Food, and more food

I gained 30 pounds when pregnant with Cole, I weighed more than Tim at the end..sad but true. I worked out, ate well, and had a great pregnancy. Taking the weight off after was slow but it all came off, with an extra 20 pounds.

So when I got pregnant with the twins I was at a much better starting point. The average weight gain for twins is 45 pounds...yikes!! I'm only 5 foot 4 so 45 pounds is ALOT. Some friends gained 50-60. Even better, thanks for sharing! I love food, I plan it, prep it, freeze it, tupperware it, pack it...it is a job in itself.

Alot of people ask me what I eat, and are shocked to know that I eat 8 times a day...easily. Each meal is a mini meal, every 2-3 hours. I cannot digest large meals, physically I get bloated and tired and cranky. Not to mention the scale does not like big meals on me either.

I can count on 2 hands what I eat. Boring? Heck no, there is a ton you can do with natural, whole foods. For me, the key was to cut back on white starches. That meant breads, white rice, pasta, potatoes etc.. Instead I enjoy oatmeal, whole grain rice and low carb bread, yams and sweet potatoes.

A sample day of food in my life (keep in mind I get an extra 300 calories this trimester!)

8am: 5 egg whites with steamed spinach or other veggies and low fat cheese.
10am: 1/2 cup oatmeal mixed with sugarfree applesauce
noon: 1/2 cup cottage cheese with 1/2 mixed berries
2pm :5 oz chicken, 3 cups salad with 2 tbsp low fat dressing
5pm: 4 oz fish or chicken, 1 cup green veggies steamed and 1/2 cup boiled yasms
8pm: pudding or yogurt or some gluten free crackers with natural peanut butter

This keeps my energy high and my belly full all day. Once a week I like a serious cheat day. Some candy, chips, chocolate, whatever I feel like. Keeps me sane and reminds me again why I need to eat clean...cheat days also mean headaches from the sugar and fatigue from the junk!

I also got some emails this week on how to do a plie squat. Here is what it looks like from the back, I use a 20 pound dumbbell for extra weight, but it can be done with no weight or a lesser weight.



Seeing this pic (which is a pic from last week when we had nice enough weather to train outside!) has reminded me that I need to get in my leg workout today.

Get it done people!! Enjoy your weekend

Special Days this past weekend

Maybe it's the hormones but I have been so teary these past few days. Special events are melting my usually tough exterior!!


Friday was Cole's preschool graduation. Where on earth did the past 4 years go? He will be in school full time in September and while I look forward to having 2 months of peaceful mornings (until babies arrive!) I will miss my buddy...terribly. I watched on Friday as he ran around with his other 4 year old homies and cheered them on while they each received a "diploma" and grad cap. His smiles turned to sadness when we had to leave He knew he would likely not see his teachers again. I say it over and over but I really believe teachers have the most underpaid profession.

Miss Renee and Miss Darci rocked. Cole was able to learn the alphabet in french and count to 10 in french and spanish and this was not even a bilingual school! You know your child is in great care when he wishes every day could be a preschool day.

So, onto Sunday. The Manitoba Marathon is a family tradition for us. Every year at least one family member runs, sometimes more. Either way we all get up at 5am to watch and cheer the runners on. This year Cole participated in the Mini Mites 100 metre dash. He was very serious about this, lots of training took place in the past few months. Often I would have to remind him that "training" in the mall was not the best idea. While he did not win, to see him at the start line and then cross the finish made me well up...again.

My dad, a great father, ran his 3rd half marathon, and at the age of 63, is in better shape then he was in his 30's. I am so very proud of him and I am lucky to still have him in my life, healthy and strong. I hope for many many more years with him.

Tim also decided to participate this year. He has wanted to run for a while but is more than happy to let me train for it each year. This year was his year and I was more than happy to cheer him on. Fathers Day is bittersweet for him. We lost his dad almost 2 years ago and while we talk and laugh and share stories about his dad almost daily, not having him physically present is hard.

Training for the half was tough. Tim was carrying a full work schedule and taking 2 accounting courses at night...and dealing with preggo wifey here. He would head out at 8pm for his long runs, after a full day of work and studying. I am not that disciplined.

The race weather was insanely HOT, humidity was high and people were passing out left and right along the route. Ideal running conditions it was NOT! In the end everyone finished, we all went out for our traditional Smitty's breakfast, 11am beers were had (by those who earned it!) and long afternoon naps capped off another perfect Fathers Day.

Congrats Runners!

16 weeks and feeling great!

