No More Excuses...

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Time to Start Training.

So, I ran last night for the first time in probably 9 months.  According to my half marathon training plan, my first long run is in 5 weeks... and it's 7 miles.  Dum-dum-dummmmm... I ran two miles last night without dying, so that's a start!  Jena has promised to keep me accountable over the next several weeks, so stay tuned for some progress updates as the weeks count down.  

Speaking of countdowns, Chad happens to work in the OneAmerica building downtown, and there happens to be a real-time countdown clock to the start of the race.  So that's a nice dose of reality for him every day (and for me when he decides to let me know just how little time we have to get our poor bodies into shape for this crazy race).  

God help us...

 

What I Heard...

OK, so my cousin Lacy has a blog (you can check it out here), and I have been busy reading it and stealing all of her ideas for posts, headers, etc.  I love when she posts "What I Heard," little snippets of conversation overheard throughout the week at her house, etc.  In an effort to capture and share more hilarious Maya-isms, I thought I'd just go ahead and steal Lacy's idea.  Chad thought it would be a great idea to post a "Sh*t Maya Says" video on YouTube, but he isn't willing to dress up as Maya, so this will have to suffice for now.  Enjoy!


"Mom!  We're on Hazel Dell.  And we're going to Grandma's house.  On Picadilly!" - Maya, in the car on Monday as we drove to my parents house.  For the record, we WERE on Hazel Dell Parkway, and my parents DO live on Picadilly Lane.  Looks like we've got a little Rand McNally on our hands.  

"Who cares what teams make it to the Super Bowl.  Their fans just need to show up and bring their wallets." - My Dad, during a conversation about how terrible it would be for the Patriots to come to Indianapolis and win a Super Bowl at Lucas Oil.  I find this to be totally hilarious coming from my dad.  I don't know why.  

Get out of here, Tom Brady.

 "Signing up now... I hate you." - my friend Jena, via text, after I coerced her to sign up to run the Indianapolis mini-marathon with me in May.  I may have talked her into it purely by suggesting that we could make shirts for the event.  I know how much she loves crafts.  We've also got our friend Maggie roped in, and I'm working on Rachel and Lexi.  COME ON GIRLS!!  Everyone hates running.  Might as well all hate it together!

This could be us!!!!

"Mom... what are you doing?"
"Spraying this stuff (Lysol) on the trash can so it doesn't smell bad."
"Oh.  Can you spray some on Miles?" - Conversation between Maya and me yesterday as Chad took the trash out and I was putting a new bag in the trash can.    Back story: Miles is a stuffed rabbit that travels almost everywhere with Maya.  He tends to smell pretty terrible after being hauled around by a toddler.  So last week I told Maya that Miles was "stinky."  Her response - "No!  He smells WONDERFUL!"  Ummm, nope.  Sorry kid.  He smells awful.  So I talked her into giving Miles a "bath" (in the washing machine).  So she dragged her step stool from the bathroom into the laundry room and proceeded to throw all of her "friends" into the washing machine so they could get a bath.  I was so pleased with myself for getting her to cooperate with the whole process.  Little did I know we were creating a monster.  Now, at some point nearly every day, Maya lets me know that Miles might be getting "stinky" again and may need another bath.  She hadn't mentioned anything about it yesterday until Chad took the trash out.  Turns out Miles' hygiene is always on her mind... :)

I don't have a quote for this one, because she didn't say anything when she woke up from her nap on Saturday.  But there was no way I wasn't going to share this picture, because it's hilarious.  Frighteningly similar...

I made these!! (Plus a bonus Maya video)...

So... it's no secret that I am NOT a very crafty person.  In the kitchen, I'm cool as a cucumber.  But get me around glue guns, felt, fabric, or (gulp...) sewing machines, and I am WAY out of my element.  I am amazed every day by the creativity I see on other people's blogs (thank you, Pinterest, for helping me realize the depths of my creative void).  My good friend Jena is doing her best to ease me into the world of crafts (baby-steps... and some hand-holding at Joann's)...  So when I recently had the opportunity to wander over to a friend's house to learn how to make crafty zipper pouches, I jumped at it.  I'm not even going to pretend to try to tell you how I did this.  I'm just going to send you over to Anissa's blog, and you can learn from her, seeing as she is the master...


Here are the results of my effort (with a significant amount of help from Anissa and Emily)...

