Back to the Forest

On Saturday, my sister and brother in law invited us to Rotorua for a spot of mountain biking.  It had been nearly a year since my last visit to the forest, and even longer since I'd last hit the trails (last time was just after we found out I was pregnant, and I decided to play it safe and walk...)

We managed to get Chip, baby paraphernalia and bikes ready, and leave the house with just enough time for Phil to pick up a date scone in Tirau, before arriving at the Waipa carpark for our traditional "Rotorua picnic".   I loved stepping out of the car with the baby and watching his eyes light up as he looked around, taking it all in.  He's at such a curious stage at the moment, and it's thrilling to watch.

Chip was not too impressed with our picnic (hence the dummy, which is usually strictly for bedtime and car trips!), so I ate fast before packing him into his stroller and walking loops of the paddock.

Once we'd all had our fill of chicken, chippies and homemade deli salads (coleslaw and egg and potato), the girls took Chip for a walk up the hill on the forestry roads and 4wd trails.  Our Phil & Ted's explorer handled the trails very well! It was a bit surreal as there has been a LOT of logging since we last went.  In the picture below I'm standing next to one of my old favourite trails, which used to be totally covered in trees!

After 40 minutes, Chip woke up (as predicted), and it was time for his picnic, and an al fresco nappy change. 

He wasn't too excited by his stroller on the trip down (I think the wails meant something along the lines of "I'm NOT tired, I've SEEN THESE BELLS BEFORE and WHY AM I NOT OUT IN THE TREEEES?") so I grabbed the mei tai wrap I'd stashed under the buggy, and tied it on.  He liked that better, and spent the rest of the walk gazing around at the trees.

Then it was our turn.  We stuck to the easiest of easy trails, and I still felt like a total noob.  I used to be fitter than my sister, but less technically capable.  Well, this time, I was definitely lagging in both areas!  I'm glad the MTB has so many gears- I sure needed them.  That's what 20+ extra kilos will do, I guess...

We ended up doing about 50 minutes in total, and by the end I was having a fantastic time.  Still not riding anywhere near as confidently as I had been pre-pregnancy, but loving the feeling of riding, the wintry forest air, and so on.

Chip spent my ride sleeping in the stroller again, so we thought we could probably get away with a quick trip to the pub.  Forgetting of course that of COURSE we could get away with a trip to the pub.  Chip LOVES pubs, and has barely cried in his three pub visits so far...

Yep, he's our son....

The pub was a bit too exciting after a bit for a wee baby, so we had a feed in the car before driving home for bath/feed/bed, while the boys braved Hamilton on the night of an All Blacks game, and came home bearing bentos! 

A new diet for a new mum

As I've posted about before, when Chip was about 5 weeks old, a lactation consultant recommended that I eliminate dairy to see if it would help Chip's gut problems.  It (or something), so I've stayed off dairy since.  And that's not just milk, yoghurt, cheese and sour cream.  That's everything that those things are IN, including most processed food, baking and so on.  Then, when Chip was 11 weeks, a naturopath suggested that he was also highly sensitive to wheat and yeast, and that I should eliminate those as well.  

 

I've now been dairy free for about 3 months, and (mostly)* wheat free too for nearly two months, and we're currently in the process of "testing" Chip to see if he's grown out of his sensitivities (...or, let's be perfectly honest, to see whether he was ever actually sensitive at all).  We have some EBM I expressed prior to giving up each allergen, so we're starting by testing those.  Before I add them back, I'll also test him without his Gaviscon, as we don't want to be medicating something I can manage with my diet...

 

...especially since, while it's been a challenge, it hasn't been SO bad! Some of me actually doesn't want to go ahead with the testing!  (I'm going to anyway, partly because if he can tolerate them, I want him to be exposed to them!).  I get lots of yummy, healthy food in, I don't *think* it's affected my supply (though remember, my supply isn't great to begin with), and it's making it a bit easier to stick to my Pro Points (...more on that later...)

 

Here are the pluses-- to ME-- of cutting out dairy and (most) wheat:

• it forces me to be prepared, as eating out is so much harder
• I can resist loads of naughty things I can't resist for the sake of weight loss for the sake of Chip's comfort
• it forces me to eat healthy whole foods
• it's encouraged us to be "creative", or at least move away from some of our staple dishes
• we've learned how nice some of our staples are even without the cheese- I'll certainly be able to cut down on the piles of colby we used to have in our Monday "ombles" (omelette/scrambles), and on our Mexican nights

But here are the downsides:

• dairy is a great source of calcium and lean protein, and I do get a bit sick of my alternatives
• bread is a very useful thing to have on hand as a new SAHM, especially a new SAHM of a kid who likes to nap on people - it was tough adjusting to not being able to just make a sandwich or some peanut butter toast when I needed to EAT but didn't have time; especially given that I also couldn't just grab yoghurt and fruit! (yes, there are gluten free breads, but they generally taste like butt, and Chip may also have a sensitivity to yeast, sooooo....)
• although we can eat a large variety of things, I am getting a BIT sick of potatoes and rice, and sometimes I really just want a pile of pasta with parmesan cheese (and other stuff, I suppose), or a cheese toastie, or a plate of Watties spaghetti
• when you tell me dark chocolate is the only treat I can have, my natural response is to EAT ALL THE DARK CHOCOLATE.

And here's a pretty normal day in the life, foodwise:

 

Breakfast: porridge with chia seeds, banana or dates, almond butter and oat milk [Comment: Oat milk is by far the BEST non-dairy milk out there; I sometimes accuse Phil of using cow's milk!]; decaf coffee.

