What?!?!

It's no secret that my husband is a hunter, and we have guns in our home.  Eric and I decided it was time for me to take some lessons at the armory, so I can be less anxious around guns as well as learn how to shoot & handle them properly.  Prior to this lesson, I had never held a gun much less fired one.  To say I was a little nervous and unsure of myself would be an understatement.  However, my instructor was awesome.  He was very calming and extremely patient with my shaky, fumbling fingers.

 

Once I was given all the loading, unloading, gun safety, etc. practice and talk, I took my first few shots.  Wowzas!

 

My instructor brought my target to me at the end, and we talked about what I did (correctly & incorrectly) to make the different shots.  He and Eric were both really proud of me for going WAY out of my comfort zone to handle and shoot a gun.  Considering I am a total rookie, I managed to settle down by the end of the lesson and actually enjoy the target practice.  

 



 

Eric was a proud hubby this day.  Slowly, but surely, he's bringing me into his world of four wheelers, guns, and hunting.  And, he was right, it's fun to challenge yourself to try something new and out of your comfort zone.  It was a fun "date" for us, and I see target practice as a new date night for us in the future.

Steelers Football

The long awaited day arrived, my 37th birthday, the day I was going to get to see my Steelers play at home!  Eric and I donned all of our warm clothes and prepared to lug around rain gear just in case.  Mother Nature was looking out for us - it never rained nor was it really that cold.  We actually felt a little overdressed, but better too warm than freezing our fannies off all day.

 

Pittsburgh has a subway system that took us straight to the stadium area which was a lifesaver.  We headed out and arrived in the stadium area about 10 AM for the 1:00 PM game.  We ended up at this hilarious place called the Tilted Kilt within walking distance of the stadium.  It was the perfect setting to get us in the Pittsburgh Steelers mentality - crazy Steelers polka type songs blaring, wild fans drinking insane amounts of alcohol at 10:30 in the morning, lots of you-know-what-talking between Chargers fans and Steelers fans, and ridiculously under dressed waitresses scurrying around.  I was in people watching heaven.

 

We headed over to the stadium area taking in all the sights around us.  These fans are crazy excited and the hustle and bustle was in the air.  It was fun.  I was definitely out of place with my wardrobe - my pretty white woolly sweater was not a Steelers jersey.

 

Our seats were AWESOME and close to the field.  We were in the thick of some hardcore fans, so that made it even more exciting.  I'm a fair weather fan compared to these people.  Wow!

It was cool to watch the game so close in real life.  I could follow the ball much better that way.

 

#7 Big Ben in action

 

A view of the incline and Mt. Washington from our seats

 

Eric and I

Hey, we know those guys #6 and #17 in the Chargers uniform!  Our new friends from Primanti Brothers, Phillip and Charlie.

I had to have my picture made with these guys.  They were sitting right behind us, and they were hysterical, over the top, scream at the refs, & yell at the players at the top of their lungs kind of fans.  They found our South Carolina selves quite entertaining as well, and they especially loved the fact that my husband brought me to Pittsburgh for my birthday. 

The Steelers played awful, and they lost terribly.  I still had a great time, but those fellas behind me had steam coming from their heads they were so mad.  Again, Steelers fans are not for the faint of heart.  Eric and I grabbed some dinner and explored the casino after the game.

We called it a night about 9:00 that night and enjoyed the cab back to our hotel.

Definitely a memorable birthday.

Not Your Traditional Date Night

My husband spends many of his fall and early winter evenings & EARLY mornings in the woods.  He's been wanting to get me in the deer stand for awhile now.  We finally had an afternoon/evening that my parents could babysit, and he could be away from work in the afternoon, so we donned our camo gear, headed to his hunt club, and sat in the woods.  I even wore a deer call around my neck!  Madeline would be so proud that even while hunting, Mommy had on a "necklace". 

 

It was INCREDIBLY quiet, but I enjoyed myself.  I very much enjoyed the quiet.  I can certainly understand why the peacefulness is appealing to Eric after a hectic workday.  We didn't see any deer, but that's okay, I got a little taste of my honey's world.  And, we had a little date night even if we had to text each other in order to "talk" - that is until it started getting dark, and I had to cut my phone off.  :)  Eric said I followed all the "rules", so I suppose that means he'll invite me back to his little slice of peace and quiet.

Daddy's In Charge

I went away on a girls' weekend, and I found this picture on our camera!  Daddy time is the best!

My sources tell me that upon arrival at church, both girls were dressed adorably AND with bloomers and bows!  As an added bonus, I came home to a clean, tidy kitchen! 

