Lana Lyman: Survivor!

I finally did it. I FINALLY, after 3 months, took both kids out alone. Pathetic, I know, that I've waited for so long....but with Shae's fussiness/colic/whatever it was the first few months, followed by sickness for 2 weeks, etc. etc. I just have not been brave enough to do it. And to be honest, I probably wouldn't have yesterday either, but a dear friend is 4 days overdue with her 2nd baby and I thought it'd be fun to meet up and walk the mall. After her baby comes, it may be awhile before SHE'S brave enough to head out, so I loved the idea of getting together. I tried sending Carter to G'ma's house so I would just have the baby, but G'ma was busy yesterday so off I went with both kids. And they did AMAZING! No, really, they did! I was only 10 minutes late leaving the house and the car ride there was peaceful. Both kids were loaded into the double stroller and off we went! We even had lunch at Nordstrom Cafe {the BEST if you haven't been} and the kids were great! Carter sat in his chair and ate, then played right by our table and Shae' sat in my lap and attracted the attention of everyone who passed by. {I'm convinced she will be my crowd stopper. She's beautiful and smiles at everyone..quite the combo!} We then walked, walked, walked...for nearly 3 hours we walked and talked and it was wonderful! At one point, I did have to hold Shae' because she was sleepy and fighting it...so my friend had to push my massive stroller for me, but other than that, I'd say it was a perfect outing! Even the car ride home was wonderful...both kids fell asleep and I got to listen to talk radio in peace as I drove. :) I do credit my success to a few key things:

1. Comfortable Clothes
   I knew I would be dealing with the kids and didn't want to be uncomfortable (too hot, etc) with what I was wearing.

2. Comfortable Shoes
   I knew we'd be walking a lot. I would normally wear boots, but knew my feet, legs, back would be hurting something awful by the time we left if I did. So I chose my Coach sneakers and didn't have one bit of pain...I could've kept going a few more hours!

3. Patience, patience, patience!!!
   I made up my mind before I left that even if the kids were out of control I was going to keep my cool. Too often when they get worked up, I do too. Knowing that it was very possible that would happen while we were out, I just decided that I would be prepared for it and deal with it as it came. Thankfully, I didn't have to this time around...but my mindset made the day better for all of us anyway.

So there ya have it.....my story of survival. HA! {pathetic what 'stay at home mom's' consider an adventure, huh?} Now, I'm not planning to go out daily just because yesterday was a success. I know I'll have a day all too soon where the baby screams nonstop and Carter acts like a typical 2 year old. And let's face it: it's just EASIER to be at home when you have small children...especially when you're exclusively breastfeeding one of them. But at least I've gotten over the initial fear...and with spring/summer just around the corner, I'm now looking forward to {instead of dreading} the fun outings to come!

And finally, here's a couple of pictures of my sweeties :) These were taken last weekend when we went out on our 'family date'...which was also a HUGE success! The kids were fabulous! I think we're finally getting the hang of two kids.

My sweet boy