For a while anyway...

For a while anyway, I felt like a runner again. 

Long gone are the college days of running sub 7 minute miles. 
Long gone are the days of 7-9 mile runs. 

This summer and two kids later I plodded along at 10 minute miles and did 4 mile runs.

I had committed to my best friend Melissa that I would run the Epic Rocky Mountain Relay in July.

A flight out to Colorado for 4 days?  4 days of no motherly responsibilities? 

I have to admit, it sounded good.

 Team: Eatourdusters, 12 Women, 32 hours of running, 198 miles... Colorado Springs to Crested Butte??!! 

Was I crazy?!
Round trip ticket to Colorado Springs please!

We met early race morning to load up the 2 vans that would drive us along the route. 
 Many of us meeting for the first time. 
Our drivers would be awake 2 days straight, surviving on cat naps and coffee.

One van would be "active" while the other van waited ahead at a checkpoint. 

Runners would eat and rest while they could. 

 The legs I ran were 3.29, 6.62 and 6.27 miles.

Our start time for the race was at 10 a.m. 

My first leg of the race began at 8pm Friday night.  Just as the sun was setting.

My second run began at 3 a.m.  Saturday morning.

 I donned the latest fashion with a headlamp and reflective vest and ran along highway 285. 

The only sound was that of my sea lungs gasping for air and the occasional semi.  I watched as the sun rose above the mountains in Buena Vista.

My third run started sometime Sat afternoon and it was HOT!  Exhaustion and dehydration had set in.  I had a couple of nurses in my van and if they had an IV they would have given it to me.  A runner for our team had to finish the leg for me.  I guess that is what happens when you come from 881 feet elevation, under trained and run at 7,000 ft and higher.

 

 Highlights of the trip included the view from Cottonwood Pass...

 ... hanging out with friend, Melissa Meyer...

 ...admiring the wildlife (thankfully no bears)..

 ...Meeting some fun, awesome women..

 And hanging out with my best friend Melissa Waters...

 We were awake for about 42 hours straight.  We slept like transients in a city park. 

We came to accept the porta potty and body glide. 

We had the time of our lives and pushed ourselves to the limit. 

For a while anyway, I felt like a runner again. 

I have not run since I have been back.  It is not the same running on your own. 

I miss the friendships and camaraderie that running can bring. 

I miss training with a goal.

With two little ones and a husband getting his MBA,

 it makes it hard to lace up the shoes and get out the door....
maybe tomorrow.

This is not us but here is the winning video for the relay this year.

Soggy Bottom Boys

Wildcat Den State Park, Muscatine Iowa

First Camping Trip with the Boys

Labor Day weekend

We rolled into camp on Friday about 7pm. Just enough daylight left to set up our tent.

The first thing on Braeden's agenda, campfire!

We set a small fire even though it was about 85 degrees out.

Man it was hot.

It got to be 10pm and at some point we had to go to bed.

We took the fly off the tent so that we could get some air.

It was awesome to be able to look straight up into the clear sky and see the stars.... all night long... did I say it was HOT?

Saturday morning was beautiful.
 The skies started to get dark around 1pm.

It started to lightning.

It started to thunder.

It started to rain. No wait, it started to POUR!

For hours it poured!

We went to the tent to stay dry.

We all took a nap, falling asleep to the sound of rain.

We woke to the sound of drip, drip, drip...

The floor of the tent was slowly puddling with water.

Our sleeping bags and pillows were getting wet.

We went into the tent at 1pm,

emerged for dinner (thankful that we bought a canopy to cover the table)

and went to bed at 8pm.

That night temps dropped into the 50's and it was a great night of sleep!

We decided that instead of camping until Monday,

we would leave the next day, Sunday, at the end of the day.

It was cold in the morning, great morning for stocking caps, a campfire and marshmallow roasting.

I made coffee, bacon and eggs.

(note: there was a picture of myself here but it kept disappearing)

We came back to camp for lunch.

The sun came out and dried up the gear so it was a perfect time to pack up.

The boys did great for their first time camping and despite all of the rain, we had a great time!

As we headed out of the park we visited an old mill and hit up a cemetery.

More on that later :)

Our Little Athlete

Back in April we decided to put Braeden in soccer through the Parks and Recreation Department.

It was just a 4 yr old program.

No rules, just the basics... You are one team, they are the other, this is the goal, get the ball to the goal. Ready, GO!

