A Walk in the Park - Part Duh

So now that SpongeBob is on I got the kids some lunch at the little stand. We sit there for awhile so Addison can sleep a bit in her car seat. We had received clearance to go back and be with Steph a while earlier so after about 3 hours of sitting in front I thought we'd go back and see how she was doing. As the four of us followed the nurse back through the twists and turns of hospital hallways we finally made it back to the er. As we all said hi to Steph one of the doctors mentioned that this was not a good time for the kids to be around her. I quickly figured out why they said that. Steph's left hand was held up by her fingers in straps. They were about to reset Steph's bones. I herded the kids to the little waiting area there and turned on the ipod music to cover up what was about to happen. I found out later that Steph had no idea what was about to go on. The doctors kept her talking and all of a sudden yanked down on her elbow, she screamed and the bones were reset. Job well done. We got to leave about an hour later. The kids did well overall and were very helpful. We got Steph home an picked up her drugs. She was strung out for a couple of days and stayed in bed for the rest of the weekend. They didn't put her in a hard cast - just a splint/brace. The pain never really went away and was pretty bad Sunday so she made an appointment to go see the specialist on Monday. While talking with Dr. Beiber he told her that the bones had moved apart again and he woudl have to reset them. Remembering the pain from the last time she asked for options. He said that if they did the surgery she wouldn't have to worry about the bones coming apart again as they would put a plate in to keep them togather. Then she woudl be able to get therapy to move her wrist faster. She took that option and scheduled surgery for Wednesday. While this is all happening I was in a training class for the entire week so Aunt Alice took Steph to the appointments. I talked to Steph about taking the day off to take her to the hospital but she said that Alice could take her and all I would be doing would be just sitting in the waiting room all day. So I stayed in class. I'm not sure how much I paid attention that day. She didn't get home until after 8 pm that night partly due because she wouldn't wake up from anesthesia right away. After another few days on Percoset she decided she was going Huey Lewis and needed a new drug.
Oh, I almost forgot the week before Addison was home sick fo r a couple of days, the Saturday night Steph broker her arm Chloe got sick for a few days then the Sunday after Steph's surgery Dylan got sick for the entire week. So a little Brian pity party - over 2 weeks everyone got sick or hurt and I had to take care of them.
She's doing better now and the doctor has thrown down the challenge that she's not progressing fast enough so she'd kicked her therapy into high drive and has some mobility back.
Now she's able to pick up Addison a little and even took all three out for the day last weekend and didn't have a problem. So we're now back to the normal chaos of our household. Stay tuned for new developments.

Just a walk in the park, Kazansky

Sooo, it's been a while. I truly have been too busy to write. Between work and home I have barely had any downtime that I'm not sleeping. Work issues have been that I was given a project, the scope changed and then it was taken away. Why would it be taken away you might ask? Too many questions, that was truly the official answer. When the scope changed I asked silly questions like, "Do those changes require any approval?" and "We don't have the inventory for those changes, when will we have it?". I've always heard no question is a bad question. Apparently it is when you are dealing with underfunded projects. Oh well, on to the next project.

Home issues as most of you know are surrounding Steph's broken wrist. I know, I know the first question to pop into your head is "how could such a graceful cautious person like Steph break her arm?" Answer - Just walking in the park. Truthfully, it was a bit more than that. We were at Needewood park for the kids fun run one morning. We got there late because at first I was just going to take the kids while Steph stayed home to clean the house. Sidenote- I was supposed to be running the Baltimore Half Marathon that morning but signed up a few days late and didn't get in. Steph decided right before we were leaving that she would go too. I was pushing for this as I wanted us to go as a family. It would be fun, I thought. We got there and most everyone had already done the walk/run as it's only a barely a mile down and back. It was also raining a bit so we just kind of hung around, let the kids play with their friends and chatted with Scott Bailey who was there with his two. We were packing up to head home when we suddenly changed our minds and decided that we were at the park we would go for a walk. The rain had stopped and the sun came out a bit. Steph went ahead with Chloe to run a bit and I had Addison in the stroller with Dylan walking with me. About a half mile in Dylan saw some rocks and a tree that had fallen down across the little creek that runs through the park. He climbed on the rocks for a few minutes while I waited with the stroller. He was trying to find a way across but the leap to the tree from the rocks was a little to far for him without someone there to help, so we headed out to find the girls. We all met up about a half mile down and walked a bit more. The Dylan wanted to show Chloe the rock climbing place so we headed back. Steph was feeling good and started to walk across the creek. I know you are thinking "This is it, this is where Steph falls off a wet rock and breaks her arm" No, she actually did very well and even helped Dylan get across. The two of them explored the other side while I stayed with the girls exploring the close side. Chloe was trying to find aneasy way acrosss for her but we coudln't find one so we just played a bit on our side. Steph and Dylan were looking around, balancing on fallen trees and having a good time. By this time it was getting close to lunch so we decided to head home. Dylan came across OK and Steph got off the fallen tree and was on the wet rocks helping Dylan across them (No, not here either). I turned to put Addison in the stroller when I saw both of them were off the wet rocks and Dylan was on the dirt. Steph was only a step behind him. Then with only about a foot or two to the dirt it happened. Out of the corner of my eye I see Steph just go down. There was no off-balance wobble or anything she went straight down.

She popped back up pretty quickly and said she broke her arm. Honestly, my first thought was something like, "no it's not, suck it up, I'm gettting hungry". Then immediately after that I saw her arm. I could see the bone pushing her skin up on her wrist. After a quick assesment I gave her some instruction to hold her wrist up and close to her body. I got everyone moving back to the van. Dylan and Chloe started crying because Steph was crying. Dylan started blaming himself becasue he wanted to climb on the rocks. I was trying to calm everyone down on the half mile walk back to the van. We drove straight to the hospital where I dropped Steph off at the door, parked and walked with the kids to the waiting room. The good news is that by the time we got in there she was already admitted and was going through the preliminary assessments. The kids were very good and were very concerned about Mommy. I talked to Dylan about how it was not his fault at all and it seemed to stick with him. The Shady Grove hospital has a kids emergency waiting room with a tv and fish tank. There was a short time when we first went in that I was playing AV tech trying to get the tv to the correct station the kids wanted to watch and find the volume buttons. It took a while to find the right buttons when the buttons are on the top of the tv and the tv is about 8 feet off the floor. I found buttons and just started hitting them. 5 minutes later we had SpongeBob.

To be Continued

2009 August Long Beach Island

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The Swimsuit Issue

We just had a taste of what all the fuss is about out here. Most people out here take at least a week and head to the beach. We went for a weekend to Long Beach Island, NJ and found out we need to take a full week next year. We've been talking about it for years with Ann & Steve Philpott to take the kids to the beach. Steve's parents have a house there so they make the trek a couple of times each summer. Poppy and Mom-Mom opened their house to us to use as a base point. They had also just added an upstairs with 5 twin beds. Just enough for our two oldest to sleep over with Will and Cole. Will and Dylan are two weeks old and we met the Philpotts back when the boys started daycare together. Cole is a few months older than Chloe. They all get along very well. Steph, Addie and I holed up in a motel not too far down the road. The kids didn't even go see it until the last day there. Chloe came over to help pack and mentioned that she was really glad she got to stay with Will and Cole because our motel didn't even have room service. I guess she gets used to staying in Marriotts too.

