Filanthropy Friday

One of my dear Austin Apartment Association friends and fellow chair on the Community Outreach Committee, Haydee, is walking on Saturday in the Great Strides Walk For Cystic Fibrosis. 

She has a nephew with Cystic Fibrosis and this weekend, she's walking for him.  I donated $20 to help her reach her goal. 

Tradeshow

2nd Place - Not too shabby!

Wordless Wednesday

Hill People

Today part of our group (the part I'm in) did hill repeats - our coach called us the hill people.

It was a 6.5 mile work out:

2.25 mile warm-up

2 miles of hills (4 x up a big huge hilly hill and then back down)

2.25 mile cool-down

I am now the official "turtle monitor".  It's pretty dark while we're running and our coach frequently asks me where "so-and-so" is on the route (especially, if we're doing something like hill repeats where we see the same people over and over again).  She only ever asks me about the the slow people (like me) because I don't even know the names of the fast people.  She always apologizes for asking me to be the "monitor", but it's good to have a task. 

Papa is in town until tomorrow morning, so Cub and I spent the afternoon and my aunt and uncle's house with papa.

Misfit Monday

The trade show is this week! (So blog posts might be a little sparse and short.)

Here is our banner - with one small change to come - we're going to give the two guys on the end, shirts -  so that they don't just look like floating heads.

 

Don't I make a cute gopher?

Here is the little criminal today (although no biting incidents at school today) doing a little trespassing and property damage.  

Weekend Update

It was a busy weekend - so I'll update with bullet points:

• Friday night wasn't a great one for Cub.  He was crying on and off from about 2:30 - 3:30 in the morning.  I brought him to bed and he fell asleep on my lap.  As soon as I started to carry him back to his bed - HUGE TEARS - but he fell asleep in his own bed around 4:20.  It was too late for me to go back to sleep (I usually wake up for my run around 5:00).  So I got dressed and ready and headed out early. At least Buttin got something for my sleep sacrifice - Cub slept in till 7:15. 
• My run was decent.  I was planning to go about 21 - 22 miles, but ended up going 19.2.  I guess it was luck (?) but I made a wrong turn and it ended up being a short cut.  Once back in the general vicinity of my car I could have gone a little further to get above 20, but that's just not realistic.  My run overall was pretty good, but a little slower than my last 20 miler (today I was about 12:10/mile), but I blame my sluggishness on my lack of sleep.  
• Cub took a decent nap on Saturday, but in the afternoon he was a G-R-U-M-P.  I mean full wailing and flailing about at the slightest thing.  We ran out of his favorite cheese at dinner time (I tried to give him another kind instead) and I thought his eyes were going to pop out of his head from all the crying, head shaking and screaming.  I tried all kinds of distractions (books, tv, toys, other food) and nothing seemed to work - eventually I gave him a bottle and then he cuddled with me on the couch and almost feel asleep while drinking his milk.  (Side note: when I went to the grocery store this morning, I bought TWO packages of his favorite cheese so as to never run out again.)
• On Saturday night, Liz and I went to see a movie - Moneyball (excellent - solid 4.0 cookies) and according to Hannah, Cub didn't make a peep (he was in bed, fast asleep by 6:30).
• Sunday morning Cub slept in till 7:00! 
• My dad is in town from Florida, so after a quick trip to the grocery store Cub and I went over to my aunt and uncle's house to eat breakfast with family.  Cub proceeded to lick every window in my aunt and uncle's house and terrorize the kitty-cat. 
• This afternoon (after a shorter nap), Cub and I went to one of our customer's corporate picnic.  They had an nice air-conditioned inside area, but all he wanted to do was try to get into this disgusting little creek with dead frogs floating in it.  

 

We got home around 4:30 this afternoon and went outside (more) to play.  Cub decided to talk to the airplane flying overhead. 

Then I told him there was an airplane on his shirt, but I think it just made him confused.

Filanthropy Friday

This is just the coolest charity and it's my first International transaction (Philippine Pesos).  I have Jonathan, Liz's husband, to thank for finding this uplifting charity. Thank you! Thank you!  It's been a difficult couple of weeks and this is a great find.

