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Monday, June 28, 2010

Lots to catch you up on!!

Last week we were able to spend a lot of time at the pool and Austin has gone from being very timid to fearless. He loves jumping off the side into the pool. He can go under and hold his breath while doing it. He has even started to kick his feet. Definitely my son, he makes me proud!!
He is also growing up so fast. In the last week, it seems like a lot of things have clicked for him. Every night we ask him to tell Daddy night night and then he and I go to his room to sing a song and go to sleep. He's never done it until this week. He went right up to Phillip, planted a big kiss on him, said "Night Night", grabbed his blankie and "pa" (paci) and went to his room. I sing him his song and when it's over, he takes out his paci to give me a kiss and tell me night night. He acting like a little person who knows what he wants. I love that he is growing into such a sweet and smart boy.
He has learned several new words this week. He says "nana" for banana "sme me" is excuse me (which he says when he coughs, sneezes, or has to walk over you. It so stinkin' sweet). He can say "potty", "oopie", "pee pee", "pee ew" (thanks to the new potty we bought to get him used to the idea). He says "EEEEEW" all the time when something is yuckie. He is also learning the names of the babies I have during the day.
Not only is he learning new words, he is also trying to help with everything from feeding the little babies bottles to wiping up spilled milk. I wish I knew that that would last throughout his teenage years, but I'll take what I can get.

In other news, my half marathon training is going well. Last week, I had a pretty hard run for 6.5 miles. I was so tired after and spent most of the day on the couch. I knew that I needed to make some changes to my diet to improve how I was feeling. I focused on eating more carbs last week and drinking tons of water. To prepare for my long run this past Saturday, Phillip and I ate a great dinner (steak, potatoes, corn, salad, and bread) on Friday. Then I drank Gatorade G-series Prime before my run, Performance (watered down) during my run, and the Recovery after my run. It made such a difference in my run. We actually ran 7.25 miles even though we only planned for 6.8 and not only that, but my recovery time was next to nothing. It made a world of difference. You better believe that I will be following the same routine every week!! I am starting to believe that I can actually do this, and that's a great feeling.

Here are a few pictures because we all know that those are the most important part of any blog post!


After a long day at the pool.

With Daddy

"But I don't want to take a picture, I want to SWIM"

Phillip and I on date night :)

Friday, June 11, 2010

Me, Stressed?

A week ago Tuesday my doctor heard a "tick" when he was listening to my heartbeat. I had go in for a check because I just haven't been feeling well at all. Headaches, fatigue, dizziness, heartburn, and other weird things had been bothering me for months. When he told me he heard something weird with my heart and then ordered a chest x-ray, I have to say I got really nervous. It's never fun to think that something might be wrong, but after having a baby it makes it all a lot more real. I couldn't help but consider the "what ifs". It was not fun and made all of my symptoms even worse.

Well, I went in this past Tuesday for my follow up and got good news. My x-ray and blood work all looked perfect. My doctor thinks that all of the symptoms are stress related. Man, I can't imagine what could cause me stress. Maybe the fact that I have had a (temporary) career change from teaching to stay at home mom and now to at home child care provider. Or it could be that Phillip was laid off for 2 months in the Winter. Maybe it ways the financial hardships we have endured over the last year due to both of the previous things mentioned. I don't even have to go into the stress that comes along with being a new(ish) mom and wife. Admitting this is weird to me. I am not depressed. I don't feel overwhelmed most of the time. Sure, I have moments but mostly I feel happy. Sure I have a lot on my plate but I am home with my son and happy with where I live. I have a husband that loves me. Why would my body be so stressed? I feel like my body has failed me. It can't handle the stress that I thought I was handling.

This is where my training comes into play. This training is going to be more than training my body to run a half marathon. It is also going to help train my mind to let go of the stress on the road.

After hearing that my heartbeat was off, I took last week off and just walked. Training started back yesterday and boy was it a day to start back. I swear the wind was 30mph coming across me and I was pushing the stroller trying to keep it straight in the wind. Austin was antsy and still not feeling 100% himself. I was shooting for 4 miles, but barely made it 3.5. I thought I was going to die. I just kept thinking about something a friend once told me :
"When you think you are going to die, run for 30 more seconds. Then run another 30 and another 30"
Today I was planning to do a short run, 2-3 miles and a run up the monument. Well, after running about 2.5, I decided to keep going. I ended up running about 4 miles. I don't think it was quite that far but the dailymile.com map doesn't account for elevation of the monument or the parking lot I ran though, so I had to improvise. Tomorrow is my long run. 6 miles. I am so nervous that I want to puke. (How am I going to do 13.1?)

After my run, I am going to tell ya'll all about how great it was (ha ha) and I will also get into the eating part of this training stuff.

Here are a few pictures of the Monument where I do most of my runs. I wish I could find a better one with a better look at the elevation of that hill. Every time I run up it, I am amazed at how freaking hard it actually it.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Worst Week

I am having it.

Phillip went out of town to visit his family on Sunday. We had a great time together before he left. Not really doing anything special, but just enjoying our first day off together as a family in well over a month. It was a great way to end a weekend full of fun. Well, I of course stayed up later than normal watching whatever I wanted and chatting with friends. I finally went to bed only to be woken up soon after by the loudest thunderstorm I have ever heard. Soon after that, Austin woke up BURNING UP. After a search of the house to find the thermometer, I discovered he had a fever of 104.5. A call to the ask-a-nurse told me to go to the ER.
So, at 1:45am I packed us up and we drove to the hospital. The said his ear was red. So we were sent home with an ear infection diagnosis and a prescription for antibiotics.
Early Monday, I called all my mom's and told them that I couldn't keep their little ones and the poor guy ran a high fever all day. Phillip was nice enough to offer to come home, but I told him to stay in Kinston. I thought for sure Austin would be feeling better by Monday night, Tuesday morning that latest. Well Monday night was horrible. Austin couldn't sleep at all. I tried rocking him, putting him in my bed, laying on the couch, anything. Nothing worked. When morning finally came, I called Phillip and told him we needed him.
He came home and was a big help. Austin had missed his daddy and it cheered him up to have him home. Austin would go from seeming like he was getting better, to being a fussy mess in a matter of minutes. Bedtime was bad. He didn't want to go to sleep alone but couldn't get comfortable in my arms in the rocker. He finally went to sleep but didn't stay asleep for more than an hour. On top of all of that, Phillip woke up throwing up in the middle of the night too.
I found out that J, the 16 monther that I keep, has Hand Foot and Mouth Disease. I was just waiting for the sores to show up on Austin and sure enough I found some this morning. I am waiting for a call back from the doctor's office to see if I need to bring him in and to see how long I need to keep him away from other children. I really, really hope this passes soon and we can get back to normal.
What a week.

Friday, June 4, 2010

Austin's 18 Month Stats

He weights 31lbs and is in the 97%
His height is also in the 97%
His head is 75%

He's a big boy :) Dr. L said he looks great and seems normal in every way. His language should really blossom soon. Right now he says about 15 words:
Bye Bye
Night Night
Momma
Dadda
Nona
hi
hot
help
Pa- what he calls his paci
ball
bath
bubble
cheese stick
no
fish
truck

We are working on body parts and animal sounds. He loves being outside and playing in the water. The boy in him is really coming out. He throws everything and can get pretty rough. All-in-all, he is pretty perfect.
Here is a video and some pics for your enjoyment: