7 Random Things About Brennen September 28, 2011

Look what I got!

The Versatile Blogger Award! And I got the award not once, but twice! The first blogger to tag me with the award was F.E. Sewell and the second blogger was Andrea S. Michaels. Thanks so much! To help show them my thanks, please visit their blogs by clicking on their names!

The rules of this award state that I need to share seven random things about myself with you. But since I already did that recently, (click here if you missed that post) I am going to do what any other proud parent would do, I am going to share seven things about Brennen instead! Because really, what parent doesn’t like to talk about their kid?

1. Brennen loves, I mean LOVES mac & cheese!

See what I mean? He is Mr. Cheesyface 🙂

2. And he also loves muffins! But only if they are pumpkin or banana muffins!

Now that's talent!

3. I am convinced that when Brennen grows up he is going to be a gymnast / comedian / stunt double. Don’t believe me? He really and truly does that world’s best somersault. He also makes me laugh EVERY day. And he scares the crap out of me by jumping off of things that he shouldn’t. He has no fear!

Doesn't this make you laugh?

4. He is my biggest cheerleader! (Sorry hubby.) He tells me, “Good job, Momma!” and gives me a high-five for every little thing that I do. And it feels great! 🙂

5. Brennen has the biggest heart, especially when it comes to animals. One day after it rained we saved worms by moving them off of the sidewalk and into the grass.

6. When Brennen’s hair was longer he would always ask us to give him a ponytail. I hope that when he gets older, he will feel just as comfortable in his own skin as he does now!

He was so proud of his little ponytail!

7. Brennen is never very far away from his blankie. Luckily we have many of them as they are receiving blankets cut into fours and then sewn around the edges. I know that eventually he will outgrow his blankie. But I am not in a hurry for that day to come.

Brennen and his blankie! ❤

Now it is your turn! I want to learn something about your child or children! Feel free to tell me 1 or 10 things! I love hearing about other kids almost as much as I like talking about my own!

My First Run in a Running Skirt September 15, 2011

Yesterday I finally took the plunge, I went running in a running skirt. I have had the skirt for a couple of weeks now, but part of me was still hesitant to try it out. I mean, who goes running in a skirt?!?!

Once I finally got the running skirt on, I started to warm up to the idea of heading outside in it. Afterall, it’s not very often that I look in the mirror after getting ready for a run and think to myself, “Hey, you look pretty cute!”

Cute, right?

 The first thought that crossed my mind once I headed out for my run is that people were going to think I was running in a skirt to get attention. In the last seven years of living in this area, I have NEVER seen ANYONE run in a skirt. The thought only stuck with me for a moment as I am past the age of really being concerned about what other people think about me. I just wanted to see why so many women are in love with running skirts. Now I know why! The skirt was super comfortable! Gone was the annoyance of the running shorts that ride up in the waist or in the legs. I also appreciated the extra ventilation the skirt provided since it was a hot day. By the time I came back from my run, I was pretty much on board with adding running skirts to my running wardrobe. I just needed to make sure of one thing. Did the skirt fly up in the back when I ran and therefore expose my butt to every passing car? I should explain that the skirt has an attached brief to it, but I still don’t need strangers seeing that either. My hubby willingly helped me resolve my last question. I ran fast, slow, with good form and with crazy form and much to my hubby’s dismay the skirt never rose up!

Speaking of men, I feel bad that male runners will not get to experience the freedom of running in a running skirt. Maybe I should invent the running kilt! Oh, crap! I am too late. It turns out they already exist. Don’t believe me? Click here. I would love to hear from any male runners who run in a running kilt!

So what do you think of the running skirt? Have you tried it yet? Why or why not?

Power Outages No Longer Have Power Over Us August 29, 2011

A few weeks ago we had a nasty but short-lived storm pass through the city we live in. Obviously, it was no hurricane Irene but it was strong enough to cause our power to go out. And for whatever reason, whenever we lose power it is ALWAYS out for at least 24 hours. On top of our power outage luck, I have a horrible track record of going grocery shopping the day before we lose power. In the seven years that we have lived in our house, we have had to throw away all the perishables from our fridge & freezer five times due to power outages. I’m just that lucky.

