Early Saturday Morning

Juice box in hand, Oldest and I were setting a Saturday morning record for getting out of the house! It seems that Oldest and I waste valuable time every Saturday morning watching cartoons.

So I thought, Grocery Shopping! It hadn't gotten done on Friday. Off to Walmart to run around in great speed. But we did spend some extra time in the toy section to pay our respects. It had been a fast trip, but then I remembered I'd like to make one more stop. Victoria's Secret had sent me a ten dollar off purchase card for my birthday that was about to expire.

"Oldest, is it okay if we make one more stop?"

"Yeah, aaaaaa... sure Mom." (yes- this is how Oldest talks at 3 years old, always with great thought to her replies)

I think of myself as extra lucky with my birthday and this store. They always send out birthday cards and because they are having their Semi-Annual Sale at this time, I get double the free stuff!! Otherwise, I would probably never shop here.

Once in the store I ask the Clerk about the print on the back of the card. There is no need for me to get my heart set on something and then find out that I can't use the card! They admit to me that it's pretty confusing, but I know it really just how managing the manager cares to be. The clerk double checks for me and sure enough, anything more or less!

With this answer a huge game is opened for me. I'm not letting VS luer me into their store for $10 to get any of my money! So usually I will get a pair of panties or some body care products.

Oh! Did I tell you that we had 9 minutes left on the meter when we pulled up and that I refused to feed it?

While wondering around the store, Oldest is intoxicating herself with a sweet assortment of lotion blending. (If you have to fart, don't worry, Oldest is your little air freshener) Finally I have narrowed my quest down to either panties, or you guessed it, body care products!

But then my little girl has a loud announcement to make to the shoppers of VC, "Mommy? I need to go Poop! Poopy Mommy!" (Note to self: got to work on her manners of statements to the world!)

Everyone, weather it's hold'n it up, or hold'n it down, it's a universal fact that all Mommies begin to perspire when they hear reference to these actions come out of their child's mouth. (Dads sweat and run!)

So I pick up speed and promise her we are just about done, when she has another thing to tell everyone, "Mommy?, I want to go to the bathroom back there!"

What? Where? You think there is a bathroom in VS- 'ell NO! But I have to look to where she is pointing since everyone else is wondering where they could pop-a-squat. It's right next to the checkout counter where some hat boxes are piled up. (#2 Note to self: Carry hat box with young children for instant potty, look stylist and sophisticated while sporting the Victoria Secret Name.)

"Quick, lets get in line"

Then there is one more thing she has to say. I feel the scowl and cringe in my face of what might next be on the tip of her tongue-

"Mommy?, I want to go home and watch T.V...."

"Ahhhh"..... I sigh, that was a freebie in the Mommy world.

"O.K., Baby we will."

I'm feeling a shade darker pink and my deodorant is kicking in when I place my purchases on the counter for the clerk. I reach in my pocket to pull out my last "little birthday gift for self", when there is no card in my pocket, or back pocket,..... or purse! What the *#@&*??!

I grab Oldest and swing her 'round the store once more as I teach her a good lesson on how to run people over. (Why am I so absent minded like this?! I'm so ticked off at myself!!!)

That little voice says, "Mommy? You lost it?" (Wait, did she mean physically or mentally?)

I feel that little hand in mine.

"Yes Oldest." I know she knows my disappointment.

But then that little hand puts the thought in my mind to pull myself together. I tell myself, if you don't listen to Oldest, you'll be even more embarrassed, and is twenty dollars of VS stuff really worth all this to you? BE REAL SELF!!!!

Then there is this bright light and a smiling, friendly face. It's the clerk I showed the card to in the beginning. There is a halo around her head, she might even of had some wings and the l'eur de Heaven (VS sent) perfuming herself.

"I lost my card", I tell her.

"You did??! Well I saw it! Let me tell my manager."

And just like that I was checked out and out the door.

"Oldest, You still need to use the bathroom?"

Oldest,"Aaaaa.....no."