The charity is called A Liter of Light (or Isang Litrong Liwanag).  Their slogan is - Bringing Light To The Poor One Liter At A Time.

Students at MIT (I totally got accepted here) developed a way to provide very inexpensive lighting by using a plastic Coke bottle - a Solar Bottle Bulb.  A Liter of Light's focus is bringing this type of technology to developing and poor countries.  

The really cool part is how they do it - they cut a hole in the roof, fill up a plastic Coke (or Pepsi if you so desire) bottle with water and a little bleach, and then install the Coke bottle in the roof (they do a little sealant so that rain doesn't get through the metal roof).  When the sun light hits the bottle, it literally fills a room with light - as much as an electric bulb (55 watts).

The video is amazing! The people who are receiving these lights (right now, many in the Philippines) have so much joy for something so simple. 

I wish there was a way for me to inexpensively ship all of our plastic bottles of Dr. Pepper to them, because we have a lot, but instead I donated 1,000 Philippine Pesos, (conversion: 1 U.S. Dollar = 42.4496 Philippine Pesos) approximately $23.56. 

My Week As A Semi-Single Mom

Tonight begins my week as a semi-single mom.  Buttin is attending Fantastic Fest which means he's pretty much watching movies from 2 PM - 2 AM for the next week, with the occasional break to prevent seat sores.  I'm sure he'll be hating Cub's 5:30 AM wake-up call, but he'll probably look forward to spending a little time with his son - even if it is at 5:30.

So I'm beginning to think that we're never going to get cooler weather, but the other day I order a cute little winter hat for Cub.  I got it in the mail today and had Cub model it.

Wordless (Mostly) Wednesday

A self-portrait series - by Cub.  

Technically, I hit the button to take the picture, but he was looking at himself and making these faces. 

 

Recovery Run & Biting (again)

Today was a "recovery" run.  I'm not exactly sure what we were recovering from, but maybe it's the months of training in the heat.

We ran 6 miles -

2 mile warm-up

2 mile (straights and curves on the track)

Straights - 5K pace

Curves - easy jog

2 mile cool-down

It was a cooler morning and it felt good to run - even if it was on the track (for the middle two miles).

In other news, little Cub had THREE biting incidents at school today.  I guess three was too many to write up on a report, so I just had a mini parent/teacher conference when I picked him up this afternoon.  The teacher said he's not doing it maliciously - just bored or teething or "more of an oral kid" (her words).   I really thought we had gotten over this little stage of life, but I guess not.  He's not really biting at home so they're going to watch him a little more closely at school to see if they can identify triggers (like chubby little arms within biting range).  

Speaking of the little criminal, here he is playing with his new favorite toy, a wagon (his Christmas-in-September present from Gigi).  He's telling me his wagon is "hot", which is one of his new favorite things to say (well, sign).  Everything is "hot" right now.

Here he is telling me is other favorite thing, "one more time".  I always put my finger up when we're going to do something "one more time" . . . like read a book or play with my phone or (apparently) bite a friend at school, so now he loves to put his finger up when he wants to do something again.

Misfit Monday

The trade show is one week from Thursday.

In our production of Caddyshack, I will be playing The Gopher. 

Today my goal was to find a costume that was under $35.  I though maybe I could make my own by purchasing some brown pajamas (a la the bunny costume from the bowling tournament), some ears and a tail.  I tried various Google searches because "gophers" aren't very popular costumes - go figure.  However, I quickly learned that work is probably not the best place to Google, "beaver tail" or "beaver costume".  When I tried Googling "squirrel tail" - my search results include "authentic squirrel fur tail" and "live squirrel".  

In the end, I found a used Gopher costumer - this is what it looks like:

Since it's a used costume, I hope it's not from someone with a furry fetish - and if you don't know what that is, I don't recommend Googling it at work.

Now, here's Cub doing his impression of a gopher.

An Afternoon Movie

Buttin and I have decided we need to try and go on a few dates (together).  So this afternoon we asked Hannah to come over for a few hours so that we could go see the movie, Drive (about 3.5 cookies).  

