With a frost in the air, (I have to scrape my windows before work because my husband always takes the garage spot) A nip at your nose, (my son always loudly yells MOCOS (boogers in Spanish) as my nose runs relentlessly in the cold) hot chocolate in hand,(because I stopped drinking so something has to keep me warm) I bound for the snow with neurotic dog and screaming child in hand because one thing we all know is WE ALL LOVE WINTER!!
I have been so busy lately but in a good way not at work.
We had our 3rd Annual Festivus for the Rest of Us! Benefiting the UNM Comprehensive Cancer Center. And even with the cold and wet rain we still had a pretty decent turn out. I loved the costumes and the energy that everyone still had even when soaking wet!
I had 2 fun filled snow days with my son and got him on skis for the first time. Yay!!! My little skier I'm so excited to go to the real slopes!
Soon I'll have a nice week and a half break from work over the holidays and I'm more than excited for that. With more ski trips coming up I decided to forgo a half marathon trip to Austin in order to get a few ski days in this year. So my training hasn't been stellar but I'm maintaining a base at least and I have lost about 5 lbs in the last month and half and have plateaued on that front but as long as I maintain over the holidays I'll be happy. The last two years I didn't really get to ski you know having a child and all so I am more than thrilled to get a few days in this year.
Oh and I got to try the Trek Speed Concept out finally!!! So I think I can make a decision soon but it won't be an easy one. I liked both the Specialized and Trek a lot!!
Music has always played an important part in my life and I have always found the right music to fit my mood really helps the situation. Now that I see how much my son loves music it reminds me what a big part of my life music has been.
The soundtrack of my life: It lifts me up when I'm down, makes that last mile just a little bit easier, energizes me when I'm lethargic, helps me concentrate when studying, brings a smile to my face when a song makes me reminisce and so much more!
Here's a very basic timeline:
5 yrs old - my mom put my brother and I in piano lessons, I loved music so much but unfortunately did not have a good ear. My brother on the other hand could listen to a song on the radio then figure out how to play it on the piano
10 yrs old - I begged my mom to put me in voice lessons. I loved acting and I loved singing and I loved musicals so of course I wanted to be in one. The poor instructor had to pull my mom aside and tell her that I just wasn't meant to sing. Now don't feel sorry for me this was and is a very true statement.
11 - They tried to give me a solo in the school play and even worked with me one on one until it was decided it was best that I sing it with a group and they relegated me to be Mary and trust me that was hilarious because Mary should not look disgruntled and try to push the 3 wise men off the stage for teasing her.
12 - I discovered pop music and I would blast New Kids on the Block, Tiffany, Debbie Gibson and Power 102 as loud as possible. We had very thin walls so I must have the most patient parents in the world. I also new all the songs to Grease and would try and force my brother to act it out with me. Believe it or not there were only 2 people in my class that liked NKOB and I stood up at one point and yelled at everyone telling them what a good band they were and that they were all idiots for not understanding!
14 - 15 - I discovered that in my brothers room you could pick up a rock station that I couldn't get in my room and found that blasting heavy rock was much more satisfying when I was angry and wanted to make a point. Again very patient parents.
Middle & High School - I played 1st chair flute but had to have a tuner with me at all times to know if I was flat or sharp while everyone else just knew. I worked very hard at practicing anytime I had a solo because I was determined to keep it but again this did not come naturally to me.
My mom and I at our last concert.
College years - I really got into Punk music and not only felt I could really relate but thought Hey I finally found a type of music I could sing. I could be in a band and the distortion would cover up my vocals and heck bad vocals were in style. That dream never came true either.
I also conducted an experiment for one of my college courses trying to determine with a timer, a heart rate monitor and a walkman if music increased heart rate and or improved run time.
I've gone to more concerts than I can count ranging from 1 country concert only because I won tickets, Juanes, Ricky Martin, Rancid, Blink 182, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, Sugar Ray, Green Day, Staind, Beck, Santana, Tom Petty, Cake, I could go on forever. And more off Broadway musicals than I can count.