I waited about an hour after the power went out, before I texted the hubby at work to alert him of the news. That was when I discovered I only had one bar of battery left on my phone. Again, I have awesome luck! And no, I do not have a land-line. Why would I ever need one of those? I immediately received a text back from the hubby that said, “I am tired of this! I am buying a generator on my way home!” A small part of me wanted to tell him not to buy one, as generators are expensive, but the side of me who threw away 5 fridges / freezers worth of food said, “Let him get the generator!”

While Brennen and I waited patiently for the hubby to get home (and by patiently I mean, Brennen drove my crazy because he couldn’t watch TV even though if the power had been one he wouldn’t have wanted to) I used the remaining battery life in my phone to find a friend who had power so I could give Brennen his breathing treatment. Brennen has asthma (although not officially diagnosed) and receives pulmicort through a nebulizer on a nightly basis.

When the hubby finally got home, he went to work assembling the generator, putting gas in it etc. After hoisting it onto our back porch the hubby plugged in a few necessities like our fridge, a light, the tv and even our neighbor’s fridge. The hubby was super proud of his accomplishment, he saved his family from the difficulties of a power outage!

And then 5 minutes later . . . the power came back on!

Saturday Sound Off: Tumblehairs August 6, 2011

The wild west has tumbleweeds, and my house has tumblehairs.

This is the product of having two dogs that are part Husky, who seem to shed all year long!

Kodi

 

 

Juno

We have tried taking them to the groomer on a regular basis and brushing them ourselves. But nothing seems to eliminate the tumblehairs.

Instead we are stuck vacuuming on a constant basis and keeping a lint roller handy at all times. Ah, the price we pay for having pets!

What part of being a pet parent drives you crazy?

Warrior Dash Results: Or How I Aged 60 Years August 2, 2011

We have already established that I participated in the Warrior Dash.(Click here and here.) Shortly after the race, I checked the Warrior Dash website to see if the results had been posted. Here is what I saw.

.

Women 70 and over
Place	Name		Bib No	Age	Div	Overall	Total Time	Pace
1	Betsy Mxxxx		46951	92	1	3434	1:03:01.85	20:20/M

.

That’s right, they have me listed as 92 years old! For the record, I am 32. I showed my hubby and we both got a good laugh out of it.

The next day I got a Facebook message from a reporter, asking if she could interview me about competing in the Warrior Dash at 92 years of age and I got a Facebook message from a complete stranger that said how inspirational I was to her. To top it off, multiple people found my blog by searching, “Betsy M Warrior Dash.” As this point, I decided it was time to put an end my celebrity status and I emailed the administrators at the Warrior Dash website requesting that they fix the error.

But who knows, maybe when I really am 92 years old, I WILL kick some butt at the Warrior dash!

The Day I Looked Like a Crazy Person July 1, 2011

Have you ever looked around a room and thought to yourself, “Wow, I’m the token crazy person today?” That was how I felt Wednesday when I took Brennen to see Barney at Kids Club Live.

I had high expectations for the day. I even posted on Facebook that it was going to be a Super Dee Duper kind of day. It seemed like a no-brainer, Brennen loves Barney and had a great time at Kids Club Live last year. What could go wrong?

Well, I failed to remember that Brennen has developed a fear of seeing TV characters in person. Somehow I managed to block out our first row experience at Sesame Street Live earlier this year or maybe I convinced myself that Barney would just be different.

It wasn’t different.

While sitting in out third row seat waiting for Barney to come on stage, a slew of characters began walking around the room, mingling with the crowd. As soon as Brennen caught a glimpse of the Cat in the Hat he started crying so loudly that the entire crowd looked over at us. He then put his blankie over his eyes, buried his head in my shoulder and used his grip of steel to cling to me for dear life. I tried desperately to console him, rubbing his back, talking to him, rocking him, etc. Nothing helped. This continued as Curious George, Super-Why and others came out. I could see other parents looking over at me and I knew what they were thinking, “Why don’t you leave, he is obviously scared?!?!” I wanted to say, “He loves Barney, really he does!” But I just smiled nervously.

I was still holding out hope that when Barney finally came on stage, Brennen would be just as excited and mesmerized as he was last year. But instead, he stayed in the same terrified position through Barney’s entire performance except for a few songs where he swayed from side to side while still covering his face and clinging to my shoulder. I asked him on several occasions if he wanted to go home or stay and every time he said he wanted to stay. When Barney left the stage, he sat up, removed his hands and blankie from his eyes, started clapping and said, “Yay, Momma! We did it!.” He then looked around and said, “Where did Barney go?”

