My "New" Elliptical

Any of you who know Ryan and me or who have followed our blog for a while know what cheap-skates we are. I prefer to say we are industrious and frugal, but you would probably just call us cheap-skates.

Last June Ryan saw an elliptical listed on the Caterpillar classifieds for $100. The batteries were dead on the control panel and the resistance wasn't working quite right, but it was in great shape. (The cheapest new models are currently being sold for $500.) We jumped at the opportunity. I have a particular affection for ellipticals, since I lost a miraculous amount of weight after I had Collin using an old, junky one we bought for $50. It only had manual resistance adjustments and was super noisy. I leaped at the chance to use one like I had always coveted at hotels.

Unfortunately last June when we purchased it, I was ridiculously pukey and sick with this pregnancy, and I didn't touch the thing. Of course, we knew I wouldn't use it until after I had Brennan, so we put in the basement in the "exercise room" and let it collect dust.

Fast forward six months...
In January, shortly after I had Brennan, Ryan decided to try it out one morning he didn't feel like using the treadmill or bike trainer. He changed out the batteries and was devastated to discover that the resistance didn't start working with the new batteries too. He looked online for the cost of a new circuit board - $220. Yep, our $100 purchase just got pricey.

We talked it over and decided that if Ryan couldn't find a way to fix it for free, then I would just find a resistance I preferred, and Ryan would manually set it for me permanently. So much for the fancy new elliptical...

(Are you feeling an "I Love My Engineer" post in the works?)

So Ryan took apart the circuit board, and everything seemed to look good to him. There was one small spot of rust on one small part, but everything else looked great. Doubtfully, he ordered the part ($1.03 plus $9 shipping = $10.03 total) online, and it arrived on Thursday.

A little bit of soldering and a whole lot of faith and... Yep, you guessed it: ten bucks and my elliptical is as good as new. Adjustable resistance at the touch of a button!

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for: I love my engineer! Thanks, Babe.

Now I just need my doctor clearance... My skinny jeans are calling.

Six Weeks

Brennan is now six weeks old, and though I could post about his milestones (he smiles at us now), about Collin (who now knows all this colors, most of his shapes, and counts to ten easily and to twenty with help), or about Ryan (who is on a scout camp-out tonight and tomorrow), instead I am going to selfishly post about me.

1 - My Body:
My body has aged at least a decade with this pregnancy and delivery. My back, arms and neck hurt all the time. (And it didn't help that I fell down the stairs this week.) My stitches have healed funny, and I am still rather uncomfortable "down there." The midwife cauterized some areas today, which hurt like holy heck for about an hour and feels almost like heaven since. My hemorrhoids are in full force, so though I've stopped bleeding from the delivery, I gush like no other each time I deliver daily on the toilet. I'm nursing (of which I am a huge advocate - don't hear me wrong), which means none of my tops fit correctly or comfortably. And none of my bottoms (except my one pair of fat-girl khakis) button, since I still have at least 15 pounds I need to lose (to hit my first pre-pregnancy weight), and hopefully more like 30 pounds to drop (to hit this pre-pregnancy weight). My hair is in a pony-tail at least half of the time, and my little Brennan still manages to twist his fingers into the little baby hairs on my neck. I have had an on-again-off-again headache since the day I delivered Baby #2 which usually centralizes behind my eye balls. And the midwife explained today that the stinging sensation I've been feeling above my belly button is indeed a separation of my stomache muscles that may or may not heal itself in the next 3 months. Do I feel good? Not a bit.

So the six-weeks-post-partum visit that should mean a return to exercise - and a beginning to the weight loss and an ending to my achy body? Not for me. All I was cleared for today was for walking. Yep, with another visit in 10 days. Here's to some miraculous healing...

2 - My Mind:
Mush. That's what my mind seems to be now. Yes, I have most of the picture books in our home memorized and I have recently polished up on the difference between a rhombus and a parallelogram, but last night as I lay in bed singing in my mind "Mr Golden Sun" for the millionth time, I realized that my mind was far from my scholarship days of college or even my days as valedictorian of high school.

Do I regret being a stay-at-home mom? Not for a second. (Well maybe when they both are crying and I have to change back-to-back poopy diapers...) But I wouldn't trade the hours I spend with them for a paycheck any day, and I couldn't be happier to spend each and every day with my two boys at home.

