Introducing Lucy Danger Speed

You all have seen many pictures of Lucy and some have even met her in person but I have to update our blog with a proper introduction.

Miss Lucy Danger arrived 13 days early on 11/6/11 and wasted no time in her arrival. My water broke around 6:00pm. I figured I had time to take a shower, freshen up, labor at home, etc. I figured this was my 1st labor/delivery I have a TON of time right... WRONG!

My contractions started immediately after my water broke. They seemed pretty close together and I thought for sure I was 'feeling' it wrong. I called my mom, Midwife, and doula. I made Ryan a sandwich and was walking around the house making sure all our stuff was together. I got in the shower, you have to shave your legs before you head to the hospital, duh! By the time I got out (we have about 10-15 minutes of hot water in our very small tank) my contractions were about 5 mins apart. I had to hold onto the table during them and sway back and forth but I was able to talk thru them. At this point my doula had stopped over to check on me and to see how things were going. Based on how fast the contractions were progressing she thought we should head to the hospital. Good Call!

We got in the car, called the midwives and let them know we were on our way. We have about a 45 minute drive to Nashville and my contractions are now so intense I can't speak and I can no longer sit. I swear we hit every traffic light coming off the highway. When we arrived at the hospital we had to come through the ER which meant a security check. I am barely able to stand, can't sit and am holding onto Ryan. The guard could have cared less. I started to cry!

Fast forward to delivery, we got to the hospital a few minutes after 9pm. Once on the proper floor I immediately asked for an epidural and Ryan kindly reminded me of our birth plan and asked me to try the Nitrous first. We had to beg the anesthesiologist to allow me to have it since I was not in the bed. It's self administered and you have to be in bed to get it incase you get dizzy. Thanks to Ryan and Christina (my doula) they helped the kind anesthesiologist see the light and they hooked me up. I was to far along for anything else other than pain meds via IV and we didn't want that. I used the nitrous to help me relax after the contractions. This was a life saver.  After about 30 mins of pushing our daughter was born @ 11:37pm.

Weighing in at 6.6 lbs
Length 19 1/2 inches long

 A lot has happened between now and this above picture. There is a video below of her now, along with a picture taken today. I will go back into the photo archives and post some other pics such as her first bath and other cute pictures we have but I wanted to get this out now - you all have waited long enough and have been so patient. Thank you and enjoy.

We named the musical giraffe she is watching, Randy. Thank you Jill and Gretchen - she loves watching and listening to Randy. (yes that is her tooting you hear as I pan down her body. she is a tooting machine)

Sleeping on Mommy and Daddy's bed:

Stay tuned. There is more to post and I will do my best to keep this updated.

It's the last 30 days (or so)

Today marks 30 days until the baby is due. One more month! My belly is looking more and more like a torpedo than a baby belly. I am asked at least once a day "when's that baby due" (add the southern accent) and "do you think you will go full term". I feel huge and look huge but according to the midwives my belly is measuring right on target. I think my absent ass is making my belly look way bigger than it actually is. Our next appointment is Tuesday and then we go every week after that. We get to tour the labor and delivery floor of the hospital next week as well. Things are getting busy. We are getting the house ready, setting up the bassinet and nursery stuff in our room, getting rid of the boxes left over from the move and making room for baby stuff. This helps to keep my mind off the waiting game. I hate waiting for things, I am not very patient when it comes to things like this. So staying busy takes my mind off waiting.

I have been thinking a lot about the arrival of this little baby and what it means to me, Ryan and I, our family, and to Logan and Tyler. I have to remind or inform people that while this baby is my 1st baby it is not my 1st child. I consider Logan and Tyler my kids. I share them with their Mom and Dad but I have helped raise them. Through the teen years I might add. Me, Logan, and Tyler came together during the most confusing time in their lives. A time when they are trying to figure out who they are, what they want to be, and who they want to become. While it wasn't easy being the outsider to this family, I don't think it was that hard either. I let them guide our relationship (within reason) and dictate how involved they wanted me to be. Ryan and I worked together to build a family bond between the 4/5 of us. We supported each other, asked each other for advice and always approached each hurdle/issue together. Ryan never left me out of decisions, conversations, and family events. We grew as a unit as the kids had big things happen, good and bad, they wanted me there. So, as I said while this is my 1st baby, he/she is certainly not my 1st child. I have parented through teen heartbreak, boundary testing, coming of age changes, teaching of life skills, trips to the ER/Dr., school dances, band performances in the rain, soccer games, band concerts, graduation, plays/musicals, parent teacher conferences, detentions, rock concerts, vacations, birthdays and much more.

I know Logan and Tyler are just as excited as Ryan and I to welcome this new addition. Tyler will be a big sister, what a change for her. She is really looking forward to it and I couldn't ask for a better big sister for this baby. Logan has always been the trailblazer for his younger sister so being the oldest is 'old hat' to him, but he's about to turn 20. No longer a teenager. How weird it must be to have a sibling 20 years younger than you. I can't imagine what that must feel like. Logan has always been a good big brother. He has a huge heart and I know he will continue to be a good big brother. It will be good to have Logan and Tyler as an outlet for this new addition. When Ryan and I are getting on this kids nerves he/she can call Logan or Tyler and bend their ear. I think that is a pretty unique thing to have as a kid.

As the days tick away and I watch my belly stretch and jump (which weird’s me out each time) I grow anxious and excited. I can't wait for the baby to come. I can't wait to see Ryan, Logan, and Tyler hold the baby. Logan and Tyler taught me so much about myself and being a parent. They made me fall in love with being a Mom. With them being in OH it has really been hard not having them around to fuss over. Tyler does a great job in keeping Ryan and I in the loop of what is going on with her. Logan, not so much. He is like his father that way. Not really good with the communication and phone thing. So Logan, if you are reading this let us know how you are every once in a while : ).

