Looking for something to do on October 11th? Come on downtown and cheer on the marathon runners!
2009 Chicago Marathon Spectator Guide
So we've heard from many of you asking where we have been, why the blog hasn't been updated, etc.
The answer is that we are training for the Chicago Marathon on October 11th. When we walk to the starting line on the morning of the 11th, we will have logged 430 training miles since June. Some fast, some slow. Some easy, some hard. Some painful, some not. Those next 26.2 miles are likely to be ones we will never forget.
When we haven't been running, we've been working, playing with the kids, getting the kids settled back into school, etc. During the week, we just crash after the kids are in bed.
On the weekend, we alternate Saturday and Sunday so that we don't both do our long runs on the same day. This involves getting up at 5AM, driving to a park, and running for 2-4 hours. Here's a few photos from a recent long run (generally 12-20 miles):
Getting to the park before sunrise to stretch out and get moving before it gets too hot.
Finishing strong, too tired to even smile for a picture I'm taking myselfThis year, we haven't yet done much back to school shopping yet. However, we did go to the Justice Store (formerly Limited Too) and I let her pick out a few things. She was adamant that she have the outfit below. She picked out the pieces herself and I have to admit, the outfit turned out pretty well and is adorable! She even picked out the shoes and paid for them herself at Payless! (Good thing Payless exists because she's in a women's size 8 and will probably outgrow these shoes in the next month!)
Emily started school last Wednesday. She's excited to be in class with her best friend, Madison, again! Her teacher is Jane Fairbanks and we have heard that she is fantastic. Hard to believe that our little girl is in 4th grade!
Traditional first day picture on the front porch.
Emily and Madison
Getting a good luck hug from her little brother. 
Our little family is finally all back together in St. Louis. Three weeks ago, Amy, Adam and Emily headed up to Chicago while I stayed here to work. Then, I met Amy and Emily in Washington D.C. while Adam visited Ninny and Papa Kreidler. Amy and Emily headed back to Chicago, picked up Adam, and went to Wisconsin. I joined them for a few days, and we drove home. On the way, we dropped Emily in Springfield for a week of Girl Scout camp, and Adam had some alone time with Mom and Dad. Finally, I drove up to Springfield after work last night to pick up Emily, and we are finally all together again.
I got Emily home around 11 last night, and Adam was already asleep. So, I'm not surprised that when I got up to run at 6 this morning that Adam woke Emily up. I'm not sure who missed who more.
Today's run was a 13-mile training run for the Chicago Marathon (10/11/09) - it's really starting to get serious now!
After the run was done, we checked out the historic Soulard Farmer's Market just south of downtown St. Louis. It was wonderful! The market has existed since 1779 and had a ton of vendors with fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, and clothing and also had some food stands, etc. There was a great mix of people there - people of all races and socio-economic status, old and young. We found great prices on produce, and loaded up for the week.
Here are a few pictures this weekend...
We'll see what tomorrow brings!
Waiting for donuts at Soulard
Amy rockin' her pirate umbrella
Adam told me to make a silly face while I enjoyed a post-run "mystery pint" (Budweiser) at lunch today!
