A conversation with 3 year old K

K: *points to little bear* This is my baby.

Me: Oh, cute!

K: *points to big bear* And this is my adult. 

Me: ...

Man, I love this girl so much.

Running Adventures: Sweet Ear Candy

Going for a morning run with the orchestral/electronic/soundscape awesomeness of August Wilhelmson playing in your ears of such a great way to start to off the day. If you've never heard of him or any of his music before, do yourself a favour and check him out (no running required!).

Side note: I ran 6K straight a few of months ago, pumped my fist in the air in victory, and then proceeded to stop running altogether until a couple weeks ago. Now I can barely run 2K without a serious need to take a break (which I do), but I'm detemined to get back into it. Hopefully by the end of the summer I'll be able to run at least 5K without needing to take a break again.

Joy

The psalmist definitely knew what he was talking about:
My morning finally came and I've been filled with joy ever since. :)

Thought of the day

Redemption can be found in honesty, vulnerability, and brokenness.
He doesn't just meet us where we are, He IS where we are.

Weeping and Joy

"Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning." Psalm 30:5b

Three

I felt her heartbeat and her kicks before I saw her, then with flashes of pain she came forth and filled my heart with a love so fierce and strong. As I held her in my arms for the first time I looked down at her and took her in; My little ball of light, my little body of love, my little mini-me.

Then I blinked and suddenly she was three.

Happy birthday, K. :)
I love you.

Running Adventures: still at it

Today I opened a bag of chips, ate way too many, and gave myself a stomachache. True story. Anyway, as a direct result of eating said chips I went for a run tonight and (for the first time in the history of forever) I ran 5k straight with no walking breaks! I felt immensely proud of myself as I walked through the front door and told J what I had accomplished. Sure it took me 37 minutes, but this just means that I ran 37 minutes straight and didn't feel like I was going to collapse on the sidewalk. I'll take it! *highfive*

This is us

Anyone watch the pilot episode for This Is Us? I did and I loved it. Interesting take on a family drama and I'm looking forward to see how things unravel from here. One episode in and it has already made me cry. Plus, Jess Milo Ventimiglia is in it so there's that too.

O is for one

Exactly one year ago yesterday, our sweet O came into the world with a healthy pair of lungs and flailing limbs. Last night, as we sat around the table and sang happy birthday to our youngest as a family of four, my heart felt so incredibly full. Thank you for giving us a reason to celebrate - we love you, O!

Running Update Update

I did it! I jogged for 25 minutes straight and it was a success; Didn't need to stop at any point and basically jogged continuously for 3.5K! Sweet! Needless to say I was a sweaty mess when I walked through the front door, but I had a huge smile on my face and didn't feel like I was going to die so I'll take it. Yay!

Update: I went for a run in the evening and was supposed to do another 25 minutes straight jog again, but I couldn't do it. About 15 minutes in I was dying and had to take a walk break. Even though I wasn't able to do it I'm still glad I was out there instead of on the couch! Silver linings, silver linings.

Running Update

Yesterday I went for the longest run in the history of ever (for me). I was following my 5K running trainer thing and I just about died halfway through the first jogging section because the stupid street I was on kept going uphill, but I made it through. So far the longest I've jogged continuously has been 8 minutes, but for the next workout (I'm starting week 7 already!) I'm supposed to do 25 minutes. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous about it, but I'll just try my best and do as much as I can.

In other news I downloaded the Nike Running App on my phone and I love it! I may or may not have fist pumped the sky in victory when the app announced "5 kilometres" in my headphones. My first 5K! I did it!

Cookie Monster

I made 20 peanut butter-oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies yesterday. Yum! J ate one, K doesn't like them so she didn't eat any, and O doesn't have any teeth as of yet. As of right now there are 2 left. Oops.

In other news, I need to go for a run tonight...

