***Lion Cub Mommies-Back In Action!***

[cleckner04]

spidey- @ getting married on 666. I bet so many people have that same anniversary. Although, you guys messed up. Isn't the devil technically 616? I swear I read that somewhere.

Shiv- Hope your trip to your parents goes well.

You know with DH home, I haven't even begun thinking about TTC yet. I guess that's a good thing to stay relaxed. I'm too busy worrying about being able to afford a move back home in november at this point. Did you know it'll be like 3-4k just to rent a uhaul truck to drive across country? And that's not even including hotels and food. And from what I'm reading, Emma can't ride in the truck so I'm going to have to figure out a different plan. We thought about paying a moving company to come do it all but that would be even more money. I don't want to dip into our house savings at all if I can help it. So my stressing is pointed towards that now.

I haven't lost a bit of weight really either so far. When DH gets home tonight after dinner I'm gonna make him and Emma get ready to go for a few hours walk. I love just walking outdoors so hopefully that will help my weight start moving. I mean I was an even 193 on friday and I'm at 192.4 now but I know I can do better than that. I've been using myfitnesspal but I haven't been 100% honest on it because yesterday I ate cheese and crackers and I never added it in even though I added every other meal in. And the day before I had popcorn with butter melted on top. MUST STOP SNACKING!!

 

[spidey]

Wow, thats insane a Uhaul costs that much! Does that include gas, or just rental? I guess it depends on how much stuff you have, but would it be more economical to sell whatever you can and re-buy new stuff back home? How do those POD things work- can you fill up a POD and have them deliver it to a different state? Even if it takes a month to have it delivered, it might be worth it.

No more snacking!! It's hard if someone else is snacking though, so you'll have to get DH to stop too. How is Emma doing with DH?

LOL about the devil being 616. I have no idea We mostly picked that date to annoy other people. Even with such an easy date to remember DH forgot our anniversary this year

 

[cleckner04]

That's with gas too. It's a 1300 mile trip and it's only a 10mpg vehicle. Not good with gas being nearly $4 a gallon. I searched pods a while back and they don't deliver to Angola, IN which is where I'm going. Go figure. But uhaul does a pod sort of thing that I've read is cheaper than other pod style boxes. It's called upack I think. And they ship to IN so I am considering that. I think no matter what I'll need like 5k to move all of our stuff. I'm already in the process of selling some stuff. I own 3 strollers that I don't need. An 80 gallon fish aquarium and stand, Emma's crib and mattress that never got used, etc. So hopefully I can make some decent money off of the stuff to help with moving costs. We still want to take one last vacation while over here too to LA so I am saving for that as well. I refuse to give up my vacation.

Emma is slowly getting better with DH. He is home now and she went outside with him for a little bit. So I know she must be pretty ok with him if she's willingly going.

 

[Mimiso]

Hi All, is it too late to join you all!

 

[Mimiso]

ttc number four

 

[cleckner04]

Oh I just mentioned this thread in the lion cub thread to you. Welcome hun!! Never too late. I'm just now starting to try since DH just got back from deployment so I'm technically behind the others a bit.

 

[spidey]

wow, #4! What ages are your other LO's?

Cleck- 5k for moving is insane! I suppose you can't get the Navy to pay for any of it. That's sweet that Emma went outside with DH... it sounds like she's getting used to him. Does she flash him smiles? How has she slept the past few nights?

DH is off work today and is trying to fix our bedroom windows so light can't come in as easily. He's building out the windows so we can install a roller shade and mini blinds. Right now I have to velcro a large piece of vinyl (the fake leather stuff) underneath the black out curtains and light still gets through the cracks. Kira wakes up with the sunshine, so it's been hard keeping her asleep longer than 7am most mornings. If it's an overcast and rainy morning, she'll sleep till 8:30!

I'm starting a bad habit here and should stop. I'm an M&M addict and when Kira wakes up from her nap I give her a few M&M's since she's always a bit cranky and the M&M's put her in a happy mood. Bad mommy!

 

[jelr]

Cleck: Our dating anniversary is sometime in September but I'm not sure what the exact date is as we worked together and became really good friends before we actually dated as I as actually seeing somebody but he lived 2 hours away and things were sour for a couple of months but he was one of my best friends brothers so I really didn't want to fall our with her so was trying to make it work but then I had feelings for DH and knew he had for me and knew I had to get out but didn't want to do it over the phone so we had to wait a couple of weeks before I saw him and wouldn't be anymore than friends with DH so I can't remember the actual date that we actually moved from being friends to more Aww NYE is a lovely date.

