5k with Kade

In the light of my last post, I decided to run a 5k with Kade that happened today.  It is an annual run in our little Thief River Falls so it is a pretty small race with not very many participants, so a good chance to win. :)  Anyway, I like running the 10k which they have at the same time but with my not so regular running these past months I didn't want to just finish it and get a bad time.  It is funny because if I'm going to enter a race I have to do semi good ( that is semi good for me which means a good chance to beat my best time) or else I don't want to do it.  First, all races cost quite a bit of money and to me there is no point wasting money when I know I'll do horrible and I might as well run that on my own.  But that's just me, I know other people look at it differently.  So the thought hit me this week, that this is the perfect opportunity to run with Kade because I wouldn't feel bad that I missed my race and I can just do this for him and with him.  So I told him yesterday that we're going to do something fun together. :)  Truthfully, it started out with crying about it but later on he was telling nana that tomorrow he's running a race with me so I guess it didn't take him too much to convince him, I just had to give him some time.  He thought there is no way he could run the whole 5k (or 3.12 miles) but I kept encouraging him and telling him it's ok to walk some.  To my surprise he did awesome.  I had to tell him to slow down a few times but then at the end I thought maybe he was able to go faster.  He did walk a couple times but only for a few seconds and he was right back to running.  He passed 2 girls around his age (and the only kids under 11 that ran) and he was really pumped about that.  Then as we approached the finish line Ehren was standing there with Ani and Kason and Kade just ran hard at that point.  I had to almost sprint to catch up so I was right behind him when he crossed the finish.  It was so much fun to do it with Kade and to see how much confidence it gave him.  Of course, kids under 11 run for free and so they don't get any medals or even mentioning about how they did which I think is a bummer because kids like Kade would love to be acknowledged for the hard work they did.  So when he accepted the fact he won't be getting a medal he was telling me "mom, maybe you'll get a medal".  And I told him oh no, there were much faster ladies than me and maybe I could have gotten a medal if I tried running fast by myself, but I didn't care about the medal, I wanted to do it with Kade.  And sure enough, they call my age group and I got a 2nd place so I got a medal.  Unbelievable! :) Those faster ladies were all younger or running 10k.  But since Kade got a faster time than me I gave him my medal.  He so deserved it.  We made it together in 33 minutes and a few seconds which I think is really great for Kade's first 5k ever.   I personally would like to beat 22 minutes some day but the few races I run I usually do a longer distance so I don't know if I'll ever work on my 5ks again.  Maybe when I'm too old and limpy to run any longer. :) It was just an awesome experience to do it with my son and it meant so much more to me than a ton of races I've ran by myself.  I hope he'll really enjoy running as he gets older so we can continue to have our running times and racing times together.

Fall running

Yes, the Fall is finally here!  My brother Adam and his wife Slavka left this week (and there were some pretty sad kids in our house after that) and with them they took our warm weather.  Actually, I'm not complaining at all because this is my favorite season in Minnesota.  The trees are the most beautiful shades of yellow, red and brown (not yet though), the air is crispy and fresh, and we usually have more sunny days than not.  I think since I've lived here in MN I changed my attitude towards the Fall because from what I remember in Slovakia it was mostly gloomy and very rainy with occasional beautiful days.  But here most Falls are just beautiful and so appreciated after some hot and muggy days.  I think that my main reason for loving the Fall though is because of running.  I cannot compare running in the Fall to anything else, it is the most invigorating thing to me.  I just got done with my 4 mile run in the most beautiful Fall weather and it reminded me how much I missed it.  Sure, my run felt like a cripple trying to do it since I haven't done any running for a while but at the same time I loved it and was thankful for the occasional cars towards the end that made me straighten up so I would at least look like I have been running every day. :)  I loved the crispy air, the perfect temperature, the sunshine.  I used to laugh with some old colleagues about my need for a perfect temperature while running.  It couldn't get above 65 and below 10 Fahrenheit or about there.  I got it down to a few degrees and not that I couldn't run in warmer or cooler temperatures, it just wouldn't feel as good and I would have a hard time keeping my pace then.  So anyway, Fall temperatures are exactly my kind of temperatures for running - not too cold and not too warm.  I really hope I can get more organized with my time at home these few months so I can find the time for my running outside because the vicious winter is going to be here before we know it :) and that means being stuck with the treadmill for running.  It is funny how when there is something out of ordinary going on in my life, like my brother visiting us, the first thing that I let go off is my time to work out.  I wonder why that is and I always felt a little jealous of women who are always able to take that time for themselves, even when they have company staying with them.  I feel really guilty about it for some reason, but I shouldn't.  Because in the long run, it gives so much more back to me, better health, more confidence, better attitude with kids and my husband, and some precious time to think, to daydream, to pray.  So my tiny resolution for this Fall is to find more time for me to work out and run because it is what I need and it is what my lovelies need from me.

