Mommy of Many®

Saturday-no Boot Camp, no school, no work. I stayed in bed listening to the singing birds outside my window.

Then reality set in and I got up and decided to make oatmeal for breakfast. I spent a little time picking the raisins and cranberries from our trail mix and transferring them to the oatmeal. Next it was time to make a copy of JJ’s birth certificate so he could play in today’s rugby tournament. I went to the garage, got out his file and looked for the document. What I found was an empty envelope! Then I remembered-I handed over his birth certificate when we got his passport. I remembered receiving it in the mail…what did I DO with it?! It MUST be in the paperwork piles and bags that I’ve been trying to make my way through. I broke the news to him and we started tackling the piles. FOUND IT! He and Clay ran out the door to meet up with the team.

This was a reminder of how badly I need more time in this house. My usually organized abode has turned into a cluttered mass of confusion. I hate it! So…I’m hoping to spend the day in the house, with garbage bags and filing folders.

Wish me luck!

Doing the Dance of the Children Around a Bonfire Size Pile of Papers and Confusion~

One more week down! Yes! THAT is today’s success!

Here it is, 10:30pm and I’m finally finding a moment to write about the 6am Kraze Boot Camps class. Busy day! I’ve been tired the last few days, but I’ve kept going and here I am at the end of another week! Yea!

Onto Week 4! With encouragement and a little bit of stubbornness, I’ll make it through Week 4 and beyond!

It’s not too late to come out and try a class! Send Aaron a message and let him know you’d like to give the work-out that’s kicking Mommy of Many’s behind, a try! I’d love to see you!

I got out of bed with the alarm with no problem, but getting my body to not give up during my 6am Kraze Boot Camp class today was tough. It seemed like every exercise was more of a mental challenge than a physical one. That’s not to say that they weren’t physically challenging-they certainly were! But my mind was against me today. I wasn’t as exhausted as yesterday, but could REALLY have used a nap.

I talked to Aaron about how I was feeling and he said I need to start drinking a recovery shake and gave me some ideas of what to put in them. Never did I think I’d be buying those sorts of products. But I’ve got to start feeling a little better or I’m gonna have a tough time making it through.

When I got back from Boot Camp I decided to make breakfast for the kids before my shower. When Lex (4 yrs old) got up we talked about where I’d been. I asked if he knew why I was gone in the morning and he said, “you went to Boot Camp”. I told him he was right and asked what he thought I did at Boot Camp. His answer-”stretch your legs”. Alrighty then!

Just one more day in this week and then it’s onto the 4th and final week in this set of classes. I’m happy I’m working out each day but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t looking forward to the break between class sets.

Hoping for a boost of energy and for my brain to get-on-board for tomorrow!

Summer…Oh Summer! Where are you?

It hasn’t looked much like summer around here. I keep waiting to wake to the bright sky and the warmth of a day that’s just gonna get warmer and call you down to the beach. Hasn’t happened yet. This morning it was drizzling and the sky is totally grey. Last I checked, it was 64 degrees. It makes me want to put on some soup and curl up with a movie. But it is, in fact, summer and I don’t have the luxury of curling up and doing anything!

Today’s Dance goes something like this-

4:30am-wake up, check email and get ready to leave the house at 5:30 for Boot Camp
6am-Kraze Boot Camp
7am-Drive home
7:20-Start breakfast, listen to Max and Lex “play songs” on their toy piano, give Lex 2 timeouts for bad behavior, feed everyone, make coffee
8am-Shower and answer emails
9:40am-Leave to pick Maddi and Anna up from Summer School
10:30-Sports Therapy, Massage and Chiropractic for JJ and me
12pm-Make lunch
12:40-Take Mariah to work
2pm-Hair appt for me
4:10pm-Have kids and food packed and ready to leave for JJ”s rugby game, drop him off, take kids for walk until game starts

After the game, we’ll come home and get ready for the nighttime routine. I’m beat! The last 2 days of Boot Camp have kicked me hard! I better eat some “energy” foods and take my vitamins cuz I’ve got NO time for feeling tired!

Doing the Dance of the Children and Hoping not to Trip~

All I can really say about today is that it was the most exhausting day yet. I drove home feeling completely drained and I never really recovered.