Updates on Tyler:
Her senior year is going really well. She has one of the leads in the school play. She will be playing Martha in "Arsenic and Old Lace". The play is the weekend that the baby is due so unfortunately Ryan and I will miss it but her directors are working on getting it videotaped! Looking forward to watching her kill innocent old men! She was also nominated for Homecoming Queen. This was very exciting and she seemed to really enjoy the hoopla around the nomination. Her grades at the interim were one "B" away from straight "A's". She does all this plus has a part time job. If she would only get her license! ; )

Updates on Logan:

Logan is working, not sure where but Ryan tells me has a job. He is with a new band and from what I can see on facebook he has been doing a lot of song writing. Music makes him happy and I am glad he is finding a way to hone and develop his craft. We keep telling him to come visit us here in Music City - we think he would love it here. Maybe one day he will come visit. It's crazy to think that he will no longer be a teenager in a few short weeks. He has grown up so fast. In fact - he is grown up!



Updates on Ryan:
It looks like the tattoo shop is finally moving to Murfreesboro. He has been working with the owner on building walls and such for the new shop along with creating banners announcing their "coming soon". He has been drawing a lot and really getting back into creating art. He is working on getting back into the tattoo circuit and will be doing more conventions and guest spotting across the states. He continues to work out, run and train as this will always be a part of him. He plans to run more ultra's next year and finally tackle Grindstone! We will need crew members and pacers for this trip, next Oct. Please let me know if you are available for a weekend of camping, driving around the mountains, and hanging out with the crazy running people.

All in all the family is doing well. We will be back in OH for Christmas. Right now our travel dates are, arriving on 12/23 and staying until 12/30. I know Ryan plans on working some of those days tattooing so the dates may change but we will keep everyone updated.
I will be sure to post another update after next week’s appointment. I am sure there won’t be much to report but for those who want to know I will keep you posted. Take care and thanks for following.

I don't get it!

This post has nothing to do with the baby - sorry but I have to get this off my chest.

I have seen a lot of people on Facebook and Twitter use the acronym "FML". For those who aren't familiar with the meaning  - It's, Fu*k My Life.

If you are reading this and you are one of those people who use this or have used it - please don't take offense to what I am about to say - I am just trying to offer a little more perspective and maybe something to think about the next time you think your life is beyond manageable.

I am pretty sure none of my FB friends are homeless (If they are they have not been broadcasting it). They have a roof over their heads. They all have a computer at least. If not, they have a cell phone, most have smart phones, or an IPad. They have, TV's, cable, cars, etc.  Most have a list of friends on FB in the hundreds. They have clothes to wear and food to eat. That's a long list of things that some people don't have, wished they had, dream about having one day. I know I don't have some of those things on the list. With that said - most of them also have the usual downs in life. Finances, medical hurdles, romantic issues, disagreements with friends, etc.

My point - in an effort not to rant because that is not my intention - no one is without their problems. Not one person in your life isn't dealing with an issue or concern of their own. For those that use the FML,  are your issues or concerns that dire that it dictates a FML? From what I have read - I would say no.

Look around you, take stock in what you have. Focus on that and not what you feel you are without! I bet you will be surprised to find that you have more in your life to appreciate. It's easy to focus on what you don't have and lose site of what you do have. My intention for this post is to encourage those people to refocus their efforts on the positive.

There is a saying, "You get what you give" and that's not strictly referring to what you physically give, such as time, clothing, food, monetary donations... it also includes attitude. If you are giving off a negative attitude you can count on being met with negativity (think about it, there is also a saying "when it rains it pours" - could that have come about because those people are only seeing the current storm, and nothing else). Try meeting difficult situations with positivity and see what happens. We all fall, get blind sided, and feel like we get dealt a sh!ty hand at times.

You cannot control what happens to you but you can control, 100%, how you react to what happens to you. 

Shower me with LOVE!

I am still recouping from my travels this weekend and all the excitement. Ryan and I traveled back to TN Monday morning after a weekend of visiting with friends and family, celebrating and catching up.


I flew into Cleveland Friday afternoon and was happy to be back with Ryan after almost 2 weeks of being apart. Even though he was late picking me up from the airport, I couldn't be upset, I was happy to see him and show him this belly that 'popped' out over the last two weeks. He was surprised to hear that no one at the airport or with SW Airlines asked if I was allowed to fly. I had my letter just in case but no one even made mention. As we drove to my parents house he tells me that he signed up to run a trail half marathon in the morning. The man is crazy! He had just gotten done running on the trails for 2 hours and then signs up for a 1/2 marathon, complete spur of the moment. FREAK! The only thing I was concerned with was making sure he was back at my parents house in time to thank everyone who came to the shower. He made sure he arrived in time and had a Chai tea for me as well. YUM!

The shower was given by my sisters Kate, Kim, and Dina, my Mom and my bestest friend Sonya - who surprised me when she walked in the door carrying balloons. The party planners thought it would be fun to lie to the mother to be and tell her that her dearest friend from high school could not make the shower and then have her show up. There were tears, some obscenities spoken and lots of hugs. I was so happy to see her! I cannot thank these ladies enough. Everything was perfect and I had a nice time. It was low key, everyone visited, good food, and all the right people were there. My soon to be sister in law Dina made the cake, from scratch... I think I have some competition in the baking department. It was sooo delicious and looked too good to cut into.

The hardest part of the shower was opening presents in front of everyone. It makes me sweat when all eyes are on me. Especially when I have a hard time bending at the waist. Ryan and I received a lot of nice things for our new addition and we are truly grateful to have such generous people in our lives. One of the gifts was priceless. We have a family heirloom, a bassinet. This bassinet started with my Mom. My grandmother used this bassinet for all 6 of her kids, I believe most, if not all of the grandchildren have slept in it and a few of the great grandchildren have slept in it. It will be 59 years old on 11/15 (our due date is 11/19 for those who may not know) and needed a new mattress and sheets. My Mom took this to a lady she works with and asked her if she could make a new mattress (since it's so old the new mattresses wont fit) and possibly make a few sheets to go with it. I was blown away at this woman's talent and care she put into this project. I am honored that our baby will get to sleep where Grandma once laid her head - along with many other babies in our family.

