A breath of fresh air

I ran early with Katrina.  She just moved into the area from Virginia.  And she's ran 3:40 in the Top of Utah marathon.  Our run was super hilly.  I was pretty beat.

I ran with Kathryn and Katrina.  They're beginning pace is pretty fast.  It seems like I don't get going until a mile and a half into the run.  But, I don't care.  I love the company.

Will and I took a tour town.

Still a lot of trash in and around the river.

There are a lot of sand bags left behind.  Some were helpful.  Some were not.

I thought this sign was good.  You can see the water lines on the building.

This use to be a stripmall.

Front view of stripmall.

The clean up continues.  We are excited to be in our own (new) place.  We are grateful for the help and prayers we recieved from friends and family this past month.

Will and I ran the hospital route and then we stopped by the garden to weed.  Will wasn't excited to be there.  He climbed back in the jogging stroller and said, "Home."  I got about twenty minutes of weeding in.  The garden needs a lot more work.  It's a jungle.

I ran with Katrina and Christie.

Will and I run up behind the high school.  We had a very pleasant run.  It's good to be back to our old running routes.  Will took his new birthday trains with him.

The hour before the run Will cried and cried.  He wanted a drink of milk and I said he couldn't have a drink of milk until he ate two bites of dinner (he hadn't touched any of the enchilada on his plate).  Will would cry.  Then Will would say he was done with dinner and wanted to play.  So Will would play until he remembered he was hungry.  He'd ask for some milk and I would tell him he had to have two bites of dinner.  More tears.  Milk? Tears. Play.  Milk? Tears. Play.  This cycle continued forever until I said, "How about two bites of applesauce?"  We agreed on that, but then I was left feeling like I was creating a picky eater that doesn't eat much protein.

Thank goodness for the run! 

Katrina and I ran the hospital route.  We talked about forever long doctor visits, developing good eating habits in our kids, tinted windows, how wonderful our mothers are, and running stores that involved close calls with bikes.

I feel 100% better.  ‘Nothing like running to relieve the tension.  And Will had a very happy evening playing with his dad.

Will and I ran up to the park to meet up with a play group.  We went a round about way so I could get in five miles before we got there.  Will enjoyed playing at the park.  His favorite part was running on the soccer field with another little boy.  They were chasing birds.  Then we ran home.

I did the jump roping work out again.  I did five 3 minutes sets and mixed each session with normal jumping and running in place.  I even did a couple double unders!  My first ever!  Between sets I rested for a minute, during which I did the plank (four times), the wall sit (2 minutes), and some tricep extensions.  And then I did more abs very slowly.  I'll probably be sore tomorrow.

Will and I ran the hospital route again and ended at the jungle--I mean our garden.  Burried between weeds, there are a few tomatoes!  They aren't red.  But, maybe one day they will be, if they aren't sufficated by weeds in the mean time.  There's no yellow squash yet, either.

Will and I took our time getting back home.  Will chose the long way home.  He wanted to race a lot.  We'd line up on a sidewalk crack and say, "'Mark, get set, GO!!"  We'd race for a few sidewalk squares (probably 10 yards) and then Will would want to line up again.  It was a lot of fun.

Since it had rained the night before, Will and I made one last stop at his favorite outdoor spot.

He was soaked when we got home. (This picture was taken in May '08, but that's the spot.)

I am enjoying running with Katrina.  It's so nice to be able to run with another adult every once and a while.  Our pace was faster than last Saturday--tiring, but not too fast.

Will and I biked to and from a friends house.  Total about six miles.  I helped her tie a quilt for her daughter's wedding.

Katrina and I ran down to the river and back.  I had more energy than usual.

Will and I took the long way to the park (5 miles) again.  Will enjoyed playing at the park, but he had a hard time on the run home.  Lots of tears.

Will and I had an uneventful run.  We ended at the garden.  After twenty minutes of weeding, Will informed it was time to go home.  He was done exploring and playing with bubbles. 

Katrina and I ran a new route.  Part of it was through older neighborhoods, part by the river, part by the university, and part by the park.  It's a fun new loop and not near as hilly as I thought it would be.

Can't remember why Will and I just ran 3 miles.

Will and I ran three miles in the morning.  We made a quick trip to the grocery store to pick up a few ingredents to make muffins for Wednesday's Weeding Party.

In the evening, I ran with Katrina and Kristie.  At one point, we were going down hill and we started to skate on a layer of mud.  Kristie slipped and fell hard--landing mostly on her shoulder.  She's okay.  However, she said she woke up three times during the night in pain, but by the morning the shoulder was fine.

I did the jump rope work out this afternoon.

I did five 3 minutes sets and mixed each session with normal jumping and running in place.  I tried cross-overs, but was 0 for 12.  Between sets when I rested for a minute, I did the plank (four times) and the wall sit (2 minutes).  I finished the work out with side planks--one minute each side.

Will and I ran the hospital route.