That'll Teach Me to Stay On the Couch*

Back in January, Aaron joined a local running group in an effort to get in better shape and to train for a 10K. He did such an awesome job, and surpassed his goal, running a half-marathon distance a couple of times (and planning to sign up for a half sometime soon). I am super proud of him, and also super impressed. He did so great, and runs regularly at an under 9 minutes per mile pace, no matter the distance. He ran a 10K at the end of May and killed it!

So, following his lead, and wanting to get in better shape, too, I signed up for the running group, and official training starts Saturday morning. However, there were some unofficial training events this week, including a promotional trail run that Aaron was also interested in, so we decided to go for that run on Tuesday night.

We got to the park, and I was super excited and motivated to do this thing! Aaron had the girls in the stroller, so he was walking/jogging while I ran on ahead. I was making great time and was a half mile into the trail, when disaster/a tree root struck, and I sprained my ankle. Bad. Excuse the grossness of this (and the picture below), but there was a crunching sound. I thought for sure I had broken my ankle.

Thankfully, there is an x-ray equipped redi-med right outside the park where we were running so, after walking that 1/2 mile back out of the woods (OUCH!) Aaron drove me right there. In the picture (again, sorry for the grossness) the top-left picture is how my ankle looked immediately after the fall. Not too promising for a minor injury, right? The doctor said he was impressed by the swelling, and that it's not good to impress a doctor. They took x-rays and determined that the bones look fine, but I definitely have a bad sprain. I'm on the RICE (Rest - Ice - Compression - Elevation) plan, and have an air cast and crutches (if I need them), and it's starting to look better (the other three shots are how it looked yesterday - the swelling isn't completely gone, but it's much better). The bruising was new as of yesterday.



So, my plans for training are on hold for the time-being. I can't believe I did this a half-mile into my first run, and I'm super mad at myself, even though I know it was an accident. Aaron keeps telling me not to beat myself up about it, but I can't help it. I'm feeling a little depressed because, not only can I not run, I really can't do anything right now, and I feel helpless, which I totally hate. Aaron is being super awesome about running the house, but I can also tell he's stressed, so between the stress and the self-pity we both have short tempers right now, which sucks.

I'm already plotting how to make this up to him, and so far my ideas include sending him up to hang out with his brother and go fishing or something. Or perhaps buy him a nice 6 pack of beer and take the girls out so he can play video games for an afternoon or evening. Whatever it is, I owe him a huge debt.

*This has been our running joke, but rest assured: I will get back off the couch as soon as I can.

And so, it's April

The other day Gabbie and I were doing a kid's yoga routine, and we were doing child's pose. Sophie had been playing on the other side of the room, but chose that moment to come over and sit on my head. I couldn't stop laughing for about ten minutes after that.

Then, this past weekend, I was explaining something to Gabbie, and when I was done, she responded, "Okay. Gotcha." It was just so grown up, and it caught me off guard, and I was off to chuckling once again.

The story continues on as it has, work is crazy, and I'm now convinced that the slow period following the craziness that I used to get has disappeared forever. I took on this role, not quite realizing the scope and the national recognition and that I now had to be much more careful, serious, and political. I don't mind it so much, but I'm also not quite sure how I got here. I went into my Masters program because it was kinda sorta related to what I liked in undergrad, and then I got an internship at my company, and now, nearly 9 years later, I have a career. Not a job, but an honest-to-God career. It feels pretty amazing to be here, but I wouldn't mind slowing down sometime.

Most days, though, I leave the work at the office, and shed that skin through a chat with my mom (hands free, of course) on the drive from work to school, and arrive, refreshed and simultaneously exhausted, with a smile on my face to greet my girls. The last three hours at work are spent missing them like crazy, and I can't hide the glee when they run up and hug my legs. They are, of course, the reason that I put up with the work craziness, so I can give them the best life possible.

Yesterday Sophie had to stay home for some gross, illness related issues, of which I'll spare you the details. I gave Gabbie the choice of whether or not to go to school, and she chose to stay home with us. We ate breakfast, played, ran errands, ate lunch, played, napped, planted some wheat grass for Easter decorating, ran another errand, and played some more. It was the kind of day where I could pretend that I was nobody other than a mom to these sweet girls, and it was rejuvinating and fantastic, and something that I desperately want to do more often.

Suddenly, Toddlerhood

So. Last week was a rough one. There were a lot of things going on, including my special monthly visitor, that really didn't help the situation, which ultimately was this: my baby is not so much a baby anymore and it kind of hit me all at once and really hard.

Last week was her first full week in the toddler room at daycare. She loves it there and is truly thriving, trying to catch up with the bigger kids. What this also meant, though, is that she went from taking two to three bottles per day to zero, pretty much overnight. So I went from nursing/pumping from six to eight times a day (usually eight) to three or four overnight and the resulting hormone mess was a nightmare. I had zero patience with anyone and I couldn't stop crying over every single thing.

