Disney

This past weekend we were in Orlando for the Princess Half Marathon and to take the girls to Disney!  It was a fabulous trip!  We stayed 2 nights with jason's Dad and stepmom and one night at Disney.  The Princess half was great!  I was  up at 230am to catch the bus from the hotel at 3am!  We were in a holding area until 430am and it was 39 degrees out!  Seriously, I almost died.  It was the most miserable I've felt in a VERY long time.  We were then able to walk to the start line and our corrals which was about a 20 min walk.  I was in corral A and was one of the first runners out of the gate.  The race was fabulous - a lot of fun and so much to look at!  I kep to my aveage pace of 8:20 min miles but ran a few around 7:30 min/mile and at few at 9 min/mile.  I ended up with a finishing time of 1:49!!  I was super excited as I had set a goal for 1:45-1:50.  I shaved 5 minutes off my last half!  I ended up 61st in my age group out of 1200 women 30-34.  I was 301 out of all the women who ran 11000+ and 326 overall out of 13000+ people!  Jason and the girls didnt make it to the finish line in time as it was CRAZY trying to get around the park but we met up after the race and I was so happy to see them!  We went back to the hotel, changed and checked out and headed back to Magic Kingdom.

Madelyn was in awe when she saw Cinderella's castle.  We rode Peter Pan, Dumbo, Magic carpet and Pirates of the Carribbean and Mackenzie went on all of them except Pirates!  She was so good I seriously could not believe it.  We also saw a 10 min 3D movie and Mady was mesmerized, Mac was even super excited and sat throughout the whole thing!  We then saw the parade and we got to see all the characters - even Cinderella!  The whole day was awesome and both girls didnt sleep a wink. 

Mackenzie is now crawling like crazy, pointing, pulling up and even has her first tooth!  She is eating so much table food and is not exclusively on formula.  She really hasnt had a lot of interest in milk - she would rather eat and she eats a lot! 

This weekend Steph, Ashley and the kids are coming down for Spring Break.  We are really looking forward to it.  I'm looking at my next half in April and then have to figure out what I'm going to do for the summer months.

Holiday's

Haven't posted in a while so I thought I was due for an update.  The holiday's have been GREAT!  My mom came to visit us for Thaknsgiving.  I ran the Turkey Trot in the morning and ran the 8 miles in 1 hour and 6 minutes!  I was very pleased.  Unfortunately, when I returned we discovered the Mackenzie was very sick.  She sounded like she had croup and was very congested.  That evening we alternated her between the steamy bathroom and the cold outdoors.  In the middle of the night she was having trouble breathing so I took her to the dr. frist thing in the morning.  The dr. infomed me that she had croup and bronchitis.  We were given a nebulizer and breathting treatments immediately.  She seemed to be doing a little better after her initial one but the dr said if she continued wheezing to give her another one when we got home and if it STILL continued to take her to the ER.  Well, that is exactly what we had to do.  Jason was golfing so I left Mady with my mom and headed for the ER.  It was one of the scariest experiences of my life!  The rushed us in immediately and set up an IV and did blood work and chest xrays.  The respiratory specialist came down pretty quickly and proceeded to give her 2 back to back breathing treatments at very high dosages.  The dr said she had a pretty severe case of bronchitis and croup but the breathing treatments helped tremendously.  We were there for about 4 hours before we were released to go home. What a traumatic day!  Jason rushed off the golf course to get to the ER but they wouldnt let him back with us due to a one visitior only clause because of the swine flu :( But he waited in the ER until I told him to go home and wait for us. We ended up buying a nebulizer and gave her treatments consistently for about 2 weeks and she is MUCH better now.  That was our second year of Thanksgiving illnesses and I hope it does not continue to be trend!  mom got to help us put up and decorate our tree which was extremely special.  We are so Thankful to have her in our lives.

I ran my second half marathon this year on December 18th- The White Rock Marathon in Dallas.  It was absolutely awesome and I finished in 1 hour and 55 minutes!  I did extremely well in my age group and was totally psyched.  Jason and the girls came and met up with me after and Jamie and Richard met us at Ozona for brunch.  So fun!  That night Madelyn and i went on a horse drawn carriage ride in our neighborhood looking at all the Xmas lights - she was facinated!

