June | 2017 | Goddard Family

Announcement…

I have finally reached my pre-pregnancy weight!

Yay!

It has taken me the longest this time – about 14 months. But I stuck at it and here I am 16kg lighter and at the same weight I was before I became pregnant with Willow.

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I’m also feeling the fittest I’ve felt in a long time. I’ve been running and cycling outdoors 3-4 times a week and walking on the other days. The exercise has benefited me in more ways than one. I was prescribed exercise as part of my treatment for the anxiety attacks that I had been having and it has helped a lot. Not only does exercise release serotonin, the ‘happy’ hormone. It also gets rid of stored up adrenaline in the body that contributes to anxiety. I always exercise outdoors which gives me a boost of fresh air and sunshine, which are both great mood enhancers and give me an energy burst.

This may be a good time to make another announcement…

I have been writing a book on postpartum weight loss.

The content is 3 quarters of the way finished. Then I am getting some photography and graphic design done to bring it all together.

The release date of this book – which doesn’t have an official name yet- is mid 2018.

I will give you more information as the time of release gets closer.

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So what did I do exactly to lose all the weight again? I mainly followed the Trim Healthy Mama way of eating. Sometimes strictly and at times pretty loosely. That may explain why it took me so long this time. Over time as I began to learn more about nutrition and what foods help me lose weight I began to write my own detailed weekly eating plans. The plans include a weeks worth of breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks, drinks – everything. I am including these plans for you to see in my new book.

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It feels great to be able to pull out some clothes that have been packed away for so long in my ‘too small’ clothes bag. Trying on new clothes is exciting again because I am enjoying the size I am. It hasn’t been a smooth weight loss journey either. For the first three months postpartum I lost nothing. I wasn’t really being very strict with my eating at first though. In the past I would lose weight initially without even trying much then later on I would have to work harder to lose the last 10kg. This time was different. I had to be strict with what I ate if I wanted to lose any weight at all. I had to say no to comfort eating. I also reached a plateau when I only had 1kg to go and I stayed that weight for several weeks.

I almost gave up and decided that I feel okay at leaving my weight where it was. It was a healthy weight for me and that would have been fine. But I took a look at some of the pre pregnancy weight clothes that still didn’t quite fit and thought – I’m not going to give up!

I revved up my exercise sessions to 45 minutes each instead of 20-30 and I followed the eating plans I designed for myself more strictly and was extra careful about what I ate after tea.

And…I did it!

Now it’s time to enjoy and maintain and set some new goals.

Blessings, Peta xo

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My three eldest children are now aged 7, 6 and almost 5. I felt at the beginning of this year that they are old enough to be doing chores now. They’ve been helping me out with bits and pieces around the house since they were toddlers (mainly just tidying up toys or carrying groceries in from the car) but I thought it was time to make chores an official part of their days. I have chosen a few chores each based on what I feel like I need help with the most and what I believe would be achievable for them. I want them to be a little challenged but not to the point that they are overwhelmed by their tasks. I really want my children to grow up understanding what it takes to run a household. By giving them chores they are developing character while learning good skills that they’ll need for the rest of their lives.

This is the current chore list and later I’ll share what I do to keep them motivated.

7.5 year old son:

Put away all the clean dishes from the drying rack
Take the recycling out to the recycling bin
Put away clean washing

6 year old son:

Tidy up shoe racks
Empty and rinse out the compost bucket
Put away clean washing

Almost 5 year old daughter:

Clear off the breakfast table
Put clean washing away

These are their daily chores. They put their own washing away after I deliver it folded and placed in their rooms in plastic tubs a few times a week.

Lets face it sometimes children, (AND adults!!) are in a stinky mood or are occupied by something else and really don’t want to do their chores. To attempt to conquer this problem and to make daily chores fun I made up a simple chart. It is just a piece of A4 paper with their names on it.

If they do their chores…

Straight away without being distracted
Well
Without any whining or complaining

They get a tick on the chart. When they get seven ticks I give them a chocolate bar, Freddo Frog or a mini pack of Maltesers!

This is working at the moment! What a blessing it is to have the children helping out! I’m thinking of introducing table chores for everyone to help clean up after our evening meal. I’ve been putting it off because the children (and myself) are usually pretty tired and grumpy by this time of the day but it is usually daddy who cleans the whole kitchen by himself after tea while I get the baby and toddler ready for bed or help the older ones have showers. It might be time to change up our schedule in the evening a bit to share the load of the evening kitchen clean up.

Do your children have chores?

Do you give them any rewards or allowances? Leave a comment and share what’s working …or not working for your household.