Why we have only boys so far

Part of Eli's homework each night is to read a book and write about it. Last night he read the book, "Kick, Pass, and Run. " Eric saw the book lying on the counter when he got home from work. With a smirk on his face, he brought it to me and covered one of the letters in the title, then chuckled like the eighth-grader he will forever be.

Two roads diverged...

A few years ago I had a kind of personal epiphany that helped me to understand the importance of the choices I have made and will make in life. My great Aunt Dorothy and Uncle Winston had come to visit us in Arizona. This aunt and uncle have been like grandparents to me and my siblings ever since my Grandmother Fleming died, so I was thrilled to have them travel all the way from Memphis, TN, to our home in Arizona to visit. Aunt Dorothy and Uncle Winston have one wonderful son and daughter-in-law and one terrific grandson, Martin. Aunt Dorothy had a nephew who also lived in AZ, so when they were there, we all met together at her nephew and his wife's home for dinner. At this dinner, I was struck by how much my dear great aunt and uncle talked about me and my brother and sisters and our families, along with their son and his family. They had little "brag-book" pocket picture albums they pulled out with pictures of me and all of my family members, and they went on and on about what was going on with our lives. We (along with Martin) were just about all they talked about. Sometime in that evening I realized that this is what life is all about. If this aunt and uncle had never had children and had never spent time fostering and growing their relationships with us during holidays and family gatherings, now that they are elderly and retired, what would they have to bring joy to their lives? As I write this, I'm reminded of the play "You Can't Take It With You," the story of an eccentric family that are unusual but happy and supportive of each other, and when contrasted with a more ordinary family whose priorities center on the materialistic, teach the audience that it's the relationships we build, not the awards we get, the money we make, or the things we aquire, that are really lasting.
This weekend my dad's family met up in TN for a family reunion. Just Brandt and I were able to go from my little family because of sickness, but while there I again just felt so grateful for family. Everyone loves and supports each other regardless of the differences in our lives, simply because we are family and that's what families do. I could have worked for several years before we had children, and we would probably have had a bigger house and newer cars, but that isn't the path we chose, and I'm glad. Nothing brings me more joy than my husband and children. They bring challenges, headaches, and heartaches, but the joy always outweighs the trials. ( I know---we haven't reached teen-hood yet..)

I have had a great week of working out. Monday I ran pushing the jogging stroller for 52 minutes and went 5.8 miles. My legs were pretty tired from my race last weekend, so I took it easy.
Tuesday I biked 45 minutes and did full-body weights.
Wednesday I ran with Ashley for 6.5 miles. I'm not sure how long it took because I forgot to re-start my watch at one of the traffic lights.
Thursday I biked 50 minutes and did full-body weights.
Friday I ran 8.6 miles in about 1:11. I felt GREAT on this run. I started pretty slow, but ran a sub-8 minute pace for about 7 miles of it.
Saturday I got up at about 4:15 a.m. to workout before we left for the family reunion up in TN. I did speedwork on the treadmill: 12 minute warm-up, then seventeen 40 second speed bursts at a 6 minute-mile pace with 20 seconds of rest between each one. I then jogged to cool-down for 10 minutes. I did some push-ups and ab-work afterward.

