Weekend getaway and a fun run

Knowing there's an extra set of female DNA growing inside me must have given me wings as I ran over 5miles at last Thursday's =PR= women's run.  Trish and I fell back from the main pack about half a mile in, and decided that the planned route was too damn hilly and so we made up our own.  Turns out we misjudged distances and went about a mile further than everyone else, not finishing until about 20min after sunset.  I pushed myself, my heart rate was higher than it's been in months.  Granted, pushing myself wasn't breaking any land speed records, and I had to walk a number of times just to pull the heart rate back down a bit, but it felt great to sweat and work hard.  Sadly for Nick, I'd left him behind since the planned route was on main sidewalks and would have been too tough since even after ten years he still wants to pull hard on that leash.  Maybe this week if he's good!

This weekend involved lots of walking and lots of eating, but no official workouts unfortunately.  It was Stuart's reunion at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and then to celebrate our wedding anniversary we had dinner on Saturday at the American Bounty restaurant at the Culinary Institute of America.  Compare that with the gray "minute steak" that we were served in the West Point mess hall for lunch that day and Baby M is getting exposed to a wide range of culinary masterpieces and misses even while still in utero. 

It was gorgeous up there, with the occasional yellow or red leaf, but we were a few weeks early to get the real fall foliage views, but that's okay it was still awesome.  For our anniversary, Stuart bought one of those wood burning fire pits for our patio (6th anniversary is "wood") so we're starting to think fall.  Between driving through the Poconos, watching football in Michie Stadium, and now having our own firepit, I'm getting ready for an exciting fall and the approach of a memorable holiday season.  And my present to myself....I've decided that I'm not done racing this year.  Stay tuned for more details. 

Girls on the Run takes on a whole new meaning

Nearly halfway through this adventure called pregnancy.  No need to publicly share photos of me quite yet(!), but we had some exciting times this morning at the ultrasound.  Despite my absolute certainty that this little guy was a boy, turns out he is a SHE!!!  So, we are now officially expecting a DAUGHTER in February.  wahoo! I'm excited and scared and overjoyed and nervous all at once. Is that even possible?

So, when I took my pups out for individual evening walk/jogs tonight to give myself some extra distance, it truly was girlS on the run as my baby girl and I checked out the trail.  Pictured here is the happy dad-to-be and a profile shot of his little girl.  Bring on the pinks -- but none of this sissy frilly pastel stuff.  I want fuschia.  I want raspberry.  I want visual cues for my strong and healthy and active child to know her self-confident place in this world!

Family's Other Newest Member

I never did take pictures to document the incident, but Stuart had a wicked bike crash a few weeks ago.  Over the handlebars, landed on his face, bike crashing into the guardrail and cracking the top tube.  Bye bye reliable Fuji Pro.

Although the expense outlay wasn't planned, living without a bike really isn't an option in our house, so within days we made our way to Conte's to see what kind of deals they could make us.  Ten days later, Stuart completed his latest century ride on his sweet new Pinarello FP6.  So, as the ugly black bruises finally fade to pale yellows, there's a smile on his face.  And one on mine too, as USAA has told us that replacement value is covered under our homeowners insurance.  yipee!

Group Running -- Good for the Body AND Spirit

As someone who has always valued being fit, but at the same time struggled with my own weight and body composition, this process of growing a baby can wreak havoc on my self image if I’m not careful. Yesterday was one of the bad days. Plans for this coming weekend include a trip to buy some maternity clothes as mine are either already outgrown or stretched to their limit. In addition, a visit to the OB earlier this week confirmed another pound or two on the scale, to which one family member responded with an email telling me to “get over it”. Day’s end found me crying first to my husband, then to one of my best friends that I didn’t want to buy “fat clothes”. Both were of course wonderfully supportive, saying all the right things to reassure me that I’m not totally crazy.

Finally, together with Nick the dog, I made my way red-eyed and sniffling to my Thursday night =PR= running group. Normally a devoted group member, I’ve been hit or miss in attendance this summer between fatigue and an aversion to the heat, so I perked up a bit when I got some cheery waves and hellos. (Although Nick quickly quashed that when he peed all over the floor of the store in his excitement at being back!)

We hit the road at 6:30 and I stayed toward the back. Trish and another woman (whose name I always forget!) willingly hung back at my slow pokey pace and commiserated with my topsy-turvy emotions. My body needed the exercise, but more importantly, my mind and heart got a much needed boost from the empathy and camaraderie of women already traveling the road of motherhood. They appreciated my frustration at my slower pace, my changing body, and reassured me that all would be well on the other side. I cut about .75mi off the run route so that I wouldn’t finish too far behind everyone else (I finally sent the two of them ahead), and reconvened with the group in the Potomac River Running parking lot at the end. Another wonderful woman and mom of 3 boys, Laura, emphasized that I’d better either buy a jogging stroller or better yet, tell Stuart he’s on baby duty on Thursday nights since exercise and me-time makes for better mommies. She doesn’t need to tell me twice! Yet another told me that this month is “Mommy Month” at the local Lululemon yoga store and encouraged me to check out their website for free prenatal yoga and other fun stuff. I got home in such a better frame of mind than when I left.

There’s a lot I’ve missed this summer – races, workouts, group fun. But with the weather starting to cool, I can at least put this important hour of my week back into my schedule and enjoy the company of these great women.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming...sort of

Just when the world thought my blogging days had come to an end, I'm back! It's been over two months since my last post, and a lot has happened. And, when it comes to triathlon, a lot hasn't happened. But, there's a reason for that.

In just another few short months we'll be taking on a challenge bigger than a triathlon, bigger than Ironman, bigger than anything. Baby M is officially due on February 7, 2010!!! Yikes, I've posted in blogland, so that means it's really official.

We just got to see my stepson this weekend and tell him, until then we wanted to keep this fairly low key. Needless to say, he was excited beyond anything. "I was just saying last week how I always wished I had a little brother!" No promises yet that it will be a boy, but we're so happy that he is psyched.

Lots to say, lots to catch up on. But it was easier to be silent than to dance around the edges of non-existent workouts (too damn tired), skipping races, and generally re-evaluating what the next year or two (or 18!) look like.

So, strap in. Baby M is on his/her way, and it's going to be one exciting and scary ride!