It's been a while, but I am still alive and breathing and loving life. I must inform you, I am typing this post on my new IPAD. It is the coolest invention yet and I think my kids enjoy it as much as I do. At any given point in the day, one of them asks "hey mom, where is your Big phone?" Eventually they will learn the right name for it, but at least it feels like money well spent. Everyone of us (with the exception of Audra) is getting use out of it. Nelle and Malaki are using it to learn letter sounds and formation, Tavia is using it for math combinations practice and Aaron and I are really enjoying an App called GoSkyWatch. You can point it at the sky, put this little box around and object (in the night sky) and it will tell you what it is. Very cool in my opinion. Okay enough about my new toy and on to other events of the past few weeks.

I am still going to the gym regularly and still really like it. I tried a new class this week called Bodyflow. It is a combination of Pilates, Yoga and Tia Chi. I. Loved. It! I wish it was something I could do three or four times a week, but I will have to settle for one a week. I did have to laugh, the one teacher is really into the meditation part of the class, and at the end she does what is called "guided" meditation. She talks in hushed tones and tells you to focus on the ball of inner light that flows thru your body. How can she say this stuff and keep a straight face? I used the "guided meditation" time to take a nap. So even though I never found that ball of unique light she kept talking about I certainly felt refreshed.

Tavia is already almost done with her first quarter. 3rd grade is a lot more study intensive than previous grades. She is still doing well, but it is definitely different for her and me.

September is a big birthday month for us. We celebrate four - two on each side. Tonight we did a combined party for Mom and Luke. We ended the evening outside chilling out around the fire pit and making smores. I used to never like those things and tonight I ate four. Yes, four.
Where oh where did my self-control go? It was a great time, but now the hubbo and I are snuggled up eating popcorn and watching football. Okay, he's watching football. I'm updating you people on my small corner of the world.

The mundane of Mondays

Okay I realize that I have been lacks posting recently. Can you loyal follows forgive a sister? I have been a little busy.

I have now been a loyal gym goer for two weeks and can I tell you a secret? I LOVE IT!! I am taking two different classes and they really are fun. Who'd have thunk ... exercise and fun all rolled into one activity. My kids seem to like the Kids Club well enough. My little one seems to be a bit concerned that I will forget her and only allows me to be absent from her sight-line for ~45 minutes each visit. After my alloted time is up one of the dear workers comes and gets me saying "she's not crying, she is just whimpering and looks sad" and then tells me that this has been going on since I dropped her off. Wow Audra, way to make Mom feel like pond scum for being the cause of your sadness and whimpering. I suppose one day I will long for my kids to feel that way in my absence, but in the midst of me burning 497 calories per hour, not so much. Alas I smile, because I know that I am loved.

I walked in an Alzheimer's Memorial walk this Saturday morning. Our group of ladies (plus Audra), walked three miles thru downtown Fredericksburg. It was a beautiful day, the fellowship was wonderful and the cause was more than worthy. Glad to say I was a part of it. After the walk, (meaning lots of calories burned) my darling husband had a Dunkin Donuts apple fritter waiting for me (meaning lots of calories taken in). I guess since I did the walk, inhaling the apple fritter at the end wasn't nearly as damaging to that Jillian Michaels figure I am after, than if I hadn't walked.

Sunday was busy as well. Since I am on the singing rotation at church, I had to be at church to go over my special. After leaving 15 minutes later than we were supposed to, discovering that my make-up was not in the car and my hair sporting the "wind-blown" look ... I realized that the Lord is in control, and it is okay to be put out of my eliminate. Lunch at Olive Garden was fantastic, bought a new headboard and foot board for super cheap, then ran home to turn around and go back to Stafford for Tavia's first day of drama rehearsal.

Tavia started 2:49 which is a drama program out of Mt Arrarat Baptist Church with Frick and Frack Music. I can not say enough about how wonderful this program is. Tavia absolutely loves the fellowship and the directors.

Home at 9:15 last night and exhausted.

I am so glad that today all I have to do is laundry.

Bring on the mundane.

Things that go bump in the night.

SLEEP! I love it, but can never seem to get enough of it. Four children, one husband, and two dogs have a way of making 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep non-existent.

