Fall Fun

It was a fab weekend here and the weather did not disappoint.  I LOVE fall and it was fall wrapped up with a bow this weekend!

So I turned the big 3-1 and celebrated the day with a 6:30 run (yeah! got to sleep in!) of 8 miles and then headed off for some fall fun with my sweet family.  Behold...

Kiddo boy and me...  he requested to wear his coyboy boots so he was fitting right in!

Let's hope it's a while before the kiddo is driving me around!

Tarzan... attempting to "paint" his pumpkin.

And finally... a family shot from the day (taken at the level of a tripod-pumpkin!)

12 mile runs and closing a chapter

First a running update...

We ran 12 miles on Saturday morning... starting at 5am! Ick!  It took us right at 2 hours and felt WONDERFUL!  One of those runs where you just feel good.  An "all-is-well-with-the-world" kind of run! It was fab.  I feel ready for our race (a half marathon) in another couple weeks.  We will do a tempo run or two during the weekday and weekend runs will taper back to just 8 miles or so.  Once race day is complete it will be time to maintain a good base for the April half marathon!

I turn the big 3-1 on Saturday.  I'm pretty sure that makes me "in my 30's" now instead of just 30.  Is that just my logic or do others do that too?

And finally-- I am officially finished nursing baby boy as of early last week.  I have actually had two cry-fests over that fact.  It amazes me that something that was so hard at first, that I pretty much despised in the early weeks could turn into such an amazing time and bond that I did not see coming.  The blessing of a baby and nursing all took me by surprise!  I'm never good at ending chapters in life but usually future chapters are just as beautiful in their own way.   That's what I have to remember. 

An end to nursing has made the past year flash before my eyes and probably why I couldn't help shedding a few tears.  I have pictured those first days of trying to figure out how to nurse a newborn and be a mom, watching a baby grow and change just a tiny bit as I held him for each new feeding along the way, being around for the littlest of milestones that no one but a mother would know about... it's been amazing and I will miss these days.  I look forward with hope to doing it again with another child.

And I leave you with a photo or two of my little guy at 13 months old!  The first is after eating beets.  Yum!

And playing with his Mama's lens cap...

The alarm sounded today at 4:40am! Yuck!

Another befor crack-o-dawn run this morning... 8 miles starting at 5:15.  Thank goodness the park is close but that was still a 4:40AM wake up call!  BUT I won't have to do a long run this weekend now and also don't plan to do it early!  Yeah!!  There is always good news!

And I have been burning the candle at both ends this week.  I've been blessed with two small archi projects but they are happening around the same time!  So working on that and house rental stuff all on top of life = wanting to crawl into a hole and sleep.

I finally called my OB office today about the lack of a period.  Just to put my mind at ease that it's ok/normal/.  ; )  I'm actually at peace in the waiting (yes, of course I'd love another kiddo soon) but just in case this little lady should have started again after almost 14 months from having a baby, I'd like to be proactive. 

And a last random nugget for today since some of my old elementary to highschool peeps read this 'ol blog... I just finished looking back at some old photos from the middle and highschool years and seriously wanted to laugh/cry/cringe over spans of my dorky years.  I actually wore a homemade halloween-themed puffy paint sweatshirt at my 15th birthday party!  Who does that?!  (Yes, my birthday is right before Halloween so at heast it wasn't spring or something too!)

My poor kid might have no chance at having dork-free years with these two parents!  : ) 

Please-- someone make me feel better and share your own dorky highschool moment!

B.O.B. Stroller Safety Alert

I bundled up my little guy and took him out for my run this morning-- my hubby had to be at work early so I had to cancel my plans for a 5:45 run.  It's definitely not my preference to run with the little guy but it worked out and he always enjoys the runs-- so that's good!

But the real reason for this post is that BOB sent me an email today about another safety alert regarding the backing to the logo patch on the canopy.  For instructions on removing the patch backing follow this link:  http://www.bobnotices.com/recall1/documents/OMB06.pdf

Happy running!

Whoa Baby!

You have got to check out this article about a Mama giving birth immediately following the Chicago Marathon (that she ran at 39 weeks prego)!

I can guarantee my husband would have vetoed the idea of me running that long at that far along in my pregnancy... I was running at 39 weeks but it was only for about 2-3 miles.  : )  

And in nursing news-- we're still just doing just one nursing a day (most days)... why most days?  Well I've "caved" two times now after my little boy (13 months old) signs "please" and tries to lift up my shirt.  Breaks my heart.  Both times were when we've been reading a book in the chair I usually nursed in so he obviously associates the two.  Sniff.

Eliminating Garbage

Today's rant after unsubscribing from some new (to me) running blogs I decided to follow on Google Reader:

I'm not mad at you if you like to cuss (or write and cuss) but life's too short to read that garbage aside from hearing it more than I'd like on a daily basis so I'm not going to read your blog if you consistently write and cuss. 

And I'm ok with having less reader's becausse I don't cuss and maybe that's boring to some. 

Keeping it real today.

~Running For Two

Breaking Out the Old School

Wow-- I have a million things I'd like to write about today but just as I run... so shall I write one step at a time and see where we get.  Deal?

Just returned from my trip to Pella, Iowa-- where they make Pella windows.  Go figure.

As a fan of Mr. Roger's growing up it was totally cool to go visit an actual manufacturing company and see how lumber gets turned into a window in the course of just a few days!  (Remember that time Mr. Roger's had a neighbor that made crayons?  No? Oh well-- I loved that show and fully admit I was and am a dork!) Anyway, the people at Pella were about as cheery as Mr. Roger's neighbors used to be too... And to see all the really cool tests they do to make sure you get a quality window was neat-- like this machine that simulates a shipping transit, another that thrusts a 2x4 into a window with the impact of a hurricane force.  If I had been allowed to have my camera back in there I would have taken pictures to show you. 

Here is one of Pella, Iowa-- I wouldn't book your vacation here but it was cute if you will be close... all photo's via my iphone this trip.

And another from Des Moine in a very cool sculpture park...

They treated us right and packed our agenda from morning to night.  I went from about 7:30-11 every night!  Plus they fed us about every 2 hours so I stayed busy and stuffed.  I was able to get in my 8 mile run Saturday before I left and allowed myself a hall pass to skip my Tuesday morning run.  It worked out because I really would have been tired trying to fit that in too. 

Mr. Roger, Hall Passes... wow, I am breaking out some old school today, kids.

And in case you are wondering I did not make the self-imposed deadline of dropping all feedings (Talked about here and here).  But I am down to just one feeding a day and may have cried a little when I dropped the morning feeding.  Oh how I love the bonding time of nursing and if my body would have a period I'd still be nursing more!  Come on and ovulate, body so I can do this baby thing again soon!

It was so good to see my family again after three days away.  I miss my boys when I'm gone!  It was a nice break for this Mama though!

Oops... the little boy beckons for dinner... on tap tomorrow... a 5:45 run of 5 miles.  I'm back in the Bluegrass State and ready to run!