Holidays already. Really?

Happy Thanksgiving week, everyone! Can't believe the holidays are already here. And WHY do we say that every year? I guess as you get older, time passes more quickly. This year, I am amazed by a few things:

• How ecstatic I was to see my son skip from house to house on Halloween, dressed as an adorable Harry Potter.
• How annoyed I was to see several houses with Christmas lights on days after Halloween.
• How crazy the world is right now (no explanation necessary. Think economy, random shootings, desperate people... you get the picture).

Things to contemplate... small town living, fresh starts, the importance of family.

Yeah, I am a sap around the holidays. We'll stuff ourselves on Thursday, decorate for Christmas on Friday and I get to run another marathon on Sunday. Yey!

Peace to all.

What Matters

think I've always had a pretty good head on my shoulders. I mean... I forget where my car keys are, I sometimes forget where I'm going and head in the wrong direction. But when it comes to what matters most, I've got that down pat.

Sometimes though, we get caught up in the "stuff" of life. The expensive toys, trips, goodies. It's easy to do, especially when those around you are also caught up in the same stuff. Yeah okay, I'm being vague. But lately, life has reminded me that much of that stuff really doesn't matter. What matters is the family that surrounds me, the light in my five-year-old's eyes when he reads a book or wins a game, the hug from my husband when we've both had a difficult day. Stuff can't do that for you. I've also been reminded, by said five-year-old, that you can derive immense pleasure from the simplest things in life. The color of fall leaves, stars on a clear night, the innumerable uses of scotch tape.

Stuff doesn't matter. Love, family, fall colors, hugs. That's what matters. Who needs the car keys? For that matter, who needs the car? I think I'll go for a walk.

First Day of Kindergarten!

We are proud, exhausted and smiling like crazy.

Blog Fail/Summer Vacation!

I twitter, I Facebook, sometimes I even email, text or (gasp) pick up the phone! What I haven't been doing is blogging... obviously. Sorry. We had a WONDERFUL vacation in July. Two weeks on the road. Just Blaine, Brandon and me. Some people wondered why we'd choose to spend so much time in the car. Let me tell you, it was the best bonding experience we've ever had as a family. This vacation rivaled any of our Hawaiian trips, Disneyland, San Diego. It was the perfect mix of camping, hotels, staying with our wonderful cousins and then camping with them. I apologize in advance for not including all the photos I'd like (esp. of our Colorado family. As I blog this, I only have access to a small portion of our vacation photos).

Our itinerary looked like this:

First night: Drove to Spokane, stayed in a hotel

First full day: Drove all the way to Yellowstone and arrived after dark because we missed a turn in the park and took the scenic route all the way around the park. Oh well!

First three days: Camped in Yellowstone. Amazing experience. Saw so much more than I could possibly post. Wild animals, beautiful scenery, geysers, streams, waterfalls, more wildlife. At one point, the three of us pulled over, took off our shoes and just sat on a river bank, soaking our feet. Not a soul around for miles. It was incredible.

Off to Colorado: Via a night spent in Casper, WY. Interesting place. Visited my first Walmart. 'nuff said.

Arrived in Colorado: Spent two nights with our fabulous cousins in Erie (near Denver/Boulder). They showed us Rocky Mtn National Park, among other things. Probably one of the most beautiful places in the country! Climbed around at 14,000 ft elevation, saw the Stanley Hotel (Stephen King fans will know what that means).

Steamboat Springs/Steamboat Lake: Traveled here with our cousins (Julianne, Jim and the boys - Forest and Harrison). Spent a wonderful day with Julianne's mom (my dad's cousin) and and Poppa Russ at their ranch. It is here that Brandon earned the nickname "shooter" for his newly discovered target shooting abilities. Hmmm. From here we traveled to Steamboat Lake and camped for two nights. I have to say, Jim is the BEST. CAMPING COOK. EVER. Can we always take him with us camping? The dude's amazing in the 'kitchen.' They also rented a boat and we spent a nice day on the lake, catching big, beautiful trout.

Jackson Hole: It was hard to say goodbye to Colorado and our family, but we headed off to Jackson Hole and stayed at a nice little cabin on a creek. We visited the town, took the gondola up to the top of the mountain and watched hangliders literally jump off the mountain. Amazing! Of course, Brandon remembers the 'bungie trampoline' more than anything. Kid has no fear.

