Vrooom Footprints

I have been looking at this Pinterest Pin for quite a few months.

I thought this would be super cute in Mr Blue Eyes' room and go perfectly with his new big boy bed theme.

A quick trip to the local craft store and I was beginning my Pinterest journey.
A few foot prints on the canvas and I was building a firetruck.

Cutting out doors and tires.

The ladder was tedious. 

What was I getting myself into?

Mr Blue Eyes was most excited for the dump truck.

I will admit the ladder was easier to build compared to mastering the tread on dump truck tires.

But I think we had a potential winner.

I was most looking forward to the John Deer tractor!

We rounded off the art project with a race car. 

A little tedious gluing, painting some details and TA-DA!

A bright red firetruck!

Super awesome tractor!

Super fast race car!

And the BEST dump truck this side of I-25. 

Pretty darn good if you ask me! Pinterest Success!!!

13.1

It took me a long time to get to where I stood last Saturday morning. Shoes laced up. Timing chip secured. Bib number on. Butterflies in my stomach and nervous jitters in the air. I never imagined that six months shy of looking 35 in the eye that I would have signed up, let alone shown up, to dare I say, RUN, my first ever Half Marathon.

I have never been a runner.

I used to laugh and tease and tell people that I only ran for two reasons: Someone was chasing me down a dark alley at night trying to kill me... or the horses got out. I joked and forwarded funny little someecards around like these:

Sure, I played sports and I was athletic growing up. I even played lacrosse in high school, which is very much a running sport. But I really, truly, honestly hated to run. Every time the coach would tell us to go run laps, I loathed every minute of it. I ran during a lacrosse game only because I had to. I ran out of necessity because I liked to handle the ball, score goals and win. I was competitive and did what I had to, but I was lazy...

For that reason alone, I should be amazed that I stuck to a training program over the last few months on my own. That on my own, I became a runner. A runner that could and would attempt a Half Marathon.

I look back now at what a waste that time was playing sports. I can't help but think how much more potential I had and how much better of a player I could have been...

I was running Saturday somewhere in the middle of it all, surrounded by plowed fields, the sun, a light breeze and not much more than that. Alone on course, listening to my shoes hit the pavement over the music in my ears and the Nike cheers from my friends and I got lost in my thoughts - which is very easy to do when you run for a couple hours. I was reflecting on the fact that this really did seem like a dream. I could not believe this day had arrived and I was brave enough to venture away from the starting line and carry my own body over 13.1 miles of Iowa country roads.

What was I thinking? What a crazy road my life was traveling on these days. I was running a Half Marathon after all.  

Then I got a lump in my throat and my eyes welled up with emotions.

Do you know what really amazed me that very moment?

It wasn't that I had trained, traveled and was out in the middle of no where running 13.1 miles anymore. I was amazed that I thought this day was going to be so hard. So challenging. So physically demanding that I doubted my ability to do hard things.

I laughed because I had done harder things than lace up a pair of running shoes and venture out for 13.1 miles. 13 years ago, I walked into an operating room and faced open heart surgery. Bi-passed, my heart was stopped for I believe 13 minutes while a surgeon repaired 5 holes in my heart.

I got goose bumps while I ran. 13 years ago, 13 minutes, 13 miles...

I thought about the post-surgery complications and the recovery time it took after surgery. I thought about how I was so concerned about carrying by body over 13.1 miles when I had carried two babies for 9 months each and endured 2 c-sections.

This was nothing. I had done hard things before.

I set into a rhythm and started to see other runners in front of me again. I set new goals to catch the next person in front of me and then the next. To finish strong.

Ten miles in, my body started to feel the miles I had traveled. By mile 11 I was trying to get my head back in the game and stop focusing on the fact that my hips were aching, my right foot or sock or shoe or something down in there was annoying me, my left knee was starting to get more sore. I kept trying to push the distractions out of my mind and focus on finishing strong.  

Up ahead I spotted my aunt and uncle's jeep. I waved and smiled. My uncle Ric leaned out of the car and asked me if I needed any water. Then he asked if I wanted to get in. I laughed and shook my head "No." I was finishing this race!

A few seconds later and Ric was running next to me. Pacing with me. Running me in the last couple miles. It was perfect timing. Just when my mind was starting to tell me to slow and walk, Ric helped give me the second wind I needed for that last final push. He encouraged me and drove me to catch one more person, climb one last hill, kick it into high gear and give it all I had left to finish stronger than I know I would have finished on my own. It was amazing and special and I will always remember and thank him for those last two miles!

As we came into the home stretch, I saw my dad holding Mr Blue Eyes on his shoulders. I waved and they cheered. The finish was in sight. As I rounded the last corner, I was sprinting now. I am not really sure where that energy reserve was hiding but I found it. As I crossed the finish line - being very, VERY careful not to trip cause that would be mortifying - my ears echoed with cheers from my family members waiting for me at the finish line. A medal was hung around my neck and I was embraced by hugs and congratulations.

 

I was overwhelmed by accomplishment. Did I really just do this? Did I really just run my first Half Marathon?

I did!
And I didn't walk and I wasn't last!!

Shortly after crossing the finish line my Brown Eyed Girl and Rah-Rah crossed the finish line for the 1 Mile Fun Run. I really did try to finish in time to take my Brown Eyed Girl on her very first race, but I didn't quite make it. I was very happy to know her Aunt Christi ran with her in my place!

After the runners were all back, we settled in for an afternoon of entertainment, conversations and relaxation at the finishers square. 

We hugged a cow.

 

 Hung out in Uncle Kurt's race car.

And someone may or may not have completed a little landscaping alterations at the golf course. Hope they don't mind...

