SMALL VICTORIES

It was a busy Friday in the Trailmomma household. Vans had a meeting with our accountant to discuss taxes (blah). I (conveniently enough) could not get out of work to meet him. He offered to pick up the Peanut from school after his meeting so that I could go straight home and squeeze in a run before it got too dark. I wasn't able to run last night because I has asked Vans to stop at the store to buy some milk. Two hours later he comes home with about 500 grocery bags. Never shop hungry!!! Rule number 1 right ladies? :-)

When I got home from work I changed in record time. The weather today was GORGEOUS. My car temperature gauge said 67 degrees! Sweet! That meant I can wear shorts on my run since well, I have zero maternity running clothes. In and out in a flash I was on my way. I decided to go the same 3 mile hilly route I ran last Sunday. I can't help it, it is really pretty and we're in the market for patio furniture and this run allows me to peek into a lot of backyards along the way. Not creepy, just curious.

What is the first thing I encounter on my run? Turkeys!

Yeah yeah yeah, they look small in the photo but trust me, they were HUGE. Luckily there was a nice barbed wire fence separating us. El Dorado Hills turkeys are HUGE compared to Sacramento ones.

I did giggle when I saw them however as it brought back old times running with Pigeon. My first mile (which was some flat and down hill sections) was actually a 10:30 pace. However then my belly seized up and I resorted to walking quite a bit after that. I think my water intake was low today. I need to work on that when I get busy at work.

The rest of the run/walk was wonderful. Temperature was great and very little car traffic. Just me and my thoughts.  Happy to get my run in I came home and started baking up a storm. Gluten free brownies (Peanut loves them), Gluten free cinnamon protein bread and a great meal using TVP (textured vegetable protein), beans, brown rice, tomatoes, chili, garlic and cayenne pepper. It was yummy. I accomplished all of this before Vans and the Peanut got home.

The Peanut has been having too many potty accidents at school this week. As an incentive I promised her ice cream after school if she could go the entire day without an accident. Since Vans and I did the old switch-a-roo with pickup, I had to tell him that if she was accident free he had to take her for ice cream. While I was cooking dinner I received the following:

That looks like . . .

could it be?

ice cream!

Small victories all around today for the Trailmomma family!

HOW TO USE A FOAM ROLLER

While I was working last night, Vans and the Peanut were rolling it out with our foam roller. The foam roller is one of the best recovery and stretching tools out there. You can buy one here and you can also go there to learn how to properly use one (ahem, I wouldn't really follow the Peanut's advice on this one). :-)

working those quads

um, the knees?

errr, the shins?

aaah yeah, not sure

maybe add some downward dog too?

NIGHT RUNS

Last night I kept the promise I made to myself on Sunday. Run. After the Peanut's swim lesson (which was amazing, she actually jumped into the water off the edge of the pool by herself!) and dinner prepped . . . I grabbed my headlamp and reflective vest and set out.

Now that I am exploring the surrounding neighborhoods a bit more, I don't feel so uncomfortable. The new area that I am running around has very little traffic (occasionally people coming home from work) and it also has side-walks which is rare in most of El Dorado Hills.

It was still dark outside but very pretty . . .

That was at the start of my run so you can only imagine how dark it was when I finished . . . 3 MILES LATER!!! Yup, I ran 3 more miles last night most of which as uphill on the way back. I was reduced to walking the hills I admit. Trailbaby is not enjoying running up hills. I probably could manage as my heart rate isn't too high but the bulging belly is starting to feel sort of weird when I have to run UP. I don't mind. I was still out there doing something vs sitting inside my house eating the Peanut's left over noodles and french fries (her favorite this week).

Although not as euphoric as Sunday's run, it felt great to be moving and breathing fresh air. I even had a moment while running where I felt like it smelled like October . . . back east! Does anyone ever notice this (or am I the only crazy one)? I find that certain seasons or times of the year have a particular or specific smell? Maybe it is my pregnancy hormones making me loopy.

