Please bear with me for a few days while I complete this project. I think it will ultimately make the blog a lot more user-friendly to those who are searching for specific information.

Building a healthy feeding relationship through baby-led weaning.

I recently attended a dietician-led discussion about building healthy feeding relationships with children. There was one concept that particularly resonated with me, which is as follows.

The parent-child feeding relationship consists of five responsibilities:

1. When to offer food;
2. Where to offer food;
3. What food(s) to offer;
4. How much to eat; and
5. Whether or not to eat.

The first three are the responsibility of the parent; the last two are the responsibility of the child. Feeding problems arise when parents lose sight of which responsibilities belong to whom. 

It’s simple, yet brilliant.

The dietician went on to explain each of the five responsibilities:

1. When to offer food. Food should be offered at routine, designated meal (and snack) times. Evidently, toddlers do not have the same understanding of the hunger reflex that older children and adults do (I didn’t know this!), so they may use “I’m hungry” as a stalling tactic, or to express another need, such as thirst, sleep or comfort. Conversely, when they are hungry, they may say they are not, especially if they are absorbed in other activities. Children should not be permitted to graze throughout the day.

2. Where to offer food. Food should be offered in an upright seated position, ideally at the family table. Lounger seats are not safe places to feed babies, as the reclining position interferes with the gagging process that helps to prevent choking. Food should not be given in the car seat (dangerous!), stroller, or on the run. It is easiest to cultivate the habit of sitting nicely at the table when the expectation to do so is laid out from the very beginning. Start as you mean to go on.

3. What foods to offer. Children should eat the same foods as the rest of the family, and should not be given special “children’s meals.” There are exceptions to this rule in the early months and/or years, as certain foods (e.g. nuts, grapes, popcorn, etc.) present a choking hazard. Components of the family meal can be prepared in different ways to make them safer or more developmentally appropriate for young children; for example, cooked to a softer texture, broken into small pieces, or mashed with a fork.

4. How much to eat. It is up to the child to decide which of the offered foods he wishes to eat, and how much of each food he will consume. As adults, we have the freedom to decide not to cook or serve a food that we don’t particularly feel like eating, and it is only fair to respect that our children may have different food preferences on different days. It is okay, however, to insist that a child taste (but not eat) every food offered, as only through repeated exposures will children learn to accept new foods. Children need not eat a “balanced diet” at every meal, or even every day. More important is the aggregate of nutrients consumed over the course of a week (or longer).

5. Whether or not to eat. A child should sit at the table for the duration of the meal, and should be offered food, but they should never be forced, coerced or bribed to eat. In the early months of feeding, it is very common for babies to only play with their food, and/or to spit everything out. As children get older, they may decide that they do not wish to eat, and that is okay. A parent can simply refrigerate the child’s meal to have it available should the child decide he is hungry at a later time. It is important not to “reward” refusal to eat by offering the child foods other than those that were served at the meal.

Do you agree or disagree with this philosophy? What techniques or rules have you used to help build a healthy feeding relationship with your child(ren)?

It almost didn’t happen. After I booked the appointment (to coincide with Oliver’s morning at daycare), I realized that the daycare was going to be closed on Friday for professional development. I would have had to reschedule for next Thursday, but fortunately, J came to the rescue by foregoing the first couple of hours of his workday to stay home with Oliver.

I have six personal training sessions, which I am using to ease myself back into CrossFit. Mainly, I want to work on my lifting technique, to ensure that I have not fallen into any bad habits on account of several months of pregnancy lifting (big belly, shifting centre of gravity, etc.) followed by a long break.

On Friday, we worked on cleans. I was put through various drills to work on generating power from the hip and keeping the bar close to my body. My coach took at least half a dozen videos, which we analyzed frame-by-frame to find even the smallest flaws in my technique.

