My Baby Weight…My Business

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Let me start by saying that I have incredibly thick skin and I am able to take what people say and think about me with a grain of salt. It also gives me the ability to shake my head and laugh at what people find important about a woman who has just had a baby. By far my favorite comment is, “when do you plan to lose the baby weight?” Well to be honest, I planned to lose the baby weight the first 3 months of her life. Then I realized, that was going to be very hard to do. That’s not to say I disagree with being healthy, it’s one of the most important things in life. But it took me 10 months to gain the weight and since I have never done this mommy thing before it’s taking a bit longer then I had planned.

my-baby-weightI will be the first to tell you I have 35 pounds to lose and believe me they will be gone eventually. Now that she is almost one I am sleeping more and eating better and have more energy. But I will also be the first to say that this first year of her life went by in a blur and it was all I could do to take care of her and semi take care of myself. And to be incredibly transparent her needs were far more important during this time. From nursing to periods of crying to all-nighters, exhaustion, loneliness and laughter, she had to come first. I facilitated naps, night time and every feeding (that happens when one won’t take a bottle) and I will stand up and say my little girl hammered through every milestone, is happy, healthy, walking and talking. So I held on to 35 pounds for a little longer then society felt I should, I am just fine with societies critique, because I know what really matters and I know I will never get her first year back. Believe me I won’t regret the time I took to care for my child.

That being said this year certainly wasn’t spent in a vacuum of baby care. I took care of my home, husband, and bonus son. I cooked and cleaned and did the grocery shopping. I coached youth cross country in the fall, held a winter running club and coached track in the spring. I also worked full time and then part time up until two weeks ago when I was laid off, while keeping my daughter home with me. And I am certain all of those super mommies out there have similar stories. We are capable of so much but we can’t do everything! And I know, if you are like me, I am a little more comfortable, a little more rested, a little more energetic every day and therefore a little more capable to take on another challenge!

Moving into her second year of life exercise tops my list as does transitioning more toddler responsibilities to my husband. I look forward to a bit more “me” time and maybe training for a race or two. I will happily watch my daughter grow and prosper and I will continue to not care about all those well meaning yet intrusive questions people feel the need to ask. I am a mom, I know what I am doing and I know who I am doing it for and that is all that matters!

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Cara DiSalvo
Hi, I am Cara. I was born and raised in Dayton, OH and live in Belmont with my husband Michael, our one year old daughter McKenzie and Lance the Dog. I am also blessed to have a 3 year old bonus son. I am currently a stay at home mom and I love (although challenging at times) every minute of it! I also enjoy running and yoga and more often then not you can find McKenzie and I at the park, DLM, lunching at one of our local favorites, the farmers market or the library. We love spending time around town and look forward to sharing our adventures with you!