We are! Members of Minnesota Public Radio that is. When our TV took a turn for the worse last month, we found that there was significantly more time to listen to the radio. Neither Jason nor I are hooked on one type of music. We both have pretty eclectic tastes. Because of that, we find it hard to find a station that satisfies all of our tastes. We end up using iTunes or our iPods for getting our fix of music. When we’re listening to the radio though, we are usually listening to MPR.

Jason started listening to MPR a while back. I resisted, because at the time I was hard-cord Republican, and I felt like there was too much lefty liberal stuff on there. I’m not sure if that was true or if I just heard what I wanted to hear. I’m guessing it was more likely the latter. As time went on, I noticed that I was more and more interested in what I heard while he was listening to MPR, and I noticed that less and less of what I heard was political. It was just interesting stuff.

Off the top of my head, I can think of several programs that we regularly listen to. Instead of TiVo’ing the latest TV shows, we are often downloading the latest podcasts of our favorite programs. My favorites are Midmorning with Kerry Miller, Midday with Gary Eichten, Speaking of Faith with Krista Tippett, and the Sunday Morning Puzzler. Some of Jason’s favorites are Science Friday and Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me!

One of the things that I like about listening to MPR is how I feel after I’ve listened to it. I feel like I used my time wisely. I feel smarter. I feel more interesting myself. I like the fact the variety of topics and perspectives I get. It took me a while to believe Jason when he told me about it, but now that I’m listening regularly, I’m hooked! Lots of other kids can sing the lyrics of songs they hear on the radio in the car, what will my kids take away from our time in the car? I can only imagine!

For a while after my last post about running, I was getting that question pretty frequently. Lately, not as many people have been asking. I was glad, because I have taken a running hiatus unfortunately. My last run was with Jason when we stayed at the in-laws’ house on October 25th.

Since then, I’ve been sick. Ugh. It started out as a terrible sore throat. I couldn’t swallow. I couldn’t sleep. I didn’t want to eat. It hurt so bad. Then, my sore throat turned to a cough. For those of you who know me, you know that this isn’t a rare thing for me. I have a tendency to get sick pretty frequently, and nearly every cold or illness I get turns into a cough. For years, at least the past 20 years, I’ve attributed the fact that I get sick so often to a poor immune system. Lately, though, I’ve been wondering if it’s something else. Allergies? Asthma? Something else all together? I don’t know.

I had an appointment with my doctor last Monday. At that appointment, I talked with her about this cough. She agreed that it wasn’t normal, and it was something we should try to figure out. Last Wednesday, I went to the hospital and had a pulmonary function test done. If you are like me, and you don’t know what a PFT is, I’ll tell you. Basically, I sat in a little glass box. First, I had to breathe into a mouthpiece. Then, the technician pumped some sort of gas into the little box. I did some more breathing. Then, she opened the door, and I did a few more breathing exercises. Each time, she got a chart and some numbers on her computer. I’m still waiting for the results of the test, but from what she said at the appointment, I’m guessing the results will be inconclusive. If that’s the case, I’m going to end up going back to the hospital for another test that is specifically to diagnose asthma.

So, to bring this back to the original topic of running, I don’t know what’s going to happen there. I was up to 2.5ish miles before I got sick. Most 10K and half marathon plans start around 3 miles. I would still really like to be able to run in the 2009 half marathon, but at this point, I’m not going to push it. I am hoping that figuring out what is causing this cough will also help my running. I had gotten to running about 2.5 miles, but my stamina was pretty spotty. Some days, I could make it. Some days I felt like I was going to die after 15 minutes. I wasn’t ever physically tired enough that I felt like I needed to stop running, but I sometimes felt like I couldn’t get enough air. I’d really like to be able to say that I ran a half marathon, and I’d like to do it with Jason, but at this point I just want to figure out what is causing my cough.

I’ve written a little about my husband, Jason, and how he’s very dedicated to his running. In fact, I am jealous. I’m not really jealous of the time he spends running (although catch me on a crabby day and that might be true, too), but I’m more jealous of the fact that he really sticks to things. He says he’s going to achieve a goal, and he does. There’s really no question about if. We just wait to see when it will happen. In May of this year, he ran the 5K at the Fargo Marathon. He decided next year that he’d like to run the half marathon. Yikes! So, in a step along the way, he is registered to run the 10K at our University’s homecoming celebration this weekend. Yay, Jason!

This leads me to a little bit of an admission. I have actually been running also for a while. We have a treadmill, and I started doing the Couch to 5K plan in June. I didn’t tell anyone though. I didn’t want to have any pressure put on me if I didn’t like it or if I decided to stop. Then, I realized something. I realized that if I really wanted to keep up with running I needed a goal. I also needed to tell people so they could put pressure on me and keep me accountable! So, I’m going to do it. I’m making a goal (gulp) and telling people about it. My goal is to run the half marathon in Fargo in May of 2009 with Jason. (My heart is beating faster as I’m typing this…not a good sign for my physical fitness.) I’m currently running 2.5 miles at a time with a goal of running 3 times a week.

