2013 - what a year

Work wise and family life, we bit off a lot this year.  I had many projects and we started our youngest in a montessori school for her in-between year.  Too young for kindergarten and too old for preschool . . . so we found a great school  http://www.montessoriplus.org/  School starts at 9am and ends at 3:30pm - a bit of a problem for working parents . . . so we adjusted our schedules in September.  It's hard to make it work and I look forward to returning to a normal schedule.

At work, we did a Lean project, begun to learn about implementing Lominger competencies and chose an online performance management system to implement in 2014.  Oh yes and we are trying to change the culture for all city employees - Respect - our cultural competency program.

Respect . . . Be More




And we went to Disney World in December.  It was super fun.  My brother and his family and my parents joined us.  We rented a home in the area.  It had a small heated pool and was an easy drive to the parks.  It was a perfect week for all of us.

Updates on my life . . . 2011 - 2012

New Job - April 2012

Wow, it's been awhile since I've posted on my blog.  There are so many things that have changed.  I switched jobs.  This is really good news, as I am back to doing what I love.

I am the Human Resources Director for a city.  Previous to this, I was a manager/director for different types of agencies/divisions.  While I loved making a difference, I always wanted to run a HR department.  So,  I've been doing it for 2 years.  It's been great.  So, what's next on my list of future desires.  I may return to the private sector and then onto a consulting career . . . who knows what the future holds.

Costa Rica - September 2012

We stayed at the Westin Playa Conchal  http://www.westinplayaconchal.com/  The resort is lovely and we would return again.

Day 7 - down 8.2 pounds - Lyn-Genet (The Plan)

Okay, so I had steak last night. It was really good, but I think it is stressing my system. I did lose .4 from yesterday, but I can feel a fullness in my intestines, so something is happening. I can only have red meat 1 a week. This week I will try scallops, wild white fish and back to a little chicken. I think that sounds much better for the week. Oh yeah, I had red wine (merlot) and chocolate last night. Yeah!

Lyn-Genet and The Plan

What to say about this . . . I have been on The Plan for 6 days. I have lost 7.8 pounds in that six days. I've had similar weight loss with HCG, but this was different. It was easier. With HCG, I was only 500 calories and while I wasn't hungry, it was a very boring experience.

On The Plan, I have eaten a LOT of vegetables and a few fruit. Now that I am on Day 6 - I actually like the flax granola that I consume each day. On the second day, I was literally just chewing swallowing to get it over. I discovered on Day 3 - that I wasn't putting in enough milk (plain coconut milk). Once I became generous with milk, the cereal became sweeter and more interesting. It does have dried fruit in it, but I was really tasting slimy flax seeds, which is a joy killer.

The first three days are really a cleanse. They are very similar to the 3 day plan in the More magazine. http://www.more.com/lose-weight-fast-detox-diet
I lost exactly 5 pounds during the first 3 days, which is very cool.

I am really liking this experience. It is hard because I am not eating out or drinking lattes. I must cook (clean and slice vegetables). I had to purchase a new food processor because the one I've owned for 15+ years lost the slicer/shredder blade. The dishes I am cooking or ones that I will eat after the plan. Today, I had broiled steak, mixed green salad with lime agave viniagrette, and sauteed zucchini and onions with parmesan cheese (goat cheese). Outstanding.

I've made carrot ginger soup which was way better than I could imagine. So, the cooking skills are energized with real food instead of brownies/cookies/cakes. Aaah . . . Oh by the way I can have 1 glass of red wine and an ounce of chocolate after day 4. I have and I still lost that day. Awesome.

We'll see if my body reacts to the steak I had today. A reaction would be a weight gain or some other physical change.

Reactive Foods

 

It's been a minute

Okay, where have I been. On a journey . . . everyone is older. Rodney is REALLY living in Colorado. I accepted a new job last year and it is wearing me out. Really . . . it's time to do something else.

More to come . . .

On Vacation . . .

What a week! I was off on Friday and I don't return until after the Labor Day Holiday. Yeah!! Unfortunately, my grandmother passed away today. So, I am taking the girls to Alabama for the funeral service. It will be good for them and good for my dad. He will like the fact that the wild children are around. It sort of turns my leisurely week into a different mode, but at least I have several days to get ready. I'd hate to pull this together and go into the office.

