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Heather, Elizabeth, and Brian came over on Friday to help us turn a cold, rainy Friday into a fun day of games and being together.
The girls enjoy brownies and milk while the boys sleep:
Milk bubbles!
(click on this image to see the video of milk bubble giddiness!)
The girls did some painting:
(click through to see the video of the girls discussing their painting)
My Man, Brian!
I think this picture is one of my all-time favorites. The expression on Brian's face is priceless!
We only have a few more Friday playdates to enjoy with the Ashes. It will be with great sorrow in our hearts that we say goodbye to them, for they are moving back to Pittsburgh in June. But! I am so proud of Colin (Heather's husband) because he is finishing his PhD in Materials Science from MIT in about 4 weeks!
Heather and Colin were our first friends in Cambridge. The first Sunday we attended CTK Cambridge, they invited us to lunch with them at Wendy's. The rest is history. Heather has become one of my greatest friends, and I will miss being able to hear in person, on a regular basis, her insights on parenting, Jesus, and being a wife. You can glean some of her wisdom and encouragement on her blog, Life in the Valley.
Next weekend I will attempt to run 13.1 miles for the first time in 4.5 years. Chris and I signed up to run the Country Music Half Marathon in Nashville, TN when we found out my little sister, Sarah would be running it. That was about 2 months ago. Plenty of time to train. Suddenly it's next weekend!
Many of you know that before I had kids, I was a runner. I've been running since I was 14. I started when I tried out for the JV field hockey team freshman year of high school. I remember it being so hard to run a mile. I ran track my sophomore year, and ended up running cross country my senior year. Suddenly a mile wasn't so hard. 3 miles wasn't even hard.
I ran because all my friends ran. I ran because it made me a better field hockey player, and I ran track in the spring because I didn't want to play softball, and running was my other choice. And they took everyone. You see, I've learned to like running, I'm a really consistent runner, I'm just not very fast.
I've always fallen back on running as my exercise of choice because it's the most time-efficient, least expensive form of exercise that requires no equipment other than a decent pair of shoes. I'm a Saucony girl, always have been, although recently I've come to realize that my feet did grow a half size during my pregnancies, and I think now I'm a 7.5.
Boston is a great place to be a runner, except during those 3-4 black out months from Dec-Mar where it's generally too cold and icy to run outside. When we first moved here and lived in Cambridge, I started going for longer and longer runs along the esplanade.
Chris and I ended up training for and running 2 full Marathons. The last one we did was in Oct of 2005, the fall before I got pregnant with Frankie. I ran with my sister, Becky, and we finished in around 4:20.
I love running along the esplanade. By this point, I've logged countless miles, and know the bridge loop distances by heart. Even though we don't live in Cambridge anymore, I still get to run the esplanade because I work on MIT's east campus, and my office is short block from Mem drive. I'll go for a run at lunch, or at the end of my day. I've also chosen to drive to the esplanade for some of my longer weekend runs while training for this half marathon.
A few weekends ago I completed a 9.23 mile loop (Eliot to Longfellow). I was struck as I ran about how many milestones and images of my life here in Boston I pass on this run, and just how familiar it was to me, even though it had been several years since I'd run it.
I realized how much I would miss this run if I ever left Boston, and how much I'd missed in the 4 years since I'd run it. I feel the need to document the run for myself, and for those of you who have logged many miles around the esplanade and may no longer live in Boston, or are currently not able to run the esplanade.
I started on MIT's east campus, and stopped for a quick bathroom break in Tang. I headed over the salt and pepper bridge, and into the wind of the south side of the river. I passed many Canadian geese, some who looked ready to attack me if I got too close to their nests (I was careful not to). Past the hatch shell, past the playground, and past the entrance to the MIT bridge. Under the Storrow drive overpass and the stretch near the BU boathouse with the fitness stations. Past the BU bridge, over the wooden bridge and into a stretch right next to Storrow. Past River st, western st, and Harvard footbridge. Past the Harvard practice fields and getting on into Watertown. I crossed the Eliot bridge and passed Mt. Auburn Hospital, where I gave birth to both of my children. On the way back, I pass Harvard again, Harvard Boathouse, Trader Joe's and the public pool on Mem Drive. I always feel a great sense of relief when I'm tired from a long run and I get to MIT's Westgate tower. It's the western edge of MIT, and I feel like I'm home. Partly I'm sure because my good friend, Heather, lives there, and I feel some comfort knowing I could probably go get a glass of water if I needed to. But I'm not done until I pass Mass Ave, the dome, and the MIT boathouse.
