182: the best fans ever

I can't begin to describe the gratitude I have towards all of the encouragement I received for this last race. Jim and Laurie coming to hang with the girls - literally couldn't have done it without them. Mom and Dad's words of good luck - stuck in my head. Knowing that Kinsley and Dagny were standing waiting for me to get to the hill - it actually got me going from about mile 5, I just couldn't wait to see them. Megan's texts for the week leading up to the race ... and then seeing her standing there with Jim, Laurie, and the girls - hit me hard and kept me going. All of the "good lucks" on facebook and email, the texts the days leading up to the race, and just knowing people were pulling for me ... got me through some of the toughest parts of that run.

So thankful that I have such amazing people in my life.

181: there's still hope to get fast

It seems as though most of the people who are super super fast and win races are those who have been running since before college. They've been coached by the best and have that natural talent that the average person doesn't have. I've always thought that I can train hard and continue to get better but there's really not much chance that I'll ever be REALLY good. And I've always felt as though I have to work harder than most people to get the same improvement - not a big deal, but it's something I've accepted and I'm willing to do - I don't mind working hard! I've also accepted that even if I keep running and training hard, I'll just maintain my above-average-but-middle-of-the-pack abilities.

BUT ... the coverage of the Eugene Marathon has given me a new hope. The woman who won the marathon is 45 years old. She has run 20 marathons and this is her first win. But what's more amazing to me is that she has only been running since 2006 or 2007. She has only been running for seven or eight years and in that time has gotten to the point of being able to WIN a marathon. And not a tiny town marathon that has 100 people show up. Eugene is thousands of people.

I know I'll never be able to win a marathon - nor am I sure if I will ever even run another full marathon. But it is encouraging to know that there IS a possibility for me to get much much faster and continue to improve. I haven't been running that long. And since I've started really running I've had my training put on hold a couple of times to have a couple of pretty damn cute babies. Now that that's done ... I feel like I can keep building on where I'm at. That makes me excited.

180: a PR

My goal today was to break 1:40:00 in the half. Going into the race I was nervous that something ridiculous would keep me from meeting that goal. I know I'm trained. I trained hard. But I've been having some problems with my pelvis not moving properly, which gives me pains down my butt and leg. That was a worry. I've also been getting random side ache pains that will occasionally keep me from running more than a couple of miles. Another worry. I also randomly have hard days where running more than a couple of miles just isn't in the cards for my legs. Another worry. But thankfully none of those things came up today.

I went out wanting to stay with the 3:15 marathon pacer for as long as I could hold on. I figured I'm bound to have a hard last few miles - it always happens - I may as well have some time in the bank. I realize that this train of thought is sort of "frowned upon" in the running world, but I felt like I needed to just really push myself and see what I could do - I know I can run sub-7:30's, but how many of them can I run? I can run sub-7:15's for a 10k with a side ache and still have some in the tank and I've trained a lot since then so I should be able to hold 7:25's for a while!

I kept with the pace group through about 5 when they pulled ahead a bit. At that point I couldn't quite find a group to run with - it seemed I was always relatively on my own and had no one to work with. Fine. Through eight miles I was at a good 7:30 average pace - roughly a minute and a half ahead of my 1:40 goal at that point. Running up 19th was rough, though. I saw Jim, Laurie, and the girls and Kinsley was holding out my fuel. She's an awesome helper and gets so excited to hand us stuff during our runs. But then I saw Megan just beyond Kinsley. All of the sudden I was overcome with emotion. I'm not sure why it hit me like that, right then, but it may have just been the realization that she was at the Boston Marathon when the bombs went off. She was there. So many people were injured and she was right there. Thankfully she wasn't physically injured but she could have been. And so many people were. So messed up on so many levels. People all over the course were holding signs in memory of and in support of those who lost their lives, were injured, or emotionally broken in the Boston events. Runners were wearing shirts/shorts/headbands/socks with all sorts of love for Boston. And then I saw Megan. I started to get choked up and I just felt like I needed to hug her. So I did. I stopped right after grabbing my twist from Kinsley and I gave her a hug. Continuing up the hill was really hard. I actually had a mini asthma attack, which I haven't had in about 10 years. Not sure if that was my emotions getting me or what but I nearly panicked. I felt like my wind pipe was siezing up and swelling and I wasn't going to be able to catch my breath. Somehow it went away, though, and I was able to get to the top.

