Review of Training

Training has been going well. I am loving the Spin classes that I go to each week and I find them to be very motivating. I did my first long run last weekend (7 miles) and it was a good one. I decided to run with a group of people that my husband works with. They run on the W&OD Trail each weekend. They have a volunteer set up at different points on the trail to give out drinks and at the end of the run they have a cooler with drinks and snacks. The other cool thing about this group is that a lot of them are training for the Marine Corps Marathon too; they will have support during the marathon as well as their own tent with massages afterwards! I am glad to be a part of the group.

This is what my training looks like this week:
Monday - 1 hour Spin Class
Tuesday - Speedwork: Half mile warm up, 3 x (1 mile fast then .25 easy)
Wednesday - 1 hour Spin Class
Thursday - Tempo run: 2 miles easy, 2 miles @ Tempo pace then 2 miles easy
Friday - Rest
Saturday - 8 miles
Sunday - Rest

On Sunday I got a new pair of running shorts and I love them

Now all I need is a head band to keep the sweat out of my eyes and my bangs out of my face. I was thinking of getting a Sweaty Band.

On the homefront - Yesterday was Will's first day of daycare and he did great! He didn't cry when I dropped him off and he was happy to see my when i picked him up. I thought today may not go as well since it was the second day, but I am happy to report he did well again. I love my daycare provider and she is so great with kids. I know that he is taken care of well when he is there. That eases my mind a lot.

Charlie is on big adventures with his Grammy and Pappy and my cousin's daughter Olivia in Pennsylvania. He is having lots of fun and I am glad.

James is on grand adventures with his Nana and Grandad at Colonial Beach. He's been to the pool everyday and riding his scooter. I am glad to know that he is having fun too!

Everything is good in my life! We are looking forward to celebrating Will's first birthday this weekend.

Memorial Day Weekend

We had a wonderful weekend. It all started on Friday night. We packed the van and drove to the campground in PA. We didn't really rough it this time because we weren't sure if it was going to rain and we also didn't know how hot it would be. We decided to stay in a cabin with AC. There was a loft and a bunk bed as well as a double bed. Charlie was so excited to have the loft all to himself!! Here are some photos from the campground. This is how the boys got around...

Daddy pulled them everywhere. Will looked so big sitting in the wagon!

My 4 favorite boys at the park.

This was across from our campsite. Will was watching Charlie & James play frisbee and squealing!

Charlie loved it up in the loft. I think he's pretending to hold a light saber.

Saturday we went to Sue & Travis' for a fun picnic. I was really excited to see friends that I hadn't seen in quite a long time. The boys had lots of fun runnning around and playing with all the other kids. Here are some photos from the picnic.
This is the only time that Will sat still...after I put him in a basket!

James had so much fun learning to play football with Sue's nephew Colton.

This is me & Will, Sue & Harry and Jordan & Isla.

Will is enjoying Isla's company.

I love the concerned look on Harry's face!

Charlie has a new friend and his name is Jacob. He can't wait to see him again!

Monday was a great day. We woke up early and went to Beam's Blue Mt. Farm in Newburg to pick strawberries. The drive there was so beautiful. We saw several horse and carriages driving around. The boys had a lot of fun picking strawberries and they even got to eat free ice cream with strawberry topping afterwards! Here are some photos from the farm.

A Trip to the Beach

Last weekend Mike took the two older boys on a camping trip to Virginia Beach while Will and I had a little one on one time. They boys all had a great time! The beach is a great place, especially for boys, because they can get as messy as they want and then jump in the water. Mike said they had lots of fun playing on the beach and running from the water, I guess it is still pretty cold there since it's only March. The weather was beautiful that weekend.
Charlie found a grasshopper at the camp site.
Mike said it was a little chaotic at first while he was trying to put up the tent because he had to keep an eye on James & Charlie at the same time. I think eventually he said he put James in the van to watch a movie so he could finish putting up the tent, but he didn't strap him in. When Mike went back to the van he said it smelled like seasoning because James had found the steak seasoning and dumped it all on the floor of the van.

Later that night James got in the cooler and broke all the eggs! I swear, you can not take your eyes off that kid for a minute!!

The boys go camping

Our neighborhood has a "Camp out in the park" each year around this time. Mike took the boys and they had so much fun! They helped set up the tent. This picture shows how tall James really is. He just turned 2 and already looks as big as a 3 year old!

Now, if you look closely at the picture of Charlie below there are a few interesting things to note...the first is the small red mark on the left side of his neck (click on the picture to enlarge). How did he get that mark, you ask? Good question! well, he was walking through the park and fell on a stick!! Geez!! Can you imagine how horrible that could've turned out? Anyway, he's fine.

The second thing to note is the outline on his t-shirt...it's supposed to be a guitar but looks more like a beer bottle!! Mike picked this up for him at a Festival last year....need I say more.

Our camping trip

We got the van all packed up and ready to go camping on Friday. We decided to leave early and get to Cunningham Falls State Park to set up the tent and everything else. Charlie and James were excited to go!

Here are a few pictures of the boys once we got set up...

Our friends Ruchi and Prashant and their daughter Anika came and stayed on Friday night too. we had lots of fun together and I think they enjoyed their first camping experience! Saturday morning we made breakfast and then Mike, Prashant and Charlie went to see the beautiful waterfall. Later, we ended up going to the lake and the kids got to play in the water and the sand. This was much better than when they were playing in the dirt the day before.

James and Anika Ruchi, James, Anika and Charlie