Tonight I have to work super late . . . here:

technically it is now called Powerbalance Pavilion or something

photo credit

I am kind of sad as these next couple of games could be my last few games working for the Sacramento KINGS since they are threatening to leave Sacramento (and it looks like they probably will). I have worked for the KINGS and the Maloofs (as a side job) for over 10 years. The City of Sacramento is really screwing up if they let this team get away. What else is left if Arnold is out of office and the KINGS are gone? :)

Regardless, it will be nice to see my crew tonight as I haven't seen them in some time because I was so sick the last time I was scheduled to work.

The Peanut was home sick on Monday again. Just a slight fever but eventually seemed to kick it. I think just a day at home with Vans is what she needed. He was going stir-crazy in the house and so he took her to Border's Books to create havoc . . . I mean read.

check out the "daddy hair" too (oh boy)

looks like she found a few to read

they came home with 2

and not the Penguins of Madagascar (shoot, my favorite)

Tuesday she went back to school and has been fine since then, congested but fine. Like I mentioned earlier, she was fine enough for swim lessons last night. After 6 lessons of straight tears she now finally is enjoying being in the pool and getting her face wet. The last 3 lessons have resulted in smiles, begging to get into the pool and purposefully putting her face in the water. What a change huh?

BACK ON TRACK

I am hoping I am back on track to a regular running routine. For three weeks I was terribly ill with a horrid sinus infection. Then I traveled back east where running was just not possible. Now that I am home, the weather has turned pretty cold and it even dropped some snow here but I am not letting that get in my way.

The only thing that might get my in way these days is the lack of running clothes that I can actually fit into that are not shorts. Today, I dug out some old extra large items I had stuffed away. Perfect.

Despite a rough night's sleep (due to a Peanut developing a cold), I decided I wanted, no, I NEEDED a run this morning. My weekday job has been silently killing me with stress for various reasons. On Saturday I worked at the store which I generally enjoy because I like the people I work with but when I got home I was beat. I probably sold more shoes and articles of clothing on Saturday than I have since I started. It is getting harder to bend down and hand someone their shoes with out ticking off Trailbaby. It will give me a strong kick me in the ribs every so often but I don't mind.

But this morning, I wanted out. Alone. I woke up channeling my favorite runner/blogger/writer/mother of all time.  She's my idol in so many ways and a lot of what she writes speaks to me. She will often write how a certain run "cleansed her" in some way or another. That is what I needed today. So I grabbed what I could and I set out on a new route that I have been mentally planning now for a week.

It started with a down hill and then some flat sections and then led me into a residential neighborhood with a lot of rolling hills. It was so peaceful. It wasn't super early, maybe 8 am but the streets and homes were quiet. It was awesome. As I ran, I thought about my job(s), my friends, my goals post baby etc. I think my mind has been so overloaded lately that it needed this quiet time. Physically I felt great. My heart rate stayed within a comfortable range, minus some major hills that reduced me to a walk. No aches and pains. Just me running outside in the sunshine.

I even brought my camera as I knew I'd pass a few pretty views.

this local elementary school tucked within a neighborhood

that also has an amazing view of Folsom lake

lucky students!

you can't see it in the photo, but I could

see the skyline of downtown Sacramento

After a while, I realized that I needed to get going. The Peanut had swim lessons later this morning so I had to start moving again and stop taking photos.

my route back however, was completely uphill

that way!

I totally loved the hills. Some I walked, some I ran but either way, it felt great to be using muscles that have not seen much "work" in a while. Overall, I only ran 3 miles which in comparison to runs past is nothing but running 3 miles 6.5 months pregnant . . . go me.

When I got back to back to my house I immediately went to my favorite section of our driveway. The "stretching area!"

our rock wall aka my stretching zone

The rest of day I was in a great mood and I attribute that to just being out running again. I have been trying to figure out a way to fit this in two more times during the week which is hard these days what with an hour commute each way, the Peanut and her various swim lessons and my two other part-time jobs.

Later in the day we drove to a near by park with the Peanut to meet some friends. The Peanut had refused a nap and was slowly starting to get a runny nose. As we were getting ready to head to the park, she found a ball that she was super excited to share with her friends. While we were driving, I turned around to see the following . . .

she held onto the ball the entire way

Poor girl only managed a 20 minute nap but that was better than nothing. Tonight she is battling a fever, a runny nose and an upset tummy. I thought the sickies were gone from our house but when you have a kid in daycare, you're never in the clear. I am hoping she recovers quickly and refrains from passing this on to both Vans and myself.

