I went to my first exercise class in 2 1/2 years last night. It was perhaps not the best choice for my re-entry into exercise - kickboxing with the perkiest male instructor I've ever seen. The moves just burst out of his mouth like popcorn. In fact, they "popped" so much it was hard to understand what he was saying! Oh. "Kuh" means uppercut! I finally watched everyone else for what we were supposed to do!
As we finished the warm-up, I actually thought to myself, "Well, this isn't so bad!"
Not so fast.
Two minutes later as we were doing basketball-style sideways slides across the floor for the 20th time, my body started yelling at me.
"Hey! You are 29 years old! You have three children. One of them was born less than 8 months ago! What the heck are you doing?"
"Suck it up and keep moving. Don't embarrass me! You have to start somewhere!"
"Sure. SOMEwhere. but not KICKBOXING!"
I actually finished the class and walked out on my own. It felt pretty good and it was fun, though my joints, especially my knees and hips, definitely let me know that this was strain they were not used to and weren't sure about having just recently carried a baby. My right knee, hip, and right side of my neck are most sore. I have a long way to go to be in shape. But it was fun, especially with friends. I felt really good afterwards! I think I could get back into this!
I really liked punching the bag. I got to wear boxing gloves and everything! It's a great way to get out any pent-up aggression without hurting yourself. (I tried punching a doorframe with my bare fist once a long time ago and I don't recommend it. Drywall gives way but doorframes don't.)
I think I enjoyed the class because I got to do something with adults and just be me, not the mother of ____ (fill in the blank). Being a mom is great, but there's more to me than that and it's good to remember this now and then. Like it's nice to go out with Scott alone and remember that we're a couple in addition to being parents. But anyway, exercising alone at home isn't quite the same. I am not challenged to try harder, plus I think I'd be more motivated to go with friends than to turn on a DVD at home.
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I got all the pieces cut for the top part of my Christmas tree skirt last night. I am excited to start sewing it together. I'll be here alone tonight, so I'll probably get a lot done. I'll have the dining table all to myself to set up the sewing machine!
I also started the hat I'm knitting for Big Girl. It's going well. It's definitely easier to work with the circular needle than with the double-points. I fear it may turn out to be something worthy of mention on You Knit What?, but it's something Big Girlwill love and that's all that matters. Those knitting snobs can go protest against Fun Fur on their own blogs!
Now I need to make time to mail the Yankees hat... after I take a photo of course.
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We had parent-teacher conferences last week. That's always a mixed bag for me. It was great to hear that Big Girl loves school, has friends, and correctly identified all lower-case and all but 4 uppercase letters when tested.
But it was discouraging to hear about the challenges they are having getting to work with them on her communication device. (I wonder if she only wants to use it for fun and refuses when they ask her to do specific things or academic things?) She also refuses to hold any kind of tool - paintbrush, marker, crayon, etc. She loved to paint and draw in preschool, so this really surprised me. Her upper body strength is almost non-existent, so this makes any kind of fine-motor skill almost impossible for her. But she won't even TRY.
I want to be very involved in her education, but sometimes I feel so unhelpful because I have no idea what to say when they bring up these problems. I know it's important for her to learn to do things she doesn't want to (we all have to do this - in fact, most of the things I do in a day are things I wouldn't choose to do!). I know that unless she learns to read and "write," she won't be able to express herself or function in this world without being totally dependent on someone else.
Life is going to be hard enough for her because this world is moving faster and faster and she simply can't do anything fast. This will be her (and my) biggest frustration I think - just when she gets into something, everyone else has moved on to the next thing. We work really hard to include her in everything and help her do as much as we can of what typical kids her age do, but it's exhausting. Sometimes I wonder how much fun she's really having, too.
The biggest thing I've noticed lately is that having three kids has really cut into the quality time I have available to spend with the kids. I want to spend time with each of them alone, but since Little Girl was born, this time isn't really quality. It's getting them dressed, fed, bathed, ready for school, ready for bed. Big Girl and Big Boy are both showing signs that they miss this time with me. I have GOT to figure out how to prioritize better and make this happen with each of the kids. Every more experienced mother I've talked to says to take the time and enjoy these days with the kids because they grow up and the days are gone forever. The housework will keep.
The housework will keep.
I'm going to read the kids some books!
