Christmas Extravaganza

Five fun whirlwind days and its over...just like that!  Where do I even begin!?!  On the morning of Christmas Eve we packed up the Vibe with suitcases, presents, and one cute dog and headed toward the big mitten.  With much concern over the weather, it ended up being an oh-ke-doke ride.  Once we got to America's high-five, we headed over to Kate's for a little gift exchange.  It was of course more exciting to see her and her cutie little husband.  Baby Sluiter is coming along just nicely and we are excited for his/her arrival.  Man, I'll be glad when we know that thing's gender.  Oh, by the way...I forgot my camera so its like this Christmas never really happened.  Later that night, we had a gift extravaganza at my parents' house.  It was great fun!  I got lots of cute clothes, jewelry, a super cute wristlet and of coursed, the Sex and the City movie.  Jeremy got his much anticipated Wii with lots of games and controllers and what not.  On Christmas day we had a little party with my grandma and crazy extended family.  It was fun to see everyone and answer funny questions about living in Chicago.  These people sure don't get out of the mitten much.  Its always great to see my granny.  Nothing says "Merry Christmas" like a fist full of cash from your grandma.  Thanks granny!!!    The day after Christmas, we repacked the Vibe and headed for Jeremy's family.  We made it to his bother's house around noon and by 3:30, we were off to see Jeremy's grandparents and extended family.  It was crazy in the small space of grandma and grandpa's living room with all of the grandkids....none of which belong to me....thank GOD!!!  The kids LOVED all of their presents and again, nothing says "Merry Christmas" like a fist full of cash from the grandparents.  What is it with grandparents?  Do they have an aversion to shopping or shopping centers?  Not that I'm complaining.  Not only do I get something new and fun.  I have received the gift of shopping!  Turns out, its my perfect size!  We stayed with Jeremy's bother and his wife and kids until Sunday.  Jeremy's parents were also there so it was a full house.  After much eating and visiting, Jeremy and I packed up the Vibe one final time and headed back to the Windy City.  Zoey (the dog) was happy to be home and Anastasia (the cat) was happy to see us.  We've unpacked, done the laundry, ordered pizza, and we're already guitar hero rock stars.  Here's to relaxing after all of the craziness of the holidays.  Now we're looking forward to New Year's Eve with friends.  Hope everyone has a great 2009!

Oh, what a day!

So today started out as an average Wednesday. Then it all went down hill when I got to school. When I arrived, I remembered that I have morning duty...which I hate. Once class started things were fine...for an hour. One of students came to me and told me she had a headache. I felt her forehead and it was fine so I told her I would check in with her before we went to science lab. We went on to finish math, do centers, and I was just finishing up my writing lesson on the rug and sending the students back to their seats to work when the same student came to me again. She looked miserable so I felt her forehead and she was burning hot. She said she felt like she was going to throw up. I asked to wait by the garbage can until everyone got settled and I would take her to the office. She casually walked over to the trash can (none of our trash cans have trash bags in them...I think you know where I am going with this). Just as she approached the can, she leaned over, pulled her own hair back and just vomitted. I thought to myself, I'm 30 years old and I'm not that calm when I vomit. Anyway, I took her, and the trash can, to the office. I called her mom who came quickly to pick her up and the custodians had my trash can clean in no time. After practically bathing in hand sanitizer, I returned to class thinking, that was really gross but could have been so much worse. After writing, I took my class to science lab. I was in a meeting with my principal and the other second and third grade teachers while our students were at their specials. After picking them up, we only had a few minutes to fnish writing before lunch. One of kids didn't come back from science lab. I thought to myself...that's wierd...but the students informed me he had gone to restroom but had been gone for a long time. As we're getting lined up for lunch he comes back to the room to get his things to go home. He had a huge cut by his eye and it was swelling. I asked him what happened and he told me that when he went to the bathroom, he stopped to get a drink and fell, hitting his face on an edge. I thought to myself...this is just great. We survived the rest of the school day, incident free. After school I only had one hour to work and realized I had to go to my last class at University of Chicago tonight. Last class means final. Of course, I wasn't prepared for it so I didn't want to go. I survived it but don't think I did so well. All in all, I guess you could say, it was a really strange and annoying day. Here's to hoping tomorrow will be better!

