Breaking cobwebs

I did it. :-)

I finished my 20-miler today. And even though I was of course, slow (4 hours), it wasn't as painful as I thought it would be (more on that later). It was my final long run, so I was a bit excited to get it done knowing that I get to taper for the next two weeks with a 12 and 8-miler. Even though I had to run/walk the last 3-4 miles, I'm still very excited that I finished this run, because it means that deep inside, I still have a liiiiittle bit of fire in the belly. Twenty miles. Pretty friggen' cool.

What made the run all the more satisfying was that it didn't start off promising. I slept late (a little after 11pm) the night before because Ryan and I were at a birthday party until 9pm, and then once I got home and bathed him and put him to bed (my mom and Rich were at a play), I had to deal with some undescribably foul plumbing issues (no worries, I'm definitely suing my parents our delinquent slumlords). Plus, I'd taken a sleeping pill, so I woke up at 5:45am and felt very groggy for the first 4-5 miles of my run. In fact, I felt so out of it that I kept telling myself that I could switch my 12-mile run (next weekend) with this week's 20-miler if I needed to. However, as I'd hoped, once I hit the downhill section and popped a few shot bloks at mile 4, I felt back to normal and decided to slog it out.

I ran from our house to a half mile past Matsuyama's, then turned around and ran back to Kahalu'u beach. The last 2 miles of running on Queen K before turning down Makala Blvd. were absolutely horrid in terms of heat. It was so pervasive and unrelenting with absolutely no breeze(s) that I started to feel like I was overheating no matter how much water I drank (our car thermometer said 89 on the way home). So for the first time ever, I detoured to Old A so I could dump a ton of water on my head. It helped so much that I did it again a few miles later. I was so eager to get to Alii Drive if for other reason than to benefit from the occasional shade along the mauka (mountain) side of the road. In fact, I'm pretty sure the shade and dumping of water on my head were 100% of the reason why the run didn't end up being as painful as I'm accustomed too (since I usually end my runs in the hot, shadeless lava fields otherwise known as Queen K).

Oh, and the reason why I titled this post "Breaking Cobwebs" is because often, when you're the first person out running, you're the one having to break through all the cobwebs on the side of the road. It's always a little bit annoying to have them stuck all over your face and legs (along with the dead bugs), but there's also a teensy weensy bit of smug satisfication knowing that you're the earliest of the early birds out there. ;-) It's an expression I've used in my head for years when I first started running.

I'm so happy that I finished my run today that for the first time in over 3 years, I'm going to allow myself to wear a t-shirt tomorrow that I bought from the San Diego Rock N Roll Marathon that says "I kinda *heart* running 26.2." I always felt I have to earn the right to wear that t-shirt, and now, I basically have. :-) I just hope it still fits. Eek.

A few pics from the weekend-

Ryan had a disco dance party with his two new buds (visiting from Bellevue) Theo & Levi!

Every so often I get inspired to do something educational or green, and since this activity combines the two (& Ryan could use a little help with puzzles)- ta-da!

This is Ryan imitating ME making silly faces at him whenever I want him to smile for a picture! And no, we don't usually take our son outside of the house in only a t-shirt, diaper and boots...only when we're going out for a late evening walk and it's still so warm outside! :-)

Target had it's first Reading Day on Saturday (last year's inaugral event got cancelled due to a tsunami warning) hosted by Dr. Suess, and Ryan and I were there to partake in the fun!

He was thrilled to see a few of his friends there too! However, just prior to the event, he was being very, very stubborn/fussy and ended up with a time out. Yes. In Target (no worries, I stood 4 feet away). He immediately burst into tears (he hates time out) and exactly one second later (because yes, that's how firm I am about him remaining in time out) he sadly informed me, "My tears are falling down." (i.e. - he wanted me to wipe them away). :-( Thankfully, he liked story time and we ended our excursion with a snack in the cafe area listening to an older man sitting right next to us play his ukulele. Only in Hawaii. :-)

Hope you really love Ryan...

I know, I know...a little overkill on the Ryan photos this month, but I think I've finally posted the last of the San Fran photos I like best. Please bear with me. I'm only having one child (so I think we're allowed to take four thousand photos a month as long as we only post half of them). ;-)

Yeehaw.

