Week 6

Yippee my foot/ankle seem to be better. I ran last Friday after a full week of sitting on my butt. It was a short run, but it felt great. I was feeling my progress slip away and am so glad whatever happened to my foot has healed and I'm back in the swing of things. Cheryl and I met up this morning after getting the kids off to school and ran outside for the first time together. Of course by the time we got the kids off and met it was nearly 9:30 and VERY hot and humid. I can't stress this enough. We met at the marathon starting point and headed out on the course, only to be done in by the heat, just shy of a mile. We walked the mile back to the car and by the time when made it we were soaking wet in sweat. We agreed that until the Florida heat and humidity take a hike we'd meet at the crack of dawn on the weekends.

I didn't bother to weigh myself today and have contemplated not weighing in at all until after the run. I just get discouraged when the scale doesn't say what I think it should. I find myself making up for it with a few too many trips to the kitchen. Oh, how I love food.

New Look

What do you think? Thank you Lemonade for my free custom template!

Kindergarten

It's official...Nate started Kindergarten today. Here is a picture of him with his teacher, Ms. C. He was so excited about today that he woke up at 6:10am and asked if it was time to go to school. Dropping him off was a little harder than I thought it would be, but no tears from either of us. I got him settled into his classroom and then Reese and I headed to the cafeteria for a volunteer meeting. I found comfort in being just down the hall from him. The meeting ran an hour and half and bless Reese's heart he sat and played through the entire thing! I had no idea it was going to be that long. Before leaving the school I was so tempted to go by Nate's class and peep in through the window in the door, but I resisted....he needs his space. I can hardly wait until 2:20 comes so I can hear all about his first day.

End of Summer and Nasty Talk

Jake and I wanted to do something to celebrate both kids heading off to school so yesterday we took the kids bowling and out to an early dinner. Jake slipped out of work early and it was fun to do something different. As Reese starts pre-school and Nate heads off to Kindergarten (tomorrow!) it has hit me how very precious these last six years have been. I have been able to spend almost every waking moment when my kids. What a treat that is.

Nate and I dropped Reese off at school this morning and headed over to the nature center to hang out together, then to lunch were we shared a huge brownie topped with ice cream. It was so much fun hanging out with just him. On our way home we stopped at the grocery store to pick up some cool things for his lunch box and as we were headed into the store I got a heaviness in my chest as I walked past moms with small children. I realized I would often be shopping alone after tomorrow. How can it be that my babies aren't babies at all?

On the way home from picking up Reese from school I hear him call Nate and "stinky roach." He tells me he learned that at school! We had a chat when we got home about "nice words" and how "stinky roach" wasn't one of them. I fear this isn't the last time we'll have this discussion!

Week 5

This will be a brief post because it has been less than a productive week. Somehow, I'm not even sure when, I hurt my foot/ankle and it began to swell. I'm taking Cheryl's advice and staying off of it for a week before I resume training. I'm bummed. And because I'm bummed I've been eating too much. Today I resolve to suck it up and eat right, take care of my foot and try to run again Friday.

First Day of School

Reese had his first day of pre-school today. He was so cute as we got ready for his big day. He couldn't wait to get his backpack on and once he did he had a hard time keeping his balance. I wasn't surprised because it held a lunch box, change of clothes and his blankie for rest time. That's a lot of stuff for a little dude to hold. Despite its weight he insisted on wearing it out to the car and then again once we got to his school.

It was a tear free day for all involved...thank goodness. The teacher had asked that parents make the goodbye short and sweet so I did just that. When we walked in Reese made his way to the sand table and was so involved with the sand and his new friends he hardly noticed when Nate and I said goodbye. When I picked him up I was full of questions, asking him about his day. I wasn't sure how much information I'd get since he's still just 2. He told me he played on the playground in a pretend boat, ate the chocolate off of us cupcake first and used Ms. Aimee's potty. Ms. Aimee said he didn't cry and even fell asleep at nap time. I hope the rest of this week goes as smooth as today. I'm proud of my little guy.

Music to my ears

I invested in an iPod today. I'd been thinking about it since I started running. I need something in my head so I'm not focused on my run or my exhaustion. Ironically, a year ago I wasn't completely sure what an iPod was! I'm no techy that's for sure.

I need to pack it full of fun, motivating songs....got any ideas?

School!

This morning we headed over to Nate's school to do last minute registration stuff and get his teacher assignment. I was thrilled to find out he has Ms. C, a very enthusiastic, attractive teacher I met during the Spring Kindergarten Orientation. It turns out that all Nate's little buddies are in different classes. There a five Kindergarten classes and each of his friends are in a different one. Strange how that worked out. I think it's for the best. Nate can be very shy and this will give him an opportunity to meet lots of other kids without the security blanket of having a good friend with him.

