Welcome to Fitness Friday! I’m starting this new series in order to keep myself on track with my fitness goals and hopefully encourage you along the way.

This week I went swimming with the kids twice this week. I definitely feel the results of the swimming! My shoulders and back are pretty sore right now, which means I am gaining new muscle. I am hopeful to get to the pool three times next week! It is a great way to exercise.

We also went for two short walks around our neighborhood. I miss the days when the kids would ride in the carriage because I could walk at a fast pace and I didn’t have to keep everyone on course. However, it has been great to stroll around with a couple of our friends. The kids keep each other company and the moms get a chance to chat. So far our walks have been spontaneous. Perhaps we will schedule them some time in the future.

I have been unsuccessful with getting to bed earlier most nights. I don’t understand why I’m not getting to bed since I am so tired at the end of the day. I suppose the I want to feel like I am a grown up. I have to get to bed earlier this coming week!

My new goal is to stop snacking at night. If anyone has a good suggestion for how to avoid late night munching, I would love to hear it. I need all the help I can get!

Photo courtesy of Tom@HK

Swimming lessons have begun! We took two rounds of lessons last year and decided to take a break. C4 was terrified of the water last year and refused to put her face in at all. It was not worth it to me to force the issue, so we stopped. Besides, my goal is simply for her to be able to swim not for her to compete or anything like that. Waiting was the right choice! She had a great time today, and she wasn’t even nervous before the class started.

We arrived at the lesson early to allow the kids to warm up to the situation. My kids adjust better to anything new if I explain what will happen and answer their questions at the venue. It seems to relax them – and me. I also give important safety information. For example, today we talked about the life guard’s job. I also explained that they might hear a whistle blow, and three blows mean that the life guard wants to clear the pool. My kids are so curious, and they are pretty independent thinkers. They often question the authority figure when they are told to do something that appears confusing. That kind of questioning seems defiant to some adults even though the questions are not to meant to defy authority. I try to avoid having that happen, especially on the first day of a class.

I saw my little girl actually swim from the side of the pool to the rope and back again with the barbells. She splashed in the water. She even went down the slide into the pool. She smiled the whole time, too! She did check with me throughout the class, but there was no sign of distress. What progress! I am so glad to see her enjoy the water now.

Wednesday is A2’s turn with her very first lesson with Mommy. I’ll keep you posted!

Photo courtesyof  bonsaihiker

Life is fragile and can change in an instant.

I remember the night that my life changed. That moment will be ingrained in my memory for the rest of my life. It started with the phone ringing in the middle of the night. Remembering that sound tears my body up even now. The voice I heard was my sister’s, but there was something odd in her voice that I couldn’t pinpoint. Then she said it, and I wish I could have made her stop. I wish I could have gone back to the moments before.

“Mom died tonight.”

“What?!”

“Dad found mom dead in their bed tonight. You have to come home.”

E and I had just seen my parents the day before. They came to our church for our baptism. My dad actually enjoyed the service and felt comfortable in our church. My parents even heard my testimony for the first time that day. We had a wonderful time celebrating with some cake. But I had no idea that I was hugging my mom for the very last time when I said good-bye to her that day.

When I was on the phone with my sister, I desperately wanted to go back to that day. I wanted everything to go back to the way it was. E and I were married for almost two years. We recently bought our first home and got our first dog. Our life together was just beginning. Everything was going as planned, and we were living our dreams. Our life was blissful. As I listened to my sister, I longed to feel comfortable and happy again.

I didn’t realize how fragile life is as I watched my life change in front of my eyes.

This coming summer it will be six years since my mom died. I cannot believe it has been that long because it still feels like yesterday. Last night I was reminded how fresh those wounds still are. It hit me suddenly. After watching a hospital drama on TV, I completely lost it. It wasn’t one specific thing that happened on the show that started it. It was just the relationships and the events that reminded me of how much I miss being comforted by my mother. This is why I avoid watching my favorite “tear-jerker” movies and only watch comedies, much to E’s chagrin. It isn’t that I am afraid to start crying. I’m simply terrified that I won’t be able to stop crying. Last night I overcame that fear, though. I cried on E’s shoulder and confessed that I wanted my mother, that I had an ache in my heart for her, that I needed to be comforted by her and no one else would do. (Now I understand why my own kids cry for Mommy when they are distraught.) E held me tightly and listened. (He’s a good husband!)

