The Mom Squad

In the past I tried to update this blog on the days I got a workout in, that format is no longer sustainable. With 2 kids my free time is close to non-exsistant so blogging isn't as easy to get too. This post for instance, I've tried get done 3 different times this week with no success. Most interruptions involve poop, not mine, and laundry. At this point everything is touch and go in my life. Sleep remains elusive at best and as a result days are all over the place. Workouts are happening but not like before. Granted it's only been 7 weeks but I can't plan on getting a workout done. If we get a good nights sleep I'm able to get up and get something done. No sleep = no workout, it's just that simple, we are still in survival mode over here. I'm thankful for workout friends who understand and don't care. When I show up they cheer and when I miss they remind me that it's ok to sleep when we can and to hang in there. In my head I refer to them as my Mom Squad, last Monday most of us were at the pool at 5:30am, I counted 7 of us all with small kids back at home. It was hysterical, I can only imagine what the other swimmer's thought. Even more twisted is that we all found time to escape our families and we end up at the pool at an ungodly hour waiting for the gym to open. What can I say? They are a great group of ladies and are a phenomenal support system during these blurry days. For me it has always been about finding a group to get me thought these times. I still see and love the ladies from pre-natal yoga 3 years ago. I'm rambling now, lets get back to business. Here's what I accomplished, along with changing about 500 diapers: Monday - 2000 yard swim with the Mom Squad Wed - Fitness in the Park Friday - Fitness in the Park Sat - 2200 yard swim I hate to even say that I have goals for this week because it doesn't really matter what I want to do, clearly I have little say in what gets done. But that said in an ideal world I'd like to get in 3 swims and 3 Fitness in the Park classes. The weather looks nice enough to break in our monster of a double jogger, but who knows.

No running, no sugar, no dairy, no gluten, no sleep, no fun

Hi, it's me. They haven't done me in yet; I assure you, they are trying. Throwing every curveball in their books at us, last night it was a tag team attempt and they took turns screaming at us from 1am-4am. The logical part of me knows that this will pass and we will sleep again. The delusional sleep deprived part of me wants to curl into a ball, waive the white flag and call it all as a bad idea. So here's the update, you were right. Too much too soon. I'm not superwoman and although felt great immediately post delivery I need to dial it back. The biggest concern in my pubic bone pain has returned and if this gets worse it leads down an ugly road I have no interest in. So no running, other activities as tolerated but listen to my body needs to be the motto. Also I need to make some dietary changes. Acupuncturist has recommended no dairy, no sugar, no gluten. As much as I hated to hear this and debated a bit with him this evening, he's yet to steer me wrong and we've been together several years now. I've cleaned up my eating in the past and even today do fairly well. My biggest crutch? Dairy free chocolate chips and goldfish. The hardest part in regards to eating with a toddler and infant is I don't have time to plan and execute. Shopping is a last.minute.oh.shit.the.cupboards.are.bare afterthought. Meals have been built around pasta. Why? It's quick and we will all eat it with the least amount of bickering. I also don't have time to eat during the day and then eat more than I should at dinner. Today my lunch taunted me across the room for a good 45 minutes while I dealt with the needs of an infant. Time to be more mindful, plan things out and prepare foods that I can grab and eat quickly. Good wake up calls all around. Once I figure out how to make this work on 5 hours of sleep and 2 kids to wrangle I'll share what has worked as well as what hasn't. Sean did reassure me that any improvements in diet are good and again perfection is not an obtainable goal. Also, the baby has started to smile which just makes it all a bit more tolerable. No workout today due to the 1-4am revolt that I lost. Plans for a swim tomorrow...fingers crossed.

Save the Bay Swim

There are times you register for races and your pulse goes up and you have that "oh shit" moment after hitting submit during registration. I can recall all of the times this has happened: CVS 5k, my first race ever Newport marathon, 1st marathon Crabman Tri, 1st tri NYC marathon, it's NYC! Providence 70.3, 1st half ironman Run 4 Kerri, 1st race post baby It's not every race or event but when it happens it bring the excitement back to training and competing. It's easy to fall in a rut and forget how fun this can be. So in my sleep deprived delirium I decided to register for an event that has been on my bucket list for a number of years. The Save the Bay swim, 1.7 miles from Newport to Jamestown. Open water across the Bay, even thinking about it I get the jeebies. Open water swims stress me out and push me to the edge of my comfort zone. There is a lot that can go wrong: drowning, sharks, big fish with biting teeth, jelly fish, rogue waves, sea monsters...I could keep going but will stop before I have a full on panic attack. So why? Why not, you only live once and this is the year that I'll swim from Newport to Jamestown and will forever brag about it. I'll swim with friends and come out of the water to my cheering husband and 2 kids. Yipes, 2 kids! Even a month in I'm having a hard time realizing this is our new reality. Haven't quite figured out a training plan yet, it would be helpful if our newest family member would sleep a bit more but we'll get there. In the meantime I did escape this morning for another run. Things are slowly coming back and feeling less wonky, the key to this return to running will be patience and listening to my body. Good thing I have this swim to train for :) Ran 4.6 miles today

Fresh Air and good friends

It was a rough night, the kind of nights that life-with-infant war stories are made of. Mind you we are 3 weeks in, so in addition to little sleep last night there is the cumulative effect and it's starting to take a toll. The high is waning and the under eye bags appear to be semi-permanent. Needless to say this morning was just as ugly. The infant was STILL awake, the toddler was ready to party and Joe and I wanted to die. Joe took the toddler to the market and I sulked in front of a cup of coffee when my phone started to buzz. Were we interested in a playdate? Not really, clearly I wasn't fit for interacting with other humans given my mood. Then my friend dropped the bomb, let her know as she was planning on going for a run. Wait! A run? Outdoors? Solo? She's also living the dream with an infant and a toddler. Well that changed my outlook. Joe came home and I was flying around the house. We were headed out, him for a game of 4 on 2 with 2 toddlers and 2 infants vs. 2 Dad's and me for a real run. Outside, with my garmin and old worn out sneaks. And what a run it was. Forget that our pace was so slow I'm not publishing it here. Forget that my pelvis and hips felt like jello or that I needed to walk twice. We were outside and alone. It was a taste of old life and just what I needed. Recently I read a blog about surviving the first 3 months with a baby and advice from different bloggers. My 2 cents is you need good friends. Really good friends. Friends like ours. Friends who continue to show up with food, wine, coffee, and cookies. Friends who turn a blind eye to the mess in my house or the fact that I've lived in the same pair of sweats for weeks. Friends who keep assuring us that it's ok and we are doing great. Friends who don't care when I roll up to their office at noon with both kids and keep us entertained for 90 minutes even though it's clear they have work to do. Friends who meet me at coffee shops and keep my toddler relatively quiet while I struggle with nursing or a diaper change. Friends who listen without judging when I'm stressed and feel like this was all a bad idea. Friends who come at dinner time and hold a fussy newborn while we both get a chance to shovel hot food into our mouths. Friends who get me outside for a run when it's 30 degrees and I've slept less than 4 hours. Most of them don't read this, but I'm grateful for all of you. Thanks. Ran 4.6 miles today