Me and The Boys

Highlights From The Past Two Weeks

First - I got LASIK! I can now see without the aid of contacts or glasses, and it is quite simply one of the most amazing things I've ever done. The procedure itself was a piece of cake. I was a little nervous, but the Valium they gave me helped tremendously with that : )  And it was all done in a matter of minutes - literally. I slept for a good portion of the afternoon, am strictly adhering to my regimen of eyedrops, I go for a followup appt. next week, and all is well so far.

I feel great, and my vision is wonderful. I expect the novelty will wear off eventually, but for now, I still get kind of excited to just look up and read a street sign, or glance at the tv, and read something, knowing that it's my eyes reading it all by themselves. And not having to deal with the maintenance of contacts is a treat, too - not to mention how dry and irritated the contacts had been making my eyes. When I was considering getting it done, everyone I talked to who had had it said the same thing - "best thing I ever did."  And now, I would say exactly the same. I still find myself reaching for my glasses when I wake up every morning. And then I smile, because I don't need them anymore!!!

Gabe and Dante got their report cards, and all was just as we expected. They're both doing fine. Dante is exactly where he should be academically, and aside from getting a little too goofy and silly sometimes, he's a great student and has lots of friends and has adjusted very well to Kindergarten.

Gabe is excelling academically, and as we knew, still struggling with maintaining focus and not speaking out of turn. These are the ongoing challenges for him, and that will probably remain true for some time to come. We're fortunate in that it isn't affecting his academics, and I'm hopeful that we can help him get these issues under control before it starts to affect his ability to learn. And at this point, it isn't causing a major distraction for the rest of the class, although his teacher did point out that he's noticed that some students have expressed that they don't want to sit next to Gabe because he is a bit of a distraction for them - and they're also worried that his behavior is going to end up getting them in trouble.

This makes me a little sad, but in a way, I also think it might be a good thing. I don't ever want him to feel like he has to change who he is to make people like him, but this isn't about changing who he is - it's about adapting to the classroom rules and being a respectful member of the community. And I'm kind of hoping that a little taste of peer pressure might give him some more incentive to work harder at controlling his impulses. That being said, I don't want it to get to the point that he feels excluded or ostracized. I'm counting on his teacher to alert us if things seem to be headed in that direction.

On a more positive note, his teacher mentioned how impressed he was with Gabe's creative writing, which was not surprising to hear, but still nice to hear. He is quite the writer, and I love to read his stories, and that's something I think we need to encourage him to do more - as long as he's not doing it at 10:00 at night!

Carmine is our little monster, growling and yelling and generally acting very much like a two-year-old. When we walk into the karate studio for Dante's lesson every week, Carmine throws a punch and yells 'aaiiyahh!' 

He's picking up on everything now, and is getting smarter by the day. We have a new tradition now, too. When it's naptime, he likes to wimper and say 'no, no, no,' even though he loves to nap, and usually sleeps for a good two hours. So when he starts to protest, I tell him that we need to go upstairs and find Mickey. So he puts his hands up to his mouth and yells "Where are you, Mickey?" and we head upstairs and peek around the corner of his room, and he grins and says "boo!"  Then we scoop up Mickey, he gives him big hugs, I give Carmine big hugs, then he gets all snuggled in his crib and talks himself to sleep.

I'm fairly certain he's going to be another night owl like Gabe, too, seeing as how he often stays up until 9pm (and a few times, even later!), just talking and singing and playing in his crib. It's all perfectly fine now that he's in his crib and can't get out, but once he moves to a big-boy bed and can get up, I fear that we're really going to be in for it. This is why we will not be moving him to a big-boy bed until he figures out how to get out of the crib, which will hopefully not happen for a long, long time. 

The upcoming holiday has everyone in quite a tizzy. Gabe and Dante are off the wall - so much more rambunctious than usual, and that's saying something, because they're pretty rambunctious even on their quietest days. I'm at the point now where I just want Christmas to get here, so that all the anticipation and craziness can be over! 

We're bringing them to see Santa this weekend, and they also have the Christmas pageant at church on Sunday - Gabe is an angel, and Dante is a shepherd - sure to be a very cute performance.

The gifts are wrapped, and cookie baking is underway, and as much as they boys are driving me crazy, I do enjoy sharing the holiday excitement with them. I didn't buy them a ton of presents this year, since we got them a Wii. We've been holding out for a while, but decided we'd finally cave and get them one this year. I cannot wait to see the look on their faces when they open it. They're going to be blown away, since we keep telling them that they won't be getting video games for a long, long time. I love surprises : ) 

The Boys

As it always does, the weather around here has gone back and forth this month between cool, dry, fall-like air and warm, humid summer air. On on of those warm days a few weeks ago, we snuck in one last beach outing after school.