I won a trophy and my Brown Eyed Girl got her very own finisher medal for the 1 Mile Run. 

Rah Rah and I both snagged the Longest Traveler Awards to support the Live Fit With Lupus race. Rah Rah for the 5K and this beaut for the Half Marathon.

It was a great day surrounded by family. A great day for a great cause. I think running my very first Half Marathon while supporting my Aunt Lisa and Uncle Mat's foundation, Live Fit With Lupus, was the icing on the cake.

A day I won't soon forget!

I can do hard things!

I am strong!

Deers!

"Mahhhhhmeeee! The girls are back the GIRLS are back! DEEEEEERS!! The girl deers are back!"

Perfect! Now that you have announced it to the neighborhood whole house I am sure the deer are scared to death, spooked, and frantically running to get as far away from our house and whatever short little loud creatures they just encountered, as fast as possible.

Alas, the small herd of does continued to venture into our yard.

Our very wiggly and loud children struggle being quite and still at a restaurant surrounded by casual conversations all around us. Being truly silent and still in order not to scare the deer... well this really could only be successful accomplished if they were both sleeping in their beds. Except Mr Blue Eyes snores. So, even then it would be a struggle.

This is how we deer watch at our place.  

We stand in the kitchen sink, in our underwear. 

We watch as the cute little deer explore our back yard and bed down in our trees.

And it's really really cool until mommy notices that one little yearling is eating all of the new baby leafs off of her trees and then she wants to storm outside and say, "Hey you little Missy! Nibble a little grass, catch a little snooze in the protection of our trees, I am happy to leave you a couple little apple treats for tomorrow, BUT GET YOUR GRUBBY LITTLE LIPS OFF THOSE TREES!"

Okay you can't really see her in this picture, but trust me, she was there. Just moving from one tree to the next. Nibble. Nibble. Nibble.

Getting Those Toof Bugs

Mr Blue Eyes had his first dentist appointment!

Big or small, a trip to the dentist's office can be a series of highs and lows. Mr Blue Eyes was excited that he now qualified to be included as a candidate for a dentist visit. But the actual idea of climbing in the chair and having those things stuck in your mouth was a little terrifying still I think for him. We let Sis go first to show him how it was done and that there was nothing to be scared of.

When the time came, he refused to get in the chair.
So Mommy had jump in to save the day.

We met the Mr Tickles and Mr Thirsty and some of the other special tools. 

He was not a huge fan or Mr Tickles. I am pretty sure only the front teeth got polished.
Never the less, a fancy new toothbrush and a trip to the treasure chest. 

Most importantly, we left with a smile.

The Big 3

It seems like yesterday.

Where did the last three years go?

Running, skipping, learning to pedal. 

Our Mr Blue Eyes is turning into a little boy right before our eyes!

We celebrated his big birthday over three days - seemed appropriate. Thursday was lunch with Mommy and Grandma Rhonda.

He flirted with the waitresses and they brought him a very yummy birthday treat. Grandma Ronda and Mommy taste tested it just to make sure it was safe to eat.

Friday, his actual birthday, we went to the Denver Zoo with our sitter, Lyndsay, and her daughter, Sophia. 

Lions and tigers and giraffes. Ice cream cones and carousel rides.

I threw together a party for Saturday. To my last minute credit, I did manage to get balloons, decorations AND bake my own cupcakes! Birthday boy asked for chocolate, Spider-Man cupcakes. This mom delivered! Right down to the Spider-Man liners.

Most notably, this mom frosted 24 cupcakes at 5:30 am Saturday morning. (the early bird catches the worm!)

A bottle of food coloring later and we had perfect red cupcakes!

But thanks to the BEST aunt in the world, Rah-Rah, she helped this old mom with an idea to go from lame old cupcakes to awesome spiderweb cupcakes!

Cute little sugar wafer Spider-Man faces and we were ready!

My Brown Eyed Girl's blond sidekick and her kid sister came over to fill the kid quota required for a party.
We brushed and rode PC. 

The Birthday Boy rode first. (with only a minor temper tantrum from a certain sister who thinks PC is her horse therefore she should always be first.)

While we were busy playing cowboys and cow girls, Handy Man and Grandpa Matt were busy building the Birthday Boy a sandbox! As soon as his ride on PC was over, Mr Blue Eyes went over and watched patiently for his sandbox to be finished.

He just stood there waiting with excitement. 

Once the 20 bags of sand were in... Grandma Debbie unveiled Handy Man's 30 year old Tonka Trucks she had saved from when Handy Man was a little boy and had played for hours in his very own sandbox. 

All of the kids loved the sandbox!

It was challenging to get the kids back inside for lunch after the sandbox was complete.We improvised with a picnic in the yard. If it weren't for the cupcakes, they would have never come inside to sing Happy Birthday. 

We had a little cake.

Opened some presents.

Birthday Boy and Jelly-Bean both got hockey sticks. 

And then the Birthday Boy dropped everything and went right back out to his sand box. There was just one little issue, more of a development, with the addition of the sandbox. 

This kid kept stripping off his shorts and underwear and playing in the sandbox with nothing from the waste down! 

I said, "Cole, where are your shorts and underwear?"

With out looking up, "In the grass Mom." 

"Honey, WHY are your shorts and underwear in the grass?"

"Cause I like a naa-kee butt Mom." 

"Yes, but honey we need to wear underwear and pants outside - especially in the sandbox and in front of all your friends."

"It's okay Mom. I like a naa-kee butt."

I guess there is no arguing with the Birthday Boy! Dear Lord what do the neighbors think?

Happy Birthday to the funniest kid I know! I love you Mr Blue Eyes!