Fantasy Shopping

My husband loves Fantasy sports.  He's been commissioner of his Fantasy football and basketball leagues.  Both children's birth stories include details about my husband finishing up his research on his picks for that year's draft.  So, just so you know, fantasy sports are totally acceptable around here.
Fantasy shopping is also very accepted around these parts.
As a Stay at Home Mom, there's not a lot of dress code requirements to meet.  Washable.  Comfortable.  Not super frumpy-making.  All things fairly easy to accomplish on a daily basis.  However, I still enjoy pretending I can indulge in my fashion-plate fantasies every once in a while.  And thank god for the internet, because living in a small-ish town in Montana is not the place to go to indulge said fantasies.
You would think, since this is an activity not based in reality, that I would be all about finding things I like, clicking them into my cart, and moving on, with no regard for price.  Oh, but you would be wrong.  I'm a bargain-hunter, through and through.  Even in my wildest internet fantasy shopping sprees, I search out the least expensive option.  I can't help it.  If I find something I like, or there's a particular item I want to research, I simply must search out other more affordable option.  Sometimes this is fairly easy to do.  And nowadays, there are even whole blogs dedicated to this (fashion here; home decor here)!
How far do these fantasies go?  Far enough that I use this site to see if I can find some free shipping or coupon codes, just to get the price down a bit further.
Cheers and happy shopping -
Mama H

Denim backpack - WHAT?

I'm sorry, where the heck did this come from?????  1987??????????

I mean, can you imagine the design meeting for this?
"Let's take some jeans...and, oooh, ooh, remember that backpack your grandma bought you to be one of the cool kids, back in 5th grade?!??!?  Let's take jeans and make an updated version of that!"

Egads.

Cheers -
Mama H

Writer's block

Man, oh man, I've been suffering from some major writer's block.  I know - I've left you and high and dry.  I'm so sorry!  I just don't know what to write.
The boys are good.  I'm good.  The husband is good.
What's not so good?  The weather.  Seriously.  I'm over this:

I mean, really???  It says the low is supposed to be 19 degrees.  NINETEEN.  But that up there?  You read it right:  1.single.degree.  Ugh.
As if the bitter cold isn't enough of an insult, the reason it's this cold is because we're experiencing an inversion.  Which is basically where the clouds have gotten together and decided to hold all this cold down among the lowly people, in the valley, and let the warm air have some fun up in the mountains.  Which also means that the clouds have managed to keep all the pollution (smog, wood smoke, car exhaust, what have you) down here, too.  Which also means that we've had a Stage II air alert for the past few days.  You know what that means for those lucky sufferers of asthma???  Ugh, again.
So, I haven't run in two days.
Growl, growl, growl.
On that note, I shall try to conquer my dislike of January - a long month, full of cruddy, cold, weather, with no festive holidays - and regal you with some Juggle Like a Mama musings sometime soon.
Until then - keep warm!
Cheers -
Mama H

Lust - style

Happy Friday -

Just saw these boots on Aldo.com and am lusting...really wish I had them to bust out tonight for a quick glass of wine with the hubs, or a friend, or just to prance around my house in!

$52.49 doesn't seem like too shabby a price for leather boots...just sayin.

Go here to check them out.

Cheers -
Mama H

Amazon Prime

Hey all -
Just a quickie note...doin' a tiny Thrifty Thursday shout-out.  We're an amazon Prime household and I have to tell you, it's awesome.  The annual fee is a little crummy to choke down each year, but for the rest of each year, I thank myself every time I place an order and get FREE two-day shipping.  In an attempt to save moula (and watch less crappy TV  we also canceled our cable account this summer.  With Amazon Prime, we're able to stream shows and movies anytime we'd like.  Many of them are free to stream and occasionally we'll "rent" a movie (oooh, wild Friday nights here!).
Check it out, here.

Cheers, ya'll -
Mama H

PS I'm not getting anything for posting this review - just letting you in on thrifty secret.

