Tri To Finish Cinco De Mayo Race Review....and Triathlon talk!

A little overdue, but life's been busy with a new infant and changing of jobs! There sure is a new normal of getting things done once you have a baby in the house...still adapting to that change. :) 

Anyways...

This past May, Ryan and I ran the Cinco de Mayo 5k Race at Swartz Creek Golf Course in Flint, Michigan. that was organized by Tri To Finish. Tri To Finish puts on events throughout the whole lower peninsula of Michigan and range from 5k's, 10k's, triathlons and duathlons. We had a great time at the Cinco de Mayo race. It was an awesome course with a few nice elevation climbs throughout and paved conditions. I especially enjoyed it because part of the course is included in the CRIM so it helped give me an idea of what to expect in August when we run that race. The starting line was well organized with the MC getting everyone pumped up for the start and the course well marked (always good!). 

This was a perfect race to get me back into the running game after taking the last year off during pregnancy and Aiden's birth. Ryan and I did really well too, so that's always awesome! Ryan got 2nd place in his age group and I got 3rd (out of 14) with time of 28:58, which I was happy about. I wish I had pushed harder at the end, but was reluctant that I would burn out since I hadn't been running as often as I had hoped and didn't know what expect with the hills. I'm really hoping to work on my pace and carve some off my time and maybe place even better by end of summer. 

Pre-race selfie!

Finish line

Awesome medals!

Age group finisher medals

After race with Aiden (Grandma and Poppa watched him). Sweet sombreros, huh? Race swag at it's best.

Overall, super fun race that was well organized. We really loved the medals, shirts and fun hats too (some runners dressed up and wore them - AWESOME). Also, had a mini-breakfast after race for runners to help re-fuel with food from a local mexican restaurant..bonus!

I'm super excited to say that I'll be racing in my first sprint triathlon EVER with Tri To Finish in September at Holly Recreation Area (which is gorgeous if you have never been there). I have a mixture of feelings of excitement and nervousness, but I'm confident that'll it'll be a great starter triathlon. I've started training for it and I'll be sure to update on that hopefully later this week or next week. :) 

Welcome to Parenthood - Advice from a New Mom

Happy One Month Baby Boy!

I can't believe that it's already been a month since Aiden has been born. In that moment our life completely changed in so many ways, but I can say that it's worth it, but also has been one of the hardest months of my life. I don't think that any amount of reading, preparing and conversations can prepare you for the way that becoming a parent can affect you.

You spend 9 months imagining and preparing for this little person to enter your life and once they do, life is turned around completely. The moments following are some of the most challenging moments, both mentally and physically, however also the most rewarding and fulfilling. It's surreal the moment they hand your child to you. It's a moment of disbelief that YOU made this child and that he/she is yours to keep and raise and hopefully mold into a decent human. Talk about responsibility.

This past month has been a learning experience. I think most people go into parenthood with pre-conceived notions of what it will be like. Media shows parenthood to be this simple walk in the park of cute, sleeping babies (which they are...sometimes, and pretty much never at night), perfectly clean homes, easy & pain free breastfeeding (think again...it's hard), and so on.

Each person's experience differ, but the following are the few bits of advice I have:

Be prepared to be flexible - That first month is pretty much dictated by baby, and that's okay. Just go with it. There's no point fighting it because at that point you and baby are both learning this whole new thing. I know that I went into this with certain ideas of what I would and would not do. I've already reneged on more than a few things and I'm sure as time goes on there will be more.

Sleep when baby sleeps - Everyone says this...but honestly do it as much as you can. You never know how the upcoming night will go and you'll really regret not sleeping that extra hour when you've been up between 12-6am with a fussy baby. Those dishes will get done, laundry washed and house dusted...just maybe not today, or even this week.

Get over bodily fluids - You will be spit on, pooped on, peed on and leak everywhere before it's over. The sooner you get over being grossed out by it...the easier life will be.

