Marathon Monday

 Marathon weekend was awesome as usual. It started with the BAA 5K on Saturday. I was really excited for this race and hoped to bust out an awesome time, but that did not happen! I forgot that the race is ridiculously large, that 10,000 people have to squeeze over a tiny start line and skinny course, that people seed themselves, and nobody seeds themselves honestly except me. When it came time to line up, I stood next to the 6:00 minute per mile sign and was amazed at the hundreds of people in front of me. There must be a lot of sub-6 runners.... I stood next to a 10-year-old and an overweight woman, but the optimist in me thought perhaps there was some chance they could actually run a 6-minute mile. Why would anyone want to line up ahead of where they should be??? The gun went off and I passed a gazillion people, dodging in and out for 5,000 meters. Still, my time was not great - 19:21 - not even close to what I wanted. Not even close to 6-minute pace! Next time do I line up at 6:15 pace or just toe the very front no matter what? Anyway, the race was run and I was ready to be a spectator for the rest of the weekend.

I hosted the Annual Pasta Dinner at my place with former BYU runners Carolyn Quebe, Emily and Kristy Barrus, and their families. My high school bestie, Kathy Shell, also came. We chowed on pasta, forgot to take pictures, and caught up on life/kids/running.

On Marathon Monday, we headed to Mile 19. It was cold (in the mid to high 40s) and rainy, so the kids didn't last long. After an hour or so, Scott took them to the car and drove a friend of his to the train station while keeping the kids dry and happier. I stayed in the rain and cheered on my BYU teammates (Carolyn, Emily, Kristy, and Tara), my BAA teammates, and Kathy. Despite the crappy weather, everyone ran well and was happy.

 On Tuesday, we picked up Kathy from her hotel and held her hostage for two days. She has never been to Boston, so we had to do the typical tourist routine: Freedom Trail, Old North Church, Mike's Pastry, etc. At the top, that would be Kathy and Phoebe with Bill Russell at government center (a little detour from the Freedom Trail). Directly above, they posed with a neighborhood firetruck. Kathy was a forest service firefighter a few years ago, so she and Phoebe got along swimmingly. They even independently wore firefighter T-shirts and camo shorts, so Phoebe proclaimed that they were twins and insisted that they hold hands 24 hours a day. They do kindof look alike and one lady even asked Phoebe if she was proud of her mother for finishing the marathon (Kathy also wore her Boston Marathon jacket around town so everyone knew how awesome/ sore she was). Phoebe responded, "no." I had some explaining to do.

 We stopped at the Rose Kennedy Greenway and rode the carousel. Kathy brought the kids Blackhawks hockey jerseys from Chicago, where she lives now. Scott said Oliver would get beat up if he wore this in the North End, but no one messed with him.

On Wednesday, we checked out Harvard to rub John Harvard's toe (it brings good luck), walked around Henry Longfellow's house, went to a local chocolate factory, and went out to dinner. On Thursday, we parted ways - she headed to New York to visit another friend and we headed to New Hampshire to get some relaxing vacation time. More on that soon.

Watching the marathon got me all excited about running marathons again. I think last year's Boston left me a bit burned out. I was constantly tired from breastfeeding every three hours, not getting regular sleep because Oliver was still waking up at night, and running 60-70 miles a week. I was glad I ran it last year, but I'd had my fill of pedestrian paced marathons. I am ready to train hard and get to the starting line rested and ready. I knew that wasn't going to be the case for this Boston, so I ran shorter distances for awhile and survived the winter, Scott's crazy call schedule, and such. I think things will get easier though, so I am signing up for a fall marathon and should be running Boston next year.

Happy Halloween!

 We started our Halloween celebrations off right by visiting Phoebe's favorite guys who are always in costume. I guess since she dresses like a firefighter 364 days out of the year, she decided to be a "radiologist" for this one day. Bruce was a skeleton and Oliver was a pirate, complete with marker-made beard that he contributed to.

 We went to the school's fall party and did the usual games and pumpkin painting and such.

 Phoebe wanted to get a picture with her new best friend from school. Of course it couldn't be one with a straight face.