Reese starts pre-school next Monday, but Nate doesn't start until Thursday. This gives Nate and I Monday and Wednesday to hang out just the two of us........such a rare thing. Monday after dropping Reese off at school we'll head over to Nate's school for a meeting with his teacher and then off for school clothes shopping. I'm so glad he loves to shop, because I LOVE school clothes shopping. I'm hoping Reese settles into to school without too much fan fare. He's never been one to cling or cry when I leave so I think he'll be just fine. I'm not feeling particularly sad about him starting school so if he doesn't cry then I don't think I'll cry. When Nate started pre-school I couldn't get out of his classroom fast enough before the tears came down. I think it was a combination of him being my first, the fact that he wasn't even talking much at that point and I was very pregnant=emotional.


Nate has the advantage of starting Kindergarten at the same school he attended Pre-K last year so I think that will save both of us from the Kindergarten boo-hoo's. At least that is what I'm hoping. I was surprised last year when I found myself getting upset he was finishing pre-school...so we'll see.

Here comes my guilt....I can taste freedom for the first time in 6 years. I feel a lot guilty about this as I have LOVED staying home and wouldn't want it any other way. However, I have found myself envious of working moms putting themselves together each morning to spend a chunk of their day having adult conversations and experiences. Then, they get to come home to kids who are so excited to see them they practically burst with excitement. I've come to this conclusion simply because when Jake comes home from work the kids go nuts! "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy"!!!!! While I'm status quo and not so exciting. Yes, I know hanging out in your PJ's, eating chocolate chip muffins mid afternoon and playing competitive UNO can make for a pretty good day too. I don't mean to sound ungrateful...I just crave a balance of the two.

I'll be volunteering at Nate's school, which I think will be great fun. I'm going to wait until he gets settled before I get too involved. I think he needs his space to make new friends (without my help) and get used to his new routine. I look forward to meeting all of his friends and making some of my own.

A Recycling First

I feel like a bit of a hypocrite because as much as I think/talk about "saving the earth" I find I'm just beginning to do my part. I had to buy more printer ink because my little computer wizard, Nate, has Googled and printed too many space related images for his collection. He cuts out his images and keeps them in a gallon baggy for a project TBD. We have to ration the paper so we have paper when we need it!

I noticed when I got the ink cartridges home that HP had included a postage paid envelop to send my old cartridges back to them for recycling. How cool is that? I cringe at the number of cartridges I've thrown out. However, I guess I'm like most and unless it's easy we just don't take the time to recycle. I'm getting better at it.

Corn = Plastic

Nathan has started watching "Reading Rainbow" and while I should have been working out I started watching it with him. It was about making plastic from corn. Facinating.

The resin, known as polylactic acid (PLA), will be formed into containers and packaging for food and consumer goods. The trendy plastic has several things going for it. It’s made from a renewable resource, which means it has a big leg up—both politically and environmentally—on conventional plastic packaging, which uses an estimated 200,000 barrels of oil a day in the United States. Also, PLA is in principle compostable, meaning that it will break down under certain conditions into harmless natural compounds. That could take pressure off the nation’s mounting landfills, since plastics already take up 25 percent of dumps by volume. And corn-based plastics are starting to look cheap, now that oil prices are so high.
Corn Plastic to the Rescue to read more

Compact Fluorescent Lights

I think most people have heard of the energy saving benefits of using compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL's), but did you know the mercury in them is highly toxic. Mercury is the second most toxic naturally occurring substance on earth (Plutonium is the most toxic). If you break a CFL bulb here is what to do:

* Open a window and leave the room for at least 15 minutes
* Remove as much as you can without using the vacuum, wear rubber gloves, scoop up what you can with stiff paper or cardboard, use sticky tape to pick up the remaining small pieces and powder, wipe area clean with damp paper towel and seal all the cleanup materials in a plastic bag.
* Dispose of the bag in your outdoor trash receptacle (unless your state doesn't allow you to put CFL's in the trash...CA, WI, OH, MN, IL, IN, MI).
* Vacuum the area and dispose of the vacuum bag.
- EPA Guidelines

I have to say that when I read this it freaked me out. Thank goodness I've never broken a CFL bulb. We currently have about 30 CFL bulbs in our house so at some point we're likely to break one. I'm still in favor of the energy saving benefits of the CFL's, but I think it's a shame this information about cleaning up from a broken CFL isn't widely known. As for what the bulbs can do to the environment once placed in your outdoor trash barrel....I don't know what to say about that. I checked into recycling these bulbs, but it's pricey and only makes sense if you go through a large number of bulbs within a year....not the case for the average household. I'm guessing it's geared towards businesses.