Teton National Park: And we thought Yellowstone was beautiful. Freakin' incredible. Just incredible.

Big Sky Montana: Pretty cool. We were winding down at this point. Almost at the two week mark and we decided to cancel our Glacier National Park camping and head home a bit early. We'll do Glacier another time.

26.2 Miles Down and on to a Vacation

My sister gently reminded me that I have not blogged since before the marathon. So here are the highlights and lowlights from the Inaugural Seattle Rock and Roll Marathon as I remember them (some things I just block from my mind):

• The picture to the right is a large bald eagle that calmly watched the 25,000 runners streaming by.
• I think I trained well enough, but trail running doesn't translate well to reinforced concrete
• Reinforced concrete is HARDER than normal roads
• Running with 25,000 people is freakin energizing!
• There were no bears on the route
• The bands were fun
• I had a sinus infection
• I took a new antibiotic
• Said antibiotic didn't agree with me and gave me stomach cramps
• Said antibiotics made me dehydrated which resulted in muscle cramps
• Salt packets from a bicycling medic solve muscle cramps
• The Alaska Way Viaduct is veeery long
• Completing a second marathon felt awesome
• Seattle stepped up for this event!
• At the end, ice was my friend and so was beer

This Friday, our little family is taking off on our Griswold Family Vacation... Yellowstone, Boulder, Steamboat Lake, Jackson, Grand Tetons, Big Sky and Glacier (pretty much in that order). It's the perfect blend of camping, staying with cousins, hotels and cabins. We are beside ourselves with excitement. This will be the first family vacation where we aren't flying somewhere or sticking to a certain schedule. If I can figure out how to blog from my iPhone, I'll post vaca updates here. I'll also be posting photos and status updates on Facebook at www.facebook.com/IngridOuglandSellie

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer so far!

26.2 miles with 25,000 of my closest friends

Tomorrow is the inaugural Seattle Rock and Roll Marathon. 26.2 miles of rock and roll, crowds, runners, tired legs, sore muscles, blisters and bleary-eyed smiles. Okay... that's just my personal experience. But... I'm looking forward to it. Okay, right now I am a nervous nelly and thinking about tomorrow makes me want to puke. I am looking forward to mile seven. That's about when the jitters go away and I find my groove. The crowd will be somewhat thinned out by then and my brain will find that happy place where I flit from thought to thought as my feet and legs take on a life of their own and just follow the course.

My mom and sister will be at the finish line cheering me on. They can walk on the ferry and then walk to the finish line to see me. I let Blaine off the hook because driving into the city and finding parking during an event of this size would be a sheer nightmare for him. There's a live band every mile along the 26 mile course and a huge celebration at the end, followed by a concert at Marymoor Park. I'm thinking that the one thing that will get me through the last three miles will be the free, cold beer at the end. Seriously, a cold beer at the end of a run like that is AWESOME.

I am incredibly proud of my friends Randi and Janet for running the half marathon, their first ever. They've trained hard (harder than me I think!) and they will be awesome. I am sorry I won't be at the finish line to cheer them on, since their finish line is my halfway point. I expect to see pictures, gals! The weather is supposed to be sunny and mid 70's. I am bummed about that. I was hoping for clouds and a few sprinkles. I run MUCH slower in the sun.

Okay, off to obsess over the course map and elevation chart a bit more.

Happy Friday!

-Ingrid

Does Writing Euphoria Exist?

So, I'm training for my second full marathon. It's easier this time (knock on big ol' slab of wood). My goal is to train injury free... meaning no tendinitis, sore knee, pulled calf muscle, etc. etc. All my long runs are done on trails in the woods, which has significantly helped to keep all the aches and pains at bay. I've also finally reached what some runners call "running euphoria." No, I don't hallucinate and see margaritas up and down the trail while I run (although that would be great!) But I have reached a point where I am no longer breathing hard and feel like I can run forever, or until my legs collapse. It's really quite cool. I can, after an 18 mile run, stop and NOT be out of breath whatsoever! Of course my body is exhausted, but it's still really, really cool.

So my question is... does writing euphoria exist? Can I reach a point where I can write and write and write and not become mentally exhausted? And how do I reach that euphoria? 'Cuz seriously, I'd sign up... pronto.

