Take Care of Yourself

I don't know about you, but I really hoped 2017 would be better than 2016. But man, y'all. 

I'm feeling very Liz Lemon right now. I was all into everything going on the first couple of weeks of the new administration but I had to pump the brakes. Burn out is real, and this is definitely going to be a marathon, not a sprint. 

It's easy to get discouraged, especially when you see that the dozens of calls you've made to your senators went ignored. (I'm looking at you Lankford and Inhofe.) But caring does make a difference. Some bills have been withdrawn after public outcry (why does this guy hate national parks so much?) so it's important that we keep going. 

But it's also ok to unplug. Spend time with your family. Watch tv. (Though I don't recommend watching the West Wing and House of Cards in one night right now. Last night I dreamt I was running a marathon in DC which ended in the Oval Office where I yelled at President Bartlett about how insane it was that Bannon is on the National Security Council as Frank Underwood watched.) Maybe watch something a little lighter. I'm watching Bunheads for the first time so I can keep listening to the Gilmore Guys. I also rely on the Popcast to make me laugh every week. 

And I take a bath every single night. That's something that pretty much everyone told me I'd have to give up once I had a baby, but y'all, that's my sanity saver. Even if it's a quick bath, it's my designated "me-time" every day where I'm not working or taking care of someone else. On a good night I pour a glass of wine, get some lavender dark chocolate, and settle into a bubble bath. Sometimes I read. Other times I set up the iPad and watch some Netflix. 

Those baths are how I care for me. The dishes may not get done every night, there may be laundry piled on the couch, but my bath is mandatory. 

Find something that you love and do it. Take care of yourself. 2017 may not be an easy one, but we can do it. 

The Baby Belly

Happy Friday! Popping in to say that I am coming back NEXT WEEK with a brand new series called "Gone Crunchy". In it I'll explain why I'm letting my inner hippie come out to play, and how that's going to look as we add a little girl to our family. (And I promise it will launch next week. I've already written the first post.)

But first, let's talk about something that's been bothering me recently. 

I've been dealing with a lot of comments about my body. I expected that to happen. There's something about being pregnant that makes people think they have the right to comment on every little personal detail (and ask some really inappropriate questions). But really, I've been dealing with some less than nice comments about my body for years, so I'm not that shocked. 

Here's the thing: I've gained 20 pounds over the last 31 weeks or so. My midwives tell me I'm measuring exactly where I should be. Our little girl is constantly wiggling around, elbowing me or doing some sort of dance in there. All her ultrasounds have looked perfect, and her heartbeat is always strong. There is no reason I should be concerned. 

However, everyone keeps telling me how not big I am. Seriously, everyone. We could fund our daughter's college education if I had a dollar every time someone said this to me. I know everyone has the best intentions when they say it. But hearing it over and over again, literally every time I leave the house, is starting to wear on me. It's beginning to make me wonder if I'm doing something wrong, to the point that I'm starting to lose sleep over it. 

I know most pregnant women deal with some sort of commentary about their weight gain, or lack thereof. The thing is, no two women are alike. Some carry their babies super high and straight out. Some carry low and compact. Some just have a tougher time with weight gain - others have a tough time gaining weight at all. And everyone starts at a different place! For example, here's a comparison of me at 12 weeks and me at 31 weeks:

Clearly things have changed, and I don't just mean losing my tan or the fuzzies on the tank top.(What can I say, when you wear the same thing almost every day the fuzzies are bound to happen.)

Pregnancy is hard enough without having to endure endless comments about your body. Can we all just agree to stop commenting on pregnant women's bodies? Actually, can we stop commenting on women's bodies in general? There's just so many other things we could be talking about! 

If you've made comments like this to pregnant women (or women in general), don't beat yourself up about it. But maybe next time we can talk about something else? I'd love to tell you about the nursery we've been working on, or the Hypnobabies method, or the cloth diaper stash I'm collecting. Or you know, how my business is going since leaving my 9 to 5! 

I do hope some of you are interested in the cloth diaper and Hypnobabies info, because that's totally going to be covered in the new Gone Crunchy series. So stay tuned :)

Previously on Mrs Robbins Sparkles...

One Week with a Toyota Camry

I'm currently sitting in the waiting area of a locally owned garage here in OKC, so what better time to tell you all about the recent opportunity I had to drive a new Toyota Camry?

The process of actually participating in this opportunity was a bit of a comedy of errors. I was invited to attend an OSU football game, complete with a pre-game tailgate and two tickets to the game, and I was super excited! (OK, I would've been more excited if it had been OU, but it was a big game.) But the day of the game was also the day my dogs escaped and I totally ate concrete while chasing them. So I missed out on that chance (though I hear it was a lot of fun!). 

And then the day finally arrived when that gorgeous new Toyota was delivered. I couldn't be home when they dropped it off, and I got a call from my husband around 3 that day asking if there was supposed to be a car in our driveway...because there wasn't! Apparently they delivered the car to my neighbor's house. So James decided to move it for me. But he called me after about 5 minute because he couldn't figure out how to start the car. 

It turns out that he had been starting the car each time he tried, but because the Camry was a hybrid he couldn't hear it start! He moved the car to our driveway, and I hurried home to see what I had to drive. And y'all, it was definitely pretty! Both inside and out.

This was a super nice model, complete with heated seats. As someone who is constantly cold (and currently dealing with pregnancy related back pain) I absolutely adored those! That night James and I took the car on a little drive to dinner and to do some last minute Christmas shopping. I loved the safety features, like the alerts if I drifted too close to the center lane (something that happens often when driving rural Oklahoma roads - sometimes you have to cross the center line to avoid the massive potholes!). 

The gas mileage on this car was nuts. While I actually didn't get a chance to drive it too much, thanks to the ice storm that hit our area just after Christmas, I was amazed at how little gas I used. Of course, this model was a hybrid so it naturally has much better gas mileage than a non-hybrid model. The estimated mpg is 43 city/39 highway/41 combined, which is incredible as someone who used to drive a vehicle with 17 mpg combined! Honestly, I've always assumed hybrids were a bit of a pain. It totally wasn't! 

The other thing I really enjoyed was the media system. That's definitely the biggest struggle I've had with my personal vehicle, but setting up my iPhone with the Camry's Bluetooth system was very easy. Plus my husband loved the satellite radio - and the super soft leather interior ;)

The only bad thing about my time with the Camry? The fact that I had it during the ice storm and couldn't really drive it much! I'm not sure how it would've handled on the icy roads, but I didn't want to risk it. Though I didn't want to risk driving in general! I didn't take my own vehicle out at all during that time either. 

I think this might have been the first time I ever drove a Toyota. I grew up in a GM loyal family, and my first two vehicles were a Chevy Camaro and a Chevy Silverado. I didn't look at Toyota when I was shopping for my current vehicle (a Mazda CX-5, which I do like) but next time I'm in the market for a new car, I'll definitely stop at a Toyota dealership too! 

Big thanks to Toyota for this opportunity! It was a pleasure to drive your vehicle :)

Previously on Mrs Robbins Sparkles...