Hump Day Havoc

Yesterday was ridiculous. I just couldn't win and it actually carried over into this morning. Long day at work, rushing to get to my Spin class, adjusting to having 2 kids in tow...all in all just kind of rough. Yesterday I made a comment on my post stating that when I grew up I wanted to be a M.I.L.F. If you have never seen American Pie it is time to crawl out of your cave because you have missed some major amounts of time. Anyways....I thought my comment was hilarious. So funny in fact that I carried it over to my facebook status. Apparently I was wrong. While trying to get dinner on the table my husband asks me if I was fishing for compliments. My response.."whaaaa?" He said that status updates like that are people fishing for compliments. My response..."humph, maybe, I guess." This is not the usual response from me, I was obviously tired from my day and from the workout. If I had been on my game I would have popped off with the appropriate wife-type response of..."if you complimented me then I wouldn't have to fish for them." But like I said I was off my game so I agreed with him, next time...I am going total desperate housewife on his ass.

Here is a picture of me teaching spin class last night. This picture was sent to me during class from a girlfriend of mine. Typically, not a big deal although I do not understand why she thinks I am photogenic during workouts....must be the dim lighting and loud music.  I noticed she was sending text during class but didn't think anything of it until it became glaringly obvious that I did not put my iphone on "airplane mode" which would have prevented me from receiving any texts, emails, or calls since I am using my iphone for music for class. So...right in the middle of the class the music briefly cuts out for my ding notification that I have received a text which draws my attention downward and everyone else in the class upwards. When I realize it is her, I give her the stink eye which makes her giggle. I quickly set my phone to airplane mode and look back at her. It is at this point that I get the giggles.  I then lose the ability to look at her for the reminder of the class without giggling. I will note that I did get several compliments after class about it being a good class. I didn't even have to fish for those!!

Double Accountability

In 2011 I get the honor of being a mentor for TEAM In Training. I am going to help out the coaches for the TEAM train people to run theirr first half or full marathon. I am super excited and very honored. In 2011 I plan on running a half marathon in Lincoln NE on May 2, 2011 and then a full marathon in San Francisco CA in October 2011 both with the TEAM and proudly wearing my purple jersey. But 2011 holds a couple other goals for me as well. I want to do a sprint triathlon in May 2011 and then my very first Olympic triathlon in July 2011....all on my own. I did my very first sprint triathlon this past summer and loved it....in  hindsight. It was crazy; people everywhere, lifeguards saving people during the swim, chaos at the transition points, I didn't know if I could finish, and when I crossed the finish line I knew instantly I wanted to do another!

So, my TEAM coach sent out our training schedules for the Lincoln race. I have modified it to account for the bike and swim training I will need since the triathlon comes after the half marathon. I teach a spin class once a week at our local YMCA so that part was covered. I just have to force myself to swim in the mornings during the freezing Nebraska winters. Very hard to force yourself into a cold pool when it's a 50 below wind chill outside. BUT....it's good cross training for a marathon, so I have accountability. Today I found out I have double accountability.

The YMCA that I work at is having a contest between the Omaha branches and the internal departments. They are calling it  the "Practice What You Preach" contest. YMCA employees write their name on a big board displayed in the Y and then fill in each work out that is completed at the Y. Each branch is competing to see who's employees "practice what they preach" by working out 3-4 times a week at the Y. Within our own Branch of the Y, the winning team or department will be the determined based on the average number of workouts per person. So for example if Aquatics has 4 people and one person has 20 workouts, one has 9 workouts and one has 6 workouts their average is 11 workouts. The department with the highest average wins lunch from the losing department.

I love it!! Motivation, accountability, and meeting goals. What a great way to start 2011!!

Christmas Weekend!

Here was the picture we used for our Christmas cards this year. The card read "This Is What Jolly Looks Like". I thought it was fitting. We had a very busy weekend...the holidays, adjusting to a baby in the house, family in town. It was a little nuts! I am grateful for the time with family but I am glad to be getting back to my usual routine. I will say that this routine has been significantly altered having "Izzy" around.

