Tennis Balls + Moving Cars

According to our program director, throwing tennis balls at moving cars is very therapeutic.  Not exactly my idea of stress management.  Of course, I prefer to run.  This week, I was able to run with HR a few times.  I enjoy running with him and wish we had more time to do so.  Sometimes he starts out on the bike and I run and then we switch off periodically.  Today we actually ran together, no bike involved.  It was nice.  At times we were just quiet or weren't running exactly together, other times he slowed down to run with me and we talked or I sang loudly (and horribly) the song playing on my iPod at the time.

Trey is still in a period of adjustment at daycare, but he is fine once breakfast is served.  Ryan went from not even attempting to walk 1-2 weeks ago, to running this week.  He is so silly, always smiling.  I'm missing my Caiden, but he is really enjoying his new adventure.  I'm happy for him.

School is going.  I have a lot going on in the coming week.  I will finally get to meet my client next week.  I'm nervous, but excited.  He happens to be a nine-year-old boy, so I'm already a little sensitive about that...he's Caiden's age!  I know I will learn a lot from him.  I have several assignments and a test to do next week, eek!

My in-laws are watching the boys this weekend.  They offered and I didn't want to be disrespectful and argue, lol.  It comes at a perfect time, as there is a color run this weekend that most of the CSDO grads are going to be participating in.  I'm hoping to snap some pictures for a blog about it!  I will also be spending time working on a stuttering project and preparing for my client.  Busy weekend!!! I love my kids, but I'm happy to be able to have a little kidless fun with a great group of new friends. Updates to come....

Hit the ground running

Since the move I have run just about everyday.  I took a day off this past Saturday because HR was away at work and I didn't have anyone to watch the boys.  I have noticed I am feeling sluggish.  My sister suggested that it may be my diet or sleep habits.

I'm beginning to understand that it may be a combination of things.  It is crazy windy in Kingsville, being so close to the coast.  Despite feeling less than motivated, I have continued to run daily.  I even found that there are not just 3 dogs, but 7...6 of the same breed.  I will try to snap a picture soon, but I'm not exactly thinking about taking out my phone while running past these puppies.

I am enjoying the view though.  It's peaceful and calming, despite feeling like I'm running in place.  I have even had to resort to walking at times, it's just so draining.  I believe that it will only benefit me in the end.  Apparently the wind never dies, so I will have to make the most of it.  Hoping to start incorporating a track workout or two each week at the university track.

Milestones

Ryan is thriving in daycare.  In just a week Ryan has begun walking.  Before we moved here, he was not in daycare and he showed very little interest in walking.  He's been pulling himself up since he was about 6 or 7 months, but he rarely walked along furniture.  Now, seemingly out of nowhere and with little practice, he is walking across the room pretty easily.

He is also 24+ hours pacifier free.  I wanted to wean him from it within a month or so of moving here.  I informed the daycare that I would prefer them not give it to him, but I left it in case they needed to because of his transition (moving and the daycare for the first time).  The first week he had to use it often, as he cried a lot and this was one of the only things that would soothe and comfort him.  Yesterday I forgot the pacifier at the daycare, which I thought might be a problem at bedtime.  He went to bed easily without it!  His teacher said he didn't use it at all today.

Caiden loves his new school.  He has made friends quickly, but as it's only been 3 days, he hasn't gotten the names down just yet.  I'm sure that after a semester of going in late, getting out early and having lots of breaks (it's more of a year-round schedule), he will be dreading Texas public schools.  I facetime with him a few times a week...charging the iPad now. (=

I have been doing a lot of running.  My body is feeling it, I feel sluggish and work out...so tomorrow I may just bike and give my running legs a break.  Saturday was the only day I wasn't able to run because HR was away working.  This weekend I probably won't be able to run at all; it's not an off weekend for him.  I will likely take the boys for a couple of long walks on the wagon.  They really enjoy being out here in the country.

Caiden: Long story short

It has come to my attention that my subtle clues about Caiden haven't been received.  Upon careful and lengthy consideration, I decided to allow him to stay with his father for a few months.  He is currently in California and really enjoying the time getting to know his dad.  It means that we here in Texas have to take a backseat, which is by no means easy.  It is one of the hardest things I've ever had to decide on, but I truly believe it is in the best interest of those immediately involved.  I'm so happy that he is enjoying his time and taking on new adventures.  So far he is making the most of it.

Caiden went rockclimbing for the first time.  He said it was scary at first, but he loved it.

Cashed in thousands of tickets at Dave and Busters (His father and I started saving them several years ago).

Long days

Anyone who truly knows me knows that I cannot function without two things: SLEEP and FOOD.  Without the proper amount of sleep or food I can get rather...lets call it irritable.

Today happens to be my "long" day. I start class at 9:30am and don't get a break until 1:45pm. This means I don't get to eat a big lunch.  It also means I will have little patience in my final class of the day~big problem considering....I'll get to that in a bit. My first two courses are taught by the same professor. Judging by his syllabi, I was expecting a grumpy old man. He was young, funny and easily distracted. Not sure whether this will be a good thing or a bad thing. He requires a lot of reading and even more writing~my arch-nemesis 

My afternoon class is called Fluency~think of it as the flow/fluidity of speech. The book for the course is Working with People Who Stutter: A Lifespan Approach. There will be no exams, just a series of experiential assignments.  Here's my problem.  By this time in the day I am STARVING and tired of sitting in the same class all morning (my back aches from sitting so long, not to mention the "cold" 40s temps). Oh, and the professor stutters.  Now, I'm not sure how many of you are familiar with the clinical meaning of stuttering, but  there are varying types of "behaviors" that are classified as stuttering. He displays several. I have nothing against the guy, he is intelligent, interesting, and brings a lot of personal experience to the subject, but that doesn't make it any easier for me to focus on what he is trying to say. A fellow classmate told me it does get easier for all of us. As the semester rolls on he gets more comfortable with the class and stutters less, and the students just kind of get used to it. I hope so.

