week one exercise

I feel like I did really good last week! Monday and Wednesday I got up early and did a 40 minute pilates video. Tuesday and Thursday I ran 2 miles in 25 minutes (while pushing 50 lbs). I was going to get up early on Friday to do pilates again - but Josiah was up before my alarm went off (5:40). Those darn 2 year molars! Instead I walked 2 miles (40 minutes) w/ another mom while Ellie had her last dance class.

Now I just need to focus on eating healthier! Been having one to many late night snacks the last couple weeks ... or so.

This next weeks goals? Pilates on Monday, Tuesday and Friday. Run on Wednesday and Thursday. Play with my family at the zoo on Saturday (dad & mom coming down for a visit this weekend)!

30 minutes later ...

and they are STILL eating breakfast! We started out with toast and scrambled eggs w/ spinach & cheese. They were still hungry so they ate a bowl of shredded wheat (Josiah ate 2), Ellie ate an apple and now they are eating a bowl of corn flakes!

Must be going through a growth spurt!

I ran!

After writing about exercise I checked back outside and it wasn't raining anymore It smelled SO fresh and clean out that I just had to get out and run! So once the kids were up I warmed up some frozen pancakes, loaded them up in the stroller and headed out. This was my second run since I got my real running shoes. I did a 2 mile loop in about 25 minutes ... last time I only made it 1.5 miles - so I felt better about finishing the run this time! I had to go up a hill at the 1.5 mile mark and pushing 50 pounds going up a hill is NOT easy - but I just put my head down and pushed through!

One of these days I'm going to push the kids (not run) up tarantula hill ... I'll post a picture of that one when the time comes. It's across the street from my house and it's not easy.

exercise

Since I do not have a gym membership I have to come up with my own things to do for exercise. Sometimes that is exhausting with two kids! Last week I did nothing ... but I have "that time of month" to blame ;) This week I began by planning out what I was going to do ... pilates on Mon, Wed & Fri and running 2 miles on Tues/Thurs. It's raining today, only a light drizzle, but I'm not running. If we lived in Portland or somewhere where it rained A LOT I would go ... but we live in sunny Southern California ... I'm not running. I also don't feel bad ... my plan is my plan - but it's not a law ... and if you really knew me you would know that I create laws all the time for myself and then beat myself up for not keeping them. For instance, I MUST get up @ 5:30 every day to read the Word, prepare for the day (or exercise) and be showered and ready for the kids to be up by 7:30. I did that for awhile ... and that was good. But I'm learning that was a season and the Lord was using it in my life to teach me some valuable things about discipline - but I'm not in that season right now and that is okay!

That being said - I'll still run twice this week ... I'll just do it on Saturday and report back then on how the rest of the week goes!

Lessons learned

This evening I had to run out to Trader's right before dinner so when I got home I was in quite a rush to get the meal made so we could eat "on time". Ellie really wanted to help and Jo just wanted to be wherever she was. Initially I let them help but then I got annoyed b/c it wasn't going fast enough and shooed them out of the kitchen. Josiah didn't care but poor Ellie went away crying, "mom, you told me I could help". I was just so frustrated and at that moment I heard the Lord saying to me, "Tara, she just wants to spend time with you ... push her away now and she won't want anything to do w/ you when you want it" ... ouch! I did NOT want to hear that - and I told him so but I knew I needed to draw her back in and take the time to include her in what I was doing. In the end it was amazing. Both Josiah and Ellie ended the evening thinking that they had made dinner and that ended up being very beneficial because this is a soup they normally don't eat - and they both wolfed it down! They were so proud of themselves for helping to make dinner. In Josiah's words, "mommy, you're a good cook ... Ellie, you're a good cook".

So glad that I listened to God and let my children mess up my orderly life!

"People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them."
Mark 10:13 - 16