Hi Gorgeouses! Guess who’s back? Our resident holistic nutritionist, Lori Kennedy — here to motivate and inform us! Enjoy! And, congratulations, Lori, on the birth of your baby girl! Love, all us Gorgeouses!

So I had my baby 7 weeks ago today. Let’s just say that, no matter how much you plan, things never go the way you want them to. I had a pretty traumatic birth experience where I ended up having an emergency C Section. I had midwives because I wanted a natural birth –- the exact opposite happened. The baby and I are fine and healthy, which is all that matters –- EXCEPT that I am left with a stomach that resembles the face of a walrus!

SO today I will start writing about how I plan to lose the 20 pounds I have leftover from 9 ½ months of eating whatever I wanted. (Yes, I know I am a nutritionist but I was pregnant and all my nutritionist ways went out the window –- I am human after all!) My pre-baby body was hot, if I do say so myself. It was hard work to get it and keep it, and I am determined to feel good about my body again or at least good enough to be naked in front of my husband without covering my walrus stomach with my hands.

I am sure a lot of you moms can relate. You want your body back! I am with you in your struggle. I am still wearing my maternity pants because I refuse to buy pants in bigger sizes and my pre preggo-pants don’t fit …YET!

I invite you to dedicate the next 12 weeks to getting your body back. It doesn’t matter whether you had your baby 7 weeks ago or 7 years ago –- there is no time like the present to regain your health and your self-confidence.

Here are some things that have helped me over the last 7 weeks to avoid eating the chips that my husband keeps buying.

1. Apple and 1 tablespoon of raw or roasted almond butter – BEST SNACK EVER!!! Almond butter can be quite expensive. I get mine from Costco.

2. Berries shake – fastest breakfast and portable, can drink it with one hand. All you of moms can appreciate something that only uses 1 hand.

Recipe:
1 cup mixed frozen berries
1 cup soy milk or whatever milk you want
1 cup water
1 tsp oil – I use extra virgin; you can’t taste it, use whatever oil you want – Flaxseed, hemp, canola
1 scoop protein powder – I use hemp but whey is fine too
Blend on high. Enjoy!

3. 70% Dark Chocolate –- 1 square per day

4. Cucumber, salsa and hummus — my husband came up with this
Cut up cucumber. Mix 2 tablespoons of salsa with 1 tablespoon of hummus. Use the cucumber instead of pita or bread. I keep cut up cucumber in my fridge at all times.

5. Grapes — great to munch on when you want something sweet

Goal for the week — pick 1 day to cheat and eat whatever you want. This has really helped me. My day is Saturday. I literally eat whatever I want on Saturdays. If I want crappy food during the week, I force myself to wait until Saturday. If I still want it…I eat — GUILT FREE!!!

Another tip: Have a dinner plate full of salad before you eat your dinner. Salad fills you up so you don’t eat so much at dinner.

What are some of your tips for losing your baby weight?

Lori

CHECK OUT LORI’S BIO HERE!

Got a nutrition question of your own, Gorgeouses? Ask LORI (click here to ask your question). LOVE!

I’ve decided to start my 2008 weight loss resolution early. Like, right after Josh-O brings me my chai and loaf FOR THE LAST TIME. Oh, and whad’ya know. In the space of those few sentences, my chai came and went. Yeah, I scarfed it ALL — and the little loaf, too. And, I feel like CARP now. No, I feel like CARP-OLA.

See, it’s not worth the calories. It’s just not. But, WE NEEEEEDS it. And, you know what that tells me? I’m ADDICTED. I’m addicted to the IDEA of the chai. That beautiful cup, with SLEEVE-GLORIOUS- SLEEVE! (Need sleeve.)

In the morning, I wake up. What do I think of? How, when, where, with kids or without kids, via it’sgrandma, Josh-O, etc., WILL I GET MY CHAI!? Before preschool pick-up? After? Stay there? Have it in car? Then, there are the countless other important questions of my day: tall? or grande? soy (is soy good while nursing? but OH it tastes so good in the chai!)? with water? without water? The possibilities are ENDLESS! And, I’m so pathetically indecisive!

…And, I’m feeling fluffyfat, and my skin’s inflamed with… with… DOTS — teeny dots on legs and arms.

(And, my esthetician has recommended a LOVELY organic spearmint body wash for this….)

I know it’s partly hormones from the nursing. This happened last time. Like, the dots and all.

