Bathtime is Getting Wild Up in Here

Little Mister has decided bathtime is a great opportunity to give his momma a heart attack.  He now regularly stands in the tub and I spend the entire time having heart palpitations and worrying he will fall.  Today when he turned to sit back down he slid backward and his face went under water for a moment.  Talk about me freaking out!  He was only upset for a moment and then was over it, thankfully.  After that I made sure I had a hand hovering on either side of him.  I don't want to stifle his curiosity and force him to sit, but goodness it's nerve wracking.

I had a hard time getting a G rated photo of him standing in the tub!

 

Goober boy loves to pull things off the side of the tub.  One of his favorite things to do is pull down the water bucket and pretend to drink out of it.  He even smacks his lips after doing so, pretending whatever was in the bucket was scrumptious.  Then he scoops it down into the water and puts it up to his lips drinking out of it.  When we start using soap and it gets in the bath water I have to take his prized toy away.  He's quite good natured about it and takes off in the other direction to pull everything else off the side of the tub.  As Carter becomes more and more mobile I'm sure bathtime will become increasingly more fun!  For now I'm just happy to have some seated playtime while bathing him.

Speaking of the bathroom, Carter has discovered the toilet.  During winter break I went into the laundry room to switch clothes over from the washer to the dryer, leaving Carter in his bedroom.  When I walked back down the hall I discovered Carter kneeling at the toilet.  He was lifting the toilet lid over and over.  It was so funny that I let him do it until he started to put his hand down into the water.  He's such a little charmer.  When I told him no, he turned toward me and flashed me a sweet smile.  We're gonna struggle with that as we get older.  As in momma's gonna have a hard time getting onto his sweet little face!  See for yourself.  Could you say no to that smile?

Back at It

Today was my first day back at work and Carter's first day back at daycare since Christmas break.  Thanks to yesterday's snow day we had 17 glorious days home together!  Just so I'll remember next time around with Baby #2 it still hasn't gotten much easier.  The longer I am at home the harder it is to go back.  I'm afraid I'll look back and remember things with a rosy tint like I typically do.  Then I'll wonder why it's so hard the second time around.

Ready to make some important calls on the car ride this morning.

This morning was tough for me and involved a few tears.  When we walked into daycare and Carter saw the other kids he started laughing.  I felt a bit better because I guess deep down I was a little nervous about his transition back into daycare.  I set him down on the floor and he immediately took off crawling around.  He even went over to a baby laying on the floor on a Boppy and touched her head with a little bit too much force.  Knowing Carter was having fun helped, but I still missed him so much!

Taking off at daycare.

It was so great to see all my students and they sure know how to start my day of nicely.  I was greeted with giant smiles and big hugs as they walked through the door.  They were so excited to share news of toys they got or activities they did over break, so I gave them each a sticky note to write something to me when they finished their morning work.  I loved reading through the notes.  I can't say enough how precious my kiddos are!  Nothing can beat walking into Carter's daycare and seeing him after a day at work.  It is the most amazing feeling.  Now making it out to the car is the hard part because it means I have to put Carter in his car seat and no longer get to hold him.  Today he napped on our ride home which was perfect because he was ready to boggie down when we got home. 

These sweet smiles make my day!

The best part of my day was when Ty arrived home.  I always cheer, clap, and excitedly say daddy to get Carter jacked up when Ty walks in.  Today before I started the regular cheer squad, Carter heard Ty say something to Harper as he walked in and immediately took off toward the hallway and speed crawled to him.  It was the sweetest thing!  I love my boys!

The highlight of our evening playtime was Carter with the dishwasher.  It is one of Carter's favorite toys these days.  Anytime the dishwasher is open he excitedly crawls over, pulls up on it, stares at his reflection, and be bops around.  It is hysterical to watch, especially when he hikes his leg up and attempts to climb on top of it.  You will have to forgive the length of the video I took while he was playing with the dishwasher.  One of the main reasons why I take videos on my phone is so I can watch them at work when I miss Carter and have no kids around.  Basically when I'm walking back from dropping the kids off in specials or lunch, plan time, and my lunchtime.  Just hearing his voice perks me up!

