Merry Christmas in Julaugust!

It's our 4th year celebrating Christmas in July, but with buying a house and packing up, we didn't manage to celebrate until August. Oh well, it's the spirit of the thing that counts, and we have plenty of spirit!

We started the day at the I Run Colorado 5k. We think if there had been a stroller division we would have fared pretty well. Our time was 30:46, though Garmin tells me we ran 3.25 miles rather than 3.1 (we were on the far outside edge with the stroller...that adds up!). It was my fastest 5k time ever (I wasn't the one pushing the stroller!) and we all had a great time running and cheering each other on (though apparently the kids didn't want to be photographed)!

Once the 5k was over, it was time for the REAL race! Maddie competed in her first race EVER today, a 1/2 mile kids run! There were a lot of pre-race kisses, fist bumps, and a little pep talk. She was pumped (but a little nervous).

And they're off!

Gavin and Maddie started the race together...holding hands. I thought I was going to die when I saw this.

Seriously? They're too cute.

...and Gavin's race was over.

But Maddie was on fire! She worked those little 3 year old legs as much as she could!

She even left Mommy in the dust for a while.

But after the 1/4 mile turnaround, she was really feeling it. She was tired and wanted to be carried, but she dug deep and crossed the finish line on her own two feet! There was no blood, but there were definitely sweat and tears.

Lots of kids that were running at her pace had turned around early, and we were so proud of her for sticking it out! After she crossed the finish line, she went to collect her medal (which Mommy had told her about in advance - silly Mommy) only to learn they'd run out. She was so sad - she just sobbed into my shoulder and cried, "I want my medal!" I promised her Mommy would get her a medal and tears pooled in my eyes because my beautiful, strong baby was so proud of herself and yet so disappointed at the same time, and there was nothing I could do about it.

Then, Devyn Kercher, #292 and the 2nd place finisher in her age group, came up to me and told me that she wanted to give her medal to Maddie. The tears that I'd held back poured down my face because this just meant SO MUCH to Maddie and so, it obviously meant a ton to me, too. To have someone step up and give away her (hard earned! She ran that 5K in 23:26!) medal to a sad little three-year-old who crossed the finish line dead last...wow. I'm crying now just thinking about it. And this is just another reason that I love this sport - the people are the best and I want to raise my kids knowing that! Thank you, Devyn, for making Maddie's day.

No Olympian has looked more proud. It was a great start to our 4th annual Christmas in JulyAugust. Presents and a special dinner, still to come!

This is Your Life

"This is your life. Are you who you want to be?" - Switchfoot

I've asked myself this over and over through the years. There are times that the answer was a resounding "no" and the question pushed me to change, to correct my life course - sometimes in little ways, but more often, in huge, life-altering ways. I left a soul-crushing job for one that was energizing and empowering. I left a job I loved and was good at to stay at home and raise a family. I left a city and a mortgage I was comfortable with to move halfway across the country. And I've never regretted any of it. But in the course of all of that, I managed to neglect someone who is really important. Me.

I have struggled with my weight ever since I can remember, and even when I was thin, I didn't believe it. After Maddie was born and I was starting to feel human again, I decided to take charge and remake my shape. I was turning 30 that year and I wanted to celebrate life and myself, so we dubbed it "The Year of Me." I signed up for a triathlon and began going to a 5:30am fitness boot camp. Days later, I found out I was pregnant with Gavin. Given that I'm hardly able to function while pregnant, the tri was out the window, and I thought maybe I'd missed my window of opportunity. Instead of "The Year of Me," it turned into the year of Gavin, and I wouldn't have it any other way, but it definitely took its toll.

Fast forward to January 2012. I had an energetic 1 year-old, a passionate (almost) 3 year old, and we had just moved our family across the country to where we dreamed of living. But, I was at my highest non-pregnant weight. I was fat, slow, and winded after climbing the 3 flights of stairs to our apartment. "This is your life. Are you who you want to be?" No. Not yet.

