Summer has been heating up in Colorado, and by the time dinner rolls around, the last thing I feel like doing is making a heavy meal. I usually cook something substantial for the boys, but I’ve been trying to make simple and lighter food for myself. 

Today while I was grocery shopping, I spotted some natural and organic prosciutto.  I immediately thought of one of the tapas I love most from the Mediterranean Restaurant in Boulder.  They wrap prosciutto around cantaloupe, and top it with grated Parmesan cheese.  I thought it would make a perfect light dinner.  Pictures of the final product I made tonight:

As I sat down to eat with the boys, who were eating turkey, noodles, cheese, and melon, they asked me in their most critical voices, “What in the world is that?”  As if I had just picked through the trash can for dinner.  I launched into my explanation about how wonderful prosciutto is. 

I told them it is Italian ham, and asked them if they wanted to try it.  Of course, they refused.  I explained to them the salty flavor of the prosciutto mixes perfectly with the sweet melon, and the cheese gives it just a slight bitter taste.  I told the boys this is one of the best dishes which blends three flavors flawlessly.  I asked them again if they wanted to try it, and they looked at me like I suggested they ride their bikes to the moon.

Cole then said,” Mommy, do you know what I am going to make when I grow up?”  I was excited- I thought I sparked his culinary imagination. 

“What?” I asked him, eagerly.

He smiled at me from ear to ear and then replied,

“SpaghettiO’s.” 

I have never served my children SpaghettiO’s.  Up until tonight, I didn’t think they had ever heard of, seen, or (gulp) tasted SpaghettiO’s.  How could my son compare a perfect real-food dish to SpaghettiO’s? 

I almost cried into my prosciutto wrapped melon.  But it would have made it soggy, and I wasn’t going to have two tragedies in one night at dinner. 

Hopefully one day when we are all eating real Italian food, I can tell them this story and laugh.  I hope for my kids, appreciating real-food is an acquired taste.

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Our summer so far has been very busy.  Compared to last year, though I’m not complaining, but when I envision summer, it seems like life should be moving slower, and it shouldn’t be so rush-rush- every day.

Someone once told me as your kids get older, life gets busier and that seems to be the case.  I’ve been working, juggling daycare, and trying to plan some fun activities for the boys.  I have also had to start looking around for a new place to live once the house we are living in sells.  There has been a re-organization at work, and it just doesn’t seem like there are enough hours in the day to get everything done that I have and want to get accomplished.  It is really overwhelming at times, realizing it is just me now.  I don’t have any safety nets- if I don’t succeed in balancing work, finances, time with the kids- Ryan and Cole will suffer.  The practical, over-planning part of me feels like I should work as many hours as I can, and then some. 

Recently a good friend, who is a single mom of four, told me what she regretted.  She said once she was divorced, she panicked about finances, and she made that her goal. She figured if she was okay financially, she wouldn’t be so stressed and it would mean security for her and her kids.  She says though she really missed a lot of time with her kids, and they all suffered.  She says she will never get that time back with her children, and the financial security came at way too high of a price.  She told me no matter how crazy things seem to get, keep my kids as a priority, and everything else will work out. 

So keeping that advice in mind, I am happy the boys and I have been able to do some fun things so far this summer.  We’ve been swimming a lot with my sister and her daughter- the boys’ cousin.  Last week when I was working and our childcare provider was on vacation, my sister took all the kids to the zoo, and they had a blast.  Yesterday I was able to take the boys to see a local production of The Music Man.  We have a camping trip with my dad, (Papa Dan), planned for July, and some vacation time planned.   

In less than two months, school will start and Ryan will be in school full-time.  Cole will be in preschool, and I will be working more hours.  It is the end of an era for us.  My kids and I will all be starting new chapters in life, and making adjustments.  I am very grateful it seems like it will be good timing for everyone.  

As I think about this last block of time we have- it really is a gift.  I have been so fortunate to be able to share the majority of these early years with my children.  With all the difficulties in the last year and a half, the highlight has been being able to have time with Ryan and Cole. 

There are a million things I should and could be doing this summer.  It is hard for me to not have every detail planned out. This is a very hard “leap of faith” I’m taking, but I believe it is the right step now for the boys and I. 

But for the next two months, I’m not going to worry or stress.  I’m going to get done what I need to, and enjoy the time with my children.  I’m believing as my friend advised, put the kids first, and everything else will fall into place. 

My friend, Steve, has a great blog- Fleur de Life.  He ends every post by tying in what he wrote about as the Fleur de Life-the important things that really matter.  I love the quote below, and to “borrow” from Steve- taking a leap of faith…-it is the Fleur de Life!

