Nice Visit with an Old Friend

Today I was lucky enough to get a visit from my long, lost friend, Christina (or Senator Donato as we lovingly referred to her in college). 

I met Christina during my sophomore year at Oneonta.  She was the little, energetic, friendly girl that lived across the hall from me in Sherman Hall.  Christina could talk a mile a minute about anything-to anyone and she always seemed to be happy and bouncing off the walls!  We were complete opposites and seemed an unlikely pair.  But, as I got to know Christina I found that she was kind and generous and sincere.  She would do anything for her friends.  I remember a time during practicum when I missed my 7am ride to Delhi.  I was late and frantic and I called Christina.  She, without hesitation, lent me her car so that I could get to school.  Christina was also nice enough to drive me to see a boy....far away....more than once.  She was that good of a friend!

(insert picture from college here-once I can scan it)

It's been over 10 years since Christina and I have spoken to or seen each other.  I don't know why we didn't keep in touch...but we didn't and time passed.  We can thank facebook for our little reunion today! 

Christina drove from New Paltz with her baby girl, Ellie (her birthday happens to be 7 days before Ethan's).  While our babies played together, Christina and I tried to fit 10 years of life into 6 hours of visiting.  It was easy talking to her and never felt uncomfortable.  We caught up as much as we could in between taking care of the babies and the hours seemed to pass too quickly.


Ethan & Ellie "playing".



Uh....Mom is she going to grab my ear again?

Brayden, Ellie &Ethan

It's just a cute picture!

Old and New Friends

When she packed up to leave I was sad.  Since Christina lives in Tennessee it is unlikely that we will see each other again anytime soon.  But I definitely plan to stay in touch with her.  I won't let my spunky, little friend disappear from my life again! 

A lot of time has passed since college but today was like no time had passed at all.  It was wonderful seeing, talking and laughing with my old friend. 

My Baby is TWO!

My baby boy is 2 years old!  Time has certainly flown!  Brayden is growing into such a smart, funny, handsome little boy!  He has beautiful eyes, a great smile and his laugh is infectious!

Brayden is learning so much every day, surprising us with all he knows!  He talks up a storm!  He has so many words, phrases and sentences that I can't keep up.  He is also very polite.  He makes sure to say "thank you" and "bless you" (even if you've only coughed)!  His favorite responses to any questions are "of course" and "no way"!  He can count to 12 (most of the time) and a recognizes lots of numbers and letters!  Brayden also knows lots of signs.  His favorite are "more", "daddy" and "please" which he signs no matter what.  Others we have to ask him to sign and he will. We are, of course, so very proud of him!  But no pressure though...not from his teacher parents! ;) 

He is such a kind, loving big brother.  He always gives Ethan kisses night-night and is sure to yell "wake up!" when he thinks E needs to be awake! 

Brayden loves to draw and jump and dance and go for walks.  He would rather be outside than anywhere else.  Elmo is his favorite show but he also like Dora & Diego and the Wiggles.  He is beginning to enjoy Thomas and trains.  He knows the NY Giants logo and will emphatically say "Go Giants!" even though Daddy is a Cowboys fan! 

Brayden has changed so much over the past 2 years.  I have enjoyed watching him grow and learn.  Though time passes way too quickly, I am excited to see how B changes over the next year.  I know that he is only going to shine more than he already does!  Brayden is my love and my joy and I can't imagine my life without him!

Here is a look back at Brayden's first 2 years....

Brayden Matthew, born March 1, 2009

B's hospital picture



At 5 months, B could put himself into a sitting position.

 

At 6 months B could stand



He was also crawling at 6 months

Walking with help at 8 months

Walking without help at 10 months.

Always a daredevil!



B's photo shoot at the Story Garden.



Last day as an only child-16 months old.

Big Brother Brayden won't go near his baby brother!

B finally decides it's ok to meet his brother.



B's first haircut!  Such a bog boy!

So silly!

What a sweet big brother!

His new thing...he wants to drive-all the time!

He will jump off anything!

So beautiful!

