The Passing of a Wonderful Soul

Geneva Bowering

We received news yesterday that the girls Great-Grandmother, Geneva Bowering, passed away yesterday. She was 92 years old and had lived her life exactly the way she wanted to.

She was small in stature but her presence commanded a room and her husband Nathan would always say yes to her because even though he was himself a fairly tall man he knew that Nan would remember any misstep.

Nathan passed a few years ago but I always loved visting them as did the girls. They always opened their house to family, friends and anyone that needed it. It was a small house but it was the most loving home you would visit. Always greeted with a big hug and tea and sweets or an entire meal you felt at home. The girls would love to visit. Heading down from Nan and Pop's home to Topsail Beach where they got to catch capelin. When not at the beach they would sit on the red porch gathering snails with Pop helping them. Nan would stand inside and watch - just smiling her big smile. You knew she loved her life.

And she had an interesting life. In 1921 her home in The Battery neighbourhood of St. John's was engulfed by an avalanche. Nan, a small infant at the time, was pulled from the wreckage. I guess that night in February was a good indicator as to how tough this little woman would be.

I know I will always remember her bright eyes, her wonderful smile and her loving attitude to people and life.

She leaves behind many family and friends who will miss her. And I know we will all miss you Nan Bowering.

Happy Holidays!!!!

I know ... a little bit late from normal but it has been a busy holiday this year.

This was the first year that we Skyped during gift opening. With Martika in Ottawa we Skyped with her so she could open gifts with us. It was actually very fun. We sat next to our tree and she had her tree and she had all the gifts that were sent from us and the rest of the family. It was a little bit weird not to have dinner with her but she spent it with her friends in Ottawa which I know she enjoyed.

We had a wonderful Christmas ... we relaxed ... no stress ... we ate well ... drank well and had fun with the girls. But of course the holidays are not over. We have New Years coming up and between now and then will have more fun with the girls and Kris's friend who arrived yesterday from Sweden.

We did manage to take a few pictures ... and I uploaded them to our Picasa site. You can follow the link or view them in the slide show below. We hope you enjoy.

Happy Holidays!

Looking forward to 2013

As 2012 finishes up I am starting to look forward to 2013 to see what I want to do. Part of this was motivated by having to put in my lottery entry for the 2013 Cherry Blossom 10 miler. It made me think about what I did in 2012 and that made me think about what I want to do in 2013.

So for 2012 I completed 3 races that were 10 miles or more - the Cherry Blossom, Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon and the Navy-Air Force Half Marathon. I think for 2013 I want to get that up to at least 5 races of 10 miles or more. I did win a spot in the Cherry Blossom for 2013 so in addition to that I am thinking the Marine Corps 17.75K, the Marine Corps Historic Half (Hospital Hill is a great challenge) and then I would like to do the Army 10 miler in the fall along with either of the Navy-Air Force Half (assuming they do it this year) or go for the full Marine Corps Marathon. The Navy-Air Force would be great since I would get to do a 10 miler or more for each of the branches in one year but the full would be a great thing to do before I hit 50.

So outside of my races I am planning to finish the work on the Triumph so I can get it on the road and also to do some upgrades on the Wrangler so I can get that off the road :-)

With work, making time for some travelling with La and then time with the kids, both local and in Ottawa, it should be a busy year.

But I am looking forward to it!

It takes a while sometimes ....

So it used to be, many years ago, that when I took a roll of film out of my camera it got processed. Well times have changed. Partially because with cell phones now I also have the digital versions with me. I know some will say "You still use film?" Yes I do - and I enjoy it. The other issue is finding a place to get it processed. Well I finally found the latter and we now present some additional photos from our trip to Newfoundland in July ... 2011

St. John's July 2011

Christmas Tree Weekend

So we went out this weekend and picked out a nice Frasier fir for our Christmas tree. We got it in the back of the Jeep and got it home and let it sit in the stand so it could fill out - which it did nicely.

Sunday evening we decided to start and decorate it. We strung it with lights and then started the decorating. We will finish it next weekend when Kris and Sam come over. To make it easy to see we have pictures of lt with the room lights and lit without the room lights. We hope you like it as much as we do :-)

Our Black Friday ...

We do not take in the traditional post-Thanksgiving events of shopping. Instead of crowding into malls we find a local place where we can find the beauty of nature but also enjoy some culture. This year we toured Hillwood Estate and Gardens.

We started our afternoon with a picnic in Rock Creek Park on a beautiful Friday afternoon. I took advantage of the leftovers from the day before when we had enjoyed a nice duck with a bourbon-maple glaze, some brussel sprouts with bacon and wild rice. The left over duck leg covered in the glaze made a nice sandwich.

After our picnic we headed up to Hillwood where we were greeted by some of the friendliest people. We toured the mansion, greenhouse and the gardens. It was a wonderful afternoon and as you can see by the pictures also very beautiful.

Thanksgiving

Today is a day I sit and relax and think of how lucky I am. I truly have many things to be thankful for.

I am thankful for my beautiful and supportive wife. She inspires me to be a better person with her own actions.

I am thankful for my large and loving family. Our girls, the Moore and Bell families and all of the extensions of those (and there are LOTS).

I am thankful that the girls are finding their place in the world.

I am thankful for my community and all it allows me to have - a safe place to run, a great job and access to so many cultural avenues.

I am also thankful for my heritage and the strength that it has instilled in me.

I am thankful for my friends - new and old and all they have taught me.

I hope you all can look inward today and see how fortunate we all are and then over the holidays see if there is some small way you can make someone else smile.

Happy Thanksgiving

Fall Morning Runs

Tuesday I woke up and wanted to go for a nice run ... nothing ridiculous but maybe 4 or 5 miles. I checked the temperature and it was 32. Ok, maybe a bit cool and certainly my coolest morning yet so I decided I would slip on my Nike tights which are a bit thicker. They are actually ones that have almost a compression feel around the knees.

So off I go. A mile in my legs are just not feeling right, after 2 I decided I had to take a short cut back to the house and was done in just about 2.5. I was disappointed. But I learned some things.