 

Snack 1: Crunchy oat-based muesli bar [Comment: not the healthiest snack-bar choice, and I'm definitely missing being able to choose whatever I want from the muesli bar aisle!] or rice wafers with peanut butter.  Fruit (usually an apple or a pear)

 

Lunch: Almost invariably, a chicken salad using one of those packets of shredded chicken breast (not the pulverised fakey kind, the actual chickeny kind).  Since it's winter, a lot of my favourite salad veges are out of season, though we can sometimes find these at the Farmers' market.  But winter veges make a good salad too- mine's usually prepackaged salad greens, red cabbage, carrot, radishes, microgreens or sprouts, and maybe grated broccoli stem.  I sometimes bulk it out with chickpeas, blackbeans, or falafel made with one of those mixes found in the chilled section, and add some flavour and creaminess with hummus or salsa and avocado.

 

Snack 2: Vege sticks with hummus or peanut butter, fruit (usually kiwifruit and a mandarin)

 

Dinner: Last night's dinner was chicken and white bean chilli, a favourite of ours.  Our other planned meals this week include koftas with salad, hummus and falafel, stir fried tofu, and Monday-egg foo young.

 

Dessert: a piece of fruit, maybe a couple of dates, and a mini bar of Dark Ghana.  Cup of nursing tea.

 

*by "most" wheat, I mean that I avoid bread and wheat flour.  However, I do occasionally have a handful of glucose based sweeties, and although we are using tamari at home, I won't freak out if there's a bit of soy sauce in a restaurant meal.

Starting from scratch

During my baby break yesterday (3 x 5 minutes walk/2 minutes jog), I realised I was running like an overweight newbie.  Jogging for 2 minutes at a time was about all I could handle.  My shorts were painfully tight.  It wasn't just my speed that was ploddy; my gait was too. The idea of flying through a 20km run like I was 10 months ago was, quite frankly, absurd.

I thought about my friend Ally, another new mama triathlete.  She'd mentioned that her comeback race would be the same as her first 10km race.  Because she did it when she was just starting out, she may beat her original time, despite being barely 2 months post cs when she does it.

And that made me realise that I never really started from scratch, the way a lot of athletes do.  I started walking at 16, and lost lots of weight doing that.  Then added some casual swimming, up to a k at a time.  Later, I joined a gym.  When I started running, I was rubbish at it and puffed like a puffer fish.  But I weighed 61kg or so, and I was fit.  My first half-marathon was a 1:54. Yeah, I took 12 minutes off in that first year of running. But I never got those massive improvements a lot of others get, partly because I started off fairly fit and fast.

But now I am (sort of*) starting from scratch.  I weigh god knows how much.  My abs have been decimated.  My muscles have forgotten what to do.  Jogging at 7:00/k pace for two minutes took it out of me.  That's much slower than my slowest half ironman pace.  It's slower than some of my steep offroad race paces!

Anyway, there's something I find freeing and exciting, rather than frustrating, about starting from scratch.  I get to return to the heady days of seeing results! Of setting and beating (post baby) PBs.  I've been doing this so long, I haven't felt like that in years!

Here's to starting from scratch!




*Of course, I'm still not REALLY starting from scratch.  Sure, it was tough on me to jog 7:00/ks for 2 minutes today, but if I were starting from scratch, I wouldn't have 7 years of running under my belt.  I wouldn't have those 20km runs I was doing a year ago.  But let me have it, ok?

Hot Potato Chip: Week 39

Here's Chip, now better known as Toby, early in the morning on what would have been 39 weeks!

We're now home and settling in slowly.  More to come when the little dude gives me a break...

Hot Potato Chip: Week 38

38 weeks today, and although I'm feeling pretty good, I'm hoping that I only have a couple more of these updates to go!  Chip shows no signs of making an appearance any time soon though...

What we ate: I've been trying to focus on healthy lunches, with a fair degree of success.  Having my fridge and oven to hand means there's no excuse for eating toasted peanut butter sandwiches! My favourite re-discovery has been twice baked potatoes (or kumara) stuffed with cottage cheese, cheddar, veges, and topped with whatever else I have in the fridge.  Today's mexican kumara was particularly scrummy!

How we moved: I've been slowly getting into a maternity leave routine, but we're sharing one car and I'm not as mobile as I once was, so it's not always easy.  Anyhoo:

Tuesday: Rest (much needed)
Wednesday: 40 min swim
Thursday: 45 minute swim; walk to yoga; yoga
Friday: 1:00 walk with a friend
Saturday: Rest (but had quite a big day wandering around Raglan)
Sunday:40 min swim with Phil
Monday: Rest

Where we went: The plan was to join Phil and a friend of ours in Auckland so they could go to Roxette. But when the concert was cancelled, we decided to head to the beach instead, and had a lovely picnic and wander in Raglan.  Bliss.

What we wore: Stripy singlets and shorts. Being at home is bliss.

What we bought/got given: I think we made it a whole week without a purchase.  Wow!  We did a lot of setting up though- Chip's room is nearly done!

What changed: Nuttin' much.

Exciting moments: Putting the bassinet up in our bedroom.  So cute!

What I miss:  Being mobile- I've been carless for a couple of days this week, and I've really noticed my lack of independence.  Today I walked my errands, but it was pretty tiring, and it would have been great to have been able to pop onto my bike, or just to walk into town without it being a big excursion! (we'll have a second car available after the baby comes, it just hasn't been worth it to organise it yet)

And it's about time I put a new belly shot up! (I've been slack taking them, and my 37 week photo was of my bare bump and not for public consumption!) I've been thinking the bump hasn't grown much over the third tri after it's early poppage, but it's plenty big now and has dropped a bit too: 

28 weeks

 

 

 

 

 

38 weeks

Hot Potato Chip: Week 37

A big week for me and Chip- likely to be our biggest week as "one"! Chip is now considered full-term, meaning he or she could join us at any time (I'm not expecting this, though I am starting to doubt that I'll go very late... we'll see).  I also finished work last Thursday, and spent the long weekend feeling a million miles from Waitangi, celebrating Chip's impending arrival and my 30th birthday with a vast array of family and friends! 