I hesitated for a moment on whether or not to do it - it would mean a car full of sand, and sandy children who'd need a lot of washing up when we got home - but it would also mean a few more hours at one of our favorite places - so we went for it. And it was lovely. Scott stopped and got some sandwiches and joined us for dinner, and we had a wonderful night. Well worth the cleanup afterward.

And one of the reasons we were able to just pack up and head to the beach on a weekday afternoon is because the boys are not signed up for ANY activities for the next two months! I debated this for a while, and came so close to signing them up for something, but I'm so, so glad I didn't.

They'll both start up with sports again in November - Gabe in basketball, and Dante in karate - but for the time being, I'm really enjoying not having to rush them out the door when they get home from school. And I'm definitely enjoying not having our Saturday mornings occupied by sports practice.

I know it's good for them to be busy with stuff, and I'm happy to spend my time taking them to all of their activities, because I know they enjoy them. But I think they're enjoying the break, too. They come home from school, have a snack, do their homework, and either play outside or run up to their room and construct elaborate Lego universes.

So I think it was a good decision, especially at this time of year, when they're still getting used to being back in school - and especially for Dante, who's getting used to being in school all day, and is completely exhausted every night. Extreme exhaustion seems to be the main trigger for his night terrors, and he's been having more of them lately, so I know having a little less on his plate right now is a very good thing.

Gabe, on the other hand, is becoming more and more of a night owl, and we have a lot of trouble getting him to go to sleep at night. I don't mind if he stays up and reads quietly, but he had been getting out of bed a lot, and coming downstairs a lot, so we instituted a new system whereby if he goes to sleep after reading quietly for a little while (i.e., he stays in bed and doesn't get up and play with toys, or come downstairs), he gets 15 minutes of computer time the next day.

Two days in, and this seems to be one of the best motivators we've ever found! So we'll be sticking with this system for the foreseeable future. He was getting just as frustrated with the situation as we were, though - he complained to me one day last week that he "just wants to stay up late at night, but.... but.... but..... you just keep catching me!"

He and Dante are both getting so big, it seems unbelievable to me. They went on their first real bike ride with Scott a few weeks ago, and it was amazing to watch the three of them ride off down the sidewalk.

We're so lucky to live so close to a fabulous bike path - they were able to ride out of our neighborhood, down a hill, and straight onto the path, where they proceeded to ride 7 and a half miles! He said they had a blast, and he can't wait to do it again. Next order of business is for us to get a seat or trailer for Carmine, so we can all go for a ride together - maybe even down to the ice cream shop next spring!

Gabe in particular seems to have grown up a lot over the past year. Don't get me wrong - he's still an immature little boy who does plenty of things that are decidedly NOT grown-up - but he's changed an awful lot. And it's not just me who thinks so - when I was picking them up at school last week, the principal came over to tell me that he noticed that Gabe seems to have matured a lot, and to let me know how impressed he was with how well Gabe's doing so far this year. Music to my ears : )

Carmine is also growing up, and is getting a jump-start on the terrible twos. He's a rough-and-tumble little kid, and is constantly yelling and throwing things, and I'm doing everything I can to put an end to it, but it's very difficult when his big brothers sit there laughing hysterically at his antics.

I've even started giving him occasional time-outs if he throws something, and I warned him the other day that if he threw a toy, he'd have to sit in the chair for a time-out. So what did he do? He threw the toy, climbed up and sat in the chair for a minute, climbed down, threw the toy again, then climbed up in the chair again.

We really have our work cut out for us.

In addition to the attitude, Carmine is also going through a horrible bout of separation anxiety, and he's also going through a "all Daddy all the time" phase, which is especially tough since Scott works from home, and every time he pops in and out of his office for something, we have a whole drama with trying to get Carmine detached from him. It's exhausting.

He's also decided that he doesn't like going to the gym daycare, and screams bloody murder when I drop him off. Sometimes they're able to calm him down and I can stay and workout, but other times he doesn't last more than 10 minutes before they have to come get me.

It's incredibly frustrating, since that gym time is the way I structure my days and weeks, and it was also my guaranteed 'alone time' every weekday, and I'm really missing it. I had planned to just keep at it, and keep bringing him most days, figuring that consistency was key, and the more he goes, the sooner he'll get over it. But that doesn't seem to be working, so now I'm wondering if I should take a break and not bring him for a week or two, and hope that when we go back, he's past this phase.

I know he'll get over it eventually, but I hope it's sooner rather than later, because working out every day is really key to maintaining my sanity. Thankfully I've been able to go for my runs early in the morning, so that I'm able to get that training in (especially important now that I'm only a few weeks out from the marathon!), and I have been able to get in a few other workouts each week, but it'll be nice when we can get back to a more regular schedule with it - that's one of the things I was looking forward to most with the start of school. I love summer, but I do much better with a plan and a routine.

The boys are pretty well settled into their school routine now, though, and we're having much less chaos leaving the house in the morning, which is nice. And we have a fun time out at the bus stop. Carmine LOVES waiting for the bus. When he spots it, he points and screams "BUS!  BUS!  BUS!!" 