And then there was Thursday morning, when I realized I was out of bottles to pump into because I was still pumping but Sophie wasn't eating any of it. That's when I went back to bed, and stayed there most of the day.

Sophie is so great. Much more challenging in many ways than her quiet, compliant older sister, but really great. She is a cuddly, smily, fun girl. It just seems like she went from being a baby to a toddler within a month. No gradual transition at all, just BAM! Toddler. A walking, getting into things, eating real people food, signing and using words, responding to questions, toddler.

I knew this day would come, I just didn't know I would have such a hard time with it.

The Things We're Doing These Days

I was sick last week with some sort of weird bug that had me down for the count with a headache, light-headedness, a little bit of congestion, and a whole lot of exhaustion. I am feeling better for the most part, save for still having a headache and now with the added fun of constant heartburn. So what I'm saying is, I kind of feel like crap still and planning to have tomato soup for dinner tonight was not my smartest idea ever. What proves to be even a less smart idea is that I'm still totally going to eat that tomato soup because it sounds really damn delicious.

Not feeling well, of course, put me in an excellent mood over the weekend. Aaron caught the bug, too, coming down with it on Friday (which actually made me a little better, because the symptoms are so weird I thought maybe it was just me, but no! Confirmation!). So we shared that excellent mood. The girls fed off of our bad moods, so it was really fun to be in our house this weekend, I'm sure.

Despite our household-wide surliness, we did have some fun this weekend. Gabbie got to go to the neighborhood park and play with the neighborhood kids. Reportedly they played some sort of tag (Aaron went along and also played tag, while Sophie and I napped), which sounds like a lot of fun. There aren't many kids Gabbie's age in the neighborhood, but there are a lot of girls, who have adopted Gabbie as one of their own, and if she's around they include her in their games. It's pretty fantastic.

Sophie is working really hard at walking. She can actually walk, but lacks the confidence to do so. She'll walk halfway across the room, stop when she realizes what she's doing, and then she'll drop and crawl. Alternately, she'll wait until we're all watching, take a few steps, then stand there and clap for herself. She's pretty darn adorable, overall.

I'm really excited for Aaron, who started with a running group last night through a local shoe store. I think this will be really good for him and it sounds like a great group. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little jealous, because I totally am. This will definitely be an adjustment, as he'll be out of the house for runs two nights a week and on Saturday mornings until his 10K in May. However, I'm all about it given his family history and my desire to keep him around for a long time. One of his grandpas died in his forties from a sudden and massive heart attack, and I'd like to avoid that happening to him if at all possible. So, support for excersize it is! I can't wait to go cheer him on in his sure-to-be many races in the future!

As for me, well, I'm working on things. I need to get out of the house more too. I feel kind of bad that my hermit-tendencies make Aaron feel bad for wanting to go out and do things with other people. I need to make more friends and find time for the friends I already have. I'm sure once Sophie is a little less dependent on me due to nursing, I'll be more likely to feel like I can go out. I meant to sign up for a cake decorating class at Joann's this month, but forgot to do it on Saturday, which ended up being the first day of the month-long class. Hopefully they'll offer it again soon! We're also talking about finding a church we can all agree on, with families with young kids, and then possibly we can make some friends there. I'm still in that being-a-mom-is-lonely phase of babyhood and I'm starting to get itchy to get out of it.

2012, Here I come!

I don't know if it was the time off over the holidays, finishing two big soul-sucking projects, or what it was, but I feel absolutely restored to my full self here at the beginning of 2012. We'll see if that feeling lasts, now that I'm back to the daily grind. (I really hope it does, and I'm working to make it so!) I feel like I have the energy to take on this year and make it my best yet, which is saying something, because I have had some pretty great years!

Aaron and I have both felt like we've put ourselves on the backburner in recent years. Two kids in 2.5 years will do that to you, I guess! Anyway, we talked about our resolutions this year (something we've never really done before) and they center on taking better care of ourselves, our relationship, our family, and our home. Here are my resolutions for 2012!

1. Read more - 26 books at least!
2. Be a better friend - that means go out with friends, make new ones, and call or write people more often.
3. Get in better shape - I am going to do that couch to 5k program this year. I'm going to!
4. Do something new - this is starting out with a cake decorating class. I can bake delicious cakes, but they sure are ugly. It's time to do something about that (and perhaps make new friends in the process?).
5. Spend at least 15 minutes a day cleaning the house - I tend to procrastinate, and save it all for the weekend, and then on the weekend I'm so exhausted from the week that half the stuff I want to get done
6. Read more to the kids - we have a ton of books, and while I read to them nearly every day, I want to start a bedtime routine of reading a book or two before they go to sleep every night.
7. Be present when I'm at home - no playing on my phone or the computer until after the kids are in bed and my chores are done!
8. Communicate with my husband - I know this is last on the list, but it should be number one as far as priorities go. Far too often we expect each other to just intuit what we need, but that obviously is not the best method for keeping a relationship going. We are going to work on using our words this year.

