I'm back, Baby!

Ok. So maybe "back" isn't the term for it. But it's been a while since I've written here. And here I am.

After the car accident in October, I was in a fog of sorts. The pain in my neck and shoulder made it very hard to concentrate on anything - at home and at work. I was irritable, short-tempered, tired, pretty miserable. Around the 8 week mark after the accident I started to be able to use my right arm to open doors and hold the baby without wincing. It was a bit of a turning point. From there the headaches started to be less persistent and slightly less crushing. My shoulder and neck started to improve. Dr. Matijasic cleared me to go back to the gym, only lower body at first. It was hard to get back into the groove. It's amazing how fast what little conditioning I had achieved was lost. For the most part I was stretching and walking/running the treadmill and nothing else.

Last night I decided to attempt Zumba again. I've missed it so much! It was hard. Probably harder than the first time I ever tried Zumba. I couldn't do most of the arm routines without pain. That's not good. But I did well with the lower body songs and had a lot of fun! Some of the songs are new and Julie has mixed up the routine a bit since I was there last the Thursday before the accident, but when the familiar songs came on I got right back into the sambas and cumbias I know so well.

I made a new friend too! New Year's Resolution #4 in action - Put Myself Out There More. I ran into Zoe at the water fountain when we both ran out of water at the same time during class. We talked about the previous song, a little Russian-inspired mix, that was hard hard hard!!! After class we talked for a while. She has a hell of a handshake. I liked her immediately. When she asked if I was a college student, I liked her even more!

It's a start... back to Zumba, back to blogging, trying to get back to life as it was before. I still cannot wear Simon which breaks my heart. He was 7 months old when I stopped wearing him - prime time for babywearing fun and convenience! It's a shame. I wonder - if I am able to wear him again - if he will not want to be worn since we've been out of it for so long. I hate to think that my babywearing days are over forever and I can't even remember what we did the last time he was snuggled up tight against me in the ring sling. I'm trying to hope for the best.

I still have pain. When I attempt things that were taken for granted before to get back into the swing of things like Dr. Matijasic recommends (like Zumba), I have more pain. I guess I am not ready for some things yet.

Get off your butt and move!!!

I joined a gym last month. It was time. If I can't diet or reign in this voracious appetite I have while nursing, then I need to move more to make up for the fact that I eat everything that's not nailed down.

Beth and I shopped a few gyms and decided to return to Club Julian. I had been a member there in 2004-2005 and stopped going when I was pregnant with Jesse. It's been a few years and more than a few pounds since I stepped foot in a fitness facility.

Pregnancy and childbirth really take a toll on a woman's body and I feel like they've taken a huge toll on me. I was in physical therapy at UPMC's South Side facility for a few months after Jesse's birth to rebuild core muscles and regain strength in my extremities. After being on bedrest and restricted activity before and after his birth, I was a hot mess! PT helped so much.

This time around I am not as bad off but I desperately need to strengthen and build up my stamina. I am not interested (right now) in dropping pants sizes or being some MILF, I just want to be healthy and active for my boys.

Antonio, my trainer, got me started on a routine and I've actually been able to pump it up from his original plan pretty early on. I usually start by stretching on the (awesome) stretching machines, then I warm up on the treadmill for 15-20 minutes. I am able to do inclines and speeds I wasn't able to do until I was ready to graduate from PT last time so I take that as a very good sign! Off to the circuit training from there. Legs, arms, abs and back. I've modified some of Antonio's exercises to make them more "chiropractor-approved" after Dr. Brian made that frowny face he makes when I described what exercises I was doing. No more ab or back machine exercises, it's all on the floor or on the ball. I cool down on the track, stretch on the machines again and head home!

It's been going well. I've been able to get my routine to fit into an hour and a half so I can be home by 6:30 to nurse Simon. Dan's been great about getting the kids and starting dinner every Tuesday and Thursday since the start of September. I really hoped to work a third day into my schedule and take a fun class on Saturday or Sunday but so far that hasn't happened yet.

Last week I was on my way to the gym from work and I really just didn't feel like going. It would be so easy to turn up Seventh Street and head home to my boys instead. I remembered I had a class schedule in my bag so I looked to see what was offered at that time of day. Zumba. 5-6. I perked up a bit.

I had heard of Zumba a few times. My mother-in-law said something about it once and I saw a short segment with some overly peppy chick on the Jennifer Antkowiak show (No, I don't watch the Jennifer show! It's filmed here at work though so sometimes I come into contact with it when I choose not to.). It looked a little neat since I do love all things Latin (Hello! Gipsy Kings, anyone??? LOVE them!). But it was all in passing and I never gave it a second thought.