There have been a few mornings, though, when he got very sad after the boys left. I think he finally realized that when they get on the bus, it means they're going to be gone all day. It broke my heart watching him run down the sidewalk after them.

Luckily he's easily distracted, and a few minutes later I had him laughing and giggling. It seems impossible to imagine, but before I know it, he'll be climbing up those steps himself.....

Better Late Than Never

School finally starts tomorrow - a week late. We're definitely all ready now! 

Supplies are packed in backpacks, lunches are in the fridge, and two little boys are up in their beds, not even close to being asleep.

I've read so many things that advise you to start getting ready for back to school at least a week ahead of time, by moving up bedtime and getting the kids back on a schedule.

And I know it makes good sense, but it also sounds like a real drag. So instead, we packed as much as we possibly could into these last few days of summer - which, for our family, means beach time, more beach time, and then even more beach time! 

Friday was just me and the boys in Narragansett, and we had an awesome time, aside from Gabe getting attacked by a seagull (no joke - a seagull flew down and grabbed his sandwich right out of his hand, and cut his finger in the process!).

Saturday we all went down to Roger Wheeler, and although it was a ltitle cool and very, very windy, we had such a great day.

I decided a few days ago that I would dump all their Happy Meal toys were going to become beach toys, figuring that a few of them would likely be 'accidentally' lost or forgotten in the sand. And I was right. We're already down at least 5 toys - and the boys hardly even noticed.

They did mention something about one of their Batman toys that went missing, and I told them that yes, it probably got buried in the sand, but that some day some other child would discover it on the beach and would be all excited that they found a hidden treasure, and they could bring it home and play with it, and they liked that idea. So, it's all good.

Anyway, the big bag 'o crappy toys (as I call it) proved to be a huge hit! They built fortresses, and bridges, and caves, and tunnels, and their superheroes and smurfs and Sponge Bobs and dinosaurs had countless adventures as the tide rose and receded. It was fabulous to see them playing so nicely, and so intently.

The storm had also washed up lots of driftwood, which added a whole new element to their sand sculptures. 

Saturday night we went to a friends' house for a back-to-school party - an annual tradition, and one we didn't want to miss, even though the boys had already had a very late night at Kids Night Out at the Y the night before.

And after two late nights and two full beach days, we packed up again Sunday morning for one final excursion. We met up with some friends at Narragansett, and soaked up every last bit of sun and sand that we could, and it was glorious. A great way to close out a wonderful beach season : )

I'm sad to see the summer end, but looking forward to getting everyone back on a schedule and back into a regular routine.

I'm also looking forward to wrapping up the final 6 weeks of training, and heading to Hartford to run this marathon!

The training is still taking a lot out of me, but I feel like I've turned a corner mentally. I definitely feel like the end is in sight, and that's made me be able to feel much more excited, and much less fed up with all the training.

I actually felt so positive, and so optimistic about last weekend's 20-miler, but then when I started running, it was just all wrong. I was so tired, and felt so slow, and my hip flexor was not feeling good at all, and it was the first time I ever seriously considered cutting short my long run. I was feeling that bad.

But I stopped for a bathroom break and had a gel at mile 5, and after I got going again, things improved dramatically. By the halfway point, I was feeling downright wonderful!

I was careful to not go too fast during the middle miles of the run - something I've been doing during my last few 20-milers - and maintained a much more consistent pace, and it paid off. I still felt a bit of a slump at the 15-mile mark, but it was nowhere near as bad as it has been.

And my goal for the 20 miles was an 8:53 pace, and I ran 8:52. Doesn't get much better than that!

Last Tuesday's track workout was daunting - even more so than some of the other insane track workouts I've already completed. 3 x (2 x 1200 @ 5:10). And with the insanity of last week's three-day-long power outage, I was feeling completely unmotivated and negative, and absolutely dreading the workout. And I also couldn't run on my regular track, so I was feeling very out of sorts the second I started warming up.

The first two sets of 1200 were awful. I was struggling, and wanting to quit so bad, and ended up a good 8 - 10 seconds over my planned pace. Instead of jogging for my recovery on the next two sets, I walked, and it seemed to help.

I also focused on running a more consistent pace, and that helped a ton. I STILL struggle with going out too fast - in races, in track workouts, and sometimes on long runs, too. Maybe someday I'll learn to get that under control.

The more consistent pacing did the trick, though. And once I got through the second two sets, I knew there were only two left, and I knew I could get them done.

And as it turns out, those were the two best sets of the entire workout. I ran the final 1200 in 4:59!!!!!  My jaw dropped when I saw those numbers on my Garmin. And surprisingly, that final 1200 felt better than any of the other ones I had run.

So, once again, a slow start, but a strong finish. That's definitely the way to do it - much, much better than the other way around!

Thursday's tempo went well, as my tempo runs always do. They're as close as this plan comes to an 'easy run,' so I really enjoy them.

