Anthony the Drama King

Medieval torture device, known now as a bike trailer

Oh son. Son, son, son. Your shiny smile, inquizzitive personality, and sweet little voice just make our hearts go pitter-patter. But sometimes, I just have to tell ya, you are a DRAMA KING! I know it runs through both families but don't let it get the best of you! Fight the power!

Tuesday, we went over to my friend Shannon's house for our weekly playdate. Since it actually wasn't raining, we decided to take the kiddies to the pool. Usually we jog to the pool, but I didn't bring my jogging stroller because I was driving the smaller car and it doesn't fit in the back. So, Shannon suggested we take the bikes instead. What a great idea, says I, since I don't bike very often I was excited. She has the ancient medieval torture device shown above attached to her bike. She loads up her son, Chase, who's obviously quite used to it and sits quietly. Then, it's Anthony's turn to get in.

He was resistant, but I figured if we could just get him in there and get going, he'd like it. No such luck! I tried three separate times to get him in, and he SCREAMED bloody murder each time. We finally got him strapped in, all the while he continued to wail, and then he started contorting his body around trying to get loose, to the point he was turned around completely backwards and tangled in the arm straps. By this point he was really panicked, and I really can't blame him then. I got him loose, picked him up and tried to comfort him, but he continued to cry and cry, tears running down his face and snot running out of his nose. I put him the car and just drove him to the pool, and though he was better once we were there, he never really recovered. Though I doubt I scarred my child for life, I scarred him for a good six hours at least!

It's funny because I had thought about buying one of these bike trailers. Glad I didn't waste the money! I guess we can try a bike seat that attachs onto the adult bike when it cools down. Adam was really surprised he reacted that way too because he doesn't mind his stroller and loves to ride in his little car. Sometimes, my kid is just weird!

Chantel

Searching for my rhythm

Mileage totals for the past two days:
Sunday- 5 miles, ON THE TREADMILL thank you very much! Oh it was boring agony on a Sunday afternoon when nothing's on the gym tv's to be plodding along for 49 minutes... but it did help to look around and see out of the dozen or so people there, I was the ONLY GIRL!

Monday A.M.- 4.5 miles. Oh yeah, after a week of avoiding morning runs I got out there with Erin this morning at 6:45am and conquered 4.5 miles. My legs were tired from yesterday's run and the humidity was fierce, but we made it.

Now that it's almost August I really gotta start getting into a regular running schedule again so I'm used to it when training starts in September. This summer I've been pretty loosey-goosey, going when I felt like it with the knowledge that I can run 6-7 miles as a long run right now, which is all I need to be able to do to start marathon training.

If I'd known I was going to be quitting my job and starting a new business, I probably wouldn't have signed up for the marathon, but I'm committed now and actually, awful glad I am. Starting the business would've just been one more reason to put off running a marathon and likely, it would've never happened. Adam and I are talking about getting pregnant again next year, and though there's nothing to say I can't run a marathon after another baby and having two little ones to handle, now is the much better time!

In Health,
Chantel

Gggrrrrr

Well, got my lazy self up this morning and did a 3.25 mile run before work. It was my first morning run in two weeks, and I could certainly feel that in my tempo and pace. I just couldn't get into a good rhythm. I started 20 minutes after waking up, so I think maybe I didn't allow myself enough time to actually come alive before hitting the pavement. Erin and I are talking about doing a longer run Sunday morning. We'll see how that goes.

