November Thankfulness - Installment 8

I'm back for my last installment of thankful posts. 

Day 29:
I'm thankful for my family.  I don't think I've said that yet, although I know I've mentioned each one of them individually, I think they are worthy of another mention as a unit.  We may be a blended family, but we work well, and I wouldn't change it for the world.

Day 30:
I'm thankful our house has a garage.  As the weather turns colder and frost and snow arrive, I'm so glad I don't have to scrape my windows every morning.  And let's face it, if we didn't have a garage, I'd probably find a way to make my husband do it for me.  I'd say it's safe to say my husband is happy we have a garage too, even it he forgot to park the car in the garage last night.

Week 9

Since I learned we were expecting, there have been quite a few things that have changed for me.  Looking back, even before we knew, symptoms were present.  I was just dismissing them as being part of a cold and/or my running. 

I want to take the time to write down how I've felt these last 2.5 weeks since discovering we were pregnant.  

• I can't brush my teeth without gagging.
• I go to bed early.  By early I mean before 9:30 at the latest, and the weekends, I've been falling asleep on the couch before the kids even go to bed at 8.  
• My appetite is very limited.  It is improving some now, but those first few weeks, EVERYTHING made me nauseous.  
•  I'm cranky.  My husband, I'm sure, would be very quick to agree.
• We haven't talked too much about it, other than to say the fact that I'm feeling so yucky is hopefully a good sign for this pregnancy. 

I'm sure there are a few more things I could share, but the bulk of the last 2.5 weeks has cosisted of trying to find something to eat, sleeping, and sitting on my butt.

Luckily, my awesome husband has stepped up and helped out a lot. 

November Thankfullness - Installment 7

Well, I've fallen way behind in my posting. But, I'm back for another installment. 

 

Day 19:

I'm thankful for an afternoon without the hubby to do some Christmas shopping with the kids for him.  Let's hope they can keep the secrets!

 

Day 20:

I'm thankful for a relaxing day at home, with no where to go.

 

Day 21:

I'm thankful tonight is my last night of in-class for my 501 class.  Just a week of online class left for that class this semester!

 

Day 22:

I'm thankful my mom watches out boys one day a week.  I love that they're able to spend time with family instead of day care every day.

 

Day 23:

I'm thankful for a quiet day at work with everyone out for the holiday.

 

Day 24:  Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm thankful for our families and that we're able to celebrate the holidays with them.  It may be a challenge to schedule out holidays with or families, but at least we're able to spend them together and that is what matters.

 

Day 25:

I'm thankful for a clean house.  I required the house be cleaned before any decorations went up, and I'm so glad I did.  Now, I won't have to do any heavy cleaning again until after Christmas!  Don't worry, I'll still clean in the next month, just not nearly as throughly!

 

Day 26:

I'm thankful God has given my peace, or some sense of calmenss, as the boys spent their first two hours, unsupervised with their mother for the first time in over three  years.  It's been a long road, and while I was still uneasy.  We think we're doing the right thing. 

 

Day 27:

I'm thankful for trains and decorations and Elfie (our Elf on a Shelf) that make my boys happy.  Their happiness is so important and not to be taken for granted. 

 

Day 28:

I'm thankful my boys have the opportunity to take swim lessons.  I hope it builds their confidence, strength and ability as they learn to swim.  I'm also super thankful I have a hubby who takes them to handle the men's locker room with them!  

I peed on a stick.

When I ran my half marathon, I was almost two weeks late for my period.  I assumed it was from all the running and training I had been doing.  I've known that to alter cycles before.

By the Thursday after the race, November 10, I was tired of waiting and on my way to class that night, picked up a pregnancy test.

I know that you are sometimes advised to take them first thing in the morning, and we always have before, but I wasn't willing to wait this time around.  When I got home from class that night, it was the first thing I did.  And sure enough, it was the clearest positive result we've ever received.  (Just a reminder, our previous experiences are here and here.)

I'm feeling much better now about my less than satisfying half marathon.  Not only was I feeling sick, I was pregnant too!

November Thankfulness - Installment 6

Well, I got a bit behind in my Thankfulness this week.  I've been really tired lately; we'll say it's the change of seasons.  It's turning to winter here and getting that chill in the air!  But I'm back for another installment!

 

Day 13:

I'm thankful for blessings in disguise from God.  I may not have become a mother the traditional way, but I'm still a mother.  And my boys, they have two Moms.  My heart breaks for them and the challenges they will face in understanding their unique situation, but things could be worse, a lot worse.  So I'm thankful for my boys and our situation because we are safe, happy and loved.

