Traveling with a Toddler

Recently I had to take a trip up to Ft. Lewis for a medical appointment. Since the Army was paying for my ticket we decided it would be a good idea to have Frank and Ava go with me since we would only have to pay for his.  The thought of flying with my 18 month old gives me anxiety. So many things could go wrong and I knew I would have to have the patience of a saint.

Ava's current obsession is horses. So we decided to buy a mini iPad so that we could download pictures of horses and various apps to keep her entertained.  This was the best decision I have ever made in my entire life!  We downloaded a horse racing game that entertained her the entire game. She kept saying "go, go, go" and "yay" when they would cross the finish line.  She was so adorable and precious.

Another purchase we made for the trip was a hiking carrier for Ava.  She has outgrown baby carriers and there was no way that I was going to have her running around at the airport.  The carrier was amazing! She was so easy to handle and she didn't mind being in it. It turned into a seat as well so we were able to put her down when we needed to.

After all of the preparation she did pretty well. The one difficult part for me was that she is in a mommy stage and would not let Frank hold her. So I had to have her on my lap the entire flight. And she would not sit still! She kept moving like she does in her sleep. I have bruises on my legs from her digging her heels into me.  I had no idea that I could be as patient as I was during this trip. Normally, I would become overwhelmed and would need a break, but I couldn't get that without Ava freaking out. I would take a deep breath and think about the person I want to be in this situation; patient, understanding, happy, grateful. Taking a moment to be grateful helped me out a lot during the clingy periods.

Day of travel I tried to dress Ava as cute as possible so that if she flipped out then at least she would be cute enough it get away with it. She kept saying hi and waving her hand at the other passengers. The only outburst we had was she kicked the seat in front of us twice. The guy gave me a stern look and I'm thinking "At least she's not screaming at the top of her lungs." Oh and she also threw a cracker and 5 binkies. Having all of those backup binkies was amazing. I'm pretty liberal when it comes to binkies falling on the floor and putting it back in your mouth, but not at the airport aka germ central.

Overall I think it was successful trip with limited tantrums and surprisingly awesome communication between me and Frank. We both know that traveling is stressful so we tried really hard not to get frustrated. We also were very clear and detailed whenever a situation arose. Like when going through security, I was tasked with Ava and the red backpack. Frank was tasked with the carrier, diaper bag, and holding our tickets. Coming out of security I was responsible for getting her shoes on and her into the carrier and he was to get all the bags back in order. Also, whenever we disagreed with each other one of us, yes me too, would give in and just go with the flow. Nothing is important enough to argue about when you are traveling. It's just not worth it and your trip will go a lot smoother without the tension. 

Tips:

• If you can get approved for pre-check TSA I would highly recommend it. You don't have to take off your shoes, you can have any amount of liquid for the kids, and you do not have to take out computers. Trust me the less you have to juggle with the better. It reminded me of the good ol' days before the world got crazy. 

• Diaper bag: separate everything into large zip-lock bags. Diapers, snacks, toys, spare clothes.  That way you only have to search for the bag and not dig through a whole bunch of stuff to find that one magical thing that will stop your kid from screaming. It just makes life easier. 

• Snacks: we packed Ava's favorite snacks. Right now she is being picky so we had a variety for her to choose from. It is also important to have your own snacks too. We had cashews, cheez-its, and sun flower seeds. You have to take care of yourself. You don't want to have low blood sugar while traveling with a toddler. Then end result might involve child protective services!

• Play time: on the way to Seattle we found an empty gate near ours and let Ava run around. We played hide and seek and also chased her around. We tried to get her to expend as much energy as possible. On the way back home the Seattle airport had a play area and it was amazing. We had two hours and she stayed in there the entire time. 

• Communication: be very clear on your intent when speaking with your partner. Sometimes you will ask your partner to do something and they question it. Instead of snapping "can't you just do it" I would explain myself. "I would like you to stay here with Ava so I can talk to the airline without disruption." Realize that by being clear does not mean that you will get your way. He also has needs. Frank might say ok or he would say that he would like to talk to the airline because he needs a break from Ava. As much as I would have liked to be the one to talk to the airline I would go with the flow and let him do it. It is not that important who does it, but it is important to be aware that you are in this together and that everyone's needs are being met. 

