"YOU DID THIS TO ME!" and other thoughts on labor.

So, remember those running shoes that I bought over a month ago and haven't really used yet?  Today was the day.  Last week I made my way to our (not so local to our locale) YMCA to sign us up.  The military recreation department here has a sweet deal that gets us a free membership.  How can you say "no" to that?  Granted, the setup is not nearly as swank as our Y in Texas was, but really, how can I argue with a place that I can go work out (for free) and have a safe (free) place with trained professionals to watch my children (for free), whenever I can cram time into my schedule to actually do it?   Like I said, how could I refuse?  And seeing as how this is the first time in years, yes years, that I even have the slightest desire to run, I pounced on it...OK, not really pounced, more like distractedly meandered my way towards it.  But it happened today.  I ran 2.27 miles.  OK, I only actually ran for like 1.75 but I walked very briskly while swinging my arms wildly for the other half mile.
I am a little worried about being able to walk tomorrow, let alone get out of bed.  Even after the drive home, getting out of the car to walk to the front door was nearly enough to collapse me in a fetal position on the driveway.  Jell-O, I tell you.  But I jogged on a treadmill with Regis and Kelly on the telly, good tunes in my ears and facing a huge window looking over the water so it wasn't all that bad.

I digress (typically I do that when trying to get to my point, that is, if I have one.)  Really, I wanted to tell you what my train of thought was on the way home from the gym this morning.  I would like to call it "Reasons why running is like giving birth."
It starts with the anticipation.  You get all geared up to do it and you may even get excited and buy yourself something new to wear.  Sometimes this build up of motivation and anticipation can take up to 9 months.  Then the time comes and you actually have to go through with it.  You may experience severe mood swings during the experience.  "Yes, I can do this.  Look at me go. Wahoo!" and then "I don't want to do this.  I hate this.  Why am I doing this?  I change my mind." And then perhaps a Black Eyed Peas song with the perfect punch and tempo comes on and you get all motivated to pick up the pace and turn again with fierce determination and motivation.  You have to find your rhythm, your pace, your breathing.  You may or may not have the urge to suddenly use the bathroom.  You may feel the panic of regret a time or two again before it's all over...it really depends on how long the experience lasts.  You pass through the ring of fire, the final push, if you will.  And it is over.  Then you are really proud of yourself.  You are probably going to be quite sore, but you will feel good and accomplished. 
Immediately afterward you will be voracious and need something to eat.  You will also swear that you are never doing it ever again.  Until later in the afternoon when that wears off and you think "oh, wouldn't it be wonderful to experience it all again?"

And those are the main reasons why I think running is like labor.

PS I had a funny moment in the car yesterday while driving somewhere with the gaggle of girls.  That one song came on, you know, the 80's "I touch you once,  I touch you twice, I won't let go at any price" bit.  I had to kind of laugh (OK I laughed about it today, yesterday, not so much) because it perfectly depicted what was going on in the back seat.  The bickering, my gosh the petty bickering.  Some songs I will never be able to listen to in the same way again.

PPS Swim lessons started up again.  I don't think the swim caps and gangly girl bodies will ever get old.  Or watching my children learn and accomplish something.  I love that Abby's cap is a little low and tight, ever so slightly squeezing her eyes shut, and Mia's seem to be as wide as they can go.  I'm not quite sure why Mia looks so concerned in every picture.  She has been asking 438 times a day "how many more days until swim lessons?"  In fact, I took them to dinner after and she asked the question again.  I just about had an embolism but decided instead to simply ignore her every time she asks that question for the next 7 days.
And this is my fellow spectator...I swear, those metal bleachers are going to draw blood before this is all over.  That, or we'll all end up with some kind of warts or fungus from having to take our shoes off on the pool deck.  Warm, wet floors make me want to vomit.  I might just have to buy myself some moc crocs from the drug store before next week.

Giddyup.

Haley and Abby had their first horseback riding lesson on Saturday.  I don't know who was more excited, them or me.  They loved it.

It was a lot of fun to watch the girls.  Haley approached it with her normal level of caution and close attention.  Abby was energetic and kept volunteering for everything first.  They did really well.  Haley only got on backwards once! Just kidding.  The instructor was having them practice their balance by turning all the way around in the saddle.  She also goes over grooming and tacking so that the girls will eventually be able to do it on their own.  Abby was in love with Shadow and her sparkly pink blanket.  She would rub her face, push her long bangs aside and talk to her (except that I'm pretty sure that Shadow was a "he".)

