What I Wear: an embarrassing glimpse into my workout attire

I’ve never been one who could be mistaken for an athlete. In fact, my most shining athletic achievement was being the star walker on my little league team, mostly because I was so short I had no strike zone. (My, how things change. Or not.) I did strike out once. And then I cried. But mostly I crouched down low to get on base or stood in left field half-praying a ball wouldn’t be hit in my direction. I was a cheerleader in 7th grade, too, but beyond that, the closest I came to working out outside of P.E. was marching in 10,000 degree heat and attempting to play my trumpet without passing out. Until recently, most of my working out consisted of walking the ½ mile from the parking lot at work to my desk.

Not surprisingly, I’ve never been a runner, either. Oh, there was the one semester in college when I decided to see if I could work my way up to a 7-minute mile (a feat accomplished once and likely never again), but when summer break came and I had no track to go to, that was that. Since then, I’ve loudly claimed to hate running, all the while harboring severe runner’s envy anytime I saw someone effortlessly jog down the street. And then I started reading on Erika’s blog about how she was training for a triathalon…and while there’s no way in h-e-double-hockey-sticks I could do that, I couldn’t help but think maybe, despite all of my misgivings, I could give running another try.

So it’s been about a month and a half, and now that my legs and my lungs have decided to play a little more nicely together (re: I don’t feel like I’m going to die until at least .75 of a mile), I’m actually (and begrudgingly) beginning to not mind it so much. In fact, the last 3 times I’ve gone, I’ve run 2 miles without stopping (or mostly not stopping). So when Erika posted about her workout attire, I thought it would be a good opportunity to let her know the part she played in my getting my rear in gear and thank her for presenting the possibilities of cool workout clothes. She replied to my comment, and then the moment of truth came: I had to confess the sad state of my workout attire.

And then I promised pictures.

Oy.

But, despite the fact that I might die of embarrassment by posting these, I am a woman of my word. (Don’t worry, Erika. I’m saving the best for last.)

Shoes

I have had these lovely Nikes since senior year of college. They replaced a pair of Nikes I bought sophomore year of high school—they were green and lovely and slick on the bottom because all the tread had been walked (not run) off. Oh, and they were covered in paint from my lucrative and oft-envied work study job as a campus painter (which mostly consisted of painting the fence that surrounded the campus a lovely forest green—good use of my tuition, ONU). Anyway, when it came time to retire them, these shoes made their way into my home. The tread is wearing down and the paint (?) is wearing off, but they’re pretty comfy, all things considered.

However, find me a pair of shoes like Ellie’s in a 6.5 adult,

Source

and I am would definitely be in the market for an upgrade.

Shorts

I have no idea when I got these. I’m thinking an outlet mall some forgotten time long ago? They’ve mostly been worn as comfy post-work shorts or sleeping shorts, and I have a fondness for them because Josh has complimented my legs more than once when I’ve worn them. Last Memorial Day I had the brilliant idea to wear them while repainting Ellie’s room because I was certain there was no way a little cutting in and rolling would ever get them messy. I am clearly a master painter, and a genius. And I also discovered this week that running in them in 90+ degree heat actually causes chaffing of the thigh, which is so very comfortable and good for the self-esteem. (I did recently purchase some running shorts from Old Navy, and so far, I’m a big fan.)

Shirt
This varies from run to run, but mostly my shirt consists of whatever is handy, comfy, and clean. In addition to the wonder I am about to feature, I have worn my Missions in Action t-shirt from my trip to Russia as a junior in college (2002), my Crop Walk t-shirt (2007), and a light pink “Perfect Cami” from Old Navy because it was too hot to run in anything else.

But to completely appreciate my favorite running shirt, walk down memory lane with me to the Colchester Labor Day celebration right at the start of my 7th grade year. The sun was hot, the smell of onion rings and Chester chips were wafting from the Eat Tent, the sound of the carnival rides were whirring in the distance, and I entered a tent selling dog t-shirts with quiet excitement. I flipped through the samples, and there it was: A Shetland Sheepdog. And it looked a bit like Ivy, my beloved dog who was my 3rd grade Christmas present, gifted to me after years of asking for a dog every.single.day. I paid for the shirt and wore it proudly (even to school, if my memory and shame serve me right). And then time passed, and it became an undershirt for itchy sweaters and a jammie shirt for summer nights. And last month, it became my running shirt.

Here it is, in all its glory.

And here is the completed ensemble (minus the shoes. Gonna have to have a talk with the photographer on that...)

It is a sight to behold, no?

On the bright side, at least I’m still running. (Got my 2 miles in this afternoon!) That has to count for something, right?

For Mama, for tomorrow

Once upon a time, a little girl, who was not quite as high as a grasshopper’s knee, knew that she wanted to help people when she grew up. She wanted to be a nurse.


Some years later, she found herself facing the incomprehensible monster that is high school geometry. As she tried to wrap her mind around theorems and postulates and angles and scratches on her notebook paper, her teacher looked at her dismissively and said, “You’ll never make it as a nurse. ”

Hmph, the girl thought. I’ll show you.

