I love Shutterfly!

I have always loved Shutterfly and now I love them more! They are offering bloggers 50 free Christmas cards!! I already planned to buy cards and this means I can spend more money are prints!! See for yourself here

In Austin News..

I have been focusing on my training a lot recently but I wanted to take some time to fill everyone one in on Austin. The most exciting news (for me) is that:

WE HAVE A SWIMMER!

I feel so proud of him. All Summer, I have been teaching him how to kick his feet, paddle his arms and hold his breath to go under water. We tried out the puddle jumper (click here to see what that is in the beginning of Summer but he wasn't ready. We tried regular swimmies like these and he didn't like those either. I was content to hold him this year and thought we would try again next year.
That was until we met a friend at the pool on Monday. This friend is a year older than Austin and soo cool in Austin's eyes! K let us borrow his puddle jumper and we gave it a try. It worked! The little man jumped right into the pool to me and began kicking his feet and paddling his arms. I was amazed at what a little peer pressure can do for a little boy!
We are bringing Daddy with us to the pool today to try to get a video. I can't wait to share this cuteness with you all!


Other than that, he seems to say a new word everyday and is testing his boundaries with rules. He is definitely keeping me busy and on my toes. In fact, I need to good get out the heavy duty scrubber and get that crayon off the floor...and the cabinets...oh and the fridge...

Week 2...Through!

2 down, 14 more to go...Here is a recap of last week:

We did 2 easy runs Monday and Tuesday that were a little humid but altogether nice. I did a race paced run on Thursday that I smoked. It was very motivating but I need to reel it in to a more manageable pace in the coming weeks. Saturday was our 7 miler. I've done that before so I wasn't too worried. I woke up feeling like I was getting a cold so I took it easy and it ended up being my favorite run so far.

This week I will run 8 on Saturday. This will be my farthest distance. HERE WE GO =)

Week One....DONE!

We finished week one yesterday. Only fifteen more to go. It didn't seem like it was going to be a big deal because I was running less miles in the week than I have been running leading up to this, but I was surprised at the things I learned this week.

1. I am faster that I thought I was and can maintain that speed for longer than I thought I could.
2. Just because I've run 6-7 miles once a week for the last 9 weeks I can't assume it's going to be easy. I still need to prepare by eating (uhhh and drinking) right the day before.

I'm only going to measure once a month, but I will weigh in once a week.

Weight 8/2: 163
today: 160

In other news:
Austin is talking talking talking! New words I can think of are :
ready
pretty
butterfly
Cookie Monster
Big Bird
Zoe
Elmo

He is also doing great with swimming. He now kicks and paddles with his arms in the pool. I am hoping to get Daddy to take a video this week with his arms and legs moving.

We have officially transitioned into sleeping in a toddler bed. Austin has gone to bed without getting out for a solid week now.

He made some new friends this week that are all at least a year older than him. It was great to see him interacting with older kids. He is so used to being around younger babies.

The Before Shots

Click here to see our "before" shots. Fun stuff :)

Here Goes Nothing...

Today marks the start of the official training for the OBX Half Marathon. 16 weeks from start to recovery. 4 months. I can do that. Right?

Of course I can!!

I have a running plan and a diet plan that I hope will work together to give me to best outcome. Here are my beginning stats.

Belly at belly button: 31.5"
Waist:29.5"
Bust: 36"
Right Thigh: 24.5"
Left Thigh: 24.5"
Weight: 163 lbs

*I will add a picture soon*

The Small Moments

Today Austin and I met some friends at the beach. It was one of those perfect beach days. A little overcast with a good breeze making it not too hot. It was low tide and there wasn't a drop off so Austin could play in the water without me having to hold on to him the whole time. I had an actual conversation with another adult unlike when I am running after Austin on any other day. He was still running around but I could allow him to explore a little more today because the beach wasn't crowded and the waves weren't a danger.
After a little while, he and I walked down the beach and he found some plants growing. He plopped himself down and started looking at the leaves. I sat down in the sand and let him hand me pieces of plants to smell. We sat like that for only a few minutes, but it was just enough time.
Enough time for me realize that I couldn't ask for anything more. I have always wanted a child to share my life with and now I have him. Between diaper changes, feeding, temper tantrums, and all of the other things I have to do on a daily basis, I forget about what really matters.
These small moments are what remind me of that. I have a beautiful son who couldn't be more perfect in my eyes. I thank God for the small moments.