Brightwood Lights

I know, I know. Many exciting, life-changing events have transpired over the past month, but I am going to ignore all of that for now and give you what you’ve been dying for: The Race Report. (I promise more to come on life changes later!)

On April 11, 2010, I had the chance to realize a (small) goal I’d had since high school: Complete the Cherry Blossom Ten Miler in Washington, D.C. I’d read about the race in Runner’s World as a high schooler, and it sounded like one of those races every serious runner must have on her resume. So I resolved to add it to mine at some point.

As luck would have it, my first six years in DC did not allow fulfillment of that goal. April 2004, I ran the Paris Marathon. April 2005, I got married. April 2006, I was 7.5 months pregnant. April 2007, I was in Germany for my Oma’s 80th birthday. April 2008, I ran the Boston Marathon. April 2009, I knew I’d be 3.5 months postpartum and not in prime running shape.

And, as luck would (again) have it, the 2010 race was, for the first time ever, entry by lottery only. . . and I never win ANY random drawing. I figured entering the lottery was almost pointless, but, SURPRISE! My “group”- which included Caleb, our friend Janel, and me- was selected!

Caleb’s friend Mickey was in town for race weekend, so we even had built in childcare (from a brave bachelor!). Caleb and I headed off early on a Sunday morning:

And took in the Mall at sunrise one last time:

And then met up with friends from church who were also running:

I was in the “red” starting wave, which was maybe the third or fourth to start, and Caleb was in the “purple,” which was the last. (I had submitted a qualifying time; he had not.) My customary pre-race port-a-potty stop caused me to be a bit late in getting to the start, and I got cut off RIGHT at the start line as the last red runners began their race. That actually worked to my advantage, as I was literally at the very front of the blue wave when it was released, meaning I had open road ahead of me for the first .5 miles or so, until I started catching up with the red runners. Despite the crowds typical of a large race and some very sharp turns at points where the route doubled back on itself, I felt great and had a good run. My (secret) goal was to run sub-8:00 miles, and I finished in 1:17:28, which is a 7:45 pace.

Caleb, meanwhile, was VERY bogged down by extreme crowds. The purple wave not only ended up being a catch all for the slowest runners and those without qualifying times, but it also became the “lowest common denominator” for faster runners wishing to run with slower members of their group. He knew from the beginning he’d never be able to break through the masses to run a strong time, so he settled on good company and conversation with another church friend. They finished the race together, smiling despite working to avoid stepping on any toes (or heels) for ten miles:

Many of us regrouped post-race to cool off, and a number of us even dared to show up at church in our sweaty running clothes! (Don’t worry- we sat in the balcony, far away from the showered congregants!!) In our defense, we had to attend as Simona and the other children were singing during the service.

Of course, Mickey did a great job getting the kids dressed and to the church– we had no doubts he’d take naturally to parenting.

To round out the race report, it seems my lottery luck continues. Another running goal of mine is to complete each of the “world marathon majors”- Chicago, Berlin, London, NYC, and Boston. So far, I am 3 of 5.
Entry to the NYC marathon also is gained by winning a random lottery, unless you have entered the drawing unsuccessfully for three consecutive years. Then the race organizers finally take pity and grant you automatic entry for your fourth year. I entered unsuccessfully last year and was already planning on running by default on my fourth try (in 2012). In fact, I even promised Caleb after the Berlin marathon in September 2009 that I would take a break from marathoning for a couple of years. So convinced of my lottery luck was I that I even told him to plan on London in April 2012 and NYC that November. SO, I was shocked to learn in early April that I AGAIN got lucky and got into NYC this year- on only my second try! HOWEVER . . . I will be keeping my word to Caleb and deferring my entry to 2011 (more on that to come).

But in the meantime, I’m headed out to play some Powerball. Don’t even bother to wish me luck– I’m on a roll all on my own.

The (good) Nationals games all end with this phrase from our radio announcer, Charlie Slowes.

