Conditioning Cards

When I was a gymnast our workouts were broken down into warmup/stretching, routine/apparatus work, and then the last half hour of every practice was conditioning.  Looking back it amazes me how strong I was.  I try to do some of the strength exercises now, and I fail miserably.  But, I'm determined to get super strong again, so I'm taking a page out of my gymnastic days and have created conditioning cards.

To start our strength sessions, my gymnastics coach would get out a deck of cards (index cards), shuffle them and then lay out 10-20 along the beam.  On each card was a different exercise.  We were given repetition numbers.  Then we got to it. 

I plan on duplicating this.  I started by writing down some exercises. 

Then, thank goodness for Amazon, I found blank playing cards.  I put the exercises on the playing cards.

Now I can legitimately shuffle them.  I plan on choosing about 10 each time and doing each exercise three rounds at 10 reps, maybe.  A lot of the exercises I can't do yet (squats/lunges), but there are many I can do.  I can't wait to get started.

What are you favorite strength exercises?

How do you come up with strength routines?

The July Challenge

Last week I went to a funeral and wore a dress I bought last summer but had never worn.  It's a cute little polka-dotted number that has a natural waste and A-line skirt.  It looks straight out of the '50s.  I absolutely loved it last summer when I bought it.  When I put it on this past week it did not fit well.  It was so tight I was left with a mark around my mid-section where it was squeezing the life out of me.  Plus the natural waste kept rolling up which caused me to fuss with the dress all evening long. 

How did I get this big?  Where has all this weight come from?  Ugh!  I'm disgusted with myself.

Dave too has put on some weight and isn't really happy with it either.  So we concocted a plan.  We're calling it "The July Challenge".  From June 28th - July 31st we will:

1. Eat in every meal, except for Friday lunches at Chipotle.  We meet college friends every Friday for lunch at Chipotle.  Friendship is more important than one meal.

2.  No alcohol.

3.  Exercise every day.

4.  Try to eat Whole30/clean for as many meals as we can. 

The person with the highest percentage of weight loss wins and the other must buy the winner something he/she wants (within reason).

Desperate times call for desperate measures.  I do love a challenge. 

Week in Review

The motivation has come back a little.  I did alright with my workouts last week.  I swam once and biked three times.  I'm craving running like nobody's business, but at least biking is helping me feel like I'm actually doing something aerobic.

Swimming - 2000 yards
10 x 200 Rest :15
Odds regular easy swim. 
Evens pull breathing bilaterally.
Yes, I did a little kicking.  I kept the kicks really small, mostly kicking from my ankles.  It wasn't so bad.  It was nice to not have a pull buoy.

Biking - 16.9 miles
I did three rides on the trainer; all of them easy.  Two of them were for thirty minutes and one was for 35.  I even got Dave to join me for the 35 minute ride!

I did do a little strength training, mostly core and some arms.  It was nothing important to write in my training journal so I won't bore you with the specifics.  Tune in Monday and Tuesday next week for more information on a lot more workouts coming my way.

Adventures in Grocery Shopping

My parents graciously watched Anderson last night so I could go to the grocery store.  I really dislike grocery shopping, but I enjoy the challenge of getting the best deal and saving the most money.  So armed with a billion coupons and a long list, I began my trip.

The shopping went as normal as possible.  I rolled up to the check out lanes with a very full basket.  As I approached the check out lanes and here is where the adventure began.  I lucked out and caught a check out girl who had just opened her lane.  She didn't see me sneak in and begin unloading my groceries.  She was turned towards the other, full lanes and let them know she was open.  A woman scurried over with her cart and was not very happy to see me already there.  She lashed out at me and the check out girl.

You told me to come over here!!!

I took my items off the other belt to come over here!!!

We both apologized (first come first serve, honey), but it didn't matter.  She was so mad that she left her cart blocking the lane and walked out of the store.  Good grief!  She basically only had water and a few other items in her cart; she could have gone to the self check out.  As my son would say, calm down mama.

The adventure didn't end there.  Like I said, I had used a bunch of coupons and of course, there were problems with some of them (my fault as I was trying - unsuccessfully - to double down on them).  The manager had to be called over to check my bags and rescan my coupons.  By this time the lane was full and I was holding every one up.  I was embarrassed but at least no one was making a stink.