How I'm getting what I need

Aaron and I grew up in very different types of homes. I mean there are many similarities, including loving families, parents who are still together, close extended families, etc. In many other ways, though, our families are just really, really different, which is funny to me because he and I are alike in so very many ways. Or maybe our differences just complement each other so nicely that we simply fit together well. I don't know.

Anyway, one of the many, many differences happens to be home-keeping styles. Aaron's mom is very, very neat. He often tells the story about how his parents were away for the weekend and he and his brother threw a party. After the party they cleaned the house from top to bottom leaving absolutely zero traces that anything had happened there at all. Their mom walked in the door and asked what the heck had they been up to, because she knew something had happened there while they were away. How did she know? A single candle was an inch out of place. Seriously. Busted for a candle moved an inch. That's a house where everything has its place, for sure!

My mom was recently taking a class where the participants discussed their upbringings and how they have shaped the person/artist they are today. Many of the women were talking about how they made their bed first thing each morning, how this helped them feel ready to start the day, and how their moms had taught them to do this every morning before school. Their houses are neat as pins. My mom shared how her mom's philosophy was that children should play, not work, so they never had to do any chores when they were small children. Still, with eight kids in her family, their house was never messy, but she definitely wasn't the one doing the work. Growing up in my house, it was never dirty, but it has definitely been cluttered. A little messy. Aaron thinks it's chaos, but it feels homey to me. My mom's philosophy is that a clean house is the sign of a misspent life.

So, you can imagine how this all comes to play in our home now. I am okay if things are in a little bit of disarray, while the same state drives Aaron absolutely insane. Again, I clean regularly enough, our house really isn't dirty. It's just a bit messy at times. With two small children who help in the mess making, and who wear me out by bedtime, there are often toys left laying out, a pile of mail left unopened, stacks of things that need to be put away here and there. (And my deepest, darkest secret: sometimes the dishes don't get done until the next day. I'm so ashamed!)

Marriage can be hard sometimes, and I'm convinced that there's not much that's harder on a marriage than babies and small children. You love them with all of your heart, but they suck up all your time, affection, emotion, and soul. There are times when I feel like I'm not getting the kind of attention and affection I want from my husband, and it's hard. It sucks! I know my reality is that my kids are at a stage where their needs are more important than mine in most instances (they can't do much for themselves, and are completely dependent, so it just makes sense), but that doesn't make me feel my needs any less acutely.

After some navel gazing during my trip to Minnesota a few weeks ago (I had time to think! It's rare these days!),  I realized that maybe I'm not getting what I need because he's not getting what he needs. Light bulb! Also, duh! I realized that maybe I should get up off my butt every once in a while, set down my phone, and stop wasting all my time (I will still waste a little of it, because everyone needs a little down time), and do some things around the house that will make him feel more at ease. He has a hard time relaxing when there's chaos all around, so it makes sense that he's tense and frustrated sometimes.

So, I'm working harder these days at being more present, thinking about what he may need, and doing what I can to make our life easier. He's a great partner, and no slouch in the housekeeping arena either. He does his part, but now I'm making sure to do more of mine. It's still early, but I think I see it working already. I'm getting what I need by making it about him sometimes too.

August Challenge

I love my kids more than anything else, ever, but hot damn, kids are expensive. Sophie started day care in March and since then it's like we've had our fingers in our ears, singing, "La, la, la!" refusing to acknowledge that maybe, possibly we should stop spending like we still have that extra money to play around with. We haven't put any money into savings since January, and we're carrying a (relatively small, but still) credit card balance, which is something we haven't done in a while.

Yesterday Aaron and I were talking about this and decided that something really needs to change. One of the things that has helped us get a little out of control with our spending is our propensity to eat out way too much, including nearly every day for lunch. Not to mention, it's not exactly helping our waistline or health either.

So, this month we've challenged ourselves to not eat out at all. No money spent on eating out. (I do have a lunch meeting this week, but work is paying for that, so I'm not counting it.) I know we can do it, it's just going to take a little extra time and effort, but we need to stop being so lazy anyway. I'm betting that by the end of the month I'm going to feel a lot better anyway, and bringing lunch with me will be more of a habit.

So, here's to four and a half weeks of home-cooked goodness!

Getting It Together, All Over Again

So. I got a new haircut on Friday (I still need to take a picture - I got about 7 inches taken off!), and I thought, "Hey! Bloggable Moment!" so I took a before picture in the stylist's chair. This picture will never, ever, ever see the light of day. Ever. Because even though I am at my pre-Sophie pregnancy weight, I still have a new mom shape around my mid-section. In fact, it looked like I was smuggling two of those floaty rings around my middle under my shirt (plus some inflatable somethings in my bra - these nursing boobs are humongous!).