Another Snow Day

We had a snow day today.  Yesterday we got some snow and ice, but not very much.  School was most likely canceled due to the freezing temperatures.  This morning when I checked the temperature was 3 degrees and with the wind chill it felt much colder.  By 3:00 pm the temperature was 15 degrees and with the wind chill it felt like 8 degrees.  Carter and I didn't go outside to play in the snow today, but we did go out yesterday.  Uncle Jeremy came over and played with us, pulling Carter in the sled and pushing the sled down a small hill in our backyard.  Carter had a blast but got tired toward the end.

I'm a bit bummed we only have one built in snow day left.  After that we will either have to go to school for a few days longer at the end of the year or add minutes to the end of the school day.  Neither of those options are appealing to me so I hope we don't have any more inclement weather!  That being said, I loved my day home with Carter so much!  Having another day added to the end of Christmas break was perfect.  I'm still not ready to drop Carter off at daycare and go back to work tomorrow, but I never will be! 

Hanging out with Uncie Jeremy.

Snuggling with daddy after being in the cold.

I finally got a picture of Carter's nose scrunch smile!

What I'm Loving About Carter These Days

I love how Carter is changing this month.  We are getting glimpses of other personality traits.  When I try to give him a food he doesn't want, he makes an unpleasant noise as he tosses the food on the floor.  He's also picking up new tricks.  I'm still obsessed with how he wrinkles his nose when he smiles, but have yet to catch it on camera.  Now he's all about sharing food.  He will hold his hand out, offering me food.  I'll lean in and eat the food.  Then he eventually starts feeding me out of his own mouth.  It is absolutely adorable!  You know that saying, "One man's trash is another man's treasure"?  Well, Carter's version of it is, one man's trash is the same man's treasure!  He drops unwanted food which ends up in his bib and then when I pull the tray off his high chair, he eats the food he hadn't wanted earlier.

Sharing noodles from his bib.

 

He's getting around much better now.  He's still working on his balance, but is able to walk with some help.  We hold his hands to help him walk around.  He can also walk while holding onto his car which converts into an almost upright position.  He's still a bit unsure but is gaining confidence every day.  He's started cruising while holding onto the furniture which he was afraid to do before.  There have even been a couple of times where he let go of the furniture and stood for a little while.  I think walking is in our near future!  I am super excited about it and am really looking forward to those first unaided steps! 

All the sudden he's decided he doesn't want to lay down for diaper changes anymore.  He almost instantly rolls over to his tummy and either takes off crawling or pushes up to a stand.  When he's standing he stares out the window and holds onto the blinds for support.  When he's wearing disposables it's pretty easy, but when he's wearing cloth diapers with all the snaps...  It doesn't go very well!  I'm thinking it's about time to retire the changing table and convert it into a bookshelf. 

My daily challenge.

Success!

Mr. Man still loves to help me with laundry.  And when I mean help, more like be counterproductive.  When I'm folding, he pulls folded clothing out of the laundry basket.  When I'm switching laundry over from the washer to the dryer he shoves random things into the dryer.  One day he found a dead pill bug from who knows where and put it in the dryer (luckily I saw him and pulled it out).  Then he reached in and pulled the drier sheet out.  I can tell he wants to help and I know he'll be a great laundry helper when he gets older.

Wait, you wanted this in the dryer?

Dancing has to be my favorite thing he does.  I crack up every single time.  He is just too cute shakin his groove thing.  I just wish it would last longer.  When he hears a song he dances for the first 15-30 seconds and then he's done.  When the tv is on in the background he'll dance to commercial jingles.  He loves his My Pal Scout and the songs.  He also loves the songs that play on his car and his Laugh and Learn Learning Home.  Sometimes he pulls up on furniture to really shake it by bouncing up and down.