But am I stretching my mind and learning a new fact each day? No. Do I bend over backwards to watch Jeopardy each day? Yep. Pathetic? Probably. Do I have the time or energy to engage in mind-stretching exercises? Nope. Will there be another time in my life for such things before I lose my brain for good? I hope so...

3 - My Spirit:
When I feel strapped for time and short on sleep, the first thing I cut is always my scripture study. I have done it again and again in my life with the same results - stress and frustration. You'd think I'd learn. In my usual form, Brennan's birth and its life adjustments caused me to curb my usual daily reading.

Now that I am returning to teaching my Primary class (I took a short break), I just prepared my lesson for Sunday. Aww, forced scripture study is the best medicine when you've been negligent. Our lesson on Sunday is about when Christ called his apostles in the first church. It reminded me of how grateful I am for living prophets, especially when they are called on by the Lord to speak out against the evils of the world. I admire their courage when Hollywood and the media mocks them, and I am saddened when those (especially of my own faith) forget their divine call and divine message and join the ranks to desparage their remarks. I am even more discouraged when I hear those of my faith disregard the apostles' words and say they were "only speaking their own opinion."

I may be speaking somewhat in code here, but I am so grateful for prophets and apostles who stand for what is right in the face of critical mobs. I am grateful for a church which teaches that revelation can (and does) come from both the priesthood line and the personal line. I am grateful for the opportunity I have each day to feel the Spirit as I study ancient (Bible & Book of Mormon) and modern scripture (Doctrine and Covenants & Ensign) - even when I don't always take the opportunity to do so.

Is this post a mess of things that are whirling around in my mind? Yep - blame it on the mush. Do you have any thoughts about your body, mind and spirit?

One Month

Brennan is one month old today. As cliche as it is to say, I can't believe he's been with us so long. On the other hand, I can't remember him not being part of our home.

Collin
Collin has become a great big brother. He loves to give Brennan kisses. Unfortunately, he gets very upset when I ask him to refrain from showing his love when he is running a fever or has a runny nose. He is very gentle, and oftentimes will ask to give Brennan his binky. When Brennan is crying, he'll say, "Uh oh baby. Baby binkie." He also knows that the baby will always be happier with some of "mama milk," and he is becoming more willing to share Mom when it means the baby will stop crying.

Brennan
Brennan is still a miracle sleeper. He is in a great routine now too. During the day, he eats every three hours. His feedings are also on hours which are multiples of three, which makes the teacher/planner in me so happy! After eating, he will stay awake for 30-60 minutes, and then nap until it is time to eat again. He only cries when he is hungry - at the 3 hour mark - and when he has gas (more on this to follow). At night, he nurses at 9pm and again around 3am. Yep, six hours of sleep for me! Instead of staying awake to play, he goes right back to sleep until 6am, and then we are up for the day. It is amazing. Of course, I am still napping each afternoon when both boys are sleeping, so that is keeping me far more sane then when Collin was a newborn.

Alright, now for more on this gas... My children seem to struggle with gas. Collin had problems burping, and he would fuss and fuss uncomfortably. Brennan struggles with the other end. In an attempt to approach this delicately, I'll say that he could definitely out "toot" any grown man, and he has some seriously explosive bowel movements.

I am certainly struggling with taking pictures of him. I took hundreds of pictures of Collin when he was a baby, but in typical mother-of-more mode, I have neglected the camera almost completely. I'm guessing that he is weighing in around 9 pounds, and he is losing all his black hair on the top of his head. Picture male-pattern baldness. He no longer fits in any of his newborn-sized clothes, which was a sad day to pack them all up. He still has his one elf ear and a seriously upturned nose. His eyes are more open and aware now, but they are still shaped like Ryan's.

And Me
My adjustment to having two kids has gone FAR more smoothly than I had planned. Of course, I had prepared for the absolute worst, so I guess that's not saying much. My mom did stay for a full two weeks though, so I was spoiled with lots of help for quite some time. By the time she left, I was getting a decent amount of sleep each night and had Brennan on a loose schedule. Now, two more weeks later, I'd say things are going rather smoothly. I wouldn't say we don't have hiccups, and I absolutely detest bed-time without help, but we are doing well.

Thanks for all your well-wishes. Happy Valentine's Day!

Blizzard 2011

I'd be remiss if I didn't record about Blizzard 2011...