Anyway, that was a definite turning point. I mean, I've been meaning to exercise and eat better, but you know, it's so much easier to not do those things, especially with a full time job and two little kids at home. Easier isn't cutting it any more. I have got to do something because I will be much happier with myself afterwards. I really want to be in a better shape, and with those two kiddos at home it's a hard thing to commit to working out and eating good for me food. In addition to the inspiration from that bad picture, one of the contestants on the Biggest Loser said something a while back that I've been trying to remember in all aspects of my life (and this is a paraphrase because I can't remember the exact words): "You can do whatever you want. You just have to do it."

Wise, wise words. I want to lose weight and get rid of the deflated baby belly, but it's not going anywhere unless I actively do something about it. So, I have some simple steps I'm using to get started. Here are my goals for this week:

1. Eat (at least) five servings of fruit and vegetables every day.
2. Don't eat anything I would be embarrased about eating (i.e. no more fast food, candy bars, soda).
3. If where I'm going is within reasonable walkable distance, walk there!
4. If it's not raining, turn off the tv and take the kids outside.

I'm hoping these simple steps will help get me moving in the right direction. I have a feeling that no matter what, I'll feel a lot better about myself by incorporating these things into my life. Next up: actual work outs. I'm all about easing into this to make it more sustainable, rather than going all gung-ho and then wearing myself out.

The best things about Spring...

The trees are all fuzzy and tinted with the green or pink that means leaves will be appearing soon.

Tulips. I absolutely love tulips.

Baseball.

Not having to wear a coat.

Sometimes taking a chance and wearing open toed shoes (which means no socks, which is great because I hate wearing socks).

Pedicure season starts again.

No mosquitos yet, so we can use our back yard.

Grilling season starts (once we buy our grill this weekend!!!).

Not having to bundle the girls up so much - and seeing how much Gabbie loves not wearing a coat. And a hat. And gloves. And a scarf. And boots. Man, winter is heavy to wear.

Yard work.

Rain (mostly because it's not snow).

Opening the windows and getting rid of the air that felt so heavy and stale all winter long.

And finally, some of the fog is lifting. The fog that was especially bad this year because of post-partum hormones. The fog that made me incapable of doing anything but the bare minimum that was required of me so that my world would keep running and my kids were fed and clothed and cared for. This wasn't the worst it's ever been, but the worst since I've been responsible for two small humans, which made me feel a million times worse about it. But, it's clearing. Slowly, but surely, I'm feeling more like myself. And that's the very best thing about spring.

Time for me, us

It felt good the other day to put that struggling feeling into words (as it usually does). Sophie had been sleeping really well since she was about six weeks old, so the not sleeping of the past week or so was really rough. Not unexpected, but definitely rough. She did so much better last night, and I'm feeling much more human today that I have been lately. (Although she's working on a new skill - rolling over - and as soon as she masters that we will have to stop with the swaddling. I foresee many more sleep-light nights in my future.)

Also helping that human-like feeling:

I took off work a couple hours early yesterday and went home and took a nap. It was fantastic.

Aaron took Monday off to relax and now he's in a much better mood.

The more well-rested feeling we're both experiencing means that our house is less of a disaster zone than it was (a messy house always makes my bad moods worse, but I often lack the motivation to do anything about it when I'm in a funk).

Temperatures are reaching the low 40s this week. That might not sound so amazing, but anything is better than the sub-freezing temperatures of the last few weeks.

Aaron and I are spending some time on us this week. We cuddled last night, and today we're meeting up for lunch. It feels good to reconnect as a couple; something I've been really, really missing.

I've also been eating a little better this week. Less junk food, more fruits and vegetables, and small frequent meals instead of the large, fattening meals I had been eating. Last night I even had an apple as a bedtime snack instead of the ice cream I was craving. I was pretty amazed with myself!

I've also been seeking out things that make me laugh. On the top of that list is damnyouautocorrect.com and the @bronxzooscobra Twitter feed. Another thing that's making me happy is good music, including Queen's Greatest Hits (especially Don't Stop Me Now) and many songs from the Glee soundtracks (especially Teenage Dream by the Warblers).

So far this week is kicking our asses a lot less than recent weeks. I hope - really, really hope - that this continues.

Our New Normal

Now that we’re three days into our new normal (-ish, since I’m only half days for the first two weeks), I have to say, it’s going pretty well. I’m actually making it to work more on time than I have in years, and we’re all adjusting incredibly well. Of course, it has been three mornings total now, so there’s still time for it to all go to shit, but I’m going to remain optimistic.

I was worried about three things with Sophie: 1 – taking a bottle (no problem there, the girl loves to eat!), 2 – the cloth diaper thing (aside from some confusion on the first day and needing to move up to the thicker inserts, that’s going well), and 3 – Sophie’s major preference for mommy and only mommy (no issues there aside from a couple of tears the first day). I’m so glad that my worries were unjustified. I attribute that to the power of worry; if I worry enough about it, it won’t happen. Right? Surely that’s true. It’s how I roll.