I'm delighted that Emma is warming to DH and Yikes at the cost of moving, that is seriously madness

Hey Mimiso - good to see you again - you are a brave woman and I'm still scared some days and maybe having two - Best of luck with it all.

Spidey: you are like the m&m pusher - lol at your wedding anniversary date especially to wind everyone up

Shiv: I hope your trip is going well and that your mum is not driving you bonkers this time, it could just be that you are so used to having your own space and doing things your way in your own home. It is hard to have another woman around that does things differently especially if your mum is anything like mine and makes sure to give her opinions on the way it should be done - Hopefully when you are on her turf it wont be driving you mad as much.

Not much news for me except the dreaded OV hormones are back, I didn't actually realise it was that time again as AF lasted so long this time around but when I stepped on the scales this morning I had put on 2lbs and was so mad as I have been doing the maintance diet to the letter this week and then when I counted back I'm on CD16 and my last cycle was 32 days so it was nice to know for once because at least when I got depressed out of my life this evening and just kept crying for everything I knew what it was.

Birthday is going to be a disaster I think as there is a load going on with everyone so everyone is either working or completely broke and it normally wouldn't bother me as I totally understand it is a shitty year for everyone and I actually nearly expected it as it has been the same everyone elses birthdays too except stupid hormones are making me feel sorry for myself - aww well hopefully they will be gone the day after tomorrow and all will be well in the world.

 

[Shiv]

Cleck - I can't believe moving costs so much there, it's crazy, I hope youcan find a cheaper solution. I'm glad Emma is warming to Corey, they'll be inseperable before you know it.

Spidey - we just tape some black out material over the window frame (inside obviously) as black out curtains always let light in. It's a pain when you want to open the window but we rarely have the window open at night so it works for us!

Mimiso - hello! Number 4 wowzers! i do warn you though that this thread doesn't exactly stick to the topic of ttc as you have probably guessed but feel free to join in with our random mutterings and throw any ttc stuff into the mix too

jelr - your birthday will be fab, once your hormones settle in a day or so you'll feel better about it i promise. As long as Jim is there and Natasha gives you a big cuddle that is all you need

Well my trip home was ok, I didn't spend that much time at my parents house as i was trying to see as many friends as possible while I was there. My midwife appt was a mixed bag, I am measuring spot on which is good. But she took blood a few weeks early as she thinks I might be anemic and my blood pressure was quite low (90/55) which would explain my funny turn! It also took her 10 minutes to find a heartbeat, I was scared shitless quite frankly! Sophia was obsessed with watching her take blood, maybe I have a future medic on my hands

 

[spidey]

jelr- those ovulation hormones are awful for you. You would think ovulation hormones should make you happy so you'd be more likely to dtd and make a baby!

Shiv- no wonder you had those dizzy spells! Are you supposed to do something to raise your bp?

I finally have my hair appointment this evening. I haven't had my hair cut for over a year so its a big deal for me! I'm actually going to get dressed up Saturday for a party celebrating the life of DH's step- grandmother. She wanted a party when she died so they're going to have balloons and other various happy things. I haven't dressed up in soooooo long. I have to paint my toes and put some make up on too

Cleckner- Are you expecting AF soon? I want to know how your luteal phase is this month!

 

[Shiv]

Spidey - take a before and after pic of your hair. yay for getting dressed up, do you know what you are going to wear yet?

Oh and I forgot to say that the meal out with my 3 new mummu friends is on Wednesday - eek!

 

[Shiv]

Oh and no there is nothign I can do to raise my blood pressure. The blood pressurre in itself isn't a worry, it's teh affects of it that can be, dizzyness etc. But i am a good girl now and if i feel even a tiny bit lightheaded I sit down (and don't try to pump petrol into teh car )

 

[cleckner04]

Shiv- Can you eat more salt though to help raise it? There has to be SOMETHING that could help! You have the opposite issue that I had because mine was always too high. But no one ever tried to lower it, they just let me go as if nothing was wrong.

