Running Humble, But RUNNING!!!!

It has been almost ten weeks since I have run.  If you do not count the run I did the day before I gave birth, it has been 20 weeks since I have run.  It has  been 50 weeks since running without a baby inside me and 60 weeks of running non-competitively.  That is a loooonnnnnggg time to be away from something you have gotten used to doing every week for years on end.  So you can imagine my excitement when two and a half weeks ago I was cleared by my midwife to exercise.  And you can also imagine my dismay when I called my PT/coach and he told me that I was sidelined to weights and elliptical training for an additional two weeks before I could run.

Ok, so I never ever ever disobey my coach, but this weekend I went here

Yup, outside in the warm Florida air!

to celebrate with some beautiful ladies on the eve of a very special gal's wedding

The bride and I

and left my extraordinary husband home with the baby and the puppy while I partied and basked in the sun. Yes, I know I have an amazing husband, commence being jealous now.

They did fun stuff that was educational too 

Anyway, back to the point, I know I said I never ever disobey my coach but when you have not really truly run in 60 weeks and you are in freaking FLORIDA and it is beautiful out and you have a three mile loop outside your front door and the indoor gym does not have the elliptical you want, then what can you really do?  Can you blame me for running...it was clearly utterly impossible not too. I know so many women postpartum who are back runnings days or just a few weeks post giving birth, I waited almost 10 weeks... I think that is a great amount of patience...right?

How could I not go outside in this weather

So the actual run itself.  I would love to tell you it was incredible.  That I settled into my old 5k pace of low 7s and passed every runner out there.  I would love to say that I was not winded, that nothing hurt, and that it was like I had never been away.  But seriously, I just got finished telling you that I have not truly run in 60 weeks, how do you think those 3 miles went?!? They HURT - HURT LIKE HELL and I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT.  Ok, I did not love that I got a side cramp at Mile .25, that I was gripping with my toes, that I had to use my iPhone for music, that my shoulders and arms hurt, and that I was as red as I was when running a 5k at super speed.  But I did love that I was out there, feeling like myself again, bllasting my favorite pump up playlist, passing some people (albeit people who were walking), soaking up the sun and just doing what I love, running.

The run was 3 looong miles.  It took me 28-30 minutes.  I wanted to run like the wind, I wanted to move fast, but my body just physically could not. I mentally could not believe how long 3 miles felt!  When I saw the mile marker for Mile 1, I was in utter disbelief. How could I have only run one mile?!?! And by Mile 2 I was pretty much convinced I had gotten lost or already passed my starting point because how could I have not gone three miles by now?!?  But ultimately, slow or not, I made it and when I got there, well I had a little dance party because I just ran three miles!!!!

Yay for the return of sweaty running pictures!

Regardless of whether this run took 20 minutes or 30 minutes, it meant so much to me.  It reminded me of my love for running.  It let me be myself and just let go.  And alas it was also incredibly humbling.  At one point in my running career, running 3 miles in 30 minutes would have been a walk in the park.  Yesterday, it was incredibly difficult.  I had to work extremely hard to make it that far. It reminded me that I have a long way to go to get back to where I am.  But I WILL get there.  I will train hard, I will run fast, and I will have the time of my life getting there.

Have you ever had to come back from taking a break from running?  Is it difficult to get back into it? How do you handle it?

Welcome Baby Lee!

Last post seems light years away.  Looking at that person running a 5k on Thanksgiving, it seems like a totally different person entirely.  I wanted to post all of this sooner, but well we have been kind of busy around here with Baby Beluga - also now referred to as Lee Michael.  There is so much to say about little Lee and our experiences thus far.  It has not always been easy and that is probably the understatement of the year but I am totally falling head over heels for this little guy.

Mr. Lee Michael a.k.a Mr. Man

Ok so where to start?  How about Lee's birth story....

Just a little background, I have been saying for the two weeks prior to Lee's birth that I would just wake up one morning and know that I would go into labor that day.  Aaron had been saying my body was holding out for my Thanksgiving Day apple pie as I may or may not have been saying for nine months that I was getting that pie.