Racing, Rashes, Rodents, and Revelry

I think I mentioned how nervous I was for the 5k I entered this weekend. Well, the nervousness built all week and finally subsided at around 8:21 on Saturday morning. I didn't reach my goal of running a sub-21 minute 5k, but I came closer than I have in a couple of years--21:29. I had planned to use my watch to pace myself, but when it came right down to it--I just ran as fast as I could. I looked down at my watch a few times--I started at around a 6:20 pace, slowed to a 7:20 on both the hills, and maintained around a 6:45-50 the rest of the time. I really just need to race more. The fast start about killed me.
Eli and Brandt ran in their first road race on Saturday; both completed the 1 mile fun run. Both ran the whole distance. Eli finished in 11 minutes and Brandt in 11:20!
After the race, Eli spotted a young chipmunk running around a tree-less field. It wasn't a baby, but wasn't as quick as an adult. Eli and Brandt probably ran another mile around the field just chasing the little guy. I think they would have been entertained all day at this if we had allowed it. I caught him with a Styrofoam cup, and we took him to a nearby tree. Hopefully he found his home...
Saturday night my mom had a Halloween party for her grandkids. They each could invite one friend--which was a GREAT idea. We almost didn't need to have any activities for them to do because they entertained each other just playing in the yard together so well. One of the funniest parts of the party was the "haunted house" in which the children felt of eyeballs (peeled grapes), brains (cooked ramen noodles) and guts (red Jello). The ramen noodles had kind of congealed, and as a clump really felt how I would imagine a brain would feel.
Eli decided to be Indiana Jones this year, and Brandt, after vacillating between the pirate "Jack the Sparrow" (as he calls him), and the Red Power Ranger, finally decided on the latter when he saw his beloved little costume jumpsuit from last year. I sweetened the deal with a new sword from the Dollar Tree. Asher was an extremely precious Woody the cowboy (from Toy Story).
This week we have been dealing with a BAD case of poison ivy with Eli. He got into it at a Boy Scout service project he went to with Eric last weekend. It started on his hands and has spread like wildfire over his body. He has been making regular visits to the school nurse for re-application of calamine lotion. I think it's on the mend, now, but know that the wounds you see in the posted pictures aren't makeup to toughen up his "Indy" look--they're the real thing!
I took it pretty easy this week in anticipation of the race: Monday I ran 49 minutes. Tuesday I just did upper-body weights. Wednesday I ran 5.85 miles in 48:35 with Ashley. Thursday I biked 40 minutes in the morning and ran with the boys (we did about six 100's at a pretty fast pace) at practice. I also stretched a ton. I took Friday off. Saturday I warmed up for about a mile, ran the 5k, the mile with the boys, then cooled down for about a mile and a half.

Nature vs. Nurture

It never ceases to amaze me how we are all born as true individuals. I know this isn't some incredible new discovery, but to me the very truth that two people brought up in almost identical conditions can have such vastly different personalities attests to the eternal nature of the soul. Scientific reasoning would lead one to say that two of any entity placed in equal circumstances would yield equal results. My boys prove this wrong every day. I guess it's the whole nature versus nurture argument. I am a big fan of nurturing, but we definitely all come with our own natures.
Case in point: my boys.
Last weekend we were all in our bedroom listening to our church's bi-annual worldwide conference on the computer. At one point I moved from sitting at the desk to laying, stomach down, on the bed. Brandt pretty much didn't seem to notice and continued playing with toys on the floor. Eli asked if I wanted a massage--which I took him up on. And Asher became very excited and tried to sit, stand, and jump on me over and over again. You may say this is just their age. But Brandt has ALWAYS been one to do his own thing, regardless of what others are doing or may think. Eli has always been empathetic. When he was in nursery at church (18mo.-3yr olds), his teachers said he always tried to comfort the sad kids who had toys taken away by other children by finding them a new toy to play with. Asher, so far, has a very fun, but quite emotional, personality. We always know exactly how he's feeling, even though he can't tell us in words yet. He also has a very weird phobia: flowers and some plants. He cringes in fear, and sometimes all-out panic if he is get too close to certain flowers or plants--particularly ones with a lot of texture (i.e.: elephant ear leaves=good; sunflowers=bad). He has been doing this for months now--something we guess he was just born with. My mom has found it's easy to childproof her house when she babysits him--she just puts a plant in front of any places she doesn't want him to go!
Some aspects of our boys are the product of nurture, though. Both Eli and Brandt LOVE working with Eric outside and in the garage. Eli is more at-task, which is partially his age, and probably partially just him. We recently had a family project of using the left-over wood from the treehouse that was smashed to build a second "kids deck" in the backyard. Eli helped Eric pour the concrete footings and we all helped some with the construction. Thanks to a hardworking, skilled father, our boys are learning to use all sorts of tools at an early age. They are also learning the importance of the old addage: "Use it up, wear it out. Make it do, or do without."