And this past weekend I 'only' had to run 15 miles, which felt blissfully easy after having already run three 20-milers.

The pace was relatively quick - 8:37 (goal was 8:43) - but I felt great the whole time. Some fatigue on the hills, but nothing that slowed me down significantly, and I finished up the run feeling so strong, and so ready for this race.

I know there's still 6 more weeks to go, but it's feeling so much more real now that it's getting closer and closer.

And every week that goes by, I become more and more confident in this training plan. I feel like it's working exactly the way it should, and that all of my responses - physically and emotionally - have been right on target. My pace for the long runs and the track workouts seems perfect - not easy, but still within reach.

And just when I was feeling like I couldn't take any more, and wondering how on earth I'd ever keep up with this level of training for another 6 weeks, I'm suddenly feeling like it's almost over, and I can't believe how quickly the time has flown by.

That confidence can be fleeting, and I have already begun having pre-race jitters, and I cannot even imagine what a wreck I'm going to be when taper rolls around.

But I am very certain that I chose the correct plan, and that I'm following it the way I should, and if everything falls into place the way it should, I will be able to pull this off. 

Better Late Than Never

School finally starts tomorrow - a week late. We're definitely all ready now! 

Supplies are packed in backpacks, lunches are in the fridge, and two little boys are up in their beds, not even close to being asleep.

I've read so many things that advise you to start getting ready for back to school at least a week ahead of time, by moving up bedtime and getting the kids back on a schedule.

And I know it makes good sense, but it also sounds like a real drag. So instead, we packed as much as we possibly could into these last few days of summer - which, for our family, means beach time, more beach time, and then even more beach time! 

Friday was just me and the boys in Narragansett, and we had an awesome time, aside from Gabe getting attacked by a seagull (no joke - a seagull flew down and grabbed his sandwich right out of his hand, and cut his finger in the process!).

Saturday we all went down to Roger Wheeler, and although it was a ltitle cool and very, very windy, we had such a great day.

I decided a few days ago that I would dump all their Happy Meal toys were going to become beach toys, figuring that a few of them would likely be 'accidentally' lost or forgotten in the sand. And I was right. We're already down at least 5 toys - and the boys hardly even noticed.

They did mention something about one of their Batman toys that went missing, and I told them that yes, it probably got buried in the sand, but that some day some other child would discover it on the beach and would be all excited that they found a hidden treasure, and they could bring it home and play with it, and they liked that idea. So, it's all good.

Anyway, the big bag 'o crappy toys (as I call it) proved to be a huge hit! They built fortresses, and bridges, and caves, and tunnels, and their superheroes and smurfs and Sponge Bobs and dinosaurs had countless adventures as the tide rose and receded. It was fabulous to see them playing so nicely, and so intently.

The storm had also washed up lots of driftwood, which added a whole new element to their sand sculptures. 

Saturday night we went to a friends' house for a back-to-school party - an annual tradition, and one we didn't want to miss, even though the boys had already had a very late night at Kids Night Out at the Y the night before.

And after two late nights and two full beach days, we packed up again Sunday morning for one final excursion. We met up with some friends at Narragansett, and soaked up every last bit of sun and sand that we could, and it was glorious. A great way to close out a wonderful beach season : )

I'm sad to see the summer end, but looking forward to getting everyone back on a schedule and back into a regular routine.

I'm also looking forward to wrapping up the final 6 weeks of training, and heading to Hartford to run this marathon!

The training is still taking a lot out of me, but I feel like I've turned a corner mentally. I definitely feel like the end is in sight, and that's made me be able to feel much more excited, and much less fed up with all the training.

I actually felt so positive, and so optimistic about last weekend's 20-miler, but then when I started running, it was just all wrong. I was so tired, and felt so slow, and my hip flexor was not feeling good at all, and it was the first time I ever seriously considered cutting short my long run. I was feeling that bad.

But I stopped for a bathroom break and had a gel at mile 5, and after I got going again, things improved dramatically. By the halfway point, I was feeling downright wonderful!

I was careful to not go too fast during the middle miles of the run - something I've been doing during my last few 20-milers - and maintained a much more consistent pace, and it paid off. I still felt a bit of a slump at the 15-mile mark, but it was nowhere near as bad as it has been.

And my goal for the 20 miles was an 8:53 pace, and I ran 8:52. Doesn't get much better than that!

Last Tuesday's track workout was daunting - even more so than some of the other insane track workouts I've already completed. 3 x (2 x 1200 @ 5:10). And with the insanity of last week's three-day-long power outage, I was feeling completely unmotivated and negative, and absolutely dreading the workout. And I also couldn't run on my regular track, so I was feeling very out of sorts the second I started warming up.

The first two sets of 1200 were awful. I was struggling, and wanting to quit so bad, and ended up a good 8 - 10 seconds over my planned pace. Instead of jogging for my recovery on the next two sets, I walked, and it seemed to help.