Thanksgiving came...my due date and I actually felt no prelabor signs that I had experienced for the past week or two - no cramping or bowel movements.  Instead, Aaron, Wubby and I set for our 5k/Turkey Trot.  Yes, we ran a 5k Thursday morning.  Well, we ran the first 1.5 miles and then I got this awful groin pain and we walked the rest of the way.  We still won youngest participant.  I thought I pulled/strained my groin muscle and waddled around the rest of the day. I was soo mad at myself for pushing it too hard.  However, it seems that the goal of moving the baby down was actually what happened...and of course I had some apple pie.

Friday morning, I woke at 1 a.m. with menstrual like cramps.  They occured every hour - which had been fairly normal for me of. Around 5 a.m. they were every 20-30 minutes.  I finally woke up with that "hmmm" feeling, but did not want to excite myself and be disappointed.  Instead, I let Aaron go to hockey and I went on the ellitpical feeling some pain at exactly 20 minute and 40 minute marks.  Aaron came home and I generally mentioned that I felt something was up and that I was going to shower just in case.  I did some laundry and texted my doula telling her that maybe I was crazy but it seemed that there was a bit of a pattern.  She told me to eat something and call her around 11 AM.

From 10 to 11, it definitely started to feel like I had low back pain that moved to my inner, upper thighs and into my lower stomach.  The pain occurred every 5 minutes or so, lasting 30 seconds, but I was still cleaning the house and getting ready just in case.  At 11, my doula said she was going to come over; at home my contractions were more random - maybe 20 minutes apart for instance but lasting 10 minutes or so.  However, by that time they were definitely painful. Around 12 p.m. they were about 5 minutes apart and I was itching for my doula to arrive.  When she got there at 1 pm, I was hunched over our  ottoman rocking and trying to make my way through contractions.  From there on in, it felt like there was no break and that my contractions were about 5 minutes apart lasting a minute or so - sometimes less, sometimes more.  I had a ton of back labor which was not fun.  My doula kept asking me to get up to go pee  - which was even worse.  I definitely had many of the phrases along the lines of I want the epidural and when can we go to the hospital.  My body however really seemed to know what to do when I did not.  Many times contractions came in full force starting in the back and radiating to the front - if I was at the toilet I would stand up and bend all the way into Aaron and do squats.  Sometimes I just literally fell to all fours looking for a place for myself.  Most of the time I did the  equivalent of pelvic rocks on the ottoman.  The breaks were short - during which time Aaron and my doula had me drink Gatorade and pee some more. My doula continued to provide back pressure, hip squeezes, while Aaron continued to physically hold me up and support me.  We tried other positions (the tub) but pretty much just stuck with the above.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, it was dark, the moon was out and we called the midwife who gave us the green light to come to the hospital.  We left around 5:30 arriving to the hospital at 6.  In the waiting room, I literally had to drop to all 4s, scaring the receptionist as we came through.  She asked how far apart the contractions were and the doula responded 5 minutes.  We went into triage and I was 5 cm, 90% effaced, and had my bloody show.   My midwife met us right there and I was still so ready for that epidural..

We made it to our room and were checked again I was 9.5 cm and 90% effaced, +2 station with a bulging bag of water.  The midwife was amazing.  She was so cool, calm and collected. It was weird sometimes to look over at her writing something on the chart like not a care in the world.  No biggie, just painful labor.  She stayed with us the whole time.  Aaron and our doula took their cues from her.  The biggest hump was that last cervical lip.  My midwife tried to push it back so I could push for awhile as I feeling such an overwhelming need to push and sooo much pressure.  However the baby was posterior and needed to still turn.  Thus ultimately, I had to not push for about an hour.  This was probably the hardest part of labor.  The amount of pressure felt low into my rectum was unbearable.  However my team really got me through.  It was amazing how through my midwife's instruction I could use my breath to manage this.  Every time I got off track and screamed/moaned she instructed me to come back to my breath and I just intensely knew I had to listen to her to get this baby to come into the world.  She had us do lunges, squat on the toilet, all fours, go into the bath, and lye on my side on the bed with my feet in the air. Finally, one big push and my bag of water broke - it was such a relief.

