Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Champions!
Not only was the weekend and Marathon relay increadibly fun....we freaking won! :) Unbelievable fun! All in all I had a fantastic time, left in the morning so as to make it to the captains meeting - not terribly interesting, but necessary if not actually informational. Then met Leah for lunch and just chilled around town for the rest of the day. We had coffee, people watched, walked some, drove the course, caught up. What more could I have asked for. The two of us met up with our teammates, Heidi, Lori and Julie for dinner (Cheesecake Factory....yum). As I would have expected they were fantastic in welcoming Leah - and Leah was as comfortable as you would expect....as if they were old friends. We all crammed into one hotel room for the night and told girly stories while falling asleep. The race was the most competitive, meaningful competition I have engaged in since actually competing. :) I ran the first leg (everyone gets five miles save for the final runner who trots 6.2 so as to complete the marathon course). Since the rely is at the same time as and on the same course as the marathon I was piled in with the 8,000 or so runners partaking in the event. It was awesome - My goal was to run somewhere around a 7minute mile. I ws thinking maybe 7:15 might be my top so I placed myself squarely between the half marathon pace group of 1:30 (6:52 miles) and the marathon group that was paced at 7:38 miles. Needless to say I was a bit shocked when I crested the first mile a good few blocks behind 6:52 pace group and discovered I turned in a 6:53 split! That man had decieved all of his 1:30 pace group....they must have gone through the mile in 6:40 or so. I was able however to slow down some thanks to a gentleman running the half marathon, wearing a watch and similarly duped by said pacer. We teamed up for the next mile and a half or so until the courses split and I was on my own. I survived up the nasty hills that had sealed the first leg for me given that I had been crowned our hill runner. I was thankfully greated on the other side of the hills by a few generous flats nad downhill sctions only to discover the final 150 meterss or so of my portion were straight up hill. I managed to find Heidi waiting at the top and forced a decent finish. I don't haev an exact split but it seems I came in somewhere just under 7 minutes/mile. I was thrilled....if not exhausted and lying in someone's lawn for a few moments! It was great fun to have teammates there cheering and encouraging and just being surrounded by such an emotional feat.
Heidi is increadible and proved to be such....I had thrown her into a pace group she wasn't interested in running with but she hung on nonetheless. And seemed generally happy to do so. Didn't even complain too much about the hills she had to run even though she'd expressed a willingness to do it if need be but an obviously desire to avoid such a leg! After each exchange we all piled in Heidi's mom van and drove to the next transition area - it was an unbelievable experience to get to watch the marathoners come by at each five mile split nad to see these ladies who were running with me lay it all on the line for each other. we cheered for the other participants like they were our own family.
Leah was awesome....any of you out there who recall her first two mile attempt back in 1996 on the beaver trails behind campus need to call her and congratulate her because girl clocked an 8:15 mile out of the gate. Not only did she run an 8:15 mile....she piled 4 more on top of it. I have no hand in what she did, nor do I have a leg to stand on when I say - I haev never been so proud of a friend in mylife. Her effort was increadible....her will unshaken - she was committed, driven and the strongest woman I have met. What a display of will we saw in her.
Julie - one of my long run buddies who has pushed me to this crazy state of enjoying ten mile runs on Sunday mornings - posted a time she never thought she was capable of. It was great fun to watch her lament over the "short" race (these two race 10 and 13 milers most often and are marathon veterans themselves)...only to complete the race with a success far beyond her goal!
And Lori rocked it as we expected....she was picking people off left and right as she traveresed the final portion of the marathon course for us. We all met her with about 600-800 meters to go and ran in with her - finishing as one person...a group of five middle age-ish women with a gaggle of kids between us happy to have completed something together.
Come to find out we won! We were the first women's team, surpassed only by one professional men's team, six all men's teams and one co-ed team. We beat down the rest of the fifty team pack. :) Men, women, and combined.
It was my first marathon experience as a spectator and I can honestly say I've never witnessed something of such emotional stature as the marathon. The spectators, the families cheering, the general unity that is a pack of 8000 people running and thousands more rooting for them floored me. It is such an emotional upheval to complete such a feat. Maybe someday....for now I am content to run one fifth of it. Thanks a million times over to the ladies that competed with me and the tens of thousands there to witness it.