I also focused on running a more consistent pace, and that helped a ton. I STILL struggle with going out too fast - in races, in track workouts, and sometimes on long runs, too. Maybe someday I'll learn to get that under control.

The more consistent pacing did the trick, though. And once I got through the second two sets, I knew there were only two left, and I knew I could get them done.

And as it turns out, those were the two best sets of the entire workout. I ran the final 1200 in 4:59!!!!!  My jaw dropped when I saw those numbers on my Garmin. And surprisingly, that final 1200 felt better than any of the other ones I had run.

So, once again, a slow start, but a strong finish. That's definitely the way to do it - much, much better than the other way around!

Thursday's tempo went well, as my tempo runs always do. They're as close as this plan comes to an 'easy run,' so I really enjoy them.

And this past weekend I 'only' had to run 15 miles, which felt blissfully easy after having already run three 20-milers.

The pace was relatively quick - 8:37 (goal was 8:43) - but I felt great the whole time. Some fatigue on the hills, but nothing that slowed me down significantly, and I finished up the run feeling so strong, and so ready for this race.

I know there's still 6 more weeks to go, but it's feeling so much more real now that it's getting closer and closer.

And every week that goes by, I become more and more confident in this training plan. I feel like it's working exactly the way it should, and that all of my responses - physically and emotionally - have been right on target. My pace for the long runs and the track workouts seems perfect - not easy, but still within reach.

And just when I was feeling like I couldn't take any more, and wondering how on earth I'd ever keep up with this level of training for another 6 weeks, I'm suddenly feeling like it's almost over, and I can't believe how quickly the time has flown by.

That confidence can be fleeting, and I have already begun having pre-race jitters, and I cannot even imagine what a wreck I'm going to be when taper rolls around.

But I am very certain that I chose the correct plan, and that I'm following it the way I should, and if everything falls into place the way it should, I will be able to pull this off. 

In The Dark

Today should have been the boys' third day of school. Instead, thanks to Hurricane Irene, it was our third extra day of summer vacation. The start of school has been postponed 'til Tuesday.

We were very fortunate to have been spared any sort of property damage from the storm. We are all safe and sound. We were, however, without power for three full days. Three days is a long time with no power.

The first day wasn't too bad, but after that, it got old really fast.

Thankfully the weather has been beautiful, so we didn't feel the need for air conditioning - the house has been perfectly comfortable without it. And it's been great weather for getting the boys outside to play, so aside from the day of the storm itself, it's not like we've been cooped up in the house.

But still, having no lights, and no refrigerator, and no hot water, and no TV, and three small children - it all adds up to a serious case of the crankies for all involved.

It was so depressing to throw out an entire refrigerator's worth of food, which I had to do Tuesday. We were able to cook and eat a few things before things got too warm, but there was a lot that had to get thrown out. Such a waste.

And I think the lack of power alone wouldn't have been so bad. And the unplanned days off from school alone wouldn't have been so bad.

But the fact that we were all mentally prepared and ready and excited for school to start (no joke - the boys have been complaining all week about not being able to go to school), and ready to get back into our routine, only to have everything turned upside down by this storm - it just really threw us for a loop.

As a result, the past few days have been less than stellar. We've all kind of been getting on each other's nerves, and instead of being positive and focusing on how much fun I can have with my boys now that we have this extra time off, I've just been aggravated and feeling like we're in limbo (a feeling that was exacerbated as we waited each day to find out whether or not there would be school).

And it's left me feeling like a really crappy parent. I should be happy that I get this time with my kids, especially on these gorgeous, late summer days. But instead I've spent the past few days counting down to bedtime. Worst. Mom. Ever.

But now that we finally have our power back, and we know for sure that school is not happening until Tuesday, I'm going to try to turn my attitude around and enjoy our extra vacation time.

We're going to have some friends over tomorrow afternoon. They still don't have power, so I'm glad we can give them at least a ltitle respite from their powerless existence. I restocked our fridge today, so we've got plenty of food and electricity to spare : )

And the weather for the holiday weekend looks pretty good, so we'll definitely be getting in some beach time. And I'm going to soak up the sun, and soak up the time with my adorable, funny, and, yes, occasionally very irritating children.

Gabe had the best one-liner from the past few days. We got our power back around 8pm last night, and we heard everyone in the neighborhood cheering, the refrigerator started humming, and the house lit up like a Christmas tree.

We had literally just closed the boys' bedroom door after putting them to bed, and Gabe came bursting out of his room yelling "Hey - I think the power's back on!!!"  It's a good thing he was there to let us know.

He was so excited to be able to turn on his bedside lamp and read before going to sleep : )

I'm going to direct him toward his dictionary next time he wants to read, so he can look up the meaning of the word 'unpredictable,' because it's become his favorite word, and he seems to think it's got several meanings.

