I remember my best friend from high school, married in her early 20’s, talking about furnishings for her newlywed apartment.  Another girlfriend was making casseroles for her boyfriend when she was going to be away at a candle convention.  Who are these chicks, I thought?  Sure we’re good friends but we have nothing in common, I considered.  I had zero interest in picking out a loveseat.  What Dave would eat while I was out-of-town never crossed my mind.  Then I grew up, got married and produced two kids in three years.  A neighbor’s granite countertop or brightly-colored flowers in a large pot now appeal to me.  I talk about things like carpet cleaner and grass lengths in everday conversation.  I am not a desperate housewife, I’m a wanna-be homemaker.  Cooking and cleaning do not come naturally to me.  Have I mentioned that?  But I’ve made great strides in domesticity in such a short time.  There is hope for my, and Dave’s, future.

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 9:  Today is my FUN DAY due to our live coverage from Dubuque.  I can’t be around all that great festival food and not partake!  But I am going in tomorrow for the “optional” resistance workout because I am dedicated.

Isabelle from Lansing

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 12

you could take a bath without two kids, three washcloths, four stacking cups and a rubber alligator?

you could drive long distances with no potty breaks, crumbs in the seat cushions or cryfests?

you could get a pedicure with no worries about how the kids were acting with Daddy at home?

you could take a shower free of muted sounds of crying or knocking on the bathroom door?

you could be alone with your husband for hours at a time?

you didn’t have children and your life was not nearly as rich or fulfilling?

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 9:  Arm workout went well.  I feel so much more taut and toned throughout the day.  Clothes fit so much better when there’s less to fill them.

Logan and Jordan from Ossian

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 12

It’s scary when your kids say and do things you know they picked up from you.  Charlotte is really into her Tinkerbell cell phone.  She told me she needs to put it in her pocket so she doesn’t miss a call.  The hilarious part is her pretending it’s ringing, answering and carrying on conversations with various relatives.  Yesterday she said “I put Nana/Papa on speaker.”  Watching her react in laughter to what they’re “saying” on the other end is priceless.  “We’re doing fine here,” she said into the phone when she was acting like she was on the line with Granddad in Washington state.  And the other day when the breeze kicked up she exclaimed, “This wind is brutal!”  Again, classic to hear your kid say something that comes out of your mouth and she likely doesn’t understand.  Lately her dolls have been bad.  “They didn’t get a nap all day and they’re crabby,” she revealed.  Some have been put in time out.  Sound familiar, Charlotte?  As for Thomas, he has had toys taken away from him by his big sister.  “This is not for babies,” she scolded.  “No, Thomas!”  Poor kid.  Bad enough Mom and Dad tell him what to do now Big Sis is chiming in with the same lines.

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 9:  I had more energy kickboxing today than I have had all session.  That was a good feeling.  On to arm resistance tomorrow!     

Colby from Denver

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 12

I debated whether to share what happened last night knowing that I continue to set myself up for criticism… but that’s what makes life fun, right?  That we’re all different, as parents especially.  So here goes… when I came home from work, changed and did the whole face routine, I got into bed with Daddy AND Charlotte and ended up having a conversation with Dave that woke her up.  She flipped and flopped around then started demanding a sippy cup as she was thirsty.  I kept telling her to go back to sleep but she would not relent.  As I got up to get her a drink, sometimes it’s not worth the fight, Dave said she already had a sippy by the bed but it had milk in it.  I rinsed out the milk in the bathroom sink and put water in it.  You know what comes next… she wanted new milk.  So began the battle that led to me carrying her into her room.  She was having a major meltdown at this point and I calmly told her through the door I held closed, “When you calm down, you can come back in our bed.”  Let’s just say more than two months of resistance training have not rendered me strong enough to tame a 3-year-old.  She literally was twisting and pulling the door handle so hard I could barely keep it shut!  Now you know what’s next, Thomas started screaming in his crib down the hall.  Daddy took over with Charlotte and I went down the hall to rock Thomas back to sleep.  15 minutes later we were all back in bed and Dave said he couldn’t sleep.  I know what he means.  The energy you expend trying to get everyone to sleep wears you out so much you’re too tired to sleep.  Been there?  

