Hello again, my sweet bear! We are now halfway through our second week of kindergarten, and it has been a bit of a bumpy ride – but that’s not what this letter is about. Things have finally smoothed out enough that I can focus on something else – like more of the adventures we’ve shared over the last couple of months.
For a long time now, you have been wanting a pet. We have our cat, Luca, but unfortunately she’s not much of a pet. She’s a biter and a scratcher, which is why she now lives on our enclosed sun porch. Even though you’ve been on the receiving end of her abuse several times, you are still so kind to her. You love to help me feed her, you want to buy her cat toys, and you’re downright giddy when you pet her and she purrs. You’ll often tell me how much you wish Luca would be a sweet cat. Me too, girlie. Me too.
In doing some online research about kids and pets, your Daddy and I began reading more about guinea pigs. They seemed a good fit – they’re small and don’t require a lot of room or as much exercise/attention/care as a dog, but they’re friendlier and easier to handle than hamsters or gerbils. They rarely bite, and many of them can be quite vocal, purring and whistling for their human companions.
We ended up deciding to adopt a guinea pig rather than buy one from a store. I won’t get into all the pros and cons, but we chose a guinea pig from someone who’d lost interest in caring for it. He is a beautiful Abyssinian with fluffy swirls of brown and white hair. And he was absolutely terrified when we snuck him into the house after you’d gone to bed the night before your birthday. As soon as I put his new wooden house into his cage, he scurried inside it and I wasn’t sure he’d ever come back out.
We surprised you with your new pet guinea pig when you woke up, and you were super excited. You also had to be very patient too as we tried to give him time to get used to his new surroundings. Undeterred, you sat by his cage reading him stories, talking to him, bringing him toys to look at, giving him hay, making art to hang on the wall by his cage – doing whatever you could to make him feel at home. You named him Piglet.
Thankfully, he’s warmed up a good bit since that day. We take him out of his cage often, and when you sit on the couch and scratch his back he rewards you with purrs and chirps. 
We are now on the hunt for a guinea pig harness, because you have all kinds of plans for taking him on walks around the house and in the backyard. Piglet is lucky to have you.
Here’s a video of you on the morning of your birthday when you met Piglet for the first time. It also includes photos and video from your awesome birthday party at Monkey Joe’s later that day.
You’d been talking about having a Monkey Joe’s birthday party for a long time and for one main reason – the birthday throne. You love bouncing at Monkey Joe’s, but the real appeal for a party there is that the birthday kid gets to sit in an inflatable chair in the party room. Genius. I love this pic of you holding court from the beloved throne as your friends gather ’round before we cut the cake (which, by the way, was decorated with an image of your favorite stuffed pink apatosaurus, Pinkie).
Just before your birthday, we had the chance to vacation in Florida with your Uncle Jeff, Aunt Michelle and cousins Stella and Jane. This was the same trip we took last year when you broke your collar bone and we had to cancel the bouncy-house we’d rented for your 4th birthday party. I’m glad to report that no bones were broken on this trip. Instead, lots of great time was spent on the sand and in the surf.
Also in the last couple of months, you and I experienced a first together. We both ran our first races.
Your Daddy and I began running this year, and it wasn’t long before you asked me to take you on a run. A bit of context – you love to run when you play, but you’ve had more than your fair share of scraped knees in these five years. Not only do you fall and scrape your knees a lot, you freak out each time it happens. Because of this, we forbade you from running on concrete. Run all you want in the grass or dirt, but on pavement – take it slow.
So it was with great trepidation that I took you on your first run down the sidewalks of Ardsley Park. But thankfully, without the distraction of other playmates, you were more focused o
n the path before you and did not fall.
Running with you was so fun, and a huge departure from my typical trudge through the neighborhood. I’m usually focused on my pace and distance and less aware of my surroundings. But you stopped your run every few feet to point out a flower, someone’s name carved into the cement, a bumblebee and anything else that caught your eye. You reminded me to take more time to enjoy our neighborhood on my runs and appreciate more than the calorie burn.
When I signed up for my first race, a 5K, you really wanted to race too. Luckily, there was a 1-mile kid run as well. On race day, you were excited as we pinned your race number on your dinosaur shirt and took off for the baseball field. The race began and ended at Grayson Stadium, where the Sand Gnats play. While I ran my 5K, you and Daddy did the kid run which took you around the outfield and across home plate. While I hated missing your first race, I was so glad Daddy took good pictures.
You had a fabulous time, and soon after, you began organizing races on the playground at school (which you won, according to you). Now, whenever we encounter a nice stretch of grass you like to take off running, pumping your arms and legs with so much determination and – I might add – actually going pretty fast. There are a few more races coming up with kid runs this fall, and I think you and I may be pinning some more race numbers on our shirts before long.
How lucky I am to share all these adventures with you. How lucky I am to have you, and I love you so much.
This is another post from the running archives. I detail my experience in my first 5K back in July, including horse farms, bad jokes and a little bit of vomit.
July 2, 2011
One week ago today, I finished my first race. I was
nowhere near the front of the pack, but I wasn’t the last one to cross
the finish line either. And I stuck to my goal and ran the whole race
without walking.