So far so good. No complaints. Well besides my cold that will not go away. I have been told by the doctor to avoid large public places in order to try and reduce the exposure to any more bugs. This meant I had to cancel my prison tour tomorrow.

Yes you heard right, I was very excited to attend Family Day at the Stony Mountain Penetentiary.

Why? I have no clue....I have always read true crime novels and one of my favorite late night shows is Lockup or Lockdown. You know that show which features a different prison every week? Yes I watch that...faithfully.

So my good friend Leanne is dating a great guy who works as a parole officer at the prison here . He asked me a while ago if Leanne and I would like a tour on family day, keeping in mind the "family" meant the prison workers family. It is NOT family day for inmates. The date was marked and circled in red in my daytimer.

No large public places means no tour tomorrow. Instead Tim and my sister will be going (they are excited too, come on, there are just some things in life you need to experience!). The sickies, Cole and I, will spend a quiet morning in the backyard, maybe this belly will get a bit of a tan!

Many requests for the belly. Thank you! First though I will remind you that these two munchkins are inhabiting the location for another 20 weeks or so:

I was happy to see them kicking around in there...we will find out the sex of them on July 24th (IF they cooperate)

So have decided to introduce some maternity wear into the wardrobe. It is amazing how much the clothes have changed in 5 years since I last wore them. The pants and shorts have this great belly band on them that is the MOST comfortable....they are almost as comfortable as my trusty old Lululemons!

So there you go, 16 weeks and growing!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Take it outside!

I have missed 2 fridays worth of workouts for you, so sorry! I will make up for it today!

Finally a beautiful morning arrive in Winnipeg!
Cole heads to daycare on fridays and I called a friend and suggested a workout at the park. She was game and we headed out!

5 minutes speed walk
3 minutes running
30 seconds right shuffle (yes people will look at you funny, a man even commented that he should have brought his camera....laugh and keep going!)
30 seconds left shuffle
1 minute squats in place (get low on these!)

Repeat as long as you want, we did an hour and then walked another hour and caught up on our girlie stuff!

Yesterday I was dashing around and getting to the gym was not going to happen so I took my workout into the backyard and went for it. This is the amazing thing, I used NO weights, only my bodyweight (which is 8 pounds heavier so that counts!) and today I can barely walk without wincing. The power of an efficient workout.

The key here is minimal rest. Keep it moving, you should be done in 45 minutes and drenched in sweat!

SET 1

15 walking lunges per leg (I stepped out on a diagonal with each leg to hit that inner thigh)
15 duck squats (legs out wide like a big plie in dancing, toes turned out)
50 toe taps (I used Cole's sandbox, just find a raised surface to touch your toes on)

Repeat 4 times through

SET 2

10 jumping squats (feet together, bend knees and jump as far as you can)
10 running knees high back to where you started

Repeat 4 times


SET 3
10 jumping lunges (get into lunge position and jump up, switching legs so you land in lunge position with the other leg in front)
40 squats shuffles (like a football drill, get LOW in a squat and shuffle moving horizontally, do not stand up, stay low!)
15 single leg squats (other leg straight out in front) per leg

Have a good stretch at the end!

Have a great weekend!

Decision is made

We are moving!

After a long night and an endless list of pros and some cons (you know what they were!) we have decided to go ahead with the move. Change is not easy, at any age, but my parents are really not interested in change. They will miss us being so close. I will miss them too. We shed some tears and then went onto more important thoughts like selling our current home and and getting Cole registered for his new school. I reminded them that we are only a short car ride vs. the 3 years we spent in another province! This move is us taking care of our future, not the next year. Life will be insane with twins, and my mom has ALWAYS been my biggest help (besides Tim of course!) and will travel far and wide to make sure I'm ok.

I also promised her one heck of a bedroom and bathroom at the new house... her own little space. She smiled.

Somehow over teh next few months I will fit in the amazing amount of doctors appointments I have. Who knew carrying multiples required so much attention!

Today was also ultrasound day! Yay! 15 weeks and this belly is growing like a weed! Amazingly different than my single pregnancy! We had 3 appointments today, including a doctors visit to check the heart rate and measure my belly and then to a fetal assessment. 4 D pictures were given to us.....wow. Amazing what you can see!

We will find out the sex July 24th. Stay tuned!

Decisions and Headaches..

Just when you think everything is smooth sailing, life throws a curveball at you...

Such has been our week.