In addition to Sophie starting daycare this week, Gabbie moved up to the 3-year-olds room. Since she’s completely potty trained, speaks in paragraphs (who cares if all items in the paragraph aren’t necessarily related, she’s only 2 ½), and there was an opening (a key component) we all decided it was time. Her new teacher told me yesterday that it is as if she has been in that room for forever. Talk about a good transition. That’s my girl!

I also have to say, that this easing back into it slowly thing (see: half days for the first two weeks) really is the way to go. I haven’t cried once! I’m amazed at myself, since I normally cry at the drop of a hat (ask Aaron, I’m fun to live with I’m sure).

So, other news of the girls, since I’m doing horribly at this blogging thing lately and feeling guilty about not writing things down:

Sophie really, really prefers to be held, at all hours if possible. This has contributed to a bit of an, um, well, she has a flat spot on her head. I feel absolutely horrible about this. My kid has a funny shaped head! So, we’ve been working on more time not in mommy’s arms and more tummy time. My sister bought her a little play gym and that has helped, except she peed all over it yesterday, so it’s out of commission while in the wash. She’s also working at reaching for things and grasping them. She’s a pro at holding on to fingers, but not much else yet. We’re working on it. I have say, the second child thing is crazy. We worked with Gabbie on all her “skills” all the time, but with Sophie we’re a little more lax about everything, both because we are old hat at this parenting thing and not worrying as much, and because we’re busy with the other kid and don’t have all the free time in the world to concentrate on every little detail. Poor Sophie, it sounds like she’s being all kind of neglected. She is sooooo not.

Gabbie is awesome as usual. She’s stubborn as hell, but also amazingly funny (whether she’s trying to be or not). Our favorite anecdote from late is this: The other night, as a special treat, I was letting her fall asleep in our bed (special cuddle time with mommy). I thought she was asleep, when all of the sudden she announced she had to use the potty. She’s pro at using the potty, but her wiping skills leave a little to be desired at times. Consequently, her underpants got a little wet. She didn’t realize this until she got back into our bed, and she started crying, “I peed in your bed!” I assured her that she had not, and we went and got a fresh pair of underpants, and all was well. Shortly afterwards, Aaron came upstairs and following some conversation wherein she told him “no” about something, he got stern with her about telling him “no.” Half-way through this mini-lecture, she held up her hand at him, and said, very seriously, “I only peed in my pants a little bit, Aaron.” Then she sighed, like she was thinking, “oh, man , dealing with my parents is exhausting.” As you can imagine, all sternness from Aaron flew out the window as we broke into giggles. Kids are hilarious.

I don’t know how I imagined life with two kids. It is both better and way crazier then I ever thought it would be, but I definitely wouldn’t trade it. It seems like we’re finally starting to hit our stride, and I think we’re all thankful for that. I mean, sure, Aaron and I dream daily of running away for a long weekend to someplace warm without the kids, but I’m pretty sure all parents do that. Especially this time of year. Bring on the spring!

Bedroom Action (Not what you think)

My brain is full of all sorts of uninteresting-to-a-blog-audience types of things (Logic models! All those emails I have to deal with! Meeting agendas! Oh my!). This new job while still wrapping up my old job thing is kind of kicking my ass.

So! A couple of semi-interesting (probably to only me) things going on right now include bedrooms. Gabbie's bedroom, our bedroom, and the soon-to-be nursery, to be exact. The top floor of our house is full of change and excitement (and sleep, thankfully)!

Gabbie's room has been painted (I need to get a better picture than I've been able to capture so far) a lovely pale lilac. It took us the better part of a day, but I have to say that Aaron and I do a darn fine job painting. It looks great!

This weekend we added a new feature to her room: a big girl bed. I really don't know how she's old enough for this already, but it seems she is. Instead of anything fancy, she has a twin-sized matress on the floor. The main reason for this is that she seems to have inherited a less-than-desirable trait from me: the propensity to fall out of bed on a regular basis. We are definitely lacking in the grace department overall, but most definitely in the falling category. My mom started me out in a regular bed, but then, after a couple of black eyes from hitting the floor with a great big smack, she learned her lesson and put me on a mattress on the floor. I'm taking that lesson learned and running with it because my heart cannot take too many additional falls (like the tumble she took down the stairs, or the near-fall in the shower, or when she tried to fall backwards onto her beanbag chair but missed and smacked her head on the couch (the hard part), all of which happened in less than 24 hours between Friday night and Saturday morning). She's trying to kill me, I swear it! We need to add a few finishing touches, like something on the walls, a lamp by our reading chair, and a bedspread (not that she keeps one on her) and then her big girl room will be complete.

Our room is also set to undergo quite the transformation. We bought a bedroom set last year, but now we want to paint the walls and trim (we have the paint purchased, just have to slap it up on the walls), put in wood floors, add a sitting area (i.e. purchase some more furniture), and possibly buy and mount a small television, and we'll be all set. Aaron wants to have this all done by the time I hit my third trimester (in just under six short weeks!) so that we have a nice, relaxing retreat. He's adorable, and I think I'll keep him around.