I need to check my lottery tickets. : )

I did order this handy little gadget to try with Chloe for the flight. Since my husband is not flying with us, I was really trying to figure out other options beyond the large Britax car seat. This little item is FAA approved. I'm looking forward to using it.

HCG on hold

I had to call uncle this evening. I have no food in the house. I have scarfed down my fruit, but I need meat. My husband is stuck on the couch (knee surgery) and I am taking care of the girls. I want food. I am stressed out. I need to not think about food and I need to get out the house. I must take care of the girls and my recovering spouse, so here I sit.

So, I decided not to make myself crazy. The HCG diet is hard enough when you are prepared, it is impossible when you are not. So, I will not take my evening dose and hope that regular food won't result in a weight gain. My plan is to start again in a week or two. Not a problem, this I can do and it will be easier when he is up and moving.

Uncle!!

(Of course, I am happy to have lost a few pounds this week, I just don't know if they will stay off when not following the stabilizing part of the diet - Phase III). This will be a good experiment.

Ready for Round 2 - HCG

Okay, since I've stabilized. I've had a ball. I've gone to a conference in San Diego. I spent two weeks on a college campus where all of my meals were prepared by someone else. Over the lst couple of months, I have not been on a diet. I eat cookies, cakes, ice cream, spaghetti, bread . . . Ugh. Now, I know some of this was because I knew that I was going to do another round, but can I tell you that I have gained only under 4 pounds. That is freaking amazing. Honestly!

Okay, so I want to continue to lose weight because my BMI is not normal yet. I need to lose another 10 - 15 pounds (from my stabilized weight) to get there. Actually, I think the exact number is 136 for the high end of the healthy range. So, I would like to get firmly in the range for natural weight fluctuations.

Like I said, it's a tough diet, so it's not easy to follow with two small children and full time job, but during the week I am happy for the work distractions. The kids send me looking for the carbs. You can find a lot of information on HCG on Yahoo Groups (HcgDieters) and there are a lot of you tube videos providing proof of weight loss.

Round 2 - Starting Weight 146.2
loaded to 149.8
Week 1 141.8 (below my stabilized weight)

I'm anxious not to fall into the same pattern as my first round. I'm thinking that I will keep these rounds to 3-4 weeks, and then go on to Phase III. Even if I do that for the next few months, I am so more likely to end the year at the best weight for me. Heck, I could stop now and feel good, but I want my BMI in the healthy range.

HCG - key to my weight loss journey

Okay, so I knew I needed to lose weight, but that wasn't news. What was key was that I only needed to get my waist size down to 1/2 my height. That seemed doable. For the first month February 2010, I went on a low sugar diet and lost 5 pounds. From March 13th through June 11th (with a 13 day break for a vacation. I lost another 20 pounds on HCG. I started with with homeopathic HCG for the first few weeks. I purchasedd mine from http://hcgboutique.com/ There are a lot of places to but this stuff, but this seemed like a good place to start and it turned out well for me.

While continuing to do research, I began to worry about stabilizing on a homeopathic version. So, I ordered Rx HCG from http://www.alldaychemist.com/

Let me just say that this diet is hard, it a very low calorie diet with many restrictions. I have tried all variations of cheating and they really don't work. What I really accomplished is gaining and losing the same pounds for several weeks, when I finally decided that short bursts were probably more effective for me.

Here are some of my numbers
Began at 159
Week 1 154.8
Week 2 150.2
Week 3 148.2 (began Rx HCG)
Week 4 147 (stopped HCG)
Week 5 Vacation
Return from vacation 154.4
Week 6 145.6 (changed ratio of drops)
Week 7 141.6
Week 8 141.0
Week 9 139.8
Week 10 139.6 (stopped HCG)
Week 11 141.2
Week 12 141
Ended phase 3 at 142.8 6/11/2010

During the weeks of 9 and 10, I was actually down the full 20 pounds, but had a really hard time. Too many restaurant meals . . . if you analyze my chart, I really should have stopped at Week 8. I just regained and lost the same pounds for the next month, because I was tired of dieting.

Waist size determines risk of diabetes. Yikes!!

So, I haven't been very active on my blog, but earlier this year I embarked on a weight loss journey. I learned on the Dr. Oz show that if you reduced your waistline below a certain number, you actually metabolized food differently, thus dramatically cutting your risk for pre-diabetes. It was a light bulb moment for me. I had gestational diabetes with both of my daughters, so I knew that I was high risk for pre-diabetes and the eventual disease. It seemed to be one of those inevitable things. What I didn't understand was that I actually processing food in an impaired way that made that disease more relevant than a healthy person.