Girls weekend plus a well kept household = total bliss for this Mama

Thanks honey!  We had a fabulous time.

No More Dinosaurs!

I have an office of sorts in our home ~ it is perfect little organized space for me to file our bills in the credenza, a computer & printer is set up for my important facebooking, blogging, and online shopping :), our old kitchen table and chairs resides in this space, a lot of my former teacher stuff lives here, and eventually it will be a great space for homework & projects for our children. 

I've been jonesing for a new computer situation for awhile now.  For the longest time, this was my computer, a total dinosaur:  

 And, then, I moved onto these two laptops.  Now they are both toast for various reasons, and I have been using Eric's work laptop recently.  That just makes me nervous - heaven forbid, my silly facebook or other such nonsense allow a virus on his work computer.  Not to mention, I didn't like using laptops because we kept it downstairs in the den, and we would find ourselves on the computer ALL.THE.TIME. taking away from family time or just us time.  I missed "working" in my little office space.

 So, for my VERY UNEXPECTED anniversary gift, TA-DA.  The sweet hubs finally heard my pleas for a new computer situation that put me back into my little office. 

I don't need much, and I don't need fancy.  So, this little set up is perfect.  My sweet husband never ceases to amaze me with his little surprises.  I'm a lucky gal.

Woo Hoo!

Guess who has been released from the orthopedic doc? Guess who can wear these orthopedic doc approved shoes to the GYM!?? Guess who has been given medical permission to run? ME! ME!!!

And guess where this stinky 'ol boot can go? Somewhere besides my foot that is for sure! I saw Dr. B for the last time today, I hope. He said, "Your x-ray looks awesome!" Music to my ears. So in true Anne fashion, I had my big bag of running/gym shoes from junky to brand new, and I dumped them on the exam table asking which pair(s) would be suitable for my new bones. He so kindly checked them all out for me, telling me why each was not going to work yet, and chose the New Balance mules for their stiff bottoms. BUT, I was given the freedom to do whatever I wanted at the gym while being smart about it! Hallelujah! He even said I was allowed to go for a brisk walk AND run a 12 minute mile if I wanted. All I wanted to be able to do was ride the elliptical. Woo hoo!! I'm back with a cautious vengeance. I'm focusing on the elliptical and my weight routine, and just maybe, perhaps trying to wear my high heels again! :) Just kidding! When I asked him about heels, he rolled his eyes, told me to be happy with my New Balance sneaks, and not worry about heels until much later this year!

Ahhh, one happy Gold's Gym Mama!

Still Ugly and Still Broken

Yep, I'm still in the boot 90% of the time, BUT I'm on the mend, I think! Dr. B was not super pleased with my most recent X-rays. The 3rd metatarsal is healing well. The 4th metatarsal that is broken closer to the toe joint is not healing as well. I'm sure having a 3 year old and and a 14 month old is not conducive to to a broken foot. But it looks better...
I'm able to work out more to my liking --- stationary bike hill programs and non-weight-bearing-weights-on-my-foot-type of weights. It's definitely not great, but it's not awful. I'm dealing with it and trying to take it day by day as I KNOW I need to let my foot heal, so I can be my normal crazy workout girl again.

I am still allowed to wear a shoe, but with the girls, my workouts, our day-to-day activities, and errands, I have gone back to wearing the boot most of the time. It's safer, easier, and stabilizes the bones better.

Bummer, two months of healing and at least one more to go. Hopefully, by April I'll be pain free, mostly mended, and able to toss the stinky boot out the back door! :)

Four Weeks

This is my broken foot at four weeks! I know, GROSS! It needs some serious TLC, but no pedicures in my near future. My toes are still black and blue and really wanky looking. Yucky!! I don't have pretty feet anyway, and a broken foot definitely hasn't helped my foot aesthetically.

I went back to my orthopedic doc this week, and he had an X-ray done. As it turns out, I broke two metatarsals --- the middle one and the fourth one. No wonder I saw stars! Apparently, the swelling and such was so terrible that it wasn't clear on the first x-ray. A little bone lesson took place at this appointment: Bone has several stages of healing. I am in the stage of healing where the hard cartilage part (think: kids' bones) is repairing. By 6 weeks, the bones will start pulling calcium into the process to starting forming new bone. Basically, no "real" healing is visible on the x-ray until 6-8 weeks. Awesome.

