Now this is runing

I realize that you're probably getting tired of running posts, but that's the mode we're in right now, so please stick with us.

I was talking to a coworker about - wait for it - running, and he mentioned that his son is an ultramarathoner (i.e. runs 50+ mile races).  He's preparing for the Badwater Ultramarathon in Death Valley, CA, which is a 135 mile race in 135 degree heat in July.

He's keeping a blog as he prepares.  I think it's amazing that people can do this, so I wanted to share it with you.  Enjoy.

On the Run - Part 2

As Linda mentioned in the previous post, it's running season for our family.  Round two of our annual races is the Lincoln Marathon.  This is my 4th year running the 1/2 marathon, and this year Tracy and our cousin Aaron joined me.  It was a perfect day, and we had the whole family there to cheer us on (excluding Guy who stayed with Linda's parents).

Despite the perfect conditions and a lot of training, I ran 1 minute slower than last year.  I was still happy with my time, and I felt good the whole run (and the next day).

This is me rounding the final turn and waving to my adoring fans. It feels great to see the finish line.

Here are Tracy, Aaron, Lincoln, and I post race. As you can see, Tracy and Lincoln were the only ones not cool enough to wear the free Lincoln Marathon visors. You'll also notice that Lincoln is eating my Power Bar. We're not sure it's good for two-year-olds to eat Power Bars, but he needed the energy.

On The Run - Part 1

It's springtime again in Kansas City, which means it's the start of running and biking season.  Last week we kicked off the season with the Trolley Run, a 4-mile run that follows the route of a (you guessed it!) old trolley track path.  The Trolley Run is a lot of fun because not only does it have a 4-mile run for Scott and me, it also has a kid's run that Lincoln has participated in for the last two years.   I ran a personal best of 40 minutes - although in the interest of disclosure, all of the previous years I've run I've either been pregnant or pushing a stroller.

For Lincoln's run, he got his very own number and got to "race" about ten yards.  

Just like the "big" race, there was also a lot of free food and drinks for the participants.  Lincoln cooled off with a glass of juice and filled up on a chocolate-chip muffin.  They also had face painting and balloon animals.

At the end of the race Lincoln received a blue ribbon, which is now proudly displayed on our fridge.  Next year we're looking forward to Guy running.

Guy's 4-month birthday and first rollover

Guy had his 4-month birthday (and check-up) the other day.  He's doing great.  He weighed 14 lbs. 9 oz. (75th percentile) and was 26 inches long (90th percentile).  The check-up also included a bunch of shots, which made for a somewhat fussy evening, but all is better now.

In other Guy news, he has started to rollover from his back to his front. He's been doing it at daycare for awhile now. He's also done it a few times at home, but he has never wanted to perform for the camera. Well, last night we finally got a rollover on tape.  Here's the proof.

A Wedding and a Reunion

We had a very exciting weekend this week, and it all started with my friend Jayne getting married on Friday evening. 

Scott and I used this as an excuse to have a date night - we left the boys with Joni and managed to get ourselves presentable for the evening.  The wedding was beautiful- Jayne got married at the Loretto, which is the same place that my sister Mary was married.

Jayne's wedding meant that all of my old college friends came into town, so the weekend also served as a reunion. We had people over to our house on Saturday to grill burgers and catch up.  I got to meet my friend's new baby girl (and talk to her about what it's like to shop in the girl's section of the baby store...).... 

Lincoln had fun playing with all of "older" kids.   We had three 2-year-old boys playing at the house, and I learned that "wild and crazy party" takes on a whole new meaning when you're dealing with preschoolers.

As for Guy, he had fun meeting all my friends.  He especially liked being spoiled by Christy during the party.  

We were sad to see everyone leave Saturday afternoon, but we're hopeful that we'll find an excuse to get together next summer again.

Easter!

We had a wonderful Easter weekend at Grandma and Grandpa Hauner's house, along with Mary, Randy, and Everett.  This year was especially fun since this is the first year that Lincoln really hunted for eggs.  He started the morning following a trail of jelly beans left by the Easter bunny, which led to the living room where he found the hidden eggs and candy.  Here he is sorting through all of his loot after the big hunt.

Guy is still too little to hunt for eggs, but he still got to be in the middle of all of the action.  He even got his very own Easter basket!

We also managed to get a picture of the boys with their grandparents before we left.  The weekend ended on a very good note, too - both of the boys slept for the entire 3-hour trip home!

Teeth?

Guy's been pretty drooly lately (we've taken to having him wear a bib), and he's been chewing on his hands a lot.  We're interpreting this as a sign that our little baby may be getting teeth soon.  There's no pearly whites to show yet, though, so I'm posting a random photo of guy posing in the overall/pants I made for him.  He says they're great for those unseasonably cold spring days, but they make diaper changes difficult.

Is it Spring yet?