How old will you be?  TWO!!!! (he's still not sure how to make 2 with his fingers)!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Brayden!



Maybe a Runner...

Did I mention that I have run 4 miles more than once??  Well...I have!  I ran 4 miles on the treadmill last Friday and then again on Sunday at Otsiningo Park.  Dare I say it's getting easier?  I even think I am getting a little faster.  I feel pretty confident that I will be able to run the St. Pat's 4 Miler next Saturday!  That is, if my hip holds up.  I went to the chiropractor today and apparently my hips are uneven and out of alignment.  I think that I have several chiropractic visits in my future.  Super. 

But no matter what I'm still going to be a runner.........maybe.

My First Run

The weather in Binghamton has been unseasonably warm for the past 2 days so I decided that it would be a perfect time to go for my first outdoor run.  Nana came watch the boys and Dave and I headed to the Rail Trail for this momentous occasion. 

The Rail Trail is 4 miles up and back.  It was my goal to be able to run the full 4 miles.  I could do it!  Once up, once back.  No big deal.  That's what I was hoping anyway. 

As I started running I was pretty nervous.  What if I couldn't do it?  What if I looked stupid?  But I ran...and I kept running.  I ran through the nervousness and the pain (my left hip has been hurting for 2 weeks-I actually haven't even been running on the treadmill because of the pain).  I continued to run even though my pants were falling down and the wind was pulling me backwards.  Dave was great.  He ran as slow as me the whole time and never made me feel badly about it

One mile....two miles.  We got to the end.

Then we made our turn and headed back.  I just kept telling myself that I had to do it...

Three miles....four miles!  Yay!  I was done!  I finished 4 miles of running and I didn't die! 

We didn't officially time our run, but I know that we got there at 4:00 and were back in the car at 4:46.  So I ran my first 4 miles ever in under 50 minutes!  It wasn't fun and I fear doing it again.  But I know that I can do it and that is a huge accomplishment.  I also know that I will be able to run the St. Patrick's 4 Miler in a couple weeks. 

My hip is hurting a lot now so I'm going to take the day off from running and do the Arc or Elliptical at the gym.  Hopefully Dave and I will be able to get out and run again this weekend. 

33 Reasons...

I'm 33 years old!  I can hardly believe it!  I don't know where the past 10 years went.  I swear I was just in college and then I realized that it will be 11 years since I graduated!  And I was just talking to my dad about high school and how I was "just" there.....15 years ago! 

Holy Crap!  I'm old!!! 

In honor or my 33rd birthday this is a list of 33 things I am thankful for...

1.  My husband, Dave.  He takes care of me and my boys.  He cooks, cleans, grocery shops, gets up at night, lets me sleep in on the weekends.  The list goes on.  I don't know what I would do without him!

2.  My first born, Brayden.  He's so smart, so funny, so fresh...so his mama!

3.  Ethan David.  My baby boy, my love.  I cant get enough of him.

4.  My mom.  She comes over every day to spend time with her grand babies and she's always willing to help us anyway that she can.

5.  My dad.  He reminds me that I am capable of anything and to expect nothing less than the best in myself.

6.  My health and my family's health. 

7.  Permanent employment no matter what economic crisis our country is in.

8.  Real friends-the ones that will stick by you and love you for who you are-no matter what!

9.  My Blackberry.  It keeps me amused no matter where I am.

10.  July & August-Summer Vacation!!  Time to spend with my family.

11.  Dave has the same vacation days as me!  Logistics...very important!

12.  My flat iron.  The best hair product ever.  It gets my hair pin straight!  Only took 32 years to find something that works!

13.  Bravo. The only channel on TV that I can watch no matter whats on.  Love it!  Especially at the gym!

14.  Heather, my personal trainer.  She is kicking my ass into the body I've always wanted!

15.  Snow days!  They are always a nice surprise and make the long winters more bearable!

16.  Dave Matthews!  My very favorite band & only concert I go to!

17.  Target.  The only store I enjoy shopping at....sometimes I go there just for fun.  Love that its a one stop shop!

18.  Online Shopping.  How I do most of my shopping.  I love not ever having to go into a store!

19.  Our House.  Its shrinking as our family grows...but its perfect and just the way we want it.

20.  Our Tax Refund.  I love getting that extra cash for our savings account.  Hopefully it will turn into a down payment on a new, bigger house one day!