From there we pushed.  Again, the pushing seemed to be all about the breath, finding a point of intensity and holding that push, releasing, taking another big breath and another push.  All I wanted was to keep pushing to get this baby out but I had to learn to only push with the contractions and to enjoy my "breaks" in between.  Soon I got the chance to reach down and feel the baby's head as well as have the mirror to see the baby come out.  With each push, I focused on my nurse and midwife's instructions to push, hold, push a little more or not.  Finally, actually only in an hour, he was out!  Baby B had entered the world - naturally  about 11.5 hrs of labor and a 9 apgar score.

New to the world! 

Aaron caught him and he came right to my chest.  Aaron also clamped the cord once it stopped pulsing.  The placenta came fairly quickly and was not too bad all.  I had a second degree tear but no episiotonmy.  I cold not have done it without Aaron, my doula, and my midwife.

Wow I have so much more to say and can't take up more of your time. This may be a little jumbled but I wanted to get out here finally.  Baby B or Baby Lee is with us.  Sitting on my lap sleeping as I type this.  Better get it posted before he wakes and wants to eat.  Hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season!

Turkey Trot: A Family Affair

Well Baby B, we made it 40 weeks!! You are due today or yesterday (depending upon what ultrasound you want to follow).  I cannot wait to meet you!!!  Dad and I are sooo excited (and Wubby too, well if he got that I was actually pregnant).

40 weeks!!!!

But in the meantime, while we wait for your arrival, we decided to do what we do best -  RUN a.k.a walk/waddle or TROT!  This morning my town had a very low key 5k and it was the perfect race for our family.  This race was so low key that I had only heard of it through word of mouth, there was no website, all I knew was the time the race started and where to show up.  We were worried that this race would not even exist and thus had a backup race.

We showed up at 7:30 to a card table set up and a big sign that said Turkey Trot and about 5 other cars.     We did get numbers and gave a donation (there was no actual cost you could donate food or money)! By 8:00 a.m., there was music playing, about 200 people, babies in strollers, and 10 dogs!  The highlight of this race - dogs could run and place as well! We knew we could not deny Wubby the opportunity to debut in his first 5K.  Boy, was he excited and competitive staking out the competition with quite a few jumps, barks, and sniffs!

Raring to go!

At 8 a.m., we started with a "Gobble" "Gobble."  No Garmin but we did rock the dri-fit clothing including my pre-pregnancy running capris (ok so they can't go anywhere across my belly but I will take it and they worked well).  We had to start in the back because of the puppy, but no big deal there today as I was not planning on passing so many people.  To my surprise, however, in the first mile or so we passed a ton of people and did pretty well.    Wubby was totally feeling it, eyeing the competition and even passing a few dogs.  Unfortunately, after a while, pain set in and I slowed the Wubs down.  I kept getting this pain in my right upper inner thigh and that was enough to make me walk.  I tried a few more running trots but knew that we would be walking much of the remainder of the course with this pain.  Can't win them all!  I felt bad because Wubby could have killed it with top dog - next year Wubs, next year.  Instead, we continued steadily walking to the finish with determination.

 Everyone on the course was great and cheered us on and were highly impressed with the three of us hehe. We came in probably second to last with a time of 38:59 but to a large cheering crowd!!!  We also won a prize - youngest participant!

Youngest!

All in all, a wonderful, low-key community race.  People were so friendly and supportive.  Next year though we will be back and Wubby will take that first place puppy prize!

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoyed a fun turkey trot of their own!

Operation Get Baby B Out & Running

Operation Meet Baby B is in full swing in my household.  To say Aaron and I are excited would be the understatement of the year.  And yes I know you are all shaking your head at me and want to tell me to enjoy this time and that our lives will never be the same again.  I understand that, I get it.  And we are enjoying ourselves, I promise we are enjoying ourselves with dinners out, massages, staying the extra few minutes in bed, and cajoling friends over with the enticement of baking and video games (more on that later).

And baking with friends of course!

But, just but, with all this fun happening the number one thing always on my mind is when Baby B will make his grand debut and being the Type A person that I am I can't help but try everything possible to help him arrive on time. Again, I  know he will only come out when he is ready, but, just but, you can't blame a gal for trying all these crazy old wives tales.