Continuing with last year's tradition, we brought Miss J - a fairy princess - along with us. After the party and a bite to eat at Miss J's, we went trick-or-treating on Beacon Hill. The kids got a ridiculous amount of candy and have been binge-eating it ever since.

My favorite part of the experience was hearing people comment on Phoebe's costume. When it got cold, she put her Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle sweatshirt on.

Nice person passing out candy: "Oh how cute, we have a Ninja Turtle!"
Phoebe: "No, I'm a radiologist."
Nice person: "You look like a Ninja Turtle."
Phoebe: "Look at my ID badge."

Phoebe is FIVE!

We had an epic birthday bash for Phoebe this year. It wasn't humongous or expensive, but it was FUN. I'm not sure that we can top this. Ever. I didn't get a ton of pictures because I had my hands full most of the time - either juggling Oliver, running party games, or both. Unsurprisingly, Phoebe wanted to have a firefighter-themed birthday party. She colored and painted fire hydrants, flames, firetrucks, and firefighter helmets and hung them on the windows and around the house. We had a "firefighter training academy" with the following games:

1. Turnout gear test - we had two sets of helmets, jackets, and boots that the kids had to put on quickly, then take off. They were divided into two teams, so had to go quickly through the line.
2. Hose drag test - again, two teams. They had to run across the parking garage (we normally would have been out at the park, but it was rainy so we had games in our garage!) holding the end of a roll of toilet paper. This game, inspired by Oliver, was perhaps the most popular.
3. Dummy drag test - I weighted stuffed animals with bags of rice and dressed them in clothes. The kids had to carry them down the garage and back, then pass them to the next firefighter in line.
4. Fire extinguisher test - I painted a skyline in acrylic, then painted flames on it in watercolor. The kids took turns skirting it with turkey basters, spray bottles, and such to put out the fires.
5. Ax test - We called it that just to stick with the theme, but it was really just breaking a pinata. A firetruck pinata, of course. In fact, it was the same one we used last year. It wasn't too beat up, so it hung in Phoebe's room all year and I patched it up to use it again this year.

 After the games, we came back upstairs for lunch and cake. Phoebe put out the fire (candles!) and opened gifts. We got her a pair of red suspenders and a matching red bow tie. I know it's weird, but she has been asking for them. Why? Because real firefighters wear suspenders (the bow tie just came with the set).

 At the very end of the party, some real firefighters showed up! Phoebe is in love with the local station and visits them about once a week. She knows most of them by name, their shifts, which truck they are on, etc. She had given them a party invite a few weeks back and they actually showed up with the trucks and all! They gave out firefighter helmets and stickers and the kids were just over the moon. Phoebe was so excited she could barely speak.

Phoebe still wants to be a firefighter and tells me she only has 14 more years until she can be one.

Fall fun

Every year our neighborhood has a pretty rocking block party complete with bounce houses, pony rides, face painting, food and activities. Phoebe fell in love with the ponies years ago and looks forward to riding Tigger and DoubleUp every fall.

 Guess who showed up at the block party this year? "My guys," as Phoebe calls them. Even though she sits in Engine 2 at least once a week, she still spent a fair amount of time buckled in.

 The day of the block party was quite hot, so Oliver and I hung out in the shade when possible. Oliver is 16 months now. We started a mother-baby music class a few weeks ago and he seems to like it. We are still working with Early Intervention and will be for at least another year. He has language delays - doesn't talk, doesn't seem to understand or follow simple directions - and a few sensory quirks. It's hard to know how concerned to be as some developmental delays clear up on their own, but it never hurts to be aware early on.

 A few weeks ago I won Red Sox tickets! I answered a trivia question from a real estate newsletter (from one of my former GBTC teammates who is a real estate agent) and won two tickets. Somehow we have lived in Boston for a decade now and haven't been to Fenway Park, so it was time. I took Bruce because he really wanted to go.

 My next-door neighbor is an usher at Fenway Park, so we met up with him and he gave us a little history of the stadium and showed us around a bit. He is from Trinidad, so on a 65-degree night he wore a heavy coat, winter hat, and gloves with hand-warmers in them!

 He took our picture for us, got Bruce a baseball at the end of the game, and got us awesome seats.

