Tonight at dinner...

Auntie Laura, this one's for you!

I DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

I did it! I finished the PF Chang's Half Marathon!!!! It wasn't the easiest thing I've ever done, but in the end, it was incredibly rewarding and so much fun!

A week before the race, I ran and averaged a 10 minute mile. I'd been having a bout of plantar fasciitis, but I got new shoes after Christmas which fixed the problem. In my last long run, I felt great so I was pumped for the race.

Alesia and I met up with an old friend, Melissa, and started the race together. I was keeping up with these seasoned runners (both have run full marathons) until somewhere around mile 4 when my toes started to go numb. It was so aggravating! I stopped and loosened my shoes in hopes it would help my feet. Unfortunately, it only got worse. It felt like my feet were stumps and there was a rock under the balls of my feet. Needless to say, my time slowed substantially and I finished in 2:32. Not exactly the 2:10 I was estimating, but I'll take it! Alesia was so sweet and and stayed with me the entire race.

Here Alesia and I are on the shuttle bus from the finish line to the start line. It was VERY early.

Alesia getting ready for the race.

Here I am!
Here we are after the race. We got a nice cop who was volunteering from Santa Barbara to take our picture.
The crowds were INSANE. There were 30,000 people who ran the full and half races. Of that, 22,000 ran the half marathon.

This was right when we got back home. Had to take a pic with the bambinos!

I am so glad I ran the race. Melissa told me I was going to get addicted to them and I think I might be. The feeling around mile 9 that I was really going to finish was so great. I still can't believe that after everything that has happened this year-- having twins, almost dying a few times, learning how to raise the boys--I finished 13.1 miles!

PF Chang's Half Marathon

This Sunday, I will run the PF Chang's Rock n Roll half marathon. Last March, our friends, Kent and Alesia, were visiting and Alesia and I planned to run this race together. I've been wanting to run it for years and since I was pregnant and fairly certain going back to work was out of the question, I thought it would be the perfect motivator to get back into shape.

It has been fun to take the boys running with me. It's been our "thing" we do 3 to 4 times a week. I bundle up the chicos and they have a good time looking out at the desert and riding over bumps.

I'm excited to finally run (and hopefully finish!) the race, but it has been therapeutic for me to train and prepare for. For some reason, it just means a lot to me to complete the 13.1 mile run after all the events of this past year.

If anyone is bored on Sunday, you can track my progress. I'll wear a chip that will track me. You can go to this link and look me up by my name. The race I'm running is the first one listed in the drop down box.

If I'm not progressing, I'll probably be at a drink station, taking a potty break, sitting down for a few minutes, etc. Ha! Ha! See you on the flip side!

***Under Construction***

I've been wanting to redo our blog for awhile as the blue and green scheme has been a little boring. Please bare with me as the blog might be a work in process for a bit.

So far, I'm liking it more. The decorations on the side are a little reminiscent of our wedding:)

The best of friends

During Christmas Palooza (that's what Eric called it because we had something to do every day of that week), we caught the boys holding hands while we were changing them. Aaaww!

I snapped this photo as we were rushing out the door to go to my parent's open house. I thought the boys looked really cute in their preppy sweater vests.

The boys at 7 months old

The boys turned 7 months old almost two weeks ago. Maybe if I don't acknowledge this birthday it didn't really happen?? :)

Carter

• likes to chew on this socks
• has learned how to blow zerberts and blow his food everywhere
• has learned how to throw tantrums when he wants attention
• likes to steal his brother's Nuk (pacifier)
• has exhibited stranger anxiety
• is getting around quite well by rolling over
• loves the remote
• has begun eating real solids. He tried macaroni with noodles and whole peas and did well, but seemed confused why there was "stuff" in his foood
• loves watching Baby Einstein movies
• can hold his bottle all by himself
• likes to hold onto my necklace
  

Brandt

• likes to play with his feet...especially during mealtime
• cut three teeth at once this month and only got a little cranky
• learned how to take off his diaper
• is basically mobile. He scoots around everywhere now
• likes to chew on his brother
• shows no interest in holding his own bottle
• likes to pull hair and eye glasses
• thinks it's really funny when Daddy pretends to eat his hand
• likes to sit up in his bouncy chair
• has begun eating real solids. He also tried macaroni with noodles and whole peas and did great
• loves watching the cats
• can sit by himself for a few seconds
• knows how to scream because Daddy taught him!
  

Carter's new skill