A large family, homeschooling, adoption, special needs, whatever strikes my fancy, sort of blog.

A large family, homeschooling, adoption, special needs, whatever strikes my fancy, sort of blog.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Hannah and Katie are Running


Last post, I talked about how I've been walking, and doing 5K races.  At many of these events, there's a 1/2 mile or 1 mile Fun Run for the kids before the start of the longer race.  I kept thinking, "I'd love to have the girls do these."  Unfortunately, it takes me about an hour to walk the course, and I have no one to watch them while I do that.  


So when I saw a Facebook ad for Healthy Kids Running Series, my interest was piqued. 


The long and the short of it is, it's a 5 week series where kids run.  I signed them up.  There are different age groups, and different distances for younger kids, but Hannah and Katie are together, and their group runs one mile. 


Katie was annoyed last year about being the second fastest runner in her class, so I knew she would be game for it.  Katie finished her mile in 13:13. 


Hannah was willing to give it a try, too.  I knew it would be more of a challenge for Hannah, but she made it.  Both girls ran/walked/ran/walked/ran as needed.  Hannah finished her mile in 17:16, which is about my speed (I'm mostly a walker). 

Remember I said it's a 5 week series?  Well, the second week, the park was already booked for something else, so everybody skipped one week.  I didn't want us to lose momentum, so I found a race with a kids fun run, and signed them up for that. 


The race was in support of ovarian cancer research. 


And instead of a full mile, it was a half mile fun run. 


There's Katie!  I screamed myself hoarse cheering them in. 


And here comes Hannah! 


Hannah could take it or leave it.  She'd rather be reading, honestly.  But Katie?  She likes it.  So we're going to see about getting her a running blade (a special prosthetic that is easier to run on).  We start fittings for new legs for both girls next month. 

I'm crazy proud of them for trying something new and challenging.  We've done a variety of sports and extra curricular classes with the children down through the years.  I would never have expected that Hannah and Katie would take up running.  But I'm excited for them, and look forward to seeing where this goes. 

Friday, September 20, 2019

Mostly About Walking


So, in June, I posted a little update on myself, and talked a bit about how I started walking for exercise.  I'd even done my very first 5K.


This was after my second 5K, which went much better!


I was pretty proud of myself for 1) not dying; 2) finishing in under an hour.  It helped that it was a morning race, so it wasn't melty hot yet.


The disappointing part was that this was the only picture of us during the race.  We're just background fodder to 242.  But we did it!


The Yes.Fit virtual race Facebook group has been super encouraging, and after seeing other people's medal racks, I decided to make my own display/motivation board.

More than 4 years ago, I won a prize box from Mod Podge Rocks blog.  One of the things in the giant box of crafty goodness was a big, blank board.  I finally found the project for that board.  First I painted it white, then I added a layer of clear sparkles, because glitter.  Then I drilled guide holes in the bottom and screwed in big old cup hooks.  I looked at a lot of medal racks on Pinterest to find just the right quote for it, which I added in sticker letters (using easy to remove washi tape to keep them in a straight line).  I painted 3 clothespins silver to go with the lettering, and glued those onto the board.

I like it.  I figure I have plenty of room to add another row of hooks to the front of the board, high enough up so that I can add another row of medals and have both be visible, should I stick with this long enough to earn that many.  I do think I should have put the letters on before the clear sparkle layer, because the stickers tend to want to peel back a bit, and if I'd done the sparkles afterward, it would have acted like a seal over the stickers.  I could clear Mod Podge over it, if it really bothered me.  I might put all the race bibs on a ring and hook the ring onto one of the hooks.  They're slippery, so when I get a bunch of them, they are not going to want to stay in the clothespin.


Gasp!  5K #3, and a visit from Brianna!  This was on 4th of July.


Which we celebrated with this lovely patriotic cake made by Josiah.


And a most-of-the-family picture while Zach was around.


Brianna lives in Los Angeles now.


While the Army didn't work out for her, and things ended with Boy, she's built a new life, and there's a new man in that life.  She's happy, and I'm happy for her.


This was our 4th 5K, another evening event (HOT), but with a twist.  You walk/run a mile and a half, they give you a scoop of ice cream, and then you walk/run back.  I was seriously dragging because I'd worked hard at my exercise class the day before, and my arms were SO sore that every step hurt.  Eli absolutely has the gift of encouragement, though, and he talked me through it.


5K #5 was in support of kids in foster care, a cause dear to my heart.


Our 6th 5K event was the Run To Remember honoring those lost in the 9-11 attacks.


The walk was great.  I even shaved 2 minutes off my time.


After the walk, we were invited to place flags by the names of the victims.

So, after 6 walks, I've decided I like them.  And I'm signed up for 3 or 4 more from now to November.  I seem to have started a little collection of race shirts, so I'm thinking I might eventually hack them up and make a t-shirt quilt commemorating this phase.  Speaking of making, I did some sewing recently.  I'll have to share that another day.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

More From New Bern


The Tryon Palace encompasses a complex of buildings.  The John Wright Stanly House was actually moved here.


The House


The sign, lol.


I really enjoyed seeing all the period furnishings in these buildings. 


There were a couple of rooms we were not allowed to take photographs in because the contents are merely "on loan" from the family. 


It was a little bit like when we visited General Vallejo's Home a few years back. 


This is the highlight of this building.  This is the bedroom that GEORGE WASHINGTON slept in for two nights in 1791 when he passed this way. 


Out the back door and back into the wet heat. 


The gardens were lovely.


I was trying to capture the huge bumblebee, but sweat was dripping in my eyes, and he wouldn't hold still, so it didn't really work out. 


I'm really glad I made the effort to drive a little further out than I had previously, in order to see the Palace. 


After I left the Palace complex I started seeing all these Pepsi signs. 


Turns out, I'd stumbled onto The Birthplace of Pepsi. 


I like Diet Pepsi, and being curious and thirsty, I decided to stop. 


There wasn't like a factory tour or anything like that, but there was a lot of old Pepsi memorabilia and Pepsi souvenirs.  I got Eli a shot glass for his collection, and myself a drink from the fountain, and wandered on my way. 


New Bern was really pretty.  The weather was gorgeous (albeit warm), the clouds were puffy, and everything seemed picturesque. 


The flag for New Bern has a black bear on a yellow stripe across a red background. 

One of the best things about this trip was being able to get out and see and do whatever there was to see and do nearby.  Often my vacations have been focused on an event or a person, and usually at the mercy of other people's schedules.  This time around I had a lot of free time on my hands, due to Sam being at work during the day, and I'm glad I didn't waste it sitting in the hotel.  Even Hawaii, I didn't have a rental car, so I was limited to the trolley schedule and stops.  This was a very freeing experience, and left me feeling more adventurous than ever.  And super grateful for my phone's GPS.