What I heard on his show that got me motivated was the following,

Belly fat: A big belly is the number one risk factor in America, and Dr. Oz has a simple test to see if you have too much: "If your waist size, measured at your belly button is more than half of your height, then you've got too much belly and you're at risk for diabetes."

Pasted from <http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Diabetes-101-with-Dr-Oz-Dr-Ian-Smith-and-Bob-Greene/print/1

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Disneyland was fun!

Okay, so we are back from Disneyland.  This was the first time for Naiyah and obviously, Chloe’s first visit.  Naiyah loved Disneyland.  We would arrive in the morning.  Have lunch – put the girls down for a nap and return for the evening.

In addition, we drove down to Farrell’s in Mission Viejo.

It was a great trip.  More pics coming to a FB album.

Petite Clothing

Today, I read a post that petite women should focus on fitting pants in the hips and thighs and not worry about the length. ONLY a non-petite person would say something like that - PETITE clothing is more than length. The rise of garments is also adjusted to fit our bodies. Only a person who has never worn a pair of pants with a too long rise would ever forget the importance of the proper size in all areas of the garment.

Non-petite people should stick to their world.

I also found a generic search engine site http://www.thepetitewardrobe.com/ that has a nice beginning to petite lines for average stores.

I love this jacket. I have never purchased from Metrostyle. The clothing reminds me of Chadwicks, which I consider short term purchases because of the quality of the garments.

I should start my own petite blog. We need real advice.

It's time to make some changes - The Four Day Win

Hmmm . . . where to begin. Chloe is now 6 months old. I still feel and look like I am entering my second trimester, so it's time. It's time to make some changes. I read an article in Oprah by Martha Beck that really talked about changing the way you view food and dieting. It was my light bulb moment. It really intrigued me, so I bought the book "The Four Day Win" by Martha Beck. I am reading it slowly and it is making me connect with my thoughts and feelings, so I am spending less time eating to erase feelings. It's great. I have stopped my lunch time desserts. I would eat Reese's peanut butter cups regardless of what I ate for lunch. I could be stuffed, but I would crave this as a finality to my lunch. Guess what! I am bored to death at work. I acknowledged that and I stopped the candy. I'm not sure how I got there, but it happened. I am going back to reread chapters 3 - 10 before completing the rest of the book, because these are foundational chapters. It is really interesting.

Today, I decided to move my body. So, I'm going to try T-Tapp again. I'm making some mental changes and this seems like a good time to restart this exercise. It's really hard, but it has worked for me in the past. I am such an overachiever that I always try to do too much, but not today. When I felt fatigued ( because I was pushing too much), I stopped. I congratulated myself on the work accomplished and took a shower. Nice. Martha Beck may be an actual genius.

I am moving towards a place where I am happy with me. It's not easy to accept myself as is, but this inability to love myself generously is what stands in my way. This book is helping me to see that I am my most harshest critic. I am too judgmental and it is damaging to my own sense of being. Heck, the next 40 years are going to be so cool. Stay tuned.

Boy, these kids are getting old.

Rodney turns 18 this week. Naiyah is now four years old. We celebrated Nai's birthday at the house and the same is planned for Rodney.

Chloe is growing quickly

My tiny little daughter, who actually weighed several ounces more than Naiyah at birth, is growing like a weed. She is three weeks old and now weighs 7 pounds and 2 ounces. If she's anything like her sister, she will quickly move away from the 5th percentile to a more average percentile. In fact, Naiyah is taller than most of her peers.

We are currently battling the woes of thrush. The medication prescribed isn't doing much, so I am trying Gentian Violet (on the approval of the pediatrician). It turns everything purple, including Chloe's mouth.

19 hours of labor - now that's a surprise

This was, by far, the most interesting labor of all three children. I had an amnio yon Friday, which was like the earlier one (painless and very easy). The results confirmed that Chloe's lungs were developed. I was admitted around 10:30am. All paperwork and consultations were completed and I was on pitocin at 1:00pm. I walked into the hospital 3cm dilated. I honestly believed that I would have Chloe before dinner. In fact, I asked the nurse what would happen to my dinner, if I was transferred to the recovery floor. Well, that wasn't an issue. Because of my previous c-section (baby #1), I received a slow induction. They would increase the drip every 1/2 hour by 1 step. In other women, it might go up 2 or more steps each 1/2 hours.