Since I have a Nike+iPod Sport Kit, I can track my progress pretty closely. AND, since you now know that this is my goal, I guess I’m going to be telling you about how my running is going every week.

He does. He is a great husband. He’s an amazing dad. He’s a smart, funny, intelligent, good looking, caring, loving person. I’m guessing you get the picture.

At the convention I attended over the weekend, there was a resource fair with tons of vendors. There were publishers, music artists, and many other booths. I did a little bit of shopping at the fair and a little bit of browsing. I came across a booth that sold t-shirts, and I knew I wanted one. I’m currently trying to cut back on my stash of t-shirts, but these were different. I wanted one. Heck, I wanted them all! The t-shirts are made by a company called FromMeTees. The two women working at the booth were wearing shirts that said, “my husband rocks.”

Anyone who knows me in real life knows that I can’t stop talking about Jason and everything he does that rocks. He does everything! He does laundry. He does dishes. He stays home with the boys when I go to Texas for a weekend. He sits on the couch with me and watches Veronica Mars. Let me count the ways.. I decided that instead of continuing to talk about him all the time and how great he is, I would just wear a shirt that could do the talking for me. Instead of getting the one that said “my husband rocks,” I decided on “Forever His Bride.” I wore the shirt for about half of today, and I have to say I love it! It just puts me in a positive frame of mind when I think about Jason. It reminds me how much I love him and how much he loves me. It also helps me to keep things in perspective if I ever start to get a little frustrated with him. When I first bought the shirt, I thought it was just a cute shirt. Now, after wearing it a couple times, it is definitely still a very cute shirt, but it’s also more.

5MinutesForMom is having a sleeping angel contest. They are giving away a South Shore Children’s Bedroom Set from Home & Bedroom Furniture. They are asking people to post pictures of their sleeping babies, and the winner will have their choice of either the Lily Rose or the Summer Breeze set. I would definitely choose Summer Breeze if I were to win.

So, here is the picture. It’s adorable, and it’s one of my favorites. We were at Jason’s parents’ house one day this summer. I ran a few errands, and when I came back, I walked in the front door and saw this…

My Sleeping Angels

I have been saying this for a while now, and I’m waiting for evolution to start working on this for me, but I think it’s probably not going to happen in my lifetime. I suppose instead of waiting for my extra set of arms, I could look for other solutions to my problems. Right now, the biggest reason I need (a.k.a. want) that extra set of arms is because A is wanting to be held a LOT, and I’m trying to plan a birthday party for Jason for this Saturday!

Last night, we were at Target, and I had quite a few things to get. Just as we were in the pop aisle (as I write this, I’m cringing thinking about all the high fructose corn syrup sitting in my basement!), A decided that he was done with the cart. So, I am pushing the huge orangey-red double cart from Target, holding A on one hip, trying to convince K not to take his seatbelt off and to stay in the cart, and trying to find the side of the 12-pack that has the handle on it. Why, Mr. Coke Man, do you put it on the shelf with the handle side down or to the side? I would love to see the handles on the TOP! Anyway…

So, as I’m doing that, i’m breaking out in a sweat, and my heart is starting to pound. I’m hoping that I don’t drop either A or the 12-pack of Diet Coke with Lime that I managed to palm since I couldn’t find the handle. A decides that he’s done being held, and he flips his body down toward the ground. I threw the pop on my cart, and I grabbed him securely. Then, I thought, why am I not wearing him???

I currently own two baby carriers. One is a Kozy Carrier that I bought when K was about 7 months old. The other carrier we own is an Ergo Carrier. If you’re not a baby wearing, baby carrier buying person, you might wonder just how many carriers a mom might need. Well, for me, the answer is at least one more. The Kozy is great. I really like it, but I lent it to my cousin’s wife in June, and I’m hoping she’s getting a lot of use out of it. (Hmmm, maybe need to check on her and see how it’s going) So, I have my Ergo in my car with me most of the time. A really doesn’t like to be worn in back carries. I think he likes to see my face and feel closer to me. He also is pretty tall, so he’s not as easy to wear in the front carries as he used to be. That leaves me hip carries. The Kozy is a good hip carrier, but right now mine’s not here. The Ergo, however, doesn’t lend itself easily to a hip carry. You have to unclip the straps and rearrange them. So, I think that instead of waiting on evolution to give me my second set of arms, I should buy another carrier!

Right now, I’m really interested in the Etc. Sling. A friend of mine makes these, and they are very comfy and very reasonably priced. The town where I live is not a huge babywearing hub, but in general, if you see a mom (or dad) wearing a child, there’s probably a 60% chance they are using the Etc. Sling that Erin made. Maybe in a week or two, I will have a new post raving about my new sling! I’m hoping.