Lots of Updates

We've had some excitment here in Chicago! A few recent happenings for us...October 24th my sister came for the weekend for a visit. Now this wasn't just any visit! She came because we had tickets for the New Kids on the Block concert. I know what you're thinking...lame. As I sat there and watched the show I thought to myself, "Oh my gosh! They were the first N'Sync!" The music was a little teeny bopper. That's what made it so fun. It totally brought me back to being twelve years old. It was so much fun! And really hilarious! We had a fun weekend. Jeremy did not attend the concert. He thought it was all pretty lame but I know deep inside he's sad he didn't go.

We've both been working like crazy since then. I just finished the first quarter at school. I was at school for thirteen hours on Friday trying to finish grades and get report cards ready. It was a little stressful. Our new computer grading/report card system is easier but I still wasn't ready for it. It made for a looooooong day.

Jeremy's friend, Kevin, and his family came to visit this past weekend. It was a little crowded with them staying here but it was so much fun. Kevin and Kathy have two kids and we took them all to the Field Museum on Saturday. The kids loved all the dinosaur bones. The kids thought it was so cool riding on the el train. We stopped for pizza on the way home. We had so much fun the kids didn't want to leave this morning!

I'm looking forward to this week. Tomorrow I have a professional development day. Tuesday is no school for Veteran's Day so my mom, sister, and Aunt Kathy are coming on the train for the day. Then Wednedsay there is no school for students because we have report card pick-up and conferences. Only two school days with students. It should be a pretty easy going week....which I need after last Friday. Oh, and this Friday Jeremy's Aunt Janet, Uncle Dick, and Grandma are going to be in town from Louisville for a wedding. We're having dinner with them Friday night. Its always fun to see them. Tootles for now!

Our First Post-Marathon Run

After three weeks of rest, Jeremy and I took our recovered legs out for a little run. I only went two miles and Jeremy went two and a half. I was feeling optimistic. I even took Zoey with me. Now that I'm running lower miles I thought she might enjoy a little trot through the neighborhood. It felt really good. In fact, my only complaint was that the slightly colder air was burning my lungs. I felt tired at the end but I wasn't in any pain. On the one hand I thought, this will be easy, afterall, three weeks ago I ran 26.2 miles. How hard can this be? On the other hand, I thought to myself, this will be very hard because I haven't done any running in three weeks! It felt good to be out running again. However, I'm not looking forward to running in the cold temperatures and on the slippery sidewalks. We're looking around to join a gym at least for the winter. So for now, we'll enjoy the warmish fall weather and keep on running.

Jeremy's run

     Okay, when we last left off Tonya just finished the race.  Now here is my side of the run.

After Tonya and I split up in the start corral I made my way up to the group that was going to be running my goal pace.  It wasn't easy.  When I finally got there I had to wait shoulder to shoulder with other excited runners.  I could barely see the starting line from where I was, but when they started the race I got chills from knowing I was about to embark on a new life.  I would no longer be training for a marathon, I would be a marathoner.  Like Tonya, the first mile went really quick.  I couldn't believe how easy it was feeling through the first few miles.  I think it had to do with the rush of excitement from the surrounding runners and spectators.  I was frightened around mile 7 or 8 by my boss.  He was yelling out support to the passing runners as they went by and when I ran by him I didn't notice him until he started screaming my name and jumping up and down.  This surprised me and made me jump.  I twisted around, gave him a wave and continued on.  It was getting warm out and around mile 11 and I noticed I wasn't sweating anymore and it concerned me.  I figured I wasn't staying hydrated and realized I needed to drink more water.  The one thing I was doing well was staying on pace.  My pace through 15 miles was right on my goal pace.  When I passed the halfway point I had knocked off about 20 minutes from my previous half marathon time, this got me excited about knocking out this marathon in no time, but then I realized, I still had 2 1/2 hours to run.  

