Relax and Just Be

Tim signed me up for pregnant yoga (probably really called prenatal yoga) through IHC and I have totally loved it. If there is anyone looking for a great class, let me know. The teacher is one that I would follow around for regular classes. She is exactly what I think a yoga teacher should be: encouraging but calm and serene sounding. She really makes a point of focusing on the mind body connection. Right now I have so many crazy thoughts running around my head that it is perfect to be able to push that all away for an hour. Last night I just kept focusing on "Relax and Just Be". It really helped keep me focused and I left feeling ready to face the world again.

I have had such strange food cravings. Currently I am obsessed with grapefruit and eat at least 2 a day. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and eat some. This morning I had brought yogurt and granola for breakfast but when I got to work it didn't sound good at all. Instead I ate a cheese stick and beef jerky - Rubio must be craving protein. It may have looked strange, but it was delicious.

Since this post is already random, I'll include my two favorite things that I have seen on other people's blogs this week. One made me laugh out loud - yes I'm talking to you Adele.

Sorry, I'm horrible at embedding the links

http://http://mormoninmanhattan.blogspot.com/

http://thesegolilypad.blogspot.com/

Valentines

Ok, so this is the cutest thing ever. In school Ada got to make a valentine for someone she loves and guess who was the lucky recipient...Baby Rubio. Is that not the sweetest thing. Not even here yet and he is already so loved.
Oh, maybe I should give a little explanation on the name Rubio - no worries, that will not be his real name, although at this point it will probably be his nick name for life. From the time we got married Tim and I have always discussed naming a baby girl Ruby. For the first several months of this pregnancy we would talk about the possibility of baby Ruby but finally acknowledged that it might be a boy and then what....we had no good names. I said that he would just have to be Rubio. Well, it's a boy, and Rubio stuck. I think it is much better than referring to him as "it", or "the baby", kind of endearing and now everyone refers to him as Rubio.

Tim always is very good to me on Valentines. He brought me flowers and treats to work in the morning. For Christmas he had given me tickets to the Lady Antebellum concert which, lucky for him, fell on Valentines night. It was the perfect way to celebrate.
Clearly not a good picture, darn I-phone, but at least there is proof we were there.

Need a Babysitter

We got to hang out with Calvin on Saturday night and I think scored serious points in the "best babysitters" contest. Yes, that is his dinner, nacho cheese Doritos and chocolate milk. I'm sure there are some nutrients in there somewhere, calcium maybe? He is a pretty picky eater and I figured that as the aunt, it's not my job to make him eat nutritious, right? Don't worry, if he would have been with us for a second meal, I would have made sure he at least had a carrot or something to balance out the meal.
We had some great times playing on the dinosaur bones at the mall, and playing Wii Star Wars at home, but the best part of the night came when he started asking about the baby. He wanted to know when the baby would be here and "how is he going to get out?" Ummm, silence from me. He then followed up with "When it is time for the baby to come out, where is the door for him to get out?" The door??? Hmmm. I thought about taking the opportunity to teach my nephew about the birds and the bees, but instead came up with a quick distraction and asked him about his new race car. Luckily at 4 years old that was more interesting and he was happy to talk about his toys. The door. We have been laughing about it ever since.
So, the moral of this story is...if you want your kids to have a nutritious meal and learn the facts of life, send them our way.
Oh, and a few people have asked, the baby should be making his exit out the door on April 18th.

Just Do It

I stumbled across someone's blog post the other day entitled "Why I Run". She talked about what was going on in her life, how running kept it under control, and how running made her feel both physically and emotionally. As I read all I could think about was how much I miss running. Let me clarify, how much I miss running freely. I am really lucky that I am still able to run. Each week gets progressively slower, and it might not be much faster than a brisk walk, but I can still put my running shoes to good use. So, I am grateful for that, but sometimes I just miss being able to run long and hard and push myself to get better. The past year and a half have really not been my best physically so my running has suffered. I didn't discover running until my late 20's and once I did, I seriously think I became a better person physically and emotionally. That's probably why I plug along now slowly, trying to squeeze out all the benefits I can. I won't lie, I often fantasize about running down the trail, free and fast (my version of fast). True, the fantasy includes a jogging stroller, but I can still hardly wait. In the meantime, I enjoy what I have and supplement the endorphins by reading about running. Sometimes those shoe ads just get it right. Enjoy a few of my favs:

Mexico - The Fun

We spent a lot of our time in Mexico laughing, or otherwise enjoying ourselves. The main restaurant had a "Mariachi Night" and my mom was so excited to go. When the band got to our table, we went with the classic "La Bamba". I'm sure the guys in the band cringe every time it is requested, but it was everything my mom was hoping for and more.

Just monkeying around.

Every day at noon they had some type of game or contest,
If you know my mom, you know that she would be
The first one in line, and usually won.
She was great in this dance contest,but lost out to a
Ten year old little girl with serious moves.

One of the favorite spots - the pool bar.
A pina colada tastes even better when drinking it here.

Mexico - Playa Del Carmen

Tim has never spent any time in Playa del Carmen, and it has been ten years since my parents were there so we got in some early beach time one day and then headed to town.

This shot is just for Julie,
"The Bikineria"

Ten years ago we ate at Sur, an Argentine restaurant,
It's still there and still oh so delicious.
Seriously, my steak was so tender I didn't even need a knife.

The town has changed so much over the years that I have been going to Mexico. It has gotten super busy, lots of tourists, and higher prices. With the progress, I think Playa has lost a little of its charm, but still a fun place to visit.

Mexico - The Beach

Prepare for an overload of Mexico pics. I've said before that I don't scrapbook or journal, this is as good as it gets, so...lots of photos.

I thought I would make it clear that it is baby,
Not too much guacamole.

The boys had a good time kayaking,
I think they only got in trouble a few times.

It was so fun having my parents with us.

We struggled with the self photo,
This was the best we could get.

Mexico - The Haciendas

A few years ago Julie and I stayed at the Royal Haciendas and fell in love. This year when we were looking for a place to stay - you know I have to make my yearly pilgrimage - it seemed like a great time to return. We were not disappointed. This was not an all inclusive (usually a favorite), but worked great for the situation, it was a villa with bedrooms on opposite sides, then a living room, kitchen, etc., in the middle. We were lucky and convinced my parents to go with so we loved having such a relaxing place to stay. Sorry, I was kind of a slacker and didn't take hardly any pictures of the resort or the rooms, but here are a few...

Our first night there on the way to dinner, not too shabby.

The grounds were beautiful,

I never got tired of walking under this arch.

Of course the pools were amazing,

Your welcome for the added beauty to the view.

My parents went out for a fancy dinner,

Tim and I had mac and cheese with hot dogs

At least they let us join them for the high class picture.

Just you wait, the beach pictures are coming...