Ethan Is Six!

Last Friday, at the end of a very hectic week, we celebrated Ethan's 6th birthday. Six! I can't believe he is that old. Almost a first grader. I remember every detail of my pregnancy with him (he never stopped moving), every detail of his birth (three weeks early via c-section since all that moving got him stuck sideways - AND he almost had to be delivered on the side of the road since he was in such a hurry...), and every day of his life.

E through the years :-)

He spent his day at school with his friends, and he couldn't have asked for a better day. We let him wear his new Lego watch to school AND he got to take in Angry Birds cupcakes for snack time. I mean, what more could he ask for?

The Birthday Boy!

He has always been a non-stop noise-maker. He even mumbles in his sleep! He still wakes up by 6:00 a.m. every.single.day, and is raring to go the second his eyes open. He has discovered a love of soccer, which is great. He isn't a ringer by any means, but he runs like the wind and works hard. He is a budding artist, spending hours at his art table drawing Angry Birds, minions from Despicable Me, family portraits, and pumpkins. Halloween is his absolute favorite holiday, and he'd cover everything he owns in the color red if he could. He has done ridiculously well in kindergarten - learning to read (with some stumbles), working hard at that pesky math, and most importantly, being a good friend and citizen. He is a great, though slightly wild and potentially devious, older brother to Jack. They love playing together, and Jack just idolizes Ethan. Ethan is really creative and spends tons of time with his Legos, building strange vehicles and narrating silly stories using all of the little figures.

His loot - he didn't even realize that there was a scooter there.

Deciding what to dig into

So, as we celebrated his 6th birthday, we wanted to get him some things he could use and grow with. He got a bag full of art supplies. A Lego set from the Lego Movie. A scooter. New sheets and decorations for his bedroom. A telescope. A new (red) soccer ball and net. He was delighted. If I would have listened to his list, he would have ended up with a billion Legos and Angry Birds that he'd set up once and then leave all over my house. We all win with these gifts!

He and AJ built this already.

The perfect soccer ball for him

We opened everything on Saturday since AJ and I had a wedding to go to on Friday night. It worked out well - he got to open gifts from his grandparents and Aunt Jenny on his actual birthday, continue with our gifts on Saturday, and now he's preparing to get more gifts at his birthday party tomorrow. Must be nice :-)

Lego movie sheets

One annoying toy. Grandma bought it.

Happy Birthday, Big Guy! We are looking forward to keeping you busy this summer and watching you keep growing and learning new things. Love you so very much <3>

SIX!

Picture Day!

We are enjoying some glorious summer-like weather. We've spent a ton of time outside this weekend, which is getting us in the yard-work frame of mind. The boys are in their glory - playing in the sandbox, swinging on the swing set, and coloring all over our driveway with chalk. We've taken many walks, kicked many balls, and pulled many weeds. We are ready for summer!

They were so exhausted on Friday after playing outside.

 Jack got a 'gentleman's haircut.' Even though, 

he tells us, he's just a boy.

 This rascal had a fun field trip at Tumbleweeds Gym.

He bounced all over the place for 2 straight hours.

Today we took the boys to get their birthday pictures done. We haven't had professional pictures done since last winter, and I was nervous. The boys proved me right and were absolute hellions the entire time. I am not super pleased with these pictures, but we managed to get a few cute shots out of these stinkers! Enjoy :-)

In 6 days, Ethan will be 6. Jack turns 3 in 3 weeks. Another school year ends in 8 days. We are so excited for all of those numbers :-)

Cleveland Half Marathon

On Saturday, AJ and I headed to Cleveland for race weekend. I was signed up for the half marathon and him, the 10K. However, ever since he ran in the Pittsburgh Marathon Relay a few weeks ago, he's been entertaining the idea of running a half marathon. He'd run nine miles with me and had no problems. He decided that if he was able to switch events when we got to the race expo, he would join me for the half marathon. I was beyond thrilled - since strep throat knocked me off my feet and killed my last week of running training, I thought having a running partner would help me get through 13.1 miles when I didn't feel adequately trained or ready.

