Lofty Goals

Recently, I decided to take on a very daunting challenge and turn it into a goal. I am going to participate in the Avon 2 Day walk to support breast cancer research. I have to raise a certain amount of funds to be able to participate and I have to be able to walk almost 40 miles. I get 2 days to walk 40 miles, but still, I have turned a corner. For many years I have looked at my husband as some sort of genetic mutant (sorry honey) for wanting to run marathons and ultramarathons and ultra ultra marathons. And here I am, attempting to walk a marathon one day and a half marathon the next day. The voice of caution must have been on vacation the day I signed up for it. But it's for a good cause and I hope the readers of this blog support me.

What I didn't take into consideration was the fact that you have to train to be able to go out and walk 26 miles one day and 13 miles the next. My idea of training and regimen is to get fired up and exercise for two days, have a setback on the third and bag the whole thing on the fourth day, consoling myself with the very same confection (cake, ice cream, Tagalongs, etc) that had me making the resolution in the first place!!! However, this time is different. This time, people have shown, and continue to show, that they believe in me. The outpouring of support has been amazing. Friends and family have contributed monetarily and with strong showings of moral support so I have taken this training seriously.

The fact that I am taking this training seriously has affected my interpersonal relationships, I gotta be honest. I look for suckers, er, I mean partners, to train with me. Failing that, I bring Kaitlyn along in her stroller. People refuse to look me in the eye as I pass them in the hallway on my way to my lunchtime walks so they won't be roped in too! Friends have stopped returning phone calls just to avoid my cajoling! However, this past weekend, I was able to find two suckers, er, I mean wonderful friends, to participate in a 5k with me. I walked a VERY brisk 5k with my friends Jennie, Megan and the ever patient Kaitlyn. We had a phenomenal finish time (nearly linking arms like sweaty Bobsey Twins....er, Triplets I guess), supported a really great cause and left the race patting ourselves on the back for our outstanding race! Kaitlyn, not being used to getting up at 6 am was less than enthused. Jennie was able to capture it in the picture you see at the beginning of the post.

I know this is only the beginning of many many 5ks to come and I can't help feeling that I've stumbled onto something great. Don't expect me to run any time soon (or ever), my friends! I may have set a lofty goal, but I haven't lost my mind just yet!

Where do babies go?

I remember when Kaitlyn was an infant, wondering when she'd reach certain milestones. I never found the brand spankin' new baby part to be very difficult at all. I mean, I love sleep as much as the next guy (probably more) but I always made time for what was important. Cleaning the house could get done when Brent came home and it was his turn with the baby. Spending time snuggling on the sofa, or gazing into each other's eyes, that's what I remember most. But I always wondered "When will she smile? When will her teeth come in? Am I doing it right?" Now I know that I shouldn't have been worried about that part at all. All that is a piece of cake. It's when they find that little glimmer of independence...watch out, world, here she comes!

Here's just an example. This is a dialog between Kaitlyn and her daddy:
D: "Kaitlyn, can I have that please?"
K: "Go 'way!"
D: "Kaitlyn, give it to me please. It's dangerous..."
K: "Go 'WAY!"
Minor scuffle ensues. Daddy winds up with the hotly contested item.
D: "Kaitlyn, go see mommy please"
(As an impartial observer, I have started to pay attention as I'm mildly curious to see where this is going to go)
K: "I NOT!"
Kaitlyn stomps into a room in a completely opposite direction. Daddy dissolves into giggles and I heave a sigh, knowing that we have been given a brief glimpse of the teenage years.

Later, Kaitlyn decided to put some muscle into "I NOT!" Picture a child, no bigger than a leprechaun with blonde, flyaway curls swirling madly about her head. She's got big blue eyes, a cute nose and pearly white miniature teeth. She can give you the sweetest smile, an impish grin or the steely stare of her father when she's not happy with you. This time, she fixes you with steady gaze, bends at the knees and back, bends her arms at the elbow and shouts "I NOT!" flinging her arms towards the floor. She wants you to know she means business. This wasn't done for any reason in particular, just to show that she could. This time, I am the responsible party as I kept encouraging it in order to record it for posterity (I failed, miserably).

