Salad It Is.

So, as I mentioned before, I've taken up running. So far I've found the best motivation for staying on track with my training is to sign up for a race. The fear of total embarrassment in front of total strangers keeps me on task, for the most part. Good thing my husband is an experienced runner (He ran the Bay Shore Marathon last year....HOLLA!) as he is the one who creates my training plans for me. If it were up to me, well, let's face it, if it were up to me I'd be knee deep in ice cream right now.

Anyway, when you're training there are different things you do each day. Different distances to run, different ways to run, different forms of exercise to do, and even resting. In my plan, I have 2 Rest Days a week. Sounds awesome right? If you said "yes", you are what I like to call "wrong".

My wonderful husband also introduced me to a fitness app which makes me keep a food diary. I was really curious about how many nutrients I was lacking in so I signed up.

Yesterday was Day 1. I ran 3 miles on Day 1.

Today is Day 2. Day 2 is a Rest Day. It is 3:08pm on Day 2 and I have only 110 calories left on which to feed. Herein lies the ugly truth about Rest Day.

No, no, I have not been pigging out and yes, I did some mild exercise in the form of yoga with my 2 year old. But come on! I ate 2 servings (1 cup total) of Bran Bits for breakfast this morning and that ALONE was 400 calories!!! WHAT?! I never noticed THAT before. Where are all those calories coming from? Bran Bits, people. Bran Bits.

So, on I trudge through Day 2 feeling a rumbly in my tumbly and all bummed out. It looks as though unless I call off Rest Day and go run around, I will be choosing between a couple bites of dinner and a glass of red. Which one do you think I'll choose.....

Drama from your Mama?

You can rest assured that, when I tell you that I hate drama, I tell you the truth. So how is it, then, that I end up with the 2 of the most over-dramatic children I have ever met?

I speak of my 5 year old male and 4 year old female offspring. My oldest, and most, how should I say it......... dynamic of my 4 children. Thus far. :-/

These two fly off the handle when "hit" over the head with a foam knee mat by their 2 year old sister. They scream bloody murder at the slightest hint of foul weather. Their screams rival those of old school horror flicks when someone darest not to share the hot toy of the hour......I could go on, but I sense your annoyance already.

Understand that I know they are children and, being as such, can not be expected to behave as adults. I know this. This is not what I expect. What I do expect is that my near 6 year old son should be able to have a day pass where he hasn't lost his mind over the most ridiculous of sibling offenses. Or parental "offenses", for that matter. What I do expect is that my precious daughter should not be screaming in fictional agony every single time she comes in contact with an unforeseen obstacle.

Have I set my expectations too high? They are my eldest, and therefore, my first children and every experience with them is a first for me. For this reason I realize that perhaps I'm just naive in the ways of the small fry, but this can't really be normal, can it?

Don't get me wrong, I love my kids and all their strange idiosyncrasies. I do understand that they can only play with the hand they've been dealt (I've never claimed to be a perfectly level citizen). I've tried everything from ignoring offensive behavior to acting immediately to correct it with either outpourings of sympathy (for "wounds") or swift justice (for "wounds" inflicted), all to no avail. The drama just plays on......and on......and on.....

Am I alone out there? Are there any other parents in the great blue yonder reading this now and saying: "What in the blazes?!? This woman can see into my house!"? If you're out there, could you help a Mama out? Any suggestions/encouraging words from those in the trenches are appreciated, just leave them stage right. I'll pick them up during intermission.

Once again, from the top!

Ok, ok, OK! I realize it's been a long time since I last posted (although I didn't realize just HOW long until now!), but I've been a busy bee!

I've picked up a part-time job and have managed to replicate myself yet again. :o) Now a somewhat working mother of 4, I also decided that I needed to start some sort of exercise regimen before my entire body resembled something along the lines of a deflated balloon filled with molasses, so I took up running. Yeah.....

So why am I starting this back up now, you ask? I need an outlet! Running is great, but at this point in time, it's more like something I do to torture myself rather than something I enjoy. If I have time to read these days I pick up my latest small group study book or whatever parenting book I've stumbled upon hoping to find the answers to the things that perplex me most about the smallest members of my household. Writing has long helped me figure stuff out, even if it just seems to be babble to the people who read it. I'm hoping it still holds that power.

So, here I am, once again. Obsessing over what I want to say and exactly how to say it (Did I mention I'm a bit of a perfectionist? This is also therapy. :o) ). Perhaps this time I'll give myself a break and hit "publish post" more often than I hit the taunting corner "x"....time will tell!