October: a month in pictures

more mini pics

2:48:32

Well, I did it.

Ran 13.1 miles.

RAN it.

I never would have thought that was possible...even after training, I wasn't fully prepared. I let my training program slide toward the end, and the furthest I had run was 8 miles going into the Mini Marathon.

But I did it.

And I am SO proud of myself for setting the challenge, mental and physical, and doing what I thought was impossible.

Sets a pretty great example for these little cheerleaders, don't you think?

The kids and I went to my sister's the night before the race and spent the night. Linds got up bright and early to drop me off near the start line, then went home to awaken the cheering squad and make some kick ass signs.

It was such an incredible experience. The people, the music, the scenery...
The best part was coming toward the Speedway and seeing my family cheering me on.
I stopped, gave the kids kisses ... after I kissed Kaden he gave me a little shove. "Go on, Mommy, get back out there!!" How's that for motivation?!


And I finished! With only one functioning ear bud, I finished.

My "goal" was 1. to simply finish, 2. to come in under 3 hours, 3. to hopefully hit 2:45:00.

So I'm awful proud of 2:48:32.

I couldn't walk right for the next two days, but it was so worth it. I'm already looking for the next 1/2 marathon to keep up my motivation. Thank you so much to my dear friends and family that supported me through this and had confidence in me even when I didn't.

I love you all!!

ebertfest

Lindsay was attending the 2011 Ebert Film Festival for work, and I was lucky enough to tag along! We had a great time, 5 days and 4 nights in Champaign-Urbana, IL. 13 films in 5 days.

Saw some truly incredible films ... my personal favorites were Natural Selection, Tiny Furniture, Life, Above All, A Small Act, and Louder Than A Bomb.

Spent some time shopping at an amazing book store, an equally cool vintage store, some great restaurants, and the local park.

long time no blog

This blog has been quiet lately, though our lives certainly have not. Our "process of becoming" has shifted directions and now involves separate households. The best that we can do is take things one day at a time and focus on providing the most structure, love, and support to the kids. I thank all of you for your support in this time of stress and uncertainty. Your love and kindness means more than you know.

Now a quick recap of December's events. All 4 kids spent the night with Dolly & Jason mid-month. Since Dolly *loves* snow, they ventured out in the morning and built a snowman. The girls (ahem, Leah) got cold and went inside, and the boys used Mr. Snowman for target practice. He's been dubbed a "Victim of the Arctic Firing Squad"!

With things being in such a general state of upheaval, it was hard for me to find my Christmas spirit. I finally dug out the bare minimum of Christmas decorations, and Leah & Kaden helped me decorate our tree.

On Christmas Eve, we were invited by Ryan & his mom to go to the Children's Museum ... on FREE DAY! What was I thinking?!? It actually was much better than I thought it would be (with the exception of the huge line to get into the Playscape area!).

The kids each got a stuffed polar bear (FREE!) and had a blast.

Christmas morning was full of the usual chaotic ripping of paper and squeals of delight. Kaden's favorite things were his GIANT tigers! Both kids also really enjoyed their storybook from Daddy where he recorded himself reading the book - Leah listened at least 3 times in a row!

We all enjoyed a lovely visit with our friend Robyn, who was visiting from Texas for the holiday. We made sure to go sledding before she left to head back to warm Corpus Christi.

New Year's Eve was spent with our friends Karlie & Mike and their kiddos, Dolly, Jason, and Mike's friend Ski. The kids had a great time running around and staying up WAY past their bed time.

0:35:08

I did it!
I ran a 5K.

By myself.

At a pace much better than I thought I could (11:20 if you care to know).

And I couldn't be more proud of myself.

My friend Karie has been a true inspiration. As soon as I saw her run her second 1/2 marathon, I was SO excited for her and proud of her. And that McDonald's breakfast that I was eating while she was running her heart out? It was suddenly very unappealing. I wanted to make a difference for myself, just like Karie was doing for herself.

So I started a Couch to 5K program. And stopped as soon as the weather got cold. I saw a physician and got myself diagnosed with exercise induced asthma, and started with an inhaler and ended up with some blood pressure medication to boot. But I started the C25K program again. And didn't give up this time. Got some kind of Healthy Indiana e-mail one day, and saw that there was a 5K for the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon on November 6th. And I bit the bullet and signed up.

I got pretty sick 3 weeks before the 5K. I was already worried about being ready, and then went an entire week without running and was really worried. But the Sunday before the 5K, Karie accompanied me on a 3 mile run. And my pace was much better than what I'd been doing on the treadmill. I was able to converse with Karie for about the first half, and then I just had to focus on my running. She kept right on talking, the perfect strategy to keep me engaged and distracted so I wasn't pestering her about how much further.

Friday, I came home from work to find this in our door:

Didn't I tell you Karie is an inspiration and the best cheerleader a girl could ask for?! It was such a nice gesture, it literally brought tears to my eyes.

Friday night, I spent the night at Lindsay & Jason's, and they drove me downtown Saturday morning. It was really cold (I know, I know, what did I expect for Indiana weather in November?!?), but the atmosphere was amazing and I was just super excited to actual be doing it! The run went really well for me. I didn't wear a watch, I had no idea what my pace was, I just did what felt right. Concentrated on my breathing, on the great tunes on my iPod, did a lot of thinking, and tried to soak in the surroundings. The parents running with their kids. The Colts cheerleaders outside Lucas Oil. The water station volunteers. The graffiti. As I neared the end of the run, Let Me Clear My Throat came on my iPod. And I grinned a big old grin, and thought of Karie. Very appropriate that she got me into this journey and she was seeing me through the end of my first official run with a great song. I picked up the pace, and proudly crossed the finish at 0:35:08! A full 10 minutes faster than I thought I would!!

I got my medal, my mini bagel, my bottle of water, my official results, and texted all of my wonderfully supportive loved ones. And I felt GREAT.

I never thought I'd be one to say that I enjoy running. But I love how good it makes me feel. And what a positive example it sets for my children. And that it's something I can do that's only about me. I'm looking forward to the Drumstick Dash on Thanksgiving, and then I'm headed straight into training for the 500 Festival Mini Marathon in May. And maybe, just maybe, I'll be as crazy as Karie and run a marathon....

field trip for the K-Man

Friday, I took the day off work to go with Kaden on his first field trip! His preschool took a trip to Waterman's Farm Market for the Fall Harvest Festival. I even got to ride the bus with Kaden & his friends!

There was tons of stuff for the kids to do. Kaden & I had his friend Jace with us for the day, and they couldn't wait to take the hay ride to the pumpkin patch.

The boys both chose a "perfect pumpkin" pretty quickly, and were ready to hop back on for the rest of the hay ride!

After our picnic lunch, they spent a lot of time in the bounce house and on the bouncy slide:

The boys thought this was pretty cool ... not so much because of the mechanics behind it, I think they just liked watching the pumpkins get squashed all over the place!

It was a darn hot day for October! Layers was the key for the day!

The boys also made several trips through the "easy" version of the corn maze.

The pony ride was almost a wasn't. The woman handling the ponies left and had to make a trip back because over 1/2 of our group had paid for the pony ride but hadn't had the opportunity to do it yet. After a little grumpiness from the handler, the kids lined up for the pony ride.

We headed for home after a long day, and as soon as we walked in the door, Kaden started decorating his pumpkin. Quite the masterpiece!

We finished our day of fun by picking up the big kids from school ...

and going to Dairy Queen! Nothing says fun like having dessert before dinner.

Kaden, I had such a wonderful time spending the day with you! I'm so glad that you're loving preschool, and we're super proud of all that you're learning! Love you, Mr. Man!