Adventures with the Ferraras

Feeding Ferrara Family of 4

2012-01-23T13:57:00.000-08:00

Since my post on how we are going to eat in 2012 and my recent image of Sarah helping me cook kale on Facebook received a lot of comments, I thought I'd post a quick update on how things are going in our household and what a week typically looks like.

The Routine

Saturdays: On my way home from my morning run, I stop at the Farmer's market to pick up eggs, goat cheese and milk. Sometimes I miss my milk man or the eggs are sold out, so I refill from the grocery store if I have to. I also buy local raw honey and salad dressings from the Farmer's market as well.

Co-op days: I have been getting a half share of organic foods from Rawfully Organic about every two weeks (Tuesdays or Saturdays). In the in between weeks, I buy extra greens - chard, lettuce, spinach and kale - from the Farmer's market. When I bring home veggies, I try to get them all cooked and prepped for eating within 24 hours. It is a losing proposition if food goes bad, so I try to avoid it at all costs. I saute all of the greens in olive oil with onion, lemon juice and garlic. Carrots and celery, I wash and chop into sticks and store in water in the fridge. Bell peppers I dice so they are easy to toss into salads or eggs during the week. They would probably be good in the greens too, now that I think about it. If I have a lot of something, I'm not sure what to do with, I will dig up a relevant recipe. Last week I got two eggplants, so I made moussaka. The fruit we eat as the week wears on, but if it is building up in the fridge too much, I get after it and make a fruit salad.

Meat: I keep a freezer stocked with meat, and we eat a lot of chicken, pork, lean ground beef, sirloin and fish. Fish is the one thing I do not ever plan to have left over. We cook and eat it right away and I plan those meals for the weekends. Typically I cook 5-6 pounds of meat per week along the lines of a roasted chicken, grilled beef or chicken, pork in the crock pot, ground beef, etc. I rarely make casseroles as I've found I end up being the one that eats them instead of my family.

Side items to go with meat and veggies are beans, quinoa or sweet potatoes. I cook the meat and sides on Sundays typically and if I think I've cooked too much, I'll freeze some of the extras.

What makes a meal

Adding up those veggies, meat and side items pretty much makes up the bulk of mine and Jeff's meals. The girls eat about the same, but they usually have some fruit with their dinners as well. In a pinch, I might make scrambled eggs or smoothies for dinner just to change things up a bit for them. I also eat a few good salads a week.

I know some people repackage leftovers to make new and fancy meals. That takes more time and energy than I have, so it is what it is. It also means I don't invest a lot of time in meal planning itself. I just cook what we have with what we have. Fortunately Jeff and the girls don't seem to mind, although the girls eat way more meat when it is fresh off the grill than when it is in its reheated form. Jeff and I have also noted that when everything is ready and in the fridge, we eat it. When it isn't we don't take the time to prepare it, instead we eat cheese and crackers or graze mindlessly, so this is much preferred.

It is worth noting that Jeff and I typically eat out one meal a week together. I work and eat lunch at home. Jeff packs his lunch, so this is food for nearly all of our meals. Sarah and Jessica eat a lunch and snack that is provided by their school and they eat pizza at church for dinner on Saturday nights. You can throw in an occasional social lunch or outing, but I don't plan on them when I'm cooking.

This is also not terribly different from how Jeff and I were eating about a month ago. The primary thing that has changed is the radical increase in fresh vegetables and sourcing of our dairy and eggs. We used to rely more on frozen veggies, so if I can keep up with the preparation, I'm sure the eating will stick.

Breakfast

Breakfast is the only meal I cook or prepare every day. It typically consists of one of the following options.

Oatmeal: Steel cut oats cooked in a crock pot overnight with frozen berries or peaches. The girls eat it plain. I add a spoonful of honey to it.
Eggs cups: Eggs poached in the oven in ramekins with added veggies and a sprinkle of cheddar cheese on top. 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.
Yogurt
Smoothies: Milk, whey protein powder, banana, frozen blueberries, cinnamon
Sunday breakfast: Pancakes or waffles. I make these whole grain, this weekend I'm going to try paleo pancakes and see how they go over.

Snacks, convenience and experiments

Convenient snack foods we haven't given up for S&J: Cheerios (Central Market or Cascadian Farm brand Toasted Os), Kashi Go Lean, Triscuits, Ak Mak crackers, apple sauce, string cheese, freeze-dried bananas and Stoneyfield Farm Oikos Vanilla Greek Yogurt. The grab and go factor is the main appeal. I'm still making some snack foods on the side, but it is hard to compete with Cheerios.

Experiments: I'm starting to make things I used to buy and buying things differently. I'm now making our hummus instead of buying it. Yesterday I made crackers out of almond flour and coconut flour. I'm buying salad dressing and salsa from raw vendors at the farmer's market, but may try making my own at some point when I have extra time. I have found lots of recipes for wheat-free friendly recipes for bread, pancakes and crackers, but I'm trying to not go crazy in making them, because I think some of the benefit of skipping wheat is that I'm eating more vegetables and fruit - not just the same food or substitute food I would have eaten otherwise.

Sometimes I feel like I'm cooking or doing dishes all of the time. Last night I suggested that we go out to eat, not because I didn't have food cooked, but just because I didn't want to do dishes after dinner. Jeff suggested paper plates. That worked.

I can't say that I have really lost weight since I started doing all of this. Since the first of the year, my weight is probably only down a pound or two, but I feel good enough that I am going to keep it up. My jeans are looser than they were in early December for sure. When I eat something that is definitively bad for me, I definitely feel terrible, so it is a good trade. In the end I'm spending probably 2-3 hours more a week on food preparation than I was previously and almost all of my cooking is done in two days -- save breakfasts, most of the rest of the week we are all reheating and eating.

So what do you think? Questions? Ideas? Recipes to share?

I continue to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Pinterest for finding and trying new recipes.

Where is heaven exactly?

2012-01-20T09:00:00.000-08:00

For better or worse, two funerals in less than two weeks makes for some interesting conversations with three-year-olds. For the record, I have done zero reading or research on how exactly to deal with this, so we have been full blown winging it. The conversations this week have been bizarre and comical enough to capture. I thought you might enjoy a lighter post.

I knew we'd need to tell them about GrandDaddy, but I didn't think we needed to do it right away since they weren't going to the services. Jeff took it head on. This is the conversation Jeff had with Sarah and Jessica on Wednesday evening while I was at my grandfather's viewing and reception. We've had several iterations repeated since then as we have entered the full blown "Why?" phase of childhood.

S or J: Where's Mommy?
Jeff: She is in Galveston to be with GG right now.
S or J: And GrandDaddy?
Jeff: Well no. GrandDaddy went to heaven to be with Jesus, and GG is sad. Mommy went to be with her.
S or J: Why did GrandDaddy go to be with Jesus?
Jeff: Well when people are old and sick they will go to be with Jesus, so they won't be sick anymore.
S or J: Is Jesus in Heaven?
Jeff: Yes.
S or J: Is is far away?
Jeff: Yes.
S or J: Did GrandDaddy go in a car?
Jeff: No. You don't go in a car. Heaven is in the sky.
S or J: Will GrandDaddy melt?
Jeff: Why would GrandDaddy melt?
S or J: Because the sun is in the sky and it is hot.
Jeff: Oh. Uh, no GrandDaddy won't melt. The sky is really big and he is safe with Jesus.
S or J: Is Jesus old?
Jeff: Yes. He was born on Christmas, but that was a long time ago. When he was a grown up, he went to Heaven.
S or J: Does Jesus brush his teeth?
Jeff: Yes, Jesus brushes his teeth.
S or J: Why?
Jeff: Because everyone loves clean teeth.
S or J: Oh. Ok.

I'd like to thank my husband for taking that one for the team.

GrandDaddy

2012-01-17T09:44:00.000-08:00

My grandfather passed away.

I have written those words over and over again in the last 24 hours. I had to tell colleagues at work, since I will be out of the office for a few days. I put it on Facebook because I wanted my friends to know without having to call everyone. I texted a couple of very close friends and family members and told friends that I had dinner with last night. Everyone has been wonderfully sweet, encouraging and supportive, which I need and wanted to hear. But I am so, so sad.

I want to shout, it wasn't just a grandfather. It was MY GrandDaddy! He was special to me! I know it is normal for your 92-year-old grandfather to pass away. I know I am lucky to have had him in my life for so long. I know he and my grandmother are incredibly blessed to have been married for 65 years, but it still makes me weep.

I am sad. I am crushed. I am devastated that in the last 12 months I have lost the three men that outside of my dad mattered more to me in my life and formative years than any others. They were anchors for me. They loved me, were proud of me and every single one of them would call bullshit on me in a second when I needed it. They were all tough and crusty in their own way, and I miss them all.

My GrandDaddy embodies what I think of when we talk about The Greatest Generation. He was a Great Depression survivor. He fought on the European front in World War II. He married my grandmother after returning from the war and my dad and uncle are dead on baby boomers. They moved to Galveston, so he could work at American National insurance, where he rose through the ranks and continued to serve in the reserves. GrandDaddy pushed past every recommended retirement age at his company, working until he was 76. By then he felt like he'd saved enough to put all four of his grandkids through college and ensure that he and my grandmother would be sufficiently set throughout their retirement.

I have no illusions that he was always kind or always had the right words. I know he was a tough dad to grow up with and sometimes could be harsh, but I know his intent was always good. I know he loved his entire family and always wanted the best for us.

Last May he had a heart attack, which put him into congestive heart failure. He recovered enough to move back into assisted living with my grandmother, so long as he had ongoing care from Hospice to help manage fluid on his lungs and their ongoing 24-hour additional care support. There have been multiple scares and red alerts. Every phone call or text from my parents at weird times has put me on alert, that this might be The Call. The one I knew was coming. The one I dreaded.

We saw Grandmother and GrandDaddy on January 7th for our annual Davis Family New Year Christmas. GrandDaddy was in poor shape then and in pain. We had lunch with Grandmother and then gathered around GrandDaddy for a while, urging Sarah, Jessica and Liam to interact with GrandDaddy as they are the most joy-inducing great-grandkids you've ever seen. I hugged him goodbye and held on tightly when we left. He asked us to come back and see him when he felt better.

Dad emailed on Saturday to let us know things had continued to go downhill since our visit and he didn't think it would be long. He and my uncle were in Galveston over the weekend and there when GrandDaddy passed away. The message from my Dad came quietly yesterday as he asked me to call him while Sarah and Jessica were having quiet time. I wasn't surprised and yet the tears still flow.

I wrote the following letter to GrandDaddy some months ago after a brief hospital stay. My dad said he read the letter to my grandfather on his last night, slowly, loudly and deliberately. He said GrandDaddy held his hand and had tears in his eyes. This gives me peace and is something I will hold on to. I hope my Dad, Grandmother and uncle and others can find their peace as well.

Dear GrandDaddy,

I’ve written this letter in my head many times. Sometimes foryou. Sometimes for myself. Sometimes for Jessica and Sarah. I debated whetheror not to send you anything, since a letter like this can’t help but addressyour current medical situation and your anticipated passing, which saddens meto such a depth I can scarcely acknowledge it.

I want you to know that feel wonderfully blessed to have hadyou as the head of our family. In all of the major events in my life, you andGrandmother were always there and actively involved. There aren’t that manypeople who are so lucky to have such actively involved Grandparents, who are atthe same time such a positive force in their life.

Ballet recitals. Trips to the beach. Disneyworld. Colorado. Graduations from high school, college andgraduate school. Mine and Jeff’s wedding. Sarah and Jessica’s first birthday.Every single Christmas. Your presence and love was constant.

But more than just being present, you helped set the coursefor me to be successful and set high expectations for myself. There are manytimes I’ve reflected on your campaign while I was in high school to get me topursue a career in engineering. It wasn’t until recently, that it even occurredto me that many men of your generation wouldn’t have even considered that Icould have been an engineer, much less that I should have been. In many ways, Itook your progressive thinking completely for granted, and instead concentratedon trying to make you proud, albeit with a different major.

Further, you made sure that I started my adult life free fromthe anchors of debt, by convincing me to go to the University of Texas andsupporting my attendance. Later you helped me buy my first car and even ourhouse.

I recognize and appreciate the sacrifices you made to make itpossible to offer me and your family all of that support. The austere lifestyleyou and Grandmother lived to save for the future; the longevity of your careerto continue to build your savings. Jeff and I are fully aware that you earnedevery penny, and we only hope that we can prove worthy of your support byworking hard, spending and saving responsibly and paying it forward to ourchildren and grandchildren with you as our example.

I’m deeply saddened that Sarah and Jessica will likely notremember their time with you, but this is what I want them to remember abouttheir Great GrandDaddy. You were tough. Tougher than I can probably even grasp.You loved your family unconditionally and took care of all of us. You were aChristian and husband to Grandmother for 65 years. You took no guffand no excuses.
You expected us to live up to our potential and worriedendlessly when any one of us seemed to be drifting. You were smart as a whipand always calculating – whether trying to improve your investments, countingcards in spades or trying to elicit information from us that we hadn’tnecessarily planned to share. And I will bring all of these traits to life withstories about you because you were such a significant part of my life and playedan important role in my major life decisions which made me who I am today… thestories tumble out already. You helpedshape me and Jeff and are part of Sarah and Jessica because of what we learnedfrom watching you, and we are all better people for it.

I love you so much GrandDaddy. I wanted to write it down tobe sure you knew how much. I didn’t want to risk leaving anything unsaid. Ihope I get the chance to hug your neck and tell you again myself soon. I amglad you’re home with Grandmother and they can get you the care you need athome.

All my love,

Lisa

13.1 Miles to a PR

2012-01-15T14:16:00.000-08:00

I've had some tough races over the last year. I did have a good 10K to qualify for the Houston Half Marathon and a good training trail run in early 2012, but I had two very disappointing marathons. My training was good for both, but hills, fatigue and horribly hot weather ruined both of my A races.

Today I ran the Houston Half Marathon for the fourth or fifth time. The weather was about as perfect as you can get for a race. It started in the low 40s with low winds. I hadn't trained hard for this race since I did the Chicago Marathon in October, but I did keep at my 10-15 mile long runs and once weekly speed workouts. I also have started doing Crossfit as of November 1st, so I've definitely been working out. I wasn't exactly sure what kind of goal was reasonable since it has been a while for me to focus on a half. My half marathon PR on a certified course was 1:59:57, and I knew I should be able to break that.

I was also healthy going into the race, which is something I treasure. I have been much, much healthier this fall and winter than I have for the last two years and I have been cherishing every moment of health.

At church on Saturday evening, all the members of the congregation that were running circled up and our minister prayed especially for us, which was heartening and wonderful. I even learned of a neighbor of ours was running, so he rode to the race with Mindy, my co-worker and friend who came in for the race. I fixed Mindy and me grilled chicken, Swiss chard, sweet potatoes and quinoa for dinner, which we ate while watching the Spirit of the Marathon to get us fired up.

So that's a long way of saying I was ready for a good race, and thought it was in the cards for me. Mindy and I started out together, but within 1.5 miles I let her go off on her own. She was keeping a much faster tempo than I was comfortable with. I didn't want to blow up on the course and wanted to have gas in the tank for pushing hard at the end of the run. I started at about an 8:30 pace, which I held for the first couple of miles. The crowds on the course seemed a little lighter than normal, but they picked up a lot on Studewood. I think people were cold and quiet.

My favorite sign on the course was "Hurry up! The game starts at Noon!" referencing the Texans' playoff game.

I followed my plan and lessons learned from Chicago. No Gatorade. Salt tabs, water and gels at miles 4 and 8. By about mile 6ish my legs felt heavy, but I kept pushing, but slowed to more of an 8:50ish pace. I enjoyed seeing the elite runners on the turnaround on Montrose and saw Mindy as well.

The out and back on Montrose seemed like it took forever and was longer than I remember, but the crowd support on Allen Parkway was better than I expected, so it was a good trade. They also rerouted the downtown finish line, which was SO MUCH BETTER than the old course. You finish going into and around Discovery Green and was a much smoother finish, although I didn't realize that was going to happen, so I kept expecting the weird turns at the end. I guess I should have read the course packet.

In the last 200 meters the girl I'd met while running the qualifying 10K ran up beside me, which helped me have the final burst of speed to finish. I didn't want to her catch me and keep sprinting away from me. We both finished, and I was quietly thrilled with my time. I had admittedly hoped for a 1:50ish finish, but I had no idea if that was realistic or not. I think I need more practice racing at that intensity to get some additional speed, but it has been a PR that was a long time in the making. I will take it!

132 of 904 in the 30-34 age group
779 out of 5,224 women
2246 out of 9,351 overall*

*Interesting to note that there were more women racing than men. I have never seen that before in a race that was co-ed. There were almost twice as many men marathoners as women though.

Living with S&J

2012-01-11T18:39:00.000-08:00

It has been a long time since I've written a developmental post about Sarah and Jessica. We've been approaching and working through some of the biggest milestones since the girls potty-trained, nevermind their language explosion, so though I thought it was worth taking time to pause and note where they are all up.

Language and games
The basic language development from about 18 months on is pretty astounding, but stories and thoughts continue to spill out of Sarah and Jessica with increasing complexity which is both fun and startling. When I try to write down what they say most of why it seems remarkable to me is lost when I try to put it on the page. Here are some typical conversations around our house, that happen over and over again.

Sarah: Never! (for a completely unknown reason, not in response to anything. She just likes to shout it.)

S&J: They don't have any imaginary friends, but we do have an imaginary peacock. He bites. He has to go to timeout. Sometimes he needs food. When he is in the minivan you need to roll down the window so they can throw him out of the car.

Jessica: When I go to sleep the air conditioner will come on?
Me or Jeff: Not tonight. It is too chilly.
Jessica: Tell the air conditioner not to come on in my room.
Me or Jeff: Don't worry it won't.
Jessica: The air conditioner will be loud.
Me or Jeff: Don't worry I will make sure it won't come on.
Jessica: So the air conditioner won't come on in my room?
Me or Jeff: That's right.
Jessica: Why did you say that's right?
Me or Jeff: Because the air conditioner will not come on.
Jessica: OK. Mama, can I suck my thumb?
Me: Yes, Jessica you can suck your thumb. Good night.

Sarah: Mama, I like your hair a little bit.

Me: Oh thank you, Sarah!

Sarah: Not a lot. Just a little bit.

Me: Oh OK.

Routines
Sarah and Jessica are in their own rooms and as of last week are both sleeping in double beds.

7 a.m. - Typical wake time. I get the girls up and dressed for school before we go downstairs for breakfast

7:45 a.m. - Breakfast is either eggs, oatmeal or greek yogurt. The girls each get Claritin in the morning and a teaspoon of local, raw honey in an attempt to help with allergies. After I do their hair, while they eat breakfast and then they get half a Flintstone Vitamin. We play a little - often taking turns on the Ollie - for about 5-10 minutes before we load in the minivan and head to school.

8:30 a.m. - Drop off at school. We are supposed to be there by 8:30 a.m. We are rarely there before 8:40 a.m.

5:30 p.m. - Unless I'm out of town or Gran and GrandDad volunteer to do pick up, I usually do so around this time. The evening routine is pretty simple, but if Dad is home early sometimes we sneak in play time outside. Dinner is as soon as we get home. They come home starving, but then it gets a little chaotic as everyone usually has to potty during dinner time and they want to play. We have to motivate them somehow to get to actually get in the bathtub.

7 p.m. - Bathtime in our large bathtub downstairs. Teeth brushing with the new sonicare toothbrushes for kids that we got about a month ago. They are awesome. I highly recommend them as our kids teeth are visibly cleaner with them in spite of all of our best previous efforts. Storytime for each girl in Sarah's room. Each girl goes to the bathroom and then one parent tucks in a girl and then we switch. We've gotten to the point that we allow "one special request after they are in bed" and that's it. Special requests include light adjustments, drinks of water, taking stuff out of their rooms, etc.

8 p.m. - Bedtime. Right before I go to bed I turn off the closet light in Sarah's room. She likes to have the closet door wide open, which I think is too bright for good sleep.

Weekends - Favorite activities are going to church, riding bikes, going to the park, going to see Gran & GrandDad and talking to GrandmaC and Papa on Skype. The girls still nap from roughly 12:30 - 2 p.m.

Milestones

Sarah is now in a double bed as of last week. She loves the new bed and is very proud to be in a big girl bed. She used to sit up in bed with a blanket over her lap when we tucked her in. Now she will lay down with baby dolls on either side of her and a blanket up to her cheeks.
Jessica is fervently working to stop sucking her thumb. She asks if she has permission to do it. She loves to get her sticker everyday. When she's tired you can see her stop herself from putting her thumb in her mouth. We tell her she can go to her room if she wants to suck her thumb when we are home. I think we are going to need a couple of months of calendars to make it so this isn't such a conscious effort for her.
Jessica and Sarah were waking up dry more often than not, so I asked them if they wanted to sleep in panties this week. They did. It stressed Jessica out a little and she got up in the middle of the night to go potty, but they wanted to do it again last night and again tonight.
Yesterday they helped me unload the silverware from the dishwasher and put all the silverware up in the drawer by themselves in the correct slot.

Food
The girls are so adaptable to available food it is awesome. Favorite snacks continue to be yogurt, applesauce, string cheese, Cheerios and Go Lean. On the weekends, I typically make waffles or pancakes on Sundays. The rest of the time they eat what we eat. Saturday evenings they get pizza at church. The rest of the time we have grilled meat, veggies and fruit at a typical meal. The love stealing food from my plate and my best trick is not offering the food I want them to eat most and putting it only on my plate. It creates instant demand and they will eat kale off my plate, but not if I put it on theirs first. Yesterday morning Sarah asked for a lunch box. I don't make their lunches for school and feel guilty about it because I think their lunches are generally very lame and terrible. That said, it is relief not to have to do yet, so I'm going to pretend she didn't ask. For now...

Favorites

Books: The Monster at the End of this Book, Pinkalicious, Fancy Nancy, Ladybug Girl and Five Little Monkeys. The girls have library day at school on Tuesdays and bring home one new book each week. I think this has been the best addition to the school since we've started going there. The girls love it!
Toys: Any arts and crafts projects, bikes, Ollie, Duplos, baby dolls (Sarah), painting (Jessica)

Sarah's limit

2012-01-09T14:19:00.000-08:00

I have written a lot about sleep in my blogs. My kids don't like to go to sleep. We have waged all out sleep wars in our house. I have never, ever, ever had a kid tell me they are ready for bed.

Until last night...

After two days of family, six hours in the car and botched naps, Sarah was ready for bed last night. Coming home, Jeff texted me to find out what the plan would be when we got home with the girls. We were getting home after 7 p.m. without having had dinner. I said dinner, no bath. He was ready.

Sarah told Jeff, "No, thank you. My tummy is full. I need to put on pajamas and go to sleep."

And she followed through on it. I helped her get ready for bed while Jeff sat with Jessica to eat dinner. She could hardly wait to get under the covers on her bed. She did, however, also tell me while we were getting ready for bed and she ran her fingers through my hair that she "liked my hair a little bit. Not a lot. A little bit."