We drove up on Saturday morning. Big Mistake, Huge. Ann & Steve forgot to mention the Saturday morning traffic might be bad. We basically went Saturday instead of Friday night because we wanted to save a bit on the hotel cost. We weren't getting the employee discount there. The trip itself should take about 4 hours. We got 13 miles away from our destination according to the GPS and came to a standstill. Now, I'm a pretty laid back guy and don't get rattled easily. I also travel very well and don't get antsy about being in the car for long periods of time - I leave that to SWMBO and Dylan. I tell you what though, we went 3 miles over the next hour. I was a little tired because we hosted Happy Hour the night before and I didn't get to bed very early and then got up early to get on the road. Needless to say I was a little punchy to begin with and I hate not moving and sitting in traffic so I was on a roll. I'm not sure the family had seen me like that before. I was talking with other cars (well really the people in the cars, I wasn't that out of it - yet) singing songs and making jokes. I really needed to get out of the car, hit the beach and have a cold beverage. So six hours after we left home for a four hour drive, a four hour drive (think Gilligan's Island) we made it to the beach. It was everything we needed. Surf, sun and a beer. Next time we'll splurge for an extra night in the motel. It took Ann and Steve only 3.5 hours to drive up on Friday...

After some body surfing, wave battling and playing wave masters (a game Steph and Dylan made up) we packed up and headed to the Philpott home to get cleaned up and eat dinner. Poppy is a bit of a cook himself and made some ribs, burgers and dogs. After a few hours of chatting on the back patio Steph and I headed to the motel for some much needed rest. We had checked in and set up the pack-n-play earlier so all we did was put Addie down and plop into bed.
Next day was more fun at the beach, but with toys! Steph made a run to the local surf shop (read expensive place) and picked up a skim board and a body board. The body board was essential to those of us who like to body surf but don't like getting chests and stomachs scraped up in the sand when riding the wave all the way in. The body board gives you a better ride and reduces the sand scrapes to the legs. The skim board on the other hand is like trying to slide on ice. The idea is to wait for the wave to come in and when there is about 1/2 inch of water start jogging, toss the board down, jump on and surf/skim the wave into the water. It's best done on a flatter area of sand for beginners. Needless to say we were beginners and we didn't have a flat area. After numerous falls and heavy laughter from the peanut gallery watching I did master the skim -for about 3 feet and I didn't fall. I determined after seeing other and more proficient kids doing that on bigger boards, that Steph just got me the wrong size skimboard. Maybe next year I'll go bigger.
That night after getting cleaned up we had one of the most delicious meals I've had in a long time. Poppy went fishing that morning and caught a couple flounder so we had that in a white wine and caper sauce along with some Shrimp Diablo - shrimp in a spicy sauce and bread for dipping. Incredible.
Monday was our last day there so after breakfast we tried to squeeze in as much beach time as possible. We headed out just before dinner so we could grab some seafood on the way out. We headed out to a souvenir shop that also sold Chamelia charms. Steph was getting a crab charm as a reminder of our trip to Tilghman Island and the beach. Poppy gave us a couple of places to stop. Charm shopping went off without a problem but food was not working for us. every seafood place we stopped was jam packed so after trying 4 places with an hour wait we went to a Joe-Pops surf bar and grill. We didn't think it would be that bad but it was basically a nightclub that served dinner. The kids loved it and thought it was cool. For Steph and I, it just wasn't what we wanted for our final dinner on the island. We tried to put on a happy face for the kids because we decided that they liked it and it was building memories for them. We didn't want our food snobbiness to sour that memory.
Thanks to the Philpott clan for hosting and letting us hang out for the weekend.

I'm a runner?

No "S", there I was. I thought I was gonna die.
Not really but I was having a hard time breathing. I ran my first race since I was in 8th grade. OK I wasn't really running to win. I was running to finish and at some points just to get to the finish line. I cought a cold the week before the run and was hacking things up all week. Let me provide some background. I am running and training for a 1/2 marathon again. I have learned that stretching is good when you get old and apparently I'm getting old. The knees, muscles and ligaments are all doing well so far. We were planning a trip to see my sister and family outside Chicago in Hampshire, IL. She flew to DC to pick up the two oldest kids and kept them for a week. Then Steph, Addie and I flew there to bring them home. We made it a little vacation as Mom and Dad drove in from KC and Grandma Reeve and Aunt Diane made the trip over for a while on Sunday. It also happened to be the Coon Creek Country Days the same weekend. I forgot how much I enjoyed small town festivals. Beer tent, nightly band(s), midway games, carnival rides and even a parade and fireworks. The girls had a fun day out sponsored by Grandma to the American Girl store in downtown Chicago. They took the train in and had a good Chic Day. Most important (to me) was the 10k. Kristin mentioned when we were first planning this that I could run in their little 10k since I was training for the 1/2 Marathon. I almost dismissed it but then thought better and saw that it fit right on my training schedule. I was supposed to be running 6 miles that weekend anyway. Why not?

Since Dana (Lenz) Hartwigsen lives about 20 miles away from my sister I invited her to join me. She said she would register and even chastized me to make sure I wouldn't back out on her. Come to find out when I went to pick up my number the day before the race it was SHE who didn't even sign up. A quick call resolved the issue. In true Dana form she was running behind and didn't get to sign up. She was planning to do it the morning of the run though and assured me she would be there. A true friend she was and showed up at 6:50am to my sister's house ready to run. One of the highlights of the run, besides making it through, was at the end of mile 5. My nephew Andrew was at the final water station handing out cups of water. I was thankful to get the water and see him on the run. Keep up the good work Andrew. In true female form Dana didn't stop talking until we went to church after the run. We were sweaty and still in our shorts but showed up anyway to see the kids do their Vacation Bible School program. Kristin/Supermom had all the kids in VBS all week. We got a few strange looks by the regular Sunday crowd but at least we were there. I don't recommend running a 10k and then sitting in a cold church. Dana and I were freezing. At one point we had the baby blankets over us to keep from shivering so much. next time I'll at least change my t-shirt before going somewhere after a race unless I can sit outside.

The next big event was the festival parade. All of Kristin's kids were in or on a float - Andrew for football, Scott and Matthew for Cub Scouts and Lauren for cheerleading. Dylan and Chloe thought it was almost as good as Halloween. They didn't have to walk and people just threw candy at them. Dylan's highlight was getting a carrott and a potato from one of the floats. He was so excited and it was the first thing he ate when we got back to the house and peeled it for him.

So while I may have run in my first race since 8th grade I still don't consider myself a runner. Maybe I eventually will. Right now it's something to do to keep in shape and I have a goal to train for, nothing more. It's not a part of me and I don't miss it if I can't get out for a couple of days. I feel I have potential to be considered a runner because if I only get out once during the week I do find myself looking forward to the next run. It's some 'Me' time and a stress reliever but maybe that's all being a runner is.

