{partners in crime}: April 2016

The popularity of Pinterest is kind of a dying trend I think, but I still like to look through there for ideas on meals, the house, etc. I kept coming across these recipes for baked donuts and thought to myself how do people make those! Come to find out they are extremely simple to make and when you do make them people are pretty impressed! All you need is a donut pan and some recipes!!! So far I have made the following...

Lemon Blueberry Baked Donuts

Chunky Monkey Baked Donuts

Chocolate Peanut Butter Baked Donuts

Strawberry Lemonade Baked Donuts

Maple Bacon Baked Donuts

Greek Yogurt Baked Donuts with Chocolate Glaze and Sprinkles

Lemon Baked Donuts with Fresh Strawberry Glaze

... You might say we are a little donut obsessed around our house!!! Now... before you freak out thinking that I'm eating all these delicious creations think again. Usually I don't even try them! They all go straight to work with Dan for his co-workers or to training for the SWAT Team. I love hearing all the wonderful comments when Dan gets home :) Now... go buy a couple of donut pans and start impressing people with your donut making skills!

Mileage Monday

Running stats for April 18th - April 24th... Behind on the blogging once again. How does that happen really? No running for this past week, but I did get some walks in with Remington. Roarke and I spent a lot of time outside, but mainly swinging at the park or just hanging out in the backyard. Out of the 7 years that Dan and I have lived in this house this is by far the most time I have spent in our backyard... and that's just in a two week period. Glad I have gotten the chance to enjoy it with Roarke.

Monday, April 18th, 2016 - REST DAY!

Tuesday, April 19th, 2016 - 1.87 mile walk with Remi

Wednesday, April 20th, 2016 - REST DAY!

Thursday, April 21st, 2016 - REST DAY!

Friday, April 22nd, 2016 - REST DAY!

Saturday, April 23rd, 2016 - REST DAY!

Sunday, April 24th, 2016 - 1.87 mile walk with Remi, Roarke, and Dan

Totals for the week : Walked 3.49 miles

Week #45

#52weeksofRoarke

Mileage Monday

Running stats for the week of April 11th - April 17th... Oh my goodness could the weather this past week have been any better!?! Talk about gorgeous! We were outside pretty much every single day enjoying it! Remi got in 7 walks this week... count 'em... SEVEN! I don't know if that has ever happened in his entire life! By the end of the week I think he was a little exhausted so today he is taking it easy and recovering from so much exercise. Roarke has loved going on walks outside. I love watching him take everything in. And the best thing is the fresh air wears him out, which is always a win win for me! Running went well for me this week. I'm able to run for longer distances and my endurance is getting better. Hoping to hit a 4 miler this upcoming week. It has been a long long while since I was able to run that far! Hope everyone has been out and about enjoying all this sunshine! Could spring/summer actually be here to stay! Let's hope so!

Monday, April 11th, 2016 - REST DAY!

Tuesday, April 12th, 2016 - 1.87 mile walk with Remi / 1.87 mile walk with Remi, Roarke, and Dan / 2.3 mile run / Stretch

Wednesday, April 13th, 2016 - 1.87 mile walk with Remi, Roarke, and Dan / Stretch

Thursday, April 14th, 2016 - 2.25 mile walk with Remi / 2.5 mile run / Stretch

Friday, April 15th, 2016 - 2.25 mile stroller walk with Roarke / 1.5 mile walk with Roarke, Remi and Dan

Saturday, April 16th, 2016 - 1.87 mile walk with Remi

Sunday, April 17th, 2016 - 3 mile walk with Roarke, Remi, and Dan at Franklin Greenways / 3.1 mile run / Stretch

Totals for the week : Walked 16.48 miles / Ran 7.9 miles

Week #44

Roarke

Weight: 17 lbs 4 oz

Life with the R-man is busy busy busy! He is now pulling himself up on everything and cruising around while holding on to tables and furniture for balance. Nothing is safe in our house anymore. I feel like I'm picking up after a mini tornado. He enjoys opening and closing doors, turning light switches on and off, and helping with laundry. He keeps me on my toes constantly. Eating anything is a complete disaster most days. He likes to do this by myself for the most part and loves eating chunks of veggies, fruits, and cereal. I usually just let him do his thing and then clean up after all is said and done. Roarke says Momma, Dada, and bye bye! He loves playing peek-a-boo and that guarantees a smile. Since the weather has gotten warmer we have been venturing outside almost everyday. Recently we discovered that Roarke hates grass so anytime we are just hanging out I have to put a towel or sheet down to protect him from the dreaded green stuff! Haha! He is super easy going still, but wants what he wants when he wants it so we do deal with frustration a lot because he usually can't communicate to us how to help him. It is hard to believe that in a few months I'll have a one year old! Holy cow where has the time gone!