Anyway, I decided to try it out. Worst case scenario I hated it and wouldn't come back. While waiting for the class to start I met Mandy, a very tan and peppy girl who told me what to expect in the class, the difference between the two instructors, etc. She's a really nice girl.

So into Zumba I ventured. Within 10 minutes I was sweating and all red in the face. I looked at the clock on the wall and couldn't believe I had to do this for 50 more minutes! There was no way I'd ever make it!

Then the music got a hold of me. Goodness, I love Latin music! Gets me every time! I tripped through salsas, merengues and cumbias, usually moving the opposite way as the class and finding the entire class facing me more than one time when I didn't realize I was supposed to be turning around.

And then the music stopped. It had been a full hour! And I was disappointed it was over. I wanted more! Me! Joelene. Fat Ass Extraordinaire. I wanted to exercise more!

I haven't done my circuit training since. I know! I know! I should mix it up and do my strength training also. Afterall, isn't strength training the reason I joined the gym in the first place? But I love the Zumba far too much. And I figure I should do what I love because anything is better than nothing.

I Zumba'ed last night and I'll be back tomorrow evening too. In my defense, I am checking out other classes like kickboxing, water aerobics, yoga, pilates...

But for now? I'm going to Zumba, baby! ¡Me gusta Zumba!

God bless Craig, whoever he may be.

Each night when Jesse is ready for bed, he says his prayers... "Dear God, thank you for today... for our house... our foods... mama, daddy, baby simon, miss donna, puppies, bubba, miss warwa, mister dan, uncle b, kafryn, motorcycles, pap pap, gwandma... God bless Jesse, baby simon, mama, daddy... I WUV YOU, JESUS! Amen."

We thank God daily for what He has provided for us, for the love He surrounds us in, for this life He has granted us.

But right now, I would like to shove my tongue into my cheek and ask God to bless some things I love more than I should.

Like DVR. God bless DVR. How on earth did I live before this invention? I think it should come standard with every discharge package when you are released from the hospital after having a baby. Will I ever get to watch the more than 90 hours of shows I have DVRed? Maybe not! It's still awesome that I didn't have to have my butt sitting in front of the TV or messing with an archaic VCR when the show came on in order to catch it. If Simon pukes on the bed or Jesse throws a royal tantrum in the middle of the nightly news, I can pause it and come back to it later. Right now I've got more than 35 hours of Olympics DVRed. I can watch the Olympics anytime I want! Which is great since all the good stuff seems to start after 10:30 when I've long passed out while nursing Simon in bed. And LOST? What LOST viewer is complete without the ability to rewind and pause and play things in ultra slow motion to see what crazy thing just flashed across the screen or what the voices in the jungle were really whispering? God bless that DVR!

God bless craigslist. Wow. What can I say about craigslist? No fees, no limit to the number of lines, no phone ringing off the hook. Sure craigslist comes with its own hassles, incessant questions from people who (really?) never heard of a Bumbo seat, no shows, lead ons, etc. But where else can you unload your kid's used crib bedding for 50% of what you paid for it more than 2 years ago? In the past 10 weeks alone I have gotten rid of a closet full of baby gear and clothes that we no longer need and I've received more than $850 in cash. Genius! Just don't go near the forums on craigslist. Now that is some freaky shiznit!

God bless the digital camera. No more snapping away hoping you got a good shot only to spend $15 at the one hour booth to find you wasted a roll of film and didn't get anything you want to put in your scrapbook. With the digital, you point, click and then you get to see what you just did! Old news but it needs to be said. The digital camera rocks.

God bless the $200 double jogging stroller found for $75. I worked up quite a sweat last night while the boys sat quietly, holding hands, watching the neighborhood zoom by. Who would have thought Jesse would enjoy a stroller ride or that I would enjoy working out?

God bless the Medela Pump In Style Advanced Limited Edition. Yeah, that's the pump I have. Before the Freestyle came out, it was the best of the best that you could buy for at home. Of course, the darn Freestyle came out mere weeks after I purchased my PISA, but that's ok. After using a Symphony for more than a year after Jesse was born, I was doubtful a non-hospital-grade pump would ever make me happy. And, face it, no pump will ever live up to the wonderfulness that is the Medela Symphony, but the PISA Ltd. makes me very happy. If I'm going to dread pumping everyday, I might as well dread it with a nice pump!

So there's my list for today.

I WUV YOU, JESUS! Amen.