My First 5k

I ran my first 5k today. The weather was not what I had hoped for since the humidity was about 85%. Just prior to the race it rained briefly. I would have preferred for it to keep raining, cause I'd rather run in the rain than the humidity. But anyway, I'm pretty happy with my performance: I finished in 33 minutes 20 seconds. I've already done all the calculations and it keeps me under a 11 minute mile so that makes me happy. I'm eager to do another one, but that will have to wait until after my recovery.

Brian and the boys just missed my finish so I took a picture with my two run coaches after the race.

Jury Duty

I completed my civic duty yesterday. As you may remember I got called to serve here in Will County. I was on call for the whole week. So Monday I spent the whole day in the jury selection room reading. Tuesday I didn't have to go in till 1:30, but once I got there I was put in a group of 40 and ended up being selected for a criminal case. Trial only lasted Wednesday and half day Thursday.

The trial was on 7 different counts, two for drug possession with intent to distribute, three for a convicted felon being in possession of a firearm, and two for a firearm with the serial numbers removed. It was a pretty interesting experience and I now have more knowledge of street drugs than I will ever need. The prosecutors had us pass around all the drugs. So I can now say I've held crack and black tar heroin, something I really could have done without. Ultimately we did find the defendant guilty on all counts. I believe the sentencing is done at another time, but I'd be interested to know how much time he was given. As a group we suspected it would be substantial since he had two prior convictions.

Two other interesting aspects of the trial were that he was working with the ATF as an informant and he chose to defend himself. God fore bid anyone I know ever has to stand trial, but I would strongly recommend not defending yourself. At times it was painful to listen to him attempt questioning because so much of it was objected to, but the judge was really pretty nice and patient.

On a happier note Brian got to spend a lot of time with the boys and thoroughly spoiled them. They had a day at the pool, play date with his hockey buddies kids, and a trip to the zoo. I won't be surprised if they ask me to go back to work (what we told the boys I was doing) and leave dad home.

Michigan City Camping

This past weekend we went camping in Michigan City, IN with my mom and grandma. They rented a cute little log cabin that had some pretty nice amenities, kitchen with microwave and fridge, bathroom with toilet and shower, plus it even had air conditioning. We of course stayed  in our RV, the campground was a little tighter than we usually like, but the cabin definitely made it worth the stay.
I think the highlight of everyone's trip was the time we spent at the dunes. Ben and Neil surprised us by actually being able to make it to the top of the dune. Neil was smart enough to get a piggy-back ride on the trek back to the car though. We had plans to go to a steam engine museum, but that did happen because a GPS is more important than you think. Beside, that will leave us something to do the next time were camping in the area.

We also had fun at a cool restaurant called the Tree House Cafe. It really has a tree growing in the middle of it. It was a great outdoor venue with picnic tables set up near a sand lot that was full of cool stuff to keep the kids occupied, tire swings, volleyball net, old tires to roll through the sand, wiffleballs. They even had a ping-pong table outside.

Here's everyone on their way to the dune's beach.

Swimmers

Here's how it started. Wednesday night Brian took both the boys to the pool while I got to stay home and have some mom time (really Heather time, cause I get a ton of 'mom' time). When they got back he told me Neil was now swimming. Part of me couldn't quite believe it because aside from teaching the boys how to kick Brian hasn't introduced any this is how you swim instruction.

Thursday night I went to the pool with the guys and brought along the camera just in case I could catch Neil on film. Not only did I get footage of Neil, but I think all of mom and dad's praise of Neil prompted Ben to start swimming too. (How many feats will Ben take on just because he see his younger brother doing it?) Here's the video:

Sorry about all the rumbling, it was super windy while I was filming.

Ben's New School

Ben has been taking a test run with his new school in their 3-week summer program. They actually have a topic they've been working on: the body. Today, he came home wearing a brain, heart, lungs and digestive system. Yesterday, he had a Ben-sized drawing of himself with labels indication things like neck, shoulder, feet. He's been pretty enthusiastic about the items he brings home and is eager to share them with Brian when he gets home from work.

All this anatomy has my mommy daydreaming working overtime. I picture him growing up to be a doctor someday. If any of you have seen his hand-washing technique, up to his elbows, you'd agree he'll specialize in surgery. If I really allow myself to get carried away, I picture him being a plastic surgeon – that way I can get a discount later on.

I Guess I'm a Runner Now

I just signed up for my first 5k. I'm participating in Westfield Works Wonders 5K Race - Benefiting United Way of Will County on August 14. (Thank you to Donna and my friend Laura for encouraging me.) I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a nice low humidity day.

Also I ran 7.6 miles today and didn't feel like collapsing.

Fourth of July in Michigan

The boys are starting to become really good RV travelers. The drive there and back were both pretty easy. We spent two nights at Al's and one night at Donna's. The boys got to go fishing for the first time which was a huge hit since that's about all they wanted to do based on our pictures. Uncle Al even got them to kiss their first fish. I got to go for a morning kayak which was so peaceful. Brian took Ben out later which he enjoyed, but Bri reports Ben was frustrated that he wasn't capable of paddling on his own. We got to see fireworks on Al's lake and the boys slept right through them in the RV. (Blue didn't seem to mind them either, which was a concern of ours.)

At Donna's the boys got to go swimming. Which of course they love. Plus they had a tractor ride with Uncle Dan. They watched their first full length movie, Toy Story. Which they loved so much they had to watch it again the next day.

Brian and I wanted to make sure we sent out a great big thank you to cousin Matt who had the boys occupied for quite some time. They both seem to be taken with him.

So I put together a few of the photos we took over the weekend and it got me to thinking how tremendously blessed the boys are to have so many wonderful male role models in their lives.