Today was a good game. The Nationals beat the Dodgers 1-0, with the only run coming in the 1st inning. The rest of the game saw plenty of good defensive plays and some great pitching. Our starter went 7 innings, our set up man pitched a perfect 8th, and our closer made it a bit interesting but got the job done in the 9th.

It was our first game of the season at Nats Park, and it will also be our last of this season. Simona has been excited about this day since October. Seriously. And though the weather forecast was foreboding (hail, severe thunderstorms, etc.), it turned out to be a great day to be at the ballpark. We went with two other families, and, despite the three 3-year-olds and four 1-year olds, we had a fun time.

Going to games has been a special Washington tradition for our family, and leaving the stadium felt like a sad goodbye. We move in nine days.

Before I start the second list, I wanted to make note of a story in the Washington Post: It seems Coolidge High School, located right across from our house, has hired a FEMALE head football coach. I ran track and cross country for a male coach in high school who had a bad back and thus couldn’t run himself. I never questioned his credentials simply because of his gender or his ability to run distance, and I hope the players at Coolidge give their new coach the same respect they would a male. Good luck to her and all the Colts!

Now, back to the list: Since we will soon be moving, I am realizing more and more that I take so much for granted here in DC. Here is a smattering of what I love about this city:

*WCF.  Our church, Washington Community Fellowship, has become our extended family here in DC. It is affiliated with the Mennonite church but considers itself “multi-denominational.” That means that folks can join the church but retain their own denominational affiliation, which adds a vibrancy and depth to the various ways we worship. We will miss the

*Sitting out.  Many of DC’s row houses have porches, and neighbors frequently “sit out” on their porches on warm evenings.  It’s been a great way to get to know neighbors and watch the neighborhood, and it’s a particularly refreshing end to those really hot summer days.

*Charlie & Dave. These are the radio announcers for the Washington Nationals, and we LOVE listening to them call games. Charlie has an amazing ability to build suspense and then let loose when the play unfolds, and Dave has a seemingly endless wealth of baseball knowledge. Of course, we’ll miss the Nats (and their beautiful stadium, too), but they’ll be visiting us in Atlanta from time to time.

*Gravelly Point. This is a park in Arlington, VA, is right by DCA- Reagan National Airport. It’s nice to be outdoors along the Potomac, but standing right underneath the path of planes landing and taking off is quite a rush.

*Museums. The Smithsonians provide endless free fun for young and old alike. Our personal kid-friendly favorites are the National Zoo, the Air & Space Museum, and the Museum of Natural History. Where else can you take your kids to see dinosaurs, rockets, or live elephants all for free, and all in the same day?

*Music. The city is the ideal place for free, outdoor summer concerts. The Navy and Army bands regularly play on or around the Mall, and the National Symphony Orchestra often does a free outdoor concert at Carter Barron Amphitheater. It’s hard not to take it for granted!

*The size. DC is large enough that it has all the amenities one could ask for in a big city, but small enough geographically and population-wise that it’s not uncommon to bump into friends or acquaintances fairly regularly. Running into a church friend at Home Depot on a Saturday morning loans a bit of that “small town feel” to urban life.
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Kid Update: Simona is creatively dancing and imaginatively playing all the time. (She has some sweet moves, mostly learned from her father- heh heh.) Andreas is STILL not walking– he’s taken his “first steps” about 20 times, only to decide that he really does prefer crawling. I’m somewhat tired of the laundry and mess created by him being on the ground constantly, but surely he’ll be upright soon enough. . .
Also, our Picasa, which we use to sort & upload pictures, has been acting up lately, so we will update pictures once Picasa has been repaired. Thank you for your patience!

Thirty reasons Caleb is amazing:

1. Caleb is handy.

2. Caleb is a thoughtful man of God.

3. Caleb is a wonderful father.

4. Caleb was brave enough to come to my bridal shower (in Iowa, since many of the women there were his family’s friends).

5.Caleb can change the oil in our car.

6. Caleb has good aim.

7 & 8. Caleb can soothe a baby with his pinky finger AND can rock an umbrella-hat.