I'm over this, Daddy & Aunty. Plus...you're kinda embarassing me.

Our little bumblebee was not a fan of sporting this look. But I love it.

Looking pretty fly during naptime.

Splish splashing with Grandma at the condo.

And in other news...

After the chaos of last weekend, I think for the most part, we're gonna lay low this weekend. We are having some out of town friends over for dinner tonight (our present digs are so spacious and luxurious that we love to show off). Then on Saturday, I'll be taking Ryan to Target for a Dr. Suess hosted Reading Day (last year's inaugral event got cancelled by a tsumani warning) and later that night, I'm taking the three amigos to a park and then a birthday party (while Rich goes to a play with my mom). On Sunday morning I will attempt my final long run of the season with either a 19 or 20-miler. I am both excited and terrified that I may not survive this event. To ensure that I hustle it in and not quit and give up, I will, as always, make sure my two boys are there to meet me for a swim afterwards (and by "swim" I mean that Rich and Ryan will romp in the surf while I collapse/lay down in 4-inch deep water like a giant hippo with only my two nostrils submerged above the water...I only wish I were joking). So please, wish me luck, send me positive vibes, light me a candle. :-) I'm gonna need it all.

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But here's some fun news- thanks to a nice tax refund we're getting a tax refund this year (from buying a home), I'm getting (minor) laser surgery on Monday! It's a long story, but I either have post-pregnancy pigmentation issues, aka chloasma (I prefer this guilt-free explanation) or sun spots (and I'm going to conveniently ignore that fact that I golfed for 15+years without using sunscreen). It's likely a combination of both. Either way, not a fan of 'em. And because I don't wear make up, I can't cover them up. So I'm super excited. I've never done any "work done" on myself before (I hope it count as getting work done even though it's non-invasive and done by an aesthetician), but if I hope to become a Puma someday, I've got to stay youthful and relevant. Next up? Probably nipple rings.

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A final bit of excitement (for me anyway)- I'm in the process of juuuust starting to plan Rizzle's 3rd birthday. Can you believe it? (Not that I'm already planning...that's normal...I mean that he's going to be THREE?!!!) So the other day I bought a five pound box of fondant (a working kidney would have been cheaper), two deep 10-inch baking pans (mine are 9-inch and too small) and five boxes of cake mix (I'm making two cakes, one for school and one for the party). My plan is to construct a Thomas cake for school (the tough one), and a discoball (easier) for the home party. Here's what I've nailed down so far for the soiree of the season (...and I think it's only fair to call it that when it's held in your parent's garage)-

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~We will be going with a disco theme for the party since dancing and music are what Ryan's all about right now. He probably loves cars a little more, but I wanted to go with something a little more festive than a Hot Wheel theme. :-)

~I so enjoyed having Japanese food for my parent's 40th anniversary that I want to repeat it for Ryan's party too.

~I also plan on reprising the candy bar (albeit a scaled down version) from my mom's 60th birthday party since that was such a hit with kids and adults.

~We've also got to have the children's birthday party staple- a pinata! (In the shape of a discoball if all goes well!)

~I think I'm also going to create another pendant showcasing a picture from each month of Ryan's life (since I think we miiiiiiight have enough photos to choose from). ;-)

So I've got my projects lined up for the next two and a half months. I've found that when you're full of ideas, but lazy, it takes about that long to pull everything together. :-)

Supercrazybusy weekend

Our supercrazybusy weekend is finally winding down...almost. Still have some morning fun planned for tomorrow (Monday) that will make a certain little boy veeeeery happy!

Saturday started with Ry and I hitting a few garage sales en route to a late breakfast with one of my high school BFFs and her significant other. We ate down at Lava Java, which if you didn't know- has food to die for. From there we headed over to my parent's for a swim in their condo's pool. Later that evening Ryan and I (Rich was studying all day, then worked that night) headed out to Genki Sushi to meet another high school BFF and her family (Ry looooved her boys), so we had a wonderful day together.