Ask for help, and accept help -  If you need something ask. People aren't mind readers. And when others offer help...accept it. It's amazing how refreshing an hour to yourself can be, so take up people's offers to watch the baby for an hour or two, and accept all offers of free, prepared food.

You know your baby better than others do - Everyone loves to give advice. Listen, but don't feel obliged to do everything others say. They mean well, but sometimes people get diarrhea of the mouth and don't know when to just stay quiet (however, I do recommend listening to your pediatrician, but don't be afraid to ask questions and research your options).

Don't take anything personal said between the hours of midnight and 6AM - I had a close friend tell me this the other day and it's true. You and your significant other are both in this together, but sometimes after four nights of little sleep and three hours of a crying infant, tempers can flare. Being angry and resentful will only lead to more issues in the end. Make sure to keep communication open.

Lastly, give yourself a break - Being a parent is hard. Suddenly you're thrown into taking care of a human being that is completely dependent on you and sometimes you feel like you've lost a part of yourself at the same time. Everyone always said that it gets easier, and it does. It's only been a month for us, but I can tell you that each day gets a little bit easier than the previous day. And even if it isn't easier, those baby snuggles make each and every day worth it.

What words of advice do you have for new parents? 

Did you have a hard time adjusting to becoming a parent?

Travel Bug Has Bitten

I have the travel bug itch. You know- that itch that can only be scratched by jumping in the car for a long ride or hopping a plane ride to somewhere far away and different than what your used to.I think this was all spurred by flipping through the photos of the trips we have taken over the years mixed with photos of all different resorts and beautiful places on StumbleUpon. There's just something about getting out of your norm and seeing other parts of the world and experiencing different cultures and environments.  It's refreshing and grounding.

Here’s a quick recap of some of the amazing places we have been:

Florida VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Punta Cana, Dominican Republic VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Riviera Maya, Mexico VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

San Francisco, California VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Upper Peninsula: MI VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Killington, VT VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

All this has me on the search for the next place to visit.  With gas prices being so high and money being a bit tighter it’s likely to be a more local trip in the great state of Michigan (although I’m dying to go to Australia, Costa Rica and St. Lucia). I’d love to visit the west coast of the state since I’ve never really explored that area, or maybe a wine tasting trip to beautiful Traverse City.

Are you traveling the summer? Are you staying in state, visiting other states or even heading out of the country? What was the best vacation that you had?

First snowfall and holiday love

I can't imagine a better way to welcome the month of December than with a light snowfall.  I woke this morning to an inch or so of snow on the ground and huge, slowly falling snowflakes.  The first snowfall of the year is always something I treasure and this morning I sat here with a steaming cup of coffee and just watched as it came tumbling down.

I love all the seasons, but there is always just something spectacular about winter that I love (I know, I'm one of the few that actually love winter).  Maybe it's being cuddled up with the ones you love inside a cozy house, all the baking and yummy food that comes with the season, snowboarding, ice skating, sledding or just the feel good feeling of the holidays.  Whatever the reason, I love this time of year.

One of my favorite things to do to welcome winter is getting everything decorated for Christmas.  We spent the day after Thanksgiving pulling everything out of the garage and decorating the house.  We've slowly been building our ornament collection over the years.  We've started the tradition of buying an ornament every time we go on vacation.  It's always a great trip down memory lane when hanging the ornaments on the tree.  I love looking at each one and having a memory or person associated with it.

These are the same bells that we had at our wedding.
Each table had a set of them hanging off
a chair.

The gingerbread man is one that my sister
made years ago in school.

Our wonderful friend's bought us this as a
wedding gift.  They're now getting
married this summer. :)

Saying"hi" in the reflection.

Ryan's manly ornament

Forever ornament from Angie after our engagement.

The moose from our trip where we
got engaged.

See what I mean about wanting to cuddle
up with those you love?

Do you love or hate winter?  Is there anything in particular that you are looking forward to this holiday season/wintertime?