School Starts for Annelise

Annelise went back to nursery school on the Tuesday after Labor Day (and I, of course, snapped a handful of pictures on the front steps and in the classroom!). This will be her last year there before Kindergarten. I am totally amazed that my baby is getting older!

Second Grade

Although Danny started school almost three months ago, I don't want the occasion to pass without any recognition.Danny is attending a new school this year (which includes a 40+ minute bus ride each way). The decision we made last spring was very difficult (mostly because we LOVE our community), but we have been very happy with the new school. Most importantly, Danny is enjoying school more than ever. Three months into the year, and we know we made the best decision for him and our family.


(Annelise doesn't like to be left out of the pictures... she is also learning the art of accessorizing!)

Age is Just a Number...

Right?

One of the more interesting things about triathlons is that your body gets marked with your race number and your age. All participants are grouped by age (although I was in a first-timers group), and having it marked on the body is necessary since we are changing gear throughout the race. I LOVED seeing the ages of the participants, and was really inspired by many of the women who competed in the triathlon. My friends and I got great ocean-swimming advice from a sixty-something woman who was doing the swimming for a relay team. She was inspiring!

Sprint Triathlon... done!

I completed my first sprint triathlon in September. When I committed to friends that I would do this, it was October (or November?) of 2009. Took a lot of work to get there, but I made it. In case anyone is wondering, the triathlon I completed was 1/2 mile OCEAN swim, 7.2 mile bike ride (short for a sprint triathlon), 3.5 mile run (a little bit more than a typical sprint tri).

The ocean swim was definitely the most intimidating. Last January I took an adult intermediate swim class to brush up on my skills. And I spent lots of time in the pool. I found out this summer that I get motion sick when I swim in the ocean, so I found some remedies for that. When it came down to the race, though, once I got out past the first buoy I ended up relying on my back stroke because the water was pretty rough.

As for the biking, I hadn't been on a bike in YEARS!!! I trained on the bike in the gym until August. Then with some birthday money from my parents and mother-in-law I bought an awesome bike. The running just required me to get out there. I jogged (and walked a little bit too).

My goal was to finish and not make a fool of myself. I reached my goal! Now I'm thinking about the next one!