Charlie has had a fun week. He had a great time at school and napped two out of the three days. He really likes playing on the playground outside. He also loves the trucks. He has been having fun painting lately. Above is him making pictures for "baby Koa's" room. He now talks in full sentences and you can understand most of what he says. Some of the things that come out of his mouth are hilarious!

He's a very messy eater but he still eats well so I'll take what I can get!

Here I am with baby Bode. He's such a little sweetie! My mom and Christy spent the evening with Charlie and I last night because all of the men-folk went to a Sixers game. We played with Charlie and Bode, ordered Thai food and watched Juno. It was a great night!

Here's the boys. Charlie got a haircut this week which he hated getting but he loves to talk about his haircut! It's very short, and therefor very manageable. He has a lot of hair and gets so hot when it's in full thickness and length!

I took Charlie to the zoo again on Friday. He had fun and liked all of the animals. He really liked the peacocks this time. SO my marathon is in less that a week. I am freaking out and am so nervous. I am trying to just tell myself that I can do it, period, end of discussion. I am looking forward to it being over. I'll certainly post about how I do next week! I really hope the weather cooperates more than anything! Hope everyone has a good week!

Weekend

This is a pretty flower (tulip) that my wonderful husband brought home to me on Friday (it was one of many in a bunch) and I took this picture of it before i had to toss it (it broke off the stem). Pretty huh!

Here's my adorable nephew Bode. We got to hang out with him all weekend and boy did we have fun! Charlie was asking all day today where Baby Koa (his name for him) was. He really likes him now that he's been around a few more weeks.

Here's Charlie dancing with Aunt Christy...

And here's Charlie hanging out with daddy. Best buddies!

Here's a sleeping shot. He really needs a big boy bed...he takes up the entire crib!

At the Passover Seder on Saturday night. Last year we couldn't get him to wear the "special hat", this weekend, he wouldn't take it off! At dinner on Sunday night at Sam and Kim's house. Enjoying some Matzoh...

DIY

We had a productive weekend around the house...with the help of my brother-in-law, we put a back-splash in our kitchen! The above picture is proof of me helping...I manned the wet-saw which was fun but a little scary. I had flashes of getting my fingers caught and not being able to work, take care of Charlie, etc...fun times!

This is the before picture...

And this is after! I love it! Mike is a great guy to have in the family...a jack of all trades pretty much! He did a fantastic job and I am super excited about my new kitchen! Also, having Mike at the house for the weekend meant that we also had Christy (my sister) and Baby Bode all weekend as well. It was a great time! Thanks again Mike!

New school...

Charlie started at a new school this week and it seems to be going really well. He still goes three days a week and the last day, he cried a bit when I left but seemed to have a great day otherwise. He loves all of the activities they do and comes home telling me all kinds of stories about his days. I am happy so far and hope this is a god fit for us all! The weather was great the end of the week so we did some outside playing. Above is him playing on the deck with his trucks.
This is the end of a long day at the new school, watching "cat TV" (Aristocats) and ready for BED!

Here he is today. We went to the zoo with his friend Henry and Henry's mom. They both had fun. He saw a black panther that he called Bagheera (from Jungle Book) and he got a panther stuffed animal that he is now sleeping with! He managed to catch another cold and is snuffly and has alot of coughing going on. I also have it (yes, the marathon is two weeks away) but don't have the cough. I hope I can finish this race, I feel like I am falling apart at the end now! Anyway, hope everyone enjoys their warm weather weekend and their Passover if celebrating!

Lots of cuteness this weekend

We had a fun filled weekend! We did lots of playing on Saturday. I went to Lowes and picked up supplies for a back splash that myself, my dad, and my sister's husband are installing in our kitchen next weekend. My long run was supposed to be Saturday but b/c of the humidity and heat and downpours off and on, I opted to go Sunday instead. So we played, Alex worked for the afternoon, and Charlie and I went to a birthday party at Gymboree for his friend Harrison (one of my former primaries in the NICU). He had a ton of fun and at one point found a blond haired mommy who he thought was great and he held her hand and played with her for a good 1/2 hour. He's my social butterfly! Sunday I planted new flowers and bushes in our front planters, and we had my parents and one of their friends come visit and stay for lunch. He got some fun new toys (jungle book lunch box which he calls his "jumma book case", a baseball glove that he likes to now play catch with, and some new cars). What a lucky guy! I did my 20 mile run which was okay. I felt incredible the first 11 miles and I guess ran it too fast because the last 9 miles were torture. I felt like I had nothing to give. I ended up running it in 3 hours 20 minutes which is 10 minutes faster than my last 20 miler...definitely too fast for me. There was a regatta going on which is normally pretty great because it gives me alot to look at but it seemed like every spectator was smoking...I find that terribly annoying. There was also alot of BBQ's going which added to the smoke. It was a nice day though, no rain, and only occasional wind gusts. I got to try out my racing gear and finally found an outfit that is comfortable (at least for 20 miles!). I am really looking forward to getting this over with. I feel like I am mentally starting to psych myself out. Less than three weeks away! After the run, we went out to eat with the little guy and then stopped at Alex's parent's house to say hi. Charlie got to taste his first Chocolate chip cookie...until now he thought a cookie was an animal cracker or Vanilla wafer. He Liked the real thing quite a bit! Here's some fun pics from this weekend:

Posing for the camera. Now, when he wants me to take his picture, he says "Cheese pease mommy". Very cute!

