Going Solo

These past few days have given me a new-found respect for single mums ( & those mums whose partners don't contribute to the household).  At touch last week Nathan hurt his ankle.  I was busy chatting to Isaac on the sidelines when I heard someone say "I think Nathan's hurt - he's limping." Now, Nathan has a habit of limping after playing most sports so I said "Oh, that's just how he is after a bit of a run."  I looked up briefly to see Nathan collapse on the ground, rolling and clinging to his foot.   So after gaining a reputation as an uncaring wife, I dutifully found some ice and took Nathan home at half time.  A trip to the physio later and we establish that whilst his Achilles tendon is intact, it's undergone a fair bit of trauma and Nathan needs to stay off it as much as possible.   These past few days, he has taken residence on the couch, with his ankle iced and elevated.  Unfortunately, Isaac has chosen this exact time to go through a clingy "only- mummy-will-do" phase.  Balancing a crying baby, whilst making dinner and cleaning with no help has given me a new perspective on both how much Nathan does do around the house as well a small insight into single mum's lives.  Nathan is of course terribly frustrated that he cannot settle Isaac at the moment.  The other day he was determined to hold him.  Isaac cried and looked at me beseechingly through the tears, his chubby little hands reaching out.  I looked beseechingly at Nathan to hand him over.  "No, he needs to learn that he can't always go to you."  Eventually the tears stopped but it does make me wonder how we will manage when I go back to work.

Exercise & Body Stuff

I always hoped to be one of those women who slip back into their pre-baby jeans a few weeks after birth.  Unfortunately, this is not to be - I am stuck somewhere between a size 12 & 14 and nothing fits quite right.  My size 10 jeans are currently sitting in the closet mocking me.  The baby belly belt still comes out occasionally to make pants fit.  I can forget about any of my tighter fitting pre-baby tops as my previously modest breasts have taken on Pammy proportions.   However, as much as I want to lose those kgs, exercise and eating well seem a bit like hard work.  Particularly as breast feeding has turned me back into a teenager, appetite-wise.  As some one who has always been fairly slim for my height without having to do too much about it, I range from total apathy about the situation to feeling a little depressed.  But not really depressed enough to do much about it.  During pregnancy I religiously did a pilates DVD each and every morning.  Now, Isaac's feeding time pretty much coincides with when I used to do that exercise.   I know that I shouldn't whinge about it and I should just do something about it, but it's so much easier said than done.   I really prefer team sports and to do that we need to organise a baby sitter.

The other night my best friend minded Zac and I played touch football after about a year being away from it.  I play with my husband's work team.  Apart from clearly demonstrating how unfit I have become (and to be honest I wasn't that fit to start with!), I had a great time.  I love and adore being a mother but there are moments when you wish you could capture parts of your life pre-baby.  Being back out on the touch field felt a bit like that.  So perhaps exercise is not only an option to bring back the pre-baby girlish body, but also an opportunity to touch base with that pre-baby girl.