Run Like the Wind!

I'm sorry, Angus. If you are reading this in 10 years, you probably are pretty pissed at your old mom for your hairstyle in some of these pictures. In my defense, you have very, very nice hair and would have been an adorable little girl with pigtails! I don't think I'm helping myself here...

In any event, this past weekend, Angus ran his first race. Well - "ran". As part of Team Kam, my friend's charity group, we went to help out at the Baltimore Running Festival's Kids Fun Run. Angus was none too thrilled about being woken up before the buttcrack of dawn to leave for Baltimore, but it was a beautiful day, and he seemed to have fun in the end. I wouldn't say he set any records, and we were definitely the last to cross the finish line, but he did most of the 1/10 mile course himself. And maybe the announcer asked me if he was a boy or a girl as we were nearing the finish, but at least people were cheering for him :). Pictures tell the rest of the story.

And yes, to confirm, Angus is now routinely sleeping 10-11 hours straight each night. I don't even take him running with me anymore most mornings anymore - I'm very happy about the former but have mixed emotions about the latter :/.

His Team Kam shirt was a teeny bit on the big side.

Holding his own near the finish line.

Post-race team picture. Medals even!

Yeah, I don't know what this face means. Just weird.

Angus digging in for a post-race feeding. Muffins, bananas, all the good runner stuff.

To the Rockies!

Yet again, it has been a while since I last posted, so....sorry? Anyway, with the holidays coming up, I'll hopefully find reasons to post more frequently.

But to this post. Angus and I spent one week in Colorado earlier this month. I had a work conference - held at the luxurious (tongue-in-cheek? you decide) Crowne Plaza Hotel near the Denver airport. Hey, it was paid for by my company, so I can't complain. Anyway, my parents drove out to meet us - with so much family in the Denver area, there's never not a reason for them to make that drive, and this way, they could watch Angus while I conferenced the day away!

Conference done, we headed to the mountains to stay at the cabin my aunt and uncle own near Estes Park. I'd not seen the cabin in years - and had never stayed there - so I was pleasantly surprised by how big it is. It's also remote enough that you feel a bit disconnected (in a good way), but not remote to the point where you aren't a 15 minute drive from restaurants (and coffee). I always enjoy time spent in the Rockies, and I was happy to share that experience with Angus, especially now that he's discovered the joys of walking. Stumbling. Falling. Whatever it was, he genuinely seemed to enjoy himself, even going for a gentle hike with me and grandpa. I'll let the pictures tell the story :).

Trying to catch Annie to torture...erm, LOVE her.

In the dog's bed at my aunt's house. Of course. Because where else would he sit?



Visiting Grammy Kay and loving every minute of the attention.

This may have been right before Grammy Kay suggested I dress Angus up as a mini-devil for Halloween.

By the creek in Estes Park.

Taking a break.

Angus was having a blast showing off his walking skills, though he was routinely distracted by pinecones.

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Nappin' along Lake Lily (?), a nice, short hike not too far from the cabin.

Angus's hair, despite having been cut twice already, is a lifeforce of its own. I, being the ever-empathetic mother I am, put his hair into a ponytail while visiting Greatgrammy Kay. He MAY have been mistaken for a girl once or twice (or 15 times). Well, he would have been a damn cute girl.

No, no, this isn't Angus's first trip to a pumpkin patch. This is a photo op set up outside a Denver Whole Foods, where I forced my father to spend almost $100 on dinner. Oops.

Our trip back to DC was not the best way to cap off an otherwise enjoyable workcation/vacation, as our flight was delayed by a solid 5-6 hours, getting us to Dulles just before 2am. Angus was a bit fidgety but was generally well-behaved. And he got McDonald's for the first time in his (albeit young) life.

Grandma and Grandpa, First Overseas Trip, Waterpark Fun

I've got a bit of catching up to do with the blog, so I'm combining three recent events into one post. The first was a visit from Grandma and Grandpa Marden - they came for Angus's and Grandpa's birthdays (and a massive carrot cake courtesy of yours truly). This was Angus's first birthday, and Grandpa's more than first birthday :). Both birthday boys are, of course, young at heart and full of energy! I won't do a grand pontification on the first year with Angus - all I'll say is that, in some ways, it's hard to believe that he's already one year old, and it sometimes feels like yesterday that I was waking up (very drugged) in the hospital to be handed my new son. In other ways, of course, the past year feels like eternity ;), and I can't imagine life before the lifeforce that is Angus George.

I think he had a pretty good first birthday, even if he had no clue what was going on. It was a nice celebration for me, as I could say "yes! I made it through the first year of motherhood with a healthy and happy baby!!!". Not always an easy task to accomplish.