Week 4

Well, I made it to 3 miles, except I had to stop twice and walk a minute or two to catch my breath. I've been playing around with my speed on the treadmill, hoping to find that perfect pace to make it without stopping. Cheryl and I figured out we have to master the 3 mile run by September 2nd to officially start the half marathon training program.

I've discovered I have a calf muscle, not just a calf. I found it while shaving my leg. I thought to myself, "What is that lump I'm shaving over". I look down and there it was....a muscle. Yippee!

I've dropped 5 pounds so far. I'd love to drop about 5-10 more.

Endeavour

It was launch day..........Shuttle Endeavour blasted off at 6:36pm E.S.T.

Too Many Doctors

I started the week having a simple dentist appointment for Nathan and I. Somehow that his grown to five doctor appointments. What is a bit ironic is that I just had a conversation with Jake's mom about how I was feeling better about doctor appointments in general. Since my medical drama unfolded I mentally struggle to even take the kids to their well-child checkups. I just get worked up.

I faced my fears and scheduled Nate for an appointment with the pediatrician about his skin. Over the last 6 months he seemed to have pimples popping up around his nose. I've taken him to the dermatologist twice and she's spent all of 30 seconds (no exaggeration) with him and sent us on our way with acne creams. Acne in a 5 year old was just not sitting well with me. I was afraid he was going into early puberty. I took him to Dr. Y Tuesday morning and to my relief he is NOT in early puberty, was completely mis-treated by the dermatologist and simply has a rash (for lack of a better word). Dr. Y prescribed bactroban cream and in just 12 hours it is already better.

We headed off to the dentist with Reese in tow for his first exposure to the dentist office. I took him along so he could check it out before his first appointment in 6 months. The hygienist took Reese back with Nate so he could see big brother have his teeth cleaned and play in the "moving chair". I headed down the hall for my cleaning. A few minutes into my exam the doctor comes in to take a look and says he sees something under my tongue he wants my ENT doc to see. He says it's probably nothing, but wants to play it safe. I freak out....the remainder of my appointment was a complete fog. I hardly remember the remainder of my cleaning, rounding up the kids, checking out and driving home. I was scheduled for an appointment with Dr. H for 9am this morning. This meant I had to sweat it out overnight......an all too familiar feeling.

My gut tells me it's nothing, but my mind wonders off to visions of Dr. H ordering a biopsy and another wait begins. Unfortunately, that scenario is way too easy to pull up in my mind and I have to chase it away with images of good news and the relief that comes along with it. I floated through my evening...feeding the kids cereal instead of a real meal, celebrating the loss of Nate's second tooth (which popped out while he was eating his Cheerios) with less enthusiasm than my norm, passing on a swim with Jake and the boys and heading to bed shortly after getting the boys in bed for the mental comfort that only sleep (or heavy drugs) can bring.

Mom came over first thing this morning to watch the boys while I nervously drove to Dr. H's office. I was so nervous I couldn't even eat breakfast, but managed to eat two crackers before leaving. I concentrated on happy thoughts all the way there. I had even taken a shower, put nice clothes on and did my hair and make-up thinking if I looked good I must be healthy. It worked, because Dr. H took one look in my mouth and said he thought everything was just fine. I took a deep breath and asked if I could hug him! He'll check me again in 6 weeks and if all is good (which I anticipate) I'll go back to my regular 4 month check ups.

I'm trying very hard to not let this one little glitch set me back on my emotional mission to feel normal again. I'm keeping my appointment on Friday with Dr. F for a physical. I dug deep and found the courage to make this appointment because I'm way overdue on having my thyroid function checked and I want him to check my cholesterol too. It's been on my mind since Jake gave blood and his cholesterol was high. He was actually at Dr. F's office this morning while I was with Dr. H. Turns out he's fine too...........thank goodness.

And they lived happily ever after.........

Week 3

I'm starting to get into a pretty good routine of exercise now. I'm actually enjoying it. I'm still on the treadmill and haven't attempted an outdoor run yet. That will have to wait until the kids start school. I've worked up to 2.5 miles and hope to run my first 5k by the end of the week. As my runs get longer I have to make sure I find something good on TV so my mind doesn't focus on the running. Commercials are torture to run through!

