Kristy Maute

Checking things off the list

Finally! Our weekend consisted of no real big plans! I feel like we have been in go mode since March. This weekend the only thing on our agenda was to start organizing and to hang out with Christian’s brother, sister-in-law, and niece who were in town from Northern Virginia. I also had some big hopes of catching up on sleep. I can’t get enough lately.

Cole’s best buddy Ashton requested that Cole spend the weekend at his house. On Friday night, Christian and I suddenly realized we had a kid-free weekend. We enjoyed dinner with some friend at The Back Deck. It’s a cute little outdoor bar right on the water. How we live in a beach town with so few restaurants actually on the water baffles me. You can’t drive more than a few miles without crossing some type of water, but there really are only a few restaurants on the water. Whenever we find a new one, I get excited. This one was way low-key. It’s definitely the perfect happy hour hangout. While we were finishing up, we spotted these two cute little guys fishing in a boat solo. Maybe I’m overprotective, but who let’s their young boys go out fishing by themselves at sunset. The current was moving too. The boys definitely had things under control, but yikes! Sorry Cole – no solo boat fishing for you until your 18!

Saturday we cleaned house all day! The house is still a mess, but Cole’s room is finally organized and the ceiling fan is finally hung in our extra bedroom (we bought it before Christmas. yikes!).

Recently we took the leap of faith, and we let Alex stay out of his kennel at night-time. He quickly discovered the comfort of our bed. Christian and I have a full size bed. We aren’t big people, and we both sleep glued to each others side. We have no need for something bigger. In fact, bigger beds in hotels are too big for us. We both feel kind of lost. Our full size bed is perfect for our cozy night of sleep, but it is not perfect for our crazy dog too. To make it worse, Alex loves to snuggle too. He has to be touching someone at all times.

Cole has been jealous about Alex sleeping in our bed. He really wants him to sleep with him. Sounds good to me. The only problem was that Cole sleeps in the top bunk of a bunk bed. Alex can’t make it to the top. Cole requested that we convert his bed into a regular twin bed, so Alex could start sleeping in his room. He didn’t have to ask me twice. Consider it done. I spent all day Saturday cleaning his disaster of room, but the task is done. He now has a twin bed.

So so so much better. Maybe he will actually hang out in his bedroom. And maybe Alex will sleep with him tonight, so I can get a good night’s sleep. I feel so much better when I get things organized. Another thing checked off the to-do list. One less thing to stress about. This task didn’t linger long enough to make it to a 40 day goal list – that in itself is an accomplishment in our house. We are getting things done!

We also had a fun-filled dinner at Christian’s parent’s house. We picked up Cole for a few hours so he could enjoy some cousin time. Little Miss Jillian is such a cutie, and she sure does love Cole!

Next weekend’s plans: It’s a toss-up between being tackling the garage, shed and storage closets and a quick camping getaway. I’d really love for our house to be more organized going into the summer. I know we won’t do it then because we will be living on the beach. I also want to go camping/hiking with Cole before the school year ends. I think I might let the weather decide this one.

It’s a beautiful day

If you live in Virginia Beach and haven’t been outside yet today run to your nearest door. It is beautiful outside today. There are waves. The sun is shining. My husband is officially missing in action due to surf. I’m back to checking the tide schedule to figure out if he will be home for dinner or not. After work, I came home to rescue our dog Alex. We headed to 64th street to walk/run the trails. I hesitated at first. After working and driving around today, the couch looked good. I ignored the temptation and headed to the trails. I also called my mom on the way, and she was dying to get outside today to walk. She jumped in her car too, and we both pulled into the park at the exact same time.

Did I mention that it is beautiful outside? This week my training/recovery plan calls for 1 minute of running and 5 minutes of walking repeated for 30 minutes total. (My mom even ran during the 1 minute!!!). The trail was beautiful. Everything is so green, and all the little critters are out and about. The osprey are also nesting. We saw several fly to and from their nests. Seeing nature become renewed is definitely invigorating. We added on an additional hour of walking once I finished my 30 minutes of training. It was too nice out to head home.