Fish, Golf and Blood

I know, I know 2 posts in 2 weeks. It's getting to be a habit. I have a ton of work to do both at home and work but I felt the need to write.
This past week seems to have been only about 2 days long. Last weekend seemed like a 3 day weekend partially because we had a happy hour Friday afternoon to kick the weekend off. Saturday we took the kids to the National Aquarium in DC. The good thing was that it was inexpensive - relatively. $7 for adults and the whole thing was about as big as one floor in my house. Baltimore Aquarium it is not. The kids had cameras in hand and were snapping lots of pictures of fish. I remember thinking during that time that I was thankful that we have digital pictures now and can just erase the bad pictures. When I was growing up with my 110 camera and later the 35mm I had to actually pay to develop the pictures to see the bad ones. Oh the money I wasted on bad pictures. Speaking of pictures. I think I'm going to dig out a few of the picture boxes I have saved from those days and scan them in. I have a bit of my Grandpa Woldruff in me and I'll take pictures of anything. Though I don't have a slide projector to show them on so this blog and facebook will have to be the venue for most. SWMBO will have a say in what pictures are posted as well. This is a family site...
Sunday, went golfing with the guys for the first time since last Father's Day. I hate to say it but I'm still a bit sore from al the swinging I did. I got my money's worth of golfing though. All those other guys were trying to swing fewer times on each hole. I figure if I can get 2 or even 3 swings per dollar spent then I don't feel so bad. Some of those guys were barely over one swing per dollar. I may not have scored well but the economics works out better for me. I either have to golf more, stretch more or take a bottle of aspirin with me and keep it in the bag. We did have a good time on the course. 2 foursomes with a little bragging rights competition. It came down to a 2 stroke difference between the two groups - my team lost. I blame myself. My putting was terrible. I had the line dead on but apparently I was feeling like playing hockey instead of golf and slammed that ball right over the cup about 4-5 times. I tried to blame the fast greens but Jorge corrected me and said it was just me. So instead of getting par or even a couple of birdies I would go 1, 2, or 3 over. Again - the economics were great but I guess good economics don't equal a good golf game. Maybe that's why so many politicians are good golfers. Just a thought. The kids got me a new golf bag for Father's Day and were very excited about it. They gave it to me Saturday night so I could use it Sunday morning. Steph, ever my stylist, got me a pair of Under Armor golf shorts and shirt. I may not have been the best player but I was probably the best dressed.
I did hang out with the family later in the day. It was great. I made some ribs and sat out on the porch and relaxed. Of course that was after I did my fatherly duties and mowed the lawn and cleaned the pool. Some things you don't get off doing even when it's Father's Day.

Oh, one night (seriously I forget which one) Steph was out for a work thing and I had the kids at home. Dylan and Chloe finished eating and went inside (we don't really eat anywhere but the porch in the Spring/Summer/Fall time). Well, let's say the went in to the house and right back out the side door. Dylan was riding his bike (he's doing much better now after he saw his friend James riding his bike to our house a couple of weeks ago) on the driveway under the carport. Chloe go on her bike, without shoes or a helmet and headed down the driveway hill. They do this and then like to run the bike into the grass on the other side of the street. They know we are to be out there to check for cars and give the go-ahead before they do that but apparently the lure of fun was too much for Chloe. The next thing I know Dylan is running back to the porch to tell me Chloe is in the ditch with blood on her foot. She had run the bike into the ditch on our side of the street, probably out of control, and sliced her foot open on the drain that goes under the driveway. I didn't know whether to be mad she was riding her bike down the driveway with out me, helmet or shoes, Thankful she was relatively OK or worried about how badly she was cut. I think I was all 3 at the same time. I'll spare the details of me rushing her up to the bath tub to wash it out and all the screaming, crying and apologizing that went on. She's OK. I cleaned her up, determined she didn't need stitches and bandaged her up. It was a bit of drama though and now she's running around on it.
Kids.