Last night though, I went to bed with high hopes. Everyone had been sleeping soundly for several hours so I figured it would be smooth sailing. Wow, what was I thinking??

At 1:00 AM Audra woke up to eat ... no biggie this is a routine eating time recently.

At 4:30 AM Audra once again decided she needed a snack. I slowly slipped out of the bed, (a little less compliant this time) and headed for her crib. I had not taken two steps when my foot caught on something on the floor. It took a minute for me to realize that the dog was there, under my feet. At the same time she realized that she was under my feet. This sent me airborne thru the room where I face-planted into Aaron's closet doors. "from the bed room floor there arose such a clatter that Aaron sprang from the bed to see what was the matter" Only to find his wife laying on the floor in the fetal position in front of his closet and his infant daughter having quite the hoot-a-niny fit in her crib.

He tried to help me up, but I rejected his offer and had him get Audra out of the crib and I laid there for another minute or so trying to decide if I was really hurt, or if it had just been a brutal way to get fully awake. I slowly made my way up and made it back to my bed. I nursed the little princess again, put her to sleep and went to sleep again myself. Thinking that the bodily damage wasn't so bad, I tried to lay down. I quickly discovered that the left side of my body was not going to tolerate any pressure. So to the right side I rolled.

At 6:00 AM the dog was up and started pacing, by 7:00, I decided to get up to see how the closet door, floor, my head, and knees had faired in the episode. Closet door appears fine. The floor? unscathed. My head? Well I have a black eye ... my knees are bruised. I look like I went for a round in the wrestling right with my two year old. Motrin will be my friend for the coming days.

All I can think is that one day I will laugh about this event, and I can also say most assuredly that the dog will be sleeping in the kennel from now until kingdom come.

September 1st ....(okay it's the 2nd now) Wow! how did that happen?

Do you ever find yourself a bit "topsy-turvey" and you can't quite put your finger on why? Well, I'm there. I arrived at this point Monday afternoon/evening and haven't been able to shake that feeling. So after a bit of self analysis here is what I have come up with.

We joined the gym. That, for most people probably isn't such a big deal, but for me it seems to present several different obstacles to overcome. So here goes ...

1. Leaving the kids at the Kid's Zone. Yes, I am one of those moms. Even if they are perfectly okay with being left (and they are), I develop an irregular heart beat and break out in hives the closer we get to the door. They really like it in there. And who wouldn't? They have a Wii, a stadium seating movie room, a half basketball court, a kids Zumba class, and the list goes on. Audra gets held the entire time because she is so little and cute and cuddly. The workers don't have to convince me of that. I am just a little jealous that they get to hold her and I don't.

2. The Zumba class. I am really excited about this class, but have a few worries as well. What if I trip over my own two feet? What if I have no rhythm? What if I can't keep up with everyone else out there shaking their groove thang? What is I just fail ... miserably fail in every way?

3. What is I don't become fit? Can you possibly go to the gym (consistently) and not become more fit than you were before you started? Let's face it, I will NEVER look like Jillian Michaels, but what if there is no hope of ever escaping this post four pregnancy body?

4. I hate the havoc that it is going to cause with the semi-routine that we now have. A normal evening at home would be dinner and then outside to work in the garden, play in the yard etc., bathes then bed. Now it will be dinner, gym, bathes (if cooperative kids are still available) then bed. I just have this feeling that we will be losing a tremendous amount of family time. Am I crazy??

There are a lot of things that I am totally looking forward to.
1. For my mental well being, this is a great thing. I will be able to de-stress at least three times a week.

2. The kids will be in an environment where they will have to deal with people that are not guaranteed to be nice. The only experience the kids have is with the church nursery, where the kids are made to be nice to one another. I know initially this does not seem like a plus, but learning to deal with all kinds of people is a VERY important life skill.

3. Tavia will get to work out on some of the equipment as well as take a kids Zumba class. She is very excited about this.

4. I have the chance to shed this post four pregnancy body!! Yeah!

5. I got to buy pretty new workout clothes.

So writing today has been very therapeutic. I am looking forward to this new adventure. Zumba here I come!!!