#52weeksofRoarke

Surgery

Surgery is scary. It's scary when you have to go through it. It's scary when a beloved animal has to go through it. It's scary when a loved one has to go through it. But this week I learned a new kind of scary... the kind of scary when your child is having surgery. It shakes you. You can have the best doctors, be in the best facilities, have the best circumstances... but there is still that harsh reality that something could go wrong. There is this fear in the pit of your stomach because whatever happens is out of your control. Surgery is scary.

When Roarke was born we knew after he was just a day old that when he got close to a year he would need to have surgery. I've been dreading it ever since, but we were extremely lucky to find a doctor that really put our minds at ease on the procedure. Really, it was more the thought of this tiny human being having to be put under for a period of time than the actual surgery itself. But the days ticked by and slowly the day I had been dreading arrived.

Surgery was scheduled for 7:00 in the morning, but we had to be there no later than 6:00 to get Roarke prepped. I hated the thought of waking up my good sleeper at 5:15 because I just knew he was going to be a major crank. This boy loves his sleep and normally does not get up until 8:00 each morning. But much to my surprise he gave me no problems at all and was pleasant pretty much the entire day.

Once we arrived they took us back to a surgery room where a nurse took his vitals and proceeded to get him and us ready for what was in store. All the nurses were extremely nice. They were over the moon for Roarke and continued to tell us that they just could not believe what a calm and easy going boy he was. Believe me, I know how blessed we are!

Had to get his vitals from his chunky toe because his fingers were too small.

Looking handsome in his gown!

"Hmmmm what trouble can I get in to?"

Roarke's nurse gave him a toy to play with... and right in his mouth it went!

When it was time for Dan and I to leave Roarke's side I was a little concerned because he has been going through some separation/stranger anxiety lately. I figured once one of the nurses picked him up the tears would flow... but they didn't! Dan and I kissed him and he wrapped his little arms around his nurse like a brave little soul and away they went. This made it so much easier on me to know he wasn't scared... therefore I shouldn't be either.

Dan and I were in the waiting room for only a few hours, but goodness it felt more like an eternity. I felt so sick to my stomach not knowing what was going on and if Roarke was doing okay. What made it even worse was that half way through the surgery our doctor called the front desk to speak with me. He noticed something else during the surgery that he suggested we have taken care of while Roarke was under. It was actually kind of a blessing because if he had not seen it we probably would have been back in a year or two for another surgery to have that issue addressed. This extra procedure adding more time onto the surgery which kind of worried me because it meant more time that Roarke was under. You can imagine my relief once he was out of surgery and back in the recovery room.

And when I saw this boy with three nurses huddled over him giving him all sorts of love and cuddles I fell apart... mostly because I was relieved he was safe but also because I had been trying to hold it together most of the morning.

Some Pedialyte to rehydrate!

And cuddles from Momma...

And would you believe this boy didn't cry once! Not once during the entire thing! The nurses were amazed and when we finally left all they kept telling us was what a pleasure it was to take care of Roarke that morning. Seriously... could God have blessed me with a more perfect little human to raise?

We left the surgery center, stopped by Walgreens to pick up his prescriptions, and went straight home where Roarke fell into a deep sleep for the next four hours. When he woke up, he was super cranky but much more so himself. He played with his toys for a while, ate some applesauce, and took his pain meds and antibiotics (which he hated)... and was ready for bed again by 5:00!

Now I just hope that he sleeps through the night without too much trouble!

Thanks for all the positive thoughts and prayers for the R-man. Hopefully he has a speedy recovery and is back to his normal self in no time!

