Mom's first 5K!

I ran my first 5K race this morning! Finished at 39:02, which is about 4 minutes faster than my pace on the first time I ever ran one for practice. Kyle and the boys came to cheer me on, and Frank and Annette were there as well :) I picked up running at the end of March this year. Jacob was about to be one and I wanted/needed to get back into exercising. But, having just the one TV and a small-ish living room, and not really liking to use my laptop (i like the sound LOUD!) working out to my DVD's at home just wasn't working. I decided running would be the answer, if I only had 30 minutes to work out, I could get a decent cardio burn running for that long. I started a Couch to 5K program in April and today I did that first race. I do look forward to going for a run now, not because I particularly enjoy the actual running, but because I enjoy seeing just how much my body can do. I like running because there is always something to compete against yourself with, and it is easy to get measurements and track progress. My body feels less lethargic and I am more eager to jump in and play with the kids at the playground. This is my ultimate reason for running, to be healthy and fit and active with my boys. No plans to train for a a 10K right now, instead I am going to focus my training efforts on improving my 5K time. I am excited to go out and find my next race!

In other news, Kaleb has started throwing out the "You're not my best friend!" card when he is mad at me. The other day I had to take his Spiderman cartoon away because he had been playing a bit rough with the kids at school. When I wouldn't let him watch it that night and explained that he needed to have a good day before he could have his superheroes back he went to all out meltdown. This was when he tossed the best friend grenade out. I replied with "I am your Mommy" and left it at that. He went so far as to say/shriek "If you were my best friend you would let me watch it!"to which I again replied "I am your Mommy. That show is too violent for you, you need to show me you can control your self before you may watch it again." I know this should break my heart to hear him say this to me, and that in his mind saying that to me is a big deal. But, if I'm being totally real, I actually felt kinda proud to hear him say that. Proud of myself for not giving in and honestly, proud of him for using words and expressing just how upset with me he was. I want him to always feel safe enough with me to express his true feelings. Sure, as he gets older we will work on finding other ways to say what he is trying to express. Right now though, I am pleased that he will shout that out. I am pleased that I was able to calmly reply and remind him that I am Mom. And pleased that he saw that even when he is in a rage at me, I love him and I am going to be right there, all the while doing what is best for him even if it makes me unpopular at the moment.

Jacob has taken off with walking! It is his preferred mode of transport and he is now already working on climbing things, like the ladder at day care for the slide. He also spent a good amount of time with Annette this morning practicing going up and down steps while I was running. He held her hand and stepped off the curb, walked around her and stepped back up the curb, then back around and down, and so on. Annette said she was like the revolving grandma :) It is such a blessing to have her around the kids (all the grandparents!) to help them grow up and be truly invested in their development.

The house hunt is still moving forward. We just heard back from the people we are trying to buy the house we want from. We had inspections and the house needs a new roof and chimney. We wanted them to pay for all repairs, they propose we split them...of course. Deciding now what we are going to do, will be getting estimates on both this week. On that front, I had a great memory lock moment today. The sun was shining, we were leaving the neighborhood on our way to the park. The Avett Brothers were playing in the car and our windows were down but going slow enough so my hair was just lightly blowing. It was such a beautiful moment and I realized that we are on the tail end of this chapter, this neighborhood, this house, this home. I'm so excited to be moving on, and at the same time I am appreciative of all the beautiful memories we have here. So, at that moment today I took a nice memory snap shot of the happiness and our young family and the summer just starting. A lovely little heart smile!