Eli & Cole - two boys, one big adventure: Swim / Bike / Run

The main thing going on in our house this weekend was a triathlon I did this morning but I'll recap the entire weekend.

Friday night we had Family Pizza night and just hung out at home. Saturday, the boys & I did the Y and then at lunch Eli & I went to pick up my race packet. Cole took an early nap and Eli refused to nap at all - I did make him have an hour of quiet time in his room because he needed to chill out / calm down and I needed some quiet. Grandma C arrived late afternoon and everyone was happy to see her. After a yummy Outback take-out dinner (it has been forever since we've had Outback), we got Cole to bed and Grandma and Eli had some time together. Tim and I then walked next door where our neighbors and friends were having a big pig pickin' party to celebrate three of the guys turning 40 this year. We didn't stay too long since I was racing today but I hear the party lasted until well after 3am. These days, the only time I'll be up at 3am is with a sick kid!

Now today......my first post-two babies triathlon. I've only done four before this one in my life and they were all International distance or longer - endurance races. Today's was a sprint triathlon - 300 yard swim, 11.5 mile bike, 5k run. My dream goal was to do the entire race in 1 hr 30 minutes. I left the house about 6:30am and headed to the race site. Got my timing chip and body marking done and waited for my friend / co-worker Kathryn. I convinced her to do the race with me, it was her first triathlon. I was hopeful that Tim would make it to the site with the boys before the start and sure enough, they got there with a few minutes to spare. The swim was intense. It was the hardest I've ever swam in my life. It was a pool swim - 6 laps down and back. You had to report your 100 yard swim time in advance so they started you accordingly with 15 seconds in between swimmers. I was so worried that someone would come up on me and want / need to pass. No one passed me until the very last lane (which was large) and it was a guy several places back. Then ran out to the transition area. My swim to bike transition was slower than I would have liked. I don't know all my official split times yet but it could have gone smoother. I got to see Tim, my Mom and the boys as I left out on the bike. I was still huffing and puffing from the swim but took off on the bike. It took me a few minutes to catch my breath and get into a rhythm. I kept pushing myself because I knew it was only 11.5 miles. I passed several folks (including someone who started 5 minutes ahead of me!) and then towards the end, got passed by a few guys. Off the bike and onto the run. I got to see my crew again going out on the run. By that time, it was getting pretty hot. I have only run twice outside since I had my knee surgery (and only 1 mile inside on a treadmill) so that makes maybe 5 miles that I've run this year. I use the term "run" loosely, I kinda run / walk but keep moving forward. That was my strategy today. The run course seemed completely uphill on the way out and then, somehow, it didn't seem all downhill on the way back. The finish was downhill so that was great. When I crossed the finish line, I had to find Tim and crew. They weren't expecting me for a few more minutes so I caught them by surprise! I found the unofficial results and I finished in 1:28:06 - almost 2 minutes faster than my goal! Tim ended up taking Cole home and Mom, Eli and I waited to cheer for Kathryn. Kathryn beat her goal time as well. A great day for both of us!

This afternoon (I have a problem and can't seem to slow down), Tim & I went to look at a Mid-Century Modern Dining set that I found on Craigslist. I was hoping to complete my dining room by Christmas (it's a yearly goal), I had been working on a black furniture scheme. It wasn't working out well and this just kinda happened, like it was meant to be. We picked up half the pieces tonight and will pick up the others tomorrow or Tuesday. I'm very excited to get the dining room together. That also means I have a ton of stuff to get rid of and clean. Ok, finally pictures!