 We sat in our ticketed seats for awhile (pictured above while we did The Wave), then moved to our neighbor's section for a plusher view. We ate peanuts (Bruce ate the shell and all; I guess he had never seen a whole peanut?!) and Cracker Jacks, cheered the Red Sox against the Tampa Bay Rays (Red Soc dominated!), and had a great time. Bruce said, "This is the best day I've had in two decades." Yes, he is nine years old.

 Also a few weekends ago, Scott didn't have to work and wanted to take advantage of whatever nice weather was left of this year. He picked Bruce up from school early and drove to New Hampshire to go backpacking in the White Mountains.

 They hiked a few miles to a campground where they stayed for the night.

 They saw some beautiful views, ate lots of trail mix, and enjoyed some father-son time.

 When they hiked back to the car, Bruce ate almost an entire package of Oreos on the way home. Awesome.

Phoebe was crazy jealous that Bruce and Scott were having a fun trip without her, so she and I visited the fire station to try on turn-out gear and sit in the trucks. Again.

Photo-dump from the Buckeye State

 Here is why we love Ohio: 1) a backyard AND a swing-set.

 2) a small-town fire department willing to let Phoebe spray the hoses, ride in the truck, and hang out shoulder to shoulder with firefighters.

 3) friends with swimming pools and toys.

 4) stuff with wheels and no downstairs neighbors to hear us wheeling stuff around on the hardwood floors.

 5) creativity welcome here! The kids decorated the four-wheeler, bikes, and tractors for their own Fourth of July backyard parade.

 6) Amish Country. We spent a day at my sister's friends' home...

 ...taking photos,

 going on buggy rides...

 We saw some beautiful places along the ride.

Bruce was not amused by the jittery buggy ride. Oliver clung to me with the same look of fear. Phoebe, however, was over the moon and wanted the horse to go faster.

 7) almost all of my family is there! We visited Grandma, weeded her gardens, and ate many many many cookies.

 8) chickens! We ate fresh eggs and even got chicken hugs.

 9) space! Phoebe and Uncle Chris took to the four-wheeler and sped all over the backyard.

 10) X-Box with Minecraft at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Plus cousins. Yessss.

 11) a bounce house to expend all excess energy.

Bruce and Phoebe pointed out all the "for sale" signs that we saw in Ohio. Now to find a neuro-interventional-radiologist position in another half-dozen years or so...

A few of our favorite things

1. Summertime! Bruce and Phoebe have one more week of school left and are counting down the days until vacation. We get a zillion holidays during the school-year, so that combined with the other zillion snow days we had and we have a very late summer vacation.

2. Hampers. Oliver's new favorite trick is to overturn the hamper, throw out all the laundry piece by piece, and then climb in. And just hang out. He doesn't really do much once he's in there. He just sits.

3. Our garden! I am happy to be able to do a little more in the garden this year. Our little plot yields a few tiny ripe strawberries per day, plus a good-sized salad. We have strawberries, herbs, lettuce, spinach, broccoli, a million tomatoes, and a tiny blueberry bush.

4. Running. I recently switched running clubs from the Greater Boston Track Club to the Boston Athletic Association. GBTC practices were across town and increasingly difficult to get to, while the BAA practices are a half-mile from my house. I am getting to practice more reliably and I'm hoping this translates to better fitness at some point. I still feel postpartum lumpiness, but I managed to run a 19:56 in a hilly 5K last weekend (first race since the marathon!). This weekend I'm running a trail 5K that I am really excited about.

5. Minecraft. Every day after school, Bruce speeds through his chores so he can get his 30-minute fix of Minecraft. He builds villages, trades diamonds for cookies (makes sense, right?), battles zombies and dragons, and blows stuff up with TNT. Afterward he tells me all about it. I just nod my head.

6. Everything related to firetrucks. Phoebe is still crushing on firefighters, particularly the ones at the station closest to us. She knows a half-dozen of them by name and regularly tells stories about their firefighting exploits.

7. Scott! We celebrated Father's Day with a manly breakfast, new headlamps, church, and dinner with a radiology friend. Speaking of church and Scott, he got called as the second counselor in the bishopric two months ago. So far it means that he is stressed out a bit more, emails a lot more, disappears on Sundays, and doesn't sit with us in church. Looking on the bright side, he pays more attention in church (since he has to sit up front!), and gets to counsel people and make a difference in their lives.