I was hoping to use the downhill to get a little kick and jumpstart the last 4.5 miles of the race. But my right hamstring cramped up and changed that. Getting close to mile 9, I was seriously contemplating stopping. I didn't want to get over to the other side of the river and HAVE to stop and be stuck. But then I realized how mad I would be. So I kept going. And it hurt bad. I was able to run through the cramp, but I had to completely change my form to ease up the muscle. Once that let up my muscles were exhausted from being used oddly and my knee was killing me - it felt like it was literally going to burst. Those last few miles were slow. Really slow. The only thought that got me to a point where I could pick up my pace again was, "if I run faster, I can stop sooner." And that worked. I was able to pick it up again around 12.5 and finish strong.

My goal was to break 1:40:00. I ended up at 1:40:31. It is disappointing to have started so strong, to have had all the stars seeming to align with none of my initial worries coming to, to have such a lead on my goal pace, and then to crash and burn and miss my goal by only 30 seconds. I trained hard and I know I'm trained well enough to break 1:40. So irritating... BUT even though I missed my goal, it was still a personal record. And I AM happy with it.

Now I need to get training again for the next one so I can kick 1:40's ass.

179: breakfast with anne and zach!

Anne and Zach are in town for the marathon weekend. They left Tori with her grandma for the weekend and came just the two of them. The last time I saw Anne was the summer of 2010 - Tori had just turned one and Kinsley was about a week away - MUCH too long ago. I'm so glad that it worked out to get together for a little visit this morning. These weekends can somehow get so busy but we made it happen. We met at Humble Bagle for some breakfast and coffee, visited for a while, played some Candy Land with Kinsley, and got to catch up a bit. Now we just need to get up to Spokane so Kinsley and Tori can play!

178: my own little focus group

A few ladies came out to enjoy the beautiful day today and let the kids play. I brought a few of the things I've been making out to let them try and give me some feedback on textures, scents, etc. I love having people who I trust, who I know will be honest but encouraging, right outside my door.

177: my health

I have a hard time with this one. I'm not sure if health issues have always been as prevelent as they are now or if I'm just more aware of them now that I'm an educated adult. Honestly, I know the answer is both. It kills me to see people sick, not feeling well in any capacity, suffering at any level. I see it way way way too often. I hate it. Every time I see/hear of someone who is unwell, I am thankful for my health and the health of my children. Knock-on-wood, we are generally very healthy. But I know how quickly that can change ... so I'll continue doing everything in my power to keep my family as healthy as we can be ... and I guess the rest is up to the Universe.

176: peanut butter

I love it. It's my go-to quick bite. If I haven't eaten but need to run? Spoon of PB. If I'm hungry before I'm about to go to bed? Spoon of PB. Don't want just a plain banana? Put some PB on it. And one of my favorite first sentences of Dagny's: "Mo PB, Mama?"

175: helmets

We finally got a second helmet for the girls. For the longest time now they've had to wait patiently for their turn with the helmet while the other one rides around. They've never been able to ride and play together. Last week we went and got Kinsley a new one. She picked it out and was so proud of it. It has a visor, which makes it look like daddy's when he wears his little cap under his, and it even has racing stripes :)

Thank goodness we have it. She took her first real crash today on her big bike. She was riding around and came to our square to turn around. When she turned the corner, her handle bar caught on one of the poles and threw her off. I didn't see it, but that's what Tanner recalled. It was awful. Poor girl was terrified. She's never had more than a minor fall where she can't get her feet down in time to stop and plops to the side. This was much bigger. Kevin ran out and found her face down on the concrete screaming. We got her helmet off and she had a little knot already forming and her arm was scraped up a little. Again, so thankful for her helmet. It has a few little scratches on it that would have been on her head and I'm sure the knot would have been much worse. Luckily, she's a tough kid and was up running around again within about fifteen minutes.

174: timmy's magic touch

I've definitely got a few aches and pains from my training. I've had a radiating ache that starts in my left hip and goes through my butt and down into my thigh. It's nothing that keeps me from doing anything, but it is super uncomfortable. The drive from Eugene to Portland was just short of misery because I couldn't for the life of me find a position that I could sit in that didn't send shooters down my leg or radiate ache through my hip. I have tried stretching and rolling, but it almost seems to make it more painful.