He is a good baby, but busy!! Due to his past, he is very concerned about food. I have never seen a 14 month old eat like this. I am hoping as he adjusts to our home and feels more settled, things will calm down for him. We are being very patient and not making any major modifications until he has been around a while. Wes has been so great!! He has taken on a big brother role pretty well and suddenly seems so much older to me. I don't know if it is just seeing him and seeing a baby or if he has actually had a personality change since having "Izzy" in the house. Probably both. Dave and I are consciously making time for just him though and making sure he knows that we think he is doing a good job.

Dave got me some thermo running pants, a tri suit, and a new hydration pack for Christmas! I need to step it up. I do not want to be one of those girls who got the gear and not the game. So it is time to get my game face on and step up the diet and the training! I have slacked these last few weeks, and I can honestly say....I can totally tell! No more Christmas cookies. No more Holiday feasts. I have 4 big events planned for 2011...I am ready to go!

Foster Parents

It is official. We are foster parents. Dave and I took licensing classes this past spring and our home got approved a month or so ago. Last night we picked up "Izzy". He did a great job transitioning to our house last night. He wasn't afraid of the dog, he ate dinner like he was a professional eater...I now how to make 2 boxes of mac-n-cheese, and he went to bed without a peep. He seemed a little dazed and confused when he woke up this morning but not scared or startled.

We knew we could possible get "Izzy" on Sunday. I have to admit I have spent the last 2 days worrying myself sick...literally.  I played the "what if" game over and over in my head. What if he has special needs....What if it is too hard on me to have a baby around after losing Eric....What if he hates it at our house....What if Wes has a hard time having a baby around. WHAT IF????

 I feel so much better after having such a great first night. It is very soothing to hear those baby sounds around the house. Wes seems to really like him too. Wes asked about "Baby Izzy" the first thing when he woke up this morning and wanted "Izzy" to come to school with him. "Izzy" will got to the same daycare/pre-school as Wes, just not until after Christmas. I think this is going to work out just fine!!

Banana Bread

Last night Wes helped me make whole wheat banana bread. He like to help me bake. The problem is...I only bake treats and sweets. Never anything good for you. I have gained 6 pounds this holiday season!!! I am going to get through Christmas and then start the diet. I am doing good with exercise but I am consuming mass quantities of food!!!

We made a game plan last night to go pick up Izzy today. We are all excited to have a baby in the house! I think I got him covered as far a Christmas goes and I found our baby gate! Wes stated he was going to help Izzy learn to walk. I think Wes is going to make a good big foster brother!

A little culture for the kids

We took Wes to the Rose Theater on Sunday to see Peter Pan the Musical. The Rose theater is a theater focused on kids. They do drama classes, all the plays of ones designed for kids, very kid friendly atmosphere. Wes seemed to like it, it might have been a little too long for his taste but he held it together the entire time! I think our buddy Ben enjoyed the play too. Sam (aka Cloudy), Ben's 15 month old brother, didn't share the same enthusiasm but he's cute enough that it didn't matter. His folks took turns hanging out in the "cry room" with him during the performance. The "cry room" sounds like a horrible place but in all actuality it wasn't so bad, nice TV showing the play so parents didn't miss out too much.

 We spent the afternoon and Dave's cousin's graduation party. He graduated from college!! Seems weird to think he's that old.

Exciting news....Sunday night we got to meet our first foster care placement. Due to the little man being a ward of the state and the very strict confidentiality laws I can't show pics of him or mention him by name. BUT for the sake of the blog I will call him Izzy. Dave and I went through foster parenting courses this past spring and our license was approved about a month ago. We are excited to foster Izzy! He should be placed in our home this week, possibly even tonight if all the forms get approved. Wes is getting a foster brother for Christmas....I am crossing my fingers that this all goes smoothly!!

Friday Fun at the YMCA

 Tonight our YMCA had a Christmas party for the kiddos. They made Christmas crafts, sang songs, and listened to Twas The Night Before Christmas. Then Santa arrived! Wes was super excited, he had a long conversation with Santa and got a candy cane from Mrs. Claus. Wes really shows no fear of strangers, slightly scary but we'll work on it.