What we ate: With a Mexican themed birthday barbecue, helpful guests for the weekend, and a baby shower it was a week of feasting!  Healthiness wise, it could have been a lot worse.  Fortunately summer means delicious fresh fruit and veges, and my family are healthy eaters, so we spent our nights together eating healthified lasagne and pan fried salmon with veges from the garden instead of Chinese takeaways and fish & chips.  The highlight of the baby shower was definitely homemade cinnamon buns, courtesy of my mother and sister.  Phil said they were the best he'd had in New Zealand, which is certainly high praise! Our Mexican menu (both beef and vege fajitas, homemade salsa and guac, black bean salad, and spicy Mexican rice) was a hit with our guests too!

How we moved: Not a lot- finishing work, entertaining guests, and planning what seemed like a zillion occasions meant it was a quiet week exercise-wise.  Tuesday's swim was cut short, thanks to reflux.  The only swim all pregnancy where I haven't made it to 1000m. Yoga was pretty uncomfortable on Thursday, as I brought the wrong yoga pants, and had to wear my work pants instead. I walked with my best friend and her 18 month old to the park on Friday, and paid for it with feet that stayed (badly) swollen all weekend! This coming week will probably be better, as my time is pretty much entirely my own!

Where we went: An emphatic "nowhere".  I barely left the house on Friday, Saturday or Monday, and didn't leave it all on Monday!

What we wore: Jandals.  I crammed my feet into work shoes for a perfunctory couple of hours every day, but was always in jandals by early afternoon (except when meeting clients!)

What we bought/got given: Loads and loads.  It's such a cliche to say it, but I was seriously overwhelmed by the generosity of our friends and family- as well as by their gift giving abilities! I am now feeling much more prepared for Chip's arrival! And a little teary!

What changed: The severe swelling is new.  Luckily, my BP is fine (124/80 today, compared to my pregnancy-usual of 120/80), and I haven't had any protein in my urine, so we're not worried.  I just need to work at keeping my feet elevated. Not easy when I'm also trying to sit forward to encourage Chip to stay anterior. Chip's head is also starting to engage, which is a step in the right direction, but nothing to be particularly excited about!

Exciting moments: My baby shower was just amazing.  It featured a baby triathlon (my team won), and hand decorating a bunch of onesies (amongst other things).  The whole day was wonderfully relaxed, with people coming and going- and made completely stress free thanks to the wonderful help from family and friends, who kept taking over the kitchen!

Race number!

Bike onesie, by my sister

What I miss: Being able to use those wonderful automatic fly spray cannisters.  I'm testing various natural fly solutions, but they're just not the same (and they leave the air smelling of soapy vinegar...)

Hot Potato Chip: Week 36

Yet another week has flown by, and now I'm in my last week of work, and a week away from full term.  Hopefully Chip's going to stay put a bit after 37 weeks though- much as I'd like to meet it and know it's OK, I'd like it to bake a little more, I'd like to enjoy some of my maternity leave, and we're hoping Phil can get through a couple of big cases at work before rushing to the birthing centre.  So baby, please stay put until a couple of days after your due date, even if crazy Mummy tries to suggest otherwise.

What we ate:  Quick and boring meals, using lots of summer veges.  Pasta, eggs and so on.  The standout meal for the week was last night's: schnitzel, boiled (garden) potatoes, (garden) beans and corn on the cob.  Healthiness, be damned! (but hey, at least the meat has iron). Also, one of our plum trees is fruiting beautifully, and I've been enjoying plenty of those!

How we moved:  Another good, consistent week.  It's great having Phil swimming frequently, as I'll basically go to the pool when he does unless I'm completely exhausted.  I "make" myself do 1k, usually free+pull, then I'm free to putz around with breaststroke, and generally relax.  The water feels wonderful on my swollen feet, and it's a wonderful way to end the day! As well as 3 swims, I squeezed in two evening walks (plus the walk to yoga) and a yoga class.

Where we went: Nowhere.  Dude- I'm 36 weeks pregnant.  Where am I gonna go?
 
What we wore:  As little as possible.  We've been blessed with a couple of weeks of perfect pregnancy summer weather- crisp and cool mornings with sunny and warm afternoons, but it's still plenty warm for me most of the time.  A little bit of humidity has returned, so it's short summer dresses when I'm hanging out at home!

What we bought/got given:  We finished our baby shopping on Saturday- exchanging a bassinet, and picking up some bits and bobs for the car.   There'll be more before the day- things I don't realise I've forgotten, things I've been waiting until after my baby shower for, and things for the hospital bag.  But as far as my mega baby list goes, we're there!

What changed:  I'm increasingly puffy, but it's still not too bad by pregnant in summer standards! An odd and new side effect of pregnancyis clumsiness.  I drop everything I touch, and each time I'm tempted not to pick it up!

Exciting moments:  None really- this next week is going to be a biggie though!


What I miss: Getting out and enjoying the summer.  I'm so tired and we have so many chores to do over the next few weeks that I've barely seen the beach this summer.  And, in other foods I miss: Subway. Phil and I lived on it pre-preg; it was a post workout staple! If there's a chicken sensation to be had in early March, it may just have to be my first post baby meal!

Hot Potato Chip: Week 35

Another week, another weekly update! Time is flying.  Two weeks to full term.  7 weeks until I think I'm going to meet little Chippo!