The nursery is getting the least amount of work done - we have to paint it, reassemble the crib, and move in my old dresser and the glider. Maybe some artwork on the walls too, we'll see. We're waiting until after my ultrasound this Friday, during which we'll get a firm answer on the baby's sex (HOPEFULLY!) and then we'll finalize our paint color decision (I'm pretty sure it will be green either way).

Having a house is a lot of work. Finally getting it the way you want it is even more. And the anxiety and challenges that accompany moving a toddler to a big girl bed? May just be what pushes me over the edge. I'm knocking on wood that she stays put just like she has the past two nights. I can deal with it taking her 45 minutes to fall asleep if only she promises not to wander in the middle of the night. Seriously, I don't think my heart can handle one more fright.

So glad I finally convinced him babysitters other than my mom are fine

Last Friday Aaron and I headed out as planned, leaving Gabbie with a babysitter. The babysitter was one of her favorite teachers from school, so it's not like we were leaving her with someone who doesn't know her. It has taken Aaron some time to be comfortable with the idea of leaving Gabbie with someone other than my mom, but he finally relented and we are both glad he did. (Although, I was the one feeling trepidation as we left that night - go figure.)

We got out of the house and saw Hot Tub Time Machine, which was as awesome as expected. It was great to get out of the house, just the two of us, and have fun together. It's something we don't do nearly often enough, that's for sure. We've been quoting movie lines back and forth ever since, which of course means we have something in common other than the Gabbster for once in a long while. 

Gabbie and her sitter had a great time and reports are that Gabbie was perfectly behaved and they had a great time. Unfortunately, babysitters are also pretty expensive, so we'll save doing that again until we have something specific to do or attend. It's nice, though, to have that in our parenting arsenal so that if we ever just really need to escape for an evening, we can. 

Unrelated paragraphs of semi-awesomeness

Well, I've mostly calmed down about the customer service thing from yesterday - it turns out they didn't send a rebate because we didn't send in a signed contract, but - in ANOTHER flawed logic circle - we didn't send in a signed contract because they didn't send us a contract to sign. Anyway...yeah. I need to step away from that situation for a day or two.

It is finally green around here. Green and yellow (forsythia and daffodils) and other flower-blooming colors. The rain the past few days may have bummed me out a little bit, but the plants are sure seeming to love it. The trees are even starting to sprout leaves. It means spring (and then, soon, summer!) is actually happening! We'll just ignore that there's the possibility of snow today and tomorrow. Plus, it always snows once in April. I just need to accept that fact no matter how hard I wish that this year would be different.

Back at the beginning of the year, I set forth a monthly date night as one of my goals for 2010. We have gotten in a couple of dates, but usually only when we head up to my hometown and my parents are around to watch the Gabbster. Last week, though, Aaron said that he would probably be okay with one of Gabbie's teachers babysitting her so we could have a night out. Well, you better believe I jumped on that opportunity. Tomorrow night Gabbie's favorite teacher is coming to our house and Aaron and I are going out. I can't wait! Now we just have to decide what to do with ourselves for the 2 - 3 hours we have free.

I used to babysit a lot in highschool, and one of my favorite parts about babysitting was raiding the snack cabinet after the kids went to bed. I plan to allow full access to food to our babysitters (goodness knows we have more than enough and can spare some), but here's the problem. Aaron and I are tall people. We can easily reach even the highest cabinets in our kitchen and store all the good stuff in the liquor/candy/junk food cupboard which is one of the highest cabinets we have so the kiddo won't be able to get it until she's at least 13 (which is when I hit my full height). So, even if I tell the babysitter we have coming this weekend that she can help herself to anything, she's short and won't be able to reach the stuff in the cabinet. Do I put some things in the lower cabinet? Or tell her to feel free to drag over a stool? I never foresaw this problem when I arranged our things in our kitchen.

Goals for the New Year Revisited

Back at the end of December, I set the following goals (now with added progress notes):

1. Eat vegetarian for a month (we're going to attempt this in January)

Check! We didn't eat meat for more than a month, and we're continuing pretty strong at this. We do eat meat out, but haven't been cooking much meat at home. One great (for my waistline and cholesterol) bi-product of this is that I have only eaten at McDonalds (or really any fast food establishment) once this year so far. I had gotten into a bad habit of eating fast food far to frequently, and it had to stop. And it pretty much has! I could still do better, of course, but it's much improved.

2. Read 50 books this year.

I'm making progress on this definitely. We're approximatly nine weeks into year, and of last night I've completed eight books. (Check out the list on my sidebar - I've been trying to update it once a week, since recent weeks have found me reading more than one book a week.) My favorites so far have been The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. Once I started each of these I couldn't put them down! There have been a couple of books that I've started and not finished, because I just wasn't enjoying them enough to power through to the end. This isn't something I normally do, but I decided that if I'm going to make it through this goal this year I need to read only books I enjoy, save for those for my two book clubs (which are helping with this goal, because that's two books a month right there!)