In other news, Max is doing very well. We are treating his Cushing's Disease and he has his energy back, is happy and doesn't want to drink 50 gallons of water a day. Our son graduates from preschool in June. They do caps and gowns and everything. I think we are all seriously ready for a vacation. Two weeks after the marathon (it's on June 27) we are taking a two week vacation. This time no planes involved. Pure road trip, which should be fun. Of course I'll bring the laptop and get some writing done, and probably blog about the sites. Yellowstone, Glacier, Grand Tetons, Jackson Hole, and all things Colorado. Yey!

My Name is Ingrid, and I'm a Facebook Addict

It started out innocently enough.

"Hey Ingrid," an overseas friend IM'd one day. "You should sign up for Facebook so we can keep track of each other more easily."

"Really? I'm not sure I have time to follow a new program. I can barely keep my blog updated," I replied, knowing that, in fact, my blog was NOT updated.

"You don't have to update it that often. Just every once in awhile. C'mon, it'll be fun."

Thus started my descent into Facebook addiction Sure, initially I only checked it a couple times a week. Added some cutsey photos and throw away status updates. It was kinda fun. Then along came the Facebook Blackberry app. I could update my status anywhere! The ferry line, my office, the grocery story. EVERYONE could know that I was buying red grapes instead of green, or that I was stuck in a traffic jam because a soccer mom's texting while driving didn't work out the way she wanted and she ended up rear ending her PTSA president.

But still, I had CONTROL. I could Facebook or not Facebook, I could stop anytime. I didn't NEED to do it. Then along came the iPhone, and with it, the iPhone Facebook App. Mobile uploads were a must. And I just HAD to know what drink I was, if I was truly a Pacific Northwesterner, and if I could be a shoe, what shoe would I be...

At some point... and I can't even remember when... my husband stopped complaining about my Facebook time and started his own account. I hear addicts can bring their loved ones down. Now we sit side by side in the evening, playing Facebook scrabble on our laptops. In this economy though, is that wrong?

Really, it's not so bad, being a Facebook addict. I've reconnected with classmates, become closer to relatives I barely knew growing up, kept updated on friends overseas, and become a much better Scrabble player.

Now, about my Twitter habit.

Another Marathon, Max Update and Silly Family Stuff

I am nuts, but I've registered for another full marathon. I guess it keeps me disciplined. And I still can't get over that I gained 15 lbs right after my last marathon. Oy.

Max had another complete round of tests last week. The chest rads and ultrasounds show he is still cancer free (YEY!!!!!!!!!) but he does have Cushing's Disease...so we'll now be treating that and I'm not sure about the future of his agility career. I know he's ten years old, but he LOVES agility and LOVES running with me... so I will be sad if he can't do these things. Right now he has energy and is happy and jumps around and plays with his toys (and steals Brandy's hedgehog at every opportunity).

My five-year-old's favorite pastime, now that he's reading, is to read EVERY sign. Street signs, signs at the grocery store, etc. It's pretty cool but tends to make our trips out and about much, much longer. I don't want to discourage his reading but dang, Costco has ALOT of signs.

I just have to say, that if I had to pick one type of food to eat for the rest of my life, it would, without a doubt, be chinese food. Every. Day. Yum.

Not Blogless in Seattle

My own mom has accused me of such :-) Well, we had a two week long snowstorm (totally unheard of for Seattle) and I had revisions to do. Oh, and then there was Christmas, New Year's, my son's 5th birthday...work was in there somewhere too.

But now, on to 2009! I have high hopes for this year, globally and locally because yes, I am an optimist.

Counting down the days until Jan. 20. Are you?

Here's a picture of my pups romping in the white stuff :-)

I'm Not Mother of the Year, Thanks to Barack

I had to turn Curious George off in order to watch Barack Obama's speech tonight. My four-year-old firmly protested this decision. I tried to get him to watch the speech. He did watch, a little bit...but he insists that daddy will be the next president. He did like the fireworks at the end though, and thought Obama's daughters were "beautiful." He's SUCH a boy.

But the speech. WOW. Just WOW.

