as cozy as spring

No white flag

July is a hard month for me.  It seems to stretch on endlessly, unbearably hot day after unbearably hot day.  I tend to get a little lethargic and depressed, staying in the AC and watching awful TV.

But this month!  I had a plan and it's gone fairly well*.  We started the month camping in a cool mountain forest and I'm pining for that in the worst way now.  I decided not to let the heat keep us indoors now that we are home and took the children canoeing yesterday.  It's been on my list o'things to do for literally years.  I loved it.  Loved it.  I spent yesterday afternoon on the computer searching for canoeing/camping trips for this autumn.  So I'm hoping some of you, my friendly readers, will have some suggestions?  I can travel (my sisters are choking on their chai tea lattes right now because I say I can travel but I usually won't.).  

* I still have sewn in a zipper but the month isn't over yet. 

Go Cowboys!

That is all. Thank you.

Update: Stupid football. Can I have a hug too, Elizabeth?

Winter Garden

5-0

It wasn't pretty but it's still a win. 

45-35

We're a day behind in our lessons.  Except that the day was Friday, so we are now catching up on last week's work.  This is very bothersome to me, but I don't expect to make up the work today because the kids had a very short night.

              

Guess where we watched the opening football game?  Fifth row, 30 yard line. 

There really isn't much to say.  It was a great game.  I saw Al Michaels and Jerry Jones in real life just like I've always dreamed (ha!).  The children truly enjoyed themselves, up until the third quarter when Sir Grumpleton decided he had seen enough of the game, thankyouverymuch.  My husband and I had a much better time.  I have 107 slightly blurry photos including Lucy posing with a statue of Tom Landry, wanna see???

               

               

                                        Ring of Honor

OK, I'll spare you the rest.  I'm so very grateful to my husband whose hard work and kindness made it a wonderfully fun family night.   Did ya see when Romo ran in that touchdown?  I think he redeemed himself from last year's giant mistake.  Maybe. 

Thirty Year Old Gymnast / Middle Ages, pun intended

I was walking to my daughter's room last night and she was asking me to show her how to do a 'bridge' again.  And then it hit me.  That's how I hurt my wrist the other night.  Apparently I am not as limber as I once was.  And a back walkover shouldn't be done after having two children - your back will simply crack in two.  At least that's exactly how it felt.  I pretend I am in good shape, but time marches on, I suppose.  As September nears I find that I am in not even in good enough shape to sit in a chair and KNIT.

How excited am I that Karen and I are both studying the Middle Ages?  And Jennifer too.  For anyone else out there studying this same period, Dawn wrote this last year.  I'm enjoying this more than I thought I would.  There are lots of good resources out there: see here and here.

I must make breakfast now.  The children are getting restless.

10K

I'm supposed to be running a 10K this morning.  It was my big goal before I turn 30.  As it turned out, my joints just really aren't what they used to be.  I could pay out of pocket for a podiatrist who might be able to fix things or I could just stop running so much and spend more time with my family.  In reality, I can do the distance (slowly), so it was just a question of pride and bragging rights, neither of which are noble reasons for accomplishing anything.  My husband is convinced I will be in a wheel chair in a few more years if I continue running because of the way I hobble out of bed in the morning. 

More than all this I just wanted to prove I was as fit as I was prior to baby #2.  But I'm not.  I'm really just not. My arms are stronger for having carried my son, but maybe that's the only improvement.  Maybe someday, when my son decides co-sleeping isn't for him, when I can stop eating the kid's leftovers, and when I can concentrate enough to remember to care as much as I used to about fitness I'll be back there.  But it isn't going to happen in the next two weeks.

Things aren't really so bad.  But they aren't what they used to be.  So I can either accept that or do something about it.

I'm still on the fence. :)

Goodbye, Old Friends

Hello Credit Card Bill!

These are my old running shoes.  I have had them for four whole years.  And I run (or ran) every day during that time, minus during pregnancy.  Believe it or not, I have unbelievably bad foot pain and knee pain.  And also, my arches disappeared while pregnant with Baby Boy and I have really flat feet now.  But the kids always needed shoes, and classes, and doctor visits, so new shoes for me was always at the bottom of the list. 

But last week as I was hobbling around, making dinner, I could no longer bear the shooting pain in the sides of my feet.  And this morning we bought new shoes.  Amanda at Academy was so knowledgeable I could have skipped my doctor and x-rays all together. When I got home I looked up how often you are supposed to change your running shoes and the Internet recommended every 350-500 miles.  My shoes have taken me well over 3500 miles. 

So new shoes means I am firmly committing to the one goal I have before turning 30 - to run a 10K.  I probably ran that far every day in practice in high school, but certainly not since I had Baby Boy and never in a race (races make me a little nauseated).  I had temporarily given up on this thinking my knees and feet just wouldn't take it, but hopefully with the new shoes it will be no problem.  I might will most likely come in last, but I will finish.