Random thoughts from my hiding spot

This morning I decided I was going to stay a step ahead of the kids.  Maybe...just MAYBE...we could have a morning of no fighting?  I often wash and slice a pound of strawberries before anyone realizes they are hungry, then place them on a table near the tv watching/game playing.  This buys me some time as they figure out exactly what they want to eat for breakfast, right?  Well, every time I do this, we run out of strawberries just a tad early.  Today, I sliced TWO pounds!  So smart, yes?  No.  There was still fighting.  Over who got more strawberries.  Children stuffing their cheeks like squirrels with strawberries and spitting juice out as they attempt to exclaim, "I got FOUR!"  Ugh.

Tomorrow, I slice 4 strawberries.  One per kid.  Then they can have size wars..

Anyway, not really what I wanted to blog about, but it is fresh on my mind.  So, you're welcome. 

This morning I have lost 7 pounds!  Over the past 8 days I have been focusing on meeting all of the goals set by my FitBit.  The "generic" goals are 10,000 steps each day/5 miles/10 flights of stairs.  I also told it my current weight and my goal weight and it gives me a calorie allotment based on that goal.  If I burn extra calories, FitBit will increase my allotment.  Nice, right?  Out of the past 8 days, I missed my goals on just 2 of those days.  However, I didn't miss by much and I really concentrated on eating fewer calories than I burned.  Also started concentrating on my water intake.  YAY!

I have started the Runner's World run streak...1 mile each day between Memorial Day and Labor Day.  Today is Day 4 and I plan to hit this gym this afternoon.  I had a 5+ mile run yesterday, so I will likely just keep the running to the one mile, but I will definitely do some extra strength training while there.  And some Tetris Blitz.  :)

Sunday's planks and burpees went well.  Sadly, I only made it through 8 rounds before having to leave for work, and then it was so busy at work I couldn't sneak away even just twice to complete it.  I also have to admit that some of my "thanks" were repeats.  I realize there are millions of little things to be thankful for in this world...it is just a little bit hard to think of those little things when your abs are shaking and kids are screaming. 

We are taking our first ever family vacation this weekend!  We are heading to Virginia Beach on Saturday and staying at a hotel ON the beach through Monday.  Just my husband and I and the 4 kids.  No grandparents.  No aunts/uncles/cousins/nannies.  Pray we survive.  Seriously.  Close quarters are not usually great for us...but I just really feel the need to get out of town.  I am hopeful that the hotel is exciting enough to keep the kids indoors some.  I know that sounds crazy, but the ocean is kind of scary!  Keeping track of four wild kids at the ocean is scarier!  Last summer my sister and I took the kids to the beach for one day, and I was exhausted just from the constant head counts.  This year, though, we are taking beach toys (shovels, buckets, etc.) so maybe that will keep a couple of them entertained on land. 

While at the beach, I am going to have to sneak away for at least a mile run on each day.  Today I will run at the gym this afternoon, tomorrow I will try to get up early (before Shaun leaves at 6:30) and get at least 3 miles in.  For the past couple of days, running has felt SO great.  Yesterday, I even ran a sub-10 minute mile!  I haven't done that in I don't know how long.  Especially considering it was hot and muggy outside, I was running by myself...I actually felt like a dog that had been let out of it's cage finally!  Haha.  Truly I think it has everything to do with my diet.  Watching my calories for the first day or two left me hungry...until I realized eating healthy things counts as less calories and fills me up better.  Hmmm.  Amazing.  :)  Another sad thing I learned?  Papa John's pizza has around 300-350 calories PER SLICE.  Sad, sad, sad.  I don't think I have ever eaten less than 3 slices in one sitting.  And more often it's 5 slices.  WOW.  Last week, though, I had one piece.  Just one.  Mini success!

Okay, the fighting is getting out of control, so I will stop distracting myself with the computer.  I think a better idea for a vacation would be all 6 of us going to a different location for the weekend.  Maybe if we missed each other a bit we would hear less "I hate you!  You are a baby!  You pee your bed!  Pshhhew!"  That last one is how I spell out the noise they make as they pretend to shoot each other with lasers. 

Have a great weekend!!

THANKS with planks and burpees!

Good morning!!