We celebrated Xmas at our house Saturday morning Dec 19th.  We woke up and Santa had come to our house and Madelyn was so excited!  It definitely was princess Christmas! She has me in a constant state of awe with how old and independent she is getting.  She speaks like a 10 year old and can dress herself, put her shoes on and go to the potty all by herself!  She is only 2 1/2!!!  We went to gymnastics that morning, had a quick lunch and then loaded up the car and headed to Kansas City!  We made great time and got there in 9 hours at about 8:30pm.  We were there for a week and it was awesome to spend the  time with the family!  We stayed at my Dad's but saw Steph and the kids pretty much every day.  Wow, did they all play well together!  We are so lucky to have each other!  Madelyn went ice skating for the fist time and loved it.  We also had a pretty insane blizzard while we were there and she got to go sledding and played in the snow!!  Mackenzie was her usual amazing self -so happy and laid back.  Both girls were perfect in the car.  We also took Madelyn to the nutcracker and she was mesmerized!  But did fall asleep for the second act - poor thing only had one nap all week!  We drove back Sunday and it took forever!  About 10 hours due to the snow and weather.  Plus Mady got carsick and threw up twice...not fun!

We are now getting back into the swing of things and preparing for the New Year.  Mackenzie can sit up on her own now and we are waiting for her to crawl.  I put her to sleep in her crib up in her room Sunday night for the first time (she has been sleeping in a co-sleeper in our room up until now) and she slept from 7:30pm until 12:30 then she started freaking out so I brought her back down stairs.  The past 2 nights I have put her to sleep at 7pm in her crib upstairs and I've had to wake her up at 6am!!!!  I am so excited!  I havent run in 2 days since I am relishing all this sleep! 

I am taking tomorrow off and not putting the girls in school so we will have a fun, relaxing day together getting ready for NYE.  We are just planning on staying home and watching the fetivities on TV.  We'll probably celebrate around 9 and go to sleep. 

Jason and I will be celebrating our 3rd anniversary on January 13th and will be heading to Dallas for some Sushi.  Then in March we will be traveling to Orlando - Jason  registered me for the Princess half marathon at Disney!!  I am so excited and cannot wait to take the girls. 

Well, that's all for now.  Happy new Year everyone!

Dallas Running Club Half Marathon

What a weekend! Ours was jammed packed full of activities as usual. Of course, it was Halloween weekend so we were up early on Saturday for gymnastics and them pumpkin carving! Jason did an amazing job and Madelyn was a wonderful helper. We went to our neighborhood party at the country club. There was a bounce house, DJ, face paiinting etc. Madelyn was all about the bounce house and the slide and played for close to an hour there. Little Mackenzie was worn out by that point and decided to take a little nap. We came home around 5pm got things prepared for dinner then hit the streets for some trick or treating! Madelyn was a ballerina and did such a fantastic job knocking on doors and saying "trick or treat!". She loved every minute of it - except for the scary haunted house house. We went to about 8 or 9 houses then headed home to eat and hand out candy of our own. Everyone went to bed at a reasonable hour and got ready for the time change.
I was up at 5:15 to feed Mackenzie and get ready for the Dallas Running Club half marathon. It was my fist in quite some time and I wasnt planning on running it but early in the week decided to after all. I had a minor set back when i ran 8 miles on Wednesday and hurt my sciatic nerve. Wasn't sure I was going to participate again but gave myself 3 days to rest and was good to go on Sunday. The race started at 8am at White Rock Lake and it was a chilly 49 degrees at the start. What an amazing race...3138 people showed up to run-it's awesome how many runners there are out there. The first 8 miles were pretty easy - a lot of hills but easy overall. At mile 8 though my back just totally tightened up. Up to that point I was running 8-8:30 minute miles which is still slightly fast for me. So I took 2-3 minutes and stretched and then hit the next 5 at a slower pace. The sun was out in full force and it was around 70 degrees at the end. At miles 10 I really had to dig deep - i was in pain but was so close to the finish. I didnt finish like I wanted but kept to a 9 min mile pace. Regardless i am pretty happy with my results. I came in 59th out of 314 runners in my age group (females 30-34) and finished 975th out of 3138 total runners. So the top 1/3 is not too shabby. Want to shave about 5+minutes off that time for White Rock in Dec.
Came home yesterday and went to lunch with the family. Then the girls took naps and we did some stuff around the house and Mady and I headed off to the park. Overall a fabulous weekend!