Meanwhile, Jessica was on the more usual hyperactive tear that we see when slightly sleep deprived. She found a toy kaleidoscopic, which she used like a microphone to interview Jeff and me about Baby Jesus. Apparently Jeff gave a really good answer while I was with Sarah because I was admonished for my incorrect attempts to answer her questions, and she said I needed to "do it like Daddy!"

Both girls were still in bed and quiet by 8 p.m.

Jessica, Greg, Sarah and me at my Grandparents' on Saturday

The games we play

2012-01-07T19:27:00.000-08:00

I love, love, love how Jessica and Sarah's repertoire of activities is rapidly expanding. Last year and for their third birthday they accumulated puzzles and games to play and we are finally using them all. It is so fun to be able to go to a family gathering with an Uno Moo game and Sarah and Jessica enjoy playing it and spend a little less time trying to run around like crazy kids. Tonight the three of us did a puzzle together, and we had the best time. Other favorite games are Candyland, Chutes and Ladders and Hi Ho Cherry-O. Although, I'm still trying to find time on the side to read directions. That is way easier to do when game pieces aren't flailing around you because they are excited to play!

Running

2012-01-04T13:24:00.000-08:00

Last year, my goal was to run 1,000 miles. The year before I'd run 577. I ran 1176.1 miles in 2011, including two marathons and a sprint triathlon.

I primarily ran in Newtons, but I tried Saucony Kinvaras, Nike Frees and Saucony Hattoris. I still run in all of them, but for serious running the Newtons are still my favorite.

#ilovetorun

2012 Challenge

2012-01-01T13:46:00.000-08:00

So back when I was making babyfood, I was obsessed with organic food and making all natural food for my growing infants. However as they got bigger, life got busier and the budget swelled, I started dialing things back a bit. I still buy a lot of organic produce and order grass-fed meat, but we also do a lot more pre-packaged food than I would like to acknowledge. At the same time, Jeff and I continue to ride the roller coaster of working out, losing a few pounds here and there only to put them back on again. We are frustrated and getting inspired to make a change. The inspiration has come from a number of sources:

Joining a Crossfit gym where most of the individuals follow a paleo diet
Watching Food Inc.
Spending time talking with Heather Jane
Reading the blog 100 Days of Real Food

The end result is a growing commitment to take the changes we've already made and up the bar. My gym put out two New Year's challenges. One to run 10 minutes a day. Two to not eat bread for a year. The paleo and Primal diets, both are anti-grain and anti-processed food. The short-hand way to describe their philosophy is "lean meats, veggies, nuts and seeds." Primal is a little more modern in that it allows diary, wine, dark chocolate in moderation.

The 100 Days of Real Food blog's pure focus is anti-processed food. She outlines her rules here, which is a very comprehensive list of how we should all be eating, in my opinion.

What are my rules?

I would say I'm following the Real Food philosophy, but taking it a step further to eliminate breads this year. To me bread is defined as anything that is primarily flour - wheat bread, tortillas, pancakes, waffles, muffins, etc. I've decided to make crackers allowable, but Jeff says that is completely arbitrary and makes no sense. Oh well. I wouldn't say I've gone whole paleo or primal though because I still love my steel cut oatmeal for breakfast and think whole grains like quinoa and brown rice are acceptable.

Procurement

Buying raw, organic food is a lot of work. Here is a run down of how we are buying our food:

Grassfed meat ordered from Paidom once every two months - a West Texas organic rancher
Organic, unrefined oils from Whole Foods and the Farmer's market - Ghee, Coconut Oil, Olive Oil
Farm Eggs from the Farmers' Market once a week
Low-temp pasteurized dairy from the Farmers' Market
Produce from Rawfully Organic Co-op once a week
HEB and Costco fill in the gaps

10-week challenge

To get us on track, Jeff and I are doing a 10-week challenge together. We want to look better, but we also want to take care of ourselves and feel better. We took pictures, measurements and weighed-in today. We'll see what we look like in 10 weeks!

Welcoming 2012

2011-12-31T21:17:00.000-08:00

I'd be lying if I didn't admit to being happy to put 2011 to bed. By about the middle of the year, I'd decided 2011 could suck it. Between funerals and family health issues it was not the year I'd hoped for, but you only have to look at one year-in-pictures slide show, to realize that we were incredible blessed at the same time and need to have some perspective.

Looking ahead, my hopes and realistic expectations for 2012 are similar to last year and relatively simple. There are things I want to emphatically do and things I'm looking forward to for the year as a whole. All in all, I want to do what I do every day a little better. On that quest, here are the things at the top of my to do list:

2012 Goals

Continue regular date nights with Jeff
1:1 time with each daughter and parent
Join a CARE group at church
Contribute to successfully winning new business at work
Provide healthy, non-processed food for my family on an ongoing basis
Become more comfortable with Photoshop Elements
Continue being an active runner and Crossfitter
Survive the Crossfit challenge #2: No bread for a year. Yes, I committed to this. So far I'm five days in.
Blog more and create blog books!

And here's a recap of how I did relative to my goals last year.

Personal Goals

Become a better photographer

Still ample room for improvement, but better, yes.

Get back to my pre-baby weight. Yes, this was a goal last year. I reached it for about a month and then packed seven pounds back on my hips. They have got to go.

Rinse, wash, repeat. Did this again. See Crossfit challenge for part of how I plan to address this year.

Austin Marathon 2011 and maybe even a fall marathon?

Two marathons - Austin and Chicago

Getting my blogs converted into books for S&J's first and second year.

Still on the to do list

Family Things to Look Forward to in 2011

Get back into the routine of going to church

Done!

Plant a vegetable garden

I planted and enjoyed my herbs and Jeff produced his firm pomegranates, but I would not call this a veggie garden.

Reclaim the house from The Baby Years

Baby steps, but made minor progress

Pick strawberries

Still on the list

S&J to swimming lessons this summer

Yes!

1:1 time with each daughter and parent

Need to make it a higher priority; we didn't really accomplish this

Family beach vacation

Wonderful!

Mine and Jeff's 10-year anniversary

Yay for us!

Christmas memories

2011-12-29T21:14:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas season was wonderful. Having a couple of days off before the big holiday was great for preparing. We had a chance to get together with Greg's family Thursday evening and do last minute shopping and cooking on Friday. On Christmas Eve, we hosted brunch at our house with Jim, Jo, Amanda, Brian and my parents, and we went to church.

Sarah and Jessica were near tears as we ran through the parking lot to church in the rain because they didn't want to get wet, but they were angels sitting in the sanctuary at church. Growing up church of Christ, we never had Christmas Eve services, so it was especially neat for my first Christmas Eve service to be with Sarah and Jessica. The service at our contemporary Christian church was lovely and simple. The girls were mesmerized by the nativity, singing and candles. Afterward they said that they preferred going to their church with the little kids and not Mommy and Daddy's church, but they were still so sweet.

We put the girls to bed in their Christmas PJs and went to work wrapping presents and setting them under the tree. Since the girls are terrified of Santa Claus, they asked for the Elf on the Shelf to bring presents instead. The Elf obliged and delivered a wonderful pile of presents and stuffed stockings.

Christmas morning was exactly how you imagine little kids reacting to a previously presentless tree having gifts piled underneath it. Jeff carried Jessica down the stairs Christmas morning and pointed, dropped her jaw and froze for what seemed like forever looking at the scene. Sarah was holding my hand and she took off running for the bicycles.

As many of you might have foreseen, we have adorable bikes with training wheels on them now. The seat on the bikes wouldn't go low enough for them to plant their feet firmly on the ground while seated, so they couldn't ride the bikes as we'd set them up. And Jessica was asking, "Where are the pedals?" So we retrenched and called GrandDad for his chain tool.

We did a Skype call with Grandma C and Papa to open gifts with them, and then we spent the rest of the day with my parents who came over in time for a light lunch and playtime before nap time. While the girls napped, GrandDad fixed their bicycles, Mom (Gran) and I cooked dinner in the kitchen and Jeff played his new video game.

Then after naptime we bundled up to go for bike rides. We have tried really hard to reinforce at this age that there no riding in the street, so for a first turn, we all went to the near by elementary school that has great sidewalks around the entire campus for riding, plus a giant outdoor double basketball court for riding practice. The girls quickly got the hang of the bikes and loved riding them. It was a delight to see how excited they were about the bikes and we have since ridden them to Gran and GrandDad's as well.

Christmas dinner was delicious with pork shoulder roast, ham, mashed potatoes, swiss chard, spinach salad, macaroni and cheese and pecan pie. Yum! We all went to bed tired, happy and full.

Reflections

It was truly a delight to experience the whole season with Sarah and Jessica this year. In retrospect, a little preparation might have gone a long way toward preparing them for their first memorable visit to Santa. The subsequent books and introduction to the Elf on the Shelf was great fun, and I loved how creative the Elf's places were, which Jeff supervised. The girls were delighted to find him every morning.

I debated and debated on whether to introduce any holiday television specials or traditions like going to the Nutcracker and finally decided against all of it, and tried instead to focus on giving Jessica and Sarah my time and attention. We've made many, many trips to the park, trips to Gran and GrandDad's, baked and decorated cookies, spent time with family and played with new and old toys alike. We went to church and looked at Christmas lights. I think that was the right call. It saved money, reduced stress and I think is what made them happiest.

Over and over again, I am reminded of how blessed we are and while the stress we feel is real it is nothing compared to most of the world's population. We learned the day after Christmas that my uncle Bob passed away during the night. This is the second dear uncle I've lost this year, which is to say nothing of the grief Mom has experienced losing her two closest brothers. Bob walked Mom down the aisle at her wedding. He has four truly wonderful grandchildren who are going to miss him terribly, and I'm deeply saddened that this is another pivotal person in my life that Sarah and Jessica will have no memory of.

I last saw Bob at the Little Family reunion in October. He clearly wasn't in good health, but hasn't been for some time. He's one of the crusty ageless Texas cowboy types that seems ageless in his own way, in spite of the fact that he was clearly moving slower, thinner and short on energy and breath. My terribly shy daughters wouldn't entertain his efforts to reach out to him, so instead we stood arm in arm to watch them play with his grandkids. He talked about how you'd have to travel far and wide to find a better group of kids. Bob was thoughtful and measured in his words, but I know he was proud of his family and legacy. I think he was proud of me too, and I know he loved me.

Several years ago he and Barbara came to our house for a family gathering for Mom's 60th birthday. As they were leaving to drive home they had a car accident a few miles from our home that totaled their car. Jeff and I left to go help them at the scene of the accident and to track down a rental car to get them home. At the time we were just doing what you do during times like that, but for two men that had been a little wary of each other and slow to embrace each other the follow up conversations were insightful and tell a lot about Bob. Jeff remarked at how impressed he was with Bob's interactions with the other drivers - straightforward, owning his responsibility and handling the scenario with complete integrity. Bob, in parallel, told my mom about how much he appreciated our help and enjoyed seeing how Jeff and I handled and communicated during a stressful situation. He noted that it seemed like we weren't putting on any shows and just following our normal routines, which made him happy for both of us. To me, that was Bob. Straightforward and honest whether you were going to like what he had to say or not. And when he wasn't talking, he was always absorbing, thinking and analyzing the situation in front of him.

Now I just pray that my mom, Melissa, Jess, Barbara and all that are grieving his loss and still mourning the loss of Jim have the reserves and strength during this hard time. I'm looking forward to being with all of them in a little over a week where we will have "one hell of a party" as Bob wanted with his family and friends who loved him. No funeral. No formal service. In the meantime, I'm going to keep focusing on giving my children and relationships time above all else. In the end, time together it is what we all cherish the most.

S&J's Christmas Gift

2011-12-21T08:06:00.000-08:00

This post could also be titled, "The bike purchase I researched more than my custom tri bike," but that seemed a little too long.

So the girls have finally reached a point where they are ready for bikes. Truthfully, we wanted to get them bikes for their birthday, but I hadn't finished my research by September, so they had to wait. In the meantime, riding our hand-me-down/craigslist acquired tricycles has become one of their favorite activities. Yep, they are ready.

I learned about the concept of run bikes or balance bikes several years ago and the concept fundamentally made sense to me. In short, the idea is that you kid uses their feet to push the bike and picks up their feet while the bike coasts learning to balance and steer. When they are confident in that skill, you can add the pedals and voila. They are riding a bike. This is completely counter to how most of us learned to ride a bike with training wheels, but the fact is that there is a pretty steep learning curve when the training wheels come off and you have to learn to balance and steer while pedaling. So why not reverse it?

I set off on a course looking at and evaluating all of the balance bikes on the market. They are roughly around $100 (except I did just see a Chico one at Costco last week for $29, and I'm pretty sure if I'd seen that a year ago, two of them would have been in our garage for the last year). $100 x 2 warranted some research. And the whole time Jeff is whispering in my ear, "How much? How long will they use them? Can't we just modify a regular bike?" I had settled on purchasing the Kinderbike Morph, which is built to have the pedals added to it when your kid is ready. At $150 that seemed reasonable enough for a purchase that would last us longer, but they aren't on the market yet. And they are late to market.

Also it turns out you can just modify a regular bike, after confirming this with some conversations with my bike shop guys, which they have been doing for years. The newly marketed balance bikes are just a marketing ploy to many of them. So that launched me into a new phase of research. What I liked about all the balance bikes are that they are in bright solid colors - red, green, blue or hot pink. Easy. When you look at regular bikes for girls they are sissy Barbie, Princess and fairy bikes or they are the most muted baby pastel colors. Ick. Not the message I want to send to my girls. I'm ok with feminine and even pink, but I'm not ok with them being on bikes that look like they should never even touch dirt when the boys are on toned down BMX looking bikes. This significantly complicated my search eliminating Target bikes (or at least all the ones I could actually buy at my local store), Giants and Treks. Finally I ended up at REI and Performance Bike, looking at their store brand bikes. Both of them have brightly colored bikes, and then I could get into the construction of the bikes.

To keep the price of kids' bikes down, realizing they will be outgrown in short order, they aren't made nearly as well as adult bikes. The bike frames are typically steel or alloy. For 12-inch bikes - the smallest made - all of them have coaster brakes, as kids they small do not have the hand strength to use a hand break. We ultimately chose the Performance Chickadee bikes because they were alloy, which we hope will hold up better as they are exposed to moisture and dirt. The Chickadee bikes also happened to be 50 percent off, so it worked out that I could buy two for what I was going to spend at REI, if I was willing to go into the store to order them instead of ordering online, to avoid shipping costs. I was willing to do that.

Finally, we got the bikes in and had to do the modifications on their assembly plan. They left off the training wheels and removed the pedals. Unfortunately the crank arms were still in place, which to me was a total hazard since they can get caught on pant legs and break the bike. So we removed the chain from the drive train and zip tied the cranks in place, which gives the girls a place to plant their feet when the bikes are coasting. I think I was blowing the bike mechanic's mind as I was working through this plan. He did not want to deal with me during the middle of the holiday shopping season.

So with all of that the bikes are ready for Christmas day (and yes I know in the photo a handle bar is flipped around, but they are fine. Trust me!).

If by New Year's my girls are riding on fully assembled bikes with training wheels you can applaud me for my flexibility in parenting because that clearly isn't my plan, but I'll go with it. The other option in my pocket is that GrandDad can fully remove the cranks and drive train, if we have to, but unpacking grease and ball bearings seems like a last resort to me.

On a philosophical note, I would have rather purchased these bikes from my local bike shop. I think manufacturers like Trek and Giant are falling down on the job by only offering sissy, sweet pink bikes. Hopefully by the time Jessica and Sarah grow into 16-inch bikes, we will have better options.

Making a list and checking it twice

2011-12-12T09:28:00.000-08:00

The ideas are swirling in my head, so here is my end of year bucket list to prepare for the holidays and the new year.

Edit and print favorite 2011 photos
Send Christmas cards - letter or no letter?
Take Mom out for her B-day
Go out to a steak dinner with Jeff
Shop for stocking stuffers
Get my hair cut
Catch up on expense reports and flex spending account filings
Prep for cookie and ornament exchanges
S&J's holiday program at school - must get tights and shoes
S&J's winter party at school - favors for the kids
Prep for meals around Christmas Eve and Day
Make sure S&J know the songs for the Christmas Eve sing-a-long at Church
Decide on when/whether to go ahead and put Sarah in her full-sized bed
Take Maggie to the vet
Finalize 2012 Budget
Final Christmas gift buying, wrapping and gifting
Purge house of outgrown toys and clothes

More hilarious than ever

2011-12-05T19:02:00.001-08:00

So I'm sad I haven't been blogging more lately. I've been all over the place and not feeling the muse much I guess. That said, Sarah and Jessica are more hilarious than ever lately. I share things about them on Facebook occasionally, but I thought I'd capture some of the recent exchanges from tonight.

This morning I took Jessica to the dentist. We had a long talk with the dentist about stopping sucking her thumb. I recruited the dentist to not just talk with me, but to Jessica too. She gave her a calendar with attached stickers, which she could earn for every day she didn't suck her thumb, and she said if Jessica brought it back full of stickers she would get a special toy. Jessica said she would do it. And truthfully it is something Jeff has been talking to her about for a while, so I thought I would go along with it (oh and did I mention that the hygienist gave me horror stories about an 8-year-old with multiple appliances in his mouth to stop him from thumbsucking and what a battle that was). Tonight as soon as we got in the minivan Jessica start to suck her thumb, I reminded her that if she didn't suck her thumb she would get a sticker.

Immediately, Sarah said, "I don't suck my thumb. I get a sticker!" Um... should have seen that one coming. Darn it! I told her if she used her manners all day, she would get a sticker. Now I need to make her a calendar, and I'm thinking I'm going to switch that to not using her whiney/commando voice.

Meanwhile Jessica demonstrated that she hasn't quite mastered negotiations yet. She was asking for yogurt and I told her she had to eat four bites of her Jambalaya first. She looked at me with her sternest face and said, "No , five!" and she held up all five fingers. I said OK.

She and Sarah have been playing this ongoing game of pretend where one girl is Mommy or Puppy. Fortunately, Sarah fed her the last two bites of Jambalaya to get to five and then Jessica didn't want the yogurt anyway. At the time Sarah was Mommy and Jessica was the Puppy. Whoever is the Mommy feeds the Puppy bites of food and now not only do they sit adjacent to each other at the table, they slam their chairs next to each other and sit at the end of the table together. And since one girl is the puppy, naturally they call me Jessica. It is all very hard to keep track of. Fortunately, they are willing to set me straight as needed.

And I only care about jamabalaya v. yogurt because they would eat yogurt at ever single meal - and I'm anti wasting food that has been served. So there you have our evening tonight, save the fight over endless access to shampoo in the bathtub, which would have drained the entire bottle, and the hysterical laughter over playing "Super Sarah" and "Super Jessica" where the girls get to balance on my feet while they pretend they are flying like superheroes - just like I did when I was little. I love 3. I'm scared to death of 3.5.

OMG

2011-11-16T09:42:00.001-08:00

Sarah and Jessica spent their first night at Gran and GrandDad's new house last night. We were super excited that they would be staying there with their new sleeping bags in the room that was just for them. But then we got these emails.

I was dying laughing about the emails. The grandparents' ability to see even the most destructive behavior as cute is unbelievable. And then I saw the pictures....

Wow.

Sleep Perspectives

2011-11-08T13:46:00.000-08:00

Before I was a parent, I thought sleep was important. It isn't until I went through the mind-numbing sleep deprivation of life with twinfants from 0-6 months that I realized how important. I've written in the past about our sleep training and issues with Sarah and Jessica, and all philosophies and controversies aside, I absolutely stand by the fact that I'm a better parent, when I'm a rested parent. In fact, I'm a better everything. Wife, friend, employee, runner, you name it. I do everything better when I'm rested.

These days Sarah and Jessica are really good sleepers. We have occasional wet beds that necessitate attention in the middle of the night, but by and large once they are down (which is the very hardest part), they are down until 6:45 a.m. or so, and that was later during daylight savings time. I, in contrast, am not the best sleeper.

I try to be physically in bed by 10 p.m., so I can be up and at them in the morning, but that doesn't mean I've actually wound down for sleep, nor does it mean I'll stay asleep. This article from the New York Times this weekend really caught my attention as it discussed how this situation is nearly epidemic for working mothers. It really hit home with me, since after about a week and half of crappy sleep, I took two Advil PM before I went to bed last night.

Here are some of the things, Jeff and I are going to try to do to improve sleeping conditions at night.

Minimizing after-hours work and screen time - none within 30 minutes of going to sleep
Adding a white board to the fridge to keep list of the immediate kid/family-related to dos, like the dentist appointments I need to remember to schedule
No sugar or caffeine after noon
Herbal tea or warm drink at night - the Chinese say it works

I'm interested in any other tricks people have discovered or thoughts on the article itself.

2011-11-01T10:44:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

A treat!

2011-10-27T12:19:00.000-07:00

Ever since Sarah moved into Jessica's classroom, dropping them off in the morning has gotten a little more challenging. They want extra kisses or just don't want to leave us. There have been a lot of tears. Last weekend Jeff went to a parent-teacher conference with their teacher, while we were at the family reunion. The teacher said it was getting too disruptive to the class at drop off and we need to reign it in.

Needless to say, this was a little frustrating to me since it wasn't exactly our choice to be creating the drama. We gave it some thought and decided to go with a good old fashioned bribe. We told the girls that if they went into their classroom every morning this week with no drama and pulled their own backpacks, on Friday after gymnastics they would get a treat.

They are very excited, and so eager to talk about it. They have also been doing great with drop off.

Meanwhile they are speculating about what their treat will be.

Sarah: Will our treat be something we can eat?

Me: Nope.

Sarah: Will it be a toy?

Me: Maybe.

Jessica: Will it be a frog?

Me (laughing): Probably not....

I have a couple of Barnes and Noble gift certificates from their birthday. I think I'm going to pick them up right after gymnastics and take them to shop for a new book for each of them.

Great Teachers

2011-10-21T20:00:00.000-07:00

I'm working on a new education-related project at work. We needed a code name for it and one of my colleagues came up with the brilliant idea of asking the key participants for the names of their favorite K-12 teachers growing up. Pending cooperation with trademarking and website availability, we will pick one of the names for the name of the project going forward. At it is, I got a laundry list of the names of favorite teachers and the reason behind it this Friday afternoon. It was heart warming and moving. As I'm a consultant, I don't get to participate, which is good because I'm not sure I could pick just one. Here is my list.

Karen Calhoun - 3rd grade teacher. She encouraged me to read. She gave us extra credit for any book report we did which was a simple five minute discussion of any book we read. My list accumulated so fast, she I didn't have to give all of my reports. She also gave every single one of her students a fun book to read. I got Caddie Woodlawn. I realize now that was likely a gift from her, out of her personal resources.

Mr. Krontz - 7th grade life sciences. He pulled me aside and told me he'd been looking at my test scores and wanted to know why I wasn't in the most accelerated classes. The only justification was that I'd been goofing off for the last two years, but after that I started taking things more seriously. The next year I was in the most advanced classes and making the best grades I'd ever made. It permanently impacted the trajectory of my life.