My friend Tish always said my first child was going to be a girl. She said she was looking forward to me having a sassy, girlie girl who was going to keep my on my toes. At the time, I thought that was the meanest thing anybody has ever said to me! I play poker and race cars! What could I possibly teach a girlie girl? It's clear that Tish's prophecy came true, but I honestly wouldn't have it any other way. My time with bebe child is the highlight of my day and even when I'm at the bottom of the well with my patience, all she has to do is turn and smile at me and all is right with my world. I guess kids are just like that. You wanna squeeze 'em with all the love you've got in you one minute and the next minute, you're wondering how much longer until you can implement time out!

So I guess I'm wondering where did my baby girl go and where did this little girl come from?? A little SASSY girl at that. They really do grow up so fast. Who knew we'd grow up with her?

Kaitlyn-isms

Oh the joys of motherhood. The past two weekends, Kaitlyn and I have had quality mommy-daughter time. As in prime time, all the time. No daddy interference whatsoever. And I have come to realize one very important thing: I am not cut out for full time mommyhood. Maybe I could do it if I didn't have a choice, but I have a choice and my choice is not full time mommyhood. I love my daughter dearly, but dear LORD is she a bundle of energy. In the time it takes me to crawl from my bed to the bathroom, she has rearranged her entire bedroom. As I spend time getting ready for the day (including propping my eyelids open with toothpicks as they REFUSE to stay open on their own), half of her room has now made its way into the bathroom. I am not sure how it is possible that I gave birth to this little dynamo of energy, but I heartily appreciate the fact that I get to drop her off somewhere and let Miss Lida try to harness the tornado that is Kaitlyn.

Some of my fave Kaitlyn antics from the past couple of weeks:
- It is most efficient to dry off during your shower as opposed to after the shower. One morning, while I was lathering my scalp, Kaitlyn opens the door and says "Here, mommy." I crack the corner of my eye open to see her thrusting the towel in the shower. I thanked her for her assistance, took the towel and put it back on the side of the tub. Such a helpful little girl.
- "HEY! Don't DO that!" Kaitlyn has picked this up from one of the little girls at day care. She uses it any time she's irritated with something I've done. Which, when you've got a two year old going on 12, is pretty often. Sometimes, I have only mildly irritated her, in which case I get a "Hey...don't..." 100 times a day. Not tedious at all.
- Two. The following is a conversation I had with Kaitlyn>
"Mama, I want mumblemumblemumble"
"Kaitlyn, do you want a cookie? (that was what I had on hand at the time)"
"Yeah!"
"Okay, but you can only have one."
"Two."
"Kaitlyn, you want two?"
"Yeah, two"
What could I do? My child is a genius! I gave her two.
- Another conversation with Kaitlyn (if you can call it that):
Me: "Kaitlyn, I love you"
Kaitlyn: "Mwah"
I love that little girl! Of course mwah means I love you too!

In other family news:
Brent completed his marathon and was not the last one to finish! It was a tough course he said, but he had a good time and got to get away for a weekend. Thankfully, since the weather was about the same as it was in DC, I wasn't envious at all. I mean, who wants to spend 6 and a half hours running anyway? Not this girl!

My dad wound up having a double bypass surgery last week. He's doing well and is due to be released from the hospital today. Don't quote me on it, but I have a feeling the first thing he goes for is a big, fat, juicy steak. Mmmmmm red meat.

