When it's a fight between my butt and my blog...

It's been awhile since the last one? How many times have I written that, not really knowing how to pick up from where we last left off?

Sigh.

Wanna hear the excuse for the latest break?

Well I don't care. I'm gonna tell you anyways.

I've been running my arse off. Literally. Almost everyday I strap on my four year old Nikes that can only be called "running shoes" in the most liberal definition of shoes, sweet talk myself onto the treadmill and then proceed to sweat, cry and pound my way through four brutal miles. BUT at the end of all that self imposed torture I feel WONDERFUL. Like I can go for another four miles (riiight)  Like I can fit into my skinny jeans (I can't). Like I'll one day be one of those people who runs for fun.... on national holidays even. Maybe even subscribe to "Runner's World" and train for a half marathons.

Alright. Alright. Before I get too ambitious let's just remember the real reason behind all the madness. Not health reasons, recreation, or meditation (which I've heard some people do while running which is crazy) but instead trying to recreate and reshape the house that tortillas, refried frijoles and cerveza built.

Am I getting to point in the story where I should parade out my point? Or maybe I should go on about how I was able to pack on 10lbs over just two weeks? And how as a person who never leaves home in anything but heels (I'm sexy like that)  I was forced to wear the ugly Nike shoes out because they were the only shoes that matched the drawstring pants that I needed to wear because all my other pants either cut off circulation to the upper half of my body and/or gave me muffin top.

Nasty. Nasty and sad.

What was I talking about? Oh yea. The point.

The point is that most afternoons I only have 60-90 sacred minutes to myself. In that time I must also eat, shower, clean, and start dinner. The remaining minutes must be spent on either running or blogging. And I'm tired of being fat. Soooo you get the picture.

The moral of the story if the post on the blog become more scant in the upcoming weeks, be happy for me. And my butt.

Two Weeks?? Really? By Seth and Amy (My fellow SNLers get me)

It has been some time since the last one. 

 

Hmmmmm. Let's see, how should I approach this one? Three nicely bulled points work for you? I thought so.

1)Moms of Preschoolers conference in Nashville meant that I was gone for four days. (First "away trip" since Sophia was born in 2005. Hooray Me!) Three days of prep time to leave, four days at conference and three days spent recovering meant a total of  ten days out of commission on every level including blog time. 

2)The phrase "my Crackberry" has recently been added to our family vernacular. Terrible, I know. It is a great shortcut for email, facebook stalking, quick internet searches but it is dismal for blogging.  Has anyone created a blackberry/blogger app yet?

3)Ever start exercising regularly and although you love it, feel invigorated by it and know how beneficial it is for your mental and physical health, you skip a day? That day quickly becomes two days, then a week and before you know it three years have gone by and the treadmill in the corner has become a clothes rack. It's like that only without the clothes rack. 

So now that I confessed/whined/blamed/made excuses, can I be a little self indulgent and post pictures of me and my very lovely friends at convention? Think almost 5000 women, all mothers of children under the age of 5,  40% of whom are pregnant, the remainder drunk off a hormonal cocktail that happens when you get that many women into close proximity with each other and you'll get the gist of the weekend. Lots of talking, crying, laughing, crying and plenty of shock and awe storytelling about child birth. It was a hoot!!

(I'm the one in the flashy red. Leave it to the Latina, right?)

Naturally, no trip is complete without a Country Music Animal Band!

And did I mention how great the Opryland Conference center and hotel accommodations were?This shot was take from near our room. 

Yup. It was awesome.

It's been 10 days

since I last blogged.  And the last one was really just a picture upload.  I have a number of excuses ranging from the moderately interesting to the exceedingly lame.  If you have the patience to wade through a litany of self indulgent rationalizations then be my guest. If not, I won't hold it against you.  The blogesphere is not a pretty place to host a pity party.

Justification #1) We were on a mini vacation. A mini vacation to a place where internet, wireless capabilities and 3G networks don't exist. It was great! We all had fun. Not being plugged for several days can be great but falling off the blogging bandwagon is definitely an unintended consequence.  

Justification #2)And this one is a real shocker... we were/are sick. No, not an upper respiratory infection this time. Even better. An harrowing stomach flu ravaged through our home. So okay, that's a little dramatic. Let me be more precise.  An harrowing stomach flu ravaged through me.  The rest of them just puked a few times. I on the other hand was so sick that at one point I was on the floor, curled into fetal position wishing for the sweet, sweet mercy that being hit by a sudden bolt of electricity would bring.  I haven't felt that miserable since October 2005 and that time I came home with a baby.

Justification #3) The boys are 18 months.  So what you say? Just ten days ago you were bragging to a friend about how "easy" they were.  Just ten days ago you were trying to decide when to time the arrival of numero four. HA! How stupid of me! I hadn't even thought through the logical conclusion.  Right in front of my eyes these sweet natured, cheerful, content little babies where slowly morphing into defiant, exhausting, exasperating toddlers. They are more needy, clingy, whiny and demanding then when they were newborns. Except now they have the energy and physical prowess of Pygmy chimps. Add to that a three year old who has recently dubbed herself "the little boss" and my aspirations to do more than lay in a vegetative state post 7pm is severely limited.

Justification #4) Have I mentioned how stressed I am? Have I mentioned that stress makes me eat.... eat and lay in a vegetative state? Did I tell you about the picture I recently took in which I refer to myself as a "cupcake".  Nicknaming oneself after a delightful little pastry is definitely the low point and the last sad step before a four to five day treadmill regimen is imposed. While this hopefully will be a positive step towards earning a new,more flattering, nickname it definitely limits the "extra curricular" activities I can pursue during that much anticipated "afternoon nap/quiet time". 

I wish I could end this with a resolute statement on "making time",  "setting priorities" " blah, blah and blah" but my willpower is currently being siphoned away by three greedy children, 15 pounds of lard and my desire to spend any spare moment left with my very wonderful and loving husband who gives the best shoulder and foot rubs I've ever had. 

H-I-N-T. H-I-N-T.

One Eye Wonder

So there are a few reasons that I haven't posted in some time

1) We spent a few days back home with Grandma and Grandpa Campos (when did I start referring to my own parents as Grandma and Grandpa?) and had a great time visiting and celebrating Tia Sonia's birthday (there I go again..can't I just call her Sonia like a normal person?)

2) While in Carlsbad I forgot neglected to buy the one thing I'd forgotten while packing.. Contact Lens Solution... which led to my sleeping in contacts for a few nights resulting in a very nasty eye infection. (Not sure why I didn't just buy some contact solution. I was at the store plus it only costs a few dollars! Guess that's what I get for being lazy about caring for my eyes.)

3) While I was recovering from my nasty eye mess Sophia came down with a mysterious illness. No other symptoms other than a fever that just would not break. Even without additional symptoms the fever led to a few vomiting episodes (she always gets sick to her stomach when running a fever) and an extremely irritable two year old.

So in summation what's more fun than caring for twins and a sick toddler?

Caring for twins and a sick toddler with the use of only one eye.

Fun stuff!

Now that I've regained sight in both eyes and Sophia's on the mend I have to play catch up from the weekend and the few days since the weekend that we've been out of commission.

Somebody get me a job so I can take a break from all this work!