Ab update

A reminder to send in your weekly minutes + multitasking ab exercise...but you might have trouble trumping Gena, who spent an entire night rocking her double-ear infected 11-month-old -- without a rocking chair. (Engaging abs the whole time, undoubtedly :)

For next week, anyone who sends a video of their favorite exercise gets *TRIPLE* points.

Best Playground Ever (water version)

This week's nomination: The Edina Aquatic Center.

The only drawback is that it's impossible to watch two kids there (of course, according to me, it's nearly impossible to watch two kids anywhere. i did run into my cousin there, who was having no trouble watching her 4 (FOUR) kids).

If you go, our favorite thing was the tube slide (pictured in the above link). The tube part is the innertube you float down -- kids under the height requirement for the body slide can go with you on a double tube. Every time my 3 1/2-year-old and I got to the top of the line, we both started jumping and squealing in anticipation.

And we can't wait until he meets the height requirement for the zip line (although, shouldn't it really be a swimming proficiency requirement?)

Don't forget sunscreen (diapers are OK to forget -- I did, and readily borrowed a chlorine-free, organic disposable from a nice Edina mom.)

I must have allergies, or asthma ... or a teething 10-month-old

Or all three.

Results from Grandma's Half, which show that I ran my third-slowest half ever, here.

*The good thing is that a 10-month-old and a 3 1/2-year-old quickly put everything into perspective. My son, for example, was most impressed that his daddy ran 50 yards or so backwards.

I'm just hoping mine will meet me at the finish line

When I heard about this story (by Kent Youngblood in the Star Tribune), I knew it had to be about Sue Olsen and her son:

"John Olsen hopes to finish Grandma's Marathon before the official clock is turned off after six hours on Saturday.
...
Olsen is 12 years old, about to enter the eighth grade. And it's obvious why his middle name is Miles. Thirteen years ago, just two weeks before John was born, his mother ran Grandma's Marathon, 26.2 miles from Two Harbors to Duluth."

I don't think I'd let my own son do it, but I'll be cheering them on after I finish the half in Duluth tomorrow.

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AB CONTEST: "How do you have 10 minutes a day?!" -- Emily, after I told her I was upping the ab ante

Send in your minutes along with your exercise of the week.

For next week, the person who comes up with the best multi-tasking ab exercise (i.e., sitting on an exercise ball while blogging) earns double points.

Of course, they're more popular in Europe

Last year, when my son turned 2 1/2, we got him a kick bike. I was possibly more excited about this than he was, anticipating evening bike rides around the block (and some relief from carrying him halfway through every walk while I was 8 months pregnant). And I love the idea that the kick bike teaches you how to balance, not pedal, since stabilizing the bike is a harder skill to learn than pedaling.
It was a disappointment, then, to set him on the seat and see that his feet didn't touch the ground. And a tad frustrating that his friends, seemingly the same height, fit just fine.
I finally dusted it off a couple of weeks ago, though, and this time, was thrilled to see him cruise around on it. Everywhere. Even when he asks to please ride up the hill minutes before bedtime, it's hard to refuse.
Now, he can glide around on it with no feet until it slows to a stop, leading me to gush this morning about how much fun that must be.
"Not really," he said.
I'm chalking that up to preschooler obstinacy, since he insisted on riding his bike to school this morning, gliding all the way.

Row, row, row...

I am definitely blogging about this, I told my friend as we hopped into a car with two canoes, two preschoolers, and two husbands:

 

I never for a moment considered the possibility that we'd canoe down the Gull River in peaceful tranquility, picnicking lazily as the current carried us along.

But that's pretty much what happened. No dousings (of people or cell phones), no tantrums (to speak of), not even another boat to disrupt the solitude.

So, enough of day-tripping: We're going big-time. We're taking the preschooler to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, if we can get a permit for September.

Hopefully, I won't regret that the test run went so well ...

Round 2

The following is an actual e-mail exchange between my husband and me:

Eric: I feel like we need to make a trip to a track to see if we can get our son to post an 800 meter time.

note: He's 3 1/2.

Me: so we want him to burn out by the age of 5?

Eric: I just think he might have fun doing it if we are doing a workout.

... and yes, it might be nice for him to burn out by then and get the whole phase done by the time he is in 11th grade and done with soccer, or before he has life long leg injuries.

Rules for Round 2, Week 1, Abs or Bust:

1. Contest starts tomorrow, June 12.
2. Participants *must* submit minutes AND a description of their favorite ab exercise next Thursday, June 19. Best new exercise gets bonus points.
3. If you're pregnant, you earn double points.
4. Rules will change weekly!
5. Big prizes to winner/s.

absolute victory

An addendum to the ab contest, because I forgot to put together a routine based on everyone's suggestions. Here it is:

3-5 minutes bicycle (if you do it slowly, you really start feeling it at 3 or 4 minuts)
1-2 minutes plank
3x10 leg lifts in captain's chair (or tree :)
reverse curls w/ exercise ball

*Anyone up for Round 2? If so, I'll make up some new rules to ensure firmer results.

and the winner is...

SO close to a tie I can't call it. Emily, let's set a Java Jack's date to celebrate!

In other news, it took only three attempts -- and lots of assitance from Grandma -- to successfully use the Fit Kids Gym this week.

sweet dreams

You know how sometimes when you're about to fall down you have to run a few steps to prevent yourself from wiping out? I had a dream the other day that my baby daughter got up and started running like that. When I fell back asleep, she woke up with seven new teeth. When I woke up, though, she still didn't have any teeth and she doesn't walk - or run - quite yet.
The problem with this teething thing¹, though, is that every spare minute of mine is devoted to sleep. This weekend, I spent close to 24 hours in bed. I was still dysfunctional all day Saturday from lack of sleep.
It really cuts down on exercise time. (And house-cleaning time, at least in theory. I know one person who actually likes cleaning, and otherwise, she's quite normal.)

So, I haven't had as much time as I'd hoped to devote to the ab contest. The last day is tomorrow, so report your minutes by 11:59 p.m. and I'll let you know the results. Assuming I've gotten some quality sleep by then (and we all know what we learn about assuming in Journalism 101).

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¹ And there's no guarantee that she's actually teething, of course. We spent five months with my son assuming every whimper was due to his "new tooth". This time, we held out until nine months. But I'm almost certain I can feel something in there.

loppet love

It's not too late to sign up for the Tri-Loppet.
The best thing about this urban paddle/trail run/mountain bike of a tri is the grand prize: It goes to the winner of the family team division. (And, it's a weekend at the Maplelag ski resort ... which, according to its website, has the largest spa in Minnesota.)

Needless to say, Eric and I are perfecting our paddling skills ...