Heidi is increadible and proved to be such....I had thrown her into a pace group she wasn't interested in running with but she hung on nonetheless. And seemed generally happy to do so. Didn't even complain too much about the hills she had to run even though she'd expressed a willingness to do it if need be but an obviously desire to avoid such a leg! After each exchange we all piled in Heidi's mom van and drove to the next transition area - it was an unbelievable experience to get to watch the marathoners come by at each five mile split nad to see these ladies who were running with me lay it all on the line for each other. we cheered for the other participants like they were our own family.
Leah was awesome....any of you out there who recall her first two mile attempt back in 1996 on the beaver trails behind campus need to call her and congratulate her because girl clocked an 8:15 mile out of the gate. Not only did she run an 8:15 mile....she piled 4 more on top of it. I have no hand in what she did, nor do I have a leg to stand on when I say - I haev never been so proud of a friend in mylife. Her effort was increadible....her will unshaken - she was committed, driven and the strongest woman I have met. What a display of will we saw in her.
Julie - one of my long run buddies who has pushed me to this crazy state of enjoying ten mile runs on Sunday mornings - posted a time she never thought she was capable of. It was great fun to watch her lament over the "short" race (these two race 10 and 13 milers most often and are marathon veterans themselves)...only to complete the race with a success far beyond her goal!
And Lori rocked it as we expected....she was picking people off left and right as she traveresed the final portion of the marathon course for us. We all met her with about 600-800 meters to go and ran in with her - finishing as one person...a group of five middle age-ish women with a gaggle of kids between us happy to have completed something together.
Come to find out we won! We were the first women's team, surpassed only by one professional men's team, six all men's teams and one co-ed team. We beat down the rest of the fifty team pack. :) Men, women, and combined.
It was my first marathon experience as a spectator and I can honestly say I've never witnessed something of such emotional stature as the marathon. The spectators, the families cheering, the general unity that is a pack of 8000 people running and thousands more rooting for them floored me. It is such an emotional upheval to complete such a feat. Maybe someday....for now I am content to run one fifth of it. Thanks a million times over to the ladies that competed with me and the tens of thousands there to witness it.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Everyone doing well
Almost two weeks later and we're all doing pretty well.
We tripped to the nursing home on the 8th, we took Addie and had a few new friends in tow as well. It was fun to see the "new" kids respond to and interact with the residents, and we hope they'll continue to come along.
Yesterday was a fantastic day. Indoor park has begun, which is basically open gym for toddlers, and instead of basketball they play toys provided by the rec center. Grandma Terri was there with the kids as well as a few other friends. Nearly 45 minutes before close Terri was presented with an imminent reason to leave (potty for a non-public restroom three year old!) so she took D home and left Carson with us to finish out play time. As one might expect we then had lunch at and played for a bit at Grandma's house before coming home JUST long enough for Mia to nap and L to have some "quiet" time (not at all what I would call rest time by the way....) After nap it was right back to Grandma's to play outside. The babies are now big enough to follow the big girls around, and as it turns out Ella and Carson lead while Delainey and Mia follow. Poor Mia's little legs don't keep up very well but she does try her drandest! She even attempted rock wall climbing yesterday on Grandma's retaining wall....mildly unsuccessful on the most steepest of walls...but suprisingly capable on the most steplike portions of the wall. We went in for a warmup and the kids played marvelously while Grandma and I had coffee in the kitchen until both Cory and Meredith got home. Much fun.
We are a girls only house this week. Chris has for all intents and purposes been gone since Tuesday morning. He did make an appearance last night, but he wasn't home until after the girls and I had left for Wednesday night Church and was gone to fantasy football before we got home. The girls were, as one might expect, sleeping when he got home, but I did get to see him, which is of course always nice. He was out the door by 6:45 this morning, again missin the girls and won't be back until tomorrow night at which time he hopes for all of us to go the football game. I told him I can't promise anything but he can most likely take Ella. Mia and I may well be going to bed.