We are quickly approaching the 10 week count down. Saturday will mark 30 weeks! I can't believe it. There are clothes and blankets, and towels to wash. I'm a planner so I am doing all this labours work now before I am to tired, big, and achy to do it all. We will have more frequent visits to the midwife and still an ever growing belly. The baby continues to "dance" when the late, great Michael Jackson is played and just last night he/she danced the ipod right off my belly. With each passing day we are closer and closer to meeting our new addition to this family and grow ever more excited and anxious.

100 DAYS

I woke up this morning feeling tired and un-rested. Sleeping comfortably has been a challenge as of late but it hasn't been too bad. With each passing day the baby gets stronger, more active (longer periods of time, more times throughout the day), and my belly gets bigger. Ryan measured my belly the other night (I forgot to ask what the measurement was at my last midwife appointment) and it's measuring right on point. 25cm. I will be 26 weeks along this Saturday.

Which Means:

Today marks only 100 more days until the due date. Now I know the baby could come before or after the due date but still... 100 days. In any other situation, 100 days may seem like a ways away - some how now, the 100 days seems like it will be here in a blink of an eye. I am growing anxious. I just want to meet this little baby. I am also thinking a lot about labor and delivery. I have a great partner who I know will be supportive and kind. I have a Douala as well which I am grateful for her experience and coaching. She has 5 kids so she has done this a time or two. Having these two people in the room to encourage, support, comfort and help me through is a great gift. My only worry is that I will have a long labor and have nothing left in the tank when it's time to deliver.

My year and half of CrossFit training has taught me that when I think there is nothing left, dig a little deeper and I will find more. I am stronger than I think I am and my body was meant to do these things. Those thoughts/learnings can certainly apply to labor and delivery - I just need to remember them when I am in the moment. I have never been the most self confident person so I am hoping this experience will help me learn how to trust in myself, my skills, my instincts, and my abilities.

So there are my deep thoughts for this post. The more I prepare and think/weigh options and plan for labor and delivery the better I will feel. So am researching and asking and taking notes every step of the way.

The fun facts:
* My belly measures 25cm - right on target
* I have gained a total of 20lbs -while I am grateful that it is all up front (boobs and belly) my lower back is not so grateful.
* Sleeping comfortably has become a challenge for both me and Ryan (poor guy)
* Baby shower is in a few weeks, I can't wait - my sisters (to include D) and Mom are the best!
* Next Midwife appt is 9/9

Thanks for checking in!

This is a pic taken last week of Ruby resting her head against the baby bump.

Family Visit

This past week my parents came to stay with us for a week long visit. With them they brought Tyler to stay for 3 weeks. It was so good to have them here, hug them, kiss them, talk to them and just be in their company. Tyler is touring MTSU with her Dad today. Fingers crossed, with no pressure, she comes here for College. It was sad to have the rents leave this morning but we will see them next weekend when we bring Tyler home. Hopefully this this past week starts the new trend of seeing each other more often.

The next time they come to TN they will be meeting their next Grandchild for the 1st time. I can't believe how fast this is going. Baby Speed is growing stronger with each little kick.

At 21 Weeks:

1. Basketball belly already - Ryan says this kid will be like me, needs extra space!
2. Ryan has been able to feel the baby kick, along with the big sister Tyler and Grandma. Strong little bugger, always on the move.
3. I have been feeling really good. Aside from my daily dosage of TUMS, my appetite is back. It's good to look at food with desire again instead of disgust and disdain.
4. I have been following the workouts on the CrossFit Mom website- I do this one day a week and walk for 30 mins the other days around the block on my lunch hour. I would like to do more of the CrossFit but it just doesn't fit during the week. By the time I get home, I am hungry and tired... I know if I wait to eat after the workout I will end up getting sick. It's just to long to wait.

Those are the biggest updates so far. Oh, other than my Mom is convinced it's a boy based on how I look. My Dad refers to the baby as "his grandson"... lets hope they are right, with all the 'he' references. This baby is set in the name department, the names are locked in and finalized. As a hint, a celebrity who gave birth to a baby girl recently stole one of our names... the nerve! : ) It took Ryan and I a long time to agree on names so we are not changing it based on the recent events.

Thank you to all that ask and check up on us. I will continue to keep you posted. Sorry this post doesn't contain much excitement.

3 Years Ago Today

I promise to love you with all my heart and mind and strength. I vow to be your best friend and do everything in my power to make you as happy as I am today. I will trust you with my dreams and support you in yours. I don’t know what challenges lie ahead, but I do know this, we will face them together.

Almost Half Way!

Sorry it's been a while since I have updated. (I hate that I am starting each post with this phrase - it will get better I promise)

I am feeling MUCH better. The 'all day' sickness has subsided. My appetite is back and the baby is very active. I just started to feel the little babe this past week.

I am back to working out. While I am not able to make the evening WOD's during the week which bums me out,  I have been walking every afternoon at lunch and I do a CF Mom WOD Saturday mornings. I have to tell you that it is really hard to go from racing the clock and your peers to taking it slow, resting between rounds, not going as heavy as you once could. That has been a real challenge for me so it's probably best that I am only WODing once a week. OH and I'm exempt from burpees for now! That is the one plus!

I have been doing a lot of research on line for baby products, breast feeding products, and the likes. Making lists and debating with Ryan over colors and patterns. We went through the list last night and got stuck trying to pick out a stroller. Ryan says to me "can't we go to the store and play with the stuff? I'm more of a hands on shopper". This surprised me since he's not into the shopping and registry stuff. So I am happy to fulfill that request.