Similar but Different

I ended my Reunion weekend with a small glass of good whiskey and Addison sound asleep in my arms after I finished giving her dream feed when I got home. I was a pretty happy camper. I just spent a fast 72 hours of travel, friendship, drink and food with my classmates and was now back home with my family.
Some I hadn't seen in 10 years, other's I hadn't seen in nearly 20.
I had not been back to my hometown of Denison in 10 years. Since Mom and Dad moved away when I was in college I don't get a chance to go there. It's not really a destination/resort kind of place and I missed the 15 year reunion.
I have to give Steph major props. The reuinon took place over our anniversary weekend. I won't say she was happy about it - especially because it happened to be our 10th but she knows how close I am to my friends. I am planning to make it up to her with a nice trip and something shiny. Man, I love her.
Frank and I flew out together from Baltimore. We stayed with Mom and Dad Thursday night while Tim flew out from Denver the same night and stayed with his parents who happen to live about 10 minutes away. We connected Friday morning with Tim's dad driving him over to us. Steph reminded me that it started out like we were young again when we had to have our parents drop us off before we could drive.
We headed out for the first segment of our road trip - up to Blair, NE to pick up Troy Greder. Troy and I went to college on wrestling scholarships in Blair at Dana College. He stayed there after I left for UNI and went to Nationals for Dana the next 3 years. He took me up to the school so we could see his wife who was working there and to show me around some of the changes that have gone on since I left. It was like I was being hit with a million memories of my year there as we walked around the new sports center and wrestling room. We drove through the small campus due to time and the rain. The new Main was there (the Old Main burned down the year before I went) but most everything else was the same.
Segment 2 of the trip was to Denison down the very familiar stretch of road - Highway 29. The four of us were talking up a storm and catching up a bit on what we'd been doing since we last talked. Luckily we keep in pretty good contact so there was less catching up and a bit more "Remember When..." stories.
Pulling into Denison I was hit with a few changes off the bat. The bull statue had been moved from out by the trailer park to the (I found out later) Fairgrounds and the IBP plant is now Tysons. Driving through a few more stark changes. The Hardee's we all either ate or worked at and served as the general meeting place was now what looked like a run down mexican place. There are a lot of Latino stores, shops and people. Some stores had dual language names and signs. Apparently Denison is about 50% latino. That's a big change from 10-20 years ago. Some of the stores are there still but a lot were gone. Reynolds moved to the old JC Penny store and The Vault was torn down and a new Crawford County Bank was built. They also built a new Jr High out by the High School. There were some new businesses but it also looked like a lot had closed. A big stab to the heart is that the house I grew up in and served as the central gathering place for my friends (largely due to the fact that I my parents wouldn't buy me a moped as a kid to get around so they all had to come to my house - a fact they continue to give me grief about to this day) was painted. Not was it just painted a different color but it was painted PINK!!! It looked like someone spilled a large bottle of Pepto-Bismol on it. The back yard that was open to the neighborhood to play Ghosts In The Graveyard was fenced in. It was very sad. Driving around town I was reminded that there are some very beautiful Victorian homes there that are very well kept. Greder even had done some painting on some that looked amazing with all thier details.
Familiarity began for me when we pulled up in front of Frank's house. The only difference was that they enclosed their porch and there wasn't the big station wagon his dad used to drive sitting out front. Inside was much the same even though Pam made Jim move the deer head from the living room to the basement at some point in the past few years. Jim and Pam were very gracious hosts to us. They said it was good to have all us kids back in their house. She corrected herself to say that we weren't really kids anymore as we are almost 40 now. I told her that I don't think it will matter how old we get, when we come back and get together we'll always be kids.
Jim and Pam were having friends over for dinner and Liz, Dana and Lisa were also coming over. The guys went shopping and I cooked dinner for all of us. Jim did grill the pork chops - I don't like to grill on other people's grills so that worked out well, Greder played bartender, Frank cut the cheese and Tim held the garbage bag open for me once so all pitched in.
Then it was off to the Pub for the evenings festivities. Walking in the place and seeing a ton of people I grew up with, partied with and hadn't seen in years was pretty cool. While we all didn't always hang out together or even get along all the time, we all were there catching up and reconnecting. There were people I hadn't seen since graduation and some I'd seen just a few months ago. A lot of them came up to me to congratulate me on the show. I had put it out on Facebook and it seemed like everyone had watched it. I really love doing that show and it was nice for people to comment favorably on it. With such a small town and knowing everyone in my school let alone in my class, I have been influence by each and every one of them in some way. I hope the show takes off, that they can be proud of me and can say another Denison Boy done good.
We closed down the bar and headed back to Frank's with a small group of about a dozen. There were a few of us that saw the sun rise before hitting the sack. Morning came early.
Saturday was for hanging out at Liz's, the class picnic in Deloit, a short nap, dinner at Liz's and then to the bowling alley. The time at Liz's was again a small group for the day. Mainly seven of us that have kept in touch over the years. Liz, Dana, Lisa, Me, Frank, Tim, and Troy. Others had spouses and family around so they had other plans for the day. I'm not sure there was a subject we didn't cover sitting around the table in Liz's parent's garden/yard. Laughter was a constant, pictures were taken and friendships strengthened. It's still amazing to me that we can pick up right where we left off. I think it was Lisa who said we can still finsih each other's sentences and jokes. We are some funny people - just ask us.
We headed out to the bowling alley where the evening gathering was to take place. Some people from Friday didn't show but new ones were there. I got a chance to catch up with Bother Bri, Johnny and Ahrenholtz along with a few others that night. I was also witness to Tim's neon bowling shoes he rented and Lisa's two balls two strikes bowling adventure. The bowling alley loked much smaller than what I remember. They had done some remodeling and it was nice. Another nice thing that I didn't expect was that all the bars - includeing the bowling alley- were non-smoking. It was a nice change not to have to take a shower before going to be to try to get the stale smoke smell out of my clothes and hair.
When that finished a lot of the crowd went over to another bar. Since we'd seen the sun rise that morning not many of us wanted to head to another bar. We did however want to go to the Fridge. No, not a refrigerator, it was basically a hill in the country where we used to go hang out. It's a small town, country thing. It had been raining so only one car could make it up the road. It happened to be the car I was in so only Dana, Lisa and I made it. We had a beer out there and then headed back to Liz's to meet up with everyone else. More laughs, ribbing and even some singing went on. No, we didn't see the sunrise that evening. It was a good thing. The next morning Frank's parents hosted breakfast for all of us. I'm not sure when I've laughed for almost an entire weekend before but my cheeks got quite the workout. When it was time to say good bye and head out for KC and the trip home I was ready. I had a great time with my friends but I missed my family. We posed for the group photo, hugs all around and hit the road. Memories of the weekend, previous gatherings and plans to connect in the future were the discussions between Frank, Tim, Troy and I on the way back. It was interspersed with texts from Liz, Lisa and Dana as they met another classmate 8 1/2 months pregnant (Angie) for lunch and made their way across Iowa back to thier homes. I love my friends. I know a lot of people don't stay in touch with people from their High School. I do and I have a special group of friends that have been through each others successes and failures, marriages, divorces, births, deaths, arguments, debates, college, kids, worries and laughter - always with the laughter.
Til next time - Palimino!

It's a good burn

I know I'm supposed to be smart enough to wear sunscreen. But I usually don't. Especially at the beginning of pool season. I guess I like the pain from the first slight sunburn. It tells me summer is on the way and takes me back to those lifeguarding days. Those days I used to put on baby oil to cook myself a bit more. Got pretty tan and I try not to think of how much damage it did to my skin. It's a good thing I didn't have to jump in after anyone when I had that on. They probably would have slipped right offf.
Right now I have a little burn. Spend yesterday out in the sun and it feels good. In the morning we went to the JDRF walk at the Nationals baseball stadium. Then we came back to our pool. I cleaned the pool, trimmed some bushes, played Marco Polo with the kids and relaxed in the chaise lounge poolside with a cold beverage (or 2). The water was clear and 70, the sky was clear and 80. All-in-all a great day.
Just got word that we're booked on Channel 9 WUSA again on the 25th in the morning and I received my iTouch for making the final table at the company poker tournament during the National Sales Meeting in Vegas. Today is going pretty well also.

Where did April go?

I can't believe how fast this past month has gone. Well kinda I guess.
Steph started back at work and jumped right into the swing of things again by spending most of her days in meetings. I think she secretly wants to stay home and schedule meetigs around yoga class and lunches with other stay-at-homes. Wait - that's no secret.
April began a tripling of work for me. My Customer Service group that used to have 5 people is down to 2. We had a little reorganizing of our group and the other 3 went to Service Delivery. So now I have 3 represent instead of just one. I now have my original Sales and have added Research and Develpment and the Medical/Regulatory departments. I would guess it's about 70% of the company. Needless to say I'm a bit busier.

Easter took us to Connecticut to spend time with the Opalka's and Shawvers (Karen's family). We had a great time and it went by very quickly as those visits often do. Addison did very well in the car so there weren't any extra stops. We did borrow a GPS for the trip this time so I wouldn't have to try and read directions going through NY traffic. It saved us a couple of times and if we did more of that travel I would invest in one. Right now it seems better to borrow one for the weekend.

Dylan figured out last night that he has about a month of school left. He was pretty excited about it and is ready for the summer to begin. I think we all are. We spent last weekend (or 2) cleaning up around the outside and getting the pool area ready for opening. I just got the call a few minutes ago that the pool is officially opened and should be ready for swimmers in a few days. That is if you can handle 65 degree water. I'll wait until about mid June personally.