We really want to meet you baby

In the spirit of Operation Meet Baby B, I was on a mission yesterday.  Google pretty much knows that my favorite topic is "natural ways to induce labor."  So yes bring on the evening primrose oil, spicy foods, eggplant, acupressure points, some other activities, and walking.  It is the latter that brings me to the topic of this post today.  This week I have been trying to exercise the baby out and he is not having it.  I usually do 3 miles on the elliptical in the morning and another 2-3 miles  of walking with friends at lunch.  Yesterday, was technically a rest day for me...but you know Baby B has got to come out somehow so late in the afternoon Aaron, Wubby, and I set out for what would be a cold walk.  I bundled up with a sweatshirt, Aaron's winter coat, and gloves.  But as soon as I got out there I decided that walking was just not going to cut it.  My reasoning, if I have already been walking and ellipticalling, a leisurely walk was not going to be enough to coax Baby B and thus I started to run - if you can call it that.


Verdict? If nothing else, it was quite hilarious and Wubby may be the most in shape of our family right now.  Mind you, we were not planning on running.  I have this big pregnant belly and was wearing jeans and too many layers, Aaron the same. And Wubs, well Wubs is good to go anytime.  I was mighty impressed with our efforts however.  We made it about 3 miles which included a lot of run, walk, stop, bathrooming (for Wubby), but it was a blast.  I gave up running about 10 weeks ago because it just did not feel good anymore.  I can't say it was easier this time around but the aches and pains were different and this morning my knees and hips are quite sore (hmmm wonder why).  But 4 days away from my due date I am not complaining.  Can't say I will be making a habit of pregnant running for the next few days and can't say that the run helped move the baby closer to the birth canal, but it was a blast running with my whole family again, laughing up a storm at just how crazy we looked.  You are talking to a gal who never goes out without body glide and tech shirts who all of a sudden decided that it was OK to "run" 3 miles in jeans.

Pregnancy will do crazy things to you...Speaking of which, nesting continues over here when I woke up with an overwhelming need to bake.  A facebook message and trip to the store later and Aaron has himself a video game date and me a baking pal!

Boys playing video games while girls cook :)

Happy Sunday!

Did you ever try anything crazy to coax your babies out?

Fear of the Baby Registry

It may seem silly but one of my biggest fears during this pregnancy has been tackling the elusive baby registry.   Clearly, this comes after the fears of Baby B being healthy etc., but otherwise my first fear was not originally about breastfeeding well or baby sleeping techniques (those came later), the first big fear was the Baby Registry.  It just seemed overwhelming!  What does a baby need?  How do I know what to get?  What do I need absolutely as soon as the baby is born and what are the "extras?"  I know, I know, people kept telling me that babies do not need that much and that it is not that big of a deal, but honestly, if you know me and my Type A personality those statements were never ever going to fly or calm me down.

Luckily, back in June, a good friend of mine recommended I go out and buy the Baby Bargains book and it saved my life and a lot of stress for me and for my very supportive husband. 

*Source

At first, this book also seemed pretty big and overwhelming, but taking it one step at a time, one category at a time made it much more manageable and much much more fun.  Essentially, the book consists of several chapters each focusing on different products (e.g., one chapter on car seats another chapter on bedding another on clothing etc.).  Within the chapters, the book gives some general advise on what to look for in the general product (e.g., what to look for in a car seat) and then lays out all the different manufacturers and their options.  If you don't want to read through each option, you can also just look at their recommendations which range from the "O.K." to the "Great" choices.

So every few weeks, I took up a new topic whether it was car seats or strollers, read up on it, and then Aaron and I hit the stores.  I know a lot of people swear by Babies R' Us but are favorite place is Buy Buy Baby, I have literally spent more days at this store in the past few months than anywhere else.    Imagine Bed Bath and Beyond but for babies and you've got Buy Buy Baby (in fact even better they send us 20% coupons just like Bed and Bath as well as take Bed and Bath coupons as long as they are not expired).  The place has it all including really knowledgeable staff (which I am embarrassed to say probably know us by name by now).  Regardless, by breaking down the registry this way, the trips to Buy Buy have been really enjoyable!  We registered, but only tried to tackle one or two areas at a time.  This way we were not overwhelmed and it was not too much.  And in the end, it worked out really well.  Plus it always allowed us to relax afterwards and hit up our new favorite pizza place!