Random Monday Things

It's Monday, it's raining and I'm lovin it. Maybe because I grew up in Seattle I have a twisted sense of what I think is good weather? But after too much sunshine, I welcome a couple days of good, hard rain. After all, it's what makes this part of the country green! And...the rain always gives me a better time on my runs. Yesterday I had an awesome 12 miler in the pouring down rain. It was GREAT. Other random things for a Monday:

• My 4-year-old learned how to lock the bathroom door from the outside, so no one can get into the bathroom. How'd he do that?
• The dogs have decided the pigeons who keep visiting our pond are pure evil, and sound the Labrador alarms with great gusto every time they show up. It's quite rattling to the nerves.
• Max is back in agility after his surgery. He still looks like a patchwork quilt, but the hair is starting to grow back. I can't wait until we're competing again.
• The PGA tournament this weekend was fun!
• Someone on my runner's forum said duck tape for my blisters is the ultimate solution. Is there anything duck tape can't do?
• My son is still completely enamoured with Curious George. Does anyone think the man with the yellow hat is a bit odd? Maybe I've just been watching too much. I really should be writing.
• Countdown to the Portland Marathon has begun. It's less than six weeks away (gulp).

Happy Monday to everyone!

I'm Committed!

Okay, I did it...I registered for the Portland Marathon on Oct. 5. It's a fun marathon, so I hear. Live music all along the route, interesting course, high number of women participants (54 percent, or something like that). The Husband and I will drive down together on Saturday morning and spend the day kicking around Portland after I pick up my race packet. We are also going to stay Sunday night so we can hit the town after the marathon (if I am still coherent). then Monday we will drive home through eastern Oregon so we can see the fall colors and buy fresh apples from a local orchard. You really haven't had an apple until you've had one straight off the tree from an orchard in eastern Washington.

Had a great run tonight. It was blustery, rainy, cool. Perfect weather for a long run. Kind of sick of running in the heat, so it was a nice reprieve. I took each dog out for 2.5 miles each (they like to run seperately), then ran the final 3 by myself.

Song that pushed me on the last mile: "Highway to Hell" by AC/DC (Seriously!)

They're Mad

Okay, I know Mad Men is just a TV show, but I would really like to bitch slap the Drapers for their horrible parenting.

Speaking of parenting. This was my day today:

One Rainy day + McDonalds Playland + 50 Screaming Stir-Crazy Kids = One MOTHER of a headache. 'Nuff said.

Dang, it's HOT

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE sunshine and high temps. But the air is just not moving out there. We need a good old fashioned thunderstorm to freshen things up (after I give Brandy an herbal tranquilizer, so she can handle it).

The Husband is off playing poker tonight and The Son is passed out already after a hard day of playing in the wading pool and sprinkler. So...I have an nice, quiet evening ahead of me, YEY! I'm planning a big pasta dinner to gear up for my 16 mile training run tomorrow. I may even rent a cheezy chick flick. I know, I know...my life is SO exciting.

Fun Night!

We had a great party at the house last night for my birthday. We couldn't use the backyard due to rain, but everyone seemed to enjoy staying inside and visiting. Isn't if funny that you spend all day cleaning and making the house presentable (translation: hide the toys and laundry) and most guests opt to hang out in the kitchen? Murphy's law though...if we hadn't cleaned, EVERYONE would have wanted a house tour.

Here's a pic of me and the girls. I've known all of them since junior high and Tabitha (on my right in the pic) and I have been best friends since we were three-years-old.

I'm 40 and it's Raining

Happy birthday to me! My husband thought it was funny last night to count down the remaining 30 minutes of my 30's. We were trying to get caught up on Mad Men episodes and he kept looking at the clock and announcing, "25 min left, anything you want to do while you're still in your 30's?"

We're having a party tonight, about 25 people. I had wanted to decorate the backyard and patio with lanterns and tiki torches but alas, it is RAINING. Sunshine all week and then RAIN on my birthday. Sigh. Ah well, at least the house is clean. In addition to the piles of food we will serve, we also have a chocolate fountain. Yum!!! (Can I fire it up for breakfast?)

Week in Review
Max is CANCER FREE. We got his lab results back and they got it all. He had a follow up appt yesterday and he also got his stitches out and got a blue bandanna for being a good boy!

I rediscovered my Facebook account and am now trying to keep up with it. Apparently, it's also on my Blackberry.

I took my son to an outdoor concert Tuesday and he danced the entire 1 1/2 hours. Seriously, when he's old enough, he's going to want hip hop classes. He also asked several times why we couldn't go get his guitar so he could play on stage with the band. He's FOUR.