Bette Keating - Earth Science. She was animated. She was tough. I enjoyed the challenge and loved every single minute of her class. She had a long-standing reputation for her incredibly hard Rock practical test at the end of every year to test our knowledge of sedimentary and igneous rocks. I made a 103. I temporarily thought about being a geologist. It was the first time I truly loved a class. Later I would realize how much more it had to do with who was teaching me, instead of what she was teaching.

Ann Mahan - 9th grade English, 11th grade English, three years of Yearbook. She was Momma Mahan to some of us, but don't let that fool you. She was tough. I loved, loved, loved 9th grade literature (Romeo and Juliet and Tess of the d'Ubervilles) and spent the next three years trying to impress her, all the while leaning on her when I needed refuge from the trials and tribulations of life in high school. She took me and my classmates to Europe for the first time when I was 16 and again when I was 17. When my grandmother had a stroke, it was Momma Mahan that told me to call my mom and held me when I cried afterwards. She was also the adult at the prom to cheer me up when my non-boyfriend was being a complete jackass. I still scorn passive voice whenever I see it because of her.

Carole Case - 12th grade English and Theory of Knowledge(12th). She also oversaw my petition for my IB diploma. I lived in fear of Dr. Case's class my entire high school career. When she's pop into Ms. Mahan's room during Yearbook the entire room would go silent. She was as intimidating as they came. We dreaded them. One of her points was that if you don't talk in the first five minutes you aren't likely to be a significant contributor or participant in the discussion. I remember this in every high-stakes business meeting in which I participate. Recently in my house purge, I found my senior essays folder. The grades were so low I tossed it. I don't want S&J to find it and think that is the bar in our household. Suffice it to say there was no grade inflation in her class. When we were in crunch time for our IB diplomas and stressed to the max (what was our max at the time) she also argued with the band moms to let us buy Otis Spunkmeyer cookies before lunch, which was against the rules. She was tough, but she took care of us.

Wendell Zartmann - 9th grade world history and World Area Studies (12th) - Above all he taught me to read the New York Times. Enough said.

When will meets intelligence

2011-10-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

Jessica

Jessica has been a thumbsucker since she was three months old. I'm not in a real hurry to pick this fight, but know we should probably tackle it in the next year. At school, with our support, the teacher has been talking to her about how it isn't good to suck your thumb because it spreads germs and is trying to get her to stop sucking her thumb during the day.

Last night as Jeff was tucking her in, she told him, "Daddy, I suck my thumb. Better get the steam cleaner."
And then she popped her thumb in her mouth.

Sarah

We've also been working to wean Sarah off quite so much milk in the day and encouraging her to drink more water. When she finishes a glass of milk, I give her water instead of refilling it with milk, and on school days, I'm giving her water in the evening to drink since she drinks milk all day at school. (BTW~ As a life-long non-milk drinker, this is completely foreign to me, but the pedi said she should only be getting 16-20 ounces of milk a day to ensure she's getting enough vitamin and iron-rich foods. And Sarah loves her milk).

The other night, I gave her a cup of water with her dinner. She said she wanted milk. I told her she could have milk after she drank a cup of water. She didn't argue. She looked at her 8-ounce-cup of water and pushed a chair over the counter. Climbed on top of the counter and opened the cabinet where the 3-ounce Dixie cups were. She got one and took it to the refrigerator to fill it with water. She drank and then said, "I drank a cup of water now I can have my milk!"

Wow. I didn't think I needed to be THAT specific with my directions. I told her if she was using a little cup she had to drink two glasses of water. So she repeated the process and then I gave her, her much beloved milk.

A good day for S&J

2011-10-16T20:08:00.000-07:00

I was determined to get some quality time with Jessica and Sarah today. I think I succeeded.

Sleeping in.
Playing in the playroom before breakfast.
Homemade waffles for breakfast.
Sand table.
Swingset.
Coloring.
Painting pumpkins.
Bathtime.
More playing in the playroom.
Quiet time (Jeff and I worked out in the home gym).
Spinach salads with grilled chicken, vinaigrette and goat cheese (I had to document that, because I still can't believe they ate it. I'd made one for myself and they only wanted what I had - minus the tomatoes).
Playing with a pink corvette a neighbor passed on to us when they were little and they had to grow into.
Visiting Gran and GrandDad.
Going to Target.
Dinner.
Bathtime and bedtime.

Signs I've hit a limit

2011-10-14T19:04:00.000-07:00

Never one to have an empty plate, I think I'm seeing signs I've hit my limit. In the last two weeks I've been to Bloomington, IL, Austin, Chicago and Seattle, with some stints at home along the way. Some has been work. Some has been play. In the interim here are the list of snafus demonstrating it isn't going quite as well as I'd like:

Booked Jeff and me at the wrong hotel from our friends in Chicago
Booked myself two flights home from Chicago and didn't book one for Jeff
Missed my flight to Seattle
Left my Nook on the plane to Seattle

Pretty spectacular list of screw-ups if you ask me, and those are just the ones I'm owning up to. The Nook is probably the thing I'm most upset about. Really, really upset about, as I'm still in Seattle and without a Nook to read on the flight home tomorrow, which I'd loaded with a new New Yorker and Fortune.

Meanwhile, I ran a sub-par marathon in Chicago and my girls are going a little haywire (see the last post). I think it is time to play a little less hard and try to rebalance. Time at home needs to count more than ever. Weekends need to be simple. And that is my goal for this weekend. As soon as I get home. Now I'm just crossing my fingers that some warm-hearted soul has found my Nook and turned it into the United lost and found, so it will be waiting for me at the airport in the morning in spite of my unsuccessful attempts to track it down via phone. Fingers crossed.

The Extra Hard Way

2011-10-12T18:40:00.000-07:00

After weeks of me popping in and out with work and personal travel, and a little school transition and chaos thrown in for good measure, I thought the girls have been getting a little unruly and obstinate. I told them tonight when I picked them up from school and Jessica refused to get in her car seat that I wasn't playing. They needed to listen to me and we'd have fun getting extra time to play and have hearts and stars, or we'd have to do things the hard way.

When we got home, I went to run to the restroom and by the time I came back to the kitchen, they had already pulled their dinner out of the refrigerator, complete with open leftovers and silverware. I'm still not sure whether or be elated or horrified by this. They chose oatmeal, blackbeans and spinach ravioli. Um ok. That's balanced-ish. I went with it.

We ate dinner, bathtime, and to add in some fun they decided they wanted to wear my nightgowns over their pajamas up to bed. They said they were princesses (so much for avoiding that stereotype). While Sarah was practicing her summersaults, I brushed Jessica's teeth and gave her hearts and stars. Then it was Sarah's turn. She would NOT cooperate. I counted to three and said it was time for the hard way.

I forced her to lay down to brush her teeth. She started screaming. She gagged and puked when I tried to brush her teeth. On her PJs. On her hair. On the carpet. Jessica started screaming and crying in horror.

Another bath. More PJs. No more princess dresses. More teeth brushing. I went ahead and gave her hearts and stars for cooperating through the entire round two. Jessica was still talking about Sarah choking when I tucked her in bed tonight.

Keeping it real, folks. Keeping it real.

First Run with S&J

2011-10-02T20:36:00.000-07:00

Today we finally had an opportunity to go visit Gran and GrandDad in their new house up the road from us (a different post to update on that). Jessica, Sarah and I were going to go visit this afternoon.

I'd been mulling over how to get there. Half a mile on a beautiful day absolutely ruled out the car. I don't trust them to be able to go that far on tricycles. The wagon would work... but what about a run?

That seemed more exciting than the idea of just walking, so we all put on running shoes and did our first girls' run to visit Gran and GrandDad. I wasn't planning to be too hardcore about it and after the first couple of houses I suggested we take a break, so we walked a bit, but they were very into it. Jessica wanted to be the lead horse and Sarah, who's been under the weather, stayed beside me. We alternately jogged and walked all the way there, but Jessica ran until she was almost completely out of gas. I think we are totally going to be ready for a Turkey Trot Dash.

I was delighted. I've been looking forward to running with the girls forever and it was so fun to try it out. I was also excited we made it all the way to Gran and GrandDad's with no issues at all. We are going to start burning up the sidewalk in no time!

It was wonderful to see the new house, have a picnic in the kitchen and play in the guest room where the girls will stay when the spend the night.

We had a great visit, albeit brief, but very, very fun. And it is worth noting that the girls were far less motivated to run home. Kitty-cats, acorns and acting like a frog were all much more appealing than running when it came to heading home.

Big girls = big feelings

2011-09-26T09:04:00.000-07:00

I am still getting used to how articulate Jessica and Sarah have become and their ability to recall and remind you of the most fun and the hurts at the same time. Last night at Dinner Jeff asked the girls what they were thankful for and Jessica said, "My birthday!" and Sarah chimed in with "Cupcakes and the Dora Bouncey House." Not too big of a deal, but I was surprised at the mention of the Dora description of the house since we didn't talk about it much and it didn't seem to really register at the time.

Yesterday afternoon we went to the splashpad as a family. I was off watching Jessica on the adjacent playground while Jeff was watching Sarah. She slipped and fell and another mother checked on her before Jeff could get to her. Jeff told me about it a few minutes later, but the incident seemed long gone. Until last night before I was tucking Sarah in bed. She started to tell me about it. She was very upset another mommy had checked on her. She said, "You watch me and if I fall you check on me. Not another mommy." Then she had me practice. She pretended to fall down and then I checked on her and tucked her into bed. She liked that a lot better and told me to be sure to always watch her. It pulled at my heart strings so.

Running shoes for S&J

2011-09-25T18:44:00.000-07:00

Over the last few years I've been working toward barefoot running and minimalist shoes, particularly in the last few months. In turn, I've been looking as Jessica and Sarah's shoes with a critical eye. I don't want to put them in over supportive and shoes that will weaken their lower-leg development. At the beginning it was easy with Robeez, but as they have gotten bigger and shoes need to be more durable, it has gotten harder. Based on some input from some forums, I started buying shoes from Target, which had thinner, flexible soles, but they fell apart really quickly. They also weren't as wide as Jessica and Sarah need, so I was a little unsure where to go next.

Then I happened to take the girls with me (and Gran) to Luke's Locker to get running shoes for me. The next morning when the girls were getting ready for school, Sarah dumped out the entire bin of shoes and looked up at me from the pile.

"But, Mama. I don't have any running shoes."

The Converse sneakers apparently didn't count. And how long do you think it took this Mama to finely go online and find some real running shoes for her girls?

About 30 minutes after dropping them off at school. That's how long. I guess I just needed some proper motivation.

I found these Nike Frees (Jessica).

And these Nike Lunarglides (Sarah) on Zappos for Toddlers.

I ordered one pair of each since I couldn't play with them. And as soon as their feet get a little bigger, I will get them these:

The new shoes have been a hit with the girls and they have been running non-stop, eager to show anyone they can how fast they can run. In my review, I like the Frees better. I had to re-lace them with an old Yankz lace to make it easier to get them on and off Jessica's feet, but they are more flexible than the Lunarglides.

Baby dolls

2011-09-22T07:18:00.000-07:00

This morning after breakfast Sarah wanted to play with her baby dolls. She's now carrying around three in her makeshift purse, adopting one more while I was out of town. She distinctly reminds me of a twin mother when she sets them all in the glider for rocking and tells me "It's a lot of babies" and busies her self taking care of them.

Today, she took them to the doctor, which is the coffee table in the living room - carrying them in her purse and holding the pocket calculator she uses as a phone. She called the doctor on the way there to let them know she was coming. When she got there, she said, "Thank you for waiting!" Then she covered the babies with pieces of potpourri and told them they were all better. Jeff and I think she must be keen on Eastern medicine.

Jessica, in contrast, ate breakfast with one baby doll in her lap, and said she didn't want to go to the doctor. She wanted to go shopping! So she put her one baby doll in her shopping in her cart and ran around the house evading our efforts to dress her.

While we played chase with Jessica (Sarah was easy to dress while she was playing doctor), Sarah then went to get in the minivan and put all three baby dolls in the front seat with me for me to take care of while she's at school.

Jessica's baby doll is in her backpack. I guess with one baby doll you don't need as much help.

Such big girls!

2011-09-21T20:11:00.000-07:00

Dear Sarah and Jessica~

After a fun b-day party with close friends, I went off for my annual weekend at OBX, followed by a brief overnight trip to Austin for work. When I got home tonight after my time away, I couldn't get over how big you both are.

You came running to greet me when I got home just before bath time. Jessica showed me the new spot steam cleaner. Sarah wanted to tell me all about her day. Both of you gave me giant hugs before we went off to bath time. You are both chatter boxes with more complete sentences and much better recollection. You can follow directions. You float in the bathtub. You sing songs incessantly. Your current favorite bedtime book is Pinkalicious, which your friends Ashley and Jackson gave to Jessica for her birthday. I read Pinkalicious to Jessica and then Sarah "reads" it to me reciting the story with startling accuracy as you turn through the pages.

This is fun! You both have your moment of tears and frustration and want things to go your way, but we've come a long way from 2.5. We've come a really, really long way from 0.0. It's hard to believe we are already here. Where did 2011 go, anyway?

Bouncy houses. Trips to the beach. Sniffles and ear infections. Allergy medicine. Pigtails and braids. Parks. Zoo. Splashpad. Swim lessons. Playdates. Norah. Austin. Ashley and Jackson. Nathan. Birthday parties. Pre-primary school. Dora songs. Hearts and stars. Timeout. Swingset. Running shoes. Itsy-bitsy spider. I'm a little teapot. Tea parties. Painting. You're own rooms. Big-girl beds. Pretend.

You are both non-stop. Demands. Questions. Action. We are trying hard to keep up. We'd love it if you could give us a break every once in a while. That said, I know we've entered a new phase when a three-day weekend while Daddy was gone was more than manageable with a few planned activities, which even included a b-day party at the Children's Museum by myself. You listened. You held my hand. It was great! I just might do it again, which has been a really, really scary idea for me in all other phases of your lives.

The really hard times are all the bedtime transitions we've worked through and the tears when you don't want to change course from doing something you love. Otherwise, you're both so fun and so enthusiastic. I can't wait for the holiday season this year and living it all through your eyes.

For Halloween, I asked Sarah what you wanted to be. Sarah said, "Four!"
I'm not ready! Kitty cats anyone?

Jessica, you're as sweet as ever. You love goat cheese and hummus. You like to lay in my lap like a baby. You're so eager to be first, you'll sprint to the minivan in your pajamas after breakfast, so you get get the preferred carseat. You are still very particular about bedtime routine. You whisper to me in the morning when I go in your room to get you in the morning. You steal food from our plates if we aren't paying attention. You still suck your thumb. You love to sit on my shoulders.

Sarah, you're as outspoken and strong-willed as ever. You love almond butter and milk. Lots and lots of milk. You've adapted to our new bedtime routine. You love your baby dolls, which you carry around in a gift bag you call your purse. You declare that you have muscles and love to run "like Mommy" sprinting around the circles in house. You asked to take 'nastics at school. Love to do summersaults. You're every much the daredevil we thought you'd be - wanting to go higher on swings and deeper in water than we're comfortable with.

I love you both so very much and am thankful for this fun time together as a family. I am going to try to absorb ever second of this time of relative peace. I hear 3.5 is going to be a bear.

All my love,
Mommy

Happy 3rd Birthday to Sarah and Jessica!

2011-09-14T08:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe they are already three.

Making a Change

2011-09-13T09:58:00.000-07:00

I'm looking forward to posting an update on the big 3-year-old celebrations and reflections, but first I have to take a step back and absorb the curveball that was thrown at me last Friday.

Jessica and Sarah had their in-school birthday parties scheduled over lunch and I went up to school to celebrate with them. Well that was the plan anyway. Jessica came home on Thursday with a fever, so she stayed home for the day and we did her party yesterday. But Sarah's went ahead as planned. I took in cupcakes, fresh fruit and sandwiches for the kids.

Sarah was delighted and surprised to see me. She wanted me to sit with her and hold her hand as we walked to the lunch room. The kids did great and I helped the teachers serve. They all sang happy birthday. I didn't expect much, but the harshness of the "Sit downs," "Be quiet" and overall crowd control had me near tears when I left. This was not the environment I thought I was providing for Sarah. It broke my heart.

I've observed the class some and met the teachers individually, but this was still very eye opening. To add to it, that evening Sarah told me her teacher pulled her arm that day. I almost came unglued. I know plenty of moms who have half dragged a resistant toddler or preschooler somewhere, but all of it was too much.

That night I talked with Jeff and we agreed that if we needed a new school we would find it. Over the weekend, I spent time talking with my other working mom friends, which was a great benefit of the party and unloaded on Jacquelyn. There are other teachers at the school and she strongly encouraged me to consider putting Sarah and Jessica in the same class if I knew and liked Jessica's teacher, which I do.

Then come Monday and I went to a healthy Jessica's party with her class. The contrast could not have been more significant. The kids were sitting at individual tables chatting and eating lunch. And I do think it is noteworthy that their classes have exactly the same number of kids in them, so the need for crowd control wasn't any greater. We passed out fruit and then before her birthday they laid out a circle of months with a sun in the middle. Jessica started at September and the teacher talked about her being a baby in the beginning and her and her sister coming home from the hospital (more tears, but for different reasons altogether) and Jessica would walk around the sun in a circle, with her teacher talking about each year of her life. Then all the kids sang happy birthday and shared cupcakes. This is what I envisioned for my kids at school.

So I took action. I went and talked with the director of the school of infants who knows the school, teachers and my kids just to get her input. I didn't pull any punches and she reinforced that I should absolutely trust myself. She coached me on how and what to say to the director of the school, realizing that Sarah's current teacher will receive any feedback I give and still have ongoing access to Sarah in the after school hours. I texted Jeff an update and went to talk to the director of the school. He wasn't so happy to see me since I wanted to add Sarah to his very most popular teacher's class which is already full. He said he'd have to see. We had a phone conference scheduled for this morning. I had my talking points armed and ready.

It was EASY. A kid is moving out of Jessica's class at the end of the month, Sarah will take his place. The whole switch will be done by the first of October. So this means for the first time in almost a year the girls will be in the same class, which will likely create some other challenges, but I think it is worth it knowing Sarah will be in a better situation and is lower risk than trying a new teacher altogether.

I had moments of doubt after I dropped off Sarah this morning and everything seemed fine in her classroom, but as Jeff reminded me we are pretty sure this situation will be better, and it's a no lose to try it.

As I was running this morning, I realized too how differently I handled this than I would have a work situation. I didn't try to have a sit down with the teacher to discuss my concerns in detail or even the director for that matter. I moved straight into let's change things for Sarah. Part of me feels like I'm abdicating responsibility by not giving specific and direct feedback, but by the same token, I don't expect a parent to have a huge impact on how a teacher does things when she's been teaching for 20+ years. I also don't want to put Sarah or Jessica in a situation where there is potential hostility that could be directed toward them when I'm not around to protect them. So this is the course we chose. Now I just hope and pray I continue to like this teacher for both Sarah and Jessica.

2011-09-09T19:12:00.000-07:00

Hearts and Stars

Continuing my trend of blogging about kid sleep at least once every three months, here is the latest. After a week of being away on business travel and coming home to a largely, out-of-control, keep-Mom-from-leaving-my-room-at-all-costs sleep situation, Jeff and I talked about it. We solicited input. We got tougher. So here is how it all played out.

Our two major battlegrounds are teeth brushing and leaving S&J's individual rooms at night. Both girls are locked in their rooms at night and have been from the get go, so we don't have the popping out of your room thing. We are also incredibly lucky in that, if they go to sleep, they stay asleep. But bedtime kept being pushed and pushed and Jeff and I were not happy campers. '

So we added the simplest reward for teethbrushing and flossing with no resistance. You get a heart on one hand and a star on the other hand drawn with the special red marker!

See aren't you excited too?

Jessica got it right away. Sarah not so much. But she got it enough that when I started brushing her teeth the hard way she went berserk because then she also knew she wasn't going to get hearts and stars. Seriously, it was the biggest tantrum I've ever seen her throw. And to make things more colorful, Jessica was positively gleeful about her hearts and stars. While Sarah was tantruming, and I was trying not to laugh because it was so outrageous, Jessica was showing us her hearts and stars.

"I have hearts and stars. I'm a big girl. Sarah's not a big girl. She doesn't get hearts and stars. See?! I brushed my teeth."

You can hit repeat on that. She said it at least 10 times.

The next night, Sarah was more than willing to brush teeth and it has been much, much better since then with both girls. Yay!

The second battle was leaving Sarah's room in less than 30 minutes after teethbrushing without a colossal fight. We basically did full on sleep training. We did the routine. I told her I was leaving the room and I did. And boy did she howl. We went through about 3-4 nights of this with her crying between 45-60 minutes. I did not go back into her room. I radically simplified the night time routine too over a couple of nights, which I had to do when I was taking care of her and Jessica by myself. She's only cried once in the last week. Sometimes she does rock herself to sleep in her glider and I have to put her in her bed when I check on her at night, but she's sleeping. The new routine is after we leave her room, we say through the door, "Bye bye, I'll see you tomorrow!" which she repeats back to us. It is SO MUCH BETTER.

Jessica, in contrast, had been doing great, but has gotten a little more challenging. We're trying to nip it in the bud early, by being firm and consistent. Her biggest protest when we are about to leave her room is telling us she needs to poop. We've been fooled at least three times by this. No more. We tell her she can go in the morning, and she might howl, but she only cries about four seconds before she decides it would be a better decision to go to sleep.

So that's about where we are now. Bedtime is at 7:30ish and the girls wake up at 7 a.m.

2011-09-09T18:52:00.000-07:00

Weekend with S&J

For Labor Day weekend, Jeff went on a true guy's trip (hunting in northwest Texas), so I had a full three-day weekend with Jessica and Sarah. I was a little anxious as I always am, but was amazed by how much I (hopefully we) enjoyed it.

Friday night we went to our last swimming lesson for a while and Gran spent the night, so I could complete an 18-mile run in the morning. Thanks, Gran!! Then we went to a birthday party at The Children's Museum of Houston, for Hayden and Elise.

I have to admit I bought a membership to the museum when it was a Daily Deal, but I have never used it because I've been terrified of going solo + crowds. Granted there were other party goers there, but the girls did really, really well staying together and listening to me, which we'd discussed before we ever got out of the minivan.

After the party the girls napped and we went to Church that evening and played on the playground afterwards for some extra fun.

On Sunday - Did I mention I have to have plans to survive this long alone? - we hung out around the house in the morning and the girls helped me hang some pictures on the wall, eager to hand me the tape measure, level and hammer as needed. And that afternoon we went to a barbecue with some former co-workers of mine, which was also a pool party.

Are you getting this? I went to a pool party with two pre-schoolers on my own and wore a bathing suit in front of former co-workers. That's a lot to stomach!