Motherhood.

Gotta luv it!

~Julia

How to Grocery Shop

Yeah, yeah, I know I’m not the only one out there that works a really crazy schedule and runs a home, but at times I just want to scream, “STOPPPPPP!” In a nutshell: I work a stupid job that enables them to abuse me (eg. Work 2 years on shift- that’s 12 hour shifts alternating 3 days off, 3 days on-rotating days to nights while having two separate buns in the oven, over 18 months of this time, and then get put on days, working 8 days straight with two off, two on, and then two off again.)

Now you ask, “Why do you do this??”

The answer is, I want my children to have everything. Not spoiled rotten -everything; but a strong family, health, and opportunities. (And now some of you may start the, “stay at home” spiel. But I’ve tried-before kids, between jobs, and moving, - I can’t bare it!)

With working all the time and then trying to do everything else like workout, shop, garden, bring the kids everywhere they want to go, laundry, watch a little T.V besides nick, and cook something good for dinner, there’s not much time.

At the beginning of the year I was feeling at my all time low about all this. So, one of my best friends got me a crock pot and book of recipes as a Christmas Gift (Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade Slow Cooker Recipes 2 by Sandra Lee) Man, how neglected was I? I had never used a crock pot! Throw stuff in it after work, stay up late and turn it off, dinner is ready for tomorrow night.

This worked well until the warm, Virginia Spring set in and I just had to get back to grilling (which is pretty speedy too!). I was also getting spring fever for fresh vegetables and such. I’m sure I’ll take it out when it starts cooling down again.

Well, back in early fall, the next step to my, “put it in the crock and walk away from the kitchen”, was to get grocery shopping out of the way each week FASTER!

So I set-up:
Day to plan out next weeks meals- Thursday
Day to write down grocery list- Thursday
Day to shop-Friday, after work and before picking up the girls

Then I started looking at my time. I’d race out of work on Friday afternoon, zoom to the store with the list I made Thursday night in hand, and set the stopwatch on my watch.

Self said, “20 Julia, twenty minutes is all you get, to get everything in the cart!!”

I can’t really control the checkout people and insist to never get into shopping line rage, this is a little chill time to check out the mags for free-for me time!

Also in this plan I tried the regular size cart. It didn’t take corners so well and I’d feel my wrist hurting later on, then I decided on the little blue ones that are more upright (ever seen those?) Well, these are great in the store on a smoothly, polished floor, I could fit everything in, but it was on my way outside that injury occurred.

Oh I had scored! The store had a bunch of slightly frosted, nipped by the cooler roses for the upcoming Mother’s Day Weekend. They had decided not to sell them, so they were giving them away for FREE! So I put them in the little blue cart and went at a fast walk to my car.(I should tell you here that my master plan is to get all the groceries for the week, not to come back to the store until next week, and to get in the store and out of the store in 30 minutes. So yeah, I secretly am giving the checkout people 10 minutes to get their job done.)

As I was walking at a fast pace this very, poorly, designed, blue cart put on the breaks! I kept walking and I flew over the handle bars!!! Yes!!! Over the handle bars of a little, blue shopping cart! My favorite word spilled out (F FEN…) with a small tear in my eye, a snag in the knee of my jeans, and a scraped palm, and the ROSES!!!, my beautiful FREE ROSES….. there were light, purple petals, everywhere! (That was the worst part)

I should have walked myself back in that store and threatened! But I’m not that type. There was the cart collector man and I sweetly explain what had just happened. He was a prick! He acted like he hadn’t even seen the whole thing!

So I said, “Don’t you see those petals over there? It ruined my roses!”

He just gave my some line about the locks shopping carts have on them so homeless can’t run off with them.

So since that incident I stopped running (No I was walking!!) while grocery shopping, and set my goal back to just getting the shopping done on Friday night. I also make a detailed grocery list on Thursday to keep from over buying, not knowing what to make, and to plan good meals.

Details in later posts on shopping list and meal plans.

