Track and Field

Kyle had his annual track and field day today at Meadow Creek Christian School. He is just over a week from completing 4th grade. He competed in 50 yard dash, softball throw, high jump and 400 meter relay. He had his faithful supporters, his brothers cheering him on (and running around like CRAZY!) Thank goodness there is a playground on the premises. We ran the boys until the were dog tired (and they slept like babies for me this afternoon!) Great job today, Kyle!

Late Nights

Evan has been working very late nights lately (or should I say very early mornings?) He wraps up his day around 1/1:30 a.m. and then is up at 5 to head out the door again. Ironically, my schedule has just gotten lighter not having training to squeeze in and all-around taking it easy this week. I am in bed early. Wonder if our schedules will ever coincide again??? I took this picture around midnight last night...

Half Marathon

I competed in my first half marathon today - the Stillwater Marathon. There were about 2,200 runners at the starting line - for all 4 races - the full marathon, 20 mile, half marathon, and 12k. The half marathon course was 13.43 miles. I had a gun time of 2:06:30 and a chip time of 2:05:41. When I was setting a goal time, I was aiming for 2 hours, but once I saw the Stillwater course and the amount of hills it contained, I adjusted my goal to 2 hours and 15 minutes. I was very pleased with a finish time of just over 2 hours. Had I stayed with my split time pace (56 minutes at 6.5 miles) I would have finished under 2 hours. That last half was hard, running with an injured knee. Regardless, I gave it 100% and that is all I could do. I haven't pushed my body physically that hard since I competed in IronGirl last fall and my plan now is to enjoy the summer and work out because I want to, not because I have a training schedule to adhere to. Thanks to my family and to my jobshare partner, Bethany, for being my awesome supporters today. I couldn't have done it without you guys!! I don't think I've wiped the grin off my face since I crossed that finish line - it is hard to put into words the "high" you get from completing an endeavor like this. I'm going to enjoy it as long as I can! There are 3 videos following the pictures - the first is at the starting line, the second is at Mile 9, and the last is at the finish line.

Enjoying the Sunshine

We enjoyed a beautiful day outside today, both at the Park and in our backyard. My task was to keep the boys out of Evan's hair while he painted the trim on the front of the house. Mission accomplished and we had fun in the process! The boys keep me hopping - I am as tired as they are after a day of playing outside!!!!

Hummingbird

I caught my first hummingbird with my camera tonight. I know we've had hummingbirds for a while because I am refilling the feeders, but I don't see them much. Could have something to do with the fact that the feeder is located near the boys' swingset and sandbox. I'd be afraid to come near that chaos, too!!!

Pond Time

We moved the fish outside to their "summer home", our front pond tonight. They must love having the room in the 500 gallon pond as opposed to their "winter home" - a 50 gallon aquarium in my laundry room. We transferred them out in a 5 gallon bucket with the "help" of the kids. I have had the same fish for 5 years now; I have wintered them every year in the laundry room. They were about an inch long when I bought them (12 for $1.00) and now they are a good 6-8" in length. I originally bought 4 dozen and I have about 30 left. Not too bad for goldfish!!! I am relieved to have them outside. Since they eat pond algae, I no longer have to feed them (or clean the aquarium) until fall - yeah!!!! :)

Many Faces of Carter

Carter has so many expressions and does not like me taking pictures, so it is tricky to capture them. They always make me smile. No matter how frustrated I get when he is naughty, he knows he has me with that smile!