Happy Birthday Josiah!

Today is my middle child's birthday.  He will answer to any of the following: Josiah, Jo-Jo, Jo-boy, Joboji, Boo, or Batman. 

He is three years old.  I feel like he's been two years old for-eh-ver!  In the past year, he has grown so much in so many ways, as one would expect at this age.    He has gone from loving Cars and Thomas the Tank Engine to all things superhero over the past year. 

He also has a range of emotions and they swing at the drop of a vegetable on his plate.  Admittedly, we had it EASY with our first child.  We got spoiled with a compliant, smart, eat-anything-you-put-on-his-plate son the first time around.  So, we naively thought the second one would be the same way, at least in general behavior/level of willingness.

Were we ever wrong.  Ever since he was a newborn, Jo was a bit more unsettled.  Poor thing had eczema pretty badly on his face and it just got worse because he kept rubbing it.  So, we put barrier creams on it and then he had a sheen to him.  He always looked greasy with that stuff on it.  Thankfully, he grew out of it by the time he turned a year old. 

When we were at our cousin's kid's birthday party when Jo was about 15 months old, he started refusing to eat a piece of chicken that I was feeding him.  And not just the typical toddler hunger swings; he threw a FIT.  That day marked the on-going battle that was to come for the next two years.  At three, he reacts a lot better to food he doesn't like, but he still won't eat it.  But, he doesn't throw himself on the floor while ugly crying and drooling everywhere anymore.  I count that as a major victory!  He knows the choice to not eat his food means he doesn't get to have any snack or treat the family has later.  He even stops and asks, "What are we having for dessert?" to help him weigh his decision sometimes.  Hilarious.

Speaking of, ever since he could talk, Jo has been the comedian in the family.  Not the show-off type, but he cracks jokes - and original ones - all the time.  Hubs and I often look at each other like, how did he think that up??

A few months after he turned two, his vocabulary EXPLODED!  He was saying four-to-five word sentences all of the sudden.  And he has been at home with Hubs and big brother just about his entire life, so he has just picked it up from individual conversations and hearing others talking as opposed to being taught to try a lot of words like I did with Benji.

Around Christmas, last year, he started potty training at 27ish months old.  I say, he started, because we weren't even thinking about potty training at that point but he was apparently ready and did it all himself.  He blasted right through that process and he was in underwear during the day full time for a few months.  Then, in June or July, he regressed and it was very frustrating.  But for the past month or so, we got back on track and he's actually in underwear even overnight now!  He has only had a few accidents and we are very proud of him.  He gets pretty upset about the accidents though, so we just try to encourage him that he has done such a great job and we are not upset at all. 

Overall, he has tested our patience like no other at this age, but he is one of the most loving and sweet and silly kids I've ever met.  He follows Benji around everywhere and he protects and loves on Calah every day.

Happy Birthday Boo!  Mom & Dad love you very much and are very thankful for you.  You keep us on our toes :)

Holy Shopping Woes, Batman!

After work on Wednesday, the five of us headed to the mall return a few things at Sears and we wanted to use the gift card-type cards and coupons that were going to expire soon.  So, we started out by going into Sears to do the return.  For some reason, Hubs' shorts required special authorization to return (they must be solid gold or something), so we had to wait 15 minutes at the checkout for a "manager" to come swipe a little card to clear it out for us.  Let me say, I was not feeling the greatest and the boys were testing my patience already at this point.  So, I was really not in the mood to stand there for something that seemed so unnecessary. 

We survived the return and started walking around the store for a couple minutes when it became super obvious that we all needed to eat - to settle the kids down a bit and to help mom & dad regain some patience.  Not sure which is the chicken and which is the egg.

We decided to eat dinner in the food court to save time and hassle.  The kids got to sit at their own table while Hubs & I sat at a raised table next to them.

They LOVED having their own me-sized table to share their meal and WE loved having a slight separation so we could eat our meal without getting heartburn (at least avoiding heartburn directly related to the stress...I can't vouch for the heartburn from the actual food...). 

Dinner went well until they were done eating and suddenly started racing around the small tables, calling my name roughly 10 times in a five second time span.  I took the boys to the family bathroom to calmly (it may or may not have become yelling at one point) explain to them the folly of their ways and to remind them what the rules and expectations are.  "Yes mom, " and we were off to find Hubs and Calah. 