- Compression clothing is good but you have to be used to it and wanting to run even a regular 5 miles the first tome out in something that you are not used to wearing is likely not a good idea.
- 32 is not that cold - so this morning when it was 35 I was back in shorts.

My run this morning was a nice 10k in 35 degree weather. It was easy and relaxing but invigorating at the same time. I loved it. Adding hills also helps and I am ever grateful that they opened that Croson-Belmont piece. I never would have thought it would have been so useful for exercise.

I am looking forward to more cool mornings and making sure I dress properly for them - not too much but not too little either.

Happy Running!

Remembering

Today seems like the day to look back and to be thankful for all we have - the freedoms, the choices, the successes and even the opportunity to make mistakes and to have someone help us.

Today we should, in looking back, remember all those that sacrificed so that we have. We should remember the war dead and injured but also their families and communities that gave so much to support their sons, daughters, mother and fathers.

Today we should also remember those that serve today and thank them in any way we can

I have been lucky enough to travel to many places and I have been able to see many memorials remembering those that gave so much. Below are pictures of some of them.

Some Pictures from Gatlinburg

We are having a great time in the Smoky Mountains but wanted to take a few minutes to share some pictures.

Keep checking the link as we will update with more

Gatlinburg 2012

Happy Halloween

Love lighting my indoor pumpkin as well - gives that spooky feeling inside the house while the little ones are outside.

Another Busy Weekend

Well this weekend was sort of thrust upon us as a busy one. With Sandy heading our way there were a bunch of things that I had to get done around the house since it would be a few days before Sandy passed and with next weekend being busy it would be mid-November before I took care of the things like getting the grass cut, the yard cleaned up and getting the Jeep cleaned (it was covered and full of dust and not a nice thing now that the windows and roof will likely be in more than off).



So outside of the work outside I also had to get some pumpkins carved, what with Halloween a couple of days away - so I did one for the house here (well I did it for Laura) and then I did a small one for Kris to have in her dorm.

One other big thing that was important for us to do was to vote. We wanted to do early voting to make sure we did not run into any travel issues etc and this is important so we had registered for early voting and we both cast our ballots yesterday. Hopefully they will not float way in the rains from Sandy. What was very cool was we had separately picked stamps out of our stamp box to put on our ballots - when I put mine on I looked and saw that Laura had Liberty on hers and I had picked Justice. Hopefully that is an omen that we end up with Liberty and Justice for all.

My Wife the Inventor

I think you all know how proud I am of Laura. She is a great "mom" to the girls, is caring, generous and of course beautiful.

And now we can add to that - an inventor.

Laura was just awarded a patent for the system she developed as part of a low cost and portable HPV test. It is targeted to help prevent the spread of HPV and to help prevent cervical cancer in developing countries.

How could we not be proud :-)

It is hard to realize you are getting older

I was watching "Song by Song, Johnny Cash" and found out that his hit "Boy Named Sue" was originally written by Shel Silverstein. That hit me like a ton of bricks.

For those of you that may not know Shel is an author who wrote poems and stories, in volume. I loved Shel's writing. He was creative, imaginative and thankfully prolific. Every night I could I would read his poems to the girls. They loved his poems. They would request different ones. I personally loved Pancakes. Of course those that know me know that I love pancakes so a poem on the subject .... WOW!

When I heard that Shel wrote "Boy Named Sue" it struck me that I have a 20 year old daughter and my youngest is 16 .... and I won't get to read Pancakes for them any more.

It is hard getting old.

Mom - I now understand.


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Sam the Mechanic

http://instagr.am/p/RDrbIznx-z/

I thought it was important for Sam to know some basic maintenance tasks with a car. Today was learning to change plugs and check oil - which she did great on

I now like Boston even more

I always like going to Boston. It is a working man's town. I ate dinner at a local bar Wednesday night in Brookline and the guys there were largely blue collar guys - fishermen, mechanics etc ...

I also like Boston for the sights - the ones I see when I run in Boston - the Charles River with its crews from the colleges rowing, the architecture of the houses, the wonderful neighbourhoods, and the sports venues.

Supercharged MG

Now I have one more - the Larz Andersen Automobile Museum. Some of the oldest cars I have seen in a private collection, dating as far back as 1899. While I was there this week they also had a British Car showing that will be there through next May. I took some pics, of course, and posted them here.

But just in case I added a sample ...

Some Pictures from our Anniversary Trip

I promised we would post some pictures from our trip. Laura started celebrating a couple of days before we left with some tulips and wine for us and chocolate for me.

We had a great couple of days. The drive was easy but the one back was best since we took the back roads and stayed off the Interstates as much as we could and then stopped at Barrel Oak for a glass of wine.

We did have a great time relaxing though with wonderful dinners, some horseback riding, swimming, shopping and one of the best massages we have had (Thank you La for arranging for it).

We hope you enjoy the pictures

Happy Birthday Mom

I did say it was a month of celebrations .....

This one is always a nice one to celebrate. I want to say a special Happy Birthday to my Mom. For more than 48 years you have put up with me. The mistakes that I have made. My carelessness that has frequently gotten me in trouble or injured. The bad decisions I have made. All through this you have always showed you loved me and supported me. You have always talked with me to make sure I understood things. It was not always easy to see at the time but I can now see how that heed me to be who I am. And now I try to take the same tact with the girls and hopefully they will see that I will always be there for them, loving them, as you have for me.

Thank you Mom for all you have done and I hope you have a wonderful day - one that is relaxing and fun.

Happy Birthday!!!!!!

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Happy Anniversary

It was two years ago today, late afternoon, I was anxiously waiting, standing by myself. A white Bentley pulls up and out steps this beautiful woman. I had tears in my eyes. I was so excited. So happy. 

I know that at times I have made things challenging but I hope you are as happy today as you looked that day two years ago. It has been a fun two years. Lots of new adventures - for us and with our girls. We have taken up new hobbies and maintained some of our old ones. Litte things like long commutes have been a challenge but we have figured it out. We have grown a wonderful garden each year - every year more interesting and full from the last - I think our lives have been like that - different and interesting each year.I promise that I will continue to work each and every day to make you happy - to make our family strong and to make our lives interesting a in a good way.

