Learning to Love Running

When I was a kid, I absolutely hated running. Hated it. I didn't have any issues with sports that involved running, like basketball or soccer. It was track running, "fun" running or sprint running. Do you remember once or twice a year your school PE class did a fun run where the entire time you were in PE you ran? Yes? No? Blocked from memory?

I have very vivid memories of doing fun runs in the Spring in the middle of an Arizona afternoon. It was so hot and I was always so thirsty! You know what happens when you gulp down water and then run, right? SIDE CRAPMS!

I decided to pick up running for cardio exercise a few years ago. I was only doing it because I needed something different from the elliptical and from Zumba. I never intended to run competitively. I have participated in a number of organized 5K races, like Race for the Cure and Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, but I always considered that something fun to raise awareness for a cause.

Lily has been an active member at her school Running Club and today we had the opportunity to raise money for our school district by competing and participating in a 5K. Every week I get to watch Lily run with her schoolmates and I have to say, she's a natural. It's like watching a gazelle in one of those nature shows. Her stride is fluid, her pace is perfect and her sprint is like a flash of lightening. She runs an average 10 minute mile. She is quite impressive!

Originally we had just set out to participate in the Fun Run (ha!), but once we got there the energy was undeniable and with such perfect weather Lily decided that she wanted to run the 5K. I was actually really excited to run with her and proud of her for stepping up her game.

We got through the first mile no problem and halfway through the second, I got hot and had to pause to take my hoodie off. That was a bad idea. Once we stopped running, I think Lily felt how tired she was getting and fell out of her running zone. We jogged for another half mile then ended up walking most of the 3rd mile. It was OK though because Lily was doing great! She was happy and we were outside just enjoying being together.

At the last quarter mile before the finish line, Lily was ready to sprint to the end. With a little encouragement from me and the sounds of the crowd cheering us on, she was off... We clocked in at 41:07. Not bad! Not bad at all!

I was so proud of my big girl running a large scale 5K race. I think it she felt proud of herself for finishing and I think it was a great feeling of accomplishment. I felt pretty great as well! For someone who doesn't really enjoy running, I have a new found respect for competitive running. I think that I will definitely do another 5K, only this time just for myself. I think this time I will want to run competitively against that mental block I have for running. I think it will be fun and good for my mind and body. Like a healing process...

At any rate, I am so pleased that at least one of my kids (for now) has a love and appreciation for running. I hope she will stick with it and continue to enjoy it. With our continued support and encouragement, I know she will. We're proud of her either way!

"You have to wonder at times what you're doing out there. Over the years, I've given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes back to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement."

~ Steve Prefontaine ~

Rainy Days and Nutty Kids

Why is it that when it's gloomy and rainy outside and all you want to do is sip coffee and curl up with a book, your kids are bouncing off the walls? Well we all know the answer to that, but it's just so funny how that dynamic happens!

So of course the school children didn't get to have recess outside today due to the torrential rain we've had and of course the school cafeteria isn't large enough to run around. Basically the kids didn't get any exercise today and even though I already tried to convince them that marching up and down the stairs while putting their laundry away was fun, it just wasn't enough. Enter Pinterest...

I had pinned a really fun homeschooling activity and decided that we just HAD to do it... We made homemade butter! I tried to sneak in some math and science and in the end we had a delicious side item for our bread during dinner.

Here we are with our jars three quarters full with heavy cream and a pinch of sea salt. That's three quarters as in 3/4. I proceeded to draw my kids that lovely pie chart and asked them to fill in what they thought 3/4 was... Enter frowny faces from children.

Next it was time to shake it up! They had no problems shaking their jars while marching up and down the stairs. I should have thrown their clean laundry on their shoulders so that they could have put it away. Nah, it probably would have ended up on the floor.

Well lookey here! After about 15 minutes of shaking, we almost have butter! I tried to explain to them what was happening to the cream as it was turning into butter, but I think they ignored me. Ha ha ha!

After about 10 more minutes of shaking and checking, we finally had butter! It was perfectly whipped and tasted so good! Best of all it was something fun to do and it expelled most of that pent up energy the kids had. Brilliant!

See? A little time on Pinterest isn't a waste of time after all! Today for me, it was an absolute sanity saver. If you want to make your own homemade butter, click here or go here:

http://kidsactivitiesblog.com/how-to-make-butter/

Enjoy!

Once Upon a Time...

Once upon a time, I wanted to be a teacher. I wanted to teach High School English and Literature. I had a strange obsession with guiding those crazy, mood-swingy kids between the ages of 14 and 17. I wanted to make a difference to those kids the same way my high school Senior year Humanities teacher did for me.

