And then sometimes, you don't get to control the routine...

So, after my last post about getting into the routine, I got taught a very real lesson that sometimes you don't get the control.  This is particularly true if you have any plague factories (aka children) living in the house.

Poor little Sweetpea is sick.  She's running a fever (not high enough to be a dangerous one, thank goodness) and coughing a lot.  So, her going to school?  Nope.  Those swimming lessons this morning?  Not likely.  She's still sleeping and the lesson starts in two hours.  If she miraculously wakes up feeling better, we might go, but I'm not expecting or planning to.

And, I'm feeling really run down.  A lesson for me: I need to get more sleep myself.  I'm not sick (yet), but if I don't get to bed when I get the chance, I'm going to have a heck of a time completing my own training, even when I can get it - which is often, as my husband is wonderful about giving me time in the evenings.  I also have both a treadmill and bike trainer, so I can do a lot without leaving the house.

Now, my picture resolution.  I could not bring myself to take and post a picture of my pathetically sick little girl, so instead, here's a picture of a vegetable thing I've been making lately.

This one has red, yellow, and orange peppers, as well as snow peas, red onions and carrots.

I have not been feeling the raw veggie love lately, so one of my favourite things has been to roast up a bunch of them.  I usually cut them up mid-day sometime, so when supper comes, it's easy to throw together and in the oven.  I toss them with a little olive oil and italian spices, then throw them in at 375 for 30-40 minutes.

Back in the routine

So, this week marks the week where things really start getting back into a routine.  The kids go back to preschool.  Coached swim restarts, as does spin classes.

As a bonus this month, I get three weeks with the kids in swim lessons twice a week.  I managed to schedule said swim lessons at exactly the same time as each other, during a lane swim time.  Yay for me!  This means some extra pool time.  I've been very happy with my swimming progress of late, and a short block with a swim focus can do nothing but help.

Although my half-iron plan doesn't officially start until March, I want to get into the routine of doing same number of training sessions.  I figure it will help me decide if it's maintainable, so I can tweak it if need be.  It will also get me used to juggling it.  There's always going to be some flexibility required when unexpected events happen.  I have to make sure that I can follow the plan as it is under normal circumstances though.

Three things Thursday

1. We've had great weather this week.

No seriously, we have. Yeah, there's been rain. There's been thunderstorms, but if you choose your time of day, there is almost always a time where it's beautiful out there. Yesterday, I totally lucked out. I ran early morning and finished my run just as the rain started. (Not that I mind a bit of rain while running.) It rained through the day, but was beautiful again by mid afternoon.

2. I'm getting back into a good routine and it's working for me.

I'm back to the early morning runs, and I think it's a critical part of my routine. I simply can not seem to get all 9 workouts in a week unless I'm doing some of it early morning. I usually need wind down time after my evening swims so I find what works best is to run and swim in the same day then bike on alternate days. That way, I'm not trying to get up early the day after I swim.

3. The chariot has been making it out, onto the trails, and into the parks.

I actually think I should start designating weeks as car free weeks. I mean, if I'm staying in town, I can seriously ride my bike anywhere in about 10 minutes. Yeah, we're a two car family, and for the time being, we'll be staying that way. Having said that, it doesn't mean that the car needs to leave the garage nearly as often. The kids are happier in the chariot; I get some extra biking in; it's better for the environment and my family's wallet.

This picture is actually from early this spring, rather then recently. It's a lot greener out there now.