Womb to Bloom - Maternity & Beyond

You know that maintaining healthy eating and exercise habits while you’re pregnant is better for your growing baby and will help you get your pre-baby body back faster. Nearly every woman starts out with lofty goals in these areas. And nearly every woman falls off the wagon. It becomes virtually impossible to avoid giving into the siren song of salty French fries and the lusty advances of chocolate cake. There are many bumps along the way to delivery, and every one of them has the potential to derail your intentions. Here are some strategies for real women facing everyday obstacles.

Wake up.  Feed the baby.  Change the baby.  Get the older kids off to school.  Feed the baby.  Bathe the baby.  Put the baby down for a nap.  Grab a piece of toast.  Get a load of laundry started.  Check the time: 2pm?!  I’m sure that any day now scientists are going to name a new time warp: the baby zone!

I don’t know if there are fewer hours in the day or if I’m just so wrapped up in all of the life happening around me that I don’t notice time passing anymore.  All I do know is that I seem to accomplish half as much in a day as I did in the time known as “B.C.” (before children). 

Ok mommy, your baby is counting on you to keep him healthy and safe while he’s hunkering down in your womb. While there are certainly things you can’t control, there certainly are other things you have complete control over. It’s those things that can really make a difference in the well-being of your baby.

You know that from the day your little one is born, you’re going to do everything in your power to keep him safe and well. You’ll make regular appointments with the pediatrician, the dentist, and even, the orthodontist. You’ll put safety gates up and latches on your cabinets. You’ll shop for a carseat with the highest safety rating. And you won’t complain about any of it. After all, it’s your job. It’s your responsibility. You’ll protect your child at all costs.

It’s all I could think about during the last few weeks of pregnancy: finding my waist again. I knew it was there somewhere, and I was determined to do whatever it took to find it again after my baby arrived. But standing in the mirror the day after my daughter’s birth, I realized that the hill I had been willing to climb had turned into an Alp-sized mountain. Fast-forward to a year later, and everything’s roughly the same size it was before. The trick? Don’t worry about it for a while, and then when you have a spare second, put on your walking shoes and eat an occasional vegetable. There is a waist at the end of this particular tunnel, and you can find it!