I had Timmy look at me yesterday and I'm already 99% better. He got my pelvis moving correctly and yanked on my leg to help align it better. He showed me how to do it myself to keep things happy. What I love about Timmy and the way he (and likely most PT's) works is that he doesn't just treat the symptoms. He finds the root cause of the pain and fixes it from there so that it is actually fixed. He tells you how to strengthen parts of your body so that it moves correctly.

I took yesterday off, too, just to really be sure I'm rested and then ran again this morning ... no pain. It's amazing what moving correctly can do.

173: a day off!

Today is my first day off in 60 days! It is messing with me just slightly mentally - I feel like I should keep my streak going - but I must say it feels good to just be able to "relax". My body needs it.

172: timmy

Timmy turns 34 today. I couldn't ask for a better brother. We may not have gotten along when we were little, but we've surely made up for lost time in the last decade. He has been supportive, loving, helpful, a great person to talk to and confide in, and fun to hang around with or even just be lazy with. We've spent long hours into the evening memorizing songs from The Brak Show. We've talked about our pasts, our relationships, our friendships, and our futures. It is hard to express how happy it makes me to see him so happy. I've always wished this for him and now he has it. I can't wait to see where his life takes him on his next adventure.

171: a good streak

My running streak is kind of what is keeping me going right now. I'm at 59 days today. Again, I know it's not much in the way of streaks, but it's huge for me. I plan to run tomorrow before heading to Portland to make it an even 60 days and then force myself to rest. My body is feeling this streak - in both the positive of having a great base and strength and the negative of starting to hurt - and I want to feel fresh for next weekend's race. I'm going to force myself to take it easy next week - not as many miles but go hard on the miles I do run. But I am thankful that I've been able to have a streak to keep me motivated (it may have been more of a slight addiction) and that I was able to stay healthy while doing it.

170: I was a part of the Manfredi wedding

Nine years ago Nika and Luca were married and I got to be a part of it. I can't believe it has been that long, but they are just as cute together today as they were that day. Scratch that - they are even cuter today because they now have two handsome little guys that they get to spread their love to, too. I am so thankful that I was asked to be a part of such beautiful commitment to a strong and loving life together. They are an amazing example to their boys and I'm lucky to have them in my life.

169: eugene is almost here ...

I'm at that point of near-burnout where I dread each and every run. But the end is in sight! Just over one week left to show time and I'm excited to see how much my hard work will pay off.

168: Megan is safe in Boston

Today was the 117th Boston Marathon. Two bombs exploded at the finish area right around the 4-hour mark. I have no words ... other than I am so thankful for all of the people who responded so quickly to help those in need of help and that my great friend Megan is safe. No words.

167: race prize gift certificates

Kevin won the 10k this last week at the OTC run. Track Town Pizza had donated gift certificates to the top male and female finishers in both races. It worked out fabulously ... Kevin had a gift certificate, I had nothing planned. We picked up a pizza, brought it up to Grandma Billie's, and had a "relaxing" evening just hanging out.

166: SV community

I can't say enough about how much I love the community that we have found here. I feel so SO lucky to be a part of such an amazing group of people. Everyone is so nice, so friendly, so genuine, and so accepting. I'm not sure that I have ever felt so much at home, especially when I've actually been away from my home and family. While I'm excited that we get to go to the beach for the summer, I'm honestly a little bummed that we won't be here to hang out with everyone in the best weather of the year.

This morning a few of us got together in the community room for another workout - this time it was to one of Jillian Michaels' "shred it" videos. The kids were running around, ocassionally joining in an exercise or two, having snacks, and playing much more independently than last time which allowed us to do more of the video (still only probably about 60%, but that's much more than last time where they were hanging all over us, crying, arguing, blah blah blah). Afterwards, Abbey suggested that we do a potluck dinner since we had the room for the rest of the evening. We invited a couple more girls and their families, we all made a little something to bring, Kinsley picked out a couple of kids' movies to bring, and we had a great time. I sincerely enjoy the company of all of these people. We ended up having seven families in total. The kids decided on Madagascar for their movie. I think that was just what I needed for the evening. Some real adult interaction while the girls were able to run around with their friends. I wish I had brought my camera because the kids did so amazingly and were so cute together. I did have my phone, but only one picture left ...