 My nephew Brewer on the other hand.....was excited to go up to Santa but ultimately didn't want to be touched or spoken to by some creepy people in weird costumes.

 After the boys chatted with Santa they had cookies and milk. They had big, soft sugar cookies with peppermint icing! It was super yummy!

                                                      Jason. my brother-in-law, agrees!

After we got home, Wes put on his PJs and snuggled with me for a quick movie before bed. All in all a great Friday night!

Accidents and Assholes

 Apparently when there is a minimal amount of snow on the ground it allows for people to drive like complete idiots. Last night, we got freezing rain and then about 1/2 inch of snow on top of it. It was slick but nothing that has not been seen here in Nebraska before...nothing shocking. Yet during this mornings commute to work, apparently everyone was completely shocked and surprised and therefore lost the ability to drive. Being surrounded by accidents and assholes is no way to start your day. Period. End of story. Done.

As the holidays are approaching, I have come to the realization that I have lost vast amount of time. I mean, I flat out to not remember a big chunk of time. My recollection of time is very altered since spending 15 months in the hospital getting care for Eric, but I remember every second I got to spend with my baby. Eric died October 2009 and I do not remember several months that followed at all. I can not tell you where we had thanksgiving last year or who attended. I do not know what we did for Christmas or what we got, where we went...hell I don't know if we even went anywhere. I have absolutely no recollection of last years New Years Eve. I remember taking a trip to LA and taking Wes to Disneyland, the San Diego zoo, and Sea World. My husband tells me we did it in November and I have to take his word for it. I remember the trip, but I have no idea when we actually went.   It is a very odd feeling to realize you have lost so much time. Not that time was wasted but that you have absolutely no idea of your functioning during that time. No idea what you did, no idea of who you did it with. The holidays always make you think about what you are thankful for, despite all the accidents and assholes. I am very thankful for a loving and supportive husband as well as a kind and gentle little boy. I am also thankful for the time I got to have with Eric.

Things that start with 'N'

Ben is the 5 year old son of some friends of mine and happens to be the coolest kindergartner I know. He's been water skiing for well over a year now, has the lushest head of hair of any boy I have ever seen, and is just an overall good kid. For his homework yesterday, he had to draw something that starts with the letter 'N'. He drew me!!! How cool is that?? Above is the picture of his actual homework, he even spelled my name right! Ben happens to have some pretty cool parents too. They like to run, have a cool boat they let us play on, and enjoy camping with us! I have Ben's mom talked into doing a marathon with me next fall with TEAM In Training out in San Fransisco. So far, we think it's going to be a girls trip that involves a lot of running and probably some tattoos! Fall 2011 is soooo gonna rock!

The results of my PET scan came back negative which is relieving and frustrating all at the same time. I am super glad I don't have cancer but annoyed they don't have answers for me. We went through a lot of this with Eric...we knew exactly what he didn't have but never found out what he did have.  So..I have to go back to the Doctor's next week.

My training season has officially kicked off. I started out with weights on Monday and hit up the elliptical today. I picked up my new inserts from the podiatrist last night and they say it will take 2-4 weeks to get them properly broken in. I am still intending on doing barefoot exercises and hopefully incorporate barefoot running into my world. Ultimately, it may be totally unnecessary to have both vibrams and custom made orthopedic inserts. But the truth is....I am high maintenance and have no patience. Hence owning both vibrams and custom made orthopedic inserts. I justify myself by saying the inserts are making it possible to run without further injury and the vibrams and bare feet and fixing the problem that caused the injury in the first place.