But, it’s also diet.

Must. detox.

Am now officially in detox mode. As of a few minutes ago when Josh-O brought me my LAST CHAI — the last chai that came and went like all the others. In a flash. Leaving me WANTING MORE. And, full and miserable because it went TOO FAST.

Do I sound like an addict? Or, do I sound like an addict?

So, New Year’s Resolution 2008 (among many): CLEAN UP DARN DIET. Not just for weight loss but for attitude and overall well-being. One must not be emotionally dependent on food and drink. Food and drink must not be the CENTRE AROUND WHICH WORLD REVOLVES.

We’s done widdit. Done. Done. DUNZO.

Adieu, le chai. I now drink only BORING drinks. Like water.

Tell me, GORGEOUSES! What are your New Year’s Resolutions? Got any diet resolutions? Any you want to recommend?

Rent Ratatouille. It’s A-MA-ZING. We bought it and have watched 5 times. The animation is INCREDIBLE. Love the music. Have newfound adoration for rats.

Go check zee gossip!

Are you loving your holidays!? LOVE! xo Haley-O

I bought a nightgown. Because my belly’s getting too big to wear pants when I don’t have to. Pants hurt right now. ‘Specially at the end of a hot summer day…. And, I was at the mall buying humongous bras and I saw nighties there and I thought to myself “wouldn’t it be great to have a nightgown to wear around the house all HOT summer long? But I don’t want anything too nightgowny. No, it has to be something I could answer the door in and maybe even walk down the street in. I mean, aren’t dresses that look like lingerie SO, like, IN right now? Aren’t all the celebs wearing them?”

I asked Josh, and he said he didn’t think I could really wear this out of the house — I’m thinking he just doesn’t want any men ogling and drooling over his HOTT-MAMA wifey…. What do you think?

WHOA!!! Doesn’t it just SCREAM hott-mama wifey? Ummm…, not-so-much. I know. But, I could probably answer the door in this…, no? (Oh, by the way, it goes just down to my knees….) And, YES, I am wearing a bra. One of the humongous bras I bought with the nightie. Maybe I should be wearing two bras…. And, yes, my face is a big PUFF — especially with this DANG cold — I am aware, yes. And, yes, my belly button has POPPED…. And, no, I’m not lactating out of my left breast in this pic. It’s just water. I was cooking…. YOU try cooking with that big belly and MASSIVE boobage without getting ANYTHING on yourself. Impossible.

Here’s what I was cooking in my sexy-hott nightie….

Penne with turkey-and-vegetable sauce! And, I made enough for THE WEEK! Awesome.

I also made this Israeli salad — cucumbers, tomatoes, green peppers and avocado with oil and vinegar dressing. A big hit, and EASY (i.e., no salad spinner required! Yess!).

The monkey had her own “picky-eater” version of the dinner….

I put Canola oil and Parmesan cheese on the penne, and left the turkey plain — told her it was “hamburger” — and drizzled ketchup on it. Much to my and Josh’s AMAZEMENT, she GOBBLED up the pasta and turkey: “Mmmm! Noolels! Hambagah!” …So THIS is what Heaven feels like! LOVE it when that little monkey eats!

Speaking of that little monkey…. EVERYONE tells me how GORJ her hair is….

I always say “thank you!” to them. But, can’t I just say “I KNOOOOWWWW” already? Because, really, it’s not MY hair; it’s HER hair. But, everyone says you’re supposed to say “thank you” when someone compliments your kid. I just find it awkward. This one time?, someone told me how awesome her hair was, and I said, “yeah, but you should see it in the morning…outta control, I tell you!” I’m such a geek.

Oh, by the way? I’m still sick. It’s BRUTAL. I can hardly breathe. And, honestly? I’m, like, crying about it. Just, please don’t tell me what I MIGHT have. People do that in comments. It’s JUST a cold. When preggers, it takes FOREVER to get rid of a cold — everyone tells me this. And, everyone knows everything, so there you have it.

It’s the monkey’s first day of camp tomorrow! I go with her ‘cuz it’s a mommy-toddler camp. Exciting stuff. Wish me luck getting her into the splash pool! And, don’t worry, I don’t have to get in with her — mind you, it would save them a lot of water if I went in ‘cuz the second I’d plop my big self in there, even the littlest amount of water would overflow out the sides. Later Loves….