I had come armed with five reusable bags (yep, I'm that girl) and they were all full along with a few other plastic bags by the time I was finished.  They didn't all fit into my cart, so the check out girl put one on the bottom.  As I was walking out, that bag fell off my cart.  Ugh.  I picked up my items and put them back in my bag.  I tried to put the bag into the cart.  It was heavy and full and I was struggling.  My blueberries jumped out of the bag, fell to the floor, opened, and scattered.  Blueberry explosion!  At this point I just wanted to get the heck out of there.  I picked up the container with the few blueberries left in there and left.

Why can't anything be easy?

FYI - I saved $35 using coupons.

Foto Friday

I am now a quarter of the way through the 100 Happy Days project.  I can't believe it.  It's gone so fast.  It's been pretty easy (surprisingly).  Of course it is summer and it's pretty easy to take pictures in the summer.  Here's what's been going on the last several days.

Day 19 - The whole family went to a Japanese Steak House for dinner to celebrate Father's Day.  Anderson didn't love the fire and didn't eat the food, but the experience was fun.

Day 20 - The Bat Cave, er, The Bert Cave.

Day 21 - Father's Day

Day 22 - I watched my niece on Monday.  The three of us went to the fountains to play.  She loved the fountains; Anderson just wanted to watch the trains.  We left within the hour.  This is the best picture I could get of the two of them.

Day 23 - This is what we refer to as "Down Train" (because it's in the basement).  Who do you think enjoys the trains more?

Day 24 - Story time at the library.  Neither of us particularly enjoy it, but it's good for him and gets me out of the house.

Day 25 - Anderson fell asleep with his book on his face.  I had to pry it out of his hands.  He rolled over and said, "my book" and then went back to sleep.  I've seen his dad fall asleep more than once like this.

Oh The Places You'll Go (and Race) - South Carolina - Dave

Dave is away on business this week and got lucky enough to find a small 5K tonight in Charleston, South Carolina, a state he has yet to race in.  It was a trail-ish type race, small - about 100 people.  The race was cheap, no frills, and finished at a watering hole where there was pizza, beer, and awards.  The weather has been incredibly hot in South Carolina this week and he said it was about "9000% humidity".  And as you can see from these pictures, he looks rather warm.

Yes, the logo is an iguana on a vespa. 

Dave even did well enough to finish third in his age group and earn himself a mug.  Good job Dave.

I Bought a GoPro

For Father's Day I bought Dave a GoPro Hero 4 Silver.  An expensive gift, I know, but it was a gift for us, for the whole family.  We have been talking about a GoPro for quite a while.  However, we aren't exactly climbing Everest or jumping out of planes so we had a hard time justifying it.  We're not exactly a family to sit at home either.  Anderson has been to over a dozen states.  He has flown on an airplane many, many times.  He's been to the ocean.  He's been hiking in Glacier National Park.  He has run his first race.  Sure, yes, maybe we're not scaling cliffs or going on The Amazing Race, but we still live a pretty fun life.  I want to record that life.  I want pictures of our great adventures.  I want Anderson to remember the amazing times he's had.  Yes, we have a swanky DSLR camera.  Yes, we have iPhones, but the GoPro is quicker and easier to carry and will be a great addition.

I got a great deal on the GoPro.  REI had a bundle of the camera, a selfie stick (originally $80ish), and a hard-sided case for the camera and it's accessories for the same price as the GoPro.  I used my REI dividends from last year as well as some money I had been saving and a gift card I had received from my birthday and only spent about $150 out of pocket.  Plus, we got a memory card at Best Buy for $50 off the original price.  Win!

We took the camera to the pool on Father's Day to test it out.  It's awesome although it's a little weird to get used to.  It's really small - smaller than my phone.  I got my finger into a lot of pictures.  And it's in a waterproof case so there is no going back and reviewing your pictures to see if you like them after taking them.  You just take and take and take and hope something turns out.  We've still got a lot of figuring out to do with it, but so far we love it.

Here's a sample of a picture we took.  I love how clear it is and how it stopped the motion of the water.

Do you have a GoPro or other camera you like to carry all the time?  What do you use it for?  What adventures are you planning that you'd like to have a GoPro?

Week in Review

Again, not much to report about last week: two very short swims and a bike ride.  Maybe there was a walk?  I don't remember.  I'll have to check on that.

I did a short swim (1000 yards) on Wednesday where I was fed up with the crazies at the Y.  You can read about that here.

The next day I put my patience in my back pocket and did a slightly longer swim of 1200 yards.  This one was a straight swim (with a pull buoy, of course).