The good news is that I've been good about wearing my boot and not walking barefoot, so everything looks as it should. The other piece of good news is that I've been given the thumbs up for the stationary bike at the gym. I patiently listened to the Doctor and all his doctor talk, but my first real question was, "OK, Doc, so what can I do cardio wise at the gym?! It's been FOUR weeks?!" Yes, he rolled his eyes, and yes, my husband was there reminding him to choose his words wisely with gym talk. I think Eric's exact words were something along the lines of, "Be careful what you say to her. She tends to take what you say to the utmost extreme." So, yes, cycle class here I come!!

I was also given clearance to wear a shoe, BUT it has to have a stiff sole & not much binding over the broken area. To quote my doctor, "Barefoot is the WORST.SHOE.EVER!" Ladies, this criteria is not conducive to a cute, stylish shoe AT.ALL. So, heels, wedges, boots, flats, a flip flop, and even my running shoes are a BIG NO-NO, but my Chacos (pictured) are a winner. Too bad it's winter time, but I wear these sandals around the house. The boot is hard on my ankle and my lower back because it has my alignment all out of whack (my left foot is higher than my right, and it keeps my ankle super still and stiff). I am really nervous about being out in public and dealing with the girls, so I wear my boot to the gym and while we are out and about. Around the house, I am able to walk on it barefooted on a very limited basis (like in the shower), and most of the time, I wear my Chacos. The more bending in the broken area = longer healing time was the gist of the shoe conversation. Cleaning day requires my boot. :)

I go back in a month, and hopefully, that will be it with this broken foot issue. While it's certainly not ideal, it's much better a month into it. My anxiousness has been relieved as far as taking care of my girls and going about my day-to-day routines. Now, I'm just anxious to get back into the gym like I want. Then all will be right with the world in Anne's world.

Ever have one of THOSE days?

You know the kind of day that I'm talking about --- it seems every decision you make backfires on you, nobody in your life seems to be happy about anything, too many, "I want...", very few thank you's, and overall very frustrating kind of day when you plop into bed at night praying that tomorrow will be better because by golly, tomorrow is a new day, and it's got to be better! I think I would sum up our 2011 year as one of THOSE days times 365! That last statement might be a slight exaggeration, but 2011 was a rocky one for us. As for me, it was a humbling year on so many levels.

We started our life as a family of four, and I would not trade our little family for anything in this world! I love my husband and my two girls down to my very core. Madeline has come along so far emotionally, socially, physically, and mentally. She's a very sensitive, empathic child. She can sense when I'm not having a good day and will try to make me smile. It pretty much always works! :) Madeline is a protective older sister, and she doesn't want Amelia to cry, get hurt, or be scolded. Sometimes she's too overprotective not allowing Amelia to fend for herself. Her outrageous temper tantrums come only every so often now, and she's learning to check her emotions. I had some very humbling moments in the afternoons pouring over my John Roesmond articles and books trying to figure out ways to conquer these tantrums in an age appropriate manner. Over the course of the year, she's become more rational, so she can calm herself down before things spiral out of her control. Madeline has blossomed socially making friends at school and in the neighborhood, learning to share without being prompted to do so, learning to not follow others' poor behavior choices, and communicating with adults in a mannerly way. Madeline is certainly not the most athletic child, but she's attempting to ride her tricycle and a bike with training wheels with much more confidence. She can climb the rockwall on our swingset in a flash, and her physical skills like hopping, running, jumping, etc. are much less clumsy. She loves her ballet class, and she's learned a ton! I am so looking forward to her recital to see what she has learned. Every now and again, I'll catch her dancing around obviously doing her ballet motions. Super cuteness. Madeline is a smart little girl. She loves to learn, and her neverending questions can be maddening, but she wants to learn about the world around her. Her little memory is a steel trap. The girl retains information like crazy. Books and coloring are still her most favorite past times.