Fall

It seems Fall has arrived in North Texas - well, that means it's in the 70"s and 80's not the 90's and 100's! Things are going well with the Conners - we are slowly but surely working out our travel plans for the next few months and I am SOOO looking forward to the holiday's! I love this time of year because we get to spend A LOT of time with family.

Last week was rough. Mackenzie came down with a fever and we were very scared it was the swine flu. Turned out to be just a cold but then Jason and I got hit with it as well. Not fun at all. We were all down for a few days except for Mady - she remained healthy. I am so nervous about this flu and my babies. We will all have our flu shots at the end of this week but poor Mackenzie is still too young to get one. It worries me. It has also jacked up her sleeping tremendously. She was sleeping 7-9 hour stretchs but now we are back up to waking up 2-3 times/night. Not fun!! Hopefully it will get better soon.

The family is coming into town in 2 weeks and I couldnt be more psyched. Mackenzie is getting Christened on October 18th and Brad and Julie (Jason's sis) are the Godparents. Steph, Ashley and the kids and my mom will also be coming. It is also Texas/OU weekend so we will be going to the State Fair and the game...I cannot wait!

We decided to stay in Dallas for Thanksgiving, a number of reasons but most of all because we waited way too long and tickets are ungodly expensive to Orlando. We will go in the Spring and take the girls to Disney. So that means I get to run my 8th Turkey Trot, I am so excited!

Madelyn is really looking forward to Christmas - it is going to be so much fun with her this year. Her imagination is amazing at this age and I just have more and more fun with her each day - she truly is such a joy. Mackenzie is growing before my very eyes! She can sit in her Bumbo seat now and in her jumparoo thingy. She is sooo vocal and happy and loves "talking". This morning she woke up at 5am but was so happy and smily that we just got up and played for an hour before we had to get ready.

It's College Football season so that means I have one happy husband. He has spent the past few weekends watching as much as he wants and I know how much he loves that. Saturday is the big game so we are anxiously waiting....

I've just been focusing on running and improving my time. I've set a goal for the half in December and plan to beat it! Ive really had to work though on sticking between 25-30 miles/week, any more and my knees REALLY feel it. I thought I was in bad shape the week before last when the pain was unbearable but it has since gotten better. Damn those old injuries!

Anyway, that's what's up with us. I'll update again soon.

3 months

Wow, so Mackenzie will be 3 months old on Friday. I cannot believe the time has gone so fast! Wait, is this how I start every post?? Anyway, things are crazy as always in our world. We're gearing up fast for the holiday's and just trying to get everything solidified.

The weekend of October 17th will be Mackenzie's christening. Mom, Steph, Ashley and the kids are coming as well as Brad (Godfather) and Julie - Jason's sister who will be the Godmother. We are revolving this event around Texas/OU weekend and the State Fair so it should make for a fun-filled whirlwind of a weekend. I, of course, am just so psyched to have the family come visit. I love the holiday's because it seems like we see each other a lot more. Thanksgiving is still up in the air for us. We usually have it here but were planning on going to Orlando but time snuck up on us and now airfare is out the wazhoo - I think we are going to postpone that trip until February and do Disney then as well. So we will either have my mom come here or we'll go to LA for a few days. Then Xmas is spent in KC - a full week, woo hoo! Its my favorite time since we are ALL together. Then after that my cousin Tim is getting married Jan 2 in Buffalo so I will probably be heading up North solo for that event. Sad that I'll miss New Year's with Jason and the girls but happy to see that side of the family. And maybe Mady will come with me, not 100% sure yet. A lot going on in just a few short months.