In the meantime, I am going to keep figuring out a way to incorporate two more runs during the week. It just feels good to be moving again. Also, finding these new routes will motivate me post baby to get out and run too.

I would also like to introduce a new blogger and encourage you all to check out his blog and look into what he can do for you. He's a pretty knowledgeable guy and definitely knows fitness and nutrition. I hope to utilize his expertise post baby because even though I know cardio fairly well, I could definitely use some help when it comes to toning and nutrition. Please check him out and add him to your blog rolls.

HOME AGAIN

The Peanut and I are home again. We got in super early Tuesday morning, like 1 am early. Before we left New Jersey though, the Peanut was very into the snow that was falling.

watching the snow fall

and yes, that is a diver's helmet on the right, don't ask

The snow did stop and the roads were cleared by the time we had to head to the airport. The Peanut fell asleep on the drive in and woke up when we got to Newark. Security in Newark was insane. As in multiple lines upon lines just to get to the main security area. The Peanut was a super star though.

The flight from Newark to Houston was fairly uneventful. Well, except when the Peanut looked out the window and yelled "Mommy! I see smoke!" When I looked, I realized she meant the clouds in the sky. Hopefully she didn't give anyone on the plane a heart attack.

The Peanut was entertained for quite a while with a gift from one of my Jersey neighbors . . .

dry erase boards are awesome

However once we were in flight and the captain told us we could use our "portable devices" the Peanut was in heaven and immediately asked for her "kitty ear phones."

watching the Jungle Book

one of her favorites

She apparently thought when I said "kiddie ear phones" that I was really saying "kitty ear phones" and was highly disappointed when I pulled them out and there were no "cats" to be found. Still, she wore them for the entire movie which is more than I thought she would do.

After the movie she fell asleep and we landed in Houston. We were stuck in Houston for over 3 hours but the Peanut was completely chill with it all. We grabbed some dinner, had a few games of "tag" around the waiting area by our gate and visited the potty about 503 times. She was content.

Our second leg was also uneventful. She watched one movie and then fell asleep again for the remainder of the flight. What an awesome travel companion!

Now we're home and back to the grind of work and school. I think we're both happy to be home and I know Vans missed us.

Now that my cold is completely gone as well, I even made it out for a run tonight. I ventured through a new neighborhood because I was running against daylight. It had many rolling hills that, at times, had me walking but it felt awesome to be back out there doing SOMETHING. I am starting from scratch essentially since my cold from earlier in the month completely wiped me out and the bulging belly is getting um, bigger.

Maybe this weekend I'll get out for another run and eventually find some consistency. I am definitely loving the longer daylight though.

HEADED HOME

The Peanut and I are flying home from New Jersey today. Or at least we HOPE to be flying home. When I woke up this morning, this was the view outside my dad's window:

this is just a little snow

compared to what the east coast has seen lately

Fingers crossed our flights leave Newark today. On time. We don't leave for the airport until noon and our flight is not until 3 pm so hopefully there is plenty of time for it to clear outta here.

So far though, our trip has been great. The Peanut has been experiencing all the wonderful things east coasters get to do in the winter. One of her favorites?

eating ice cream in the car

We took the Peanut to Cliff's Ice Cream which is legendary in this part of New Jersey. It is an old fashioned outdoor ice cream shop. In the summer the line is miles long and you generally get your ice cream and then find a picnic table to sit and enjoy it. In the winter, you get your ice cream and immediately head back to your car to eat it.

On Saturday I drove to my college roommate Jersey Jess's house. Jersey Jess and I were freshmen year roommates (there were four of us total in a tiny tiny room). I went to college in Connecticut but oddly was placed with a girl who lived only a few towns over from me. The other two roommates were nice and interesting people. Jersey Jess and I became good friends and later that year met New York Amanda and quite a few others who hailed from Connecticut and Massachusetts. For my junior and senior year in college I had 6 other roommates and all of us brought our own individual accents. It was awesome. On Saturday three out of my six other roommates made the drive from New York and Massachusetts to Jersey Jess's house with all their kids in tow. It was mayhem but awesome. The Peanut was a little quiet and shy at first. I think she was still recovering from her mini-nap in the car.

yes. tiger came too.