Holiday Shopping

I got to feel like Santa on Sunday. We took a little family time and got the majority of our Christmas Shopping done! We have a large family to shop for, which is time consuming and expensive, but fun nonetheless. After our outing, I spent the afternoon wrapping all the gifts. I never excelled in the art of gift wrapping, to the point where my family makes fun of my and can eyeball which gifts I wrapped from a distance. All in all,  have never worried too much about it since the paper gets ripped off and crumpled on the floor.
  This is the first year Wes has actually asked for specific items from Santa. To my dismay...he has asked for Zhu Zhu pets, play do, legos, and a singing dump truck. I'm cool with the legos and play do...but Zhu Zhu pets...really....has he already fallen victim to the onslaught of holiday marketing? The sad part is...I am going to complain about them and still buy them. I will give in just to see the wonderful excitement on my son's face. After all...it is a really cute face!

Radioactive Sugar!

The images from my CT scan did not make my doctor as happy as she would like, they found more puffy lymph nodes and an enlarged thymus. "At my age" no body should have a thymus. Your thymus gives you your immune system when your young and then shrivels up and goes away. However, not in my case. Which means one of two things....1. It completely explains what is going on in my lymph nodes and based on my online research isn't a good thing. Or 2. It is just a fluke and I am a freak of nature. At any rate, they set me up for a PET Scan.

So I started off my Friday with nothing to eat or drink for several hours and headed to the hospital. Then the started an IV, in my hand, which is relatively painful; and shot me up with radioactive sugar. Peter Parker became Spiderman when he got bit by a radioactive spider. I am not sure what super powers radioactive sugar will give me....but I am hopeful!

After the radioactive sugar, they dump and entire bag of saline into my veins and follow it up with lasiks to make me pee. Good times. Then I have to wait 2 hours. The idea is that cancer cells are hyperactive, they absorb sugar quicker than healthy cells. SO....if the sugar is radioactive and cancer cells absorb more of it...the cancer cells will glow on an xray. After 2 long hours of sitting in a room by myself, they stick me in the machine shown above. I slide in and out while the PET scan creates a 3D image of the inside of my body. It's a pretty cool thing if you think about it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positron_emission_tomography

Here is a link to look at a PET scan. They have actual images from a scan and describe in much better detail the whole process. I am not sure what kind of uber-geek created this machine, but it's impressive! I bet his or her mom is proud!

Vibrams in the workplace

I decided to wear my fivefingers to work yesterday. I work at a small proprietary university as a student advisor. Reactions: the nursing instructors loved them, the students were confused, and my supervisor just smiled at me. Yes, this is a picture of my feet on my desk and yes...fivefingers are relatively hideous. However...they are amazing. I love them. I am excited to see how my training goes this season! Training season starts Sunday. I'm starting off my season with a nice yoga class, I'm hoping to get the hubby to go with me too. The half marathon is scheduled for the first weekend in May and I will have a nice, slow, long training season to focus on form and speed. PLUS I hope to do TWO triathlons this year as well as another full marathon next fall!
  Last night I taught Spin class. I talked my sister into coming and she talked her husband into coming too. It was fun. I was really glad my sister came. When I got to the gym and went to change out of my work clothes, I realized I had grabbed two shirts instead of a shirt and pants. I quickly called my sister and asked her to bring my workout pants when she came up. Thankfully she had done laundry yesterday and had pants for me! That would have been a very awkward class otherwise!

Barefoot day at the gym

Today was a barefoot day at the gym, well sock day anyways. I wasn't brave enough to do a full workout in the vibrams but I did get in some bare foot time. I spent 30minutes on the elliptical and then took off my shoes and hit the floor. I did some calves raises,

 Then I hopped on the Bosu ball and did some squats, balance is important! The kid behind me gave me the strangest look when I took my shoes off.

I finished by jumping side to side over a towel and then front to back over a towel. It's not much, but I think it is a good start. The more I wear my vibrams, the more bare foot time I will add in to my gym routine. I may not have been brave enough to do a full workout in vibrams but I am brave enough to put pictures of myself at 6am, no shower, post workout on the internet.....that's say something :)

Win one for the barefooters!

 Saturday Wes had his second to last basketball game. He is probably the youngest on his team but he tries everything his coach tells him. After each game, parents are asked to bring drinks and snacks for the team. Today Wes had blue Gatorade....cute huh??

