February 8, 2017

What a day!  I have so much I want to say.  I'll have to type fast.

First of all, I woke up with such an excruciating headache.  I had eaten a little bit of an overripe banana yesterday.  That does it.  I'm never doing that again!  It has happened too many times to be a coincidence.

I tried to get put together, but once the kids were all out the door, Lance wouldn't stop whining and crying.  I decided that I needed to get my act together and run a few miles today.  When I tried to get Lance to play so I could do the treadmill, he just cried and cried.  So I put him in the stroller and headed outside.  He cried for a while, but then he just sat back and enjoyed the ride.  I felt exhausted at first, and my head was still pounding, but I kept at it.  I didn't think I'd make it to a mile, but pretty soon, I'd hit three miles and I was ready to go farther.  Lance was leaning his head down and closing his eyes, so I slowed it down to a walk.  It was in the mid sixties, the sun was shining in a bright, blue sky, my music was great, my skin was glistening with sweat, and I felt fantastic.  I slowly walked the last half mile and just marveled at the beauty of the day.  I marveled at the miracle of my body, which carries me everywhere, which allows me to experience this life to its fullest.  I am so blessed.

I forgot to mention that I finally got medicine for a bladder infection.  I'm learning that when I have a UTI, it really messes with my mood.  I wish I would have realized it sooner, but I've been fighting this off for about two weeks.  And I've been rather blue and overwhelmed.  I made Greg promise me that if I'm ever feeling this way again he will ask about any possible infections.  This used to happen to me all the time while pregnant.  I would get so down in the dumps, like I just couldn't go on, and then I'd go to my appointment and they'd tell me I had an infection.  I feel dumb that I tried to fight it off for so long this time, and that I didn't connect my moods to my health!  So, hopefully I'll get feeling better really soon.  And then it's lots of water for me.  I'm also going to add cranberry juice to my diet.  I just need to pick some up at the store...

Owen and Lance

The weather was SO beautiful today.  While the girls were at volleyball, I tried to take the boys on an adventure.  We stopped by Thunder Junction for a while and then explored around the Tonaquint Nature Center.  Owen and Lance and I fed some ducks, walked along the river, and explored some trails, while Miles and Austin played parkour on the playground.  At one point, our trail went under a canopy of trees, and we could hear the rustlings of birds in the dry leaves on the ground.  The temperature felt exactly perfect at about 71 degrees.  Again, I was filled with total wonder and gratitude.  I walked a little farther out into an opening and glanced up at the sky.  My thoughts turned to my Heavenly Father.  And I thought, "God made this absolutely perfect day."  When I think like that, I almost burst with love and gratitude.  I had my little boys; we were walking over a bridge by the river, chatting about the ducks and the birds we had seen.  I could see Miles and Austin in the distance, and I knew my girls were together at volleyball.  My mother heart was complete.  And I am so thankful to have been alive today.

I'm a lucky mom!