Last Days of School

We are winding down the end of the semester. Today was my last day with my Kindergarten friends. I have been helping in the classroom since November, and it has been a lot of fun. The children have grown so much, and I will miss them.

Jackson is quite concerned about the last days of school. His teacher is moving to a new school, and he is having a hard time with the change. Poor thing. He keeps on saying, Ms. G is so silly - she is just teasing me that she is leaving. The good news is that he had the final swim meet of the spring season and did a great job. He will be going to summer school after our trip to NC, so I am sure he will have a blast.

On the other hand, Carter is psyched about about moving to preschool summer camp. He knows there is a pool - what else do you need!!

I am off to my last school event tomorrow - a tour of one of the largest prisons in the area. Good times! As Jackson says, I will be careful taking my students where they send people who make bad choices.

Camping is Cool!

We were very lucky to be invited on a camping trip last week to Cuivre River state park. Jason was in class (which was good because there was no room in the car), so I packed up the boys and our stuff. Our Eagle Scout leader did a good job of suppressing his laughter at my tent skills, but I got everything up and ready. Unfortunately, it was a bit cold, but the boys had a great time. I forgot to take some pictures, but here is Carter's general excitement for life, and Jackson checking out the pet door in the tent. I had to try it out the weekend before we went camping.

School is winding down for me, and May marks the last month of Kindergarten for Jackson and Carter is off to preschool in June. Exciting times. I always get a bit sad this time of year thinking about how much they have grown and knowing how quickly everything will continue to fly by. Although this weekend didn't go exactly as planned, I am so lucky to have had such a special all alone time with the boys.

Spring Piggies

Here is a brief update of the week. It has been pretty nice and we have been busy as usual. We went to the baseball game on Sunday and Carter and I were featured on TV dancing as some of the home run festivities.

Carter loves his bubbles. He is saying the bubbles are as little as me. He has no idea how big he is :)

Blowing Bubbles -




Jackson participated in his first school musical. He was a straw big in the operatic interpretation of the 3 little pigs.

Nine Piggy Opera



ENJOY

Game On

You have been successfully registered for the following:

Registration: Lewis & Clark Marathon and Half Marathon (Missouri Event)
Category: Marathon (26.2 Miles)
Event Date: 09/14/08
Name: Velma

**Thanks for all of the kind words, but I would save the congrats until I have actually finished :)

Yet again

We had another quake this morning - shortly after midnight (another 4.0, but shorter in duration than the first). This isn't funny anymore.

At least it was a great warm day. Jason tackled the lawn for 4 hours, and I worked with the boys to plant flowers and spread mulch. We got to go out on Saturday to a party with some 'superstars' of the field who were visiting for a conference. Good times.

I am a princess - but you knew that already

It takes me less than a day to post about my race, and two weeks to write about the kids race. This blog is all about me - just in case you haven't noticed.

Here we have a great picture of Carter and Nora (front - both almost 3 - this was their first race). Julia, Jackson, and Logan are in the back (almost 6). The big kids are veteran racers, but I think everyone enjoyed the really great medals. They were just like the marathon medals - only rubber. Jackson refused to wear his race T as he thought it might slow him down. He has learned the first fun rule of running - it is all about the clothes. My mom also completed the 5K race and did really well in her age division. It was truly a family racing weekend.

I did do a pretty good job of messing up my knee on the half, but I am almost back to normal (whatever that is). I will be working on increasing my mileage this week again and then about 2 weeks until my formal marathon training begins. If you know of a good sports masseuse, please let me know.

I forgot to mention that the races were held in Forest Park. If you come to visit, remind me to take you there. I don't get there enough and it is pretty great.

Earthquake

Yes, we had an earthquake yesterday morning - it registered about 5.2. We had a larger aftershock in the late morning but nothing since. We do have earthquake insurance, and I was kinda hoping that the small rattling would break the broken down deck off the house. No luck.

We are fine, of course. Here is more info on the earthquake. The boys slept through the event, but Jackson is quite worried that the shocks will affect the volcanoes in Washington State. After they erupted, we would have to worry about touching the lava. So, if you see any lava in your neighborhood, Jackson would remind you not to touch it.

Race Report - St. Louis

I finished - that is the most important part - right?! I improved my time over the last half and had a pretty good time in the process. Here are some highlights. First, the weather was perfect.

Start - this is a picture of the start. How amazing. I was lined up to a man (at least 60) who had a great Ironman tattoo. He also had a 2007 Louisville Ironman finisher hat on - fantastic. He was running the full and passed me quite quickly. If I did a Ironman, I would be first in line for the tattoo.

Mile 1 - Cardinals Stadium - oh yea!

