Thursday, October 4, 2012

Dear Dad

I can't believe it's already been 4 years since we had our last conversation. I even remember what we were talking about and love the fact that it was a hilariously funny convo that had you laughing so hard mom could hear you from the other side of the house. I'll never forget your roaring laugh....it makes me smile just thinking about it.

A lot has happened in 4 years...so much that sometimes it feels like 10 years. I finished grad school, moved back home to Avon lake, started my career in anesthesia at southwest, bought my first house (you would love it), had Carson in march of 2010, and Macie in December 2011. Our family has grown a lot in many ways. You would be so proud of everyone.

Not a day goes by that I don't think of you or talk about you. I'm not just saying that either. You are still so much a part of who I have become. You always told me how proud you were...you always made my confidence soar. You believed in me when I had given up on myself. I'm so grateful that you got to meet Travis and walk me down the aisle. He is such a wonderful husband and father. I just wished you could have met Carson & Macie. I will be sure to tell them all about you. I will call them "wee lassie" and "wee laddie" just like you would have. Even though you are not physically here with us...you are in spirit and your legacy will go on. I'm glad I've healed to the point that I can write this without tearing up. It's a lesson that life does go on. Always remembered and never forgotten....you make us smile everyday Dad.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

The Amazing Circle of Life...

Well it sure is funny how life works eh? Last post I talked about the tragic death of my cousin Ryan in Texas. Now I will be sharing the happiness of hearing the heartbeat of my Christmas surprise!!! I ran my 5k April 16th and promptly vomited all over the place. My time wasn't epic by any means (27:45)..but I *might* have peed my pants a little and definitely vomited at the end. The next day I peed on a stick...and voila! Pregnant! After that 5k i felt terrible all day...stomach cramping...nausea..everything. When I got the affirmation that I was knocked up..I decided to ditch my 10 mile and half marathon race. After some research..I just realized that mentally I'm too competetive to "run slow"...and I just don't think my body can really handle it. Ive been having trouble eating food and taking in proper hydration for plain daily life..let alone longer races. PLus I had only been running 7-8 miles consistently..and 13 miles was a large jump. So instead I've been trying to run 3-4 miles here and there when I feel up to it. When I was pregnant with Carson I just really tried to stay active..even if it meant power walking. Sooooo....an exciting hault to my plans. I will definitely resume racing after the baby is born. I couldn't be more thrilled/blessed/excited!!

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Whats new

So....I've recovered from the princess mess. Ive taken off the tiara...stepped down from the podium and moved on with life. Who would ever think a princess could move on?

I am booked solid for racing...April 16th I'm doing a 5k. April 22nd I'm doing the Cleveland 10 miler and May 7th I'm going to Indianapolis to do the Indy Mini (Half Marathon). Hows that for a recovery? I'm pretty excited about it all...and have been doing pretty well with training.

Last week I spend most of the week in Texas attending my cousins funeral. He passed away very tragically 2 Sundays ago....at the age of 25. I quickly packed a bag and caught a flight to Houston so I could be there for the rest of my family. It was a really tough week, but after we got through the funeral I turned to my best defense in tough situations....running. The temperatures were perfect in the morning...and the park (Memorial Park) was amazing!! Everyday I contemplated moving there (although i probably said "i hate texas" 600 times during the trip). Have any of you ever ran at Memorial Park in Houston? The trails are sand...which was pure bliss to my joints. In every direction I looked..I could spot about 35 runners. It was full of hustle bustle and wellness. Saturday I tackled 7 miles with my aunt and uncle (the ones who lost their son)....and it was the perfect thing to do with them...and probably my favorite part of the whole trip.

Heres a picture of the trails


So anyway....thats what I've been up to. My little guy turned one March 19th. Hes into everything!! I can't wait to take him out in the Bob as soon as the weather breaks.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

The sequel

Well...I'm sure everyone was wondering "Did she get up and run 13.1?" The answer is no...I didnt. BUT!!! Some of my running buddies planned my own special "princess run" in our home town. I was excited I would actually get to wear my tutu after all!! A lot of hard work went into making it and I decided that I need to have a girl someday because i can make a mean tutu!! So I pried my sorry butt off the couch and got my game face on....and tutu of course!