Big doin's in Shoupland

Well, I realize it's been awhile since I posted. General craziness is what I attribute it to. I'll catch you up on the "doin's" at the Shoup House:

- First off, Brent is doing really well. His tendon seems completely back to normal, though I haven't seen him attempt another Wii workout. I think his goal is to try to get some running in as the Georgia marathon is NEXT WEEK. I still don't get this whole running for 3-5 hours thing, but it makes him happy and that's what's important. (P.S. Party at my house next weekend! RSVP for directions)

- Second, and ALMOST as exciting, I went for a fish pedicure with some friends this past Saturday. I'm not really sure why it is we chose to get a pedicure in the middle of winter (with snow all around, just to prove it's still winter)...I think the allure (yes, I said allure) of a fish pedicure was like a siren's song that was too powerful to resist. The brief synopsis is that there was screaming, there was crying, no fish were harmed in the consumption of our dead skin and my feet are as smooth as a baby's butt. If you're reading this, chances are you don't have access to a baby's butt (or my feet for that matter), so you'll have to take my word for it. I would definitely do it again, just maybe not live it up quite so much next time. And if you get the chance to do it, well, make sure you start out with the small fish. I hear they have had to retrieve whole toes from the big fish! Just kidding. Sort of.

- Third, and not quite as amusing as the first two topics, my father had two small heart attacks on Sunday. I think we all accept at some point that our parents are mortal. Somewhere along the way, we stop seing them as a ginormous figure and recognize them to be more like a real life person. It's at this time in our lives that we realize that eventually our parents will no longer be around forever. We hope that they will live to be 1000 year old so we can draw on their wisdom, or learn from their mistakes, until the end of our lives. My dad will need bypass surgery and will be able to resume normal activity shortly after surgery, so he is very lucky that they caught his heart attacks so early. Not everybody gets a second shot at living, so I hope he will take this chance he's been given and appreciate it. And I hope that I will appreciate his second chance as well.

No funny ending tonight, folks. Hug your loved ones tight, because you never know what tomorrow will bring.

You've been warned!

I recently realized the Lenten season is quickly approaching. Lent always proves to be fraught with drama (at least initially) as I try to figure out what I'm going to give up. The theory is that you need to make a sacrifice to honor the sacrifice Jesus made for you. I'm not super religious, in fact, I've probably been excommunicated from the church at this point, but I'm nothing if not steeped in tradition, and this year is no exception.

My goals for Lent are this:
1. No chocolate until Easter (hence the "You've been warned!"). This is especially painful (insert eye twitch here) as it's Girl Scout cookie season and I have stocked up on the Tagalongs. In fact, I think my Tagalong order alone has caused a peanut butter shortage for the entire East Coast (assuming that's where the Girl Scout cookie factory is). But as the hymn states, "We shall overcome." I don't recommend trying to engage me in a meaningful conversation on Easter as I am sure I will be blissed out from my Tagalong overload ("How many Tagalongs can Kelly eat in one day? A-one, a-two....wow! That box went FAST!").
2. No new animals. This one will also be awful hard. My bleeding heart goes out to any animal in need, but I probably am approaching animal gluttony at this point (if there is such a thing. If there isn't, well, I've probably just invented it). I had someone say to me today that it seemed as if I were light on cats right now. I won't publish the actual number here, but I was thinking "If (insert number here) is light on cats, what would be too many???" And here's where I say, I don't know, nor do I want to find out.
3. Do good deeds daily. Whether it's being honest, whether it's being tactful, polite, sincere, or helping an old lady across the street, I plan to perform one random act of kindness daily. Not to say that I'm not already kind, but there's always room for improvement.

The funny thing about Lent and my Lenten promises is that I always find myself enforcing them well after Lent. And then I realize it's okay to have that piece of chocolate and it's like a dam breaks and the chocolate longings run through! My wonderful, sweet husband says if I'm craving it, I must need it and I feel that those are words to live by. I guess I crave peace and enlightenment and hope that one day, by denying myself chocolate, I will find what it is I crave. Who am I kidding?? Bring on the Tastykake Kandy Kakes!!!! At least until the 17th. After that, cyberfriends, you have been warned!!

Owies and proper procedure

For a long time, whenever Kaitlyn hurts herself, instead of rushing to her and asking if she's okay, we'll celebrate the incident. For instance, a fall when learning to walk is celebrated with "Bravo!" and clapping of the hands. We're trying not to make a big deal of the fall since that generally seems to add to the tears, but at the same time, we want Kaitlyn to know that we saw what happened and are there for her if she truly needs it.