I also did my first bike ride since the hip injury.  I rode 30-ish minutes yesterday on the trainer in the granniest of granny gears for five miles.  I also did some core and arm strength but nothing to write home about.

In other news, this lack of running and training?  Yeah I've gained 4 pounds in 5 weeks.  I've got to get back to running.  I DO NOT want to diet (or let's be real, eat well).

Happy Father's Day

Oooh, New Stuff

Despite not being able to do most exercises right now, I did get two new pieces of workout gear that I can't wait to try out.

First is a new pair of goggles.  My current pair of goggles have reached the end of their life.  They leak.  The nose piece constantly comes out.  They have been fitting weird.  They fog.  Today I snagged a pair of TYR Nest Pro Nano goggles at REI.  I didn't even know they made a women's version of this goggles and am excited to try it out.

Secondly, um, well, I folded and bought a pair of Hoka Cliftons.  I scoured the internet and found a pair of the original Cliftons in my size and bought them without even thinking.  I don't get to use these for MONTHS, but I'm excited they're mine.  I can't wait to give them a whirl around the block.

 Aren't these suckers ugly?

What new gear have you bought lately?  What new gear do you really want?  What's the gear you can't live without?

Foto Friday

I can't believe I have stuck with the 100 Happy Days project.  So not like me.  Let's get to it.  Days 12-18.

Day 12 - Where's Waldo?

Day 13 - Last Saturday was spent out of town at a friend's 40th birthday party.  Anderson didn't take a nap all day and played hard.  We weren't even 10 minutes leaving out of their driveway and he was already asleep.

Day 14 - The jungle that is the fenced-in part of our back yard.

Day 15 - Crack me up.  Anderson fell asleep UNDER his pillow.

Day 16 - "Stop Mama!"  It's going to be a long 100 days, kid.

Day 17 - A truck, a bus, and a tractor walk into a bar...

Day 18 - Every week after swim lessons, Anderson takes a lap of the track in his pajamas and then goes to Zumba.  I'm not kidding.

Eighteen days down.  Eighty two to go...

June Hip Update

I've lost track of what number of hip update I am on.  Number four?  Number one thousand?  Who cares? 

This morning I went to the doctor for my four week check-up on my hip.  The hip is better but not 100%.  I still have some pain when I do too much, when I hyper-extend my hips, and when I sleep.  The limp is gone, but I can still feel every step.  I'm definitely not ready for running. 

The doctor started the appointment asking about my pain levels and what I had been doing.  He did some strength exercises.  I was concerned about my lack of medial strength.  He said that was due to the break so that strength would come back.  My glute was super tight from all the limping so he did some ART to loosen it up (and the pain in my outer hip has gone away with it).  I asked about what might have caused the break.  He said it was probably bad luck.  I agree.  I asked about the Hokas.  He wasn't a fan.  This surprised me as he is a trail ultra runner (100 milers).  I'm going to try them anyway.

In the end, he is keeping my recovery super-conservative.  Frustrating, but the right thing to do.  I still can only swim with a buoy and lift weights only while seated.  No water jogging yet.  Ugh!  I am now allowed to bike with very little power.  No getting out of the saddle.  He said I could ride outside even.  And that's about it.  My next appointment is in four weeks.

At least I can add in biking.  That will help me feel like I am actually exercising and keeping myself in shape.  Plus, I can add the baby trailer to my cruiser and get out of the house with Anderson to do things locally. 

My coach said I was being incredibly patient.  Well, it's either that or suffer a worse break and need surgery.  I'll take patience and a healthy return. 

Oh, YMCA (and my short fuse)!

Can I have a moment to just vent?

Maybe it's the summer heat.  Maybe because I can't run and it's driving me batty.  Maybe because it has rained every day this week and it's been hard to find activities for the kiddo and me.  Maybe it's because the kiddo hasn't taken a nap this week.  Whatever.  I about flipped out at the Y this morning.