So I showed up to the "race" and sure enough everyone dressed up!!



How fun!! They even made me a castle trophy and a princess wand. So off we went down the biggest road in our town.....little tutu bouncing butts down the main drag! We got some honks...lots of smiles...and then quite a few people who acted like we didnt exist?!? How could you not acknowledge a bunch of bouncing tutu butts?

I felt great the whole run and was running way out in front of everyone. I kept stopping to let them catch up so I could join the conversation and after all......I was the reason they were running down lake road in a tutu...I should at least participate WITH them. I had no doubts that I coulda rocked the half marathon in Orlando..and probably in cleveland for that matter. But I decided to finish with everyone else because we needed to do this...


Celebratory drink!! yes please!! In the public library parking lot none the less. Now who could ignore a bunch of girls in tutus drinking alcohol in the library parking lot??

It was super fun and we decided to make it an annual event..(someone said monthly..but i think thats too often). I learned a lot....and support of great friends really does take the sting away from a big boo boo. I had outpouring love from friends on facebook, home, and obviously my fellow princesses. Sometimes these things happen for a reason...just to show you how many people truly do care!

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Defeated.....in every way

I wish I could put up cute pictures of me in my running gear/tutu. I wish I could show off my new tiara princess medal that I've wanted for years......I wish I could say I never had a DNF. Unfortunately......I cant. The training was done.Vacation time locked down. Babysitter booked. Hotel paid for. A race to be ran.........

But as I sit here in freezing Cleveland, Ohio, I'm sad to report that I never made it to Florida. Someone....somewhere did NOT want me to run this race. Yesterday my Mom picked me up for the airport at 5:50am in a total white out blizzard. I get there and find out that my flight has been cancelled (shocking!). They rebook me for a flight later that afternoon. I return home for a few hours and take a quick nap while the baby is down. My phone rings.... flight has been canceled and they have scheduled me something for Saturday afternoon. I look outside at the blistery weather and think "theres no way I'm staying in this hell hole until tomorrow!". I call Delta and demand that they find a different flight to help me escape this mess. Success!!! A 5:00pm flight that re-directs through NYC and lands in Orlando at 11pm. ANYTHING to get me out of here. I show up to the airport around 3:30 and am waiting in line to check in. After 40 minutes of waiting.....I realize that flight has been canceled as well. Exhausted....I walk over to the ticket agents and they start typing a hundred miles an hour.


"Sorry...the soonest we can get you to Orlando is Sunday"

Well that simply wont work..the race is Sunday morning at 5:45 am!

"Can you drive to Detroit?"

OMG...if Cleveland wasn't bad enough....

After lots of back and forth and checking this and that....a spot opened up for a Saturday morning flight!!! SUCCESS!!! She plugged me in real quick (meanwhile they were telling the guy next to me he would have to fly stand by for that same flight). She printed my boarding passes...said I was already checked in..and just to arrive an hour early because all I had to do was go through security and walk to my gate. Easy enough right?

3:40 am my alarm clock goes off. I thrust myself out of bed and get ready. I hop into the car and off I go. I arrive at the airport with plenty of time and decided not to check any of my bags. I used bags that could smoosh into the cabin storage and figured it would be cheaper and easier just to carry my gear with me. I get to the security check point to find that there is only 1 agent.....ONE!...and the line is wrapped all the way around and up the stairs. After 25 minutes of waiting..I start getting nervous. I look down and see that I have a first class ticket and I can bypass most of the line!!! SUCCESS!!! I get through security and they tell me my flight is gate D. Without checking twice I start heading that way (knowing D is about 3 buildings away and the furthest gate and I only have about 15 minutes now). I start sprinting as fast as I can with both bags.....Gate D to the right....Gate D to the left.....Gate D up these escalators...Gate D down these escalators...Gate D to this way...etc. I'm running as fast I can with both bags bouncing up and down on my back. I get over to Gate D and its like a deserted island. Not a soul to be found. WTF?????

