New Blog!

I obviously haven't updated this blog in a while!! I wanted to share with my faithful readers (all 4 of you :)) that I have started a new blog! That I promise to update more regularly. So for all the Kambak happenings visit www.swimmingsideways.com

I'm pretty excited about it!

Guess I'm going to be a once a quarter blogger!! Sheesh! Well, working full time, having a 7 month old and training for a half marathon has definitely kept us busy.

Claire is getting so big. She's sitting up, eating solid foods and can pretty much get anywhere she wants by rolling! She still hasn't figured out how to crawl, she's scooting a little but not getting very far. She prefers to roll :) Also, she has been teething for MONTHS now. I thought for sure we were going to have a little tooth sprouting up early, but now 4 months later still no teeth. There is one that is so close to cutting through, she is so protective of that little tooth, she will go to great lengths to put her tongue over it, wiggle, squirm, scream, whatever it takes to not let you look at that tooth. It is quiet comical.

Work has been crazy! I started back from maternity leave to a huge project that had me working late nights and weekends. Oh my, that would have been tough even if I hadn't just had a baby. I was exhausted. It has gotten a little better. I still feel like I am never completely caught up on the work I need to get done, but I just have to draw a line and not cross it. I cannot work on weekends, I cannot work late every night. I just can't. I have to have that balance. I need time to see my baby and connect with my husband! Man, it is hard to find that balance, but we're getting there. I will say I really have enjoyed being back at work. I enjoy seeing my friends and getting in midday workouts!

Speaking of working out. I have been training for our 1/2 marathon like crazy! It's just 2 weeks away. My longest run so far has been 11 miles. I thought I would go all the way up to 13, but I'm not sure....those runs take up so much time (well, I'm pretty dang slow so that doesn't help). I feel ready though, I'm pretty sure if I've already done 11 I can make it 2 more :) I've also been doing reformer pilates, which I love! I'm slowly getting back in shape and have hope I will get back to my pre-pregnancy weight!

Back to the grind!

Wow, can't believe my lack of blogging! Well, we have been quite busy and a lot has happened since my last post. In early December my grandpa passed away. This was so hard for our entire family. Although he was "up there" in age, it was a bit unexpected and difficult that it happened during the holidays. He actually had kept pretty active and didn't like being held back by his health and age. He decided to dig a ditch one day which got him sick and from there he went down hill fast, he passed away within a few days of that. I have peace knowing that he is in heaven able to dig his ditches, catch the biggest fishes in sea, chop down all the trees he wants (I'll never forget the time he came over and chopped down our apple tree...I don't know if my dad told him to or not all I remember is all of us kids and my mom trying to get his attention to stop over the loud sound of his chain saw! haha), and grow the best gardens ever! He is definitely missed! I will say I did enjoy how this time of grieving brought our family together a few extra times this holiday season. Claire and I even spent a night with my grandma, which we both so enjoyed!

I started back to work, it's been over 2 full weeks now! I was nervous, excited, and sad all at the same time. I really do love my job and love working for Nike, so I knew that I at least wanted to take a stab at this whole "working mom" thing. But I was also sad to not get to spend all my days with Claire anymore. I have so enjoyed my time at home, I loved being present for every little milestone. That I think will be the hardest part, missing something!! Colin's mom was in town my first week and a half back and was able to watch Claire at our place which really helped the transition. I was able to come home from work, play with Claire and pump at home. It helped that I started Claire on a pretty good schedule early on so she is somewhat predictable. We've now had a full week at the sitter's (our friend Michele's) and Claire has done great! She really is a happy, adaptable little thing! And she is still sleeping great, most nights around 10 hours. Oh so wonderful!

Pumping at work, really hasn't been that bad either. Since Nike is such a large company they really have great accomodations. And I'm actually amazed by how many fellow pumping moms there are here!! I am so glad I kept up the breastfeeding, coming home and being able to feed Claire after being away all day really helps us reconnect and has made the transition easier!

I am so excited for the new year! We are continuning with our small group at church and we have some new people this year, which is always fun. We used to host this at our place but since having Claire, we've moved the location to our good friend's Natalie and Jesus' house. We are starting a book together called "Experiencing God." I'm looking forward to reading it. Colin and I are wanting to limit TV time during the week, which should give us more time to read! Also, Claire gets glued to the TV when it's on...she will find a way to look at it, even if she has to bend over backwards...no joke. It's almost scary how much power that box has!!! We want to start limiting that now!

I'm also excited to get back into shape this year! I was hoping to have more time to do this during the day while at work, but I have been so busy getting caught up that the extra time has been almost nonexistant so far. And going after work is not an option for me. I need my Claire time :) My plan is to run a few times a week and do pilates a few times a week. One of my co-workers and I signed up for a few personal pilates sessions! I'm so excited!!! We did this free trial class on the reformer machines and it was great. I was sore for like a week. Can't wait to start!

Anyway, that's about all I can think to update you all on at this time :)