It does my heart good how much he loves books.  When we play in his room his favorite thing to do is crawl over to the book shelf and pull books off.  He loves flipping through the books, reading to himself.  I used to take Carter's fingers and run them over the pages of touch and feel books.  Now he'll reach out to feel the special parts of the pages on his own.  He especially loves and notices pages with fake fur.  His favorite touch and feel books are Pat the Bunny and That's Not My Bunny... Yesterday he pulled a touch and feel book off the shelf and flipped through the pages touching each of the special parts of the pages.  It was so cute to watch!

    

Carter is so much fun and picks things up so quickly.  Just in a few short days he's gone from wobbling along as he walked with his upright car to steady walking as he cruises on the couch.  I love my little man and am so excited to see what he'll be up to next!

Officially Weaned

Carter has been fully weaned for about a week now.  It's hard to believe that it's only been a week.  It seems like it has been longer.  I guess because we've been slowly taking out nursing sessions one at a time.  It was easy in the sense that Carter was ready.  He didn't mind each time I dropped a nursing session.  There were a couple days at bedtime when he reached for my shirt and pulled on it and then dived into my chest with his mouth open, but other than that he didn't even seem to notice.

My sweet, easy going, little boy!

Thank goodness Carter made the transition easy because it was hard for me.  I thought I was fine with it and convinced myself I was excited for the independence it would create, but I was sad deep down.  I didn't realize it until I called the milk bank I have been donating to.  I had planned to continue pumping until I had enough milk to make one last donation.  I was at 40 ounces, needed at least 50 more to donate, and I knew there was no way it was happening.  So I called to let them know I wouldn't be able to make another donation.  When I got off the phone Ty could tell from my mood I was upset.  He was worried the worker had tried to make me feel bad for not donating anymore.  I assured him that was not the case and then I began crying.  That's when I realized I wasn't upset about not making another donation, I was upset to be totally done breast feeding.  As much as I hated to pump, I wasn't quite ready to let go.

Nursing was what I loved.  I loved the snuggle time with Carter.  I loved that it provided me with a chance to hold him even when we had visitors vying for him.  I loved that I was providing Carter with antibodies and reducing his risk for asthma and allergies.  It really wasn't ever too painful for me and I never had any complications such as mastitis or thrush.  The only pain I had breast feeding other than when I first started was when Carter would bite me!  So it was hard to say good bye.  Not just because I loved to nurse, but because it meant Carter was a little less of a baby, a little more of a toddler, and just a smidgeon more independent.

Now that Carter's been fully weaned for a week I'm so glad.  He's such a big boy and loves to drink from his sippy cup.  He is completely off bottles.  He's been drinking from a sippy cup at daycare and at home for almost a month now.  I decided to go ahead and use up the frozen milk I still had in the freezer before introducing him to cow's milk and we finished off the last bag today. 

I've been finding joy in the little advantages of weaning.  Things like being able to wear a regular bra instead of a nursing bra, wearing dresses that I didn't before because the only way for Carter or my pump to gain access was by lifting the whole dress, and most importantly NO MORE PUMPING!!!!  I have such a love/hate relationship with that thing.  It's heavy, it's cumbersome, I had to take it to and from work every day, it's hard to hear over, I got tired of cleaning the parts every day.  I'm sure I could write a whole post about why I'm so glad to be done pumping!  But it allowed me to do something that was so important to me, provide Carter with breast milk after I went back to work which means the world to me.  So although I did a happy dance once I'd washed and sterilized all the parts one last time and packed that baby away in Carter's closet not to return until a far distant day, I do look at it lovingly.  I feel like that sucker (didn't intend to make that pun, but laughed as I re-read) and I have been through a lot.

I'm sure weaning a baby is never an easy feat, but it has to be said that weaning during the holidays is just not fair.  Going from burning all those extra calories a day to sweets, treats, and delicious food around all the time has been rough on my midsection.  I figured when I weaned I would gain a few pounds back and I've done that and more.  I've gained 5 pounds since we started the weaning process, I'm sure most of it due to my overindulgence during the holidays.  Now I'm 3 pounds under pre-pregnancy weight instead of 8 so I guess I can't kick myself too much!  All that being said, I'd do it all over again in a heart beat.  And hopefully I will some day.