School is out for summer and the Y is crawling with kids.  Summer camp is held every day from 9-noon, which is in the range of time in which I go to the gym.  Summer camp has reduced the swim lanes down to 3 or 4, depending on the availability of the outside pool.  Because it was pouring down rain this morning, the outdoor pool was not open for camp.  Therefore, there were only three lanes available for lap swimming.  And when I got out to the pool deck, they were all full.  There was a very large older man waiting on a lane, so I stood there and waited too.  One lane already had two people in it and the two other lanes were only occupied by one person each.  Both were not very good swimmers.  Neither could hold a straight line and both had such bad form that they were taking up the whole lane.  One of the ladies I see there every day and knew I didn't want to share a lane with her.  The other was swimming backstroke with her arms literally out to the side.  Let's say if you're swimming with your hands above your head you're swimming with your hands at zero or 90 degrees.  Her arms were flailing at 45 degrees.  Understand?  Anyway, she came to the end of the lane and asked me if I wanted to share.  She said she only had a few minutes left.  I asked the very large gentleman if he wanted it, he was first, and he let me go ahead.  By the time I got my cap and goggles on, she had already hopped out of the pool.  Why did she even ask me to share?  So, I did the nice thing and asked Mr. Large Man if he wanted to share.  He reluctantly said yes and warned me that he had a lot of gear.  He did.  He had a snorkel and GIANT fins.  I mean, giant.  They were like scuba fins but stiffer.  By the time he got all his junk together I had already swam like 500 yards.  When he did get swimming he was terrible.  Look, I shouldn't critique.  I'm no Michael Phelps.  But geesh.  He was splashing and flailing and not even using his fins at all.  Shoot.  If I was wearing those fins I would have been across the pool in three seconds.  At one point I came up for air and he splashed me full in the face.  Awesome.  I'm used to open water swimming.  I can handle that.  The another time he about took my arm off with his.  I was hugging the line to tightly I was touching it with every stroke and he still clothes-lined me.  By this point I had had enough.  I had only swam 1000 yards but it was enough.  I hopped out, collected my kid, and went on home.

Seriously, what time do I need to go to the pool to not have to share a lane or at least share a lane with someone who can actually swim?!?

Sometimes a Picture Just Helps

It's been a rough couple of days in the Gordon household.  My good sleeper has decided sleep is overrated.  We put him to bed and he fights it.  FOR HOURS!!!  And the last two days he has sat in his crib for 3 hours and 2-1/2 hours, respectively, and not taken a nap either day. 

This afternoon we just had to get out of the house.  We went to my parents' where there are toys galore and lots of other stuff to play with.  It was a nice evening so we sat on the patio and watched Anderson stay busy.  Anderson's side-kick Kirby (my parent's dog) is so patient and so loving with him.  And even put up with this:

How can you not smile seeing this picture?  Thanks Kirby (and Anderson) for making everything better.  

Product Review: The Runner's Choice

I guess it is time to write this review.  It's not going to be very long.  I don't have a lot to say about it.  It's not going to be positive or negative, necessarily.  I just didn't feel the product did what I expected it to do or hoped it would do. 

I was contacted several months ago to try out a product, The Runner's Choice.  I get contacted often to try out things, mostly weird stuff or to run people's races and review them (even though they rarely provide me a free entry - um, no).  Usually I turn the person down or ignore the email, but this one intrigued me.  It's a foot serum, used while resting or sleeping, to get your feet back ready to run.  It's for sore feet.  And with its smell, I expected it to soothe my hot feet. 

I have been blessed as a runner to not have totally awful feet.  I've not had problems with blisters or black toenails or losing toenails or bunions or hammer toes or whatever gross things happen to most runner's feet.  Maybe it's because I treat my feet with care.  I never wear heels.  I'm not even sure if I own a pair.  If I have to wear dress shoes I wear flats.  Generally I wear sneakers.  With everything.  Everywhere.  Anyway, one thing that does bother me after long runs is hot feet.  (For the record, my feet get really hot after a night of drinking too.  Weird.)  So, I thought this serum might help cool my feet and allow me to sleep better.  Unfortunately, I didn't really get that feeling.

The product contains eucalyptus, wintergreen, peppermint, and spearmint, all things that I thought would cool down my feet.  Maybe I didn't put it on thick enough.  Maybe I did something wrong.  Regardless, my feet were still hot.  And since no one has perfected creating a blanket that has holes for my feet, I still had problems falling asleep with my hot feet.

Another thing was the directions.  They just weren't very clear or at least, I thought they were confusing.  It tells you to rub all over your feet and up to your ankles and to not rub in.  It then tells you to wash your hands.  Call me crazy, but if I put this stuff all over my feet with my hands and then have to wash my hands, how the heck am I supposed to get back to my chair or bed without my feet hitting the floor and rubbing away the serum?  I would either have Dave put it on my feet so he could get up and wash his hands or I would put it on using a cotton ball.

