Hi-Ya

Kevin and Zach have been taking taekwondo lessons since January as a Christmas gift from Grandpa and Grandma Dee. They both seem to really enjoy it and yesterday they were able to test to see if they could earn their yellow belt. We weren't able to make it to the regular testing session on Friday because we were headed out of town, so they tested in class. At the end of the class I asked if there was anything else they needed to do and told the instructor that the boys were hoping to break some boards because that's what they were told they would have to do earlier. When the instructor said they only do that on regular test day the boys were sad and mad that we had missed it. But thankfully, the owner, Master Shin, came and said he had a surprise for them as they were getting their shoes on. You can see for yourself on the videos.

L.A. Marathon

Well, I was able to walk down the steps this morning almost completely normally, so I guess that's a good sign that I'm almost recovered from this past Sunday. As most of you know, I ran in the L.A. Marathon on Sunday. I finished in 4:50:16, which is over 20 minutes faster than my Santa Clarita one. I'm quite happy about that!

After the Santa Clarita Marathon my feelings were that I didn't know if I ever wanted to do one again. I was exhausted and tired of training and my back was tired from the run. After this one, I am almost certain that I will do another. Maybe once a year.... I loved this one more than my first because of the amount of people that were running and the amount of people out cheering. Almost the entire way there was something interesting to look at. I also enjoyed joining up with a pace group. I joined the 4:30 group and was able to stay with them until about mile 18 when I had to make a pit stop. They continued on and I couldn't ever catch up again. But it seemed to make the time go by faster and I could definitely felt myself lagging once I lost them.

Of course, it's always fun to see family along the route. Garrett and the boys were at mile 15 and Paula, Jeff, Susan, and Sandy were at mile 23. The last 2 miles were the hardest as my legs started cramping up. But I was able to push through. It was right about when I made it to mile 26 and I looked at my watch that said, "4:48". I gave it all I could to make that last .2 of a mile so I could get in at 4:50.

A great experience.....now I am just wondering what to do next. Relax and enjoy these cute boys of mine?

Kevin's Announcement

Go see Kevin's surprise!

So Proud

I'm so proud of our boys! Yesterday Zachary received an award for academic achievement in reading and math. You could not have seen a happier boy. Unfortunately I had to miss him actually getting the award due to work, but thankfully Garrett was able to be there and capture it on film for me. He was very excited to show it to me when I picked him up though! Then today Kevin received an award for academic achievement in math. I had rearranged my schedule so I could see him receive it (before knowing Zach would be getting one on Monday). He was much less excited, on the outside, about receiving it because he's a big cool 3rd grader, but it was very fun seeing all his classmates congratulating him! These boys both work so hard in school and we are very proud of them!!

Knitting

My mom brought her knitting with her last summer and the boys would just sit next to her and watch her knit sometimes during the day. They were fascinated by it and I found myself thinking, "I want to learn too!" So my mom bought me the book that she learned from, "I Taught Myself to Knit". I let it sit in my room for probably 6 months before picking it up and then spent the first night frustrated because I couldn't figure it out. I found some sites online that showed videos and eventually was able to start.

I started by making some little practice squares, which the boys thought could be little blankets for their hamsters they were sure they were getting for Christmas. (They didn't get them, but that's a different story). My first real project was a scarf. I didn't follow a pattern, I just kept knitting until I ran out of yarn. That one went to Zach and it now just sits in his closet. I started one for Kevin and then got tired of it. It is not looking great, as I tried to teach Zach how to knit on the same scarf and it has plenty of mistakes. I just finished another scarf that I actually may wear sometime. It's not perfect, but it looks kind of pretty. I'm really wanting to make things that I can give away to people, but still need more practice. My mom gives many of the blankets she makes to an organization called, Project Linus. Maybe eventually I will get to that point....when I'm retired! Although I already kind of feel like a grandma sitting and knitting, but oh well it's relaxing. For now, I will just continue slowly learning how to do it better. I guess that's the case with learning anything new, right?

Epiphanie

My long time friend, Maile, from high school is a wonderful photographer and has now designed some awesome camera bags. She has started a new blog called "Epiphanie" and is doing a major give away on it! Go check it out!

Kicking off the 2010 walk

Team Safe at Second got together this past Friday for the first time since the walk. It was so good to see everyone again. Although we all live so close it has been hard to get together. We are going to start our weekly walks again this Sunday and it is hard to believe that we are about 8 months away from our 2010 walk. One of our teammates, Sue, put together this video that I thought you may enjoy. I can't wait to do it again!!