We have our ultra sound this Friday. We are both looking forward to seeing the baby and we both are still in agreement that we will not be finding out the gender. I got my 1st high five for that decision this weekend. Whenever I am asked if/when we will find out, and I say no I get this look of disbelief. It's funny to see peoples reactions, it's mostly the same, and I have gotten into the habit of already explaining that we want to be surprised and will plan the best we can with gender neutral 'gear'. So when I was given a high five it took me by surprise and made me smile!

For those that are wanting belly pic's - sit tight. I will post a pic at 20 weeks. I feel very large (belly large) for just starting my 19th week. But I have been reassured that nothing else (other than my boobs) has gotten bigger - AND I am almost half way done! I can't believe it!  So Mom, if you are reading this I am thinking it's a boy based on your theory - I'm caring it all up front, I'm all belly.

I will be very much relived after our appointment on Friday. I just want to know that all is OK with the baby so far. That he/she looks to be healthy and everything is in order. Every day I feel more and more movement. Especially this past Saturday. Ryan took me to see Cirque du Soleil for our anniversary and as soon as the lights went down and the loud music started the baby went nuts. Either we have a dancer/gymnast on our hands or another drummer. We will be happy with either. We love the performing arts and would be thrilled if this baby followed in his or her older siblings steps.

I think that is all for now. As more starts to happen I will be sure to post more often.  I feel like things are just starting to happen - I had 8 weeks of being sick and that would have been pretty boring to hear about week after week, so I didn't post during that time.

I miss all my friends and family back home. I think about all of you daily. Hope all is well with everyone. 

Here is a pick of me during this past Saturday's workout. I did "Baby Nancy". Can't really see the belly in this pick but it's there.

The 3rd child, 1st baby

March 17, 2011 will be a day I will never forget. Not sure about Ryan, he's not very good with dates, but I am sure he will remember the day when the little pink plus sign appeared on the pregnancy test.

Holy Crap! It worked! Was the 1st thought I had, referring to Ryan's vasectomy reversal in Oct.

The next thought, Wow, we are going to have a baby.

The next thought - MAN! It's St. Patricks Day, no drinking for me.

A Baby is on the way. We couldn't be happier about it but there have certainly been fears, anxioety, tears, frustration, and worries - and I am only 12 weeks along.

Let's catch everybody up. Here is my story of the 1st 12 weeks.

The 1st 6 weeks were great. Barely knew I was pregnant. The only give away was it felt as if my bladder had shrunk. Those who know Ryan, you know he has the bladder of a humming bird - I swear mine has become smaller than that. (I know it doesn't really shrink, just felt that way) My excitement was hard to hide as well. What a difficult secret to keep! I was so excited to share the news with Logan and Tyler, and my Mom. I was on cloud nine, thinking this is great! No sickness, no issues, I was feeling great. I woke up one Sunday morning (1 day after the 6 week mark) and was sick and exhausted. I didn't physically get sick but I felt ill and so tired all day long. I couldn't stand to smell the morning bacon and eggs being cooked, I couldn't stand the thought of food, I had no energy to go to the evening WOD, what the hell happened to me? I was feeling great and then WHAM!

My eating came to a screaching hault! I had just gone grocery shopping and didn't want a single thing we bought. What was I going to do now? I love to cook, I love to eat, I love food but my body wanted nothing to do with it. Mostly MEAT! I'm a meat eater. How can this be, how could meat be such a turn off for me? I had also been keeping up with my workouts during the week. I had been following the scaling on CrossFit Moms and was pissed when I had no energy after work to go work out. My nausea was worse at night to boot. Enter the worrying...

I was able to eat some cinnamon raisin toast, cereal, mashed pototoes, pretty much anything not paleo. I was wanting fruit however, it would leave this horribly sour taste in my moouth so I cut back on that after a little bit. I started to fall into a funk, possibly a bit of depression. I started to second guess my decision to have a child, did I really want to do this. I started feeling sorry for myself because my lifes simpilests pleasure (food) was taken away from me. How was I supposed to have a healthy pregnancy when I can't eat anything healthy.

I was never 100% paleo however, my intake of grains and refined carbs over the last several years had been significantly lower than when I 1st met Ryan. So, for several years I had limited my intake of these things and now overnight I am eating nothing but these things. I had horrible stomach pains. I remember telling Ryan that I now know why babies get so fussy when you introduce cereal to their diet - IT HURTS!!! This pretty much solidified my stance on not feeding this baby cereal. I started my research on paleo babies, there is a lot of info out there so I am glad I started now.

I have to say Ryan has been great through all this. He recognized what was going on with me and helped me talk through what I was feeling. I was feeling so guilty for having these doubts and sometimes feelings of regret... I would have internal battles with myself. I knew I wanted to be a Mom and I knew I was in absolute love with this child, I was just angry and upset that I couldn't eat, couldn't stay awake, couldn't stand to breathe half the time, oh and did I mention our sex life came to a screaching halt. Mom and Sue you may want to stop reading for a few lines and pick it back up after the next paragraph.

It's no secret that I had sex, hello I'm pregnant so I think this is a topic worth sharing. No one told me that I may not want anything to do with my husband, that his smell will be different and that I will barely want to kiss him. Ryan and I enjoyed our sex life. It was a big shocker for me, and it broke my heart when that part of our relationship just ended, out of the blue. I felt like I was letting my husband down. When I read in my book (eveyone has a book) and talked to my sister-in-law, it was confirmed that this was normal. I just wish I had known to expect it.

So to help me not focus on the bad my loving husband would ask me every day what my mantra was to get me through. He was just great. On days when I couldn't think of one he would send me texts telling me things like he looked forward to watching me rock this baby to sleep. That was all I needed and then I would feel better for the day. I would focus on the end result of little fingers and toes, Ryan's eyes, my curls... or our upcoming visit to the midwife.

We decided to go with a Midwife and a Doula. I will talk more about this decision in a later post.

