26.2 Miles is NO JOKE

It's hard to know where to even begin talking about this journey that is the full marathon.

All the preparation.

All the anxiety.

All the unknown of running your first full marathon.

It's been months since I ran this now.  I probably should have written about it sooner because now it's not really fresh in my mind anymore.  I began training on January 14th.  It was a 21 week training plan.  21 WEEKS!  That's practically half of a year ... almost.

For the life of me I can't get this stupid picture to rotate.  But you get the idea.

Jeramie did a LOT of the training runs with me.  I kept finding myself thinking that I wished that he had agreed to actually run the race with me.  But it worked out for the best.

Marathon training is a huge sacrifice.  We had to beg for babysitters for several hours at a time on the weekends.  Every. Single. Weekend.  I gave up my lunch breaks 3 days a week to make sure that I got my "runs" in.  There was no staying out late on Friday or Saturday night because I had to get up early to run the next day.  There was the stress of making sure I hydrated well enough the day before.  Make sure that I eat something healthy but substantial enough to carry me through hours of running the next day.  The spending money on new shoes. One pair of running shoes will not see you through training and running a marathon.  And good shoes are EXPENSIVE.  The dread of knowing that once I hit mile 15, from there on after every single step pretty much hurts.  You have to be stronger than the hurt.

The knowing that I would be running this marathon for the most part all by myself.  And then as the day got closer and closer .. it became more about "just finishing".  I then started worrying about a time goal.  Should I have one?  I don't have the ability to not put that pressure on myself.  Other runners would ask what finish time I was hoping for.  My answer was always somewhere between 4:15 and 4:30.  Then they would say, oh but I see your paces on Facebook, you could pull a 4:00.  Which then made me think, maybe I'd set my bar too low.  And then the pressure starts again.

Oh and the disappointment in getting into the St. George Marathon, before I'd even run Utah Valley.  I didn't want to get in. Honestly I didn't.  The thought of maintaining this training through the summer months was daunting to say the least.  And as you read this I will have just returned from running the St. George Marathon with Jeramie.

But .. back to Utah Valley.

So the night before the boys slept over at Robie's.  Baylee slept at my parents because she would be coming with them as part of my cheering crew.  Jeramie slept in while my best friend Rebecca came and picked me up at the AWFUL hour of 4 something AM.  I can't even tell you how grateful I am that she came and got me and drove me down to Provo!!  Best. Friend. Ever.  You know .. among other reasons.  I rode the bus up to the starting line by myself.  That was a first.  After I was up there for about 15 minutes I hooked up with some other runners on my Ragnar team.  They knew I was headed up there alone and were so good about seeking me out so I wasn't a total loner for the next hour and a half.  Before I knew it it was time to line up at the starting line.  I lined up with Troy and Traci who run around the same kind of pace as I do.  We were close to the 4:00 pacer.  I kept thinking to myself, I wonder if I should run with the pacer.  But I didn't.  And of course towards the end of the marathon I watched him cruise by .. he was alone.  Man I wished in that moment I had it in me to try and pick it back up and run with him.  But I didn't.

And so the gun went off and away we went.

I seemed to get left behind relatively quickly by Troy and Traci.  They were going out faster than I was comfortable with.  I knew I didn't want to go out too fast and regret it later.  Turns out this was a very wise decision on my part.

Miles 1-4  They were good.  I spent the whole time just trying to suck in the experience.  I focused on not going too fast.  Not worrying about how I couldn't see my friends anymore.  Within the first couple of miles I had to pee something fierce!  This is not like me at all.  I think it was because of the nerves and how long it felt like I was waiting before the race.  I figured if I went right then then I would be a whole lot more comfortable right away.  So I spotted a big electrical box and behind I went.  I know .. I know .. gross.  But that's what runners do.  Ask anyone.  I was really grateful because as I came out from behind that thing another runner .. a DUDE was heading back.  30 seconds earlier and it would have been a bit embarrassing!!  But boy did I feel better afterwards. So worth the time.

It is truly hard to put into words how much having this cheering section got me through this race.  After dropping me off for the buses Rebecca drove up to Deer Creek Reservoir and slept in her car while waiting for me.  This was about Mile 9 of the marathon.  And Deer Creek is at the top of one of the biggest uphill climbs in the race.  I climbed that hill hard knowing that my family and friend would be at the top.  It was such an emotional moment.  And when I got there Rebecca was there and cheering her butt off.  My family was nowhere to be seen.  I was disappointed .. however not for long. Not even another mile up the road there they were!  So yeah I probably choked up again at that point.  From that point on they were literally on the side of the road cheering every mile or so.  Seriously words cannot describe how much it meant to me that they were there for my big day.

