December 12, 2010 - a little bit of pleasure and a little bit of pain

Right before the Children's Christmas Performance at church was set to begin, Jonathan fell and cut his lip deep enough that we decided that he needed to be seen by urgent care within a few hours. It didn't really bleed, but it was deep and we wondered if he might need a stitch or two. So, we left for the performance.

Lauren performed, but Jonathan decided not to. Lauren did a great job and said her lines well.

Once the performance was over, Jonathan and I went to Children's Mercy so that they could take a look at his lip and decide whether it needed any stitches. Jonathan had a wonderful time! First of all, there was no wait (which is amazing), then there were a bunch of nice people who were paying attention to him, and he had not only his mother's undivided attention, but her Angry Birds as well.

In the end, he did not need any stitches, just some tape. For which I was very grateful.

Joy Is. . . Watching the puppy enjoy her first snowfall.

December 12 saw our first snowfall of the season and the first snowfall of Sandy's life thus far. She enjoyed it far more than I thought that she would.

"Cousins," A Poem and Illustration by Lauren.

My Little Flower. . . Third Grade Play (The Nutcracker)

Lauren was in the third grade play this Tuesday evening. They did a version of The Nutcracker and she had a speaking part and was a Flower. The kids were adorable and the music was great. We were very proud of all of them.

After the play, we got some pictures of Lauren and her best friend. Remember holding hands with your best friend. Too bad we grow out of that. So very genuine and sweet.

Christmas Bokeh.

Clogs!

I cannot tell you how much I have wanted clogs since I was the age Lauren is now. I vividly remember our first Christmas in France (I was eight - Lauren is eight) really wanting clogs.

I am 41 and I have NEVER had a pair of clogs.

So, this year, I found the Christmas dress I knew Lauren would most want and, guess what, it had a pair of matching clogs. Financially, it was not necessarily the right decision for me at this particular time. But, she did need some shoes (she generally has two pair - a pair of tennis shoes and a pair of flip flops; she used to have a thing about the feel of all other shoes and refused to wear anything else, but has grown out of that). Anyway, they came and I gave them to her. She LOVES them (so do I).

So, while I still have never had a pair of clogs, my eight-year-old gets to live out my eight-year-old wish. And, that is even better.

Joy Is. . .Trimming the Tree with the Kittens.

Joy Is. . . Key Lime Pie

That is all.

Joy Is. . . Gingerbread Day with my boy.

Last Friday was Gingerbread Day for the Kindergarteners at our school.

The station I was at was a feltboard storytelling of the Gingerbread Man. We read it nine times. Nine times. It was boring after the second telling. Know what? I didn't care. I was there with my boy. See his face? He said, "the best part of Gingerbread Day was that you were there." Doesn't get better than that.

(that said, two things bugged me about our version of the story and both had to do with his not getting eaten by the fox at the end. 1) it isn't how the story goes and 2) they said that he learned his lesson because he almost was eaten, but I think that if he got away from the fox, he'd only think that he was even more cocky.)

Yes, you can run in the cold.

This is old. From November 25th. It was 21 degrees with a windchill of 12 and it was my first cold-weather run of the season. I seem to recall that I did five miles (with the dog).

Here's the thing: you have to wear a warm head covering, gloves, and cold-weather socks and the rest is less important. Sure, you should actually wear clothing, but you can get away with far less than you think. For this run, I broke out my wind jacket, long-sleeve shirt, and microfleece basepants. And, it was far too warm.

I went out the next day when it was 34 degrees. I kept the jacket, traded out the long-sleeve or a short-sleeve shirt and wore capris. Still too hot. Several days later, I went out again. 33 degrees. Long-sleeve shirt, no jacket, and capris. Perfect.

Here is the thing: you can do it. Cool/cold weather running can be fantastic running weather. There is something awesome about running outside when it is cold and clear, cold and cloudy, cold and snowy. Actually, cold and snowy can be downright peaceful. And, you get bad-ass points anytime you tell people that you ran outside when it is below freezing.

I often hear people question as to whether it is actually healthy to run when it is in the 20s and below. It is. Not only is it safe to run when it is in the teens, but it is safer to run outside in the teens than it is to run outside in the 80s. For real.

Just dress for the weather. If you walk out the door and feel fine, turn around, go inside, remove a layer of clothing, and go back out. You should be a bit chilly for the first mile, but then you'll feel great. The more you do it, the easier it gets.

That said, I don't like running in the cold AND dark. I can do cold. I can do dark. I cannot do cold and dark. I also dislike running in the cold and strong wind, but I do it anyway. I do, however, know people who love nothing better than running pre-dawn, in the cold and snow.

So, give it a try. Don't give up outdoor running this winter, but rather challenge yourself to get out there and do it regularly. Just remember: hat, gloves, warm socks.