Example 1:  He asked me if we could get ice cream at the beach the other day, and when I said no, he whined "Oh, that's so unpredictable!" 

Example 2: When I told him that school was cancelled yet again, he exclaimed "What??!!! That's so unpredictable!"

Example 3: Dante was doing something to make him mad (as little brothers so often do), and he yelled "Stop it, Dante!  You're so unpredictable!"  Although, in his defense, you never can tell what Dante's going to do next, so he kind of got that one right.

Winding Down

The boys and I checked three items off our Summer Fun List today - 1. Pick blueberries. 2. Movie lunch. 3. Backwards day.  They enjoyed all three, and I enjoyed putting together our backwards day for them. We started with hotdogs and french fries for breakfast - preceded, of course, by dessert (a small piece of chocolate). 

Shirts were worn backwards (they sometimes do this of their own accord anyway, but today it was for a reason!), of course, and we read a book from finish to start. For their movie lunch, I made them sandwiches with ham and cheese on the outside, and a slice of bread in the middle : )  And for dinner, we pulled out all the stops - omelettes, bacon, homefries, and homemade pop tarts. As far as I'm concerned, that was the best part of backwards day.

Actually, the best part was just knowing that they thought it was fun, and cool, and special. That's what makes that stuff worth doing.

Youth track finished up Monday night, in the pouring rain. We left early, but we stayed long enough for each of the boys to do 2 races, and they said it was one of the best track meets ever. As I wrote in the caption of one of the photos I put on Facebook - if I can go out and run 20 miles in the rain, they can certainly run 100 yards in it : ) 

Since they had already spent a good part of the day playing in the pool in the backyard, and running around in the downpours we had on and off all afternoon, they were completely waterlogged, but they were having a blast - Carmine included.

We're always a little sad when track meets are done for the year, but it was so fun to see all three of them out there running this year. Once Carmine realized that people were yelling and clapping and cheering for him, he totally got into it. It'll be fun to see how he does next year!

One thing he will never be accused of is shyness. He LOVES attention, and will stop at nothing to get it. I was taking a picture of him at track Monday night, and just after I took it, Gabe and Dante ran over to sit next to him so I could take a picture of all three of them, and Carmine got very angry, yelled, and pushed them away. I've never seen a child so happy to have his picture taken. My little ham.

Still in disbelief that the start of school is right around the corner. We picked up some school supplies today, and the boys are already discussing Halloween costumes, but I'm still trying to eke out every last bit of summer that we have left. They have a one-day camp tomorrow, and Scott has the day off Friday, so we'll be at the beach that day for sure.

I'm not feeling totally freaked about sending Dante off to Kindergarten, but I think as the day gets closer and closer, that will change. I'm excited for him, though, because he's so excited. He can't wait to be at the same school as his big brother, and he can't wait to ride the bus, and get hot lunch, and go on field trips!  He's been hearing about Gabe doing all this stuff for two years, and he's more than ready to get in on the fun!

I Want To Ride My Bicycle, I Want To Ride My Bike

Lots to catch up on, especially since we are now literally on the verge of summer - Gabe's last day of school is TOMORROW!!!!  I'm both excited and terrified about the impending 8 weeks of unscheduled time. We have plenty of things planned, though, so we'll do our best to keep busy, and hope for lots of nice weather. And I know that before I know it, I'll be lamenting the end of the summer and the beginning of another school year, and wondering how those 8 weeks went by so fast.

The beach is going to be a very different experience this year, though, with Carmine being completely mobile - and fearless. We may not be quite the beach bums we were last year, but we'll still have our fair share of beach days.

This past weekend was the air show in Quonset. Fabulous, as always, especially seeing the Blue Angels. Beyond impressive!  Gabe and Dante were thrilled and awed by the noise - Carmine was terrified.

But Sunday, we were at a birthday party close to the show, and we got to see the Blue Angels fly almost directly overhead, but since they were just flying over and not actually doing any maneuvers, it wasn't nearly as loud, and Carmine was soooo interested - looking up and pointing and following the planes. It was a treat for all of us to be able to see them twice like that!

We've been super busy with Gabe's end-of-year school activities - talent show, Field Day, and today a field trip to a local farm, and then out for ice cream. And Scott took today off to watch Dante and Carmine so that I could be a chaperone on the field trip. Gabe was so thrilled to have me there, and I had so much fun. It was a great trip, and it's always so cute to see your kids at school with their friends. This is the first time I've been able to chaperone a field trip, and I will definitely be doing it again as soon as I can. 

Tomorrow will be the last time that it's just me and Dante and Carmine, so I want to do something special, just the three of us. When I thought about that today, I got a little sad. Carmine and I are both going to miss our little buddy next year. It's going to be very, very, very quiet around the house without him here.