I love you baby and I am very proud that I can call you my wife.

Happy Anniversary

Adding some pics ...

Just an FYI for those who read us ....

I added some pics from my Running in 2012 album to my running page.

We hope you like them

Happy Birthday Dad

This is a great way to kick off a month of lots of celebrations - my Dad's Birthday.

Today Dad is 88. Personally I am very glad I can say that because at 88 he has seen and lived through a lot. I would like to say that with age comes wisdom but I am more likely to say that with age comes experience and the smart people learn from their experience. I have always thought of my Dad as the smart guy. I like to think that the way I look at things has been because I would watch my Dad work at things. He always worked hard but usually in a smart way. I say usually because we all have those days when no matter what you do it just feels like a hammer will solve the problem.

I wish I could be home with my Dad today to share a glass of whiskey with him but I will need to save that glass for a bit later but I do want him to know that I will raise a glass to him today and wish him many more years.

Love you Dad

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

An Early Morning

This week is one of early mornings. Yesterday an early rise to get to DC through the rain. This morning an early rise so I could get in a quick 3-miler before I headed down to DC. The other benefit of the early morning run was that I did not feel guilty at all about the trip to Lincoln's Waffle House for blueberry pancakes and ham.

Lincoln's is a cool little diner across from Ford's Theatre that generally has a good crowd and this morning that included some of DCs finest grabbing breakfast before their shift.

As usual I sat at the counter and when they brought over m pancakes I pulled a fresh bottle of maple syrup out of my briefcase. The guy sitting across from me smiled - turns out he is from Northern Michigan and fully understood the "real" maple syrup need.

A run and pancakes for breakfast - a good way to start a day - even if it was an early one


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A great weekend

I finally got to relax after a long week last week - and it was needed.

Saturday Laura had planned a kayaking trip but with the weather a bit cool and the wind from the north making it a bit cooler we decided to take advantage of Free Museum Day and head to DC. The plan was to visit Hillwood Estates or the Newseum. Well neither worked out as both were jammed but for us that was not a bad thing as it meant we had an opportunity to head to the National Gallery.

We both love the galleries in DC and the National is one of our favourites. The National Gallery was one of our first dates so going back there is always a nice reminder, especially when we head back there in the fall.

They had a George Bellows exhibit there which was great to see. It is interesting to see over the years he painted and drew the changes in his work. The harsh brushstrokes, heavy paint use and the darkness of most of his early work that then contrasts against some of his later works which are softer in execution even though the topic is still strong. We caught one other exhibit before heading to the Hirshhorn to see the sculpture exhibit of the creatures of the Chinese zodiac. Hirshhorn is one of those galleries that does not get the attention it deserves but that is ok by me as it usually means smaller crowds.

Sunday, after a great run, myself and Sam grabbed some food at our favourite mediterranean restaurant, Zeitoon, and then headed to see "The Perks of being a Wallflower". This was a great movie. It is playing in less than a handfull of theaters in the area but worth finding one that is showing it. After the movie we stopped by the College Fair that was at Sam's High School. She has another year to keep thinking about what she wants to do but she wanted to go by and see if anything jumped out at her.

It was a great weekend - nice and relaxing and, for a change, quiet :-)

A long week ...

Evening at the lake

 It was a long 5 day trip to Ottawa. It seemed like much more than a few days. Of course only 3 actually in Ottawa - 2 were spent driving. But I am not going to complain because over those few days I got to spend a night at Malcolm's cottage on Long Lake, a couple of nights with Malcolm, Lynne and the girls and I got to see lots of Martika. On top of all of that I had a great meeting with the Government of Canada and got to spend some time with my brother and some old colleagues educating them on what I do now - so a good business trip as well.

Bulk Icing Sugar
(also have bulk cake frosting)

Some of the things that I do miss living in Virginia
    - old friends that have great cottages that are only a short hour away. That short hour really gets you out in the country - as you can see from the picture above;
    - running on downtown along the canal. So many runners and bikers - it is great;
    - Creemore Springs on tap at the Royal Oak

Bulk Prunes

    - and Tika reminded me of the Bulk Barn. The Bulk Barn is a place where you can get just about anything in bulk - as you can see from the pictures. For Tika it was spicy plantains and wasabi peas.

So yes it was a long and at times stressful trip but I was glad I was able to do it and I look forward to the next one. Hopefully it will be less stressful :-)

Happy Anniversary

Today is my parents anniversary. I will not say which one because then Mom will get defensive about her age, even though she has another birthday coming up soon. But I did want to make sure that they both know how much we love them and how happy we are that they are both around to celebrate their anniversary today. There are very few couples that have made it through all of the struggles and challenges that they have and while they sometimes seem to get on each others nerves I know that they love each other very much and each worries about the other more than they will openly admit sometimes.

Mom and Dad - we are very proud of your strength and tenacity, of your love for each other and of your love for us and your extended family.

We all love you very much and wish you a very ...

Happy Anniversary!

September 17th

Yes I know September 17th was yesterday but I wanted to just write a short post on how it went from a very long day to a very wonderful day.

The long day started very early in the morning with an electronic chirp-chirp. That chirp-chirp would haunt me all day. Every 20-40 minutes - chirp-chirp. I reset and changed batteries in every smoke detector in the house but still - chirp-chirp. I really did not need the being woke early to it. I really did not need the sound as I tried desperately to work reviewing technical papers and standards. I really did not need it when Kris called in panic mode at 1:30 when her computer crashed.

For me September 17th was supposed to be a day to celebrate. 4 years ago Laura had a procedure that changed her life - and thereby changed mine. It was a short 6 weeks after that day that we met and I am forever grateful for her doctors that made sure she was healthy and happy. But my day was turning into something else - that is until Laura came home. Even when the last chirp-chirp sent me over teh edge - she hugged me - and it all went away.

September 17th was a good day.

