Mother's Day Weekend

I survived my first yoga class! Despite my instructor's concerns about my abilities to participate and complete the moves, I did not have any trouble.  When I arrived and realized that there was only one other lady signed up for the course, I began to understand my instructor's pleas for me to disenroll.  I suspect that she was frustrated that she was obligated to teach a class to only two students for six weeks. If I had heeded her advice, she would have had cause to cancel entirely. 

I'm sore this morning, but looking forward to the weekend. I have learned a long time ago to keep my Mother's Day expectations low. At this juncture, instead of gifts and doting I am going to be grateful if I am allowed to sleep beyond 5.

I'm sure that Scott and Robby dig my "World's Best Mother" banner out of the garage and hang it from the balcony. The pair will both try to abide by my "no fart talk" decree, although I'm not terribly optimistic that they will be successful. Not only are they banned from discussing flatulence, but I have put a moratorium on talking about all bodily functions. An entire weekend without "guess that smell" and "pull my finger" is going to feel luxurious! With their topics significantly stymied, I suspect that the pair are going to have a difficult time maintaining conversations.

On Sunday I registered to take Robby to the Mother's Day brunch at our local club. Scott is going to stay home with Hamlet, allowing me the opportunity to actually enjoy a meal without the stress and chaos that ensues when we take the little tornado into public.  I predict that my diet will be derailed slightly, but special occasions warrant splurging. I'm sure I'll get back on track on Monday morning, when life returns to normal. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy the ban on bathroom humor and the extra sleep.

Happy Mother's Day Weekend!

I'm Special Needs?

Tonight I am doing something completely out of my comfort zone. I've been wanting to try yoga for a long time, but being self conscious about both my body and my abilities has always held me back. I finally mustered the courage to give it a try, and tonight is my first class.  I figured that I'm almost 42 and it's about time I stop letting vanity interfere with my activities. 

Yesterday afternoon I received an email confirming the class and asking for my contact information. Apparently the yoga instructor wanted to speak with me. I assumed that she was calling all participants, so I didn't really think much about it when I responded with my phone number.

It turns out that she was not calling everybody who enrolled, but was concerned about my possibly being an amputee.  (Considering that my email is amputeemommy@gmail.com, it was a fairly safe assumption.) The instructor was worried about my ability to participate in yoga and actively tried to discourage  me from taking the course. She explained that this was not a "special needs" yoga course, and that I would be responsible for adapting all of the moves because she wouldn't have time to help me.

I must admit that I was taken aback by the entire conversation. The more she spoke, the more adamant I felt that I was taking the course. I have never been one to back down from a challenge. Only now I don't feel challenged by trying a new activity (yoga), I feel determined to prove the instructor wrong. I may not be able to do every move, and it may not look pretty, but I'll be doing yoga with everybody else tonight.

Bad Weather Blues

The dreary weather of the past few days has been wearing me down. While we haven't experienced steady rain, the pop-up thunderstorms have been working to keep everything ugly and wet.  I keep trying to remind myself that "April showers bring May flowers," but in all honesty the rhyme is offering little solace. I miss the sun and I'm tired of the mud and muck from the rain.

Timmy has been wreaking havoc around the house. He is certainly an outside kid, requiring room to run and move. Trying to keep him contained and occupied has been utterly exhausting. It turns out that it is less work running after him outside than trying to entertain him inside the house. After a few days of Timmy confinement, my house has become a chaotic minefield of toys and crumbs. 

Looking for the positive, I haven't experienced the phantom pain that many times accompanies these weather patterns. For whatever reason, my leg has been feeling fine. Dealing with the mud, downed tree limbs and an energetic but bored Timmy, I will count my leg comfort as a blessing.

Hopefully the weather will break soon and we can blow all of the dirt and gunk away. In the meantime, I think today is the perfect day for a jumping adventure. Hopefully he will be able to jump some of his energy away.

Riding

Robby and I have been thoroughly enjoying training for the Great Cycle Challenge. Each night after dinner and after we tuck Hamlet into bed, we hop onto our bikes and meander through the neighborhood. He talks as he pedals, allowing me a precious insight into his world and thought process.  Between his new bicycle and more time in the saddle, he is turning into a strong rider. 

I have always loved riding my bike and being able to share this activity with Robby has only enhanced my enjoyment. When I became an amputee I was convinced that I would never again feel the exhilaration that comes from riding. I settled for a stationary bike out of a fear which had grown to irrational proportions. I became so paralyzed by my fear of falling or of my leg falling off while pedaling that I refused to even try for almost a decade. It wasn't until I saw Robby overcome his fear of the bike that I realized I needed to follow his example. 

Riding with a prosthesis feels almost identical to when I had both biological legs. I'm decidedly more cautious, but at my age that probably isn't a bad thing. After all, falling off a bike in your 40's could be considerably more painful with a lengthy recovery than when I was Robby's age. 

I'm so happy that I overcame my cycling phobia. If I had let my fears continue to hold me back, I would be missing out on this great quality time with Robby. He is at an age where he would rather spend time with his friends or on the computer. The fact that he asks to go riding with me is something that I don't take for granted.  (Rest assured, little Timmy gets plenty of riding time. I frequently stick him into his baby buggy and pull him around the neighborhood when the weather is favorable.)

Weekend Wrap-Up

Friday afternoon I packed up the boys and headed to my Mom's for the weekend. We didn't have any grand plans, but the prospect of just relaxing and hanging out for a few days was enough motivation to drive.  Scott opted to stay in Virginia so that he could enjoy some "bachelor time" while lounging around the house. He often chooses to not accompany us on these trips, which is fine because I think that an occasional weekend apart is good for everybody. 

My cousin came to visit on Saturday. Her baby girl Aleena is just a few months younger than Timmy. It was a lot of fun watching the two interact, trying to figure out what to do with another little person in the room. Both kids are accustomed to being the baby of the family, and sharing this role was difficult for them to navigate.  Eventually they figured it out, assuming that their respective mother did not pay too much attention to the other child.

Yesterday I came home, and returned to the reality of dishes in the sink and laundry piled on the floor. Oh how I wish I had a Fairy Godmother who tackle all of the household chores with the wave of her wand. I've tried to conjure some magic with Robby's magician wand but only resulted in looking foolish and nearly knocking over a lamp. 

Lacking any magical intervention, I suspect that I'll have to buckle down this week and whip this house into shape. Visiting with my Mom was considerably more fun than cleaning...