Jake is plugging along at work and when he's not at work, he's at scouts or assisting at Ben's t-ball games. He has a camp out this weekend with the boys and will be taking Ben with him. I never realized how much work goes into these camp outs. Between getting the gear, food, permits, cooking equipment, etc., and then arranging the actual reservations, getting parents involved, figuring out rides, and all that, it's a big job. Jake enjoys it though and is a good Scoutmaster. I think the kids really like him and he has a way of connecting with them that not many adults can... one of his many gifts.
Ben will be graduating kindergarten in 3 weeks. I'm sure he will miss it, especially his wonderful teacher, Mrs. Armknecht. He started t-ball a couple weeks ago and is loving it. I'm also going to sign him and Emma up for swim lessons in a couple weeks. Ben gave me the cutest card for Mother's Day and a plant, which he has decided he will take care of (which is fine with me.)
Emma has her dance recital in 4 weeks and I can't wait to see her perform. She has been working hard, memorizing her steps (it's a tap dance to "Who Let the Dogs Out" and she's dressed as a puppy.) She cracks me up daily, singing at the top of her lungs Mama Mia songs, or just songs she makes up. Jake has to constantly remind her to turn it down a notch because she seems to talk at a yelling level quite often.
Josh is my cute and happy guy, most of the time. We are still not sure if he will need tubes. We take him into the dr one more time this month and if he still has an infection we are told it's time to get them. I just want him to be healthy and if this will help, I'm all for it. He has a new love... watermelon. He could eat probably one-fourth of a watermelon by himself in a day. The last two days I've had a hard time getting him to eat anything but the juicy red stuff.
Barkley and Truman are hanging in there. We've had a couple rough weeks, but that's to be expected with a new puppy. He hasn't had too many accidents though and the kids adore him... Emma especially. Somedays Barkley goes into his crate to get away from her because she loves on him way too much, squeezing his guts out with lots of hugs.
As for me, I've been pretty bummed the last couple weeks. After my half marathon I was still having bad knee pains. I went to the dr and was told there is nothing wrong with my bones and they thought it was just IT band syndrome. They wanted me to come back if the pain didn't go away in a month or two. I was given some exercises to do and told to ice my knee and take aleve after my runs. Well, I can't even run 1 or 2 miles without feeling pain now so I've had to take time off from running. I was pretty bitter about it the past few weeks but then I figured I needed to change my attitude. I decided this would be a good time to focus on cross training and weights. I really haven't done too much, besides my 1 day/week with my trainer and then some bike or elliptical here and there. I've just been so focused on running the past year, I didn't make time for the other stuff. I have to say though, I've found my new love... my Body Combat class. It's hard, fast, and awesome. The class combines tae bo, kickboxing, and karate moves. The first time I went I strategically placed myself in the back so no one could see me mess up (which happened more times than not.) I'm slowly getting it though. I'm a quick learner, but realize I don't look like Billy Blanks, as much as I try. I brought my good friend, Susi, and her daughter Jaci with me yesterday and we were all sweating bullets. It was great! Emma's dance teacher is one of the Body Combat instructors and she is amazing. My trainer told me she will teach two classes, and then go work out after that. Crazy! One more thing, I've found another hero. Her name is Joanna and she has had 4 c-sections, a hysterectomy last year, and looks like a rock star. She gave me some tips on strengthening my core and shaving fat off my sides. She told me she loves the Body Combat class for that too... one more reason to keep going to the class. I'm happy that I've found something I really enjoy while I put running on the back burner for a couple more weeks. Hopefully my knee starts feeling better soon. If not I'll have to get an MRI and see if my soft tissue is an issue.
One more piece of big news in our family, well, extended family... Jake's brother is getting married in 4 days. Pete and Mallory are getting married on Tuesday in the Salt Lake Temple. We are excited for them and wish them the best.
So, that's us in a nutshell. I'll post pics when I have more time. I don't have the program to shrink the files on our new Mac so they will have to wait. (I will, however, post this pic I found on the web, showing some Body Combat moves so you get the idea of the class.) Hope everyone is enjoying the warmer weather. Summer here we come!!
4 comments:
Hi Jamie, I hope your IT band gets better soon! Chad is having that exact same problem right now. He's doing the same thing as you right now just cross training and doing all the little exercises to get it better.
I'm sorry about your knees. I have a bumb knee as well and that is how I got into biking (that and I hate running). It is a more expensive sport then running but it is highly addictive. The key is to get a nice bike and the difference is amazing! I could rave about it forever but it is worth a shot.
Man, I know how you feel about that knee situation. About 4 years ago I ran in a 5k and have never been the same since. Any sports on hard surfaces cause a dull pain in my knees about 30-45 min into it. I can usually last on grass though. I decided to buy a mountain bike since that would be a lot easier on my knees and strengthen them a bit in the process.
I love the body combatclasses! They are such a great workout! You should try pilates too if you really want to work on your core strength. You'll be running again before you know it.
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