Did I tell you about my kids? The older one is a picky eater/food critic. No joke. The kid has an insane sense of smell and taste. I hope one day she earns money with the tools that she implements daily to drive me crazy. The other younger one, has always been a good little eater until recently. Now in some effort to assert that he too can drive me up a wall he has become as we say in Portuguese, ´more complicated´. And did I mention he´s an ethical vegetarian?

After a three week vacation, away from my kitchen, with visits from friends and families over the holiday season you can imagine we were all due for a cleanse. Now calma, this does not mean that we will survive on vegetable broth for a week, but rather that we need a fresh start. One with a bit more balance and a heck of a lot less sugar, chemicals and for me alcohol.

We are so lucky to live in a country where produce is beautiful and cheap. That, coupled by the fact that my daughter only enjoys fruit in the liquid form (except for berries…the child loves the only fruit that costs us a fortune) I decided to get us a juicer. I found one. I lie, my neighbor Cynthia found one for less than 60€ that really does the trick. 

The kids love it. Not only are the juices delicious, but they enjoy making them.

About a month ago I was putting away some things in my daughter´s closet. I noticed her handwritten list of New Year´s Resolutions from last year on the inside of the closet door. The first two jumped out at me as they seemed a million years away from the kid I have at home now. The idea that just a year ago she aspired to 1) Swim at least 50m butterfly without getting tired and,  2) Do the same with 100m medley, was astonishing in light of the fact that she now competes and places in the 400IM and in the 800M. This reflection of just how very far she has come made me want to revisit this idea of sitting with the children again and working out where we want to be next year.

I am a firm believer that we can always get better. Age is not a deterrent. My favorite quote from yoga is, `Practice, practice, all is coming.` by Guru Pattabhi Jois. It´s the idea that through repetition and practice we can achieve our goal. My daughter showed me that very explicitly this year. Hard work got her where she is. Hard work coupled by a swim team made up of incredibly supportive adults and children. Hard work + inspiration + support = SUCCESS

Here is my list from last year with comments on if I met my goals.

1. Do yoga 3 times a week….only honestly did once a week, aiming for 2 a week. Adding workout 4 times a week. 
2. Write something in Portuguese every day!…MUST DO THIS AND MORE THIS YEAR! I am adding on that I will only speak to the children in Portuguese. They are very good at catching my errors:)
3. Run at least 1 half marathon this year. Preferably 3;)...Ran a marathon 4:14:14…whooo hooo!
4. Find an excuse to go out dancing at least once a month. ( I am counting on my village friends and my girlfriends in Lisboa to help me out with this one:)…Failed, sad really, but another thing to organize
5. Improve my tennis game so I don’t embarrass myself when I play Sarah, Sophie and Amanda this year at Christmas…better, but still room for improvement:)
6. Be more patient….worth repeating….REPEAT…10 Deep Breathes
7. Do a better job keeping in touch with friends… Beyond FB….Resolving to only check FB on Sundays.
8. Create a gratitude wall….nice idea, how did I forget this? 9. Learn proper swim strokes. And fingers crossed, learn to do a tumble turn….I still need to get a lesson, or two, but at least I have made swimming a regular part of my routine. Thanks Lana for needing me to drive you to swim in the mornings.                                        10. Launch my tutoring business…DONE! Adding…                                                           11. Recommit to kiwigalo.com                                                                                             12. Start the week with a meal plan created and organized on Sunday.                                 13. Try to learn to meditate.

And with that I wish you a very Happy New Year!

Very early this Sunday morning I sat down at my computer with my cup of coffee. As I logged into Facebook I was met with this image.

As many of you know, Mike was almost dead. A few times. That is not putting it lightly. There is just no way around it. He survived an aortic dissection, septicemia, a coma, organ failure´S´, he has lost his fingers and his feet. But I think you would find it hard to argue his survival and COMEBACK are anything less than a miracle….as well as a testament to his incredible will.

When I saw this image I smiled and cried because Mike looks like Mike again. I also cried because J gets to have his daddy home again. I posted a video on Sunday. It was specifically dedicated to three people I love that suffer from depression. But when I ran I thought so much of Mike, his battle and his challenges ahead that it just doesn´t seem right for me to wear my medal. I hope he will accept it, as he deserves it so much more than I do. I love you friend. YOU are an inspiration. God bless you and your gorgeous family.

Go Fund Mike!

Back in March 2014 as I walked in the door from picking up my sister-in-law at the airport I received a devastating call from a good friend back in the States. She was calling to tell me that my friend’s husband Michael was dying.

Michael had sustained an aortic dissection. According to a medical professional that I spoke to, “Heart attacks are easy. But after an aortic dissection you typically have three minutes to live.”  Luckily for Mike he was at the hospital when his aorta ruptured and one surgeon chose to proceed with surgery. According to the doctors, his insides looked as if he had survived a car crash. After this surgery Michael became septic. His wife was informed that he had less than a 5% chance of surviving the surgery he needed to determine the cause of his septicemia, but the doctor himself was unsure he could even get him to the operating table as his condition was that critical. Miraculously, he survived.

After the surgery Michael remained in a coma and experienced organ failure. He depended on a number of machines and dialysis to survive. At this point it was becoming clear that due to the medication given to Michael to keep the blood pumping to his brain that he had not gotten enough blood flow to his fingers and toes and that if he were to survive, he would lose them.

Many of us thought Michael was going to die. I for one flew over to the United States for what I thought was going to be his funeral. I was wrong.

Less than a week after, Michael opened in his eyes. This gave us great hope. But unfortunately that hope was limited. Soon after Michael showed signs of awareness more bad news came. Tests were indicating that Michael had had a stoke that seemed to have left him paralyzed, possibly brain damaged and his organs were showing no signs of working.

Knowing Michael, many of us knew that this was not the quality of life Michael wanted. He was a gymnast, swimmer, golfer and all around awesome dad to his son Jacob. We all wanted him here for Jacob, but we also knew that he wanted to have more than a life connected to machines.

We all knew Micheal was a strong and stubborn man. And although we all hoped for another miracle, we were not expecting one. After a few more setbacks Michael started coming back in full force. Organs that were never expected to work, started working. A voice that was never to be heard, spoke. A body that was never meant to move, did. Michael was on his way back. Once it was clear that Michael was going to survive the decision to amputate his fingers and feet was made.

What Michael has survived is truly incomprehensible. We are tremendously grateful for this miracle, but we know that this is the beginning of Michael’s fight. A fight he will win. But his family needs our help. I ask you here, if you can, to donate to this cause and become a part of the team that supports this incredible man.

Go Fund Mike!

And tonight it was all about getting Lana ready for her French test. Next week alone she has 5 tests, French being one. As one of the few stay at home moms in her class, I share her study materials with the mothers I’m friends with. This Portuguese school is no joke.

Okay Connecticut, yes you’ve gotten slammed with snow. We haven’t here in Portugal, that’s true, but what we also don’t have that you do, is warm houses. In Colorado, the heat was up so high that our clothes would dry overnight. Here, it takes 3 days and they’re still damp. Our houses are cold.

It’s a combination of construction that makes houses cool escapes in the summer and expensive heating bills that keep the indoors cool. So this Valentine’s Day I gave both my kids water bottles.

They love them.