Although I never did an actual workout, and although the weights I worked with were extremely light (never exceeding 65 pounds), I am sore. Pathetic. But at least I am sore in all the right places, and equally sore on both sides, which means I was doing something right. My homework for the week is to practice cleans at super-slow speed, using a dowel, to reinforce the correct movement patterns.

It felt great to be back in an actual gym, and to have an uninterrupted hour in which to focus 100 percent on me — and on something about which I am very passionate. And as if that wasn’t enough, I arrived back home to a napping baby, vacuumed floors and the cloth diaper laundry finished! Sorry ladies, he’s taken .

The sequel takes place on Thursday. I can hardly wait!

A carnival provides a venue for bloggers to gain more exposure to the larger community, and for existing readers to find new blogs to follow.

The next carnival will take place on: Friday, June 22nd.

The topic will be:  “Play is the work of the child.” (~Maria Montessori)

This is a very broad topic, so feel free to be as general or specific as you like, thinking in terms of information and ideas that other parents might find helpful. Your post could be as simple as a list of favourite toys or activities for a given age, or as complicated as an essay about the benefits and drawbacks of electronic toys… or anything in between! Here are some ideas to get you started:

How do you play with your child? What are your favourite games to play together? What are your favourite activities to do together, either in general, or specific to where you live? How do you facilitate active play within the context of small living spaces, urban environments or challenging climates? Which toys does your child enjoy most? Which toy purchases have provided the best value? Do you allow your child to play with electronic toys? Why or why not? Do you allow your child to use digital media toys (e.g. the iPad)? Why or why not? What constitutes an “educational” toy? How do you encourage independent play and/or cooperative play? How do you encourage creative play? How do you interact or “play” with your baby in utero? 

Please forward all submissions to: carli (at) onefitmom (dot) ca

The deadline for submissions is: 23:59 PDT Friday, June 15th.

Guidelines:

1. The post should be previously unpublished (ideally all new content, but at the very least, a completely revised version of an old post). Recommended length is 500 to 800 words, but you are free to convey your point of view in as few or as many words as you require.

2. The post must be edited and “print-ready” before submission. Please do not submit drafts, and please have someone proof-read your work. Posts that are laden with spelling and grammar errors — or that are irrelevant to the specified topic — will be excluded from the carnival.

3. I reserve the right to exclude posts from the carnival for content that would be deemed by any reasonable human being to be offensive or inappropriate, so please keep the profanity to a minimum and avoid expressing opinions that are racist/sexist/homophobic/etc. (Not that I actually expect to have any problems with this!)

4. Once your post has been accepted to the carnival, do not publish your post before the carnival date. I will email each participant with posting instructions before the day of the carnival.

5. All blog posts remain the property of their authors. If your post is not included in the carnival, you are of course still welcome to publish it on your own blog, without linking to the carnival.

Eggs, cucumber, orange and apple. Take that, PediaSure!

It sounds completely ludicrous when I put it that way, doesn’t it? But it’s true: apparently you can help your picky little eater get all the nutrition he or she needs with paediatrician-recommended milkshakes.

With Canadian and U.S. breastfeeding rates reaching their highest levels on record, and government mandates imposing limits on formula manufacturers’ marketing capabilities (e.g. hospitals no longer providing routine formula samples to new moms), formula companies have begun to branch out to new markets. I had to laugh when I was pregnant, and noticed that Similac is now promoting a “formula” for pregnant and lactating women, Similac Mom. But what I definitely don’t find amusing in the slightest is the emerging trend towards formula products for toddlers and older children.

This is not a criticism of parents who choose to feed formula to their infants. Infants have a developmental need for liquid nutrition, whether that comes from the breast, a bottle of formula, or some combination of both. What gets me riled up is the way marketers prey on parents’ insecurities to promote a product that is not only completely unnecessary for the average child, but may even adversely affect the child’s future health status and nutrition habits (more on that later).