He told me last week that he and his friend Alexandra from school are going to get married on the beach, and they're going to wait for a nice warm day, so that everyone can wear their bathing suits and go swimming. Oh, and he's going to send me an invitation to the "marrying party." Isn't that nice of him to invite his mom?  : )

He also told me last week that Christmas is "a very candyish time of year." I'm not sure why we were even talking about Christmas, but I thought that was a pretty funny observation.

Our veggie garden is positively thriving this year! So much better than last year's, and we've been enjoying lots and lots of salads with freshly picked lettuce. Gabe resisted the first few times I tried to serve it to him, because it wasn't the crunchy romaine hearts that he's used to from the grocery store, but when he finally took a bite, he said "Oh my god!  Don't ever buy lettuce from the store again! This is the only salad I ever want to eat!"  Now if we can get him to feel that way about all the other veggies we have planted.....

Carmine is thriving, too - getting into everything, climbing on everything, and terrorizing his big brothers by throwing toys at them. He loves nothing better than roughhousing with them, and I try to keep it to a minimum, because I don't want him to get hurt, and I also don't want him thinking it's ok to go up and tackle other little kids. But it is pretty awesome to see him and Gabe and Dante rolling around on the floor, all giggling and having the time of their lives.

It's also amzingly adorable to see him run over and give them a hug and a kiss at bedtime. So, so cute : )

As for me - there are lots of things to catch up on there, too, including the fact that I ran EIGHTEEN miles on Saturday morning (!!!!!!), and am at a point where 20-mile runs are not the least bit intimidating - but I think I need to save that for another time.

I do have to quickly note, though, that when I came home from the field trip today, Scott told me he had to run an errand. I was a bit suspicious when he came up with some weird explanation for why he had to go out, but I was so distracted by the kids that I didn't take the time to delve into it any further, and he was off.

Half an hour later, he was back in the driveway, pulling my NEW BIKE out of the back of the car!!!!  Ok, so it's not a 'new' bike - it's used - but it's new to me. And it is awesome!!!!  It's a Trek 2200, and it's so much ligher, and SO much faster than my old bike!  I had a Giant OCR, which was a great entry-level road bike, but I never felt completely comfortable on it, and I just couldn't really go terribly fast on it. And anyone who reads this blog regularly knows that I like to go fast.

So my awesome, super-fantastic, amazing husband took it upon himself to go and get me a new bike, because, as he put it, "I deserve it, because I'm so dedicated and I work so hard."  How incredible is he???!!!! 

I know a lot of people wouldn't trust someone else to go pick out a bike for them, but I trust him, and he made a good choice. We may need to make some small adjustments, but overall the bike fits me well, and although it felt a little odd when I first got on, as I rode around the neighborhood a bit, it felt more and more comfortable. It's definitely got a more aggressive feel to it, but I think it actually fits me better than my old bike did.

And I could seriously lift it up with one finger, if I wanted to - it's soooo light!  And did I mention fast, fast, fast!!!!!  I've been averaging 17.5 mph on my bike rides these past few weeks, but I know this week's ride on the new bike is going to be a lot faster. I can't wait to get out there!

First things first, though - tomorrow's Tuesday, which means it's track time. Mile repeats at 7:02 pace. Yikes!!!!  I can do this. And it will make me stronger. And it will make me faster. And Fast. Is. Good.  : )

Writing

Proof that our little boy is really growing up - some stories he wrote at school recently:

"A ninja was in a castle. He was nice, kind and smart. But one day he was kidnapped by a doctor. The doctor was going to take his brain out. But his friends heard about it and from that day on the ninja never dreamed of space. The end. Written by Gabe. Illistrated by Gabe."

 

A Scorpion in the Jungle

"Once there was a scorpion who lived in a jungle. But he was not good at games. He could play checkers but no one wanted to play checkers because he cheated. But one day a man was very kind. he taught him how to play checkers. And from that day on he was great at games. The end. Signed by Gabe and written by Gabe."

 

"Once upon a time there lived a mummy who lived in Egypt. He was poor and he had no food or drink. But he was good to God. So one day God gave every single food in the world to him so on that day he was very very happy and so he could go to the field of reeds. And when he kissed Osiris so Osiris said when he really died he could be king and the mummy was so happy he just fell down. The end. Writed by Gabe and illastrated by Gabe."

 

His teacher wrote that it was second and third grade level work. We're very proud of our little man : )

Adjusting

Last week was somewhat surreal - so much so that I honestly forgot until Friday that our 11-year wedding anniversary was on Saturday. We didn't do anything much - just enjoyed a quiet dinner together at home, which was perfect, I thought.

Getting back to our regular routine this week has been helpful for everyone. And we had a busy weekend, going to two different fall festivals - one at a farm, and one in Wickford Harbor. 'Tis the season for events like that, and since we have kids to keep entertained, we'll be hitting up most of the ones that are planned for the coming weeks.