Bottom line is that you need to go into it knowing it's going to be complete chaos.  You have to make the conscious decision that you will laugh at everything that comes your way.  Having fun is way more important than things going smoothly.  If you have this attitude it will change your life.  Trust me, I know.

Hiking is nothing to joke about.

When my friend Keara said that she wanted to start hiking I was very supportive.  Like a good friend I said that I would go with her on a hike and that it would be fun.  She chose a hike that was 2.3 miles, beginner level, and was family friendly.  When we got to the trail and realized that the "family friendly" trail was actually a treacherous pathway that was made to break your mind, spirit, and soul.  Did I mention that I brought my 2 month old baby, Ava, to go on this adventure?

We started on the trail and everything was going okay.  Then we came around a bend to a scene straight out of Lord of the Rings.  I thought Gollum was going to come from behind a tree and start talking about his "precious."  This supposed trail was really a path full of rocks that were waiting to be stepped on the wrong way so that someone can break their leg so bad the bone sticks out.  I looked at Keara and thought to myself that I love her, but this is some bullsh*t.  "Light" hike my a$$.  But the Soldier in me just kept on trucking towards Mordor with Gollum in tow.


Then I learned about switch backs.  For those of you who don't know what those are let me explain.  They are zig zags going up or down a hill or mountain.  Now their purpose is to make it easier on you to go up a real steep hill.  In actuallity they make you question all of your life decisions.  Walking zig zags takes a long time and it takes you forever just to make a little progress up the hill.  Halfway through these "helpful" zig zags I thought "WTF am I doing here?  I have Ava with me doing this dangerous hike.  What if I trip and fall with her?  If I made the mistake of doing this, what other bad decisions have made in life?"  Ya, this trip went real dark, real quick.


Once we got to the top the fear really sunk in.  We had to go down steep zig zags that were covered with loose rocks and gravel.  Thankfully Augie, Keara's boyfriend and my long time friend, came with us.  He walked in front to test the trail and to make sure if I fell forward that he was there to grab me.  Keara walked behind me to also make sure of my safety.  Really they don't care if I fall, but Ava is number one and we were concerned for her safety.  Everytime one of us slipped on the rocks/gravel my heart sank.  Augie kept whipping around everytime he heard rocks because he thought I was going to fall down to the depths of hell.  Lets just say it was a very stressfull hike down.


When we got to the bottom Keara checked her phone to tell Augie how many miles we hiked.  As she's looking at it she sees that it is NOT a beginners hike, but a indermediate hike.  Then we figured out that the family friendly part was really for mountain bikes., not 2 month olds strapped in a Baby Bjorn.  At the end of any strenous activity you are supposed to feel accomplished.  Eff that!  I felt tired and wet from both sweat and Ava deciding to drool down the front of my shirt.  I did love spending time with my friends though.  Stay tuned for my Hiking Adventure Part 2...

Have you ever gone on a crazy adventure?

Eating Coach Fail

Last week I had an appointment with a Nutritionist or Dietician.  The morning started out well.  I couldn't sleep because I was in pain so I started to get ready and I got to my appointment early.  As I'm about to get out of my car I realize that I had left part of my uniform at home.  F%&k.  My first week back at work I have forgotten my socks, then my gym shoes, now my hat.  I ended up borrowing a hat with the wrong name and rank.  Frank drove over to bring me my hat and ended up being late to his new job.  What a day.

Now back to my "eating coach" appointment.  It was a little bit informational, but kind of a waste of time.  She showed me a plate that was divided into quarters.  Each quarter is to be a fruit, vegetable, meat, and grain.  I'm supposed to eat a minimum of 1400 calories and a maximum of 1800.  She asked me a whole bunch of questions then handed me 3 handouts and a brochure for an online Army weight loss program.  That's it.  I don't know exactly what I expected, but it was definitely more than that.  I thought we would come up with a plan of action.  Or a few short term goals to keep me motivated while I'm working on my long term goal of losing 90 lbs.  I did get a cool sheet suggesting healthy snacks.