It makes me want to take lessons.  I have always wanted to learn to jump...and barrel race.  Not at the same time.

Blah [something witty] blah. Yadda Yadda [something funny].

Before I delve into the whole trip documentation thing I have to get a few things off my chest...
Number one, and probably the most important thing I have to say today.  I really wish that our neighbor's cat (the one that wanders the neighborhood, poops in our yard and whines from the top of impossibly tall trees) would just eat their rooster already.  I am quite fed up with the both of them.


Number two. I love Pillsbury's new Double Chocolate Chocolate Chip cookie mix.  Throw in a few orange flavored craisins and you have heaven in 8-10 minutes...forget cookies from scratch.  These babies create inner joy, the kind that comes in the form of calories and good old sugar.


Number Three.  I am choosing to be grateful for our barren yard.  Maybe it means that I won't have to mow it all spring and summer...even if it does make us look like the house in Malcolm in the Middle.  It keeps me humble.


Number Four.  I appreciate my two year old's attempts at good oral hygiene.  At least three times a day she brings me floss and insists that I do a thorough job...even though I could fit a whole finger between each of her teeth...and also forgetting of course, the fact that last week I caught her brushing with toilet water.  She is intent on getting the job done.  I took her with me to my semi annual cleaning at the dentist this week and she sat absolutely still and did not take her eyes off what they were doing for even a second.


I think that about sums up my thoughts for the day.  And just in case you were wondering, I have completed 19 of the 41 things on my to do list.  I'm taking a break right now.


And now without further adieu, the obligatory post about Spring Break.

I decided to take the girls out of school a tad early and leave on Friday morning in order to make it to DC in enough time to suffienctly celebrate dear Aunti Sho on her birthday. 

 (This is Sho at her birthday party...there really were adults there too...she was just swarmed by children when she put on her fancy, happy party "hat" from sister Carrie and lit a candle.  Fire attracts bugs and children apparently.)

We made really good time even though it could have been an hour earlier had I not turned around to go back and get her birthday present that I forgot, 30 minutes into the drive...also, I almost hit a two foot tall turkey.  It was so close, it nearly gave me a heart attack....dang, gangly beast. (Footnote that's not where it should appear on the page to really be a footnote: there are wild turkeys all over the place.  We see them regularly at certain times of the year...we have also seen coyotes and a bajillion squirrels, but that's not as interesting.)

 Occasionally I let flat Daddy drive so I can text all my friends. (This picture would be sooo much more convincing if there weren't parked cars outside my window, eh?)

And of course Flat Daddy stood in for real Daddy so we could do our driving-break stretches.  He's such a show off with his flexibility.

I love her dimples.  They are in such a funny place.  And I love even more that Sho and Spencer pointed out that she looks like her.  I want to eat her up, Hazel that is.  Not Peko Chan.

Flat Daddy also was kind enough to yank out one of Abby's very loose teeth.  I am so glad he did it because I find it rather disgusting.

I love those moments when I feel ultimately content and happy with my life.  Those moments are there and I am grateful for them.

Poor Haley.  The reason she looks so-so in most the pictures is because this is the time of year where her allergies take over her life.  If she doesn't get her allergy medicine in the morning I will be hearing from the school nurse by 9am that she is sneezing all over the other children.

 We went to the zoo in DC.  We always have to go to the zoo because I love going to the zoo.  

The first thing we had to do when we got to the zoo was take a picture of all the girls so that I could give an accurate description just in case a stranger wanted to kidnap them and run away.  I probably should write their names on the back of my hand too...my memory is pretty bad these days.  Seriously.  That is why I took the picture.

I also found it quite humorous that after renting this very overpriced stroller at the zoo Hazel was the only one that absolutely refused to ride all day.  Honestly, she wouldn't sit for even a minute...everyone else on the other hand...

(I only had room in the car to bring my very crappy umbrella stroller...that just doesn't cut it when you have to do a lot of walking.)