I've always been good at setting a goal and sticking to it so I'm already brewing up my next challenge once the half marathon is over. I'd hate to see myself work so hard just to let it all go after the run. Ann-Marie said she's always wanted to do a mini-triathlon so we've tossed around the idea for 2008. First, she has to give birth to that little baby growing in her belly and I have to finish this run I've committed to! I think I can handle the biking and running I'm just not sure about the swimming. I have a thing about swimming in river or ocean water. I'm always concerned about what's lurking below that I can't see. I guess I'll have to get over that.

Space

The kids and I went to the Space Center today. I haven't been in years. In fact, I think the last time I was there was when Jake surprised me with VIP tickets for a night launch on my 27nd birthday. It was so amazing to see a night launch so close up....it literally brought tears to my eyes it was so beautiful.

It was a blazing hot day, but we managed to rotate the outside exhibits with the inside ones and stay cool. Nate is fascinated by the space program and flips through the newspaper with Jake each morning to clip out any pictures covering launches etc. It was so much fun being with my little space expert today. I love his enthusiasm.

The highlight of the day was running into the astronaut pictured above as we were leaving. It wasn't a real astronaut, but more like a photo op, but the kids didn't even notice and ran up for their picture moment. Reese was a little afraid of him, but big brother Nate grabbed his hand and told him it was okay.

Date Night

Jake and I had a much needed date night last night. The kids stayed the night over at Nana's and we hit dinner and a movie. We tried a new Japanese Steak place with group style seating where the chefs cooks right at your table. As we were shown to our table I heard Jake chuckle under his breath....he noticed one of his clients sitting at the table we were headed for. Luckily, the client is a very nice guy whom I've met before, but it put a spin on our date that we didn't really want.

We negotiated our movie choice all day long before I finally caved, giving up my choice of Hairspray for Die Hard. This was only our second time going to the theater in 6 years so we had some pretty strong ideas about what we wanted to see. Really, I just wanted to go out to see a movie instead of our norm which is renting a movie to watch at home. To my surprise, Die Hard was really good, a little over the top at some moments, but very good.

We enjoyed watching the previews before the movie and nodding to each other if the movie was a yah or nah just like we did years ago when we were avid movie goers....strangely romantic. Our date officially ended this morning with both of us sleeping in (another rarity) before I went for a run before going to pick up the kids and Jake headed into the office for his usual Sunday catch-up day.

Organic vs. Non-Organic

In response to my last post I thought I'd throw this link out there. I don't think you have to go nuts and buy only organic, but take it from a gal who pays a lot more attention to what I eat and what I feed my kids since having cancer.

How did you like the hormones?

I'm usually the one who does all the grocery shopping, but recently Jake offered to make a grocery run when we were planning to grill out. I print out my anal shopping list (an excel spreadsheet with our popular shopping items listed by isle), which I'm a bit embarrassed about, but it saves me time and I embrace my over the top organizational skills. I make a note on the list to buy Greenwise (our grocery's organic brand) eggs, steak and chicken breast. I don't make a big production about it, but feel I relayed my point of buying organic.

I'm not completely shocked, but very disappointed when he comes home with the correct eggs, but wrong beef and chicken. I'm so disappointed over this fact that I can't even bring myself to thank him for doing the shopping, but instead argue over his choice of beef/chicken. Honestly, I'm not a complete freak about eating organic, but when I'm at home I like to eat the good stuff and save my hormone consumption for eating out.

After dinner he asks me, "So, how did you like the hormones? How about those antibiotics"? I reply, "Very tasty sweetie, especially the pesticides".

Happy Anniversary Will & Anna

Happy 10th

Soccer Camp

Wacky Wednesday at Soccer Camp

Nate's been in soccer camp all week. It took him until today to really get into it. The poor guy got my shyness. He spend the first 20 minutes on day one and two fighting back tears as he tried to fit in. Part of me just wanted to rescue him and the other half vowed to encourage him to stick it out and make new friends. I managed to find a good mix of both and after he warmed up to the situation he had a blast.

I tow my beach umbrella, cooler and toys and Reese and I hang out and watch. There are about 20 kids and a handful of moms hang out and watch. Reese made friends with a cute little three year old girl named Macey. He wanted her to play whales with him (he had two), but she quickly informed him she only liked blue whales that had smiley faces. Unfortunately we only had the back Shamu unsmiling ones. I've never seen such a small kid carry such a big attitude.

Then of course there is the mom how has berated her young son over some mishap every day so far. Today he apparently hit another player so of course that should be addressed, but I don't think yelling at him (very loudly) that he has embarrassed her and how ashamed she is of him. Made me so sad for the little guy.