I'm not sure I'm ready for this race next weekend. It's been tough to find the consistent time to train for this race with two little ones to care for. I will finish. I know I can finish, because I've learned that running long distance is really 80% a mental game. And I'm pretty sure my body will co-operate. I'm also really sure that my little sister will kick my tail.
I had the immense joy two weeks ago to run with my friend, Debra, in her first 5k. Our kids were there to cheer us on, and when we rounded the bend for the last 100 yards, our kids were so excited to see us. They came running up to us whooping and cheering and ran the last 100 yards with us.
In training for this race, it is with wonder that I watch my daughter respond to my running. She thinks it's normal that Mommy and Daddy go out running for an hour. She likes to run too, and will put on her "running" hat (her pink red sox ball cap), her running socks (little ankle-length sport socks), and her running shoes, and will run with me. We've done a few family runs with the kids in the stroller (and the dog, on a leash), and about halfway through, Frankie likes to get out and run with me for a little ways.
She told me the other day that she is a runner. I am so proud of this. I hope that she will always be able to claim with that same confidence: "I am a runner".
Are you a runner?
He is risen! He is risen indeed!
Easter is probably my favorite holiday. I love Easter at our church, CTK Cambridge. Good Friday is celebrated with an evening service (after dark). Passages are read, solemn songs are sung, and the lights get dimmed and candles snuffed until the attendees are left in pitch black to contemplate the death of our savior. We leave in silence, and are left to wait until sunrise on the third day.
Back to church we joyfully run on Sunday morning at dawn for a sunrise service at 6:30am! I read Frankie the stories of the crucifixion and resurrection from her Jesus Storybook Bible on Saturday night, and we talked about how exciting it would be the next morning to celebrate the fact that Jesus rose from the dead - that he's alive!
When we woke the kids before 6am on Sunday, Frankie greeted Chris - "Daddy! Jesus is risen!" My kids generally do well in the morning, and it was with great excitement that we headed to church in the pre-dawn light and raced the sun to get to the church by 6:30. As we walked out of the house, Frankie cried with delight "Mommy, the sun is coming! Jesus is alive!"
I love the sunrise service. We sing joyful songs as we celebrate our savior's victory over death, and I shed tears of joy for the sacrifice he made for me, a sinner. After the sunrise service we feasted on a brunch made by other members of the congregation.
When it was all said and done, it was 8:00. In the morning. It was a GORGEOUS day in Boston, and we did not have any other plans. We headed back to the house to see what the Easter Bunny had brought, feasted on jelly beans, and took naps. Frankie and I worked in the garden some, and then we decided to head out for some family exercise in the afternoon. Chris, Maisy, and I ran the 2.5 miles from Carson beach to Castle Island while Dex and Frankie rode in the stroller, and then we all played at the playground for a while.
We ran back and Frankie desperately wanted to play at the beach. She and Dex got in up to their knees and played for a while in the 45 degree water. If you've never been in 45 degree water before, it's cold. As in, your feet go numb in about 30 seconds. Those are my New England babies.
I love Easter, and during the last 9 Easters I have spent in New England, I have always wished it was a little warmer, and this year we got our wish!
Last summer, I posted a picture of Frankie's first painting. She loves painting, and managed to finish three more before she turned three. They're proudly hanging in our dining room, as her 2-year-old collection.
Which one is your favorite?
We're having her start a much larger painting to hang over the fireplace in the dining room. We love original art, but can't afford the price! This big canvas cost about $20. I'm excited to see how it turns out!
