Topsy Turvy

So, all went silent here at onbalance for a while.  We had a few weeks Charles Dickens would have been proud of, for they certainly were the best of times and the worst of times.  That said, let us be grateful that our worst of times are only as bad as they are….

We had Spring Break, which started off with The Monkey going to the doctor to have a cyst in his ear lanced.  If that sounds both uncomfortable and gross, you are on the right track to understanding this experience.  To reward him for outstanding behavior at the doctor’s office– truly, I would not have been so calm– I let him pick an afternoon activity.

We set off to Sweet Berry Farms to pick strawberries.

We picked nearly 7 pounds of strawberries in less than an hour.  It took us less than 48 hours to eat 7 pounds of strawberries.  We like strawberries!

The next day we had a Cousins Meet-In-The-Middle Day in Waco at the Cameron Park Zoo.  Neither my Sister-in-Law (who lives in Dallas) nor I (who live in Austin) had been to this zoo before, but it proved to be a great day trip.  Even though it was Spring Break, the crowds were manageable, the animals were exciting to watch, and the kids had a great time.

The Stowaway and her Girl Cousin even got out of their strollers to live it up on a park bench.

The Boy Cousin joined The Monkey and The Bear for a ride on a wild animal.

By this point it was Wednesday, and things were looking up.  I had a bit of a toothache, but we were getting ready to head to Houston for a few days of fun with family friends, so I didn’t think much of it.

While in Houston, I was enjoying chatting away a sunny afternoon with a dear friend while our children ran around at a playground.  My bliss was interrupted by a horrific scream, one I identified immediately as coming from The Monkey.  The next thing I knew, he was running down the playground slide, spattering it with blood, and his forehead and fabulous flop of hair was caked in bright red.  I know that head wounds bleed profusely, but trust me when I say there was a staggering amount of blood.  I held him while he screamed for a few minutes, and the spare t-shirt of The Stowaway’s being used as a bandage was soaked in blood.  I decided to call 9-1-1.

After a long wait (17 minutes!), the ambulance arrived.  The EMTs recommended taking The Monkey to the hospital for a neurological evaluation.  (The upside of the horrific screaming that was still coming from my boy was that he never passed out.)  I got to ride in an ambulance for the first time.  Lucky me.

After the ER doc determined The Monkey still had brains in his head, he glued my boy back together again.  Hooray for no stitches!

And because we like irony in our family, The Monkey had to play in the ambulance when we went to the Children’s Museum of Houston the next day.

By the time we arrived back home to Austin the next day, I was in sheer pain from my toothache.  Fortunately my dentist was able to work me in within an hour of calling Monday morning, and by lunch time I’d had a root canal.  Yippee!  In all honesty, I am grateful for modern dentistry.  As much as it stinks to have to have (and pay for– OUCH) a root canal, going from 10 on a pain scale to 2 within 24 hours is nothing short of a blessing.

So, thank goodness the kids were back to school so I could focus on my mouth, my clients, and the regular running of the family…right!?  Two days after the root canal, The Stowaway came down with the dreaded pink eye.

Back to the doctor we went….

I guess all of this is the long-winded way of letting you know why I haven’t posted in a while.

Here’s hoping you and yours have had less excitement in your lives lately!

Family Fitness Traditions

I’ve blogged here multiple times about how I grew up in an active family. I’ve also blogged about activities my husband and I like to do with our kids. I was recently featured in the Austin American Statesman about my family tradition of running. It’s a short article that gets to the heart of how just one fitness-minded person can influence lots of people over several generations.

I’m grateful to my parents for having instilled in me a sense that health and wellness are not just important for my physical body but that living an active life is a way to build relationships and community. I can only hope that my kids see how much their dad and I enjoy running (and hiking and exploring and…) and build a life-long appreciation for fitness.

Being Thankful

If there is a better way to start a Thanksgiving day than running from Brooklyn to Manhattan and back over the Brooklyn Bridge, I don’t know what it is. Oh, wait. Yes I do. It is running from Brooklyn to Manhattan and back over the Brooklyn Bridge with your best friend.