My brother on the other hand has been in several bands yes including a punk band and knows how to play the piano, trumpet, drums, guitar etc.
Adulthood - I use to only exercise while listening to music then I discovered longer distances and found that I had to run sans music. I only listen to music now if I'm lifting weights or running an easy 3 miles. Does music help you with your workouts?
That face!
My son plays air guitar to Santana and lip syncs to several lyrics on the Santana Pandora station thanks to my mom. He goes and grabs an old guitar I have in my room and pretends to play while the music plays on the radio. Is the only one dancing on the dance floor when we went to a charity event and there was a band playing. Starts dancing to a song and can't figure out if it's rock or salsa so goes back and forth between head banging and shaking his hips. And best of all CONSTANTLY is asking for DANCE Breaks. The three of us have been known to stop cooking and cleaning and hold hands and jump around.
He has reminded me how much I love music and has shown me the magic of it again as his face lights up every time I turn on the radio. I'm taking him to his first concert in December, Alvin and the Chipmunks! :-) May music bring as much joy to my son as it has to me.
Here's a little video of my son's dancing and flirting skills:
I am finally on the upward slope of this stinkin' illness. I started to get sick last weekend and instead of resting up I did back to back 5ks but then I was out for the whole week and barely started feeling better now getting my first workout in today in 7 days!!! But somehow I still did a lot, besides blog, in the time. Time can't stop for me to get sick! It's like those commercials with the mom or dad knocking on the door saying "I'm going to need to take a sick day" and then you just see the little kid looking back at them blankly! I don't have time for sick days! My poor son was sick first and he just barely felt better today! You can see my different stages of grief as I went through it. First was denial, I'm not really getting sick it's just a sore throat that will pass in a couple of days (did 5ks anyway), Oh man I feel like crap I better take a couple of rest days, anger I can't miss more work I'm falling behind! Acceptance I'll just be sick for the rest of my life I'm done working out I'm done caring that there's a mouse in the house leaving mouse turd bombs all over! Now I suppose I'm just dusting off and trying to get myself together.
When you're sick do you just keep going as if nothings wrong? Or do you stop everything and take time to recover and recuperate? What's your favorite home remedy? I always take EmergenC whether or not it works I figure at least it makes me take in more liquids, hubs makes fun of me for this!
So sick and all here's what I was still up to:
Halloween fun, he didn't really know what to do watching everyone in costume, he was kind of quite for it all until we left then he broke loose!
Timing the First Responder's 5k (Puker #1, As I tried to rip his bib number off I could hear it coming so I moved. Then had to yell to a volunteer I still need the pukers number!! Go find the puker!!)
Cooking class! Parboiling, blanching and steaming Queen! But please stop asking me to evenly cut stuff, I mean come on broccoli isn't naturally symmetrical!!
Halloween and retirement parties.
Great Pumpkin Chase 5k pushing the stroller. Wonder Woman and superman! Took it easy since I was running with the stroller and sick, 30 minutes.
Oh yeah and work, mouse hunting, timing a second 5k where I had 2 pukers, Dr. Visits and now trying to get back on track with my workouts and planning our own 5k that we're going to put on! Ready for Festivus 5k for the Rest of Us!!!
Last weekend I ran in a 4 mile off road fun run and guess what I had fun! So it lived up to it's name. I entered because they sent me a last minute email saying I'd get $5 off since I had been in their spring fling tri and I thought why not "All proceeds provide better education, research, teaching, and
scholarship opportunities for students involved in Sport Administration
to ensure a happier and healthier tomorrow." How could I say no to that! I have been in desperate need of some motivation and what better way to get motivated then getting your butt kicked at a race. I placed 2nd F OA but it was a VERY SMALL race but I'll take what I can get! ;-) I finished the 4 miles in 35 minutes, even with stopping to give my son a high 5 on lap 2. Which I was super happy with considering how out of shape I feel. I almost puked on the second loop on the hilly part but I pushed on. Even though the second loop was 1 minute slower than the first I was just happy I didn't have to walk. Hubs and son did one loop on their own walking and we got to see some balloons go up.