In between then I have a half marathon coming up December 13th. I just started back running 4.5 weeks ago and was interested in seeing how I would shape up but this past weekend I ran the 13.1 miles and was very pleased with my time. I am noticing more and more how cardiovascularly in shape I am - I barely breathe hard - its just the muscle fatique that gets to me. And its amazing how old injuries pop up here and there. I swear I'm going to have to retire from this in a few years given that state of my knee, but until then....I am so lucky that Jason lets me have the time to do this for myself, then again, I do get up at 4:30am so he never really misses me :)

Madelyn is making strides left and right. She's potty trained and doing very, very well. She can say all her shapes and colors and can count to 20!!! We're working on reading right now and and she is singing Rock a by Baby and Twinkle Twinkle to Mackenzie almost perfectly. She is really excelling at Gymnastics and is just a great, great, kid to be around. I cannot believe how big my first born is getting!

Mackenzie is just a perfect little angel. Jason and I are really loving it now as she is finding her voice. When either one of us talks to her she talks back - she is so smiley and gigly now it is adorable! She is getting stronger by the day - everyone comments on it. She can almost sit up and she can definitely put all her weight on her legs - she LOVES to stand! We're working on the rolling over too. She's continued to be congested but not as bad and is sleeping better as a result...still with Mommy or Daddy for part of the night but I'm not giving that up. I love that time with her as I'm away from her so much during the day :(

Right now I'm just really enjoying my family, trying to focus on work (which is hard) and really starting to focus on starting my business. Updates to follow!

10 Weeks

Mackenzie turned 10 weeks old yesterday - she is doing so well! Jason and I picked her up from school yesterday and she went from eating 2-3oz per feeding to 4oz! I am so happy - hopefully this means cutting down on nighttime feedings! We've had a few rough nights lately and it is kind of upsetting. She had been on a consistent schedule for sometime now, eating at 6pm after I picked her up, bath time around 6:30 and then down at 7pm. She would sleep till about 11-12 and then eat around 4am. The past week or so she has been extremely congested and has been tossing and turning all night, never really getting a good nights sleep. Hopefully we can get back on a routine this weekend.

Madelyn will be starting in the 3's classroom on Monday! I cannot believe how mature that little girl is. She is doing so well and I just look at her in awe sometimes. Words cannot descibe her - she is going to truly be an amazing little lady. I had debated putter her in dance class but I think I'm going to wait until next year when she will be able to appreciate a little more. I figure we will continue with gymnastics until then.

Jason is doing great - he's really kicking it at work which is really impressive. I've very proud of him. I've just been trying to deal with work - there is a lot going on here and I've said it before, I think this job is just so stressful! Anyway, I am working on a 3 year plan as well as some other personal goals and that is really where my focus is right now. Running is going great although my brand new shoes got stolen from our front porch this morning! I was so pissed!!! I dont think i'll have any issue with the 1/2 marathon in Dec. I started working on abs this morning. Dr. Monti told me to wait until about now to do any abs and I was really sore - it was tough so I didnt push it too much. I cannot wait to whip this body back into hardcore shape!!

I think that's about it. Not a lot planned for this weekend, thank God. Just some yard work, grocery shopping, shopping for bathroom tiles, gymnastics, running and maybe the pool...ok, that does seem like a lot!!

Mackenzie is 2 months old!

Short update today - I took Mackenzie for her 2 month check up and she is growing perfectly (as the dr said)! At birth she was 6lbs 10oz and 19 3/4 inches. Today she was 11lbs 4.5oz and 23 1/4 inches. 75th percentile in height and 60th percentile in weight. Definitely smaller than her big sis who is consistently in the 90th percentile for both. She is doing well and starting to sleep pretty well. We've had a nasty stomach bug in the house the past week and that has not been fun, definitely disrupted all our sleep.
I'm back at work and not liking it too much - I really miss being home with the girls although I know I am not one who would be able to do that full time.
Jason's bday is Monday and this weekend I am taking him out to a nice dinner - very excited for that! I've also been running pretty consistently now for 2 weeks - I'm back at 4 miles during the week (but now have to get up at 430am to get them in). That has not been fun. I've been running about 5 on the weekends and will attempt 7 t oday. It's been pretty easy getting back into it luckily, I just need to get some new shoes, desperately.