Winter Running

Winter running is something that I've spent the last few years forcing myself to do. It's not like I live in Southern California, or even Seattle.  I live in Montana.  When it comes to winter weather, I'm specifically talking snow, ice, negative temperatures, lack of actual day light and wind chill.  In years past, winter would hit and my running would take a hiatus.  Or else I'd attempt to run on the treadmill (Tre d'mille, or Dreadmill, if you're so inclined - pun totally intended) and wind up hating everything, or worse, injured.
A few years ago I decided my goal was to run outside one time per month for the whole winter (basically December through April).  I know - some of you die-hards out there are laughing right now...baby steps, ok?!?  That winter I achieved my goal - and it felt good.  Chilly, but good.
Last winter I was way more into it, mostly because I met some other ladies who were willing to get out of bed and meet me at a park, in the dark, for a four-mile jaunt before work.  Part of my problem with winter running in years past is that to fit running into my day, I had to get it done before the rest of my house was awake and before I had to go to work.  That leaves the hours between 5:30 and 7:30 in the morning.  Ugh.
This year has been a whole new way of life.  I've been so lucky to get to be home with the kids since this past July. Which means that I can wait and run at a sane hour, like 11 a.m., if need be.  And I thought that also meant I was pretty much done with uber cold temps.  I was wrong.
Last week, I woke up to a 10 degree morning.  Once it got light out, I got the kiddos to one of their two mornings a week at preschool and headed home.  It was still right around the same temp as when I woke up, so I thought I'd get some chores done, wait for it to warm up a few degrees, and head out.  No such luck. An hour later, the sun was shining and it was down to 9 degrees.  Huh.  Well, I figured I'd get dressed in my gear, head out and it would warm up some while I was out and about.  To get dressed, I put on the following:

•  warm winter running tights (these are good),
• Smartwool socks (I just use my thinner ski socks, but I know Smartwool makes running socks, too),
•  running shoes,
• ice traction-gripper things (these, specifically) ,
• light fleece hat (race hat from an early spring run),
• neck gator (I like the Buff neck gator - it's light enough that I don't overheat and also versatile),
•  fleece ear cover (under my hat),
• light running tank (included bra),
• thicker running shirt
• heavier running coat (OMG - received this as a Christmas gift and am so flipping in love with it!)
• gloves &
• sunglasses.

I used to run less in the winter - 3 to 4 miles seemed good.  But I've come to the conclusion that if I'm going to spend all the time and energy to get all.that.gear. on I should spend longer outside.  Right?  Right.  My longest cold-weather run, so far, has been 9 miles.  It was a balmy 20 degrees, overcast and there was intermittent snow and ice on the ground.  I ran on the road, trails and sidewalks.  The road was the best maintained (least amount of ice and snow).  The trail was the prettiest, but the snow and ice made me stiff and it felt like I was running through sand.  These weren't the fastest miles of my life (that's for another entry), but it felt so good and like such a major accomplishment to get out there.
What's your winter-running secret???  Are you running in actual winter conditions, or are you oh-so-lucky and live in some temperate wonderland????
Cheers -
Mama H

First time skiing

This weekend we took our four year old skiing for the first time.  Prior to this Big E has skied in a park and our back yard - safe venues, if you're asking.  He's skied on little strap-to-your-snow-boots skis.  He's held onto a broom, pulled by his dad, to "go fast!"
He's never clicked his boots into his bindings, climbed on a magic carpet or up into a chair lift, coasted away from the earth, ridden up, then unloaded at the top of a run and braved the icy hill down to where the fun begins.
He was proud.
He was brave.
He was awesome.

I was lucky enough to learn how to ski from my dad, starting at the age of two.  He would drive me up to a nearby pass, carry our skis and me (!) up the hill, then get us all ready, hold me up on my skis, in between his own, and down we'd go.  That never meant that much to me - how young I was - how much work that was - until I had Big E.  And he turned two (too little!).  And then three (too nervous!).  And then four - and then? Then my firstborn got his own real, downhill skis.
When we got there, we signed him up for a private one hour lesson with, what turned out to be, an angel of a teacher.  She was so great that Big E was ready to follow her up the magic carpet, without even knowing her name.  He was high-fiving her, talking about his ski-prowess, and didn't need my encouragement to follow her over to their spot in line.  When I came back an hour later (sneakily skiing around the side to watch his progress), he was skiing into the line to await his next turn.  After a few minutes, he got out of line and sat down on the side.  I panicked, of course,and rushed over, thinking, "he's hurt!"
He was just tired.  And ready for hot cocoa.  His teacher had great things to say about his ability to "make a triangle" with his skis and his impressive balance.  We thanked her profusely for her lesson and headed down to the Lodge.  Once we'd deposited our skis outside, we headed in for lunch (and cocoa!) and talked about his runs.  And once we were finished eating?  He was ready to head back out!!

