Rainy Crazylegs

Here I am at the start of my second Crazylegs. God, I hate pictures of myself.

One of the things Nick and I appreciate about each other most is our individual passions, and we work as a team, now that we are parents, so we can still pursue them. I joked to a co-worker today that for Nick, there are four seasons: “Skiing/Packer season, trivia season, Brewers season, and hunting season.” Nick is coming off of trivia season; his team of former-college friends placed 32nd of 500+ teams last weekend in the annual contest in Stevens Point. And as thanks for watching Lauren during his trivia weekend, Nick toted her in the backpack carrier, umbrella perched above, as I ran the annual Crazylegs Classic, an event that drew 19,000 this year despite pouring rain. My running interest only started in 2007, when I decided I should see if I could do a 5K, and the 8K (5 mile) Crazylegs is the farthest I’ve vowed to run at one time, but my favorite race of the year.

The run originated to honor “Crazylegs” Hirsch, a former UW athlete who’s now passed on, and the money goes to the UW Athletic program. The runners form a staggered start around the Capitol, and run through campus, finishing on the Camp Randall football field. My flight left 35 minutes after the first start. On mile one, I was excited and really feeling it. Mile two is Observatory Drive, the biggest hill on campus; I shortened my stride and breathed out a sideache. Miles three and four were easier than last year, and by Mile 5, I started booking it towards the stadium.

I love running onto the football field! The UW Band played ambitiously, I came in at 49:49, three minutes faster than last year, and best of all, Lauren gave me a million dollar smile as Nick approached with dry clothes for me.

Memories From the Last Two Weeks

Lauren is outside on a beautiful afternoon. Right here, she is throwing a ball and yelling “Ball!” And checking out her new climber and slide set.

Cool things going on with Lauren:

*Lauren enjoyed her Easter basket and markers, although not so much the Easter Virgil mass. Cool as a cucumber through the first hour (and pointing out the slides on the playground next to the opening bonfire), she melted down in the second hour. Daddy took her out, calmed her down, brought her back in. Mommy took her out, calmed her down, brought her back in. Mommy took her out again, and an ear-piercing screech echoed throughout the hallway, causing several people to turn around and stare. To be fair, it was past her bedtime, and we thought she’d sleep through it, but she won’t be coming back to Easter Virgil until she’s 19.

*Lauren had a great time at Grandma and Grandpa’s. They were watching the neighbor’s dog, and she practiced her tennis ball throwing skills with a willing partner.

*Lauren has stopped shaking her head “yes” to everything and has started shaking her head “no” to everything.

*It rained last Sunday, and Lauren thunked a book down in my lap and we cuddled under the covers. I am so happy she likes books and her mommy time.

*Quite the outdoorswoman, Lauren’s made several trips to the park this week, surprising Mommy with her bravery as Daddy takes her down big slides. She cried when we took her out of the swing. The park’s very close, but I’ve been eyeing Craigslist.com for a climber for home, so when the above one was listed for sale, I snapped it up this afternoon.

Firsts: Dental Visit, and Two Nights Away

Back in February, I read that you should take your baby to a pediatric dentist if they don’t sprout their first tooth by 15 months. Lauren was really late with her teeth. I scheduled the appointment, but it took eight weeks to get in: April 8, Lauren’s 16-month birthday. Then in March, she sprouted four teeth (two top, two bottom) and I decided to keep the appointment anyway, to get tips on how to clean the teeth.

I was greeted at Madison Pediatric Dental by Kay, an enthusiatic, baby-loving dental hygienist – fabulous! (Why can’t my pediatrician’s office be this great?) Kay gave me a box of Spiffies (grape-flavored tooth wipes), informative brochures, an Oral B straight toothbrush (just like the one we have), a round toothbrush that Lauren can hold, and a toothbrush shaped like a thimble so I can put it on my finger. And Dr. Wilson was very nice; he looked in Lauren’s mouth and she cried. He explained that the Spiffies have Xylitol in them, a natural ingredient found in Norweigan tree sap that breaks down plaque. (I just thought that was interesting because Nick’s side of the family is Norweigan). And, he said as long as we are not letting Lauren take drinks to bed (we aren’t), he didn’t see any problems.