Next on my nightstand: The Red Tent, Love the One You're With, American Gods, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and Steamed: A Steampunk Romance.

And after that I'm out of ideas. Any recommendations out there?

3. Train for and run a 5K

I haven't started this one yet, but I plan to soon, I promise! I have a Couch to 5k program downloaded to my iPhone, and I just need to get my butt to a treadmill. Hopefully soon the weather will be nice enough to start running through my neighborhood in the evenings. I can't wait for that to happen.

4. Decorate my house (it still has that just moved-in feeling with nothing on the walls)

We haven't gotten very far on this. We picked out paint colors (tentatively, I'm sure). We did order a new garage door and opener (one of my top priorities when we moved in), and the door has windows which will add some curb appeal to the house. I also have some ideas swirling around in my mind for some art projects, and they're just about bursting to get out, so we may have some new art to hang on the wall soon.

5. Get a babysitter at least once a month so Aaron and I can have date nights

We haven't done exactly this. We've been setting aside movies, shows, and activities (like board games), and having an "After Gabbie Goes to Bed" date night about once a week. We tried to watch one of the movies (The Invention of Lying - meh, which was disappointing because we love Ricky Gervais) when Gabbie was still awake the other night, because we were too tired to ensure we'd be able to watch it all the way through after she went to bed. We weren't very successful because she didn't stop talking THE ENTIRE TIME. Seriously, she talked and babbled and screeched and got all up in our faces for 90 plus minutes of annoyingness. That was the last time we'll try that.

I'm also trying to convince Aaron to take me out to dinner this weekend when my family is scheduled to be in town. We definitely need the alone time, and that will be at least one out of twelve for this goal!

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Inspired by Maggie's Mighty Life List, I've been working on mine. It's not very long yet because I'm putting quite a bit of thought into it and there have been a ton of edits. This month she has her list sponsored again (lucky!) and has challenged her readers to put up three items from their list to work on during March. So, for this month I will have three additional goals. I've only chosen one so far, but it's a fun, cheap, and easy one, perfect for a short timeline:

1. Make cheese at home - this could be something as simple as ricotta, but I'm thinking I'd really like to try to make fresh mozzerella.

I'll post the other two when I decide. This is going to be so much fun!

Getting Fitter

(That title was mostly to bug my husband who insists that very few words should be modified with an -er because it sounds weird to him. So I do it regularly to annoy him. Ask him about "vaguer" sometimes - like nails on a chalkboard and as hilarious as someone falling down.)

So, I'm finally committing to lose some weight and get into better shape. It doesn't hurt that we have a weight-loss competition going on through the fitness center at work. This gave me some excellent motivation to literally get off my butt and do something about the *cough30poundscough* baby weight I still have hanging around. Well, I guess technically it isn't baby weight, but I gained it while gestating, so it's all her fault and I'm sticking to that excuse.

So far, it's been going pretty well. Over the past three weeks I'm down a little more than 6 pounds, which isn't bad, but I'd like to do better. I'm counting calories, but the past week has been full of poor food choices. Ironically (I think I'm using that right) this week when I ate more than others in recent history and exercised less too resulted in my largest weight loss to date (2.5 pounds). Also, those 6 pounds were apparently enough of a loss to allow me to now remove my pants without undoing them, so there's that. It's always encouraging to start seeing the difference. I love it when you can start to see the difference.

So, I think that in order to do even better I'm going to start either the 30 Day Shred or a Couch to 5K program sometime in the next couple of days and focus on eating many more fruits and vegetables and drinking more water, and see where that gets me. I'm so ready to shed some more pounds. I want them to be gone. And then of course I'm sure they'll all come rushing back as soon as I get pregnant again, but oh well. At least I'm figuring out how to get them off so I'll have that experience to build on next time.

Life always gets in the way

So, yeah, it has been a while since I posted. I really don't know why I haven't; I think it's lack of motivation paired with not much to write about, and my standard excuse of being really busy at work. Which is true.

Anyway, in the meantime I went to Chicago, ate some amazing food (next time you're in Chicago, splurge at Green Zebra - I had one of my best meals ever there), and was the recipient of the world's fastest pedicure:

I swear I was in that chair for less than 10 minutes, whereas my friend here in town got a pedicure that same weekend at the salon where I get my hair done, and it lasted 90 minutes. Next time I'm headed there instead.

Gabbie is as cute as ever and adds more words and skills every day. Here she is feeding herself yogurt.

Gabbie in pigtails is the cutest thing I've ever seen, so she gets them pretty much every day.

And with that, I have to run off again. I'm in the middle of making brioche, and the first rise just finished. 