Workout log: Thursday I did a 1.5 mile warm up, 9 400's at 10mph with 1:30 rests inbetween and a 1 mile cooldown on the treadmill.
Friday I biked 45 min. and did weights.
Saturday I ran 8.4 miles in 1:11. I put in a couple of giant hills at the end for Callie (who had asked me to check the elevation gain for her with my watch--while trudging I realized I could have just driven up the hills with my wrist out the window :)) Afterward I ran with Brandt at practice. We ran 12 150's and jogged a 150 between each one.

Blahblahrunblahrunblahbikeblahblahrun

I need to get my workouts down before I lose track....
Last Friday: I biked inside for 1 hr 10 minutes. I kept a good, steady pace, but didn't simulate many hills so my legs would be rested for Saturday's run.
Saturday: I ran 8.7 miles in 1:11. I felt great on this run. After, I went to practice with the boys and did about seven 150's with Brandt and two 200's with Eli.
Monday: I ran 1 hr and an easy pace. I went around Sherman Oaks and through the trails in the sports complex. In the afternoon I jogged a mile with Brandt at practice, in jeans and Earth shoes.
Tuesday: I biked 45 minutes and did full body weights.
Today: I ran 5.8 miles in 47:30. It was muggier than it has been, but a few light showers at the beginning and an all out downpour at the end of this run made it a really nice one.

I signed up to do the Maple Leaf Run, a 5k here in town the weekend after this one. I have been kinda nervous about it. I haven't raced much this year, but because I workout so hard, I have high expectations for myself. I haven't been happy with a 5k race time for a few years, so hopefully I will be able to perform well and not disappoint myself. My sis, Sarah, has suggested that I just run to enjoy it, but I enjoy the feeling of a good finishing time so much, I am willing to endure 20 or so minutes of the gut-wrenching pushing of my body that achieving a good time will take. I know this is odd to many of you, but it's just the way I am.

Farewell Summer Smorgasbord

This has been such a great summer for our family. We traveled to opposite corners of the nation, we swam, swam and swam some more, and we ate tons of delicious fresh produce. As fun as it has been, I am ready for autumn weather, and I'm enjoying the quieter school days. The one thing I was really sad to seen end was the local farmers market. I went on Tuesday for the last time this year. I have enjoyed weekly supplies of locally grown squash, zuchinni, tomatoes, eggplant, green and red bell peppers and delicious clover honey. The farmers market has also given me a chance to introduce new foods to my family. I brought home freshly picked figs and even made homemade fig bars--which were a big hit. We all got to try muscadines for the first time--I only bought them once (Asher was the only one who really LOVED them, he would eat the whole grape, seeds and all). Probably the prettiest vegetable I've ever purchased I got this summer--Scallopini Squash. It was delicious to eat, too! I made some ratatouille with it, which Brandt was even excited to eat (thanks to Pixar Animation). I also bought some green tomatoes and "oven fried" them (you bread them and spray with PAM and bake, delicious!!). And this last time I brought home black peanuts. After looking for a picture of them on Google Images, I found that they are typically an Asian variety of peanut. They are smaller and skinnier than red peanuts, but have a delicious, sweet flavor.

Workout log: Saturday I ran 8.5 miles in 1:09. It was a GREAT run. I kept a sub 8 minute pace for about 7 miles of it. I finished at the boys practice. I ran 12 100's with Brandt and 2 200's with Eli. I also got some new shoes. They're Brooks Defyance--pretty comfy so far.
Monday: I ran 58 minutes, around Sherman Oaks and through the trails.
Tuesday: I biked 45 minutes and did weights.
Wed.: I did a 1.5 mile warmup, then ran 3.1 miles in 21:14. I cooled down for about 1.5 miles. This workout kicked my bootay.
Today: I did weights and then ran pushing the stroller for 52 minutes. It was perfect weather-- sunny, about 57 degrees with a light breeze.