Don't mind the coffee cup and pipe cleaner jingle bell bracelet...
I was so amazed by my new-found craftiness that I didn't think
to spend the time taking a good picture... I just slapped those babies
on the kitchen counter and started snapping away with my phone.

That's right, folks... it's a different color on the inside!  I was originally
going to use these as Christmas gifts, but I liked this one so much, I kept it.

Eat your heart out, Thirty-One :)

Just for kicks, here is a bonus video of Maya singing her ABCs
(and conducting... she has seen too many episodes of Little Einsteins)

Innaugural Post! Get to know me if you don't already...

Hello there!  What better way to start off a new blog than an "All About Me" survey??  Those who know me know that I'm addicted to surveys.  Don't know what it is about 'em, but I can't get enough.  So when I stumbled across this one on the blog of my good friend's hilarious cousin, I got excited about it in a nerdy way.  Thanks for letting me steal your survey, Calli!

A. Age – 31.  I had to do some math on that one.  I never thought it would be possible to forget how old you are, but I guess it is.

B. Bed size – King.  I need my space.  And so does Oscar.

C. Chore that you hate – Folding and putting away laundry.  With the burning passion of 1000 suns.  I'd rather clean my bathroom every day than fold laundry.  But please don't tell Chad I said that or he might expect me to clean the bathroom every day.  And we all know that isn't going to happen.

D. Dogs – I love dogs more than people.  We have three dogs: Oscar, a 10-year-old pit bull, who is a total pansy.  Hates wet grass and sleeps under the covers at night.  Sonny is a 9-year-old maltese/poodle mix (Chad won't use the word Maltipoo...).  Sonny thinks he runs the house, and a lot of the time, he does.  He usually looks like a homeless dog, but we actually took him to the groomer the other day, so he is currently presentable.  And then there's Frank, a 7-year-old disaster bloodhound.  Frank is a hairy, slobbery beast.  He has the softest fur, but almost no one knows that because no one wants to touch him.  Poor guy.  He has the sweetest temperament of the three, but he's so messy that it makes it hard to appreciate his winning personality.  He is also dumber than a box of rocks.  He once ran smack into a light pole while he was running with Chad.  True story.

Sonny is in the middle there,
but he blends in with the snow...

E. Essential start to your day – Brushing my teeth.  Many things can get skipped in the morning, but not that.  Coffee is a nice bonus, but it doesn't always happen.

F. Favorite color – Green
G. Gold or silver – Silver.  Sometimes I put on gold jewelry when I'm going to see Kara, so I can pretend to be as trendy as she is...

H. Height – 5'4".  Most people think I'm taller than that.  Turns out I'm not.

I. Instruments you play – I used to play the violin (not very well), and I can still knock out a mean "Old Mac Donald" on the piano...

J. Job title – Office Manager 

K. Kids – 1 daughter - Maya.  She's 2 years old, super adorable, ridiculously intelligent, hilarious, creative, and fun. 

She loves broccoli in an angry way...

L. Live – Noblesville, IN. 
M. Mother’s name – JOYCE!  She's the greatest.

N. Nicknames – Oh boy... Molls, Me-molls, Mo-Dub, Swan/Swanner/Swanny, Gail, Turkey... I answer to a lot of names.

O. Overnight hospital stays – Just when I'm birthing humans...

Thank you, drugs... :)

 P. Pet peeves – Flaky people, slow drivers, people who don't keep their dogs contained in their yards, people who refuse to take responsibility for their own life and success

Q. Quote from a movie –  "Stop looking at me, Swan!" 

R. Right or left handed – Righty

S. Siblings – 1 sister by blood (Carrie), 1 sister by marriage (Kara), 1 brother by marriage to my sister (Bob), and another brother by marriage to my sister by marriage (Dan).  And a partridge in a pear tree.

Me and Carrie :)

Me and Kara :)

T. Time it takes you to get ready – Well, if I only had to get MYSELF ready, I'd say about 45 minutes.  When you add a toddler to the mix, I'd say about an hour and a half...

U. Underwear – Yes.  Always.

V. Vegetable you hate – Green peppers.  Especially when cooked.

W. What makes you run late – See: "T. Time it takes you to get ready"

X. X-rays you’ve had – Teeth.

Y. Yummy food you make – Pretty much everything I make is yummy...Except for the homemade gnocchi that one time...

mmmmmmm...

MMMMMMMMM!

Z. Zoo animal -  Otters.  I like all cold-weather aquatic animals, but otters are the best.  Especially baby otters.

Well, there ya go!  Hope you learned something :)