So I signed up for a triathlon (again!), read tons of books on the sport (because who are we kidding, I have to research everything), and chose a training plan that has me working out 5-6 days a week. I began tracking all of my food at myfitnesspal.com (which is free, of course), and the weight began to come off. But something else happened. It stopped being about the weight. Losing weight has never NOT been about the weight for me, and I've certainly been down the weightloss path before.

But something changed. I began to love the world of the triathlon - the people, the races, the stories, the gear (I'm a geek; of course I love the gear!), the TRAINING. That's right...the training is addictive. And fun. And suddenly my weight loss goals seemed a little silly. I no longer knew what weight I wanted to be at; I just knew I wanted to be fit, and healthy, and I want a stronger engine to power my racing.

So here I am, a work in progress. This is me, one year ago, and me, last Saturday. The weight loss is obvious, but maybe what's not as apparent is the confidence. I'm now at the weight that I originally thought was my goal. Now, I know I'm not there yet.

"This is your life. Are you who you want to be?" Not yet. But I'm getting there.

Three's a Hoot!

"My birthday was March 24th. We put presents out and a little owl nest and I love my owl. We ate pops and it was fun." - Maddie, on her 3rd birthday

She's right - that was pretty much her birthday! Presents... an owl nest... owl pops... owl masks... owl milk... friends and Fancy Nancy... an uncle with a TON of energy... Three.

Birthdays - Take 1!

Our world has been a little crazy (little might be an understatement, but crazy definitely fits). In all of the madness, I've yet to do a post from either Gavin's or Maddie's birthdays! So, today is Gavin day, and tomorrow you're in for a hoot. Gavin turned one on December 2nd, and that happened to be the day we showed the house to the person who bought it. Since it turned into a house-showing day at the last minute, the poor boy had a bit of a stressful day. But, there were presents... And ice cream... So it wasn't exactly a bad day. The real party was still to come... It was bigger than we would normally be up for, but since our move seemed imminent (and turned out to be even more so), we wanted to be able to see as many of our friends as possible. The kids had a ball. Clearly. You can't go wrong with tents, tunnels, and a ball pit (thank you, Craigslist). And of course there were cupcakes. Of which the birthday boy was a fan. Who likes cupcakes? It was a great day. A fun party. And somehow, my baby turned one - my last no year old was gone. Happy (belated) birthday, sweet Gavin. You make our world so much more fun.

Aunt Joanne

When we moved here we were welcomed by the open arms of Great Aunt Joanne and Uncle Fritz. Aunt Joanne's face lit up when she met Maddie and Gavin - she liked us, too, but Maddie and Gavin were definitely her favorites.

She loved that Maddie wanted to read on her sofa.


She was amused by us even as the kids ate up her sweets, spun in her chair, ran around the house, and caused general chaos wherever they went.


In February, Aunt Joanne joined us all for a trendy breakfast at Snooze in Boulder, and afterward she took Maddie for a ride on her lap in the wheelchair, which Maddie thought was the best thing ever.

That day as Fritz and Joanne pulled away in their car, Maddie began to cry, "I miss Aunt Joanne." We told her not to worry, that she'd see her the next weekend. And she did, and she loved it.


But I don't know what to tell her now. We'll all miss you, Aunt Joanne. Your feistiness, your laughter, your ready smile, your hugs. We'll all miss you.

This is Why We Moved to CO

On Easter morning, we packed up the kids (and their sippy cups and their extra clothes and their new trains from their Easter baskets and their snacks...) and headed to Deer Creek Canyon, about 40 minutes away.

It was our first real hike as a family...

...and it was breathtaking and amazing.

Everyone hiked for a while,

and there was so much to explore...

and to climb!

Our littlest hiker was pretty serious about showing us he could handle the hike, and he vehemently protested being carried...at all.

There were so many moments where we just stopped and looked at each other and said, "THIS is why we moved to Colorado. Right here."

And right here.

And right here.

After we reached the top (whoohoo!) we had a little picnic lunch.

And after filling their tummies, the kids were both ready to be carried down the mountain.

Could the two of them be any cuter?

It was an amazing day - a perfect, blue skies, mountain kind of day. The kind of day you just want to have again. And again. And again.

And we can...because THIS is why we moved to Colorado.