 

Day 14:

I'm thankful for my Dad.  The 14th was his 59th birthday.  I've always been a daddy's girl, and that hasn't changed over the years. 

 

Day 15:

I'm thankful for my mom.  The 15th was her 54th birthday.  My mom has helped us out a lot with our little family, and for that, we are very grateful. 

 

Day 16:

A few days late, but I'm thankful for Caden time.  I spent a full day with just Caden as I had done earlier with Caleb.  Caden and I too had cupcakes from the cupcake bakery before heading to the library.  Only this time, we went to our small town library, which I actually preferred.  There were less people and actually some people we knew.  Granted that comes with a smaller selection, but we still have access to everything in the larger library as well.  I think we'll be back for future visit to our library!  We headed to lunch then where we at at the "tall seats" at the lunch counter per his request.  We did a few shopping things then to wait until Puss in Boots started that afternoon!  Caden wanted to go to the pet store to pick outa  new toy for our dog, Belle.  And another store to pick a Christmas present out for his brother.  He's so sweet, I melt!  It was a great day of fun, and something I look forward to doing again with both boys.

 

Day 17:

I'm thankful for a job that is flexible.  They understand the importance of family and work/life balance and make the stress of being a full time working mom easier.  Hats off to you companies who understand!

 

Day 18:

I'm thankful no one was hurt last weekend when we hit a deer on our way home.  I'm also thankful for a brother-in-law who fixed the car up for us to pick up today. 

Photo

This photo makes me smile. 

November Thankfulness - Installment 5

Day 11:
I am thankful for our Veterans.  I am thankful for the families that support them.  I am thankful for our freedom they protect.

Day 12:
I'm thankful for my dear friend Lisa.  Today, she moves 7 hours away out of state.  While we are sad to see her go, I am happy for her to open another chapter in her life. 

Laundry

I switched a laundry before I went to be one night this week.

Keith was downstairs playing video games, so before heading upstairs to bed, we had this brief conversation:

Me: I know I'm going to ask you this, and I know you're going to say yeah sure, I can do that.  I also know that I'm going to wake up in the morning and have to do it myself, but I'm going to ask you anyway.  Can you put switch the load of laundry when the washer and dryer are done?

Him:  With a slightly confused look on his face.  Yeah, sure, I can do that.  His comment was followed by awkward laughter, which to me indicated I was right.


Me:  Yeah, I've heard that before, I won't hold my breath.  

Him: I'll try my best to remember.

Me:  I've seen your best; I need better.


Wouldn't you know I woke up the next morning, and the laundry was still in the washing machine?

November Thankfulness - Installment 4

I'm back again for another installment.

Day 7:
I'm thankful for a reliable car to get me where I need to be and in comfort too.  I used to drive everywhere; then I met Keith, and he started doing all the driving, well most of it anyway.  When I went back to school it was a bit of an adjustment driving 30 miles one way to school nearly twice a week, so with that commute, plus all my other errands around town, I'm thankful for a reliable car with a working radio and comfort amenities.  Bonus thankful, it's fully paid for. 

Day 8:
Vacation days, because let's face it, working full time, isn't always the most fun all the time.  They are sanity savers, especially when spent with darling little boys.

Day 9:
I'm thankful for pie.  More specifically my ability to bake pie, don't get me wrong, I love to eat pie too.  I find something soothing about baking.  It's great stress relief.  Four pies last night, made me feel satisfied. 

Day 10:
Today, I'm thankful for music.  I drove home from school tonight with the radio loud.  I sang along loudly, and that made me happy.

Half Marathon Race Photos

These photos were taken prior to the race.  I didn't stick around long enough after for any photo evidence of it.  I didn't want any photo evidence of that finish. 

My friend Lisa, who finished in 2:09:20!

Stomp the Grapes Half Marathon

I ran participated in my first half marathon Saturday.

The plan was to run it, and I did for part of it, but I couldn't sustain it.

The week before the race, both my kids came down with some kind of cold and a nasty cough.  Being the loving, sharing family that we are; I also came down with said cold.  I could feel it starting for the week, so I took extra precautions and took vitamin c everyday, went to bed early, washed my hands like crazy, and I kept it at bay.  Or at least I thought I was.  I might have been in denial about the significance of it, but it is certainly better than more colds I've had.

I knew it would make the race a bit harder, but I certainly didn't anticipate how awful it would be. 

