Christmas Stockings

My goal is to have all homemade Christmas stockings for my family.  This is not a quick process.  I started to make the first stocking for Lex before Christmas in 2010.  The cabling was more difficult and time consuming than I expected and it was not completed in time for that Christmas.  The stocking was stuffed in a bag for over a year while I completed other projects.  I pulled it out again in January of this year, and three months later had a completed stocking.

This year Alayna learned how to  use a knitting loom.  While browsing Ravelry I found a pattern to make a Christmas stocking on her knitting loom.  After Thanksgiving Alayna picked out her yarn and began work on her stocking.  She learned new techniques.  She learned how to purl every other row to make a garter stitch edge that doesn't curl.  She learned how to turn a heel, which involves wrapping and turning stitches and e-wrapping backwards (for her).  All of this included following the directions in the pattern.

I love the stocking she created.  I am a proud mama.

Friday Night Lights

Before we leave Texas my children needed to experience the Friday Night Lights.  I took them to a high school football game.  Not just any game, The Wurstbowl between the two New Braunfels high schools' teams.

Our New Braunfels Unicorns

vs.
the Canyon Cougars

We wore our Unicorn blue.  Alayna worked on signs and a cheer*.  She also used her credits in class to purchase a mini #1 finger.  I was in charge of the three Ts:  Tickets, Transportation and Treats (apple slices and a roll of mints).

It was an extremely fun night.  I did a lot of explaining as the game was played.  We followed the cheerleaders' calls, we stomped, we jumped, we yelled.  Many times I would catch myself yelling, "Go, Cougars!"  After all the years I have spent as a Cougar, high school, college and as an alumnus, it is a difficult habit to break.  We were having such fun, we didn't even leave after the halftime show as planned.

My goodness, the halftime show.  Nothing like my days at the Ranch.  Both marching bands performed their competition pieces with full formation movements involving the flag teams and baton twirlers (ours were twirling 3 batons each!).  The dance teams** performed their numbers, accompanied by their band.  All lead by the drum major and at least 2 assistant drum majors.  Watch this for an example.  Not this year's, but whoa!

The Unicorn thunderstix were a big success.  The best part of the game for Alayna?  The Unicorns won 30-27.  The best part for me?  I received a number of compliments on what wonderful children I have.  Oh, and the blinged Unicorn jersey I bought.

The most anxious part of the evening was getting all three children safely back to the van.  Out of the stadium lights, it is dark and there are a lot of people and cars.  Everyone stayed close, and as we went thru the non-parking lot where vehicles were driving and parked I had Alayna wave her thunderstix to be seen, even though, as she pointed out, it doesn't glow.  We made it intact to the van and chatted about the fun we had until my heart rate had returned to normal.  By then the traffic had cleared and we went home and to bed.

* Alayna's cheer
Blue is great
Blue is bright
Let's go, Unicorns!
You know how to fight!

** The New Braunfels dance team is called The Monoceras and Mystics, complete with Majors, Lieutenants and there is even a "social officer".

I Am A Marathoner!

I ran 26.2 miles!  It took me five hours and four minutes.  That is the gist of this post.  If you want to read about my experience in more (possibly boring) detail, feel free to continue.

I have been training for the Chosen: Marathon for Adoption for 16 weeks.  The closer the race was the more I thought about it.  The final week, it was ALL I could think about.  I don't remember anything that I talked to anyone about during the last week, unless it was about my race.  I was excited.  I was giddy.  I was a touch nervous, but knew I could do it.  I started shaking with anticipation Friday night, and don't think I stopped until the race began!

Checking the weather beforehand, I knew it was going to be a perfect running day.  40° for the start, 50° by the half and 60° for my finish.  To make race morning easier, I tagged along with the YMCA's running group, who were meeting at a gal's home only a short walk from the start.  Perfectly warmed up from the walk, I started the race without my warming garbage bags, but with my gloves and sleeves made from thigh-high socks with the foot cut off.  While we missed the pre-race revelries, I was part of the pack for the start and crossed the start line 3 minutes after the starting gun went off.