Fortunately, it was AWESOME. The girls did great and were willing to take turns jumping into the water with me, and the 9 and 7-year-old girls helped entertain S&J in the hot tub, so I could actually get in some adult conversation and food. The mother of the 9-year-old and host helped me get the girls to the car after a full six hours of swimming and we all sacked out as soon as we got home. An afternoon like that would have terrified me a few months ago and did fill me with some anxiety this go round, but it turned out just fine. More than that, I had fun!

Finally, on Monday, I had two playdates lined up with friends and both of them ended up falling apart because the kids or very important people got sick and needed support. So instead, I took the girls out to breakfast Monday morning and the grocery store. I called Gran to let her know we had some free time and she came over in the afternoon to play.

We attempted to go to Luke's Locker to get me some new shoes and measure the girls' feet. Then we went to Memorial Park to play for a while before going home to see Daddy and eat pizza.

What a weekend. It was pretty busy even for me, but it went really well. I also continued to gain on the sleep challenges we've had with Sarah, and I love that the girls are now fun and mostly manageable to hang out with.

2011-09-03T17:57:00.000-07:00

Clowning Around

S&J brought home a great new game from school. They take turns singing this song for each other while the other girl runs in circles and then does some wild acrobatics - an attempted summersault, a jumping spin move or some other crazy, rolling antics.

Mr. Clown. Mr. Clown.
Who's that running
And clowning around?!
Quick. Quick.
Show us your trick!

2011-09-01T19:03:00.000-07:00

On the Hunt

About 16 months ago I left a long stint at Texas Instruments doing in-house PR and market communications to return to the agency life. The job opportunity fell in my lap through connections and was a perfect fit for me. Waggener Edstrom is an agency based in the Pacific Northwest with offices through out the world. They needed someone to help on the ground with a Houston-based client, where they also happen not to have an agency office. I had the skills and was a good fit for the job. It was also a great fit for me personally because it meant I had an office to go to, but had the ability to work from home a few days a week. The work has challenged me, but not overwhelmed me. It has been really fulfilling.

But 16 months are a lot time in technology and PR. A lot has changed. We have resigned the client and our contract is up at the end of October. For the first time in my entire career, I'll be significantly involved in new business. So the good news is that I definitely still have a job, which is awesome, because I love where I work and the people I work with. The hard news is that I'm facing some uncertainty and will finally have to dig in and development my business development credentials.

I'm looking through Linked In identifying my contacts and thinking hard about my network. We are looking at the Texas landscape and profiling companies we'd love to work with. Innovative? Established? In need of PR? Technology or new energy? Check!

Fortunately, we have recently won some new business out of Seattle with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and some of my experience from TI has landed me a role on the team. But that's only 50 percent and I'm eager to fill out the other 50 percent. So we're digging in and getting busy. I think this will be a very interesting period in my life, and it should bode well for a very interesting and uplifting Christmas letter.

2011-08-29T17:32:00.000-07:00

Drawing a hardline

So a while back I wrote about our bedtime routines, which were fine to me as long as they were the routine, but Jessica and Sarah are persistent and creative and kept trying to extend, extend, extend. And frankly, I am over it. Jeff and I think we've been letting them get away with too much, and our inconsistencies are catching up with us, but I'm wondering what the community thinks:

What time do/did your 3-year-olds go to bed and wake up?
Did they respond to rewards/responsibility or sticker incentive charts?
When you're ready to end the night and they aren't what do you do to cut it off (ie save your sanity)?

This has become a book I can relate to all to well.

2011-08-15T20:11:00.000-07:00

Little Family beach trip

It started out pretty simply. My cousin John emailed us all of us to let us know his family was going to Destin in August and extended an open invitation to the rest of us. 35 people later and we had a fabulous time!

Jeff and I were already planning to take the girls on a beach trip this summer and this turned into a slightly more elaborate trip than we'd initially planned, but all the better for the extended time with family.

Sarah and Jessica loved the entire trip (see more pics here). Tonight when we were saying the blessing at dinner and had the chance to say what we were thankful for, both girls said, "The beach!" They were troopers through the flights and drive and tolerated the most whacked out schedule, I have ever subjected them too. All of these things were my worst fears, naturally. Sitting in the tail of a SWA flight, we hit some turbulence, which would make average people grab the armrests. Instead, Sarah and Jessica laughed hysterically and asked to do it again.

The rest of the trip we ate, swam, built sandcastles, buried each other in sand, found crabs and chatted with family. Jeff and I even snuck in a date to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. I was also super pleased that none of us came home with sunburns. Slightly more tanned legs, yes, but no burns. I only had one rash guard style suit for each of the girls, which are actually hard to find and pricey, so I loaded up on XS cool max workout shirts from Target before the trip. The girls wore them over their suits on the beach full time and between that and my compulsive sunscreen application, we all did fine.

It was like no trip I've ever taken with family, and it was wonderful. Jessica and Sarah got to know so many people that they barely get to see, and I'm hoping it reinforces their relationships with all of our family for years to come. The set up was great with us all staying in one hotel where we could have breakfast, walk to the beach together and occassional meals, but there didn't have to be a lot of hyper coordination between groups. We'd get to the beach in the morning and had one massive dinner right after the group picture below, to celebrate Mimi's birthday, which is this Thursday.

We all had such a good time, we've already scheduled next year's trip. Hooray!

2011-08-14T14:57:00.000-07:00

Glimmers of 3?

When you have twins everyone wants to tell you about when it gets easier. No doubt there are definite milestones of personal and developmental accomplishments along the way, and while it is a shifting landscape of wants and needs, nothing has been as hard as the first six months of nursing, reflux and sleep deprivation. Nothing.

But one of the big milestones you hear about with twins is three, which seems pretty useless when your kids are minus one. But when three is only a month away, I'm starting to wonder. Parents of singletons tell me three is harder than two, so there is that daunting anticipation as well, and that really I need to take LauraC's words to heart (not a bad mantra BTW) and focus on getting to five.

That's a long-winded way of saying I haven't had high expectations for the coming year. And while two was really nice, 2.5-2.75 has been handful. Sarah and Jessica are bigger, stronger and more opinionated. They are delightful and hilarious. Loud and brassy. Their attention spans are longer, but they hit and fall harder and protest more intensely.

Then a few weeks ago I came home from a Saturday morning run to Jeff cleaning up in the kitchen after eating breakfast. I asked where the girls were and he said they were upstairs playing the play room. Legitimately playing. Not destroying and they were happy and content together for more than an hour. It was completely surreal.

Since then nothing that dramatic has happened, but there is definitely more playtime together. Sarah perpetually asks Jessica if she's her friend. Sometimes Jessica says yes. Other times, not so much. They make each other laugh and there is the great ability to talk your sister into trying something if you are too frightened to attempt it yourself.

Don't get me wrong, we still have the tantrums and battles this age is known for, but we'll take the briefest respite and it really does seem like we're reaching the point of benefiting from the mythical "built in playmate." Fingers crossed it holds.

2011-07-29T14:14:00.000-07:00

Jessica's Room

It isn't done yet, but I finally had some time to start the conversion of the guest room to Jessica's room. Below are some pictures of the efforts so far. I want to add some framed pictures of her and Sarah and a bulletin board. I'm also considering painting the wall behind the bed turquoise as an accent, but that's been more than I've been willing to take on at the moment.

Jessica has been most excited about the addition of toys and her framed artwork. When she takes you into her room and you look at stuff she tells you "it's to decorate!"

2011-07-21T20:19:00.000-07:00

Sleeping in Style

Sarah had a fun day at Gran and GrandDad's with Mimi, too! We stayed through dinner and bathtime, and I'm guessing the caretakers for the day were as sacked out as she was.

2011-07-20T20:05:00.000-07:00

Bed time routines

The bed time rituals of 2-year-olds can be legendary. I almost hesitate to write ours downs, but thought I should for posterity's sake.

After all of the normal bath, teethbrushing and story time, here are the routines Jessica and Sarah have carved out for themselves.

Jessica:

She kisses Sarah good night and leaves her room.

She potties and if she can get her hands on toilet paper, will shred it to the smallest pieces possible.

She might want a sip of water and then she pulls up her diaper and PJs separately. If you try to help her do it all at once, you will have a do-over.

Then she goes to her room and climbs in bed "by myself!"

She jumps on the bed 2-3 times and lays down with her head at the foot of the bed on top of a receiving blanket folded just so. If you get it backwards, she will correct you.

Baby Dog is on her left and a book is usually on the right.

We cover her up and then rub her down from her head to her toes three to four times. My inclination is to hold the blanket in place as I run my hand down her tiny frame, but she tells me that is wrong.

Then she might ask for Baby Dog to get a rub down too.

She gets a kiss and we sneak out of her room.

Sarah:

After Jessica leaves, she goes potty on the big potty.

She pulls her pants up, but is less particular.

Then we go cuddle in her glider, but she brings her blanket over to the chair first, which we get under heads and all, with the chair completely reclined.

We then say "cheers" and touch our fingers together.

Then I sing "Hush Little Baby" to her.

We then pull the blanket off our heads.

I push the foot rest of the glider all the way down.

Then Sarah says, "now I do it" so I set it back up and let her think she's pushing it all the way down.

Sarah then goes and climbs in her toddler bed where she sits against the side.

Baby Darlin' is on one side with her Dora doll on the other.

I cover her up with her blanket completely flat - any flipped corner will have to be fixed.

Then I ask her what book she wants and get it for her.

If she had a cold, she will want a wipe to wipe her nose one last time.

Then I kiss each of her cheeks and tell her "Last Kiss."

I kiss her again.

Then she tells me what I need to take out of the room - which she has put back together before she would ever get in the glider - nothing on the floor or out of place.

Sometimes she tells me to take a book, a blanket, the little potty out of the bathroom, the trashcan, you get the idea. Something has to go. I drew the line when she told me to take a picture off the wall.

Then I take it out of the room and close the door behind me.

All of this, so that I can leave by 8 p.m. There are no tears behind me. The girls sleep until 7 or 7:30 a.m.
Crazy but true.

2011-07-15T17:33:00.000-07:00

You won't believe what I ran in today

I've generally bought into the concept of barefoot running. Whether you call it POSE, Chi, barefoot, forefoot, etc., it all makes sense to me and is something I've been trying to work toward. I started wearing Newton running shoes almost two years ago, and they are a shoe designed to encourage you to run on your forefoot.

I've been really, really happy with them and credit them with helping to eliminate any lingering IT band problems I had and the blister problems that plagued me for years. I won't try to explain all of the science of barefoot running, as I'm poorly equipped to do so, but you can read about it here or here. But here is the problem with Newtons. They are hand-assembled and freaking expensive at $175 a pair. I wear them out at 300 miles a pair, so that means I'm buying about three to four pairs a year. Ouch!!

Last year I hit the jackpot and bought four pairs on clearance at $90 a piece, but still; that's really expensive.

With Chicago training under way and me running four to five days a week, I've decided I need to have two pairs of shoes to rotate between, so I went shopping. I decided to experiment with some of the barefoot shoes, as many of them are more economic than the Newtons at $80-100 a piece.

I tried on the New Balances, Merrells, Nike Free 3.0 and Sauconys. I thought the Sauconys were hideously ugly, but much to my surprise, I loved them. They felt great and had just enough padding with and EVA sole that they can handle the cement running I do. I really liked the Merrells too, but they are designed for trail running and softer surfaces, which I don't have access to in Pearland at 5:15 a.m. when I run.

So this morning, I ran in my Saucony Hattoris ($80 less my 20 percent discount at Luke's Locker), and no mine unfortunately are not purple. They are designed to wear without socks, and the salesman advised that I start with 10 percent of my regular daily run and slowly build up from there. My currently daily run is four to five miles, so I ran in them for four minutes.

It is totally bizarre. They are what is called a zero-drop shoes, which means that they are completely and totally flat. Most typical shoes drop between 5 and 10 mm. The difference is that it is almost impossible to heel strike with and you have to run on your forefoot - just like if you were barefoot.

By the end of my four minutes my calves were killing me. Even though I've been in Newtons, this is still dramatically different. The shoes are so extreme and so minimal, it is hard for me to imagine ever doing long runs in them, but I'm interested in trying to make the most of them and continuing to improve my form. And if I get in some miles in on these, it will at least prolong the life span of my Newtons at the same time.

2011-07-15T11:47:00.000-07:00

Easy way? Hard way?

Sarah has been a faithful baby doll caretaker for the last several months. The babies get put to sleep, fed and regularly put in timeout. Night before last while I was brushing Jessica's teeth, I saw out of the corner my eye, Sarah brushing her baby doll's teeth.

She was sitting on top of her baby doll with her arms pinned down. She'd turned the baby doll's face toward her and said, "Look at me! Easy way or hard way?"

"Hard way? Ok, Baby Doll. Now I brush your teeth."

And then she went to town with her toothbrush on the poor baby doll, known as "Baby Darlin'."

I guess after all of these months of battles, she actually has heard me, in spite of her behavior to the contrary.

Let's just hope CPS doesn't ever see this scene.

2011-07-14T09:35:00.000-07:00

Fourth of July

We made the great trek to Dallas for the Fourth of July a couple of weeks ago. The trip was fast, but it was probably our best road trip yet. We haven't tackled one in a while, and the drive went great. It was however the first trip we've made since Sarah and Jessica are now sleeping in big girl beds in separate rooms.

We attempted to follow the previous routine of pack 'n' plays in a guest room, but the girls turned that into a slumber party catapulting themselves out of the pack 'n' plays and proceeding to trash the room, which fortunately Grandma C had thoroughly baby proofed, so it was mainly their stuff that was being tossed about in silence, while we sat innocently downstairs. We moved Jessica to a separate room and all was well for the rest of the trip.

We had a great time playing in the pool and learning all kinds of new tricks, although I don't really have any photos as I was a primary catcher of jumping toddlers who can't swim. The pics tell the rest. It was a lot of fun!

2011-07-13T19:44:00.000-07:00

Latest Coffee Addiction

For my birthday, Greg and Melissa gave me a Bodum French Press.

I'm conceptually familiar with French presses, but hadn't really tried one before. When I made my first cup of coffee with it I was instantly hooked. It is awesome. And I thought I was already enjoying good coffee, but this is even better. The coffee is richer, more flavorful and smoother - and it's the exact same coffee. I'm totally hooked.

I've been enjoying it so much that I have packed away my regular coffee pot, and then I upped the ante by getting myself a milk steamer. I've slightly coveted my friend's home cappuccino machine, but let's be honest. I'm saving for floors, not buying appliances that cost more than my refrigerator. Turns out with a little bit of a manual effort, I can steam my own milk and make coffee that is to die for. Color me happy to wake up in the morning and enjoy a fresh cup every day.

Not to be left out, the trip to Sur La Table for the steamer, also led to the purchase of a home Popsicle maker for Jessica and Sarah.

I made my first batch of popsicles for the girls tonight. The Zoku boasts being able to do popsicles in 7-9 minutes, but that definitely wasn't my experience. It was a near disaster when after 15 minutes I had one popsicle I handed to a kid, only to realize the other two weren't ready yet. So count that as a lesson learned. Fortunately the sans-popsicle-kid handled it just fine, and we were able to enjoy them after we put them back in the freezer while we ran to take a bath. With the 100+ degree weather, I thought it would be a fun summer treat.

And I know, I know this seems incongruous with my cleaning out effort, but trust me, these were smart kitchen additions.

2011-07-13T19:29:00.000-07:00

Cleaning out

It's no secret that Jeff and I struggle to keep our house any less than slightly chaotic. I think we had just gotten the whole thing plausibly furnished when the invasion of babies began and since then it has been in a constant state of change. Guest room became a nursery. Game room became a playroom. Guest room becoming Jessica's room. Meanwhile there has been the rotation of swings, bouncy seats, exersaucers and toys and more toys downstairs.

We finally decided enough was enough and we're trying to reclaim it. For starters I've hired a new housekeeper who is more detailed oriented and thorough than my previous housekeeper, so the overall cleanliness is going up. Then Jeff and I have started going drawer by drawer, closet by closet and cleaning out the entire house.

We've tried to be aggressive about getting rid of stuff and boy can you tell. Purple Heart has already picked up a living room full of stuff and it's slowly being refilled. Every time I walk into a room, I smile at how much less cluttered it is. We're even getting rid of the downstairs changing table (aka child storage unit), so for the first time since I was pregnant our master bedroom actually looks like ours.

Don't get me wrong. The house still needs work. I have fantasies of new and improved organizational systems for holiday decorations in storage, and I have an entire linen closet filled with scrapbooking paraphernalia that I need to use and actually get into scrapbooks. Walls need to be repainted and the flooring. OMG the flooring. We're saving. We'll get there. Meanwhile, I'm just going to keep enjoying the organization that we've achieved to date.

2011-07-07T12:13:00.000-07:00

A girl and her watermelon

2011-07-06T10:51:00.000-07:00

What Sarah and Jessica do at Mollie's House

Somehow S&J started calling my parent's house Mollie's house, as in Mollie their dog. The swing set is always a favorite and here is a video mom captured of the girls in action.

2011-06-27T13:35:00.000-07:00

Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Tri
300m swim - 10 mile bike - 3 mile run

In short, this race sort of landed in my lap. The race director also runs a half marathon in March that was I had signed up to do, but had to sit out because I got the flu. He let me switch my registration over to this race. I had planned to do one triathlon this year, but hadn't quite figured out which one yet. This seemed like a good deal to me.

I had thought I would train up for it, but one thing led to another and I never got in the pool. Not once. I did manage to get in some trainer rides, but I never took my bike outdoors. I did, however, run. I ran a lot. So basically, I was hoping my overall cardio fitness would drag me through the race. Turns out the race was just short enough to allow that to happen.

To let you know how unprepared I was, I realized about 3 a.m. the morning before the race that I had forgotten to even pack goggles or a swim cap. Eek! Needless to say, I didn't sleep much the rest of the night.

I got to the race site in plenty of time. I rode my bike from the parking lot to transition and it felt good to be on my bike. Have I mentioned lately my abiding love for my Guru?

I set up my transition area and went for a brief run. Satisfied with that I went over to the pool and swam 200 meters to check my intensity and just get a tiny bit comfortable in the water.

Then I still had time to hang out before the race started. I saw one or two people from Houston Racing that I knew from back in the day, but otherwise no familiar faces which made me sad. In fact, I hardly saw any Houston Racing uniforms, which was kind of weird too. It was a little lonely just hanging out there by myself. I missed Michelle, who has done all of my post-S&J races with me, especially.

Finally, it was go time. It was a pool swim, so racers were supposed to start every 10 seconds. The person ahead of me scratched, so I had 20 seconds between me and the person in front of me which was awesome. It was the best pool swim I've ever had in a race. I was anxious about getting caught, but no one did. I caught one guy at 150m, who let me pass him off the wall. Then I caught another guy in front of me about 10m from the end of the pool, so I just swam the rest of the way on his feet rather than trying to pass him.

On to the bike. Once I got out of the pool with no disasters I was pretty relaxed. I thought the rest of the race would be fine. I ran my bike out of transition and started pedaling. I reached down to try to slip on my cycling shoes, but that was a total miss. I don't know if my bike handling skills were that off or if it was my fatigue from the swim, but it took me four attempts before I could finally get a foot into my shoe.

For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, here is a how to video on what it is supposed to look like.

It was so bad, I thought I was going to have to stop completely to put my shoes on, but I finally got it sorted out. (Note to self: I should have at least practiced that part even if I didn't want to train.) Finally, I was able to just ride. I passed enough people to make me feel like I lived up to the expectations of my bike and didn't see anyone in my age group. I had no idea how I was doing relative to anyone else. The people who passed me were flying and there were only about three or four of them.

For the most part, I just enjoyed the ride. As I came back to transition, I decided I felt confident enough to take my shoes off before I dismounted and that went much better. I coasted in and finally got to put on my running shoes. In my head this is where I was going to come in and hammer the race. I trust my running the most right now and was looking forward to it. That said, by then my legs were tired. Really tired. They never really got comfortable in the run, and I had a ton of tension in my lower legs from them not being conditioned for biking. So suffice to say, I kept moving, but never really dropped the hammer.

I didn't wear my Garmin through out the race as I really was trying to not put too much pressure on myself, but I did have my stopwatch going. I could see was going to come in under 1:10, which was my overall goal for the race. I also managed to pass a couple of women in my age group on the run, so I knew I moved up at least two people in age group standings on the run.

Finally, I finished in 1:06:58.
5th out of 37 in my age group.
136th out of 600 racers.
Swim: 6:36
Bike: 31:27 (19.1 mph)
Run: 26:55 (8:58 min/mile)

For comparison, the last time I did Tri Andy's Tri, a race on the same course, in 2006. I finished in 1:05:50. Then I went faster on the bike and swim, and slower on the run. So there you go. Your races reflect your training. Go figure.

Now I have a bit of a bug to go do more races, but I think I really need to focus on getting ready for Chicago, so hopefully I'll let some of this enthusiasm translate to a spring triathlon. I'm kind of thinking Lone Star Quarter Iron or something along those lines might be fun and a good break from all the run training I'm going to do between now and January.

In other news, I also finally cracked the 500 mark, officially, in my goal to run 1000 miles this year. Just in time since we're almost officially half way through the year.

2011-06-27T08:30:00.000-07:00

Pancakes, Pancakes!

The other day I was at Half Price Books, reselling some books and I picked up this gem off the kids clearance rack for $3.

It is all about a little boy who wants pancakes for breakfast and all that he has to do to get the ingredients ready for making them, from threshing wheat to churning butter. Sarah and Jessica have loved it. We've read it over and over again - sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes three times in a row.

I love that they have the attention span now to focus on stories. It is always curious which ones capture their attention and when. The other favorite in our library right now is Mary Englebreit's Mother Goose. It is about 100 pages of nursery rhymes, so they flip through and choose their favorites at bedtime. Jessica will also sit down with it and "read" the entire book to us telling us a little about every single page before she flips to the next one.

I, on the other hand, am reading Your Two Year Old, which I realize now I should have read about 9 months ago. As soon as I finish it, I'm going to get a head start on 3. So far their description of S&J is so accurate it is both frightening and comforting at the same time.

It is a good reminder of why this is such a hard age and it is encouraging that this really is a phase. Although the book is distinctly dated with some references to fights about whether or not your kid sits in the front seat of the car, for the most part it is dead on in terms of what games they like to play, difficulty with choices, the need for routine and consistency, etc.

2011-06-24T13:52:00.000-07:00

My new mantra

Strong will children are healthy adults.

My Little Grandma told my mom this about me after witnessing a nap battle. It turns out I have needed to have this story in my repertoire.

Less three weeks into the new classrooms at school, and we've had two incident reports this week. One for a nap battle during class and another for refusing to participate during circle time. Both reports suggest that we talk to our daughter about listening and following directions.

Ohhh.... Is that what I've been forgetting? Tell her that she's supposed to do what I say. Will that make everything easier? Why didn't I think about that?

Snarkiness aside. It is upsetting to get the reports. It means the girl went to timeout, and I worry that the teachers aren't going to like our kids. I'm all for spirit, but I don't want them to be troublemakers.

