Morning photos

The other day R and I were having fun rolling his little tractor back and forth on the kitchen table. I took a few photos and wanted to share. Here they are :)

Life is hectic

I've started three other posts, and the thoughts and words just haven't been flowing. I try to have some kind of theme for each of my posts, but the only thing that I can think about is how busy we are. So, this post will pretty much be a disjointed update of all the things going on in our lives. 

I got the stomach flu Wednesday last week, 4 days before my half marathon. That really threw me off, and I ran the half marathon still feeling queasy and not at my full energy potential (i.e. 75% instead of 100%). In hindsight I am so thankful that I was able to stick to my training regimen, or else I wouldn't have been able to make it! We had everyone over the night before the race for a carb-y dinner of lasagna, garlic bread, and salad. It was a lovely evening!

I met my goal of finishing in under 2 hours...squeaking by with a time of 1:57:53. It was a great experience, and I was barely sore the day after, which was amazing! My body had been ready for that kind of stress and mileage.

I unfortunately didn't get many photos :( because my phone had a low battery, and I was using RunKeeper to keep track of my time and mileage. Actually, I got only two photos. I really wanted to get one with John and Rafe, but that didn't happen. Oh well, maybe the next one ;) (photo above is at the start of the race, and then the River Avon).

Rafe started preschool last week (fortunately the same day I got the stomach flu, so I had 3 hours to bond with the toilet without having to worry about my child). It's just once a week for 3 hours. They have various stations with different activities. Apparently Rafe spent his day yesterday playing in the dirt pit with trucks, the water works table, and drawing. He definitely seems to enjoy it, and I'm glad he's able to start hanging out with more kids. He's also really into "helping" these days, which is keeping me on my toes!

Last Thursday another set of guests arrived, and stayed through Sunday (Neil ran the half marathon with me and a few other friends). I don't think I'll ever get tired of showing our friends and family around our village!

On Friday we are actually going down to London to spend just a bit more time with N and M before they leave on Saturday. We got a hotel and will stay overnight, and then meet up with Johnny's parents, sister, and brother-in-law. We'll follow them around to museums or whatever sightseeing they choose until R basically melts down. Johnny's family will join us for a few days later in the week.

So, busy, huh? I love posting a few times each week, but I'm just not sure if that's going to happen this month. I'll post/update when I can, but in the meantime I'm going to enjoy this weather and our guests as they come into town!

Car boot sales and stomach bugs

How was your weekend? Mine started off wonderfully with a girls night out with Rebecca on Friday, and then there was a car boot sale in the meadow across the street from our home that woke us up nice and early Saturday morning (I got about 5.5 hours of sleep thanks to the morning noise).

Luckily it worked out, because we checked out the sale early and scored a cool old map of Northamptonshire (Johnny got some vinyl...if it's within a 5 mile radius, he will sniff it out) and Rafe cried buckets of tears until we paid 50p for a "tractor" (backhoe) for him to play with. And yes, we were going to get it for him, but I needed to get some money from Johnny first, resulting in the toddler tears and tantrum. He got it and we were all happy. And he played with it ALL day, added bonus.

I was looking forward to heading to bed early, but Rafe--and his stomach--had other plans. About 45 minutes after he went to bed I heard him crying from upstairs, and I knew by that cry that immediately  something was not normal and went to check it out...he had had his first bout with the stomach flu, poor little guy. It brought back memories of sleeping with a towel over my pillow or beside my bed when I was little with the flu. R only wanted to sleep, he kept saying "ni-night" over and over. So we set up shop in the living room, with his crib mattress on the floor, and Johnny and I took shifts and slept (or didn't sleep) on the sofa next to Rafe. Luckily, it was only during the night, and he is starting to get some of his energy and appetite back throughout the day Sunday.

I went for a shorter long run Saturday, and did well with my time. Oh, and the weather was gorgeous! I finally got to go running in shorts and a t-shirt. Goodbye running leggings that want to fall down, hello shorts that stay on, and hello vitamin D!

I stayed home from church with Rafe yesterday. I'm pretty sure he watched every Curious George episode we have at least once, while I went on a cleaning/disinfecting frenzy (which will probably be continued today). Another run this afternoon/evening, and then I'll wind down my mileage for the race on Sunday...our friends Neil and Megan come in to town on Thursday. Let the games of guests begin!

And this morning: stoic to flirting in seconds. I love my boy :)