And, sweet Amelia, she's finally coming into her own after 12 very long months. Her verbal skills are really starting to take off, and while she doesn't seem to have a huge interest in walking on her own, she's on the move keeping up with Madeline as best she can. She's eating up a storm, and she wants whatever we are eating. Amelia has figured out how to snap her fingers, and she will snap in the direction of the food item that she wants. While it's not the most mannerly thing to do, it's giving us some level of communication, so we're going with it for now. Eventually, we'll enforce the use of words once her verbal skills are better. Amelia humbled me as a Mom. I thought I had the whole Mom thing under control --- balancing my gym time, household chores, errands, and playtime. Madeline and I got into our routine just trucking right along, and when Amelia arrived, she slipped right into our lives like she'd always been here with us. Sure, I was exhausted, but that's to be expected with the newborn phase. And, then the fussy, gassy, uncomfortable, something's not quite right Amelia showed up. Just like that. I was taken down a notch. Suddenly, I was with an unhappy baby all the time, and our happy days were few and far between. I allowed this to go on for months making trips to the doctor, trusting his advice against my own gut feelings. Afterall, Madeline was nothing like this as a baby. What did I know? However, I knew something wasn't right in my gut. I finally put my Bullheaded Mom face on, sought out advice from friends, and switched doctors after 9 very long months! Amelia's health improved and so did her disposition, but it didn't last for long. Teething. Again, more unhappy days than happy days. Unfortunately, Amelia is not the "go with the flow" second child I just knew I was going to have. She's far from it, and it's been hard for me to handle every situation with grace and a smile. As I said, it's been a humbling experience thinking I had it all just right, and then one of THOSE days keeps going on day after day after day. There were many days when I felt like throwing my hands up in the air, and shouting, "I'm moving to Australia!" just like Alexander in Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst.

Unfortunately for a large portion of 2011, Eric was traveling like crazy for days on end week after week, and it was rough running the show by myself especially during those summer months when Amelia's health & disposition were at their worst, and Madeline's terrible three's flared up. Again, a humbling experience for me...my husband did come home after a few days or even a week, and I could vent or cry or go to the grocery by myself. But, during these rough patches, I often thought about single Moms or wives with deployed husbands and wondered how in the world they did it. At least I got some reprieve. Luckily, Eric's job finally started to slow down and his travel schedule has become less hectic. Having him around in the evenings, has certainly made for happier dynamics around here! This year, he was able to find a better balance between working hard, family, friends, gym time, and hunting.

Together, we were able to go on some trips and have some date nights for some us time. Of course, we did a lot of work to the house making it "us", and we have enjoyed our improvements together. Our entertaining probably reached an all time high this summer and fall when we hosted several parties, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and some cookouts in between. Hence the reason all of our birthday celebrations were kept super low key this year. I could only handle so much entertaining with all the other things going on in our little world.

As for me, my excitement was my Disney marathon that didn't happen, and again, another humbling experience. All that training, time, & effort was for not. First, figuring out my training schedule amidst Eric's & the girls' schedules was tricky, and then I had an ankle tendon issue during the "meat" of my training which required me to cut back my miles for a two week time frame. Finally, my broken foot sealed the deal --- No marathon. Canceled trip to Disney because my foot couldn't handle the parks. Boo hiss.

Surely, all of these trials and tribulations of 2011 happened for a reason. I'm a firm believer in that. I may not ever realize all the reasons we had these experiences, but I know deep in my heart that the Big Man Upstairs puts events in your life for a reason. I've realized a lot about myself. I have a few things to iron out that could make me a kinder wife, a more patient mother, a more attentive friend, and a less perfectionist Anne in 2012. Here's to 2012 with less health issues, less temper tantrums, less travels for Daddy, a less frazzled Mama, and less of THOSE I'm moving to Australia kind of days!

Treacherous

These steps:

Plus These Shoes:
Equals = A Broken Foot
ONE WEEK before my Disney, 2012 Marathon!

Big Sigh and Gigantic Sad Face for this Mama! Stupid me decided to dash up our stairs in my heels and landed myself a broken fourth metatarsal bone.

Very ouchy! Now I see why cartoons always show stars when the characters fall down. I literally saw stars when I fell, and I immediately knew something serious was wrong with my foot. When the doctor was pressing on the swollen, bruised area, I almost fainted & barfed. For a girl who has never broken a bone in her life, this has been quite an experience.

For a Mommy of two little ones, this is quite inconvenient.

For the stay-at-home Mom who cleans, launders our clothes, & does all the errands, this is stressful.

For the work-out fanatic Anne, this is frustrating that I'll be out of the gym for at least 6 weeks, maybe longer.

For the Anne who can usually handle whatever life throws at her, this causes a great deal of anxiety.

But, the silver lining in all of this is that I don't need foot surgery, and I wasn't carrying one of my children.

Definitely NOT the way I wanted to end my holiday season and begin 2012!

Only 66 Days Until...

my Disney marathon in January 2012!

These brand, spankin' new Mizunos have officially been broken in as my training is in full force!

I'm loving my runs during the week, and I'm especially loving my long runs outside in this gorgeous fall weather on Saturday mornings. It's taking my old bones some getting used to the longer distances, but so far with lots of water, stretching, and cross training, everything seems to be going well. I'm on the uphill climb in my training, but I'm looking forward to the challenge, the "me time", and of course, the actual marathon itself. Disney doesn't ever disappoint, so I feel sure that they know how to do a marathon just right!