Take PediaSure Complete (from the manufacturers of Similac), for example. PediaSure was originally designed as a nutritional supplement for sick children, children with specific digestive/metabolic disorders, children with identified nutritional deficiencies, children with growth or weight gain problems, and children who have developmental problems that make it difficult or impossible to consume age-appropriate solid foods. But now, the manufacturer has created a mainstream product for otherwise healthy children aged one through 10 (i.e. children who have outgrown traditional baby formula) to “help fill the holes in your picky eater’s diet.”

The offshoot website, PickyEating.ca, outlines a plethora of potential feeding difficulties, for which the solution to all issues includes the recommendation to supplement with PediaSure Complete. One such feeding difficulty is “parental concern.”

“You may think your child is small relative to other children, but your doctor tells you your child is growing normally. Your child is active and playful, but when it comes to eating, you can’t help being concerned that he/she is not eating as well as he/she should. Like all parents, you want the best for your child and you understand how important a balanced diet is to growth and development. Perhaps you are more concerned than you need to be. Still, you want to be sure your child receives all the nutrition he or she needs to thrive.”

Source: http://pickyeating.ca

In other words, “Even if your child does not actually need a nutritional supplement, and your doctor assures you that your child is fine, you should probably err on the side of caution and buy this product — if anything, to alleviate your own concerns.”

Notwithstanding questionable marketing practices, let’s consider the ingredients in these so-called “nutritional supplements.” The PediaSure Complete website declines to provide an ingredients list; instead providing only a list of the various nutrients the product contains — all the good stuff; none of the bad. But I have examined the actual product in store. PediaSure’s second ingredient, after (nutritionally-insignificant) water, is sugar! Aside from water, the highest volume ingredient in a so-called “nutritious” drink for children is sugar. And after sugar? Maltodextrin. In other words, more sugar. These beverages also contain artificial flavourings and a variety of altered proteins and oils.

In case you have a really picky eater who won’t even consume a sugar-laden milkshake, PediaSure offers a variety of convenient junk food recipes to help you cram the product down your child’s gullet, with healthful additions like chocolate syrup, sugar, marshmallows, Bisquick and Dream Whip. Hey parents: now you can boost your child’s nutrition with chocolate creamsicles!

I don’t mean to rag on mainstream formula manufacturers exclusively, because even the venerable Dr. Sears, attachment parenting guru extraordinaire, has his own brand of sugary “big kid formula,” Cool Fuel.

“Cool Fuel contains all the nutrition your kids need to be healthy and to perform at their best in and out of the classroom. Unlike Pediasure that contains chemicals, food dyes, soybean oil and high amounts of sugar, Cool Fuel is all natural with a taste your kids will love. Whether your kids need more focus at school, more energy in the playground, more growth, or more taste because they are picky eaters, then Cool Fuel is for cool kids like them. And cool moms like you.”

Source: http://www.drsearsfamilyessentials.com

With such nutritious ingredients as corn maltodextrin and dried cane syrup (um… sugar) listed second (after water) and fourth respectively, and with numerous refined and processed proteins, oils and emulsifiers, who wouldn’t want to feed this “all natural” product to their children? Especially with Dr. Sears’ implied promise of better grades, superior athleticism and optimal growth.

In addition to PediaSure and Cool Fuel, other “formula” products for older children include:

• Nestlé’s Kid Essentials (the children’s version of Boost), whose second through fourth ingredients are sugar, maltodextrin and fructose — and which also contains artificial flavour.
• Herbalife Kids shake mix, containing fructose, sugar and dextrin as its second through fourth ingredients.

In my opinion, these supplements amount to nothing more than lipstick on a pig. Sure, they may contain “26 essential nutrients for growth,” or be “a good source of (insert latest over-hyped micronutrient here),” but adding vitamins, minerals and macronutrients to a product absolutely does not negate the deleterious effects of sugars, artificial flavours and altered proteins and oils. Heck, even FrootLoops are fortified with essential nutrients, but nobody in their right mind would consider those healthy!