  “When you come to the edge of all the light you know, and are about to step off into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing one of two things will happen: There will be something solid to stand on or you will be taught how to fly.” –Barbara J. Winter 

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If you have been a reader of my blog for awhile, or know me, you know that I have been in the midst of a divorce for a year and a half.  Last week after a trial, it was final. 

I’ve debated over the last year and a half, on how much I should blog about the divorce, and what was going on with it.  I felt like some of what I was experiencing could help others in similar situations.  But because of the nature of it, I decided the less I wrote about it, the better. 

One thing that surprised me somewhat, but probably shouldn’t have, was during the court trial, my ex-husband’s attorney threw out quotes from my blog, and mentioned some of the things regarding my health, and running that I have written, in order to portray me negatively in the manner she needed to.

As I sat there listening to her use my announcement that I was cancer free, and the information I have shared about running, to make her case, it was unsettling.  I wrote those things, and shared them to help other people, and to let other cancer patients know there is hope and life after having cancer.  Perhaps I was too naive- I didn’t think what I wrote would be turned and twisted around by an attorney, who was trying to show I don’t work full-time for my own selfish reasons. 

I know the reasons I haven’t gone to work full-time since my cancer recovery, and they have nothing to do blogging and running.  They have everything to do with my boys, and my being available for them-especially while their parents were getting divorced.  That might not make me the most successful person in my profession, or have me earning the most money I possibly can, but it has provided my children a sense of stability and normalcy through the divorce. 

I know I made the right decision for Ryan and Cole.  I will never look back at the last year and a half, and regret I didn’t have a full-time job.  I will remember I was there for my kids so their routine was not drastically changed.  I will remember I was there on Ryan’s first day of kindergarten.  I’ll remember standing at the bus stop with Ryan each morning and being there every afternoon when he got off the bus, until he gained the confidence himself. I will remember his smile when I volunteered in his classroom.  I will remember helping Ryan with his homework when he came home, having a snack with him and Cole, and talking about our day.  I will remember on the two days off a week I had, the one-on-one time Cole and I shared.  I will remember drawing, coloring, and baking with him.  I will remember playing farm, village, and fireman.  I will remember reading books to him, and going to the park.  I will remember talking to the boys about divorce, and the feelings they were having.  I will remember I was available for them during this incredibly difficult process. 

It turned out to be the right decision for me not to blog any specifics about the divorce.  My advice to any other parents who are wondering if they should blog about their divorce- don’t.  Written words are so easily twisted and taken out of context. Be there for your kids, and do what you need to do for them.  When it is all over, what is really important- and all that matters anyway, is you were there.

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Cole is four today!  It is hard to believe that four years has already passed.  We had a fun celebration on Friday.

We spent Thursday night with Ryan and Cole’s three-year old cousin, Maelin.  They played outside, rode bikes, and then watched Music Man.  It was neat seeing the kids play together.

On Friday, I took the three kids to the Children’s Museum in Denver, because that is what Cole wanted to do.  They played and enjoyed the brand new bubbles exhibit.

Then we went to lunch and ate mac & cheese- Cole’s favorite.  Maelin gave Cole a claw gripper toy, and he absolutely loved it.  He said “I’ve been waiting year after year, after year for this.” After lunch we went back to Maelin’s house, the kids took a nap, and then played some more before it was time for us to go home.

Cole is such a little boy.  His middle name should be mischief, because he is always into everything.  Cole also has quite the memory and sense of humor.  He remembers so much.  He also likes to tell jokes, and make people laugh.  He’s very good with impressions.

Cole is so sweet and lovable.  He still crawls in my bed with me every night in the middle of the night.  He wraps his arm around mind, and goes back to sleep.  In the morning he wakes up with a smile on his face, and tells me he loves me.

Cole has also amazed me this year by reading Ryan’s kindergarten readers.  He has picked up several of them out of his brother’s homework folder, and can read them!

Cole’s favorite food is still noodles and mac & cheese.  His favorite snack is goldfish crackers.  He likes cooking and baking with me, playing farm, fireman, and riding his scooter.  He wants to be a farmer when he grows up.

Cole often says he misses his Nana.  I recall my mom was the only one besides me, that could hold Cole when he was a newborn baby.  He cried and cried if anyone else held him.  When my mom came to visit, one month after his birth, she took Cole from me.  I warned her he was going to cry.  I was pretty surprised when he didn’t. In fact, he laid peacefully in her arms for hours.  They had a unique bond.