Just Some Mama Thoughts & Keepin' it Real

Wow, it's hard to believe that August is here. Many of my teacher friends start back on the 11th, & their students start on the 18th. Madeline's preschool starts September 1. If I am keepin' it real on this blog, I have to say, "Thank you, God, for getting me through this summer!" I think I've prayed to God for patience no less than 5 times per day everyday of the week. It's been a doozy of a summer, and I for one am glad to turn the page on my good 'ol fashioned paper calendar to August. August brings intense heat & humidity here, but it also brings me to thoughts of cooler weather to come, preschool starting, fixed schedules & routines Monday through Friday, college football on the weekends, and some serious Mama-Disney-marathon-training-time which in turn equals relaxed, happy Mama!

Summer around here is usually relaxed --- hanging out on the back porch in the evenings, a few beach trips here and there, trips to the neighborhood pool, some lake time, evening bike rides on the pink tricycle, evenings on the swingset, later naptimes & bedtimes, sleeping in a little bit, lots of gym time for both Eric and I, and some playdates scattered between all that.

Not so much. Instead, this summer was far from relaxing! It was full of doctor's appointments for Amelia's ongoing battle with reflux & ear infections, many afternoons stuck inside because it's way too hot to go to the pool with a sick wee one, many afternoons watching too much TV because Mommy needs to get housework done in between a fussy baby & a whiny almost three year old, many sharp words coming out of my mouth, many testing the boundaries from my almost three year old, many hours of the wee one fussing/crying out of discomfort, many deep breaths during naptime, many evenings spent praying tomorrow would be a better day, many evenings on the phone with Daddy because Daddy's travel schedule is nutso, and too many middle of the night wake-ups for this Mama and Amelia.

This summer has certainly been quite a learning time for me, and my perfectionist, type A personality certainly does not go well with a feeling of not doing a good job at my job. I know there were times I handled tense situations with grace and kindness, and unfortunately, I had many moments when there was too much yelling that accomplished very little except hurt feelings. I made too many little stops at the grocery store with both kids in tow instead of thinking through the grocery shopping and my couponing. I'm sure I turned down playdates, dates with friends, and other fun activities because I didn't want to drag Amelia with us knowing that she is not feeling well, and that's just not fair. Talk about feeling torn --- choose Amelia's misery to allow Madeline a little fun or having Madeline miss something fun because Amelia would be miserable strapped in the bucket seat or stroller! Then there were times when hiring a babysitter was simply too exhausting to think about because it's just easier to deal with Amelia's temperament, ailments, and meds myself. Many days I was in survival mode, and I wasn't always present enjoying the moment with my girls when they were happy & healthy. One thing is for sure: I complained too much to my hard working husband. Love his heart for listening ever so patiently to my "woe-is-me"!

But, again, if I am keepin' it real, then I would be unappreciative & ungrateful if I didn't mention my long weekend away with only my husband to Hilton Head leaving a sick wee one & testy almost three year old with Grandma and Grandpa. I cannot forget to mention my wonderful girls' weekend with my near and dear friend, Steph, to Costa Rica while my husband kept the sick wee one and testy tot while he worked from home. Bless his heart. Those two long weekends alone gave me the rejuvenation I needed to get through all those other stressful moments, I am sure. Lastly, I would be remiss if I didn't mention our wonderful family filled weekend when we celebrated Amelia's baptism on our 7th wedding anniversary & Father's Day. Again, a little ray of sunshine in our rough summer.

So, I, for one, am ready for a new season with a healthy wee one (fingers crossed), a happy three year old who gets to go to school five days per week (for a week now, she's been asking, "I get to go to school today!?"), a Daddy's work schedule that allows for less overnight travels, and a Mommy who starts her marathon training releasing those feel good endorphins!

And, if I am really keepin' it real, then I should remind myself that this stay-at-home-Mama-gig is what I signed up for no matter how frustrating and stressful the days are. Truth be told, I am really a blessed woman with two beautiful little girls and an amazing husband! Perhaps, in addition to my prayers for patience, I should also thank God for my sweet little family!

Hilton Head

Happy 7 Year Anniversary, Happy Birthday Eric, and Happy Post Baby Getaway was the theme for our most recent beach rendezvous to Hilton Head. With all of Eric's travel, he has racked up a bajillion Hilton points, so we decided that it was time for us to get away ALONE to the Hilton Resort on Hilton Head. (Side note: It really did feel like we were on a tropical island getaway! That hotel was amazing, and our stay was at no cost thanks to Hilton Honors points.) It was fabulous. Our room was perfect, our extra special treatment was divine, and the alone time with my honey was wonderful. We only had a couple of goals on this trip: relax, talk adult talk, eat slowly, sleep in, and play bocci on the beach. All of our goals were met!