Another Ear Infection

Poor little Carter man has been coughing and stuffy for a little less than a week.  I knew it was just a cold and since he wasn't running a temp, I was just waiting for it to run it's course.  Yesterday he started running a low-grade temp between 99.4-100.4 degrees.  I became worried he had an ear infection.  The last time he had a cold he ended up with an ear infection due to the drainage moving into his ears. 

We've been doing a lot of this.

 

I took him to the doctor today so they could check his ears.  When the doctor walked in I realized there was a stand in for our normal doctor.  He must still be on vacation.  Our doctor really has a way with Carter.  Carter has never struggled away from him as his ears were checked before.  This time he pitched a fit when the doctor tried to look.  I'm sure it was also because his ear hurt so badly.  She had me pick him up and hold him so she could see into his ear.  He still turned his head this way and that so she couldn't get a good look.  The nurse offered to help restrain Carter so we were back to that awful situation like last time.  The nurse restraining Carter while I held down his legs and struggled to hold in tears.  I could feel that awkward feeling bubbling up inside me where I was either going to laugh or cry.  Luckily I did neither and the doctor confirmed what I was afraid of, Carter has a double ear infection.

You can tell by those little eyes that he's sick.

This makes Carter's 3rd ear infection in 12 months.  That's not the best record, one ear infection every 4 months.  His last ear infection was in November.  Our regular doctor told us during Carter's previous ear infection that we'd see how this winter goes and then decide if Carter needs ear tubes.  I'd say it's not off to a good start.  I hate to see Carter have surgery, but if getting tubes would be the best thing for him of course I would do it.

We've had a rough go of it with ear infections.  His first ear infection didn't clear up with medication.  I had to take him back into the doctor and he gave Carter shots since the medicine didn't work.  During his next ear infection he broke out in a rash and we discovered he was allergic to Amoxicillin.  I'm crossing my fingers, my legs, and my toes that this one will clear up without any incidents or complications.  Wish us luck!

Taking the Plunge into 2014!

Happy New Year!  Yesterday was quite the day!  I went to bed at 2:15 am after all of our New Year's Eve fun at the Race into the New Year 5k and then Carter woke up at 6:30 am.  I was very tired and didn't want to get up at all!  Funny how just a few short months ago I was rejoicing in 4 hour stretches of sleep, now I am so groggy and disappointed!  I can totally wait for baby #2, that's for sure!  I'm getting used to this sleep thing and it's pretty nice!  Ty got up to go to the bathroom so I asked him to bring Carter into our bedroom when he came back.  Instead of getting up at 6:30 am, I laid in bed and quietly played with Carter so Ty could go back to sleep.  At 7:00 Carter started pulling my hair really hard so I decided we should get up.

Playing with my party hat from New Year's Eve.

We ate breakfast and played for a while before my dad came in and offered to watch Carter so I could go back to bed.  The hardest part of getting up with Carter is actually getting out of bed.  Once I'm up, I'd rather be up.  Even though I'd had 11 straight days home with Carter, I still didn't want to miss any precious time with him!  So we were all playing when my mom got up and came in to play too.  After about 3 hours Carter started getting really tired and went down for a nap.  We all quickly rushed back to bed to catch some extra sleep along with him.  Ty was still asleep so I hopped back into bed with him.  He didn't even bat an eye, he sleeps so hard!

Reading with Grampy.

Carter napped for an hour and when he woke up I talked Ty into getting up with him so I could nap a little bit longer.  I was confused about an hour later when Ty brought Carter into our room to wake me up.  He explained that we needed to leave for the Polar Bear Plunge in a little bit.  After laying for a while I finally got up to get ready. 

