I Alone...Run

On a gray, windy Saturday afternoon, armed with my iPod shuffle, I dressed in my running gear and headed out the door - ALONE. It was glorious.

Although the runner's high is mentionned extensively in any piece of literature on running, it is a rare occurence in my life. Most of my runs are pre-occupied by the loud panting, the incessant jiggling of my thighs, and the desire for it to end. Ok, maybe that's just the first 2k. I do eventually fall into a comfortable rhythm, but alas, there is nothing euphoric about these runs.

In any case, I can only vivedly remember experiencing this fabled runner's high once before. It was May 2005 and I was in Halifax, NS. My niece, Tara, was undergoing chemotherapy at the age of eight months, it was an emotional, scary time. As I burst forth from the IWK and headed towards the harbour, I didn't struggle - I was free. No sickness, no stress, only me with the sunshine, salt-air, and the sound of the wooden boardwalk with each step.

Now, three years later, the runner's high once again graced me with it's presence. After seven days of 24 hours Mikaela, I headed out for a run in my new city yesterday. I headed north and entered the Auckland Domain, a 75 hectare park located on the Pukekawa volcano often filled with locales during the summer. As it was a cool Saturday in winter, the park was mine. The salt-air was not noticable and the sun had deserted me, but I enjoyed every responsibility-free moment. I ran past the Wintergardens and through the Cherry Groove, cut across Lover's Walk and climbed back up to the central sportsfields in the heart of the volcanic crater. It was 7k without nary a thought to my panting, jiggling, or the end.

Putting Yourself Out There

Interestingly enough, I'm often telling my single friends to let others know they are looking and make the effort to get out. As a happily, married person, it is extremely easy to give this advice - I *hope* my looking days are over ;-)

In a new country, one I intend to put down temporary roots, I've suddenly found myself needing to put myself out there. As a social creature, I would wither and die without interaction beyond Dave & Mikaela. So, I started in a place I hoped would be welcoming - the Plunkets Parnell Playgroup. I was so nervous about the prospect of meeting someone who would talk to me, I rushed Mikaela out of the flat and arrived twenty minutes early. While she contented herself with swinging, I scoped out any person with a child in the vicinity to see if they looked approachable and friendly.

I was in luck. Although no one was unfriendly, there were two moms who I felt went out of their way to make me feel welcome. One of the moms noticed my Lululemon bag, and asked if I was from Canada or America. Her name was Kate, and we bonded over the use of the sling. While out and about yesterday, I received several odd looks while carrying Mikaela this way. It turns out that slings and baby carriers are indeed popular, but only until the baby reaches a year. Kate had rebelled against this, carrying her daughter until she was too pregnant with number two (she's due next Friday). The second mom, Georgina, and I bonded over being away from family. She is a transplanted Australian, and having recently gone about building her own new social networks, she was full of ideas on how I could entertain Mikaela and meet other moms.

My initial dream of joining the Les Mills World of Fitness (creators of BodyPump, BodyCombat, BodyFlow, etc) as a way to stay as fit as Teresa and offload Mikaela for a couple hours was squashed yesterday. To get the same type of service I have with GoodLife in Ottawa, I'd need to pay approximately $275/month. There's the $29.50/week fee for me, the $10/session for Mikaela, and the $5/class for RPM (spin). In the time-honoured tradition of milking the free trial weeks, I will attending classes tomorrow and Thursday. Once my week is up at Les Mills, I plan to move onto the YMCA, the exercise room, the Olympic, the Just Personal Workout Centre, and so on. I wonder how many fitness facilities they have in Auckland...

My Daughter, Delightful Traveller

In late March, Dave & I had a discussion about living abroad. In my mind, it was a theoretical discussion but Dave thought he could "make it happen". True to his word, I now sit in New Zealand.

In my infinite wisdom, I had sent Dave as an advance party...this left me to accompany one child in the 24 trip from Ottawa to Auckland. As our departure drew nearer, I wondered at the sanity of this decision but knew there was no recourse. The five weeks prior to joining Dave were a blur of packing, socializing, and feeling my clothing get tighter ;-)

Despite my best intentions, Mikaela and I arrived at the Ottawa airport with four large suitcases, one car seat, and three *heavy* carry-ons. With the help of my sister, we managed to get checked-in by 4 pm and headed for security. After a brief, unexpected moment of choking up as we said good-bye to Auntie Bobbi, it was off to chase down Mikaela, perform our security ritual, and join the pre-boarding line at gate 17! The first leg of our journey passed quickly; it was the five hour flight from Ottawa to Vancouver. With a blur of puzzles, books, and snacks, I give Mikaela a 9.5/10 as the perfect travelling toddler. With a score like that, you can only assume things will go downhill.

In the Vancouver airport, I'd thought my luck had run out. Mikaela was running wild as I struggled with my carry-on luggage, and she face-planted. The ensuing wailing attracted the attention of a passing Air Canada flight attendant. She quickly flagged us down a golf cart, and Mikaela perked up as we were driven to our International gate. Next up, the 13hr+ flight to Auckland.

She continued to be a trooper, showing only the vaguest signs of her exhaustion until she promptly announced at 1:19 am EST that she was going to lie down on her back. She fell asleep within seconds and proceeded to sleep for the next eight hours. Sure, there was the occasional whimper as she moved positions or as she discovered she was no longer on the seats, but rather, her mother had assisted her rollover onto the floor. When it looked like a wake-up was imminent, I flagged down a flight attendant for the all important "milky". With this in hand, Mikaela easily transitioned from sleeping beauty to delightful daughter. We watched a little Baby Einstein on the iPod touch, read a few more books, and played with our animal flash cards. At breakfast, served at 12 pm EST (4 am local time), she dug heartily into her cheese omelet and home fries. Personally, I couldn't stomach the idea of eggs and partook of the lighter fruit fare. For this, the longest leg of the trip, Mikaela outdid herself with a perfect 10!

Customs was a bit more challenging, she needed to run and I needed to stand in various lines. After a few chase downs, I resorted to the sling on my back. This was not meet with glee, but some JellyTots helped soften the strapping down. As we emerged from the arrival area, she was extremely excited to see Daddy. It may be because she missed him, but I think the fact that he let her out of the dreaded sling played a role in this excitement :-)

All in all, my hestitation about travelling solo with Mikaela on such a long journey - unfounded. Despite Dave's displeasure in the use of superlatives, she was awesome.