Not So Proud Mommy Moment

A couple weeks ago my cousin posted this article

I read it and knew it was just for me.

I am a yeller. I yell at my husband. I yell at my children. I yell at my siblings. I have even yelled at friends. {disclaimer - some of my yelling is one quick line - "get in here and clean this room!!!!"}

After I read the article I knew I had to get control before I missed out on life-changing moments.

There have been times when I have yelled at my kids and they have been scared of me. I asked them why - I don't ever ever hit them when I'm angry.  But to them, I was scary.

My 7 year old one time told me she didn't want to "release the angry mommy dragon".

She also has started yelling at her siblings. And said she's "like mommy because she yells when she gets mad". When you see your child pick up on your bad habit it looks a WHOLE lot different.

So I sat my older two down, told them that I needed to change. My 7 year old said I couldn't do it. She didn't think I could go a day without yelling. {read above disclaimer} I told her I had to. And since then, there have been times I have yelled a quick sentence "LOOK WHERE I'M POINTING!" And my 7 year old will remind me not to yell. I'll apologize, and start over.

I admit, since I've quit yelling I say "seriously" a whole lot more to my kids. Like when they aren't looking where I'm pointing when I say "pick this up" .... But - it's not yelling.

I have done really well in the new me. That I'm proud of. And my kids have kept me in check.

So I am enjoying more hugs, making more silly faces and answering more 'why' questions.

Running Techniques

So since my surgery I haven't ran over 11 minute miles. That makes me very sad.

My half marathon pace was 10:30 which made me happy for that long of a distance. And my fastest 5K race was a 8:17 pace, so I know I can do better.

As I was running my lame 4.5 miles I was thinking about different

running techniques.

The Gazelle - I have a friend who has long legs. She runs exactly like

a gazelle - fast yet graceful.

The Effortless- I have another friend that runs fast but it doesn't

look like she's giving it any effort. She looks like she's just

jogging. Even when she has passed me & said she was dying, it still

doesn't look like she gives effort.

The Bouncer - Another friend of mine has a bounce to her step. With

her cute curly ponytail bouncing. She always looks adorable when she

runs.

The Beauty Queen - I have a beautiful friend that always looks

perfect. Her makeup is always in tack. She smiles beautifully for the

camera.

The Attacker - Then there's me. No I don't run like Phoebe in a

Friends episode. But I feel like I attack the ground. My feet hit hard

(not as hard as a Pounder friend I have). There's no bounce, there's

no gracefulness. Sometimes I feel like I can't even pick my feet off

the ground and they drag. I get nervous that I'm going to trip and

then the ground will attack me back.

So whether you are graceful or clumsy - it's ok. Just run!