Jeff and I think it might yet be some of the adjustments she is going through to the new classroom, new classmates and new teachers. As the fatigue has built as a result of nap battles, everything else gets worse too. We're hoping we can get lots of rest over the weekend and start fresh on Monday, although we know it may take more than that.

I'll have conferences in the coming week or so, and we're going to try to arrange some playdates with classmates to see if that helps with the overall comfort in the classroom. I've also talked with the teachers about the importance of consistency and firmness. If my kids sense a weakness they will attack.

Any other ideas about convincing your 2.75 year old to go with the flow a little more at school (or the rest of life)?

2011-06-16T14:53:00.000-07:00

Stealing Daddy's clothes

This morning I must be looking rather manish. I'm wearing a blue button down shirt with black slacks for work.

When Jessica saw me, she was very agitated.

"Mama, that’s not your shirt! It’s Daddy’s shirt! Take it off!!!”

Then she went and brought Jeff to the kitchen where I was standing.

“Daddy that’s your shirt! Mama, that’s not nice! Take it off!!”

We had to explain to her that it really was ok, but I'm not sure she ever believed us. Fortunately, she and Sarah haven't noticed they are sharing community clothes and having similar freakouts.

2011-06-13T08:28:00.000-07:00

It's getting easier every day....

This weekend, I happened to run with another mother of twins, who are 8-years-old. It was the first time I'd met her in my running group, so we chatted about our kids comparing stories. She noted that when you talk to other mother's of twins how they always tells you it gets better by a certain age that seems light years away. And then we talked for several more miles and came full circle to her promising me it would get better by the time the girls were five. I thought the irony was a little funny, but it's true.

Now is easier than it was a year ago at this time and I'm sure it will be easier a year from now too. Meanwhile, LauraC is "Starting her own campaign" to remind us that it really is true.

And as her twins are five, she told me this weekend she actually made "peach sangria and peach ice cream and banana bread while the boys played and helped me. There was no crying or fighting for hours."

So I now I realize how low my threshold for improvement is. My accomplishments for the weekend:

We had a play date with Norah and no one hit anyone or made anyone cry, and they played in the backyard by themselves for all of 10 minutes. The kids also sat at their own table for brunch in the kitchen next to ours. Huge people!
S&J will play in the bathtub together for 30 minutes, and as long as we supervise enough to make sure the game doesn't become pouring water out of the tub, they are content and I actually got some picking up done, while Jeff did a home improvement project in the bathroom.

Meanwhile on the not so easy side we had a gargantuan nap battle with Sarah on Saturday, and the kids still pretty much take up all of our attention when they are up and ready to play. So I guess you could say it could still get a little easier.

2011-06-10T17:31:00.000-07:00

Bedtime protests...

You know you've taken care of every need a child has when her bedtime protesting deteriorates into, "but, I need to see a butterfly."

Jeff told her good night.

2011-06-10T12:40:00.000-07:00

So big. So funny.

Sarah and Jessica have gotten so chatty and communicative, it is impossible to capture their comments all the things they do and say that just make us laugh. True, there are many moments that as a mother of two 2-year-and-8-month-old girls, I want to scream and throw tantrums with them. But most of the time they are entertaining enough to make up for it.

One of the things that has noticeably increased in the last month or so is the amount time they spend talking with each other, not just Jeff and me. They have full conversations at the breakfast table, through their bedroom doors and in the car on a daily basis.

One of my recent favorites was in the car the morning before a dentist appointment.

Jessica: I don't want to go to the doctor. It beeps. It's scary!
Sarah: It's ok, Jessie. We go to the dentist. They brush our teeth. Then they sparkle.
Jessica: I want to go to the beach.

Fortunately, they both survived going to the dentist, but I got a lecture about not doing a good enough job of brushing their teeth. #parentingfail

Meanwhile, we have also survived the move from cribs and into the pre-primary classes at school.

It did take a few weeks to work through, but the girls are now settled into sleeping in their different rooms, and remarkably once they got used to being separated they haven't had any problems staying in their beds.

The school transition is going well. They gradually started spending time in their new classrooms last week, and this is the first week they have been in their new rooms all day. This means we go in through a new entrance to the school and they are now in rooms with kids up to 5 years old, with Jessica and Sarah being among the very youngest in the class.

For the summer they have a very busy curriculum, including special events, gymnastics, computer lessons, splash days and parties. Their schedule and naptime is largely the same.

So far, they seem very excited about their teachers, although Jessica did note the first day that she couldn't find her old teacher, which made me sad for her. The additional activities are also wearing them out. One day Jessica even fell asleep in the 10-minute drive home. We've been challenged getting them to bed early for them to catch up, so hopefully we can do more of that this weekend. In fact, that is going to be my primary priority as they have been a little short fused this week.

2011-05-31T08:27:00.000-07:00

I'm not precious!

Sarah and Jessica's antics are getting more entertaining all the time. In fact, even when I'm trying to put them in bed, I find myself trying not to crack up at some of their requests.

Yesterday Gran and GrandDad came over to play for the afternoon and while we were at the table having a snack, Gran told Sarah she was "Too precious."

In something straight out of toddler 101, she said, "I'm not precious."

Gran said to Sarah, "Oh yes you are precious."

Sarah's emphatic, sing-song reply, "I'm not precious. I'm darling."

2011-05-28T18:46:00.000-07:00

Heartbreaking and heart special

When I was nine, I had a fractured ankle and had to sit out the school field trip to Washington on the Brazos and Blue Bell creamery. Rather than me sit at school with the troublemakers, my Grandmother took me shopping and we had cheesecake at The Strawberry Patch (now Pappas Bros. Steakhouse). The field trip was on my birthday and it was a joint celebration, as her birthday was the day before mine. That's my first memory of a birthday celebration with my Grandmother.

Since then we've had more and when we couldn't be together, I always, always called.

Today was my Grandmother's 87th birthday. Tomorrow I will be 34.

My Grandfather had a heart attack on Thursday and is in the hospital. I wanted to go see him, and at the same time see my Grandmother, who is recovering from being in the hospital less than a week ago. Between visiting my Grandfather and seeing my Grandmother, I picked up cupcakes for the two of us at my favorite cafe in Galveston.

We split them together enjoying the lemon-filled cream deliciousness and mini-carrot cake, cupcake. It was before either of us had lunch, but that didn't matter. We talked about the Sarah and Jessica, Liam and my Grandfather. She asked about my mom and dad. It should have been a normal chat, but it wasn't because in my heart I know that this may well be the very last birthday we have together.

My heart aches for hers and GrandDaddy's current health. My grief for both of them is too intense to share. At 87 and 91, I truthfully don't even know what to pray for except peace and God's grace.

As I was leaving my Grandmother all but said good-bye to me. She asked me to be sure that Sarah and Jessica knew about her and my GrandDaddy and would remember stories about them.

They will, Grandmother, I promise. They will.

2011-05-28T18:10:00.000-07:00

A Change In Strategy

So back to my favorite topic: Sleeping!

Last night was sheer insanity and although the girls took a 2-hour nap today, we still haven't gotten to a good place on the sleeping front. Together it is a destructive party. Apart, everyone is heartbroken.

We've gotten the new bedding for Jessica's room. Today after naptime, I spent time upstairs cleaning up and organizing the girls' rooms. I explained that from now on "the other room" is "Jessica's Room!" And the pink room is Sarah's room.

I turned off the water to the faucets in the bathroom that Sarah has access to. I removed a ton of toys.

We did the full bath routine downstairs and brushed teeth. For the first time we did all of the story book reading in Jessica's bed, which I have since dubbed the Flower Power bed to Jessica. When it was time for Sarah to leave she was more than happy to go to her room with Daddy. I think she felt special being the one who got to leave.

I took Jessica potty in the separate upstairs bathroom after Sarah was in her room and then cuddled with her in bed for a couple of minutes. Then she lay down, I covered her up and everyone's asleep!!!

Jessica was upset when Sarah first left, but she calmed down when she and I cuddled a little bit.

The picture above is Jessica's new bedding. I have a lot of work to do to make the rest of the room more fun for her, but it is a start. Tonight while we cuddled, I told her about how I was going to decorate it.

Fingers crossed it holds.

2011-05-26T19:31:00.000-07:00

Life beyond sleeping

You would think from all my blogging lately that all we're doing is toiling over bedtime and while true, that's not all we're doing.

Life at 2 years and 8 months is living up to all the reputation of the age. So much so I am actually reading parent books again to get a better handle on what to expect of this age.

I love, love, love watching the girls interact and play together more than ever. We've been taking them to swim lessons since March and they are now teaching all of their baby dolls and bath toys to swim and float on their backs. Their play and imagination is getting more complex as they make up songs and activities with their baby dolls.

They love to put my shoes on and tell Jeff and I that they are going to work. They tell us to go to school. They have no idea how appealing this idea is to us.

They are little chatter boxes and report on what happened on their day at school. Unfortunately, this means I now know one of their teachers started giving out candy for good behavior, so I subsequently told her to cut it out. Stickers and stamps, yes. Daily candy, no.

Next week, S&J will graduate to the pre-primary school. I've met their teachers. It's at the same school they are in now, but holy cow they are going to be in the same classes with 5 year olds. It's going to be interesting to see what they come home talking about in a few more short weeks.

My picture editing and sharing has gotten so delinquent that even Jeff is complaining that he's not getting enough photos. I'll have to work on that part.

On that note, my work has been intense lately. So if I'm at my PC, I'm working. If I'm not working, I don't want to be near my PC. Hence my complete lack of blogging and picture editing and sharing. Work seems to be evening out a little and I'm trying to reclaim my nights and weekends. As soon as S&J start going to bed reasonably easily again at night, that will really, really help. So will having two parents at home. Jeff and I have alternately been out of town for the last four weeks. Ack. Now we are back home and happy about it.

Heard and seen around the Ferrara household:

"I don't know dat," is now Sarah's response to anything she isn't absolutely certain of.

"1-2-3 Bubble," before any animal, critter or toddler jumps or is thrown into the water - from either girl.

"I change mind," Jessica told me tonight as she tried to argue going back to Sarah's room.

"More yogurt please?!" They would live on yogurt if I would let them.

My birthday is this weekend. Sarah and Jessica are super excited because they are going to get cupcakes and according to Sarah, I am going to get "presidents."

Jessica has mastered flipping through photos on my iPhone and zooming them with her fingers. I know this is common for toddlers, but I was taken aback by how quickly she figured it out with only looking at photos on my phone for a few minutes two nights in a row. Typically it is hands off mommy's phone.

2011-05-25T21:22:00.000-07:00

The Nightly Saga Continues

The last couple of nights, Jessica has told us it is too loud to stay in the same room with Sarah and she's been sleeping in the guest room. In fact, we are encouraging this some what, as we believe this is the best way for her and Sarah to sleep now that they are out of their cribs, but Sarah hates it. She screams every night when Jessica leaves her room.

Just now, Jessica fell out of her bed in the guest room. Needless to say, Jessica did not want to get back in the big bed. I thought I would just slip her into her toddler bed while Sarah slept, but when we went into the nursery, we found Sarah curled up in Jessica's bed.

I guess Sarah was just trying to find a way to get closer to her sister.

I finally convinced Jessica to lay down in Sarah's bed to sleep and all is quiet.

Sarah in Jessica's bed was truly the sweetest thing ever.

I have ordered new bedding for Jessica's room and am on the verge of redoing it to be a little girl room instead of a guest room. It occurred to me in this effort, that I should do something special for Sarah's room to make it her room and a place she is excited to be. For now, she thinks Jessica gets to go to a special place, although when we've attempted to let her sleep in the guest room instead of Jessica, it has been an utter disaster.

Any thoughts on how to make the separation more manageable?

2011-05-22T19:58:00.000-07:00

A Special Day

This morning the neighborhood pool was finally warm enough for us to take the girls swimming and see how their lessons have been preparing them for the summer ahead. True to form, Jessica spent much of the time on the side of the pool splashing and watching. Sarah went from barely being brave enough to get in the water to so eager to swim on her own she was trying to divert me. She would tell me to stand in one place and then dive into the water the opposite direction. Unfortunately, she still can't really swim, so this necessitated some quick actions on our part. I think by the end of the summer they will be swimming for certain, so Jeff and I want to try to get the girls in the water as much as possible outside of swim lessons to practice.

Meanwhile, Gran, GrandDad and Mimi came over this afternoon to visit. We played outside and inside and cooked dinner together. The girls had a great time, including some special play time outside on the swingset where Mimi climbed up into the fort with them. In fact the girls had so much fun and were so worn out that they successfully went to sleep in the same room.

We have a new policy. Two strikes and your out. And by out, that means Jessica has to go to the guest room. We think that's where we are all headed anyway, as in Jessica needs her own room, but, of course, I've said that before. And really, we'd been following a one-strike policy, but tonight Sarah was in Jessica's bed when I went back in to their room, so it felt unfair to make Jessica leave. I tucked them back in and never had to go back into their room. It will be interesting to see how tomorrow morning is.

It's late and I'm tired, but we had a really nice day today with family.

2011-05-21T13:35:00.000-07:00

The Big Move

This week we've had two milestones.

Sarah and Jessica spent last night in their newly converted toddlerbeds in the same room.
Jeff was completely in charge of the entire show. I wasn't even home.

Anyone who has been reading my blog knows this is something I've been dreading for a long time. It just seemed like pandemonium in the making, but mark it: At 2 years and 8 months, so far, so good.

When my pediatrician looked me in the eye and said it was time. I knew we had to seriously contemplate it. A clinical child psychologist in my running group also confirmed it was time, so there you go. I conveyed it all to Jeff, but I was still hesitant and since I wanted him to convert the beds, I kind of left it in his hands as I left town.

(I started this post on Wednesday. The experience has deteriorated a little since then.)

Jeff converted Sarah's bed Sunday night and had a good night. Then on Tuesday he converted Jessica's bed and had another two good nights. On Thursday evening I arrived home just before bedtime, which created so much excitement the girls were playing until 11 p.m. We finally separated them and they slept until 6:45 a.m.

As soon as Sarah woke up, she started crying, "Where's my Jessica?!"

Last night went better, but this morning by the time Jeff got upstairs the girls had all the sink faucets and bathtub water flowing and all baby dolls were getting a bath.

Naptime experience was similar, so the girls are now separated and sleeping while I blog.

I had hoped to let them sleep in the same room, but I think they need to get used to this novelty a bit before we let them go back into the same room.

They have so much fun playing together that sleeping and laying down had absolutely no appeal at all. None. At one point Jessica was so tired she was laying in her bed resting, and Sarah had climbed in next to her to pat her back. It is the sweetest thing ever, but unfortunately, I think we are still headed toward separation.

My current plan is to take Jessica shopping for some new bedding for her in hopes of making that room a little more hers and a little less like the guest room. (Note: I'm definitely open to recommendations to where to find bedding as well. So far I haven't seen a ton I like.)

The one thing that I think that has worked in our favor of making this a little less crazy is that we have always had baby proofing knobs on the inside doorknob of the girls room. Even though we've had to go in and calm things down when someone is crying or playing is out of control, they aren't coming out of their room and they aren't even trying because that's just the way it has always been.

2011-05-09T19:15:00.000-07:00

At the hands of a mastermind

Over the weekend at naptime and every morning for the last couple of days, Sarah has peed in her bed. I have her go right before she gets in her crib and within 20 minutes she's screaming, stripped herself naked and peed on the sheets. Or in the morning she wakes up, realizes she's awake, strips herself naked and pees on the bed.
She stops crying the instant I walk into her room and tells me she needs fresh sheets.

I don't really track how much she goes to the bathroom during the day, but with this happening, I called my pediatrician this morning to get a better handle on the symptoms of a toddler UTI. They had me come in for a visit.

I let him know from the outset that I realized this was either going to be a medical diagnosis or a parenting discussion. After a quick urinalysis which came back 100 percent normal, it became apparent that we need to change some of our sleeping scenarios.

My pediatrician thinks it is time to move the girls to toddler beds, so they can go to the bathroom on their own in the night if needed and get back in bed (they do have a connected bath in their room). He also wants them out of their cribs because they are big enough that they could really hurt themselves if the climbed out and fell. I tried to convince him I had the cribs set up, so they couldn't do this, but he wasn't buying it.

We talked about how to make the transition, enforce the rules, etc. Punishment could be that favorite dolls went to timeout, if they were up and out of their beds, or the ultimate punishment could be separation. I left his office completely unconvinced. I emailed LauraC for her thoughts.

Then at bedtime tonight Jessica threw Sarah's favorite doll in the toilet and tried to flush it away. Sarah was hysterical the couldn't sleep together. I finally got them calmed down and in bed. Then 20 minutes later Sarah is screaming again. Because again 20 minutes after I left the room, she stripped off all of her clothes, peed on the sheets and needed me to come clean up. I'm pretty sure this whole production is a ploy to get me to go play with her. The volume of pee was way too little to make me think there was any real crisis. And she was quite delighted to see me. I did the drill and came back to find some emails from Laura with her thoughts and experiences of other twin moms.

I think Jessica will make the transition more than fine, and I realized as I was replying to Laura, that if Sarah makes the night one big party, Jessica more than likely going to be asking to go to the other room much like she did in December when Sarah was being outrageously loud at night. So... It will probably be time for a change soon, and I just have to figure out some way to make sure the game doesn't become a clog the toilet effort. That or I need to invest in some duct tape, so Sarah can't get out of her diaper anymore at night. We'll see if I have to go to plan B.

2011-04-29T11:36:00.000-07:00

School Progress Report

Today I got a follow up on the ominous school phone call last Wednesday. The school director has been doing some observation and while a certain toddler remains strong-willed, they have found that if they are firm with rules and guidelines she's generally doing better. They have also found that when they are doing "work" that she needs to sit away from her friends or she tends to want to play and have a mini-party instead of focusing, so they are being more conscious of where she sits for work time. She can be with her friends during playtime.

She said that she wasn't really worried about any of this behavior, but just wanted me to be aware of it. She also said that she was still behaving and doing better than 70-80 percent of the class, and she didn't think there was an issue with focus or concentration abilities. In fact, she said that there were other kids where she was talking to the parents about pursuing medical testing, so I was hugely thankful I wasn't getting those calls.

Meanwhile, I've also learned that they want to promote Jessica and Sarah to the pre-primary school at the end of May. This means they will officially be in the pre-school rooms with 3-5-year-olds and have finished with the school of infants. I'm supposed to go for a tour next week and we will have an orientation at the end of the month.

I'm alternately happy and sad about this. I have loved the directors of the school of infants and trusted their judgment through a lot these last 16 months. I'm not thrilled about starting with a whole new group of teachers and administrators. I am also not sure what to think about the girls being with kids that are so much older all the time, but I guess they are growing up and this is part of it, so we will role with it.

Finally, in the camp of random updates, this morning when I went in to get the girls up, they were playing in their cribs. They said they were making toys and both proceeded to hand me pretend fake toys, which I thought was pretty cute. All of the pretending is pretty new outside of pretending to be each other or other people.

2011-04-23T19:23:00.000-07:00

Conn's Green 6.2

This morning I raced in a 10K for the first time in more than a year. A couple of weeks ago the Houston Marathon and Half Marathon announced changes to the lottery system for the 2012 race. There are now qualifying times for each race, and if you have a qualifying time by May 10th, you can pre-register for the 3,500 slots and not have to mess with the whole lottery system. The hitch obviously is that you have to have a qualifying time in the books already or have a good race between now May 10th.

The qualifying times aren't impossible, but I don't have a recent enough half on the books to qualify for the full. There also happens to be only one 10K between now and May 10th that is a qualifying race for the half. So guess what? I went out and raced all out. To qualify, I needed to complete the race in 54:06.

The last 10K I ran was in March of last year and I ran a 55:30 and the best I remember it was decently cool. Today it was 85 degrees and somehow they decided it would be wise to start the race at 8:45 a.m. after the kid's race and 5K, which is opposite of most races. So I just went out with a plan to run about an 8:30 min/mile pace and finish just under the time goal.

I was about 2 miles into the race when a woman came up next to me and asked what pace I was running. I told her I was holding between an 8:30 and 8:40 and was trying to qualify. She said she was doing the same thing, so she wanted to partner up with me. That turned out to be the best thing ever because she was trying to run under 52 minutes and she encouraged me through miles 3-5.

For the most part I was doing OK, but I was really thirsty and really pushing it hard to stay on pace. I think I red lined my heart rate around 187 bpm for the bulk of the race. My legs felt good though. I was just aerobically strained, so I took that as a good sign. It was much, much different from the marathon where I actually had muscles cramping and in pain.

A little after the 5 mile mark she was starting to pull away. I told her to go, but kept pushing myself. I think I finished about 20 seconds behind her and finished with a personal best of 51:18! I ran a negative split, which I was really pleased with and finish 14th out of 88 in my age group.

The woman, her name was Nikki, met me at the finish line to congratulate me and I thanked her profusely. She just moved to Houston, so I told her all about Kenyan Way and encouraged her to come train with us.

I'm not sure if the 10K was a new race or not. This is the first year I've heard of it. It is timing with Earth Day and purports to be a very green race. The race shirts were organic cotton. The bibs were recycled material instead of tyvek. They didn't give out bottled water at the finish line because of how many bottles end up in landfills. That said, we still used disposable D-tags to time us. Our race packets still included a lot of brochures, etc. The most annoying thing to me was that they encouraged people to bring water bottles for their own water, but I could never find a single cooler where they were dispensing water, so I started the race with an empty water bottle (I'd emptied it driving in that morning). They only had two water stops on the course and they were using plastic recycleable cups, which were really hard to pinch and drink out of while in motion, so I finished the race completely parched. All that said, the course was through a very pretty and well shaded neighborhood, so I'd do it again, but I'd show up with my own ice cold fluids.

Meanwhile I'm excited to have a new race time to enter into my training calculators. I'm sure it is going to wear me out.

2011-04-23T10:32:00.000-07:00

Feeding a family of four

Checker at Costco: Wow. Are you having a party?

Me: No. My family just eats a lot.

Checker: Teenagers?

Me: No. Toddlers.

2011-04-20T13:32:00.000-07:00

The day that sucked

Check engine light came on while driving to work.

Montessori school called to discuss a certain toddler's behavior issues.

Extremely taxing day at work.

Mom has to have surgery.

Is it Friday yet?

2011-04-15T19:51:00.000-07:00

Little girls, fairy tales and the princess cult

From the day I realized I was having little girls, I was anti-princess. Princess decorations, outfits with crowns on them were all politely received and passed on to friends. I have a strong feminist sense and want Sarah and Jessica to grow up empowered with a strong sense of self, but that really had nothing to do with it. In my mind, princesses equaled prima donnas and I would not have that in my house. Princesses have people who wait on them. Little girls are part of the family and contribute to the household. That was at the core of my objection. As the pink walls of the nursery will affirm, I'm not anti-pink, but I do believe girls like little boys need brightly colored stimulating toys - so we've limited the number of pink toys around the house as well.

When I heard Peggy Orenstein on NPR discussing her new book, I was fascinated. She actually explored how this princess culture came to be and took it one step further looking at the so-called "pink effect" of toy marketers. I had to read it - it also happened to be the first book I purchased on my Nook, but that will be discussed in a blog post to come.