We had our 1st ultrasound at 7.5 weeks. I am a participant in a research study here at Vanderbilt. All this study does is collect data on your life style as you try to get pregnant and through your 1st 12 weeks. They are looking to see what may or may not impact a womans ability to concieve and have a healthy pregnancy. They pay me in the form of giftcards for each weekly diary I complete. This will come in handy! At 7.5 weeks we got to see the little bean, we saw the heart beat but have not heard it yet. A few days after the ultrasound we met our Midwife. Aside from the 7 vials of blood they took from me, we left feeling great about our decision. Since it was so early in the pregnancy the appointment was more a meet and greet. We talked a lot about our family history and how I was feeling. Ryan made sure I talked to her about how low I had been feeling. I was so relieved to hear my Midwife tell me that she did not like being pregnant. She assured me that what I was feeling was normal, but to be cautious and let her know if I started to feel any worse. I had always said that I loved kids but I didn't think I could handle being pregnant and so far my body has not made me liar. However, I hear great things happen in the 2nd trimester and I have some pretty cool things to look forward to.

With the 2nd trimester only a week away I am looking forward to all that it has to bring. I look forward to getting my energy back, possibly appetite (fingers crossed), hearing the heartbeat, getting another ultrasound, watching my belly grow, listening to Ryan talk to my belly, I am hesitant to say - feeling the baby move - because I am not sure how I feel about that. I know it's a good sign and it's reassuring and wonderful but I have a hard time with the sensation of butterflies in my stomach so I am not sure how I will take to being poked and bumped from the inside. It's all weird to me.

We are having a baby! The baby is due mid-November. Right around Thanksgiving and Logan's 20th birthday... crazy!!! It seems so far away but we know it will be here before we know it. We will not be finding out what we are having, keeping it a surprise - I joke with Ryan that it's a boy because only a Speed boy could make a woman feel this way. We are wanting a healthy baby, that is all that matters.
We will keep you posted with updates and photos. Thank you for all the well wishes and warm thoughts! We love and miss you all!

Snow In The South

It took me 5 hours to get home from work last night. 5 HOURS for a drive that typically takes me 45 mins in the morning and an hour in the evening. 5 HOURS!
Now I know people in the south say they don't have experience driving in the snow, but they also say "This happens every year when it snows." How can you then say you don't have experience if this happens every year. Granted the snow is not on the ground for 4-5 months like it is back in OH but you still get it!

Here is the reason people can't drive in the snow... They don't go out and learn. They make an attempt to get to the grocery store to get bread, milk, and water (for the 2-3 days that there will be snow on the roads) but they will not attempt to learn how to operate their vehicle under snowy conditions.

Northerners are not born with the ability to drive in the snow, they learn. Can the skill be learned over time by the occasional drive to the store, maybe, but I think the only way to learn is to go to an empty parking lot (there are alot of them around given that everyone is locked up in their homes) and make those sharp turns, slam on your breaks, do a donut and LEARN how to recover without killing yourself and the car.

I watched people try to drive up a hill, freak out because their car slid SLIGHTLY while the tires tried to find a spot to grip, instead of correcting the wheel the driver STOPPED, just stopped in the middle of the hill in sheer panic....the car was now stuck. The only other option was to go back down the hill in reverse however, there was a two mile line of cars behind it... This happened on almost every road I drove on. Thank goodness I had a wing man who could pull up a map and direct us away from the city, onto back country roads to the highway and home.

Yes, I was driving an all wheel drive vehicle but that really has little to do with your ability to drive smart in snowy weather. I had to help this woman who pulled the above stunt of stopping in the middle of a hill. She was blocking the way from anyone going around her, she was now side ways in the road. I told her what to do while she gave it a bit of gas and me and two other guys pushed the back of the car. The car would not move. I backed away from the car and told her to give it another go, I wanted to see what she was doing with the wheel and what was spinning - NOTHING was spinning... SHE HAD HER PARKING BREAK ON!!!! I tried so hard to not get irritated and told her to release her parking break and then try it again.. with a little rocking back and forth of the wheel and the release of her break she was unstuck and on her way... It got to the point where Rik would start the intro's with "She's from OH"...and then we would offer assistance.

The commute home was not without it's entertainment though. We needed gas and were in this very small town with one gas station (or so we thought). I pumped the gas while Rik went inside to get some snacks and use the restroom, we were still hours away from home. After I was done with the gas I walked inside and asked the lady behind the counter if there was a restroom. She looked at me and said "well there is a toilet in the back". I begged her pardon and she said "well go down that hall and you will see a closet, in that closet there is a toilet". Rik and I looked at each other and said, thanks but no thanks. The hall way was dark and I am a bit leery of toilets in the closet.

The commute back into work was just better. We saw alot of abandoned cars. People just said "fuck it" and left their cars on the side of the road, or in the middle of it. Maybe I should open up a driving school, bu then again there has to be a willingness to learn for that to work.

I had to get all this out before I started my work day. Got here an hour and half early. Was anticipating a longer commute.
Have a great day Clevelanders! Stay warm, I here it's cold there today! See you all soon!

Moving Forward

It has been a long time since I last wrote. I am noticing that ever since I left OH I have posted less. After some soul searching I have concluded that it's because I haven't felt at home. I haven't been able to get into my groove.  There is a lot that has contributed to this feeling - none of which I will go into detail about or share because truly, it's not important. It's not important how I got here, what's important is how I move forward.

For those of you who have been following me on Twitter or Facebook you may have noticed my 'tag' to most of my updates. #movingforward.... I have used this tag so often that my smart phone was 'smart' enough to recognize it and 'auto complete' my text for me the last few times I used it.

I am moving forward! As much as I miss home, my kids, my family, my friends, my LIFE back in OH - TN is my home now. TN is where I am moving forward.