This morning (Sunday) I got up early and headed out for my first 18-miler (in 3-4 years!). It started off promising, full of positive thoughts, mantras & smiles. But as is typical, around mile 11, I started to sag. By mile 13 I was totally pooped. It took everything I had to shuffle (and partly walk) those last 4-5 miles. So while I did finish it...holy canoli did it hurt. And not hurt so good. Just hurt. I am so dreadfully out of shape and have gained another few pounds (thanks, San Francisco!). I have NO IDEA how I'm going to be able to pull another eight miles out of me on race day (which is in exactly one month). The best way I can describe my walk after the run is "Yoda like"- picture me half bent over...hobbling from side to side...grimacing. Needless to say, I am utterly terrified, no make that petrified of race day. Forget time goals. My only goal is to finish. I've never been more scared of a race. :-(

Sidenote: Despite a visit to the chiropractor on Thursday for a very sore back and neck (Ryan came with me, sat next to me the entire time with a few of his books, and was hiiiiilarious... He now walks up to me, pushes on my back with all his might (like the chiropractor) and then asks, "Do you feel better now, mommy?"), I am still super stiff and uncomfortable. Because I have the benefit of no medical background, I easily convinced myself that today's run was going to make so tired and weak that it would loosen everything up and heal me! (I think I'll leave the medical theories to Rich...didn't work.)

Anyway, after the run (I ran from our house to a half mile past Kuki'o), I met up with Rich, Ry and my brother's family for a beach day at Kuki'o. In the later afternoon Rich and I dropped Ryan off for a playdate at his friend Tyler's house while we caught a flick, before finally heading down to my parent's condo for a family dinner (since JJ came to town)!

So all in all, we had a lot of good stuff going on this weekend, with the only downside being that I got bitten on my neck by a baby centipede last night! My first and last centipede bite was in 1997 and it was awful. My arm swelled up (you could see the two little holes in my arm like a snake bite) and became so stiff that I could barely move it for days. So when this one bit me (and baby centipede bites are rumored to be much more venomous), I was horrified. I fully expected my neck to swell up and make look disfigured, but the only effect I had was a stinging sensation (sort of like a bee sting) for an hour. No swelling. No pain. No stiffness. Score!!!

I didn't want to whip the camera out on the visiting friends (every else is fair game), so here are a few pics of this morning's beach trip!

Couldn't resist posting this pic of Riki's huge smile!

Ryan running like the wind!

Ryan holding what can only be some kind of sea slug...eew.

Somebody learned how to make a shaka this weekend! It's a rite of passage here. I can't say he's mastered it yet...every so often (maybe 95% of the time) a third finger sneaks up in there, or his pinky gets stuck under his ring finger...but we're working on it! Regardless, Ryan is very proud of himself! He woke daddy up this morning saying, "I'm doing shaka, daddy!"

Pre-Weekend Fun & Weekend Line Up

For some reason we're cranking out the fun this weekend! Today Ry and I headed out to Aunty Tessa and little Kira's house this morning for a quick playdate before joining Aunty Heidi, Aunty Joey, Nina, Noah & Naomi (to whom Ryan is currently betrothed) for Ryan's first hike! Even though he kept calling it 'camping' instead of hiking, Ryan loved it. He was so excited to hike from the moment he woke up. We hit up the trail on Ha'o Street off of Kaloko Drive, which was perfect since it was sunny/warm and the trails weren't slippery!


Riz did muuuuch better than I expected. I had assumed I'd carry him for approximately 95% of the walk, and it ended up only being 50%. I think he made it about a third of a mile...so we have some work to do if we plan to do a half marathon together by the time he's 5. :-)

The cute moment of the day...when all four keiki discovered a hole in the ground and huddled over it to ponder the possible inhabitants...too adorable!

My happy little hiker!

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Tomorrow (Saturday) we have another action packed day- a little early morning garage sales before meeting my high school BFF (in town from Oahu) for a late breakfast at Lava Java Cafe (leg-en-dary!), a lunchtime swim at Grandpa and Grandma's new condo, and then a mini high school reunion with our other high school BFF (in town from Seattle).

