Jason runs 50km - Sun Mountain Trail Ultra

(Meggan's perspective)
May long weekend is supposed to promise blue skies and warm weather... or so we continue to hope each year.  Saturday morning we packed the car full and headed back down to Winthrop, ready to camp again.  This time it was just our family but we were still staying at our friends' property.  There were rumours of flooding in the area, but when we arrived we were happy to see that all was well and camping would still be possible.

We arrived just after lunch and fed Rachel in the sun.  She didn't mind the dehydrated green beans or the Walmart brand jars of baby food if they were heated up a bit.  Rachel woke up with a runny nose and seemed a little on the grumpy side, but was hanging in there.  I was exhausted and Jason had to work hard to convince me to get up off my butt and head out to the course so I could get in my run.  My marathon training plan included a 22-23km run this weekend, so my plan was to follow the 25km race course and stop a few km early.  I have been pretty good about getting in all my runs so far and I've been quite proud of myself... but things are getting tougher each week.  I was still exhausted and sore Sat from my trail run Wed night!

Rachel waiting for Mommy to reach Thompson Ridge

But, even thought I begged and pleaded not to run (and instead to sleep in the sunshine), Jason dropped me off at the trailhead and off I went as he promised to meet me 8.5 miles later at the top of the climb.  Thankfully, it was a beautiful course and the scenery was the only thing that helped me get through my heavy legs and unwilling lungs.  I hiked most of the trail - a long climb that I was struggling through.  My calves and hamstrings were threatening to cramp as I climbed and climbed.  The temperature dropped as I climbed and I was shocked to see snow patches.  Running by myself started to weigh on me as I didn't have companionship for the first time in all my training.  I started clapping and shouting to avoid any bears and made myself nervous since I hadn't seen anyone else at all in many miles.  I was way slower than I said I would be and I was nervous that Jason wouldn't be able to wait for me at the top.  I was so thankful that he stayed and waited for me because then he and Rachel could be closer car support for the descent.  Sadly, my legs were so heavy that I feared injury on the muddy single track and gave in after 17.5km.  It was the hardest run I think I've done since playing field hockey.

As soon as I finished my run, the skies opened up and let out all the rain.  We hit a pizza place in town for dinner and Rachel had her first solid food meal at a restaurant.  Other campers kept entering the place, searching for hot food and reprieve from the pelting down rain.  We reluctantly left, needing to get to our tent and put Rachel to bed.  She normally goes to sleep at 7pm or so and it was closer to 8pm by the time we put her down.  And then ... we lay there.  Quiet.  Wondering what to do.  It was pouring outside so our choices were to hang out in the car and then come back to the tent and risk waking Rachel up or stay in the tent and be quiet.  So we whispered through a game of Quiddler and then fell asleep before 9pm.

Rachel eating breakfast in a modified camp chair

Rachel woke us up and wouldn't settle down until after midnight, but then slept well again until her latest wake up time of 5:30am.  At home we've been working on letting her soothe herself back to sleep... but right next to her in a tent and with her having a cold - that was more challenging.  She actually spent the second half of the night in her carseat in the tent so that she was propped up a little better and could breathe better through her cold.

Sunday morning the rain stopped.  Jason's 50km race started at 10am so we had time to enjoy breakfast and I hopped in the river for a very quick and refreshing dip.  At the race start we saw other friends we knew, including our friends Sarah and Colleen who were doing the 25km.  After the start, Rachel and I headed out to watch in one car and Sarah's family came with me to find the runners on the trail.  We managed to watch Jason and then Sarah/Colleen at about 5 miles, 9 miles, and 15 miles.  Rachel and I then went to the 25-mile aid station and had a play time/picnic while we waited for the runners.

Jason came in to the aid station at about 4 hours, looking fresh and having a good time.  I couldn't believe it!  I was so sore and put off from how hard I found the first 9 miles of the trail that I was blown away to see him lightly stepping and smiling after a marathon on the trails!  I decided that this was a good thing and I should be happy for him - not mad that he makes it look so easy.  We gave him a kiss and wished him luck on his last climb and went to the finish to watch him come in.


