Running

I’m been trying to get back in the habit of running for several weeks now. I was on a role before I got sick and then it took a while to get started again but I’m back. I have been running at least 3 times a week for the past few weeks and loving it. My heart rate is higher then I wish it would be and I’m going slower then I wish I was but I can see the improvements in my distance, speed, and breathing already!! I am really interested in running a 10 mile race along the lakefront that ends on the 50 yard line of Soldier’s Field. It’d be the furthest I’ve ever run but I think it’d be amazing and I finally found a partner!! A friend of mine, Gwen, is going to run it with me. She called Saturday to tell me I was an inspiration and she’s going to do it. Her husband (who’s also running it) wrote up a training plan for her and she’s hitting the gym. I have a plan I wrote for myself too and although I’m not exactly where I need to be, I’m getting there and think I will be caught up and on track within the next week. I have 11 ½ weeks to run 10 miles! I can do it!!! I’m warning you now, there may be lots of running updates on here since that’s going to be my main focus for the next 11 ½ weeks. Wish me luck!!!

Frustrating

Baseball practice started for my son last week. We missed the first practice because we already had birthday related plans. Due to the iffy Chicagoland weather there’s indoor practice scheduled for each Monday this month from 4-5pm. I was not every happy about the start time because I work until at least 4pm but we figured my husband could go into work 1 ½ early so he can leave early and I would skip the gym and drop the little guy off at day care. I mean, it’s only for 4 Mondays! So today I’m getting ready to leave work and I get an email from the coach with a practice schedule for the rest of the month which includes….this Friday at noon because they have no school (my son is in daycare) and sporadic weeknights throughout the rest of the month with practice beginning at 3:30pm. Yes, 3:30! How the heck are we supposed to get him to practice that early? Are we the only family with two working parents? My husband says this is what happens when he’s not coaching but I disagree. Our son has played baseball, basketball, football, and soccer and he has NEVER had practice that started before 5pm! I have no idea how this season is going to pan out but it’s not off on the right foot!!

MIA

I apologize for falling off the face of the earth. Life has just been crazy the past couple of weeks with my son’s birthday. To give you the short version would be to say that he had 6 celebrations in 7 days! One night in the middle of the week we were talking about all the parties, get togethers, ect and he said, “My birthday is kind of like Hanukah.” What an observation for a Catholic 11 yr old!
March always seems to be an insane month for our family. It starts with our son’s birthday, followed by the start his baseball season, followed by the start of the MLB spring training, then there’s the annual St. Patrick’s Day parties…of which we are regulars at two and they’re always in one weekend. After that we have my little brother’s birthday (one year younger then my son), and then real St. Patrick’s Day. This also usually coincides with my friend Megan and her family visiting from Texas during their early spring break. Then we have more baseball, even more baseball, and finally baseball. March is finally capped off by a week break from school for my 11 yr old in which this year he’ll spend at his grandparents. Thanks Mimi & Papa!! The third weekend in March I usually sneak in running the Shamrock Shuffle, which is a two day event because of the expo the day before, however this year I didn’t register in time, so I’m heading to Ohio to see my friend Amy and will squeeze in a dinner in Michigan to visit my Jessica. After filling everything in on the calendar, my husband was all excited to see that we have one free weekend day/evening at the end of March but then I offered to babysit my two beautiful nieces and keep them for a sleep over. I figure I’ll sleep in April!! Oh wait, didn’t I just get another invite in the mail?

Excitement

Every year my husband’s parents pick a day to spend with each of the grandkids for their birthdays. They go to a special event, go shopping for their birthday gifts, or just spend quality time together. My son LOVES to spend time with his Mimi and Papa and has been counting down the days and hours until his special day.

Today was the day and his excitement was boiling over from the moment he woke up this morning….at 3am. Yes you read that correctly, he woke up at 3am so excited that he couldn’t fall back to sleep. I rubbed his back for a few minutes and explained that he wasn’t going to get to their house any earlier if he was to get up now or go back to sleep. I’m sure he feel back to sleep shortly thereafter. Then to my surprise, when I got out of the shower he was sitting on the couch fully dressed for the day with his bed made and anxious to go. I didn’t make him wait long and before we knew it we were at Mimi and Papa’s house being spoiled with a delicious breakfast!

It is so wonderful to see the love and bond between grandparents and their grandchildren. I remember the excitement of going to my grandparents’ house for the weekend and how I always felt like a princess when I was there. My grandmother and I had a special relationship and I thank my lucky stars for each moment I spent with her. I am so grateful that my son cherishes each moment with his and that he isn’t “too old” to show his excitement.