What we ate: Watermelon.  Also, lots.  I am ravenous all morning, and much less hungry in the afternoons and evenings.  So I take second breakfast (usually a peanut butter sandwich) and a couple of morning tea options with me to work every day!  We've been getting into the meal planning zone a bit more recently- an important place to get used to, as we'll be living one income soon.  Gulp.

How we moved: I was awesome.  Swims on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Monday (for a total of 6km), yoga and a walk to and from on Thursday, and an hour long neighbourhood walk on Sunday.  That's about 6 hours total- not bad given that I've been back to full time work.  We had a late night planned on Wednesday, so I decided to be smart and take the night off swimming and have a nap instead.  In the end, that meant I was groggy for our evening out, wide awake when we got home and went to bed, and exhausted on Thursday.  Shoulda just swum!

Where we went: The pub.  Yep, that now gets a special entry! Our local was hosting TVNZ 7's politics show Backbenchers, so we went along to show our support for our preferred party.  It started at 9pm, so was a lateish evening, but lots of fun to get out of the house on a summery night, drink cranberry and soda, and talk about grown up things like bikes and beer.

What we wore: One pair of my maternity togs are nearing the end of their useful life- they should fit, but the waistband on the bottoms has a tendency to flip down, bearing rather too much white, stretch-marked, belly to the good folk of Cambridge. 

What we bought/got given: I got a parcel from BRITT which was just the best thing ever.  Cute blankies and cloths, and the bestest little outfit, including a plaid shirt onesie and Chip's first pair of jeans. Aww! (and a pair of super soft pajama pants, which have put straight into my hospital bag)

What changed: More of the same.  Slowing down. Sleeping a bit less.  Feeling pretty good though- to the extent that one can feel "good" at 35 weeks pregnant.

Exciting moments: Washing the baby clothes.  So cute. The only time I'll probably ever be excited about baby laundry.

What I miss: I miss not worrying.  I've been a super anxious pregnant lady, usually without any particular reason to be. I realise that the worry doesn't end on D-Day, so not sure if this is really an acceptable "miss" or not. Also, sushi. I walked to work on the other side of the road on Monday and caught a whiff of sushi through a vent.  I'd never thought of sushi having a smell, but seriously- this was the best smell ever.  Definitely a contender for my "first meal"!

(Note: the NZ pregnancy guidelines warn pregnant women off all sushi, not just raw fish, so I've been steering completely clear of all my favourite haunts)

Hot Potato Chip: Week 34

It really seems like only yesterday that I was writing about week 33 (though week 32 seems an age ago).  Week 34 was returning to work, being tired, and slowly getting more uncomfortable!



Ready for work at 34 weeks

 What we ate:  I had a reasonably good return to work: lunches with lots of salads (including bits and pieces from the vege garden), lots of lovely summer fruit, and not too much chocolate from the snackbox.  I did, however, underestimate for the first couple of days just how much food I need to get me though a day of work at this stage, and had to keep popping to the convenience store (for cornflakes and tinned fruit- I managed to walk past the chips).  Phil and I also enjoyed a lovely meal out on Saturday night- in the buzzing metropolis of Putaruru.  One of last season's MasterChef finalists has started cooking for a new restaurant in the old hotel there, so we drove out for an earlybird venison dinner (us and the pensioners). 

How we moved: Being back into a routine plus some nice weather was a good combo for me.  I did something every day but Friday, totalling 5:40 of exercise- less than half of a big week for Old Kate, but not bad by my current standards :)  This is how it broke down:

Tuesday: 7km walk along the river path
Wednesday: 30 minute swim
Thursday:  25 minute walk and 1 hour of preggy yoga
Friday: Off
Saturday: 40 minute walk
Sunday: 50 minute walk
Monday: 55 minute swim

Where we went: Putaruru (see above).

What we wore: Work clothes- scraping the bottom of the barrel a bit now, so it's lucky I only have 3 weeks to go!

What we bought/got given: Not much actually, apart from some PJs and things for my hospital bag. I was a bit slack.  But we did a bit more building and organising, and I did a little more list writing so I'm not TOO panicked.  Only about 85% panicked!

What changed: I'm slowing down more, and struggling a lot more with sleep since last week.  I also may be having more braxton hicks- but it's not always easy to tell the difference between them and some of Chip's big press-y movements!  And lastly, my feet have grown at least half a size.  It's not just swelling (though that's started too)- the hormone relaxin causes the ligaments all over the body to, well, relax.  This includes the ligaments holding all the foot bones together.  Relaxed ligaments = spreading feet.  And it's permanent!  Not what this already wide-footed girl wants to hear!

Exciting moments: It was actually a bit of a stressful week. Nothing major, but I worried about things, struggled to get back into work, and had a couple of minor sads.  But the first of my February Forum babies was born, as well as the first two of my ante-natal babies! The list of babies between now and Chip is getting ever shorter!

What I miss: Sleeping on my back.  And being able to shave my legs/tie my shoes.

11 things about me

I'm sitting on the couch trying to find more ways to justify staying on the couch- I'm not particularly tired, just particularly lazy! So I was stoked when I saw that Britt had tagged me- I'm it, which means I have to post!

So, here goes:


Rules:

[01.] You must post the rules.

[02.] Post eleven fun facts about yourself on the blog post.

[03.] Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you’ve tagged.

[04.] Tag eleven people and link them on your post

[05.] Let them know you’ve tagged them!

11 things about me:

1. It took me a year or two of cycling to learn to drink on the bike.

2. If I wasn't a triathlete I'd want to be a rower.  Or a cross-fitter.

3. Despite what all the diet books tell me, I firmly believe that some things are just better with a bit of butter.  Scones.  Popcorn. Jam toast. 

4. I'm addicted to Child of Our Time.

5. I am a real old stick in the mud when it comes to music.  I frequently discover a "new" song, only to find out it's 5 years old and horrifically overplayed.  And you will often hear me saying "Oh, is this that song from Glee?"