At the finishing chute, Sarah and her family and Rachel and I cheered Jason coming in.  Rachel and I yelled 'Go Daddy!' and Jason picked Rachel up and crossed the finish with her. May 22 would have been Ray's 58th birthday, so Jason was running this race with a somewhat heavy heart, but he says those were happy tears from being cheered on as "Daddy!" It was an exciting and emotional finish... just over 5 hours for 50km on difficult trails.

World's best fan club

The rain opened up again shortly after this, and we packed up and headed home after Jason cooled down a bit.  The drive home seemed long and tiring for all of us.  Rachel wasn't happy about the drive.  We were those parents singing 'Old MacDonald' and 'B-I-N-G-O' (the most annoying song) over and over again, trying to get her home.  She played with every object in the car hoping it would entertain her.  But we made it home and put her to bed and spent the holiday Monday getting organized and cleaned up.

Today is Tuesday.  Rachel still has a runny nose.  Meggan is exhausted, has a cold, and canceled half her patients for the day to try and get healthy again.  Jason is doing really well... and HE's the one who raced!!!

To view the race GPS and see where Jason went, click here: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/87645131

May 6 Tenting / May 7 Trail Marathon Relay

Many people are asking how our first tenting experience went, and if we have any tips for our friends with babies to camp this summer.

Let's back up and review a few things.  We don't often 'camp' like most people.  Camping for us comes in one of two ways: a) we need a place to sleep and, since we're cheap, we find a free rec site and pull in late at night, pitch a tent, crash, and leave the next morning OR b) we're on some other longer adventure (backpacking, hiking, paddling, etc) that includes tenting for several nights in a row.  We are NOT typically the kind of campers who have lots of stuff and have things really organized and stay at the campsite for a while and have fancy food.  I remember seeing families in Australia that went 'camping' for the summer and had fridges, generators, and tvs set up next to their surfing spot on the beach.  So... if you are the kind of family who plans to relax and sit around at the campsite and make yummy food... we are not the people who should be giving you advice from our experience.

Let's review our plan for this trip.
Friday - Meggan works until 4pm then we drive down to Winthrop, WA and hope to get there in time for Rachel's bedtime.  Eat on the way.  Set up tent.  Hope for no rain.  Sleep.
Saturday - Trail Marathon starts at 8:30am and it takes about 45 min to drive from the campsite to the start.  Meggan runs the first half while Jason takes care of Rachel.  Then Jason passes Rachel to Meggan and he completes the second half of the race.  After some food we either stay another night and relax or come home if the weather is not great.

ELEMENTS OF THE TRIP:
1) The Drive
We found driving much easier on this trip than some others.  It's a 2.5 hr drive - much shorter than a trip to Vancouver, Seattle, or Spokane.  Also, we had room for an adult to sit next to Rachel to entertain her.  Lastly, we can feed her food on the road since she can eat solids from her car seat.  So we had no issues whatsoever with the drive down or back.  (Previously we endured horrible crying on this highway.)

2) The Weather
The forecast called for rain, and rain it did.  However, we were blessed.  It did not rain while setting up or taking down the tent or very much while we were running.  It rained hard overnight and after we were finished running, which did spark the desire to come home Saturday instead of spending a second night in the tent.  It was very cold overnight and this caused Rachel's little hands to be quite chilled.  She let us know this was the case at 4am when she screamed and screamed until she warmed up inside her Mama's sleeping bag and puffy.

3) The Campsite

Our friends Dave and Stacey are building a cabin in Twisp, WA and we set up our tent in their field.  They have a port-a-potty and running water on site.  But lucky for us, the cabin is almost finished so we also had access to bathrooms, a full kitchen, and a covered warmer area to hang out before bed.  Talk about luxury camping!  I could even plug in my pump in the house into a real outlet (I had planned to use the car adapter and pump in the car.)