Kaitlyn's new thing when she hurts herself is to ask if she's okay. A knock on the noggin will prompt an "Okay, mommy?", to which I respond, "I'm okay baby, are you okay?" Today we had a couple of spills and chills. I think she's getting another ear infection which certainly isn't helping any balance issues she might have. When I went into her room to get her to start our day, she was crawling to see a cat ("KEEEETY" in Kaitlyn's world) and banged her elbow. She said "K, mommy?" to which I responded "Okay, baby. Are you okay, do you need a hug?" She came up to me so I was all prepared to give her a hug. She shoved her elbow in my face and said "Muah!" I took that to mean she wanted me to kiss it, so kiss it I did and she went about her merry way.

Later, she tumbled out of the chair she got for her birthday.. She's still learning the balancing points of the chairs, so there have been some falls as she works to figure everything out. So, the blue chair tips over, scaring her and sending her scrambling for comfort. I snuggle her, wipe her tears and she gets down to finish her breakfast (priorities, people, priorities). Does she get back in the blue chair, the chair she fell out of? No sir, says she. She gets in the red chair and reorganizes everything on the table so she can finish her breakfast from there. It was the blue chair's fault, you see, and she will punish it by no longer sitting there. That's my girl! Always figuring out a way to get what she wants!

Curse you Wiggles!

Many people know that we are blessed with a child who loves to sleep in. It's not uncommon for her to sleep until 8:30 am. I often take advantage of this and sleep in myself. I was looking forward to sleeping until at least 8 this am, as we were up late for an ER visit for Brent (more on that later). And by we, I mean Brent and I, otherwise, Kaitlyn would probably STILL be sleeping.

7:30 am, the most shrill sound starts coming from Kaitlyn's room. I should note that she is VERY good about playing in her room until she's ready for us to come get her. What was that shrill sound sending chills down my spine you may ask? None other than the Wiggles in their big red car. I groaned and rolled over, but those Wiggles persisted! They were relentless! All around they went in their big red car. They bob up and down, the wheels turn and they drive all around as long as you want them to, singing the whole time! Who is that cheerful that early in the morning??? None other than the Wiggles, my friends. Apparently Kaitlyn wanted them to be world travellers as she sent them on the journey every 30 seconds! By 8:00 am I was done. As I clawed my way out of bed, I had the brief thought that I would exile the car to Miss Lida's to disappear forever. Kaitlyn, for her part, would have been THRILLED to take the car to Miss Lida's. The anguish faded and I reconsidered. However, I will be taking the Wiggles out of Kaitlyn's room tonight and will replace it this weekend so her father can experience that particular ring of hell.

As for Brent's trip to the ER, it was the best ER trip I've ever had! It took longer for Uncle Chris to get to our house than it did for Brent's trip to the ER. 11:00 pm, he staggers upstairs, limping and gasping in pain. He was doing the EA Active workout and felt a pop. When I asked him what it felt like he said "It felt like one of the cats punched me in the back of my calf." "One of the cats?" I asked. "Yeah, it was this big POW in the back of my calf. I looked around to see what cats were in the area." (Readers, I'd like you to consider the likelihood of a cat approaching a grown man who is jumping around to punch him in the back of the calf). "Ohhhhhhhhhhkay. Do you need to go to the doctor?" "No, I'll be fine." Twenty minutes go by. "Honey, I think you're right, I think it is my achilles." "So what do you want to do?" "Well, you see, it felt like a pow and I can walk, but it hurts when I stretch -" "No, that's not what I asked. I asked what you wanted to do?" "Oh, I'll just drive myself to the ER." "K (dials phone) Chris, can you come over, I gotta take Brent to the ER."

So over Chris came and off we went. 20 minutes after arriving (and a cool hospital bracelet later), they patted him on the head, told him to take Motrin and sent him on his way. It was eerily reminscent of the time we went to hospital for Kaitlyn's birth, complete with mountains of snow on the ground. We chatted with Chris and then all went to bed. Until the stupid Wiggles. CURSE YOU WIGGLES! Until we meet again!