Well at about mile 16 I hit the wall.  The heat was getting up there and I was starting to feel soreness in my feet.  I started to question whether or not I would be able to finish and if running a marathon was a smart idea.  I figured to be able to make it to the finish I would walk through the water stops and then run in between them.  This helped my attitude and my energy.  I had so many things running through my head during the last few miles trying to take my mind off of the pain.  A guy I work with who donated to our charity had told me to think of him every time my left foot hit the ground, I did a few times after mile 16, and it helped.  I hit mile 20 and felt a surge of energy hoping it would carry me through to the finish.  It didn't.  I still was struggling putting one foot in front of the other one, but the great supporters at the aid stations and standing along the race course helped to keep me going.  Mile 24 came and went and I was having to take more frequent walk breaks and was feeling defeated.  But I knew I needed to push on, I was only 2 miles away from my goal.  My time had faltered and now I was hoping to finish in 5 hours.  Hitting mile 25's water stop I told myself to buck up and start running.  I had told myself earlier that no matter what, I was going to run the last mile.  So I dug down deep for some inner support and started pounding the pavement.  I could feel the finish line getting closer and my legs seemed to have a new surge of energy.  I began running at a pace that I didn't know I had the energy for.  I was passing people left and right listening to the crowds cheers of encouragement.  I turned the second to last corner and headed up the small hill that would challenge my ending pace.  It didn't slow me down, it actually felt like I started running even faster.  The crowd was cheering loudly as I made the final turn to run the final 0.2 miles of the race.  I could feel my legs struggling to keep the pace, but I knew I could do it, I pushed myself that final stretch and when I reached the finish I raised my arms in triumph.  As I finished I got a lump in my throat from the emotions I was going through.  I felt a sense of pride for what I just did and I almost started to cry, I think it has a lot to do with the stress you put yourself through running 26.2 miles.  After making it through the finish corral and getting my medal, I slowly walked through the crowds taking everything in.  As I waited for Tonya to finish I was looking back over my experience of the run and couldn't believe I had just ran a marathon.  I still can't believe I ran one, but I can say this, I am going to run another one.  It didn't deter my attitude towards running and I know that I have at least one more marathon in me.  Anyways I am glad I did it and happy that I finished and if there is any one who wants to run next years marathon with me give me a call and we can start training.  

We finished, Tonya's tale of the marathon

We did it. Tonya and I finished the marathon and have finally starting walking without pain again. It was rough, I won't lie. The weather did not cooperate at all and it took both of us longer than we were hoping, but we finished. The heat got up to about 80 degrees and it was sunny, so towards the end of the race the heat was getting unbearable. Luckily they had plenty of water stops along the route to help keep the runners hydrated. I completed the marathon in 5 hours, a half hour longer than I wanted to, but I feel great for finishing. Tonya finished in 5 hours and 58 minutes, and was equally happy for finishing.

