Grin and "bare" it

I've wanted to blog about something I have noticed at my gym. Today was about the worst case I've seen of this "unusual occurrence", so I just HAD to write about it. Maybe I'm too modest…maybe it's a "northern thing" (this is what my friend Kelley said after she witnessed the woman's locker room at my gym). I don't know….but walking around baring it all (no matter what your age, your physique, your skin color), is a very normal thing in the woman's locker room where I work out. And I understand changing your clothes after a swim, walking from the shower to the changing area, even walking out of the stall still working on getting yourself dressed…but carrying on casual conversations, blow drying your hair, sitting in a chair watching the news, putting on your make-up….with NO bra…and today- NO underwear….that may just be a bit much for me. No kidding- it is every single time I walk through the locker room.

One day I almost walked right into a topless woman (towel covering only from  below her boobs…). It doesn't really "bother me"…it's just unusual considering I have always been one to turn away from even my closest friends when changing in the same room. Too modest? Well, when I stopped to watch a story that was on the news in the locker room (it was about a terminally ill child in Texas whose town put on a princess parade for her---heart melt--amazing),  I paid no attention to the woman sitting right in front of the television wearing only her underwear (no bra), until she suddenly became very embarrassed, apologized and then covered herself….awkward. If you are going to sit around in a public place naked, you need to be able to do it with confidence and understand- there ARE other women walking in and out of this place and they ARE going to see you. Last week,  a women's teenage daughter walked in to find her mom completely naked standing in front of the mirror and her reaction was priceless:  "Ummm…ok mom!!" Her mom replied- "You gotta do what you gotta do" :) I think that moment made me realize maybe I'm being a tad bit juvenile about the whole thing. That said- you won't find me in the middle of a public place casually applying my makeup while sitting completely naked.  ;-)

I ended up working out twice on Wednesday and have ran 15 miles this week so far (I need to get in a good 15 more tomorrow….EEK!!)  The kids also had a "kid fit" class at Heather's gym (Kylie's mom- Andrew's mother in law ;-) hehe) and they seemed to have a lot of fun as you see.

And nothing like a nice, winter's nap

         followed by a lot of this.....

And speaking of grinning and "baring" it, I may seem totally vain, but my abs are looking insanely awesome lately. I haven't been "obsessing" over working them out, but with engaging my abs while running along with the incredible strength training classes I have been taking, they have been naturally sculpting themselves. I have shared this picture with only my sister, but I am so proud I just had to share it else where. Another reason why I LOVE running.

So if anyone has been contemplating doing something like signing up for a 5K, 10K, half-marathon, or full marathon, I HIGHLY recommend it. You would be surprised what your body is capable of. Have a good weekend!

MOOOORE SNOW!!!!!!!!

I just need to vent at this point. My week has definitely not gone as planned (and it's only Tuesday), and I feel super fed up with winter and disappointed in myself for not being "more tough" about it.  I was sick Saturday/Sunday (and it SNOWED Saturday meaning no outside run), I had to cancel last minute at church, barely got a workout Sunday when I was supposed to run 14 miles, didn't make it to either strength class yesterday (I was still not feeling 100%, but SHOULD have made it considering we were on our way but stopped to get gas and then easily talked myself out of going due to tardiness). I cancelled my chiropractor appointment this morning (was expecting company for lunch but they had to cancel due to illness/SNOW), and of course…..I was super pumped about getting a big run in today and guess what??? The gym called saying they had to close the daycare due to…..SNNNNOOOOOOWWWWWW!!!!! UGGGGG! :( This week is "Winter break" and I am struggling with keeping Andrew entertained. He has been on the i-pad far to much already, and I am in desperate need of a good run so I can feel a little bit better about my training. We did go sledding yesterday with some of the women from my Ragnar team (another reason I opted not to go to my strength training class) but it was so stinkin cold. I'm telling you- I'm just not built for this weather. I need at least 65 degree weather. I think Andrew is like me- he was standing at the top of the hill crying, his nose running, wind blowing against his poor little face until it was red. Yea- I'm not a fan of seeing my children freezing to death either. Once we started sledding, it was a great time and both my kids had a lot of fun. 

