Sunday, February 19, 2012

I won't run, Forest, I won't run!

I am not a runner! Never have been, and recently decided I never will be. I've made some serious changes in my diet & exercise routine in the last 6 weeks and I feel great! I wanted to feel better so I thought, "why not run". Oh, the reasons why NOT to run (for me) far outweigh the reasons to run!

I tried it, if you ask a trainer or my husband, who sits on the couch telling me HOW to run, they'd probably tell you I didn't try hard enough. Anyone can run right? I can do it? Nah, I won't. I didn't give up, I don't feel I failed, and I am never going to say never. I'm just not going to run.

I have a friend and a sibling who have signed up for their first marathon and I'm so excited for them. Several friends around me took up running, ran a few marathons, love running for fun. They look great, are in their best shape, and talk about how wonderful they feel after a run. I admire them and think they are just a cape away from being my hero. But their stories don't make me want to run.

When I first started trying to run I wondered when I'd feel that proverbial "Runner's High". I think I felt it a few times, that is if the high is that burning sensation in your lungs that I would equate to my late teen years of inhaling from a silver pipe. Not that I ever did that, kids, no no but I've heard all about it! My husband, the couch potato trainer, told me there is no runner's high, he bragged about his miles ran back in college, and what I was doing wrong. Had I bought myself a pair of fancy new running shoes I would have planted one in his rear!

So, I resign myself to running short 2-5 minute sprints on the treadmill and I'm happy with that. Six weeks ago I was on the couch training for heart disease & diabetes, anything I do now is success and that makes me feel good. Almost as good as that "runner's high".

I won't run, Forest, I won't run...unless of course you have a box of liquor filled chocolates, even then I may just make you get off the couch and bring them to me!

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Chasing the American Girl Dream


November 14, 2011

Last week the newest American Girl catalog came in the mail, and like I do every time I handed it off to my 7 year old daughter. She enjoys looking at it, dreaming of ownership, and admiring the outfits (that are reasonably priced at what it costs to outfit my own American Girl). This catalog was different, this year was different, her admiration had suddenly turned to obsession. She spent 10+ hours ooohing and aaahing over the catalog, logged onto the AG website and figured out how to fill her cart with more than $500 worth of items. She was chasing the American Girl Dream!

February 7, 2012

Must have lost my train of thought! I suppose now is as good a time as any to finish this entry. My husband and I talked, struggled with justification, and even picked out 1 American Girl doll with a new outfit. All I had to do was hit "complete checkout". But the internal war going on inside of me wouldn't commit. How do I justify a $100 doll and a $50 outfit? The satisfaction and happiness and glowing on her face Christmas morning when she woke up to a doll that looked like her should have been enough to seal the deal.

But it wasn't. We decided AG's knock off rival "Our Generation" would be just as wonderful to her. Of course this meant blaming Santa. We slathered his name all over those packages to make sure that if she discovered this was not straight from the catalog he'd be the one to blame. But she didn't blame anyone...she happily oooohed and aaahhed over the dolls, the clothes, the accessories, and she showed genuine love. The doll didn't look just like her but it had the same name which left her in awe.

I know it's not the same. I know that some of her friends are going to tell her the difference when they come over and play with her "not real" dolls, I know that one day she'll discover the truth. I hope that what she also discovers is not that she didn't have THE American Girl doll of her dreams but that she had the tea party of her dreams with her dolls and her family, that she had parents who sat in on sipping from doll sized cups, a little brother pretending to eat doll sized cake, and friends who didn't notice the difference. Those are the dreams I want her to chase, the dreams we will help make happen, and the memories created that she'll look back on one day.

From the Mouths of My Babes 2011

Look at this it's really gonna freak people out. ~Audrey

Mom, you are not going to believe me but it's really true: You are amazing! ~Audrey

Watch and Learn, Sister, Watch and Learn. ~Ian

Ian: What are those?
Mom: They are pickled peppers.
Audrey: If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peckers how many pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick.
Mom: (Dying inside at her take on this)
Ian: 41
Audrey: The answer is 12
Mom: (still dying inside)

Audrey: I'm going to need some chocolate cake to celebrate my birthday every day, because everyday is my birthday.
Ian: Your birthday is not EVERY day.
Audrey: Well, in my world it is.

Ian: This book must be fiction because I've never seen a penis look like that in real life before.