I ran the first half of my race with some friends from church, Jessica (who was pregnant, running her first half!), and Brooke joined us for the first mile before work.  At the first mile, Brooke said that we had just run a 7 something mile!  That didn't sound right, but my watch said the same thing.  Coming up to mile 2 I noticed my watch still said only 7 and some.  What?!?!  Yes, I realized that I hadn't started my stopwatch, I had switched back to the time.  The stopwatch and the interval timer were started at mile 2.

There's not much to say about the first 6.5 miles.  It was a pleasant run with a friend.  We chatted, noticed those that were on similar intervals or paces around us, and just plain enjoyed ourselves.  The only important thing to note was, by the third water stop, I had already confused myself with my fueling plan vs. water stations vs. walking intervals.  It sounds silly.  I had been training with water, an Endurolyte (Hammer electrolyte pill) and amino pills every 2 miles and Huckleberry Gel every 4th.  Suddenly, I couldn't recall if the water stop at 3.5 miles was my "4" or the next one.  Adding to my confusion, I had only run 3:1 intervals (run three minutes, walk one minute ala Jeff Galloway), twice.  I liked doing them that way, and enjoyed the company, so choose to use them with Jessica for the race.  Except, intervals don't magically line up with the mile markers or the water stops.  Hence my fueling confusion.

At 6.5 miles Jessica (and about everyone else, 1041 runners) turned around to finish the Half, and I continued with the few (143 runners) running the full marathon course.  I talked with a gal, and then let her continue without me as I thought I would try to continue the intervals.  After another estimated interval, around mile 7.5, I fell into step with a pair that stopped running after some beeping.  When I discovered they were doing 3:1 intervals, I asked if I could join them and now had conversation, motivation, and a beeping timer for my run.

Another enjoyable 6.5 miles went by.  It was fun chatting with Christine and Reynaldo.  Our little group would regularly pass and be passed by two other groups of gals, and it was nice to chat with everyone we saw and cheer on the runners already on their way back.  In no time at all, we were at the turnaround/half-way point.  At mile 14 I noticed that my lower back was getting sore.  I had warned my new running mates that mile 16 was always a rough one in my training runs, but as we went thru it my legs were feeling alright.  I think the gloves and sleeves finally came off around this time, too.

By mile 18, my back was hurting enough that it was rough to start up on the run intervals, and when the beep for the walk intervals occurred I kept stopping to try and stretch it.  Christine and Rey gave me so much encouragement and talked me thru.  Somewhere in there I thought I was getting a second wind, which didn't last.  I was starting to lag behind on the run intervals, but was able to catch up during the walks.

Around mile 22 Christine realized that if we could continue at this pace, we could achieve a 4:50 marathon, my "everything went perfect" goal.  Except, this was also where we met "The Hill".  For the first time, I was walking on the run interval, but my new partners slowed down their walks and gave me a lot of encouragement, and I caught up.  I was able to stay "with" them for another mile before they pulled too far ahead on a run interval for me to keep up.  I walked a lot of mile 23.  While I tried to keep myself "running" a little more for mile 24, I kept stopping (and sitting) to try and stretch my back and legs.  At the final water station at mile 25 I told myself it was my last sit down and I would run most of my final mile.

Then I saw the mile 26 marker, the turn to the main road. I could hear the cheers of the crowd at the finish.  I saw the huge boards with messages of love and pictures of the children who's adoptions had been achieved because of this race last year.  After the boards I saw my family cheering for me.

I became extremely emotional, an odd mix of ready to cry and a new burst of energy to finish strong.

And I did, finishing with a smile (which was noted by the emcee).  My new running friends were there to cheer me in, as well as another friend who had finished her first Half 2 1/2 hours before.  Amazingly, after running twice as far, I felt better after this race than I did after my half last year.

This is my finisher's "medal" made by the orphans in Haiti who will be receiving aid out of the entry fees.  100% of the entry fees goes to specific adoptions (if the runner was part of that adoption's team) or will be used for 3 different orphanages around the world.

Jelly Bean 10k

I ran my Jelly Bean 10k at the gym, on the treadmill, Wednesday.
One of the Y gals took my picture at the beginning of my run

I tried to take one at the 5k mark.  I wanted to show my race bib and not my armpit.  This was more difficult to do than I thought it would be.  Maybe this was because I was running at the same time.