Salsa

I received an email from a friend this afternoon asking if I wanted to take a free salsa dancing lesson tonight at a dance studio near our house. I jumped at the opportunity as who can resist an evening out and the chance to learn something new! I had no idea what to wear or what to expect…heck, I didn’t even know where this place was but I couldn’t wait. I was picturing the Dancing with the Stars practices where the girls were wearing workout clothes with dancing heels. I went through all my heels and found one pair that has an ankle strap and are only about 2 ½ inches high. Then I put on a pair of black capri yoga pants and black t-shirt. I mean I want to be comfortable if I’m working up a sweat and it would be impossible to dance in gym shoes! So I’m already to go when my friend called to say she was on her way. At the last minute I thought to ask her what she was wearing and she tell me jeans and heeled boots, the same thing she wore to work. D’oh! I frantically ran back into my closet and changed into jeans and boots as to not look like a complete idiot. And thank goodness I did as EVERYONE was in jeans!

The class was so much FUN! We learned the basic front back step, side to side step, and then a turn. My partner has taken dance classes at this studio before so he was helpful and we had a blast spinning around. They kept the music slow so I have no idea if I’d actually be able to keep from stepping on my feet in a club. And it was much harder to get my hips into it then what I thought it would be. But who cares, I salsa danced!!! I came home ready to teach my husband and son. Watch out boys! :)

This dance studio offers an array of classes and you don’t need a partner, so I left with a class schedule and a coupon. Now I just have to decide what dance I want to learn first!!

Parenthood

Some days I ask myself how I went from being a single woman in my late 20’s to the mother of a pre-teen almost overnight. I fell in love, that’s how. But falling in love did not prepare me for raising an almost teenager. I haven’t had 11 years to work up to this point, I’ve had three years!! Three years!!! Then again, I’m learning that nothing prepares you for your child’s attitude changes when they hit fifth grade. I’ve had friends and relatives tell me that the maturity and independence that hits in fifth grade is so remarkable that you will sit back in awe. When? When will that happen? My son has 3 more months of fifth grade and we’re going backwards instead of forwards.

Last night when I tucked my sweet boy in, he was in a bad mood. He had his face covered with Tiger, his favorite stuffed animal, and had his back to me. I climbed into bed with him, began rubbing his back, and starting talking. I talked about how important it is to talk to his parents about things going on in his life…how sometimes just talking will make everything seem better. I told him about a comment I read years ago in the Sunday paper and has always stuck with me. It said that people tend to treat strangers with more respect then their loved ones. There is so much truth to that observation. We forget to say please and thank you to the individuals in our house but we are always polite to the barista at our favorite coffee stop or the checkout clerk at the grocery store. If someone at the office asks, “how is your day?” We answer with a smile and talk about the positive and always return the question. If someone at home asks that same question, we state every thing bad that happened from hitting snooze one too many times to burning dinner. Or even worse, we give a one word answer like “fine” and don’t return the question. I know that I’m guilty of this and it’s something that I remind myself of daily because the people that I love deserve the most respect that I can give. I am not entitled to their respect, I have to earn it each day and to earn it, I have to show it in return. Just like love…no one is entitled to it, we have to earn it and keep earning it daily. I hope some of what I said sunk into my little boy’s head and if not, I’ll just keep talking until it does.

Over Sleeping

Sleep…how much sleep does one person need? For the first time in months, maybe years, I am sleeping well at night. I am literally falling asleep the second I hit the pillow and I’m not even moving until about 4am. The problem is that I should be getting up at 4:30 to go to the gym and I’m not. I’m staying in bed until almost six and then rushing to get out of the house and to work by seven. This is the latest I have ever slept in the morning. I’ve always been one of those people who are up by five and in bed by nine. Maybe that’s where the problem is though, I’m not going to bed at nine. I’m going to bed at ten or ten thirty because our son won’t go to sleep if we go in our bedroom. He wants us to stay up and we listen. I miss crawling in bed after I put him to sleep and waking up at 4:30. I know it might sound odd to miss it but I do. I used to look forward to my quiet, uncomplicated mornings where I’d get up, dress for the gym, prep dinner, and be out of the house by five. Then I’d get a good hour workout in and still make it to the office by 7:15. Now I’m sleeping in, rushing around like a mad woman, and completely skipping my workout because I don’t seem to make time in my day. How many days does it take to make something a habit?