Scratched Corneas and Isabel's 3 year check up

We survived another week of being sick. We had Isabel's 3 year checkup last Friday. She's doing fine, but is a little disporpotionate in the height vs weight catagory. Not overweight, but 'in danger of becoming' overweight. More carrots and less crap for this house. We eat healthy about 80-90% of the time and I try to make food a non-issue, but lately Izzy has been refusing meals and just wanting snacks. I'm starting to save her uneaten meals and offering them to her when she asks for snacks. I'm certainly not going to tell her she has to eat when she's not hungry or that she can't eat when she's hungry. That just asking for food issues. She's not too happy with the new plan, but hopefully she'll get it. I've also started a 'no milk in the car' rule. Honestly it's mostly for the sake of the car. I'm sick of cleaning off splattered milk from the seats all.the.time. After our well check last Friday we had to head to the doctor again on Monday. Somehow Logan scratched his cornea. He refused the eye patch, but did great with the drops. Luckily when we went back for the follow up the next day the scratch was gone! Apparently the cornea has 10 layers and the eye heals really quickly. He most likely lopped of a chunk of the first layer. Phew. The doctor also thought she heard a hint of bronchitis, so she treated him for that with an antibiotic. He also had some fluid in one ear and I noticed Logan plugging up his ears with his fingers, so I'm sure he was on the brink of an ear infection too. Luckily not too much else to write about. We're gearing up for the Summer and Logan's 2nd birthday party.

Isabel's 3rd Birthday Party and Easter

Isabel's Birth Day

8lbs 13oz

Isabel's 1st Birthday

Isabel's 2nd Birthday

Isabel's 3rd Birthday

Easter weekend was great!  Friday we had Grammy, Papaw, Grandma, Grandpa and Uncle Matt all arrived.  We stayed up late drinking and talking politics.  Always entertaining.  The next morning we presented Izzy with breakfast in bed.  A Herseim family tradition for about 23 years or so that Isabel did not understand.  She was like "wow, great.  please take this downstairs so that I can eat it like a normal person.'  We headed over to the neighborhood Easter egg hunt and found eggs and friends.  The egg hunt is held at Isabel's preschool, so she was excited to show off her classroom.

Izzy celebrated her 3rd birthday party at My Gym on Saturday, April 7th.  She had a fantastic time with 14 of her buddies and 23 adults!  Izzy and Logan take classes at My Gym and we were excited to her her birthday party there.  They provided 1 1/2 hours of non stop entertainment, including a bounce house (for a little extra), rides, puppet shows, skill practicing and zip line rides.  At the end they even put Izzy in a birthday crown and sash and she was carried out on her 'carriage' to the tune of  "You're a Princess.'  Yeah, if that's not the perfect birthday for a 3 year old girl I don't know what is!  We had pizza, strawberries, cake and cake pops.  We went a little overkill on the pizza and ended up having about 8 left over, but we managed to pawn some off on people and ate the rest over the week and didn't let any go to waste!  Yum!

The Easter bunny came the next morning and hid eggs and cascarones all over the yard.  Izzy and Logan both had a great time searching for eggs and looking at their Easter baskets.  Mommy, Grandma and Grammy spend the morning cooking for Easter brunch/lunch.  By the time noon came we were hungry and ready for mimosas.  I may or may not have made Brian go out and get champagne.  I thought it was overkill Saturday, but Sunday morning it was a necessity.  After eating too much we said goodbye to Grammy, Papaw, Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Jennifer, Uncle Greg and Lila.  We spend the rest of the day with Uncle Matt and ended up at Chuy's on the back patio.  It was full of kids.  Perfect!  Izzy and Logan ran around while Brian and I took turns chasing them and Matt reminded Lindsay to refill her birth control.  Kidding.  But not really.  After getting Logan in bed Matt and Brian took off to see "The Hunger Games."  Yes, I did text Brian that he must look like the gayest dude in Austin.  He replied 'hell yeah!'  He was really excited about the movie and was especially excited that he got to sit at the table for 2 at the new Alamo Drafthouse.

Running Marathons

So since people (and by people, I mean 2) have asked me about my training and how I run marathons I thought I would write a post about it.  I started running about 6 years ago when I needed to lose weight.  I had never run over 2 miles before when a sales rep came into my office at UT and started talking about how she was going to join this group that was training for a marathon.  I was amazed and was like 'sign me up!'  We planned on meeting the Austin Fit group the following weekend.  I showed up and she didn't.  I normally am super self conscious and nervous about things like this and not knowing anyone.  I'm not gonna lie, it was very awkward for me.  Everyone seemed to know someone and I was sort of by myself.  I signed up anyway. 