I love you sweetheart.

btw -the chirp-chirp went away after I figured out it was the alarm for a battery backup for my internet provider - Laura helped me figure that out - and for that I am glad she was her with me as well.

Official Results

The official results were posted for the Inaugural Navy-Air Force Half Marathon.

My finish time was 1:44:39 which was running at about a 8:00 min/mile pace, which was just a little bit slower than my last Cherry Blossom time. Overall I finished 296th out of 1723 runners.

I was very excited to see that I beat my goal of 1:45 after having missed my 1:50 goal at the last half marathon by only about 30 seconds.

One of the other cool things was that rather than giving out medals at the finish line they handed out Challenge Coins, which is a military tradition that started for members of units but has extended to recognition of special achievement within an unit. I now have 3 but this one is by far the most rewarding.

Bib and Challenge Coin

A Quick Race Report

This morning was the first Navy-Air Force half-marathon. The Navy has annually held a 5 miler about this time of year but this year they combined it with a half-marathon and with the Air Force banner as well. It was a fun race - relatively flat course running much the same geography as the Cherry Blossom 10 miler but adding a few miles up Rock Creek parkway.

My goal going in was to beat my Marine Corps half time. I had targeted 1:50 for the Marine Corps race but missed it by about half a minute. So this one I wanted to make sure I beat the 1:50 but given the flat course I thought I should target a bit faster so my dream goal was 1:45. So I was feeling great as I was passing through mile 12 on target for 1:45. In fact my gun time looked to be 1:44:44. My Garmin gave it at 1:44:34 so I will be anxious to see how I actually did. But either way - as the picture shows - I was happy.

A Busy Sunday

Yesterday was quite the busy day. With a week before the Navy-Air Force half marathon I cut back on my normal long Sunday run but I did want to get in a couple of miles so I woke early and did a quick 5k before I grabbed a coffee and picked up Sam. Yesterday was our level 1 whitewater kayak course. It was a cool morning when I first wen out running but thankfully by the time the class was starting it had reached into the low 70s.

The course was run by Valley Mills Kayak. The two instructors were great and made sure to cover things from the very basics and doing it in a way that had us first work with the instructor and then practice with a partner. We first started off getting wet by practicing a wet exit. You may ask what that is - well the wet should be a good indicator. This technique is used when you roll your kayak so you are underwater, you have lost your paddle and there is no one close by to help. As you can imagine this is an important technique and I decided I would be the first to try it so the first thing I did in the water was to intentionally flip my kayak without a paddle. The first time the instructor flipped me back just so I could get a sense of what it was like to be anchored in the kayak but upside down in the water. Once she rolled me back over I gave it a real try and rolled and exited. It is straight forward and surprisingly easy but I can see how some people would panic quickly. Of course we did this on flat water - I imagine in fast moving water it is a different experience.

So after I did this Sam followed and nailed it - which was pretty much what she did all day. We ended up practicing another rescuer technique which saw us also flip our kayaks intentionally and I managed to do it all on my own - not quite intentionally.

The course ended up being 3 very wet hours but was great. I think myself and Sam will do the level 2 course - maybe in the winter where they do it a pool. After we finished Sam slipped into some drier clothes and we ran out to grab a bite - but even in the mid-70s Sam still found it cold - as you can tell from the picture.



It was a fun day and lots of fun to do with Sam. I have a lot of practicing to do to get the paddling of a whitewater kayak down but I also have access to some great flat water to practice. I will just try to do it without flipping :-)


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Labor Day ... aka BBQ ... Weekend

It was a busy and a bit smoky weekend. Labor Day weekend is the usual weekend for friends of ours to throw their end of summer BBQ. This is Dave and Jill's fourth year of hosting this at their place in Maryland and I think (Laura will correct me if needed) we have made it every year. Dave trained as a chef and is very good at creating a lot of good food for a lot of people. This year Dave had some great chicken souvlaki and some fantastic pulled pork shoulder and many other meats. And then of course sides galore - potatoes, salads and countless desserts. It was a great Saturday afternoon and motivated me for Sunday.

Sunday Kris was home from Mason and she was looking forward to a home cooked meal. We had some lamb ribs and picked up some burgers and lit the barbecue. We added in some roasted potatoes and grilled squash and ended the meal with some homemade vegan chocolate cupcakes. After lunch Kris, Sam and I headed out to see ParaNorman. It was so funny - we had a great day of it.

Monday was a day to relax ... in our way. Laura headed to the gym and I decided to try a new waterway so I packed up the Jeep with the small kayak and headed down to the Occaquan River where I put in just north of the Bull Run Marina. I paddled up the river from there passing by a number of nesting areas for herons and egrets and also saw cranes and eagles. It is a great place to paddle, even with the low water, as the river is only about 30-40 ft across with high shorelines so you get a real sense of being away from everything. It will be beautiful in a few weeks when the leaves start to change. When Laura and I go I will make sure I put in somewhere else as the put in site this time involved a good hike down through the woods and across some mudflats.

After we both got home we took care of some things and sat down and enjoyed Wanderlust. It was pretty funny .... and we only interrupted our watching to get some fresh tomatoes from our garden to make some homemade pizza sauce and then pizzas. It was a wonderfully relaxing day.

It was a fantastic weekend and next weekend will get more interesting when Sam and I take a whitewater kayaking class - nose plugs optional but suggested. Yikes!


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Hope at a Community Level?

This morning I went out for one of my regular runs - a six miler with a few hills. Where we are in Brambleton it is great for running if you want to do 3-5 miles as you can vary it up a bit but for me to go beyond 5 miles I need to connect to some of the other communities around me so I will use the roads that connect into Brambleton to find my way into Broadlands, Dolomite Hills and Loudoun Valley. When I want to do some hills it is usually Dolomite or Broadlands as it has Croson, Ridgeway and Truro Parish where I can run hills wither early or late in a run.

