June gbomb

Good

• My sister Heather and her husband came to visit right at the beginning of the month! It was SO fun having them here! We discovered some awesome things to do in Flagstaff and just thoroughly enjoyed their company. They have 2 little girls and I’m so glad we got some one on one time with them! They are just the sweetest little nuggets! I wish they were all still here!!!!!!!
• One of the big reasons Heather came was to do a race with me. It’s been a looooong time since I’ve raced and since Flagstaff is a bit of a running mecca, I figured it was time. I’m so glad Heather did the race with me! I was so nervous I just might have backed out if she wasn’t doing it too, ha! We did a 13k (about 8 miles) night trail race. It was challenging but I’m so glad I did it (and also glad it’s over)!
• We had another friend visit this month and we’ve loved having company. It’s fun to catch up, but I also love the opportunity to discover more about the area we live in. Sometimes it’s hard because Flagstaff is kind of expensive and not super kid friendly, but we found some pretty sweet spots with our visitors. So…if anyone else wants to come visit…
• They say if you’re married in June, you’re a bride all your liiiiife!!! (Name the movie! Anyone? Anyone?). But really…Ben and I have now been married (more than) 5 years! Whaaaa? Yeah, it’s crazy.
• Ben is teaching summer classes on campus and he’s also working on his thesis, buuuut he has been significantly less busy than either of us had been expecting. It’s been so nice to have him around more.
• Oh man, summer in Flagstaff has been absolutely gorgeous! For those who aren’t familiar, Flagstaff isn’t really like the rest of Arizona-it’s at a high elevation, we get lots of snow and our landscape is pine trees instead of saguaros. This summer has been filled with wildflowers, pine scented air and blossoming cacti. It is unique and I love it.

Bad

• Sooooooooo….where to begin? Our doctor has been a little bit concerned with Wendy’s weight the past couple of appointments. And the last time we were in, the doctor referred us to some specialists (a nutritionist and a GI specialist). For whatever reason, I kept thinking that the specialists were just going to tell us that everything was fine and that there was nothing to worry about. But no. Both specialists expressed concern and then they mapped out a guideline for how we were going to make Wendy gain weight. I know, it’s not so bad but my mom brain just exploded with stress and worry and feelings of inadequacy. It is so frustrating to be failing at the one thing that’s supposed to be simple and second nature. However, we’ve followed the guidelines the specialists recommended and we had a follow up appointment this week. The verdict is good: Wendy’s gaining more weight and on track to get back up to a percentile (instead of zero percentile like she’s been at).
• Another frustration this month has been exercising! I don’t know how mothers of multiple children get any workouts in! I guess I really can’t complain-I do exercise every day and Wendy is not mobile enough to get into too much trouble when I do a workout video. I guess my biggest complaint is that I haven’t been able to run as much as I wish I could. I miss it. Maybe I’ll get a good run in…in 18 years…

On my brain

• I’ve been teaching the 11 and 12 year old primary class at church since Wendy was born. And I feel like I still haven’t found the right groove. I try to switch things up or incorporate new ideas and I still feel like I’m met with apathy (at best). Maybe it’s just the age group…but I’m always trying to think of ways to get them more involved…and less disruptive. Any ideas?
• I’ve written about this before and I’m sure I’ll write about it again but Ben’s been looking into more PhD programs and it always makes me wonder where we’ll be going next. He won’t apply until the end of fall and probably won’t hear back/decide where to go until March(ish). I guess we’ll just have to wait and see…
• I have never been super into Halloween but I’ve seriously been thinking about costumes all month! It is so weird for me, but since Wendy’s birthday is so close to Halloween, I really just feel an extra need to make the most of that holiday. It’s a good thing we still have months before October because my history with Halloween has not primed my brain for costume ideas.