I haven't found a great solution for my hot feet yet.  This product, The Runner's Choice, did not do the trick for me.   It's not a terrible product review.  I would say it's constructive.  I hope they get my feedback and my email I sent that supposedly bounced and work to make a better product.

Week in Review

I miss running something fierce!  (I'm old.  Did I even say that correctly?)

I just can't get excited about swimming as my only form of exercise.  Swimming with a buoy just doesn't do it for me.  I don't feel like I'm getting a workout.  Plus, I've been gaining weight like it's my best friends.  I have gained three pounds in the last four weeks of no running.  So yeah, ugh, I feel great about myself.

I dragged my lazy butt to the pool twice last week. 

Workout #1 - Pull ladder with :15 rest between 100-200-300-400-400-300-200-100.  Total - 2000 yards.

Workout #2 - This was a real workout I pulled from a previous time and converted it to a pull workout. 
400 with every 4th length drill
4 x 50 drill/swim by 25 (rest :15)
400-600-400 (rest :30)
200 cool down
Total - 2200 yards

And that was it.  The rest of the week was spent eating, boozing, and being lazy.  I'll try harder next week.  I swear.  I SWEAR!!!

Unfaithful

I've been unfaithful.  Or I'm going to be unfaithful.  Or I plan on being unfaithful.

No, I'm not talking about my marriage.  I'm talking about my running shoes.

Finally a running post!  I know!!!

I have been wearing Saucony for a long, long time.  I wore the Omni for many years, then discovered the Kinvara for racing, and in the last year or two switched to the Ride for training.  I always loved Saucony as they always felt soft and cushiony and never let me down.  Since I had the baby, though, they have felt hard and a little painful.  I've had a hard time recovering after runs.  My calves are shot after 300 miles in them.  I just haven't been in love with them the way I have previously.

Funny enough, I've been recommending Hoka to other runs for quite a while now yet have never worn them myself.  Shoot!  I had never even tried them on.  In the last several months, however, I've been really tempted by them.  Now that I'm going to be rebounding from an injury, they intrigue me even more. 

So Friday afternoon we went to our local running store (Columbus Running Company - the best out there in Columbus, if I do say so myself) and asked about a zillion questions.  I wanted to know about longevity.  I wanted to know about breaking them in.  I wanted to know about weight.  I wanted to know if people actually "raced" in them.  I wanted to know if they're a fad.  I wanted to know why they're so expensive.  The salesman (boy, really.  The kid was YOUNG) was patient, answering all my questions and was so informative.  Then I tried on some pairs that didn't really fit, but I just wanted to get the feel of them.  Besides, I can't run for knows how much longer so it's not like I could test them anyway.

In the end, I'm on their waitlist to receive a pair of Clifton 2s when they come in the store.  I'm really excited to try them out and to see if they are any different than a "regular" pair of running shoes.  My friends who have tried them swear by them.  I hope I have the experience.  I hope they are my new shoe.  I hope they rock my world.  :)

What shoe do you run in?  How often to do you jump ship to a different shoe?  Have you ever tried the Hoka? 

Foto Friday - #100HappyDays

Without a race on the schedule (ugh) I need a project.  I find that when I don't have running I can feel a little blue, sad.  I want to sit around all day and lay in bed and cut my hair and eat, eat, eat.  Instead, I've decided to stay busy with the little one and take pictures along the way to remind myself of the happy things in my life.  I am giving the 100 Happy Days project a try and document my pictures on my Facebook page.  I'll also do it on the blog every Friday and catch y'all up at the end of each week.  I guess I officially started on June 1st since I noticed I had taken a picture every day since then.  So, here you go.  The first 11 days of the #100HappyDays project.  (Some of these may be duplicates from what I've already posted on previous Foto Fridays.

Day 1 - The cars and trucks were put to sleep before bedtime.

Day 2 - Keeping ourselves occupied at Home Depot while Dave shops.  I swear to you, we go to the Depot at least 5 times per week.

Day 3 - Learning to drive with Grandpa.  He's terrible at it.

Day 4 - Sparklers for the first time at the neighbors bonfire.  Really, scaring mommy.

Day 5 - This kid loves his dog.  Sloopy is still warming up to the idea of having a brother.

Day 6 - Playing with his trucks on the piano.  Nearly 10 days later, those trucks are still sitting there.

