I don't like you, but I might love you

I'm going to start out by saying that I hate running. I love swimming. I am a swimmer, not a runner. When I run, I feel short...like every time my foot hits the asphalt, I shrink half an inch. When I swim I feel long and slender and graceful. I hate the feeling of sweat dripping down my face, back and front. In the water, I might sweat just as much...but I cannot feel it. In the pool I do not have to worry about my gigantic milk bags bouncing up and down until they feel like they are going to fall off. I wore three sports bras this morning to no avail. Also, while swimming laps, I probably wouldn't have to experience judgmental looks from the two super skinny mamas (with their designer running clothes/sunglasses/strollers) who run by me every morning, too good to return my friendly greetings. Yeah, this morning I uttered, "I hate you both", under my breath just as they escaped earshot. Pathetic.

Now, I have a dilemma...or two. My Dilemmas are named Jocelyn and Samuel. Until I invent the 'Water Stroller' and the 'Double Water Stroller', I cannot use swimming as way to get in shape. I seriously have plans to get rich off of those products, so do not steal my idea. Anyway, I have to run. I don't want to run, but I will run because I cannot just let myself sit on my booty and do nothing about my deflated basketball belly.

I've been walking quite a bit, and jogging here and there. I haven't yet seen a doctor since Sam was born, so I've been taking it easy. However, yesterday I just decided to go for it. I walked up this huge hill in our neighborhood, as a warm up, then I ran almost two miles, and walked another mile to cool down. I hated every minute of it. But, when I got home and ate a tangerine instead of a pop tart...I felt amazing!

Today I DID NOT hate every minute of my run. I realized that I should be very thankful for the hour I spend outside each morning. I tried to ignore the shrinking feeling as my feet impacted the street and concentrate on other things.

**This hour is the only time of each day that both kids are awake, yet completely quiet and still. This one thing makes the sweat totally worth it. If only I had the energy to run all day, every day.

**My neighborhood is on a bit of a hill, so I have a beautiful view of the ocean just west of Waikiki. I love being able to glance over my shoulder and see the rising sun glistening off the beautiful blue Hawaiian water.

**It's November and I am outside at 8 in the morning, working on my tan as I run in shorts and a tank top. Honestly, people have to envy this about me. :)

**The need for one-armed stroller steering while running is totally toning my arms, eliminating the need to go to the fitness center and lift. I can feel the pain from having done this yesterday, and I like it. I'm not weird, it's just that good kind of pain.

**I get to think about stuff. I have time just to be with my own thoughts, completely uninterrupted. I think about my dad a lot because a Robinson flies over about every 5 minutes. I'm working on smiling when he crosses my mind, instead of crying.

**Each time I stop at a corner for a car, then start running again, Jocelyn says, "Eeeyah". She means 'yee-haw', but it's cute anyway!

I know that today is only day two of this running stuff, but I feel so good about it today that I really hope I can maintain this attitude. I have set the goal of completing the Hibiscus Half-Marathon for Leukemia/Lymphoma in Waikiki on June 13th, 2010. I know that date is far away, and that I could very well be pregnant again by then, but I am really looking forward to finding my pace and getting comfortable and confident about this.

I also thought that I should point out that I realize how much my blogging has resembled the blogs of my sister, Stacey. This is because I want to be like her in so many ways. I want to be like all of my sisters. If you look at me, I am just a bunch of pieces of them put together to make another person. I've taught, and will teach, high school like Jodi. I was in the Air Force like Amanda. I was/am a certified lifeguard and water safety instructor like Stacey. Kylie and I have so many similarities it's crazy (movie quoting and Grammar Nazism, to name a couple of my favorites). I haven't done, and will never be able to do, any of these things quite as well as my sisters, but I think that I am pretty good at being a mosaic of my older siblings. There are things that I admire about all of my sisters, so I strive to 'steal' those qualities and talents from them. This time, I'm trying to steal Stacey's love for running, along with her ability to boast a half-marathon completion and a rocking body!



Don't you just love how you can tell that I am not actually running in this photo because the front wheel of the stroller is turned sideways? :) :) :)

Cori Lynn Gentry : My Hero

Okay, for those of you who read my sister Stacey's blog, you will probably think I am copying her. Well, I am. But, I should note that copying someone is supposed to be the highest form of flattery. So, I figured why not do a 'Top Ten List' blog AND flatter Stacey, you know, killing two birds with one stone?

This is not going to be a weekly thing, like Stacey's list making. I just wanted to try one because it looked like so much fun. Plus, my subject matter has earned so much of my respect, admiration, and love that I had to express it somehow.

The following are the top ten reasons that Cori Gentry is the greatest (in no particular order):

#1 - Cori and I have never met face-to-face, yet she sent me over 20 text messages while she was in labor! How cool is that?



#2 - Cori is very educated and knowledgeable about the things that she has strong opinions about, yet she won't judge you (out loud) for disagreeing with her. Well, maybe, but she will be nice about it.

#3 - Cori says things like, "to create the illusion of progress, I'm going to blog about packing... instead of doing it. I'll pack tomorrow... maybe." :) She is honest!

#4 - Cori made an 8-minute long video of herself trying to drink a glass of castor oil. She is capable of turning her pain and suffering into entertainment for others. I love that.

#5 - Cori and I have talked about poop, hemorrhoids, suppositories, episiotomies, sex, crotch pains, and worse...like we were talking about the plot of a Disney movie...yet, we have never actually SPOKEN to each other. Also, she is the only other person who gets super excited about cute cloth diapers, and that makes me feel better about my obsession.

#6 - Cori has an amazing husband, whom I have also never met, but I know enough about him to assume that most wives should be envious of what they share. Plus, he's in a band.



#7 - Cori is a great writer. This is a huge deal to me because I really like her stories, and I wouldn't be able to enjoy them quite so much if she didn't use proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation in her writing. Her exceptional blogging talent has even led me to overlook her occasional usage of the word 'prolly'. :)

#8 - Cori's son and my son have the same birthday!



#9 - Cori is a trooper. She survived a super long and hard labor with a "that-wasn't-so-bad" kind of attitude. She has made me aware of how grateful I should be for so many things, just by being grateful for things herself.

#10 - Cori is gorgeous. She has a great smile and doesn't need hair extensions and false lashes to make pregnancy look good.




I can't wait to actually meet Cori and her family someday! We are going to write a pregnancy book together, eventually, after we have each had a few kids. Look forward to it's release in 2017.