Back to work

Tomorrow I return to the working world. I am ready for it. I definitely am sad to leave sweet little baby R, but Q has been such a handful lately, I am looking forward to the break. It was much harder to go back last time. Life with just a newborn was serene and relatively easy. But now with a boisterous toddler and a baby, home is hectic and work will be an oasis. Or so I think. I am sure a few days in, I will wish I were back at home. It will be good. I am ready.

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We are preparing to finish the last two rooms in our house. The master bath and the spare bathroom are still white, but not for much longer. Today we bought paint and accessories for the rooms. The spare bathroom is becoming the kids' bathroom. We got all sorts of transportation paraphernalia like a shower curtain, bus Kleenex holder, truck soap dispenser and towels. We got bright school bus yellow paint for the walls, and I ordered a print of firetrucks for the wall. Doesn't that sound great? I am excited. We picked a light taupe for our bathroom. Next weekend is a painting weekend. Not my favorite thing to do, but it is a great pay off.

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I am pretty sure I am nixing the marathon training for this time around. I am leaning toward a half-marathon instead. To be honest, the training has been hanging over me and stressing me out a bit. I was supposed to run 12 miles today, but it was almost 100 degrees outside, and I was just not feeling up to it. Instead I hit the treadmill for five miles. I feel sort of a relief with it not looming in the future. I just have too much on my plate right now, and a half-marathon is a little more my speed.

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Friday: rest (traveled)
Saturday: 45 minutes walking, weights
Sunday: 5 miles run/some walking on treadmill, push-ups and sit-ups
145 lbs.

--MM

Home

Vacations are nice because they make you appreciate coming home.

We are back home tonight, but of course had travel problems again. I am beginning to seriously doubt the U.S. airline industry. One of our flights had mechanical problems again, and we had to wait an hour and a half for a new plane.

The boys were pretty good. The flight from Phoenix to home started off extremely hot. The boys were sweaty and grumpy, and so were we. The flight attendant gave us cold compresses to put on their foreheads.

It is nice to see the cats and even Ruby again and to settle back into the routine. Starting next week it will involve going back to work. Hard to believe that is already here.

Our DVR is packed full of television to watch. I am going to be very, very busy catching up on 14 hours of shows like "So You Think You Can Dance?" It is not easy being me.

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a little scattered in my training this week:

Tuesday: 3 miles, push-ups and sit-ups
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: 4 miles on treadmill, weights

--MM

Old friends

Being back in the place where I grew up brings back lots of old memories. I feel like if I walked into my high school it would be preserved as I remember it. Instead it would now be filled with kids I don't recognize. I hear of people much younger than me married with kids. I still picture them as freshmen in high school, and the image of them grown up is jarring.

I met up with two friends in the past week. One was a close friend from high school who was my maid of honor. We only see each other about once a year, but from the first moment we are together, it is like no time has passed. The other is a girl I once lifeguarded with. She now has two children ages six and four. I brought my little kiddoes to her house today. We shared memories from our days at the beach and now our experiences as mothers.

I am not the best person at keeping in touch with old friends, but I so appreciate these friendships that last for many years--through high school, college, and far beyond.

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We have been spending a lot of time with my sister and her four boys. They are ages six and under. With all six boys in one place, it is often a zoo. I don't know how my sister does it. My two babies exhaust me, and just being around her brood is enough to tire out anyone. T and I talk about having four babies, but sometimes I wonder if I can really do it. I don't know if I share my sister's endless energy.

This week our big crew went to a kids' museum and a beach. I put a bikini on for the first time since having baby R almost three months ago. I spent the day trying to suck in my stomach.

Yesterday, we diligently attempted to get a picture of all six grandsons. There was a great deal of squirming and whining, but we did get a few cute ones.


Tomorrow is the last day of our visit. We fly home Friday, and I am back to work Monday. This has been a very enjoyable trip, mostly I think because it is so laid back and unplanned. It is a nice way to end my maternity leave before reality rears its ugly head.

--MM

Keep on truckin'

Saturday: 11 miles (very hard)
Sunday: rest
Monday: cross-train (elliptical and weights)

--MM

11 miles

I did my longest run since the birth of R this weekend, and it wasn't very fun. I had to do 11 miles. My parents have a nice bike trail near their house, so I ventured out in mid-afternoon. It was a nice day, but it started feeling hot about 5 miles in when I was out of the shade. About 7 miles in I started seriously regretting not bringing water. That was not a very wise choice. My mouth was a dry as sand, and my tongue was sticking to my lips. I walked a few times but kept chugging along. My feet were blistered, and my hips ached by the time I saw my parents home a mile in the distance. I was now desperate for water. I felt like a parched man crawling through the desert toward an oasis. My parents were outside when I got home, but I just rushed by them straight to the sink. Water tastes like ambrosia when you are dying of thirst.

I may just do the half-marathon in Lake Tahoe. Since I am up to 11, 13.1 would be a piece of cake. I am not sure I am up to the full 26.2 just yet. We'll see. No decisions just yet.



Q was so touchingly cute this weekend. He was following my mom and dad around everywhere doing whatever they were doing. He hauled mulch with my dad and washed tables with my mom. He is such a charming little fellow, and I am proud when I see how much they enjoy him.

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T had to head back home this weekend for his MBA classes, but now he is back here. It is nice to again have someone to share diaper-changing duties with.

--MM

Weird vacation

This is a strange vacation. T is working the whole time and just actually returned back home to attend his MBA classes. So, it's not really a vacation for him at all. I am also just kind of hanging out, not sight-seeing or doing a bunch of touristy stuff. It is actually kind of nice and relaxing. Except for the two kiddoes of course!

Tonight I see my very good friend from middle and high school. Becky was my maid of honor, and we have always stayed close. I am looking forward to it.

I have also been getting in some good working out. My parents have this great exercise area in their finished basement. They have a treadmill, elliptical, and weight machine with a plasma TV. There is also a bathroom and wine room down there. T and I think we could just live in their basement.

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Sunday: rest (while traveling)
Monday: cross train (elliptical and weights)
Tuesday: 3 miles (on bike trail near their house)
Wednesday: 6 miles (on bike trail)
Thursday: 3 miles (on treadmill) plus weights
Friday: rest

145.4 lbs (10 pounds of pregnancy weight to go) have eaten a lot of cookies on this trip, so progress is slow

--MM

A bunch of boys

Q is having a blast with his big boy cousins. My sister has four boys ages six and under. I don't know how she does it considering I often struggle with two. Q tries to keep up with all her boys, and they are wearing him out. My parents have a tire swing in their basement, and four of them squeeze on together. It is fun to watch them all playing.

It was a rough trip to Wisconsin. Our morning flight was cancelled, and we finally got on an 11:30 a.m. flight. One of our flights had mechanical problems, so we didn't get in until after 1:00 a.m. The boys were fairly good on the flights, but it is just exhausting. I used to not mind traveling, because I would just read or sleep. It was kind of a relief to have nothing to do. But, when you are traveling with a two-year-old and a two-month-old, you are constantly holding or entertaining someone. I would have paid a large sum of money for a nice long nap on one of those flights.

Packed flights, absent snacks, and extra expenses make me just dread traveling lately. Plus, it seems like flights are always late or cancelled. It has been so long since I have had a flight go perfectly smoothly. It seems like by the time you arrive you are so stressed out, it's barely worth it to get away! My sister, even with her four boys, always drives to her vacation destinations. Now I understand why.

--MM