Talking on his new phone (my old cell phone that still makes noise and lights up but he can't call anyone). Best toy ever!


I love his eyes!

At the party playing with the giant rubber band...

Modeling the latest in party wear...

Trying out his party favors. Star shaped sunglasses covered (by him) in truck stickers. He was being quiet in the car and I turned around to check on him and cracked up when I saw him.

Best day ever...

I had the best day today with my little man. I came home from work to a happy little guy who had woken up early by an evil poop deposited in his diaper overnight...I wasn't hopeful for the day as he was up an hour earlier than usual and I hadn't slept all night. We went to visit his new school which was great. He really seemed to like it, the kids really liked him and welcomed him. He thought the automatic faucets in the bathroom were way cool and I could tell he'll be asking for them for the holidays this year! Everyone made us feel very comfortable and he seemed excited to start there next week. I think he can get that concept...when asked about wanting to go to this school and play with these friends, he got a big smile on his face and nodded and said, "new school soon!" So then we went to Walnut street and ran some errands and played in the park. We met Alex for lunch at Continental midtown and he was a dream at lunch, laughing and eating and sitting in a booster seat. He napped well and then he and I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening together. Alex is out with his brother so it was just Charlie and me! We went back to the park and played, we ate dinner at Marathon Grill, we shopped a bit at Loehmans (love this store!), bought me a new cell phone, and then went to Rita's and got ice cream for the boy, and water ice for me. I seriously could live on water ice. I took a really cute pic with the new phone of him with ice cream all over his face and hands, but I cannot figure out how to upload the pic to my computer. We came home, he took a bath, watched a bit of "cats movie" aka: Aristocrats. He's very into this right now and thinks it's quite funny and walks around singing, "everybody wants to be a cat" all day. Too bad he's so terribly allergic! He's now sleeping and I just feel like I had the most amazing day with him. If there was any whining, it mas minor. There were no tantrums, no fighting his stubbornness, no need for compromising...it was just a fantastic day. I really didn't want it to end except that I am soooo tired!

So he's done at his old school. They made him some sweet little cards and the teachers wrote some very sweet things about him. He was really well liked there! It was warming up this week but rather rainy so we spent one morning doing finger paints. He started out dipping a single finger in at a time and ended with full hands and paint all over his smock...What fun! The last picture shows the masterpieces he made. I also brought his slide up from the backyard so he could play on the deck with it. He loves it. He's outgrown several pairs of pants that now make him look like he's waiting for a flood and he wore a hole in the knee of his jeans for the first time this week from playing...he's growing up and getting big and telling me storied and singing me songs...I love having a two year old!

Uneventful

It's been a pretty uneventful week here. I gave notice at Charlie's daycare that he will be ending there in two weeks. They were sad but the owner understands all of my issues and concerns. He starts at Western Learning Center on 4/15. I am anxious for him to adjust...it's never a fun two weeks or so getting used to a new place. At least that's how long it took him to get used to this school after being home with me for 1 1/2 years! We'll see how it goes. The weather is getting warmer but it's been really rainy. I cannot wait for the warmth! Running has been going okay this week. I ran 11 miles on Saturday and it was really great. I was a bit sore today but did a quick two miles on the treadmill to loosen me up. My new shoes that I ordered came in last night too so that should help. This will be my 4th and final pair of shoes for this marathon training. Lately, my feet are very sore and tired so I knew it was time to get new ones. I have been using New Balance 858's and I LOVE them! Expensive but so worth it....no blisters thus far! Last night I was supposed to work but got a wonderful call from the charge nurse saying that our census is low and asking if I wanted off...um yes please! I should save my time for my next maternity leave but it's hard to pass up a free Saturday night! Below are pictures from the last few days. The top two are Charlie and Henry trying out the "Three Bears" beds at the please touch museum. They had a great time there on Friday and we ran into alot of people we knew! He also got a book in the gift shop about firefighters with Elmo as the host...he loves it! The bottom two pics are from dinner last night. We went to Pietro's and had yummy pizza and pasta. Charlie ate more pasta than I've ever seen him eat and had his sunglasses on the whole time! We were planning on going to the zoo today but, alas, it was raining! So we spent several hours playing and singing and taking turns running on the treadmill (Alex and I, not Charlie). Hope everyone had a good week and a relaxing weekend!