After a bit, I was actually able to stop. I am one step closer to healing.

Remember this…

Life is fragile and can change in an instant.

Mine did.

Photo courtesy of sektordua

Today was a monumental day. C4 went on a field trip with her classmates and went directly home with a friend afterward. I actually felt confident with the travel arrangements and that she went on a drop off play date. When I brought C4 home, she and A2 played together for over an hour while I put away laundry. This afternoon I only had to intervene a couple of times to help them work out a problem or two. Even just last summer this would not have been possible.

Just last summer I would have been reluctant to send C4 on a drop off play date. I would not have done the laundry without having the children right with me. Leaving the room would have meant rushing to finish and chancing a problem between the girls. What a difference addressing C4’s issues has made!

I am so grateful that we finally figured out that C4 has SPD and that she goes to OT. Now she is relatively calm, and we have ways to help her now when she is out of control. We are learning so much about what is happening to C4, and I am encouraged that we will be able to address those needs with success, too. I know that there is much more work to be done, but I am relishing the progress.

Photo courtesy of futureshape

Photo by bardgabbard

We were stranded today because Daddy took the 4-wheel drive car to work. It snowed last night. Then all day we had freezing rain. It turned out to be a good thing, though.

Today the girls and I stayed in our pj’s all day. I cleaned up the house, and they played. They were WONDERFUL all day long. They even helped me do some cleaning. Their new job is scrubbing the kitchen floor!

Here are a couple of things to note about today:

~C4 was completely under control today. I was able to leave the room for extended periods of time and not worry about anyone’s safety. What a blessing and what progress!

~I was able to clean up after the Christmas craziness!

~I got a TON of work done for my upcoming workshop. I am getting very excited about that.

~The girls are getting back on track with their routine. They both napped today and went right to bed at the usual time.

~We somehow did school work and devotions today.

What an amazing day! Thank you, Jesus! Someone must be praying for me and my family.

Days like today make me realize that we are making progress around here.

My dad came here to help us out with switching the winter and summer clothes over. It was such a productive day! The summer clothes are in the attic. The whole house is vacuumed. The entry way is organized with the coats hung and hats, mittens, and scarves sorted into baskets. All junk is cleared away, too. I even washed the entry way floor. This rarely happens because of behavior problems.

A2 played so nicely while my dad and I sorted and packed the clothes. She even did a great job waiting while we put things in the attic. It is quite an adventure to put things up there because we have to use a ladder and crawl around since we have a pitched roof. What a blessing!

A2 is officially potty trained! She goes into the bathroom independently now, and she tells an adult if she has to go. She wakes up dry in the morning and after a nap. It took her two weeks to do it! Thank you, Jesus that this went quickly!

C4 had a great day trying to use some OT strategies to manage some sensory seeking behaviors. When I gave warnings for not listening and bad choices, she responded well, too. (Our new discipline policy is to take privileges away one at a time – TV time and at bedtime 3 books & 3 songs. It has worked since she has lost those privileges a couple of times!) She was also helpful with cleaning up her bedroom and the kitchen after dinner. This is a huge step for C4 as the behaviors tend to escalate and we both lose control.

C4 did not have any potty issues today. Rather than throw a tantrum about needing to use the bathroom, she simply went. She even tried to go before we had to leave for her OT appointment today, which she never wants to do for me. Praise God!

Bedtime was a breeze tonight. We have a new routine. First, C4 cannot nap, which will take some time to adjust to, and I am limiting A2’s nap. We now do a little yoga in the girls’ bedroom at bedtime. Then we read books, and I sing to them once they are in bed. I pray with each of them individually, too. Leaving the door open a little has also helped. Tonight they fell right to sleep without testing me at all!

Sometimes I lose sight of the progress we have made. It helps for me to remind myself of how far we have come. I know that there are challenging days for everyone, but days like today help keep that in perspective.