Background

Before Brennan was born, Ryan asked if he could attend a recruiting career fair at Wisconsin on February 2nd. I wasn't a big fan, but he doesn't ask for much so I consented. Since my mom was arriving on the 27th, I figured she'd be here to help too. When he'd done these in the past, he left at 4am and returned around midnight. I knew it would be a long day for us both, but I figured we'd survive.

As the actual event arrived, things changed. Since Brennan was born early, my mom changed her flight and came early. She'd been here for two weeks and was more than ready to return to her own life, and therefore left on Saturday the 29th. That made Monday the 31st my first day alone with two kids.

Tuesday

With the blizzard forecast for Tuesday the 1st and Wednesday the 2nd, Ryan decided to pickup his rental car a day early and leave around noon on Tuesday. He thought the storm was supposed to hit late Tuesday afternoon. Knowing I was going to be alone and locked inside for the coming days, I took the boys to McDonald's for breakfast. Brennan was fussing when we pulled in the lot, so I went through the drive-thru and sat in the backseat with Collin while we ate our hashbrowns and burritos. Good times.

The snow and wind started at about noon. Ryan sped through the house throwing clothes in a bag, and as he kissed us goodbye, I started crying as the wind howled and the fireplace whistled. I vividly remember saying, "For the millionth time, I really don't think you should go."

While Ryan drove to Wisconsin, everyone's husbands returned home early from work and enjoyed a spontaneous vacation. I fumed.

By 5pm on Tuesday, Ryan had called and he had safely arrived at his hotel. The evening news in Madison was reporting that the governor had declared a state of emergency and that driving was discouraged. The university had also canceled all evening classes and activities, but the career services were still certain the Fair would take place the next morning. I voiced my doubt.

Wednesday

When Wednesday morning arrived, and the university officially closed and canceled all classes. Career Services was forced to cancel the career fair, and Ryan and his co-worker were stranded at the hotel. Ryan had packed hurriedly and didn't throw in swim or exercise stuff, so he really had nothing to do. Poor soul. The snow and wind continued, and he was bored. The freeway between Madison and Peoria had been officially closed, so there was no way for him to get home either. I was feeling no pity.

By afternoon, Career Services announced they had rescheduled the fair for Thursday, and Ryan decided to stay. Why waste the trip by trying to come home?

Back at home, I was furious. Collin was restless, the snow was piling up, and I was going crazy trying to think of things to keep everyone happy. After my pleading, Ryan called our neighbor with a snowblower and let him know he was gone. He came over and spent at least an hour working on our driveway.

By noon, after 24 hours of storm, we'd accumulated 15 inches of snow with drifts up to three feet. They had predicted ice too, but thankfully it missed us. No one was going anywhere.

Here's Collin - note the pjs, crazy hair and window marker decor - with our 4-foot back porch drift.

Back in Madison, Ryan tackled the local streets and went to an old friends' house for chatting and dinner. Rough huh?

Meanwhile at home, a neighbor had brought us dinner. She had a baby in December, but ventured down the street, walking in a lone set of tire tracks, to deliver a casserole and chocolate chip cookies. The wife of the snowblower owner came over and played blocks with Collin while I showered. Then she held Brennan so I could eat dinner. She ended up staying for THREE hours. I couldn't have special-ordered better neighbors.

Thursday

In Madison, the career fair started at 11am but went slow. It picked up around 4pm, but Ryan decided to take off to try to get home. The freeway was now open, and he was able to travel at normal speeds for most of the trip. Despite almost running out of gas, he made it home at 7pm.

Back here, first thing in the morning I called the girl across the street - who has two girls exactly 6 months older than my two boys - who came over and played. The snow plow finally made it to our street at 10am, and all the husbands exited the neighborhood for work at once. Their two-day vacation had come to an end.

By dinnertime, I was done parenting. As soon as we were done eating, I started the bedtime routine with a shrieking Brennan on one knee and a whiny Collin on the other. So much for a peaceful story time. As I left Collin's room, I heard the door bell. It was one of the neighbors with "new" toys for Collin to play with. Not 30 seconds later, I heard the garage door, and Ryan was home!

Conclusion

Our neighbors are saints. I never could have survived without their help. It was my second, third and fourth days alone with two kids, and I did them as a single mother. I'd say I feel like I can tackle just about anything now!

And if you are wondering, Ryan did admit I was right - He never should have gone. He tried to redeem himself by building this sweet fort for Collin.