The BIG NEWS:

RedFlag Athletics is getting off the ground. Ryan and I started this year off with our first group class under Red Flag Athletics. We are working out of IMA which is a integrated mixed martial arts academy. The people are great and in just these first few days of the new year we have some dedicated 'members' to our community.  It's really starting to happen and I can see life being breathed back into my husband. That makes me happy to know that he's happy, or at least getting there. Our website is up and running, we have ads out on Craigslist and we are looking forward to making this happen, to grow over the year, and to move forward.

http://redflagathletics.com/
http://www.integratedma.com/

And in OTHER NEWS:

I was working for Gaylord Entertainment (haha peanut gallery) for a few short months. I really thought this place was going to be THE job. Well lets just say we didn't mesh. I ended up giving my two weeks notice just after 2 months of service. Wouldn't you know, the day after I gave my notice Vanderbilt contacted me about a job opening. Vanderbilt is like the Cleveland Clinic here in Nashville. They also have a college. It's a very large employer for middle TN. After several interviews and a pass off to another department, I was offered a job in the Cancer Center as a scheduling coordinator. While I haven't started there yet, not until Jan 10th, I am excited to get started and I really clicked with my new boss. That's important to me.

And in FURTHER OTHER NEWS:

Ryan and I still have plans to expand the family. He had his vasectomy reversed in Oct and we have had the 'green light' since Nov to give it a go. No baby news to report as of now, however check back in the future because this is where it will be posted when it does happen.


To wrap up this news posting I will end with this:

Definition of MOVING

1

a : marked by or capable of movementb : of or relating to a change of residence <movingexpenses>c : used for transferring furnishings from one residence to another moving van>d : involving a motor vehicle that is in motion movingviolation>

2

a : producing or transferring motion or actionb : stirring deeply in a way that evokes a strong emotional response

Definition of FORWARD

1

a : near, being at, or belonging to the forepartb : situated in advance

2

a : strongly inclined : readyb : lacking modesty or reserve : brash

3

: notably advanced or developed : precocious

4

: moving, tending, or leading toward a position in front; also: moving toward an opponent's goal

5

a : advocating an advanced policy in the direction of what is considered progressb : extreme, radical

6

: of, relating to, or getting ready for the future <forwardbuying of produce>

MOVING FORWARD - Capable of movement toward a position in front, producing action ready for the future!!

That's where the Speed's are headed! Where are you headed in 2011?

Again.. Sorry for the long pause

A new job
A new baby in the house
A 100 mile race

Living in a house with 10 other humans, now 11, leaves one with little down time or quiet time. It makes it hard to blog with that much going on.

Ryan and I are still working on getting our CrossFit affiliate up and running. Ryan has done a lot of work on building plyo-boxes, trainer bars, and a trailer to haul it all to the parks. As soon as we have the rest of the funding we will be up and running. Soon, very soon!

My sister-in-law had her 5th baby last week. Ozzie Parker Speed has joined the Speed family and the chaos that comes with it. He's a perfect little baby boy. Having a new born around has made me very excited for mine and Ryan's future. Hopefully in a year from now it will be our turn to bring home a little baby.

100 miles... it's this weekend. The big race! Ryan has been training for this race for as long as I can remember. He may not have known he wanted to run 100 miles when we 1st met but he's been training for this challenge for ever. We have some great friends/family who will be helping us out as pacers and crew for us. We are lucky to have such great people in our lives. Looking forward to this weekend. I know Ryan will do great.

I start my new job at the Opryland Hotel right after we get back from our trip. I am looking forward to starting back to work, making some money, meeting new people, and getting back to what I do best. It's a temp job to start, to help with the holiday season. Hopefully after the holidays there will be a perm job available.

SO.. that's what's been going on in my neck of the woods. Hope all is well with everyone! More to come after we get back. I will provide race updates and work updates.

DAY 32

I know it's been awhile since I last updated this. It's been a crazy couple weeks. Ryan ran his 1st mountain race so we were out of town for a bit and Ryan's grandmother passed away.

Let me catch you up....

It's been 32 days since we moved from Cleveland OH, to Lebanon TN. Still unemployed, and living with Ryan's parents. Most people, I think, would be frustrated with that situation. US, not so much!

Is it tough living back home with the parents, yes! Is it tough sharing space with 6 adults, 4 children, 4 dogs, and 2 cats... YES! But does this situation hold many learning opportunities and memories this family will have for a life time... YES!!! So instead of focusing on the stress and anxiety, we have continued to move forward.

Ryan's nephews are learning what it's like to work this summer. Each day they have a job to do together. Most days they bicker, fight, cry, and whine their way through it but then there are some days, like today, where they work together as a team and get it done. Ryan and his brother recall having to weed their 'enormous' garden, mow their 'enormous' yard with a push mower, weed eat with an electric weed eater that required 4-5 extension cords, etc... needless to say Boris and Spike are creating similar memories this summer as they are put to the test each day. Ryan and his brother are planning on building them a tree house at the end of summer so the boys have had to lug lumber up a hill into the woods, it's only fair right?

Ryan and I are still looking into buying a plot of landing and building a home. Given the budget we have to work with, zoning and building codes that need to be met we are looking into nontraditional, unconventional way of living. No we are not going to live in a grass hut but this home will be small. Probably smaller than the home we left in Cleveland however it will also be, intimate, warm, artistic, creative, special, Eco-friendly, and original. I am looking forward to this. This is taking some time, we don't know what we don't know so we have to do a lot of research before we move forward with the purchase of the property.  More to come on this front for sure.

Our Crossfit affiliate application was submitted yesterday. This is very exciting. The first step in building our own business. Now it's time to start thinking about the website, the flyers..etc. Just so that we are ready when we receive our acceptance. : )

The job hunt is just as frustrating but I can't get discouraged. I just have to keep plugging away. The goal is to not have to need supplemental jobs in the future and be able to focus 100% on the Crossfit business. But in the mean time, money is needed to grow a business. It will all work out, I trust in my partner that we will be successful together.

While things are slow moving, they are moving none the less. We will be home in about a month and half for the 1st home game for Willoughby South. Looking forward to seeing the kids, my family, and our friends. If we have time to stop out some where for a drink we will keep you all posted.

