Hood to Coast Relay

197 miles on foot from Mt. Hood to Seaside with 12,000 other crazies. That was how I spent last weekend. Somehow I got roped into "The Mother of All Relays" this summer.

It's basically complete mayhem from Friday morning to Saturday evening. There are 12 people on a team and two vans per team. Each person runs 3 legs that average 6 miles each to reach the beach--running around the clock. Let me paint the picture: It's 3:00 in the morning. This is your 2nd run since the sun set. It's cold and dusty and you're trying to find your teammate amongst the crowd. Once you find her, you wonder why you were in such a hurry because now you're running 5 miles on a gravel trail at 3:30 in the morning. It's pitch black except for the head lamp on your head which seems to illuminate nothing except for the dust particles flying at your face. Occasionally a participating van drives by to light up the road, but just as you are grateful for the extra light, you are eating the dust that it kicks up in its wake. Lovely.

Actually, the "midnight" run wasn't the worst. At least it was cool. By the time I ran again later that afternoon, it was blazing hot and I had more miles to cover, less food in my stomach and no sleep to my name. Needless to say, the last 8 miles were brutal. But like any good mother of future missionaries, I soldiered on and cranked up my tunes to the likes of Baby Bash and Optimus Rhyme with a throw back to ACDC, Van Halen and The Beastie Boys.

The party on the beach was worth the suffering. It was a beautiful evening and it definitely felt good to squish the sand between my tired toes.

I owe my survival to my Mom who treated me to a surprise pedicure, facial and massage the day before the race (and babysat with Aunt Darel during the race). This allowed me to venture into my "happy place" while pounding out 19 1/2 miles.

I can't end a post without new pics of the boys or else the aunties will have my head. Plus, I'm afraid C and K will outgrow their Moto Jammies soon and I had to get some pictures for Uncle Clint.




As soon as he sees it, Cole makes a beeline for the camera with that determined look on his face. This makes picture taking interesting to say the least.

Keith is content as long as he can smear raspberry jam all over his head and squish it between his fingers. At least he's eating something!

The Secret River

Brent spent last week on his annual trip to "the river which shall not be named." In true fisherman fashion, Brent insisted that I keep this river's identity a secret. Despite my lack of understanding for this code, I obliged.

This was year 6 on the ________ River and it was a slim crew compared to the usual crowd. Brent, Clint and Grandpa Burnett were the diehards. Milo came too, although in all his excitement he had a hard time staying still for a picture.

Despite an intense downpour and lightening storm, the trip was a success and everyone caught some nice fish. The men enjoyed time together on the river and eventually lost count of the number of fish caught. I suppose that would be the reason for keeping the river anonymous...












While the men fished, the boys and I hung out in Yakima for the week. We got to go to Aunt Julie's baby shower. Yay! We're so excited for another baby to join the family! We mostly hung out with the Grandmas and the aunts and enjoyed the last days of summer.


Grandma B. with Keith chowing on licorice.

Violence

Violence is clearly encouraged in our home, as evidenced by recent pictures. I can hardly find any pictures of the boys where they are not attacking each other. They are amazingly hardy, despite kicks, scratches and punches in their faces.

I neglected to tell our pediatrician last week about the boys' rigorous workout schedule. If she knew the training routine, perhaps I could set her mind at ease. The doctor is slightly concerned about Keith's small size and so I am now slathering butter on every morsel I feed him in addition to spoon-feeding him guacamole at least once a day. I want to be on Keith's diet...


We got to see Leanna, Bryce and Cohen last weekend. Cohen is such a character! We can't wait for the boys to be a little older so they can run around and we don't have to worry as much about them getting hurt. Brent keeps trying to teach the boys how to "tag team" Cohen but I think Cohen just may hold his own--don't let the high heels fool you.

Boston Baked Babies

Brent and I had been looking for an excuse to return to Boston so we could visit friends and remind the boys of their roots. We took that opportunity recently when Brent's old fund threw a celebration for reaching their fundraising goal. Despite a disasterous trip East, complete with lost luggage, sleeping at JFK airport and finally renting a car and driving from NYC to Boston at 2AM, we had a great time. Our schedule was booked from the moment we arrived but it was worth it to squeeze in as many reunions as possible.

Highlights:


Scott and Brittany were excellent neighbors for almost two years. Nothing has changed since they fed us (again) even though they are expecting their first baby this fall.

I got to see two of my closest friends from work who have now been dating for close to 2 years. (I'm taking credit for that match up!) Doug and Erin squeezed us in before their Coldplay concert. Thank you!

I was really excited to show off the boys at work and especially looking forward to saying goodbye since I never had the chance last December. Here's a few members of the management team.


One of the major highlights was revisiting the NICU. The sights and smells hit a little too close to home and we couldn't have been more grateful to be on the outside of that secure door.

While Brent partied it up with coworkers at the Liberty Hotel, I got to spend the evening at our SSD reunion. I miss all of you more than you could ever imagine! Thanks to "S" for hosting and planning (as usual)!!! Stacey, you were sorely missed! Clearly, we've added a few children to the group in the last year with two more on the way!

A huge, HUGE thank you to S, T and T for throwing out the red carpet at the Petrey Palace. We were so sad to miss you while you partied in Chicago, but also so grateful to be able to crash at your place. Favi was a gracious hostess!

My friend Ellen is an amazing photographer. We tried to line up a photo shoot with the boys before we moved but a huge snowstorm hit and we could never get together after that. We got together last week and she posted some pics on her blog here:

http://ellenpatton.blogspot.com/2008/08/future-olympic-wrestlers.html

The take home message is that coast to coast air travel is not meant for 9 month old twins. The boys did great, but Brent and I were wiped out! I think we'll be traveling a little closer to home for awhile.