I have really been slacking off as a blogger lately, what does that make me, a slogger? I guess it is that I have been busy without really doing anything. Having a 1.5 year old with boundless energy and endless needs keeps me on my toes.
One thing that I have committed to lately is exercising. I learned that I have to make it a priority--the first thing on my to do list, rather than the thing that I get to if and when everything else gets done. So now I run/walk 3-4 miles outside with Aubrey in the stroller or do 1/2 hour on the elliptical machine 6 days a week and workout with my exercise ball and resistance band 3 times a week. No excuses. The problem that I always run into is that I really hate working out. It makes me miserable, so I am pretty good at finding ways to get out of it. But now I am being very good about it and make it a habit so that it feels wrong when I don't do it every day. I do wish I had someone I could do it with that could make it a sort of competition--that would help with the motivation. For now I just have to compete with my laziness and the scale.
Around this time of year I always get the itch for vacation. I don't know if it is just that it has been a long time since we have had one, or winter drives us inside and there isn't all the fun picnics, hikes, swimming, and other various free outdoor activities to do, but I REALLY want to get away. I daydream and "shop" online for vacations until it becomes a reality that with a kid and dog we can't really afford to fly anywhere, so we will end up waiting until it is spring or summer and just drive to the beach. Honestly though, I don't want to be a family that does the same vacation every single year. I would rather have adventures. Bill and I have semi-seriously been talking about taking a trip out west this spring, maybe to Arizona or Colorado. Have any of you had a good trip out west? Anywhere you suggest as a fun place to visit, that isn't too hard to bring along a toddler? We do have a backpack that we put her in, and definitely plan to do some hiking, but obviously with 30 pounds on Bill's back we can't do a whole mountain.
Speaking of toddlers, Aubrey gets more like a kid and less like a baby every day. It is a little sad, but fun at the same time. She asks to do her favorite things all the time now--Walk? Outside? or Playdoh? Downstairs? I also constantly hear "help please" because she gets herself halfway under or over something and then gets stuck. If she even so slightly bumps something she runs over to me and holds it out while making kissing noises so I will kiss it and make it better for her. I think she probably learns a new word every day now, and says "welcome" when she hands you something and "okay" when you tell her something. Aubrey's latest challenge is learning colors. She knows all the words, red, blue, yellow, green, orange, purple, pink, but she gets them right only about 50% of the time. Often she just says a color regardless of what the color actually is. Also, we have casually started potty training. I think it will be easier to do in the summer when we don't have to take off three layers to sit on the potty. We got her a green baby bjorn brand potty that she gets excited when she sees it and says, "potty! potty!" She knows how to sit on it and say what you are supposed to do on it though, it is cute. Mostly we are just talking about it so she gets used to the idea at this point. Along with all the fun parts of having a toddler we are "enjoying" the temper tantrums now, fun times.
Well, she is handing me books and saying, please! so that is all for now.