My dad and Ty were both registered to run the race which consisted of 2 miles and 3 swimming pools.  Yep, that's right, swimming pools.  Racers jump into 3 different pools of freezing water during a 2 mile run.  When they had signed up I was 50/50 on whether I wanted to run with them.  I hate, I mean absolutely hate, being cold.  I took ice baths every day in high school and college after cross country and track practice.  One time in high school a teammate added the ice to the water (in her defense, I did it for her every day).  After 2 minutes in the bath I was still miserable.  There was something about the 2 minute mark and ice baths, after that it becomes bearable.  Well, this time it didn't, so I asked her what the temp was.  She proudly replied, "34 degrees" at which point I told her she was nuts and jumped out of the ice bath.  I kid you not I put on layer after layer of clothing, drank hot chocolate, even ran around my block in 70 degree weather, and I was still freezing all night long.  My legs were splotchy and purple.  I equated that experience with all cold water experiences and decided not to sign up. 

Friday evening when Ty came home from work he informed me there were still openings for the race (the past 2 years it filled up).  At that point I started toying with the idea of running the race.  By New Year's Eve I'd decided if there were still spots open, I would sign up on race day.  When I crawled out of bed after my nap I wasn't sure there would still be spots left, but I decided to dress in race wear just in case.  I put on shorts, an underarmour top, thin quick wicking socks, and my old pair of running shoes.  I also made sure to pack a bag full of warm gear to change into after the race.  I figured the key to not freezing my tush all day long was changing into tons of layers after the race and drinking something warm.  Jeremy came over to spectate along with mom and we all headed out for the race. 

Upon arriving at the course, I hopped out of the car and ran up to the tent to see if I could still register.  I was a bit surprised that there were still openings left.  I filled out the form, paid my entry fee, and came to the realization that I was going to freeze my hiney along with dad and Ty!  When everyone else met me at the tent we realized there were 2 heats, a 1:00 heat and a 1:30 heat.  Ty and dad were in the 1:00 heat since they had pre-registered and I was in the 1:30 heat since I was a late registrant.  We talked with the race director and she said it was okay for Ty and dad to switch heats to run with me, but I couldn't switch heats to run with them since the first heat was full.  She said it was a crowd control issue which made sense because you can't have too many people jumping into the pool at a time!  Dad and Ty decided to switch heats to run with me, but I could tell dad was anxious to get the race over with!

Waiting for the race to start.

We waited around for a while before the 1st heat started and saw some interesting costumes.  The race also had a costume contest.  My personal favorite was a man wearing a polar bear costume and riding a unicycle!  As the 1st heat finishers began to trickle in, I wasn't too worried.  The first few finishers looked really good and didn't look too miserable.  I paid attention to the first female finisher in the heat.  She finished in 20:30.  Then as more runners began to cross the line, they were looking more cold and more miserable.  I saw some finishers with bright red skin.  I figured that's exactly what I would look like!

 

As we were standing at the starting line awaiting the gun I looked down at my legs and I already had goosebumps!  When we started the race the temperature was in the mid-40's, so we were really lucky, but it was still a bit cold to be jumping in water!  Dad and my plan was to take off quickly so we were overheated by the time we reached the pools.  The race went out in the opposite direction of the pools and then turned around and you ran past all the pools before turning and entering the first pool.  The entire path was soaked with water from the heat before us.  I knew we ran 1.25 miles before the first pool.  My legs were still pretty sore from running a 5k only 12 hours before, so I was starting to welcome the first pool, knowing I would get to slow down once I hit the pools.  Dad and I ran together and there were only 4 men in front of us.  We were told to wear as little clothing as possible into the pools, so I took off my underarmour and threw it to mom as we ran by (After going into the first pool, I think that was a mistake).  By the time we got to the first pool there was only one runner ahead of us. 

Ty looked like he was having fun!

That first pool was by far the worst.  As I said before, I have taken plenty of ice baths in my day so I was prepared for what it would feel like.  I knew that once really cold water reaches above your belly button your body goes into panic mode, your breathing gets shallow and you begin to hyperventilate, your body warns you that you will die if you don't remove yourself from the situation.  So I was expecting all of those things, but I had never fully submerged my body in freezing cold water, so I was still caught off guard.  I jumped down into the pool and as I resurfaced I was struggling to breath.  As I gasped for breath, I accidentally swallowed some water and began to choke.  It was at that time that I realized I somehow had to swim and make it to the other end of the pool.  I did a sorry looking doggy paddle all the way over to the stairs and was able to pull myself out of the pool.  It wasn't until after the race that I found out dad had dived into the water (crazy but genius) so he didn't resurface until he was about half-way across the pool!

