Self-improvement

When i had the G, I started thinking about the kind of mother I want to be for her. I started thinking about what kind of example I can be for her. And it made me take a long hard look at myself. Like D.r.Phi.l likes to say the same sex parent has the most influence on the child.

There were a couple of things that I could see that would set a good example for her. The first was finishing my bachelor's degree. I started back in 1990, through a series of bumps in the road I left school after my second year. In 1997 I went back to school this time at a different university and was going to school full time Monday to Wednesday while working Thursday to Saturday or Sunday. The place I was working offered me a full time job at a good wage and I took it. So, I dropped out, again.

A few years ago, I looked into my original school and found out that they had a distance education degree in Adult Education. As a happy coincidence, I happened to have been working as a corporate trainer already. It seemed like fate. When I got pregnant I needed two courses to complete my degree. During my pregnancy I took two half courses and then took almost a full year to start my final course. I finished that course in December and my graduation is set for June 6th. It only took 22 years, but I will finally have my degree. A B. of Ed. in Adult Education. I am pretty proud of myself for seeing this through and think that G will think I did a good thing too when she's old enough to understand.

The other thing I really want to do for her is to present a healthy Mom. I used to be a very active person, but lately I am more like a slug. Before getting pregnant, I was almost at my highest weight ever. Due to extreme nausea and morning sickness, and perhaps healthier eating, I actually only gained 3lbs for my entire pregnancy. I guess G was fed off of my fat stores. After giving birth, I lost around 29lbs in about two to three weeks. Slowly that weight crept back up and I gained almost 15lbs of it back. I decided about a month ago that enough was enough and joined a doctor supervised weight loss program. It is pretty limiting in what you can eat and how many calories you have a day because it is designed to get the weight off quickly. I am down almost 20lbs now. I still have around 55lbs to go, but I am on my way to being a healthier example for my daughter. In addition to the diet, I am starting going to Zum.ba on Monday nights with a co-worker. I can't wait to start.

There are other things that I want to improve upon. I want to be a more positive person; H and I tend to complain about things when in fact we have things pretty good. I don't want G to be that way.

Of course, I have to stop swearing so much. She's almost talking now, so I better get that under control before there's a little parrot following me around.