apples

I mean well. I really do. I want my children to have many experiences. I feel like experiences are more remembered and cherished over material things. Last week, Highland Orchards was our experience: farm animals, swings, a faster-than-the-speed-of-light slide, mums, pumpkins, apple picking and cider doughnuts were all on the list to be experienced. We were ready to have some fun adventures. It was a wonderful morning until the apple picking. First problem: the apples were picked from most of the nearby trees so I had Eli on my hip and Evie walking with me for ooohhhh, about 5 miles! Ok, maybe not 5 miles, but it felt like it! But there Eli was, holding his little apple bag and ready to pick some apples so I could deal with the walking.

Then we finally found some there were pickable, but they were up high. So I had lift Eli up. He couldn't for the life of him pick an apple off of the tree. Each time, it fell out of his hands then he would fall into hysterics. What were these apples coated with, Crisco? Then Evie would be down for two seconds while this was going on and I would look down at her only to see a rotten apple in her mouth. Lovely. This was the trend, back and forth: Eli in hysterics, Evie with rotten, dirty apples in her mouth. Then, Eli wanted to leave with only 3 apples in our bag. No way, I thought...we were getting our money's worth. I had plans....important plans for these apples. But the meltdown already was hitting astronomical proportions. So I quickly picked a bunch myself and started back with my brood. My lovely OCD son wanted me to pick him AND Evie up so that he could not step on bad apples that had fallen off of the tree. I admit, I had a few squish under my feet which is not the best feeling....but I could not hold both.

So here we came, back to our car with Eli crying, Evie falling off of my hip, barely holding onto my bag of apples. So after all this trauma and drama.....I decided to go back and get some cider doughnuts from the bakery there and we ate them outside. No more meltdowns, no more tears, just the three of us, happy as clams. Those doughnuts are fat laden pieces of heaven. So suffice it to say, I had my camera with me the whole time, but only got a few shots. And for the money shot....i.e. the three of us eating doughnuts...well I gave up on my camera b that point and will have to just remember in my mind and my heart.

photography

for all of you non-facebook people, please click here to see my new website! be sure to check the blog for recent photos and also please pass along my info to any friends and family! i am currently booked until the beginning of december, then i will only be taking maternity and newborn sessions until march 2011.

running

I ran in my first race on Friday night. It was my frirst official race. Of course I don't count the races we had when we were kids. You know the ones...when you run and run and feel like your legs are going to fall off, arms flailing in the air, heart pumping so hard you thought it just might beat out of your chest because you had to beat your friend. And I don't count the runs in high school sports either. For field hockey, we had to run 2 miles (I believe) and I came in second a lot of the time, only to see my lovely friend Christiana come in first every time. One time I was beating her and was so bent on coming in first for once that I smashed my knee into the guardrail and only stopped running because people were telling me I was bleeding.

Even though I don't count those races, they hold one important factor: I am actually a bit competitive. In board games, I am all about fairness and hate trash talkers like my husband. In life, I am always about sharing. But running...I am feel the competitive spirit boiling up in me.

So back to the 5k....all the runners are standing there, huddled together, waiting for the official start. I look around and there are runners from all walks of life: older and younger, tone and not so tone, some listened to music, others preferred to listen to their own breathing and the cheers from the crowd. I wasn't nervous at all, which is not like me. I run 3.5 miles almost every day....BUT, it is a slower run...may even be classifed as a jog. But at the time, I wasn't even worried about how I would place in the race. I just didn't want to be last.

And then the race started......FAST! Everyone just jumped out of their shoes practically and started booking down the street! I was winded after the first 2 minutes! I had two friends ahead of me and one behind. But then as everyone found their stride and settled in, I did as well. And then I was on fire. My competiveness just took over and I ran at a steady pace the whole time. None of this jogging I do during my normal runs. I took long strides, let my music push my pace and let my mind push myself. It was exhilirating seeing the families that came to cheer on their loved ones. I felt so cool when there was a water tent and the people would hold out a cup of water for you. Not for me, thanks! I am on a roll! Most runners who did take the cup threw it in their own faces anyway. I was passing people left and right, it was awesome!

It was two laps to the finish and as I was completing the first lap, I was thinking I could be in the top 20 in this race. And then I saw it. About a minute after I finished my first lap, I saw runners passing me on their way to the finish line....THE FINISH LINE! I was JUST starting my second lap out of two laps and they were finishing! Sooooo, then my thinking changed. Ok, mayyyyybe I was not in the top 20....I was then trying not to be in the bottom 50!

I ended up coming in 120th out of 321 with a time of 23:50. I was happy with that. The best time was 14 minutes! I cannot even fathom how fast he had to run to get that time. But now I have caught a bug...they were handing out fliers for the Turkey Trot, a 5k on Thanksgiving morning around the Downingtown Golf course. I like it. Anyone want to join me? :)

jumper

small house + active kid = the need to use our noggins to come up with energy releases. please note that there were couch cushions at the bottom of the stairs 8 stairs he jumped and no child was hurt during this stunt. :)

6 years ago, on august 28th, 2004....chad and i were married. it has been a tough road, i am not going to lie. it still is tough at times. lots of roller coaster ups and downs, twists and turns. scared, worried, laughing, excited, joyful, frustrated, carefree. to celebrate the roller coaster ride we are on, we went to longwood gardens on our anniversary and just had fun. no kids, no time constraints, no fear of looking stupid. we let go and actually had the most fun we have had in a long time. it was a gorgeous day and we reconnected. loveliness.