Today is March 28, and Scott was scheduled to play in an Ultimate Tournament this weekend.  Instead, we woke up to a house that looked like this today:

Yesterday was cold and blustery and it snowed most of the afternoon.  Last fall we planted a new red maple in our front yard, and it had just started to bud a couple of weeks ago.  We're hoping that the late freeze won't hurt the tree - we've already lost one tree this year and we'd rather not lose another!

Lincoln and Scott are busy working in the cold to get our driveway shoveled (even though they're predicting that it will be 60 degrees tomorrow!), and Guy and I are also working hard playing and typing, as you can see.

Hope you all are staying warm, too!!

Taking a quick break from work

I'm working from home today because we are getting new windows installed at our house.  We're taking advantage of the Government's stimulus package that included a 30% tax credit for energy efficient windows (and we had wanted/needed new windows since we bought the house).

It's cold and dreary here today, and they are predicting snow tomorrow.  I was planning to play in the annual Fool's Fest ultimate tournament tomorrow in  Lawrence, but that may not happen because of the snow.  I guess I have to stay home and spend time with my family.

Anyway, to take us to a warmer place, here is a picture of Lincoln bathing Guy (think nice warm water).  It's not the most efficient way to bath an infant, but they both seem to enjoy it.

We didn't fool anyone

Congratulations. You're all great students and got A's on your quiz. Lincoln is Kid 1 and Guy is Kid 2. Next time, we'll have to think of something more challenging.

Here's your reward. A short video of Guy's tummy time practice in action. You'll notice a little head wobble going on, but he's getting pretty good. Next step, rolling over.

We're back...and a Quiz

We've been a little absent lately because we've been busy. Linda went back to work last week, and we're still working the kinks out of our new routine. It's a hectic at this point, but it's getting better.

So Guy is almost 3 months old now, and he's been practicing tummy time. Lincoln was doing the same almost 2.5 years ago, and our challenge to you is to identify each of the boys from the pictures below. It shouldn't be too difficult...we'll see if we stump anyone. We'll post the answer shortly.

Kid 1

Kid 2

What a Week (Part 3) - And a doctor visit

Guy and I are recovering today from his 2-month doctor appointment where he got three shots and an oral vaccine yesterday.  He's still a bruiser - he now weighs an impressive 12 pounds 10 ounces, which puts him in the 75th percentile for weight. His head and length are both in the 90th percentile.

While we recover, here are the last set of photos from our vacation.  After two days in Loup City we went on to Colorado - usually an 8-hour trip from Scott's parents' house.  Lincoln was spoiled and got to spend the trip in Grandma and Grandpa's new truck (with Grandma and Joni !), and Scott and I had room in the backseat of our car to sit and feed Guy on the road.

Once at Copper Mountain in Colorado, the adults skied and Lincoln got to try a bit of sledding.  (The goggles are Scott's).

Guy even got into the action and came outside for this family portrait.   It snowed the first day we arrived, and then we had two beautiful days of sun for skiing.

Of course, it wouldn't be a ski post without an action shot.  Since no one got a picture of my slo-mo fall (I was standing still and tipped right over), here's a more impressive photo of Tracy catching some air at the terrain park.

What a Week (Part 2)

After spending Saturday morning with Everett and my parents, we started off towards Loup City.  It's about a 5 1/2 hour drive with no stops, so with a 2-year-old and 8-week-old we managed it in about eight hours.

Along the way we saw Scott's grandfather and met up with some of Scott's family.  Here's Lincoln with his cousin Austyn - she's 2 weeks younger than Lincoln!

And here is Grandpa Bob with both Grandsons.

Once in Loup City, the boys explored Jenner's Park.  At one time it was the local zoo - now it has a frisbee-golf course and a playground.  Some of the cage remnants remain - although the bear cage now only houses Lincoln and Grandpa King.

Our next post will have some Colorado photos!

What a Week (Part 1)

We just returned from a wild and crazy week that included more than 24 hours in the car and stops in 4 states. This post covers the first part of the trip...there are more to come.

The weekend started with a Friday-night, slumber party at our house with Everett. Mary and Randy were vacationing in sunny Mexico, so Everett stayed with us Friday night while Grandma and Grandpa Hauner stayed with him the rest of the weekend.

The weather was nice, so we took the opportunity to let the boys burn off some steam outside.

Gym Time

Guy understands the importance of regular exercise.  He therefore puts in plenty of time each day in his baby gym.  In the morning he does five reps of the "fist bump".

Later in the afternoon (after a bath and a clothing change) he does five reps of "grab the toy".  It's an exhausting workout, but it will make him big and strong one day!

I promised a smiling baby photo but...

My friend Terri from my knitting group made this beautiful sweater for Guy.  It's gorgeous, so you'd think that Guy would be smiling in the photo.  You can blame my styling - at 7 weeks Guy already knows that a lovely hand-made sweater should not be modelled over pjs.  But he still looks cute, right?  

Places you probably shouldn't put your baby...

Okay, so maybe you shouldn't put your baby in a trash can...but if they're similar size and the baby looks sooooo cute in the trash can, can you really resist?  Me neither.  Besides, Guy doesn't seem to mind.