Our bibs, all ready to go

Luckily for me, AJ was able to switch! We got to the expo in under two hours, got situated, and headed to lunch. We stumbled upon this really great, family-owned German pub (thank you, Google app!) and had a fabulous lunch. Sauerkraut balls, a giant pretzel, giant beers, etc. What better things could we have eaten before running 13.1 miles, right?

Our first course...

We headed to our hotel, which left a lot to be desired. All of the official marathon hotels were booked by the time I decided to run this race, and this was the hotel with the best location that had rooms available. It wasn't terrible. But I would not pay to stay there again. One room on our hallway REEKED of pot. We switched rooms because our tv didn't work. The next room was fine, but the shower ceiling looked like it was going to fall on us. Luckily, aside from sleeping, we were only in there for a total of 2 hours. Not too bad.

Our respective lunches...they were insanely good.

We decided to see a movie (and get out of our hotel room) that night - gotta make the most of a kid-free night! (A special thanks goes out to my mom for house/kid-sitting on Saturday so we could enjoy race weekend!) We were still full from lunch (again, not the greatest approach to marathon fueling, but whatever) so we grabbed cheesecake and ate it outside before our movie. We saw Neighbors. It was a typical fraternity-esque comedy. We laughed a bit. Not a ton.

Here we are before lining up at the start. Brr...

We both had a little trouble sleeping - too many nerves the night before! Our alarm went off at 5:45, which just stinks on a weekend. We were out the door by 6 and walked about 10 feet to the public transportation center. (You see? Our hotel had one thing going for it, and that was the easy access to the bus. Super convenient.) We had about a 10 minute ride, and it dropped us about 2 blocks from the start line. It was FREEZING! I think it was about 37 degrees, which I know is not technically freezing, but still pretty cold nonetheless.

Just a small view of the insane amount of people lined up

There were about 20, 000 people running in 3 different races, all of which started at the same time and in the same corrals. Not very smart planning there, Cleveland. It was insanely crowded, and we had a tough time dodging people during the first few miles. We just took our time and chatted. Well, AJ chatted and I listened. He was a very peppy runner - super excited about his first big race. I just wanted to get it over with.

He had to use a port-a-potty at mile 4.5, which was annoying, especially since he got mad at the line and ended up deciding not to go. We lost about 4 minutes there, but we weren't trying to race, so it was ok. The next 5.5 miles went well. It was a very flat course through a lot of neighborhoods. There weren't nearly as many spectators out as there were in Pittsburgh, but it was still good.

Here we are on the final stretch.

Funny how seeing a camera makes you stop looking miserable!

At Mile 10, the course went near the lake on an interstate. This is where the race went bad. Mile 10 started with a giant hill - not steep, but just never-ending. We got excited after running to the top and getting to go downhill for a bit. We got less excited as we got to the bottom of the hill and saw another gigantic hill. Seriously? Why do race planners feel the need to throw hills in so late in a race? It's just uncool.

We (well, I - my knees were very unhappy by this point and reminded me with each step that I wasn't really ready to run such a distance) walked a bit over the next two miles. It was just too, too hilly. Everyone around us was walking, except the marathon winners. We got to see two Kenyans fly past us on the other side of the road. It was impressive!

Crossing the finish line - 

hand in hand!

Finally at 12.5 miles, we headed off the highway onto a ramp (downhill!) that led back into town. We were able to finish in a strong run, only to find out that the course was actually 13.5 miles. That's a big difference from 13.1! I am not super happy with our time of 2:34, BUT when I consider a bunch of things (the 4 minutes we lost for AJ's potty break, the extra .4 of running, the fact that I could barely run two miles two days before, and the fact that six days before I couldn't even get up from the couch due to a 104.5 fever), I think we did ok. We used my Garmin watch to calculate the 13.1 minus the potty break, and it put us at 2:25. We are very, very happy with that time! It's only a little more than my Hershey time, and I was much better trained for that race.

We couldn't smile any more...