A while ago, I wrote about our new compost bin that Jason and his dad had made. I was a little skeptical that we would be able to fill it all up. Who throws that much food? Well, it’s pretty much full. We have some of our lawn clippings in there and some food with it, too. Jason goes out once in a while, and he moves it around and turns it. I guess he waters it, too.

When we first started the project, I thought it was just something fun to do. I also thought it would be nice to eventually have the compost for our garden. I didn’t realize until today when I was reading on 5 Minutes for Going Green (a fabulous blog, by the way), that composting has another benefit. Food that is thrown away is the largest component of landfill waste. When food is thrown away, it does not become compost. The conditions in the landfill are anaerobic (oxygen-free), and instead of becoming fabulous fertilizer, it breaks down to become methane gas. Methane gas is a greenhouse gas, and it is three times more potent than carbon dioxide. In an era where global warming has become an everyday conversation, it seems like composting is one small thing that the average person can do with little extra effort and expense.

It’s always nice for us when the 4th of July falls near the beginning or end of the week. We don’t have any family in town, so if it is near a weekend, either we or they can make a 3 day weekend out of it and take a trip. This weekend, Jason’s mom and dad came to visit us.

They drove up yesterday, and brought A a sandbox as a gift for his first birthday. It is very nice. They even bought sand that feels like beach sand! WOW! I want to go play in there once the kids are in bed. K seems to have made more use of it than A has so far. A sat in it yesterday for a while and then started eating the sand. Once he got tired of that, he was tired of the sandbox. K, however, was happy to play in there all afternoon and again this morning for almost the entire morning.

Part of the reason that they stayed overnight is that we are still trying to do a few odds and ends jobs around our house, and sometimes those jobs are easier with a second set of hands. This morning, Jason and his dad worked on installing a fan in our main bathroom. This afternoon, they worked on building a compost bin. Jason found the plans for the bin on Lowe’s website, and I have to say it is much bigger, nicer, and sturdier than I anticipated. We will have to do some serious composting though with this thing.

Jason and his dad were only able to finish about half of the compost bin project. It said that it was a five hour project on the plans, but I think if I were helping, I could easily help them turn it into a ten or twenty hour project. Just think of the family togetherness that could result from that help! So, now the bin is in our garage with the rest of the lumber waiting to be finished. In fact, those things are right next to and on the cement pavers that we will be using in our next big project of re-landscaping the front of the house. That project may have to wait for our next long weekend…Labor Day!

Happy 4th of July!

About a month ago, Jason, my husband started running on our treadmill every other day. He started off running two miles and is up to three and a half as of Saturday. Now, I have never had much desire to run. Occasionally, I lose my mind, and it sounds like something I would enjoy. However, in my saner moments, I know that it is not something I want to do. In fact, I almost shudder when I think about it. Even though I would find reading the dictionary to be easier and more enjoyable, I’m really proud of him for making this commitment and sticking with it. Ever since my parents have known Jason, they have said over and over again how he is the most patient person they’ve ever met. One conversation that I recall with my dad happened after a long, hot game of golf. I think that his patience plays a big part in his ability to be dedicated to a goal that he has. Me, not so much patience and not so much dedication, unfortunately.

Recently, one night when A wasn’t sleeping and Jason was getting ready to go run, I got grumpy about his running. I stood in the shower and stewed about it. I had myself convinced that he was being selfish and choosing his own desires over being with me or the boys. I was pretty mad at him. In fact, by the end of my shower, I was ready to sit him down and let him know that right now we just don’t have the time for him to be running. He needs to spend all of his evening time with me, with A, or doing work. (How terrible does that sound?) Suddenly, I realized just what I was going to tell him. I really felt like God was asking me to dig deeper and figure out where my feelings were coming from. So, I spent some more time thinking about it.

I came to the realization that me being mad about his running had nothing to do with him. Not so surprisingly, it was about me! I was mad that he was able to stay so dedicated and committed to running when it’s something that is very hard for me. I start new projects and hobbies quite frequently. I’m currently crocheting and quilting blankets. I also have terra cotta pots and paint in the garage. I have tons and tons of unread books. I have a blog that I don’t update nearly as often as I should. I have also started reading my Bible-in-a-year at least 4 different times, and I could go on and on! Persistence is not one of my strengths unfortunately.

My first instinct when I figured out why it was bothering me so much was to go out and make some big commitments to prove to myself that I can in fact stick with what I start. I’m not so sure that’s the wisest thing to do though. After some more thought, I think what I’ll do is take some time decide where I really do want to spend my time and energy. Then, I’ll commit to doing those things instead of jumping onto the next fun idea that comes by.