I bought a family membership to our local YMCA yesterday. It only costs $44 a month which includes access to the fitness center and all classes, including aquatic. What's even more, is that they offer FREE childcare while you work out. Say what? How did I not hear about this before?
This is my chance to be more active! I can now go in the mornings and get my workout done without having to wait until all the kids are in bed. I did that for a while and it left me depleted of energy and a little cranky. I would get on the treadmill at 9:00 or 10:00 at night for an hour and then not be able to get to sleep until at least 1:00 in the morning. Ethan and Jacob would wake up around 6:30 when Megan and Carter were getting ready for school, and so the day would begin. It wouldn't have been so bad if they still napped, but that has long since been gone around here. I was so exhausted by the routine, that I stopped exercising for about 3 weeks.
Luckily, we have discovered the Y, which I hope will give me just what I need. Today was the first workout, and it felt great! Ethan and Jacob were excited to be going to the play room that we had seen yesterday on our tour of the facility. They talked about playing with new toys and seeing new kids all the way there. I knew that Ethan would have no problem because he is use to going to therapy with various clinicians and being away from me for short periods of time. I didn't, however, know how Jacob would fare. I have never left him with anyone but grandparents, and wasn't sure how he would handle me leaving.
When we got to the Y, the boys trotted in all smiles and headed to the playroom. As soon as we reached the hallway, we could hear a little girl screaming. I thought, Great! There's no way Jacob is going to stay in there if kids are screaming. But, much to my surprise, he wasn't phased a bit. The boys took their shoes off and joined the other kids dancing on the rug. I signed them in, blew them a kiss and was on my way.
The fitness room was really crowded, as I knew it would be after seeing all of the cars in the parking lot. Even with all of the members, I was able to get right onto a treadmill and then made my way through all of the weights. I LOVE weight machines and have missed them! I tried not to overdo it on my first day and stuck to 2 sets of 12-15 reps per machine. My workout lasted about an hour and then I made my way back to the playroom. I peeked in the window to see what the boys were doing and they were playing away on the rug with one of the caretakers and some other kids. Jacob was playing with a train set and Ethan was playing with some sort of vanity/makeup thing. As soon as I entered the room, he saw me and told Jacob that it was time to go. Jacob said that he wanted to stay and play, so I had to explain to him that they were getting ready to close and that all of the kids would be leaving. I am so happy that they both had a good time. Not only did they play, but they had snack as well, which is right up their alley. To top it off, one little boy brought valentines for all of the kids, so they got a heart shaped Jolly Rancher sucker to take home. They actually want to go back tomorrow, which we will do!
I love staying home with the kids, but it feels so good to finally be doing something for me.
No comments:
Post a Comment