While these products contain many of the nutrients necessary to support children’s growth and development, there is very little clinical research proving that the synthetic vitamins and minerals used for fortification are as bioavailable as those occurring naturally in whole foods. Nutritional supplements are not the equivalent of a nutritious diet.

Aside from the problems identified above, my biggest concern is that the use of these products outside of clinically necessary circumstances does nothing to help children enjoy (or at the very least accept) healthy, nutrient-dense foods. Instead, it conditions them to prefer the sweetened, hyper-palatable foods that contribute to lifestyle diseases, such as obesity, heart disease and type II diabetes. Under the guise of helping to improve children’s diets, these products are — inadvertently or otherwise — exacerbating the very feeding problems they purport to resolve.

In reality, the only way that most children will come to accept nutritious foods as the mainstay of their diet is through repeated exposure to healthy foods and removal of undesirable junk foods. In the absence of more appealing (i.e. sugary, fatty, salty, processed) options, children will not starve themselves.

What do you think about nutritional supplement shakes for children? Am I being too condemnatory and cynical? Do they in fact have an appropriate place in the diets of picky eaters, or are they just another insidious means to get children hooked on sugary, hyper-palatable foods?

Playing at the park.

Off to the yacht club for Opening Day celebrations.

Not very happy about having to wear a hat.

With Daddy, at the new park downtown.

Peek-a-boo!

The end

I didn’t make it to the gym in the morning, but I ran in the evening.

Now here is where I totally backtrack on last Thursday’s supposed conclusions :). The more I think about my early morning workout aspirations, the less I like the idea, and the more I realize that I simply have to find a way to make evening workouts work for me and my family. I love working out in the evening; I really do. It’s when I’m at my finest. It’s a satisfying way to end my day, and it helps me sleep soundly at night.

Although I won’t be able to train five evenings per week due to my part-time work commitments, I should be able to manage four evenings throughout the summer months, and three thereafter. By the time fall rolls around, I expect Oliver to be in daycare long enough that I can get to the gym mid-day on Thursdays and Fridays, to compensate for any evenings I miss.

Yesterday evening started out as a bit of a jumble, since J came home from work later than expected and the steaks I had taken out of the freezer to thaw were still half frozen. So we fed Oliver an early supper on his own (tuna, avocado and bananas — yum!), bathed him, and got him off to bed. Then we had our supper. Then I did some laundry and tidying, sold some surplus baby stuff on Craigslist, and ran out to track down a few copies of this Vancouver Sun article (I’m in it!) while I digested my steak and salad.

Finally, I strapped on my FiveFingers KomodoSport shoes, grabbed my Gymboss timer (yes, those are shameless sponsored links to my Amazon Store :) ), and was ready for my run.

Those who know me well know that I am notorious for throwing myself back into workouts with such vigour that I render myself essentially immobile for days afterwards. I knew that if I was going to be able maintain any consistency with my new training routine, I’d have to start with something a little bit less punishing. Something that wouldn’t aggravate my IT band, which had been bothering me in Hawaii (this is what happens when you combine a diet high in junk food, being generally de-conditioned, and wearing flip-flops). Something that would leave me sore, but not too sore to go back for more.

I settled on eight sets of run/walk intervals: two minutes of running followed by one minute of brisk walking. I managed to keep my IT band pain-free, which bodes extremely well for continued training. From a cardio standpoint, the run was too easy, but muscles need to be re-conditioned more slowly. This morning I am stiff — but not so sore as to be unable to do something again this evening.

In all of these months, I’d almost forgotten the sheer exhilaration of running the seawall on a quiet spring evening; the air an intoxicating blend of ocean, cherry blossoms, tulips and freshly-cut grass. I love the feeling of running in the cool night breeze, with the daytime hordes gone away and only a smattering of hand-holding couples walking the seaside path.

So I didn’t make it to the gym. But I ran. And it was amazing.

I’m still not sure how gym classes are going to factor into this new scheduling revelation, but we will make it work somehow.

