shorty

Funny, or not, is how dirty Erin's fingers are.....and how I noticed it not when I took the picture but rather right now, when I am posting the picture. Certainly she has had a bath in the meantime.....right?

sleepyhead

puddle jumper

Blurry. Happy. (Wet). Kid.

stairs

Just in time for me to be at the all day long no end in sight nausea point of the pregnancy (where I feel like getting off the couch is an impossibility....), Erin has figured out how to go down the stairs and Annie has figured out how to go up them. It's all sorts of scary around here. I haven't been brave enough to get Annie with the camera. She is so unsteady....and proud. Terrifying!

little fish

The highlight of the weekend for the girls was swimming in the hotel pool. They LOVED it!

more pics from the race....

Yes, Kate and Erin were there, too.....but after a 10:00 bedtime the night before and an early 6 AM wake up, they were waaaay too cranky to photograph!

lots and lots to be happy about

We did it!!!! Wow---what a great weekend and a great run and a fantastic experience. More pictures to come later, but for now...the race was great and we are so happy we did it (all 13.1 miles...about 2 hours and 3 minutes....NO stops!) and it's done! We feel great and we feel tired! Special thanks to Eoin and Cortney and Wynne for some much needed support around mile 7.5 and to Jen, Bridget, James, Carrie, Chris, Max, Viv, and Grandma & Grandpa with Kate, Erin and Annie to cheer us on at the end. You guys are the best. (Oh, and for those of you not yet in the know....yes. Three Hemsworths crossed the finish line this morning! :-)

knee pads

We had 2 glorious days in a row of temps in the eighties.....and after 2 days of crawling everywhere without pants, Annie had road rash on her knees and blisters on her big toes. Those are some serious training injuries! I took pity on her this morning and fashioned some knee pads. She was so pleased to be able to slide over the wood floors again!

the last lonely miles

This morning I ran my last training run....an early and easy 3 mile loop. Lonely, as today it was just me....Sunday at the least it will be me and Dan and at the most it will be us and our 3500 new running partners. This week has been the "taper" week...taking it easy and resting up for the big run. Tomorrow we will pack our bags and travel to Madison to pick up race packets and meet the grandparents at a hotel for some swimming and kid fun. Sunday morning the race starts at 7 and hopefully ends at 9! I will be happy to see my three little cheerleaders at the end. I tried to explain to Kate the concept of racing but she couldn't get past thinking about race cars and how we would be driving one. Hopefully by Monday morning I will be functional enough to let you all know how it went!

I can take a Christmas card reject picture any day of the year.

cornhusker

Who says those Nebraskans have all the fun?!

annie, 9 months

Annie is 9 months old today.....unbelievable. Of course, whenever a milestone like this rolls around, I never have very good pictures....and this weekend is a crazy one with grandparents and weddings and all that good stuff. We'll see what I can accomplish! But, here she is....all 9 months of sass and fuss and love and cuddly goodness.

pathetique

Annie is at the stage where she pulls herself up on everything but can't for the life of her figure out how to get down. I see this face many, many, many times a day.

Madison Marathon - May 24, 2009 - Madison, Wisconsin

Madison Marathon - May 24, 2009 - Madison, Wisconsin

I imagine you are all desperately seeking information as to our route and where you can cheer us on at 7:00 AM on a Sunday morning.....

elbow room

Once Annie declared her mealtime presence, our old dining room table officially became too small. Out with the old, in with the new. Starbucks, doughnuts, tulips, and a brand spanking new dining room table....here just in time for Mother's Day. You might not be able to tell from this last picture, but I was really, really happy!