Well, you can chalk up another Half Marathon Finish for Sarah. She competed in the Half Marathon around the Lake Saturday, even with the heat and humidity. She has been a runner for many years, starting in High School. She has done countless Half Marathons. She always followed me around to races/marathon that I was in those first years when the kids were small, because she held back to keep an eye on the kids. She started her Half Marathon debut in 2006, and has continued since then. I did not run this race this weekend. Physically, I am not able to handle this heat yet. So, I rode my bike to help provide water, and give cheer support for her. It was my turn! She did very well, in spite of the terrible heat and humidity. It was at least better than it was on Friday. I don’t think they would have been able to have the race if it would have been on Friday. She was nervous because she knew it would be hot, but we had a lot of people from our Run Club who were also running in it.
Sarah is on the far left, as they were just taking off. The rain the night before helped cut down on some of the humidity, but only slightly.
They followed the Lake during the run. They are coming around one of the corners here, and she is still hanging with a bunch of them from run club. The further the race went, the more separated people got. The heat and humidity can change even the best of plans, or the best of training.
Here she is giving the thumbs up after just going up the hill by Memorial Park. She is one tough individual. Her feet got chewed up pretty good because of the heat, so then she was limping around Saturday afternoon. We as the run club are going to be doing a virtual Wonder Woman 10k coming up soon, wearing our Wonder Woman gear. It really won’t be any different for her, as far as I am concerned. She has always been my Wonder Woman! Life is busy as a physician, being a mom, a wife, cooking, running, and her favorite escape/hobby, sewing. She can do it all. She too leads by example. It was my turn to support her during a race. I did some cheering on the sidelines last year for her during some of them, but riding along beside her most of the way was a first. Running is what got us going out together. Running helped us raise a family. Running is helping us as we get older as well, and hopefully will get to do more of this when we retire. If we can’t run, we will bike. But, regardless, we will be spending time being active just like we always have. Good job this weekend Sarah. I know it was hot. I could not run for you, but tried to help you get through it as easy as possible. You are tough, determined, and always positive, and I am lucky enough to have you as my wife. Love you Sarah! Keep moving everybody!
My daughter Megan did her first solo mini triathlon this weekend. Way to go! She is an excellent swimmer, and since she has been home, she has been doing a lot of running with us, but the bike for her is more unchartered territory. I got her bike ready (previously Molly’s), and she got in a few rides prior to this weekend. She was nervous, but very excited to “Tri” this on her own. She has done this one before on a team, and of course, she was the swimmer. It was really a perfect day for a triathlon. Sarah and I were spectators for this one. It was the first one we have not done in many years. Sarah is planning on doing a Half Marathon next weekend, and for me, well, my recovery is still taking time, and I do not do as well in the heat yet. So, hopefully, we will both be back at it again next year too!
With everything going on with COVID, they had individual starts for everybody, 10 seconds apart. Here Megan is getting ready to jump in the water. I have to admit, I can tell she is my kid. There are many similarities with her and I, but there are also some differences as well.
This is one of Megan swimming. And, wait a minute, she is actually swimming! This is for sure where she and I differ. She does not have to do the Reiffenberger Stroke…which means you stand up and run like h@#$! I am terrible at swimming, and have to say, I really don’t like it. Give me the bike and/or running any day. She is the total opposite!
Here Megan is at the first transition, going from swimming, and getting ready to get on her bike. But, she had to fix her hair first! Now, I have to admit, that is not something I have had to do, or worry about, for a long time! She is going to have to work on this as you can lose a lot of time in these transition zones. She will get it!
Here she is coming in to finish the bike section. 14 miles around Lake Kampeska. Everything went well for her! I fixed a tire for her earlier in the week, so I too was very relieved to have her come in and we did not have to worry about a flat tire during the race!
Here she is stopping to get off the bike to again enter the transition zone to take off running. This is definitely one similarity, and I think it is safe to say it is similar for everybody doing the triathlon. As you get off the bike to get ready to run, you look at all of the trees around you and realize your legs are now about as flexible as those trees! It is such a hard feeling to describe until you actually experience. It takes the first mile of the run, at least, to try and get loosened up to feel more comfortable running. The run in this race is a 5k, or 3.1 miles.
She is coming around the corner to the finish line of the run. She is about to finish her first “Tri”!
She can definitely see the finish line here! From this side view of her running, if it weren’t for the pony tail, this could be me! She definitely has my running form as well. I will make her a true runner yet. I wanted to do something this day since I could not do the whole race. I ran the run portion of this with her, waiting for her right around the corner at the start, and letting her finish it on her own. When you are tired, and it is getting hot, any kind of encouragement is appreciated. It was great for me to be able to run with her, and “Tri” pushing her. I kept pointing out the person ahead of us, and would tell her that was the next goal. She would pass them, and we just looked at the one ahead of us again! She did great!