The book was fascinating. I think what intrigued me most was the detailed discussions of how the Disney Princess concept came to be and the modern playscape for girls - from online communities, American Girl, Dora and why you can get a pink version of every toy you can imagine.

Jeff and I have a lot of reasons for not letting our girls watch television or movies. For example, when I think about The Little Mermaid, I think Ursula and are eels are just too scary for pre-schoolers, but it wasn't until I read Orenstein's book that I actually thought about the strong anti-feminist theme of all the princess characters - be pretty and a prince will come rescue you. She also addressed how the little 3-6 year old princess turn into Hanna Montana fans which ultimately are affected when Hanna Montana becomes an accidentally sexy Miley Cyrus. Her message: Our little girls grow up too fast and everything constantly reinforces the value of being pretty over being smart, witty and strong. As parents we can't completely isolate our children from this, but we need to be cognizant of it and try to manage it as best we can.

As I contemplated the book and my daughters, I see them wearing my high heels around the house. They want chapstick when I put on lip stick. Sarah went to sleep last night in her bright red party dress because she picked it from her closet. Jessica and Sarah fight every morning over who gets to wear the pink sandals for the day (I now realize the idiocy of buying one pink pair and one purple pair - clearly everyone would want the pink ones). Jessica wants all things pink - pink panties, pink yogurt, pink swimsuits. On the flip side, they love their new soccer ball, which is white and blue, thank you very much. Sarah likes to go running and this morning she announced she was going running to Austin when she wore my running shoes around the kitchen. Jessica loves kitty cats as much as she loves things that are pink.

In truth, they are learning to be girls by watching me more than they are learning from any outside influences, which is a nice comfort and a ton of pressure at 2.5. I know it won't last forever though, so as we also have a future of banishing Bratz, limit online time, and likely watching Disney films with much discussion, I need to remember that what they see at home is just as important. Like do they see how I scrutinize my stomach and the scale every morning or will they be aware that I am now leading a largely male team in my current position at work?

Finally, Orenstein notes that even though children today grow up faster than ever before developmentally they are no different than our grandparents were as children. And that is something that I especially want to remember in the age of the iPad and Internet. Playing with crayons, at the park and with soccer balls is just fine. They will learn all that stuff in due time and don't need to be on it today just because some of their peers may already be there.

2011-04-14T12:51:00.000-07:00

Conversations with Jessica and Sarah

As Sarah and Jessica's language and thinking has taken a noticeable jump in sophistication over the last few weeks. Jeff and I find ourselves laughing more at the things they say and listening harder as the sentence structure and content gets more complicated. I also find myself wanting to repeat our conversations, but not sure I can possibly convey their cuteness - sometimes because they are sweet and sometimes because they are bossy.

~~~~~~

Like the other night Jessica was full of spunk while we were getting ready for bedtime. She turned to Jeff and in her bossiest almost growling voice, stood looking up at Jeff with finger pointed said, "Hey. CUDDLE."

~~~~~~

Last week I told the girls Jeff and I were going to go on a date and our babysitter was coming over. Sarah thought about it for a moment. "You and Daddy going to go on a date?" she asked, nodding her head for emphasis. "You going to go on a Teeter-Totter?"

~~~~~~

This morning as I was walking into the girls room to get them up they were having an argument.

"My Dada!"

"No, my Dada!"

I got Jessica out of her crib and whispered in her ear, "I'm your Mama."

"No. You're Sarah's Mama. I go see Daddy." And Jessica squirmed out of my arms to run downstairs to find Jeff, closing the gate behind her so Sarah couldn't catch her.

~~~~~~

Tonight Sarah was crying while Jeff was getting her dressed for bed. He told her to use her words, so she said, "I'm crying!"

2011-04-06T11:15:00.000-07:00

Just call me Grace

On Saturday morning, I was walking across the parking lot to go to my run, I tripped and ATE it, when I tried to step over a curb.

I banged up my knee, hip, hand and my chin. It was awesome. The Coup de Grace was that I also whacked the crap out of my elbow. You know, the one I spent thousands of dollars lasering to reduce the scarring from a bike accident in 2007. It is currently green and purple with a little bit of road rash. Jeff said he was glad we didn't spend more on it because it is clearly my primary defensive weapon and destined to be banged up more in the future.

I still did my 11.5-mile run and one of the guys in the group came up to me while we were running: "Are you that girl that fell in the parking lot? You’re really tough. I couldn’t believe how fast you got up."

I was like, “Well yeah, I was humiliated!”

Every time Sarah sees my knee, she says, “Uh oh. You have a boo-boo? You fell down in the street? Be tareful, Mama.” Then she says, "I have a boo-boo, too." And she shows me her pristine knee, which I think was skinned back in Februrary and asks for a Dora band-aid.

Every. Single. Day. It is hilarious.

2011-04-05T09:50:00.000-07:00

New House Rules

This last weekend, Jeff and I had a family meeting. Our children are out of control. The temper tantrums. The yelling at us when they want things. The up and down during meals. We decided we needed to get more serious about establishing what is acceptable behavior, what is unacceptable and providing more positive reinforcements.

1) Out with the little table. We've had a kiddie sized table in the kitchen that the girls love to eat at instead of sitting at the big table. However, they sit super close to each other. Steal food from each other. And stand up and sit down constantly. The little table is now in the playroom upstairs, and we're now sitting only at the big table for meals.

2) If you stand up, meal-time is over. As I mentioned Sarah and Jessica tend to want to get up around and see what is going on or take breaks from their meals to go get a doll, change chairs, etc. No more. If you get up from the table, we put up your food. Period.

3) Good girls get stickers! Poop in the potty. Get a sticker. Get dressed without a fight? Get a sticker. I have some special stickers I got for the girls that they can choose from. The Dora stickers are wildly popular. I haven't gone so far as to make a chart as the girls get really excited about putting stickers on their shirts, we might grow into the chart and working up to larger prizes, but right now this alone is generating results.

4) You can not yell at Mommy or Daddy. The I wants tend to come out of their little mouths as demanding, panicky requests or more likely orders. Most of the time, we tell them to ask nicely, which involves restating the request by adding please and in a calmer tone. We're getting stricter on this as well. We get worn down and I tend to let this slide, but it's getting old.

5) No more cuddling at bedtime. Ok. That sounds really harsh, but here's the deal. Our routine had been after we read stories to spend time cuddling in the glider, singing a few songs and then tucking the girls into sleep in their crib. They've gotten so big that the glider time has gotten a little crazy and they are more interested in playing with Mama's hair than cuddling anyway, so we've cut that out of the routine. We're spending a little more time reading books and cuddling with the girls in our laps and then it is straight to bed. It's helping us get them in bed a few minutes earlier and generally ending the evening on a more positive note.

We're talking to the girls about all of these changes and trying to make sure they understand them and aren't just feeling punished. We're trying really hard to reinforce positive behavior as well. I think we're making incremental progress already. The meal times alone are much, much more manageable, which is pretty significant when my primary time with them in the day is at breakfast, dinner, getting ready for school and getting ready for bed.

I don't know exactly when things started getting so crazy feeling, but it has seemed like the struggles have gotten bigger in the last couple of weeks. It might be because they've reached the dreaded 2.5, but I also think it is partly because of their size and strength now. I used to be able to man handle them when I needed them to get dressed whether they wanted to or not, and I just can't any longer. I'm not physically strong enough and their resistance has gotten much more willful - like crouching down in a ball so I can't brush their teeth or refusing to stand up so I can help them get dressed and just going limp as a doll complete with closed eyes. We're hoping these steps help, but of course, we're also more than willing to take suggestions too. How do you manage your 2.5 year olds?

2011-04-02T19:09:00.000-07:00

Final Four Playdate

I've decided that the nice thing about having twins is that if you add another kid, the additional chaos boost is pretty minimal - especially if it isn't your own kid. Last night our friend Seth happened to get tickets to the Final Four and wanted Jeff to go with him. Jeff was super excited, and I offered to take care of Norah with Sarah and Jessica. Her mom was off on a business trip with an extended weekend visit to see friends, and really, what's one more toddler?

Norah arrived about 3:30 p.m. Sarah had just gotten up from her nap, so we did puzzles and ate pistachios until Jessica got up. Once Jessica got up we all went outside to play in the backyard until the kiddos got hungry, so we ate pizza and oranges for dinner. Then bath and bed. I had all girls in bed by 7:18 p.m. with no tears. And did I mention that ALL three kids pooped during the evening bedtime ritual? I was super impressed with myself. Of course, I have to admit I skipped teethbrushing because that just seemed like more than I could deal with, so now we know if I had triplets they would have terrible oral hygiene.

The particular beauty of Norah as a houseguest is that she has a schedule almost identical to Sarah and Jessica's, so there was no major adjustment on any side. Sarah has had a rough week of pooping in the middle of the night and consequently loosing a lot of sleep what with the middle of the night baths, so an early to on-time bedtime was pretty critical for her. I'm also blaming that for her being such a pill this afternoon, which resulted in many, many timeouts. Fortunately, Norah and Jessica still had fun together, so hopefully Norah will want to come back.

And now, I'm enjoying a quiet evening on the couch with wine, blogging and chick TV. No other signs of Final Four here, and I'm hoping for a lot less poop in the next blog post.

2011-03-23T08:05:00.000-07:00

S&J Gumbo

Sarah and Jessica are 2.5 now. They are opinionated, chatty and full of life.

I pick up a new hair brush to brush Jessica's hair. "That's not yours," she tell me. "It's Grandma C's." She was much happier when I started using a comb on her hair.

I made roasted sweet potatoes for dinner. Jessica said, "How about pink yogurt?" She got some after she ate her sweet potatoes.

Sarah's favorite thing is to go in the back yard. Only she says it more like a kid from East Texas and it comes out "back ya-ard." Since it has gotten warmer, I've encouraged them to do more barefoot play, but Sarah thinks this is insane and reminds me she needs to put on her shoes first.

Jessica is extremely independent and wants to do absolutely everything for herself. She puts on her own panties and pants and pulls her shirt over her head, so we can help her with the arms.

Sarah could care less about doing any of this and when she's ready to change clothes, she's happy to let us help her to get the job done as quickly as possible.

Both girls like to pick out their own clothes, which makes for some pretty interesting combinations. In general I don't fight any of their choices, so long as they are actually dressed and warm enough. One night Sarah slept in a red satin party dress. She LOVED it.

Jessica only likes to eat with pink spoons. I have very nice Oneida tableware for toddlers to help them get used to spoons and forks consistent with Montessori thinking. Jessica could give a rip and would rather eat with her bright pink Munchkin spoon, and if she can't find it in the silverware drawer, she'll ask to look in the dishwasher for it. Sometimes the pink baby Gerber spoons will also suffice. She will also request specific plates or bowls for different meals.

Sarah is strong, physical and fearless. She will climb any play ground equipment and hang like a monkey from bars. She rearranges furniture to get to what she wants to play with or whatever Mom has put up. We've had to revamp our baby proofing as previously out of reach things are now well within reach and of interest. I've watched her open "child proof" medicine bottles without batting an eye.

Sarah and Jessica love playing DJ in the car. I connect my iPhone to the auxiliary jack so we have a full play list available. Favorites are ABCs, Baa-Baa Black Sheep, Mr. Sun and Do the Rubber Duck. They take turns after each song and keep track of who's turn it is. I downloaded some They Might Be Giants and the Johnny Cash kids album to try to spice up the selection, but they like simpler songs. They love anything by Raffi on the first take. They veto most of the new music I try to interject.

We still don't watch any television with the girls, but we do Skype with the grandparents. Consequently, they refer to our television as the "Big 'puter" which we connect to our PCs for Skype calls. They frequently ask to call both sets of grandparents on the big 'puter.

Sarah and Jessica both love to read books. Sarah is especially assertive about bringing books over for us to read with her. Popular books are Hop on Pop, The Monster at the End of this Book, Goodnight Moon, Twas the Night Before Christmas and LadyBug Girl. We read them every single day.

The baby doll phase isn't quite as intense right now as it was a few weeks ago, but both girls still sleep with dolls. We have lots of tea parties, do puzzles and play in our toy kitchen too. The playroom has truly been the best investment ever.

I love playing with Sarah and Jessica with more than ever and can't wait to see what they are going to do next.

2011-03-22T13:00:00.000-07:00

Lessons learned in running

I often get questions from friends about running. Since I had Sarah and Jessica and essentially had to start from scratch after months of bedrest and limited activity, I feel more qualified to answer the "how do I start running questions." One of the things I really try to emphasize is start slow and let your body build strength. It takes time and rushing things only leads to injury.

Partners: In my experience, running partners are really hard to find and make my workouts so much more consistent. In general, I try to find people slightly faster than me, so I am chasing them, but right now, my primary running partner is about to leave me in the dust, so I hope she doesn't ditch me. If you like your time with your friend, I would try to push yourself harder when you aren't running with her and/or maybe add an additional day of running to build some speed. Depending on her mindset, if you think you could push her a bit to pick up the pace, you both might get incrementally faster together.

Speed: I would try to progress from 4:1s to 6:1s, then to 10:1s (as in run four minutes, and walk one minute) and on to steady state running. You are totally capable of doing that, if you're running and progressing consistently. I'd raise the bar on your intervals every 3-4 weeks to give yourself time to adjust, and don't add more than one mile a week. You'll get some speed by just running more and walking less. Then it will be a matter of being consistent through the hot summer and by fall you'll be strong enough to add speed work and the cooler weather will make it easier to go faster. My coach is a proponent of not doing speedwork until you are regularly running 20 miles a week, or you're likely just setting yourself up for injury. It is also really, really hard to get faster in the summer when your heart rate is running higher from the heat, so not slowing down is a big effort. Here is a basic run down of my running experience post S&J, which might help with your expectations. Timing is in terms of their age:

0-6 months - going from walking to running 3 miles, 3x a week, maybe a little more, still doing intervals
6-18 months - building up to running regularly 20+ miles a week, able to do a slow half marathon 2:30, race felt easy, I didn't push it; running with the 4:30 marathon pace group in my running club
18-24 months - still running 20-25 miles per week, realized I needed strength training to get any faster/stronger, started doing weights regularly, running with the 4:15 pace group
24-30 months - started noticeably speeding up as the weather got cooler; advanced to the 4:00 pace group, trained for the marathon, running 25-35 miles per week (still low for marathoners); PR'd half marathon at 1:57:30; ran with the 3:45 group this last week; they kicked my ass

Shorts:

I have four different bottoms in my collection right now. Here they are in order from favorite to least favorite, with editorial commentary.

CWX tights - I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these tights, especially for longer runs. No chafing and they are so tight they add spring to your step. If it warmer than 70, I typically go for shorts.
Lululemon speed shorts - I tried these out when I start noticing that almost everyone I was running with was slowly ditching all of their Nike stuff and I felt like I was running with a Lululemon catalog. The shorts are incredibly wicking and I haven't had any chafing problems with them. They are what I wore for my marathon. They are really, really short though, so some people like these better: Groovy Run shorts
Saucony PE Revival Shorts - These are classic running shorts. They are super thin and light weight, but like the Lululemon shorts I can only wear them when I feel skinny.
Nike tempo shorts - These were the standard shorts for about 5+ years for almost all the runners I know. Nike still makes them in almost every color imaginable and you can find them on sale now. I traded up for the others on the list because these weren't as wicking or as slimming. I really noticed the difference last summer when I could wring these shorts out after a long run and my Lululemon shorts were still completely comfortable and barely wet feeling. That said, they are still a decent short, and I have about four pairs I wear occasionally.

This weekend I'm running another half marathon. It is the last one in the Houston area for much of the season, so I'm looking forward to doing it and hopeful I will redeem my Austin performance.

2011-03-19T17:53:00.000-07:00

Not the weekend I expected

The grand plan for this weekend was to take the girls to San Antonio. See Karen, Courtney and Logan on Saturday and then on Sunday meet up with Liz, Henry, Amanda and Michelle at Brackenridge Park before we came home. Obviously a girl-dominated weekend, Jeff was going to stay home and have the weekend off.

By 9:30 a.m. we were loaded up and ready to head out. Before we hit I-10 though, we were going to stop by my folks to visit briefly. Gran has been very sick and hasn't seen the girls for almost a month. It was a must-do visit for her mental health and sanity.

As I drove the 30 minutes to my folks house, I found I was so tired I could hardly keep my eyes open. I had already taken a Sudafed that morning for my lingering cold and was half way through a cup of coffee. And I literally found myself fighting to keep my head up. It has been a hard week. I went to SxSWi for work and lost sleep on that trip and have been sleeping pretty miserably because of the earlier mentioned cold.

We got to my parents and I assessed where I was. I thought about everything that's been going on and what kind of excuse I could offer my friends. Finally, I decided to call Karen and tell her how I was feeling. No excuses. Just the truth.

"Stay home. Be with your mom. You're where you need to be. I get it. Your cargo is too precious to risk it and we'll try again another time," Karen said.

I love that I have friends who totally and completely understand. I'm sure it has a little to do with the fact that she has three kids of her own and runs her own business at the same time. The best laid plans don't always work out.

And as you can see the girls did have a good time at Gran and GrandDad's!

After I talked with Karen, I called Liz and she was equally supportive. Only by this time, a mere 30 minutes later Sarah didn't really seem like she was doing very hot either. By the time I loaded her and Jessica up in the car to go back home, Sarah's temp was at 100.5.

We all came home and crashed for a 2-hour nap. Jeff too. Sarah's temp was 101.5 when she woke up.

Yes, this weekend was not meant to be at all.

On the brighter note we did have a truly hilarious, white trash potty training moment as we were unloading the car later this afternoon.

We'd been having a low-key day inside and Jessica announced she needed to go potty and only wanted the so-called "Little Potty" which refers to a very specific training potty we have. It had been loaded in the minivan for the road trip.

Sarah and Jessica followed me out to the driveway to get it, but we got distracted by our neighbor's cat. We started playing with her and then Jessica went back toward the house to pick up the potty and go inside. I turned to collect Sarah and when I turned back, Jessica was instead going potty right there on the little potty in the middle of our sidewalk in front of our house. She kindly had the package of wipes in her lap. She had to sit there a long time, and let me tell you there was no hurrying the girl either.

Then, of course, being twins that they are Sarah wanted her turn to go potty outside, but her mean Mom put the kibosh on that depriving her of the opportunity to be one with nature.

Fortunately only a couple of neighbors happened by on a lazy Saturday afternoon, including the cat owner who commented, "Oh, glad to see the girls are all ready potty training."

Yes, they are!

2011-03-17T18:36:00.000-07:00

A Day at the Park

I do still take some pictures. I just haven't been so good about editing and posting lately. Jessica is in the stripes and Sarah is in the flowered shirt.

2011-03-10T07:58:00.000-08:00

Diaper-free Days

I've hesitated to write this post for fear of jinxing our progress, but I think Jessica and Sarah are potty trained. And it happened just like that. Sarah has been for some time as she started wearing panties a little before she turned two. Jessica hasn't been as consistent about using the potty, so she's been in pull-ups. Sometimes she would use the potty. Sometimes she wouldn't. We didn't stress about it.

Then this last Friday, threw a fit when we tried to get her to put on a pull-up and only wanted to wear panties. So we let her and sent her to school. She came home after a day of no accidents. She's been wearing panties ever since. I think we've had two accidents in seven days. Not bad in my book.

Moreover, she and Sarah are now competing to get to sit on the big potty, so we are moving away from the little training potties and all the clean up that involved.

HOORAY!!!!

I had expected Jessica to follow the same progression Sarah did where she gradually started staying dry all day and not needing a pull-up, so we would switch to panties when she did that consistently. Instead it is almost like she knew she was in a pull-up, so why bother going to the bathroom? Now that she's in panties, she makes the effort, like she knew what to do all along.

In a lot of ways it is like when they learned to walk. Sarah followed a steady route of crawling, standing, cruising and then walking. Jessica stood up and just started walking hands free. She would fall a lot, but with a lot of determination it took her about two days to catch up to Sarah, when I thought she was a good two to three weeks behind her.

We are still putting diapers on both girls at night, as they are confined to cribs overnight, but that's fine with me. I figure we'll cross that bridge when they are ready. Meanwhile, I'm really, really excited about this step.

Oh and for those of you tracking where the heck Jessica is sleeping, she and Sarah are sharing a room again and have been for a while. At the moment I can't even remember how all the back and forth went, but somewhere along the way they started getting really upset about being separated, so we stopped trying to do that. They seem pretty happy about it and are back to going to sleep at a normal time, so we're letting that ride too.

2011-02-21T19:11:00.000-08:00

Date nights

At the end of every year, we do a comprehensive budget analysis of where we spent our funds for the year. We look at what categories we need to plan increases for in the coming year, what money needs to be rolled forward and where we have excess funds. For two years running (read since Sarah and Jessica have been born) we have been underspending mine and Jeff's entertainment budget.

This is what is supposed to pay for our dates. Before my current job, we used to meet for lunch once a week, but now it is very rarely feasible. Instead we've been going out on occasion when we leave the girls with my folks. Babysitting has been reserved for when we have a function in the evenings, usually related to work. And let me tell you, it isn't a ton of money that we set aside, so it shouldn't be that hard to spend.

A few weeks ago, Jeff came home and said he wanted us to find a sitter and start having regular date nights. We'd have to adjust the budget, but we were worth it, and it was that important. For those of you that really know Jeff, you know how huge of a statement this was.

So we did it.

I hired our next door neighbor teenager, who we've talked about hiring before, but were never comfortable with until Jessica and Sarah were much more than infants. She comes over every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. and takes over what ever the current state of chaos is and we go out to dinner. We've done it three out of the last four weeks and it has been great.

We've just gone to local eateries, so we've never been more than 10 minutes away. The first night was a near fiasco as we'd gotten so wrapped up in our week we'd forgotten our grand plans until she actually showed up. It worked out though because she helped me get the girls ready for bed and observed our entire evening routine until Jeff could get home from work. This last week she arrived as the same time we arrived home from work, so she did the whole routine all by herself.

The girls seem to like her too. Sarah talks about her all the time. Jessica is more reserved and talks about how she'd rather play with Mama, but they seem to get along fine once she actually arrives.

It has been good for Jeff and me as well. We deliberately picked Wednesday because it forces us to have a touch point between weekends and it harkens backs to our college days when we used to always go out on $2 Tuesdays at the movie theater. And we found out after the fact that we are paying slightly above the going rate, so our sitter is very happy to come back every week, or maybe it is just because S&J are so perfectly adorable. You decide. Either way, I think this is a good investment in all of us.

2011-02-21T18:08:00.000-08:00

Gumbo

Sarah has started calling Jessica "Jessie." I think her teachers call her that or something. We only call her Jessica. I'm not at all opposed to nicknames and thought we would use them before she was born, but since she's been born, she's always been Jessica to me. Fortunately she responds to both.

On that note, the girls are now regularly pretending they are each other. The first instance was a couple months ago with Gran, but they do it now and think it is hilarious.