I think Hannah and Cub spent the entire time while Buttin and I were gone, outside, because he was sweaty and red (and also outside) when we got home.  

It was nice to get out of the house together and Cub seemed to enjoy his time with Hannah.

Here's a picture of Cub from today - not surprisingly, playing outside.

Running With Mormor

Mormor and I ran together today.  I was only supposed to do 10 miles, but I wanted to show my mom the trail we'd be running on for Frankenthon.  We were going to try somewhere between 15 - 20, depending upon how we were feeling. 

Well, we felt gross.  We walked/jogged about 15 miles, but my mom got to see most of the route we will run on October 22nd.

Here's a beautiful picture of us at around mile five.

This afternoon was very overcast, but no rain.   It felt cooler, so I took Cub to the park.  He enjoyed being outside.

 

Filanthropy Friday

Last week, I promised a happy Filanthropy Friday for today.

I lied, but it wasn't on purpose.

Today, our family said good-bye to our beloved dog, Molly - aka, Mo-b and Mo-bear. 

I've had her since she was eight weeks old - I was only twenty-one.  She's been with me though so many life changes. I am very grateful for her companionship and unconditional love. I could go on and on about Molly stories, but right now it's just a little too difficult.

This week I donated $50 in Molly's memory to the Texas Alaskan Malamute Rescue Association.  

You're a good girl Molly-B and I'll love you forever.

A Little Haircut

Today we went to Sharkey's for Cub's first approved haircut. 

Sharkey's has a ton of stuff to keep children occupied.  At first, he wasn't having anything to do with the haircut experience (not the car chair, balloons or the tv), but then I put him in my lap and from then on, he was pretty happy.  By the time it was over, he had found a bunch of toys and didn't want to leave. 

Here's a little before, during and after.

The day before - so sad about the shaggy state of his hairdo.

During - happy. 

After - so happy, he's posing.  

I know.  She didn't cut very much.  I wouldn't let her - it's baby steps for this mama. 

Wordless Wednesday

Marathon Goal Pace

Today my running group did a 7.5 mile MGP run.

1.25 mile warm-up

5 miles at MGP (10:03 is my MGP)

1.25 mile cool-down

During the warm-up, my semi-fast friend asked me if I had done 8 miles at MGP during my 20-miler on Saturday (she did because that's what we were supposed to do).  I told her (as politely as possible) that my MGP could more accurately be called - FINISH PACE - meaning my goal is to finish and that NO I hadn't run any of the 20-miler at MGP, I was just trying to go the distance. She laughed.  I wasn't joking.

I did all 7.5 miles in an average of 10:30/mile, so I'm guessing I was pretty close to my MGP during the five miles in the middle.  The lesson I learned today was that if a marathon was only five miles, I could do it at my MGP. 

Here is Graby running at his marathon goal pace:

Misfit Monday

We are in trade show planning mode.  No rest for the misfits. 

Here is our trade show "invitation".  It's a candy wrapper and it will be around a Baby Ruth bar - DOODIE!

It's pretty classy.  

Here's Cub helping me sweep dirt off of dirt. 

To The Zoo

It was 102 this afternoon, so in our parental wisdom we decided to take Cub to the Austin Zoo. 

The Austin Zoo is actually an animal sanctuary - they're all rescues.  It's not a flashy/touristy kind of zoo, but I was pretty impressed with the variety of animals - lions, tigers, bears, pigs, primates, birds and a cute little petting zoo area with sheep, goats, chickens and deer. 

Here are a few pictures.

Obviously excited about the pig. 

Not hitting the snake glass. Promise.

Feeding the deer. 

Picture with black bear.  There really was a bear, but he didn't want to pose.

Do Not Touch or Feed the Cash Cub.

Some kind of primate (not pictured), but Cub thinks it looks like a cat.

 

Very energetic lion.

 

Walking out, holding hands with Daddy.

 

We plan to go again soon - when it gets cooler. 

Venti!

I finally did a 20 mile training run.  My time (including my water stops/walks) was 3:59:40 (which is about four seconds slower than Sarah Palin's fastest marathon time - argh!), but I am pretty please with my time. 