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 9:  It’s great to go to bands class and zone out a bit because you’re too tired to think.  Even doing the same exercises, I find the time goes by fairly quickly since it’s a calm and methodical style.  Better save up some energy for kickboxing tomorrow!

Reese and Aidan from Dubuque

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 11

From the title of this entry, one might think I am heading off for a massage and mani/pedi.  Truth is now that Daddy and the kids are permanently home for the summer, I can’t even find a free moment to watch one of the real housewives’ reunions that’s been waiting for me on the DVR.  An episode of Bob the Builder will likely bump it off before I get to it!  Due to this lack of ME time, I have decided to start training Charlotte to pamper me.  Ha, ha!  I have been asking her to shampoo my hair in the tub, to put lotion on my legs when I’m getting ready and… yes, I went this far… to attempt a microdermabrasion with a warm washcloth and cotton balls.  It was the grainy scrub that comes in a packet, but still!  So far her cosmetology skills are mixed.  She only rubs the shampoo on part of my head, keeps applying lotion in the same spot and dabs the facial cleanser on places like my toe before she quickly gets bored.  Of course if I tell her I don’t want her to do any of this stuff then she’ll really get excited about it and give it her all.  That’s an idea…  

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 9:  I am down two sizes.  I am so much stronger.  One push-up used to be a struggle, now I can knock out 40 pretty easily… of course my knees are on the floor!

Allison, Macy, Tessa and Kaylee from West Union and Waterloo

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 11

We’ve all been there… if we’re honest.  You turn your back for one minute and your child is seconds away from tragedy.  Thomas, again, was three or four steps up the stairs today when I headed down from a 30-second trip to grab something.  If you panic, you might scare the little one into falling.  So I always try to remain calm in these situations.  Like the time Charlotte, barely over a year old, locked me out of the house in the garage.  Of course it was winter, I had no spare key and until that moment I was completely unaware she could even reach the door handle let alone lock it.  I was able to talk her into turning it back to let Mommy in much like a special agent might reason with a hostage taker–very delicately.  Of course we’ve all heard of or experienced those moments when we discover the entire car ride home the baby wasn’t strapped in the carseat… or you were swinging the carseat to soothe the baby, again, not strapped in.  Who knew you could have flung the child halfway across the back of the church!  (That’s where Dave would swing Charlotte during the service.)  Then there’s the time, two times, when I dropped Charlotte while feeding her.  She rolled off my lap like a rag doll.  My mom, just back home from a hip replacement, dove down to grab her.  One of many more heart-stoppers to come, I’m sure.         

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 8:  A lot of push-ups, punches and kicks today.  It felt good.  Tomorrow is my FUN DAY for the week, after my resistance class of course, so my last cardio workout to get there wasn’t so bad! 

Clayton, Allyson and Madisyn from Tama

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 11

I know some of you are like me.  I get so excited for activities aimed to entertain children.  In fact, I find myself looking forward to them probably more than I did at their age.  Is this normal?  A parade, a museum exhibit for little ones, even a trip to Chuck E. Cheese or a ballet lesson… all things I’m pumped for.  And I don’t think of myself as living vicariously through my kids.  I have some thrills in my adult life… right?  Perhaps the enthusiasm is due to my wanting them to be all smiles and laughs while taking part in said activities.  I build them up in my head, ever the optimist about potential enjoyment for all.  Sadly the scenes never play out quite like I imagined.  Someone’s tired or crabby… adults included…. or the story or puppet show are too long and the kids’ attention spans too short.  As fast as I read, even I find myself skipping paragraphs with Charlotte as my audience.  We left two productions early the past two attempts.  So I’ve cut back on our engagements.  Daddy seems pleased.

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 8:  I switched to the harder band for leg work today.  Trying to push myself these last three weeks.  I still miss sugar terribly and keep forgetting to pick up some more sugar-free Jello.

