Todays Happenings......

Good Middle of the Night to You......I hope you are sleeping soundly in your bed right now, as it is 1:45am.  K is out of town, my MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT ALARM WENT OFF....that would be Heidi, McCauley's hamster.  You know what....I will just let her stay in the room and I'll leave.  I am beginning to see a pattern that apparently I can live with.  Quite frankly I'm starting to believe I do my best writing after a burst of adrenaline has shot through my viens from being startled from sleep by the gentle crackling of wrapping paper behind our bed.  My fear .... is that I will get to a point when I will not be able to write a thing during normal daytime hours w/out that high. 

In the quad of pics above you see Heidi now behind the bed, I awoke when she was trying to scale the inside of the tube of wrapping paper....Heidi loves a good challenge..... the picture on the left shows how  she got out, she was able to move the lid and squeeze through the top.  I TRULY thought all the kids knew that you had to have the diapers and the wipes stacked on top of the lid so she couldn't move it.  (you can't tell but the  first picture does not have the wipes on top........on Saturday those diapers and wipes will be given away at a baby shower.....we will have to come up w/ a different strategy to keep Heidi in).

Why doesn't she like her cage anyway???  She never stops attempting escape.  It goes on 24/7....she does have a pretty decent success rate.....but look at the poor saps below.  If she had any real brains she would stay where she is safe in her cage (see her tucked in behind William's head?)  These gerbils kept W busy for a good long time last night.  This kid is like the gerbil whisperer....I was watching him catch, release, drop, and maul these + two other gerbils for quite a while.  He never got bit.  I was astonished.  Maybe it was because the gerbils could sense he had no fear.  

Alright, that is done, now that I am here, I may as well work my way backwards through the day to get to why I am really writing this post.  I will just cover the highlights....because this was a jam packed day.


Midday high-light was checking Lawson out of school.  All of the kids had their 6 month dental appointments scheduled for Oct. 25th, but since the boys and Kevin will all be on their hunting trip to South Dakota, I had to move theirs.  Well, they had been pushed back to Feb. but I asked that Lawson be kept on the "short call" list to see if he could get in sooner than later due to some recent concerns.  Well, miraculously we got the call yesterday that they had an opening today at noon.  I snatched it up and you can see the event unfold below.

This is Ms. Robbi, the best hygienist is the world!!

I love her so much.  Lawson was very relieved to find that he had Robbi for his make up visit.

Notice her wall of fame.....the kids are on there from when they were very young.

A quick background to this visit : a few weeks ago L was complaining about his upper left tooth feeling weird.  K and I checked it out, couldn't see anything.  I said, well, can you last till your apt in a few weeks?  (I had forgotten about the trip at this point).  He said sure, but he persisted to bring it up and we would look and couldn't see anything......UNTIL....one day when we saw two bumps on the gums above his teeth.  hmmmmmm.  My initial thought was that his permanent teeth were trying to come in side ways and were going to shoot out the side of his gums.  I have only ever seen this with kids in Louisiana.   (I am not sure if this is pertinent in any way, but feel I should mention, that at one point over the course of the complaining we asked if he had tried to floss, nope, so he did.  L reported that he did in fact get a chunk of meat, he thought, (yes, I know this is gross to hear...but it may be important to the story....can't let pride hold me back.....naturally I would like you to believe that my kids floss everyday, and that they never get meat chunks caught between their teeth for who knows how long, but that is not the reality).    Anyway, long story short, after a few exrays, etc.  the dentist reports that he has an acute infection.  He needs antibiotics immediately, and he needs to come back in a week and get that tooth pulled.  Whoa.
I know we were blessed, not lucky, to have found this out before the week long trip.  I am thankful to an attentive, and mindful Heavenly Father who sees and knows what we do not.

Now....drum roll please......dadadadadadadadadadadadaaadadadadadadadadad.....getting to the post I have been anxious to write about.  This morning I taught my first warm up for, not one, but TWO exercise classes at OUR CLUB.  It was one, well, two of the most terrifying experiences of my life.  

I have been going to OUR CLUB for at least a year now and I love it.  I mostly love the classes.  I have tried, and for the most part loved them all - Zumba, step, Intense Intervals, Body Sculpt, Turbulence Training,  yoga, pilates, kick box, and the list goes on.  I have always admired the instructors, and have kept the idea dormant, but in there, of the possibility of maybe someday pursuing instructing myself.  