Not that she ever does with two older sisters, but Baby Rosey was definitely not starving for attention :)

 It was a very last-minute deal, but it was such a fun evening. I hope we have many more of these to come.

165: craigslist

Where else would we be able to get Kinsley her own two-wheeler to ride for less than $30???

164: gardening opportunities

Our apartments have garden plots available to tenants. We don't have one because I don't know the first thing about gardening. But we have friends who have them. Kinsley absolutely loves helping Yaya and Papa in the garden and has since before she could walk. Dagny is showing the same interest. Now that the weather is consistently nicer, we have had more of a chance to get out and see our friends here gardening.

Kinsley literally jumps at the chance to go with Ella to her "Enchanting Garden" and help her plant things. Ella and Rebecca are still moving things from their previous plot at the other side of the complex to their current one which is right across the parking lot from us.

Yesterday we walked over to the other plot. Kinsley was beyond excited when Rebecca told her that she could actually eat some of the flowers! The flowers of a kale plant are tiny and yellow. Kinsley didn't just pick a couple of flowers and pop them in her mouth ... she shoved the whole plant in her mouth.

We walked back to the new plot and Kinsley, Dagny, and Taya helped Ella transplant her plant.

Rebecca hooked up the hose to do a little watering and the girls snagged a couple of sips ... so fun to drink from a giant drinking fountain.

I love that the girls are able to be exposed to gardening. I think it brings so many great and valuable lessons along with it. I'm also excited to get the chance to learn a few things from Rebecca while the girls play!

163: OTC thursday series runs

The OTC summer run series has started again for 2013. The second Thursday of each month between March and November is a 5k race somewhere in the Eugene/Springfield area. Ocassionally there is a 10k as well and it's free for members and only $5 for nonmembers. Never is a race that inexpensive! The cheapest 5k I've seen is still $25-$30! And $free is even better. I'm trying to race as much as I can for the practice of just racing so these are perfect for me.

Even better is that they are the perfect distance for people who don't run a TON but want to set a goal to work towards. Abbey came out tonight and it was fantastic! She's only run a 5k one other time in her life and it was a long time ago: pre-Penelope for sure. Her goal was to beat her previous time and she destroyed it! I'm so excited for her and so excited that she wants to do it again! I'm really hoping that we can get more of the girls in our complex out to do them, too. It would be so fun to have something super active like that to do together. And I love that the kids can all come hang out, run around in the fields, and watch their mamas be active!

162: Charlee and Tanner are in Eugene!

We are so excited that Charlee and Tanner are living in Eugene now. Brian emailed and said that they're normal child care lady had a baby and could the kids come hang out a couple of days this week. ABSOLUTELY!!! We were so excited! The last time we had seen the kids was when the girls were almost a year old - much too long ago. We've stayed in touch through Facebook with photos, notes and messages, etc, but we haven't actually connected in person.

Dagny and I picked Kinsley up from school and immediately came home. We had some lunch, tidied up a bit, and then Kinsley waited anxiously for them to get here. What fun kids they are. Brian had said at one point that he understood if four kids was too much of a handful ... it made it so much easier! Kinsley and Charlee played so well together and Tanner is the most mature eight-year-old I've ever met and a huge help with all three girls.

We brought all of their stuff inside and then immediately went to the sandy playground where we hung out for about an hour before it started to rain.

{photos soon}

After having a snack, the kids wanted to go out to the track and run and play in the sand some more. It had stopped raining for the most part and Kevin was home from school and could help me out ... so we hopped the fence. Tanner did some laps, easily running over a mile, and the girls played in the jump pits and on the runway until Kendra came to pick them up.

When they left Kinsley was so excited to get to see them again. And we are so excited that it will be so easy to see them again now that they're so close!

