15 Days to a Better You!

Two weeks after Lily was born, I found myself needing some "me" time. Luckily there was Enrichment Night to save me. I went with Kari to the Christmas White Elephant party - what a hoot! I had started pumping milk to store since my milk had come in. I was really excited that Mike could watch Lily so I could be gone for a few hours. I was even more excited that I looked smokin' hot! In the two weeks after Lily was born I had gone back to my pre-pregnancy size, all thanks to the Belly Bandit. Mike bought it for me for an early Christmas present and it was great! I didn't really have much to lose anyway (about 10 lbs) but I really didn't expect to be back in my jeans before Valentine's Day. It was a real boost to my self esteem to have women who had been pregnant compliment me on how good I looked. I wore the Belly Bandit out, so that helped "suck it in" too! This was also the first time I'd left Lily alone with Mike (with a bottle of pumped milk). She threw a fit over drinking out of a bottle and by the time I came home, both of them were so upset.

She'd already drank 2 ounces from the bottle, but acted hungry when I snuggled her, so I went ahead and let her nurse. Bad idea! She overfilled her tummy and projectile vomited all the milk all over me. It was sad and funny. It took two times of that happening for me to realize she wasn't hungry after her bottle, she wanted comfort.
I had to leave half a dozen times to take my finals. I was really thrilled to show off my pre-preggo self to my classmates, most of whom were under 20. One month after Lily was born, I graduated with my Accounting AAS with a 3.96 GPA. I also was awarded high honors from my professors for being an exemplary student. I was thrilled!Yes, I was a cheerleader. For semester. And then I got pregnant. And the squad was disbanded for lack of participation. Wasn't I hot?

In the middle of December, Sister Sherri Kuoppola brought us a dinner that I'll never forget. To be fair, a few other women brought us dinner, but sister Kuoppola's blew me away! It is now my favorite meal to make, and it's so easy to change up. I've named it Kuoppola Pasta in her honor:

3-4 chicken breasts, cubed

1 chicken bouillon cube

1 garlic clove

1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (I blender this to get out the chunks)

1 small can sliced mushrooms (I leave it out unless I have it on hand, and then I blender it)

1 pkg cream cheese (chunked up)

1 pint heavy whipping cream

1 bag mozzerella

½ cup italian blend cheese or parmesan

1 box pasta (cooked)

Saute cubed chicken in oil. Add bouillon, garlic, tomatoes, and mushrooms. Heat through. Add cream cheese, whipping cream and cheese. Simmer until hot. It will thicken up the longer it cooks. Remove from heat and add cooked pasta. Mix well and serve! Feeds 10