We certainly enjoyed walking out to the beach with only a small cooler, chairs, towels, and bocci. Ahhhh, just beach, sun, and water.
Just us...we enjoyed lazy days by the beach playing bocci. We also enjoyed getting cleaned up to go out to dinner during what would normally be the dinner/bath/bed routine with the girls. (Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for giving us a long weekend away!) We had several dinners out, some fancy, some casual, to celebrate our anniversary and Eric's birthday.

This next series of pictures cracks me up because as Eric and I were posing to do our famous self portrait at dinner one evening, the lady at the next table kindly offered to snap a photo of us. Not only are they blurry, but she was not happy that we were content to sit across the table from each other. She wanted us to be all lovey, dovey on each other. She obliged and took our table picture.

Then she pointed to me, and said, "Sit on his lap." So I threw caution to the wind & did as she asked since she was rather insistent. :)

Then she wanted us to kiss. Really lady?! We agreed upon the cheek kiss.

Luckily, the lady and her man's cab arrived, so she gave us our camera back. Later back at the resort while wandering around, Eric and I documented the night with our self portrait!

Lunch at the pool bar was so relaxing --- no wiggly kiddos, no cutting up food, no worries!

A much needed mini vacation with my true love!

Costa Rica

I had the most wonderful opportunity for a little getaway with my friend of 25 years! Yes, we have been friends since we were 10! How crazy is that?! My friend, Steph, was invited to go on a trip with her company to Costa Rica as a headquarters guest. Apparently, she is some sort of rockstar within her company, and it was really interesting for me to see the "Business Steph". She was allowed to bring a guest on this trip, and since she is not married, she thought of me! Although we only live 30 minutes away from each other, we are not able to get together very often, so she thought it would be the perfect way for us to get in some good girl time.

I must give my husband huge props for making this all come together for us -- the trip was from Monday, May 20-Thursday, June 2. My sweet husband took Monday and Tuesday off to hold down the fort, and on Wednesday and Thursday, he worked from home, managed the girls, and used my parents' help to give him some peace and quiet to work in his office.

Not only is Steph a rockstar within her company, but her crazy busy travel schedule put her into the "fancy" status in Delta airlines. We were upgraded to first class on the way to AND from Costa Rica. It was awesome, and we were giddy about our first class seats. Well, I was giddy about our first class seats. Steph gets upgraded quite a bit, so I think she was highly amused at my antics!

The flight was fun. We chatted, had a couple of celebratory beverages, ate snacks, and laughed at the fact that we brought all kinds of reading material that never got read! The obligatory snapshot of our destination from the air!

Our resort was really nice, and like most resorts, the staff was super accommodating to make sure our stay was relaxing and pleasurable. Our room always had nice touches after the cleaning service visited.

Steph and I did not have an ambitious agenda for our trip. She works hard and wanted to relax, and I most certainly wanted to enjoy some girl time and adult conversation. We went to the gym in the mornings, had leisurely days by the pool and the beach, and had lovely dinners with her work people.

Costa Rica was beautiful, and it was a wonderful opportunity for two old friends to catch up!

I Finally Did It

I registered for the 2012 Disney Marathon, and I AM EXCITED! I've been talking about the Disney marathon since I ran my last marathon in Atlanta with my awesome runner-sister-in-law, Angela. Then neck surgery & babies came, so my running goals were put on the back burner. BUT, I am officially registered now, and there's no turning back. Eric and I will make a fun weekend of it, and although my "official" training won't start until the fall, I am excited to get my running legs back!

Photo borrowed from:

http://espnwwos.disney.go.com/events/rundisney/wdw-marathon/index?page=walt-disney-world-marathon

Thankful...


Last week was a rough one, and this one is shaping up to be a tad challenging as well. However, while both of my little ladies are napping, I need to set my mind straight and remember my blessings.


So, in this moment, I am extremely thankful for:

• my hard working husband who is home from his business trip for this week & has no current plans for business trips next week
• my two girls even if schedules and attitudes are wanky
• my workout at the gym this morning
• having the opportunity to be a stay at home mom
• a few minutes to myself to do this post and gather myself
• upcoming weekends of "Anne & Eric" time
• a "big sister" package in the mail for Madeline from my Aunt Maureen --- more books! yay!