We love living in Winnipeg. We also love being close to family. BUT......in the past year I have struggled with balancing "me" time, my own family time and then time with my parents. My parents live 3 minutes away. They are very respectful of our space and always call before coming over. BUT.... I have felt as though I was missing something in this area we call the "North End" Being close by has alot of perks. Babysitting at the drop of a hat. Quick walks or drives over for coffee on a lazy day. Direct access out to the highway to our cabin. Hardly any traffic or line ups (maybe because of the age demographic of 60!)

BUT....there are no kids around here. There are no young moms close by. None of our friends even think of venturing into the North End. My parents still work and love their jobs, they also travel alot more than they used to. I love that they are independent and enjoying their time together right now. The problem is that we are always a constant. We are always home, any given day you will find us here. Easy to "assume" we can do whatever anyone needs us to do. The word "no" is not in my vocabulary. When I do say "no", good intentions aside, someone ends up feeling hurt.

I threw 4 words out to Tim a few weeks ago..."I need a change". Not knowing what "change" meant, I just had an urge to do something new. Rejuvenate my life. Find that spark again. Maybe it's because we both work full time from home and are in the house all day. We want more space. We want "newer" space. We keep dumping money into this 25 year old house which we will never see again.

And then an offer comes along....

A 4 bedroom home in a beautiful area of Winnipeg, one of the nicest streets in the city and more house than we could imagine. A friend offered a quick sale as he has been transferred to Calgary and just wants to help us out. Him and his wife did IVF which resulted in 3 kids, and they know the emotional and financial sacrifice involved. He just wants to pay it forward and sell the house for what he paid......rock bottom price for that area. Winnipeg is friendly like that, there are people who are not only interested in making a quick buck.

We laughed at first and then thought about it? How can we pass this up? It has everything we want, is move in ready, Cole will start kindergarden in that area and I will be far enough from delivering the twins that a move is possible! The drive to the North End would be 30 minutes on a traffic light free route.

So I dropped the bomb a few days ago and to put it lightly....it was not accepted with open arms. Why would we do this with twins on the way? We will need alot of help. Cole will be so far from his grandparents. Can we afford to do this? All very good, valid points. BUT no one was really listening to me.

So, as Tim and I sit here, weighing the pros and cons, I have a massive headache.. I flop between sheer excitement at the thought of this amazing opportunity and true guilt for wanting to leave the area I grew up in and moved back to 3 years ago. Is this a selfish decision? Should I live my life based on someone else's hopes and dreams? Will I manage with twins with help 30 minutes away instead of 3 minutes away? Will I miss the quiet nature of this area? Am I searching for something that I "think" I want? Am I running away because I am tired of the expectations that have been placed on us? Will I regret this is 5 years?

We decide tomorrow. I am in for a long night.

Climb those stairs!

I know, I have been AWOL. My sincere apologies. Life has been BUSY to say the least. I have been sick for 2 weeks now, going on 3. My voice is back but my throat and overall energy levels are loooooowwww. Usually I would enlist the help of my mom to watch Cole for me so I could rest and get better but my parents were too busy basking in the glorious sun of Maui for 2 weeks. I laughed at their choice to venture to Maui in May, but we had winter like weather while they were gone so kudos to them!!

This past weekend Cole has a soccer jamboree. Saturday was spent (in the freezing cold weather...again) shuffling between soccer games and swimming lessons. Cole seemed a bit off since last wednesday, waking up many times at night screaming in pain and overall crabbiness (which is so unlike his happy nature). Saturday afternoon Cole and I napped while Tim studied. When we woke up Cole's eye was red and puffy and seeping green goop. Nice. I remembered there was a case of pink eye floating around the daycare last week. A quick call to health link and we were on eye drops and rest. No pink eye!

So Sunday we were back on for soccer..... thanks again to the weather, we froze....thanks to my mom for bringing some Timmy's to keep us warm! It is bloody June 1st and I was wearing my winter parka!

I am managing to pull myself to the basement home gym or to my actual gym 5 times a week, and I managed to get in some stair training over the weekend. You need a few flights of stairs. My gym has 4 flights, 10 stairs each, so 40 stairs up, 40 down. Perfect! Those of you in Calgary I KNOW you have a massive set of stairs outside of downtown...plan to go use them once in a while!

4 sets running every step

4 sets running every 2nd step

4 sets left leg leading, sideways steps (kind of like a shuffle up the stairs)

4 sets right leg leading

4 sets bunny hops every step (killer on the quads)

4 sets deep lunging up every 2nd step

4 sets running every step

That made for 1000 stairs.

I like to do this after a leg workout but can be done as a warm up, or you can add in more sets and get a full 45 min cardio workout, totally up to you! Trust me your butt will thank you!