218515_10150179463973240_583823239_7043544_1305146_o — Osprey Nest - Mama's in there somewhere

Did I mention I’m “running” again? I’ve gone from an 18 mile run to a stress fracture to 10 weeks of no running to a 1 minute run, and I think I am enjoying the 1 minute of running as much as I enjoyed the 18 miles. I am loving it. It feels so good to run. Physically I feel good. I am not having any pain in my leg. Mentally I am feeling fantastic. I forget how much I rely on running to keep me sane. Today I ran a total of 5 minutes, and it feels great. Running, I have missed you!

It is so easy to let things slip out of our life that we love and enjoy. Normal life routines can quickly erase all the things that energize us and leave us feeling renewed. After High School, I let go of running. It resurfaced briefly over the next 10 years. It wasn’t until I was 28 that I truly started running again. I needed it both physically and mentally. While I’ve never had weight issues, I was certainly in the worst physical shape of my life. I was also mentally exhausted. Thank goodness for running.

243889_10150179464283240_583823239_7043549_7656615_o — My running buddy (he might be just as happy to be running again!)

Today was a nice reminder of how much I love running, of how much I love being outside, of how much I enjoy sharing those moments with people like my mom. The smell of honeysuckle filled the air. There were cool breezes coming off the water. The sun felt great on my skin. My running shoes felt great on my feet. And as an added bonus – Alex will sleep good tonight which means I will sleep good tonight!

244056_10150179464123240_583823239_7043546_3206294_o — ahhhhh

Did you breath in the sunshine today?

100% Best Case Scenario

I have finally posted my life vision. I officially wrote my goals down about a week ago, and I have been reluctant to post them. I keep going back to edit. Should I add this? Should I take this out? Is that goal to high? Am I not reaching high enough? IT IS EXHAUSTING! Finally, I left it exactly as it was when I first wrote my life vision. It is what felt the most natural to me. It was the unedited version of my wants. My life vision is supposed to be my 100% best case scenario on life plus some. It is not about setting goals too high or too low. It is about what I want my life to look like in ten years.

You can read my life vision here. Enjoy!

A Day to Celebrate

Yesterday was one of those days that just worked. After work I picked Cole up at school. He surprised me by doing his homework during kids quest. We are always squeezing in homework on the way to swim lessons or after dinner. It is usually a battle on swim nights, so it was such a nice treat for him to do it on his own. Christian also had possibly the best idea of the entire year. He wanted to ride after work. I wanted to run. Cole had swimming. I originally assumed that Christian would bike while I took Cole to swim. When we got home, I would run while the boys ate dinner. Instead Christian’s most amazing wonderful idea was………..he would leave on his bike as soon as he got home from work, and he would bike towards the rec center. Cole and I then meet him at the rec center. Christian took over and supervised swim lesson, and I ran at Bayville Park (right next to the rec center). It worked out PERFECT. I got back 10 minutes before Cole finished swimming. We all headed home together, and we were still able to enjoy our dinner together – tacos in the slow cooker! YUM! We all managed to find the time to enjoy our activities without sacrificing any family time in the process. Christian biked. I ran. Cole swam. (maybe we should do a family tri!). And we all had dinner together.

(if you need a super easy, super yummy dinner idea – stick chicken breast in the slow cooker with taco seasoning and water. When it’s done cooking it pulls a part with a fork! We made yummy soft tacos topped green pepper, spinach, avocado, cheese and salsa. So good. So easy. and it was waiting for us after all of our activities.)

To continue to sing praises about my husband, today is his birthday!!!!!!! He’s claiming 23, but he hits mid-30s today! 35! Trust me, 35 is much better to him than 23! He definitely gets better with age, and he is even more handsome! The older he gets, the more the gray hair surfaces and the sun/laugh wrinkles around the eyes become more defined. Yes! Those are two of my favorite things! I am so lucky to have him in my life. He is an amazing husband and a wonderful dad to Cole. Our family is always apart of his thought process. He loves family time just as much as I do. He has brought out so many qualities in me that I let suffocate for so many years. Thank you husband for bringing me back to life!