AJ did great - he felt strong the entire time. I think it's safe to say he's hooked on running! He stuck with me so we could finish together - we held hands as we crossed the finish line and quickly headed to get some snacks. I felt extremely weak - I was a bit woozy running in the final stretch and thought I was either going to pass out or throw up. Luckily, bananas, chocolate milk, pretzels, popsicles, and sports drinks were only steps away. I felt better about two seconds after getting some sugar and salt in me, so we posed for a few photos. My legs and feet were pretty beat up at this point, so I was glad to not have to walk very far to hop on the bus. We got fast showers and said goodbye to our hotel! We had planned on going to the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame, but given all the race traffic downtown, we opted not to. Instead, we had a great carb-loaded lunch of pasta and headed home.

The photographer grabbed me while I was 

searching for food!

It was a really great weekend, despite the toughness of the course. AJ and I are both a bit sore today, but are moving around almost like normal people :-) We are currently discussing where we'd like to run a half in the fall. I had considered not running any more than six miles after Cleveland, but I feel like I need a redemption run - one where I'm healthy and trained, and one that is preferably FLAT. We'll see where we end up!

Close up of our medals. They are pretty awesome!

Mother's Day

I'm trying to play catch up here and remember everything that has happened in the past few weeks. We'll start with Mother's Day. Things were a little crazy during Mother's Day week, starting with this:

First, AJ got strep.

This is me - 12 hours later. Strep sucks.

Ethan's school did a nice little program for moms and grandmas. They served breakfast each day and any important woman in students' lives could join them for a meal. Ethan was super lucky - he was visited by both of his grandmothers. It made for two very special mornings for him (and them!).

Ethan and Grammy

Ethan and Grandma

This year was extra special because I got homemade gifts from each boy. Teen Teen had Jack make a hilarious candle - he painted the clothespins himself. I've said it a million times, but we are just so lucky to have her. She has been like a third grandmother to both of our boys - so much more than a baby sitter. I am so touched she would have Jack make a craft for me!

You can see Jack's candle here:

Ethan kicked things up a notch in kindergarten with an "All About Mom" and a picture. The picture is super cute. His answers about me - not so much. I'm 40. Love tic tac toe, picnics, and laying down. I cook awesome cheesy noodles. Ok - a few of them are correct. I asked him why he said I like to lay down (I was ready to kill him!) and he said that since I was sick, I needed rest. Sweet boy was just thinking about me since I spent Mother's Day battling an outrageous bout of strep throat that left me shivering with a high fever for three days. I forgive him :-)

All wrapped up with a tea bag

So many factual things here...

But look at how cute the picture is!

We saw AJ's parents on Saturday and had a nice dinner that I could hardly swallow :-) But, we followed it with frozen yogurt, so...yay!

The boys giving Grammy her gift

We saw my mom on Sunday. She and I got up early and went to Pittsburgh's Race for the Cure. It was an insanely crowded and not well-organized walk, but it was fun to take that time to walk with my mom. I'm not sure we'll make it an annual thing, but it's a great memory on Mother's Day.

This was on a bridge in Schenley Park

 There were 20,000 people walking. Insanity.

 Nice view of the Cathedral from our walk

I realize I have zero pictures of me with the boys from Mother's Day. I just wasn't with it at all! They did make my day special, though. I got flowers, good food, AND everyone took a nice, long nap that day. My kind of celebration!

Party Planning

I will do a catch up post one of these days (detailing our mad bout with strep throat, amongst other things), but right now I am thigh-deep in party planning. It hit me - I'm running out of time to get invitations out, favors and cakes ordered, and gifts bought and wrapped!

E's birthday is first, and we always give him his gifts on his actual birthday, so I got to online shopping today. He's getting to a fun age, so I had some cool choices for him. I still have some things to buy, but I'm pretty pleased with his stash so far. A scooter! A Lego watch! Lego Movie bedding! Books! Some strange ball he wanted! Shopping is great medicine. (So are the horse-pill antibiotics the doctor prescribed, but that's a story for a different day.)