Southside Momma's Meetup

I'm definitely an introvert at heart. I enjoy being at home, reading a book, watching a good movie on TV, taking a long walk, going on a run. I enjoy spending time with friends, but smaller groups are my thing... definitely NOT big parties. However, now that Roarke is getting older I know that just being with Dan and I is not benefiting his social skills. I knew that I needed to start taking him to groups where he could meet other kids his age and do things outside his norm. So, even though putting myself in situations were I don't know anyone is kind of stressful, I decided to join a Southside Momma's group so I could be part of different events that go on throughout the month that I thought Roarke might enjoy.

Roarke and I have gone to something called "Play Baby Play" a few times at our local library. It is an hour long program were you get to sing, learn rhymes, play musical instruments, read books, and just play with other kids. I have definitely noticed Roarke is starting to get a little bit of stranger anxiety lately, but when we go to these groups he just jumps right in to playing with other kids. It is fun to see him play with other kids since I don't see that very often.

Love that little guy!

Here's Roarke with his buddy Lincoln! I have to laugh when I'm at these groups. Mom's with their 3-6 month old babies will sit down next to me and say things like... "Oh, they look like they are the same age, how old is he?" They are absolutely shocked when I tell them Roarke is 10 months. Its crazy to see a 3 month old weigh the same as my 10 month old! Oh my my my!

This little lady thought Roarke was good looking! I caught her giving him the eye several times :)

I really thought that I would hate going to things like this and making small talk with people I don't know, but I actually haven't minded it and I don't ever really feel like I don't know anyone there because I always have Roarke to talk to. Once Roarke turns one we will be able to join in a lot more things! Can't wait for more adventures with my little dude!

March Photo Dump 2016

Our best photos from the month of March!

Mileage Monday

Running stats for the week of April 4th - April 10th... you would think that one of my biggest fears would be Roarke getting the flu. Well, obviously I never would want that, but with an 80 lb dog who vomits quite often I have grown use to dealing with cleaning up messes such as that. No... my biggest worry for me as a Mom is actually me getting sick and not being able to take care of Roarke the way I would want to. That is exactly what happened this past week...

Roarke ended up coming down with the stomach flu on Monday evening and spent most of the day on Tuesday recovering. Once I put Roarke down for bed on Tuesday evening I started in throwing up. This went on most of the night with cold sweats and aches. Uhhhgggg! On Wednesday morning Dan offered to stay home from work and take care of Roarke so I could get some rest, but I declined his offer knowing that more than likely he was going to come down with the same thing and I didn't want him missing any more work than he had to. So my day Wednesday was pretty miserable as I tried to take care of myself and my sweet Roarke. I was absolutely exhausted and just plain weak from the night before. Then on Thursday evening Dan came down with it and battled a high temp most of the night. He ended up staying home from work on Friday to recover.

So mainly, my week was full of sickness. Everytime one of us would get better another one would come down with it. I spent soooooo much time doing laundry and trying to disinfect my house, but I never could get ahead of it. I'm so thankful that we are on the upswing now even though I still don't have any appetite. Needless to say, I didn't get any running in last week, but I'm looking forward to some warmer temperatures this week and getting outside again.

On Thursday, Roarke has a minor surgery coming up so I'm glad that we got this out of our system before that takes place! Send good vibes our way and I'll keep you posted on how things go.

Week #43

When everyone has been sick all week you take your weekly pic in your PJ's :)

#52weeksofRoarke

Mileage Monday

Running stats for the week of March 28th - April 3rd... Lordy! This past week was a week of catch up. Catch up on cleaning, on laundry, on outside chores, on food prepping... so much of the week was spent on just catching up that most of the things I usually do was lost. So in the world of working out all I really got accomplished was one walk with my Remi. Pathetic I know.

And even now as a new week is beginning I find myself once again playing catch up as the Roarke-a-nator seems to have come down with a stomach bug. It has definitely been one of the less glamorous moments in my motherhood career as I'm cleaning up huge spots of vomit off my carpet while my 10 month old sits in the bathtub covered in it. All that laundry I had got finished was suddenly overflowing in my laundry room, my sink was full of dishes, and my cleanly swept floors wreaked of Resolve Carpet Cleaner. YUCK!

This sweet Sugar Bear is not feeling so hot and it breaks my heart!

So let me apologize if I don't get to that blog post, dirty dish, smelly towel, or run this week. Right now in terms of catching up I'm focused on snuggling a sweet little man who needs extra love while he is on the mend. I must remember that all those things that need done really don't matter in the least, but being there for my loves are what's important!