I'm surprised this picture turned out because I quickly snapped a picture and threw my gloves back on immediately.(it was so.dang.cold….) I truly think people from Texas need to live here for a year so they can a. really appreciate the seasons for what they are  b. NEVER EVER EVER again complain about being cold when it is 45 or 50 degrees out (that was me) c. realize that Texan hospitality is really hard to come by anywhere else in the US.

So about Texas being different from MASS…(and while I am on the subject of my stop for gas being such a "hastle"): you know the little latch you can push down so the pump automatically fills your car up with gas without you physically holding it? Those don't exist here. AT ALL. Some gas stations (especially in the winter months), pay people to have a full service gas station. Pretty sure Todd and I almost pulled out some pepper spray on the first person that ran over and started trying to pump our car full of gas (LOL). We had no idea it was so common here. I had been waiting until Monday to fill up my tank because I saw a super cheap gas station on my way to the gym last week which meant I was on Empty. So as I jumped out of my car to fill up my tank,  2 attendants came running over to me and caught me a bit off guard (I was in a hurry-going to the gym….). I apologized, and of course the reply I get- "Well if you REALLY want to do it on your own, go right ahead." Rude. 2 Minutes before-  I had a man lay on his horn because oops- apparently my turning into the gas station was a big inconvenience to him (??) Anyway- they ask what I need and I say to fill it up. Funny thing is- I failed to tell them regular so of course I got PREMIUM FUEL and paid more for this tank than ever. FAIL. So as I said- friendly, easy going people are WAY harder to come by up in the north.

We are getting 4-6 more inches of snow today…to top the "mountains" that already exist  in my driveway, backyard, parking lots, etc. etc. I'm over it. It's supposed to get up to 49 this Friday (!!!) and I will find a way to get outside and run like the wind. So if you are complaining about getting out in 50 degree weather today- just remember…it could be way worse. Stay warm out there friends!!

pretty- but I'm over it after 3 months

Anyone up for sitting on the balcony? 

Love Day

Andrew had his first Valentine's Day party at school, and I'm pretty sure I was more excited than he was. :) I printed a cute little saying, "Sip Sip Horray! It's Valentine's Day!" punched some holes in them, and attached them to a straw. 

They turned out pretty cute and were very easy. He wrote his own name on about the first 8 and then got tired of it and just started scribbling (what is to be expected from an almost 4 year old I guess). Most of the kids wrote their own names on the cards and 1 kid even wrote out "Happy Valentine's Day!" (some kids are on their 3rd year in the preschool) I'm telling you- Andrew's teachers are incredible. They really are. He has learned so much and is doing SOOO much better with socializing and speaking his mind. Just tonight, I was doing my favorite duty as a mother- cleaning off dry boogers from his nose (!!) when he said, "Mommy, can you please stop picking my nose!!" LOL! Note taken-you are too old for mommy to be cleaning your nose. :)

 I have always loved Valentine's day-even when I was a little girl I LOVED all the pink and red hearts, chocolates, balloons, flowers, etc etc.  I have always been a bit over the top girly when it comes to frills and flowers and sparkles.  :) I think my daughter may have inherited this trait from me considering her favorite book right now is a Valentine book from her nanny and she absolutely loves any kind of shoe and jewelry she can get her hands on (my shoes/necklaces are always strung throughout the house-something I will one day look back on and really miss). :)

as I said- she likes ANY kind of shoe 

 I bought Andrew a huge heart sucker a few days before his party while shopping for his teachers (he kept saying, "I'm being a really good boy and would REEAAALLLLYY like this sucker, mommy") and then I went to our favorite place to buy some "cupcakes" (they are technically muffins but look at these things!!)

Sadly, Facebook made me think my attempts were a failure, but the look on my babies' faces told me otherwise:

well- Andrew doesn't look quite as thrilled ;) 

Sometimes social media makes me feel so inadequate and I need to stop letting it!! I almost skipped my workout that morning because I was so mopey (good thing I didn't because it was the fastest 4 miles I have ever ran!).  And my beautiful baby girl made these especially for me and came running at me thrilled as ever to give them to me. :) One of the. best. moments I have ever had as a mother.

*she later ripped (quite literally) one of them off the fridge and once again excitedly delivered them to mommy

I also fished this beautiful creation from my son's backpack after school (not quite the same sentimental delivery of such a special Valentine- but still made me very happy!)