Guy's started to smile now, so I hope to have a photo of that soon - it's adorable!

Lil' Bruiser

On Tuesday Guy had his 1-month doctor's appointment, and weighed in at an impressive 10 pounds 14 ounces. That puts him in the 75th percentile for weight. Scott's been doing some historical comparisons, and Guy gained the same weight percentage - 32% - as Lincoln during his first month. Of course, Guy started out a whole pound heavier...

In other news. we got to spend a relaxing dinner at Mary and Randy's house last Sunday. Lincoln loves going there and playing with Everett's toys (that's actually all he talked about once we told him we were going), and Scott and I like having a night out with family.

We forgot to take our camera Sunday night, but we did take a few photos before we left. Since it was cold outside, we dressed Guy in his wool pants and jacket that I knitted for him. He looks pretty handsome in his duds, if I do say so myself! The pants are actually overalls that go up to his armpits (very warm and cute!), and as can see in the photo is that the jacket (which I knitted in 0-3 mo size) is actually almost too small to go around his growing belly.

A Visit from the Grandparents

Last weekend (actually, it's now been two weeks - time flies!) Scott's parents visited and the boys got to be spoiled by their grandparents.  Here's some highlights:

Here, you can see Shirley's amazing ability to read stories to *both* boys at once.  We were very impressed with this skill.

We had a bit of snow, so Lincoln got to break out his heavy winter coat and made a snowman.

Even Grandpa Mike got in on the action and spent some quality time with Guy.  All in all, a very nice weekend!

Takin' A Break

The votes are in, and many of you were very close in your guesses! As your reward, I have some pictures of Guy hangin' out during his first "real" bath in the baby bathtub.  

Here's the actual totals - (note: there were also some labs costs but I don't have those handy):

• Hospital: $6,500
• Doctor (Linda): $3,100
• Doctor (Guy): $1,600
• Total: $10,200

The bills do not indicate if the chicken fried steak dinners (or the extra pieces of carrot cake) impacted the cost. Here's your reward!  Note his calm, cool expression.  He is *way* too tough to be excited about a silly bath.

A Model Baby - and a contest!

Yesterday Guy and I braved the cold to get Guy's first official portraits taken.  Our friend Stacey Schmitz is an awesome photographer, and believe it or not Guy was actually awake for the entire session -  I can't wait to see how they turn out!  The event was preceded by a bit of stress, however, when I realized my "little" guy was growing fast and the newborn outfit I had picked out didn't really fit anymore - we made a quick change and he was presentable in some 0-3 month digs

Now for the contest!  The prize, as usual, is that everyone gets treated to even more cute photos of Guy.  Scott and I are fortunate to have excellent health insurance, and as a result our out-of-pocket cost for Guy's birth was very small.  We're now getting our "explanation of benefits" statements from our insurance company that show the actual charges for Guy's arrival.  Can anyone guess how much it costs to have a hospital birth?  Keep in mind that we stayed two nights in the hospital (in which I ate 2! chicken-fried-steak dinners) and had no anesthesiologist  charges.  The answer will be next time!

For now, here's a photo of the brothers hanging out together.

Guy in action

Since Guy was sleeping in yesterday's post, I think it's time to show this video of him awake and in action.  Lincoln is providing the commentary - his Thomas trains had derailed and he had just managed to get them all back safely on the track when Scott started filming.

Home Alone - Part Duo

Scott went back to work this week so I am officially "home alone" with Guy this week.  I wanted to take a photo to show some of the fun activities we've been up to so far, but usually when he's not sleeping we're usually too busy feeding, changing diapers, or cuddling to take a picture - plus he's awfully cute when he sleeps! 

...and here's the "duo" part of this post - a picture of Guy's big brother sleeping in the same Boppy.   Lincoln was about two months old in this photo, but I think you can still see the family resemblance.

Our First Field Trip

Today we took our first field trip as a family of four.  On the advice of one of Scott's coworkers we checked out Science City at Union Station.  You can get an annual pass at a reasonable price, and it includes unlimited visits to Science City and the Planetarium.

We started getting ready for our big outing at 9:00 am, but didn't actually make it out the door until 10:00.  Once at the museum, Lincoln had a lot of fun checking out the "toys".  Here Scott is showing him how one of the exhibits works - this one involves rolling balls down different tracks.

Of course, Lincoln decided that it would be much more fun just to carry the balls around the museum.

As for Guy, he spent the entire trip asleep in his cozy bear outfit.  It may be a while before he can truly appreciate these family outings.

Overall, Science City turned out to be a great way for the entire family to spend a cold January morning together.

Taking Care of Guy

Taking care of Guy is really hard work, as you can see in these photos:

This morning I had to spend a couple of grueling hours watching Guy as he napped.  It required all of my concentration.

Guy likes to be held, so as you can see Scott spent a lot of time yesterday keeping him happy. It is difficult, all-consuming work.

Of course, it would be nice if all of this napping would translate into a lot of sleep at night, but so far Guy is turning out to be a regular newborn and waking up every 2-3 hours.