On the way home, Brennen played a video that I recorded with my phone of Barney singing the “I love you, you love me” song over and over and over. Just before pulling into our driveway he said, “Can we go see Barney again?”

To be Jane Jetson . . . June 17, 2011

I love going on vacation, but I dread the packing beforehand. Before Brennen, packing was relatively easy, I packed for myself and the hubby took care of his own packing. If one of us forgot something, we just dealt with it or bought a replacement. It was simple!

On the other hand, packing for myself and Brennen is not so simple. I equate packing for Brennen to having to pack for an additional 10 people. Who knew that someone so small could need so many things?!?!  I have to pack multiple outfits for him for each day, just in case. Not to mention, I must have both warm weather clothing and cold weather clothing for each day, regardless of the weather forecast. And let’s not forget toys, books and other items to entertain Brennen while on vacation. In addition to all of those items, Brennen is a very selective eater, so I need to pack a bag of food for him to ensure he eats while we are away. At the end of packing for Brennen, I feel like I have packed our entire house!

If only I could be Jane Jetson. With the press of a button I could have my house fold up into a tiny suitcase. (Hey, George Jetson had a car that did that, why not the house too?) Or better yet, Rosy would do it for me!

Marshmallow Morning June 6, 2011

I used to be a morning person. But that was before I had Brennen. Now I am not a morning person and I am not a night person. Frankly, between having a 3-year-old and all my other commitments, I just try to survive the day.

But Brennen IS a morning person. Today he came in to our bedroom at 5am. A good 15 minutes before my alarm goes off for work, and 30 minutes before I actually pull myself out of bed.  “Morning, Momma!” he happily exclaims! This greeting tells me that not only is he awake earlier than necessary, but he is WIDE awake AND happy about it. I try to encourage him to go back to sleep by cuddling with him in our bed. He starts talking to me about marshmallows and showering me with kisses. The marshmallow comments confused me, but I shrug them off. He then says the one statement that gets me out of bed every time, “I have to go potty, Momma! Now that he pees standing up, he must be monitored at all times during the bathroom process. Let’s just say he is easily distracted and when his head moves, so does his body. You get the picture.

After finishing up in the bathroom, Brennen runs to the dining room. “Look, Momma! Marshmallows!” Sure enough, a giant bag of opened marshmallows sat on the dining room table. Brennen happily takes one out the bag and starts to eat it, grinning from ear to ear.

The Hammock Rapture May 23, 2011

The only Rapture that occurred on Saturday at 6pm at my house involved my husband and a hammock.

Last year for Father’s Day, I bought my hubby a hammock. However, I neglected to buy him a hammock stand. By the time I got around to looking for the stand, they were sold out for the season. Hence, 2010 did not bring to fruition my hubby’s dream of lounging around in the backyard in a hammock.

Yesterday, with the end of the world quickly approaching, my hubby ventured out to find a hammock stand to ensure that he could enact his dream before doomsday. He arrived back home victoriously holding an assemble-yourself stand and quickly began putting it together. After just a couple of minutes, he realized that the box was missing some of the parts. Not to be deterred from his mission, he repacked the contents of the box and headed out to exchange the incomplete stand. He returned yet again and assembled the stand in its entirety!

Just one problem – the hammock I bought for him did not fit the stand he bought! By the look in my hubby’s eyes, it seemed the end of the world came earlier than predicted.

Tattoos May 16, 2011

Andrew, Brennen and I enjoyed some quality family time last night … we had a tattoo party!

Ok, so they were just the temporary kind but I sense that Brennen may get some real ink in the future. Once I applied his first tattoo he squealed with excitement and demanded another. I finally had to cut him off once he reached 3 tattoos. He then turned his attention towards making sure that Andrew and I each got a tattoo too.

So at the end of our tattoo-athon Brennen ended up with 3 Disney Cars tattoos, I got 1 Cars tattoo and Andrew got a tattoo of Ronald McDonald’s head. (Andrew wouldn’t let me take a picture of it, so I had to settle for blogging about it.)

Maybe one day I can convince Andrew to get a REAL tattoo!