21.  Dr. Canino, my OB.  He saved my life...for real, helped me through a pretty rough time and delivered both my boys.  Oh...and he's my secret crush!

22.  Outer Banks.  Beautiful vacation spot where I hope to bring my boys every year.  Such wonderful memories!

23.  My Camera.  I LOVE pictures...taking them, creating things with them, looking at them, sharing them with others!

24.  Candy.  Even though I don't eat it so much anymore its still a LOVE.  Its my coffee...its my stress relief.

25.  Christy, my awesome babysitter and new friend.  Love her!

26.  My parents very generous monetary support.  They love to buy us things...what can I say!!

27.  My siblings...all 4 of them.  They make me laugh and life just seems right when we are all together.  Couldn't imagine life without any of them.

28.  Facebook.  Oh the hours I spend doing absolutely nothing on FB!  Its a huge waste of time but it has put me in touch with so many old friends!

29.  My minivan.  Seriously....the best decision we ever made!  And automatic doors...best invention ever!

30.  My In-Laws. Genuinely nice people.

31.  Carrie, one of my very best friends since 3rd grade!  We can say anything to each other!

32.  Kim, my college roommate and other best-friend.  We are so different, but so alike!  I love that our babies are growing up together!

33.  Another birthday and more to come!



Happy Birthday to Me!



So, You Wanna be a Runner?

I'm a very goal-oriented person.  Goals are what keep me going.  So far I've accomplished all my life goals; college degree, professional employment, master's degree, home ownership, marriage, babies (in that order).  So lately I've been feeling pretty lost without a goal.  I would love to have another baby....but honestly I'm just not ready for that-and babies are expensive! 

I needed a new goal.  Something to work toward.  Something to keep me busy (not that my boys don't keep me busy enough).  I decided toward the end of October that my new goal would be to lose all the pregnancy weight I had gained.  Well...its been 3 months and I am almost at my pre-pregnancy weight...about 10lbs away.  I would like to lose that 10lbs and about 10-15lbs more, but.....I got a little bored with simply trying to lose weight. 

So..............I decided that I wanna be a runner!

Yeah...I don't know.  Crazy huh?!?  Its especially crazy because, though I am a regular at the gym, I do NOT run!  I think the last time I ran was for my 5th grade fitness test when they make you run a mile....and I've always joked that I wouldn't run if someone was chasing me.  But, putting all that aside,  I decided that running would be my new life goal.

Super.

I started running a couple weeks ago.  I get on the treadmill, turn on Kayne West's "Stronger" (on repeat) and pray.  Ive been trying to run at least every other day and I guess I'm getting better.  I can run for 30 minutes straight and I go a little over 2.5 miles (which sucks-but I'm a beginner!).  I still hate running, but I'm trying.  I will not give up.  It is my new life goal-there is no other option but to succeed. 

Dave (my husband) is a runner.  He used to run 1/2 marathons every year and he even completed a whole 26.2 mile marathon a couple years ago.  So, he is supportive and my new found interest in running as even gotten him back on the treadmill!

We are going to run the St. Patrick's 4 Miler on March 12th.  That's what I'm working towards right now...being able to run 4 miles without stopping.  If I can do that then I am going to consider maybe running a 1/2 marathon on May 15th. 

Lofty goals.  We'll see....

Ahhhh! Report Cards!

When I was a little girl playing school and dreaming of being a teacher I thought that correcting papers and doing report cards would be soooo much fun!  Boy, was I soooo wrong!  Correcting papers and doing report cards might actually be the very worse part of being a teacher! 

I. Hate. Report cards.

On the other hand...snow days might be the best part of being a teacher!  And if the meterologists get this one right there may be TWO snow days in my very near future!

I. Love. Snow days!