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Snack time ...

Nutrition ... rather ... will be the death of me. Specifically when it comes to my middle child ... namely, Ms. Payton.

Considering the road she has had with food and oral aversions, I feel like I should be happy she will eat at all. However, I'm not sure that a whole lotta salty foods do much for her health.

She is obsessed.

No fruit -- well, except mandarine oranges. No vegetables -- unless you count those salty veggie straws you can get at Costco.

On the other hand ...

My youngest child ... namely, Ms. Addison ... loves fruits and vegetables and meats and soups and pretty much anything that is sold at the grocery store.

So for snack ... this is how it looks at our house.



Payton eats salty chips.

Addison eats tomatoes.

C25K: Week One Recap

What is C25K? Click here and here to learn more.

W1D1 ---> After my five minute warm up, I ran my first 60 second interval at 6.0 on the treadmill. I did fine, but I quickly realized I was going to burn out quickly at that pace. I walked my cool downs at 3.5 and then continued the rest of my runs between 4.5 and 4.7. It felt good to finish, however it left me feeling like I needed to do more.

W1D2 ---> I did my training on the treadmill again ... with these cold temperatures, I was too scared to go outside. I have read that training on the treadmill is definitely not the same as running outside, so I am going to get outside as soon as I can. My runs were between 4.7 and 4.8 and for my cool down walks, I went down between 3.0 and 3.2.

W1D3 ---> On the treadmill again, although I contemplated going outside. Didn't get far. I'm such a mouth breather, that I was really nervous I'd hurt my throat. I increased my runs to 4.9, which right now is a great pace for me. I think 4.7 is too slow and I find myself running goofy because I'm trying to maintain that slower pace, which is awkward for me. I left my cool down walks between 3.0 and 3.2.

Week One Mileage Log: 5.4 miles

My biggest question right now is how to achieve proper breathing. I have read so many people talking about their breathing leveling out after about 10 minutes into their run. What do they mean by that ... and what is proper breathing form?

Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner -- Take Two

Winner winner, chicken dinner -- Take Two. Ha ... love it.

Words from Kristen ... the winner of the contest -->

I'm so thrilled to have won, but I was blessed enough at Christmas to be able to purchase my own running shoes. I only entered this contest because I really wanted the iPod Shuffle. That said ... I know there are so many other people who have committed to Operation C25K that do not have good running shoes ... so I want to have Bethany draw another name for the $100 gift certificate. Good luck!

So ... Nika, her exhausted/sick/camera shy self, Kristen (via telephone) and I just sat down to draw winner #2 ... drum roll please ...

Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner

Disclaimer: I accidentally said iPod Touch in the video, but it is for an iPod Shuffle. Oops.

Happy, happy birthday!

Four years ago today, Payton entered the world looking a tid bit dusky.

Well, she actually was more than a tid bit dusky, but we'll keep it at that. The poor thing ... it breaks my heart to see this picture of her just after she was born. I remember saying, "I don't think she is supposed to be this color."

Ya think?!

Seconds later, a NICU team came flying through the doors and whisked Payton over to the side of the room. They were giving her blow by oxygen, which was less than sufficient. They took her away and the next thing I remember is being wheeled into the NICU to see my baby girl. They rolled me up next to her isolette ... and there she lay under an oxy hood with cords everywhere.

Uh ... things were not supposed to happen this way.

A nurse removed Payton's oxy hood so that I could see her face and that is when it hit me. She has Down syndrome. Look at her eyes. It is so obvious.

I didn't say anything to anyone about my suspicions. Not even my husband. And nobody had said anything to me about their suspicions.

Not yet, anyway.

It turned out our baby girl had to stay in the NICU, as she could not breathe on her own. Her red blood cell count was also through the roof and she had two small heart defects ... among other things. The doctors finally let us in on their suspicions and that is when our world came crashing down.

I wasn't sure that I even wanted to see my baby. The hospital social worker had brought me some out dated information on Down syndrome ... one of which was titled How to Breastfeed the Down Syndrome Child.

I remember feeling so empty when I read that. I mean ... the Down Syndrome Child? Was my baby girl not even a person? My emotions were all over the place.

If only I knew then what I know now.

Thank God it did not take me long to realize that Down syndrome or not, this was my child. This was my gift from God and dangnabbit, I wanted to see her.

I would later come to find out that the exact feelings I initially had are very common. Is it hard for me to admit now? Sure it is. But I just didn't know. I was not educated and I had no idea what sort of gift had just fallen in my lap.

A gift that has taught me more things in her four years of life than I have learned my entire life. A gift that has allowed me to appreciate the small things in life. A gift that has given me more compassion than I know what to do with. A gift that I am so deeply in love with, that I am not sure I could live without.

Happy 4th Birthday, Payton. Happy, happy birthday!