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Then on Sunday I have my long run out to the beach, where I'll meet up with my two boys and either go to a birthday party, or a beach date with friends...but best of all, Rich and I will have a belated Valentines Day date night at the movies, courtesy of Aunty Mel, Uncle Jason & Tyler.

Out Takes! Bonus Extra Footage!

These pics didn't make the first cut, but I like 'em enough that I still want to share them!

Rizzle at the entrance to the San Francisco Zoo

More "wiping the goats" at the zoo

Doing what Ryan loves best...riding the train with his uncle!

Joey said there was no way Ryan and I could fit into this little cab together...ha. Look who showed him (and look who got a leg cramp as a reward). :-)

Our future tetherball Olympian (please note that the racket is about three full feet away from the ball...so we'll have to work on that).

Slow down for the cone zone!

Checking out the view of the Golden Gate Bridge after scaling from atop this crow's nest at the Children's Discovery Bay Museum.

Playing on a Golden Gate Bridge replica at the Children's Museum with Pops

Teaching Ryan how to "swim" on tv! Note the puckered fish lips for more authenticity (I credit my method acting...you all should try it).

Laying atop a "pond" (really, a giant blue waterbed) with lilypads (padded pillows) at the museum.

The annual picture in front of the bridge, but this time from the Marin side instead of from the peninsula!

Ryan said he liked putting his face up next to his Aunty Kathy's because her cheeks and lips were so warm. ;-)

Everyone doing their best 'scary face' for the camera at the Ferry Building!

PS- A reader named Jessie asked me this morning how long Rich has been in school (because as she so astutely pointed out, it seems like it's been for years). It has been! He's in his second to the last semester of his Masters in Nursing Administration program at Cal State, and if all goes well, he'll graduate after the first summer session in July! At that point, he'll have been in school for five and a half of the last eight years , so I'm more than ready for him to be done!!! Unfortunately, he's already making noises about wanting to also get his MBA soon thereafter, but I'm making even louder noises that it will be over my dead body. :-)

Days 7, 8 & 9 Highlights

After a second night in Santa Rosa with Rich's family, we headed back to the city on the morning of Day 7. As soon as we got there, we picked up Ryan's godmother and my BFF Kathy (who had flown up to see us from SoCal). She actually took a bus from the city and walked across the Golden Gate bridge to meet us in Marin at the Discovery Bay Children's Museum!

So while she and Rich were shlepping their way down the mountain to the museum down at the bay, Ry and I were already inside having fun...so I'm not sure, but I think someone has a future hawking crabs down at the wharf!

Again, climbing was the name of the game on this trip. Ryan climbed up nearly every apparatus he could find. Loved his fearlessness!

And if the wharf gig doesn't work out, he can definitely a road work crew! He loooooved this area of the museum! They also had a giant blue waterbed shaped like a pond with lilypads on it that we regrettably didn't take any pictures of that he also loved.

This was a near life-size boat that even rocked to emulate the sea (not my favorite feature). Capt. Ryan to the rescue!

Trying to teach my young how to swim!

Learning how to "swim" in a giant aquarium with daddy and Aunty Kathy!

Our smiley little "ant" crawling around in a giant ant tunnel!

Later that evening we hit up yet another park with Uncle Joey before hitting up two favorite stops of ours down in the Mission...

... Ethiopean food and BiRite ice cream! (Daddy was worn out and back at home studying and resting. He was NOT pleased to missing one of favorite kinds of food!)

See what I mean? Still pissed off about it...even later that night! Ry on the other hand? Sweet as pie. And why not? He's being cuddled by his daddy with his favorite blankie and precious thumbkin in his mouth...life doesn't get any better for him!

The next day we let daddy study some more while we hit up Ryan's beloved carousel at Golden Gate Park's Koret Children's playground (I don't know who the Koret's are, but they've done some amazing gifting to the city because we also played on their playground in the SF Zoo as well!). After spying a giraffe on the zoo's carousel, all he could talk about was wanting to ride on one the next time, so he finally got his wish!