There was cake, a large dinner, and a whole pile of presents - a few more for Angus than Grandpa, but Grandpa was a good sport about it.

The second event was our recent/annual trip to Scotland and London. Angus unfortunately came down with a pretty nasty virus the day before we were set to leave, so he and I had to delay our departure by a few days. Once he was healthy again, though, we were off, and Angus got his first taste of overseas travel. We spend the first week in Scotland, where Angus got to meet most of his cousins on his dad's side. There were no major injuries or major tears, so I consider this first meeting a success. We then flew to London for a few days to spend some extra time with Christopher's youngest brother and his family. While there, we went to the Imperial War Museum - a place I would have loved to spend several hours exploring but soon realized that museums and babies don't mix too well. Ah, well.

The final "event" was a trip to a waterpark near us. Well, a park that has a splashground. Nothing groundbreaking about this, but Angus LOVED it, so I took a few pictures to record it.

Trip to Old Town for Grandma's favorite restaurant on the water.

Trip to Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

I'm sure Angus will thank me some day for posting naked pictures. Him and his cousin at bathtime!

On the way back from the Imperial War Museum. Angus SHOULD have been sleeping...

Checking out the splashpark.

Full crazyman mode.

Where did my shirt go?

Impending calamity...

Angus is close to walking. I don't know about any of you, but that sentence is enough to strike fear in my little heart.

After months of crawling only backward, Angus one day decided it was time to move forward, and it's been a steady stream of baby-proofing, my shouts of "Angus, no! Don't eat that!", and my steady decline into further madness. Any day now, he'll be strolling around the house like he owns it. Which is great from a developmental standpoint - not so great from the point of view of my overburdened sanity!

Anyway, Angus is chugging along quite well. He's babbling like a drunken Irishman pretty much any given moment that he's awake, he's eating like a champ (if you get the chance to hold him, you'll understand that he's not missing any meals), and he's getting into anything and everything he can. It's hard to believe he's almost one year old (!!!), but that's right, one year ago today, I was two weeks away from my due date - large and in charge and ready for him to be born already! More on the past year later, but for now, a few pictures to get the blog-wheels greased again.

His hair has recovered nicely from the Daycare Disaster '14. Well, it's debatable whether it's "nice" hair. But it's definitely    A LOT of crazy hair.

Umm...I may think the legal drinking age is a bit strange, but you're still a bit on the young side to be hitting the hooch.

Pondering the meaning of life on one of our three visits to Roosevelt Island last weekend.

He looooves the swings!

He also loooooves the bath tub!

Crazy Baby Syndrome

Well, I've officially fallen off the blog wagon, given that it's been well over one month since I last wrote (and Angus is not even 10 months old yet), but this tired mother is going to try to resurrect a frequent blogging habit.

Anyway, nothing too major has happened since I last blogged, but Angus is (surprise, surprise) continuing to grow. Physically and mentally, he's growing - it seems - almost daily, and his curiosity and sense of adventure seems to be growing even faster than his chubby little thighs. To be fair, Angus is only in the 50th percentile for weight for his age (though at a healthy 21 pounds, that's more a statement about the obesity epidemic in this country than any statement on his svelteness). But his hair has, for the most part, grown back from the daycare hair massacre, and he now is the proud owner of 4 teeth. 2 on top, 2 on the bottom. With which he LOVES to chomp on his mother's shoulders and arms. He's also standing up a lot more, though crawling forward still seems to puzzle him. In addition, he's started sleeping through the night 4-5 nights/week, which is fantastic. I need to train myself not to wake up thinking I hear him crying so much, but that will come, I'm sure.

The main events highlighted in the photos this post are: a 5k for breast cancer that Angus and I ran in early May and a day trip to Harpers Ferry we made this past weekend with a friend. This was actually the first 5k I've ever run and, as I expected, it was over almost before it began. But running a race with a stroller was a bit more challenging. I didn't necessarily WANT to take anyone out with the BOB, but if it had happened...all's fair in racing and war, right? But it was a fun day, and Angus soaked up attention from my team mates.

Overall, Angus and I have been foraying into DC more often on our daily jogs. While I don't always love or even like living here, early morning runs do showcase the city at its best. I really hope Angus grows up enjoying being outside....

We went to Harpers Ferry on a beautiful Saturday. It's not the most exciting place in the world, but it was nice to walk around, grab some low-key lunch, and just relax outside of the immediate DC area. I'm always a fan of those activities. Angus was on his best behavior, though eating while holding him is becoming increasingly difficult. He is a squirmer and a grabber and a nutjob. I love him more than life itself, but that kid is a crazy person. In a good way, but I only envision my levels of exhaustion escalating as he becomes more and more mobile. We're also going to need to baby-proof the house VERY soon.