Why is it we so easily can block out hundreds of positive comments, but hearing one negative one throws us all out of whack? I'm sitting here stewing over one parent from my kids' cybercamps complaining about me to Gayle. Apparently her kid didn't like me too much, so she went home and whined to her mother, who comes back and asks Gayle why I am teaching a kids camp if I don't like kids. SAY WHAT?? First of all, I like kids just fine, otherwise I wouldn't have been offering these Cybercamps the past THREE YEARS. I would've told my boss after the first summer to just forget it, this stinks, give me back my adult classes. Second of all, this is a classroom. Yes, it's a free service to the military families, but no, that doesn't mean I'm going to let the kids run around with no structure whatsoever. They're here to learn and do projects on the computer. I expect them to behave politely and with rules, just like they have in school. If that makes me the mean, bad teacher, well then I guess I am! The problem is that so many parents these days let their kids run around without rules and let them back talk, curse, and just be overall rude to their teachers and other adults, then they're suprised when someone corrects their kid on their behavior.

It just makes me so annoyed because I've worked so hard every single school break to make sure the kids have a fun and enjoyable time while learning something cool too. Do I get irritated with some of them sometimes, sure, show me a teacher that doesn't! I have so much respect to teachers who do this every single day, all day long, without ever a thanks or good job. It truly is a thankless job! What I have to remember is that I've had many of the same kids come back year after year, and they wouldn't do that if they didn't enjoy the classes.

I don't know why I let one negative comment bother me so much. I guess it's because this parent didn't come to me and ask me about the situation, but just went and blabbed to Gayle, and furthermore, I don't even know what situation it was or who the kid was!

Oh well. I can't stress over what I can't change. But it can still annoy me!

Riding the Rollercoaster

Anthony fascinated with a balloon

This picture really doesn't have anything to do with a balloon, but I just liked it. Anthony's Auntie Aimee took the picture when he was visiting Grandma last month. Apparently the balloon provided quite a few minutes of entertainment!

Before I go on, I want to give a shout-out to my other sister-in-law Chiara, who is undergoing surgery today to remove a tumor from her kidney. The prognosis is very good, but it's still major surgery and we're all just praying for the best.

So, regarding the rollercoaster comment... it really has been one this past week with Baby Boot Camp. I'm in the final stages of securing locations, and just found out once location is a no-go and another is unhappy with the financial agreement. I think we can renegotiate on that one until everyone is smiley-fine, but it's annoying to still not have this stuff finalized. Looks like the YMCA is on board though, and this is the one I really wanted to secure. Up and down. Up and down.

The hardest part of this ramp up period by far has been visiting doctor's office (OBs and pediatricians) to leave marketing materials. I H-A-T-E this process! I feel like such a dirty salesman, coming in and bothering people when they're busy and grumpy for being stuck at work. I don't know how door-to-door salesmen do it. So far, the response has been decent; most places have allowed it. One that turned me down though was my own OB's office! I am still sooooo mad about that! I went in last Friday and talked to the receptionist, who was very nice and said she'd need to pass on a copy of my materials to the office administrator for approval.

I called the office adminstrator yesterday and left a message to see whether or not I'd be allowed to leave the brochures in the waiting room. She had someone else call me back to say no! This is my own doctor's office! I was so incredibly annoyed that I called back and left another voice message today asking again and reiterating that I am a patient there. She hasn't called me back so I'd assume the answer is still no. Like I said to her, I'm just trying to get the word out. I believe in this program and I believe it's very, very important for new moms to be aware of programs out there that can help them through the hardest times. What is the harm in allowing a few brochures in the waiting room?? Goodness knows patients at that practice need all the reading material they can get as they wait to be seen an hour or more after their scheduled appointments!

Enough of that rant. I just gotta ride out these highs and lows. That's the nature of the business, so to speak. Anthony's pediatrician was very receptive to helping me promote the program and is distributing all of my marketing materials. So, alas, you when some and lose some.

Running tomorrow a.m. with Erin for the first time in a week and a half!! I HATE morning runs!
In Health,
Chantel

P.S. Running

Oh yeah, running. yeah, I'm still doing it, but I've hit a wall with motivation because of this stinking heat. I did 4 miles on the treadmill Sunday and 3 yesterday. I've been varying the inclines and speed, trying to make it more interesting, plus the hill intervals are good for my training. Here's what I did yesterday:

Mile 1-
0.5% incline, 6.0 pace

Mile 2 (quarter mile intervals)-
1% incline, 6.5 pace
2% incline, 6.2 pace
3% incline, 6.2 pace
4% incline, 6.0 pace

Mile 3-
1% incline, 6.2 pace (recovery)
2% incline, 6.2 pace
1% incline, 6.5 pace to end

Game on!

