Stream of Consciousness

Would you believe that I've had a bit of writer's block lately? I have a number of half composed posts sitting in my drafts folder just waiting to be finished. Ain't gonna happen. So, this post will be stream of consciousness so I can get all these thoughts out of my head, hopefully I can type fast enough to avoid self-editing. The backspace key is not my friend these days.

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Ok, so the running update is this: I don't have a stress fracture (yeah!). I have the bones of a 25 year old (double yeah!). My foot injury was a result of doing too much, too fast and I have since been cautioned and lectured by the podiatrist that I need to stretch, get properly fitted for new running shoes, heat and anti-inflammatories applied daily and, here's the capper, 'you're not as young as you used to be and you just can't go out and bang out 3 miles after not running for a few months'. But! I have the bones of a 25 year old! Just ask Dr. Mark! He was amazed by my scan!
Yeah. Anyway. Another week of rest, heat and advil and then I can run again with lots of stretching before and starting out slowly. I'm looking at the silver lining which is that starting slowly will force me to work on my form. So, there's that.

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Mother's Day weekend in Santa Barbara was fantastic. Great food, fun shopping, relaxing in the wine country and in the spa. I got home on Sunday just 5 minutes after the boys returned from their mountain retreat. I spent the rest of the day doing grocery shopping, laundry and making dinner but I couldn't have been happier. It was great being away for a few days but I missed them and it made my Mother's Day all the sweeter to just be with them.

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The boys are back in swimming lessons this week and I am amazed at Dean. He seemed a little hesitant at first but last night that kid went under water with his eyes wide open so he could retrieve the ring that the teacher placed on the lower step. It's unbelievable! And Jack is working on his stroking and kicking and has excellent form. I'm so glad we're doing these lessons again.

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The boys are also in a community center production of High School Musical and have rehearsals every Wednesday. So far they haven't gotten up to do any of the singing or the dancing - they just sit and watch. Jack tells me that he doesn't want to do it so I don't know what will come of it. If nothing else at least they're gaining the experience of the work that goes into putting on a show.

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I got the surprise of my life on Monday night when I got home and there was a box sitting on the countertop which Tom said was my Mother's Day present. I thought my weekend was my present so I wasn't expecting anything! I opened the box and there was a beautiful new Nikon D40 digital camera with an extra lens. OH! It's so beautiful! I can't wait to start using it.

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Last night at my MOMs club meeting we had a panel of women (members mostly) who talked about challenges that they have faced. One mom's challenge was her twins' diagnosis of ADD and ADHD, another mom's challenge was one of her twins was diagnosed as severely autistic, a third mom talked about her both her twins' diagnosis of autism, the fourth mom talked about her twin girl's deafness and the last mom talked about the loss of one of her twins at 3 months of age. It was an incredibly emotional night. Listening to these women as they talked of the challenges they faced, their inner struggles, the difficult decisions they had to make, the thoughtless comments they had to bear . . . it left me feeling so blessed, so incredibly fortunate. These women were incredible in their faith, their courage, their strength. It was a surprisingly uplifting, if emotionally draining, night. And it sure illuminated how easily it is to get caught up in the moment without enjoying the present. Every moment, no matter how difficult, is a gift.

Cherish your gifts. Enjoy your present. Love your life.