I found a babysitter so Todd and I could go out that night. My favorite thing to do is to splurge on a nice steak dinner, a bottle of wine, and delicious dessert with coffee. YUMMY!  It was such a good time, but of course no pictures. I always feel silly asking our server to snap a pic of us (but need to because one of my favorite pictures of me and todd was at our 5 year anniversary dinner).

Todd bought us some Dave Matthew's tickets for the concert in June! WOOHOO! Another date night! :) Love was definitely in the air that day (as it is EVERY day), but something about this day always has me gitty and extra girly and shoving lots of chocolate in my face (Disney's Frozen anyone?) :)

can't you tell how much they love each other ;) 

            more valentine creations 

and she called them her "Magic Shoes"

It felt a bit like Christmas this week. These beautiful bad boys were delivered this Saturday:

I have needed new running shoes for WAY too long. The pair I recently "retired" ( they are actually still taking me through my nasty long runs outside in the snow),  were the very pair that I wore during my 2nd half marathon. No exaggeration- those shoes probably had a good 600 miles on them.  I usually bought nike, but these were my first pair of asic running shoes (I owned several asic shoes when I was cheering but not to run in), and I absolutely loved them. So I had to get another pair of asics this time around. I researched online and found the ones I like: asic gel-kayano 19. They recently came out with a kayano 20, but they were about $40 more and I read some reviews that said they weren't as supportive as the 19's.

They came in the mail on Saturday and ironically, that was the day I planned my long training run. I opened the door and screamed with delight, "YAY! My shoes are here!!" Andrew ran over, saw me holding a box and of course assumed it was full of lots of toys for him (after shipping all of our christmas presents back to MA from TX, this is only to be expected).  I ripped them open and told Todd, "I just have to wear them on my long run today!!" I knew that wasn't a good idea and Todd reminded me my feet would be blistered like crazy if I made that move. I tried 1 of them on with 1 of my old ones and WOOOOOWWW…Here's what I said-"They are my MAGIC shoes! They are going to get Mommy to the finish line of the marathon all by themselves!"  ;-)  So now Andrew is quite interested in these "Magic shoes" that mommy was so excited about and hands them to me every time we are going anywhere: "Here you go mommy. Here are your new shoes" :) He is the sweetest boy sometimes.

And WHAT a difference they have already made! Not even a week into it, I feel WAY better. I ended up completing my 14 mile run (!!) in my old shoes. Let me set that run up for you- 28 degrees for a high that day, about a foot of snow on the sidewalk MOST of my run (like running in sand, right???),  shoes that are worn out as it is….my camel bak FROZE while I was running around the lake. I actually ended up running in the street part of the run (which is very scary!)  I ran through 4 different towns that day (Woburn, Stoneham, Reading, and Wakefield to be exact), and made it to 1 of my favorite places to run: Lake Quannapowitt.  I also found quite the gem along the way- there were tons of people sledding down this amazing hill in Stoneham (and it's only 5 miles from our house). I am so excited to take the family there sometime next weekend!  This was by far the most difficult run I've ever done and my body felt awful the next day. So…bring on the magic shoes. I wore my new shoes everyday this week and WOW!  My back/knees are not in so much pain that I am waking up 4 times a night, and while I'm running- I feel like I can go forever. :)

I wasn't sore at all yesterday (and after 2 very challenging strength training classes, 27 miles last week, and 15 so far this week…I'm amazed).  I just got back from running 7 miles, and yes- I'm a bit sore. But I'm telling you- those magic shoes of mine are going to be just what I need to get me to 26.2 miles come April 21st. :)  Good thing I got an early morning run in because this is what is going on right at this moment:

10 inches of snow expected…on top of the mounds and mounds AND MOUNDS that already exists…I just LOVE winter….can't you tell. ;-) 

    Starbucks??!! Where did you go??!! 

Andrew likes to "off road" rather than use walk-ways :) 

School was let out early today (which meant no school for Mr. Andrew), so we will be spending most of today indoors playing cars, feeding/loving on baby dolls (Abby's new fav- so sweet!), watching movies, eating food, playing on i-pads, and maybe mommy can get in a nap. :) Valentine's Day is tomorrow so I hope they have school. Andrew's Valentines turned out super cute (thank you pinterest!) so I hope he gets to hand them out to his school friends. Happy Valentine's Day!!

