I Have Become My Mom...Sort Of

I remember as a kid not being too fond of the fact that Mom watched golf, tennis and car racing. The firs two sports totally bored me out of my mind. As for car racing...sometimes I was bored and sometimes I liked it.

Now that I'm 36 I find myself watching tennis and golf and car racing and guess what...I like it!

I enjoy watching golf and seeing how each player approaches the holes/shots differently and what club they choose to use. Tennis looks like so much work and one thing I can appreciate is mental toughness and physical conditioning. Tennis is one of the few sports that the coaches don't get to couch during the "game" so to speak. Yes I know they are matches not games. But still most sports that have coaches allow the coaches to coach, but in Tennis it is up to the athlete to coach themselves during the matches, and I find that impressive.

As for car racing...pit stop strategy makes or breaks you, drafting, bumping, who you decide to work with on the track all play into it and I love watching it unfold. I didn't get that when I was a kid though...it was just a bunch of cars going in circles and maybe an accident here or there to spice it up.

I thought it was just my Mom being old and boring (sorry Mom...I don't really think that about you...don't be to upset about the thoughts that went through my little kid brain) but really it was her ability to understand the less obvious drama involved. Plus, the "big" sports like football, basketball and baseball are easy to understand and follow the scoring. Golf and Tennis are a bit more complicated and I just didn't understand it back then. Now I get it though.

Now when I sit and watch tennis, golf, and car racing the thought that runs through my mind is, "I have so become my Mom in some ways." And, it makes me smile.

Mt St Helen's Camping Trip

We spent a long weekend camping at Seaquest State Park. What a pretty park with tons of greenery, open space for the kids to run, playgrounds, and fishing nearby.

We had great weather most of the time. There was a little drizzle here and there, and some clouds the morning we headed up to the mountain. But, as we worked our way from one visitor center to the next it got warmer and warmer and the clouds went away.

There were lots of fun times with the kiddos, some really, really great wine from the Mt St Helen's winery, some great campfires built by Grace (with supervision) and lot's of sight seeing!

Mark, Sky, Bishop and I walking along Silver Lake.

The Beckham's walking along Silver Lake.

Grace at an overlook with the Mt St Helen's behind her. You can really only see the bottom of the Mt because of the clouds.

Me with Sky all Moby Wrapped. The Moby Wrap is like magic. Sky was so happy being snuggled up next to Mark and I and loved the motion of us walking with her.

Reading Steven Tylers book to Sky. Just kidding...totally not appropriate for her. Actually not even very appropriate for me. ;)

Mark reading a book with Sky, but not too her...is a Zombi book...not ok for Sky yet.

Kiera was fascinated by seeing herself in Mark's bumper.

The next two pictures are for sure the pictures of the weekend...the first runner up is...

Sky letting Daddy know how she feels about the flash on the camera going off in her face all the time. :)

And the winner is...

A mud covered Kiera. This happened not even 5 minutes after Bob and Michelle pulled into camp Friday night. Kiera was playing on a jungle gym and stepped off one of the higher platforms and landed head first / face first right in the mud. I love it that even though she was crying her head off Michelle paused long enough for us to get a picture of it.

It was a lot of fun going back home so to speak. I grew up in the Mt St Helen's area and have not been back in over 11 years. It was interesting to see how much has changed and how much is still the same.

Sky's First Camping Trip

We took Sky on her first camping trip this weekend. Mark and I took off on Thursday to the Mt. St. Helen's area and Bob, Michelle and the girls joined us Friday after work.

There are a ton of great pics to share, but for now a picture of Sky with her two best friends hanging out in the trailer.

More on the trip and more pics when I have a chance.

One Month Check Up

Sky had her one month appointment today and she is perfectly healthy! 8 lbs 15 oz and 21 1/2 inches long. Everything is normal and good for another month.

Not looking forward to her two month check up as that is when the immunizations start. :(

Meeting New People

Sky has been very, very busy meeting lots of new people. These Pictures are not in order...actually I'm sure they are totally out of order...Call it being tired and busy with a new baby.

We visited my Aunt Nancy, Uncle Randy, Cousin Tracy and her son Magnus a couple of weekends ago and had a great time visiting and enjoying Tracy's baked goods. Magnus was totally all about Sky. He wanted to be the first to hold her and constantly kept coming back to her to see what she was doing.

Nolan, Michelle and Kolton came over to meet Sky and Kolton in particular was very excited about seeing the baby. (I see a pattern here of boys liking Sky, thought we had 13 years or so before that started!)

Reggie, Mark's parents dog is totally in love with Sky. He curled up on Mark's lap and sat there watching her for the longest time!

Bob, Michelle, Kiera, and Grace were one of the first to meet Sky. Grace has been the post patient and most excited of anyone. She would constantly talk to me about how pretty Sky would be and how happy we would be once she was here. And, post important she kept telling me what a great friend she would be to Sky. She is sitting here so patiently waiting for Mom to be done holding Sky so she could have her turn.

All that visiting has made her a sleepy girl. There is nothing better than snuggling with a sleeping baby.

5 Mile Drive

Michelle and I ran 5 Mile Drive Friday night and it was great.

Somehow we actually ended up running 6.34 miles, no I don't know how 5 Mile Drive turned into 6.34 miles, but it did.

