Books I am having trouble finding a new audio book. I got Heartburn by Nora Ephron, narrated by Meryl Streep, and I loved listening to Streep again but am not in the headspace for clever humor. In fact, I didn't realize it was supposed to be funny until I read a blurb on it. I think it *is* funny, I am just too tired for clever humor. So I returned that and made it to the front of the queue for Build the Life you Want by Arthur Brooks and Oprah Winfrey... and it's too smart for me. I'm too tired to be smart. I waited sooo long for this book though, and every time I listen I realize I've zoned out.
I think I need to listen to some sort of soft fiction, like Emily Henry. Or maybe Fantasy or Science Fiction? I am 29th in line for Fourth Wing with a 14 week wait. I'm currently reading The Cheat Sheet which I'm enjoying, but reading slowly as I am defaulting to my phone too much for night feeds.
Phone Use. Iphone are so good for escaping. I am definitely using it to escape, because lots of my life is mentally dull (rocking a pram, bouncing a baby in a wrap) or uncomfortable (baby crying, night feeds where I wish I was asleep) right now. I would love to embrace all the intentionality I see around at the moment... but I'm so tired. I am looking forward to a time when my headspace is less tired, and I need to make sure that the phone is not keeping me in the tired headspace longer than needed.
Weight loss. There's some really interesting blogging on weight and weight goals going around the internets right now. Elisabeth's post here is so honest and interesting. I definitely lean towards intuitive eating, although right now I am eating everything and anything. I’m also breastfeeding twins.
If you want to lose weight quickly I recommend getting pregnant then having the baby, as evidence by this graph here:
Outside This week I went for two long walks in the woods and I am so so happy I did. One of the (many) tricky parts of twins is I can't just stick them in a carrier and go for a walk. Thankfully I've had friends who like walking visit two days this week and each of us carried a baby into the woods. Prams/Strollers are fine, but I love the feeling of walking on uneaven surfaces without pushing a heavy twin pram around. And while they do make twin carriers, I do not want to stop through the woods with 22 pounds of baby strapped to me. I didn't want to stop through the woods with 22 pounds of baby inside me.
I am just so impressed you have enough brain power left in the midst of TWIN babies, and FOUR kids to keep blogging. Thank you! I love hearing about your days and nights -- reminds me of a special time in my life, and to appreciate the current time of my life (which is spent helping take care of a medically complex grandchild...so I'm tired a lot too).
ReplyDeleteI'm super picky about audiobooks, too, so I feel you on that. Good luck on your hunt. Thank You For Listening by Julia Whelan is my rec for a great, fluffy audiobook!
ReplyDeleteI was actually thinking I need something like “thank you for listening” - that’s exactly the fluffy audiobook I’m after. But I already listened to it while I had pregnancy insomnia last year. -Rachel
DeleteOoh hot tip! Lose 19 pounds in one day by giving birth to twins!!! Looks like we've got the new hot diet craze of 2024.
ReplyDeleteLol lol, but yes after babies get a bit bigger you'll be able to concentrate on books, spend less time on your phone, adjust ratio of chocolate cake to veggies, and walk WITH the kids instead of carrying the kids...it's all on the way I promise you.
I did not see the connection between all my things and babies untill you posted. Thanks for the pep talk! -Rachel
DeleteI did not love Heartburn, although I do like some Ephron books and was excited that it was Meryl narrating...but it did not do it for me. My go to for when I don't want to think too much is thriller or murder mysteries. I don't know if you have read The Wife Upstairs, or The Golden Couple, but both of them were in that genre, don't require thinking and if you miss a bit, it is not the end of the world.
ReplyDelete22 lbs of babies could really keep your weight loss chart headed downwards! Or could give you all kinds of back problems. Thank goodness you have friends who are willing to share the load!
I am trying to tell myself I don't care about losing the baby weight, and that it will all come off super easily while I eat whatever I'd like (like it did last time). But i popped on the scale at a doctor's appointment with Althea the other day and I was up a pound from my 6 week postpartum visit! I'm surprised it bothered me so much, but it did. Weight stuff is tough.
ReplyDeleteIt is tough! And if I was gaining no weight or not losing weight I probably couldn’t change anything now anyways so it’s basically pure luck that I’m still losing weight, although I’m fairly sure that will stop soon. It also might be weight loss of atrophying muscles?
DeleteThankfully no one weighs me here and the kids excitement at seeing their (and my) “numbers” makes weighing fun at the moment. But if I had to get weighed at an appointment I would be dreading it. I was annoyed they weighed me at the 12 week scan (my first appt) and I was already up 5 lbs… which made sense when I found out it was twins but also I don’t understand how knowing my 12 week pregnant weight changed anything:
I was glad that weighing myself was always optional during and after my pregnancy. I did it sometimes and I skipped it other times. And yet I tied value to it; first I was kicking myself for gaining "too much" even though I was eating well and working out regularly. Then I felt great that I had lost so much by 6 weeks, even though it wasn't through anything I was doing (except the choice to breastfeed, i guess). It's so silly and arbitrary. All I really want is to get strong again and to fit back into my pants and the number on the scale doesn't matter for either of those.
DeleteI recently listened to Heartburn as well. I liked hearing Meryl Streep, but I didn't find the book itself very funny. My step mom read it and thought it was hilarious.
ReplyDeleteWhen I had my daughter, I gained 35 lbs. I lost 25 lbs in the first month, and the last 10 took me 4 years. I breastfed, but it didn't help with all of it. My sister couldn't eat enough and lost all of her baby weight really quickly, ended up a little underweight for a bit. Every person is different I guess.
I recently listened to a light book I liked, 'Maybe Once, Maybe Twice' by Alison Rose Goldberg.
I just listened to The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope and thought it was pretty great - it's a historical fantasy/ heist novel set DC's Black Broadway of 1925, and narrator's fantastic. I found it by looking through the list of recent Audie Award winners.
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