Smugglers' Notch

I have to give my husband some credit- he is the best at planning little getaways for our family. I am not real great at finding the best deals, places to stay, or planning out the details, but my beloved husband ROCKS when it comes to "scheming up a little vacation" :) I like to say I'm pretty content just staying home (for the most part), because packing for 2 kids and myself (especially ALL the snow gear), is quite a daunting task. So thank goodness Todd plans out the travel arrangements and gets us out of our comfort zone to do things that end up being the BEST memories ever. :)

We stayed at the resort complete with a kitchen so were able to cook meals during our stay (I would like to say we saved $$ that way, but man were our groceries expensive!!!) The day care was incredible. They had everything we needed, fed Abby warm meals and snacks, bundled them up and took them out to play in the snow, had nap time, and would even take them out on skis if you requested. She seemed to really enjoy herself and was worn out each day she came back. :)

                 eating a little snow 

Not only had I not been skiing in YEARS, but I have only been twice in my life. So, I'm definitely not an expert, but I like to think I am pretty athletic and pretty dang tough. Todd on the other hand has been many times and likes to go down the triple black diamonds and what not (!!!), so I was a bit worried about it being just me and him on the slopes (while the little ones were away at ski school and day care).  I allowed him to go off on his own on day 2 (and I actually did really good going down the greens on my own), and we met up after lunch. I mostly blame it on the magnificent coffee/baileys/frangelico concoction I had at lunch….maybe a little bit of my inability to control my speed along with my unreasonable confidence after my rounds down the greens….but I ended up skiing straight off a mountain!! Thankfully, nothing was hurt (except for my new found confidence in skiing), but it took me quite a while to get back up to the mountain not to mention quite a few onlookers  had a funny story to tell later that night. When we finally got back down the mountain, I looked at Todd and said, "Well now I HAVE to go back and try again or else next time we go skiing, flying off the mountain will be the first recollection I have of my ski experience." So we went again, and I did much better. No more speedy-style skiing for me (even though it was quite a rush of adrenaline). :)

Andrew's first day of ski school started off pretty good. He was crying (was still in his weepy mode- still not sure what that was all about), but seemed to be having fun the times we checked on him. I got a few videos of him on his skis and after watching the P&G commercials during the olympics this week, those videos may just come in handy when he's a winter olympian. :) Sadly, the first day didn't end so great. I don't want to focus on the bad, because day 2 was great….but on the first day, Andrew's ski instructors LEFT HIM at the bottom of the little magic carpet BY HIMSELF!!! :( Todd and I were right there and witnessed it happen right before our eyes (talk about momma and poppa bear getting upset). Make a long story short- we talked with the instructor (5 minutes into the ordeal), and then talked with the lady that heads the ski school. It kinda put a little damper on the first day because we have a hunch they did it on purpose (I'm the first one to say that Andrew is a handful when he's frustrated…but that is NO reason to abandon him while the rest of the group goes back up to try again), but I WILL say- day 2 was MUCH better! His instructors gave him the best attention (I'm pretty sure we were THOSE parents and they knew they were on thin ice with us), and he was even snow plowing by himself the next day!! It's moments like these when you realize how to advocate for your son, but not coddle or be too overbearing allowing him to give up (easier said than done).  It was a great 2nd day and he still talks about it at school. :)

              hot chocolate break 

                    some tubing 

Andrew's favorite part of ski school:        the tractor ride 

       he looks a tad bit miserable here ;) 

       testing out the skiis in our lodge 

          Winter Olympics 2030 ;) 

                      And 2034 :) 

A visitor and some good news

*I started this blog about a week ago…it was a *different* week to say the least. But it ended well. :)