Tonight we read There's a Monster at the End of this Book. Sarah laughed so hard she make herself puke. We cleaned her up and continued reading and laughing hysterically.

Jessica's potty breakthrough was temporary. The potty dance came back this weekend, but we're optimistic that progress is still progress and it will come back.

Today I registered Sarah and Jessica for swimming lessons, which start in a month with the two-week swim bootcamp. It is there first official organized class or activity outside of school. I'm excited and hope that leaving work at 4:30 p.m. for two weeks for work is manageable.

I'm sore from the marathon, but not unbelievably so. I hope that I can at least run easy by this weekend. I am still dehydrated though.

I also spent the day hanging and framing pictures, which is a project I started at the beginning of January. I'm curious what other parents do with photos on the walls. Do you just keep adding to the collection or do you cycle through photos as they get outdated? I'm going to run out of wall space soon, but I love that my walls finally aren't as bare as they have been for years and years.

2011-02-20T20:00:00.000-08:00

Austin Marathon: 2010

The race weekend didn't turn out at all like I had expected or hoped, but it was still fun and the race was a definite learning experience.

It all started Friday evening. I was about to go pick up Jessica and Sarah from school, when they called to let me know Sarah had a fever of 102.3. I got to school 10 minutes later and she was pitiful. I came home and gave her Motrin and within 30 minutes her fever had gone down and she was like a new kid.

Meanwhile, Jeff and I had decided we definitely shouldn't just leave her and Jessica with my parents for the weekend as we'd originally planned. We decided to wait and see how she was doing on Saturday morning before final decisions, but I went ahead and started adjusting and rescaling my weekend. I cancelled our hotel, confirmed I could stay with a Kathleen who was also racing and cancelled our post-race lunch with friends. If I was going to get to go, it would still have to be a fast trip.

Ultimately, Jeff stayed home. Gran and GrandDad came over to help. Amanda picked up my race packet for me and I headed to Austin around 1:30 p.m. I was sad when I left town because the weekend was looking so different from initial plans and worried that leaving Sarah - even though she was continue to do well with Motrin - wasn't the best decision.

As I drove to Austin, I listened to podcasts on my playlist. This one on running happened to play, and I drew confidence from it thinking that I was off doing something I was designed to do instead of it being something I'd irrationally trained myself for months to tackle.

Fortunately, I kept my dinner plans with Jacquelyn's family and dinner was awesome. They fixed me the dinner of my choice - grilled salmon, roasted sweet potatoes and steamed broccoli - and they were so excited about my race that I couldn't help but have a better attitude about it.

After that I went to Kathleen's, where we got to catch up and get ready for the next day.

Race Day
Race morning started off well. We didn't have any problems parking, scouting out the port-a-potties, checking our post-race gear bags or getting to the start line. It was humid and the weather was in the low-sixties. There was a southerly wind, but that helped keep things cool, so it seemed OK. It was supposed to stay overcast all morning.

I was suppose to meet Mindy by the 4-hour pace group, but didn't actually find her until the race had officially started and the crowds were starting to move a bit. We started off the race conservatively as planned. The crowds were really thick, so we were even going slower than we'd hoped, but instead of being stressed I tried to focus on the fact that I was having a good chance to get warm before we started pushing the pace.

The flats on the way to Ben White felt good and the hills weren't too hard. I saw Amanda around mile 1.5 and Mindy's husband at mile 3. Mindy was chatty and we all felt pretty good. When we turned around at mile 5 to come back down South First a large portion of the course was downhill. We picked up the pace, but it felt completely manageable and we made up for some of the time we'd lost. I was warm and comfortable.

I saw Amanda again at Mile 10 where she was holding up a sign for me, and I ran over to give her a high five. That's when the real fun started.

There was a pretty strong hill on Lake Austin Boulevard as it neared Mopac. I saw Kathleen pulled over on the side of the bridge with some friends. I had no idea what was going on with them, but they were laughing, so I figured they weren't hurt and I kept running.

The hills got bigger and the distance started growing between Mindy, me and her friend, who was also running with us. I told Mindy not to wait on me as I wanted to chase her and try to be motivated to stay with her. I kept her in range through the rollers up Exposition, until we crossed back over Mopac at 35th can continued North. We were contemplating a pit stop, but hadn't found a good place without lines. We saw her husband again and then I decided I had to let her go. Well, it's more like I just couldn't hang anymore, so it was decided.

My quads were starting to get tight, so I decided I need to regroup. As much as I'd gotten excited about my time goal, when I set out my goal was to finish the race strong and I decided I needed to focus on that. I made a pit stop around mile 14.5 and stretched a bit. Then I set off on the course again at a deliberately slower pace. I wanted to just keep running. I decided to just treat it like another training run.

I was delighted to see Melanie cheering around mile 15. Then at mile 18, I got to see Jacquelyn, her Mom and Ashley. They had made signs for me and were screaming wildly. I motioned to Jacquelyn to come over and she ran with me for a bit and gave me a big hug. I was badly off pace at that point. She and I both knew it. She said they were going to meet me again later on the course, so I was really looking forward to that.

I was still grinding up hills and it hurt. Everything hurt. I was worried my quads were going to seize up as they were nearing the charlie horse point. I stopped a few times to stretch and started taking slightly extended walk breaks at the aid stations. I just didn't want to stop running. I didn't care that I was running 10:30s or 11:00s instead of 9:09s. I just wanted to keep moving forward. Around this time the 4:15 pace group passed me.

I had hoped to stay with them, but I couldn't hang on. As strong as I've been through training, I felt certain I would have a PR today, even if I didn't break 4 hours. My first marathon was at 4:17. I thought I for sure had that in the bag, and suddenly realized I didn't, which was deflating.

At mile 19 the course is supposedly downhill, but that's when we also turned into the wind, which I'd been oblivious to up to that point. It was shockingly strong. When possible I would get behind larger guys and draft off them until they would stop to walk. It was clear I wasn't the only one having a hard day.

I gritted my teeth and tried to think about the fact that I was born to run. I recited inspirational Bible verses. I thought about the fact that I was running through the neighborhoods where my mom and Uncle grew up. I longed for my iPod and running music. I yo-yoed back and forth with a number of runners and tried to draw strength from them when they would pass them. I prayed for my quads and calves to hold out for the rest of the race.

The miles ticked down and finally I was on 51st and Duval. I just had to make it to 11th street and now I could count it off as I went. I got to see Jacquelyn again at 23.5 with her whole family. It was a beautiful sight. She ran with me a little bit. She said she'd just seen her spinning instructor pass a little bit ahead of me. She said he was the fittest person she new and she was so impressed I was hanging with him, and that I'd been at my race for just over 4 hours. She ran until we got to 35th and I could see the 24 mile marker before she turned back. It was a huge boost.

I decided then that there was no more stopping. I just had to run.

That lasted until I got to the aid station at mile 25, right before we entered the UT campus. I got some water and walked a bit. Then no more stopping. For real.

I wove through campus on San Jacinto which is the same path that the MS150 takes into Austin. I thought about the time that my Dad, brother and I finished together and raced the last 500 yards to the finish because we're siblings and we could. That was a very fun experience.

We finally got through campus and across MLK (19th) and I could see the nasty hill ahead of me that was between me and the finish line. I gritted my teeth and just tried to keep grinding it out. It was insanely intent. Kathleen was near the top of it and came running in from the sidelines to high five me and tell me I was doing awesome. I really, really tried to believe her.

Then FINALLY we made the turn around the capitol and on to Congress for the final sprint to the finish. I ran with all that I had left and crossed the finish line at 4:32.

It was a very humbling day. I'm pretty sure I'll do another marathon in the next 12 months. I really, really hope I find a colder day for one. Until today, the five year temperature averages for Austin was a low of 31 and high of 55. I checked the weather as soon as I reclaimed my gear bag. 75 degrees, sunny and 22 mph winds. That is TOO HOT. I was caked in salt. My cheeks are sunburned in spite of my sunscreen.

The good news is that I still finished in the top half of racers and the top third of women, which I will take any day. I was also very pleased with how all of my gear faired. I'm sore, but I don't have a single blister or any chafing, which is no minor thing on a race that long and in conditions so different from what I'd been training in all season. Here is what I wore:

Nike tank
Lululemon speed shorts
Zoot compression calf sleeves. I'm now a huge fan. I think they are the reason that my calves held up as well as they did.
Lululemon socks
Newton Universal racers
I carried my gels in a SpiBelt, which work perfectly and didn't bounce or annoy me. They also gave us one in our race packets, which was very cool.
Garmin Forerunner 305
I slathered my feet and all potential chafing areas with Hammer Seat Saver

Everything worked perfectly. Now I just need to get a little more experience and a little stronger, and I'm going to get that 4 hour goal.

Meanwhile, Gran and GrandDad had a great day helping Jeff with the girls yesterday, and Jeff had an awesome day with them today. Both girls were fever-free and Motrin-free today as well.

2011-02-14T13:16:00.000-08:00

Growing like weeds

Less than a month ago, I put on a pair of 2T hot-pink corduroy pants on Jessica and had to roll them up with two-inch cuffs. Today I thought they would be cute for their Valentine's Day party at school, so I got them out again. Today they fit.

No wonder Jessica and Sarah eat ALL THE TIME. We spent the weekend with family and people talked about what good eaters they were. They didn't even see all the meals between the meals. Fortunately, we stocked our hotel room with blueberries, strawberries, cheerios and Lara Bars, so they survived the window of time between waking up and getting dressed to get downstairs and eat some more.

Did you just note how breezily I just referenced our first hotel stay? It is something we've never wanted to tackle, but this was a non-optional trip. Fortunately, we were able to get a suite, so the girls had their pack n plays set up in one room where the couch and breakfast table were, and Jeff and I had a bedroom. Both rooms had bathrooms. The set up was perfect and the girls did great. When it was bedtime at first they asked to go home to sleep, but they settled down pretty quickly and slept until their normal wake up time.

We had a random and unexpected major breakthrough in potty training. Jeff was getting the girls' beds set up and Jessica just up and went and pooped on the potty all by herself. In a strange hotel room of all places. No drama. No potty dance. No cuddling on the couch while she tried not to move. She just went and did it. We got a repeat performance on Sunday. I almost don't even care about the rest of potty training. Clearing this dramatic hurdle for us is huge. I am positive now that the rest will just happen, so we'll soldier on, and I know things will work out. Fingers crossed that it sticks!

Oh and for those of you wanting to connect with Sarah when she's really being shy, Grady and Melissa have figured out the trick. Cupcakes and grapes will completely win her over. Sarah and Jessica get really, really overwhelmed in large group settings and pretty clingy, but Sarah was very happy in both of their arms most of the weekend, which was often accompanied by a treat, which made her a very happy little girl.

The weekend was pretty intense with a drive to Austin, my uncle's funeral services, family time, a hotel stay, more family time and a drive home with overtired girls. We were blessed with a gorgeous weekend, well-behaved kids, extra loving support from our friends during the services, and wonderful time with family. I just wish it all could have been under completely different circumstances.

2011-02-10T19:07:00.000-08:00

Baby Dolls and Chitty Chat

Sarah and Jessica have enjoyed putting their animals and babies down for naps for a long time, but they are taking their love of dolls to a whole new level lately. I wrote about Jessica's baby doll a while back, which was a sleeping companion, but now both girls are completely focused on their dolls, especially Sarah.

They sleep with dolls. Put them down for naps on their mats and cover them with blankets and carry them around. Sarah takes it another step further. She wants them dressed and undressed. They need diapers. She feeds them cheerios and pushes them in her stroller. They go potty. The whole nine yards.

Also Doll is apparently hard to say because Jessica still calls hers "Baby Dog" and Sarah calls her "Baby Dof."

I think it is kind of crazy how stereotypical it is. I have a theory though because I've heard kids this age tend to get infatuated with dolls. I think it is part of the natural process they must go through in anticipation of a sibling - not that Sarah and Jessica are getting any more. That said almost all of their friends their age now have siblings on the way, so hopefully they will all be excited to get live baby dolls soon.

Another recent development is that Sarah and Jessica are now having more conversations with each other. They've been interacting for months, of course, but they are now actually talking to each other. Bedtimes have become more chatty and now in the back of the car they don't just talk with me, but with each other too. Sarah will tell Jessica when it is her turn to sing a song. Or when Sarah is looking for the cows on the way to school, Jessica will tell her "Just a minute, Sarah."

Finally, Sarah's other favorite thing to do now is play with my hair. This means my hair is mostly in a ponytail when it is not being played with because it has been brushed and pulled on extensively in the morning while I'm simultaneously dressing her. She does ask me if I want pigtails or a braid though, which is what I ask her every morning when I do her hair. I guess turnabout is fair play.

2011-02-08T09:27:00.000-08:00

Marathon Planning

In spite of everything that's been going on, I'm still obsessively thinking about my upcoming marathon. I've logged the training. Weekday running consistency varied but my long runs have been consistent. I've logged 19, 20, 21.5 and 22 mile long runs. Some with race paced miles thrown in to the mix. I'm terrified of the Austin hills, but they are what they are, so here I am.

I'm scared to say I'm gunning for a 4-hour marathon because of the hills and the fact that it is only my second marathon. But training has been better this time around, so I'm going to try.

Here is my race plan:

Miles 0-5: First six miles are largely uphill on Congress: Goal pace 9:15
Miles 6-10: At the turn around on 71 it is downhill down to South First and flat along the river until you get to Exposition. This will be the time to pick up the pace a bit: Goal pace 9:00
Miles 11-14: When you turn north on Exposition you hit the toughest rollers for about 4 miles. Pace will be slower on the uphills around 9:15 and faster on the downhills around 9:00
Miles 15-19.5: After you turn on 35th you hit the hardest mental portion of the course. It is a grinding, gradual uphill run through neighborhoods for 5 miles. Goal pace 9:15
Miles 19.5-26.2: When you get to North Cross Mall it is all down hill from there (save the giant hill on San Jac right near the finish line). Goal for the remainder of the race is 8:50-8:55.

I will do gels every 4 miles along the way and grab Gatorade and water as I go.

Now I'm obsessing about the weather and what to wear. Clearly weather predictions are sketchy as exemplified by our non-snow day this last Friday, but I'm still checking. With the hilly run a couple of weeks ago, I decided I want some kind of compression to provide additional support on my calves.

I'm guessing the temperature is going to be somewhere between 40s to 60s.

Current options are CX-W compression ventilator tights or Lululemon speed shorts with compression sleeves on my calves. For my top, I'm planning to wear a Lululemon Push Ur Limits tank with a Terry bolero if it is cold. I have super cheap disposable gloves, if it is chilly at the start. Garmin, shoes and socks are standards.

So there you go. Thoughts, additional analysis and lessons learned are welcome.

2011-02-06T20:03:00.000-08:00

Blogging/Photography Hiatus Excused

Over the last two weeks, all four of us have gotten a stomach bug which got more aggressive with each person. My mom was the last victim and the ended up in the hospital from dehydration and low potassium. Thankfully she's home now and sounds great.

Sarah, Jessica and I have all had a cold. Jeff seems like he is getting it now.

On top of doing the juggle for childcare for sick kids, we had the added fun of school closed for a day with out power, so the girls got whisked off to Gran's. Then Friday school was closed for an ice day, but since Jeff and I both work with virtual teams, we both had to work with kids in the house, which was tantamount to chaos. It was awesome to be on the phone with a Wall Street Journal reporter and have Jessica bust into the room and say "Mama? Mama? Mama?"

My dearest and closest uncle passed away. It was not unexpected, but it has still been heart wrenching. Out of respect for him and his family's privacy, I've decided not to blog about it. But his obituary is here, which barely touches on what a special person he was.

So yeah, the last two weeks have been rough. I am very much looking forward to seeing my extended family next weekend at my uncle's services.

On a much, much brighter note, I've also been blessed to have seen many friends over the last two weeks and been in contact with more as a result of all of this. That has truly been uplifting and fun. I feel like I'd gotten a little too disconnected and have enjoyed the time with everyone.

Sarah and Jessica are also getting better and doing well. We've had mounting bedtime battles the last month or so, and Jeff and I decided to make a concerted effort to move bedtime up from 7:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. It isn't easy to do with our schedule, but we're four days in and it is making a substantial difference. The girls are going to bed faster and with much, much less protesting. Naptime has gotten a little better too. We're back to the adages of Healthy Sleep Habits and feel like overtiredness has been the culprit of some of the challenges we've been having. Now we just have to prioritize the scheduling and see if we can make it work during the work week.

Here's hoping this week runs a little more smoothly...

2011-01-30T19:56:00.000-08:00

Playing with GrandDad

Today, GrandDad invited us over to play while Gran was at bridge. I used it as an opportunity to also play with my camera. Here are some of the pics.

Jessica

Sarah

Teeter Totter

Jessica

I'm gaining an appreciation for how sensitive the lens is when the aperture is maxed out. I love this photo even though it isn't 100 percent in focus. I did a lot of playing with the settings in the backyard, which was informative.

After swinging in the backyard, we went shoe shopping. Sarah really wanted some sandals and only wanted to look at them. I ended up picking these out for her primarily because they were similar to her previous pair of sparkle shoes which she's really liked.

Jessica picked out a new pair of sparkle shoes to replace the ones she'd outgrown. I tried to find a picture of them online, but couldn't. They are wildly colorful, light up and have a peace sign on the laces. Maybe that will have to be a photo project this week. The only horrifying part of the trip was that they went in wearing size 6.5 tennis shoes and came out wearing a pair of 8s and 8.5s. Ouch!

2011-01-27T12:04:00.000-08:00

Teacher Report: Little Mom

Today I had a teacher conference with Jessica's teacher. It has been in the works for a while, but since there weren't any critical issues, it got bumped a couple of times. As usual, I really enjoyed hearing her description of Jessica. She said that Jessica is the youngest girl in her class, where the age range spans 9 months.

She described Jessica as a little mother. She likes to clean up and wants to make sure everyone is doing OK. She said that a new girl joined the class recently, and Jessica sat next to her while she was crying and patted her back telling her it was OK. She also enthusiastically helps clean up after any spills and if anyone isn't sitting on the red line for circle time, she tells them they need to sit down and helps them cross their legs.

She also affirmed that they are having the same challenge at school with potty training and Jessica. She reminds her to go potty about once an hour so she stays dry all day, but she hates to poop on the potty. It wouldn't be an issue, but she can hold it for hours dancing around on her tip toes and whining. The poor girl is miserable while she fights it, and will only sit on the potty as a very last resort. At home, we try to be easy going about it, but it is so frustrating watching her do the potty dance. The teacher and I agree that she'll grow into it, but are frustrated for her as much as anything.

The teacher also remarked at how good Jessica was at taking turns with other kids, which she found remarkable. She said that if someone is playing with a puzzle or toy that she wants she will sit next to them and wait until they are done with it for her turn. Twin power!! That isn't how it goes at home, but I'm glad she at least has the concept for when she's at school.

At lunch time she sits with the table of good eaters, and she always, always cleans her plate. Her teacher found this remarkable compared to her size as most of the other "good eaters" are much chunkier kids. She said she and Sarah's teacher have also compared notes about whether Sarah is a good eater too. She is.

Finally, she said that she can't tell the girls apart if they are side by side, but if she has Sarah in front of her, she knows it isn't Jessica. In her words, "I know my twin!" I thought that was kind of funny because in most cases it is the opposite where people only know them comparatively and not as individual kids. Yesterday, some how the girls both ended up dressed in red shirts and there hair was the same, so they truly matched. She said all the kids were tripped out and depending on who was normally in their room argued that there were two Jessicas or two Sarahs. The teachers explained to them than there was a Jessica AND a Sarah.

I am always on guard about whether we are in the right school and have Jessica and Sarah in the best scenario. Times like this, when I've also seen the girls napping peacefully on their mats in the classroom at the same time, make think they definitely are. That is something for which I'm truly thankful.

2011-01-22T12:14:00.000-08:00

Project 52: Shades of Grey

This last week's assignment was Shades of Grey, which I think meant some kind of black and white.
Here is a picture of Sarah enjoying her first-ever smoothie. We tried it as an afternoon snack. It had bananas, frozen peaches, milk and a little whey protein in it. She loved it and has been a fan of smoothies ever since.

This photo is shot straight out of the camera and edited in Photoshop Elements, enhanced with Pioneer Woman's B&W Beauty action.

I'm not quite friends with Elements yet. I like it's capabilities, but just when I think I understand something it does something completely whacky and unexpected, which is absolutely maddening. I'm still working at it though alternating efforts between it and learning how to use my camera better.

2011-01-21T19:06:00.000-08:00

Dear Sarah~

Sarah Bear if there was one word to describe you it would be "Passionate." You are joy, anger, happiness and frustration all bundled into one. You take over the room when you are at your most joyous and you make us all want to run when something has gone awry.

Yesterday at dinner time I told you and Jessica that Daddy's birthday was next week, and I asked if we should make him cupcakes or waffles to celebrate. You thought about it a moment and said, "Cupcake waffles!" and started laughing hysterically like it was the funniest thing you've ever heard. As we continued with dinner you'd spontaneously say "cupcake waffles" and die laughing all over again. Naturally we all laughed happily with you.

The flip side of that is that when you get mad, you stay mad for a very long time. Nothing can set your world right, until you decide it is so. You will throw yourself on the ground and jump up and down in fury. The jumping is actually pretty impressive and the fury sometimes so intense it gets a little comical.

You love physical activity. You like swings, slides, running fast and throwing the ball. Sometimes instead of story time at night you and your Dad will bounce a pink rubber ball off your heads and play catch instead. It doesn't exactly seem like a settling down activity to me, but you have fun and settle down during the few minutes of cuddling before we put you in your crib. I give you a one-minute warning before I put you in bed and you'll often ask for "a l'il bit more."

We still struggle with rough nights occasionally, which lead to the harder days. You need your sleep very much, but you would much, much rather play than nap or go to bed, which creates a vicious cycle.

When we drive to school or the store, you love to have your window open unless it is too chilly and you narrate what we see as we go. "The gate is open. The back hoe turned around. The cows are eating..." Although you are often shy in public, you are a chatterbox in the car and you enjoy singing songs. You also love tea parties and serving everyone from your play kitchen.

If and when Jessica goes to timeout, you jump up and run to the door to open it for her as soon as it is over. I think you love having your sister around, although you don't openly acknowledge it very much. Whenever I do your hair in the morning while you and Jessica eat breakfast, you often volunteer her to go first because we all know getting a pigtail or braid is the worst torture ever. That said you often choose a braid for your own hair, and turnabout is fair play, so you do my hair every evening.

At night before I leave the room each night and all of your animals are tucked in safe, you ask for a kiss. I'm not sure how that started, but it is the sweetest thing ever and I will always come back to your bedside for a kiss.

I love you my Sarah Bear!

Love,
Mom

2011-01-21T18:22:00.000-08:00

Dear Jessica~

It has been a while since I've written you a letter. But as time passes, I want to be able to remember exactly who you are in this minute.