I felt the need to blog about our latest family obsession... SCRABBLE! Oh yeah, the good old fashion spell-words-with-tiles game you remember as a kid. Sheramy bought a travel version on a whim one day, hoping I'd play with her. I have many fond memories growing up of my mom and neighbor/babysitter Diana sitting with their perm rods in their hair and playing Scrabble for hours, so natually, I was "game".

Enter the obsession.

Adam, who claims to hate Scrabble because he can't spell, decided to humor us by jumping in on the game. Little did we know he must've minored in Scrabble playing in college. Of the half dozen times we've played, Adam's won 2/3 of the time. Yes, it bothers me and Sheramy to no end. After all, we're the ones with the completed Advanced Degrees (spell boy's degree is in progress) AND he's the one who said he's lousy at it. W-H-A-T-E-V-E-R!

So my mother in law is visiting this week, and we decided to draw her into our circle of game playing madness. First night, she comes out shooting and rakes Adam and I through the coals. Last night though, the Scrabble gods shined down upon me. I started out the game with a 7 letter word and was unstoppable to a high of 258 points. BOOYAH! I was getting a little sick of losing, so my interest is repeaked. GAME ON!

Chris is here taking care of Anthony while his regular sitter Erica is on vacation. As I give him a kiss and head out in the mornings, I'm so happy knowing only a few more weeks left and he'll be with me. It's hard saying goodbye to your child in the mornings, knowing someone else gets to be with him all day. He's growing so fast, and I don't want to miss any of it.

Speaking of Baby Boot Camp, happy to report I solidified the YMCA as a location this morning. They are as excited about the program as I am. It's a load off my mind to know I have a good location set that will be able to bring me in lots of marketing and advertising.

Chugging right along... Grand Opening is set for September 8th!
In Health,
Chantel

Big Boy Food

Anthony sampling more adult fare


My extraordinary son has finally decided what the rest of us already knew: baby food is nasty! Now he has suddenly become open to trying out a new array of big-people delicasies. It started while we were in Atlanta; a trip to the Macaroni Grill resulted in Anthony chowing down on spaghetti with garlic and olive oil (sprinkled with a few red pepper flakes which amusingly made the dish too spicy for Grandma but just right for the one year old!). Since then, he's tried and liked popcorn shrimp, fish, Adam's "Italian Stallion stew" (raviolio, tomatoes, zucchini, and squash), among other things. Last night we took him to Moe's. I ordered him a side order of rice and beans topped with tomatoes. Again, he chowed down.

Since he's starting eating big boy food he's become SO much better at the dinner table too. He sits nicely, doesn't cry or pitch fits or do any of the other things he used to do to annoy us at dinner. We used to eat as quickly as possible in order to avoid the dinner meltdown; now we can sit back and enjoy, while Anthony happily munches the same food we're eating.

What a huge breakthrough! This child is now 100% perfect.

Didn't run yesterday. Adam and I were going to go to the gym and let Anthony hang out in their childcare center (another big breakthrough last week-- he spent 35 minutes in the childcare center while we worked out and didn't mind a bit!), but I was grumpy due to Aunt Flo and had ran both days before. Tonight I teach at the gym, so I'll get my workout in then, and tomorrow we'll try the gym again. I do hate running on the treadmills. I try to make it more interesting by adding the hill intervals, but 30 minutes feels like an hour when you're running in place.

Big meeting with the YMCA tomorrow for Baby Boot Camp. I'm super excited and nervous. I really want this to work!! I think it'll be huge exposure to me to be a part of this YMCA.


In Health,

Chantel