Libby from Denver

 

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 11

Learning about the shocking events of Parkersburg football coach Ed Thomas’ shooting death today reminded me of how tragic it is, especially for young people, to lose someone.  In this case, some 20 students witnessed the event which is beyond horrific.  I was 5 when my maternal grandma died of a heart attack.  She was in her late 50s.  I will never forget the tear-stained look on my mom’s face when my paternal grandparents pulled up to the hospital door with me wide-eyed in the backseat.  The event impacted me enough to name my daughter after the grandma I lost too soon, Charlotte.  My dad’s dad died of cancer when I was in 5th grade.  Today his widow, my grandma Helen, is in an Alzheimer’s wing of a nursing home.  My mom’s dad was killed in a car crash six years ago.  He was in his 80s and did not see the service truck when he pulled out from a rural intersection.  I was with my mom when we went to see his body at the funeral home.  These are moments you never forget, no matter your age.  The hope is that the memories of laughing and loving are just as vivid.  I hold on to those.    

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 8:  My stamina has improved, so does that mean I need to be working harder?  I am sticking to my 6 small meals a day and looking forward to my cheat day, as always!

Brianna and Olivia from Fort Atkinson

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 11

Just when you thought it was safe to go in the water, local lifeguards young enough to be my step-kids (ha, ha) get a job at the waterpark and turn into control freaks.  We were stopped at the gate and denied entry unless our snacks disappeared.  So the man with the mirrored shades confiscated our bags of mini-wafers, Goldfish and puffs.  I am not kidding.  Even funnier, we were told in addition to no food allowed-unless you buy it from the snack bar-water bottles are off limits, too.  Really?  When the heat index is so high a warning has been issued and toddlers and babies are outnumbering adults.  Dave got busted yesterday for holding Thomas when he was supposed to be in a tube.  Another mom was told to stay with her son’s tube so water dropping from a bucket wouldn’t flip it.  This was her response, and I quote, “I can’t get water on my head.  I am allergic to chlorine and I will bleed.”  The girl was speechless.  Yet you’re walking in waist-high water with the same chemical, I reasoned, but spoke not a word as it was thrilling to see the lifeguard void of a comeback.  I know, I know.  They are there for our safety and all the snot-nosed kids, especially the ones too big for the toddler area, need to have boundaries because accidents happen.  And I am including my kids in the snot-nosed category.  Thomas is getting over a cold.  Guess what?  We got our snacks back from the holding tank when we left.  The whole ordeal made airport security seem like a breeze! 

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 8:  Back with the bands today.  Tough to get up so early again after three mornings sleeping later than 5:30… but of course I felt good after I did the workout!

Lilly and Laynie from Cedar Falls

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 11

I saw a lady at the local waterpark today with her string bikini top tied around her back to prevent a strap tan line.  I remember those days, I thought.  Shifting and twisting lounge chairs and swimsuits so you could achieve bronzed skin from head to toe.  Now I’m spray painting any uncovered skin with SPF 70 mist, likely going through multiple cans of it this summer alone.  The permanent red mark on my nose is a daily reminder of the sun damage done.  If it doesn’t go away, the blemish may need to be taken off with a cream so strong it will blister my skin.  Wow, all that fun in the sun with no protection all those years was so not worth it.  I surveryed the kiddie crowd today and only a handful had hats on.  Nearly bald babies were soaking it up.  I am trying to find a balance with my two.  Thomas fights the hat and Charlotte goes under so much let’s hope the “waterproof” description on the sun block holds.  And thank God for the spray tan.  I had one airbrushed on Friday for a family photo shoot yesterday where the color scheme was white and khaki.  I wanted to be sure you could tell where my white dress ended and my arms began.  It worked wonderfully minus the solution stains on my parents’ guest bedroom sheets.  And I have an instant tan line which is something I used to work for.  So nice to know I didn’t risk skin cancer to get it!

Farrell’s Extreme Bodyshaping, Week 8:  I worked out Saturday and Sunday so all was not lost.  Will be back at it with the group tomorrow!         

Addison from Waterloo

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 11