I handled the increases in the drug without a problem. I used Hypbirth (hypnosis) to handle my contractions. I was in the zone and feeling pretty confident, but my body wouldn't create a nice pattern, so they kept increasing the drug. After about 12 hours, my body stopped responding. They increased the drugs and the intensity of the contractions decreased.

Around 4am, they decided to take me off the drug for an hour. I was at 6cm and tired. I went to sleep for an hour. At around 5am, they started the drug again. My body responded with very intense contractions, but still no real pattern, so they increased it at 6am. Around this time, I was beginning to struggle with my hypnosis. The contractions were so erratic that I couldn't sync them to the audio script. I stopped using my Ipod, which was a bad idea because I didn't have a back-up plan.

Sometime after 7am, I began to vocalize the idea of medication. The midwife and nurses kept telling me to take it one contraction at a time. I knew they were trying to get me to 10 cm, but the pain was so intense. I kept saying that I couldn't do it and they kept telling me I was doing it. Finally, they checked me and I was 10cm. No drugs were coming. I felt scared. What would the contractions feel like to push her out?

Once again, pushing was an ordeal. If birth is so natural, why don't I know how to push a baby out. After a little remedial coaching, I began to push. After each round of pushing, I would complain that I was too tired to do it. Yes, a real whiner. Finally, I decided that I was really tired and I just needed to push until the baby popped out. I did that twice until I felt the incredible pressure of her head. I took a deep breath and pushed until I felt her head come out. The rest of her was very easy and she slid out. The midwife told me to open my eyes and take my baby. She had vernix on her body, but very little other fluids. I was so excited to grab her.

I was very lucky, no tears or stitches and one completely healthy baby. Her head was normal. The ultrasound result was not accurate. She was small but not too small (5 pound 15.2 ounces). Happy Birthday Chloe!!!

Chloe will arrive in a couple of weeks

The midwives and consulting doctors have decided that Chloe should come at 37 weeks. It's a result of my semi-high blood pressure and an ultrasound that showed poor head growth. It seems that Chloe's head growth is not the same rate as her limbs or abdomen. Chloe is small, but her head seems to be smaller than normal on the ultrasound. So, they will induce me at 37 weeks, but first I must have another amnio. They need to see if her lungs are developed. This is very stressful, but I am not surprised that they want to take her early. Between the gestational diabetes and the blood pressure that is erratic, I knew that I wouldn't make it to my due date. Luckily, my blood pressure never required medication.

The End of Football Season

Well, the season has come to an end. The team didn't make it into the playoffs. We weren't surprised. The guys played their hearts out, but it may be time for some new ideas on the coaching staff. Rodney had a great four years playing with the team. I'm glad he's done and he came out of without an injury. So, it was a success.

Chloe - What does it mean?

I had an email from a friend who asked what the name Chloe means, so I decided to look it up. Here's what I found:

The girl's name Chloe \ch-loe\ is pronounced KLOH-ee. It is of Greek origin, and its meaning is "blooming". From Khloe, originally used in the classical period to symbolize the fertility goddess Demeter. May be connected with Chloris. Appears in the Bible, and as a name in literature, especially in the tale of Daphnis and Chloe, set to music by Ravel. Adopted by Puritans in the 17th century. Chloe has 6 variant forms: Clo, Cloe, Cloey, Khloe, Khloey and Kloe.

Chloe
Gender: Female
Meaning: Greenery.
Biblical context: The Biblical baby name Chloe is Greek in origin and it's meaning is greenery.

In Greek mythology, Chloe is another name of Demeter, the pagan goddess of fertility and agriculture. Chloe is pronounced khlo'-ay.

Chloe was a Christian woman of Corinth who informed Paul of the disputes within the local church. 1 Corinthians 1:11 http://www.biblical-baby-names.com/meaning-of-chloe.html


So, what about Naiyah . . .

Naiyah

Name origin: Greek

Name meaning: Water nymph


Name: Naiyah
Indian Meaning: new
Gender: girl
Origin/ Nationality: India
Continent/Source: Asia and Pacific

In Indian origin, the female name "Naiyah" means: New
In Greek origin, the female name "Naiyah" means: Flowing Water