As mentioned before, Kaye is on spring break this week. Last year, my friend Lisa watched a four-month-old Lauren. This year, we have a substitute caregiver we can call on, but spring break coincided with Nick’s mom’s break, and sister-in-law Kayla’s too. They made us a generous deal: they’d come down for half the week, and then Lauren would go back home with them, and we’d meet up on Friday. I’m so pleased Lauren gets this quality time with them, and Nick and I, although we admitted it felt awkward, got a date night last night. We’ve gone on date nights before, but this is Lauren’s first overnight away from me. Talking with no interruptions felt so foreign! (But I missed Lauren saying, “Mama? Mama?” this morning in her crib.) I picked up some items for an Easter basket after work today (toddler markers, non-toxic and extremely washable, and some candy). Happy spring and Easter!

Egg Hunt

Lauren with her egg.

Saturday, April 4 was a beautiful 50 degree day with sunshine, and Nick, Lauren and I headed down to Angell Park for Lauren’s first Easter egg hunt, sponsored by the Sun Prairie Lions Club. Lauren’s walking skills improved throughout the week, and by Saturday, she was using walking as her main mode of transportation – goodbye crawling!

We met Kim, Jeff and Sam at the park. Three egg hunts, divided by age group, were marked by “Caution” tape, and I had to laugh as we approached the 0-2 year old one; eggs, real and plastic, were clearly visible everywhere on the ground, and each child was limited to four eggs.

At the back of the pack, Nick and Lauren took off at the sound of the starting horn, and Lauren walked a bit, but eggs were snatched before she could even get close! We shrugged it off (she’s young, she doesn’t care) but a nice Lions volunteer was coming around with spare eggs. Lauren has a real egg here, and she ate it for dinner that night, enjoying the white and smearing the yolk around with her fingers. Afterwards, we enjoyed a picnic lunch, and Sam and Lauren played at the playground.

Early Easter Means Extra Food

Picture one: Lauren tasting her first jelly bean ever. She cried when I told her “just one” and took them away. Picture two: Lauren with her Easter basket from daycare. Lauren’s daycare provider, Kaye, is on spring break next week, so an Easter party was held today. When I was younger, I loved to celebrate the holidays; still do. But I’ve noticed that every holiday at daycare warrants a pizza party and a sweet treat. When St. Patrick’s Day rolled around, Lauren had part of a green donut, and someone brought green Rice Krispies treats, and she pooped green that night. I’m trying to decide when to step in, say something, and limit this. If I did, say, when she’s 2, would she notice that everyone is getting candy except her? Should I “suck it up” and remember that 90 percent of the time she’s getting mixed veggies and chicken? And, I’m fortunate to have a provider that wants to do something for the kids.

Food’s a hot topic for Lauren this week. Last week Friday, she woke up screaming, as I mentioned in the last post, and we gave her a snack. Saturday night was OK but she picked it back up Sunday night, Monday night. I asked Kaye for advice, and she suggested a bedtime snack of graham crackers, or cereal, and milk, since Lauren’s been moving and walking a lot this week. Cured. I feel much better doing this than letting her eat in the middle of the night because I don’t want her to think she’ll be rewarded for waking up. I told my friend Lisa over lunch, “It’s weird. If I LOOK at too much food, I gain weight, but because she’s growing so much, she needs whole milk, three meals, and three snacks a day!” It probably helps that Lauren doesn’t sit in front of a computer all day long as well!

On the other hand, I need to lose a few pounds. I try to keep my weight in check due to my mother’s health history. Last year at this time, Lauren was four months old, and by training for running events, I’d lost all the baby weight by then. This year, extra pounds crept on after the holidays, then by dropping weight training in favor of yoga class, then Girl Scout cookie season arrived, then I got sick. The final straw: my back went out of alignment and the chiropractor told me I need to do some upper body exercises to get stronger. Today was Day 2 of a new running/strength training program, and I forgot how much exercise lifts my spirits! Wish me luck.

Tomorrow is the big Sun Prairie city Easter egg hunt. Pictures soon!