For Dylan's birthday we hosted a family oriented cookout/Kentucky Derby party. Since the Derby is always the weekend of/after Dylans actual birthday we've had people over for at least the last 3. Next year we are making it mandatory to wear a hat. I'm debating on wether to wear a cowboy hat or the pig ear cap if I can find it. I'm leaning toward the pig ears. Speaking of pigs - I cooked about 5 slabs of ribs for the party. MMMmmmm ribs.... they came out pretty well. Drakeel came over and helped make a home-made sauce from the drippings. That was a first for both of us and it came out pretty well. The other first for the weekend was Kevin Conway and I figuring out how to make Mint Julep. We're getting there. It was tough because we both prefer to take our Makers Mark straight so we were happy not to have too much sugar or mint in it. I think I'll be working on those over the summer as they are pretty light and 'summery'.
This past weekend (9th) we had Dylan's birhtday party with his friends. We took them to play Laser Tag. We had 8 kids and 4 adults in there for our group - Russ joined Steph, Carrie and I - and I'm not sure who had more fun. It's dark in there and Dylan did get clocked across the eye with the butt of one of his friends gun. He's got a bit of a black eye and a scratch. He took it pretty much in stride. Since it was dark in there I didn't see how bad it was when it happened so I basically got him calmed down and asked if he wanted to leave. He said no and ran off. It wasn't until we were out of there 15 minutes later did I see the bruise forming around his eye. We got it iced down and it's not so bad now.
Chloe and Addison have been spending their days with Aunt Alice. It has been great. She comes to pick up the girls from our house in the mornings and I meet her at a park to get them back. Alice - who has 3 boys of her own (Jr. Hi, High School and College) is getting used to dealing with girls. I think she's enjoying it but I know she's tired at the end of the day. Aren't we all. Chloe really enjoyed hanging around Middle School play rehearsals a few weeks ago. Alice was helping with sound so Addie and Chloe got to go until I picked them up. Both girls had a little fan club of 12-13 year old girls showering them with attention. When we went to the play Chloe had a number of girls wave to her and call out to her. She was eating it up and felt very important.
Addison is doing well. She's growing quite a bit and is getting more and more interactive. She is starting to try and roll over. It's only a matter of time before we have to baby proof the house and move breakables up above the 3 foot level.
Major News - We are now a cat free house. I'm not going into a lot of detail but I'm sure they will find a good home and I now have my basement back.
Salt and Pepper Update. The website is active - www.saltandpepperchefs.com and video is posted. We've done 2 local news shows recently and have another on the 28th. We are in the beginning stages of talks with a local station to become regular guests. Nothing final yet but I did get the directiveto start writing those recipes down. Amazingly, that is pretty hard for me to do. Something I have to work on though.

Disappointment

I had to officially pull out of the Shamrock Half-Marathon. I am getting things changed to a new venue to be decided.

Ugh.

I was kinda ready to be done training and just go for fun runs of 3-4 miles for a while.

I am currently still stretching the ligament so I can start to run again. The information I have read says that recovery is different for everyone. It could be relatively quick - 1-2 months and others have had issues for 6 months or so. I'll keep you all posted and try to not let my frustration and disappointment show through.

Here's the back story and details on the weekend.

I went to go see a specialist and after some pushing and prodding(5 minutes after waiting 1.5hrs) he said I have runners knee or IT Band Syndrome. It's where the ligament that runs on the exterior of your legs becomes inflamed due to rubbing against a bone in your knee. Apparently stretching is key. So he is sending me to physical therapy so I can learn some stretches to keep this from happening again. I've called the therapist and haven't heard back yet. I've taken it upon myself to go to the Internet and look up the stretches that I would be paying the therapist to show me. If I ever get a call back I guess I'll go but I don't have time to wait around. When I told the Dr. that I was training for a 1/2 marathon and the run was that coming Sunday, he stopped writing and looked at me like I was nuts and said "Well, you're not running in that". I of course pushed the matter and asked if there was anything I could do. He said matter-of-factly that it was up to me and how I felt but I took a great risk in injuring it further and causing more damage. I decided to follow his advice. Like a good friend of mine said after he inquired about the run - You only have one set of knees and you're not 18 anymore. Getting old stinks.

We decided to go on down to the race since the hotel was already paid and I had the time off to make it a mini vacation. That was an excellent decision. We made it down there just in time for me to go pick up my Shamrock shirt that I got for registering and my runners number. We then checked into the hotel (a Sheraton - we were spying on the competition). Steph had called ahead to see if we could get an ocean view room and they said there were none avialable. When we got there she turned on the charm and got one anyway. The room had a balcony that looked onto the beach/ocean and the boarwalk right below was on the final .25 miles of the race so we got to see runners filing by on their way to the finish. It was pretty cool.

Saturday night we met up with Vic & Jen Ferson and Dave & Jenny Huisenga for dinner. Our hotel had a pasta buffett so we just stayed there then headed to bed since the race began at 7am. I made plans to meet them all the next morning for the start. Fersons were walking and Huisengas were running.

I didn't bring my running clothes at all because I knew I would be tempted to just go run/walk with them. I almost did the walk with Fersons just to do it. I am kinda glad I didn't because with all the walking I did I was beginning to feel the knee again by the end of the day. I probably could have made it OK but would have been icing my knee still today.

I watched the start of the 1/2 Marathon at 7am then walked down to see the start of the full Marathon at 8am. I got there just as they were starting a special ceremony for a guy who was doing his re-enlistment to the Navy prior to the race. Then he hugged and kissed his wife and ran the Marathon. It was pretty touching to see that. It makes me appreciate all those who serve and have served just a little bit more. Thanks to you all.

After the start of the full race I heard the announcements over by the finish line that was about a block away that the first 1/2 Marathon runners were finishing. It had been about 1:05 from their start. They were bookin. I went back to the room to help get the kids up and ready. They had already ordered room service and were enjoying the fresh ocean breeze by the time I got there. I took Dylan & Chloe with me to head down to the finish line to try and see the Huisengas come across. I think I bent down to talk to one of the kids and missed Dave and I'm not sure where I was when Jenny came across. We did meet up with them after as they were walking to their hotel across the street from the finish line. Dave looked tired and Jenny was limping with a sore hip. They headed off for a soak in the tub and rest. We walked around a bit then went to the beach side of the race lane so the kids could go to the water and I could watch for the Fersons. I somehow missed them too but the kids got soaked in the freezing water...

I talked with Ferson's and Huisenga's and they were going to get cleaned up and meet up for lunch. They were heading off that day while we were sticking around and heading back home on Monday. Steph was exhausted and crashed with Addie so Dylan and Chloe and I headed to lunch. After we met up with everyone we were walking to the diner. Dylan was walking along the sidewalk in front of a laudromat. He and Chloe were playing the 'don't step on a crack' game. Then all of a sudden the door opened and smacked Dylan right in the head. He stepped back a couple of steps and had a smile on his face for a couple of seconds. The guy coming out apologized profusely and Dylan seemed to be OK. He then came to me and buried his head in my side. He was hurt a lot more than he let on and he was embarassed too. He did get tears in his eyes but didn't make much of a fuss about it though he did have a big red mark for a couple of hours on his forehead. Poor guy.

After lunch we said our goodbye's to Fersons and Huisengas and headed back to the hotel to watch the Jayhawks play in the NCAA Tournament. The kids and I then went to the pool to play for a little while. They are tougher than me as they would jump from the hot tub into the big pool multiple times. I did that once and I thought the regular pool was a little chilly even without hitting the hot tub first. I guess I do have a bit if Dad in me. He doesn't like getting in the water unless you can see the steam rising. That night we went out for sushi and tried to teach the kids to use chopsticks. It's a work in progress. With all the walking and swimming we had done the kids were tired. Chloe even finished eating and laid down on the bench to sleep. We only let her because there were only about 5 other people in the whole place and we were about to go anyway. She wouldn't wake up really so I had to carry her about 5 blocks back to our hotel.