That girl was my mama.

She has been a nurse for 42 years.

When her day ends tomorrow, she will close this long chapter of her life and take her first steps into retirement.

The girl who wanted to help people grew into the woman who lived her dream of helping others. It can be said as simply as, she was a nurse, but really, it was so much more than that.

It was a wardrobe that consisted of blue scrubs and hospital polo shirts more than it did high heels and fancy dresses.

It was hours after a 10 hour day spent dictating her day into a voice recorder, then, when the hospital said she must, hours spent learning a new computer system, then hours spent typing her day instead of speaking it.

It was having folks at church stop her on her way out the door, describe their ailments in very specific detail, and look to her to offer a diagnosis. (She never did, by the way. But she would listen sympathetically, and sometimes, that’s all they really needed.)

It was learning to give shots that didn’t hurt.

It was figuring out which weekends and holidays she was scheduled to work, then figuring out which weekends and holidays she would have to switch for so as not to miss a birthday or a move to college or the birth of a grandbaby.

It was waking up to the 2am phone call from the hospital, summoning her on her night on call. It was the sound of the beeper going off in the middle of dinner, in the middle of a holiday, in the middle of the night.

It was driving ridiculously steep and curvy country roads in the dead of winter to see her home health patients. It was bags that weighed nearly as much as she did. It was a dog bite she once got as thanks for doing her job.

It was wrapping wounds and cleaning vomit and administering medication. It was remaining professional in the face of undeserved hostility. It was remaining calm when panic seemed a much more reasonable response.

It was loving her patients. It was celebrating with them as they got better. And sometimes, it was losing them and crying private tears because part of her heart had gone with them, too.

When I was a senior in high school, Mom and I attended a mother/daughter luncheon. The speaker asked the moms to share any inspirational quotes that they believed would we could carry with us as we left high school and entered a new world.

Mom raised her hand and said, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

For her, it is a sentiment true for work as much as it is for life.

For the past 42 years, her patients have been blessed because she has been a nurse who cares. She has listened to their stories. She has lifted up prayers on their behalf. She has helped their wounds. Some were physical. Some could only be seen by the heart. But every patient, every life, was better, because she was in it.

Well done, Mama. Turns out you made one heck of a nurse, after all.

Project Life - Anniversary Week

Welcome to Project Life! I am Amanda, wife to Josh, mama to Elaina and Elysia, worker-bee by day, daydreamer by night. I don't scrapbook Project Life (yet), but I still love it because it helps me remember the blessings of every day. Enjoy!

(Warning: Massive amounts of pictures follow. I dont know how to edit them into a nice format, so this is going to be one stinking long post. My apologies in advance :) )

Sunday, June 16
Today we celebrated Father's Day. We went to church together as a family, and I made a pie for Josh in the afternoon. He spent the rest of the day being the wonderful daddy that he is. And really, I couldn't have asked for a better dad for our daughters.

Monday, June 17
Today Josh and I celebrated our 7th anniversary (and what a blessing these 7 years have been!). Originally, we were going to go to Mattheison State Park, which isn't too far from Starved Rock. We went the summer I was pregnant with Elaina and were enthralled with the natural beauty of the waterfalls. Unfortunately, most of the trails were closed for repair, so we decided to go even further back into our history and go to the Westfield Mall in Naperville before heading over to Dekalb for some Bea's Wok 'n Roll. It really was a perfect day, with plenty of happy memories and dreams of the future. So nice to know that after all these years, there's no one I'd rather spend my time with than him.


Steven Tyler, eat your heart out



For some reason, I'm thinking glam rock is not my style...



 The best. potstickers.ever.

Noodles with chicken and pea pods...so simple, so delicious. I may or may not have been tempted to cry when finishing my leftovers the next day...

Love him so

 Tuedsay, June 18
After such a wonderful day celebrating our anniversary, going back to work would have been tough under any normal circumstance, but it was even harder because Josh stayed home with the girls (this was his rolling layoff week), and I had to leave them all behind. Thankfully, he brightened my day with several texts and pictures to keep me going.

 

Wednesday, June 19
Tonight it was finally cool enough to take the girls to a park in the evening. I love watching our girls play, especially as they grow and learn to play together.

 

Thursday, June 20
This is such a typical scene in our home. So glad we captured it.

 

Friday, June 21
Today Josh took the girls to Monkey Joe's and sent me some lovely pictures of their adventures.

Meanwhile, I worked (boo). Around 1:00 I stepped outside to clear my head and noticed the sky was looking rather ominous to the north. This, however, was not enough to get me to go back inside, grab my car keys, and roll up the windows. Nor was the thunder I heard five minutes after getting back to my desk. Note to self: next time, get the keys. 1.5 inches later, it was a rather wet ride home.

