Julia's 1st Pair of Rainboots!

Monkey Jammies!

One of Julia's most favorite stuffed animals is her stuffed monkey. I actually bought it for myself while I was in college and roadtripping from Vermont to Oregon. My friend and I stopped at a teddy bear museum, so naturally, I bought a stuffed monkey! Tom and I picked out these jammies for Julia while we were in Oregon, and they're some of her favorites! They're quickly getting too small for her though, so I thought I'd take some photos of her in them before she can't wear them anymore. We're usually pretty good at "retiring" small clothing for her, but we're seeing just how far these poor jammies can stretch! Tom was folding them tonight actually, and gave the belly area a little tug to stretch them out for the next time she wears them :).

Tired Girl...

I honestly can't remember the last time Julia fell asleep on my chest, so when she did the other day I immediately asked Tom to take a photo! Julia is such a big girl now, we only get very brief, but sweet, moments of cuddling with her. She's constantly busy doing something, running from one thing to the next, and usually only pauses long enough for us to get a quick hug or kiss in! We love her rough and tumble, 100 MPH, personality, but we certainly enjoy quiet moments like this :).

Week 9 - 10 Mile Run

This week I think I was supposed to run 12 miles for my long run, but with everything going on, I think I could only, mentally and physically, handle about 10 miles this morning. It was a sad run too, since it was the last long run I will be able to do with my usual group of folks, since next weekend we'll be in Illinois! Next weekend I think I'm supposed to do 16 miles, which should be interesting! I've decided to invest in a Garmin GPS watch once we arrive in the States as well. They're pretty spendy, but running by myself in a new area is a good combination for getting super lost. Not something you want to do on a 10+ mile run. Or any run, for that matter!

Also, I realize my posts have been seriously lacking in Julia photos, so the next few posts will be totally dedicated to her :).

Week 8 - 20K Race!

This weekend, five of us (one's taking the photo) went to a 20K (12.4 miles) race in Rheinzabern (about an hour away). We really just wanted to do if for "race practice", but I really did it so I'd be forced to get the miles in! I was pretty set on doing my 10 min. pace, but with so many other people, it was hard to get into a good groove. I ended up getting way too warm, and carried my sweatshirt for at least 5K, then was able to drop my warm-up pants and sweatshirt by the car we all came in, since the race was a big loop we had to do twice. I also got passed by many old Germans! That was humbling. I did meet my goal though - I finished! My time was about 1 hour and 59 minutes, so I was just under my 10 min pace the whole time.

I felt guilty leaving Tom and Julia for most of the day while I was at the race, but I know that for me, running is a big de-stressor, and is really how I get my "me-time" in. For some people it's reading, or chatting with girlfriends, or cooking, but for me running is definitely how I deal with whatever stress or anxiety I have. I guess choosing to train for my first marathon during a big move was actually a good thing! My hope though, is that I'll be able to keep training after we've moved - it'll be challenging to motivate myself for that first long run (I think it's supposed to be 15 miles!).

Sewing Projects I'm planning...

This is yet another no-photos-of-Julia-more-for-my-planning-sanity post of all the sewing projects I have in my head that I want to start once I get my sewing machines out of their boxes:

• Yellow linen pillow covers for living room
• Queen-size quilt for Tom and me
• Pretty-as-a-picture dress for Hannah
• Grocery bags
• Camera strap covers (for Robin, Teri, Jordan and me!)
• Noah's Ark wall hanging for Julia's room
• Big fabric alphabet and numbers for Julia
• Cloth napkins for us (down with paper towels!!! we go through way too many...)
• Curtains for our new house...I'm sure I won't be able to find ones I like, so I'll have to make some...or, I'll realize I don't actually have that much time to sew and settle for ones that are so-so :(
• Doll quilt for Julia (from Anna Maria Horner's book...love her stuff! I just have to splurge for some of her fabric)
• A couple of aprons...maybe for me or to give as gifts
• Long suffering blue and yellow quilt, started literally about 6 years ago...

Week 7 - 12 Miles...again

This Saturday I was supposed to run 13 miles, but "only" ended up running 12 because of my knee. The group switched up the route a bit, which was nice, since the loop we've run several times already was getting veru monotonous. I did run faster on Saturday than I usually do, but only because I was trying to keep up with the group. We had a long run in a new area on Tuesday and I got horribly lost, then people were driving around trying to find me, and I ended up running 1-2 miles more than I intended. So...after that adventure, I told myself it'd be worth it to run faster and not get lost than to be comfortable and run way more than I was prepared to. It was actually very chilly (I think below freezing), so most of the way all I thought about was a toasty shower. This was the first run I brought water and energy gel (and a phone and maps...) on, but I ended up only having a few sips of water. Other than that, thankfully, it wasn't very eventful! Next weekend the group is running a 12 mile race, but I think I'm going to try to do 13 miles on my own. We're getting a rental car next weekend and giving back the car we've borrowing, so our weekend is being taken up a lot by that.