Rainy Days and Mondays

I am not generally a rainy day person; this is probably evident in most of my blog posts and I'm sure you've guessed it by now.  I would probably not make it through a winter -- or any other season -- in Seattle.  I am happiest when the sun is shining, regardless of whether it's hot or cold outside, even though I do have a kick-ass pair of black-and-hot-pink striped rain wellies and faux-fur-lined Kamiks for chillier wet days. But I'm changing, a little.

When we lived in the Valley, on "the grid," I used to dread rainy days... the bewildered rushing water in the suburban gutters, the puddles in the cracks of the asphalt, the pool flooding, the precarious way that we Angelenos drive in the rain.  I could never find a working umbrella -- I am somewhat known for throwing broken ones back into the umbrella bucket in the garage when the sun comes out and then scrambling to fix the sharp spokes when the next rainstorm hits -- and my kids have never owned rain jackets.  Even during that crazy El Nino year when my oldest girls were in preschool and we had to practically wade through a flood to get out of the car for two weeks, I didn't get the hang of living in the rain.  I hate being wet.  I hate the dark, cloudy days.  I hate the perpetual Monday morning feeling of rain.


Until now, that is.  This morning, I had to take the dog on a walk.  He drank a ton of water before bed last night and wouldn't go outside when Raf opened the door... and I figured a wet morning wouldn't kill me.  Quite the contrary.  It was quiet and smelled fresh and clean outside.  Gibby and I quickly got the hang of the weather -- he's a Lab, after all -- and I was surprised by how much I loved the sound of the rain dropping from leaf to leaf above us in the trees that we passed.  27 minutes later, we were home and I had to send my apologies to the late great Karen Carpenter.  Rainy days no longer get me down.


Now, I'll turn my attention to Mondays.

Shoes shoes shoes

One of the hottest items at the SV Moms event was the Skechers table. As you may have heard, these shoes are supposed to "tone" your body - calves, thighs, butt - while being beneficial for your low back. I am always skeptical of things like this that promise to tone and strengthen and "help you lose weight"... truthfully, it's not the shoes that make you lose weight, but the exercise you do while you wear them, right? Plus, these shoes are... how do I put it?... not the cutest. Lately, I am coveting the Nikes that can be totally customized, so these sort of ugly clodhoppers were not on my "to buy" list.

However...

I vowed to wear them at least one whole day to try them out. So on Monday, I put them on and wore them around the house, to the park for my 3-mile walk, to the grocery store, to pick up the kids at school... And I have to say that my calves and thighs were a little sore the next day. I could feel the difference. Whether or not I will "lose weight" with these shoes remains to be seen. But I liked them enough that I'll wear them again... though only when I'm alone on the track!

And I almost sidestepped the Stride Rite table -- since my kids are older -- but then I caught a glimpse of these girl-sized Gladiator sandals. Perfect for our upcoming summer trip to Europe. I was thrilled that Stride Rite had some more sophisticated styles (I am so over the little girl styling of older girl sandals, as seen at Target or Gymboree).

I think these were designed by Jessica Simpson, but I won't hold that against them.

Disclaimer: I received the Skechers as a gift from the company and a gift card from Stride Rite.