How cute are these boys???

The boys will be celebrating their birthdays at a party on Sunday, June 8. I think we hit everyone via email, but if not, come out and join us at Hopewell Park! E will be having an Angry Birds theme, and J will have a solar system theme. We're hoping for great weather surrounded by great people!

Marathon Weekend: Part 3 - The Actual Race!

This post is what it's all about - the actual race! (And, I promise if you keep reading, there are pictures coming!) AJ and I were pretty excited to get to be a part of the marathon festivities without having to get up at 4:30 a.m. to get into town for the actual start. The relay is PERFECT for us since we were relying on my mom to watch the boys. Us leaving at 7:30 was much more manageable for all in involved!

We parked right by PNC Park and got into the city and lot with zero issues. We took the T (which is awesome, by the way) into town, which dropped us very close to the finish line. We had to walk a few blocks to catch the relay shuttles, but it got our legs warmed up in the VERY chilly temperatures. Luckily, the rain showers had stopped by this point. Anyway, we got to ride the shuttle (a school bus) together to our two relay exchange points. We were on the bus for about 30 minutes before we went our separate ways.

I waited at my stop for about an hour before my teammate, Mike (Jack's godfather), met me for my turn. It was unbelievably chilly and windy. There was zero sun, and I wrapped myself in a foil cape (from the marathon) to try to keep some heat in before my run. Mike ended up sneaking up on me (in fact, I was running back from the port-a-potty when he crossed!) so I didn't get a picture of him as he came in for his medal. Sorry!

My leg of the relay was 6.1 miles - from before mile 16 to mile 21.5. I was really glad to have this leg because unless I do a relay, I will never see past mile 13 in a race. I just don't have it in me! The best part was the neighborhoods I went through. I'm not even quite sure where I ran, but the people were AWESOME! I believe I ran through Homewood, which isn't known for being a great part of town, but I gotta tell ya - those people were the BEST cheerleaders EVER. For two straight miles, there were hundreds of people - all of them with signs, cheering, high-fiving, offering water and fruit, etc. They had DJ's set up and were clapping and dancing for every runner. It was truly incredible, and I'm so glad I got to run there. I didn't stop smiling the entire time! Even better was the fact that with that type of crowd support, I had no desire to stop running. I had to keep going for my fans :-)

Here I am finishing my leg.

I felt really great during my 6.1 miles and was met by AJ and his parents at mile 21.5. His parents are insane and volunteer at the marathon every year. They get there super early and stand there all day - I'd rather run 26 miles than do that, but they like it. Again, they are crazy. But, because they were there, we got this AMAZING photo:

We are SO glad to have this moment captured. I loved that our relay legs were back-to-back so AJ could give me my medal. And then he took off. And he really ran - he ran some of his 4.7 miles at about 8 minutes and 30 seconds, which is REALLY speedy.

My view of the finish line

I hopped back on a shuttle to try to beat him to the finish line. It was no easy task - I had to walk about two miles back to the finish line from the shuttle stop, which was pretty annoying. I did snag a great spot right along the sidelines of the final stretch, and I was able to cheer like a crazy lady as AJ flew by! I was so glad he got to experience the 'real' finish line. So many spectators were around, and the volunteers in that area really fuss over the runners as they enter. He had a blast!

He saw me! He saw me!

Today, AJ and I both earned our titles of "Runner of Steel" and got a nice medal. Though my medal this year is smaller than last year's (and required less miles!), it means a million times more. Running for Finley made every step feel earned and important. I thought of her all morning; it helped me suck it up when my shins hurt :-) And, our team finished with a time of 4:37:30. Not bad for a bunch of old people! I think our pace was about 10:45 minutes/mile. Thanks for that final push, AJ!

And, a final note. Big BIG news. AJ Kovall, Mr. I Hate Running, has officially decided he will run a half marathon. He wants to run Pittsburgh with me next spring. I knew he would get the bug after being there today. Those exercise-induced endorphins make you do some crazy things. I need to sign him up before they wear off!