This morning I did my regular 6 miler which takes me up Croson, down Claiborne and a loop through Ridgeway/Stone Hollow. Some hills and a nice safe area to run in. This morning I even saw an old friend, Mark Burns, that I used to work with and we also trained together at early morning karate classes. What I found really nice as I ran around Ridgeway was the number of kids that were walking to school. Some were walking with their parents, others in good groups but it was amazing at how many elementary aged kids that were walking to school. Most of these kids were walking at least a third of a mile, some may actually be doing almost a mile (I think that would be the maximum given the community layout). Now I do not know if it was the kids deciding themselves to do this or the parents encouraging them but given the parents I saw walking I think there may have been some parent involvement and if so then I say that is FABULOUS. We need more parents encouraging kids to get out and do things like walk to school or the grocery store, especially with a community/area like Broadlands where that is possible. Ridgeway is a bit more unique in that there is largely only local traffic through most of it but communities like Broadlands and Brmbleton have done a good job in laying out sidewalks and paths that allow/encourage walking and I hope more parents encourage it.

Maybe there is hope for a healthy generation of kids - even when they are so easily distracted by video games and iPhones - but it takes a community approach - both to build the resources to encourage activity but also to have parents involved to encourage and protect when needed.

Congratulations to those parents at Mill Run and I hope that carries over to Eagle Ridge.

First Day

As parents in Loudoun county know today is the first day back to school. Sammy was less than excited to be starting back in her junior year - not that she does not like school - but as she put it - "If they could start classes at 1 I would be much more excited about it"

Sam & Kris in her dorm

Well Kris also starts her first classes today at GMU. Her first day as a Patriot. We moved her into her dorm last Thursday and she seems to be settling in nicely. The freshmen dorms at Mason are nice. They are in a consolidated area and are low rise buildings. She has two roommates which will always present some challenges but her RA seems great and so far things have been good.

Yesterday, after my 10 mile run and spending some time with Sammy on her learning to drive a 5-speed, we took some other stuff over to Kris and then all went to lunch. It was really nice since we all could chat about things that are going on and talk about things that are stressing both her and Sam. It was kind of cool that Sam was even offering advise on tricks to make the studying easier. Lets see if she can also live those :-)

Sam also made me a cake for my birthday. the timing was great as I had finished my carrot cake a couple of days ago - so more cake is always good. We did share it with Kris's roommates as well and they seemed to appreciate some homemade cake. They will likely appreciate it more in a few weeks after being away from home for a while.

So it is a transition year. Tika is off studying in Ottawa, Kris is off to GMU and Sam has her own car and is now looking for work. I am looking forward to seeing where their choices on things take them.

Thank you!

Yesterday was a great day and it is largely thanks to Laura.

We started the day at out local Caribou Coffee where I got a free coffee for my birthday. We then packed a picnic and headed down to Delaplane to visit Barrel Oak Winery. It is a small winery/vineyard that have some of the friendliest people involved with it. Their wines are varied and good. A couple we really liked. Their grounds are just beautiful. They have about 23 acres of 10 varietals growing and were just getting ready to start harvesting some of the fruit. We rann into a couple of people that worked their while touring their production room and started to have a long chat with one of them. Turns out she is one of the owners. She was very friendly and gave us lots of insight into what it takes to run a vineyard.

After wine tasting and some lunch we picked up some lamb to have for supper and we made lamb chops with fresh rosemary, roasted butter potatoes and some sautéed green beans. For dessert I am still working on my carrot cake that Laura got for me for Sunday - and it is still very yummy :-)

Another cool thing was when I went to check something on Google I saw the following Google Doodle. For those that don't know - if you see a Google Doodle and it does not make sense to you just roll your cursor over it and it will tell you what it is about. Well I rolled mine cursor over this one and it said "Happy Birthday Gary!" I thought it was cool - but on the other hand realized that Google was pulling the dat from my Google+ and then direct marketing me (which I generally do not like - except when it says Happy Birthday Gary!)

Thank you Sweetheart for a wonderful birthday.

Happy 138th Birthday Honey!!!!!!!

I would like to wish my sweet husband a very happy 138th birthday, sort of. In cake math its 48. HT's ran out of 4's so I figured a 1 and a 3 would suffice and he could do math anyway and you know that's just how it worked out. Kris suggested getting a "+" and an "=" candle but I didn't see any. Audrey, I never ventured to calculate how old that would make his mom because cake math is different. So don't even worry.

On a more serious, and less mathematical note, I would like to express my deepest most heartfelt thanks to you honey for taking such good care of me, especially lately. You are always supportive- I think you read more food labels than I do just to make sure I don't eat anything but meat and rice- and never complaining. Even I am complaining about eating meat and rice, and salt. Okay, maybe I don't complain about salt. You are a true source of strength for me, always by my side. Which is where I want you, the perfect spot. I love you and I would never trade our lives for anything. Even ketchup.

Happy Birthday, I hope its the best year ever.
Laura

Kris is braces-free

So yesterday I took Kris to her orthodontist to get her braces off. She was very anxious about getting them off before she started at Mason and they went right down to the wire as she moves in a week from today.

The process itself was a couple of hours but she was very happy and smiling afterwards. She did say that it would take her a while to get used to not having them but I am sure she will adjust quickly.

Before

After

Congratulations Kris!

Some Shoe Success

I know I was complaining about the manufacturers of shoes always changing things and creating new variants of their existing shoes. It is funny that I just read an interview with the guy that wrote the definitive book on barefoot running and he said the same thing.

Well I did find a pair of my existing shoe model online and they we delivered Friday in time for me to do a good 9 mile run today. I will still try out the Nike Zoom Structures but on shorter distances until I am comfortable with them.

Speaking of 9 mile runs - when I was just at about the 5 mile point I ran into a race. It appears they were having a triathlon in Broadlands. It was a bit convenient as it restricted car traffic on Claibourne so I could basically run where I wanted but just before I turned on Ridgeway I realized that there were still bikers using the lanes so I had to do a quick run across the street to make sure I did not mess up any bikers. It was a good run tough - at a very good pace - better than 8:20 for a reasonably long training run. Maybe I am a runner?