6. I have no idea at ALL how to garden.  This coupled with my black thumbs is a bad combination.

7. I can read (most) books at least three times.

8. I'm not a pet person.  I don't dislike animals- I quite like them.  But I've never truly loved a pet, and have no burning desire to get one.  This makes me feel like a bad person, but I can assure you I'm nice :)

9. I have wanted to go to Canada since I was about 5 years old.

10. I took Latin throughout all of high school. It comes in handy occasionally in European countries and pub quizzes.  And once I translated a Latin maxim that came up in a legal text without having to check the footnote.

11. I tend to be That Girl who Hogs the Singstar Mic.

 

Britt's questions for me:

1. Do you floss? If not, do you lie to your hygienist about it? Yes (in part thanks to Britt)!  But before I was a good girl, I stretched the truth on occasion.  

2. It’s Friday night. What would you love to be doing? I would love to be out for (quiet) drinks with a group of girlfriends.

3. Favourite movie of all time? The Sound of Music

4. Do you remember your dreams? Maybe once a month, on average

5. What’s the worst pick up line you’ve ever heard? I've never really had one used on me (*shame*).  Always liked "seen any seagulls lately?" "how about a shag?" though!

6. If you won the lottery would you quit your job? Yes.  I thoroughly enjoy my job, but we're about to have a baby, and I would love the financial freedom to stay home for longer.

7. Do you like mitts or gloves better? Gloves.

8. Do you use the library? Yes- I probably read 50+ books a year and buy about 2?

9. Would you rather travel to the future or the past? Future- nothing I'm particularly interested in seeing for real at the moment.

10. How much is too much to spend on a pair of jeans? Shoes? $200 would be my absolute limit for jeans, though I've probably never spent more than $160, and I usually buy the $60 chain store ones.  I'm going to treat "shoes" as normal shoes, not including specialty or sports shoes, or boots.  In that case, I'd also say about $200 as my limit, again with the most I've spent being about $180.  What's "too much" is a tricky one- I try very hard not to judge how people spend their money- but I'd probably start rolling my eyes a little north of the $300 mark.

11. Favourite song of the day? See #5 in my 11 things! My song of the moment is The Carpenters' Top of the World, cos I'm trying to make it my "Baby Theme Tune."  Oh, and I've also been playing "Life's a Happy Song" from the Muppets over and over again.  So much delightfulness!

My questions for you:  

1. Where do you sit when you blog?

2. What's your hot drink of choice?

3. When did you get your driver's licence?

4. Which toiletries are you "brand loyal" in relation to?

5. What accounts for the biggest proportion of your grocery budget?

6. Are there any authors whose books you will automatically buy?  If so, who?

7. Do you still read the paper newspaper?

8. Be honest- do you like McDonalds?

9. Do you prefer crosswords or sudoku? Or do you hate 'em both?

10. What is your least favourite household chore?

11. If I told you my birthday, could you tell me my star sign?

I tag Lucinda, Casie, Liz, Angela and anyone else who wants to play!

Hot Potato Chip: Week 33

It appears that this blog has officially become a "Chip: Weekly Updates" blog.  Sorry about that, folks, but I'm not exactly doing a lot in the way of triathlon at the moment...

Week 33 was our last week of holiday. We got home from our trip away late in Week 32, and had most of a week to potter around before heading away again for Phil to race.  It was good to have a few solid days at home to cook a freezer full of meals (seriously- I think we have 30 meals in there?), build a little bit of baby furniture and pretend to do some work in our garden...

What we ate:  I craved healthiness after our holiday indulgences, but didn't always do the best job of making good choices; and we were so busy feeding Future Kate and Future Phil that we didn't always pay quite enough attention to feeding Present Kate and Present Phil!

How we moved: I did a lot, but didn't do very much in the way of deliberate "exercise".  I think I ended up at one walk and two swims for the week. Plus a quickie swim in Pilot Bay.  But I also spent two solid days cooking, an afternoon in a hot garden, and a long morning spectating at a half ironman.  Given how much those things take it out of me nowadays, I'm not beating myself up for not doing more workout-workouts. Hopefully I'll do a little more this week, now that I'm back at work!

Where we went: Tauranga for Phil's half ironman.  Just over a 24 hour trip in total, and possibly a little too tiring for this gigantosaur, especially with the 3:30am wake up call! 

What we wore: Slouchy, round the home, kinda stuff.  Trackies, stretchy cotton dresses.  Old baggy t-shirts.  It was nice not to have to get properly dressed for a few days!   But then on Monday I had to put on work clothes again.  And learned that, sadly, my proper work shoes are now too small (pregnancy can cause your feet to go up a full shoe size.  Permanently).

What we bought/got given: Loads! I had a bit of a panic attack about being behind the 8-ball and went on a bit of a purchasing frenzy.  Baby clothes, feeding, changing and sleeping accessories.  Bassinet and cot mattresses and linens.  And some of the delightful things I need to put in my hospital bag for me!

What changed: Chip has moved from my right side to my left, which is good news for labour if Chip stays that way.  Clever baby! Other than that, not a lot has changed- I feel much the same as last week.  Tired, slow but not too bad.
Exciting moments: Clearing out the baby's room and building the cot.  The nursery is far from "done" (and we're really not "doing" much... it won't surprise you to learn that I'm not the sewing acres of bunting and painting the walls type...), but it gives both of us a warm feeling inside when we walk past and see the cot in there.  We also passed the one month til full term (37 weeks) point- and it's 4 weeks til full-term today! 

What I miss: Being able to shop for an afternoon without multiple loo stops and without getting sore feet after an hour or so!