Braeden is not the aggressive type so he would just run with the mob of kids after the ball.

He would take breaks to pick dandelions, do some stretching.

He would chase the mob.

And he would do a little goofing off.

Then in May/June, we tried Blastball.

"Kind of like t-ball but with excitement" was the description.

Two teams face each other, one kid hits the ball, runs to a base, jumps on it and it squeaks. And the teams would rotate.

Again, a lot of dandelion picking going on.

In June/July came swimming lessons.

Braeden was very excited for swimming. When it started he was eager to try to put his face in the water. After a while that got old and he had more fun drawing water pictures on the side of the pool.
He did get water just to the top of his ears. (that is him with his head poking out)

Then came July 4th. His first running race. I ran my first race in over 7 yrs that morning and Braeden was very excited to be running his! I got a little teary eyed pinning on his bib number.

1/8 of a mile, out and back.

The starting line was a mad house. With the race being ages 5 and under, parents were allowed to run as well. If the parents did not run, there would have been plenty of kids face planting into the pavement at the start.

He had a BLAST!
Thought it was the best thing EVER!
And he was so PROUD to show off his ribbon!
I think he found his niche.

Next up... karate.

Our destination for Memorial Day weekend:

Great Wolf Lodge. Baraboo, Wisconsin.

Our original plan was to camp at Jellystone but the weather forecast was calling for some rain. Since Braeden melts in the rain, we figured that camping that weekend would just result in mud and meltdowns.
We did not tell him anything other than camping was canceled and we would stay in a hotel. He likes the white sheets on the hotel beds so that was fine with him.

While Sean was checking us in, I took the boys over to the large windows on the other side of the lobby.

Braeden loudly erupted in squeals when he saw the waterslides. Miles copies everything Braeden does so he started squealing too!

This is just one of the three rooms.

There was one area that was the favorite and we spent most of the time there.
We slept great and had tons of fun. Ate some good food and some not so good food.

We found a great place to take a winter weekend but we might try out another waterpark... they are everywhere.

Like Father Like Son

Spider Man with blinking lights.

That is the shoe that I had to talk Braeden out of the other day while shoe shopping.

I grabbed his attention when I said... "but this one is silver and black and looks just like Dad's running shoes. Don't you want shoes like Dad's"?

Today Sean was heading out the door for a run. Braeden (in his sweet little voice) said...

"Dad, can I go for a run with you? I have new running shoes".

How do you say no to that?

Home sweet Home

"The most important work you and I will ever do will be within the walls of our own homes." Harold B. Lee

Here is it... a little tour of the the new house.

I seriously pinch myself everyday.

I think we took a brave step in living with a white kitchen with two boys. Magic eraser will become my new friend.

My antique teapots now have a beautiful home.

Turning on the fireplace sets off the smoke alarm.

Guess it will take some time to burn off the residues.

Down this hall, straight ahead, is the Master bedroom and bath.

Down the hall to the right is the laundry, mud room and garage.

I am standing with my back to the hall that goes to the boys' rooms.

The stairs head to the basement.

Miles' room.

I am thinking Jalapeno Jelly will the the color for the walls.

Braeden is requesting blue walls and the Toy Story theme will continue.

Master bath.

Mud room/drop zone off garage.

This area will be so handy in the winter.

If you come to visit, you will now have your very own room and bed in the basement.

You will also have your own bathroom.

The basement space is awesome.

So much room for the boys to run around.

Also plenty of room for the treadmill and other work out stuff.

It still needs some organizing...

Then in basement, we also have this unfinished space... great for storage!

We are loving the new town of Marion. It is the oldest town in Iowa. The downtown is bustling with business. The town park is home to festivals and concerts in the summer.

We have a trail head that is half a mile from the front door. Sean is loving that he can head out for a run and not have to run on concrete.

We are right next to Cedar Rapids so the opportunities for the boys are endless. Braeden is signed up for soccer that begins in two weeks, Blastball that starts in June and swim registration is coming soon. Story time at the library is great!

Our neighborhood is full of kids. And from what I see... safe. Kids ride their bikes all over the neighborhood, they run with their dogs down the street and everyone plays basketball in the driveways. Neighbors have gone out of their way to introduce themselves and bring over fresh goodies.

This area was voted one of the safest places to raise a family. Schools have great ratings. I am really looking forward to staying put for a long while.

Miles is 18 months old and this is his 4th house.

I am ready to call Iowa home.

Come visit!!