As we were heading for our first long run they were calling out times and you were supposed to follow the group that represented your min/mile.  I seriously had no idea how fast/slow I was.  I just jumped in the 10:10 group.  Luckily it turned out to be a great fit.  I met these men and women every Saturday morning and we did our long runs together.  Some weeks we talked the entire time and some weeks we put in headphones and just tuned everyone out.  I met some great running buddies, but I'm not going to lie.  I never saw them again after the post-race party.  We never exchanged email/phone numbers or anything.  It was always just a weekly run date.  I was totally ok with that and actually welcomed it.  I didn't have any new friendships that I needed to nurture.  Just running buddies to bitch and moan with.  Training for your first marathon is such an exciting and scary thing.  I had mostly good runs.  Every single long run I was like 'this is the farthest I've EVER run.'  'Can I do this?'  It was fun being with people going through the same thing.  I'll never forget our 5 mile run.  It was super hot and insanely humid.  I remember thinking that there was no way I was ever going to finish 21 more miles.  But, August faded into September and the mornings gradually got cooler and more manageable.  My only other really really tough run was the 18 mile run.  I remember it vividly.  I remember almost sitting down and crying.  My knee hurt so badly and I was in so much pain, but I kept going, even with my long walk breaks.

Marathon Day came and I had never been so nervous about anything before.  Ever.  I found my running group and we all decided that we would try to stick together, but that we should all run our own races.  I had phenomenal support from my family.  Brian had anything and everything I would possibly need in a backpack and he saw me about 5 times along the route.  I ran with a friend the entire race.  I was having a tough time around mile 22.  My friend seriously kept me going. She was amazing.  Her family called her 'Pi' as in the math number.  She had 'Go Pi' written on her shirt and people kept yelling 'Go Pee!'  It was awesome.  Anyway, we finished in 5 hours and 5 minutes.  I was so sick at the end and declined the celebratory keg stand that was offered in the last 400 meters.  Gross.  It was a great day and a great accomplishment.  Words can't express how proud I was.

I would go on to run 4 more marathons over the subsequent 7 years.  Each one of them was unique, challenging and amazing in their own ways.  The feeling of getting a marathon medal (or Tiffany's necklace in the case of SF Women's Marathon) draped around your neck is pretty boss.

Soooo.....how do you run a marathon?

1.  You have to want to. I don't mean go into it like 'I'll see how it goes' sort of thing.  It has to be 'I'm GOING to run a marathon.  Damnit.'

2.  Get running shoes.  No, don't go to Wal-Mart and get some 'running' shoes.  Get some RUNNING shoes.  This is insanely important.  Go to a specialty running store and get a gait analysis and proper fit.  Do not just buy the prettiest shoes.  It's tempting, but get what's right for you.  I'm usually a size 8, but my running shoes are a size 9.  Since I'm usually running my long runs for hours at a time my feet swell.  Yours will probably too.  Go up a size or even a size and a half.  Knowledgeable sales people will tell you this.  But just PLEASE go to a running store and get a proper shoe.  It's so important.  If you feel like you have a less-than-stellar sales person leave and go back at another time or to another store.  You really need someone who knows running shoes to guide you through your purchase. Expect to spend at least $90 on a pair of shoes.  Once you know what works for you you can often go online and find them cheaper if you want.

3.  Find a running group.  If it's your 1st marathon this is highly recommended.  Just do a google search.  I highly recommend the USA Fit training approach.  I used both the Austin Fit and San Jose Fit programs when I was in each city.  They know what they're doing.  I've trained solo and you can do it, you just have to be careful and know what you're getting into.

4.  Stick to a plan.  Print it out and cross of the training days after you've done them.  It's a great feeling to put a big black X over a 20 mile run on your calendar.

5.  Life happens, but don't let it derail you.  Sure, you're busy.  We're ALL busy.  I either get up at 4:30am to get my runs in or do them at night or go on the weekends.  You only need 30-40 min max to run during the week.  Promise!  But, sometimes you just can't run.  You're sick, your baby is sick, whatever.  Forget it and just pick up where you left off.  Your body is pretty damn amazing and will forgive you.

6.  Injuries happen.  If they happen to you don't freak out.  Cross train.  Bike, swim, walk whatever you have to do to keep up your aerobic base.