4) Our Tent
In our pre-child camping years, we were all about light, efficient, and cramped.  For this trip, we borrowed a 6 person family dome tent from our friend Amber and we were sold.  It took a little bit extra effort to set it up, but once it was up we were sold!  We could walk around inside it.  We could diaper change inside it.  We put Rachel's travel crib set up inside it and we still had heaps of room to set our own sleeping pads and bags up without disrupting her sleep.  We would not have been able to make this happen to the same level of luxury with our old 2-person light-as-a-feather backpacking tent.

5) The Help
We didn't try this alone.  We had 6 other adults and a dog at our campsite with no other children.  There were many hands on deck to set up tent, hold the baby, entertain the baby, etc.  We also had other friends doing the race that were around at different aid stations and at the finish and the post-race meal to help hold Rachel.

6) The Food (Rachel's)
I was pretty stoked to try the dehydrated sweet potato, green bean, and pear/peach mixtures I'd made.  We'd also bought jars of food for the first time and started with that in the car on the way down.  Rachel was NOT a fan of the mixed vegetable WalMart brand jar... but she is a good sport and politely had some without throwing it up.  We'll have to see if she dislikes all jarred food or just this flavor or what.  She ate lots of cheerios and rice crackers as we were on the go quite a bit.  She didn't have many opportunities to try the dehydrated food after all... but I will admit I am really disappointed in the outcome there.  She took down what we offered her like the great eater she is.  But the food didn't 'hydrate' into any kind of appealing texture and it all seems like it was a lot more effort than it will be worth in the end.


7) The Race

The Sunflower Trail Marathon Relay race course was beautiful.  I ran with my friend Jehanne for our 13mile section.  We were a bit nervous going in since our longest run to date was a mere 13-14km.  We weren't sure that the extra 7km would happen.  But we felt really strong and enjoyed the trails and the scenery as we chatted along.  At 10km we saw Jason, Rachel and Nick cheering.  Onward we went.

We had it in our heads that our section was 12 miles, and in fact is was 13.1 miles.  That last mile was also on pavement and uphill, so it was a challenge to our tired legs.  But we came into the exchange and saw Jason, Rachel, and Nick waiting for us happily at 2 hours and 18 minutes.  Not a bad half marathon time for a casual long run in the woods!  Jason handed me Rachel, gave me her latest food and diaper update and he took off.

Meggan finishes 21km and gets Rachel as Jason takes off

He took his much more technical, hilly half of the run in just over 2 hours, passing loads of people.  I met him at the finish line with all our friends. 

Jason crosses finish line with Rachel in his arms

We both enjoyed ourselves.  2 days later, I'm still amazed by my body and encouraged that I will be able to run a full marathon in 3 months.


So.  One night in a tent and a trail half marathon done.  In two weeks, we'll go down again.  We'll make Rachel wear more clothes to bed and it will be warmer.  We won't have nearly the help or access to the cabin.  Jason will be running 50km and we'll be camping for at least 2 nights.  Wish us luck!

Returning to work

April 4th Meggan (writing this) returned to part time work at the clinic.  This was a difficult decision for us to make.  Our friends and family in Canada, used to many moms being off on EI benefits for a 1 year maternity leave, say 'why so soon?'.  Our USA counterparts say 'Wow! You were so lucky to get 6 months off and only be returning part time!'

The biggest component was that I missed working.  The other huge factor was that my clinic owner was willing to work around Jason's schedule to make something work.  Jason took two afternoons off work to be with Rachel, and our schedule was set.  We each work about half time.

Being back at work is fantastic.  I love being a PT, and I love using my brain and my hands.  I love the social aspect of seeing patient after patient.  The time at work always flies by way faster than I even mean it to... and before I know it, it's time to rush back home again.  At the end of each shift I call home to see how hungry Rachel is and if I have time to do my charting or not!  I really missed work while I was off and I'm already scheming to find my next course or certification to learn more.  I also find that I enjoy my time with Rachel much more when I don't have to do it for so long.  I like the balance.

Of course, this wouldn't work if Jason didn't have the option to work part time around my clinic hours so we can flip childcare... and he loves being home with Rachel.  He's now the one going to the library with her for Song&Rhyme and to BabyTalk at the Health Centre.  I take her to swim lessons.  We split chores around the house.  Any free time either of us gets when we're not working, we are out running, since we're both training for big races this summer.

