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?

Reading

I started a new book while I was home sick and haven’t been able to put it down. Belong to Me by Marisa de los Santos is a follow up to her novel Loved Walked In. It’s been three years since I read the first novel and the story came back to me almost instantly. I love when a good book can capture your mind and soul as if you were a living character in the story. Her words read like poetry and I get swept away instantly. I love to read and can get lost in a book for hours on end while the world passes around me.

Tuesday evening I took my son to the library so he could pick out a book to read this week. After a frustrating hour of walking up and down the junior aisles lost in a sea of books, he picked a collaboration of short stories. On our way home I tried to explain to him why I wanted him to pick a novel. The character development, setting, plot, climax, theme…being able to comprehend what he reads and to see the story unfolding in his mind as he reads. I told him that when I read I become a silent character. I don’t just read a book, I see the words dance on the page and imagine that I’m there in that little town walking down the street with the raining hitting me in the face. I smile, I laugh, I cry, and I shake my head in disbelief. I get completely and utterly lost in each and every book I read but I love it! It’s like going on a vacation and seeing a whole new world! That’s what I want for my son, I want him to be able to get lost in a book so much so that he remembers it for the rest of his life…not just the story but how he felt when he read it.

Help!

What a few days it's been!  This cold turned into the worst sinusitis I have ever experienced.  We spent our Valentine's Day in the urgent care so that we could get antibiotics because I could not take the pain one second longer.  My husband is also suffering from bronchitis so we're a healthy bunch over here.  Wanna come over for dinner? 

Sweets

Thank goodness it’s Friday!! It’s official - I’m no longer coming down with a cold so much as this cold has taken over my body! I feel as if someone lit a match and threw it down my throat! Not that I’ve ever experienced that or would like to…but in my imagination this is exactly how that would feel. Have I mentioned that I’m ready for the weekend? My son was an angel last night and fell asleep without a peep. He was his normal, goofy, playful, in his own world self this morning as he got ready for school. It was a wonderful way to start the day even if I already felt like a bomb had gone off in my head. While sitting at my desk wishing I was home in bed, the delivery man surprised me with a beautiful bouquet of lilies in shades of red, pink, and white! I’m not a red rose person as I think they’re cliché, especially for Valentine’s Day, and I so love that my husband knows this about me. He is the best at surprising me with a grocery store bouquet of mixed flowers that I look at lovingly for days on end. I’m a simple girl when it comes presents as it’s the thought that counts and I feel so very special that someone is thinking about me. As I glance at the sparking red vase full of closed buds, I can’t wait to take them home to my dining room table and watch them unhurriedly open until the petals are pushing for a breath of light.

Excuses

I didn’t get up this morning and go for my run because of my lack of sleep. I’m also coming down with a cold because my nose is stuffed and mouth is so dry I’m drinking water as if I’m in a desert. I know…excuses! Excuses! Anyways, today I also started thinking about yoga. I have always enjoyed yoga but have never done it consistently to reap the benefits. It’s been one of those things I’ll do here and there if I feel like it or am inspired enough. I remember doing Bikram yoga one time about 3 years ago and I loved it. The room was hotter and muggier then Washington DC on an August day. The classroom was filled with women and men of all ages and body types wearing as little clothing as possible. It was very difficult to breath and I was so dizzy that I had to lie down and just breathe. The instructor said the first step was just staying in the room for the full 90 mins. Oh how I loved pushing my body like that! I felt so strong and as if I had sweated out all the stress in my life. I never went back though. Maybe because there wasn’t a studio near my house. Maybe because the friend that I went with never invited me back. I’m not really sure but I think about that day in class each time I drive by the studio in my town. I look at the red faced people walking to their cars after class and smile because I know how good they feel at that exact moment. I remember how good I felt! Hmmm…would it be crazy to start this running training routine and do a Bikram yoga challenge? Why is it I am always looking to start something new but I never really finish what I set out to do? I have to think about that and get back to you because I have never asked myself that before.

Life

My family is going through a tough time right now. My son has been having trouble sleeping since the end of December and it’s like a roller coaster each night. When I lay with him at bedtime and we have our conversation, I never know what the night will bring. Some evenings it’s as simple as a couple calls for reassurance or he’ll get up for a glass of water. Some nights it’ll take him over an hour to fall asleep and we can hear him get up in the middle of the night but he’ll go back to bed on his own. And then there are nights that we’re all ready to scream or cry until we fall asleep. I fear the latter every night as we go through our routine and last night it happened once again. After hours of up and down, saying he can’t sleep, and crying in the fetal position he finally exhausted himself enough and drifted off. But that’s where my sleepless nights start. The helplessness, frustration, and confusion that run through me as I hear him cry or watch him toss and turn stays with me for hours. My husband is a godsend and has more patience then I do any day of the week. He’ll stay calm and rub his back while I’m ready to explode. I know my son doesn’t want this to be happening but it seems as if he’s causing himself to not sleep by obsessing over little things he’s never even mentioned before. For me the most frustrating part is that we can’t determine the trigger. How did he go from a perfect sleep to an insomniac overnight???

Day One

So I went to the gym and ran per my schedule. I only made it half way. L I was huffing and puffing and had pains in my side. What the heck was I thinking???? I know I need to loose weight and get healthy but is this torture really the only way? Okay, time to be positive. I felt good after I ran and my legs felt strong and toned while I walked around the office the rest of the day. I may have only made it 1.5 miles straight but at least I made it that far. I remember the days when I couldn’t run a block!!!

Challenge

A couple of weeks ago we were having dinner at a friend’s house when we starting talking about working out and running. I am one of those people who will work out 5 days a week and eat healthy when I have a goal in sight and then once I reach that goal....BAM…I stop doing everything that made me successful and fall into bad habits again. I have done this several times in the past 5 years and it is very frustrating. Right now I’m at that overweight, eating everything in sight, and feeling miserable stage. It’s February and NOTHING fits me. Just wait until I have to pull out the summer clothes! L So, we were talking about running and I open my mouth and say that I’d love to run a 10 mile race in May. They look as surprised and I did when those words came out. I have NEVER had any desire to run beyond 5 miles. And why would I now that I’m in the worst shape that I’ve been in years?
This brings me to today. Today I researched 10 mile training guides online. Today I made up my own training guide by combining a few I liked but that needed to be simplified. Today I received an email from my sister-in-law asking if I want to sign up for a half marathon in August. A HALF MARATHON !! 13.1 MILES!?!?!? I’m not even sure I’ll be able to get to 10 in May! We go back and forth about how I’m a chicken and she points out its just 3 more miles. I’m terrified so I tell her to ask me again in a few weeks after I start my training. Am I insane?