Hot Potato Chip: Week 32

What we ate: Sweetcorn and stone fruit! The next phase of summer food is well and truly upon us.

How we moved: Wellington was good motivation to exercise, even in the rain.  I missed my old favourite pools!

Tuesday: Rest (travel)
Wednesday: 45 min (hilly) walk
Thursday: 1hr (waterfront) walk
Friday: 50 min swim
Saturday: 50 min swim
Sunday: Rest (travel)
Monday: Rest

Where we went:  Wellington.  I'm sure the number of visits I've made while pregnant (this was #4) will help Chip recognise his or her true home town.  Right?

What we wore: Started off the week in lovely summer dresses and jandals (thank you, Glassons).  Finished it in jeans, wishing I had brought a jacket!

What we bought/got given: Lovely books.  Thank you lovely friends!  I spent yesterday mucking around in Chip's room realising just how much more we need to get. Ugh!

What changed: Chip has GROWN and is making me much less comfortable!  Finding a comfy sitting position can be tricky.  Finding a comfy sleeping position is damn near impossible!

Exciting moments: We passed the "2 months to go" milestone (well, in theory.  I suspect Chip will NOT be here 2 months from now), and entered Chip's birth year.  Woo!


What I miss:   Running.  Walking just isn't the same- especially in the rain!

Hot Potato Chip: Week 31

What we ate: Christmas treats.  A few too many, of course... Our main meals were fairly healthy, so I hope that makes up for it!

How we moved: Relaxed and fun, and feeling a bit more energetic again.



Tuesday: 35 minutes at home yoga (started as a walk, but the rain put an end to that!)
Wednesday: 45 minute swim
Thursday: Yoga
Friday: Was supposed to swim, but alarm didn't go off
Saturday: 40 minute swim
Sunday:  40 minute ride / walk (on the Napier waterfront path- I gave my bike to my sister with about 2km to go)
Monday: 45 minute walk; 15 minute OW swim (the rest of the time I mucked around)

Where we went:  Napier.  Such a lovely place to visit, I didn't want to leave!

What we wore: My sister made me a gorgeous maternity dress (and I may have stocked up a little on summer essentials in the Boxing Day sales)

What we bought/got given: Chip got some lovely Christmas presents- a book and cardi from his auntie and some cuuute wee hats from his Grandma

What changed: Not a lot, though getting some rest means I am feeling a bit more like me again!  I just need to remember to keep resting and not wear myself out.

Exciting moments: Single digit weeks to go... Exciting?  Or scary!?

What I miss: Being able to eat what I want.  Runny Boxing Day brunch eggs, rare meat, cold leftovers...

Merry Christmas!

(source)
From the Hotpotatos and Chip

Hot Potato Chip: Week 30

I'm 30 weeks pregnant today, and feeling absolutely ginormous.  I'm honestly looking at this photo and wondering how on earth I'm expected to fit TEN more weeks of baby in there! For some context, here's 25 weeks... so twice that amount of growth (and then some) left.

What we ate: My first stone fruit of the season.  And the first jersey bennies from *our* garden (I say *our* because although it's at our house, my mother-in-law is the gardener, and I can't take credit for anything... apart from choosing a house with what is virtually a greenhouse for a backyard!)

How we moved: Not much.  I decided after a couple of lacklustre weeks to admit that I was just bloody worn out and to take a week off.  The one exception was going to be yoga, but we got stood up by our instructor- obviously a sign! I got back into it slowly over the weekend (put off a bit by the inclement weather the whole country's been suffering from), and had a great "workout" with Phil yesterday evening; riding Penelope the Cruiser on the Karapiro bike path while he ran a 5k TT (in 18:07... Hopefully Chip inherits his speed, not mine!)

Where we went: Nowhere.  It was bliss.

What we wore: A new work skirt, half price at Pumpkin Patch.  It's far from elegant, but boy oh boy it's comfortable.

What we bought/got given: Clothes from a family friend.  And our cot arrived.  Yay! Phil has a good bit of furniture building ahead of him!

What changed: Chip seems to have found some room to move over the past couple of days; instead of squashy, pushy movements I'm back to feeling happy little kicks and punches every which where.

Exciting moments: Reaching the 30s.  I now feel like the countdown is actually on, and it's bloody frightening! I'm doing my best to forget about the loooong list of baby jobs on my list so we can relax over Christmas.  But once we get back from holiday, it's game on!

What I miss: Booze!  It's been a few weeks of holiday parties, and I'm sick to death of lemon lime and bitters!

Hot Potato Chip: Week 29

What we ate: Nothing stands out.  I worked. I ate meals at stupid times. I ate too many things from the snack box.  We didn't even have time to get the good strawberries.

 

How we moved: Not much.  Not much at all.  I am really letting the side down, advent challenge-wise.

 

Tuesday: Yoga

Wednesday: REST (work)

Thursday: REST (work)

Friday:REST (just tired, and lazy)

Saturday: REST (in Wellington.  And lazy)

Sunday: 40 minute walk

Monday:  REST

 

Where we went: Wellington.  I have decided I don't like pregnant flying any more.  It was hot and stuffy, I was tired and a bit nauseous, and the airplane seat forced me into a really uncomfortable position. Fortunately I have no flights left (and if things change and I need to get on a plane it's not like it's THAT bad).

 

What we wore: A new work skirt, and some trousers I'm planning to get turned into capris.

 

What we bought/got given: Some lovely knitted overnaps from Organic Baby in Petone.  I couldn't resist.  Also, a small pile of Golden Books.

 

What changed: I have slowed down a LOT.  I'm moving slowly, and I'm feeling utterly exhausted. Too many weekends away mean I haven't caught up enough on rest, and also that I'm trying to catch up on housework and laundry while dealing with a busy time at work, and stressing about Christmas.  Chip is definitely bigger, and definitely less comfortable inside me.  Poor wee baby. 