After a couple more runs down the magic carpet, Daddy M and Papa B couldn't resist asking if he wanted to ride a real chair lift...you'd have thought they'd never ask with the enthusiasm he answered that question with.  My heart was pounding, but I'm not willing to kill my kid's enthusiasm for skiing on his first day, so to the "big chair" we headed.
The first ride up was a little tricky - I mean, I've never held a tiny person on a chair lift, with skis dangling off his short, little, ski-boot laden legs before.  Daddy M and I both had a firm grip on him the whole time.  When we got to the top, we each scooped him up under one arm and helped him ski down the off-ramp.  I figured out that if I held my ski poles across the front of us, placing him in between my skis, and kind of holding them out in front of us like a handle bar, he could hold on, gain his own sense of balance and practice his "triangle" (but only if I skied with my skis REALLY REALLY far apart - see my aching glutes, shoulders, every part of my back and outer calves today...).
We spent the next two hours riding the chair up, scooping him off, getting him set up, and teaching him to ski.

I'm fairly early into this whole having-kids-thing.  My boys are four and two and a half years old.  And I have heard, more times than I can count, that being a parent doesn't necessarily get easier, but that it's different at every age.
And we have our moments - moments when I think, "damn, I should have called this blog, Struggle Like a Mama.  Cause today?  There's no juggling - these pieces flat out can't be caught, let alone launched back up into the air to juggle."
But those days seem to be getting fewer and farther between.  And now we're moving on to experiences like this weekend.  This weekend where I watched my baby boy (he will ALWAYS be my baby) hurtle his little body down a snow and ice covered slope, grin, and, scream, as he approached the chair lift for another go round, "RADICAL!"
The boy is a force to be reckoned with and he got both his Mama and Daddy's love for the speed, peace, joy, humility, grace, thrill and adventure that skiing offers.
Cheers to that -

The Motherhood

If you're a mom, this will make you laugh (and maybe cringe at it's accuracy?!?)...if you're anyone else, watch it and you'll have a teeny tiny insight into being a mom...

Happy end of weekend - new post tomorrow!

Cheers -

Mama H

Why I Love Running

Today is the day I've dedicated to using my blog to wax poetic about one my loves, running.  I haven't always been a runner.  In fact, up until I was almost done with college I never, ever considered myself a runner and was pretty sure people who called themselves "runners" may as well be honest and just call themselves "crazy."
Growing up, my mother was a runner.  She was the kind of runner who had to run every day - or at least it seemed like it.  She'd be up hours before I could fathom rolling over in bed, let alone getting dressed and trucking out the door, decked out in running gear.  Every once in a while she would try to get me to run, too.  I remember doing a 5K with her when I was in junior high.  It wasn't pretty.  (Side-note: it was a fundraiser for a non-profit, complete with celebrity endorsement.  I remember, very clearly, Valerie Harper, cheering her heart out for me as I - finally - crossed the finish line.  How is that the image that's stuck with me all these years?!?)
Running back in those days, and actually, well into the late '90's made me feel like I was suffocating: my throat would close up, I'd feel like my shirt was slowly sealing my esophagus shut and I could not catch my breath.  Are you seeing what it took me 20-some years to see???  Uh, yeah.  I had asthma - mostly allergy-induced.  All those years of sucking wind during soccer practice started to make more sense.  I'm mainly only allergic to three things - unfortunately those things happen to be grass, dust and pollen.  Huh - can you think of somewhere that has none of those things?  Me neither.
Fast forward a few years, a bajillion allergy shots and every combination of allergy meds you can come up with, as well as a long-standing prescription for Albuterol, and my asthma doesn't really bother me anymore.  I'm free to embrace this running thing for all it's glory.  And, man, have I embraced it.
What I love about running is that anyone can do it.
I know some of you are scoffing at that statement.  And to you, I say, find the next 5K in your town and go to it.  You don't have to participate, you just have to watch the finish line.  I guarantee that every kind of person imaginable will cross that line before the race is over.  Old, young, skinny, overweight, fast, slow, etc, etc, etc.  They are all there, giving it their personal best for that particular race.
Running keeps you honest.  If you haven't put in the time, you won't get the results you want.  You might get lucky and manage to finish the race you're running in the time you want, but it will feel terrible.  If you've put in the time (and all the race-day stars align - hydration, weather, gear, etc), you will rock that race.  And that?  Is freaking awesome.
Running makes me appreciate the moment.  Here's a photo of my view from a recent run:

I can tell you that a lot of people would look at this and think, why bother?  Grey skies.  Snow.  Stroller (holding 60 lbs of toddlers).  Phew - tough stuff.  But, you know what?  This was a great run.  I mean it, great.  Big E and Little H spent the whole time talking to me about everything we saw ("DUMP TRUCK!"), I swung by the grocery store and grabbed some sugar (so we could bake cookies when we got home), and I appreciated my surroundings (check out those mountains!).  There's not much I do on a regular basis that makes me so thankful for the mundane details of my life.  Thank god running relaxes my brain enough to let me own that appreciation.

Cheers, peeps -