Works For Me Wednesday

I cannot take credit for this catchy title. I read a lovely blog everyday called A Work in Progress. I discovered her through my longtime friend & blogger extraordinaire, Nancy. I love blog land! Anyways, Courtney does a Works for Me Wednesday post each week in A Work in Progress. I had lots of things swirling around in my brain this evening, so I decided to "borrow" her idea for today.

What is working for me at this very quiet hour on Wednesday?

• Amelia successfully sleeping in her crib for a post dinner cat nap & bedtime with little to no crying to boot!
• Our cushiony glider in Amelia's nursery.
• The fact that Target now carries dry fit work out clothes ~ much cheaper than Nike and similar quality.
• The prospect of getting together with one of my supper club girlfriends, but we plan to include hubbies & kids for a simple grill out. Madeline is two months older than her little boy, & Amelia is two months younger than her little girl.
• Me being a fuddy duddy and nixing the annual Columbia St. Patrick's Day 5 Points thingie. An all day drinking affair (whether you are drinking or not) just doesn't sound like that much fun to me anymore. Then add in the whole B-feeding thing. Pumping (and probably dumping because let's face it, I'd have a few bevs throughout the day.) the entire day every 3 hours really doesn't sound fun at all. Some people take their kids, but it's not an event for kids, at least my kids.
• My house finally being spackle and dust free after the MASSIVE cleaning that has taken me three full days to accomplish. Each of our 3 floors got a day of intense blind cleaning (talk about tedious), window sill wiping, baseboard swiffering & vacuuming, and the regular cleaning stuff like dusting, vacuuming, and bathrooms.
• This gorgeous spring-like weather.
• Our new across the street neighbors being our age AND having two girls the same ages as our two girls AND they are super nice AND they accepted our invite over for dinner on Friday night AND Rachel is a stay at home mom who is a Gold's Gym rat like me! What are the chances?!
• Blog friends (those that I really know & those that I have yet to meet in person) and their awesome blogs!

However, Madeline's recent behavior issues are NOT working for me, and that post will be up in the very near future!

Life with Two (and More)


How has a month gone by, & I have not posted? I've got lots of things to share about the girls, and I'm not quite ready to hit publish yet for their posts ~ still missing pictures and a couple of stories on Madeline ~ those are coming soon.


Life has resumed to normal. I am out of the no sleep "baby fog" & "baby high" stages of bringing home a newborn even though I still feel sleep deprived. Being tired all the time feels normal now. Eric's insane travel has commenced leaving me to hold down the fort. I've returned to my normal, non-pregnant-girl gym routine ~ woo hoo!!! Madeline is back at school regularly barring any future inclement weather conditions. Oh, and I've taken both girls to the grocery store & Target all by myself as if I'd been doing this Mommy thing my whole life. Like I said, life has resumed to normal. And, did I mention, life is great?!


Life with our two girls has settled in rather nicely. We've had to get used to Eric's traveling again, and I'd say that's been the biggest adjustment as far as Madeline is concerned. She got very used to Eric's travel pre-Amelia, and then she got very used to Eric being home after Amelia was born. I think she forgot that "Daddy's working" = Daddy doesn't get to come home every night thus leaving Mommy in charge. Yes, there have been some hairy moments when one child was probably not having her needs met in the most timely manner, but we survived. I have since been able to iron out most of the kinks in order to prevent a tremendous amount of melting down at high demand times like lunch/dinner, baths, bedtime, etc. Madeline has had to re-acquaint herself with the phrase, "Daddy's working.", so that always brings her terrible two behavior out more often. I guess that's her way of expressing her displeasure regarding Daddy's need to work. However, our nightly prayers now include, "We thank God for Daddy's job, & Daddy's ability to take care of us, so Mommy can stay home." This simple sentence seems to make sense to Madeline, and it seems to remind her that her world is okay even when "Daddy's working."


We are in the process of getting our one year warranty things fixed around the house, and it's a mess! There must've been a billion nail pops to fix, and it's going to be a cleaning nightmare for me. The Spackle and dust is EVERYWHERE. Not to mention, our builder doesn't do the touch up painting part, so we have to go back and do that part ourselves. YUCK! I foresee myself burning the midnight oil doing some serious cleaning in the next few weeks while Eric is traveling. I do my best work while he's traveling and late at night with no little girl interruptions. I'm just crazy like that, I guess. However, we are not looking forward to re-painting our ceilings, walls, trim, etc.