 

Exciting moments: Chip was doing very well at our midwife appointment today.  Sitting in the right sort of place, measuring the right sort of size, generally doing the right sorts of things.  Go Chippo!

What I miss: Feeling energetic. I hate not feeling like me!

Hot Potato Chip: Week 28 (nearly a week late)

What we ate: The return of nausea + the onset of summer meant the return of grain waves and orange juice, and a renewed love of iceblocks (I'm loathe to spend $2.80 on a glorified popsicle, but BOY those new ginger beer ice blocks are good!)

 

How we moved: Another full on week!

 

Tuesday: 30 minute walk

Wednesday: 40 minute swim

Thursday: 50 minute walk; preggy yoga

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 40 minute walk around the Mount

Sunday:  Tinman!

Monday:  Swim (35 minutes)

 

Where we went: Mount Maunganui for Tinman.  We stayed in a caravan at the Mount holiday park; a bit more run down than I'd expected, but it was wonderful falling asleep to the sound of the sea, and the couch-bed I slept on was surprisingly comfortable.

 

What we wore: It's more what we DIDN'T wear, which is the clothes I ordered online a couple of weeks ago. The sizing was all haywire, and I confess to having a bit of a meltdown when I discovered I had only one top I could wear!

 

What we bought/got given: A bassinet and boppy feeding pillow. There was a sale, OK!

 

What changed: Nausea and fatigue returned- they did tell me this would happen in the third trimester, but I wasn't expecting it to happen on day 1!  Fortunately, I haven't yet experienced a number of other third trimester complaints (knock wood), so I can't complain! 

 

What stayed the same: Everything else- but things feel like they're starting to happen (not in a labour sense, just in a stepping up the baby growing sense).

Exciting moments: Reaching the third trimester! And an old friend and colleague had her baby at 39 weeks- the number of ladies left between now and me is starting to dwindle!

What I miss: Clothes that fit!

Tinman 2011: Ending my pregnant running career on a high

This was my third year going to Tinman.  I set my standard distance PB there in 2009, then had a pretty pants race there in 2010 (which was a pretty pants season overall).  So I was keen to participate in some way, shape or form, even though I wasn't keen on a swim (with the risk of a good kick to the belly), and I haven't been able to ride a bike (except Penelope Cruz-er, sort of) for quite some weeks!

I asked Mike if he was keen to put in a team to do the sprint, and he hooked us up with a swimmer (Tom, who did the bike last year when I did the swim in Rotorua), and Team 3.5 was good to go!

The day was grey and a tiny bit chilly; a nice change from previous hot years.  We arrived at transition at about 6:45am, got Phil set up, then met my fellow team members to kill some time before it was time for the swimmers to "(wet)suit up". I didn't quite know what to do with myself for a bit while Phil warmed up and the others mucked around- I realised doing the run in a team was sort of the worst of both worlds, spectating and racing.  Lots of waiting around, but not necessarily able to be in the places I wanted to be in.

Fifteen minutes or so after finding Tom post-swim I headed to T2 to kill time there.  I figured Mike would be back between 30 and 40 minutes, and wanted to make sure I was there for him.  I wasn't very sure of the timing, but after awhile I decided that I had time for a quick pee break, as it was taking people a reasonable amount of time to get their bikes in.  Unfortunately, Mike has his speedy shoes on, and when I came out he was looking around the transition area, bike racked and transponder off.  What a fail! Despite wandering round with nothing to do for ages, I managed not to be in the ONE place I needed to be at the right time.  I'm not sure how much I cost us, but T2 was 1:48!

Bladder emptied and guilt fuelled, I started off at a cracking pace, about 11km/h, though by a few hundred metres in, I'd settled into a slightly more realistic (flat) run pace of more like 9.5km/h! It was fun to feel like I was "running" again- however slowly!  Of course, that didn't last long.  But I kept running along the Mall, with plenty of cheers the whole way.  My hips started to ache a little before I made it to 1k, but I wanted to make it to the Mount before I walked, so just slowed my pace some more and concentrated on my gait.

I walked the hill at the beginning of the Mount (and OMG, that was such a treat- I've run that bastard so many times in races and always resisted the urge to stop; last time only because a certain paparazzo was waiting for me...), and then started thinking about my strategy for getting around.  Eventually, I settled on a run 2 mins: walk 1 min system, which I tweaked a bit depending on where the hills came in.  I took a look at my average pace and realised I could aim to do 5km in 40 minutes, but the course is long so I wasn't actually sure I could finish in that time.

It was strange having people passing me the whole run.  I'm a decent runner, and usually run at a sensible pace, so I only usually get passed by speedsters on double lap courses.  There were no speedies with me this time (the lead men ran me down at the end of the Mount)- it was just middling to slow team runners who were burning me off! What I found particularly weird (and what my ego found damned annoying) is that none of these passers could see that I was pregnant unless they took a good look at my profile as they passed.  One girl actually ran "with" me and chatted for a few hundred metres and didn't say anything to suggest that she'd noticed.  My poor wee ego just wanted to shout: "I'M NOT JUST FAT! I'M NEARLY SEVEN MONTHS PREGNANT, OK? And if I weren't, I would be SO much faster than you!".  Luckily, I do have some manners.

Walking up the second "hard" hill on the Mount (those familiar with races on the Mount will recognise it as the one where the second photographer always hides), I was caught by a guy with one leg, who was crutching up the hill like a machine.  Dude was a total legend- swam, picked up his crutches to get to T1, one-pedalled it the whole 20km, and then crutched his way around the run course.  He called out "pick it up, you don't want to be passed by the one-legged guy" and I replied "you think one leg's hard, try four?!" (yeah, not my best work...) 