We walked back down to a couple stores and the boys were just completely amped up about everything they saw and kept pointing and saying, "Mom, lookit!", as they were touching whatever it was I was requested to "lookit".   Hubs took the boys out of the jewelry store so I could browse in peace for about 15 minutes.  Calah and I found a few things and checked out.  I bought her a cute purple, beaded bracelet topped with a tulle flower and rhinestone on the flower.

As we left the store, I saw the boys basically sitting atop Hubs' head in the middle of the mall.  It was a relief to see they were having a better time out there than they were in the store.  So we kept moving along, back to Sears once again.  Their sales were really hard to deny, especially with the gift cards and coupons we had.  Sadly, the boys' behavior did not get much better.  They were shouting, whining, chasing each other, and hiding in clothes racks.  There may have been a few violated mannequins and jumping stunts off of tables along the way.

We went to check out and there was a problem with the gift card so between that and our indecisiveness at the register, we sat there for a good half-hour.  No joke.

We ended up being there way too long and we were all very crabby and tired by the end, but we survived.  Our kids are usually pretty patient and understanding when we are out shopping, but it was not this day.  This day, we FIGHT! (A little LOTR shoutout!)  I think I would much rather shop alone and possibly have to return some things after showing Hubs than to experience that type of debacle any time soon.

Do you dare take your kids to the mall with you?  Is it worth it in the end??

Surgery Recovery Update

I had FAI surgery seven weeks ago and started physical therapy (PT) five weeks ago.  Around the same time I started PT, I ditched the crutches and walked using only my hip brace.  PT has helped me regain flexibility and strength a TON over the past month.  I haven't worn my brace at all in the last four weeks, not even to leave the house.  I am very pleased with the recovery process so far. 

My second surgery is scheduled for September 17th, the day after Jo's third birthday, and  I really am looking forward to it because my left hip has gotten a lot more painful in the last few weeks.  I actually rely on my right hip a lot now because I'm trying to prevent the pain in my left. 

When I came back to work last week (about 6 weeks post-op), I became fatigued very quickly from all the extra walking I had to do.  It takes approximately three minutes to get to my desk from my car in addition to 19 stairs to climb.  Sounds insignficant but my endurance took a major hit after this surgery.  So the first couple of days were rough and I was so glad to get to PT on Tuesday to get my "fix". 

The exercises that I do at PT test my endurance every time.  I always end up sweating and tired as if I was really hitting the gym hard.  But I really have noticed a difference in how much I can do and my PT, Curt, has added more exercises for me as I've gotten stronger. 

Another thing that has helped a lot is the stretching he does for my hip as well as the muscles all down the back of my leg (hamstring and calf).  The stretching is really intense, even now, so I just try to take deep breaths while he is doing it because I know it's going to help me in the long run.

These days, I go in to PT twice per week (down from three times) and they give me heat for 10-15 minutes, then I do my exercises pretty much on my own, and then at some point, he stretches me, then I ice for 10-15 minutes.  I like doing the exercises on my own because it's at my own pace and I don't have to wait around for my next assignment if Curt is busy.

However, I found out on Tuesday, that Curt doesn't work there anymore.  I was totally bummed, to say the least, and I'm hoping that when I go in today, I'll be able to work with one of the other PTs that I've gotten to know a little bit.    I wouldn't care so much if I didn't have to start this whole process over again in a few weeks.  The only actual PT (the others are assistants) that is there right now is a woman that I don't particularly want to work with. 

Good thing I have some time to get used to the idea because I don't think I have a choice unless they hire someone else by then. 

Overall, I am just very thankful to be healing so quickly so I can get back to my life and family.  It has gone much better than I anticipated, so I am just praying this second surgery goes just as well.

Short-Term Goals & Food Issues

I went back to work last week. I miss being home with my family, but it’s nice to get back into the normal routine, too. But, I will only be here for three weeks before I go back for my second hip surgery.  Since I have a short time span to work with, I made a goal for myself: To bring my lunch to work every single day - - and actually eat it. It probably sounds silly to make this goal but over the past 10 years since I started working here, it has been a struggle for me. Here’s a snapshot of a typical morning for me.