I got back to my office to look up the program she recommended, Army Move!  I took 2 questionnaires, filled out the registration forms, and emailed it all to the online program.  Long story short, I had to email and talk to 3 people before I found out that the program is no longer running because they do not have the staff to man it.  I got a hold of a Lieutenant Colonel at the US Army Public Health Command.  She said that she would help instruct me since the nutritionist wasn't all that.  She asked me how much weight I had gained.  When I told her 100 lbs. she said "OMG, you should see my face right now."  I let her know that I understood it was crazy.  She kept asking me questions looking for a justification for the weight gain  Was it water retention, high blood pressure, thyroid problems?  She just couldn't comprehend that someone would gain that much for no reason.  There was a reason.  It's called my love/hate relationship with food.  I love food and hate to not eat it, but I wan't going to tell her that :)

 

I told her I had to lose 90 lbs by June 1st which she replied that I should only lose 32 lbs by then.  That was a little discouraging.  We will see.  She wants me to do MyFitnessPal to track my calories and exercise.  She then had to get off the phone for an appointment and said that she will email me.  I don't know where this route of working with a nutritionist is going to go, but at least I am trying.

Suggestions that make you say WTF?

My favorite/most annoying part of weight loss is all of the suggestions on how to lose the weight.  It's usually some form of add this and cut this out.  Or starve for 2 days then binge for 1.  They all make me smile.  I have received suggestions my whole life so I am used to it.  I just nod and let the person talk.  These are how my weight conversations usually go.

Me-Yes, I'm trying to lose weight.
Person-That's great! You should (insert over the top, no one does this for real, crazy ass idea)
Me-Thanks.  (Even though I didn't ask you) Um...how did that (dumb ass idea) work out for you?
A few possible replies/scenarios happen.  Yes these have all happened to me.

• I tried it
• Person-Oh I did it for 1 week and it was good.  But I stopped doing it because (insert a bunch of excuses that no one asked you for)
• Me-(Feeling awkward because I reminded you that you did not succeed at your amazing idea) Oh well that's ok, you look great.
• The mysterious "article"
• I saw it on Pinterest or read it in a "magazine"
• Me-(Was it called the Ethiopian Drought Diet?)  Oh, well if you happen to find it you should email me the link.
• Sorry, but who did it already?
• Person-My friend/sibling/co-worker/mail man/janitor's cousin's dog groomer did it and they lost like a ton of weight.
• Me-Good for them. (I wonder if this person is hearing imaginary voices)
• Overweight advocate
• Person-It totally works. I'm on day 3. I haven't seen any results, but it's great.  You should definitey try it.  We can do it together!
• Me-Oh cool. Maybe. I hope you do great! (First off, dude you weigh the same as me. I don't think we should be giving each other advice.  Secondly, it does NOT sound great.  Please do not try to bring me on to your sinking ship of misery.  I will let you go, Jack.  I will let you go.)
• Skinny advocate-My personal favorite
• I haven't done it yet, but I'm going to. I want to lose 5 more pounds so I can go back to a size 6.  I look so fat in these size 8 jeans.  And then continues to go on and on about their own body issues.
• Me-(Deep sigh)  I don't know what you are talking about.  You look amazing.  I wish I looked like you.  (At this point I want to shank you.  But, I continue to be a good friend and tell you how great you look and that guys check you out all the time.  Meanwhile I'm attempting to not compare myself to you and trying to forgive you for being so naive, self-centered, and insensitive.  It's not their fault that they don't know what it's like.  Poor skinny people.)

Of course there is the rare event that someone has gone through what I am going through.  They offer me some great insight and truly inspire me.  One of those people is Michelle Weesley *names have been changed to protect identities* and I have to give her a shout out because she helped me lose a total of 50 lbs last time I had to get into shape.  She let me know that she has always struggled with weight, but has proven that it is manageable.  There is hope.  It is possible to be the size you want without starving yourself.  Control and awareness are key.  That is what I will be trying to get back to. 

