Operation Slimdown - the " Wooty Woo! " Edition

Ok, i'm cutting to the chase here, no mucking around like usual - I'VE DONE IT!!!  Wooty woo! yes, i have reached my 10 kg goal. In fact, i've lost 10.3kg in 14 weeks. So in a little over 3 months i have achieved the goal which i gave myself 10 months to achieve ....and i'm kind of proud of that. Although i consistently lost weight every fortnight, it hasnt been super easy. The first two weeks were a little difficult - i had the occasional temptation ( like my BIL's birthday cake... ) but also just coming up with meal ideas ( especially for lunch at work ) that didnt involve any bread, rice, or pasta was a bit tricky.

And i have slipped and slid a little, in places. I'm constantly tempted by Portuguese tarts from the bakery near my work, and i will put both hands up and admit that i dont do enough exercise ( although my incidental exercise makes up for it ...a bit ). But i'm happy with the way i've done things and i'm happy with where i'm at. I have already said that i would like to push on from here - officially 67.5kgs - and get back down to at least 65kg. The smallest i've been in my adult life was 61kg and even though at the time i thought i had a rockin' bod ( which i did ) i look at pics now and think maybe i had a bit of Lollipop Head Syndrome going on ( for other examples please see Beckham, Victoria and Bosworth, Kate ). So 64/65kg might be a good medium for me...

Now that the official goal has been met " Operation Slimdown " will cease to exist in its current form. This means no fortnightly updates, and no fortnightly measurements with a tape measure ( although i will keep a constant eye on those damned scales... ). Thanks to all you regular readers and commenters for supporting me on the journey, and good luck to the rest of you who are still pushing on!

DD minus 26: Dude, Its Hot....

Yes, of course its hot - welcome to the Australian summer. So in the part of Australia where i live, the temperature starts to heat up from around the middle of November and there isnt usually any cooling down to speak of until early March. Generally, i am in love with this part of the year:
* First of all, its the Christmas period. I know there's something to be said for a white Christmas ( you know, by people in the Northern Hemisphere ) but i'll take the heat and the sun for my Christmas celebrations.
* Its the season for all the best fruit - namely peaches, cherries and mangoes. I've said it before, i'll say it again - mangoes are the food of the gods.
* Putting your lawn sprinkler on to water the grass and letting all the little kids run through it
* Barbeques - cooking outdoors, eating inside with the air conditioner on
* And a few other things i cant quite remember right now

Dont get me wrong, i'm still much happier to have this weather than be stuck in winter, but this summer i'm really feeling the heat. Guess why? Oh yea, i'm pumping around enough blood for two people and thats keeping me extra warm as it is - and the combination of heat and being on my feet have given me ankles the size of an elephants. Sexy.

I mean it only got to 38 degrees celsius here today ( thats 100 degrees for your Fahrenheit type persons ) but its only set to get warmer and, like i said, the heat carries on for quite a while. o matter - now that i'm on maternity leave i dont have to go outside if i dont want to, or be on my feet all day, so i can indulge myself in a fabulous hourand half long nap under the airconditioning in the afternoons. Which i did, today. Naps are fabulous.

But before i took a nap? I have finished the baby's room - i am now officially a rockstar! Or at least i felt like one this morning when i had finished putting up the wall decals and vacuumed the carpet. I am loving the wall decals. Check it:

I apologise for the flash reflecting off the paint there, but how cute are my little puppies? If your in the market for wall decals, for kids rooms or otherwise, try http://www.dezignwithaz.com/ . Theyre a company based in San Fransisco and they have some really cool stuff.

And now, onto tomorrow. I can promise there will be a lack of baby updates because - tomorrow i'm babysiutting my neice all day. Yep, i'm hanging out with H while her mum and dad are at work. So far i plan to take her to the movies and to make some banana muffins for our afternoon tea so instead of baby talk you can expect a run down on the antics of a four year old, possible a movie review and a critique of my banana muffins ( made straight out of the box ). Mmm - muffins.....

DD minus 27: Look Whats Finally Coming Together

You know how when you've been wanting to do something for months, and for better or worse you've ( kind of ) been procrastinating or just not quite finding the time - and then, finally, you get your arse into gear and the project is nearing completion .... you know how that makes you feel ? That " wow, look what i've done ", personal pride kind of feeling ? Yep, thats what i've got going on because..... the baby's room is almost done!

I feel like i've achieved a lot today. Its not just the physical act of washing and drying and folding piles and piles of baby clothes and cot sheets and fleecy blankets - although seeing all those little clothes hung out on my washing line was kind of sweet. Its more than that. The near completion of this physical task - the painting, the putting together of furniture, the washing and folding, the organising and decorating - is symbolic. It means I'm READY. Or as ready as i'm going to get anyway. Sure, i still need to pack a bag for the labour ( altough i did pack my bag for the actual hospital stay today - go me! ) so i'm technically not quite ready, but i feel like i am.

I also feel excited, nervous and a little scared - but on top of all this, i feel ready. I know i'm repeating the same word over and over here but theres no other way to explain it. I feel like i'm in a place where, even though i am excited and nervous and just a little scared, i'm also at ease with whats going to be thrown at me and i'm pretty sure that i'm going to be able to handle it, no matter how bad it appears to be. It might be because i've been having all these little conversations with other mothers or other pregnant women lately - like my beauty therapist today ( by the way way, lower leg and foot massages are the bomb! ). Its nice knowing that i'm part of a group - which has literally billions of members.

She asked me if i had thought about pain relief for the birth ( which i have.... kind of ) and how i think i'll make it through labour ( which can literally last all day if not longer ).

Here's what i'm holding on to - billions of other women, since the dawn of time, have been able to do this. And if they can, i can to. Simple yes, yet motivating. If so many other women can do it - can be strong, can bear down in the face of pain, can kick and scream and fight until the " job " is done ( or, for the Zen ladies out there, bite their lips and do it all in silence ).... then so can i. I can be that Superwoman.

And seeing as i've put together a piece of furniture all by myself this afternoon, made up the cot, sorted and folded all the clothes my child owns and cleaned the bathroom, i think i'm well on my way to that superhero status....