This post was written for inclusion in the May blog carnival hosted by One Fit Mom (wait, that’s me! ). Today, participants share their funny, honest and even poignant confessions of how they are less-than-perfect parents (or parents-to-be). Please read to the end of the post to see the full list of links to other carnival submissions.

Eight months. Eight confessions. And believe me, this is only the tip of the iceberg. If I had the time, I could probably think of something for every week of poor young Oliver’s life!

1. I really hated breastfeeding at first. It was not the magical bonding experience I was lead to believe it would be. This probably had a lot to do with my early breastfeeding struggles. I dreaded every single nursing session for the first couple of months, and whenever Oliver cried, I would think to myself, “Oh, please don’t be hungry again.” When Oliver would latch, I would grit my teeth, wince, and then pull out my iPhone or laptop and surf the web in an attempt to make those agonizing minutes pass as quickly as possible.

For the most part, I never came to love our nursing sessions, with the exception of our nightly dream feeds. They were the only time Oliver fed without farting around, biting, getting distracted, twiddling, kicking, or any other one of his rather impolite nursing habits. There is nothing in the world like cuddling up with a soft, warm, sleeping baby while he nurses quietly and contentedly.

But alas, eight-month-old Oliver is starting to wean himself. He’s having shorter and less frequent feedings during the day, and last night marked his final dream feed. It was a bittersweet moment as I lay him back down in his crib.

2. Screen time is our cheap parenting trick. Yes, I know: every major child health organization recommends no screen time before the age of two. But this mesmerizing animated children’s lullaby buys me just enough time to clip all of Oliver’s fingernails with nary a fuss nor fidget. The iPad hath charms to soothe even the most savagely fussy baby on an airplane. And then there’s the iPhone — the mother of all crawling incentives. Indeed, I don’t believe Oliver would have learned to crawl nearly as early as he did if it weren’t for Daddy’s iPhone left carelessly on the floor, just out of reach. Whenever I start to feel guilty about screen time, I remind myself that at least we don’t have cable, so we haven’t gone as far as to plunk Oliver in front of the television for an episode of the latest über-creepy children’s program (shout out to The Wiggles).

Oliver, “helping” Daddy at work. Does it count as screen time if the screens are off?

3. I exploited the Exersaucer for naps. My naps, that is. On a few occasions that I was so exhausted I couldn’t keep my eyes open, I put Oliver in the Exersaucer to safely contain him while I caught a 10-minute catnap. I positioned the plastic monstrosity beside the bed to assuage Oliver’s separation anxiety, and he would giggle and make eyes at me, thinking I was interacting with him, when in reality I was dozing.

4. I was wholly responsible for Oliver’s first “dropping on the head” incident. It was under my care (J wasn’t even in the same city as us!) that Oliver happened to fall off the settee of my friend’s boat and land directly on the top of his head, on hardwood floor, of course. As I picked him up by his legs — he was wedged upside-down between the settee and the dining table — I felt like the most inept mother in the world. He was fine. They bounce.

Mere moments before “the incident.”

5. I can’t believe I’m admitting this on the Internet, but we’ve driven in the car — twice — without properly securing our baby. The first incident occurred when Oliver was four weeks old and we were collecting his grandmother from the airport. We’d carried him into the airport in his infant seat and unbuckled the harness to let him be more comfortable during the potentially lengthy wait. The idea was that he would eventually be taken out of the seat to meet his grandmother. As it turns out, he fell asleep, so we left him in the seat. Upon returning to the car, we blithely clicked the seat back onto its base as we’d done dozens of times before, forgetting that our baby’s harness wasn’t fastened. Amateur mistake.

On the second occasion, we were on vacation and using the car seat in a rental car, without its base. After assiduously strapping Oliver into the seat, we drove off, only to realize upon arrival at our destination that we’d forgotten to secure the seat to the car using the seatbelt. Both incidents scared the crap out of us, and we established car seat “procedures” to ensure we would never repeat them.

