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| pretty views on this beautiful snowy morning |
Even though I felt like crap and should have slept in instead of going running this morning, I didn't want to miss it. My sister (new blogger!) is in town and we made plans to run with the group. I kind of "slept in" - till 6 and she came over and we drove to Valley Forge to run 10 miles. Around here, there is snow everywhere. It was hard for the hosts this week to find a route that was safe to run on. We ended up doing 2 loops of Valley Forge park that start and ended from the visitors center. It was exactly 10 miles. We had to dodge a good amount of snow and ice and climb through some snow too. I did have a nice little wipeout - it was all one motion. I fell and kind of ran through it. I guess you feel embarrassed when you fall. It was a good laugh and I came away from it unscathed. We ended up at around 9:40 pace, but being that I didn't feel well, the hills and the snow, it wasn't a big deal. It felt fine and was a nice run with my sis! I love when we can run and chat.
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| Kimp running down the hill |
Post run, we stopped for bagels and a guy that I swim with is the same age as Kimp and wanted to meet her. They are both college swimmers and have alot in common and both single. It went well. I describe him as high energy and he's a morning person. It was a nice breakfast and maybe it will go somewhere except that he lives here and she lives in DC.
I'm still feeling quite lost in terms of the day-to-day. Before having Nick, I felt bad for stay-at-home moms and planned a return to work in 8 weeks. I didn't want to feel the isolation and inferiority (that I feel now). Sometimes I question if I should have just tried it to see how it would have been. Don't get me wrong, I love being able to be home with the kids, but I like how I feel when I am out swimming or running in a group and having an identity away from the kids. What set some of this off is when we went to get our numbers for getting a mortgage and one salary isn't going to get us the type of home we want to settle into. I'm working on what to do about this - it is causing stress in my home life. I don't think that full time teaching is going to work out for me with small children - and I feel like if I did that, I wouldn't feel right leaving on the weekends for long runs and such. I'd count the time at work as my "me" time. However, part-time jobs are very very hard to come by. I'm on the look out while at the same time making sure that I am counting my blessings. I know that I am going to miss this time. I'm just ready for this phase where I am having a hard time with it to pass!
love the new banner pic!!! sorry you're not feeling well, hope it gets out of your system quickly.
ReplyDeleteas for the house buying/work situation...money issues are so stressful. maybe it's the stress that got you sick, it does a number on your immune system.
Great job on the 10-miler!
ReplyDeleteFunny that you would say you feel inferior by being a SAHM. That's how I feel being a working mom. I would love to stay at home, but no matter how much we cut back there is absolutely no way we could swing it. Student loans (mainly DH's!) will keep me in the work force whether I like it or not.
Grass is always greener right? I agree part-time would be the best of both worlds. Guess that's why they're so hard to come by.
I like the new picture! Good luck with the whole job thing. I teach full time and have an 8 year old and a 2 year old, and it does keep me busy. Sometimes too busy. But I don't think I could stay sane if without work. I admire moms who can, but I seriously need time away from my kids.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I could function well on 6 hours of sleep a night. Right now I get 7-8 a night, but I'm not training as hard as you are. When I train harder in the summer, I need more sleep than that.
Sorry to hear you're sick again! It's my opinion that you can consume all the right things, etc, but germs are germs. And you have two kids who are most likely frequently exposed to other small kids; germs with kids are just a fact of life and paretns pick up pretty much whatever their kids do.
ReplyDeleteBut, on that note, I sleep WAY more -- about 9 hours a night (yet, I think all people function differently with differing amounts of sleep -- I have always slept a lot, and right now, when I'm able I can easily sleep 10-12 hours in a night).
I think feeling a bit lost is natural. Being a parent, no matter what work decisions you make, makes you feel disoriented. Just find comfort in the fact that you're not alone in anything you feel about this!
I cannot function well on 6 hours of sleep. I get 8-9, if I want to feel good and I can't really go with less than 8 for more than a couple days in a row before I'll get sick. I hope you're feeling better soon!
ReplyDeleteLove the new pic! It makes me feel like such a wimp for complaining about the black ice earlier this week :-)
ReplyDeleteSleep - I need,/require 8hrs. And, if I can sneak in a 30min nap on a given day I am much nicer person/mom. I used to feel guilty about it, but then realized it was a good way to take care of me.
Lastly, I busted on an icy run earlier this month...the only one in my group. But, I got right back up and kept running, and hardly bruised at all. Maybe running thru those falls helps the healing process :-)
Love the snow pictures! Sorry you had a fall :-(
ReplyDeleteI think you need a little more sleep plus up your vita C intake. Get a supplement (I buy Solaray brand) and start taking 3 1k mg caps 3 times a day until you feel better. Once you start feeling better you can find the amount that helps keep you well. I'm still taking about 4k a day. Vita D is also essential to staying well! You should be taking about 4k mcg a day and when you feel a sickness coming on you need to up that. Dr. Tenpenny has the correct dosage info on her website. So the main stuff to help your immune system in the winter is: echincea, vita C, vita D and I know Dr. Tenpenny says vita A....but I keep forgetting to look up that dosage info as well.
It does stink to live on one income. We are drastically downsizing to afford what we can live in. Just think that it really won't be much longer until your kids will be in school all day and you can go back to work and work on the house that you want. Enjoy the time that you have with them now :-)
I also thought I would throw in that I was also eating about 2 oranges a day and I THOUGHT I was getting a lot of vita C until I looked it up online. An orange only has about 45 mg of vita C! That is NOT enough! I'm from the mindset that no matter how healthy I eat, I can not eat enough to get all the vitamins and minerals I need. There is a girl I know that argues this point with me and she is literally sick at least once a month and then she's taking all kinds of medications for them. It's hard for me to keep my mouth shut :-P
ReplyDeleteI'm getting sick too... urgh!
