Earthmovers and Sandcastles

Monday through Thursday, we’re hopping from school to playground programs, and it’s a lot of fun, but Fridays are blissfully unscheduled. Some weeks, that will irritate me, as those are the “I have nothing to dooooo…” days, but this week, we really needed it. Last night, both boys came home utterly exhausted from their playground programs’ field trips; Gabe was tired to the point of mental breakdown, sobbing with heartbreak when Sam changed the channel on the television. “I won’t ever get to see the show, ever, ever again!” Early bedtimes for all ensued, but I believe a day of rest is still required.

Of course, we still have plans. I need to do the farmers’ market this morning, and I think I’ll take them to the library on Friday afternoons throughout the summer, based on the emptiness of the day. There’s also a free concert on Friday afternoons downtown, but Sam made a face when I mentioned that, so I doubt we’ll stick around for it. We’ll see.

Forgot to mention that my appointment with my new/old doctor went really, really well. She really couldn’t tell me much more beyond what I already knew, but she listened a lot more, and she brought in another athletic doctor who also listened a lot, and they both agreed that my issue has to do with the weight loss finally catching up to me – or, rather, that the rest of my body is trying to catch up to the weight loss. She wrote me scripts for a pelvic ultrasound (to make sure that the endometrial lining is as it should be) and for a bone density scan, since a big problem with amenorrhea is bone loss. If both tests are normal, we’ll do a wait-and-see, and if I haven’t gone back to normal in a year, we’ll do another bone density scan. The male doc suggested using birth control pills to regulate my cycles, but I’m reluctant to do that, and they didn’t seem concerned that I didn’t want to go that route.

One thing they also suggested was having my body fat tested; if it’s under 15%, apparently, that’s sort of a threshold point where it would pinpoint definitively why I’m not cycling. You need fat over that point, I guess. I have no idea what my level is, and it’s difficult for me to tell, since I have loose skin that would make calipers all but useless. A local facility has a different method of testing that my doctor says would be accurate, so I might give that a shot. The male doc surprised me by saying that, just to his eyes and without me standing or being undressed, he’d guess that I’m not far from that point, based on my shoulders, neck, and chest (I was wearing a spaghetti-strapped sundress). I don’t believe that one lick, honestly, since I’m really more bottom-heavy. Still, knowledge is power, right?

The heat broke this morning, though it was more of a slow bending than a break. My 4:30 run was still very warm, and I came back inside covered in white pellets of salt, but it’s not supposed to get a whole lot warmer than that all day, and it’ll cool from there a bit. Summery, yes, but a Wisconsin summer!

In the heat yesterday, I prepped a chilled carrot and parsnip soup (didn’t wind up eating it, as it didn’t have enough time to chill fully before dinner), and the tastes I nipped of it were good. We’ll have it tonight with grilled Cornish hens, roasted beets, and the beet greens. I’ve been cutting back on meat to only about once a week (usually on the weekends), and I’ve got to start clearing the frozen meat out of the freezer – need to make room for casseroles, soups, and baked goods!

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