Day 7 - Trucks, trucks, and more trucks. 

Day 8 - I mean, could this be cuter?  I'm not sure who was walking who.

Day 9 - Who doesn't love ice cream on a hot summer day?

Day 10 - Got a babysitter, went out on a date.  Hilarious!  Plus, I had a free ticket!

Day 11 - Took the little one to the local mall to play in the fountains.  He played in them for nearly an hour and then we watched the model trains.  He liked the trains a lot and I had to carry him off in a heap of screams and cries to get him home to eat lunch.

Mom of the Year or Horrible Mom?

When Anderson was just a baby Dave and I made a very tough decision to give him a pacifier.  I know in the grand scheme of things it's not really a big deal, but we really struggled with it.  We didn't want to screw up his teeth (according to the dentist, it won't) and we didn't want him to become obsessed with it and have it until he was like 3 or 4.

Now at 2+ years old he still has it and it has become an obsession.  He doesn't do anything without it and it seems to never drop from his mouth.  He showers with it, he sucks it in between bites of food, he sleeps with it.  I must wash that thing a thousand times a day.  And I really wouldn't care, I guess, if he wasn't talking like an adult.  The kid is adding new words every day and putting small sentences together now.  He even tells jokes.  I love it.  We can finally figure out what he wants.  But, he talks around his pacifier and it makes it hard to understand him.  We will ask him to take it out and say whatever he was saying again and he does, but then he sticks it right back in his mouth.

For a while we were doing a pretty good job of breaking him of it.  We would take it from him when he got up in the morning and then wouldn't give it back until he napped or slept for the night.  I don't know how or when it happened but he went back to having it all the time.  I've become fed up with it.  It's time to be done with the pacifier.  My neighbor (who has quintuplets - yeah, you read that right) had suggested cutting them just a little at a time.  It wouldn't taste the same and he wouldn't want it as much.  It's a great idea but it hurt my heart to cut them.  It was something that he still had that connected him to his baby days. 

But then I had an idea.  Anderson has four pacifiers.  Two of them are the same and they are his favorite.  This morning I cut, every so slightly, one of the two identical ones.  I brushed his teeth, took his pacifier, and switched it out with the cut one.  Immediately Anderson knew something was different.  He pulled it out of his mouth and said "oh no."  He said it was broken.  I convinced him he chewed it off.  He would chew it and suck it and take it out of his mouth.  We went to the fountains to play and he handed it to me so he could play.  Woah, that never happens.  Then at nap time he handed it to me and said, "done."  Ah, break my heart.  When I laid him down for bed tonight he handed it to me and said, "trash."  The one time today it was a problem was when he woke up from his nap and wasn't quite awake.  I quickly distracted him with his trucks and he was fine.

So, it looks like this might be working.  It makes me sad (and it's crushing Dave) but it's working.  He talked all day today and I understood what he said.  Except for once he didn't cry or throw a fit when he didn't have it.  Big boy.  Such a big boy.

Oh, hi!

If you haven't noticed, I've been on a quest to blog every day.  Or at least, I'm trying.  It's been really hard to find things to write about when I don't have running in my life.  I'm trying, though.  There's something about blogging more often that brings out more readers and commenters.  Don't think I haven't noticed, y'all!  With this (stupid) hiatus from running, I'm looking for you!  I want/need more blogs to read, comments to read, people to stalk, er, I mean find.

So, leave me a comment today introducing yourself and/or your blog.  Or introduce me to one of your favorite blogs.  Or just say hi. 

I can't wait to meet you.  Welcome.

Update on the Big Boy Bed

IT.IS.NOT.GOING.WELL.

Does this pictures scream BOY!!!

In fact, I think Anderson slept in it maybe 4 times since we put it up a week ago and that includes naps.  The first couple days he slept like a champ and I thought, hey, this is going to be easy.  And then he discovered he can climb in and out of it.  And open the door (we put up a baby gate so he can't get out of his room, but can still open his door).  And get out his toys.  Three days last week he didn't fall asleep until 10:00, 10:00, and 11:00, respectively.  We eat dinner after he goes to bed.  Those nights I ate VERY late.  The rest of the time, he has still slept in his crib and hasn't really tried to climb out.  He's slept in his crib very well too.  Two days this past week he took three hours naps, both of which I needed to wake him up.