Saturday, June 22
Today was a busy day. We dropped the car off for some alignment work, went to Party City to get prepared for Ellie's birthday party, ran to Fresh Market for some coffee and muffins, then to the Asian market downtown for thai basil and sesame oil, stopped for some Starbucks, and picked up the car again. Then, we came home and relaxed before heading over to Mario and Rita's for some birthday enchiladas for Adam. (There were no pictures of these, sadly, because I was too busy stuffing my face with them.) In the afternoon, we relaxed, watched Bambi (with a strategically timed snack break (re: my daughters were unscathed by the sudden departure of Bambi's mother. The same cannot be said for their first viewing of The Fox and the Hound.) In the evening we played outside--a good, busy, blessed day.

  

Waiting for Daddy outside of Party City

Sweet baby



Silly girl



Project Life - back in the saddle (again)

Welcome to our week!

Sunday, June 2

After weeks of scheming, drawing, pricing, figuring, and dreaming, Josh finally set out to create the zen raspberry garden of his dreams. He rented a sod cutter from Geiger and, after its work had been done, he spent most of the day removing water-laden sod in preparation for the rest of the work. I kept the girls occupied while he worked—a much easier task! After Bible study, he continued his work while I moved bricks for the next day. It was a cool, peaceful evening, and I was glad to share it with him.

Monday, June 3
Today, all of Josh’s hard work paid off: after spending nearly 9 hours working, he created a beautiful walkway for us to enjoy as our berry patch grows. He spent the day laying lawn paper, placing bricks, and backfilling with pea gravel. By the time the girls and I got home, he had finished his hard labor and started dinner. What a man :)

So proud of him!



Tuesday, June 4
Josh had a work dinner tonight, so the girls and I spent the evening playing, drawing with chalk, and enjoying Hello Kitty popsicles. I am so blessed to have these precious little people in my life!

Wednesday, June 5
Ellie has been on a nap strike lately, which means she is a ticking time bomb loads of fun in the late evening. Tonight we decided it would be in her best interest (and ours) for her to go to bed early. For Elaina, this meant some one-on-one time with Mama and Daddy after Ellie was in bed. Although she shushed me a couple of times when I was talking to Josh because her “baby is sleeping and we have to be quiet!”, she soaked in her time as grown up girl.
 

Enjoying some Calliou and time with Mama

Thursday, June 6
Our roses are going crazy this year, and I am loving it.

Friday, June 7
Claud-Elen Days (our local small town festival) started on Wednesday, so tonight we took the girls to the carnival. Elaina loves the carnival and has been talking about it for weeks, and it was such a beautiful evening. Elaina and Arcadia are old pros now, as this is their third year going. Ellie was a little uncertain of the rides but warmed up to the idea once she saw how much fun her sister and cousin were having. Unfortunately, it was short-lived fun; her napless week caught up with her and the meltdown was of epic proportions. (Note to anyone who has ever had the joy of walking through a large crowd with a screaming, thrashing toddler in your arms: I feel your pain.) So an evening that started with the promise of a memorable, lovely family time was, in fact, an evening of lovely family time punctuated by the memorable meltdown of a poor little little who just needed to sleep. So it goes.

Pure joy

Cousins

And the meltdown commences....sigh

Elaina's first Ferris Wheel Ride, courtesy of Gramma!

Ellie and Papa

Saturday, June 8
Today Mom and Dad came up for another Claud- Elen days tradition—this is the third year they have gone to the parade with us. The girls were soooo excited to have Gramma and Pampah here; I love watching them interact. The parade was long enough to be interesting and short enough to allow us to leave before Ellie hit her wall—she fell asleep on the way home and napped for two blessed hours. In the meantime, I got to visit with Mom and play with Elaina while Josh and and Dad got some work done around the yard. When Ellie woke up the girls got to go into the pool for the first time this year—crazy, considering they’d already been in it before Memorial Day last year. Josh grilled out and Mom and Dad stayed til just about 6:00. It was a great, great day.

All that fun is exhausting!

Ordinary days

Tonight was shaping up to be an ordinary, unexceptional Tuesday.

And then, during dinner Ellie grabbed my hand and said, "Jesus wuv me!! (I think she was trying to re-say grace.) With my heart in about a million pieces, I said, "You're right, baby! Jesus does love you!" To which Elaina replied, "God loves us,too!"

After we ate, we went for a walk. Josh and I both noted the humidity, which was preventing the evening from being as beautiful as it otherwise would have been.  About a block and a half from home, a surprise rain shower cooled us off and provided the extra oompf I was hoping for for exercise.

When we got inside, I spent the rest of the evening listening to my girls laugh and squeal and play with their daddy. I disappeared into our closet to put my winter clothes up and when I came out all three were piled on the couch under a Hello Kitty blanket.

When it was time for bed, Ellie fell alseep in my arms and I got to study her little face and watch her chest rise and fall and marvel at how much more of my lap she occupies these days. I laid her down with a kiss, and while Josh and I chatted, Elaina came in for another bedtime song. They left together, hand in hand, for a few more moments together.

Since then, the house has been quiet, affording Josh and I the chance to spend some good time together, laughing and talking and watching Chopped. Thunder is rumbling in the distance now, and a cool breeze is coming in through the window. Chappu is sleeping on my feet.

Our ordinary Tuesday wasn't so ordinary, after all.