One other thing that was key, I enlisted a very dear running/mommy friend's help for one visit to Buy Buy.  She was so well informed that the staff literally followed us around to hear her views.  She gave us the details that the book did not - what to use for a diaper rash?  what kind of shampoo to buy? what clothes were really useful etc.?  This really helped me complete the registry.

 Running buddies know all - especially how to dress for Holiday 10ks

In the end, did we get everything on there that I think we need?  No, probably not.  Do I still continually update it?  Yup.  But have I moved on to being neurotic and worrying about other things?  You bet!

How did you tackle the elusive baby registry?

Wubby Bootcamp!

Hi all!  I know I know, I never post, no one ever reads this blog, I am unpredictable, but you know what that is pregnancy for me.  So I will continue my random posting and maybe someone out there will be interested and if not, again, at least I still have a record for when the baby is a bit older and can read (you know, at like 5 weeks because our baby is clearly going to be a genius hehe).

Lately, one of my biggest baby worries has not been about Baby B but about our other baby, Baby Wubby. 

I love love Baby Wubby and he is overall a good dog/puppy - we are very lucky.  But that does not mean I have not been super worried about how Baby Wubby and Baby B will get along.  Actually, I was particular worried (a) sleeping arrangements (because up until Sunday Wubby slept in our bed) and (b) Wubby's new found desire to chew random things at random times when our back was turned.

 Wubby thinks he owns the place, apparently this is a problem!

A few weeks ago, we came home to what we refer to as a "tornado" in our bedroom as Wubby had eaten a ton of random things while we were gone.  And, well, this sent me into overdrive - can I blame the pregnancy hormones yet again? Poor Aaron had to listen to many talks of how I felt overwhelmed about the idea of caring for a baby and watching Wubs 24/7.  At that point, I really did not think it was possible.  I was super super nervous about the idea of turning my back for a second and what Wubby would do, or rather chew in the meantime.

Luckily, in the past week, we have initiated what I like to call "Wubby Bootcamp" and I am feeling a whole lot better.  Earlier last week, Wubby's trainer came for a home visit.   And we got some great ideas on how to best calm my fears and work with Wubby.  For instance, I was worried that if I had to run upstairs when the baby woke up from a nap, for instance, and Wubby did not follow me, he might start chewing on the toys, swing, or whatever other baby item was strewn about.  We came up with the idea of having a "Wubby gated area" downstairs to manage that situation (which is harder than it seems because we have no doors and a very open 1st floor).  We also worked on the idea of teaching Wubby "down and stay."  So that he would stay down when I needed him to.  Wubby has been a champ at doing both things although he really does not like to go "down."  He knows what we want him to do but he would rather just stay up for fun (I cannot understand why he gets lots of cheese when he does go down and Wubby loooovveess cheese).

This weekend my fears were eased even more and the "Wubby Bootcamp" really kicked off after we attended Isis's Babies and Barks class led by the owner of the Pawsitive Dog.  (Isis is a Boston base company that provides a number of different parenting resources for New England parents everything from stores, consults, classes etc.)  Aaron was actually the one who suggested we take the class and I was so happy we did (although he may have been ready to kill me as I asked a question about every two minutes).

The class pretty much taught us that we have been doing everything wrong.  OOPPS!!!  Its not that we are bad puppy parents but little things that we are doing could add up to problems.

Apparently as cute as he is sleeping on the couch this is a big NO-NO

So changes have to be made to really (1) show Wubby that we are the leaders of the house and (2) get him ready for a baby.  How do we do that?  Well, mainly drive Wubby crazy and act like crazy people while doing it! We are working to teach Wubby who is the boss through not letting him on the furniture and scheduling his feedings.  We are getting him ready for a baby by taking out all the baby stuff and teaching him what is and is not his.  We are also acting like lunatics by screaming, clapping, carrying around a baby doll, playing Barney, and we are changing up our schedules - all so Wubby gets used to what it will be like to have a baby - and us too for that matter.

Overall, Wubby has been taking it really well, probably better than me. It is tough to kick him out of the bed and keep him crated or gated at night.  It is tough to ignore him when we first get home or when we have been away for a long time.  However, in the end, I know that it will be better for Wubby, Baby B and us and at least for now I am little more calm about having a Wubby and a baby.