I did end up passing him, and temporarily passed another couple of walkers too.  By the end of the Mount, I was still averaging under my goal of 8:00min/ks (...and to think it would usually be 8 minute MILES...for a 10km... off the bike...), and I was motivated to run the length of the Mall to the finish.

I didn't get quite as many cheers on the way back- the men's winners had just come through ahead of me, and Mr One Leg was closing the gap behind me.  Quite often I'd hear a "Way to Go....." that would trail off and turn into "Oh my god, look at that guy go!"

It was very strange not being able to pick it up at the end- I was "working", but there is a limit to how hard I will push with Chip on board, so I was not only slow but also pretty relaxed, and some of the walkers who'd been conquered by the Mount streaked past me on the final straight. However, when I saw my teammates cheering, and realised that my Garmin had ticked over 39:00 as I approached the chute, I confess to digging in just a little bit more.

I stopped my watch at 40:04, Garmin time, satisfied that my official time would squeak under 40.  As my Garmin distance was 5.27km, I was pretty pleased. 

It's not every day a PW feels so good. But my hips have had enough of this, and it's time to focus on yoga and swimming, and to start really thinking about getting this body ready to bring Chip into the world in 2-3 months time!

Hot Potato Chip: Week 27

26 weeks, 6 days

What we ate: Heathily from Monday to Thursday.  Less healthily after I passed my gestational diabetes test.  And then more healthily again, after I remembered that you don't need to celebrate not having diabetes by doing your best to GET diabetes.

 

How we moved: When we could- it was a busy week!

 

Tuesday: Morning 6k wog along the river trail.  Lovely!

Wednesday: At home workout before rushing to get Phil from the airport.

Thursday: Walk + yoga

Friday: Lunchtime walk

Saturday: Walk with my sister along river trails in Taupo.  Plus spectating...

Sunday: 3 hour walk

Monday: REST

 

Where we went: Taupo.  And it was bliss.

 

What we wore: I ordered yet another Piwaka t-shirt from one-day tees.  Ooops! A girl can never have too many.

 

What we bought/got given: A capsule.  For some reason imagining a tiny baby all scrunched up in it was particularly exciting! I'm taking a bit of a break from baby buying in the lead up to Christmas now- I'll still pick things up when there's a good sale, but I'm trying to focus on Christmas first!

 

What changed: I realised that running is pretty much over for me for good.  Carrying this much booty is just too hard on my poor legs and back.  I'm still planning to do as much as I can at Tinman though- I want to go out on a high note!

 

What stayed the same: Everything else.  Still sleeping well, still not too achy or painy. Still relatively energetic in relation to the first tri, but not in relation to any previous version of me!

Exciting moments: I'm 27 weeks today, which means by many people's calculation I'm in the third trimester.  Which is very freaky and exciting.  We also passed the "3 months til due date" marker this week, though we were too busy worrying and being relieved to notice.  So maybe I'll count the third trimester as starting from 28 weeks.

And a new heading as we head towards the final countdown (courtesy of Lisa); What I miss: Cycling.  Mountain or road; whatever.  I miss the fast wooshing downhill feeling, and the uphill grinds.  While I was not sad not to be racing this past weekend, thanks to the insaneo winds, I had some serious bike envy.  I'm worried that the bike mojo I've worked so hard to build will be lost when I get back into it.  There will need to be lots of trips to the Redwoods to visit Sprocket and ride the Dipper!

 

Advent Challenge

Since there's been a bit of enthusiasm for an advent challenge (yay!), and since advent starts tomorrow in NZ (double yay! and also EEK!) I thought I'd better actually come up with, and share, the "rules" of the challenge (even if that does mean posting three times in three days, which might just make your computers explode with hotpotato overload).

The advent challenge is meant to be motivating, but flexible. For one thing, it's holiday season, which is mental for everyone. For another thing, the people who have so far expressed an interest are a mixture of marathoners, triathletes, active preggos at varying stages of gestation, gym bunnies, and people who want to generally increase their activity levels. So we can't exactly compete for hours of training or calories burned or anything. And it's hardly in the holiday spirit from us to "compete" at all. So the "rules" of the challenge are that it is low-key, fun and flexible.
Here's what I suggest:
- buy an advent calendar of your choice. It can have crappy chocolate behind the doors, or it can have dear wee pictures of Victoria nativity scenes. It's totally up to you.

- get hold of some plain white stickers; about the size of the doors on your calendar if possible

- think of 5 or 6 different types of workout you do (mine will be strength, stretch, swim and walk/wog I think, but yours might be tempo, hill, speedwork, race, or swim, bike, run and MTB, or whatever you want). Try to include something new, or something that you want to do more of, if possible.

- fill in some stickers for each workout type, and some rest stickers too- we want to keep things flexible, and we don't want anyone burning out and falling asleep during present time on Christmas day

- every day, once you have done your workout or played your rest card, you get to open the wee door on your advent calendar and look at the dear wee picture or eat the crappy chocolate. If you don't do your workout or you run out of rest cards, no door for you!

- THEN you can blog or tweet about it. I'll go for a really creative hashtag - hows about #AdventChallenge? I'll publish a list of participants later this week, so let me know if you're participating.

- there are no winners, cos that's just too hard. But if you do something that I deem to be ridiculously awesome, I'll send you a bag of Cadbury Magic Elves- the best and most ridiculous Christmas candy in NZ.

NOTE: I realise there are LOTS of people who don't celebrate Christmas. Aotearoa is pretty short on people who celebrate Hannukah or Kwanzaa, and I am only very vaguely familiar with the traditions associated with those holidays. But if you would like to be involved in the challenge and you are not a marker of advent, please come up with your own holiday themed challenge and share the love.