Is was after I passed my family the first time that I actually entered the true downhill portion of this race.  Straight down Provo Canyon.  Now, when you sit here reading this you're going to think .. well that's downhill .. how easy is that?  Umm .. it's not.  Downhill running is very hard actually. Almost harder and more painful than uphill running.  And I realize this sounds completely counter intuitive. 

The plan was for Jeramie to jump in with my around mile 20.  He would then run with me through the rest of the race, for the moments that it got really hard.  He ended up joining me a little bit sooner than mile 20 and I was so grateful to see him walking towards me.  It's around mile 20 that the course flattens out again, which is good when your quads are screaming from the downhill.  But around mile 22/23 my right leg from my hip through my calf started cramping up something fierce!!  It was truly excruciatingly painful.  Right around the same time Evan and Rachel had joined the cheering crew.  The new faces helped.  I tried to look brave.  And then I kind of just wanted to cry.  They often say that a marathon is truly run in those last 6 miles and boy that is the absolute truth.  That's when it's really hard and you want to quit.

As I closed in on the finish line Jeramie dropped off to the side and I gutted it out.  I was running as fast as my body would allow.  Which in fact was pretty slow.

That face says it all.

I finished.

 4:21:19

Average Pace:  9:58/m

Overall Place:  849

Gender Place:  315

Division Place:  76

 

This is one of the hardest things I've ever done.  The amount of work that goes into training for a marathon is tremendous.  The sacrifice is big.  That feeling of accomplishment .. words cannot describe.  I am very proud of myself.  Running 26.2 miles is really hard.  Like REALLY hard.  There is no question I will run more. After a full marathon a half marathon is easy.  I don't feel like I have to work hard for that anymore. But a full marathon, I will have to work my ass off for that every single time. 

Worlds Best Cheering Crew!!

 



Edited to add:

 

 



No more diapers .. FOREVER!!

Well .. I guess until Jerm and I get old and we wear them.

Oliver is officially potty trained.  I am so so so happy that he's potty trained.

And he's an official member of the Howard-Kramer underwear club!

I don't really remember that clearly how Baylee's potty training went. Other than I used to have underwear and extra pants with me wherever we went. But I don't think she was real accident prone either.  Jackson on the other hand was much older .. I'm thinking right before he turned 3 years old. But he potty trained literally overnight and I don't think the kid had a single accident EVER.  I chalk some of that up to the fact that he was older when he potty trained and had a more mature bladder.

Wyland and Oliver I basically did together.  I didn't really wait until they indicated they were "ready" per se.  So here are my tips and tricks for what they're worth:

1.  The ideal age is 26-28 months old.
2.  Choose a two week period where you don't have a ton of stuff going on that will take away from the potty training. 
3.  Do NOT under any circumstances go back and forth between underwear and diapers.  You as the parent have to be willing to 100% commit to a 2 week period.  No going back if it "seems" like things aren't going well.  Give it the full two weeks.
4.  If you have to leave the house then be willing to go with the kid in underwear.  Take an extra pair as well as pants or whatever they're wearing on the bottom.
5.  Buy those old school Gerber padded training pants.  It makes it SO much easier because when they do pee it's not a huge mess to clean up. They absorb quite a bit.
6.  At first put them on the toilet at least once an hour.  When they actually pee you need to SERIOUSLY celebrate .. do the potty dance and clap and make lots of noise.  I've never done the whole reward system, although I know it's worked well for others.
7.  When they pee their pants don't make a big deal about it.  And whatever you do don't get MAD.  Just remind them to do it in the potty, something along the lines of, "Oh darn you did pee pee's in your unders, pee pee's go in the potty."

That's pretty much the nuts and bolts of it.  It worked like magic with both Wyland and Oliver.  They were both completely potty trained soon after their second birthday.  Even the pediatrician said at Oliver's 2 year appointment, oh he's probably not ready for potty training yet, boys take longer.  Yeah .. no.  He'll be potty trained soon.  I think when they potty train at an earlier age like this they are more prone to accidents even after they're potty trained.  I keep an extra pair of underwear in my purse even now.  They aren't huge empty the bladder types of accidents. More a case of oops I started to go but caught it kind. 

