Exercise and Motherhood

Hello followers.

Sorry for the two year lack of writing, we have been busy making and having babies. Our life is full with two boys, Logan just turned two, and Owen was born March 6th. So I guess you could say I have had my hands busy.

But I'm back at it, thinking and blogging lots on life in general, so I hope you are prepared for lots of insight! My brain hasn't stopped being funny just b/c I have become a mother, its become insanely more awesome. Enjoy!

As I type this blog, I am sitting here with a 5 lb. infant looking up at me in my lap, and my toddler kicking away in his crib protesting a nap. You think, "how does she ever get anything done with two under two?" Well, its simple. You use every minute of every day, and you do stuff. You dont' have time to be lazy (although some of those sleepless nights sure make you want to be lazy, and stay in your sweats all day). You still live your life to its fullest, and don't complain about how busy and tired you are. That is how you get things done.

Here is an example of one day with my two boys. Wake up around 630am, feed Owen. Change a poopy diaper. Hear Logan calling "mama" in his room next to ours, go get him. Change his diaper, get him dressed, brush his teeth. Family breakfast downstairs. Dad stays home with the two boys while mom gets her run on. Turn on Thomas the Train for Logan, Owen naps, mom showers and gets ready. Then its time to get out of the house. if its nice, we do something outdoors, if its crappy, we do playdates, jungle gyms, trampoline parks, toddle open gyms, etc. My toddler has more energy and I must expend it in order for him to nap for me. We get home around 11am, feed Owen, change his poopy diaper, feed Logan lunch, might feed myself lunch, put logan down for his awesome 3 hour nap, one-on-one time with my Owen. Then he naps, I clear the house, pick up toys, do laundry, wash out bottles, pumping stuff, and prep stuff for dinner. Logan wakes up around 3pm, we have cuddles, get him a snack, change another poopy diaper, go outside and run wild (good thing we live in a kid-friendly culda-sac so we can kick a ball around and he won't get hit by a car). Then after two hours of playtime, we have dinner made up, daddy comes home around 530pm, then its family dinner, bath time for both boys, play time with daddy, settle down time with books, both boys sleeping by 730pm. Owen wakes up for his feeding at 9pm, and then we have lights out. ANd then we wake up and do it all over again the next day. Its awesome. I absolutely LOVE my life. I wouldnt' want it any other way. Life will change when I go back to work, but right now, I am enjoying maternity leave A LOT.

That is a "simple day" in our world. Then you add in a few more factors: we have a 5 week old, who came 4 weeks early, spent the first week of his young life in the special care nursery, then we were home for not even a week, and we were admitted to Childrens' for dehydration and vomiting and were there for three days, then came home for less than a week, and he had surgery on his bum kidney and spent another three days in the hospital. Yes, he is only 5 weeks old. That is stress, but how I handle the stress is how I am defined. Most people in that given circumstance, would lay in bed every free minute they have, and feel bad for themselves, wishing that someone would come to their house and clean it for them. That's not how one should live.

The way I get through my stress is through exercise. Running is my zen. Its my one outlet that truly helps me get through some thick stuff. I wouldnt' be able to get through my most stressful days without running. I pushed my second baby out in three pushes, turned to the doctor and asked her if she could clear me to run a race that I had signed up for the following weekend (not knowing we would be pregnant at the time). She looked at me and laughed. I then went on and asked her if she was sure there was only one baby inside of me b/c I still had so much energy and adrenaline going through me that I was ready to push out a few more babies. people probably hate me for how easy my second was, but if they knew how hard my first delivery was, they would understand that I completely deserve Owen.

Oh yeah, back to running. If you haven't read the book "Run like a Mother", go buy it, and read it. Its amazing, and its the best book that will help you get off your lazy butt after having a baby, and exercise (besides reading my awesome motivating blogs). I have found that I am a better mom b/c of the "me time" I set aside and have (usually consists of running). When I get back from a run, I am clear-minded and ready to be a refreshed mom! I love my boys to DEATH, but we all need a break from our kids at times. On todays' 2.5 mile run (give me a break, I got cleared to run 3 weeks earlier than normal people do- and I need to start out slow, don't worry, I have plenty of time to train for the 1/2 marathon in June), all I could think about were my boys. I know its supposed to be "me time" but I would start laughing out loud mid stride, by some of the things Logan says. His world is so awesome, I would love to be inside his brain for a day, and Owen is such a joy, minus the sleepless night we had the night before last). My world is my boys.

But I also got to thinking about how crabby I am when I couldnt' run the first three weeks after having Owen. My husband probably took the brunt of it. But he understands my obsession. I had a 1-week follow up with my doctor due to some complications we had post-deliver, and tried to get cleared to run that day. She again, laughed at me, and said, lets compromise and say 3 weeks. I agreed. I never was a runner, EVER. I hated running. Running meant punishment in my world. I was a two sport athlete in college, soccer and basketball, and we hATED running. haha. But now I have grown to run marathons, and I LOVE running. I am not fast by any means, and I don't ever place, but its so refreshing and I do it for the challenge and sense of accomplishment.

Well, I now have a screaming baby in my lap (he said I was writing too much) and its time for my toddler to wake up since he took so long to fall asleep. I promise I will write a much more organized blog with no chaos next time.

See you soon!
Steph