A little unrealistic, perhaps?

Ten weeks and one day ago, Jay and I headed to the hospital and were blessed with a beautiful baby girl. While resting in the hospital for four days, I not only dreamed of the person Sam would one day become and how our lives had been forever changed but also mentally made plans for my maternity leave. Among the glorious feats I hoped to accomplish:

1. Get lots of rest and recover from both the c-section and hernia surgery.


2. Enjoy spending every day with my new daughter.


3. Lose the baby weight.


4. Lose the additional 25 lbs I have acquired since high school (and by default, actually weigh what my driver's license says).


5. Deep clean our entire house and maintain this level of cleanliness from here on out.


6. Begin an exercise routine that would not only allow me to accomplish goals 3 and 4, but make me the envy of the neighborhood with my amazing new rockin' bod.


7. Have a nutritious dinner on the table each night by the time Jay got home.


8. Update my blog daily.


9. Shop for new work clothes (because none of my clothes would fit, due to my amazing new body, right?)


10. Essentially, become Super Mom and Super Wife.

All of this, in the 12 weeks I would have off.

I'm starting to blame my apparently unrealistic optimism on the Percoset I was taking.

Looking back, there are a few problems with my list. First of all... I don't cook. If it can't be microwaved or poured directly into a bowl and served with cold milk, I don't make it. So, while having dinner on the table each night IS possible, Jay complained that Lucky Charms and hot dogs aren't his idea of delicacy. Plus, he REALLY likes to cook, so as Super Mom and Wife (#11), I am really doing HIM a favor by not cooking.

Next, I really hoped to recover from my surgeries and get lots of rest. Recovery - CHECK... by my 6-week-checkup I felt really good. But the "getting lots of rest" part? Definitely possible, if I can learn to be happy with showering every three days and wearing the same clothes for weeks on end. I COULD do that, but I'm pretty sure I would again be out-voted by Jay. Really, he is such a picky person. Ugh. So, I'm learning to love coffee. Sleep is for the weak.

I wanted to lose the baby weight, and by my 6-week-checkup I successfully weighed LESS than I did before I got pregnant! Halleluia! But, I am starting to think that losing the additional weight was a slight stretch in my short 12 week timeframe. I have, however, found a Sharpie marker that will take care of the driver's license part.

As for spending time with my daughter, I have definitely gotten to do that. And 99% of the time it has been completely amazing, so I consider that item successfully checked off.

Number 6 - starting a great exercise routine, has sort of happened. Yes, I have been walking almost every day (minus this week) but NO, I am not the envy of the neighborhood. In fact, I think the neighbors probably groan when they see me heading off with my squeaking stroller and my not-Pod, for I cannot carry a tune. I do love to sing out loud Sam thinks I sound wonderful, so I will continue this annoying feat simply for my own enjoyment. But I don't expect anyone else to want to walk with me anytime soon.

Having a clean, picked-up house is one of my ULTIMATE goals, because quite honestly, having a messy house makes me want to run screaming for the door. So for my mental health, number 5 was very much at the top of my priority list. But this, like my weight loss dreams, has started to seem impossible. I did deep clean my house one weekend... and was immediately followed by Addi smearing ketchup all over the back door.

Overall, I am pretty happy with my progress and the successes I have had. No, I haven't become a gormet cook, I am not as skinny as I would have hoped, and I am definitely a lot more tired than I planned, but I have spent a ton of time with Sam and have loved every minute.

As for the house, I have tried to embrace the mess, even repeating this quote over and over in my head:

"If a cluttered desk signs a cluttered mind, Of what, then, is an empty desk a sign?"
~Albert Einstein.

Reading this, I tried to gain the perspective that Albert Einstein was a sage man and therefore very wise, so I should deal with the clutter and move on to something more important (like my blog).

But did you see the guy's hair? Maybe in addition to being a brilliant physicist, he was also just a crazy old man. It's your call.