Plan:

Wake up at 6AM, shower, get dressed, do hair, minimal makeup, pack lunch, grab milk/tea and breakfast bar/fruit, and head out the door at 6:30.

What actually happens:

Alarm goes off at 6:00, I snooze it.

Alarm goes off at 6:07, I snooze it.

Alarm goes off at 6:14, I fly out of the bed in a frenzy and go to the mirror to look at my hair.

I then determine whether my hair is good enough to skip washing it. Either way, I don’t have enough time to wash it, so I just throw it into a ponytail.

Then, I stand in my closet for a good four to five minutes. I finally find something that’s not stained or wrinkled and still actually fits me, so I throw that on.

Next, I put on my face moisturizer and skip the makeup (except my brow liner – I “can’t” leave the house without my eyebrows filled in – thanks Shari Braendel!).

Brush my teeth, grab my shoes, and head to the kitchen.

Here’s where it gets interesting…

I think to myself, I need breakfast and lunch. I will grab leftovers for lunch and a Fiber One bar with milk for breakfast.

I go to the fridge and open it. It lights up and I can feel the cold come sweeping out onto my face. I’m feeling good. I have a plan. I start my search. After what feels like forever (translation: 10 seconds), scrrrreeeeeeeeeeech! All my optimism about finding a lunch worthy of my palette is out the window.

I look at the clock. It’s anywhere between 6:31 and 6:37 usually.

Oh, shoot, I gotta go! I’ll just grab breakfast on the way (because that SAVES time??) and I’ll go out for lunch.

Hmm…I’ll give 500 points to the person that can point out all 57 things that are wrong with this scenario.

On the days that I DO find a lunch to bring, only 50% ends up with me actually EATING it. I somehow justify to myself that I need something I don’t have here in the work fridge and that constitutes why I had to buy a whole meal at (trying to hold back the vomit) McDonalds.

But I AM trying to lose weight and I AM trying to save money. Just how hard am I “trying”?

So, this leads me to my short-term goal of bringing a lunch and eating it for the 14 work days I have before my next surgery. I originally started working on this post last week but got distracted with work, lesson plans for church, paying bills, and catching up on my blog reading.

Goal: To not buy lunch out while at work

Timeframe: August 26th through September 16th

Plan: Pack a lunch the night before and bring it to work and eat it

I love goals that are simple and straight-forward, don’t you? The real challenge is my brain. I need to whip it into shape so that it looks like an adult’s brain and not a stomping-in-the-aisle-because-mommy-won’t-buy-me-a-toy child’s brain. I think it’s time. I have spent too much of my adult life wishing and wanting things to be different; watching my friends and family having and doing things that I could only dream about in someday-land. Fact is, they’ve worked hard for those opportunities and have had to say NO to get there. I don’t say no to myself often enough by any stretch.

Since I took over a week to finish this post, I can actually give you an update on this goal (wow, procrastination is good for something after all!):

Monday, 8/26 – Leftover Rosati’s pizza & fruit

Tuesday 8/27 – Leftover whole wheat spaghetti & meatballs & yogurt

Wednesday 8/28 – Leftover whole wheat spaghetti & meatballs & yogurt

Thursday 8/29 – Leftover grilled chicken breast & animal crackers

Friday 8/30 – Leftover Italian Sausage Rigatoni & veggies (my fav recipe!!)

Tuesday 9/3 – FREE Culver’s chicken tenders meal; I had saved up 10 Scoopie tokens from the kid’s meals so I got a free kid’s meal. I felt full half way through, wow.

Wednesday 9/4 – Leftover grilled chicken breast & Italian Sausage Rigatoni from last week

So far so good! It has felt great to stick to the plan and not fill myself with fast food. This is one step of many that I need to take to get to better eating habits.

Also, I’ve started eating every three hours as suggested by Chris Powell. I haven’t done the carb cycling yet because I needed to first get used to the idea of eating every three hours instead of sporadically or going on snack binges when I’m at home. It’s been almost a week now and it seems to work. I’m not hungry in between meals. Carb cycling requires a lot more thought and planning, especially when cooking for a family of five, with one of those being extremely, extremely picky.

My third quarter goals update is coming at the end of this month, so I’d better go check up on our progress so I can actually do some work on them!

What are your goals this year and how have you done with them so far?