Both the ones we went to this past weekend were very fun, and we brought Granddad along with us, which made the boys really happy. They got their faces painted, had snacks, did crafts, and even got to try sailing remote-controlled boats in the harbor. All good stuff : )

Gabe is doing great with first grade, and Dante is doing great with preschool. But according to him, it's not preschool. We went to a friends' house for pizza Friday night, and someone asked him how preschool was going, and he was very quick to correct her - "I don't go to preschool!  I'm in the 4-Year-Old Class!"

Carmine is doing awesome, too. He is now officially crawling, but he still prefers to stand and try to walk. He can cruise along the furniture a bit, so what he usually does is crawl a short distance to the nearest piece of furniture, pull himself up, and cruise along it. He is definitely a man on the move, and is not a fan of sitting still!

He's chowing down, too - eating tons of baby food. And I tried giving him Cheerios last week, but he almost choked on one, so we'll wait a few more weeks before we try those again. He was fine, but it totally freaked me out!

The boys have kept up their usual steady stream of one-liners. Gabe and I were in Marshall's one day last week, and I had told him before we went in that we weren't going to buy any toys, but he still asked for one, and I reminded him that no, we were not buying any toys. He whined and carried on a bit, and I tried to joke around with him and get him distracted, but he kept whining, and he finally said "That's it! If you don't buy me a toy, I will go to Grammy and Grampy's house and live with them!"  Then, after thinking for a minute, he added "And I will bring all my toys with me!" 

Dante, on the other hand, informed us that "Once I'm seven, I won't do anything bad ever again."  I don't think he realizes how hysterical that statement is. 

Dante also made two extremely informative statements the other day:   1. "It would be nice if you lived in Providence; then you wouldn't have to drive far to get to Providence."  2. "You know why they call it fast forward?  Because you go forward, really fast." 

As for the injury report - things are not going well. I haven't run in over 7 weeks, and my shin still isn't feeling quite right. I had planned on starting back at it this week, but given that the area is still sore to the touch, I don't think that would be a wise idea.

I'm not quite sure where to go from here. I suspect that I did/do have a stress fracture, and that's why it's still hurting, and I suppose I should go and get x-rays to try to confirm that. I'm just feeling so discouraged and disgusted with the situation at this point, I don't even want to deal with it. But I'll probably be calling the doctor later this week to try to get an appointment set up.

It is a really disappointing situation, but with all we've had going on lately, I'm reminded to keep it in perspective. I'm still able to do all the other things I love, and am lucky for that. It just feels strange to have no race on the horizon, and no training plan to follow. I've had moments where I worry about how I'll ever get back to my running and racing self, and get back to being driven and focused, because although I'm working out a ton, it's just not the same without that racing structure to it.

But I've been here before, once due to injury, and last year due to being 30 weeks pregnant and unable to run anymore, and both times I made it back just fine, so I'm sure I will again. I just hope I don't have to wait much longer to start the journey.

Big Boys

Carmine is now able to pull himself up to standing, and wants to do nothing else. He also tries to let go and stand without holding onto anything, and the other day he let go and acted as if he was going to try to take a step!  Needless to say, since he's only 7 months old, this results in a lot of falling, and I'm really glad we have carpeting in our family room!

I think he's still a ways away from actually walking, but I also think he's going to walk way before he's a year old. He may even skip crawling altogether. He's just too anxious to keep up with his big brothers. He loves nothing more than to be sitting or standing in the family room amongst them and all their toys. He'll grab a toy, bang it on the ground and make noises, and act like he's part of whatever game they're playing, all with a huge grin on his face. He's going to be awfully sad next week when they're BOTH in school every day and he's stuck with boring old mommy.

Dante starts school next week - the 4-year-old class, as he's been announcing to everyone all summer : ) I can't believe that this will be his last year of preschool, and next year he'll be getting on the bus with Gabe! Thank goodness I have a few more years of babyhood with Carmine!

Gabe's first day of school was today - FIRST GRADE!!!! - and just in time, the weather decided to turn ungodly hot and humid again. He didn't seem to be too bothered by it, though - he was too excited about the fact that he now sits at a DESK!

He likes his teacher, he sits next to one of his best friends (a girl!) from last year, and seemed to have a great day. He was a bit tired tonight, though - it will take some time for all of us to adjust to the school schedule again. And I need to adjust to the fact that he's now going to have homework every night!  Last year homework was kind of a novelty, since he rarely had it, but as an everyday event, it's going to be far less 'fun.' We'll get used to it, though.

He and Dante jumped in the pool shortly after Gabe got off the bus, and after splashing around for a while, Dante decided to throw a bucket of water over Gabe's head. I fully expected whining and complaining from Gabe, but instead he laughed hysterically. So of course Dante proceeded to do it again, and again, and again. And while Gabe was running away laughing, I yelled at him to go and get his own bucket, so he could splash Dante back.

An epic waterfight ensued, during which they nearly emptied all the water out of the pool. They loved it, though, and didn't once fight or complain or whine. I'll be refilling the pool for tomorrow afternoon.