Every morning when you wake up, the first thing you want to do is see Sarah. You have a small, multi-colored doll with purple wings from Grandma C. You have to have her in bed and gather her and your blanket up to go see Sarah each morning. We call her "Baby Doll." You call her "Baby Dog." You can say Ls clearly as in pLease and Baby Liam, but she is still Baby Dog. You've also started calling Sarah, "Sarah Beer," which is pretty cute.

Your favorite food is hummus in a bowl. You often request a specific colored bowl and you get very upset if we put it on a plate. You're also particular about your spoon, but fortunately you've learned how to go to the drawer and pull out the one you want. If you ever pick up a butter knife you tell me "I's dangrous" and throw it back in the drawer.

You've become quite the little helper too. You hand me things out of the dishwasher as I put them away and enjoy wiping down counters and cleaning up spills. You'll create your own spills just to clean up, if I'm not careful.

You don't like loud noises. Unless, of course, you're the one that is making them.

We went through a period where you went to timeout a lot. A lot. Sometimes 2-3 times before school. Lately it is much, much better and while you have your moments of protest they are typically loud, but short-lived.

Every week your art projects come home from school. You color very diligently choosing multiple colors and covering the entire page. We can also see vestiges of triangles and circles, which you work on every time you have the chance. When you color you tell us your "workin' hard."

You love to be tickled in the evenings, but not ever in the mornings when you tell us "No tickle!"

In the evenings as a part of story time, you've decided you should read to Daddy and me as well. You are starting to gravitate toward longer books like Ladybug Girl, The 500 hats of Bartholomew Cubbins and Yertle the Turtle. When you read to us it goes like this:

Ladybug. Ladybug.

Laaaadybug!

Ladybug Girl.

Ladybug...

As you turn the pages. Yertle the Turtle read similarly only substitute turtle. It is too precious!

I love, love, love your sweet smiles and delight as you discover new things and realize new skills like the other day when you were plowing down Norah's driveway on her tricycle.

You bring me joy and happiness I didn't know was possible.

I love you, my sweet Jessica.

Love,
Mom

2011-01-17T19:00:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow night: New rules

Jeff and I are all about giving our kids choices in an effort to minimize battles.

Do you want to walk or do you want Mommy to carry you?

Do you want the green shirt or the red shirt?

Do you want oatmeal or eggs for breakfast?

Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't. Lately bedtimes have seemed especially hard whether it is a nap or actual bedtime. Sarah fights us every single step of the way. One night it took both of us to hold her down while we brushed her teeth and it was so ridiculous we were laughing as we did it. I'm sure it only made her more mad, but it was seriously outrageous for a little teethbrushing which we have done every single night since she has had more than four teeth.

One of Jessica's choices is whether she sleeps in "The other room or with Sarah." We decided after her show tonight that it is no longer going to be one of her choices. From now on the other room is Jessica's room. That is where she sleeps and is how we are going to refer to it. I'm going to start converting it to a kid room that can double as a guest room ASAP, and we are going to stop discussing it at night and at naptime. The battles have become too big. The choices too ridiculous. And at the end of the day, Jeff and I think she actually sleeps better separated from Sarah, which is how it started and restarted in the beginning. That said, we both always enjoy hearing them together, so when they get a little older weekend sleepovers *might* be allowed. For now, we think routine is more important.

The crowning of this decision was that Jeff and I both came to the exact same conclusion during bedtime and so the conversation between us about it took less than two minutes. Now that's what I call efficient parenting.

2011-01-16T11:55:00.000-08:00

Brazos Bend Keep on Truckin' Trail Half Marathon

This morning I did the Brazos Bend trail race, which was a half-marathon distance race. I signed up for it just a few days ago in spite of the forecast for relatively crappy weather. I've never been down to Brazos Bend and I wanted to check it out to see if it was a place to put on our list for taking S&J. I also thought a trail race would be a nice alternative to all the road running I've been doing in preparation for the marathon.

As I drove to the race site in the rain, I was kicking myself for not running yesterday when the morning was pretty clear and 50 degrees. In the pitch dark and rain, this was not very exciting to me. I also thought there might be some substantial drop off in participants because of the rain, but when I got there and saw some of the folks - several of which were there to do a full marathon or an ultramarathon - I realized that no, they were as whack-a-doodle as me or more so and race turn out would be fine. I unexpectedly ran into a few people I knew and with only 300 participants the small race felt pretty intimate. As the sun came up and the rain let up, it was also more inviting and they pushed back the start 30 minutes to make sure we would have good visibility while running.

I set out at a decent pace and was pushing it at about 9 min/mile for the first couple of miles. I felt a little stiff and creaky, but I kept telling myself that the race and the pace would come to me. I just had to keep plugging at it. After three miles the group was pretty thinned out and I felt good. By mile 6 I felt really good, warm and smooth.

This is why I like distance running. The longer I run the better it feels.

Somewhere between mile 6 and 9 I passed a girl of about 6 or 8 running with her dad alongside her. She was running for all she was worth. He was pushing her and her breathing was labored. I didn't like it one bit. Neither did the woman next to me. I had seen the girl at the start line take off with her sister at a blistering pace. The woman next to me started talking about how age inappropriate it was for a child of her age to be running a half marathon based on her bone development and that it was likely robbing her of the ability to run marathons when she was our age. The woman and I struck up a conversation and continued chatting for a few miles, which was nice company, but she couldn't hold the pace, so I left her after a bit.

Shortly thereafter I came upon the young girl's sister who was running very hard. Her dad was still behind me and as he got within shouting distance of his daughter he started yelling at her to dig deep and push harder. It made me think of the "Why Chinese Mother's are Superior" WSJ article this week that has everyone in an uproar. I think there are plenty of American parents who push their kids, but this wasn't responsible at all in my book. I tried to encourage the girl as I passed her and like her sister before her, she was breathing so hard she could only nod. I could go on and on, but I'll get back to the race.

Around mile 10, I glanced at my Garmin and realized that if I held my pace I was on track to break two hours. My previous half marathon PR was 1:59:57 at the Houston Half in November 2007. At this time exactly a year ago I did a half marathon in about 2:25. I know I've been running stronger lately, but with the conditions so muddy and slippery I didn't think a PR was possible. This was a huge boost and a lot of race math quickly ensued as I tried to push the pace.

At mile 11.5 my right heel reminded me that I haven't been training to run trails and all of my tendons were getting maxed out with the muddy trail. I pulled up slightly until it passed only for it to come back as a sharp pain about a half mile later. I contemplated walking as getting injured was not at all my goal.

Mercifully, about that time we got off the trails and had about a half mile of asphalt trail. The stability helped me steady my gait and was a surprising welcome change. The pain sort of abated as I kept running - enough so that I didn't think I'd done anything acute. I knew then that if I could hang on, I would have a PR.

I crossed the bridge and then pounded out the last bit, and hit my Garmin at 1:57:30 as I crossed the finish line. I was thrilled.

I grabbed my medal and walked straight to the massage table to get someone working on my foot. The blessing of a small race and a faster pace is that there was no line. That has never happened to me, so this was my first-ever post massage race. She wiped the caked mud of my legs and rubbed down both of my lower calves and feet.

As she worked both of the little girls crossed the finish line to enormous cheers and the chiropractor working on the guy on the table next to me told him she thought he had a small tear in his Achilles. Thankfully the massage therapist told me she just thought I had a little inflammation, which I think is accurate based on how I'm feeling now.

I really did enjoy the trail aspect of the race and being in the woods. I also was surprised at how much I enjoyed the camaraderie of the race given my history of being completely unmotivated by small races.

I sincerely look forward to a day when Sarah and Jessica may line up for a race with me or going to cheer for them at their own races. I hope that we can take a balanced approach to this enthusiasm and encourage them without also putting them at risk, as in all things. It is interesting to see how being a parent creeps into every facet of your life even when you're off doing your own thing and having a little "me time." Who we are will never quite be the same. That said, I'm still glad I'm getting faster.

And finally the official race results are posted!
My official time was 1:57:27 with a pace of 8:57 min/mile. I placed 17th out of 95 women competing on Sunday.

2011-01-14T19:24:00.000-08:00

Project 52: Week One

The assignment this week was to take a picture that illustrated the name of a song.

Ready to Run by the Dixie Chicks instantly came to mind. So I took this photo of my gear that I set out the night before I went for a run.

I also later found this photo that reminded me of Jingle Bells, so I thought I might as well include it too. It is of one of the girls Christmas tutus that I took Christmas morning.

The sad thing is that I took about 20 shots of my shoes before I got one that was remotely tolerable, but I did do a lot of playing with my camera settings and realize now some of the composition aspects I should have considered. My copy of Photoshop Elements also arrived today. Umm yeah, this is going to take some work. It's a little more complicated than Picasa.

2011-01-13T10:56:00.000-08:00

Just like the old days with a new twist

Jeff and I have been gym rats for a long time. When we first started dating Jeff was already a gym regular, and I had just gotten started, so he brought me along and taught me how to lift weights. Later he taught me how to run (Side note: He pretty much had no idea what monster he was creating). Over the years, we hashed through many issues over a bench press.

Our home gym has been evolving for years. Jeff grew up with one and always wanted one in our home. So much so that he bought an Olympic weight set and bench for the garage in our first two-bedroom duplex. As we moved and continued to not have room for it, but had more room in the budget for gym memberships we got rid of the weights. Needless to say, I was not a fan of the garage gym.

Once we moved into our current home, we started accumulating gym equipment again a few years back. I'm not exactly sure how it started except Jeff wanted a heavy punching bag which wasn't readily available at your normal 24 Hour Fitness. Then I wanted a trainer for my bike when I was Ironman training. In fact, I wanted it so badly that I asked for it for an anniversary present.

During the great pre-baby, house reconfiguration, we turned our home office off the entry hall into a home gym. Enter our second set of Olympic weights, additional hex weights, a mirrored wall and flat-screen television. The gym has been great, although it isn't huge with all the equipment we have in it. Typically only one of us works out in it at a time and the other person works out at the near-by 24-Hour Fitness or I run outside. In fact, we coordinate this for the early mornings on an ongoing basis because both of us prefer to leave the house.

This last weekend the home gym entered the next phase. We added a treadmill! Jeff has long wanted a second piece of cardio equipment beyond the trainer. Somewhere recently he decided a treadmill would be as good of a solution as a stairmaster or elliptical - both of which I have no lost love from me. I could get way more excited about a treadmill. Simultaneously, Jeff's brother is building a home gym, so our heavy punching bag will have a loving and safe new home. The heavy bag had to go to make room for the treadmill.

So this...

has been replaced by this...

We knew the moment we set out to buy the treadmill there was "that guy" out there with a treadmill doubling as a clothes rack. We got the treadmill this last weekend from a Craigslist seller who had a garage full of unused gym equipment and still had 50 pounds to lose. The treadmill looks brand new even though it is three years old. And if we like it, which we both do so far after our inaugural runs, it will rate as one of our all-time coups on Craigslist. We spent Sunday afternoon setting up the home gym in its new configuration.

I can't really explain why the change has made the gym so much more inviting to me, but it is. We hung pictures. My medals and plaques from races are hanging in the corner. A poster a friend made for me for the 2008 Houston Marathon is above the mirrors. Jeff got the weights re-arranged.

And yesterday morning - the point of this long and probably boring post to anyone, but me - Jeff and I worked out together in our gym. I ran on the treadmill while Jeff lifted weights. Rather than turning on the TV we listened to music. We pretty much did our own thing, but we chatted too. It was really, really nice.

So here we are three years into life with kids, and we're working out together again. I like it. We might just even let our gym memberships lapse as they expire in March. I'll keep running outside Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturday, but maybe I'll finally be able to add that fourth or fifth day of running. Jeff is also at the point with our schedule as packed as it is, the extra 15-20 minutes spent driving to the gym, checking in, etc. isn't worth it for the incremental difference he gets in his workout. And extra time together in the morning is definitely a bonus!

2011-01-11T13:43:00.000-08:00

Rinse, Wash, Repeat

I'm only a week into the new year and I'm already ready for a vacation. It is pathetic.

Here is the latest daily routine around our household:

5:15 a.m. - wake up, work out, get showered
7 a.m. - S&J wake up, dress, eat breakfast as a family
8:30 a.m. - go to school
9 a.m. - start work
5:30 p.m. - leave work to pick up S&J
6 p.m. - dinner, play, bathtime, confront much bedtime resistence, bedtime routine
7:45 p.m. - bedtime (We'd like this to be 7:30 p.m. That is very hard to accomplish.)
7:45 p.m. - clean up the kitchen, household chores - laundry, cooking for the family, picking up, chatting with Jeff
8:45 p.m. - realize it is too late to watch a show or do anything fun
9 p.m. - set out stuff for the next day, get ready for bed, read a little in bed, talk with Jeff
10 p.m. - go to bed

We do this over and over and over again. The new part of the routine is that Jeff is having to stay later at work, so he used to be home to help me in the evenings and now he's getting home around 7:15 p.m., so just in time for storytime and bedtime. Sometimes I rebel against the schedule, so I stay up later doing something I want to do, but then I sleep in and miss my workout and get frustrated. Sometimes I get caught up at work, so the whole evening shifts back as I can't pick up the girls on time.

My house still needs to be de-Christmased. The laundry is never ending. I want more time for fun stuff for myself; with my kids; with friends. I am frustrated and tired.

How do you deal with the daily grind and keep a positive outlook?

2011-01-10T19:13:00.000-08:00

A complete non-event

A very pitiful Sarah after getting her eyes dialated

About six weeks ago, Jeff and I both noticed that as Sarah would focus on something she would start to squint. We noticed it independently and decided it was worth getting checked out. We started with an appointment with our pediatrician. He said she was healthy, but said it was worth getting her looked at by a pediatric opthamologist since she has so much development underway, and she's too young to effectively participate in eye screening. Today we finally got into see a pedi opthamologist.

I quickly realized how stressed I was about this whole thing when I started trying to make the appointment. My pediatrician initially recommended we go to Texas Children's opthamology clinic, but they recently opened a hospital in Katy, and the only doctor doing general screenings is now practicing in Katy - a full hour away from us and from far-away suburb to far-away suburb. With the Texas Medical Center fifteen minutes from us that seemed unreasonable to me and equally frustrating. In fact, I was nearly in tears over then going through the rest of the guys my pedi offered, but didn't really endorse.

Thankfully, my MOMs group came to the rescue and heartily said that two doctors at Houston Eye Associates had been great with their kids. The sheer volume of responses to my forum post also made me calm down about the general idea of going to the specialist, which was really at the route of my freakout.

I have lots of friends who have dealt with some very serious challenges with their children. Here I am freaking out about the idea of Sarah wearing glasses, and it made me realize that I have no comprehension of the things they've faced, which was truly humbling.

Glasses should not be a big deal. Jeff and I both wear them. Jeff started wearing glasses early, and we've known it might be something the girls will need. In fact, we both immediately agreed that we'd get her Lasik as soon as she qualified for it because of how miraculous that was for Jeff. And that's likely a conversation we will have at some point down the road, but today I was very, very relieved to hear that Sarah's eyes are completely and totally normal. Sarah has beautiful expressive eyes I'm not ready to see hidden behind glasses. I also don't want her to become "the twin with glasses."

They dialated her eyes after she again proved too shy to do the eye screening, and did a full physical exam of her eyes. The doctor was awesome, singing to her as he did his exam and letting her sit calmly in my lap the entire time. He explained to me his measurements of her corneas and how those measurements translated into the range of normal and where she was compared to where she would have to be if she needed a prescription. Totally. 100 Percent. Normal.

For something so relatively minor, I was struck by my emotional upheaval over it. I guess it is just another parenting experience to chalk up. I'm happy with how this one ended today.

2011-01-09T19:19:00.000-08:00

Clues your kids might be foodies

You tell the family you're going to the store and ask if anyone needs anything. Jessica says "Hummus!"

You leave fresh roasted vegetables on the counter to cool. Your kids pull up chairs and shovel brocoli, carrots and cauliflower into their mouths until the cookie sheet is clean.

Your husband pulls some spices down to add to some scrambled eggs. Sarah and Jessica both identify paprika, garlic and chili powder correctly.

Conversely...

There is still a lot of talk about birthday cupcakes. Drinking the juice out of the bowl when they've finished eating fruit. And waffles are the current favorite food that Sarah requests at every single meal. She calls them "Wa-cules."

We seem to cycle through favorite foods. For periods they get locked on a single food they want every single meal. Yogurt. Applesauce. Oatmeal. Waffles. I wonder what will be next.

2011-01-08T20:26:00.000-08:00

Today's Run

I have been belaboring my training plan for the Austin marathon for the last few weeks. Because I've been running with people training for Houston which is a full three weeks before Austin, I built my distance up a couple of weeks early and haven't quite known what to do with myself.

Today was the last long run for everyone running Houston. Most of the running groups in town were running 18-22 miles. The four girls I've done quite a bit of my training with were running 21 miles today, which was fine, but I let them know on Thursday I was going to do some running at marathon pace starting around 10 or 12 miles, which they said they were fine with.

This morning we started off at 5 a.m. We started running at 9:45 min/mile pace and about six miles in I had no idea how I was going to pick up the pace. But by 10 miles I was feeling great. I started picking up the pace and bit-by-bit I pulled away from the group, I could hear some of their comments about the fact that I must be feeling good and that I was doing well. I put in my earbuds for my new iPod Nano that Jeff gave me for Christmas and kept going. Before I knew it I was running about 8:50-9:00 min/mile pace which is roughly my marathon goal pace. I held it for the next eight miles. I did have to make a pit stop at which point the girls passed me, but I caught them shortly after that and they decided to try to keep up with me after that. We ran the next three miles with almost no talking as we pushed the pace. One of the girls did note that she wished I was running Houston with them.

I took that as a HUGE compliment. Here is the deal with running buddies. They are awesome to have. Some of them become amazing friends, but because everyone out there is somewhat competitive people don't always take a strong running day as a good thing. People can be quite catty. I've only been running with these girls for a few months and were introduced to them through other casual friendships.

We ran hard and for a total of 21.4 miles, I averaged my best pace for a long run that I can remember. At the end of the run one of the other girls said I'd pulled them through the entire run and they was glad I was there.

Me too. It is awesome to have a good day.

I don't know what Austin is going to be like with an elevation like this (this is also why I plan a super conservative first 6 miles). But I am started to feel more confident about my training and I'm getting excited for the race. I'm guessing right now it will be about a 4:05-4:10 marathon for me, assuming all goes well over the next six weeks.

In other exciting running news, Jeff and I bought a treadmill today. Jeff has long been wanting a piece of cardio equipment to have at home. He's talked about an elliptical, which is my absolute LEAST favorite cardio at the gym. I told him he could get one, but was obviously not thrilled about it. I'm not exactly sure how it happened, but over the last few months he transitioned to a treadmill, which was WAY more exciting for me.

We closed out our 2010 books and decided to move ahead with the treadmill plan. We did some online research and managed to find one that sounded good on craigslist. We ran on it in the guy's garage. Two days later and we own a treadmill. Woot! I am so excited because I'll finally be able to add a fourth day of running or hill intervals easily. This also frees me from having to renew a gym membership that expires in April, and I've pretty much only used for treadmills on rainy days for the last three years. I'm not sure Jeff is excited as I am, but I'm fired up. Oh, and it fit in the minivan, which was super impressive and handy.

2011-01-07T10:14:00.000-08:00

En route to being a better photographer

This is something I've been interested in for a while. However because photography with a dSLR is actually pretty technical, I find I get overwhelmed with details and options. I know the basic rules of composition and have gradually been learning the vocabulary and technical aspects, I continue to want to improve. Improve a lot actually. Some of my favorite blogs are those of friends with beautiful pictures of their children: The Allens, LauraC and Rachel. I want to be better at this.

So I've watched and rewatched some videos about learning the basics of aperture and exposure. I've started reading the Pioneer Women's blog on photography. And today I decided I am going to start doing the MCP Project 52, which challenges you to do a type of photo a week. I think that sounds way more manageable than once-a-day challenges and should be fun.

Finally, all new hobbies need new toys, so I'm using my Christmas funds to buy myself a new lens for my camera and Photoshop Elements. After a LOT of back and forth and spending time looking at the photos I like most, I decided to get a Canon 35mm F/2. PW had a lot to do with introducing the option as explained here. My budget isn't huge at this point, so other considerations were a nifty-fifty (Cannon 50mm F1.8) or a 50mm 1.4. Photoshop will be an improvement over Picasa, which is what I primarily use for photographs. Of course, my wish list is actually longer, but I think this is a good start.

I'll post my photos and of course, welcome ideas and other resources for ways to continue to improve.

2011-01-05T15:00:00.000-08:00

Why we may have to reconsider the whole reading books in bed thing...

Or back to board books?

You know Jessica was the culprit because a) it is in the big-girl bed and b) there is only one doll, one blanket and one book.

Last night Sarah went to bed in her crib with two books, two wipes, a stuffed kitty cat, a dog, two bears, a stuffed frog and a blanket. All were lined up around her so she could pat them while reading her books. The kitty cat gets special treatment and is covered by the two fresh wipes.

2011-01-05T13:00:00.000-08:00

Move IT 2011

Last year I participated in 500 in 2010. The goal was to run/bike/swim 500 miles in the year. I reached the goal somewhere around July. This year, I'm upping my goal and rejoining the challenge.

Running 1000 miles in 2011.

I'm tracking my runs with my Garmin Forerunner 305 on SportTracks. I'm just focusing on running for simplicity of tracking, which was actually a barrier for my ongoing reporting. I came up with the goal based on 20 miles a week for 52 weeks. It's an aggressive goal. But, then that's the point of goals.

Join me! Anyone can sign up. Go to the blog and check it out.

2011-01-04T14:28:00.000-08:00

Looking forward to 2011

When I think about this coming year, I think we are in for a good one. Jeff and I are optimistic that after three hard, twin-dominated years that we are in for some fun.

Jessica and Sarah will turn three in the middle of September and so many of our friends that have kids their age are now going back to the well to add on to their family. Jeff and I are reveling in the fact that our family is complete and very happy to be looking forward to a year full of playtime, tantrums, travel and exploration.

The cognitive shift in S&J over the last few months has been so substantial, and while also challenging it is also a blast. We feel like we are having real conversations. They remember events and stories beyond just routine. They tell us about their days and things that have happened. They try to boss us around.

I think I've written this before, but when I pictured my family, I never imagined us with babies. I always imagined the kid phase. This is way more me and way more fun.

So here are my personal goals for the year and things I'm really looking forward to doing as a family.

Personal Goals

Become a better photographer
Get back to my pre-baby weight. Yes, this was a goal last year. I reached it for about a month and then packed seven pounds back on my hips. They have got to go.
Austin Marathon 2011 and maybe even a fall marathon?
Getting my blogs converted into books for S&J's first and second year.

Family Things to Look Forward to in 2011

Get back into the routine of going to church
Plant a vegetable garden
Reclaim the house from The Baby Years
Pick strawberries
Take S&J to swimming lessons this summer
1:1 time with each daughter and parent
Family beach vacation
Mine and Jeff's 10-year anniversary