7.  Gear.  As in other gear besides running shoes.  If you're um, chesty, get a good sports bra.  Not a Target C9 one, a good one.  It was be expensive.  At least $50.  I love Moving Comfort Juno.  I buy a size smaller than normal and do a good  bounce test in the store.  Your milk shakes should not shake.  I ran my 2nd marathon while still nursing and my tatas were tamed.  Super important.  I cringe when I see a woman running and her boobs are practically hitting her in the face and knees.  Ouch.  Now I wear a cheapo larger non-supportive bra (Target C9) under my heavy duty compression bra to avoid chafe.  Speaking of chafe...get some body glide.  Nobody wants chub rub.  Rub that stuff everywhere you have clothing seams, socks, etc.  It helps.  You will also need hydration if you're running in areas you're unfamiliar with or that don't have water.  Buy a cheesy running belt or hand held water bottle.  Put your medical info in it.  Including an emergency contact.  I have a RoadID on my running shoes.  Other crap that is nice, but not necessary include a GPS watch (love my Garmin), tunes, fuel (at running stores or you can just carry Gatorade tablets, swedish fish, a sandwich, whatever works for you).

7.  Believe in yourself.  You CAN do it!  You really really can.  If I can go from not running over 2 miles to running 26.2 miles in 6 months, anyone can.  Marathon running is seriously 90% mental.  Seriously.  Nike had that shit correct.  JUST DO IT!

Ok, so now that nobody had read that, happy Wednesday!  Anyone else excited that there's a new Modern Family tonight?  You know you're tired when you can't even get through an episode of New Girl.  I love that show, but not getting more than 3 hours of sleep in a row for years will allow you to fall asleep anytime, anywhere.

Brian took the kids tonight because I needed 2 hours to myself.  I don't know what's gotten into Izzy the past couple of days (sugar?!) but she had been not herself.  She bit her friend at school yesterday, bit Logan today and had 2 accidents.  She hasn't had an accident since her first 2 days of potty training.  WTH?  She's been throwing things, and generally acting a fool.  Logan is sick, so he's been a handful, but he's making progress.  He will now play independently for about 10-15 minute stretches while I'm in the room.  This is huge for him.  I can see him ever so slowly turning a corner.  I am cheering him on with my biggest cheer leading skills.

Sleep is not overrated

Logan has been waking up a lot at night again. :-( He's been up 3-4 times a night for the past week. It's like having a newborn all over again. At least he goes back to sleep quickly, but I don't know what's going on. Growth spurt? Brian thinks maybe his feet are cold since I've been putting him in footless jammies. I just bought 3 new cute ones, so that's probably it and they'll be a complete waste of money. We'll try him in some footed ones tonight and see if it makes a difference. He hates socks, so would just take those off if I tried. I just tried to make a new paragraph. It looks fine while I'm typing, but as soon as I publish it's like there are no spaces. Maybe it's an iPad glitch with Blogger? Isabel had a tough day yesterday. She was just whiney and grouchy. In addition to over an hour at My Gym we hit up the big neighborhood park for over an hour. Logan spent at least 20 minutes in the swing. When it was finally time to go I took him out and he screamed and flailed around and tried to hit me. I love carrying a toddler to the car who's having a tantrum. It's like the walk of shame for a mom. Anyway, so we had a busy day yesterday. Isabel was obviously tired and just being a typical overtired almost 3 year old. As Brian was gettign their bath ready I hear a smack and then Logan cry. She slapped him across the face. That ended her night pretty quickly. She didn't put up much of a fight when I told her after bath she was going to bed. No movie night for her. Unfortunatly one of the bad things about putting her to bed an hour early is that she's up an hour earlier this morning.

It's Friday, Friday!

Phew, (almost) made it! Last night sleep was horrible. Brian had something he needed to file with the PTO before midnight EST and I could't sleep. Logan was up a lot and Izzy leaked. The alarm for my 5:30am spin class made for a short night. Coffee is my best friend. Isabel was begging to go to My Gym again today, so we went out right when they opened and had the place to ourselves for a bit. Then a group of moms came and were increadibly high energy and chatty. I just didn't have the energy to make adult conversation today, so after an hour we headed to Target. They have these double seat things attached to regular carts at Target to me them really long, but otherwise you can only fit 1 kid in the regular carts. There was only 1 'kid cart' on the side where we entered. I was seriously day dreaming about the coffee I was about to get at the Starbucks in Target. I looked down an noticed puddles on each of the seats in the cart. I was like, wow, that's a lot of water left over from the rain we had 2 days ago. I tried to wipe it up with a baby wipe, but it was too much. The lady at customer service saw me and brought over some paper towels. We were cleaning up the water while I was trying to keep Logan out of it, when I realized that it smelled funny. I took a big whip and yep, it was pee. I almost vomited. For real. I gagged. I think the Target worker did the same. I took off for the restroom to scrub my hands and Logan and Isabel. After that stellar start to the shopping trip I was expecting nothing but disaster and quickly headed to get my coffee. With my grande coffee in hand I started flying through the store grabbing what I needed like one of those contestants on a timed grocery run. After a few minutes I realized that it was quiet in the store. No one was screaming. That meant MY kids weren't screaming! AWESOME trip!