 

[Shiv]

I don't think eating more salt would help unless I ate a ton of it and I don't exactly watch my intake as it is (just had a bag of salt and vinegar crisps and huge lump of cheese! ).

It is better than having high blood pressure for sure and apparently it will start to rise again as I get closer to the end of my pregnancy.

 

[jelr]

Ooo Spidey we definitely want pictures of your hair once it is done and Yay for getting dressed up, I was the same last week I was delighted with myself having somewhere to go and get dressed up for a change, I even went all out and got my hair put up as a trial for the wedding and did my toes and fake tan and I felt so good once it was all done, mind you I had forgotten how much I hate doing it all and how time consuming it all is

Shiv and Cleck: Isn't it mad that in this day and age they dont can't do something to regulate blood pressure in pregnancy. Shiv it is no wonder you were so dizzy, you definitely mind yourself as it doesn't sound plesant at all and must be scary when it happens.

Shiv: so glad they found that hb, you must have stopped breathing yourself when she was trying to find it. Are they going to put you on iron for the anemia, that is probably why you have been feeling so tired. Eeek for the dinner with the other mums, I'm sure you will really enjoy it and it will give you a chance to really get to know them.

Well the hormones are a little better today, this morning was a disaster and I cried for most of it and ended up being late for work by the time I stopped looking like I was crying and put more make up on, but It started to lift this afternoon so I dont feel half as bad tonight. It really is mental how much they change me and more so since the mc but I'm wondering if it is something to do with my diet lately as my friend was telling me about this herbal remedy that she used to take called pms escape and I have been trying to locate it as she used to get it on special order from our local health food shop but they can't get it anymore, but finally today I found it online and from what I can see it is a complex carboyhdrate tonic with vitamins and minerals in it and from what I have read you need extra carbs to balance the serotonin levels that drop with pms and I have been on low carb or total food replacement for so long so I'm wondering if that is what is the problem or is it just to do with the mc. When I was a teenager I was put on anti depression tablets twice and it was only my mam figured out that when I was like that it was once a month so she made me put it in a diary and it was always half way to ten days before Af arrived and over the years it has gotten much better, but has hit me like a ton of bricks again the last few months - I'm presuming it is ov hormones but I'm not 100% sure as I dont pee on any sticks to check but it is always half way though my cycle and on the same day that I put up 2lb so I'm presuming that it is. Fingers crossed this pms escape helps as I know when I spoke to the consultant he said that there was stuff he could give me but not if we were going to ttc soon as it was either contra-indicated in pregnancy or basically birth control and being honest even after we have another baby I would prefer to treat it with something natural than shoving medicine or more hormones into my body.

My birthday will be fine though and I really don't care once DH and Natasha are around, which they always are :cloud: it is exactly what I thought would happen as everyone is under serious pressure here this year, I know was really looking forward to catching up with everyone as we all seem to have gotten so busy between children and some of them are working second jobs and I know myself I dont have that much time since Natasha was born and even when I'm off in the summer everyone is working, so we only get to speak on the phone every couple of days and see each other every couple of weeks, but sure there will be other times and it really isn't that much of a big deal, but yesterday I was like a big baby and thought it was the end of the world i mean in fairness if that is all I have to cry about but it is like all happyness switches off and I turn into a crying, depressed mess for at least a day each month where I think I have the weight of the world on my shoulders over absolutely nothing I was feeling so sorry for myself this morning I was even going to cancel going out - I do worry for my sanity sometimes

Now that my mind is a little clearer though i'm still going to go out and tonight my sister phoned and she has changed her work so her and her husband are coming, so there will be myself and Jim, my sister and her husband, one of my friends, my mam and one of my brothers going for the meal and then my mam will head home to take over looking after Natasha and the rest of my brothers are coming out for a few drinks and my brother from London is also hoping to arrive home that night as he is off for a few weeks so is heading home early for the wedding and one of my other friends that can't also phoned tonight and is coming down with her boyfriend this Monday which is actually my birthday and we are going to get a take away, she wanted to go for a meal that night but I dont want to leave Natasha with my mam another night and we really dont have the money either, so in the end I didn't even have anything to be upset about but then I always find something when I'm like that. It is so stupid really as I just felt like nobody cared and I know how much they all care about me. Good job I didn't say it to any of them when I got the texts yesterday or I would be convinced there was extra coming now out of pity in the mood I have been in - Poor DH though got the brunt of it all, I really dont know how he doesn't have me checked into a mental hospital when I'm like that - but it is funny as he actually knows what is happening before I do most months and will actually say, check your calender I bet your periods are due in the next two weeks

On a brighter note I saved money on my car insurance last week so I have saved more and I treated myself to a slow cooker which arrived today so that cheered me up and I'm looking forward to using it.