Work has me really depressed and stressed so any family fun time and run time I can get in I consider a win. I have another 5k in a couple of weeks this one benefiting the department my husband is in at the University. So I guess my workouts have come down to any race I happen to enter!!! No really I will get back on track ASAP! I'm eating a banana as we speak and am planning my workout for tonight. I get to go on a quick 4 day trip to Colorado this weekend with the fam to see my best friend so today is my Friday and I am determined to come back refreshed.
Photobombed!
Oh yeah and I'm taking an online Forks Over Knives cooking class as if I needed something else to do! The first lesson I had to "reset" my pantry and refrigerator. For me this mean cleaning and organizing. They wanted you to get rid of all processed foods so I may have blamed the ones left on my husband......
Stress is at an all time high and I haven't been working out as I would like but I have been taking the time to watch my son grow and know that with time the stress will dissipate and my love for my son will not. I have a 4 mile fun run that not only am I not trained up for I even forgot it was this weekend until my husband mentioned it to me. But instead of freaking out I just asked him if he would mind taking my son along to see me run. I want him to know that his mom will always give her all even if it's not perfect. I may be inching away from my goal of meeting race weight for next season instead of towards it but that is not adding to my stress. I will put that goal in it's place and wait until the timing is right. I wrote a letter to my son right before his birthday not sure where it came from but I know that for now this is where my focus is:
To my son:
As your second birthday approaches I am proud and
sentimental.Every evening as I cradle
you in my arms to help you brush your teeth I look at your curious and kind
eyes and become a little sentimental.I
fight back the tears I feel welling up and smile at you.I think about how I cradled you for most of
your first year and how good it feels to provide you comfort, protection and
joy.As you passed through your second
year, your head gradually lifted from my arms as you became more independent
and eager to explore the world.With
each bounding step and curious point and ohhh and ahhh your head found my arms
less and less.As we sit on the month
of your second anniversary of life the only time I get to cradle you is while I
brush your teeth.A simple daily chore
to you, a treasured opportunity for me.I
cherish these moments and soak them in and am so happy that you let me help you
with brushing your teeth because without those moments I would no longer have
the chance to cradle you.Even then as I
see your bouncing legs spill over my lap I know that this too will soon fade as
you will get too big to cradle and you will be brushing your teeth completely
on your own.My love for you knows no
boundaries and I am amazed daily by the capacity of one’s heart to grow, every
time I think my heart might burst because of all the love I have for you it
grows a little more.So as I open up my
cradled arms to let you spread your wings and fly like a butterfly coming out
of its cocoon I hope you know that if you look back and see a tear slide down
my cheek it is not out of sadness but out of overwhelming joy, never ending
love, insurmountable pride and simple contentment.
I have lived a very full life and am very lucky that you
have come along to continue on this journey with me.I have no regrets and strive to learn from my
mistakes and hope to pass along what you may find helpful so that you may feel
this kind of joy in your life as you explore the world and make the best of
what you have.I hope to show you that
to be loved is also to give love and that to be kind to this earth we inhabit
and all those who try to have their small piece on it as well will enrich your
life more than any material item ever will.To be part of a community and take action for what you believe.To not ever be scared of what others may
think as long as you know that your heart is always in the right place.To analyze and question with an open mind and
never go along with the status quo just because but for when you do it’s because
it’s what your heart and mind tell you is right.It’s
ok to be different it’s ok to be the same.I am not perfect and I will get angry or sad and make mistakes but will
always, always love you and come back to that for strength.If I can only be that strength for you, then
I will feel I’ve been the mother you deserve.
Animal Humane Doggie Dash that I never miss with my favorite Doggie! Thanks to her I ran it in 25:10 even though I started at the back since I didn't even realize the race was starting and couldn't breathe when I crossed the finish line due to congestion.
