My Cooking and Puking: no relation to each other

Merry Christmas Recovery!! Thank you family and friends for your gifts. The kids had a great Christmas. I'm happy that the "loot" did not require an addition to the house. The toys are getting smaller and more expensive as they get older. I finally got slippers after a two year request. I don't think the kids believed me previous years. The idea that someone would really want slippers was beyond them. Thanks to movie gift cards (which I love), we have seen three movies in one week. CW and I went to a Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert. I'm taking MW to see the Cheetah Girls in two weeks. The tickets to both were Christmas presents.

So the folks and sibs came to my house for Christmas. I liked everyone coming to my house. I have alot of Christmas decor and not a lick of decorations for other holidays so that part worked out well for me. I took some saved vacation days which meant I didn't stress trying to get things ready. The part that sent me to bended knee was the cooking. Does anyone out there understand how intimidating a 7.5 lb pork loin roast can be? Does anyone know how messed up your cooking schedule becomes when the pork loin is finished 90 minutes early and 120 minutes before your guests are suppose to eat? Does anyone know how scary it is when the pork loin is turning black and your mother who is suppose to be there to help you like she was for your brother has not arrived early like she did for your brother? Does anyone know how to make your stuffing muffins that are so easy to cook (per Rachel Ray) stick together and not fall apart?

My Mom said today that she forgot to get some leftovers to take home. I told her no one asked for leftovers so I did not offer since I figured they didn't want to offend me by refusing. She said that was not true. I do know now the following things: pork cooks faster when apple juice is part of the marinade; don't use as much pineapple juice as the receipe calls for in the Apple Taffy Salad; don't use as much chicken broth in the stuffing; and don't bother with dessert because people bring a ton of sweets.

Ok, now for a running update. Sunday is the day I run without walk breaks. Since the groin strain, I've only made it back to 3 miles (down from 4.5 miles). I've had a real struggle with shin splits. I'm finally going to get new running shoes this weekend with my Christmas gift card. Anyhow, the rest of the week I do walk/run combos. The distance is not as important as the total time. I was reading up on Jeff Galloway's Website for tips to increase my distance and ease the leg pain. I've added a 5 minute warm up walk instead of stretching which has made a huge difference. Now my walk/runs are up to 35 minutes when they had dropped to 20-25 minutes. My leg has finally stopped hurting too. Also, on the website, it talks about increasing personal running speed. There is a complicated formula to figure out if a runner is ready to increase their speed. One thing he says is "don't run so fast you need to puke". When I read that I thought "who would do that?". Guess what?

Well, tonight I was finishing my walk/run combo. I had already run 26 minutes and walked 12 when just ahead of me two guys come out of their house and start warming up for what looked to be a run. Now these are the guys in the "frat" house who do not keep their yard, smoke pot (I can smell it when I run pass their yard), and keep five cars parked outside. Needless to say, the HOA is not happy with them. Neither are the neighbors. When I passed them, I was walking for one minute before it was time to run again. I started to run right after passing them. I heard them laugh and start running. Now I'm thinking "That's not right. They have no clue that I've been running for 26 minutes." I picked up my pace but they passed me in a dust of smugness. I kept at it though cause I knew they don't have a healthy lifestyle and I know I have a killer kick in my run. Happily, I can say I passed those frat boys. I haven't maintained my "kick" for that long of a distance though (I couldn't let up until I passed them, right?). When it was over, I went inside and puked. I guess I'm not completely ready for that speed. PS. I think "puking" is a vulgar word. I'm just using it because that is the word Jeff Galloway used on his website. Also, it has a little dramatic flair to it.

Footnote: Did everyone hear about Arnold Swartz....? He broke his femur while skiing with his family. Ok, I'm thinking skiing with anyone even remotely related to a Kennedy... not such a good idea. Also, as I've been typing this, the news is breaking about Gerald Ford. I remember the day my Mom voted for him. I think that was the last time we agreed on a candidate. Of course, I was six. I wanted him to win because he was old and I didn't want his feelings hurt.

Quick Holiday Catch-up

Wow! I can't believe three weeks have passed since my last entry. It's all the Holiday activity. I think I'm pretty much done with shopping and now I need to focus on dinner for Christmas Day.

Both kids have done their Christmas plays. The Pre-K through 3rd Grade kids had their program 12/6. The 4th through 8th had their program this past Weds. That means two different shows to attend as a parent. However, that also means the shows are more enjoyable and shorter. Both were really good. It wasn't an exercise in patience. The music teacher is so good. One of the best moves Concordia made was to hire her.

There was some drama with MW's show. She developed a swollen red and painful ankle. It got to the point were she could not bear weight. Xray's showed a funny shadow that was a possible non-displaced fracture. Labs ruled out an infectious or inflammatory process. The whole ordeal took about 4-5 days to resolve. She milked it for all it was worth. So she was off crutches for the show but if anyone looked carefully enough...they would have noticed a slight limp. Two days ago she started crying about her leg hurting. It was the same leg but this time above the ankle more on the tib/fib. Of course, I start letting bad things run through my mind but then I remembered ... "we did xray and any bad spot would have been noticed". The pain went away by the next morning. I must say it was a funny sight when I had to pick her up from school the 2nd day of ankle pain. I was still limping due to my sore groin. We were quite a limping sight as we made our way to the car.

MW has started basketball. Her team has played two games. She is playing so well. The first game she was scoring, defending and even got an assist in. The second game she was the only one on the team to foul. The expression on her face looked like she thought she might have to go the principal's office but the parents were elated. She played a good portion of the game and was beet red by the end. Her defensive game is tough. I guess having a big brother serves a purpose. We're off until January but the games extend into February. The first game we did snacks and concesssion stand so our team duties are over unless something comes up.

Not too much with CW going on except his mouth. Everything has to be supplemented by a wisecrack from him. Usually he is making a joke. Sometimes it is to aggravate his sister. Once and only once was it directed toward me. He shouldn't do that again. I don't mind commentary from an offspring as long as it is respectfull and please don't whine about how hard life is because you are bored. Two of his gifts have been foiled. His sister found one and not knowing it was his gift, held it up for everyone to see. The other one he found after looking under my bed.

I need reassurance that he will one day shower, brush teeth, care about grades, not hit females, feed his pets, exercise and eat right, wear clean clothes and clean his house. I really think if I left him alone he would stay on the computer all day, eat junk food between games and personal hygiene would not even enter his mind. His pets would starve and trash would pile up. His mind would turn to mush and he would have no friends and he'll weigh 300 lbs. Sometimes, he'll be on the computer for his one hour limit and I'll just snap at him... because that vision I just described runs through my head. The same thing happens when I see him snacking. The same thing happens when he hasn't done anything productive with his day. The same thing happens when he constantly bugs his sister. The same thing happens when his homework is sloppy or he takes no initiative to start a big school project. The same thing happens when he hasn't fed his pet in two days and asks if he can play on the computer. I don't nag... I snap LOUDLY. I can see a complex developing especially when he gets food for himself. He seems self-conscious. Which of course, I then have anxiety about because obviously I've gone too far and now he is going to turn into Norman Bates. Like I said, I need reassurance.

Ok, let's move on.... We went to see "The Navity" which we enjoyed very much. CW said "I don't usually like that kind of movie, but it was ok". MW wanted to know if girls still get stoned if they get pregnant before they are married. I said "only by their mothers".

Merry Christmas to everyone. I hope you enjoy your holidays. As you go through your Christmas list, remember why that person is on your list in the first place and appreciate them. I love appreciation in the form of spending money or gift cards (ha,ha,ha).

Love to all, K