Several years ago I had a wonderful job at a preschool as an assistant teacher and an after-school day care worker. Preschoolers are funny little people. Running around, having temper tantrums one minute then playing nicely with a friend the next. Socialization is key during these times and I remember how tough it was to get some children to come out of their shell and show their personalities. From this experience (and from having a toddler of my own) I thought that this was where I needed to be. I needed to be a Preschool Teacher!

Fast forward to present time... My kids are now in elementary school and WOW! How these children inspire me! I used to always say that toddlers grow in leaps and bounds, but I honestly think now that it's the Kindergartners. Leaps and bounds... It's amazing how much they learn in a day, a week and a month. Five year olds are still in the phase where they want to learn and want to please. They are receptive to the feelings of their friends and learn the meaning of self-control. It's not just the emotional side, it's also the academic side.

Every school year, I am always worried that my kids will have a good teacher. Not just good, but INSPIRING. I remember having school teachers who were teaching for 20+ years and although they were good teachers, they lacked inspiration. An inspiration that helped motivate us children that were willing to learn. I believe that perhaps it was those uninspiring teachers that made certain classes or subjects boring. Just running the lesson plan for the school year isn't enough sometimes.

I am very lucky to be a part-time working mother. Being a fitness instructor gives me the flexibility to work around my family schedule. So many families do not have that option; I grew up in a dual working family household myself. Working as a tutor on a volunteer basis for the teachers at my kids' school has been a blessing. It fulfills my need to teach children and the children teach me as well. They teach me patience, they teach me pride, and best of all they teach me to be the best person I can be. All children want is to succeed and to get a positive response for doing their best. They crave being challenged, but in baby steps. As a parent, I need to remember this with my own children. I often times forget that they need gentle reminders and positive praise. Sometimes I expect my kids to already know everything but come on, they're just kids. And they are only kids for a short period of time!

Once upon a time, I wanted to be a teacher. But today I am a parent and that's the best kind of teacher around!

While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.

~ Anonymous ~

2012 Mantra: Live for Today!

Well, well, well... Look what we have here... A blog post in 2012! My last archived post came from when?? 2010?? Looks like the Russell Family has been living life to it's fullest! That's right.

So why start again? If 2011 taught me anything, it was to let go. Let go of anger. Let go of things I cannot change. Let go of negativity. Let go of insecurity. Just let go... And LIVE. So that's what I did in 2011 and what a wonderful thing it was to do!

2010 gave me some of the darkest days of my life; the death of my dad. 2011 gave my mom stage 4 lung cancer and that was the catalyst for my transformation. I realized that I had to change in order to survive. One cannot survive with darkness in their heart and mind. I had to come out of that fog for my mom, for my sisters, for my husband and most importantly for my kids. I'm still a work in progress, but aren't we all?

Now is the time to refocus. I feel now that I have a better sense of balance and purpose in life. I still find joy teaching fitness classes, but mostly I enjoy tutoring struggling readers at my children's school. I absolutely love helping out the teachers and being a pivotal role model for these children. The children have given me strength and I cannot thank them enough for that. They help me just as much as I help them.

I get to hone my creative self in the form of mother helper in the Kindergarten classrooms. I get to decorate the hallway bulletin boards and help the teachers with whatever they need. It's like being a teacher without having to create the lesson plan! It's great!

I continue to sew numerous projects during my spare time. I am completely convinced that all you need to sew children's clothing is one or two really good patterns and a million yards of different fabric designs to make a whole wardrobe. My girls wore shorts, capris, pants, skirts and dresses all year that I made with just a couple of patterns. I had so much stockpiled fabric that I was able to use most of it up without having to spend a lot of money on new fabrics. It was a great way to clean house!

Knitting of course only bites me once a year, in the Fall. But lately, I've had the urge to knit again. I managed to knit about 4 scarves in a span of 2 days! I was having a craving for some sweet baked goods when I decided that my hands just needed something to do. So I picked up my needles and knit my sweet tooth craving away.

Speaking of baked goods: a pesky little thing called Pinterest came into my life several months ago. All I have to say is thank goodness I teach fitness classes 5 times a week. Every cookie, cake, smoothie, pasta dish and everything tasty happens there. I have also managed to add many arts and crafts ideas onto my already long list. Some of the ideas people come up with amaze me! I enjoy it and it keeps me occupied in a positive way.

So there we have it! My first post for 2012. Who knows when I will post again? I make no promise, but hopefully soon! I'm living life outside of the computer and so should you... ;)

"Learn from yesterday, live for today and hope for tomorrow"

~ Albert Einstein ~