I do like hearing ideas though.  Sometimes a different perspective is what I need.  If you have given me advice already do not automatically think that I am talking about you.  Calm down.  If you are really my friend I would have told you right then and there that you are being stupid.  And you know I would tell you!

What crazy suggestions have you heard?

I gained 100lbs to deliver a 7lb baby and I know I have to lose it all

So I've delivered my baby and now I am left with the task of losing all of the "baby weight."  It should not be called baby weight for me.  I gained 100 lbs. during my pregnancy.  That's right, 100 lbs.  I went from being 185 lbs to over 284 lbs.  Ridiculous.  I didn't even realize what was happening.  I know I saw my weight every doctor's appointment and I saw the number continuously going up.  But it was surreal.  Whenever I mentioned my weight gain to friends or family members they just brushed it off, said that I looked the same, and that pregnant women gain weight.  It's like they fed into the delusion that everything was okay.  That's what I was, delusional.

I am extremely upset with myself.  Prior to getting pregnant I had worked really hard to lose weight and get into shape.  I had achieved my fitness and health goals then decided to have a baby.  I thought I would gain 20 maybe 30 lbs.  Little did I know that I would lose my damn mind and eat every food listed on the "use sparingly" list.  There are a few reasons I think I gained so much weight.

1.  I'm an emotional eater. I was hormonal and felt the need to eat.  I just feel good when I eat to the point where I'm full. (Yes, I realize this is unhealthy mentally and physically)
2.  I had been strict with myself on eating for so long that when I had the "go ahead" to eat, I binged.
3.  I had just gotten back from Iraq where food variety was limited so when I got back I wanted to try all the foods I had missed.
4.  My husband is the chef in the family.  He would make healthy food, but the amount we ate was/is out of control.  When he makes us plates he loads them up with food and portions are way out of whack.
5.  I love fruit and hate vegetables. (I've gotten better with this)

It no longer matters that I gained the weight.  What matters is what I am going to do to lose it.  I have to.  My career and thus my family depends on me.  However, I needed to address the reasons why I gain weight.  This is not my first rodeo dealing with a large amount of weight.  I've always struggled.  I'm just tired of the anxiety that goes along with my weight gain.  The vicious cycle of eating and gaining weight.  Then eating because I feel so bad about myself since I've gained weight thus gaining more weight.

I've tried reading other websites/blogs about weight loss.  I think my problem with them is that you see the before and after pictures with a general description with how to get there.  I read about how great their skinny ass life is and that I can do it too.  But when I look at their happy size 6 faces to get inspiration I feel like a failure that I don't already look like them.  They make it look so easy.  What usually isn't told is the complete meltdown someone has when they gained 1lb during a weigh in.  Or the discouragement when they plateau for 2 weeks.  Or the struggle to love their body enough to have confidence, but dislike it enough to keep up the motivation to lose weight.  Hopefully 1 year from now someone like me will find my blog.  I'm hoping to give a different perspective.  Below are promises to myself.

I will document my journey losing the weight to keep my job.  I will be as honest and candid as I can be because that's just who I am.  I will write to keep accountability for myself.  I will write to show people what it is really like to lose weight.  The good, the bad, the ugly will be written about no matter how bad I look.  I am scared, but looking forward to sharing my journey.

 

Frank's Cheesy Tater-Tot Casserole

We had some hamburger meat that needed to be eaten before it spoiled.  So Frank asked me what I wanted for dinner.  I saw a picture of a tater-tot casserole and it looked good so I picked that.  He went to the store while I was at work and all I said he needed to get was tater-tots, a can of cream of whatever he wanted like celery or something, and some cheese.  Well, Frank then decided that he was going to make the cheesiest casserole ever to be made on this planet.  Here is how the adventure began...

First the ingredients:
2 lbs of ground beef
1 bag of tater-tots
1 can of cream of chicken (or any substitute)
Small amount of cheese

Directions:
1.  Start with browning the ground beef. You will want to drain the beef after you are down cooking it.