Monday morning we went for breakfast at Pocahontas Pancakes... Interesting but pretty good pancakes. I do have a tough time going out to eat pancakes. I have a tough time spending $10 on a meal I can make twice as good myself. The buscuits and gravy weren't bad either. We walked around a bit after that and ended up in one of those beach side tourist shops that sells everything with Virginia Beach on it. The kids talked Steph into getting them hermit crabs. We got a boy and a girl that share a cage. Soooo now I have two more pets to take care of. At least the hermit crabs don't meow all night long and shed everywhere.

Before heading home we drove up to the Old Cape Henry lighthouse at Fort Story - it was the turnaround point for the 1/2 marathon. We got to meek the lighthouse keeper and he gave Dylan and Chloe special coins that you can only get from the lighthouse keeper. To show it's a small world. John, the keeper, went to church at the Redland Baptist Church when he was young - it's about a mile away from our house. We got to climg a bunch of stairs to the top of the the old lighthouse which was the first government paid for building. The kids did it twice - once with me and then again with Steph. Oh to be young again. They wouldn't let us take Addison up because of the steepness/liability.

Though it was very frustrating to me not to be able to run it was all in all a great weekend. I look forward to running it next year so I can get my beer and Irish Stew.

9110

9110 - That's my race number for the Shamrock 1/2 Marathon.

I'm hoping it's not an omen...

51

51 - That's the age that Wii Fit assigned to me last night. What a crock! Though I do feel old at times but 51!! Come on. I think it's faulty for it's basis as it uses BMI as a barometer. BMI has me at borderline obese. It doesn't take in the fact that I lifted weights for years and have muscle mass that weighs more than fat. Don't get me wrong I have a little junk in the trunk. I know I need to lose about 10 pounds but according to BMI I would still be drastically overweight even for that. So I get the BMI skewed weight thing but based on some agility and balance tests they put me at age 51. Even though I haven't run in about a week I feel pretty good. maybe 42 but not 51. Maybe I'll lay off second helpings for a while.

Knee update. I am still sore from who knows what went wrong on my 13 mile run. I am able to go up and down stairs with no problems now. I did go out on Saturday to test it out. I got about a block before it started hurting. I turned around and went to the top of my hill thinking I just needed to work it out a bit - kinda like walking off a charley horse or a near sprained ankle. No good. I headed inside put the brace back on and did some stretching. It does feel even a bit better each day so I'll probably try to run with a brace this week.

Steph, Chloe and Addison went back to KC/Beloit for Steph's friend's baby shower. They spent a few days in KC with Mom & Dad and a few more days in Beloit with Rod & Bonnie. Sunday they went to see Michelle at the hospital after the baby was born (about a month early but healthy). All day Chloe was complaining of a stomach ache but with all the chaos of traveling and visiting not much attention was paid. On the way home she got sick in the van. Steph, of course, felt horrible for not listening to her earlier. I felt bad because she had to clean it up as best she could on the side of the road and then had to do a deeper clean when they got home that night. She also would have to be up with Addie when she gets hungry at night. I knew she wasn't going to get much sleep then. It breaks your heart when kids tell you something and you don't pay much attention to it then something bad happens. You feel like if you would have paid more attention to their needs then you could have prevented it - even if nothing would have stopped it. They get back on Wednesday night so hopefully we can all settle back into life and get some rest. Or at least what we call rest in our house.

Paternity Leave

So here I am nearing my month off work for Paternity Leave and I've not posted anything the whole time. Hmmm, why is it that I can find 20 minutes to write something during the day while I'm working but not while I'm at home? The biggest thing we've realized this past month is that we forgot just how much work newborns really are. We had these grandiose plans for what I would do during my time off. Not many of those things have been completed unfortunately. It's pretty frustrating for both Steph and I. To be fair we had a lot of company with Rod, Bonnie, Amber, Ryan, Lainie, Mom & Dad. We've really only been sans company for a couple of weeks. Having them all visit was great and I wouldn't trade it. Getting into our own regular routine has taken a bit longer than I remember though.
The Shamrock 1/2 Marathon is coming up quickly. I can't believe how much progress I've made. When I started I could barely run 2 miles now I go out for short runs of 3-4 miles. A couple of weeks ago I did 12 miles and felt pretty good after then the next weekend I dropped down to 8 miles. Just this past weekend I did 13! That is the longest I've ever run - EVER. There is a downside though. My left knee started hurting just a bit off and on about mile 3. At about 11.5 it really started to hurt with each step just under and to the left of my kneecap. I powered through pretty good but did have to walk a bit then sucked it up for the last .7 mile. I came home to ice, shower and go to a party (nothing much keeps me from a party). I did dig up a knee brace that I've been wearing nearly constantly. I was able to keep the pain away for the first couple days by not bending my let which is a bit difficult in a house with lots of steps. Sunday I did stay off my feet pretty well and Steph took on extra duty of getting me things. She's a saint. I can now walk up steps without wincing. I will take it easy this week as far as running. I'll do some cross training and hopefully not lose much stamina. If it does not keep healing I'll get it checked out. I also need to check out what happens to the race if I can't run. I seem to recall that if you get injured you can apply your fundraising amount to another run so I still plan to raise the amount needed. If you have not had a chance to donate you still are able. Send me a check or go to http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/shamrock09/breeve .

Addie is getting so big. You can tell she's a Reeve baby because she's now got her cheeks. She has a little cold that keeps her nose pretty stuffy. It also drains into her chest so she coughs quite a bit. She is doing well though and only cries when she's hungry or tired. Dylan and Chloe are doing well with her too. Chloe is still a helicopter. She wants to be involved as much as possible. We think they were both a little jelous for a while but that has been going away recently. Chloe's been going to her school part time for the past month so she stays home with us on Tues/Thurs. She loves it but Dylan is jelous of her. Dylan is doing OK at school. He has another slight bully incident but we believe it has been resolved. He was not getting some of his school work done and we think it was because of the bullying and jelousy at home. Now that those are going away his work is improving.
Steph and the girls are heading to KC/Beloit for a week leaving tomorrow. Dylan was pretty upset that he couldn't go with them when he found out. I tried to explain that with the girls gone we get to do some cool guy stuff. Like no bathing, watching Star Wars in our underwear and burp and fart without saying excuse me. Those plans were going well until someone reminded me that Carrie would still be here so we may have to curtail some of those things. We'll see. I may have to come up with something else equally as cool. I already have offers for sleepovers for Friday and Saturday nights so I'm not sure what we'll do.
I do have pictures of the family and I know I've had lots of requests for pictures of Addison. They are still on the camera and I'll get them on here in the next couple of days. I also go back to work soon so my postings won't be so far apart...

Thank You God!