Everything was fast-paced and intense and Aaron kept us moving the whole time.

So-Kraze Boot Camps Class, Week 3/Day 2=an early night to bed for Mommy of Many. Just as soon as I finish picking Kateri up from work, getting JJ to rugby, feeding everyone dinner, picking JJ up from rugby, taking Kateri to the airport for her 10pm flight and picking Maddi up from a friend’s, I will surely crash into bed and I can pretend it will be early. Hoping to wake up feeling refreshed and ready for tomorrow’s class!

Wanna get your behind kicked into shape and your energy challenged? Join me!

Yesterday evening the rest of the family arrived back from their trip out to Nevada. I had gotten all the laundry done and some other household tasks completed, knowing that once they walked through the door, there would be a whole bunch of new work to be done. I was right.

The laundry’s been going since 4:30 this morning. There are plenty of bags to be unpacked. Gramma and Papa sent lots of snacks that needed to be put away.

The kids had a great trip! They haven’t visited with Clay’s family in a few years and it sounds like Gramma and Papa did it up right. These San Diego kiddos went for a hike and ate snow. SNOW! in July! Definitely not something you can do here.

So, it’s back to the full-time Dance of being M.O.M. It’s good to wake up to Gabi’s curly head in my bed again and to hear the constant hum that is the sound of the kids talking throughout the house.

But I will admit that the quiet was a really nice thing to have. I moved through the house, doing chores, with only my thoughts. A really nice thing to have every once in awhile.

Doing the Dance of the Children~

Week 3! Week 3!

After a 3-day weekend, it was back to Kraze Boot Camps at 6 am, this morning. I heard the alarm and groaned. I kept giving myself 5 more minutes, 3 more minutes, 1 more minute, until it was TRULY the last minute to get out of bed and still show up dressed and ready to go. I was feeling LAZY from the break. But, I knew-deep down-that once class was over, I was going to be happy I had gone and that I could mark off another successful day of making healthier choices for myself, which ultimately translate into a better M.O.M. for my family. So off I went with Kateri and Jez in the car with me. We were all dragging!

Why today was a success-I went! I ran both the big-loop laps! I know I have plenty of friends who ACTUALLY run and that running 2 laps around a park loop doesn’t sound like much to whoop about, but I AM NO RUNNER and this is a HUGE step forward in my abilities *patting myself on the back*. I can do more push-ups and stay in a plank position longer. I like that my successes aren’t measured by anyone else’s capabilities but that we’re all there, each day, to live a little bit healthier, have more energy and make better choices for our fitness.

So far I’ve lost 4 1/2 lbs, am drinking a lot more water, am choosing my foods better and am drinking WAY less coffee. I have more energy and I actually look forward to working out (except on the day after a 3-day weekend).

Good Stuff!

Come on out and join the fastest growing fitness Kraze in San Diego! Let’s make better choices together!

And don’t forget to mark your calendars for next Monday when Mommy of Many™ will be joining Aaron-Dr Kraze on his weekly on-line radio show to talk about fitness for moms and families!

Getting things in the mail is always fun (except bills, of course!). A few days ago I opened the mail to find a sample of Snikiddy® Baked Fries for the kids and I to try out. I was impressed with the fact that these were a baked snack that contained no preservatives, no corn syrup, no trans fat, no hydrogenated oils AND are gluten and wheat free. I try hard to stay away from corn syrup in all of my children’s foods, so I was excited to have them try something new that fit that criteria!

I think my 7 yr. old, Max, gives the best review of this snack. After he ate a handful of the baked cheddar cheese fries, he said, “Mom, those are really good! Can you please email them and ask them to send you some more?”.

There you have it! Kiddo tested-M.O.M. approved~

Clay and most of the kids have been gone for several days now. I’ve attacked the laundry, had the carpets cleaned, cleaned up the back yard and have started to attack the piles of paperwork and odds and ends that have been lying around since I went to work in the Fall. I believe I have 2 more days before they’re back and I’m hoping I can really tackle what’s left in that time. While I miss cuddling up with the little ones and hearing all the that the others have to say in a day, I have to admit that I’m loving the quiet, work-time. I’ve needed this! It’s the uninterrupted time to just work that us mama’s never get.

Dang! Why do I feel guilty for liking that?!