Last year I did the triathlon as one of 3 on the team, and my portion was the run. Here Sarah is helping me down the final stretch, pushing me, and encouraging me to keep going. This was only 4 months after I had been sick, so I think this was because she wanted to keep an eye on me than anything else, but don’t tell her that I already knew that was what she was doing! The point is, we can all use some help at times. We do not have to always do things by ourselves. Those accomplishments when we do complete them on our own are definitely more meaningful, right Megan?
This was a shirt Megan bought for me for Father’s Day a couple of years ago. It says: I’m a Runner Dad…I’m like a normal Dad, only much cooler! Right on Megan. I am proud of you this weekend. This “Tri” took work, and you did it! We can all take a lesson from this. Once we put our mind to it, we can “Tri” anything, and accomplish anything! Hopefully next year Meg we will all be doing this triathlon! And for everybody else, shoot for the stars. You have no idea what you are capable of achieving until you “Tri”! Keep moving everybody!
The 4th of July celebration extended over multiple days. It was a good time to take a break from work, and an even better time to spend with family. We always have projects to work on at home, but we also need to learn to take a break from everything and just relax. We managed to get some of this accomplished as well. This first picture is Sarah and I at Lake Kampeska waiting for the rest of the run group to come on Sunday morning. It was a light crowd that day as many of us were out celebrating the 4th late, and watching fireworks. We had a large group meet the morning of the 4th, which is turning into a new tradition as well. We all dress up in our red, white, and blue, and Owen carries a big flag, and we go for a group run. I think we managed to get some attention that morning by people stopping to watch us run by. It was also a morning to celebrate something else very special for our family.
Very good friends of ours, Steve and Carletta Hauck, were in Seattle for the week as their daughter, Carissa, was getting married on the 4th. We were supposed to be out there as well, but had to cancel due to COVID. They have been friends of ours since we moved to Watertown, as Carletta was our day time nanny for 15 years. So, Carissa was like another daughter to us. We could not be there for her day, but we ran for her and her fiancée Scott. We thought about them all day!! We had a large group out running for them. Carissa has run with our group many times when she has been home.
It was a great day to celebrate multiple things! We had a good time meeting that morning for her, and running as a group.
We need to remember what the day is about as well. Later that day we all went about spending times with our families, celebrating in our own ways as well. We spent the afternoon and evening out at the Lake, just having some quality time with family. We spent time playing the bean bag toss, and going out on the jet ski.
The best part of it all, was just hanging out with my kids, and their significant others. It was relaxing, and the fireworks after words was very cool!
Even the dogs had a good time playing with each other. There is always stress going on with our lives, but you just need to take a break from it all and forget things for awhile. Nothing is ever finished. There is always projects to work on, and things to get done, but you still need to take time to spend with family. Projects always seem to have a way of working out eventually. Relax! Take life as it comes. Enjoy the moments like these. We all just need to learn how to relax! Keep moving everybody!
We all have those moments when nothing seems to go right. We then get more worked up about it, or stress about it, lose sleep over it, etc. If we don’t learn to be more patient, we keep going in this continuous cycle, with no true end in sight. For me, and Sarah, going out for a run, or exercising, is our way of trying to regain control again. Our attempt at trying to slow things down, and forget about everything else going on, and just have some time for ourselves. There is no question working out helps. We all need to strive for more patience, now more than ever. We need to have something to make us feel like we are back in control, when everything around us seems to be out of control. Believe me, you are not alone. We all feel this way. We all wonder what can get thrown at us next! One thing this pandemic has done is we have gotten to spend more time at home. Before, this was always a struggle. Now if we could just see more of the rest of our family in the process, that would be even better. Control what you can control! I struggle with patience as well. We all get in a hurry with life, and want to keep things moving. It can be hard to slow things down.
None of us are immune to this. This is Dakota looking out the side door waiting for me to take her for a walk. She is standing up on her hind legs to look out the window wondering if I forgot to take her with or not. I was just getting my shoes on, but she was getting impatient. Then she will start pacing, and then whining, wondering if she is going to get to go along or not. Finally, I open the door up, and she bolts outside ready to go!
We could all learn a lot from Dakota. Yes, she needs to learn to be more patient, but if we all got as excited as she does when it is time to go for a walk or a run, we all would not struggle as much. She keeps leaping in the air she is so ready to go. Her paws are not even touching the ground here!