 Because how can I not love these boys...

Do you have a puppy and a baby/child?  How do you prepare your dog for their new brother or sister?

Baby B: Weeks 28-32

Oh gosh, to say I am behind would be an understatement hmm...the last time I blogged was September 10th.  Trying to get a grand total of two posts in for the month, not the stellar blogger in the least huh?  I doubt anyone still even checks this little old blog of mine, but I do really want to have these posts for my baby one day. so for Baby B and anyone else out there here is the update of, well the past month.

Week 28

How have I been feeling?  Exhausted.  I guess that explains the lack of posts.  Well between being exhausted, incredibly busy at work, incredibly busy baby prepping, and the fact that Aaron brings my computer to work now, there is not much time for blogging.   Generally, through Weeks 28-30/31sh I was not too terribly exhausted.  In fact, we got a TON of stuff done.  Weekends have been full of baby prepping - my poor husband, I always come up with something "fun, new and exciting" for us (or him) to do.  Really, it is fun!  The house is getting cleaner by the day as I find it necessary to clear out and make space in every nook and cranny from cleaning out the entire kitchen to emptying the "office."  Aaron has been so graciously dealing with my nesting by helping paint, put up shelves in the garage and third floor, and making weekly trips to Buy Buy Baby.  I think I owe another post to baby prep so I will leave it at that for now.

Week 29 

How have I been feeling emotionally?  I am on an emotional roller coaster.  It has evened out a bit this week but last week was not pretty.  Again, poor poor Aaron.  I may have had one or two or three emotional breakdowns going from anger to tears.  They generally come towards the end of the day when tiredness and hunger creep in and I sort of, well, loose it.  I am working on it.  Can I please blame it on the hormones?

Week 30

Cravings and Aversions:  I have started to get sick of food.  I am too tired to care.  Whatever works has been just about good enough for me.  Nothing has truly appealed to me and I have a very hard time figuring out what exactly to eat, again not making it easy on the husband - do we see a theme here?  This week, however, I have been much much hungrier.  Maybe baby growth spurts?  Maybe the exhaustion.  Well, whatever it may be earlier this week I could not get enough food in me.  Unfortunately, there is not so much stomach space now-a-days so it is a juggling act for sure.  Other problem, last week I was too tired to even get to the store.  This week I made it to the store, but I have been too tired to cook and Aaron has been working hard hours.  Luckily, I have a very wonderful friend who allows me to "drop-in" for dinner all too often where I always get a well rounded meal and good company.  I owe her, her adorable daughter, and her chef of a husband a ton of thanks as well as about a thousand homemade dinners.

True cravings - seltzer!  I used to "guzzle" seltzer as my dad would say and that is back! Poor poor poor Aaron forgot to bring home seltzer last week.  It was not pretty, luckily the next day I woke up to this...

Yes that is my fridge the day after Aaron forgot seltzer, I woke up to the fridge being STOCKED!

Week 31

Other craving, apple pie ice-cream.  Do you remember that I love fall?  How could I not be craving apple pie ice-cream?  No, I have not gotten it yet but I did make an apple pie from scratch including picking the apples and making the crust.  My first time truly making it from scratch and it did not turn out half bad!

My very own apple pie!

Exercise:  I officially threw in the towel on the running earlier this month.  It just hurt to run.  It was not worth.  Aaron, however, has been running in my place!  He promises to post about his experiences soon, new PRs, upcoming half marathons and the like!   In the meantime, I walk during my lunch at work and elliptical.  I pretty much don't plan anything and just listen to what my body wants for the day whether that be 30 minutes on the elliptical or an hour - usually 30.

Week 32

Doctor's Visits: Today!!! YAY :)

Baby Kicks:  Two weeks ago baby was kicking so much he would not let me sleep.  I have also decided his dance parties are the reason I have no energy.  There is only enough energy for one and he is it!  Regardless the little guy is a mover and a shaker.  I still love the twists and turns and seeing my belly "jiggle" even if it sometimes is uncomfy (e.g., when he kicks me in the ribs!).

Any good ideas for quick meals? How is everyone's running season?