My goals for this run were to get under 60 minutes, no matter what.  Even better would be 58 minutes.  I am happy to say, I PR'd at 57:17!

While I did walk a 1/2 mile to cool down, this is me picking up the boys from Child Watch 8 minutes after finishing my run.  Lex did not care how sweaty or smelly I was; he just wanted to be loved by his mama.

I thought it would be fun to take our picture with the Y's Easter bunny, Daisy.  Cavell made bunny ears and an Easter "basket" with eggs (all paper cutouts).  He very happily hop-hop-hopped over to Daisy's cage.

Jelly Bean

I have signed on to run the Jelly Bean virtual race!  I will be running the 10k option.  I need to decide if I will do it Wednesday the 20th on the treadmill or Saturday the 23rd outside.  Anyone else doing this?

St. Patrick's Day

This morning I ran the St. Patrick's Day Treadmill 5k at our YMCA.  While I was aiming for some time between 25:30 and 26 minutes, I was quite happy with my 27:01.  I earned some Lucky Charms.

Alayna was very excited for the today's "Green Out" at the Y.

We tried a shamrock hairdo and decided to add a little green.

In ChildWatch the kids tie-dyed some shirts in green and gold, received green leis, party blowers, shamrock stickers, a hat or crown, and their own Lucky Charms treat.  Alayna had her face painted; a bejeweled, glittered butterfly on the left and a rainbow with a pot of gold on the right.  Miss Nell also painted a shamrock on Alayna's hand.  She wanted to make sure you saw it in the picture.  Cavell decided he needed to pose the same way.

1/2 Marathon Report

In January I had a Sunday School lesson on goals and resolutions.  Mine was to run a half marathon by the end of the year.  I knew the Rock n' Roll San Antonio would be in November.  After Lex was born I found a local Marathon and Half Marathon that was scheduled for their inaugural year when Lex would be 6 months old.  The local Half Marathon was chosen based on the ease of accomplishing the logistics of feeding Lex and completing a race.  Running a small race close to home would be a much better experience for the family and would still offer me the same challenges of running a larger race that adds two hours of driving time to the mix.  So six weeks after Lex was born, the practice and preparation began. 

Race Day!!  I finished my 1/2 in 2:17:30.  That is a PR by 30 minutes compared to my time last year.  My training plan projection said I should do it in 2:15, and I am amazed that I was that close.  I wanted to finish faster, and my training runs said I could.  But there were some crazy hills, and I did not train on hills quite that size (or that many).

Note the sweaty armpits BEFORE the race started.  Why do I run races on the hottest, most humid days of the year?

My friend, Brooke, and I were actually in the port-a-potties when the race started.  We still crossed the start only 2 minutes "late".  Very different from the Rock n' Roll last year.  35,000+ runners there compared to 1,200 at this race.

I did well through the pack on the up hills in the first 3 miles.  After that the race said the course was fairly flat.  HA!  As I was coasting down some of the hills during the 4-6 miles, I knew I would have to try and run back up on the way back.  I managed to get to the turnaround/half-way point in 63 minutes, which was smack on the pace I wanted.  But, those hills between miles 7-9 were as tough as I expected talked myself into them being.  It didn't help that the only mile mark I saw on the way back was for mile 8.  I know I slowed down . . . a lot.

Just after the 10 mile point Brooke passed me.  I was feeling rough.  But, positive thinking kept her in sight the rest of the race.  Even if it didn't give me a big push, it kept me from really hitting a wall.  I knew I wouldn't hit my goal time, but after seeing the 3 mile marker again, I realized I could make my training time if I didn't wuss out.  It helped that I could coast down some hills after that, even though my calf's hurt.  Towards the very end there were still some little hills that felt much bigger now that I was running them again.  I have a new appreciation for the stories of going, "uphill both ways" now.  With about 1/2 mile to go I had to walk; roughly a block, about .1 or .2 miles.  I finished at a jog.  I went a little faster through the finish chute, but I was not able to sprint in strong.

