Meet me in Atlanta

Here we go again! I just registered for the Zooma half marathon for November 8th. This is the race I ran last November. I was training for this race when I found out I was pregnant with squeaky, and after consulting my doctor, decided to go ahead and run it. I am very excited to do it again this year. It is a tough race with a lot of hills - did not realize midtown Atlanta was so incredibly hilly!! I figured I should go ahead and register to get myself more motivated for the long runs outdoors.  I am hoping to bring even more inspiring women with me this year!

Extreme Makeover Me Edition First full week

This week Amber wants us to post about what inspires us.  There are really several things that inspire me.  Every morning on my way to work there is someone out there at 5:30 running or walking and I am completely in awe of these people.  I wish I could make myself get up that early and just hop out of bed and go.  It does make me more excited to get out later in the day though!

The monkeys also inspire me.  I know that having 3 little boys takes A LOT of energy and I can't imagine sitting back and just watching.  I have had the pleasure of running in kid races with them twice and I really can't wait till we can do a 5K together and they smoke me!  

I have a necklace that I got for finishing my first (and only to date) half marathon.  I actually put this on this morning because it inspires me.  It is a small silver stick figure of a woman running with the race date and name on it.  I love it and whenever I wear it, I am inspired to get back out there and keep logging miles.  

This past week was a pretty good one for me.  I have been running 3 mile stretches and am increasing my speed slowly.  There were two times that I really did not want to be on that treadmill and I simply told myself to get on and go just 1 mile, then 2 miles, then just 5 more minutes and I ended up doing 3 miles each time.  I went for my first road run since the baby on Saturday morning.  It was really tough though.  My running buddy came along and she pushed littlest monkey in his jogger while I pushed the two older monkeys in the double jogger.  I kept getting frustrated because of how fast my heartrate was going up and how winded I kept getting.  Later on I figured out I was being very hard on myself and should have been happy to run at all considering how much I was actually pushing.  Each monkey is about 40 pounds, and the stroller is at least 15.  So all in all I was pushing about 95 pounds!!  I feel lucky to have not passed out from that one!  It will get better, we plan on keeping it up and I feel like it will actually count as a strength training session for me.  It was so nice to get out and run with someone too.  We have some great conversations, did I mention my running buddy is a psychologist!?!  

Here are some pictures from our cow appreciation day at Chick-fil-a.  We had a great time.  The kids were mooing all over town and were so excited about the entire "field trip."  And since we got our food free, I treated them to ice cream cones.  I am not a big fan of vanilla ice cream, but if you have never had the ice dream cones from Chick-fil-a, you MUST!!  Yes, big monkey is barefoot on the restaurant floor!  So gross, I know.  He was so excited that the cow was inside that he ran out from the play area without putting his shoes on.  I have come a long way in my neurosis and I did not freak out when I saw this - of course he was ushered quickly into the play room as soon as I took the picture!

I put a fresh coat of paint on our dining room walls.  Boy did it make a difference.  After 5 years and two rambunctious monkeys, our walls were looking beat up.  So I simply put a light coat of the same color on the walls and it looks brand new.  I also bought the older monkeys a fish each.  Just fancy looking goldfish but they are so excited.  We welcome Frankie Frankie and Roddy Doddy to the family.

On a crappy note, our van was broken into Saturday night.  They broke the side window and crawled in and out and took our portable tv's and my ipod.  I was incredibly relieved to see that they somehow missed my camera that was inside my vera bradley diaper bag (that they overlooked as well).  I am now starting to feel the anger about my ipod and the tv's and mostly having to replace the window.  Some people just really suck.  It has been a rough few weeks and this just really did not need to happen!

Chikin is mooey better than beef

The monkeys, their buddy, his sister, the nanny, and I are going to Chick-fil-a tomorrow dressed like cows (well the kids are at least).  They have been at home sponge painting white t-shirts and making cow visors to wear and are SO excited.  I saw this and thought they might like it being that they LOVE going to Chick-fil-a.  It is really the only fast food restaurant we go to (every once and a while we get milkshakes from Sonic) and they love the fact that they can get chicken, fruit cups, and play.  I love the service.  The people are super nice and usually help us to our table, get refills, take our trash, and I never feel rushed out.  So, as our Friday field trip, we are going to take the "herd" to eat free chikin (side salad for mommy since I don't eat chicken!)!  I will be sure to post pictures Monday.

Extreme Makeover Me Edition Beginning

This will be my first week doing the Extreme Makeover Me Edition (EMME) that Amber hosts on her site.  I am excited and hope that I will be able to keep it up each week.  I really enjoy reading what other people doing this challenge have to write every week. 