I turn around and start sprinting back when I hear "Last call for flight 2069 to Atlanta...paging Christine Moore...last call" I quickly find a worker and ask where the Delta gate is and he says oh...its gate A! At this point I am sprinting as fast as I possibly can and keep repeating in my head "you trained for this...you got this!" However the only thing that was coming out of my mouth was "f$ck you! f$ck you!" You should have seen people dodging to get out of my way. I'm pretty sure I just took the terrorist alert from orange to red. I could already feel lactic acid building up in my legs as I pushed them faster and faster and faster. I get to gate A and all I see is American Airlines planes. I finally find a screen and look up my flight.....its at gate B. I look down at my watch....it left 10 minutes ago. I'm standing at concourse A with sweat pouring out of me. My shirt is soaked, my jacket is soaked, and now I can feel the tears coming on as well. My legs are shaking..my heart is pounding..and I'm pretty sure my cardiac enzymes were elevated and may have suffered a slight heart attack. I knew at this point I was done...I was not meant to run this race.

I sit down to gather myself and take a couple deep breaths. (Figured my ischemic heart needed a little oxygen before anymore activity). I walked over to the ticketing agent and they confirmed that every flight is booked solid..theres no way I can get to Florida until Sunday unless I start driving now. I'm standing there wondering if I really have the strength to walk back into my house and put away all the summer clothes I had packed.


So now....I plan to go buy a blow up palm tree and sit it here next to my recliner. I'm going to lay here all day with my sunglasses on and the fire going....and instruct the babysitter to pretend like I'm not here. I might even go tanning........

and just maybe...I'll set my alarm for 4:00am tomorrow and get up and run 13.1 miles in 23 degrees!!




not likely!

Friday, February 4, 2011

Invites

Heres a quick sample of what we did for Carson's invites...I blanked out our address because we dont appreciate un-announced internet visitors :)
He really went to town! I'm a little scared for his love of cake at 10.5 months old. Not a good thing!!

I have a long run tomorrow...did a little 2.5 miler today. Its been super cold/icy/windy/slushy/miserable here lately. I'm sure you've all heard (wah..wah...wah...). Its scary to think I started this blog in Georgia and somehow ended up in the depths of freezing hell (Ohio). But I guess I try to make the best of it...ive contemplated painting a beach mural in front of my treadmill in the basement! haha. Happy Friday ya'll!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Frosting covered...

This was an absolute AWFUL week...followed by a very busy weekend. Everything about this week was terrible including my 7:30 c-section in which the patient could feel the entire surgery..EEEK! The spinal went in well..but the patient had a previous spine fracture so the medicine didn't spread as expected. THey tested the spinal and she was numb..but when they got elbow deep in guts & baby...she could feel everything! We ended up having to give her a lot of drugs to get her through the surgery (one which produces hallucinations)...so the rest of the c-section was followed by me answering the same questions over and over and over and over and over again.
Patient: "Where is Rick?"
Me: He went to tell your family about the news of the baby
Patient: "Where is Rick?"

You get the point. I think we discussed 7 times that the baby weighed 7 lbs 2 oz..which everytime she said "NO WAY!! That is what I guessed!" I thought it would be rude to quit answering her questions...so i just went along with that fun game. This example sums up how the entire week went...and then this weekend was jam packed full of :
bowling/play group/massage/bridesmaid dress shopping/ dinner w friends at our house/ church/ running/ family pictures/ church community group/ laundry/ bills etc


The highlight......definitely taking "smash cake" pictures of Carson for his first birthday invites. I will post pictures as soon as I have them. That kid was fisting his cake in his mouth faster than we could take pictures. I had to keep telling the photographer " I swear we don't feed him cake at home" because he knew exactly what to do with it. And even as we were trying to clean him up..he was picking up crumbs on the floor and shoveling it into his mouth!! Adorable!

Oh wait...you said this is a running blog? I did do 5 miles outside today..and it was awful :) nuff said :)