Here's a typical day:
6am Rachel gets up.  Jason showers and gets ready for work.  Meggan tries and fails to coax Rachel to sleep a little longer.
7-9am Jason works with his morning client while Meggan and Rachel eat breakfast, get dressed and pack for the day
9:15am Meggan leaves for the clinic and works through her patients while Jason and Rachel have a morning walk/nap, change diapers, do laundry, put together lunch, try to get dishes done and the kitchen clean.  Rachel has a bottle and eats lunch.
1:30pm Meggan returns home and feeds Rachel since she screams for it when she sees Mommy, even if she's just eaten.  Meggan is ok with this since her body is ready to feed!  Jason leaves for work.  As he runs out the door, he tells Meggan when she last ate/napped/was changed.
Afternoon - Jason works.  Meggan and Rachel get organized for dinner, change diapers, feed her, do chores, go for a run in the stroller, hope for an afternoon nap for Rachel so Meggan can make dinner.
6pm - Rachel eats dinner, then starts bedtime routine.  Jason has finished one job and is either off to coach or do yoga.
6:45pm - Jason comes home to kiss Rachel good night Meggan puts her down
7:30pm - Jason and Meggan eat dinner, then have time to themselves to clean the house, pump milk for the next day, finish the dishes/laundry, do physio exercises, and might fit in email/a game/book before bed.
Rachel is still waking up 3-4 times a night on average.

Anyway, we like it.  We think this balance of splitting child care, working half time, and each getting time with Rachel is good.  For now, it works.  We might try to keep it going, if we can avoid daycare.  We'll see!

Solid Foods

(written by Meggan)
Rachel recently turned six months... this means FOOD!!!  Thank goodness, too.  Rachel ate so much and all the time when we were in Virginia that we were very anxious for her to start trying solids.

There is a lot of information on solid food out there, but few sources agree on the best foods to start.  I read quite a bit, came up with a plan, and started making food.  We took the advice of our local nurses to encourage starting with iron-fortified cereals and iron-rich foods such as beef and chicken.  We also liked the concept of trying vegetables before sweeter fruits in hopes to reduce a sweet tooth (like Mommy's!)

We knew that April would be a busy month for us, so in March we started making baby food.  We made pureed squash, chicken, beef, and sweet potato.  We bought rice cereal and pumped extra breast milk to add to the purees and to freeze in ice cube trays to add to the cereal.

pureed chicken

We have friends who have picky eaters as children and some friends who can't seem to force food down their baby's mouths... so we were wondering what Rachel would be like.

The big day arrived and we started mashing up avocado for Rachel to try.  She took it down like a starving girl and wanted more and more and more!  She grabbed the spoon and shoved it in her mouth greedily.  Green goop was everywhere and we were proud parents... until the next day when she broke out into a full body rash.  Oops.

After two days break we started again with rice cereal.  This was a big hit and easy for everyone.  She developed the method of spoon goes in, then suck the thumb right away to help swallow.  When hungry, she will literally dive her whole body forward over the spoon.  Soon she took down all the foods we had pre-made, and we were looking to find more finger foods for times on the go.  Sadly, starting solid foods has not helped Rachel sleep better but it has decreased the frequency of her feeds.

We love the idea of making our own baby food and avoiding buying jars from the store.  It's easy to do when we're at home.  Last summer we got extra local pears and peaches and canned them in water without any additives... now Rachel is eating that local Okanagan fruit!

We tried to take our frozen ice-cube-tray-size foods with us on our Easter trip to Vancouver.  It worked out fine, but I wouldn't choose to travel with frozen food again.  I debated canning my own baby food size jars, but I was talked out of this by anyone who had ever tried it, warning me of loads of work and botulism risk.  So I have moved to the dehydrator and snack foods.

dehydrating pureed sweet potato

This weekend we'll be going on our first camping trip with Rachel.  Of course it won't be a regular trip.  We'll be leaving late after work on Friday during Rachel's fussy time, get to the campsite late, wake up early Sat morning, and run in a trail race.  Should be no problem!  I am bringing cheerios, rice cakes, dehydrated sweet potato, green beans, pears and peaches.  Plus, I'm going to buy some jars of store baby food and have them on hand if need. 