Today was my longest run since doing a marathon almost two years ago.

It was a great morning - about 65 degrees and not much wind. 

The first 18 miles were relatively uneventful.  The only issue I had was at about the 6 mile mark - I ate a Gu and I stuck the package in my mouth and when I pulled it out I cut the inside of my mouth with the wrapper.  It was unpleasant, but it hurts worse now (after a day of sticking my tongue on it) than it did during my run.  For the first 18 miles, I felt almost no discomfort - just a little soreness starting to settle into some of my muscles.  

At about mile 18 I started to get pretty warm and I was in an area with no shade.  I did a little walking just to keep myself from getting too tired, but every time I'd walk a little, my muscles would tighten up.  It actually felt better to slow jog, so that's what I did.  

I actually stopped my watch at exactly 20 miles - I wasn't running any further.  

I walked the half mile back to Rogue.  I got there AFTER all the people who were running 22 miles were on their way home (some of them were probably already home).

Here is a picture of Graby playing outside today.  It's starting to get pretty hot again (sigh) in the afternoon, so we had to limit our outside time.

Filanthropy Friday

My heart aches this week.  I wish I had more money and time to give to others.

For the second week in a row, other things have happened to throw off my planned donation - so this week I'm giving to three (very deserving) charities. 

Charity #1:  United Way - Central Texas Wildfire Relief Fund

As of this morning, more than 1,300 homes have been lost in Bastrop, TX.  I cannot imagine losing my home in such a devastating way.  I feel badly for the moms and dads who have lost so many "firsts" - like drawings, stamped footprints and baby shoes and for the kiddos who have lost their favorite toys, trophies and awards. 

The UWCA is directing 100% of the money collected from the Wildfire Relief Fund to a variety of non-profits ranging in services for immediate and long-term relief.  I hope my $10 helps.

Charity #2: Muscular Dystrophy Association

MDA was my planned focus for today's Filanthropy Friday.  MDA was probably my introduction to charity/philanthropy.  As a child, I looked forward to the telethon every year on Labor Day weekend.  My parents would let me stay up all night to watch it.  I would cry at every story and beg my parents to donate money - which they did and then they encouraged me to donate some of my precious savings. 

In high school, we were required to perform 100 hours of community service during our senior year.  I volunteered at a one week MDA summer camp for children.  I have so many memories of that week.  I took care of a mischevious 9-year-old boy, Charles.  He was in a wheelchair, but we could go swimming and dance. I returned to the same camp two years later and spent a week with another 9-year-old boy, Chance.  I saw Charles during my second summer and his mobility had declined significantly, but he still had the same little fighter spirit. 

I regret not keeping in touch with Charles, Chance and their families.  Both Charles and Chance had Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, which is the most common and caused by a protein (dystrophin) deficiency.  Without this protein, muscles break down and become weaker.  Based upon the average life expectancy of someone with DMD, it's unlikely that either Charles or Chance are still alive. 

I made a $10 donation in each of their names to MDA.

Charity #3:  Save-A-Limb Fund

This came to me as a recommendation from a fellow Baby Mama.  

She has a friend with an 8-year-old son, Shawn, who has experienced over 60 surgeries as a result of growth abnormalities.  This family is fortunate because their medical insurance covers most of the costs.  Other families are not as fortunate. 

The Save-A-Limb Fund helps families who cannot afford the costly surgeries required to heal their children and are instead advised to have the limb(s) amputated. 

Shawn is participating in the Save-A-Limb Ride to help other children.  He has already surpassed his fundraising goal, but I gave him $10 to support his ride.  

Again, I find myself so thankful for the health of my child.  I would not wish an ill child on my worst enemy (it's a good thing my worst enemies are beans and raisins) and I cannot imagine the helpless pain of a parent who has a child with MD or the parent who has to watch their child go through dozens of surgeries.  I wish there was more I could do to help. 

I'll try to make next week a little more uplifting, promise.

Nice Cool Yassos

Since Tuesday's post was Cash's 17 month letter, I didn't write about running.  Running this week has been nice with the slightly cooler temperatures. 