A few weeks after my mother passed away, I made chile rellenos for the boys.  I didn’t put chiles in theirs, and they liked the crunchy shell and melted cheese.  Cole then said, “Nana loved chile rellenos.” This was true, but I had never told the boys this.  I told Cole Nana did, and asked him how did he know.  He said if he thinks, he can hear her voice in his head sometimes.  I can’t explain it, but I think it is very special.

Cole and his Nana- June 22, 2006

I’m so excited to see how Cole grows and changes this next year.  Holding him in my arms, seconds after he was born, four years seemed like a lifetime away, and yet it is here.

I love you, Coley.  Happy Birthday!

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Alison and I were certain the race was a 9K, which is 5.5 miles.  The last few weeks I’d been preparing on how to run this distance in a race. I figured out how fast I needed to run each mile, and practiced to try to get the time I was hoping for- 50 minutes.  A few days ago, I ran 5.6 miles in 49 minutes, so I decided I’d try to hit 45 minutes for the race.  Ryan and Cole have been running short distances with me to train for their race. 

So on Mother’s Day, after making a big breakfast for the boys and I, and opening the cards they made for me, we headed out to the race site at the Boulder Reservoir.  We met up with Alison, her husband, Iggy, and their little boy, Winston.  The kids race was about to start so Cole and Winston lined up for the first wave:

Then they were off!

Ryan ran in the last wave, and he was ready to run!  

Alison and I got ready for our race, while the three boys and Iggy went off to play.   They announced then the race was a 9.9K, or 6.1 miles.  Alison and I were surprised we both had missed that.  It wasn’t that much in terms of distance, but for preparation it was huge.  I have ran a lot farther than 6.1 miles before, but never in a race or in a training run.  I didn’t know when I would peak, when I would start getting tired, or any of that.  There wasn’t a lot I could do, except run and see what happened. 

Alison met up with one of her friends, Kelli, and after chatting for a bit, we were ready to line up.  The fastest starting time they had was 7 minutes, and even though I wasn’t going to try to run every mile at that pace, I decided to line up there.   They announced there were almost 2,000 runners, so it was crowded, but the race organizers had everything running very smoothly. A few moments later, we were off!

The first mile seemed to fly by. I ran the first mile in 7:34, but figured I had better slow down a bit- there was still 5 miles to go.  The course had turned into dirt, gravel, and grooved road.  Some of the spots were really loose, and I had a few issues with really getting my feet planted.  There were a few hills too that weren’t super easy for me.  I’ve ran on a lot steeper and tougher hills, but during the race, the hills were challenging me.  

A handful of runners passed me.  I was trying to run a pace of 8:30 for the next few miles to make sure I would have enough left at the end.  The scenery was really pretty, and there was plenty of room to run, but I wasn’t getting into the groove I like.  I was struggling on the gravel at points, and was too overly focused on the pacing.  

At the beginning of mile 3, I was able to see the front of the pack, and the bikes leading the runners.  I was surprised for a minute when I realized there were not that many people in front of me.  I figured there were about 100 runners ahead of me.  It made sense since I started at the front, and not that many people had passed me.  That definitely gave me a boost. The race was half over, and it looked liked I was in the top 10%. 

At mile 4, I had crossed the reservoir, and I glanced across it.  I saw a sea of runners- the path was packed.  It dawned on me even though I wasn’t having my best race, or doing my best running, I was ahead of all of those runners- almost 2000 of them by a least a mile.  I thought back to my first race last October, and never thought 7 months later, I’d be running so strongly in a hard race with good runners.  It really hit me then how far I’ve come as a runner.   

When I hit 5.5 miles, the distance I thought I was going to be running, I was right at 45 minutes.  It made me feel good that I would have hit this goal even though it wasn’t the goal anymore.  I started to run faster, and the course was not that crowded.  There wasn’t anyone I felt like I could try to pass, so I concentrated on running faster and faster towards the end, and finishing strong.  It helped the last stretch was downhill. 

When I approached the finish line, I saw the official clock was at 50:58.  I ran as fast as I could, hoping to finish under 51 minutes, but I didn’t quite make it.  I saw the clock turn to 51 minutes and then I hit stop on my Garmin, so I wasn’t exactly sure what the official time would be, but knew it would be 51-something. I grabbed some water, and a few minutes later, I saw Alison running to the finish line.  We were both very happy we had run well and finished strong.   

We found the kids and Iggy, and visited some of the booths. Then we let the kids play on the beach, get their feet (and pants) wet, make sandcastles, and we had a picnic. 

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