Day three and I'm already resorting to bullet points

I have been super motivated lately, which is super weird. What happened to my laziness? I kind of liked it even though I never got anything done. Case in point (of the missing laziness), take today:

1. By 7 a.m. today I had made breakfast (breakfast sandwiches) and dinner (pork roast in the crock pot).
2. I worked out last night and was a little sore, but I decided it might be fun to stop by our work gym at lunch today and did 30 minutes on the elliptical. And I can't wait to do my EA Active workout tonight again. What the hell is up with that? (Also, my ankle is doing so much better; I would say I'm at about 75% of normal)
3. I checked off more items on my work to-do list today than I normally do in 3 days.

Some other items worth sharing:

• I didn't think the time change had affected Gabbie too much - she's been going to bed at her normal time and waking up a little late even. I thought I had the Fall Back mastered! Then her teacher at daycare told me that Gabbie was so tired by lunch time today that she ate her entire lunch with her eyes closed, and then crashed immediately after. She ate all her food, including yogurt with a spoon. Color me impressed (and amused)!
• The constant whining - it is killing me! She is in a whining phase these days. Actually, it started on Sunday. Maybe the time change had more of an effect than I thought.
• I was scared to death of teething before it actually happened. Besides a night of crappy sleep every now and then, the only way we've noticed she's teething is when we look in her mouth and notice, Hey! Another Tooth! My daughter is made of awesomeness. Just sayin'.

And, to finish off this incredibly random post, here's a picture:

Gabbie at the Cider Mill/Pumpkin Patch - she LOVED that wagon and cried when we made her get out of it and leave. Guess who's probably getting a wagon for her birthday next spring! (p.s. she has a much cuter hat now)

One Sexy Mama (at least that's the goal)

If you asked me how I've felt since Gabbie was born, I could give you several words to encompass my feelings: joyful, thankful, grateful, awed, amazed, humored, tired... The list goes on and on. One word that you won't find on that list, though, is sexy. I haven't felt sexy since about the middle of my pregnancy, and counting back, that means I really haven't felt sexy for nearly two years.

I need to get my groove back, in the worst way.

I'm still overweight; I lost 20 pounds in the first couple of weeks after she was born and the scale hasn't moved much since. I have a saggy stomach still. My boobs, well, let's just say they'll never be the same. My stretch marks have mostly faded, but the texture of my skin down there is a nightmare. Don't get me wrong, I never expected to bounce back and look exactly the same as I did pre-baby. I've seen what I looked like at 41 weeks pregnant. You can't come back from that.

But, I can make some progress. It's going to take some work, but I'm at the point I'm willing to put in that work. I need to eat better. I've already cut out fast food and am weaning myself of soda. I'm going to add physical activity to my routine, because I know that's the only way I can really get in a better shape; plus it helps with my seasonal depression, so now is the best time for me to start a routine again.

As of this evening, I've been felled by some sort of stomach bug, but when I'm feeling better I'm taking a picture of how I look now. I might even post it (with much apology before and after for subjecting you all to the sight). I just know that now is my time to do this, because I have 20 pounds to lose to be at a good starting point for getting pregnant again, which we expect to start on early next year. That gives me about 4 months to lose that 20 pounds, which I think is totally doable. If I do the work, that is.

A Few Monday Tidbits

Mondays suck. Everyone knows this. Just thought I’d restate the obvious.

Do you want to know something I feel bad about? (I’m telling you whether you do or not, actually.) I feel bad that my work pays a lot of money to run the air conditioning for our office, and then I warm it right back up with my space heater. It was seriously 66 degrees in here earlier, which is slightly ridiculous, especially since we’re all dressing for the hot summer weather that has finally arrived. I wore flip flops (fancy office ones like these) and my toes are seriously blue.

Speaking of seriously blue – if you watch True Blood, have you noticed how much more pale everyone is? During last night’s episode Bill was so pale he was almost blue at one point. Anyway, that was one seriously good episode, and it’s hard to wait for next week. I’m also sad that there are only 3 new episodes left this season. Finally, what is up with the Jessica/Hoyt story line? It wasn’t in the books, and I don’t get the necessity of it other than continuing to use a character they made up in the first season.

I’m kicking myself for not taking a picture of the kittens this weekend. I’m explain more about them tomorrow, but suffice it to say I’m missing their absolute cuteness.

You can roll your eyes at me if you want (the nice thing is I can’t see it through the computer), but last week I joined FlyLady. Aaron is much busier at work these days, working long hours and being constantly busy during those hours, and so I need to pick up the slack a little around the house. Trouble is, he’s the good housekeeper in our family, and I have no idea what to do. I really like this system so far because it basically tells me what to do, so I don’t have to make any decisions. So far the dishes have been done every night before bed (which is different) and I’ve done at least one load of laundry every day (and put it promptly away, which is also different). Not that I live in squalor usually, it’s just that having a toddler tends to take up all my time. This is already helping to make things easier around the house, so I’m enjoying it. We’ll see if it continues to go so well. I tackle my first “hot zone” tonight.