Well I think I have rambled on enough and really should be in bed, but we did the weekly clean on the house tonight as all my classes are finishing next week so I will probably have to work extra days so I'm just going to relax with Natasha for the day. If I'm not in tomorrow which I probably will be have a good weekend everyone. xx

 

[Shiv]

oh jelr - it sounds really horrible how you are feeling mid-cycle, I really hope that the herbal stuff helps you as it must not be much fun for you. I am glad that your birthday is looking up

Ooooooh what slow cooker did you get? I still haven't done any research but still want to get one

 

[jelr]

I realy hope it helps too Shiv because honestly all perspective and coping skills go out the window. At least DH is used to it now and is so good about it and supportive and he is the only one really sees it because I feel so stupid the next day. it is like being really drunk and getting upset over something pathetic and you feel so stupid the next day as you know it was the drink and not the real you, and with this is it is hormones

I went for the russell hobs 6.5 litre one. I got if from Amazon for about £40. It was a middle of the range one as I wanted a big one so I can do a roast if all the family are over and can do extra stews and things to freeze for all of us if I want to. it also has the keep warm function and timer which is what sold it for me. The only thing is I wish I had done some more research as I think I might be sorry I didn't go for one that you could cook in the crock pot. I did feel I wasn't going to pay another 15 or 20 pounds for the sake of saving on the washing up and thought I would just brown off the meat and that in the pan, but now that I'm reading the recipies and understand it a bit more I think you would need to brown off a roast or chicken if you want it to crisp up and I think the big crock pot would have been handy for that rather than trying to fit a big roast in a pan or it would have been handy to finish off to brown in the oven.

Actually you have looked at recipies and things you can do in it and I know some of you other girls use one, do you really need to brown everything off first. Looking at the recipies in the books, they seem to do all the steps first on the pan and bring to the boil and then put it all in the slow cooker and to me it seems like the same amount of work as cooking it on the hob except you put it in the slow cooker to finish cooking like you would leave it to simmer on the hob or put it in the oven, which is kind of defeating the purpose of cutting down some of the work Obviously some things would need some cooking but I dont know if everything would as I know if I'm doing a stew / casserole I just chop up all the veg and meat and add my stock and some barley to thicken and fire it all in the oven for a few hours and I dont bother browning so I would imagine with a lot of things you can just fire it all in am I right?

 

[Shiv]

I plan on just chucking everything in and turning it on! I think you do get a bit more flavour if you brown you rmeat first, but I can't imagine it makes that much difference. I agree that if you have to get everything up toboiling before putting it in the slow cooker then all you are saving is giving it an occasional stir!

 

[jelr]

Exactly my thoughts Shiv, I didn't really do my shopping this week around it as I thought it wouldn't be here until next week so was going do fish for the dinner but I have a piece of steak here for DH (because I'm not really a steak lover) that I was going to do next week and I haven't frozen it yet as shopping was only delivered so I think I will do fish for myself and Natasha and try and fire the steak and potatoes and some onions for flavour into it now and try it on high for 3-4 hours and see what it is like and I have extra fish here if it is a disaster he can have that lol

 

[cleckner04]

I LOOOVVEEE my slow cooker. I cook in it at least once a week if not more. It's so easy to just toss stuff in there and everything I've ever cooked ends up being delicious.



I'm down to 190 lbs even!! So today is your lucky day Shiv, I took another picture.

Spoiler

https://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/cleckner04/IMG_8943-1.jpg

I'm so excited!! So I've lost 50 lbs now. Only 10 more to my goal weight but I think I might continue to lose weight even after that to get down to a 'healthy' weight. But I'm honestly pretty happy at this weight too. I told DH once I get down to 180, I'll retry the 30 day shred DVD so I can tone up all over. The last time I tried it I started gaining so that is the only thing that puts me off on the idea but I bet if I stuck to it longer, maybe it would even out and I'd lose inches instead.