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The Frustrations of Fashion

OK - Maybe it is not fashion for everyone, certainly not me, but every year the manufacturers of running shoes seem to make changes to their shoes that means the ones that I have gotten used to and like are no longer being made. This of course means two things need to happen - I need to go out and find as many pairs of the ones I like and buy them and keep a couple of pairs in reserves or I find new ones.

Like I said - I do not worry about fashion

Well it has gotten to the point where finding as many pairs of the ones I like is no longer an option. It seems they are now out of stock everywhere - so now the new search for new running shoes. What gets additionally frustrating here is that when manufacturers release a new version it seems they make some minor change that means the new version of what I was using does not fit the same way so not only am I looking for shoes but also looking for sizes.

Now I am certainly not one to complain about technological advances that make the running experience better - but REALLY - I loved my Brooks Adrenalines when I had the 2010 version. I came to like the GTS 11 and bought multiple pairs so I would not face this problem too quickly - but now I find the GTS 12 just do not fit the same.

So off I go trying new shoes from other manufacturers - some I have used before - Asics, Mizuno and some I have never ran in before like Nike. I guess it will take a few weeks to find what I like and in the meantime I will run in the 11s I have, wait for delivery of the one pair I found online and experiment with other ones.

Wish me luck.

I think I have figured it out ...

As you all know I have been running now for a few years. The last couple of years I have even been able to get better with my races - improving times in all race distances, 5 milers, 10Ks, 10 Milers and half-marathons.

Usually when I crank up my training I do find that I get more sore - a few aches and pains in the legs but over the last few weeks I have not had those aches and pains - even with an increase in running. Today was a medium run - just under 6 miles with some good hills - I am so glad that they finished the Croson Road link to Belmont and then of course Ridgeway has another good hill. The run felt great.

So what exactly is it that I figured out - I think it is core cross-training. On my non-running days I am doing an hour of kayaking and a couple of those days a half hour in the gym where I keep it basic. I think the kayaking and gym work have really helped my core strength and that in turn helps my running. Interesting how all these things relate.

The other great thing about kayaking is it is so relaxing. I go mostly in the mornings and what a great way to start a day - it is quiet - very few if any people - just me - some herons and a lot of open water.

Maybe that sanity break is helping too :-)

The issue with Olympic Delays

Sunday mornings is usually my, get up early, but not too early, and go out for a medium to long run before it gets too hot. This morning however I wake up and Women's Olympic Cycling is on. I know, for many people that is not a big thing but I am the guy that watches every day of the Tour de France and it is not very often you get to see the women race so I got distracted. When I finally pulled myself away from the TV it was in the md-70s and my medium run would be a bit more challenging.

I am the guy that loves running when it is 30 or 40 degrees. I will tolerate 50 or 60 but when it is over 70 it is not as much fun for me I was not to be deterred though and did an 8.5 mile run through Brambleton and Broadlands and made it a little bit challenging with the first 2 miles mostly down hill and the next 4 up, another big down hill and the rest up hill again.

It was not fast but it was good. I can't wait for the fall

Untitled by tricdn at Garmin Connect - Details

Baltimore

Kris has headed up to Baltimore for the Otakon Convention for the last few years. So yesterday I took the two girls and headed up to Baltimore to drop Kris off and so myself and Sam could go grab a nice supper. Kris stays with a friends family while there and in the past we have hung around with them for a bit but this year myself and Sam went straight down to Bagby's, which is in the Fell's Point/Little Italy area, for some Pizza and salad.

After we ate we decided to head over to the Inner Harbor which is just a short walk. On the way we saw lots of Otakon attendees but also noticed how much has changed in the area. There were new and innovative parks, new stores and Ripleys had opened. Made us realize that we do not go up to Baltimore often enough.

We did see some unique things and of course I took a couple of pictures :-)

The local "Pirate Ship" that Tika has always been trying to see when we are there

Some new pictures

Just click on the picture to be taken to an album of kayaking pictures

Laura checking out one of or new kayaks

A Great Weekend

Yes it was a bit cooler than we are used to during July in and around DC, and yes it was a bit wet at times but for me it was a great weekend.


Saturday I got to spend the whole day with my beautiful wife. A relaxing
coffee in the morning, a nice lunch, an afternoon at the Torpedo Factory catching up with a couple of our favorite artists, Laura Edwards and Matthew Johnston followed by a nice relaxing supper at home and an evening watching Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. The day was relaxing, no stress and no running around. I got to spend the entire day with the person that makes me smile every day - how much better can it get.

Sunday i went out for a nice run - it was a bit cooler and just occasionally misty - so 7-1/2 miles from Brambleton through Broadlands was great. After i got back and had breakfast and coffee I packed up all the kayaks and took Kris and Sammy kayaking at the reservoir. This was Kris's first time but she did great. We had grabbed some sandwiches beforehand and paddled across the reservoir and had lunch there. On the way we saw herons, turtles and even a loon. The girls were both a bit sweaty afterwards which was also good - I like that they get exercise when they do not think they are :-)



After kayaking Laura and I took Kris to get some things for college. The usual stuff that she will need in her dorm but Kris always appreciates when we do things like that for her. After dropping the girls off Laura made me a great carb loaded supper and we watched the end of the Tour de France (now we are all excited about the start of the Olympics this week).

So as you can see - a great weekend and after that I have no issue in looking forward to a bust week at work.


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Kris is a Patriot

I mean that in the very school sense. George Mason's mascot is the Patriot.

A busy couple of days

OK - outside of the obvious - work - we did have two big things that I thought I would quickly post on:

- Kris spent yesterday and today at University orientation at George Mason. She seemed a little bit nervous but also excited when I dropped her off yesterday AM. I will see how she is when I pick her up this afternoon :-)

- Sammy finished her in-car driving school today with her official driving test. SHE PASSED!!! Woo hoo! Oh wait - that means she gets to drive - YIKES! Just kidding. According to her instructor she did very well and we are very proud of her. There is a bit of a catch. Technically she cannot get her license until August 23rd so she still has a few weeks to wait. At that point she gets her 180 day temporary license and then, assuming no problems, come next February she gets the real McCoy.

