How to be everything to everyone in one day

Yesterday I was an athlete running 16 miles. A mother being active outdoors with her son. A mother in a pretty dress taking her daughter and mother-in-law out to tea and shopping. A spouse to a business owner, helping him market his business. An employee, answering email and helping fix others' computer problems on a Saturday. A friend, going out to dinner with another couple. And a wife on a date with her husband.

Needless to say, today I'm a little tired.

First thing yesterday I met Danielle and Wendy for a 16-mile ride. Danielle's daugher and my son came along on their bicycles. We ran/rode the East Lake Sammamish trail - a new gravel trail about 9 or 10 miles long (we just ran until Gabriel's bike computer said 8.13, then turned around - we went slightly longer because he had been fooling around a little and not riding perfectly straight). It was a solid run for me - we ran between 9 and 10 minute miles and my heart rate was extremely low - I don't think it got higher than 140 the whole time, except the last mile when Gabriel fell off his bike and needed some encouragement to get back on and get going. The others had gone ahead, so Gabriel and I ran/rode an 8 minute mile - possibly even faster, I could only see the 7 on his bike computer's speed thing and not what number was next to the 7 - to catch up. Surprisingly, it felt great. I really need to start running faster more often - I think I could do it (not for a half or full marathon yet, but I am pretty sure I could run 7, 7.5 minute miles for a flat 5K now).

So after we got our Jamba Juice (yes, the lower-cal ones) for recovery - they're perfect if you add the protein boost for a 4:1 carb/protein ratio, I went home, showered, made my hair pretty and put on a cute dress to take Camille out to tea. She had cried when I said Gabriel and I were going out running/riding, and begged me to have a tea party with her. On the way to the tea house I decided to be a good daughter-in-law and invite my mother-in-law along, as she lives just a few minutes from the tea house. So we had a lovely tea and did a little shopping.

Then I went home, changed again, answered email from work, then left the house and dropped both kids off at the in-laws so my husband and I could run all over Microsoft and put up flyers for his business on the bulletin boards in the kitchens.

THEN I changed clothes in the car (yeah, on the freeway!) so John and I could get to our dinner reservation in Bellevue. Danielle and her husband met us for dinner and we spent three hours eating. Danielle has given up alcohol for the entire year until IMC; I had two glasses of wine and was drunk and sleepy.

So this post is a little broader than the usual fairly narrow scope of diet and exercise, but this is what balancing everything is like. And although it struck me yesterday with the number of clothing changes and everything how busy my life is and how much I have to work to be a decent everything (mom, employee, athlete, wife), it was actually a fairly normal Saturday.

Today I don't have anything planned, except going to church, which I've already done. However, my house is a mess, there's nothing to eat in the fridge, and I have a ton of laundry to do. But it's a gorgeous day, I want to get outside...but I also want to go to sleep and nap all day long.

So I'm off to clean and shop, and probably take the kids to a beach (lake) this afternoon.