My first mile was faster than it should have been at just under 10 minutes, so I consciously slowed down.  I managed to run the first 7 miles with my planned walk breaks every two miles, plus the water stops that didn't align because I can't drink on the run. 

Somewhere in the seventh mile, I lost my running groove.  I ran the whole 11th mile, but other than that it was mostly walking, with some spurts of running. 

So many thoughts went through my head.  A short list of them is below.

• Should I or should I not call my husband to come pick me up?  (I did not.)
• I may never run again.
• Why do I run?  THIS SUCKS!
• I think I could be happy fat.  
• I trained so hard to suck this much!?
• Why can't I see people behind me anymore?

I did a lot of watch checking the last bit too, because I wanted to finish in three hours, even with the walking.  Mainly because I vaguely remember them saying something about opening traffic back up around the 3 hour mark, but I didn't pay attention because I assumed I'd be done by then.  Clearly, I needed to learn that lesson!

I finished in 2:56:53.  I was 598th of 620 finishers.  That certainly didn't go as planned. 

I felt awful by the time I finished, and was ready to go immediately.  You know it's a bad race when I didn't even stick around for the wine.  I wanted to go home.

To add salt to the wound of my ego for the race, we ate at IHOP on the way home, and I forgot my race bib there.  I realized it when I got home and nearly cried.  I'm obsessive about collecting my bibs, writing my times on them, and hanging them together in my bedroom.  Now my collection is not complete, and of my first half marathon race. 

It's taken me a few days to be able to write this post.  I was still disappointed in my results Monday at work; it didn't help that all my co-workers wanted to know how it went. 

I'm still feeling bad with this cold, which is worse now.  I haven't ran since either, but it's only been a few days.  What my running plans are next, I have no idea.

I'll post a pre-race picture soon too.

November Thankfulness - Installment 2

I'm back for the second installment of November Thankfulness!

Day 3:

I'm thankful for the opportunity to attend graduate school for my MBA with the support of my family.  Wrapped up in this are so many things to be thankful for, not the least of which is my husband who is so encouraging and supportive of what I'm doing and picking up extra work at home to help out too. I wouldn't be able to do it without him. I'm thankful for the financial resources and the ability to fund my schooling. I'm thankful for the intelligence and skills to be able to complete the program. Although, I suppose I could be getting a little ahead of myself there as I haven't seen my first semester grades or made it far enough to be certain when I'll finish; regardless, I'm thankful for the opportunity to try.

Day 4:

Today I'm thankful for TJ Maxx. Strange? Perhaps, but today, it's true. A good college friend of mine, Robin, introduced me to it a few years ago near her home in New York state. After that I found some back home and when I travel, and I love them! They've introduced me to dresses, which are much easier to shop for than pants. Now, especially in the summer, I'm a big fan of dresses. I've never had a store where I can shop for so much in one place that I've liked so well; I leave with a smile on my face and less money in my bank account.
Tonight, I will spend some time there with a friend for an evening of spaghetti and shopping. With a quick stop at another favorite, Target.
Stay tuned for the next installment!

November Thankfulness

For the month of November, I was thinking about making a list throughout the month.  I hadn't mustered up the motivation to put it down on paper screen.  Then I read this post from Melissa, and here I am. 

So, because it is unrealistic for me to remember to write a post every day about what I'm thankful for the whole month.  My goal is to write them semi-regularly with a few items in each post.

Day 1:
I spent the first day of November as a vacation day.  Keith and I both took two days off over the course of the month.  We picked separate days, and each of the days will be spent with one of the boys.  That's right, one will stay in day care while we have solo time with the other.

Yesterday was Caleb day for me. 

I'm thankful for Caleb time, and the ability to take time off to spend one-on-one with my kids. 

We started out our day dropping Caden off at school and saying hi to his friends and teachers at his request.  Then we headed into Medina for Main Street Cupcakes!  My champagne and berries cupcake was amazing.  We spent the rest of the morning at the library before heading to lunch at a local drive-in, where our car battery died and my mom had to come rescue us with jumper cables.  After that excitement, we spent the afternoon at home in the basement watching movies and cartoons. 

Day 2:
Today I'm thankful for a job that is flexible enough to allow me to work from home on days when we have sick kids.  The kids both have awful colds, and Caden had a fever last night, so we kept them both home today for some extra rest to kick this cold to the curb.  I'm thankful my job is flexible enough to allow me the freedom to be here for my kids when they need me without loosing precious vacation time!

I'll be back soon with more thankfulness!