We simply must always visit Georgetown Cupcakes.  You can gouge me any day for one of their cupcakes.  De-licious.  They are in a new location...bigger and well, bigger...more room for more cupcakes.  The girls and I dropped Spencer off at campus for a lecture, walked all the way there and all the way back all in the name of enjoying a tasty cupcake on the green lawn.  They were amazing.  I was quite proud that they would make that kind of effort without complaint, just for a cupcake.

We also fit in a quick visit to to my favorite Smithsonian, the Natural History Museum.

Flat Daddy said he wanted to buy me those jewels.  He is so generous.  I told him I couldn't possibly accept such a generous gift but I would think about it.

This was a note stuck in a window of a workshop in the museum.  I love it when scientists have a sense of humor.  It makes smart people so much more interesting.

And these pictures I just had to include because I enjoy the conflict of others.  It's for the same reason that I will laugh at you while we are talking on the phone if you are reprimanding your kids.

Sho came to meet us at the museum after work.  There was a slight miscommunication and further frustration because her phone battery was dying and we couldn't find her and she couldn't find us.  

So Spencer went running up and down the National Mall in the rain.  Sho had an umbrella.

I found it completely entertaining because this is about as mean as they get.

Spencer ever so subtly agitated and Sho smiling and being adorable.

Come on, fight a little would ya?

I was laughing.

My only complaint is that we really could have used more Gelato...or any kind of ice cream.

Though there is always an abundance of delicious treats, snacks and Japanese television dramas at Spencer and Sho's.  They cook real good like.

I was completely entertained by my kids eating their cones.  Mia was seriously getting into it and savoring every bite...even though she looks thoroughly disgusted.

I must also take the opportunity to mention that at this point in the trip I realized that my camera lens was seriously smudged with fingerprints...thus causing all pictures for several days to be inexplicably blurry.  I thought my camera must be broken because it wasn't focusing.  Turns out it was just grimy kids.

And Abby regularly eats with her eyes closed.  She also squints when she takes a big bite at any meal.  I simply adore it.

It is no minor detail that we took a couple of days in the middle of our trip to drive down towards Norfolk near our old stomping grounds.  We saw and stayed with good friends and also scouted the area for housing come the end of the summer.  (Our job will likely be taking us to either Norfolk or DC before the new school year starts...hence the trip to VA for Spring Break....it served its double purpose of neighborhood hunting and playing with people we love.)

ANYWAY! There is tragic lack of pictures from this part of my trip.  I did however, manage to get a photograph of my favorite piece of art hanging in our friend's house.  She had her three older children paint canvases for the baby's room in a farm theme.  Their son, who I adore as equally as them and the rest of their children, insisted that the fluffy baby chicks be holding a hand grenade and a gun.  I found it utterly charming and hilarious.  We have such awesome friends.

And by the end of the trip we all kind of felt tired and disheveled.  It was time to come and get back on schedule and sleep in our own beds.  We had so much fun but it was time to come home and replace the washer and dryer...which I am going to finish ordering. right. now.

The lesser details of the trip that shall not be left out are as follows.
I hate the New Jersey Turnpike.  I feel trapped and there is no good food.  Plus if you miss a gas station it could be your last for a very long time...and it will cost you money to drive on their road which isn't all that great anyway-you pay all that money and they don't give so much as a foot rub or "have a nice day".  OK, some of them give you a "have a nice day".  I suppose that is nice to hear every 50 miles or so.  Though I would prefer more encouraging comments like "way to go!" "You can do it!" "You 're almost there!" That would be awesome.  Where can I send that suggestion?


A special thanks to all those who choose not to use their turn signals, thus allowing me to practice my powers of ESP that rarely get used anymore.  Apparently there are a plethora of drivers out there that haven't read Clark's book entitled Highway Etiquette.


Somewhere along the New Jersey Turnpike Haley requested "Great Green Globs of Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts"...by the third verse Hazel was drifting off to sleep for a 20 minute power nap.  That was my favorite part of the trip.  (I have to sing the song enough times for them to be entertained but fast enough that they can't learn the words themselves.)


Then I nearly hit a small furry beaver like rodent that looked as though he was contemplating his options on the shoulder of the freeway.  It was a bizarre sight in the middle of the day.


One night I sat on Sho and Spencer's bed and watched Spencer going through his mail.  He kept ripping off pieces of paper, chewing them up and then spitting them out into a neat little pile.  When I inquired what the heck he was doing he informed me that he prefers regurgitating his personal information instead of shredding it.  