Like our pride in our cloth diapers, I find making Rachel's baby food and feeding her very fun.  It feels good to provide good food for her... cross your fingers that the camping trip goes well for us all :)

New York City

Since we mentioned it here on the blog, most of you know we went to New York City as part of our trip to the east coast of the US in March. More on the rest of the trip later, but here are some fun shots from our trip to NYC. On Friday we caught the DC2NY bus directly from Vienna Metro Station to New York. This saved us having to drive, and allowed us all to ride together in the same vehicle. We went with Jason's mom, sister, aunt, and cousin.

After checking in at the Roosevelt Hotel, we ate lunch at Grand Central Terminal and wandered up to Rockefeller Center. Rachel stayed busy looking around at everything. We bought tickets to ride up to the "Top of the Rock" Saturday morning, and checked out the Lego store. Then we walked to Times Square, the home of commercial over-stimulation -- hmmm, did I (Dad) mention that NYC is high on my list of places you couldn't pay me to live? You can see in the picture to the right that the three girls are looking in three different directions to observe the craziness.


As part of my cousin's "sugar quest" we visited the M&M's store and the Hershey's store. We had to go back to the hotel to recuperate before dinner. Dinner at a cafe a few blocks from the hotel, and then the older girls went to see Spiderman, a new play with music from U2. You may have read about its many production difficulties; while the play was good it was paused several times to restart technical action scenes. Meanwhile, Rachel and Daddy headed back to the hotel. While walking back, Rachel's head and eyes were moving back and forth constantly in the stroller, trying to take everything in. She began to make a few frustrated sounds, but as we entered the hotel lobby she visibly relaxed and began to smile again. When we got to our room, which was quiet, she sighed and was ready for some fun playtime before bed. Even a 5-month old knows you have to recharge after NYC!

View of NYC from Rockefeller Center

Next morning we were up with Grandma O. and off to the "Top of the Rock," the observation deck at the 70th floor of the Rockefeller Center. Beautiful sunshine greeted us after we zoomed up in less than a minute thanks to a super-speedy elevator. Rachel's favorite part of the deck was feeling the wind in her face as she came in from the outside section of the deck. After descending, we took Rachel's first subway ride down to the end of the Manhattan and the Staten Island Ferry terminal. This free ferry was a great way to see the shoreline, and spend an hour inside (it was cold outside) looking at scenery. Most of the ferry did what we did on Staten Island: disembark, walk through the terminal, and immediately re-board the return ferry back to Manhattan. Nice views of the Statue of Liberty.

Taxi back to the hotel for rest, then we headed out on an afternoon trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met). Rachel was reasonably entertained by the Egyptian section, and we also viewed the armor collection and the musical instrument section. More dinner and then we went to see Robin Williams in his Broadway debut play, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo. A deeply affecting play, it was nonetheless good to see phenomenal acting from the entire cast.

Sunday morning we started our day with a run at Central Park, which was a nice change from the concrete jungle. While there, we saw several thousand people walking, running, and racing in the 2011 Colon Cancer Challenge, to raise awareness and funds. We also saw people cleaning up from an early-morning duathlon, and tons of people going to the zoo, or simply enjoying the sunshine in the park. Following our run we returned to Times Square area, visited the Disney Store, and rode the big Ferris wheel inside Toys R Us. Rachel liked the Ferris wheel while we were moving, but was unimpressed with the stopping and starting to load the next round of passengers.

Soon it was time for another park with less stimulation, so we headed to Bryant Park, where we enjoyed more sunshine and used the public outdoor reading room: shelves full of books for anyone to read while sitting in the park. We walked back to the hotel past the NYC Public Library, where we talked with a couple from Connecticut holding a sign reading "Talk to Me." We finished up our trip by waiting in line on a random street corner for our bus.

Grandma held a sleeping Rachel for the majority of the long ride home to NOVA.