161: skype

Skype has proven to be completely invaluable to our family. We don't use it all that terribly often, but we use it often enough to make a difference to the girls. I am convinced that Skype is the reason that Dagny is so comfortable with some of our family that she doesn't see on a regular basis. Kinsley was around our parents and siblings on a near-daily basis when she was a baby/toddler but Dagny hasn't been since we've been in Eugene since she was only a couple of months old. But seeing the faces of Yaya and Papa and Gramma and Baba and Boo Boo and Auntie D on Skype ... she gets to talk to them and interact with them a little bit. She hears their voices and sees their facial expressions. And then when we actually do get to see everyone in person, the "settle in" time is so minimal. Moving away from our friends and family was hard - it was the obvious choice for us and we knew it would be short-term, but it was still hard. But Skype has helped us to feel like we are closer in proximity to our family than we are and has let us visit with them more often than we would otherwise be able to. Very thankful for Skype.

160: mom and dad's example

Today Mom and Dad are celebrating 35 years of marriage. They have been such a great example of how to make a relationship work: how to support each other through difficult times, how to carry each other through hardships, how to work through differences, how to learn from each other and from mistakes made, how to have fun and laugh together, how to work as a team, how to appreciate each other, and how to love selflessly. Thank you for your example. Here's to the next 35 years!

159: My first 25k

Timmy and Alex chose the Shotgun Blast Trail Run for their Christmas race. There was a 50k option, a 25k, or a 10k - they chose the 25k ... that's 15.5 miles. On trails.  I've done a full marathon, but this is on trails. It sounded scary to me. But up until this weekend I really had pictured us just going out for a really long jog. But then they got here and Alex said that Timmy was planning to bomb it and see how fast he could do it. So there went the "easy run" mentality that had given me an ounce of comfort. It was scary again. I was so nervous this morning. But it was so much fun ... I say that when I think of PART of the race, not the entire thing, though.

The race was 3 loops of a 5.2-mile course, which is one of my mini hells - I hate multiple loop courses, but even worse for me are out-and-backs so this wasn't ALL that terrible. The hardest part of those loops, though, was that the first two miles were straight. up. hill. Two miles. Uphill. And uphill on single-track trail. The first loop was hard, but not horrible. The second time was painful. The third time was down-right destroying to my legs. I was barely moving. It was faster for me to actually stop running and walk in parts.

The next mile of the loop was downhill. It was such a welcomed change on my legs for all three laps. And the final two miles of each lap were rolling. My legs got so tight on the insane two-mile up that the downs were a big relief and I was able to pick up my pace significantly. However, the downhill also got a little scarier with each lap, too. It was raining - dumping actually - and with that many people going running it became a serious mud fest by the second lap. There were a couple of sections where I literally braced myself through my core and hips and surfed down the mud because I thought it was safer than trying to run step by step through it. I lost my footing a couple of times and nearly launched off the side of the trail. We did catch a few moments where there was no rain, but they were few and far between. By the end of the race I probably had an extra 10 pounds to lug around with my drenched clothes and mud filled shoes. I wish we had taken a picture of us before and after to really capture how muddy and wet it actually was. Kevin hung out with the girls and they cheered us through each transition with their cow bells.

Timmy did awesome - he came in 3rd overall!

Alex was amazing and was smiling all the way to her frolick at the finish.

I did try to smile, but the camera was apparently taking too long and only caught me looking exhausted - which I was.

All-in-all, it was a great run. Those dang two-mile uphills on each loop slowed my overall pace down significantly, but it was encouraging to be able to pick it up as much as I did even on the third lap. I'm not too concerned with my time on this one. I'll take it for my first ever 25k, and a trail race at that. I am surprisingly less sore and tired than I thought I would be, but we'll see how things feel tomorrow.

158: Timmy and Alex weekend

For Christmas, we gave Timmy and Alex a trail race weekend. They picked a race and we registered and did food, etc for the weekend. The weekend is finally here! Kinsley has been SO excited for them to come all week - beyond herself excited. She actually sat in the window of her bedroom waiting for about 30 minutes watching for them get here and calling to them ... "Uncle Timmy? Alex? Helloooo? Are you here yet?" ... and that was after I made her come in from the rain where she was sitting and waiting for them about an hour before they were supposed to be here. She's pumped.

Today was very low key. We played around a bit, Kinsley showed them how she can ride her two-wheeler now, we walked to the market, made dinner, and then Kinsley asked if she could watch "Despicable Me" with them. She was in HEAVEN. And it's so fun to have them here.

