Owen reached the half-year milestone today. What better way to celebrate a cool, fall day and our entire household recuperating from colds.
Owen at 26 weeks
Owen turned 26 weeks old today and is just 2 days away from becoming a 6-month-old. He came down with his second cold this week which hit TB and me a couple days back. We are all slowly recovering. This week’s post is late because Team Smith literally just returned from Boston, celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Rho Nu Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. It was great seeing so many of my chapter brothers and having them meet Owen.
Here is the headshot.
Owen at 25 weeks
Owen turned 25 weeks old today and has been teething more than weeks prior. He is looking forward to watching his first Dallas Cowboys home game tonight against the New York Giants. His jersey is all ready to go.
Here is the headshot.
It’s about finishing what you start
I started my 4th half-marathon promptly at 8 AM, Sunday, September 13, along with 640+ other Skagit Flats marathoners/half-marathoners. It felt great running outdoors soaking in the late-summer, early-autumn beauty of the Pacific Northwest. I ran with an excited bounce right from the start as TB and Owen saw all us runners off and cheered me on. The temperature had reached the upper 50s by the time the gun fired and the bright sun hung over the flat, treeless, farm-draped course painting the asphalt in bright yellow and warming the air with a damp, earthy thickness.
I planned to run mile one at a 9’30” pace then gradually increase my pace the rest of the way to about 8’45” by mile 10. I hoped my training prepared me to finish between 1:55 and 2:00 based on how I ran the other races. Where I ultimately landed in that range would be determined by how I felt at the midpoint and again at mile 10.
Expecting a fairly cool temperature throughout the first half of the race, I ran with less fluid for the first 4 miles than previous races. While my FuelBelt holds 6 bottles, I wanted to minimize the additional weight I carried along each segment (1-4, 5-9, 10-13). I started with a single 8 oz bottle filled with Gatorade Endurance. I swapped the empty bottle with TB for two more 8 oz bottles at mile 4. At that point I was already hotter and thirstier than I expected. My plan called for me to run miles 5-9 with that 16 oz of Gatorade supplemented by water at the water station I would pass just after mile 6. Before reaching mile 6, I had consumed one of the bottles of Gatorade. At the water station at mile 6 I tossed back a 2 oz cup of water. At the 6 1/2-mile turnaround I ate a GU gel and drank half the second bottle of Gatorade. I felt strong and energetic but sensed I was overheating.
Owen at 24 weeks
Owen reached the 24-week mark today. This week he developed a fascination with gravity, dropping everything to the floor as quickly as we give it back.
Here is the headshot.
