5k Tuesday

A LONG time ago I posted about beginning the "Couch to 5 K" program. At the time I was doubtful and, honestly, not really looking forward to doing the whole running thing. I could jog 3-5 minutes then have to walk and dreaded the next jogging interval. I stuck with it though! If you are not a "runner" then don't tune out just yet...

Within 2 weeks I could feel my body changing and my ability to strengthen actually happening! Short 3-5 minute jogging intervals began to turn into 7-9 minutes intervals and there were times that I didn't even want to stop, even going uphill. I am amazed by the human body on so many levels.

I have survived two serious car accidents (neither time was I wearing a seat belt), recovered from several surgeries, given birth, gained weight, lost the weight, and am now running an average of 9 miles a week. I have never felt better, both in body and in spirit.

At the end of January I participated in my first 5k race in Prattville. It was a beautiful yet COLD day. I ran the first 16 minutes and needed to slow down the middle part of the race by going back to intervals. I managed to run the final mile and cross the finish line in under 38 minutes. As cliche as it sounds it really was the most gratifying to participate and finish rather than win.

As I got closer to the tape I look over and saw my prize: the man of my dreams and beautiful babies cheering for "Mommy."

Looking forward to:

Polar Bear Run

Resurrection Run

Footprints to the Finish-line

4th of July "I Run for the Party"

Interested in getting off the couch? Check this out:

Couch to 5k

A Mother's Spiritual Moments

My babies have been SICK this week. It all started early Saturday morning, about 3:30a.m. when one child woke up with a fever. The next day, the other baby caught it and currently both are suffering from upper respiratory infections and their regular seasonal asthma. They are pretty pitiful but illness is no stranger to them and dealing with it is no stranger, or enemy, to me.

Since Saturday, I haven't left the house, except to go to the pediatrician's office twice and pharmacy to pick up antibiotics, steroids, and cold and cough OTC meds. I have not put on make-up in all this time. I have showered twice...maybe three times. I haven't talked to anyone except through text messages and emails. Last night was the first night in 4 that I got uninterrupted sleep. My "routine" feels like a juggling act:

wipe a nose

change a diaper

give breathing treatments and meds.

clean up spilled juice

find the wipes

fold the laundry

has it been 4-6 hours yet? give meds.

bleach the counter tops

wipe a nose

change a diaper

read a story

cover up a baby with a blanket

has it been 3-4 hours yet? give breathing treatments and meds.

bleach the counter tops

repeat

There was a time in my life when I didn't have enough "sick days" in my "sick bank" to feel no pressure or guilt about staying home with sick babies. I would feel sick to my stomach thinking about work I was missing, paychecks getting smaller, and people at my job that would resent my multiple days off per nine weeks.

I worried. all. time. time.

Y'all. That fear and that worry is gone. Did you know that God promises to bless every little area that we worry about and not only take care of it but provide abundantly? I'll tell you an example. Two years ago, Harper was hospitalized for RSV and pneumonia. This was the winter after I returned from maternity leave so I had no paid leave to take. I emailed all of my teacher friends begging for donations for "sick days." I wasn't getting any responses and had reached a point where I was getting angry. Nick called to tell me goodnight - I was at home taking care of Lily while he stated in the hospital with Harper. I told him how I was feeling and he assured me that God was working it all out. 5 minutes later I had a call on my cell phone from an unknown number. I answered and heard an unfamiliar voice on the other end. A girl I had met two or three times through another friend was calling to tell me that her husband had taken a job in Mississippi and that she would be leaving her teaching job at the end of the year... and that she had 15 sick days to give me. I will never forget being unable to speak, wiping away tears. I thanked her as best as I could, laid my baby down in her bed, walked to my bedroom, got down on my knees, and said, "shame on my Lord, please forgive me, for doubting you."

Both of my children were hospitalized again the following year and now this little setback... and I have the days, because of her gift, my answered prayer.

Anyway, I had a spiritual moment today because in between bleaching and wiping, I was sitting on the floor with my sick children playing pretend tea party, listening to Christmas music for the first time this season, and just breathed in and out thinking, "wow, what a gift to be home, to be mommy, to be free from worry, to be getting to spend three days with these beautiful children in their time of need."

As I type I am sitting in my old red chair beside the Christmas tree, listening to Celtic Christmas music and basking in the meaning of the season which is "peace on Earth."

Peace starts small. in your heart. in your home. in your relationships. out in your community. to other people in this big big world.

I tell you this one example of giving and peace in my life to hopefully give you a little encouragement this time of year in case you are worrying or depressed about something going on that feels impossible. Do you believe in miracles? They happen everyday. Christmas is about expecting great things, so much more than what's wrapped under the tree.

Bird-days and Content-ness

This morning I was riding with my family of four to church. We don't play the radio during these thirty minute trips to "the Preferred City" (a nearby town, not the name of our Church, for all of you non Montgomerians.) We don't play the music stations or talk radio so that our family can talk. Having 2.5 year old twins means that Nick and I are doing most of the listening but you get what I am saying. Between the car ride and Sunday school there were some pretty good conversations. I'll fill you in on a couple.

Lily is obsessed right now with "birthdays." Anything birthday. Pointing out that candles have fire and cakes have candles and candles go on cakes and cakes are for birthdays. Singing the months of the year song at night and hearing me tell which family members' (immediate and extended family and friends) birthdays are in what months. The Birthday Song. We sing the Birthday Song to Campbell, to Rosemary, to Haddie, to Nini, to Mommy, to Daddy & sometimes... "to fill in the blank with a non-living object" such as, "happy birthday to time-out." If the thought has crossed Lil's mind during the day, then it deserves to be wished a "happy birthday" at night time before bed, after we read the Sharing Book.