Pre-5k, he wore a bib one of my coworkers forfeited. Fortunately, it was a walker's bib and thus not chipped; otherwise, he would have gotten a better time than me.

DINNER TIME!!!

Getting into things he has no business getting into.

OH SO EXCITED ABOUT A WATER BOTTLE.

Harpers Ferry - this one is for you, Dad.

Great views from HF.

We ran into DC to run the 5k (of course - duh!). The Mall was dead, so I took the time for a photo opp.

Crazy person.

The Team.

An Exciting Few Days...

Angus and I are on our own this week, as Christopher, Abbey, and Molly headed to Fort Lauderdale for spring break. I have about negative 40 days of vacation, so I wasn't able to go with, but Angus and I have been jamming on in DC by ourselves. That's not to say it hasn't been an interesting few days.

Monday morning, I received a text that no parent ever wants to see - in essence, that there had been gunfire in the backyard of our daycare provider's neighbor's house. According to our provider, the police were there, the kids were safe, and she would keep us updated as to when we could pick them up. Suffice it to say, I was a bit stressed until I received the follow up text saying things were clearing up. I picked up Angus and we had an unexpected afternoon together, which was nice. And it turns out that the gunfire was someone "practicing shooting" inside a neighboring house that's currently under construction. The whole thing was VERY bizarre, but Angus is safe and it wasn't a gunman bent on destruction, so I'll not look that gift horse in the mouth (though I will continue to wonder what is WRONG with people???).

We also thought Maya was a goner for a few days. She hadn't been seen since Saturday, so I reported her missing and was set to prowl the neighborhood posting signs. Low and behold, when we got home, I heard a faint mewing coming from the shed. Dummy hadn't bothered to make a peep when I'd been calling her name in the back yard before, but long story short, she was fine. Hungry after 4+ days trapped in the shed, but fine. I know all readers of this blog were very stressed about the possible disappearance of Maya.

Anyway, a few pictures to round things off.

Angus is now able to crawl...backward. No real forward movement other than a bit of shuffling, but the kid can go backward pretty quickly now!

I'm sure Maya's VERY happy to be back within reach of Angus.

I'm not sure that book is quite up his alley, but hey, if my kid shows an interest in reading, who am I to judge?

Just a cute grin :).

Rainy, Rainy Portland

I once again had occasion to head to the West Coast last week, as I was attending a conference for work. As my dad has friends not far from there, he met me in Portland to further develop his babysitting (and diaper changing) skills. The hotel we stayed at was just a few blocks from the conference center, and pretty centrally-located (or so we were told) for downtown Portland. The room itself was probably the worst-arranged room I've ever stayed in, as there was about 2 feet of spare space once you got past the bed and the crib, but it was clean and there was free coffee. So obviously Dad and I were happy.

Angus was his typical happy-go-lucky self most of the time, and Dad's help was MUCH appreciated. Unfortunately, it rained for about 99.4% of the time we were there - and not just light, sprinkling rain...I'm talking DOWNPOURS - which put a damper (no pun intended) on our extracurricular activities. We did still manage to get out to a few good restaurants, however, and Dad frequented the nearby Starbucks "drive-through".

After my conference ended, we drove over to the Oregon coast for the day/night. After a brief stop at the Tillamook cheese/ice cream factory that I would prefer not to ever speak of again, we arrived in Pacific City, a scenic little town my parents have frequented in the past. While the weather still left much to be desired, we were able to walk on the beaches during a few precious lulls in the rain, and Angus showed his true adventurer spirit. Despite the wind, rain, and cold, that kid was smiling ear-to-ear the entire time. I think we have a little outdoorsman on our hands!

We won't talk about how early we went to bed (only because of Angus, of course), or how many "classic" movies my dad watched, or how much food I purchased for the one-day trip to and from the coast. But Angus was well-behaved, he and Grandpa got some quality one-on-one time, and we arrived back in DC late Sunday night in once piece. Can hardly ask for more than that!

Beautiful Oregon coast.

Pictures a bit out of order, but Angus jazzed up for the final leg of our trip (Chicago to DC).

He's a big fan of riding in shopping carts now. As evidenced by the legs.

Happy with Grandpa.

At lunch. An increasingly common face he makes - often accompanied by a whole lot of jabbering.

At a pizza place in Portland. It was absolutely pouring as we waited for the bus there. And it stopped, of course, once we were inside. Regardless, the pizza was very tasty!

Rainbow on the drive back from the coast.

Big strong Angus! Guess we're going to have to get this kid some shoes before too long.

That water bottle was his absolute favorite thing ever for a few days.

Angus and mommy.