This is when I mess up my races.  After a training run I sip my leftover HEED and walk about a mile and feel good and recover well.  At the race, I picked up my medal and a cold water bottle.  Then, I STOPPED and GUZZLED the whole bottle of water.  Next my body rebels and tells me what a bad idea it is to break my post-run habit.  My legs cramped up so I grabbed a chunk of ice from the water trough and began icing my legs.  I hurt so much I couldn't decide to stand or sit, so I sat down and got up and then repeated for about ten minutes. All the while, guzzling MORE water, refusing the electrolyte drink that is offered and then arguing with Paul over whether I should take the last electrolyte pill. I was well on my way to hyponatremia, (water intoxication that kills distance runners and others who drink too much water resulting in an electrolyte imbalance), and didn't even know it.  And I hurt more and continued to feel sick to my stomach.  All the while we are chatting with friends, including Brooke who says she hurts, but seems just fine.

After 20 minutes of this Paul (who had all 3 kids) made me get up and walk across the parking lot to get my bag (where I downed my recovery drink and felt even more sick).  I tried to sit down again at this point and was severely reprimanded by Paul.  It was time to stop the self-destructive behaviors and start listening to Paul.  He made me walk with him the 1/2 mile up a crazy hill to get to the van and come home.  He even gave me dirty looks when I walked too slow.  It hurt.  But then I felt better.  Strangely enough, I needed to walk up that last hill at a decent pace in order to stop the pain.  I would probably still be sprawled out on the asphalt in cramped up tears if Paul hadn't gotten me up and walking again. 

So, no post race pics or entertainment; I didn't even check my "official" time and rank.  But, with a little flexing and message for my cramping foot I felt normal before the 10 minute drive is over.  Then I had to feed Lex, because he refuses a bottle and was starving after a 5 hour fast. I don't realize how full I can get during that time.  I think I am using everything my body has for me on my run, but this was an interesting reminder that my body is still built for caring for a baby.

Paul (kindly) laughs at my bad race habit.  He gets to since he saved me from it.  He also says I like to pick the races on the most humid, warm days.  Yes, our cool weather left us and I was running on the warmest, muggy day we have had in 3 weeks (temps in the 70's and humidity at least 80%).

Announcing Alexander Lee Jensen

Born April 13, 2007

7lbs 2 oz

20 inches long

Blue Eyes

Cleft chin

Wise perspective on life

Stacy wanted to make sure she had a picture of herself in the hospital not wearing a gown. So in the middle of her contractions, she stops in the lobby, refuses the cute little 'ol lady with the wheelchair, and poses for a picture.

More pictures will follow as well as the story of the "explosive" event.

Showing off - again

Yes, I knit another shawl. The Aquila. That is Latin for Eagle. It's something about eagle feathers on the edges, and water and the droplets on the water from the wings, I think. The instructions were in Finnish, but I knew enough about knitting to figure it out from the charts. It only took me one month!

A Little Exercise

Even during my pregnancy I have tried to maintain my fitness level.



But, when that weight becomes easy, they tell you to up the weight.




I currently bench double Alayna's weight right now. But, the balance is very different between a barbell and a 6 year old. Since I'm not supposed to increase my weights during pregnancy, I've just been increasing the reps. I look forward to getting back to the gym post-pregnancy and recovery and seeing how much more weight I can actually do.

36 Weeks

I don't know why, but I feel that 36 weeks is a good time to show some more pictures of the pregnancy progression. So here they are.


Only 2-4 weeks to go. I'm hoping 2. Paul probably wants something closer to the 4 range.

I'm feeling really good. I still go to the gym. But, I can't run or even walk on the treadmill and my baby belly is starting to get in the way of riding the bike. Oh well, I still lift some mean weights.

Peacock Feathers

This is a brag post for me. I finished the shawl I have been knitting.

This is the whole shawl, almost. I couldn't quite get tip to tip, it is 88" wide.

"The Peacock Feathers Shawl is a stylized version of a peacock's tail in full display, from the small feathers at the top of the peacock's back, down to the dramatic sweep of the tail."

Here is the tail feather.

Here are some side feathers.

Golly, pictures just don't do it justice. Probably due to my camera and lack of skills with it. I promise it is divine in real life.

27 weeks

In other words, the beginning of the 7 month.

Also known as the beginning of the 3rd trimester!

Yes, that means in less than 3 months (hopefully) Alexander will be here.