Heading to the start, we were getting nervous and excited. When the race finally started it was less than spectacular because it took us at least 17 minutes to get to the start. It was tough at the beginning because it was so crowded. As we continued on it got a little easier. Tonya and I actually got separated in the crowd and did not run the race together. Tonya has always thought the first mile was the most difficult because she is trying to find her stride and get into a tempo. It didn't seem to be hard and before she knew it, she was hitting the 1st mile marker. When she hit the 1st mile she was surprised at how easy it felt and thought only 25.2 miles to go. She was having to run without her trusty running companion, her ipod, for the first time and she thought it would be hard but there was so much excitement with all the runners and spectators. She is glad she didn't use it, she felt she was able to take everything a little better. Then came mile 7. She hit the wall and needed to call her friend Kate. She needed a shot of support and Katie was just what she needed. When Katie answered the phone, Tonya was sobbing and said she wanted to quit. Katie told Tonya she couldn't quit because she wasn't a quiter. As soon as she got off the phone with her she took off running with a smile on her face. She was texting with her friend Diane who told her she was just past mile marker 11. Knowing she was there helped Tonya keep going. She passed mile marker 11 and started looking for Diane on the west side of the street where she said she would be. All of sudden Tonya saw a crazy lady jumping up and down on the side of the street yelling her name. She threw her arms up and smiled. Tonya ran up and hugged her. Tonya was trying to tell her something and Diane told her, "don't stop to talk to me, keep going," and she started yelling "GO, GO, GO!" She kept going and was getting tired again so she was very happy to see the 13.1 miles, which is half way. Tonya took two minutes to walk and then began running again. For mile 16 she did a run/walk. Around mile 17 Tonya met a girl named Stephanie who had lost her running partners. They started running together. Stephanie was very encouraging for Tonya when things started getting rough again. Basically they decided to run from water stop to water stop. There were water stops every mile. So they passed mile marker 18 and just a little further was the water stop. They grabbed a gatorade and walked to the water and grabbed a water. They walked and drank and tried to keep moving while they took water. They were trying to stay hydrated because of the heat that had been beating down on them since mile 12. As soon as they finished with their water they were off and running to the next water stop. This was working great for them. Unfortunately, in mile 23 Tonya stepped on some uneven pavement and she was so tired it was all she could do to catch herself, but twisted her ankle. Tonya jumped off the course to stretch her ankle and to make sure it was alright. Stephanie stopped with Tonya to make sure she was okay. Tonya was very happy running with Stephanie because she was very encouraging and a nurse so Tonya knew she would be alright if anything happened. Tonya was fine and they continued on. She was getting tired and whiny, but Stephanie kept encouraging her. At mile 25 Stephanie said, "we have to finish this. We didn't come all this way to give up with only 1.2 miles to go. We can run to the end." Then they saw the 1 mile left marker and Tonya wanted to cry. She couldn't make her legs cooperate. She just tried to keep up with Stephanie. She took a second to walk and waved Stephanie on to go ahead. She didn't want to hold her back. Tonya was coming up to Michigan Ave. and knew she only had two turns left. So she walked to the corner and took off because she could see the 26 mile marker and knew she only had to go 0.2 miles beyond that to the finish line. She started running and swearing wondering why they would make the end uphill. Tonya started crying and then heard someone calling her name. She looked up and saw her Mom and Sister standing just before the turn to the finish line. She ran over to them sobbing. She hugged them for a second and then ran for the finish line. Tonya didn't know they were coming and was so happy to see them at the end. As she rounded the corner onto Columbus and towards the finish line, it was almost like she hadn't run at all. Her legs were moving faster than they had at mile 1. She was so happy to cross the finish line. She missed her goal time by almost an hour, but she didn't care. She was just happy to finish. She hasn't ruled out running another marathon, but it probably won't be next year. She plans to do the half marathon in August and maybe a few others throughout the summer.

I will add my story later, so you can take this one in for now. So check back in the next couple of days for my experience, and hopefully we will be getting photos soon, so we can post a few.

Long Time

I know it has been awhile and I am sorry.  It just has been really busy for me lately.  We are entering our final week before the marathon and we are excited and nervous about it.  We ran 8 miles today and it is our last run until Saturday the day before the race.  I had a good run and felt good, so I am hoping that that feeling will carry over until next week.  Tonya said her run was a little tough, but she is feeling good about the race.  School is going well for both of us.  Tonya is still enjoying her class and loves having her own classroom.  I am busy with homework, but I am still happy with my decision with switching majors.  Well I need to get back to homework so I must say goodbye for now.  I will definitely blog after the race next weekend, so check back to see how your favorite marathoners did.