Transplant

Just a request for some thoughts and prayers. Tricia is the wife of Nate who is the author of Confessions of a CF Husband. I've been following their story for a little while and check in daily to see how things are. I even sent him some Hawaiian keiki cloths at Nate's request and he helped me out by posting a PSA about my budding business on his blog. I've had ten orders from people because of that. Thanks Nate! So anyway, Tricia is currently in the OR receiving a set of lungs from someone selfless enough to be an organ donor. I am an organ donor, always have been, and encourage everyone to consider this for themselves. She will undergo a tremendous surgery that will eventually give her a set of lungs that are CF free! Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers tonight while you drift off to sleep. Pray that Nate and Tricia and Gwyneth all go home together in the next two months! There is a link to his blog on the left under "Blogs I know".

Deep Thoughts by Sara Cohen

So I went running today, 7 miles, not bad but not fabulous. It was pretty warm and humid out and there were tons of allergy bugs in the air and my lungs are still feeling slightly pneumoniafied (my own word just made up!). But it was a good run and I am looking forward to crossing the finish line at mile 26.2 in less than five weeks! Yikes!

So normally when I run, I literally think about nothing. I may think about the people around me, the scenery, the marathon, but nothing too deep...although I do feel that running is my therapy. No psychiatrist needed, just let me run! Today though, I had some seriously deep thoughts and thought I'd share them, in case anyone ever went through anything like this, in case some stranger stumbles on this blog and is helped by this bit of info, but mostly so I can thank my parents who I know read this.

So while running, I was thinking about the marathon and how amazing it is that a person can run that distance and not die of complete exhaustion, and I remembered when I was a teenager, I used to run 5-10 miles a day on 1 slice of low fat wheat bread, a cup of frozen peas, 1/2 container of fat free yogurt and some jelly beans. I would run and run and keep going on pure adrenaline alone. I was anorexic and had some serious issues with my health when I was a teen. I realized while running today, that the only reason I am alive to try this marathon craziness and the only reason I can run these distances, and go home and eat a big meal and be excited about it, and rather than lose weight in training, I have gained muscle weight, is because my parents saved my life when I was younger.

They questioned me, and bugged me, and put their noses where I thought they didn't belong and eventually hospitalized me. Twice! I was a tough one. I was certain that they were trying to ruin my life, I thought they were punishing me, and I really just wanted to be left alone. They spent more than enough of their money, finding the right doctor for me, and then later going to court when he was logging more time than he actually spent with me. Their hairs turned more gray and they were up late stressing about me for a long time, all the while raising my younger sister, working full time jobs, and keeping the house together. If they hadn't done all of this, and continued to love me unconditionally despite my stubborn and difficult ways, I would not be running, I wouldn't have Charlie and I wouldn't have Alex. I've always been grateful in my mind for all that they have done my whole life but for some reason, today, it really hit me how lucky I was and still am to have them as my mom and dad.

Anorexia wasn't and isn't about being skinny, it's about so many things I couldn't really cover it all in this post. I do believe it is a disease and I don't feel like you can ever be cured of it. There certainly isn't a pill to take to make it go away, and even hospitalization is tricky and isn't a fix. At the worst of my days, I was 40 pounds lighter than I am now. I have a heavy bone structure but 40 pounds wasn't lost in my bone structure, I was skin and bones...I didn't have a period for almost two years, and my heart wasn't functioning properly from dehydration and electrolyte imbalances. I was really sick and even when the weight was replaced, I was not right in my relationship with food...almost ten years of obsessing about food, or lack there of, takes a toll, and this is where I credit my parents again. They really stuck by me. They supported me in going to college, helped me through rough patches, continued to pay for a doctor whom I found and loved and really connected with. I then met my husband who learned of my weirdness on day 2 of our meeting (I had to know if he was going to run off by my insistence on fat free everything!) and continued to love me and tell me how beautiful I was. He, to this day checks on me (even if I don't need it), to make sure I ate, and lets me know how nice I look...and I incidentally weigh more than him and probably always will. That would have been enough to send me over the edge back in my bad days!

Everyone was worried about me getting pregnant and getting big and how that would make me feel. Amazingly enough, I was so thrilled to be growing that little baby inside of me, I have never had a better relationship with food than when I got pregnant and since then. Alex was a huge help through it all but I mostly just loved being pregnant. I would never have had any of this if it weren't for my mom and dad. I really did not want to be helped or saved or anything back then. I wanted everyone to leave me alone and forget about me. Luckily they didn't do that and I am now a woman about to turn 30 (yikes!!!!), working as a nurse in a job that I LOVE, married to an amazingly supportive man, with the most amazing little boy that I grew inside of me. I love it all. And I love my parents for everything they did for me. I am going to run this marathon in their honor. I wouldn't be doing it if it weren't for them! Thank you guys for everything....thank you for being the best parents ever. I hope I can do half the job you have done with my own kids!