When the kids and I were gearing up for them to go to public school I began making a list of possibilities.  A kind of wish list of things I wanted to accomplish, or learn more about while they were away for several hours each day.  Getting certified to instruct was on that list.  


Soooooooooooo, I have been chipping away at it.  I got my CPR re-certification a few weeks back.  Took the online test, and then met up with the professional to pass off my practical.  I have been studying, and working through the written material.  THERE IS TONS.  The book is massive.  I will go and take the all day work shop and exam on Saturday the 23rd.  It will be in Orlando (V - can you still keep M?)  while the boys are on their hunting trip.  


This morning was the hurdle I have been dreading/yet anticipating for a few months now.  I can't believe I survived it.  Maybe that's a bit dramatic....but it was so very terrifying.  I had to come up with just the warm up for the 6:00am step class.  I worked and watched and strung together a 10 - 15 minute routine I felt ok about.  I typed it out.  Made a mini cheat sheet that I wore in a sweat band on my wrist.  The night before I could not sleep, so at 3:00am I finally got up and put my gear on and shut the office door to practice a few more times.  I felt pretty good.  After I took my shoes off (I was only a little sweaty), went back to bed in my workout attire.  Got up at 5:00, went over it again and headed out.  Got there early to test out the stage.  I was super thrilled to see my two dear friends Shelly (running buddy) and Vanessa show up for moral support. I really wanted to give them a good showing.  You know what I mean? Make it worth their effort.  


Maria made it, the instructor for the class, as well as the head over all the classes at the gym.  She was all excited and supportive, she cued up the music and introduced me using the head set.  Then she took off the head set and gave it to me.  (I tell you I am reliving it right now..... thankfully this time I can cry in the privacy of my own home.....no I did not cry at the gym...but the thought did cross my mind).  I felt like a little kid, taking this gadget, and trying to figure out which way to put it on.  It seemed massive, it loops around both ears and has a bar thing that rests across the back of your neck.  It felt very awkward and intrusive and distracting.  


I am shaking.  I walk to the stage.  I am trying to act calm and normal.  I know these people, all 8 of them.  It is just a warm up.  Let it begin.  I am doing it....so many thoughts are clamoring through my mind, try to stay with the beat of the music, what comes next, cue them for the last one, get ready to transition to the next step, don't worry about Shelly who is a jumbled mess in front of me....pretty sure she has never taken a step class ever in her life...., don't worry about Maria over in the corner....is she trying to help me find the beat?.....oh my gosh what comes next, look at my cheat sheet, w/out looking like I am looking...impossible.  I have to take my paper out and turn it to the other side and tuck it into my band again.  What is up with My mouth and throat???!!!!!!!!!  I have lost the ability to communicate verbally.  I have such a dry mouth that my lips are sticking to my teeth.....they are literally stuck to my teeth, tucked under so that I look like an insane WOLVERINE!!!  at this point....I can think of nothing else but getting water and trying to eek out my next cue.  This was a very low point.  I wish so much that I was exaggerating.  This is the cold hard truth and just how it was.  I had to pry my lips off my teeth as discreetly as possible....but they went back up.  Is this as hard for you to read as it is for me to write.  Are you getting it????  Shelly finally responded, w/ some goading on my part to get my water "WITH THE ORANGE LID"......, by then I was wrapping up, (thank you though), and my time on the stage was over.  


I did it all over again at the 8:20 Body Sculpt class w/ Elena.  Maria had given me some constructive critiquing, which was much needed and appreciated.  I rushed home, got the kids up and off to school.  Hurried and reworked my warm up, removing some of the twisting and adding other safer stuff.  (I was so, so tempted to cancel and put off this second warm up).  I forced myself to go do it, IT IS ONLY A WARM UP FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!.....but only after drinking a large quantity of water, as well as a spinach packed vita mix, and inserting an altoid mint for mouth moisture.  This class was packed.  Overall it went quite a bit more smoothly.

RELIEF.  It is done until next time.  I am supposed to email Maria and let her know when I would like to do it again.

I was thinking how I wish I could see several months into the future.....like if I had a Magic 8 Ball.   I am curious about some things.....Will I stick with this Instructing business?  Will I become a savvy, confident,  instructor?  Will I get a class of my own someday and have my name on OUR CLUBS class  schedule????  Will I be able to overcome DMS? (Dry Mouth Syndrome).