Live happy, healthy, and free! (Pic of Ryan crossing the finish line at the Rattlesnake 50k, 6 hours and 57 mins up and down a mountain)

The View From Here

Three weeks in TN and lots of time to think. Not a lot of quiet time with 6 adults an 4 children under 1 roof but time none the less.
Ryan and I came here thinking we would continue with our current career choices, find a place to live, and eventually after a few to 5 years, move on. We have realized that we have a great opportunity to really go for what we have talked about for all these years.
Not live by the traditional clock. The one that has you working 9-5 or longer M-F. The one that requires approval for time off and takes up most of your free life. The one that has you doing work that you are good at but no longer passionate about.
So what are we up too:
1: Applying for our CF affiliation so we can open our own CF box (name ideas are greatly appreciated)
2: Look into building codes and such to build a cottage
3: Purchase land if cottage ideas can be approved (the picture posted would be our view from the future front porch)
4: Run our own business and live life as we want

I have never felt so free in my adult life. Free to make my/our dreams come true. I'm so excited to get started and am lucky to have a great friend/mentor who has done the same thing and is willing to offer advice and suggestions along the way.

I miss my family and friends, this will never change but I know they are happy for Ryan and I and their love and support have made this possible.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Change is Good

HI Folks!
It has been a while since I have posted anything. I have been busy with packing up the house, looking for a job in VA, attending year end shows for the kids, and doing research for a new house. It's been busy and not without it's twists and turns. I was offered a job in a Progressive MD claims office a few weeks ago, and Ryan was brought on staff at Crossfit Old Town in Alexandria to start up an endurance team. This was all great news.

We have had the biggest twist this past week... I would like to call it the Universe's way of saying "No, over here. This is what you need."

Due to an unfortunate change in family affairs (everyone is healthy and fine, nothing life threatening) we will no longer be moving to VA. We are headed to TN.

Ryan and I have a saying that the Universe gives you what you need, not what you want. We wanted to move to VA, we fell in love with Alexandria and could see ourselves settling down there. However, the right move for us right now is Nashville.

Life is an adventure for sure and what a story all this will be for the grandkids.

Looking forward to seeing everyone at 1899 on June 12th to see us off. The party is still on and our move date is still on track.  Just a new location.

Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner #crossfit #zone diet

Today I nursed a cold and a sad puppy. Caesar had to have a tooth pulled yesterday so he had a rough day today. While tending to the pup I captured what I ate throughout the day. Why? Because I am hoping to inspire my friends and family to get healthy and stay healthy. I am really creating a life style change with my nutrition (notice I didn't say diet) and fitness.

As most of you know I have started the crossfit training with Crossfit440 (crossfit440.com) out of the Gorilla Pit in Mentor (gorilla-pit.com). I started on January 1st of this year. Due to previous scheduled engagements I missed several work outs however, I am noticing changes in my body since then. A few being; I eat all the time, I sleep better mostly because the work out kicks my ass, my performance in the gym has improved with each workout. I am getting stronger a lot faster than I thought.

Because of that I have really tried to eat well and not stray to far from the zone diet plan or a paleo diet. So lets get to it... here is what I ate today:

Breakfast = 2 poached eggs, 1/2 a slice of multigrain bread, half an apple and 1 tbls of peanut butter:

Lunch = 6-8 oz pot roast, clementine, mixed nuts and dried berries:

Dinner = 1 1/2 lean pork chops (salt, pepper, garlic powder) sauteed broccoli with mushrooms (1/2 button and 1/2 baby bella), garlic, and tomatoes:

All of the meals were full of flavor ( I could ease up on the salt but, baby steps, I love my salt) and filling. Notice the portion sizes. I didn't have a tablespoon of peanut butter for each slice of apple, one tablespoon for the half an apple was plenty. I also could have had more of the dinner but only because it tasted good. To avoid over eating I made Ryan's plate, put it in the microwave, and put the rest of the left overs in the fridge. If the food is put away then I wont eat it.

I am going to try to post more of these kinds of posts and share how I/we progress. I also LOVE to cook and thought I could share how I take the food we love but feel guilty about eating and make it food we still love and not feel guilty about eating. Stay tuned...

Life Changes in 2010

So it's been some time since I last posted. As of Jan 1 I have been trying to focus on the life changes Ryan and I have in store for ourselves this year.

We will be moving to VA in 5 very short months. I have been looking at homes for rent and at the job market. BIG change in that respect of our lives.

I would say the bigger focus for the year is our health. Ryan is training to run a 100 mile race in Oct. That's a big challenge. Mentally and physically. We also have another big thing planned for the end of the year... Not sharing those details at this point, but stay tuned. This plan is also challenging mentally and physically.

With that, here is what I have been up to...

I have joined the crossfit culture. I have been training with the crossfit440 (crossfit440.com) folks out of the Gorilla Pit in Mentor. It's intense and challenging. I have already seen results. I can do several band assisted pull ups in a row now and my flexibilty is getting back to what it used to be way back when. I have been trying to introduce more females to the class and the culture but most are afraid that they can't do it. I couldn't do it either. I still can't do most of it but the beauty of the program is everything can be scaled down to meet your fitness needs. I call it a 'culture' because it really is. I have taken several group classes and this is the first that has challenged me with friendly competition and encouragement. Everyone encourages everyone to do well, and finish the workout. It's great. You also get time with a personal trainer throughout the workout. You are trained to do things correctly to avoid injury. It just takes one workout!

Nutrition has been big for me lately. I'm not about to work my ass off or work it into shape just to ruin it with what I put in my mouth. We have been eating grass fed free range beef and I am on the hunt for chicken and pork. We eat lots of fruit and veggies as well. Mostly trying a Paleo life style.

Some meals I have made/tried were a noodless lasagna. This was better as a "left over" I think. Not sure why but I liked it better the second time around. The recipe can be found here...freetheanimal.com/2009/05/noodless-lasagna-recipe.html








I have also created a post work out sandwich that Ryan just groans over. I need a name for it so if you have any clever ideas leave a comment.

