So, anyone who knows me from my pre-Oklahoma days knows that I used to exercise compulsively. Ever since I was in high school. I loved it. I loved that part of myself that was so driven and dedicated to staying in shape. I think that without it I kind of am an Eyore. Exercise makes life sunnier, at least that is always how I have felt about it. However, I have not been able to get it together since Maggie was born. I just lost my drive. I have been ho-humming over this for the last year. Part of it is just finding the time. I do not want to take my kids to a gym daycare. I took Elliot to the daycare at the gym from the time he was 6 weeks old and he was always sick. (Grace somehow avoided that, she has a much stronger immune system). Having a sick child takes on a whole new meaning when you have 3 children. That sickness makes the rounds for a month or 2!! So, that leaves waking up really early or exercising at night. I started working at night when Maggie was 2 months old, so that was out. That left getting up early (like 5:30)-not going to happen, especially when I was nursing Maggie in the middle of the night (she started sleeping all night after about 6 months). So here I am, a year later still needing to lose 15-20 pounds. With Grace and Elliot I had lost all of my weight by the time they were 1. I am not the type of person that can lose weight and stay that way without exercise.
So, 2 weeks ago (on Maggie's birthday) I dedicated myself to running again. It is getting light enough in the morning that I can get up and run at 6:30. I went 4 days last week and I am on my 3rd day this week. I am up to a little over 3 miles. I am beginning to feel that drive come back. I feel better mentally and emotionally, but my body hurts. I have never been this old and out of shape. I have some sort of injury in my left arch, right in the middle, that my dad tells me is very difficult to treat and really can only be helped by sticking a big shot of cortisone into my arch-no thank you. So I just take ibuprofen every day before I run and always have my orthotics in my shoes. Today the inside of both my knees hurt really bad for the first 10 minutes. It's probably because I spent a lot of time on my knees yesterday scrubbing toilets, showers and bathtubs. (I'm old, remember?!) But, I love the way I feel when I am done. I just have to keep telling myself that. Pretty soon it won't be so hard and my body will get stronger. It will only make me a better mommy and more pleasant person to be around. I can't just give this part of myself up, and I won't. I was just on an extended break!!
I do a little preschool one day a week with some other moms from my church. Sometimes we will go on field trips. We recently went to the fire station. It was a big hit with the kids!! They got to go inside the ambulance and climb all over the fire trucks. It was really fun and even I learned a lot!!
Ray and I went to Logan this past weekend to attend Ray's brother Jez's college graduation (thanks again, mom, for watching all 3 kids!! Gotta love grandmas!). He got a bachelor's degree in Business. Yes, you counted right, he did this all while having 5 children and working full time to boot!! We are so proud of Jez and Trina for this amazing accomplishment. If any of you know Jez from his former life you can realize and appreciate how far he has come and what a truly amazing accomplishment this is for him and his family. He is such a good, faithful man with such a huge heart. Ray always talks about what a good example Jez is to him. He and Trina are such good parents. I didn't hear either of them raise their voice one time to any of those precious little kids, and believe me, having 5 children (including a 5 month old) at a college graduation for 4 hours is no easy feat!! We are so happy for and proud of Jez and we are excited to see what new adventures their life will now bring!! 
So, we just signed a contract for our house and I am soooo relieved!! I think what I am most relieved about is that I don't have to keep the house spotless anymore! Now I can start stressing out about the contract falling through :-) I really do think it will be okay, though. We are set to close on June 2. Ray is leaving at the beginning of May to start his job. I was planning on staying here until our house sold and we have been praying that we would have an offer before he left. So now, if all goes as planned, we will only be apart for a few weeks. We feel so blessed to have sold our house so fast, especially the way the housing market has been going. Now I need to come up with a new name for our blog. Any suggestions?
This is where Maggie now goes in the morning when I am getting ready. She used to be asleep at this time!! At least the bath tub is getting used, it's not like I ever have time to take a bath in it!