Congrats to Sammy and Kris - we are very proud of you both

Not where you would expect ...

So this morning I was out paddling and glanced over to the shoreline to see a deer standing in amongst the vegetation growing just off the shore of the reservoir. I should not have been surprised because there are lots of deer around us but I had never seen one in the reservoir before. Well before I finished paddling I had seen 4 of them, along with a few turtles and an osprey.


Today was not the first day of being surprised by nature. Yesterday morning it was a baby bunny in my front garden.

Yesterday evening it was a surprise to see one of my sunflowers had flowered.

I guess nature is full of surprises.

If you want to see some more pics from kayaking we have an album up on Picasa.

A Bit of a Repreive

Going out the door this morning was a bit of a reprieve ... from the heat that is. This weekend was one where I actually skipped running - it was just too hot. This morning was a bit better - just around 70 but with high humidity still - ok technically it was light rain when I ran so I guess that means 100% humidity. It was nice though that for 30 minutes of running it was raining and that kept me cool for the last 25 minutes.

I did find time on Saturday to go kayaking. EMS runs demos every now and then and this weekend they were going to meet at Beaver Dam so I figured I should go and check out a couple of kayaks. It was great as it was a few degrees cooler than the 100+ at the house a couple of miles away and on the reservoir there was a breeze. You are not supposed to swim in the reservoir but if a kayak happens to tip is it technically swimming? It was a great way to spend a couple of hours on a hot summer day though. I am looking forward to getting out Saturday with Laura :-)

Adding another form of exercise

So last weekend myself Laura and Sammy took a course with LLBean. It was a intro to kayaking that was part of their discovery series. I have paddled quite a bit over the years so I knew I would love kayaking on the Occoquan. Sammy and Laura were a little more hesitant but it did not take them long to love it. Being the outdoor person I am that was great news since now it meant we had another outdoor activity that we could do with the kids - I think even Kris will give it a try.

So this week we got some kayaks. We got two bigger ones for myself and La and a smaller one for the girls. The girl's kayak we picked up at the store so the next day I was anxious to get out in it. Normally on the days when I do not run I would go to the gym and do some cardio but yesterday I decided to just take the kayak to a local reservoir and spend an hour kayaking.

What a great idea this was - the reservoir was calm and silent. No one else was on the water. The sun was out and the fish were jumping. It was very peaceful. I spend about an hour cruising the lower part of the reservoir, doing 5 minute sprints every now and then. It was a great workout. Now rather than going to the gym on my off days I will likely just grab a kayak and head to the reservoir for an hour of paddling. Then of course on the weekends I will be able to go out with La and maybe one of the girls.

It can hardly get better

Happy 4th!!!

We are looking forward to a nice relaxing 4th. It is nice that it falls mid-week - last Sunday being Canada Day and then only a couple of days til the weekend again ... woohoo!

We hope all our friends, family and followers have a wonderful holiday.

Gary & Laura

A Quick Pic

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

This is one of my favourite times of the year. It is a week or so after the beginning of summer - I get to celebrate my heritage today and in 3 days get to celebrate with the country that adopted me as a son :-)

The weekend has been interesting so far - the storms Friday that we slept through - a great midday kayak on the Occoquan with La and Sam followed by a great fireworks display in Brambleton. Now I am just relaxing over coffee after removing a large tree from the girls house and getting ready to celebrate the day.

There will be pictures :-)


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Summer Running

I can honestly say I do not know how the people I see out running in the afternoon do it when it is 90 odd degrees. I say this after I went out Sunday AM to do my usual 7 mile run and it was 75 degrees and I was just hot. I ran my 7 miles but it was a bit slower than usual.

It was kind of an interesting run as I totally forgot that the Broadlands triathlon was going on Sunday so I ended up running across and along parts of the course as I ran the streets I normally run along Ridgeway and Claibourne. There were quite a few competitors and they definitely varied between those that are fully invested in the sport and those that are doing their first - but it was great to see everyone involved.

I guess my running now will mean I get up a bit earlier so I am not out running when it is not too hot - which I guess is not a bad thing.

Our First Upgrade

Since Laura and the girls found climbing in a challenge we put on new sidesteps before we do the next upgrade with bigger tires.

Fathers Day Weekend

What a wonderful weekend.

The kids and Laura treated me to a wonderful Fathers Day weekend - two fun days that were oh so relaxing.

On Saturday myself and Laura had our usual casual Saturday AM, went to our local coffee shop and had some breakfast and just relaxed. While there she said that she had some plans and that we would need to be ready to leave by 11. So just before 11 we dropped the top on the Jeep and headed out. She navigated as we headed towards and then around Frederick, MD. We arrived on Black Ankle Rd and I then knew where we were going. Laura had introduced me to this vineyard a few years ago and we loved one of their reds. We had not been able to find it in a while so I was very excited to go visit them.

We enjoyed a wonderful wine tasting and I can honestly say that it was one of the very few tastings we have done (and we have done quite a few) where we enjoyed every wine. We had brought a picnic with us so we sat outside and enjoyed some good food with a bottle of Rolling Hills red. After lunch we sampled some chocolate from a local chocolatier - which was a fantastic way to finish our lunch.

After a relaxing early afternoon at the vineyard we took the back roads down through Frederick and Montgomery counties and took Whites Ferry back home. Laura then laid out her plans for supper which included a fresh garden salad, her very popular roasted potatoes and some wood smoked BBQ ribs and chicken. We decided to open a bottle of Black Ankle Syrah to go with it and it all matched wonderfully.

Sunday I woke up with text messages from Tika, who is in Canada right now. A nice way to start Fathers Day. Kris, Sam and Laura took me out for a wonderful lunch at the Old Brogue, a wonderful pub in Great Falls that we love, and then we went to get the girls some frozen yogurt. We had a great afternoon.

After we got home we called my Dad so we could wish him Happy Fathers Day. It was a great way to finish off my day - the reminder of why I work so hard to be a good Dad to the girls - the fact that my Dad worked so hard to make sure we had what we needed each and every day.