On Tuesday morning, our group did six Yasso 800s . A long, long time ago when I was preggo with Cub, I frequently did Yassos   - I actually wrote about doing a six Yasso workout here. 

In theory, if you do 10 Yasso 800s in a row, it's supposed to be a predictor of your marathon time.  Two years ago when I did Yassos - my average time was about five minutes, meaning I should have been capable of a five hour marathon. Hmmm.

Well on Tuesday, my average time (even though we only did six) was 3:58!!!  If I do a 3:58 marathon - I think I just might stand my head, twirl and spit nickles.  I guess it's good to have a goal and I'd be overjoyed with a 4:58 marathon time.  

I caught Cub mid-sentence today in this picture.  Anyone whose seen him "talking" in person, knows this face and I think it's adorable.  

Wordless Wednesday

Dear Cash - 17 Months

Dear Cash-Cub,

I love it when the monthly anniversary of your birth occurs on a Tuesday.  You were born on a Tuesday.

I missed your 16 month letter and a lot has changed since your 15 month birthday. 

You babble a lot, but still don't say many distinguishable words.  You do a lot of signs - some are actual sign language and some are modified ones that only we understand.  You know - cat, dog, duck, chicken, bird, horse, pig, frog, fish, star, more, thank you, please, all done and milk - BUT - no mommy or daddy.  I'm really looking forward to the day when you call me something. 

You may not say much, but you understand a ton.  You follow instructions (when you want) very well.  We go outside everyday and you diligently get your shoes and sunscreen when asked.  You also want to help with pretty much everything we do - from sweeping the floor (like that happens a lot) to brushing your teeth to flushing the toilet. 

One thing that has really changed (and I've been meaning to dedicate an entire post to it) is that you have almost completely stopped breastfeeding.  I'm so glad that we did this on our timetable.  If I think about it too much - it makes me sad, but because it has dwindled down slowly - it has been easier on both of us.  At night, instead of nursing - I just read you books.  Right now you really enjoy a book about animal hugs and kisses.  Your new favorite animal is the otter, but I can't seem to find the sign for "otter". 

You are pretty much a solids eating machine now.  It took you a while, but now your meals frequently include: hotdog, cheese, rice, goldfish, crackers, bananas (you ate three bananas in one day this weekend), apple newtons and bagels.  You don't eat many vegetables so we're working on those.

Regarding naps you are pretty much down to one nap a day.  It took you a while to get to this schedule on the weekends, but now that you're on it - we're all a little more used to it. 

You are showing signs of toddler-ness - but mostly it's the good stuff.  You're super curious, playful and you have the best laugh in the whole wide world which make all the tantrums a little (just slightly) more bearable.

Little Cub, please don't grow up too quickly and please be sweet to me and your dad.  We love you more than cookie dough and Sonic ice and all the other stuff we love combined.  

Hugs and Kisses (slobbery ones, that you now give spontaneously and upon request),

Mom

Here are a couple pictures of you from today.

On your swing.

Doing your Saturday Night Fever dance (well, actually pointing at a plane).

Misfit Monday

No Misfit Monday because we didn't go into work today.

Instead we spent the day enjoying the beautiful weather - high was about 89. ((In some sad news, there are a few wildfires in Central Texas that have destroyed over 500 homes.  Thankfully, none of the fires are near us.))

As part of our beautiful day, we spent a couple hours at Liz & Jonathan's house.  Cub used to be a little timid around their pool, but not anymore.  I had to hop in with my clothes on after him.

Cub's second favorite thing to do at Liz and Jonathan's house - POO HUNTING!

Weekend With Gigi

This weekend, Gigi came for a visit.

Buttin and I were able to get out and see a couple afternoon movies (a rare treat) and we had a couple nights out with friends. 

Cub is really enjoying his time with Gigi - she lets him drink her diet Coke and eat her food.  She also provides an endless supply of hugs, kisses and poo hunting.  Gigi had a GREAT poo hunting idea - she just flicked all the poo underneath the fence and into our neighbor's yard.  Our neighbors love poo, or at least that's Gigi's story. 

Here is the Gigi, Buttin and Cub poo hunting this morning.

And here's Cub practicing his stunt work.