#bellypouch

I am all about exploration...but I'm certainly not a writer by trade, so starting a blog is only about trying something new. But it's also about not having an outlet right now and having a lot of things on my mind! I grew up writing a journal and will always be an advocate on the therapeutic benefits of writing.

I've been doing a  lot of research and internet searching lately for two major things:

1) What can a 1 year old eat?

2) What are the best exercises to lose your post baby tummy?

Question one came about from freaking out over what I can let my one year-old son eat, since everywhere I read...it was the 1 year mark when we can start exploring new foods and not worry about him having some allergic reaction or major diarrhea (yuck!). I'm happy that my son will eat just about anything, including all the non-edible items...but as a new parent, its not always obvious what he should and should not eat, there are so many suggestions, advice, and opinions!

The most recent food introduction has been to 2% milk. Yes, I know some seasoned mothers and doctors will say, "No, whole milk is what you start with", but my kid is not the normal size. He is and has been above the 95% percentile for his age since a month after birth (he's 29lbs at 1 years old...he can squash a 2 year-old!). So, 2% milk worked and he hasn't had many issues..but my husband thinks we should try out some of the organic milk products. Can you say "GMO"? We'll see how organic milk goes...2% is working out alright, though about 1/3 of it ends up on his clothes or the floor...sooooo, um yeah!

Ok, question two...I knew I would 'stretch' having a child, I knew I would gain weight (more than I should have), I knew I might get stretch marks, but gosh dammit, I was hoping by 1 year "The Pouch" would go away and I could stop looking like I was 4 months pregnant! I love being a mom, I generally had no problems with my pregnancy, but being a former college-athlete (we'll get into that later), I have certain expectations about my body...AND THEY ARE NOT BEING MET!  I have tried to play basketball,  morning Bootcamp, an aerobics class, juice fasts, etc...but I'm just not seeing results. 

Everyone says "It took you 9 months to put it on" and that it will take time to get the weight off, but my goodness, my entire wardrobe is ruined, shoes don't fit me and my social confidence is shot (not that it was very good to start). I work from home, so sometimes I think that makes me a bit more lax about working out and being healthy, but I'm going to the gym 4x a week. It's a never-ending struggle...1+ years in the making.