At one point I was stuck in DC traffic so slow moving that I was able to safely cut my fingernails into the all purpose car barf/emergency potty/garbage can while simultaneously eating an entire package of mint milano cookies.


And that, my friends, is all.
Good night.  I'll be here all week.

It's not you...it's me.

I just got back from a wonderfully enjoyable Spring Break in DC and Virginia.  I would love to tell you (and the future me) all about it but the "to do" list that I put aside in order to enjoy our vacation has come back with a vengeance.  But I have to say, after getting started with Megan's suggestion, things look promising.

 (by the way, this is an 8.5x11 piece of paper and nearly every line is written on now...and still going)

So in other words, blogging about not being able to blog made #3 on the list.  Blogging about the actual trip is not so high up there.  I know, wipe away the tears of sadness.  I will be back soon my little Lovelies, with stories of friends, family, green grass and gelato.  And as much as it pains me to put all blog writing and reading on hold, it is very necessary for the time being. 
All in good time. 
Wish me luck.

Airing my dirty laundry...no really, I did.

So before I get back to enjoying our Spring Break in our Nation's Capital with some of my favorite people, I wanted to fill you in on the basement situation which I know you have all just been dying in anticipation to hear about.  I am just trying to provide closure.  That's all.

So during and after "the great flood" I took comfort in knowing that I could NOT do my laundry.  I have to admit that much of my cheery disposition resulted from the simple fact that I knew I couldn't (ie didn't have to) do anything but wait until the raining was finished.  Therefore I didn't feel lazy not doing my laundry in a foot of water...that cheery attitude also had to do with ignorant bliss as my children and I were wading around in water not knowing of course that we could be fish-fried in a matter of seconds.  

Ah, ignorant bliss can truly be a blessing.

The flip side of course came a couple of days later when I opened the door to my room and was hit by a stench of dirty laundry...I could hear the calls of a lost child and assumed they had been swallowed up by the mounds that had taken up much of my bedroom.  Then someone wet the bed and somehow adding that particular laundry to the stack pushed me to take action.

The water had receded enough to call in the repair man and assess the damage of our 2 year old washer and dryer, neither of which were working.  So, with a trip out of town in two days, Hazel and I loaded up our 9 loads of dirty, smelly, damp and tinkly laundry and headed to the nearest laundromat.  Several wonderful people had offered their own machines but despite the temptation to drop off my laundry at someone else's house (forcing them to touch my unmentionables and those of my daughters-which I did indeed do to a friend the next day) I opted for two very large machines at the laundromat.

Can I tell you how much I am in love with their ultimate, jumbo, humongous machines? I could have fit my entire family in one of them.  Probably wouldn't be a bad idea for bath night.

"OK, everyone climb in! Plug your nose for the rinse cycle!"

I was able to do all 9 loads in just 2 machines! It was nice because I was able to do it all at the same time and  get it all finished while Mia was at school so I just had Hazel.  

The laundromat was surprisingly nice and tidy and would have been mostly enjoyable if it weren't for the three year old who peed on the wall while we were there.  His parents didn't even try to stop him...or clean it up.  It was pretty awesome.

Some of the bins in the basement were still having a difficult time airing out because of the humidity down there so we took advantage of the amazing spring weather and hung our the contents of our Halloween bin out to dry.

As "quaint" as that experience can be, I would rather keep 'hanging the clothes on the line' a novelty and not a necessity.  I heart my washer and dryer.  I also heart saying "I heart" things.

My kids couldn't resist a chance to play.

They are so weird.

Then Hazel and I had to lie down on the trampoline and look at the sky.

And then everyone else had to come join us.

(plus one darling neighborhood girl who consequently could pass as one of my own, missing teeth and all.)

So now I am out town and trying to enjoy myself while simultaneously scouting possible places to live in a few months.  The weather is gorgeous, the company wonderful and accommodating and the fun, plentiful.  I will catch up on all that later.

And just in case you were feeling really sorry for us and can't sleep at night knowing that we have to replace a very young washer and dryer, our beloved renter's insurance covers flood.  Maybe one perk of being renters at this point.  But a perk nonetheless.

#4 turns 2.

My baby is 2.  How I love this girl.

Happy Birthday Hazel!