We've been just fine on our own, however, as Tuesday night was tumbling - to which the girls and I walked in the rain. I generally enjoy taking Ella to class mostly because I get to sit and chat with other adults while she is active under someone elses tenure for an hour. Not so when Mia is in tow. If only she could join the class....at least that what she seems to be wanting when she makes a break for the mats and kids at all possible moments! Can't complain about Tuesday morning either...Heidi graciously offered to watch Mia while I went for a run, and since I didn't get done in time for her to complete a good workout I walked both Mia and Matthew to preschool pickup (Addie's school is across the street from Ella's) while she ran there. They're coming over tonight for supper and likely split workouts again since Jim and Chris were considerate enough to schedule their out of town trips simultaneously and we've both been left to our own devices! Should be a fun night. I fully expect them to stay most of the evening and to leave bathed and in comfies ready for bed.
I am desperately anxious for the weekend. Our Marathon Relay is finally upon us! I leave for my "captains" meeting Saturday morning, meet Leah around noon and don't return until after the race Sunday morning. After a full week of single momming it I am quite looking forward to a full day on my own, and time to spend with Leah.
Hope everyone has a full and fun weekend planned. We are down to three weeks until we visit Texas....Can't wait!!!!
We tripped to the nursing home on the 8th, we took Addie and had a few new friends in tow as well. It was fun to see the "new" kids respond to and interact with the residents, and we hope they'll continue to come along.
Yesterday was a fantastic day. Indoor park has begun, which is basically open gym for toddlers, and instead of basketball they play toys provided by the rec center. Grandma Terri was there with the kids as well as a few other friends. Nearly 45 minutes before close Terri was presented with an imminent reason to leave (potty for a non-public restroom three year old!) so she took D home and left Carson with us to finish out play time. As one might expect we then had lunch at and played for a bit at Grandma's house before coming home JUST long enough for Mia to nap and L to have some "quiet" time (not at all what I would call rest time by the way....) After nap it was right back to Grandma's to play outside. The babies are now big enough to follow the big girls around, and as it turns out Ella and Carson lead while Delainey and Mia follow. Poor Mia's little legs don't keep up very well but she does try her drandest! She even attempted rock wall climbing yesterday on Grandma's retaining wall....mildly unsuccessful on the most steepest of walls...but suprisingly capable on the most steplike portions of the wall. We went in for a warmup and the kids played marvelously while Grandma and I had coffee in the kitchen until both Cory and Meredith got home. Much fun.
We are a girls only house this week. Chris has for all intents and purposes been gone since Tuesday morning. He did make an appearance last night, but he wasn't home until after the girls and I had left for Wednesday night Church and was gone to fantasy football before we got home. The girls were, as one might expect, sleeping when he got home, but I did get to see him, which is of course always nice. He was out the door by 6:45 this morning, again missin the girls and won't be back until tomorrow night at which time he hopes for all of us to go the football game. I told him I can't promise anything but he can most likely take Ella. Mia and I may well be going to bed.
We've been just fine on our own, however, as Tuesday night was tumbling - to which the girls and I walked in the rain. I generally enjoy taking Ella to class mostly because I get to sit and chat with other adults while she is active under someone elses tenure for an hour. Not so when Mia is in tow. If only she could join the class....at least that what she seems to be wanting when she makes a break for the mats and kids at all possible moments! Can't complain about Tuesday morning either...Heidi graciously offered to watch Mia while I went for a run, and since I didn't get done in time for her to complete a good workout I walked both Mia and Matthew to preschool pickup (Addie's school is across the street from Ella's) while she ran there. They're coming over tonight for supper and likely split workouts again since Jim and Chris were considerate enough to schedule their out of town trips simultaneously and we've both been left to our own devices! Should be a fun night. I fully expect them to stay most of the evening and to leave bathed and in comfies ready for bed.
I am desperately anxious for the weekend. Our Marathon Relay is finally upon us! I leave for my "captains" meeting Saturday morning, meet Leah around noon and don't return until after the race Sunday morning. After a full week of single momming it I am quite looking forward to a full day on my own, and time to spend with Leah.
Hope everyone has a full and fun weekend planned. We are down to three weeks until we visit Texas....Can't wait!!!!