The New Alamo

I saw The Hunger Games at the new Alamo Drafthouse last night! The theater was really really nice. The tables were in 2's instead of a long bench, so you didn't have to crawl over everyone or crawl under the bench to get out if you needed to use the bathroom. The seats were nice leather/vinyl and the picture and sound in our theater was amazing. Ok, I think I'm the only one in America who didn't LOOOOOOOVE this movie. I thought it was great, but not the most awesome movie ever. I really really loved the books and I have been looking forward to this movie for so long that I think I just expected it to be 8 hours of awesome or something. I think I was most disappointed with the arena. For some reason I expected it to be different. But don't get me wrong, I did love the movie and will probably see it again with Brian. The acting was very good, especially Elizabeth Banks, Jennifer Lawrance, Woody Harrelson (brillian casting), and Lenny Kravitz is just pretty to look at. Now that I think about it, it was a pretty darn good movie. I just don't want to marry it. Maybe have a long term relationship with it. Not much to report on the kid front. This week we've gone to My Gym twice already since we had class Monday and yesterday Isabel really wanted to go. She played the whole time with a little 4 year old boy who was the sweetest thing ever. They actually went into a 'cave' and read books for a while. It was so cute. His mom came up to me and said he really prefers playing with girls and has always been like that. Apparently his 7 year old brother is the same way. I wish I could have taken them home and had their calmness rub off on Logan some. Logan has been having a good week. He's still not talking too much, but he's started to say a few more words/sounds. He loves to say 'ummmhummmm' for yes. "Logan, should we go get Izzy?" "ummmmhummmm" He's had a little ingrown toe/hangnail thing on his big toe that I've been soaking and putting antibacterial cream on. His eye has been looking a little red and slightly goopy. It's just on the brink of being 'uh oh, pink eye' but it's still looking like it might be allergies. The pollen is out of control right now. If it looks worse this morning I'll take him in to the pediatrian. Isabel has still been a rock star with potty training. No accidents at all. I don't have to remind her to go potty all the time. She's been so easy to potty train. I'm sure I'll have my work cut out for me with Logan though. When he needs a diaper change he'll grab his crotch and go 'poopoo' It's actually quite helpful. Today I'm going to attempt to go shopping at the mall if Logan's toe/eye are looking ok. I need to go to exactly 1 store. But I'll have to try on things, so hopefully Logan will be cooperative.

Daddy is Beating Us!

A friend came over tonight and as we were sitting on the couch chatting Isabel screams "Daddy is beating us!" I said "Honey, I'm sure Daddy isn't beating you." Brian was in charge of bath/jammies tonight. It turns out Isabel was talking about the speed competition we have after bath time when we race to get our jammies on. Logan and Dad vs Izzy and Mom. Haha. Lovely. Isabel has been a little challenging the past couple of days when interacting with Logan. She's slapped him a couple of times. Oye. I told her preschool teacher about it as a warning today. When I went to pick her up she told me they had figured out what one of Isabel's triggers is. Apparently she doesn't like to share her friends. She has a best bud at school (Isabel thinks they're besties, but I don't know if the girl knows this) whom she adores. She talks about her constantly. It's funny because I've heard other Moms talk about how their son/daughter talks about Isabel non stop and Izzy doesn't mention them. It must be the same thing reversed with this little girl. So there is a new girl in town. She just stated in the classroom a couple of weeks ago. She's trying to be friends with Izzy's bestie. Izzy is having none of this. D.R.A.M.A. Isabel's solution is a slap across the face. Not such a great solution. So Isabel's bestest friend says to me today "fuuuuuuuck" I was like 'huh?' She says it again "fuuuuuck." I was like uh, are you trying to say F for (girls name starts with an F)? She just looks at me like "No, I'm trying to tell you to fuck off." Nothing like getting schooled by a 3 year old.