2.  Layer the bottom of a baking dish with the ground beef and mix in the can of cream.  It may not look like a lot of cream, but it will balance out.  This is with 1 1/2 cans which we found out is too much.

3.  The next too steps are a matter of preference.  I like the shredded cheese to be put down, then the tater tots on top. Frank likes the tots on the bottom and cheese on top.  Since this is his recipe he did it his way.  He layered the tots.  Then he put even more cream of cheddar.  At this point I think even he was questioning on whether it was a but too much.  Oh and let me tell you it was.  But this is about attempting to be domestic.  We live and learn.  Just make sure that you learn from us!

4.  The Frank layered the top with a little cheese.  Now the reason I like the tots on top is because they get real nice and crispy. And because it is baked it is crunchy, but not greasy.  Frank likes a real nice melted cheese layer. So like I said earlier, either way is good.

5.  Finally cook the dish in the oven using the directions from the tater tots package.  For us it was 35 minutes at 350 degrees.  And this is what it turned out...

We ate this with sweet peas.  It was really good when I ate the peas and casserole in the same bite.  I suggested to Frank that next time we try having the peas in the casserole.  He thought it would be a good idea.  I think it would almost be like a shepards pie but with tater tots. This recipe has potential for different variations for sure.  Stay posted for our attempt #2 for this casserole.  

*I think this would be a good meal to freeze.  But since I've never done frozen meals I didn't try it.

Any suggestions or learning tips from your experience with this kind of meal?

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here is my second attempt at a recipe from Pinterest.  I've decided that since it is just me and my husband that I would make my co-workers be my guinea pigs. There is no way Frank and I can eat all of the recipes I make before they go bad.  So I'm surfing Pinterest at work :) and I stumble upon this pin and I asked my co-worker Kassy if it sounds good. She said, "Yes, and you should make it tonight!"

Now, normally I leave my "experiments" for the weekend, but I was inspired to do this one right away.  It doesn't hurt that it is only 3 ingredients and I've been itching to use my new Kitchen Aid. By the way, do you know how hard it is to leave a Kitchen Aid in the box without using it for 3 months? I hate moving! But I'm glad that we now have our house set up enough for me to make a mess in the kitchen and not have to move a bunch of random things to do it.

This is the original website where I found the recipe.  http://www.instructables.com/id/Scary-Easy-Pumpkin-Chocolate-Chip-Cookies/?ALLSTEPS

Here is a breakdown of the recipe with my own pictures at my attempt:

The shining red thing on the right is my new KitchenAid. Thank you Helen for the amazing wedding gift!

• 1 box of cake mix (I used the spice flavor that was suggested, but I read from others that carrot works well too)
• 1 15 oz can of Pumpkin Puree
• 1 bag of chocolate chips

The rest is so simple!

1. Mix the cake mix and pumpkin puree together until the mix is thoroughly worked in. (At this point I had to refrain from eating the batter because it smells just like Thanksgiving.  I may or may not have tried it.  And it may or may not have been ah-mazing followed by a weird after taste.)
2. Fold in the chocolate chips.
3. Put on baking sheets. (The original recipe called for parchment paper, but I just used foil)
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

The 

I tried small and large shaped cookies to see which would come out best.  The cookies that were on the top rack (left) came out perfect.  The ones on the bottom rack (right) were slightly burned, but still good.  

The retain the exact shape that they have before they go into the oven.  I wonder how I can make the shape come out better than just throwing it on the sheet with a spoon.  Do you think a piping bag with a large whole would work?  Anyways, on to the taste test...

Well Frank tried them and gave it a thumbs up. I guess that means my attempts at being domestic are going well!  I read from some of the comments on the original post that some people have tried variations.  Here are some variations that I think might be cool:

 *Christmas: white cake mix/peppermint white chocolate chips

 *Valentines Day: red velvet cake mix/dark chocolate chips

 *St. Patricks Day: white cake mix with green food coloring/mint chocolate chips

What are some variations that you think would be good?