157: bed naps for Dagny

After Bounce today, the girls were pretty wiped but still in really good spirits. Dagny was still awake as we pulled into our parking space but her eyes were drooping pretty heavily. I asked Kinsley to be really quiet for just a minute to see if Dagny would fall asleep. Sure enough, within a minute or so of parking Dagny was out. She was so tired that she stayed asleep on my shoulder when I got her out of her seat and even let me lay her down in her bed without budging. That never happens. She never takes naps for me in her bed anymore. She naps, but it is ALWAYS in the ergo, the stroller, the backpack, the car, or on my shoulder. But she was out cold in her bed for this one. And she slept for 2 hours! It was so great because it gave Kinsley and I the chance to hang out. We read books, we did a few puzzles, we made some lunch, we played Chutes and Ladders and Go Fish, and we read more books. I don't mind in the least that Dagny typically naps when we're out and about. But it is really nice to be able to occasionally have days like today where I can spend some inside, quiet, alone time with Kins.

156: BOUNCE!

Today was a crummy day weather-wise. It was overcast and rainy on and off all day. We got a text from a classmate of Kinsley's that they were heading to Bounce for open gym and asked if we'd like to join them. Kinsley literally jumped out of her seat when I asked if she wanted to go and said, "YES! Let's get dressed RIGHT now and go." I had to stall her for another two hours, but I promised her that we could go.

What a great way to spend a rainy day. For $5 a kid, they can run and jump and tumble as much as they want for over an hour. I don't think Kinsley or Dagny stopped moving for the entire time we were there. They went from the trampolines to the uneven bars to the balance beam to the trampoline runway and all over again. I was so proud of how they waited patiently for their turns in line. Kinsley was such a great example that even other parents commented to their children about how they should wait nicely like this little girl. And Dagny followed suit to her big sister. It was pretty cute to watch her stand quietly with her hands down to her sides just watching and waiting so patiently but SO anxiously for her turn. And the best part is that it gets their energy out in a way that is completely different from how they are normally able to do it. Changes like that are always welcome for these girls.

155: school's in again

I think that preschool has been such a great thing for Kinsley. The social piece of it has been priceless - just having other kids to play with and interact with has been great. She has friends that she talks about and little inside jokes that she laughs about and she's becoming even more of a KID instead of a little girl. I also think that it has been amazing invaluable to have Miss Ali and Miss Melissa working with her. Having someone else set structure to her day and have rules that may or may not be the same as at home and help guide her through different learning situations has been really good for her.

Spring Break was great and I really loved having Kinsley with us the whole time. But I think that she really missed her other routine. She asked almost every day if she had school today. When we'd say no, she'd ask if school was tomorrow. She also got a little more testy over break than she's been. I think being with us all day every day was starting to get to her (I can't imagine why). I'm glad that we're back into our normal routine and that she has her little break from home again. Even if it's only 3 hours a day and only 3 days a week, it is exacly what she needs.

154: Baba!

I am so thankful that I have in-laws that are so fantastic in so many ways. The girls absolutely adore Baba. They love when we stay there and they get to say good morning to Buddha from the kitchen nook with Baba when we wake up. They love playing ball with him in the backyard. They love it when he brings them spring rolls for lunch after his workouts. I love watching them play with him because there is always so much joy on their faces. He is such a good man who has worked so hard to bring great things for his family. We wouldn't be where we are without him.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BABA!

153: march running challenge

There was a challenge posted on the facebook page for "I{heart}Running" for the month of March. I should clarify, I do not love running. I do, however, like the posts on that page - they are inspiring, I can relate to many of them, and they are a good kick in the butt for me. The challenge for March was to run every day, at least one mile. I told myself that I was going to do it, so I had to. And I did. I ran every single day in March - all 31 days. It has led me into the longest running streak I think I've ever had - 42 days now including the couple of weeks in February and today. It's not impressive by many standards - I know people personally who have had streaks of 100 days, 365 days, and even 1000+ days (seriously) - but it is MY longest streak. I ran 163 miles in the month of March, which is an average of roughly 5 miles a day. That's nearly 20 miles more than the month prior to my last half marathon, which is really exciting for me. I'm hoping that this mileage translates into another PR at the end of this month for the Eugene Half. I'm not sure I would have put that in if it weren't for the "I{heart}Running" challenge, so ... thankful for another facebook challenge.