He also scored a bonus ride on a moving horse since rides were only $2 (unlike pricey Pier 39's $5 experience). :-)

And since there were no signs telling us to the contrary, I let Ryan feed the pigeons (a novel experience for us since we don't have them on the Big Island...something I'm not broken up about, believe me, but for Ry, they're awesome birds)! Later that night we walked to Union Square to meet Kathy at her hotel and have dinner at a vegan restaurant in the Westfield Mall (quite possibly the nicest, greenest food court I've been in)!

The next morning was my second long run (and once again, my scheduled 18-miler was aborted for a 16-17 miler) in the city. Even though I didn't feel as good as my run through the park the previous Saturday, I swear- this might have been, scratch that. This WAS the most scenic run of my entire life. I cannot think of a more picturesque run in the country than the one I just did.

It started with a pre-morning sunlight run down Market Street (Joey taught me to sing loudly to myself so all the crazies will leave you alone since clearly, you're crazier than anyone else) to the Embarcadero, along the marina/wharf, through Aquatic Park, beautiful Fort Mason, my favorite running spot on Earth- Crissy Field, then up and over the beautiful Golden Gate Bridge (admittedly a little freaky since the wind was blowing and I swear, I felt the bridge rocking) to Marin, then back along the same route to the Ferry Building to meet my boys, nibble on some fruit and say goodye to Kathy.

I cannot begin to describe how happy and alive the city makes me feel, most especially when I'm walking or running there. Everytime I'm there (perhaps my 25th trip?), I fervently plot my move there (not really gonna happen anytime soon). I don't think I need to live there for very long (it's not an ideal place to raise a little boy), but just enough to satiate myself and expose Ryan to all the wonders the city has to offer.

After bidding a fond adieu to Kathy, we continued back along the Embarcadero back to Pier 39 so we could hit up a teeny tiny park we always take Ryan to. This is him at his 'restaurant' serving us food (we do this at EVERY park we go to). ;-) What I love best about his restaurants is that they always serve EVERYTHING, and food always costs only $1, $3, or the latest amount of his he's been saying- "Two and a half ."

Ryan found a little ladybug and a little friend that day, and they spent about ten minutes excitedly huddled over it. I didn't have the heart to point out to Ryan that his little friend eventually massacred the little aphid-eater with a giant stick! :-( That kid soooo should not be allowed to live in the city of San Francisco.

Our final evening in the city we spent at the park of course (I desperately wanted a picture of us in front of the famous Painted Ladies behind us). It's funny, in all my trips to the city I'd never been there. And since Joey only lives about ten minutes away from them, we made sure to make it our last, memorable stop in the city.

That night we hung out with Joey and a few of his friends before they went all out to a party. Ryan entertained everyone by wearing Uncle Joey's Snooki wig (since no trip to San Fran is complete without cross dressing).

For the first time in a long time, we have no return trip back to San Fran on the books...so I'm not sure when we'll be returning. Rich says not for awhile, I say...let's save and keep our eyes on airfares and who knows? ;-)

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Special thanks go out to Rich for taking on this trip even though he's in the middle of school, to Uncle Joey and Aunty Randi for putting us up for free (I mean, I think it's free, I haven't received a bill yet), Murphy for not jumping on Ryan this trip, Aunty Kathy for flying up to visit us, Grammy Kay for driving up to see us, Shawn, Sandy, Macey & Riley for having us over, and of course- the big man upstairs for giving us such beautiful weather, and a fun, safe trip with people we know and love.

Days 4, 5 & 6 Highlights

Whoops...we go to bed so late every night (such is life with Uncle Joey) that I can't seem to get caught up on posting! It's funny, even though we eat 1-2 hours later than normal each night, Joey still claims that he and his friends have to eat 1-2 hours earlier than normal each night to accommodate us early peasant folk. :-)
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So anyhow, after fake apple-picking (which Ryan still talks about...tee hee), the next morning (day 4 of our trip), we went to eat French Creole food for breakfast at Brenda's. Can I just say that it was probably the best breakfast I've ever had? That Joey suuuure does know his food.

After breakfast we dropped Rich off at coffee shop so he could study ( a recurring theme throughout this trip), and so we could take Ryan to a family favorite destination- Golden Gate Park! Psst- Ryan is the only little (mama's) boy I know who quickly admonished his uncle for carrying him like that because "It's too dangerous!"