Well, this morning, on the way to church, Lily started asking "Mama sing happ-ee bird-day?" I said, "Lily it is not anyone's birthday today, let's sing something else. We will sing "happy birthday" to Daddy on Wednesday because Wednesday is Daddy's birthday." Oops. Since I told that little true fact, and it is now 12:50p.m. Lily has stated that "Daddy will have a bird-day" in some form or fashion at least every half hour - assuring herself and me that we will sing the birthday song very soon, to Daddy.

As we made the exit off of the interstate, we had to wait a minute or two at a red light. You know how sometimes, when you are the passenger, your mind starts to drift as you stare past a nearby gas station or bait and tackle shop? Well my thoughts wondered back about a year and two months ago when Montgomery was getting Fallish and the sky was so blue and Thanksgiving and Christmas were just around the corner and I was un-diagnosed but positively depressed. The saddest I have ever been. I was painfully depressed about where I worked and more specifically for whom I worked (not to be mentioned or ellaborated on but trust me, I could write a book over the span of my life about what I learned and the tears I cried and couldn't fit it all in). When my mind came back, about the time we accelerated, leaving the red light, I looked at my Love, and said, "I am so happy. Remember this time last year when Sundays were the worst because it meant that Monday I was going back to "name of place I am not mentioning?"

"Yep" is all Nick said but I knew he knew exactly what I was saying.

"I am so happy right now in this season we are in" I said back.

and i mean it.

This is the best season of my entire life. I can't list out every thing that I am thankful for at home or in my relationships with my friends but as my list relates to my thought at the red light I will say that for the first time in my life I am so incredibly blessed by my full time job.

I look forward to Monday mornings when the coffee starts brewing at 6:05 and I hop in the shower, put on fresh ironed clothes, make the 4 minute commute, walk through the halls and am greeted by hundreds of smiling children's faces and other coworkers. My classroom is clean, organized, lit by two lamps and floor to ceiling windows that let in real sunlight. My room smells like apple cinnamon Glade plug-ins, paperback books, and pencils shavings.

During my day I write with inky felt tip pens, create with construction paper and glue sticks, play Go-Fish, diagram details of a story on a marker board, help memorize "sight words," laminate picture schedules, and re-inforce good citizenship by giving out stickers when I catch a student being helpful, kind, or patient.

My co-workers are really really nice and are also good at what they do and love doing it. I love my job. But for a long long time, this just wasn't so. At first I was just the odd one out - the new kid. Over the years it began to feel like not only was left out but I was sought out - to be punished, manipulated, and mistreated. Feeling like that made it really hard to find any joy from 8-4 Monday through Friday and not only then but on the weeknights and weekends because Monday was coming too soon to do it all over again. So many times I wondered, "why God? is it too much to ask for to be happy during the hours I am away from the ones I love the most?" Now, I have to cut myself off from my work knowing that it will still be there the next day and there are my personal duties and relationships waiting for me, often eating Nilla Wafers, sipping milk,wagging tail, and playing "scary cat" with my hero on the floor in the den when I walk in the door.

I am happy also because for the first time ever... I am just living- taking pleasure in the simplicity and comfort in routine. There isn't anything to wait on or figure out or hang on until. I am taking care of my body and have all that I need. In the past 8 weeks, Nick and I have had two very expensive emergencies occur and it hasn't once phased me to stress over it. We paid it and moved on. Spending time with friends and family isn't such a chore as it was when I was depressed because "time off" isn't "time away" or "time to turn off." Now it is blissful "time to be shared." Do you know what I am saying? When I was depressed, any time I had to myself I wasn't willing to share because there was nothing of myself I could give that wasn't required. It isn't like that now. I am not tired or irritable or unhealthy. I am awake, recharged, and seeing for the first time what it means to be completely content...

Thanks be to God.

5k Tuesday

This is not supposed to be a huge announcement or "pat on the back" of any sort but today I began the Couch to 5k program. For the past few weeks I have been mentally and physically preparing to begin training to participate in a marathon of some sort. I have never been a "runner" and might never be... jogging is more my style. However, after completing week one day one of C25K, I am fairly optimistic. Today's experience consisted of a 5 minute brisk walk and then 20 minutes of 60 second jog/90 second walk intervals. It felt really really good! I attribute my success thus far (I know it is only day 1 but I said I am being optimisic!) to three factors:

1.) motivation - I always said that when I quit smoking I would mark this accomplishment with something big. What better way to celebrate being smoke-free than to fricken' run!?

2.) healthy diet - again, I am not making a huge announcement that I will never have mexican food or dessert again but for TODAY I didn't have any sweets or heaping portions. Plus, I drank 64 ounces of filtered water before my jog.

3.) MUSIC PLAYLIST

I have never exercised using headphones and an ipod but recently, my sweet Love, surprised me with a lightweight set of headphones to use with our ipod nano (AND a cute little pink digital watch with a stop watch feature, thanks Love :) Lightweight useful equipment makes the jogging experience easier, faster, and more fun.

So here is my perfect W1D1 C25K playlist:

Mykonos - Fleet Foxes, (warm up)

My City of Ruins - Bruce Springsteen

The Rising - Bruce Springsteen

Hometown Glory - Adele

Magpie to the Morning - Neko Case

Somewhere Only We Know - Keane

I Saw God Today - George Straight

Falling Slowly - "Once" soundtrack

Halo - Beyonce (Help for Haiti)

Hallelujah - Justin Timberlake featuring Matt Morrison (Help for Haiti)

Let it Be - Jennifer Hudson (Help for Haiti), cool down

If you are thinking about this crazy thing called running check out any of the numerous Couch to 5K programs. The one I like is Cool Running.