I've been gone.  Now I'm back.  No excuses, that is just the way it is.  :)

So, today is Sunday.  For those who are friends with me on Facebook, and/or part of Baby Boot Camp you know we had a few weeks of challenges presented by our fearless leader, Kira.  For those who aren't, here are some more details! 

One Saturday it was push-ups.  The next it was Burpees.  We were trying to do 100 in a day and these were broken up by doing 10 each hour for 10 hours.  "We" are the members of Baby Boot Camp.  If you are a mom (or even a nanny!), you should check out your town to see if there is a local group!  It has absolutely been the best "club" I have ever joined.  During those challenges we all took pictures of the silly places we did our challenges...one mom did push-ups at Target, one mom was doing them on the side of the road.  I tried to find ridiculous places to do mine just to make the challenge even more fun.  I can't always be consistent in my class attendance, but I will ALWAYS rise up to a challenge.  Especially one that can be done wherever I am!  So, I posed another challenge (mostly to myself) one weekend to do 10 flights of stairs each hour.  That one was rough.  I have purchased a "FitBit" and noticed that Tuesdays and Thursdays are my most sedentary days...I'm talking an average of 3,000-4,000 steps total.  That is terrible!  So, those two days I have been taking the "every hour" thing and running down and back on my street each hour.  This is .36 miles every hour...which definitely adds up!  Sometimes I would walk fast, sometimes jog.  The bonus part?  There is a hill at the end of my road that apparently counts to FitBit as 2 flights of stairs! 

All of this background is bringing me to the point, I promise. 

In Bible study this week the author of the book we are studying (Ann Voskamp) said something that just resonated with me.  It was just a rhyming of words "thanks for planks".  We had just finished a quick (off topic) discussion about the various challenges I had been posting pictures for and I even gave a little demonstration of how to do a plank...so, the phrase just stuck with me.  (by the way, Ann was referring to trusting the bridge maker when you drive across a bridge...giving thanks for the planks that make up the bridge)  Anyway, I was thinking about one Sunday when I posed a challenge of doing one minute planks every hour.  (um, that one hurt the next day!)  Making the PLANKS about giving THANKS.  On a Sunday.  To the ONE I should be thanking every day! 

Today's "challenge" is to do 10 burpees and a 20 second plank every hour.  Every hour I will also thank God for 10 blessings in my life.  Since my children get up ridiculously early, I was able to start my challenge in the 7 o'clock hour.  Amidst yells and screams and fighting children I did my 20 second plank and gave thanks for 1. This Day, 2. Comfortable beds for sleeping, 3. Waffles for breakfast, 4. My husband getting the 3 boys dressed before heading to work, 5. An amazing church that I can look forward to even when I've only had a few hours of sleep, 6. A great job (both mine and my husband's), 7. Sweet kitty cats that love to sleep at my feet, 8. Energetic children (this sometimes doesn't exactly FEEL like a blessing!), 9. The internet...my favorite way of keeping in touch with far away family and friends, 10. The ability to complete a 20 second plank and 10 burpees!

It is nearing the end of the 8 o'clock hour, so I will be getting down as I post this.  I am feeling a little stressed and sleepy and annoyed, so coming up with 10 blessings feels like a struggle right now.  However, as I watch the sun stream through the trees and see the thermostat warming up and hear the birds (ok, and the cicadas) singing their songs....there is 3 right there.  It is the little things I forget to notice each day.  It is the beauty all around me that I just walk quickly right on by and continue worrying about the yelling children and the "mom! mom! mom!" I hear constantly.  There are always 10 blessings around you.  You just have to be quiet (for 20 seconds!) and LISTEN. 

8 o'clock:  1.  Sunshine, 2. Roof over our heads, 3. DVR so I can always catch up on my shows!, 4. Text messaging...so I can keep in touch with others even when the screaming is way too loud for phone calls, 5. The promise of 74 degrees today, 6. Plans for a Memorial Day cookout with great friends and family, 7. Hotel reservations for a beach vacation, 8. Sloppy Joes (for so many reasons, I am thankful for Sloppy Joes.  Honestly), 9. A very close relationship with my sister, 10. This blog as a forum for getting my thoughts "written" down!

Have a great day!