I've returned to the OB for my postpartum check-up, and I was given a clean bill of health. I had a follow-up with my hematologist for my platelet count, and they were up in the 120,000 range, so once again, I was given a clean bill of health there too. I was "cleared" for exercise ~ haha! I cleared myself for that about two weeks after Amelia came home. :)


Eric and I were able to go out on a "just us" date ~ my parents came over for a few hours, and we were able to go out to dinner without worries. Grandma is great like that! Eric and I had almost forgotten how nice it is to eat without cutting up someone else's food, burping someone else, or reading the cocktail menu like a book while we wait for our meal.


Madeline attended her first birthday party at a Kindermusik type place for a friend from school, and it was fun. Chaotic but fun. I must say, I am new to this kid birthday party thing, so it was a little overwhelming for me to have all those 2 and 3 year olds running loose doing their thing. Most of the other moms were chilling talking to one another, and I seemed to be watching Madeline like a hawk making sure she was minding her manners, sharing, and behaving. Perhaps I need to relax a little bit and trust that she will do the right thing without me hovering. I will learn to chill out eventually.


I've returned to my pre-baby workouts, and it feels awesome. My heart rate gets high, I sweat, I listen to music, and I have made my muscles work hard again. It's been so great to get back into my rhythm, and I have all the sore muscles to show for it. And, best of all, Amelia is already spoiled rotten in the kids' care by those wonderful ladies. They are smitten with her, and they love having a new baby to cuddle. It's a win-win for us all!


Madeline got her first shiner last weekend. Eric was cleaning up his truck, and she ran smack-dab into the tailgate, not once but twice. Her little face took a beating, and in her Madeline post, the pictures reveal her nice shiner. Madeline also had her first time out at school. Apparently, she was standing in the baby doll bed in the house center, and the teachers had to ask her repeatedly to stop. By the third offense, she was put into time out. As a result, at home, she was not able to have TV the whole rest of that day (which really amounts to two Dora shows --- one before nap & one before bed), but you want to talk about kicking a girl while she is down, then take away her Dora TV shows. According to her teachers, no TV for time out at school made a very lasting impression on her because she not only obeyed immediately when corrected the following day at school, but she mentioned that time out at school = no Dora TV that day. Score for Team Mommy & Daddy!

Finally, I had a girls night with my Supper Club girls, and it was so wonderful to chit chat with the ladies! I'm so blessed to call these girls my friends. It was such a refreshing evening out, and I'm so lucky to have a hubby that supports my girl time!

There's a Newborn in Our House

I had to laugh at our drainboard in the sink the other night. Two wine glasses, the coffee pot innards, and lots of bottles & Medela pumping items!


This pretty much sums up our day --- coffee in the mornings, lots of Amelia feedings & Mama taking care of milk business, and a glass of wine to wind down the evening when there's the very short hour that BOTH Madeline and Amelia are asleep.
Ahhh, life is good.

And, Baby Girl Makes Four



Today is officially our last day as a family of three. I'm experiencing a wide range of emotions this morning --- I'm excited, anxious, nervous, and even a touch sad. Don't get me wrong, I'm not sad in an unhappy way. I'm sad in a nostalgic way, I guess. I have loved every minute of our time together as a Mommy, Daddy, and Madeline trio. Yes, I have even loved those trying times when Madeline was acting out, and I was stressing out moments! We've doted, disciplined, vacationed, played, worked, and loved hard over the last two years. It's been a season of our lives that I wouldn't take back for one millisecond. We have our groove, and it's all about to change. Well, change makes me nervous regardless of how awesome the change is. I would consider bringing home Baby Sister a pretty awesome change!



We'll get our new groove as a family of four, and there is so much to look forward to with this new chapter in life. I'm most excited about watching Madeline find her niche in big sisterhood. I'm only a tad worried about her with sharing attention and not being the only child. She's quite a compassionate little thing, and I know she will slip into her new role beautifully once things settle down. Not to mention, Little Sister plans to butter up Big Sister with a new Fancy Nancy book upon their first meeting, and I think that just might do the trick. :) We've talked and talked about Baby Sister, so we'll see exactly how much of all that talking was processed in the little mind of a two year old.



I'm a little nervous about the whole delivery process even though I know what to expect this time. I just want a calm and healthy delivery with little to no pain. :) I'm not looking forward to all those post-partum issues --- puffy belly, swelling, soreness, and general tiredness. However, I know that's short term, and I'm looking forward to cuddling, swaddling, nursing, smelling, and taking care of a new baby.

I'll be back with an official introduction of Baby Girl Stewart...