6. I was a food hypocrite. J and I agreed that Oliver would not be given any grains, sugar or processed foods for at least the first couple of years of his life; however, it didn’t stop us from treating ourselves from time to time. On numerous occasions, we ate said contraband in front of our very food-aware, solids-eating baby, while he looked on with importunate eyes. We’ve stopped doing it. It’s cruel. Oliver has finally given us the motivation we’ve needed to kick the treat habit. Nobody wants to be “those asshole parents.”

7. Oliver has bumper pads in his crib. Yes, those much-maligned panels of cushiony goodness surround my baby’s sleeping space, and I know for a fact I’m not the only mom doing this. Bumpers are still sold in baby stores, and let’s face it, baby stores don’t stock products that don’t sell. I wouldn’t recommend that anyone else follow our lead (in fact, I’d categorically advise against it), but if you watched a mere five minutes of “Oliver Cam” (our video baby monitor), you would understand our decision. The kid does not stop moving, and without bumper pads, we’d undoubtedly be running into his bedroom every half hour throughout the night to extricate yet another trapped limb.

8. I let a hobo touch my baby. Not just any hobo, mind you, but my long-time neighbourhood panhandler whom I’ve known for years. He was so excited to meet then six-week-old Oliver that he leaned his face in super close and grabbed Oliver’s little hand, all the while cooing and oohing and ahhing over him. I cringed (his hands were filthy!), but I just didn’t have the heart to ruin a fleeting moment of happiness in this gentle soul’s otherwise tragic life — even for my baby. I immediately took Oliver home and scrubbed him.

I also let him play with his stroller wheels. Dirt is good, right?

Okay, it’s time to ‘fess up. What are your worst parenting transgressions?

Oliver is more than eight months old and I’ve yet to re-implement any consistent, formal fitness training program. For the first time in years, I do not have a gym membership; this despite the fact that J gave me a hand-made coupon for a one-year gym membership as part of my birthday present. Five months ago.

It’s a bit of a catch-22. I haven’t wanted to take J up on his offer until I was sure I could commit to a regular schedule of gym visits; but the lack of a gym membership has been one of my barriers to regular training. Instead, I’ve spent months deliberating over which gym to join: which gym has that elusive combination of top-notch training, optimum facilities and equipment, a generous schedule of classes, a convenient location, and a monthly fee that won’t blow our budget. I’ve long given up on the idea of a gym with childcare. The types of gyms I like to frequent do not offer childcare.

There was a time, not too long ago, where it seemed my entire life revolved around eating well and keeping myself in top physical condition. I spent every evening at the gym, every weekend pursuing recreational fitness activities, and I would turn down social engagements if I thought they might derail my perfect diet or cause me to miss a CrossFit class. I was obsessed, and I had the body to prove it.

I love the turn my life has taken since then, but there are things I miss.

I miss pushing myself to my limits, then spending an hour or two shooting the breeze with my coaches and/or fellow athletes after class. I miss that body. I miss striving for perfection and feeling so completely in control of myself. I miss being consumed with optimal macronutrient ratios and personal bests (I’m kidding about those last two… or am I? ).

I also know those days are over, at least for the foreseeable future.

Obsessing over being the paragon of fitness has given way to obsessing over being the paragon of housewifery and motherhood.

Over getting every last fingerprint off the doors of the kitchen cupboards. Over meticulously logging nursing sessions and naps. Over trying to cram in as many stimulating mom and baby activities as possible. Over endless vacuuming, laundry and tidying. Over family meal planning, cooking, and sitting patiently through an eight-month-old’s self-feeding. These new “Mom” pastimes have come to replace that which used to be my gym time.

My other new pastime is being in a constant state of exhaustion. Despite the fact that Oliver sleeps a solid 11 to 12 hours per night, he is a surprisingly fussy bundle of perpetual motion, boundless energy and insatiable curiosity during his waking hours.