A funny story was relayed to me after I posted last and need to share it with you regarding our ever quotable kids.
Apparently, when Wendy was bringing our kids to the hospital when Addison was born Chloe asked how her new baby sister got in Mommy's tummy. I'm sure the frozen look of fear on Wendy's face was priceless and I wish I could have seen it. How do you answer that question from someone else's kids? Luckily she didn't have to do that as Dylan piped up. "Well, God makes the baby, lets it grow a little bit then put it in Mommy's tummy to finish growing." Overexcited Chloe with her eyes looking toward heaven I'm sure, yells out "Thank You God!"

Truer words have never been spoken.

As we are now a week and a half into newborn parenting you would think things might settle down a bit. Well, you'd be wrong. Things are as crazy as ever and I'm pretty sure it's not going to change any time soon. While we are getting the hang of having a newborn again and recalling some things we had long forgotten there is just enough chaos to keep us on our toes. We have not had visitors over mostly due to Steph and Addison getting used to each other and feeding. Steph also has a bit of a cold and just is exhausted. The house is a mess and we have family in town. I think we will be open to visitations next week as I begin my paternity leave then and can be around to help a bit. We will be guest free for a couple of weeks until my parents come in the middle of February. Rod and Bonnie were here for 10 days and left on Tuesday morning. That time went way too fast and they both helped out a tremendous amount with food, cooking, cleaning and mostly support. Bonnie's main project this visit was a success - helping Steph with Addison. Amber, Ryan and Lainey came in on Wednesday night and will be here until Sunday. Amber planned the trip as they came were flying here during a KU game and will be taking off to go home about the time the Super Bowl Kick-Off. We're glad they are here as we haven't seen them since their visit last Summer when Lainey was just a couple of month old. She is getting so big it's kinda funny to see her compared to Addison - What a difference 9 months makes.

My running is going well. A couple of weeks ago was a 7 mile run on a Saturday. I just couldn't get a rhythm going so I was uncomfortable for the entire run. It's no fun to feel bad for a hour and a half. My times were slower and even when I thought that if I could speed up I wouldn't have to be out there as long it didn't help. I powered through and made it. I wasn't sure how things would progress. Then last Saturday was the 8 mile trip. It was a bit cold and windy with gusts up to about 30 mph at times. I got into my cadence early and felt good the whole run. Except that I kept burping up the lasagna I had for lunch for the first 4 miles. Ugh. Even with the 30 mph headwind I had my fastest sustained run ever for my longest run ever. After that I felt like I could definately do this thing. This weekend I have a 10 mile run scheduled. I'm not sure how that will go. I only got a short weekday run in last night due to the ice and snow we got. I know all of you in the Mid-West think that's a bit silly but remember - this is DC. They don't prep the side roads or shovel the sidewalks here. It was complete ice for a couple of days. When I went for my 'short' 4 miler last night I was running on the streets in the neighborhood and thought everytime a car came by that I'd have to jump into the ice to dodge it or that I would hit an ice patch and fall in front of the car - it was kinda dark out too. I also had my left shoe jabbing something into the top of my big toe that started early. They about 2 miles in I stepped in a pothole, jammed my knee wierd and pulled a muscle in my lower back. I headed home after that and called it a night. This morning my back is in sorry shape and I'm going to the store where I bought my shoes in hopes they can help me figure out what is causing my toe so much pain. Hopefully I can get this all cleared up so I can put the in the 10 miles I need this weekend.

I also had to put in my recommitment form for the fundraising and race. I'm about $825 into my necessary $1900. If you are planning to donate and haven't yet please do so soon. I really need your help to reach that number.

Addison Marie

It's been a busy week.

Addison Marie Reeve was born on Monday January 19, 2009 at 6:53pm. She was 21 inches and 8lbs 6oz.

We went into the hospital about 10am on Monday and by 10:30 Steph was hooked to the IV with a Pitocin drip. Pitocin is the drug that induces labor. She had the amount increased periodically throughout the day. About 6:15 Rod, Carrie and I decided to head to dinner since nothing was really happening. Bonnie was in the room with Steph and we figured we had about an hour before the next check. We were going to go to the hospital cafeteria but then decided to head across the street to Chipotle. What better way to gear up for the birth of my child than a Chipotle Burrito. We got over there and I was finishing my order - Barbacoa, black beans, spicy, corn, tomatoes, sour cream, cheese and lettuce (mmmm Chipotle...) when my phone rang. It was 6:35 and Bonnie was calling to say to hurry back, Steph was at 9 cm so we were getting close. Carrie quickly got back in line to order because we forgot to get something for Bonnie and we headed back to the hospital. They dropped me off at the door and I ran to the elevators, up to the 3rd floor, through the security doors and into the room - it was 6:45. The door to the room was partially blocked because they had the delivery equipment out as the doctor and nurses were quickly getting things ready. Steph apparently had them check her again about 30 seconds after Bonnie called me and she was at 10 cm and ready. The nurses didn't even have the things set up so it was a rush. Bonnie was at her side and stepped back as I manuevered around the tables and people to get to Steph's side. Steph did a great job and 7 minutes later Addison was born. Bonnie stayed in the room to see her first delivery and was in a state of amazement.

It was a little scary for Rod and Carrie in the waiting room though. They called Bonnie when they got to the waiting room while Steph was pushing. The ringing really annoyed Steph so Bonnie was quick to answer it once we figured out whose phone it was and where it was. She quickly said that she couldn't talk and had to go and hung up. Carrie, on the other end, thought she said "I can't talk now, they're doing CPR, gotta go". They were with that belief until Bonnie came out about 30 minutes later. It was even a bit more scary because before they could talk to her Rod and Carrie saw that Bonnie had tears in her eyes and had been crying. All were happy once the communication cleared up a bit.

Shady Grove Hospital now has private recovery rooms after deliveries with no set visiting hours or number of people to visit limits. Wendy Bailey had been watching the kids all day and brought them up to meet their new sister. Chloe was ecstatic and Wendy said she probably would have run to the hospital if she'd let her. Dylan was excited but more reserved about it. Steph did make it into the recovery room in time for the beginning of the KU basketball game vs Texas A&M (they won which is a good omen)

We couldn't decide on a name and had it narrowed down to a short list. Wednesday morning before discharge Steph and I whittled it down even more to 2. Still not able to decide we talked with the nurses and processing and were able to leave without her name. The processing person was going to call us when she was putting the information in the next day. After asking family and friends in a poll on our two names (it was pretty much a tie) we did a complete change and opted for one we crossed off the list (it was the last one we crossed out though). Like I said - Everyone gets a say, just not the final say.

We are all doing well and are adjusting to life with a hungry newborn. Thanks to all for your help and support.

Easy Runnin

I didn't ever think I'd say this but I went out for an easy 3 mile run this morning in 20 degree weather. Also, I now understand what I used to hear from long distance runners about the first couple of miles being warm-up miles. Of course in the cold all the miles help keep you warm.
I do need to start working on my speed a bit now that I have the confidence that I can make it the full 13.1 miles. 7 miles are due this weekend.
Baby news is that Steph went in for her checkup today. The little girl is about 8.5 lbs already. Monday can't come soon enough for Steph now.
Rod & Bonnie come in to town on Saturday morning so it will be nice for them to be here when the baby is born. We tried that with my parents when Chloe was born but she was late and was born a day or two after Mom & Dad left to go back home. I don't think we'll have that problem this time.
The baby is all out front and when Steph was sitting down last night she seriously looked like she had a basketball under her shirt.
Stay Tuned.