(Confession: My husband and I preemptively assuaged our guilt for not taking our boys to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade by taking them to see the already-inflated balloons on Wednesday night. We hedged our bets by saying that the weather was likely to be poor (it was, after all, late November in New York City), and our little Texans were not likely to want to sit out in the cold and wind. How were we to know it was going to be an absolutely gorgeous–sunny, still, and perfectly crisp– Thanksgiving morning?!)

My husband and I left the boys with their grandparents and set off for an easy four-mile run. We don’t get to run together all that often, so we use the time of relative quiet to talk about both the nuts-and-bolts of our family life as well as our hopes and dreams for ourselves and our boys. Settling into the rhythm of the run, we talked through the ups and downs of the suspension bridge. We took in the Manhattan skyline set out before us, and the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor to the left. Also on the bridge were walkers, runners, and cyclists of all sizes, shapes, colors, and ages. What a portrait of America, so apt for the day. We breathed deeply at the turnaround in Manhattan, ready to run up the rise of the bridge and head back to our family in Brooklyn. It was, after all, the birth of our neice and nephew less than three weeks ago, that prompted our holiday visit to New York.

For the blessings of new babies, family, good health, and the hopes and dreams central to being American, we are grateful.

Finding your Mama tribe

Shortly after I moved to Austin with my husband and then 18-month old son, I embarked on the adventure of creating a life that would satisfy me and help my child to thrive.  I was blessed by finding the Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) group at St. Louis Catholic Church in Central Austin.  Not everyone in the group (including me) were members of St. Louis, and not everyone in the group was Catholic.  But we shared the common bond of motherhood and its especially intense challenges of being mostly stay-at-home moms to young children.  The women I met in this group became dear friends, and for more than two years I enjoyed their company, wisdom, and friendship.  I knew that once a week, I had a place to go (with babysitting provided!!) where I could be myself for two hours.

Although I haven’t participated in the group regularly for more than a year, I still see my friends on mom’s night outs and other celebratory occassions.  I was honored when they asked me to speak at their end-of-year Open House.  I am going to talk about “Functional Fitness for Busy Moms,” a topic that I know is relevant to my friends– and pretty much every other mom, too!  If you would like to join us and find out more about the group, the meeting is from 9.30-11.30 tomorrow, May 27th.  The group meets at St. Louis Catholic Church on Burnet Rd., just south of Anderson Ln.  Childcare is available free of charge in Wozniak Hall.  Just email me and let me know to look for you.  Open arms and hearts await.

Giving Thanks

How many reasons do you have to be thankful this year?  I have a lot.  Countless, really.  But for today, I’m going to give you the Top Ten Things I’m Thankful For this year.

10. Great neighbors who are also great friends.

9. The Monkey’s love of singing.  It is impossible to not smile when a two year old sings his heart out…..  especially when said two year old has big brown eyes, fat cheeks, and dimples.

8. The Bear’s love of reading.  You know those kids who don’t ever want to do anything but read?  Yeah, it’s awesome. 

8a.

The Bear starting Kindergarten– that’s been pretty awesome, too.

7. The hubster’s love of ice cream.  (Which has been rather important element of our relationship at all critical stages.)  Celebrating our familial love of ice cream during our annual pilgrimage to The Sundae School.

6. Having the ability and interest to sew.  With help and encouragement from my friends at SewingMamas, I’ve made a lot of progress this year.  I enjoy the creativity that sewing requires, and there’s nothing like seeing your kids running around in mama-made.

5. Travelling nearly all summer long.  And having those travels include taking the kids to Disneyland for the first time, visiting our old gaggle of friends in London to celebrate our ‘babies’ turning five, and our usual summer vacation to Cape Cod.

4.  Having the courage to follow my passion and start my own business.

3. Discovering the awesome freedom of flight on the flying trapeze.

2.  Good health.  My family and I have had another year of good health.  My best friend’s daughter has finished leukemia treatments.  We do not take our good health for granted.

1. Faith.  Both the faith that I have and that my family & friends have in me.  A belief that this world isn’t broken and that good abounds is essential to honoring who we are and what we do here in God’s creation.

 

Good health and great happiness to you.