All of these elements combine to create my reason (no, let’s call a spade a spade) excuse that:

a) I can’t find a daily — or even thrice-weekly — two hour block of time in which to travel to a gym and take a class; and

b) even if I could, how on earth could I muster up the energy to do so?

Evening workouts, after Oliver is in bed, are out of the question. I simply can’t do intense training within two hours after a big meal, and there are no gyms offering 9:00 PM classes. Also, I am already working (part-time) one or two evenings a week. I don’t want to fill the three remaining weekday evenings with obligations. It’s not sustainable, and it’s not fair to J.

Mid-day workouts are presently not an option, as I’d have nobody to watch Oliver. It would be too much of an interruption to have J take two hours off in the middle of his work day. Perhaps if/when Oliver becomes more accustomed to his new daycare and is staying for longer stretches, I will be able to hit the gym on Thursdays and Fridays. Two days are better than none.

This leaves me with the dreaded early mornings. I’ve never been a “morning” person, let alone a “morning workout” person. Furthermore, I think the military long ago killed any desire I might have ever have had to drag my ass out of bed at some ungodly hour — tired, cold and starving — and partake in intense exercise. But this weekend we will be eliminating Oliver’s 11:00 PM dream feed, freeing us up to go to bed much earlier. With that, I think that 7:00 AM workouts will become feasible, if still unpleasant.

The only issue I’ve yet to figure out is what to do about engorgement. Since my classes will take place more than 12 hours following Oliver’s last nighttime feed, and since he doesn’t receive his first morning feed until after 8:00 AM, I’ll be going to the gym with very, very full breasts (TMI? Sorry!). I really don’t know how that’s going to work. I’m afraid it will be tremendously uncomfortable, and that I’ll leak. I’m afraid that Oliver might wake early one morning, and that J will be stuck for an hour or more with a cranky, starving baby.

But alas, those precious early hours are probably the only ones I can count on if I want to establish any sort of consistency with my fitness routine.

Don’t get me wrong: I’ve remained active throughout the post-partum period. I walk (often for hours) while Oliver naps in the stroller. I take Oliver hiking, snowshoeing and swimming. I am constantly chasing, lifting and carrying. My life is the epitome of Mark Sisson’s mantra, “Move frequently at a slow pace.” I look fit.

But I am craving more. I want a regimented program, complete with goals and coaching and meticulous record keeping. I want to see my six-pack again; not just hints of abdominal definition. I want to be able to rip off a “Murph” and still be able to walk the next day. I want to be a mom and an athlete. Is that too much to ask of myself? I don’t think so.

So the excuses stop here. If I really and truly want this, I will have to find a way to make it work. And that way is going to involve some rather unpleasant mornings for the time being. But who knows — maybe someday I will come to love my morning workouts.

Did you have a passion or obsession that you temporarily gave up for motherhood? How do you find balance in your new role as a mom, while still indulging your need to excel at another pursuit?

The topic will be: Confessions of a less than perfect parent (or parent-to-be)

It’s easy to be a “perfect” parent in the world of the internet, where we can select and edit everything we post; but we all have our deep, dark secrets. Maybe you surf the web on your iPhone while breastfeeding, instead of staring lovingly into your baby’s eyes (*ahem* guilty). Maybe you plunk your infant in front Treehouse while you sip your morning coffee. Maybe your Paleo diet during pregnancy included a pint-a-day Ben and Jerry’s habit. Maybe you lied to your OB or midwife about what it was you were really doing at the gym (“just some light weights and cardio… honest”). You get the picture.

It’s time to make moms and dads all over the internet feel better about themselves: tell us how you are a less-than-perfect parent. Share one confession, or share many. Feel free to justify your sins… or leave them unexplained for all the world to judge!

Please forward all submissions to: carli (at) onefitmom (dot) ca

The deadline for submissions is: 23:59 PDT Friday, April 27th.

Click here for full details.