I would like to make this about more than just body image and getting back into shape.  I want to get my psyche back into shape too.  I am a happy person for the most part.  I am a little high strung at times though and neurotic (as my mom likes to tease me about).  I am trying to make it a priority to step back and smell the roses more often.  I also need to do more for me, I know this would make me a better mommy.

My biggest goal physically is to get back to running like I was when I was not pregnant and at the beginning of this pregnancy.  I am not in a huge rush to get the weight off (don't get me wrong, I DO want it gone) since I am breastfeeding and don't want to compromise that success with losing the weight too fast.  

I will be running my second half marathon November 8th and really need to get into training for this.  The first time I ran this was when I was 19 weeks pregnant and I was on top of the world when I crossed the finish line in under 2 1/2 hours.  I am hoping to get into good enough shape to run it in 2 hours this time, we will see.  I ran most of my pregnancy but then had about 9 weeks off due to having a c-section.  Boy has it been hard to get back into the running.  I could not believe how out of shape 9 weeks can make you!  So I have been taking baby steps and am back to running on the treadmill.  I ran 3 miles yesterday in just over 30 minutes.  It was a great run and felt really good.  Running is my time to be me and a time to actually hear my own thoughts.  My goal this next week is to run 4 times on the treadmill and once outside.  I would also like to get in a couple of strength training sessions, I am really lazy when it comes to this and I know how much I would benefit from doing these exercises 

I am not one to really do well with dieting.  I like carbs.  No, I LOVE carbs.  One thing I plan on getting under control this week is the candy eating that has gotten out of hand.  I know that I get enough water when at work, but the weekends are a different story.  I have to do better with drinking enough while running after the monkeys.

I have about 15 pounds to go till pre-pregnancy weight is achieved.  I have sort of stalled for the past few weeks, but I do feel a difference in the way my pants fit.  

This week's topic was to share vacation survival strategies.  I can't say that I have any, other than packing snacks to take with us on our road trips.  I have always just figured vacation meant I could take a vacation from everything, including healthy eating.  I do try to make a conscious effort to eat plenty of fruits and veggies along with the junk, and I do make sure my kids are not overloading on sugar.

3 months old

Squeaky is 3 months old today!  Where does the time go!?!  He is holding his head so well now and does really well with tummy time.  He absolutely loves to get kisses and squeals with delight when he gets them.  I have been watching his hemangioma very closely and it has grown some, but mostly it is just a bit more raised than before.  The older monkeys are still in love with him as much as they were the day we brought him home.  I love to watch them talk to him.  I am getting some good rest at night since he likes to sleep for long stretches.  The hair is just as crazy as ever and growing in blond. 

We had a great time visiting friends on the 4th.  The boys really had fun playing with the kids and their toys.  My friend made a wonderful potato salad and homemade ice cream that was really yummy.  I am not usually a big fan of potato salad, but I plan on making this one soon!  We plan on making the ice cream for a summer treat at work, hopefully this week!  I am happy to report that the ice cream did not seem to bother the littlest monkey (no, I did not directly feed him ice cream!!).  So I am hoping the dairy issue has corrected itself and he will not end up lactose intolerant like my husband. 

Where did June go

This week really got away from me.  There is nothing like a rough couple of weeks to really make you appreciate your closest friends and family.  I have the most wonderful supporting people around me.  I am truly blessed.  A girl could not ask for more understanding friends and family.  My parents are the kind of parents everyone would love to have, the kind I strive to be everyday with the monkeys.  I know I have mentioned this before, but I really mean it!  My best friends live in different cities, states, and even countries than I.  But when we get together, or email, or talk on the phone, it feels like we are next door neighbors.  I don't tell them nearly enough how thankful I am to have them all in my life. 

I get to go visit one of these friends this weekend.  The monkeys and I are going on a weekend trip to let mommy have some venting "girlfriend" time.  The big  monkeys are very excited because she has a daughter that they are both in love with and a son just a bit younger with fun toys.  I am really looking forward to it.  

I had a great run this afternoon.  The kind where I could have kept going if time wasn't an issue.  It is such a great time to clear my head and make plans and just be me.  I am very much looking forward to running with my running buddy VERY soon.  

I am thinking about doing the Extreme makeover me edition that Connie does each week.  It might keep me accountable for things (like the half dozen pecan sandies I ate before my run).  I feel like it might cause me to feel pressure to come up with things to better about myself which means I would have to really look at my life a bit closer.  I am not sure if I am ready for that, but will think about it before next week's edition.