She was the first kid there and the others slowly trickled in. There were so many toys that most of the kids were pretty occupied whether they were playing together or not.

toy madness!

Once all my roommates arrived though, things started getting crazy. Most of my roommates have never met the Peanut and I have not met their kids. Needless to say, there was a lot of "oh you're so cute!" going on. And hugs.

New York Amanda and the Peanut

The Peanut was fairly chill the entire time. She was not Miss Social like she has been on most of our trip but then again, being introduced to NINE OTHER kids at once, could be a bit intimidating. She chose to sit back and take things in.

her first capri sun

amazing what kids will eat/drink in the presence of other kids

While the Peanut was enjoying her "juice" Jersey Jess and New York Amanda and I tried to take a few self portraits. We were not having much luck. The Peanut if you remember, was a great photographer last weekend, so I tried to get her to take our photo . . .

um, not quite

She had a little bit of trouble figuring out the camera. No worries, I was able to take a semi-good shot that did not make us look like we all had 4 chins each.

New York Amanda, Jersey Jess and moi

We stayed for quite a while at Jersey Jess's house completely destroying the place and probably tormenting her dogs with all the kids. It was so much fun.

all the kids, minus 1 who had left which makes 10 total!

The Peanut had a blast and I was so incredibly excited to see most of my roommates. It is amazing how we can get together after all these years and it is like time has never passed . . . well, except for the 10 crazy kids running around.

Sunday was a day spent visiting my neighbors and local friends. I grew up in a very close knit neighborhood. I was the only girl on a street with 10 boys! Most of the mothers on my street always looked out for me although I was always able to hold my own when it came to games like baseball and football etc. However most of the boys acted like my bigger brothers, especially as we got older, so it was nice. I had to bring the Peanut over to my neighbor's house so they could all see how much she has grown.

Then it was a big family dinner with almost the entire family minus Vans and my step-brother's girlfriend. One of these days we will get us all in the same house for a photo. The Peanut has been wonderful this whole trip. I have had to eliminate her naps however in order to make bedtime happen which has been interesting. Except for the occasional tantrum or stubbornness at about 6 pm, she has been great and she has been totally spoiled.

Last night when we came home after dinner the Peanut wanted to chill with her newest obsession "white chips."

don't mess with me mom, having a snack here

She definitely has the "Jersey attitude" down and I can hear my accent slowly coming back. Maybe it is a good thing we're flying home to California today! Vans is definitely in for a big surprise!

A FEW NJ ADVENTURES

We've been here since Wednesday and the weather has been pretty nice. Compared to the east coast snow storms the past few weeks, I'd say this week has been wonderful for the east coasters.

Upon arriving and settling in, Jersey Dad quickly has become the Peanut's favorite. All she has to do is bat an eyelash and say "please Poppy" and he's a goner.

she talked him into to watching some tv

Then we decided to take a trip to Barnes and Noble. The Peanut was given the book Mr. Funny and quickly noticed that there was Mr. Bump and Mr. Messy. So on Thursday we decided to head out in search of the other books. Instead, we came across the following while browsing through Barnes and Noble's kid section:

This photo made me laugh and I quickly sent it to Vans so he could see. So many things are going on in this photo: the Jersey Girl shorts, the short shorts over the black tights, the black leg warmers, the black high tops and if you could only see the rest of the outfit. It just struck me as something out of the Jersey Shore and no, it wasn't Snookie (I made sure).

For dinner we went to a local favorite, Frank's Pizza . . . where the Peanut ordered french fries, of course.

Today we went to visit Gramie at her work and then hit the grocery store. When we came home it was time to play in the snow . . . or whatever was left of it.

mini snowmen

After some time in the snow, the Peanut's attention span was getting smaller and smaller so I dug out the big guns . . . some childhood board games!

tiddily winks!

That kept her attention for a bit but sadly, not for very long. The Peanut went napless today and hopefully this will come in my favor when it is time for bed but overall, it made for a very long and exhausting day of power struggles and tantrums.

Tomorrow we're going to visit my college roommates, some of whom I have not seen since graduation day. I am super excited. They all have kids of their own too so it should be pretty interesting.