It was a wonderful weekend and one I will remember.

Happy Fathers Day!

Kris's Graduation Weekend

I am not sure it means I am older but now I have two kids that have graduated high school.

This past weekend was Kris's graduation and I could not have been more proud of her. Sunday was her actual graduation ceremony and Kim, Luke and Amanda came all the way from Ottawa to celebrate with us all.

It was a hot weekend in Northern Virginia, 90+ degrees and sunny. The "and sunny" meant the Jeep was going without windows at least (I kept the top up to protect my head). We all had lunch at Hunters Head Tavern in Upperville. It is a great place as it is small and cozy, great staff and great food. The drive out was also nice since there was a horse jumpers show on in Upperville so lots of beautiful horses. After lunch we relaxed a bit before heading to the Patriot Center at George Mason University for her graduation ceremony. It was a little bot funny that she was having her graduation ceremony there as she will be attending GMU in a few weeks.

It was an evening event and I think that helped to make sure that people kept on time with speeches and the like. When Kris marched out we were quickly able to pick her out and she saw us right away. She said it helped that Laura's dress was a very vivid color :-)

The commencement address was great - given by a former Stone Bridge Grad who had just graduated from the US Naval Academy. She was a great speaker, entertaining and a great message for the kids (and for adults) about passion, motivation and finding time to enjoy life. I hope the kids, including Kris and the ones sitting next to me, took it to heart.

It was late by the time we finished but we found time to get some pictures of the new graduate. We were also so very proud of her and our now anxious to see where she will head in life.

We love you Kris

ConGRADulations

A Busy but FUN Week

This week I had to make a quick trip out to Utah. Yes it was work related but it was fun work.

The company that I am working for now, Venafi, is a big believer in making sure people know each other and are able to work well together. So twice a year they have team building events. This one sounded exciting from the start - a day at Utah's Olympic Park.

I flew in Tuesday night and headed up to Park City where we were staying. A quick beer and bite to eat at the No Name Saloon also allowed me to catch up with a few of the guys that I already knew and to meet a few more. The next morning I finished off some real work and we headed up to the Olympic Park for noon.

Looking down one of the ski hills
towards the lodge

The ride up there is cool in itself. It is a steady, windy, drive up but as you go you can see all the ski jumps which are very impressive (as you can tell from the picture). While we waited for everyone to get there we watched some ski jumpers practice off the varying jumps and landing in the pool. Some were obviously experienced while others were brand new to it. Once everyone was there we started with a quick briefing and some team building and then headed up to the mountain top. We literally spent the next 5+ hours having fun and getting to know each other. We were doing street luge, summer biathlon (including air rifles to hit targets - first go two shots to get a center and second go - one shot one hit), zip lines, alpine sledding and the best - a run in a 4 man bobsled down the actual Olympic course. Driven by a professional driver using a wheeled sled - we still hit 70 mph and pulled 4 Gs.

After the full afternoon being active most drove back down while a few of us zip-lined back to the lodge where we had some food and drink and spent the evening playing blackjack, craps and betting on roulette.

It was a great way to get to meet and get to know a lot of people. You learn a lot from someone when they are next to you on a zip line that is 1500 ft long, dropping 500 feet at 60 mph.

Looking forward to the next team event.

Our new Jeep

So Tika was right again. I could not last more than a few years without a Jeep Wrangler.

This time it was an easier decision since the new Unlimited is a 4 door with lots of space.

Today will be our first full day out with it and all the kids. I know La and Tika are really looking forward to it.

Memorial Day Weekend

This has been an interesting weekend so far ... myself and Laura had a great Saturday, coffee in the AM and then a quick run to Costco which presented an interesting shopping experience. We were there to pick up some groceries etc but as we walked through our local Costco Laura saw a rack of sheath dresses. We looped around picking the last few things that we needed and then Laura wanted to go back and look at the dresses. Laura does not have an easy time finding a dress she likes and that fits well but these looked promising. She was a little hesitant but I encouraged here to try one on ... as you can see.

As you can see in the background people thought she looked good as well She liked the dress so much she ended up getting 3. You can see the videos of Laura trying on the other dresses on our YouTube channel -  a grey one and a beige one.

Big kids at play

Tired Shoes ...

My tired running shoes after yesterday's race

Tired ... but happy

Todays Race

Today was definitely an early morning - rising at 4 AM to head to Fredericksburg for the Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon.

It should be no surprise that logistically this race is well organized. They had arranged to use a commuter lot 3 miles from the race start and shuttled people there. When I made it to Warrenton at around 6 I was quickly able to get on a bus and head to the start in Fredericksburg - it was flawless.

The race itself was a good race - I had a plan and stuck to it ... mostly. The biggest part about this race is after running 10 miles you get to face the biggest hill. It only rises 150 feet but it does it in about a half mile. And then you get to face a couple of smaller hills. So needless to say the end of the race is brutal.

The weather was good at the start but was a bit warm by the end - but running through the old neighbourhoods of Fredericksburg is great. The people were all out cheering, kids high-fiving and lots of water and the occasional sprinkler.

I did not know how I would do on this race since I had a great Cherry Blossom but had not trained hard since then. I had a goal to finish with a pace under 8:30. Well I finished with a 8:26 pace finishing in 1:50:32 and putting me 780th of just over 6,000 finishers. I was pleased. The cold beer after helped too :-)

Utah Trail Running

Wednesday was a great day to be in Utah. The weather had been warm but it was dry. A few rain storms had rolled through the mountains so they cooled a bit which was ideal for running the local trails.

I left Sandy and drove to Little Cottonwood Canyon Trail. The trail starts at 5400 feet above sea level and pretty much goes up from there. Of course I am not fully acclimated to altitude running so adding a 1000 foot climb over 2-1/2 miles made the run ..... interesting.

The trail itself is a great trail for running or mountain biking. The run or ride up is challenging and the way back down is even more challenging.

Hopefully the little bit of altitude training on the road and in the gym here in Utah will help my run in the Marine Corps Half-marathon on Sunday.