Catching up with the Raymonds

It's been too long, so I won't even try to document our comings and goings chronologically. But here's what we've been up to since I last posted...

• Christmas in Ohio! We drove to the motherland, got lots of face-time with family, and scored some loot. I got Scott some nice headphones. Bruce got plenty of Legos. Phoebe got lots of firefighter stuff. Oliver got a few toys. Scott got me some awesome mom jeans (high waist, mile-high fly, a bit short on the leg...); they may not look so awesome on the outside, but they are lined with flannel, so I am totally wearing them all winter. 
• The Drive Home. Scott had to fly back to Boston to work after Christmas, but I stayed with the kids for a few more days of fun (and Cousin Camp at an indoor water park!). I started the drive on New Year's Eve; it snowed for a few hours and I got lost in the boonies of Pennsylvania, but we eventually made it to Anika's house! We stayed there for the night, got a New Year's Day run in the morning, and then drove the rest of the way to Boston in nice weather.

• Firehouse Saturday! It has been on my bucket list for awhile to take Phoebe to the Boston Fire Museum. It's one of those dinky museums that has limited hours and is run by volunteers (retired firefighters in this case). Bruce loved playing with a switchboard, Phoebe got to pull a fire alarm, and Oliver slept through the entire thing. We also went to Firehouse Subs for the first time for some grilled cheese sandwiches and firefighter hats. 
• The Plague entered our house. When we got back from Ohio, Oliver started throwing up. Then Phoebe. Then Bruce. Scott wins the medal for cleaning up most of the barf. While Phoebe had surprisingly good aim in the bucket, Bruce missed in epic fashion. He had the bucket next to him in bed because he wasn't feeling well when he went to bed, but he woke up and leaned over the side of his loft bed, and let loose the contents of his stomach all over the Lego-covered rug/ walls/ ladder to his bed/everywhere. He is really out of it at nighttime. 
• Creepy sleep-walking Bruce. Speaking of being out of it, Bruce occasionally has sleep-walking episodes. He will walk out of his room, turn on lights, say really weird things, act really strange, and then not remember any of it in the morning. I grabbed the camera for his most recent episode. I thought he'd be embarrassed by it, but he thought it was hilarious when he saw it the next morning and said I should post it on the blog. So here it is: he is scared of his bathrobe, wonders why we have it or his bed or something, and says he hates the bathrobe but wants to get inside it...

• Hosted a Blood Drive. I organize and coordinate blood drives at church every few months. It's kindof a pain to get people to sign up, but it is always worth the hassle. Whenever I hear the I-don't-like-needles excuse, I shrug. I know what that's like, but you're really going to let that stop you from helping someone out?! 
• Marathon training! Yep, it has begun. I am excited, but also nervous. I was counting on Oliver breastfeeding a bit less by this point, but he still wants me every third hour or so. Just give him a bottle, you say? Nope, he won't accept imitation: he wants the real deal. That might make long runs tricky - maybe I need a pit stop with a jug of Gatorade and a hungry baby. Someone suggested I get La Leche League to sponsor me and have a designated breastfeeding stop on the marathon course. Classy.
• Bruce started piano lessons again. He had an awesome teacher awhile ago, then a not-quite-as-awesome teacher that moved so slowly he was getting bored, then no teacher because I didn't want to trek around town to lessons with a new baby. Throughout it all, Bruce has been great at practicing on his own and has really improved his skills. When he met his new teacher, he played a few songs for her. At one point he started beat-boxing while playing and his teacher said, "Is that beat-boxing?! Genius!"
• Skiing! Winter is upon us, so we took advantage of the snow and headed to a tiny ski resort. I hung out with Oliver in the lodge, Scott taught Phoebe to ski, and Bruce flew down the bunny hills about a million times. He is fluent with the T-bar.

• Oliver is growing up and looking more and more like a little boy. He loves watching himself in the mirror, watching Bruce and Phoebe anytime, eating (especially when others are eating), and playing peek-a-boo and other little games.