Doing the Dance of FINALLY Making Some Real Progress in This House~

Day 5 of Week 2! 2 weeks down!

My car was quiet and lonely this morning. I was the only one in it. The rest of the girls are planning on going this evening. Mornings work better for me. If I have the whole day to come up with excuses not to go, I’ll surely find one. When I hit it, first thing, I don’t have time to think of adequate excuses not to go. Why do I have to play mind games with myself?

Today-running stairs, push-ups, burpees, plank punches, sit-ups w/ our weights & a punch, push-ups w/ a shoulder tap, power squats w/ our weights, frog jumps, inch worms (the first exercise that I couldn’t finish a round of. These killed me!), more push-ups, more jumping jacks and a jog around the big circle…

Welcome to the weekend!

I’m happy to say that I know what the end of Week 2 feels like. Can’t wait to see what the end of Week 3 feels like!

Come on out, join me in the fastest growing outdoor fitness Kraze-Kraze Boot Camps and find out how it feels for you!

Happy 4th of July Weekend!

I had a full car on the drive to my Kraze Boot Camp class this morn. How great is that?! Kateri, her friend and my sister, Maggie, were all with me. What a great way to start the day!

It was a good day in class. I’m finding my strengths and my weaknesses. Cardio is still hard for me, but I can do WAY more jumping jacks than I could on Day 1. I haven’t been sore since last Thursday and my old habits are changing. I’m realizing that taking on this challenge really is about changing my way of thinking and the way I do things in my life, not just about losing weight or toning my body. My energy levels are changing and so are my eating AND drinking habits. I drink A LOT less coffee now, than I did 2 weeks ago and I’m reaching for water even more often than I used to (and I’ve always been good about drinking water). I’m taking better care of my skin and making sure I get to bed and get plenty of sleep. All of this from deciding I’d see if I could make and keep a commitment to spending 1 hour a day, exercising.

Tomorrow will mark the 1/2 way point through this round of classes. I can’t wait to see what the next 2 weeks will bring!

Remember, it’s never too late to join me! Come out and give a class a try. If I can commit to 1 hour a day, so can you!

Good night~

The majority of my family is gone and the kids that are still here were away from the house with friends or quietly in their rooms today. This is what I’ve been waiting for, to be able to tackle this house. I’ve scratched the surface of tasks that need to be done and there’s PLENTY more waiting for me over the next few days. There’s lots of clearing out to do. We live in a small space, which means there’s not much room for clutter. When clothes are grown out of, they need to be packed up and sent to cousins and when books aren’t being used, they need to be donated. This is the chore that’s waiting for me in every room of this house.

I’m grateful for this time! I was home, full-time, for the vast majority of 16 years. When I went to work last Fall, many household tasks got put on the back burner. I’m hoping to catch up!
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Maddi turned 14 today! She had summer school, helped with chores and then was picked up and treated to some birthday pampering by a friend. When they headed over to the friend’s house, she was surprised to find out that a party was waiting for her. What a great birthday! What great friends! I hope this is the beginning of a great year!

Now, this tired M.O.M. needs to talk about my morning at Kraze Boot Camps and hit the sack.

Good night~

Whew! It’s been a long and busy day for this M.O.M! Here I am at 10:35pm, finally able to talk about today’s 6am Kraze Boot Camp class. Bet you thought I forgot!

It was a great work out! I’m excited that today marks the 1/2 way point in week 2! I had more energy this morning and didn’t procrastinate like I did yesterday. We did a new exercise (that I’m sure has some sort of technical name that I am unaware of) on the planters outside of the Convention Center. We stepped up with one leg and then back down with the same leg. I realized that I should have looked around more carefully when I chose my spot, because the planter was sloped and was shorter at one end. Me and my short legs ended up on the taller side! But I did it!

So today’s success is-overcoming my short legs on a tall planter!

I also started to notice, today, that the majority of the other people in the class are friendly. It’s a good thing to start off a 6am Boot Camp with friendly faces! You should come join us!

Speaking of joining…my sister’s coming out, in the morning, to give it a try! Yea! This means I’ll have 3 other people in the car with me. I love it!

Ok, it’s been a long and busy day, so I’m off to bed.

Tomorrow’s one day closer to completing week 2 and I wanna know what that feels like!

Good night~