Running High

It's amazing what the proper shoes and a couple days rest will do. Last week was rough. Tuesday's run of 3 miles lasted only about 3/4 of a mile due to pain. That afternoon I went to get my new shoes - Wed was a cross train day and Thursday was to be 4 miles - I got in 3. I probably could have done the 4 but I got up late and didn't really have the time. I was still getting lots of shin pain so I was glad that Friday was a rest day. Saturday was to be a 6 mile run and a 20 minute on Sunday. I had planned to switch them but by the time I got the lights down Saturday afternoon it started raining. Since it was about 30 degrees out I didn't really want to go run in freezing rain so I assessed the situation and decided that my legs needed another day of rest so that when I did the 6 miles I wouldn't be aggravating sore muscles... So then comes Sunday. I was busy with lots of things most importantly a nap after church so my run got pushed back to early evening. I wasn't really looking forward to it. I would have to run at night and due to the lateness my route had to change so I was running 3 miles out and 3 miles back instead of having Steph drop me off 6 miles out so I would run home. That plan was great because it was mostly downhill... Now I would be running the first 3 uphill. With Russ' good news this week and donations starting to come in I knew people were counting on me to train. I headed out and took it easy. It was nice out - about 33 degrees and a full moon rising that was a bright orange. The first mile wasn't bad. The next two were a little tough as that was the uphill part. At my 3 mile turnaround I stopped a minute to retie my shoes and started out again. I felt pretty good and was running faster that before ( I was heading on the downslope after all). About mile 5 I was feeling very good and began to feel only what I've heard described as a runner's high. I was running easy with no pain at all. That feeling stayed with me through the last two miles and I felt like I could have gone more. I'm not sure if I've ever run 6 miles at one shot before so I feel a huge shot of confidence. Specifically because my last two miles were the fastest of the run. After stretching and cool down my shins and calves did not scream out in pain. I thank the guy who fitted me for my new shoes for that - 6 miles with no pain. This morning I do have some muscle aches but it's the good kind of ache like you get from a good workout not the pain from something going wrong. Woo-Hoo!

Baby News - None yet though Steph went in on Friday and they said she was dialated 1-2 cm but no contractions. She goes in on Thursday to get an ultrasound so we can see how big she's getting. The nurses estimate last week was that she was over 8 lbs already. We have an induction scheduled for the 19th. The baby is very active and that makes Steph very uncomfortable. We all have our go bags packed. The room is put together, clothes washed and diapers at the ready. Only cosmetic things remain. I will be painting the girls room possibly this weekend (I get 30 days of Paternaty leave so I have so time to finish then if we head to the hospital this weekend) and put her car seat in the van. Some of you may be asking about a name. C'mon, it's us. We have a list but probably won't make the final decision until we meet her and then we'll only put it on the birth certificate right before we leave the hospital. You all will know shortly after we know.

Ouch

Like I said - I'm not a runner. I did my 5 miles on the local high school track. 2 things hit me as I was doing my 20 laps. One is the last time I ran on a track was when I was a freshman in college and I HAD to run for wrestling. We were running single file and the last guy in line had to sprint to the front - I HATED that drill. I think it was during that drill that I swore off running after wrestling... The second thing I thought of was that I don't like running on the track. While it is nice and smooth with no hills it is very boring. I think I'll take the hills and potholes over boring. I did make it and even averaged 10 min/mile. Sunday brought soreness and a shorter 20 minute run. I had to wait until night to do that and I ran a bit faster but paid for it in pain. If pain is weakness leaving the body I must have built up a LOT of weakness. Some of the pain is just from pushing hard to improve. Other is from bad shoes. Today I went into a real running shoe store. I was fitted 2 different ways, they watched my feet and ankles as I walked and pointed out what types of shoes I should wear. I have high arches so my feet elongate when I stand (or when they hit the pavement) so that causes pain in the calves and shins. With the shoes I have and the inserts the calve and shin pain should go away soon. Then I'll only have my endurance to worry about.

Steph and I feel that she'll go into labor within the next week or so. We'll keep you posted on that too.

Proving Myself

Maybe it's that nearing middle age thing that makes guys want to go out and prove they "still got it" or maybe it's just finally time to do it. Whatever the case I know my inspiration is Russ French and wanting to help him out. For those of you that don't know Russ was recently diagnosed with Lymphoma. He is undergoing treatments now. Russ is a husband to Marla and Father to Nolan and Audrey. He coaches baseball and is a friend to all he meets. You can read about his diagnosis and treatments on his blog http://visitruss.blogspot.com/. His diagnosis rocked our comfy group of friends. Knowing that I couldn't help much due to the fact I didn't go to years of medical school I prayed. I wanted to do something to support him. Then I remembered a guy I used to work with did the Marine Corp Marathon with the Lukemia & Lymphoma Society Team in Training a number of years back. I thought I could possibly do that. I started checking out their website and seeing what I would need to do. It seemed to be a no brainer. All I had to do was sign up, raise some money for blood cancer research and run. The first two things - no problem. The third - well, I'm not what you call an avid runner. I ran because I had to. Coach told me to run to get in shape so I ran. After wrestling I swore I would never run like that again. Over the years I lost my hatred of it and started running a few times a week. Nothing much just a mile or two at the most. So now I have signed up to do the Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon in Virginia Beach, VA in March. I chose that one because, well, because it was sponsored by a beer company. After the run there is a party with free beer and Irish stew. The other one in that timeframe was here in DC but was sponsored by a bank. I like beer way more than I like banks right now so there we have it.
Team In Training (TNT) provides a training schedule, group runs, help with fundraising and moral support. It is a group of dedicated people helping to raise money to find a cure for L&L. So believe it or not I have only missed a couple of training runs but I am running 3 miles at a time now during the week with longer runs on the weekends. We add a mile to the run each Saturday - this weekend is a 5 mile run. I have not run that far in a loooong time. It should be intresting. So far I have not joined in the group runs on the weekends yet. As we add mileage I will have to do that to keep going. I don't run very fast (just over 10 min miles on my 3 mile runs), my legs specifically my calves are weak and scream in pain (though it is starting to get better and when my legs burn I think of Russ getting spinal taps that I hear aren't quite like massages so I keep going) my spirit is strong and I get the mileage in.
I will keep you all posted on my progress, pain and performance. Please, if you are able, go to my fundraising web page http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/shamrock09/breeve and donate.
My minimum is $1900. My goal is to get 100 people to give at least $25 for a total of $2500. More is appreciated and it is all tax deductable.
This will not be the last time I ask you to donate for a cause - just the first this year - which is why I'm not asking for $100's all at once. Just so you can plan - in the Spring we do a walk for James - Juvenile Diabetes and next fall the challenge has been thrown down for the Marine Corp Marathon so I'll hopefully be doing that for TNT.

PS - Rod and Bonnie - Thanks for the Wii - I used it the other day and found out that boxing and tenning are a great way to warm up for my run.