Random Tuesday Thought!

http://stacysrandomthoughts.com/

 

It's Tuesday!  Whew.  I'm going to random up and see if I can keep the comeback streak going.

 

->  Three missing girls in Cleveland have been found!  That's great news for a city that's just become used to bad news all the time.  The man that helped rescue them?  Priceless.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmqj8V0_hBI

 

Go watch.  And remember the dead giveaway.  If you see a young white girl run into a black man's arms, call 911.  She's either homeless or something is wrong.  ;)  As usual, C-town represents.

 

->  LG has learned to ride his two wheeler without training wheels.  I'll get a picture soon, but when it happened I wasn't expecting it, so I didn't catch the moment.  It was a Hallmark moment, though.  We were out front on the sidewalk practicing, and I didn't notice that all the neighbors were slyly watching from behind their yard work.  As soon as he went down the block, they all broke out in cheers and whistles.  It was awesome.  Now we have to get the little boy across the street on just two wheels and they'll have a gang.

 

->  We have a new adopted member of our household.  I've named him Figlet.

 

He was just a just a little leaf as of last Wednesday, but now he's up to 3 whole mini leaves!  A friend has moved from her long time home, and is spreading around cuttings from her old Italian fig tree in hopes that if she loses it in the move, one of us will carry on the tradition.  We've been trying to take good care of for her.  I'll keep you up on his progress.  We'll probably keep him potted for a while, and only when he's big enough to defend himself from the deer will we move him to the yard. 

 

->  It's teacher appreciation week.  I'm just going to point out that I get one day, PB gets one day, but the teachers get a whole week.  I also don't get paid to take care of my children, and they do.  I don't get a present at the end of the year, and they do.  I'm not bitter, though, I promise.

 

Ok, I'm randomed out for now.  Go see Stacey.

 



In my enthusiasm to blog, I didn't even think about doing my spin today.  Not my finest.

Gretchen threw "bucket list" up there.  Hmmm.

I don't have a bucket list.  Not kidding.  I'm not saying I live in the moment or anything.  I'm a planner.  I just don't have this magical list of stuff I want to get done before I meet my maker.  No trips to Europe, or mountain climbing.  I don't care if I meet someone famous, or finish War and Peace.  If that stuff were to come along, I would do it willingly (most likely), but I'm not setting out to do it. 

Which kind of brings up something I've been up to lately (for those that lost me for this past year).  I took up running.  It started as a random occurrence.  I ran a charity 5K for my niece and thoroughly embarrassed myself.  Yes, thoroughly.  Finished one before last, and the last guy was almost a million years old.  I had to run to redeem myself, to prove that I was not going to be one of those people who was an athlete who let middle age and the rest of life get the best of them.  I got an app (of course there's an app for that, silly me).  PB bought me new running shoes (because if anything besides shame was going to get me to run it was throwing money away on shoes I didn't use.  I now HAD to use them.)  It began.  A co-worker heard about it and invited me to a race at Halloween.  It was fun to have that little bit of time outside of work together.  We didn't run the race together, we just showed up together and she was waiting at the finish line to cheer me through.  This time I finished middle of the pack.

People began encouraging me by telling me how excited they were for me.  Who gets excited to hear about someone else exercising?  Who knows...  I kept going.  I ran the Cleveland Turkey Trot (with all the half drunk college kids home for the weekend).  It was a beautiful day and I had FUN.  PB and the boys cheered me on and I didn't feel like I was going to die. 

My old college roommate and I decided to do the Princess half marathon at Disney together next year.  So I keep going.  Three times a week I put on my running shoes and hit the pavement.  I'm enjoying it, mostly.  Not all the time.  It sucked to run in 35 degree weather.  It sucked to run through pelting hail, but I have to run when I have time.  Am I proud when someone sees me on the road on a miserable day and tells me I'm crazy?  A little.  Being honest, during most runs I'm not enjoying myself.  But when I get home and I look at the miles I logged, it get that little "squee" moment. When I run right past a place that I used to turn around huffing and puffing last fall and know that I'm not even half through my run?  That makes me happy. 

Bring it all back around.  I can't tell you how many people have asked me if I'm doing this because a marathon is on my bucket list.  They're shocked when I tell them no.  I have a lot of reasons for running now (be a good example to my kids, stay healthy, get outside more, I could keep going).  A bucket list is not one of them.  When I'm staring at the end, I don't want to think of some list I didn't accomplish, and all the "what ifs".  I don't want to go screaming to the end trying to cram it all in.  What I do want is to be able to sit down and look at everything I did get to do, to try to learn and appreciate the opportunities I took when I had the chance.  Just a different perspective, I guess.

But now, put Gretchen on your to do and go read the other spinners. 

If only I were the princess type.

Conversation on the way to swim class last night:

PB:  Look, Mama, your cherry tree is blooming!
LG:  Does is grow poison cherries?
MB:  Really, Disney?  I'm not the princess, so clearly I must be the wicked step mother trying to ruin everything beautiful in the world.
PB:  Well-
MB:  Watch it, your options are handsome prince or doddering old fool.
PB:  Doddering old fool it is.
MB:  Or I guess washed up hero.  A few fathers were washed up heroes.
PB:  Doddering old fool it is.  Washed up hero implies that at one time I was a strapping young hero rescuing princesses. 
MB:  Yeah.  But at least you're my old fool, right?

Conversation after PB proceed to chase a collie down the street from the ice cream stand last night (long story, collie slipped leash, causing owner to stumble and fall- and on and on)

PB:  I learned something tonight.
MB:  What's that?
PB:  I'm faster than a middle aged man trying to chase his collie down the street, but not quite as fast as a collie trying to run away from his middle aged owner.
MB:  Well, at least there's the ice cream, right?

And, to my credit, I only took maintenance licks of his cone while he was gone.  It was still mostly waiting for him upon his return.

Have a good weekend everyone. 

Shhh, you don't see me.

But I'm here for a second.  Like a ninja.  To give you some love.  A little taste of what the Badgers have been up to:

A little brewing.

 

A little time in the sun.

 

And exploring some "new" hobbies.

 

Yeah, it's been a good time out here.  I'm not calling it a comeback yet.  But I'm warming up to the idea.