One of the things I love most about the city of San Francisco is that despite it having more dogs than children...they seem to have more parks per square mile than any other city I know. I swear, we take Ryan to a different park each day (all within walking distance from Joey's) and never seem to run out of options- there are at least 2-3 children's parks within Golden Gate Park, Alamo Square, Duboce, Mission Dolores, the Panhandle, etc.
Here's Ryan learning to cross a ropes bridge at Golden Gate!

Right after that, we took him to toss coins in the fountains (one of his favorite things to do).

I'm guessing his wish just came true. ;-)

And it just wouldn't be a complete outing with Uncle Joey unless he taught Ryan to do at least one naughty thing (Ryan wanted to touch the water). Mommy said no...too dangerous...too cold. Uncle said sure and hoisted his little body right over the water. No wonder the state keeps taking away his young.

Later that night we chowed down on Mediterrean food (also at Uncle Joey's urging) and the next day, we rented a car and headed out to Fairfield to meet up with Ryan's beloved Grammy Kay at the Jelly Belly Factory! Once we got there, Ryan excitedly hopped out of the car and announced that this car in front of the factory was 'soooo silly' so I had him take a picture with it.

We had to wear silly paper hats on the factory tour (we saw bazillions of jelly beans drying, which made it worth it). Rich was asked to be a volunteer to eat one of the beans from their 'gross line' (they really do have one!). He was given the sample called "barf" (very accurate, he reports), the guy who volunteered with him was given "boogers." Eeeew. Who buys that stuff? Well, me I guess...I mean...I almost bought it, I wanted to...but I couldn't figure out who to give it to!

I think Ryan's favorite part of the factory/store was the race car in the cafeteria (which sold jelly bean-shaped hamburgers amongst other things). Between these kinds of rides, fountains and wishing wells, I've learned that parents of toddlers should always keep a few rolls of quarters in their bag. ;-)

That night we hooked up with one of Rich's stepbrothers (he technically has a total of six brothers if you're counting), which also happenned to be the ONLY one I hadn't met yet. Shawn & his wife Sandy are the most amazing, generous hosts and let us crash in their "barn" (a large pool house/man cave...complete with full bar, pool table and six TVs!). Ryan loved running through their little beaded curtain!

And to make their home even more cool? They have their own totally kick-arse playground in their backyard!

That night they took us out to eat at one of Guy Fieri's restaurants (Johnny Garlic's) for an amazing dinner. And to our surprise, Ryan loooooved their rosemary garlic bread and olive oil/basalmic vinegar appetizer!

The next morning we took Ryan to a place I've been wanting to take him for a very long time (but we don't have such options on our tiny island)- an indoor play park!!! While Rich studied in their coffee shop, Ryan and I ran around howling and having fun with Grammy Kay for as long as they let us. Rizzle loved the ball pit the best. So did I.

They also had a bouncy house obstacle course, giant slide and bouncy monster truck. The picture below is the precise second that I actually DROPPED Ryan on the obstacle course (in part because I was trying to take pictures AND play with him) and almost couldn't get him back! I actually had to take my socks off (which you were required to wear for sanitation reasons) and charge back over the wall in order to haul him over with me so we could move on! Hysterical.

And no side trip would be complete without Tiger Mom insisting that Ryan still practice the piano!

Sidenote: Even though Ryan does in fact, have a brief piano lesson at the end of each music school day...he has not learned a thing. In fact, while all the other obedient children delicately tap on the keys they're supposed to, my son has figured out how to turn on the drum beats and instead sits there bopping his head to the beat and pounding away on the keyboard with his fists (if we're ever asked to leave, I won't fight it).

Ryan with his Grammy Kay and two cousins Macey & Riley...we can't wait until they come and visit us someday!

Days 7, 8 & 9 to come soon!

PS- We had blue sunny skies each and everyday we were in California...we landed in Hawaii today and it rained! (That didn't stop us from swimming in the pool though...our little fish missed the water and just had to jump in the moment we returned.)