Mile 2-5 - a loop around the Budweiser plant. The smell of hops was pretty strong. It was good to finally get a view of Soulard and some of the original Weed and Seed Neighborhoods. I was pretty much on pace for this part of the race.

Miles 6-9 - The out loop past city hall, jail (where I do interviews), and probation and parole. This part was up and down. Killer HiLlY course. Why don't you notice the hills when driving!!! I did hear 'way to go grandma' - she also passed me and was super fit. This is where the hurtin started. There really weren't that many spectators - bummer.

Miles 10-13 - Turn around and go toward the arch. About mile 10 there was a folk singer belting out American Pie. As Sammy and JP know - I HATE this song (the drunk man anthem). It did make me smile at this point. More hills and back home - I was able to pick up the pace on the way home.

Post race - I was SORE (and I still am). Next time I won't mow the entire lawn after a race. I did get my wish of going to IHOP for dinner (I am fancy). There is nothing that a swiss and mushroom omelet can't fix.

Lessons Learned:

1) Journaling my workouts and tracking things with the Nike+ was good (although I really want a Garmin). I wouldn't have logged so many miles if it weren't for the training plan.

2) I can't neglect other training. My abs are killing me right now, so I need to go back to basics and focus on core strength. I miss my boot camp.

3) Nutrition. Nuf said.

Next up - Joker's Wild I am still planning on the full in September, but I am petrified! If you feel like training for a half and would like to do half of the marathon with me, I would so appreciate it. I need a running buddy!

Go! St. Louis Marathon

Just in case you want to follow the path - click here for a drive through the course in St. Louis. I really wish I would have trained for the whole marathon. Oh well, there is always next year. I am tapering this week, so lots of pancakes and rest for me. I will give a full report next week.

tall girl

This is a great essay from the New York Times. A great essay from a fellow tall girl from the Badger state.

Photo Montage

My Slideshow 3/25/08

I am way to lazy to make a bunch of separate posts, so I thought I would wrap everything into a short slide show. In the show we have

1) photos from our 12 inch snowstorm in March. All of the snow came in a span of 4 hours. I know this is nothing compared to Wisconsin, but it was pretty exciting for the kids. Particularly given we haven't had this much snow TOTAL in any of the 5 previous years.

2) Crazy leprechaun adventures. Although I think we got shorted on this holiday as it was a Monday and the following weekend was Easter.

3) Finally, Easter. Enjoy!!

glue

We had our first head wound yesterday, and I am sure that this event marks the first of many ER visits. Carter fell and hit his head at school, and they glued it back together in the pediatric ER. It is a small wound, and he will be back to normal in a few days. He was a real pal for the doctors and didn't seem phased by the whole incident. Good guy :)

I was just thinking on Monday how I like that we still live in the same city where Carter was born. For some reason, I enjoy seeing the hospital and walking down memory lane (at least in my mind). I guess I didn't think we would be back so quickly to literally walk the halls of the hospital ER. I am thankful we have a very nice and new ER just for kids.

This is one of a few events over the past week where I realized that St. Louis is really home. I was so excited to see the arch and the ballpark after my trip to Cinci. I know it has been 5 years - clearly I am not quick to warm to new environments.

Public Service Announcement

I thought this information might be helpful. I have been working on my taxes over the past few weeks, and I began to wonder about the economic stimulus package that will begin in May. You can calculate the amount of your stimulus payment here.

If you are like me and have to pay the IRS some cash this April, it is still a good idea to complete the direct deposit portion of the 1040. Doing so will ensure that your stimulus payment will be direct deposited in May. Happy Saving.

Spring in Coming - RU Ready!

Make sure to watch the whole video. Just something to stop the excuses. I know I have had them a lot this year.

Carts

I am running a bit behind in posting new pictures of the cuties. And cute they are. Carter is blossoming into such a big boy. His language skills have really begun to take off - the boys regularly have conversations. It is a delight to listen in.

Last week they had a long discussion about what Carts should be when he grows up. Carter wants to be a firefighter, but Jackson is so worried about him burning in a fire. They agreed that a football player would be a better choice.

Unfortunately, most interactions quickly devolve into some form of discussion involving 'mine'!!

Here is a snap of our treats at the Valentine party at Carter's school. I gave up sweets for lent, so I chowed down on the fruit and Carter ate the rest (I am not kidding). He can wear size 4 pants, but he is so skinny. He didn't get it from me!

Carter is also becoming more of a leader in his class. This is an important last step before he enters preschool in June. Unfortunately, a few weeks ago, he lead the class in a mutiny over the snack bowl. In Montessori, children serve their own food from bowls. Carter and his buddy thought it would be hilarious to commandeer the bowl and start making 'snow granola'. He knew he did something wrong, but he couldn't help but express his contentment in what he had done.