I didn't write much on book two. I need a schedule to keep me on track.

I ran my longest training run yet, 15 MILES. I did it yesterday so I could party this weekend without a long run hanging over my head. The Portland Marathon is less than two months away.
They announced the Rock and Roll Marathon is coming to Seattle in June. Woohooo!

I'm older now.

Happy August, Goodbye 30's

This is the last week I can say I am in my 30's (gulp). Yup, turning the big 4-0 on Saturday. I'm kind of looking forward to it in a weird way. Just a new chapter, right? The husband is throwing a party at the house Saturday evening and I'm trying to get the backyard in shape for it (think red paper lanterns, candles, tiki torches). Our son will go to grandma's for the night, so it's actually a grown up party!

So, turn 40, make a book deal (through fabulouso agent) and run a marathon. Kind of a wacky to do list. What's next?

Random things happening right now:

• My brother and his friend ranked #6 in the state for fishing tournaments, so they are invited to some big national tournament next year.
• Max is doing great with his recovery and I'm hoping he can get back to agility in two weeks.
• My long training run this week will be my longest run EVAH, at 15 miles
• I will need a massive dose of Advil and a massage after that run
• My birthday is August 9 (did I mention that already?)
• I need to be more disciplined with book #2 and am hoping to hear from my agent soon on book #1.

Happy summer everyone!

Summer Fun!

We had our family reunion this past weekend up at my dad's house. He lives in what used to be our summer cabin on Lake Whatcom. It's rural, green, beautiful. The lake is gorgeous and clean. I spent summers there growing up and am hopeful our four-year-old son (little B) will have that same experience. In addition to swimming, boating and making s'mores over a beach fire, Little B learned how to fish! Uncle Eric (my brother) is an expert fisherman (he competes in state tournaments and is ranked 12th in the state so far this year). He taught B how to bait the hook, cast and wait patiently for a fish. B was ecstatic when he reeled in his first trout. Even today, he can't stop talking about it.

The hubby and I also went on some long, technical mountain bike rides in the woods behind my dad's house. It was sooo much fun. It was also good to see our cousins, eat way too much good food and reminisce over a few (or more) drinks. The dogs were in Labrador paradise...swimming and running on the beach for three days straight.

Speaking of dogs, Wednesday is Max's surgery. His CT scan was beautiful and the cancer hasn't spread anywhere that we know of, so we are very hopeful. He has his last agility class (for awhile) Tuesday eve and I will take him to the hospital at 7:30am Wednesday. We probably won't be able to pick him up until Saturday morning. I hope I can visit him in the meantime. I will be a wreck on Wednesday and will have to restrain myself from calling every hour. Still haven't figured out how to tell our son about the surgery. I'm figuring, "Max has an owie in his mouth that the doctor needs to fix" is about as much as I can say.

I hope everyone is enjoying the summer so far. Seattle actually has summer weather...YEY!

Song I loved hearing today: "Mercy" by Duffy
Weekly running mileage completed (ending yesterday): 25
Running mileage for this week: 0/26
WIP word count: Ask me tomorrow!

A Quiet House

Sorry I haven't blogged in awhile, we had wonderful house guests this past week. My good friend and her twin boys, who are exactly one week older than our son (they were born on Christmas eve and our son was born on New Years Eve - 2003). Three four-year-olds in one house is hilarious, by the way. They live in Sweden, so we are lucky if we see them once or twice a year. Next year, we hope to visit them or meet them for a vacation in Italy (if our dollar is doing better than its current peso status).

I have developed my training plan for the Portland Marathon (Oct. 5). I have NO idea if my body will hold up to that kind of training but hey, it's worth a shot. I can always chicken out and shoot for the Seattle Marathon the end of November.

Max is doing very well. All his tests have come back normal. No signs of cancer in his chest, lymph nodes, abdomen, spleen, etc. Tomorrow he gets his CT scan. I am so so so hopeful that the tumor is small. The CT scan will determine how extensive the surgery on his jaw will be...and will actually determine once and for all if surgery is possible. He still plays like a puppy in the backyard. He and Brandy had a serious game of tug-of-war in the backyard today. I filled up our wading pool and it was so warm that me, my son and both dogs spent a good portion of the day sitting in it!

Weekly running mileage: 0/24 (today is a strength and rest day)
Song that got me going this morning: Beautiful Day by U2