Last Friday someone asked if I was pregnant with my second.  That would be great...except that I amnot pregnant at all.  But it was not just a question, oh no people.  It went something like this:

Woman from my DryCleaner:  Runs out from behind the counter-gives me a huge hug. (nice right?ummm...) Then proceeds to grab my shoulders, hold me at arms length, smile, hug me again and rub my belly...(yes, this happened) and exclaims with pure joy “baby number two!”

Me:  Staring down at my toes “Ummm, no.  I’m just a little fat.”

I know what you are thinking-I must still be rather large from having Ms. M.  Look it, I am the first to admit I am larger than I was pre-baby, but I am not huge.  Well at least I didn’t think so until my ego was shattered last Friday.  

You can judge for yourself.  Here is a picture me 8 months preggers and one of Ms. M and I today leaving for a meeting with Linda Wellbrock, President of Leading Women Entrepreneurs. (One of the perks of being an entrepreneur is I can bring my kid to meetings with me!-Thanks Linda!)

*New Years Eve 2011

*Leaving for our morning meeting 

Ok, now that you have formed your own opinion about my relative thin/fat ratio lets talk about this stuff.

*P.S. I would love to hear anyone else’s stories-I really hope I am not alone here in the post baby body blues.   Please!!!!!

1.) I have decided this is the only time in my life I may possibly be thinner than Jessica Simpson.

2.) What I am going to do about my broken ego and why my daughter motivated me to finally commit to being healthier.

Jessica Simpson is Haunting me this week:

I am not totally oblivious to the fact that working out is the answer to my weight issue so in a fit of tears and sniffles I set out for the gym.  (It took me 30 minutes to find my gym membership card since it hasn’t seen the light of day in 12 months.)

I head straight to the dreaded treadmill.  Fire it up and start out, perhaps, a little too aggressive for my out-of-shape physique.  My towel falls onto the moving band between my feet and in what seemed like slow motion I look down and reach for the shooting piece of white cloth which in a rather unfortunate chain of events sends me flying a$$-over-tea kettle off the back of the machine.  Luckily it was 2:00 in the afternoon so only about 10 people were lucky enough to enjoy this little performance of gymnastical dexterity.  

Why is this relevant?   As soon as collect my pride the first song on the large screen tv meant to inspire me is a pre-pregnancy, Nick Lackey era Jessica Simpson.  This is not helping.

Yes, like the majority of America I have been following the “Jessica Simpson Pregnancy” coverage.  I now seem to think of her as eternally pregnant.  But it also made me think, wow...this is what I am comparing myself too?

The blond staple of gossip magazines who we love not in-spite of but FOR her failures.  I can’t remember a single song she ever sang but I do know she commands a fashion empire worth nearly $1bn.

She is human and likable-not to mention curvy.  Here is the rub, she has always been curvy and as a pregnant woman who has gained over 50 pounds she is very very curvy, but, as a fashion mogul with celebrity status she has been able to do two things the rest of us mere mortals can not: 

• Design her own line of Maternity Wear to ensure she always looks fabulous. 

• Sign a lucrative contract with Weight Watchers for her post-baby weight loss.

*My guess-she looks better than ever after the baby.

Get It Together Girl:

So what am I going to do about it?  Truth, I don’t know exactly.  I don’t think there is any magic bullet or pill to make you the size you want to be.  I think there is hard work and a commitment to being healthier.  But that is easier said than done.

Our worlds are so crazy these days between managing kids, aging parents, houses, jobs and friends that sometimes it feels like we can’t fit it all in, let alone time for ourselves.  

Then I remembered my amazing business partner had written a terrific post back in Nov. all about sticking to your workout!  “Five Easy Ways to Stick to Your Workout During the Winter”

*Read here for the whole article

In a nut shell:

• Set Small Goals
• Weigh AND Measure
• Have a Plan of Action
• Schedule Your Workouts

The upside is at the end of the day no matter if I lose that dreaded 15 pounds or not my little girl loves me.  She is the best blessing I could ever hope to receive  and if the price is I am a size or two bigger  that is ok with me.

In the meantime, I am going to work my tusshie off to try to get back into a bathing suit for the summer!!