We saw about a billion racoons and they are aggressive little things. We had to put some effort into avoiding them. We also saw a deer that let us get really close.

It was a beautiful sunny evening, we both were feeling good, and pushed more than I thought we would.

We did have to walk the steepest hill, but we picked up running again as soon as we hit the top of the hill. Stopping to walk prompted me to start thinking about what counts as having run a race.

Does running a race count if you don't run it all the way? For me personally I don't feel like I ran a race if I didn't run the entire way, and so far I have run every race in its entirety. It's the same personality trait that made me push so hard to get straight A's in HS, when the reality is all people want to know is if you graduated, they don't give a crap about your GPA.

Anyway, the question is not asked to criticize or minimize what others do in their races. I have read many blogs and articles from runners that walk every aid station of a marathon and in my mind they are marathon runners, and some runners walk for 2 minutes after running 5 miles during races/marathons and to me they are still runners.

Is there a general guideline or thought that runners go by, or is it a personal viewpoint type of thing..."I'm a runner if I finish within the allotted time" or "I'm a runner if I start and finish each race and run the entire way" 0r "I'm a runner once I complete a 1/2 marathon, or a marathon."

For me personally I feel like I need to start strong, finish strong, and run my butt off the entire way to feel like I ran a race. That thinking will last until I meet the race that kicks my butt and forces me to walk for one reason or another...run long enough and it seems pretty inevitable.

Pacifiers

I think pacifiers are evil! Sky doesn't want one all that often, but she does seem to mostly want it while trying to fall asleep. The problem, she spits it out every 5 minutes. That means that I spend 1 to 2 hours popping the pacifier back in her mouth until she falls asleep meaning that neither one of us is getting very good sleep.

I have tried waiting until she falls deep asleep after her bottle, but as soon as I put her down in her bassinet she wakes up because she LOVES to be held and snuggled. So to be alone in her bassinet she needs the pacifier to sooth her.

If she would just stop spitting it out all the time we would both be soothed and sleeping!

Lack of posting

Sorry for the silence. Still working on a schedule, not feeling like I'm going to fall asleep any second, and making sure all Sky's fans have a chance to spend some time with her.

My goal is to post a nice long post with pics by the end of the weekend.

Post Sound To Narrows Report

Official Business first...I finished in 31.15 which I feel is a personal record. I know that our very first 5k we finished in 30.15, however the word on the street is the first race was a short course. I know that today was a full 5K and that my first two miles were between 9.30 and 9.44 each. (In the interest of being honest the first mile and half was downhill all the way.) The last mile and half was a steady incline and I slowed down, but I ran the whole way and still had enough at the end to sprint once the finish line was in site.

I will admit it, I'm proud of myself! I was not looking forward to this race for multiple reasons, but thanks to a pep talk, a pep email, and a pep text this morning I decided to turn up the music, and just go for it. I don't run alone, nor do I want to start running alone...I missed Michelle more then she will ever know, but I did enjoy just cranking my music and running however fast or slow I wanted. I was worried I would feel alone, but I didn't. This is the first race that there were spectators in their yards cheering for us and some had even set up misting stations in their yards. There were a lot of kids running and I loved watching them plot and plan and pass people.

This was a really fun race, and I will totally do it again. I'm glad to have my first "alone" race done. Now I know I can do it, and if there is a race I really want to do that Michelle can't or doesn't want to do I know I will be ok going for it alone.

Race Anxiety

I am running in the Sound To Narrows this weekend and I'm anxious about it. Yep it's a 5K so I know I can do it...I have finished several now, so I know I can do it. But, I have not run much since Sky arrived, just once actually this last weekend on a track at Relay. Also, I'm without my most valuable resource...Michelle.

(Ok I guess the argument can be made that my most valuable resource is my mind and my determination, and my confidence in my fitness and my ability to run a 5K even if lacking the number of training runs I would like).

But, Michelle and I have run every race together, and almost every training run for that matter. I think I have run maybe 4 times by myself. Michelle get's me through the rough spots. She always knows when I need a high five, and encouraging word or a fist pound.

What am I going to do running without her?! I don't know.

What I do know is that I am having my pre-race massage on Thursday, I have my breakfast planned and ready to go. The race playlist is ready and my clothes are all clean and ready to go. Yes, it is only Tuesday and already I'm making sure everything is good to go.

I hope that by Saturday I can embrace the aloneness and focus on pushing myself and seeing just what I am capable of on my own. (May not be the best time to push myself considering the lack of training runs, but oh well.)

My goal will be what it always is...start the race, finish the race and run the entire way. Just wish I felt a little better about it.

Conversation with Grace

Mark and I BBQ'd at Bob and Michelle's yesterday. It was a wonderful sunny afternoon after Relay and it was so nice to kick back and relax with them.

In typical Sky fashion she was sleepy and I put her down on Bob and Michelle's bed since we were outside in the sun and I didn't want her to get a burn.

After a few minutes Grace comes outside because Sky had been crying and I couldn't hear her outside.

Grace: Um Jen Shannon is crying.

Me: She is? Ok I will come in. (Grace follows me into the bedroom).

Grace: I heard her crying and crying and thought you were in here taking care of her. I don't know why you were not here and she was all alone.

And that is how I was scolded by a 4 year old about how I'm caring, or in her mind not caring, for my baby.