After school I came home to start a crockpot dinner and clean up. HR comes home tonight. I ate a lite lunch and then went on a run before I picked up the boys. I decided to avoid Larry, Moe and Shemp today (the ranch dogs).  I hadn't seen them the few times I drove by their house, but I didn't feel like running into them and awkwardly spending so much time pretending I wasn't scared and forcing polite conversation just to get passed them. Maybe there's some sort of secret password I need to say before they'll let me pass????  I was bummed I didn't get to see Veggie (the baby calf in my pic from yesterday). He's definitely a cutie, but I'm not sure I would have seen him anyway because they rotate pastures to graze 

I ran, instead, near the university. I parked at the boys' daycare and ran a large loop around some historical buildings in the downtown area. I must admit I enjoy the "old time" architecture; the details are beautiful.  I only ran about 25 minutes, but I pushed the pace. It was a nice run, although I really need to find the headband I have that covers my ears (not sure what it's called).

Anyway, I survived another day. Now I have a ton of reading to do and a few assignment due tomorrow.

Friends

I've never been one to have many friends, though I do consider each one that I do have to be near and dear. We can go days or weeks without speaking and pick up just where we left off. My friends are more than just friends, they're family.

TAMUK admitted 11 new graduate students for the Spring cohort. I assumed that each of my classes would consist of only us 11 students, but we have the Fall cohort with us as well. Most of the students (both old and new) did their undergrad at TAMUK as well, so they are quite cliquish.  I managed to make friends with the only other "outsider". After class, she and I found our way around campus to get i.d. cards, permits, bookstore items, etc. There's something about being lost with someone else on campus that makes one feel a little less lame!!! We also had lunch together.  I learned that she has over a year of clinical experience as an assistant, so I know she's an asset.

The boys started school today, I can only hope they too made some little friends. I hear they did awesome, and they seemed to really enjoy themselves (from what I can make out from Trey's gibberish and the teacher reports).

I was also able to go on a slow 4-miler. I definitely took things slow due to the back pain I've been experiencing. I forced myself to stop and stretch a few times to keep my back loose. So I took the time to snap of few pics of my surroundings.

I was trying to take a picture of the open pasture itself, but the cows came running.

I figured they wanted to be in the picture too.
I guess I made a few more friends!  

Wide open spaces with little traffic = <3

I was excited to finally get a run in here. I've been itching to enjoy the countryside~the rolling hills, the pastures, the cows. It was a blast! I am a little bummed that I couldn't make friends with 3 fellas in particular...three ranch dogs that apparently have their run of the county road.  The first time I passed them they just came to the middle of the street, annoyed.  On my way back they followed, barked and even growled :(  How do you befriend country dogs????

I got a nice surprise in the evening when my momma stopped by.  A cousin of hers passed away and the funeral was in the area. Sad about the cousin; yay for getting to see mom!  She finally got to see our house, and I'm sure the boys were happy to see Nana.  

I also heard from a birdy that HR will likely be on the yard for the next couple of weeks.  This is great news! It means that at the end of each day he will be able to come home, and home is a mere 20 minute drive or so.

All in all, it was a pretty awesome day. I am blessed! 

Aches and pains

...aches OR pains?

We moved into our new home on Saturday. Well, I didn't move anything; HR and my brother-in-law did. I supervised ;) by Monday morning, however, my back was killing me. The pain is all on my right side-the sciatic joint. Along with that comes a lovely pinch down my quad.

I tried resting. I tried a little stretching. I tried ice. I tried heat. Nothing seemed to help. I usually couldn't tell you the difference between aches and pains in my back, as I am in a constant state of discomfort.

Yesterday, my friend Doc (sports medicine guru!) Invited me to his office to see what he could do. He stretched me and i thought i was going to die. He worked a little pressure point magic, afterwhich I could barely walk. Doc did his best to realign things. He suggested i stretch really well a few times a day.

Today I went on a short run. I ran 11 minutes out, just over a mile. Then the discomfort got so bad that i had to stop. I proceeded to walk and jog slowly the rest of the way back home.

I'm bummed. When i was a competitive athlete I was taught to observe the signs my body was giving me...to know the difference between good pain and bad pain. I am not sure anymore, not when it comes to my back. Mentally i am almost numb to the pain. I just tune it out. I do know the pinch isn't as intense. I'm hoping that today's discomfort/pain is merely soreness from Doc's pressure and aggressive stretching. Here's hoping.....

Home

Well, we are finally in our new house. It has only been a few short days, but it is actually starting to feel like home. My cousin even came to hang out all day today.

The boys at adjusting well. Ryan is having fun exploring. Trey likes all the "aminals". There are cows in the fields both behind the house and immediately across the street. There is also a charming red barn that houses an antique shop diagonally across from us. For those that don't know, Caiden is spending a semester abroad. It was a tough decision, but he is visiting with his dad in California. He is having a blast, making friends already and starts school next week. I miss him, but he sounds so happy. I'm glad that he us able tho get to know his dad a little before he has to go back to sea duty/deployment for his remaining 3 years.

I am anxious to get a run in here. There are rolling hills and wide open spaces. The boys won't start daycare until next week though, so for now it's Insanity and walks around the countryside with the boys in the wagon. It's peaceful.

Satellite TV and internet service will be connected Friday. School starts Monday. It's all coming together....