Hopping down right at the edge of the pool.

Resurfacing after his dive.

After the first pool as I began to run again I was surprised that my legs weren't as numb as I thought they'd be.  Getting out of an ice bath (I always stayed in for 10 minutes) it's hard to move and as your feet touch the ground, there's a weird sensation that travels through your legs.  I was expecting that feeling, but hadn't thought about the fact that I was in the water for a much shorter amount of time.  I was also amazed at how quickly my body began to warm back up in between the pools.  During the run between the 1st and 2nd pool I was dreading the 2nd pool just a bit.  I couldn't decide what I should do.  Was jumping straight in like I had on the first pool the best way to do it?  I finally decided to just do it the same way again.  When I jumped into the 2nd pool my body didn't panic nearly as much as it had in the 1st pool and it was much easier to swim across.  As I pulled out of the 2nd pool I was closing in on the guy leading our heat.  He struggled after getting out of the pools each time and I would catch up to him a little bit more in between each one.

Looked like Ty got a running start.  I wish I'd thought of that, I just plopped in!

As we approached the 3rd pool volunteers were yelling out instructions.  I had caught up to the guy in front of me and we entered the pool at the same time.  The race medals were on the bottom of the pool, so you had to dive down to the bottom to retrieve your medal.  I had registered late enough that I was instructed not to take a medal.  If they had enough no-shows they would hand me a medal after I crossed the finish line.  So I by-passed the medals and swam my way across, making it through all of the soda and beer cans floating in the pool waiting to be grabbed and carried to the finish line.  After the race my mom told me Ty had stopped and sifted among the beer cans (in the freezing water) to choose the beer he wanted! 

Searching for the beer he wanted.

I came out of the pool in front, but wasn't sure where to go.  As I stopped to ask a volunteer, the man I had just passed sprinted around me.  I took off chasing after him, but he already had a decent lead since I had to pick up speed after coming to a complete stop.  I caught up right behind him as we neared the finish line, but just couldn't over take him.  It was the strangest feeling sprinting while my legs were numb!  I guess enough runners chickened out and didn't show up for the race because I was handed a medal as I crossed the finish line in just over 19 minutes.  I watched dad and Ty finish and then hurried to the car to change.  I still felt warm somehow, but then began shivering as I changed my clothes in the car.  I put on an underarmour top, a fleece long sleeve, a sweatshirt, 2 pairs of sweat pants, a regular pair of socks, a knee-high pair of socks, dry shoes, gloves, a head band, and a stocking cap.

Carter helping to warm his mommy!

Between Carter, mom, and Jeremy, we had the best spectators!

We met back up with Ty in the tent and I immediately got a cup of hot chocolate.  After about 5 cups of hot chocolate and some Carter snuggles I was finally warm again!  Ty claimed he never got too cold after the race, but I think that was due to the shot of Peppermint Schnapps and multiple beers he drank before the race.  Overall we had a blast and I would definitely run the race again!  Now I'm tempted to do it again when it's colder (in the 20's or 30's) to see what a difference that would make.

The race finishers.  The medals were huge, Ty said they were 6.5 inches!

Racers and spectators together!

Ty has been wanting to do this race for years and I never understood why and always thought he was a bit nuts, even yesterday as I signed myself up, but it was a blast!  I introduced Ty to running and he introduced me to races I would never have chosen to run, like the Warrior Dash, the Color Run, and the Tough Mudder (which we will run together in May).  We work so well together, stretch each other, and make each other better!  I love that!  We may have welcomed 2014 in a bit of a crazy way, but that's totally our style!  I'm so excited for a crazy, fun, and full of love 2014!

Our New Year's Eve

Carter and I began our New Year's Eve at home together.  I felt so lucky spending another day at home with him!  I put him in an extra adorable outfit for the occasion.  We read and played all morning and then he went down for a nap.  Ty only worked a half-day so he was home around noon to eat lunch with us.

