Feelin' the Burn

That is my elliptical machine, I affectionately refer to her as "Bessie" in my mind. So far I think Bessie has been worth the dough. With the exception of a few rough weeks where I spent most of my nights dealing with a wakeful Allison, I have been waking up early 3 times a week and spending some quality time with Bessie before the children wake up. My current goal is to get up 4 mornings a week and eventually I would like to make that 5.

The girls are fascinated with it. Every now and then I will let Audrey and Amy use it, under heavy supervision of course. Lately they like to use it in the evening after baths and showers - a little backwards if you ask me but ..... So I will set the timer for 5 minutes and they each get 5 minutes - and then they usually sleep like LOGS after - hee hee hee. 5 minutes might not seem like a long time but on a machine built for people of adult height and weight, 5 minutes is pretty tough for a 6 and 7 1/2 year old. Poor Audrey - last night she and Amy each wanted to use it so they each got their 5 minutes. Audrey must have played hard at school or pushed herself to go a little faster on Bessie or something because this morning she woke up complaining that her legs hurt. At first I kind of wrote off her complaints - maybe she was just stiff from a deep sleep, maybe it was growing pains. But she kept mentioning it so I asked her where it hurt. She ran her hands up and down across the tops of her thighs. "Oh", I say, "I bet your legs are sore from using Mommy's elliptical machine last night. That's where mine always hurt". So I told her if they were still sore after school, I would give her some Tylenol or Motrin before dance class. Well poor thing was seriously in tears when it was time to head to the bus. I asked if her allergies were bothering her as well and she sobbed and said, "No, it's just my legs really hurt!". I felt so bad for her but a part of me couldn't help chuckling on the inside. Can you imagine me sending a note? "Please excuse Audrey from any extra physical activity today - she is sore from her workout last night". So I gave the poor girl a dose of Ibuprofen and sent her to the bus stop. I hope she's alright now that the ibuprofen is probably wearing off. I hope she's able to make it through dance class tonight. Maybe she can treat herself to a nice long soak in a warm tub before bed tonight .......