Later, Julia

Session 2’s Recovery

Yes I did it! I successfully completed session #2. I might have even run a little more than was required since I kept having trouble remembering what time it would be when I’d pick up a walk again. Old age? Don’t believe in it, the mind is just another muscle we need to exercise regularly.

The Session wasn’t bad at all. And the day’s “goal completion” feeling was well worth it! I got the girls out of daycare, everyone showered, and home for dinner for a warm-up and eat meal. (I’ll give more details about how I do dinner these days, later. Hint: more scheduling!)

So, more about feelings and pains while completing Session #2: My feet have been behaving nicely. I bought some new sneaks for myself on my birthday. They are Asics Gel Trabuco running shoes and only ~$40 since they were on clearance from last season. The only catch is they are ORANGE! I don’t mind though. I also bought some no-show New Balance socks. Now I didn’t get analyzed by a computer or some sales person watching my gait, but all seems good with these new items.

Yesterday I changed out my work sneaks. The old ones had who knows what on them: Acrylamide, Acylonitrile, solvent, who knows what else. So I down graded my other workout shoes to my new work shoes. But for some reason I got a very small blister- or spot where the skin rubbed off on the back of my tendon while working. A small bit aggravating, but wasn’t bothered while I ran.

My other issue was something silly the night before. We all went to Bluebird Gap Farm where the Hampton Parks and Recreation puts on summer night movies. While waiting for sundown there is a DJ that plays games with the kids and fun line dancing music. The girls wanted to go up with the other kids but aren’t confident to go on their own (well they were fine with this by the end of the night) but, in the midst of the Hokie Pokie I was holding my youngest, showing her how it goes and I pulled something in my back below my shoulder blade. Wasn’t ‘till next day that I felt it. But it gave me no pains during the session, and it’s even better today.

So in summary I had two little issues, but plan to keep with it!!! YEAHHH!

The Plan: Schedule, Schedule, Schedule

My life is so scheduled in order to keep everything going these days. Let’s take a moment to think about what the word schedule means:

sched·ule , n.

1. A list of times of departures and arrivals; a timetable: a bus schedule; a schedule of guided tours.
2. A plan for performing work or achieving an objective, specifying the order and allotted time for each part: finished the project on schedule.
3. A printed or written list of items in tabular form: a schedule of postal rates.

Yes, a timetable and order with allotted time for each item. I’m just so AD, it’s even hard to sit down and make a grocery list each week let alone take time out to pee!
But each week I try to make order to my life; to plan the groceries, buy the house hold supplies, get myself to work on time, keep my family happy, and to take up something like running in order to get fit, and healthy. Having recently popped out two children, I’ve really just begun to get a grip on my new obligations in life. Also, I just turned 35 last week! This all adds up to:
What am I really doing with my life?
Is this mid life yet?
Am I doing everything I dreamed of?
Where do I want to be right now and down the line?

So I’m using this blog to get accountable for more of my actions and will start with my running plan.
A bit about my athletic life is that I was competitive swimmer: ages 8- ~15. Then I got into lifeguarding which kept me employed all though college. I also rode my bike like mad in high school, sometime averaging 20 miles a day! But after college and moving around the country, I’ve been lucky to keep an occasional gym membership. Now that we have a family YMCA membership I’ve got to use it more!
Lots of times I’ve tried to begin a running program but have always failed. Usually this has been from injury or lack of motivation and documented successes. So I scheduled a plan. I will work out three days a week right after picking up the girls from daycare. I researched on the internet and found the Couch to 5K running plan. Getting people like myself back in shape and running 5K in three months! Check it out at http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml. I ran last week with no Couch to 5 K and it was pulling teeth. This week I picked up the plan and so far it’s been great! So I’ll “Just keep swimming” or running.
Monday- Wednesday- Friday –First 3 Sessions-
Stretch
Brisk Walk -5 minutes
Jog 60 seconds
Walk 90 seconds
Do this for 20 minutes.

‘Till next time,

Julia