Tonight we put him to bed at the normal bed time, 8:00-ish, and then let him crawl in and out of bed and do whatever until 9:00.  We were really hoping he'd settle himself down and realize we weren't going to play or talk to him.  We kept the rest of the house dark and even left the dog in there to snuggle with him.  It didn't work.  At 9:00 we put him in his crib and he fell almost immediately asleep.

I don't get it.  I don't know what to do.  What can I do to get him to stay in bed?  Do I need to padlock all his toys at night?  Do I need to wear him out more during the daytime?  Is he just more comfortable and secure in his crib?  Any thoughts out there moms/dads?

How Do I Spin This?

Earlier this spring I was contacted to give a try to a product and write a review.  I tried the product again and again and it just wasn't doing anything for me.  On top of that, it had some confusing directions that just didn't make any logical sense.  The company has contacted me a few times asking me about the review.  For a while I ignored the emails.  The last one, though, I sent back a response letting them know that I didn't think the product lived up to expectations.  Unfortunately, the email bounced.  Now I don't know what to do.  I don't want to write a fake, positive review.  Product whores drive me insane and I will not be one of them.  Do I write a review?  Do I try contact the company again?  Do I wait for them to contact me again?  What do I do?

Week in Review

The hip is starting to feel better.  There are days I wake up and forget about it and can get around without limping.  Then there are days where I've obviously done too much and hobble around pretty severely.  This week I had good intentions of swimming a lot, but construction continuous on the master bath (it may never get done) so I had some other things I needed to attend to.

I got in three swims last week:

1. 10 x 250 pull with :10 rest in between
2. 1250 pull
3. 2 x 1000 with 1:00 rest in between.  I got to swim this one outside.

Carina asked me last week if I could pool run.  The answer is no; not yet anyway.  I'm not even allowed to kick while swimming!   I got back to the doctor in a week and a half and hopefully I'll be able to add in a few more things.

Go out and run a mile for me today!

Things I Love: Ultra Swim Shampoo

When I was a kid I had white-blonde hair.  When I'd swim in the summer it would turn green from the chlorine.  As I've gotten older and my hair has gotten darker, it has stopped turning green but gets kind of 'straw-like' after swimming.  A few days of build-up and I've got quite the rat's nest on top of my head.  For several years now, more years than I can count, I've been using chlorine-specific shampoo to get the gunk out: Ultra Swim.

I like this stuff because it's not thick, it gets the chlorine and chlorine smell out, and it leaves my hair feeling super soft.  I've tried other chlorine shampoo before and it's just not the same.  And the best part is that I can find Ultra Swim at any grocery or pharmacy and it's only a few bucks.  If you're a swimmer, give it a try!

Foto Friday

Yada yada yada....pictures.

Y'all having a kid is so cool (most of the time).  Anderson does some of the funniest things.  Can you figure out this picture?  He has taken all his trucks, tractors, buses, trains, characters, etc. and laid them all upside down or on their sides to go to sleep.  He does this before most naps and at night.  If he's asleep, everyone and everything is asleep.

I can't even.  This picture is so cute I think I'm going to frame it.

It's a good thing we have another 14-ish years before Anderson gets his license.  He's a terrible driver.  Every week we let him drive the tractor.  He usually drives it into the street or into a bush.  Yesterday my dad let him drive the tractor.  He was still terrible.  :)

Thursday Thoughts

Yesterday was National Running Day.  Real holiday?  Hallmark holiday?  Made-up holiday because runner's are cool?  (Yeah right.  We're like the nerds of jocks.)  Whatever way you slice it, I didn't get to participate.  Stupid hip.  I'm already so over being injured.

So, did you participate in National Running Day?  If so, what did you do?  How far did you run?  Did you run an extra mile for your injured friend *wink wink*?  Are you going to run an extra mile for your injured friend today since you forgot yesterday *wink wink*?

Big Boy

It's funny.  I wrote yesterday about struggling with life choices and then later in the day I actually sent Dave a text that said,

"I am NEVER EVER having a second child."

Yesterday was a rough day for Anderson and me.  He's usually such a good boy that when we have off days it really throws me for a loop.  Anderson and I have something in common: we both love to sleep and are really good at it.  Anderson has slept through the night since he was 3 months old and takes a solid 2-3 hour nap every day.  We used to take our nap (yes, I nap too) together in the same bed every day, but in the last couple of months he's wanted to sleep in his crib.  Although I miss him fiercely, we probably both get better sleep.  Yesterday, for whatever reason, Anderson didn't want to nap.  He was in his crib, talking, singling, yelling, walking around.  He was pretty much doing everything except napping.  I went in and tucked him over and over and over.  Then I hear this loud THUD and crying.  Shit!  I ran as fast as my broken hip would allow me down to his room and found him on the floor.  He had climbed/fallen out of his crib.  He had never done this before, nor even tried.  We called nap time over and just hung out and played the rest of the afternoon.