After lunch we took Harper on a walk with Carter in the stroller.  It was so nice to spend some extra time with Ty.  We had the chance to talk and joke with each other.  Shortly after we returned home Ty headed out to get a haircut.  While he was gone my parents arrived and then my brother, Jeremy, came a bit later.  We all went out to dinner at Panera.  We wanted to eat a light dinner since we were racing later in the night.  Carter made a huge mess at dinner.  There wasn't a bib in Ty's diaper bag and sitting in a high chair with no tray always leads to a bigger mess than usual. 

Carter on New Year's Eve last year.

At home we sat around and talked for a while before we needed to leave for the race.  My parents, Jeremy, and I were all signed up for the Race Into the New Year 5k.  The race begins at 11:45 pm so you are running as it changes to the next year.  I ran the race back in 2011 with Ty and my parents.  We were debating whether to sign up for it last year since my due date was January 9th and decided to sign up race day if we did run.  Thank goodness we didn't sign up ahead of time because we had a new born on New Year's Eve last year!  Ty offered to stay home with Carter since he was registered for a race the following day.  More on that race to come tomorrow.

All dressed and ready for the race.

Ty all situated with the monitor and ready for his night in with Carter.

I'll start the race re-cap off by saying it is the most fun race I have ever run.  It is just a blast.  The atmosphere, running through the dark, knowing the new year is starting as you sweat your way to the finish.  It is just awesome.  We also got blinky light rings and New Year's hats.  The race had 500 runners so there were quite a few people, but it wasn't too packed.  Jeremy and I jogged a mile warm-up together.  I was feeling great during the warm-up which was exciting.  My training has been a bit blah since the Jenks Half-Marathon we ran in November.  I had 2 weeks of just two or three runs and hadn't done speed work in a while.  I wasn't sure what to expect for the race so I decided to shoot for 22 minutes.  I figured I'd go out in 7:00 pace and try to pick it up from there.

We took off and I was feeling great.  I peeked at my Garmin a couple of times during the first mile and saw I was averaging under 7:00 pace.  My first mile was 6:52.  I was afraid I would really struggle during the 2nd mile, but I figured I'd maintain the pace for as long as I could.  The race really thinned out after the 1st mile and I could only see one person quite a ways ahead of me.  I just kept trying to push the pace a little bit.  I could hear someone coming up behind me for about half a mile and when he finally caught up to me he had a really bright light which was nice because I could see the course really well.  My 2nd mile was 6:47.

During the 2nd mile they started shooting off fireworks indicating it was midnight.  I was crossing a bridge over the river as the fireworks were going off.  It was beautiful watching the fireworks both in the sky and reflected in the water.  My plan was to run my last mile the fastest so I started pushing as much as I could.  I ran my 3rd mile in 6:44.  That put my finishing time at 21:20, an average of 6:48 per mile.  I was pleasantly surprised that my time was only 15 seconds slower than my 5k in November.  Now I'm optimistic that I can break 21 minutes later this winter or in the spring!

After the race Jeremy and I ran around with our noise makers cheering on runners.  It was a blast!  I barely had time to change my clothes in the car and on my way back heard them announcing top overall finishers for awards.  I was rounding the corner as they announced I had finished 3rd overall female.  I weaved my way through the crowd to get my award and saw my mom and Jeremy standing at the front of the crowd.  When I met up with them I saw Jeremy had finished 3rd overall male.  We both got New Years hats, a medal, and a gift card to a running store.  We stayed for all of the awards.  I was 2nd in my age group, Jeremy won his age group, and mom and dad were both 3rd in their age groups.  We left to head home a little bit after 1:00 am.

With our 3rd overall finisher awards.

Everyone in the family went home with a medal!  Check out Jeremy's blinky ring!

Ty was waiting up for us when we got home so we could all cheer the new year together.  We drank a glass of champagne, ate some pie, and then I showered and got ready for bed.  When I finally made it to bed it was 2:15 am.  It was the latest I had been up in an extremely long time!  I knew Carter's 6:30-7:00 am wake up call was going to come WAY too fast!  

Woo hoo 2014!!!!