Running Adventures: Update

It's been more than a month since I started running and today seems like a good time for an update. Good news: I'm still running! I've been generally going out at least 3 times a week since I started with the exception of a 2 week rest period (too eager + too soon = overused knee complete with knee pain). I'm still going through the C25K thing and so far things have been good (tiring, but good). I completed the first workout of week 4 on Tuesday and I'm super happy to report that I can now jog for 5 minutes straight! (I know this is nothing for a lot of people, but for someone who had no endurance and was barely able to run 60 seconds straight back in April, this is a big deal, lol.) Now this is progress.

Sew, Sew, Sew

I got my hands on a sewing machine (it used to belonged to J's mom) and now I've found a new hobby. Up until last week I hadn't touched a sewing machine for almost 20 years, but I was somehow able to remember how to thread it (my grade 8 home ec teacher would be so proud) and haven't looked back since! I started off by making a few bibs for O and then decided to up the ante and made a pair of pyjama pants for K. I never thought I'd be able to sew a pair of pants. I made a lot of mistakes, but they are pants through and through...and now I'll be able to do better next time. You live, you learn. (Thanks, Alanis.)

Running Adventures

I went for another run yesterday (who am I?!). I made sure to be more prepared compared to my first time around when I didn't even put on a hat and ended up coming home with a huge headache. I've been running in the evenings after putting my kids to sleep so by the time I get out it's actually quite chilly out. Yesterday I layered on another turtleneck and put on a toque...and was headache free when I came home (it's all about the little victories over here).

I went a little farther and my time was a bit better (although still slow by most people's standards, but whatever) so I'm quite happy about that. Overall, I'm feeling pretty good about things and I'm actually looking forward to my next run!

Run Sharon Run

I took my running shoes out for a run this weekend! Ok fine, it was more like a walk/jog combo if anything and according to my phone my time was terrible so maybe my jogging was actually more of a glorified walk, lol. Oh well, it's only up from here right?

Piano fingers no more

We stayed at my father-in-law's place last night thanks to our diva tankless water heater (ughh don't even get me started) and this morning I took the opportunity play some tunes for my littlest one on his piano since we don't have one at our house. Fortunately I can still play, but unfortunately I can't play very well anymore and I now suck. Thankfully O was a good sport about it and sat beside the piano in a rocker looking at me with an amused expression on her face for a good twenty minutes. Mission completed.

a full heart

I end most days with a sore back and a fried brain, but I'm thankful because I know my back is sore from holding my kids, and my brain is fried from trying to decode 2yo talk and 4 month old cries, so despite going to bed most nights feeling like I could sleep forever and still wake up not feeling refreshed, my heart is full. So very full. :)

Cooking Corner: Pikelets

My usual breakfast consists of a bowl of cereal and milk before running out the door. I don't mind cereal at all but every so often (when I have the time) I like to make something a bit more "special." Here are my general breakfast go-tos: soft boiled eggs and soldiers, fried egg and toast, scrambled eggs (hmm there seems to be a pattern here), soup noodles, and pikelets. Today was a pikelet kind of day.

Have you heard of pikelets before? They are basically the Australian/New Zealand equivalent to pancakes and they are hands down so much better than pancakes. Usually they are eaten with butter or jam and whipped cream, and I've also eaten them with maple syrup (I'm a Canadian, yo), but I usually just eat them plain (fork optional, heehee). Here's the recipe I use:

Pikelets
1 C AP flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 C sugar
3/4 milk
1 egg

1. In a bowl, sift* together AP flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. In a separate bowl mix together egg and sugar

3. Add 1/2 of dry ingredients to wet ingredients.

4. Gradually add milk and rest of dry ingredients until everything is mix together.

5. Cook batter in skillet just like you'd cook a pancake (pour into little circle/disc and wait until it starts to bubble and the bubbles start to pop, then turn over onto the other side until pikelet is cooked through)

*I couldn't be bothered to sift anything so I just mix things together and it still turns out just fine.

Sorry, no pictures because I couldn't wait to eat them and now they are all gone. :)

Spring it up

Spring is finally here! Our first real taste came yesterday when it was sunny and warm with a side of blue skies. Not wanting to miss out we took little K for a walk around our neighbourhood. A great way to spend a beautiful afternoon. :)