The school is here!

And so the long awaited school year finally came.  Kade started 3rd grade and Anika preschool.  It was a bit of a rough start since we missed the official first day of school being on our little trip and the next day Kade got a croup cough so he had to stay home.  That day Ehren just took Anika to school by herself.  The next day Kade was all ready to go to school and had so much fun there.  It was the first year he wasn't homesick on the first day and came home excited saying "I didn't even cry one bit mom!"  My boy is sure growing up, he needs me less and less every day it seems like.  Anika loves school and was so ready to go.  She really is almost the age of other kindergarten kids but she misses the Sept 1st cut-off so that's really why she really loves it and it doesn't even faze her that she's away from home.  The school is having major problems with their busing though and my poor Ani was on the bus for almost 2 hours the first day.  Today I'm going to pick her up because of that and even though the teacher was saying how they're going to work it out, I don't think I want to wait until they try to do the changes and will just keep picking her up.  The bus is on time and doesn't take long in the morning at all, just after preschool is over.

So today was the first day when Kade and Ani went on the bus together and they were so cute.  Kade loves to take care of Anika when he's on his own, he likes to be in charge and be the responsible one.  That love is not shown as much when we're home :) but at least I know he is good with her when I'm not there.  Poor Kason was so hurt this morning though and when I tried to tell him I'll be right back in the house after the bus leaves he insisted he's going with us to the driveway in his pyjamas.  He was excited for a while about the bus coming and then when he started to realize they're going on the bus and he has to stay home he got really upset.  He just cried and cried that he wanted to go on the bus.  The funny thing is that I know he'd do just fine in a preschool on his own, he's so ready but he will have to wait until he's 4.  I am pretty sure he'll be crying about going to school next year on the days there is no preschool because it is only 3 times a week.  I am really glad his cousin Emily comes to our house on the days Ani goes to preschool because they play really well together and he doesn't feel alone.  But at the same time I think he does like a little time alone with me because he gets so much more of my attention, playing with him and doing things with him that he doesn't get when all the kids are at our house.  They're all just growing up so fast, it is hard to believe it sometimes.

Ani's first day

in her classroom

she loves the goldfish

Kade and Ani ready to get on the bus together for the 1st time

Kason would not leave their side

instead of helping Ani get up there here I am, taking pictures

and they're gone

  

Adam and Slavka

It is a historic moment for me right now because my brother Adam and his wife Slavka came to visit us.  He's the second brother that made it over here.  They rented a car in DC where Slavka's sister lives and drove all the way here.  They will stay with us for a few more days and will drive all the way back to DC.  It was really strange (and nice) having them drive to our house on a regular Friday night because every time any member of my family comes to visit we have to make a trip to the airport, at least 2 hours away.  And we've just been having such a nice time with them.  Our kids love playing with Adam and Slavka because they understand and talk in English and Ani especially has been so goofy with them.  They're just really enjoying their company.  And we are too.  I know Ehren loves visiting with them because it's so easy to talk to them and he's really enjoyed getting to know both of them.  So a part of their stay with us we wanted to show them something more beautiful than TRF (because in my mind you cannot fly thousands of miles and all you see is TRF :)) and what could be a better place than Duluth and the North Shore?  Ehren and I love going there in the fall and since they are here now we went a bit earlier but it was such a nice trip.  The weather was so gorgeous in comparison to the times we went before where in October we had to wear hats and mittens because it was too cold.  The kids loved it too and they were all able to do the little hikes with us.  By the end, we were running out of time and food so we decided to head home even though Ehren and I wanted to keep going and look at more places.  We decided from now on we need to make it a priority for our family to go every year and experience a new hiking place each time.  I have to say it's the most beautiful place in Minnesota and it feels like you're in the hills and at the ocean at the same time.  After we got home, Adam and Slavka have been cruising our neighborhood, doing some geocaching, playing with the kids and so on.  I'm so glad the weather has been just beautiful and warm for their trip and it is supposed to cool down right as they will be heading back.  Here are a bunch of pictures so far but I might put more on here from our busy weekend ahead with the Hanson family and church friends.

eating their chocolate eggs from babka

playing lots of fun games together

we went to the cabin for one night before heading up to Duluth

Kason got a ride on this motorcycle and just loved it

Kade was wondering if we could find gold in this creek because of the color :)