Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Looking Ahead - Spare Rooms and Spare Tires

I'm almost there.

I can sense it.

Somewhere between the disappointment and frustration, I'm coming out of the fog. It feels nice to breath again.

I feel less and less 'poked' by those folks who have simply had better luck with the lottery of family building world than I have had. I know I'm not letting My Sailor down. It is what it is and I can't change it. What can I say? Acceptance is a beautiful thing.

'The kids room' has naturally changed into 'the spare room'.  It's too sad to have an empty room waiting for kids. Other than twin bunk beds, there isn't anything particularly anything "kid" about it.

So let's spin this differently. It's more likely to provide beds for houseguests than it is for anyone joining our family - at least not until next year most likely. While that makes me a little sad, but the self pity bug chirps a lot more quietly when it's just a spare room.

Change what you can, and let the rest go, right?

So let's look ahead, shall we?

Clydas-"This is your wake up call."
I've booked two trips! The first one will be to head back to California. No Disney trip this time. No funerals either. This time, it's I get to be with my mom and my brother as they celebrate their birthdays (both in April). It's bound to be a little bit bitter sweet. The anniversary of Dad's passing is 2 weeks before all that. It's strange to think he's been gone for a year. We all still feel that burden. I will admit that it's perhaps a little extra heavy with My Sailor at sea and our adoption plans delayed, but I've decided I'm just going to deal with it when it comes, as it comes. One day at a time. I have great friends to help me get through the hump, and great family still in the wake of that tragedy.

On a completely different note, I can't wait for my friends and family in California to see me again. My body shape has changed dramatically since my last visit, and I get a secret smile thinking about making my entrance again.

It'll be great to see them all again, but some time with my family will be nice - even though I'll be working and continuing to train while I'm in California. Zumba? Crossfit? Running? Body Weight Tabatas? Who knows. They haven't seen me since December, but it's always fun to grab my shoes and my jump rope and take my act on the road.  Traveling is so much more fun without the vacation-eating-remorse that comes later. No doubt we'll be making a traditional stop into Stone Brewery. They are right in my family's back yard basically. Only at their brewery have I found my favorite beer on tap. And if you haven't visited Stone Brewery, it's beautiful. Even if you only drink water, it's worth a walk around their garden, complete with koi ponds...

But nowhere else is there a gargoyal overseeing operations and brews called Arrogant Bastard Ale or (my personal favorite) Sublimely Self-Righteous on tap. Yes, I'm a pretty fit girl, and I still drink beer. Just not all the time, or in large quantities. I feel no reason to deprive myself a little Self-Righteousness from time to time.


So all that said, that should be a fun few days, despite it being a 'working holiday' for me. In other words, I'll spend waking hours with my family, and evening hours hammering out my day job. Oy. If I time it right, I can work at least 1 or 2 12 hour days in advance, so I won't have to work full 8 hour days when I'm visiting home, but we'll see how all of that rolls out.  ('Rest' is a 4 letter word after all! Then again, so is 'work'. Damn.)

I've also booked the trip to do the Expedition Everest Challenge in Florida! I'm really relieved that I won't be flying solo to this one either. The Nurse and I have gone to Disneyland every year for the past few years together. These trips are usually around the holidays and very impromtu. This time, we're planning ahead, and taking it across the country. She decided she'd like to come to Disney World with me! I haven't had a girl's trip to Disney World since 2009 when Sista' Girl and I did our Inagural RBT, so I'm looking forward to this Ladies Only Outting.  I'm a little nervous to see how my new lifestyle (you know, corn and grain free) will play out there, so I'm coming prepared...
The Nurse and I- Disneyland 2012
I plan on coming prepared with lots of Paleo friendly bars and snacks packed so that I won't be suffering much come race day and having them delivered to the hotel in advance. Things like Caveman bars, pressed fruit, some raw nuts and other essentials that don't require a kitchen.  I'll still be splurging here or there. (What kind of a Disney fan would I be if I didn't have a Dole whip or at least consider a heavenly Carrot Cake Cookie?!) But I'm to the point now where I don't enjoy the after effects of some of those splurges. They range from a general feeling of sluggishness to gastric upset to swollen, arthritic joints. That's no good for a 5k + Scavenger Hunt, so I'm going to be very careful up until race day (we arrive 3 days prior), and then loosen the strings a bit afterwards. Thankfully, The Nurse is on board with supporting me. I'm either very lucky that the right people have stuck by me, or very smart in choosing my support mechanism... In truth, it's probably a little bit of both.

I'm also looking forward to staying in Shades of Green again. I didn't really get to use their fitness room last time, and it looked awesome. Can't wait to break that puppy in this time around.

Although My Sailor will miss all the fun, I'm sure he's relieved to know I have a support team. There is even talk of a Magazine Meet Up with some of my fellow contributors to Celebrations Press! It's always fun to meet fellow fans, even if it's just for Hugs and Hi's.

So there is lots of good stuff coming down the pike before summer strikes.
Stay tuned!

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