 

 I guess in a way maybe I should be a bit sad that my last baby is potty trained.  But I'm really not. I don't miss the diapers at all.  I have been changing diapers for about six and a half years STRAIGHT.  I'm actually kind of excited to be moving out of the baby stage.  Although when my sister in law has her baby in September (Jeramie's sister) I'm sure it will make me think .. awe maybe I want another newborn.  Not really though.  I assure you we are DONE.

15 month Comparison

Well it's come up a few times in the last month who Oliver looks like.  I tried hard to find a picture of Jeramie at this age and I thought I had some but darn it if I couldn't find any.  But in my opinion he still looks an awful lot like Jackson at the same age.  Not exactly though.  He doesn't have the big eyes like Jackson and obviously they're a different color.  Well .. and he has a different shaped mouth.  But they definitely look the most alike.

Speaking of Oliver ...

I definitely have been feeling like a do a terrible job of taking pictures of him at this age. I know a lot of it is that I hardly take any pictures in general this time of year.  And as it's getting warmer this will change.  Overall he's doing great though.  He's such a tough kid and thinks he's just as tough as Jackson and Wyland.  He likes to get into the cars and play with Wyland a lot. 

Oliver 15 Month Stats:

Weight:  22.5 lbs, 22%

Height:  31.18 in, 54%  (this is down from 67%)

Head:  18.5 in, 45%

Jackson at 15 months:

Weight:  20 lbs, 3%

Height:  31.1 in, 50%

Head:  18.5 in, 42%

For whatever reason I can't find any of Wyland's growth charts.  Bad mom.

Right now Oliver also spends a great deal of time climbing on things.  Specifically the dining room table.  You can often find all the chairs stacked in the corner and the bench upside down in my kitchen because he's wicked quick.  He is also known as the naughtiest of all the boys.  Definitely getting a bad name for himself. At home and also at both grandparents houses.

This past Thursday we went to my mum's for dinner.  In the few hours that we were there Oliver managed to spill a soda in the basement, spill my mum's coffee all over the floor (don't worry he didn't get burned), and he may have fed something he shouldn't have through the dog gate that proceeded to get chewed up. Then as we were leaving he picked up and smashed a cute little bunny candy dish.  He's SO NAUGHTY.  This was all in only a few hours.  Good thing he's cute too.

Oops .. I swallowed a tooth.

Jackson officially lost his first tooth this week.  We were at my mum's for dinner on Thursday and all of a sudden Jackson comes running into the kitchen with a bloody mouth.  Apparently Wyland hit him in the mouth and knocked out his loose tooth.  After searching around the living room we never did find it.  So we can only assume he swallowed it.  ICK!  He was very excited that even without the tooth the Tooth Fairy still came for a visit and left him "FIVE BUCKS"!!!  Apparently another kid in his class lost her tooth too and she also got five bucks.  Is that the going rate for teeth these days I wonder?

In other, not so exciting news Wyland and Oliver LOVE to take baths together.  I love that Oliver is big enough now to hold his own in the tub with Wyland.  They have so much fun together.

They think it's the best part when I let the water run for them to play with.

Jackson gets "fauxhawks" all the time.  This is the only place Wyland gets them

because of the length of his hair of course!

Won't he looks so WEIRD when we finally cut his hair?  See it all pulled away from his face.

We have the big kids signed up to start swimming lessons next month.  We're doing them at the local rec center that doesn't have a "great" pool.  But they do lessons just on Saturday mornings and I like that a lot.  Plus I think having lessons this time last year really helped Jackson with building his confidence last summer on the boat and in the pool.  This year Wyland is old enough to join them.  Jackson and Wyland will be in the same class which I think will be fun with them.  Then we'll have a 30 minute break and Baylee gets to have hers.  One thing I do like is that they have a very small toddler pool off to the side so while we wait for Baylee's lesson to start and then have the 30 minutes to kill of her actual lesson the boys can play in the toddler pool.  I'm excited because I know the kids will love it.  But at the same time I'm NOT looking forward to giving up my only sleep in day.  Then on top of that the majority of the time I'll be taking them by myself and juggling Oliver as well.  Plus I'm kind of itching to throw in a half marathon on St. Patrick's day for fun.  I have a 9 mile training run that weekend, so I figure what's 4 more?

Speaking of running, my running buddy Rebecca is out of town for the next two weekends so I had to drag Jeramie out with me.  We had an awesome 8 mile run this morning out on the Parkway.  I usually do my long runs on Sunday's and it's pretty quiet.  But we were able to arrange for a babysitter this morning and so we headed out today instead.  There were SO many other runners out there.  Kind of neat.  Jeramie did a better job of running next to me instead of 6 paces ahead of me.  I was teaching him the ways of courteous running.  Things like:

1.  Say "good morning" or wave to people when you pass them. 

2.  Don't blow snot rockets without checking behind you first, to ensure that you don't snot rocket ON someone.  (I don't EVER blow snot rockets mind you.)