Favorite husband memory – date #1: I pulled in the parking lot. He was standing outside, waiting for me, and without hesitation I think I said out loud to myself “I love him.” Of course, I didn’t really love him yet. But the guy standing in front of me was worth noticing. He was adorable in his jeans, northface, and hat (still my favorite outfit!). I knew from our previous conversations that we were definitely in sync mentally. And then during our date, he said to me, “Everybody has baggage. When you get to be our age, you just have to decide who’s baggage you are willing to carry.” BRILLIANT since I was a single mom, unemployed, and unsettled in a new town. Fortunately for me, he saw past all the things I thought of as negative, and he saw me for me. And he loved me!

Happy Birthday Christian! I’m proud to be your wife, and I can’t wait for your whole head to be gray. XoXoXo

(Did you notice I mentioned Running in my blog! Yes! I ran yesterday – more on that later. Today’s about celebrating my husband!)

If I had a stalker…

During my morning blog reading session, I was reading California Training. Beth’s blog made me laugh out loud, and then it got me thinking. Her blog discusses the little hints we leave behind in our daily life that are so telling of who we are as people.

Have you ever thought about the things in life that tell the most about you? They can be actions, routines, facts, whatever, but they have to be little truths that make you you.

Her list of things will crack you up – read it here. Her list got me thinking – what little truths do I leave behind? What is my list – what are the things a stranger would find if they stumbled upon my life, if they broke into our house or stalked me for a day. What would they think?

#1 – there is always a yoga mat rolled out in our front room. If a stranger broke into our house, it is the first thing they would see. I’m not sure if that means we are to lazy to actually decorate the front room – instead its a room filled with tables (desk, end table, and lego/train table), a TV, books, and 3 happy yoga mats. One day the room will have my pretty dream couch from West Elm, some funky floor length mirrors with a cool frame, lots of candles and Cole’s art work all over the wall, upholstered ottoman cubes (easy to move), bamboo flooring, our 3 happy yoga mats, and even more books. Hopefully the 3 yoga mats and the uninspired room will say that a day doesn’t go by that someone isn’t practicing yoga in the front room AND we are your average working family. The room will shine when I can stomach the price tag that comes along with it!

#2 – our garage is FULL of bikes – count them, 9 (not including the 4 in the shed!). If the stranger broke into the garage, they will win the bike lottery – if they can find them! Who ever lives in our house must love biking. In truth, Christian is the true lover of biking in our house, and majority of the bikes belong to him. I love biking. I swear. I do. I just love running more, and I easily forget how much I love biking. I am the proud owner of 3 of those bikes – mountain, road, and beach cruiser! As for Cole, he LOVES the tow-behind. We are lucky that he is small for a 7-year-old because he can still cruise behind Christian all day long. We really do have to get him on his own bike this year!

#3 – Our laundry room always has work-out clothes hanging up to dry. We honestly wash and hang dry most of our clothes. Both Christian and I have lots of sweaty hobbies, and we are lucky enough to be able to ” professionally dress-down” for work. Lots of my favorite hiking clothes and lululemon items sneak into my work wardrobe.

#4 – We are always preparing dinner as a family. Cole loves to add the spices. Christian mans the grill. I’m stuck in the kitchen. If you were to spy on our family during the dinner hour, you will definitely find us cooking together.

#5 – My running shoes, garmin, and ipod are always stashed together in a corner (starting again today!). Today I get to run for the first time since my stress fracture. YAY! 1 minute of running followed by 5 minutes of walking for 30 minutes. I will take it!

#6 – Christian and I always walk Cole to the bus stop together. I’m sure the day that he doesn’t want us there is right around the corner, but until then, neither one of us are willing to be left out of the bus stop routine.

So Mr. Stalker, House burglar, or nosy neighbor, I hope all the little details we leave behind in our daily life will make your recognize that we are just a happy family that enjoys spending time together and staying active. We like to take care of our bodies as much we do our minds. What would your stalker discover about you? Think about it. It’s a fun exercise. You might even discover something about yourself in the process!