One of my best friends from high school came to visit us last week. She's been quite the road tripper and has been traveling all over the US for the last month. She lives such a fascinating and exciting life full of traveling, celebrities (she has worked on celebrity apprentice for the last 5 or 6 seasons), and spontaneity. She is usually off work for a big chunk of the winter so decided to come visit me and my babes. :) Her train arrived in Boston so she and I actually stayed in Boston on Saturday night (I will use any reason to get away for a night). We stayed in a hotel, ate at a nice restaurant, had some delicious cocktails and then had a slumber party complete with wine and plenty of gossip. :)   We had so much fun and the kids absolutely LOVE "Kerrie!!" :) She cooked for us, stayed with Abby while I took Andrew to school, went to the gym with us, put together puzzles with Andrew, and enjoyed some Chick fil a on free kids meal Tuesday. :) She made a yummy snack that we termed "snuckers" (they are a snack on a stick and actually taste a lot like snickers without all the junk added). She found the recipe on Facebook and we tried them out and the kids love them.  I'm not a big fan of measuring so when I made them this week, I basically melted about 1 tablespoon of coconut oil with a tablespoon of raw honey, stirred that in a cup of gluten free oats, mixed in some ground flax seed, dairy free chocolate chips, and quite a bit of peanut butter. Stir it all up, roll them into balls, but a stick in the top and freeze them. They are delicious and pretty healthy! Andrew would get up in the morning and say, "As soon as Kelley gets up, we can eat some snuckers!" Andrew is actually now convinced that Kelley has been living on a train since we dropped her off at the train station last weekend. He keeps telling everyone, "Kelley is on a train right now."  Abby has told me this week that she wants to see Kelley, so I know those kiddos miss her to pieces (and so do I)! Those are the things I miss most about being with close friends in Texas.

On to some good news. This has actually been a pretty rough week as far as Andrew's behavior goes, so this good news was a bit of a surprise. First off, he had to get his first stitches last Thursday because he slipped and fell holding a bowl of what was going to be snow ice cream. :( It's not hard to assume that the snow ice cream was a bust (quite literally), and a trip to the ER was in order. He had bit into his lip and they had to stitch it up on the bottom (I could type a whole other blog on that little experience…).

 Anyway, this week he has been all out of sorts, and I can't decide if it is the stitches, if it's the fact that I've jumped back on the GFCF diet (kids actually regress when they are "detoxing" the first few weeks being on the diet), or if he's about to hit a new milestone. I've noticed some skill usually takes the backddd  burner when he is about to hit a new milestone (whether it's with his speech, potty training, becoming more independent, or just learning so much at once). He didn't want to stay at the second session of bible study at church (I teach while he's in the first session and then attend the 11 service when he's in the second session). Then we went to "Kylie's mom's gym" on Monday and he cried in the daycare there (that was actually quite an interesting morning at the gym….another story I should probably blog about for some laughs). :) Then on Tuesday, he DID NOT want to go to school. We got out of the car and he said, "I want you to hold me," and then said, "I don't want to go to school!!" I brought him in, carried him to his door (another mommy was so sweet and carried Abby in for me…I obviously had my hands full in that moment…). Well, make a long story short, I had to go get him early because he was still upset after I left him. :( It broke my heart because Andrew absolutely loves school so this was so odd to me. And anytime I have tried to go to the gym this week, he cries and cries and says, "I don't want to!! I want to stay in mommy's red car!" :( It was a tough week getting my runs in and was heart breaking to see him in such a funk. 

here he is at his play school sports day :) 

On to Wednesday- we had a speech evaluation at the Lurie Center (we had another appointment with them a couple weeks ago and I'm not even exaggerating when I say it took us 13 months to get into this place…I remember seeing January 2014 on our appointment date and thinking "Did they make a mistake on the year??!) Anyway, he was already having a rough week so I told her from the beginning that he will probably not do very well. HA! That Andrew of mine….he did so well that she couldn't believe he has been diagnosed with PDD-NOS. She said she didn't recommend any services at this time (?!), and she thinks he is doing really great! It was such a mix of emotions because I am SOOO proud of Andrew, but after all the appointments we've had with his pediatrician at MIT (whom I didn't care for in the least), who would INSIST he get more weekly hours because he NEEDS the help and he NEEDS a team of people with the Lurie Center helping him…and then we get nada. I can't believe how far he has come, and I truly think the diet changes have helped him tremendously. We have even been told we could start trying dairy again in a few years to see how he responds to it.  I couldn't be happier with the sweet boy he is becoming and yes- the week got quite a bit better. On to my next blog about our ski trip….whenever I get around to posting it! :)