My New Body

I have been toying with the idea of writing this blog.  Should I? Should I not? Is it revealing too much to the world? Is it that important? Will it embarrass me?

Yes! It is that important! And yes it might embarrass me but it shouldn't and that is why I decided to write this.  I am trying to do things I normally wouldn't do out of fear or shyness and this is completely out of my comfort zone, so here we goooo...

This post will entirely be focused on the post-pregnancy belly, or "Jelly Belly" as I like to call it.  We all saw pictures of my ridiculously large belly which housed an even bigger Penelope.  Lets face it I looked like I might fall forward at any second, and probably not be able to get up.

Before I go in depth on this post I should give a little background.

Growing up I was always very skinny and athletic, even though I ate like an obese man.  I never really paid much attention to my body until after high school.  An interest in the fashion world, as well as a few other life experiences, initiated a distorted body image.  I was a size 0, creepy skinny, yet thought I was fat.  Any jiggle of my thighs would set me off.  Drinking water to feel full, eating a small salad as my only meal for the day, running 5 miles per day, etc.  I could go on and on.  This very unhealthy lifestyle lasted on and off for a few years.  Distorted body images and eating disorders aren't something that you are ever cured of.  I like to describe it as a constant radio with the volume on low.

Since I am the first one of my closest friends to have a baby I had no idea what my belly would like once Penelope came out.  And to be honest I never really gave it much thought.  It never really crossed my mind.  But from the looks of me at 40 weeks pregnant, it wasn't going to be pretty.  The day we went home from the birth center, which was the same day I had Penelope (yay!),  I looked like I was about 5 months pregnant but it was a weird pregnant.  It wasn't the rock hard baby belly I was used to, it was in fact, the complete opposite.  Thus, the birth of the Jelly Belly.  It felt like I swallowed the biggest bowl of Jell-O and it just planted itself in my stomach.  When I walked it wiggled.  When I laughed I looked like jiggly Santa Claus.

Now, at 2 months postpartum, I still have my Jelly Belly.  Its gotten significantly smaller and not as Jello-y.  I still cant button my work pants so I use my MacGyver-ing skills with a rubber band.  Some days I wish I had my flat stomach back but mostly so other people don't think I am still pregnant.  But the majority of the time I like my belly.  Now that's weird to say.  But when I look down and rub my belly it makes me smile.  That was Penelope's home, where she grew strong and giant.  

Yes my thighs, butt, and belly have gotten a bit thicker.  Yes I had to buy all new bras and some not-so-tight dresses.  Yes some days I silently wish for my old body back.  Yes some days that radio is louder than others and silencing it takes some work.  But I love my new body.  I finally feel like a woman.  Aaron also tells me how beautiful I am every single day, he loves the newly added curves.  He is my biggest support. 

Cloth Diapering

I want to share our disposable and cloth diapering journey with everyone, and by that I mean the world.  Diapering is a major part of our new lives as parents.  We are averaging 12-13 diaper changes per day.  We were told 8 was average but with a giant Penelope everything is proportionately larger.

When Penelope was born we used disposable diapers for the first week.  A baby's first few days of poop is called meconium which is what the baby ingested while in utero.  It tends to be black in color and has the consistency of tar.  We chose to use disposables because our midwives suggested to do so due to the meconium being difficult to clean off cloth fabric and its tendency to stain.  While disposables were quick and easy it was hard to tell if the diaper was wet because it is absorbed so quickly.  While this sounds nice I hated it.  She could pee and pee and we would never know thus letting her just sit in it.  No thank you.  Not on my precious baby bottom.

A few weeks before I gave birth, Aaron and I took a Cloth Diapering 101 class (if cloth is something your interested in I highly recommend finding a class in your area).  Before we took the class the thought of using cloth gave me anxiety.  I knew I wanted to do it but there are so many options nowadays.  Cloth diapers have come a long way since the days of using pins.  There are all-in-ones, all-in-twos, prefolds, pocket and many more!  How does one even choose which method to use? Let the anxiety begin.  Not to mention the laundering and care.  Ahh! But after taking the class we felt much more educated on our options and even decided that day how we would be diapering Penelope.  We decided to use the prefold+snappie+cover method until she got big enough for all-in-twos.  We purchased two dozen prefolds and three covers.  This seemed like a lot to us at first but it isn't, we wash diapers every day.  There are about 1 million ways to fold a prefold, no joke and they are all documented on YouTube.  We use the Jelly Roll Fold, click on link to watch a directional video. 

Here is the prefold+snappie:

(The snappie replaced the old time pins! No more poking poor baby)

 

And here is the prefold+snappie+cover:

We recently purchased GroVia Hybrid diapers.  They are considered all-in-twos which is basically a waterproof cover and cloth inserts that snap in.  There are two options velcro and snaps.  We got one of each and to our surprise we like the velcro better.  It is considered a hybrid because they also make disposable inserts.  We haven't bought the disposable inserts yet but when we go on vacation it seems like a good idea! The cloth inserts are the only part that gets dirty, the covers only need to be washed if an explosion happens.  So far we are really liking the GroVia Hybrids! They fit her a lot better and it limits the wetness to just the pad.  Plus they come in awesome colors and patterns! Check out the robots with spaceships and the owls!!

GroVia Hybrid with snaps:

 

GroVia Hybrid with velcro:

Friday's

While Friday is the start of the weekend for most, for me it's just another day.  Fridays are tough for me. I have school and then I go immediately to work, which means I am away from Penelope for at least 12 hours.  These are my least favorite days.

Here is a little glimpse into my day:

Wake up

Feed baby

Leave for school

Pump while driving to school

Sit in class

Leave school

Sit in the car, do makeup and pump before work

Work

Pump while driving back home

Feed baby

Sleep...hopefully

If I don't have a baby attached to my boob the pump is.  I feel very dairy cow-ish. Happy Friday everyone!