Later that evening Dave and I tucked him into bed and it was more of the same - screaming, yelling, telling us he was scared - and even with us standing there he kept trying to climb out of his crib.  He would put his foot up on the spindle and try to climb.  He would stand on his pillow and throw a leg over the railing.  We went from never, ever trying to even climb out of his crib to not wanting to be in his crib at all.  We went from baby to big boy in the blink of an eye.  After trying for an hour to get him to settle down and sleep, we threw his mattress on the floor and let him sleep there.

We haven't used the baby monitor in almost a year but I wanted to make sure he was okay and not just playing all night or hurting himself.  About an hour after he fell asleep, he was on the floor, awkwardly.

Being the good parents that we are, we totally took a picture of this before putting him back in bed.  Not even five minutes later, he was back on the floor.

And that's where I left him for the rest of the night.  I covered him up and moved his pillow down and he slept the remainder of the night. 

Today, with a heavy heart, we said goodbye to the crib.  I got my hand-me-down Sauder-esque toddler bed out of the basement and put that bad boy together all by myself (without any instructions - I deserve an award).  I got a railing to help keep him from falling out and a baby gate to keep him in his room.  Anderson loved it.  And he took a great nap in it for nearly three hours.

We put some sheets from another bed on it for the short term, but bought him a super cute truck set.  He's gonna love it.

I'm not going to lie.  Dave and I shed some tears as we watched him sleeping in his big boy bed for the first time tonight.  He looks so little in that big bed.  He's growing up so fast and I'm just not ready.  Stay little forever buddy!

Time Tunnel Approaching

Listen, I'm not doing too well growing older.  I guess I just never thought about life after 30.  When I was younger I had plans - college, career, husband - all by the age of 30.  Now that I'm sorta nearing 40, I feel like time is running out. 

No, not running out like that.  I just feel like, maybe, I'm starting to run out of time for the things that are important to me.  Let's start with running.  I have been marathon running since I was 23.  I've run 17 marathons.  My PR was set six years ago.  I've had a goal for years to go after my dad's marathon PR of 3:21, but with only three years until things, perhaps, start to start sliding back downhill I worry that it may not happen (even though he set that PR when he was in his late 40s).  Now I'm injured and facing a LONG recovery and rebuilding time.  Will I ever get back to the runner I once was?  Does it seem stupid that it's THAT important to me? 

And now let's talk about societal pressures.  One of my biggest pet peeves is when someone asks me if Anderson is my first child.  Yes he's my FIRST.  He's my ONLY.  I have ALWAYS said that IF I have a child, I will only have one.  And I waited a long time to have one.  My sister and I did not get a long (ie - could not even be in the same room without arguing) until we were in our 30s.  Dave and his brother are nine years apart so it's not like he had a sibling close in age that could be his best friends.  So, both Dave and I are okay with one child.  But I have felt a lot of pressure from the "world" that I HAVE to give Anderson a sibling.  If I want to do this (and really I don't), I better get a move on.  It was hard enough to get pregnant the first time and now being over 35 it could be way, way harder and a lot more dangerous. 

I feel stuck.  Running goals or family expanding?  I feel like there's only room for one.  I'm really conflicted.  I think about it every day, a lot every day.  I really don't know how to be okay with either make.  And I don't feel like I can make both choices.  What to do???

May Totals

The month started off so strong.  I was getting back into running after taking time off after the Athens Marathon.  I was excited about trying again at the Cleveland Marathon.  Unfortunately, I started having some pain in my hip.  We all know how that turned out: broken and torn.  The end of the month consisted of lots of nothing and then the beginning of a bunch of swimming to come.

Swim - 15,300 yards ~ 8.7 miles

Bike - 38.64 miles (all indoor on the trainer)

Run - 57.5 miles

Strength - 0.25 hours

YMCA Visits - 17
Cost per Visit - $5.02

Unfortunately, I'm probably not going to meet my goal of 1000+ miles of running this year.  That's okay.  It's better to take care of myself.  I might get a thousand miles of swimming, though.