She loves going to the Lake and explore. Always something to see, and hear. New adventures each day, even if it may be the same route. I have definitely found that to be true lately as well. By the time my day gets done, I will go for a walk most evenings to unwind. I have to admit, I did not pay a whole lot of attention to the sunsets at Lake Kampeska before. I am not sure why, but I think more of it was I usually did my workouts in the mornings instead of the evenings, so I really did not get to see them much. Boy, have I been missing out a lot! I love those days with some clouds in the sky when the sun is setting, because it is always a different view. The one evening this last week it had rained earlier, but when it came time for the sun to set, it started breaking up. I told Sarah I was going to the Lake because it was looking interesting. It did not disappoint. I was gone for over an hour. The colors that were being created in the sky, and the continuous changes in the cloud formation was like watching a movie. I was thinking I was going to leave after a few minutes, and I am glad I didn’t. This was a perfect example of having patience, and letting things play out. It was very relaxing, and entertaining. The following picture were taken that night, and this is how that time changed the view.
There really are not any words to describe what was taking place. I just stood and continued to watch and see how things played out. Wow! That is what life is about! Take your time! Be patient! See how things play out! You never know, but the best is probably yet to come, just how things were evolving that evening taking the pictures. We don’t know what everything in the future is going to bring, but we all need to learn to be more patient in our lives.
I have to admit, when I am out running, or especially walking, I am looking around and paying attention now to everything around me. Before, I would be in a hurry. Just get it done, I got things to do. But now, I am not even looking at the time. What normally may take me 45 minutes to go for a walk is now about 90 minutes. I have learned to be more patient with this part of the day, and really take in what is being given to me. It is a great way to unwind from the day, and then also to help forget about all the stress related to it as well. There are enough things to worry about, so forget about all of the little things. Strive for more patience in your life. Take in what life has to offer. We all have room for improvement on this, especially me. But I am trying, and right now, I am really enjoying these evenings. Some of my next posts I will have to have more sunset pictures. Right now, it is one of the best medicines I can take! Keep moving everybody! Slow down, and take it all in…all the good, and you will be better able to handle all the bad as well.
This picture was almost 30 years ago. Oct 6, 1990. Sarah and I got married that day. I am getting last minute advice from my Dad on the right, and my Father-in-law on the left. Great advice from both! Time really does go fast. My Dad now has been gone over 6 years. I don’t think a day goes by where I don’t think of him. He was a great role model. He did whatever he had to do for his family. A lot of guys can be a Father, but not everybody can be a Dad. There is a lot of pressure on us guys to try to live up to that expectation. Sometimes we do just fine, and other times we need to ask for a do over. Hopefully we learn from our mistakes as we get older.
I learned a lot from both of my parents. They were married for 59 years when my Dad passed away. Nothing ever goes perfect. There are challenges, mistakes, lessons learned, but at the end of the day, it all worked out. My Mom struggles a lot since he has been gone.
With seven kids in the family, there was always plenty to do. We were a family, and are still very close. Those traits my parents passed down to all of us kids as well. We are all close.
I see how there were plenty of times when they just needed to take a break, and relax. Being a Dad is a full time job. 24/7, 52 weeks a year. We always had questions for him, or wanted his advice on how to do something. Many of those times he knew the answer, and those other times, he helped direct us to find an answer.
He was a great grandfather as well. Here he is with Nick. Nick is now 23! Hopefully I can be there for my kids when they need it as well. Both Sarah and I always get calls for advice. What should I do about this? How do you fix this? What would you do under this circumstance?
It was tough with both Sarah and I being a physician. We would put in long days at work, and then continue it at home. We worked together, and trading off who could be at their events, if both of us couldn’t be. One of us would be there. We both still ran as it was a means of relieving stress. The kids would be right there with us. They would go with us, or ride their bike with us, or be the cheerleader for us as well. I want them to do the same for their kids. Lead by example.
Nick and I started a tradition a few years ago of going to a Vikings game together. I don’t know what this year is going to be with the Coronavirus going on, or if they will even have a NFL season. Time will tell. If nothing else, we will have a pause in this year, and pick back up next year. If they do have a season, maybe we go somewhere else to watch it, not at the stadium. Will have to see what the future brings.
The kids are growing up fast. Molly is now married. They still spend time together, and worry about each other. And so do we!
They will always be my little kids when they come home. Dakota loves all the attention when they come home too. We are still family, and always will be. As a Father, I hope I have helped them become who they are. My Dad’s advice to me was if you think you are right, then don’t back down. If you are wrong, then admit it. Stand up for yourself, because if you don’t, who will? We stand up for each other. Hopefully, we keep being active together, and have more races and events to do. When we start having grandkids, we have a lot to teach them too. They will be running, walking, or riding bike along side us as well. Happy Father’s Day to all you Dad’s out there. Keep working at it. And, keep moving everybody!