After the game, we headed down to Backwoods where I tried on some vibrams. Since the ones I ordered online were too small, I wanted to make sure I only sent them back once. Well...while I was there I got talked into going with the Sprints instead of the Classics. The young hippie salesman thought it would be a better match. I LOVE THEM! I wore them all weekend. I think I am just going to exchange the pair I previously ordered I love them so much! I am really excited to try them in the gym. I am really forcing myself to go slow, but man...am I pumped! My foot looks really good in them don't ya think?

We finished off our weekend with a Big 12 Championship game that was a good game...but sad results. My hubby took a guys trip down to the game and reports he had a great time despite our loss. Huskers just could not hold on to the ball. ANYWAYS... Wes and I put up the Christmas tree. He really had a good time putting the ornaments on!

Images

So today I had to have a CT scan of my chest, abdomen, and pelvis. I had an appointment with my Doctor a couple of weeks ago and have some puffy lymph nodes, my blood work came back fine so they wanted me to get some xrays done to be on the safe side.  Apparently there are a wide variety of potential issues in lymph nodes for "women of my age". It was the first time my Dr. has ever discussed my age during an appointment. Between stepping on the scale and the "women of my age" comment.....not the most fun Dr. appointment to date.  Have I really arrived to the point where weight and age are the main concerns for my health?? What happened? When did I get old? I might have to go back to eating cold pizza for breakfast just to make myself feel better. I would suggest a good beer binge....but hangovers last too long nowadays and I have a 3 year old. If you have ever had to deal with a hangover and a 3 year old at the same time....you know what I am taking about. If not....I would never wish this situation on my worst enemy.
    Rant over....back to the story...
During a CT scan they give you a contrast dye via IV, the nurse warned me that alot of people say that when the dye goes in it feels like you pee your pants and not to worry because I won't really pee. Comforting. Well....it's true. As soon as they started the dye, my ears got hot and I felt like I started to pee. One more punch to the ego....feeling like you lose control of your bladder...suppose to happen at 60 not 31.
So I leave the hospital, with a bruised ego, a band aid on my arm, and a hospital wrist band; and head straight to Starbucks for a special little treat to make myself feel better. I get up to the drive thru and my gut instincts are to order a skinny vanilla latte and oatmeal. Low fat, fiber, lower calories. Yes....the old person's combo meal.  I opt for the latte but decide to order the coffee cake instead and I must say....whoever said you could not eat your way to happiness lied.  Granted...this is a once in a blue moon event for me, I boycott Starbucks for political and social reasons, but that cake is awesome! I will be back to my organic cereal, organic skim milk, and free trade coffee tomorrow. Today....bring on the cake!!

Change of Perspective

I got my training schedule for my half marathon from my TEAM In Training coach yesterday. I got super pumped. What's crazy....after doing a full marathon I looked at the whole 20 week schedule for the half training and thought..."this will be a breeze." Then I stopped and realized what had actually passed through my head and took another look at the schedule. When did a 13 mile run become an easy day??  I ran sprints in high school and doing an 800 meter run was brutal....now here I am at 31 thinking a 13 mile run sounds fun. Even better....I am excited about doing a triathlon in May. One year ago...this was all such a foreign concept, long distance running, and now it's a daily focus. To quote the famous, talented, and wonderful Dave Mathews..."funny the way it is, when you think about it." (I'm a fan, can you tell?) 

I have to modify the training schedule giving by the coaches, my triathlon comes after the half marathon. The schedule he sent out had 3 rest days and 4 run days. Not an option when you have to bike, swim, and run. So..beginning December 18th I will be doing a schedule that has 2 run days, one swim day, one bike day (I teach spin 1x per week), 1 strength day, and one yoga day.

Today was a swim day.

I swam 550 yards straight...no stopping. Whew!!! Tough stuff! The triathlon in May is a 750 meter swim, so I am on my way. After swimming laps I strapped on the water belt and did some water running for about 15 minutes followed by some water jumps and calf raises. Trying to get a bare foot workout when ever possible!!