ReplyDeleteI am sick of being sick too! My little germ factories have been bringing everything home and we keep passing stuff back and forth to each other. It seriously has been about a month!
ReplyDeleteI totally understand your internal tug of war about working and staying at home. I have done both and I will say both are equally hard. I think you need to do what will make you the happiest.
I was sick all last week courtesy of visiting our nieces - actually kind of knocked me for six. I was on the couch most of the week! Usually I take Cod liver oil tablets during the winter (have been doing that since childhood). My mum used to take it in liquid form (it's as bad as you imagine!) or a tablespoon of molasses and rarely got sick. I think sleep has a role to play too. I aim for 7-8 hours a night, though it's usually more like 7 1/2. Don't be too hard on yourself - you're being a super mama, finding time for your running/training, inventing healthy meals for your kids and figuring out the whole work thing. So I'd say more kudos!!
ReplyDeleteAlso, have you thought about somehow networking or asking around for a job share situation? Sometimes there are people in the same set up as you who are working full time and would love to get some with their kids while only working P/T. And you'll really appreciate being a teacher when you go back - it's seriously the best job if you're a parent with the summers off (as much as my brother in law didn't like it in the end, he misses the time off aspect with his kids).
As others have said - more sleep would prob help but hard to do if your pumping. I'm no good at day napping either and usually stay up after first feed to get exercise in and or breakfast in peace! But it does take it's toll. I'm like many other I need loads of sleep - always have.
ReplyDeleteSpeed work can lower immune system too as can increasing mileage and it is usually recommended to increase 1 or the other at a time so if you've been upping both....(I'm starting to think I should change careers and become a personal trainer! I love all things exercise and physiology related!LOL)
Stress too.... well that's a killer - totally why I've been knocked recently. 1 salary, bills jobs - awful - totally hear you.
It is hard - I think I will find taking time to exercise hard when at work and yet it is so important to have something that is just for you. I think you will pop out of this phase and things will be easier again. You do an AMAZING job with 2 wee ones who are both so young. I'm knackered and I just have the one!
Take care and hope you feel better soon. Oh and if you're a hill runner then wiping out is inevitable so you just get used to it!LOL!
Great pic,
Kaz.
I was out in that yesterday, too - pretty fun :)
ReplyDeleteHope you're feeling better soon!
First off, LOVE the new blog look! Your picture is so cute and I like your font and the whole 9 yards.
ReplyDeleteSecond, I don't anything about sleep. I used to count myself as a morning person and functioned great with not much sleep. Then when I started working, sometimes it was harder to get out of bed in the morning. Then when I got married, I had to get used to my husband's sleep scheduled. He likes his 8 hours and he does not want it to be disturbed by me going to bed or waking up significantly earlier or later than he does. (He'll have another coming to him when we have a baby!) I honestly, though, feel like I feel better, get up more easily, and even look better when I have less than 8 hours sleep. So, I think it just depends on what makes you feel better.
Third, I hope you feel better- physically and mentally- soon! Is there a way that you could try out working- maybe for just a semester without a contract- to see how it goes?
Sleep is always a priority, I think (as a fellow mom) is one of the most important things that we often lack. My little guy is finally sleeping through the night and my entire world has changed now that I'm up only once at night instead of three times. Look at ways to get more sleep, either at night or via napping. Its hard to take a nap, especially when both kids are sleeping ... because its your time to get things DONE. I get it. But prioritize yourself instead of things like housework ;)
ReplyDeleteAnd about the working/SAHM mom thing. I think either way you will feel as if the grass is greener. That is life! But, you need to do the best with what you are given. If you are working, find a way to make the time with your kids special. If you SAH, then you need to find ways to make your life your own (and not always about being "Mom").
hope you feel better soon. as mothers, im not sure if we will ever find a roll that we are completely happy with. i work part time and wish i didnt have to work at all. my friends tell me im lucky...i tell them they are lucky. the grass is always greener no matter the situation. btw, love the new space here....thought i was lost when i saw the new header, but quickly realized i was in the right place LOL. get some rest!
ReplyDeleteLove the new picture! :) I wish I had some advice about sleeping. I'm a sleeper - 8-9 hours a night, but I don't have little ones at home so it's easy to get in that much.
ReplyDeleteHope you are feeling better!
First let me say....LOVE the new look! As a working mom sleep is something that I always sacrifice. I am up a 4;15 to prep dinner for that night then off to the gym to run. Before I walk out the door I also put in a load of laundry. All this is done and I am racing off to work by 6:30am. The one thing that I have learned about being a working mom is that there is very little time for me. It may be just what I am feeling right now but I always feel like I am rushing and giving to others. I know it is a case of the grass is always greener for me...but I would give my right arm to be able to stay home. I know it is a hard decision for you and it is a financial sacrifice. I hope you get peace with your decision and that everything works out!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous pictures. Looks like a great run with your sister.
ReplyDeleteLike everyone else said, 6 hrs of sleep is not a lot. Plus, I think if you are stressed you are prone to becoming sick more easily.
I used to feel inferior about being home full-time (especially after Elena was born). Not sure why, but I can relate to what you are saying. It changed for me once I started to focus on my needs during the day and taking time for myself and realizing that if I was at work I wouldn't be able to do this (i.e. taking naps during the day, watching my favorite shows, training). Maybe you should get more sleep and be more selfish during the day? Plus, this weather doesn't help.