3.  Keep your music low enough that you can hear people coming up behind you when they say, "on your left" so you can move out of their way.  He failed to do this once because he has his music turned up so loud.  He almost got ran over and pissed the guy off.  Oh well, hopefully it was a learning experience.

4.  He learned about fueling.  He says, "These taste like GUMMY BEARS!!!!"  Yes, yes they do.

Then I made him push it the last mile (after we'd already run 7).  We increased our speed to about a 9.25 min mile (in my world that's fast, I am not a fast runner by any means).  He says, "That last mile was INTENSE!!"  Yes, yes it was.

We stopped for coffee at the end and walked back 1 more mile to the car.  During our walk Jeramie tells me that maybe running will become his new MMA.  Gotta love that running high!!

Wyland's First Day of Preschool

I cannot believe this little guy is old enough for preschool.

He followed in his big brothers footsteps.

Jackson's first couple of weeks were rough.

I was expecting the same if not worse from Wyland.

Boy was I ever wrong.

He trucked into preschool like he owned the place.

 Jackson and Wyland both ended up with the same backpacks this year.

I had put off taking them to go choose and that was all they had left for boys.

Good thing they both love Spongebob.

 There's no denying this kid was excited.

 And off he goes.

Jackson Starts Kindergarten

I don't think he could hardly believe the day was finally here.

To say that Jackson was excited to start kindergarten was an understatement.

His teachers name is Mrs. Larsen.

And he is thrilled to be going to kindergarten.

On the first day he sported a faux-hawk .. per his request.

He looked handsome as could be.

 Jeramie dropped him off to school.

He didn't need Dad to walk him into school.  He said, "No I got this."

 I picked him up and dropped him off at home.

He looks way to grown up.

We have a crawler on our hands.

It's official.

Oliver does the combat crawl.

And he is SO cute when he does it.

He's like a little caterpillar inching his way across the floor.

And everything small goes in his mouth.  Talk about stress.



In fact sometimes Jackson and Wyland lay down on the floor and have crawl races with him.

So cute.

He thinks he's a big kid now.

Wyland enjoys having a playmate.

Me?  I just want him to stay a little kid.

A sleeping baby.

I love sleeping babies.

I love looking at them.

I love holding them.

I just LOVE them.

This guy started flipping on his tummy to sleep from about 5 months.

I would flip him back onto his back and within minutes he would be on his tummy again.

Well okay then.

He's my first tummy sleeper.

That and he migrates to the top left corner of his crib.

Consistently.

And he loves his blankie.  We have four made of the same fabric.

He will shove them in his mouth and kind of gum on them.

Especially right now that he's teething.

He's got a second tooth coming through on the bottom any minute now.

And the top two front teeth look like they won't be far behind.

Last Camping Weekend

Like I mentioned this was out last camping weekend this summer.

Kind of a bummer.  While it means we'll be home and actually start getting things done around the house.

It also means that our weekends won't be spent sitting in a chair enjoying the outdoors.

Absorbing the vitamin D from the sun.

This picture is a terrible picture.  I don't know what's going on with my tank top.

'Cause it just isn't flattering.  BUT so as it may, this was me post swimming in the lake.

Doesn't Jeramie's hand look creepy next to Oliver??

Jackson insisted on getting his own chair to sit next to Uncle Evan to cook hot dogs in the parking lot.

'Cause that's how we roll. 

That's right, post half marathon the day before Evan and Rachel came up for some tubing on Sunday.

I apparently got some serious air on my wakeboard run.

I thought they were just poking fun at me, but apparently not.

I wish there was a picture for me to see it myself, alas there isn't.

Just a random shot of Jeramie.

I swear he checks the oil level in Big Red a million freaking times.

I suppose it's a good habit and has kept her on the road and running well.

Thanks Aunt Rachel for teaching Wyland fun little nuggets of naughtiness!  haha.

Just remember your children are still to come,

 and I have lots of little boys that will teach yours GROSS boy stuff.

Oliver liked his new backpack ride.  And it wasn't too hard on my back either.

Among other noteable weekend news Oliver cut his very first tooth!!!

We had the most gorgeous Jordanelle water we have ever seen.

I think Evan *may* have been wishing he hadn't asked us to take his wakeboard out of the boat.

Nothing like ending the season with a little parking lot lunch.