Back from Break

After 10 days off for spring break, I am now back to work. Blah. But, my break was truly relaxing and enjoyable, and since I didn't have much computer access during break, I'll fill you in on my ever-exciting activities:

• I ran consistently. I am now really relying on my 3 milers as the backbone of my running schedule. They're long enough that I feel like I get a good workout, but short enough that I don't feel overly-exhausted by them. Plus, they leave me enough time for the bathroom before and after. (A pregnant woman is never far from a bathroom, I've learned that!)
• I have been leaving the Garmin at home while I run lately. I know I'm getting slower and it was frustrating me to watch the digits decline, and because I want to just focus on getting the runs done and feeling good while doing them, I decided that the best idea was to leave the gadget at home. It has been weird to run without it, but I think I have to put my ego in the backseat for this running-while-pregnant business, and to do so, I have to let go of focusing on how slow I'm currently running.
• I also did a couple of sessions of my new prenatal yoga video. I like it, even though some of it strikes me a comically corny. I think it's good to incorporate some flexibility and breathing exercises into my routine.
• I got to sleep. A LOT! I slept in everyday, and I took naps almost daily. All the extra rest was glorious, and I felt so good! In general, I'm feeling pretty good these days. I've only thrown up once in the past two weeks, and that may be attributed to the fact that I consumed expired milk with my cereal that day. Oopsie.
• I also got to take long walks with Scooter and play with him more. I love my little Copper Top dog.
• I also got to do a lot of reading! One of my favorite pleasures in the whole world. I read "Still Alice" by Lisa Genova, and I thought it was excellent. It's a novel about a Harvard professor who's diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's. I thought it depicted Alzheimer's from the patient's point of view with sincerity and insight, and the story itself was incredibly moving. I also read most of Curtis Sittenfeld's "American Wife" ( I still have about 80 pages of this one to finish), and even though I'm not finished, I think this is truly a masterpiece. I'd originally read reviews of this when it was published about a year ago, but I never picked it up while it was in hard copy. For those not familiar with it, it's a fictional account of Laura Bush's life, and it's incredibly engrossing. Sittenfeld manages to create characters that, even though they are based on real life people, are uniquely their own, and while the events too are shaped around real life, again, Sittenfeld, re-imagines them with depth and poignancy. (Listen to me, do you think I wish I were a book critic for the Times? Because, um, yeah, I wish I were.) Seriously, go read this one. It's brilliant.
• I also diligently read some student papers and got some chores done around the house, but all in all, it was a great break for spending some "Jess-time."

But, today it is back to the grind, which is okay, because I take comfort in certain routines and I like returning to my classes. Plus, we only have 8 weeks of the semester left. Then, I'm just teaching one summer class, so my summer should be pretty relaxed as we prepare for the baby.

I'm still working to catch up with everyone's blogs, so I hope to read what everyone else has been up to as of late!