The Accomplished List

This isn't me or my kitchen.

It's 8:30ish in the morning here. I've already run 4.5 miles, fed my kids breakfast, and mopped up a gigantic disgusting mess in the garage. Don't ask. It's just not share worthy. I am now sitting at my computer with my homemade latte that tastes nothing like the Starbucks latte I love so much trying to get a blogging streak going to match my running streak, 10 consecutive days and about 30 miles. How cool is that? AND, I'm typing stuff on my blog, the third post in two days. I feel so accomplished right now, I'm going to revel in it since this is probably the most I'll get done all day. Ask me what I've accomplished again at about 8:30 tonight, and I'll more than likely have the same list having only added "kept the kids alive" and "managed not to run away."

Oh, wait, we have baseball tonight. The list grows on baseball nights. So, tonight if you asked me what I accomplished I will probably say that I got two unwilling spectators ready to watch their brother play baseball. I packed a bag with a bazillion tricks and snacks to keep said unwilling spectators happy at the game. Then repacked the bag after a five year old in a panic to find the ONE toy she MUST have for the game or she just CAN'T survive dumps it all over the floor. I can say I fought over the reasons why sparkly princess shoes are not the kind of thing you wear to the ball park, and searched the house top to bottom for the socks I JUST handed my eight year old and decided to just get him fresh socks that may or may not match because at this point we're so late it just doesn't matter. (We'll probably find them as soon as we get home. Like yesterday we found them on his bathroom counter next to his tooth brush.). I will have traveled to the game, probably arriving late due to toy and sock issues, and I will arrive with a nagging headache having listened to the Frozen soundtrack AGAIN, and also having listened to my eight year old son beg me to never play those songs again, EVER, "plllleeeeeeeease!" I will more than likely have fed them something from a drive through as we are traveling to the game because in all the chaos of getting to the game, cooking is just not an option, even in the summer. Then I will probably have resolved to never feed my children fast food again hearing my eight year old, Jackson, the one with the food allergies and autism, ask me when I'm going to cook again, "I love when you cook, and I miss your yummy food." I will have gone through a dozen healthy snacks offering each one to my children who just ate fast food eventually caving in to the lure of the concession stand. AND, I will have attempted to have adult conversation with the other baseball moms while watching said unwilling spectators and also paying attention to my super star BJ Upton/Freddie Freeman/Mike Minor combo kid (I'm not biased or anything) play the game he loves so much so that when he asks me later, "did you see that, Mom. Did you see that?" I can reply, "yes, baby and it was awesome!"

So, tonight when I say, "I managed to keep the kids alive and not run away." It will mean so much more than say, yesterday when the most I accomplished was dishes, grocery shopping and boxed pizza for dinner (it was Kashi and Amy's organic). Now, grocery shopping WITH my kids is kind of like attempting to climb Mount Everest in a bikini. Ok. I'll take that back so I don't offend those super fit, crazy people who have actually accomplished that nearly inhuman feat — the climbing Mount Everest thing not the bikini thing, 'cause that would just be dumb. Grocery shopping WITH my kids is more like running a half marathon on a trail on hills that feel like you're climbing a mountain in 80 degrees and 80% humidity with the sun glaring through every opening in the canopy above knowing your super fast friend you've been chasing your whole running life is probably up ahead singing her way through the race and crossing the finish with a PR. That will be on my list of accomplishments for next Saturday, should I survive, anyway.

If I don't, then you can say, I died doing something I love trying to be better than the woman I was yesterday. If I do survive, though, you should probably know that I'm really just running this race because there are some awesome women running it that asked if I would join them. I like running for me, but I like running for others more. Well, that and it will help me keep my running streak alive, AND I have ten pounds I gained training for that darn marathon I need to get rid of. Plus, my daughter is super proud of me when I get home from a race. I want to inspire her to do things that are uncomfortable and difficult, to push herself outside the box so she has a nice fat mental file of accomplishments to draw on when she's facing a mountain she doesn't know if she can climb. And, running is awesome. It just is.

So, now I'm going to go clean my house, make sure a certain uniform is clean, and attempt to prepare ahead of time so maybe I can be on time and forego some of those 'issues' I listed in the second paragraph. Then maybe I can add "finished the day with low stress and fell asleep quickly without any worry over the permanent damage I've caused my children with my overwhelmed craziness." We'll see. It's still early.