9. Caleb has a great smile.

10. Caleb has that Iowa charm.

11. Caleb takes his job as big brother seriously, never missing a chance to give baby bro a hard time.

12. Caleb is a sports fan and instills the same in his children.

13. Caleb supports me in my marathoning endeavors.

14. Caleb is a good pillow.

15. Caleb plays soccer.

16. Caleb is a bit of a redneck. :-)

17. Caleb looks good with a beard.

18. Caleb got us tickets to the opening game at Nationals Stadium!

19. Caleb is fun (and much better than me at croquet!).

20. Caleb can be a little boring. :-) (Actually, Caleb has the patience to read so many books that our kids can’t keep their eyes open anymore.)

21. Caleb has fully embraced raising our kids as German-speaking and has been learning the language himself. And he doesn’t believe it, but he is doing an amazing job of learning German.

22. Caleb was the only family member besides Mom who made it to Dad’s U.S. citizenship ceremony.

23. Caleb would make an excellent giraffe.

24. Caleb is a good dancer.

25. Caleb is a loyal friend.

26. Caleb loves the outdoors.

27. Caleb boldly lets me cut his hair. . . sometimes a bit too short!

28. Caleb is scholarly.

29. Caleb is a good sport.

30. Caleb is my best friend.

Happy birthday, Caleb! We love you!

A brief summary of our trip to Germany:
The only part of the trip that I anticipated with stress rather than with excitement was the travel.  Getting myself and the kiddos to and from Germany was a daunting task, despite knowing that many people have endured much, much more.  Thankfully, all worry was for naught.  The kids were superb through the 20+ hours of flying and the additional hours in the airport.  I even had Johnny Isakson, one of Georgia’s two senators (and one of the few US Senators I would even recognize!) compliment me on their behavior at the airport in DC.  (I thought it was Senator Isakson, but I wasn’t sure until I saw his name on his luggage as he walked away.)

We did have a few small “incidences” along the way.  Our flight from DC to Newark was delayed, and we were in danger of missing our connection to Hamburg.  So I was rebooked on a “just in case” itinerary that would have taken us from DC to Newark, Newark to MADRID, and Madrid to Hamburg.  Not only is Madrid NOT AT ALL on the way to Hamburg, but such a route also would have taken an extra 12 hours.  Now, I’ve always wanted to go to Spain, but definitely NOT by myself with two children and with a limited supply of diapers / food / Euros!  Thankfully, all went well and we caught our connection in Newark.  Still haven’t made it to Spain, but someday. . .

And on the way home, we missed our Newark-DC connection but were easily rebooked on the next flight out and made it home without further problems.  Again, the kids were amazing.

Our time in Deutschland was great.  We ate LOTS, trying to (literally) cram in all of our favorites in a limited amount of time.  We spent a few days traveling to Dresden, Leipzig, and Berlin, which were great.  Being there almost exactly 20 years after the fall of wall was great timing; unfortunately, two little kids are not all that interested in exploring the historical significance of these cities.  So, we took in what we could and focused on enjoying time together as a family.  We’d definitely take the chance to return to these cities to see some more, but we also think our next few years of family vacations will emphasize kid-friendly activities over touristy sight-seeing.

The time in Glueckstadt was fun but too short, as always.  It’s been amazing to see our children get to interact with their great grandparents, and we are trying hard to take advantage of that for as long as possible.  Simona got to attend a German preschool for a morning, which she loved.  Andreas sampled his first ice cream, and both of them got spoiled by family.  Caleb and I particularly enjoyed sitting with Nancy’s Dad and Oma in the evenings, telling stories, drinking beer (or water!), and eating Schwarzbrot.

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Other updates:  As mentioned we lost our camera in Germany.  We do have pictures to upload and hope to do that soon.  (These are from my dad’s camera and from our video camera.)  My parents generously gave us their old digital camera, but we need to figure out how to get pics off the camera and onto our computer, so post-Germany pictures may be a while in coming.  We’ll try to stay on top of it!