The sandwich is contructed as so:
A potato pancake
2 slices of bacon
A 1/4 pound burger
A fried egg
A potato pancake






This sandwich is perfect after that long intense workout. Served with a piece of fruit. When making the potato pancakes try replacing your regular flour with almond meal or almond flour. I haven't had the chance to try it but I have read it's a great paleo sub for flour.

I made carnitas in the slow cooker last night and served it with an apple walnut salad. One of the best salad dressings I have had is by Garlic Expressions - a garlic vinagrette. Yum! If you want this recipe let me know.




As I create more dishes I will post them here as well as keep you all updated on our life changes taking place this next year.

Carry on and I encourage you all to make small life changes this year too! Let's do it together. Let's encourage each other to succeed and hold each other accountable as we try to better ourselves!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Christmas Magic and Miracles

It has been a long time since I posted to the blog. Sorry about that.

So lets get some updates out of the way:

- Ryan is still working hard with the crossfit training. He plans to run more races in the new year.
- Logan is still planning to move with us to VA. He is hoping to attend a community college in VA.
- Tyler is still planning on staying in Cleveland when we move. It's hard for her to think of completing her high schooling in a different school/city. This makes us sad to think about the next two years without her but it is ultimately her decision and she has some time to decide still.
- Me, well my busy baking time is done. Everyone got their cookie grams in time for Christmas and I got all the cookies and pie's made in time for Christmas day. I am thinking about our move more and more and trying to figure out what I want to do when we move.

This post is supposed to be about Christmas magic and miracles. My husband and some friends laugh when I tell them that I believe in the magic of this time of year. I believed in it as a young child, it was the idea of Santa and flying reindeer, and the bunch of gifts under the tree when we woke up. As an adult it's in the faces of small children when they talk about what Santa brought them, it's in the hugs and kisses between family, and that warm feeling you get by doing for others.

This year my parents needed our help but they would never admit it. My brothers and sisters all came together to give them a very special gift. That warm feeling of everyone coming together and just celebrating being a family is what Christmas is for me. We may disagree, fight, or bicker throughout the year but for whatever reason this one day in the year helps us all come together like we were kids again.

After the emotional gift opening and announcements a few of us sat around the table and played Apples to Apples. Towards the end of the first game those that weren't playing surrounded the table to see what all the commotion was about. It was rather entertaining and you learn so much about people playing this game!

We ate way to much and drank a bunch too. This Christmas felt like the best ever. There is Christmas magic and miracles, you just have to know where to look.

Into the semi-wild

Words cannot even express how today went. Tyler and I had the most amazing experience at the zoo. Ryan has a customer who works at the zoo and we were able to go behind the scenes with his wife. Tyler wants to be a Zoologist so this was all about her today. We toured different parts of the zoo with Sheena, she is a vet tech and works with ALL the animals. We started at the clinic where we were able to interact with a baby red panda, 100 year old tortoises, a screaming hairy armadillo, and a grey wallaby. The baby red panda is about 3 months old and just the cutest damn thing. He was running around, showing off, trying to climb up Tyler's pant leg. We found that his species is severely endangered. The tortoises were HUGE. They scared the crap out of me. The one tried to make a break for it when Sheena opened the pen. He's 400 pounds, once he's out there isn't much you can do to get him back in. That was funny.

We then went over to the fennec foxes. Tyler has been in love with foxes for as long as I have known her. I thought she was gonna burst when she saw them. The two we saw are used in educational shows so we also saw a bunch of birds and a two toes sloth. We got to feed the sloth and she was super cool. So chill, and laid back, just hangin out. We got to feed the sloth which again was COOL.

The best part was the Rhino's. Once we got the rules of being up close with these LARGE animals we were able to pet them and Tyler hand fed them. They were so gentle and just wanted to be rubbed. The 'sisters' were very friendly. They stuck their heads up against the bars and we were able to rub their cheeks and around their nose, horns. Their faces are much smoother than I expected.

Just a wonderful day and I am so glad I got to spend it with Tyler. I wish we could go back and see the other animals.

A parade and Tim Burton

So the season of Marching Band is upon us. It's Logan's last year so this is bitter sweet in so many ways. Unfortunately due to his accident he will not be in the drum line this year. You can tell this is really bothering him. They had their pre-show this past Friday and you could see the "It should be me" look on his face as he walked the field with the drummer who took his place on the line. Also, this being his last year means in 10 short months, who's counting, he will be graduating high school. How did we get here so quickly?

The up side to all this is they were able to rewrite some parts and Logan will be competing with the band in the 'pit' playing the rack. Still not sure what that means but I will hopefully find out at this Friday's football game!

The first public performance of the season was today at the Willoughby 'Last Stop' parade. I have no idea what it was for. As an adult you realize that parades are just one big commercial. One advertisement after the other. The kids did well. Logan carried the banner since he couldn't play. I am glad he got to participate. It's the little things that will get him through this.



That's him on the right with the white thing on his arm.

This is his new brace for his arm. It looks like something Tim Burton created. He's hooked up to rubber bands and has a hook super glued to his pinky and ring finger. This is to help the tendon heal. He also has to strap down these fingers when he goes to bed to avoid moving them at night.




Overall, Logan is looking at 2 years for full recovery with the nerve. He will get a little back each week but if he does everything right and follows the Doc's orders he will be back to everyday life in 3 months. He has his good days and bad but as long as the band keeps him involved he will get thru.

Here is a short video of the band playing their fight song... it is REALLY slow, (and after having compressed the video I see the quality isn't that great either) as the season continues they always sound better... they are the Marching Rebels, any guesses on the name of the song they are playing? (never mind the chatter between Ryan and I, you can see Tyler, last row of the trumpets. I say her name and another girls name and then they come into frame) Much more to come...