Friday, October 3, 2008
Recent Goings On
The last few weeks have been pretty interesting. Heici and I took the kids out to the cabin for a few days last week so as to attend a wedding of a relative of mine who happened to be a college roommate of Heidi's. The boys (Chris and Jim) stayed to work Friday then came up together and met us for the weekend. The big girls were great at the cabin, as they were earlier this summer. They tried like heck to find toads, which it seems have become sparse, likely due to the cold nights. The babies were mostly good as well, although both Matthew and Mia picked a night in which to prove difficult sleepers away from the comfort of their own homes and beds. The wedding was a good time, short, on account of my having a race at 7 am the next morning, but good nonetheless. Which brings up the hotly anticipated half-marathon. Mia was a cranky sleeper the night before, and God Bless him Chris did his darndest to deal wtih her, but she just wasn't having it. So at roughly 2:10am after nearly 2.5 hours of sleeplessness I took her from him and pu her to bed in the pack-n-play in Gran and Lucky's closet, set up the monitor, shut the doors and went to bed. Lo and Behold it worked!!! She slept until 7:30 the next morning. At which time I was already a good 30 minutes into my 1.75 hours of tortue! It was good. Humbling. Difficult. But good. I ran a time right around what I had aimed for, but was a little disappointed in my racing efforts. It seems that "don't go out too fast" doesn't merely apply to the first mile or two, but to the entire first half of the race. I went out plenty slow, and I know this because the crowd allowed for little more than a jog silmilar to that of an attempt to run through a busy mall on, say, tax free day. But around mile 3 or so it seems I kicked it in, which I realized at about 5.5 and paid for a little after 7. Let's not forget to mention that just after 7 was also the 1 mile plus long hill. O Torture. After I reached the peak I began walking at the water stations, and occasionally at the end of the four or five remaining grueling hills. But I finished, and I'm proud of it.
As a good portion of you have heard I finished that 13.1 mile atrocity a few days over 10 weeks pregnant. Without drawing it out, we found out today the pregnancy is over. We're doing alright. It's suprisingly simple for me, given the powerlessness and reality that I am experiencing. I did a darn good job for the first few hours. Chris is a saint, and has been taking care of the girls all afternoon. Home alone I realized I was unable to sit, and the cramping was debilitating either way so I chose to mow the lawn, mostly to have something to do. So I plugged in my iPod, picked the best (and consequently only) Christian Rock music I owned and cried my way through a few laps around my house. After that I was in pretty good shape, and oddly can find nothing in my soul that does not scream praises to God. In a time when I would expect myself to mourn, to question, to be furious with God for taking this child the only words I can find are those of awe and wonder. It would seem that for as tiny as this little person was in its last earthly moments, even then God had bigger plans for it than I could ever provide. And I can't help but to thank Him for loving my baby so much that He would draw him near so as to give it what God had planned for it, not what I had planned for it.
For I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Because this broken road
Prepares your will for me
Well I'm Broken-But I still see your face
Well you've spoken-pouring your words of grace
-Jeremy Camp
Amen
As a good portion of you have heard I finished that 13.1 mile atrocity a few days over 10 weeks pregnant. Without drawing it out, we found out today the pregnancy is over. We're doing alright. It's suprisingly simple for me, given the powerlessness and reality that I am experiencing. I did a darn good job for the first few hours. Chris is a saint, and has been taking care of the girls all afternoon. Home alone I realized I was unable to sit, and the cramping was debilitating either way so I chose to mow the lawn, mostly to have something to do. So I plugged in my iPod, picked the best (and consequently only) Christian Rock music I owned and cried my way through a few laps around my house. After that I was in pretty good shape, and oddly can find nothing in my soul that does not scream praises to God. In a time when I would expect myself to mourn, to question, to be furious with God for taking this child the only words I can find are those of awe and wonder. It would seem that for as tiny as this little person was in its last earthly moments, even then God had bigger plans for it than I could ever provide. And I can't help but to thank Him for loving my baby so much that He would draw him near so as to give it what God had planned for it, not what I had planned for it.
For I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Because this broken road
Prepares your will for me
Well I'm Broken-But I still see your face
Well you've spoken-pouring your words of grace
-Jeremy Camp
Amen
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