Lining up at the start, I excitedly soaked up the contagious energy of
so many people standing still but poised to run. Of course, once the
race began, the crowd of racers spread quickly and I was soon in the
back third or so of runners. I did not have a time goal, so as I was
passed over and over I just had to keep reminding myself that I was
competing against the course, not the other runners. I think if I’d
pushed too hard in that first mile, I might not have been able to keep
running the whole race.
The race was very close to my house, but took us on a course I’d never
run before. Once we lapped Daffin Park, we headed down a side street
where I saw, to my great surprise, a riding stable and horses in the middle of town. From there,
we took the Police Memorial Trail – a small, paved path that wound through the woods. I had
no idea this wooded area existed in my neighborhood and I was excited to
discover a new quiet, shady place for my runs.
The first mile went by ok, but I soon became convinced they’d forgotten
to put out the second mile marker. Surely I’d done two miles already?
But then, there it was up ahead. I was tiring but determined, so for the last mile I
turned to the self-defense tactic of making jokes – asking other runners
if I could climb on their backs, asking the police officer at the
roadblock if he could give me a lift.
Finally, the finish line was in sight. I fell in step beside another
runner going my same pace and we began to crack jokes together. Eying
the group of spectators at the end of the race, I started repeating
aloud a mantra. “I will NOT throw up in front of these people. I will
NOT throw up in front of these people.”
Side note: do NOT drink a milkshake for breakfast before a race on a hot day. Milk? What was I thinking?
I began to pull away from the other runner in the home stretch, and then I heard her voice behind me say,
“You jinxed me!” I turned around in time to watch her throw up. “So sorry!” I yelled back. I felt momentarily guilty, but pressed on and kept my breakfast down.
Camille and Lee were there to cheer me on as I entered the Sand Gnats
stadium and crossed the finish line at home plate. I’d run the race in
36:48 minutes, an 11:50 min/mi pace. That was faster than
my training runs, so perhaps all that combined energy at the finish line
really was contagious. I was hot, tired and thirsty, but I was proud.
And I definitely want to do it again.
Happy 5 years and 1 month (plus a day or two) sweet bear! Today is the last day of your summer break – the last day before you turn into a kindergartener.
And what a crazy few days we’ve had. When we woke up Thursday morning, we were super excited that it was “open house day” at your school, and we were looking forward to meeting your teacher and seeing old friends. But then, I got a call that shook things up considerably.
First, a short digression. Your Daddy and I have long been fans of Montessori education, and this was reinforced when we sent you to a Montessori preschool at age 2 and you thrived. For both Pre-K and Kindergarten, we put your name in a lottery for a local public Montessori magnet school, but both times we were way down on the waiting list – 99th on the list for Pre-K, and 31st on the wait list for Kindergarten.
I was ok with this though, because our neighborhood school is wonderful and we felt lucky to be able to enroll you there. We all truly loved your Pre-K year and were looking forward to another school year there.
But then, the day of open house, four days before the first day of school, I got a call from the Montessori school. They had an opening for you if we still wanted it.
You’d think, having wanted to go to that school from the very beginning, that it would’ve been a no-brainer. But it wasn’t. Your Daddy and I really wrestled with the decision. You were so very happy at the neighborhood school and had made wonderful friends there, and we’d made great friends too among the tight-knit group of parents. We knew you’d get a good education at your neighborhood school. So should we move you, especially so late in the game?
Still on the fence, I went to the Montessori school to pick up paperwork. I found myself sitting in my car outside the school, bawling because I didn’t know what to do. Then I still had to go to the open house at the neighborhood school because I’d signed up to help, and I ended up running into the girls’ bathroom sobbing because it tore me up to see all your buddies back together again, so excited to start a new year together.
But in the end, we decided to go with our first instinct, which was to give the Montessori education a try. In addition to the teaching style we like, the school also goes through 8th grade, so that solved a big middle school question for us too.
When we told you about the change, you were not happy. In fact, you informed us you’d decided not to change schools. When we told you that you didn’t have a choice, you were very quiet and somber for a long time. You loved your school. You loved your friends. It was heart breaking.
I needed to do something to make us all feel better. Your new school mascot is a bobcat, so that day I placed an online order for a toy stuffed bobcat and had it overnighted to the house. You have an overwhelming number of stuffed animals, and we usually fight the addition of any more plush pets to the mix. But this moment called for an exception.
Friday was open house day at the new school, and I was desperately hoping it would be a good experience but steeling myself for the worst. We got to school and pushed through the crowded halls to find room 12 and Ms. Lauren. It was an adorable room, with many of those familiar Montessori tools I remembered from preschool. And Ms. Lauren seemed very nice and approachable. Best of all, you walked around the room with a huge smile on your face, and that did so much to lift our spirits.
Shortly after we got home, this little package arrived. You named her Bobbie, and you love her.
I know this has not been an easy change for you to accept, especially happening so close to the start of the school year. But I hope one day you’ll understand why we made the choice we did. Whether it was the right choice or not, I hope you’ll understand that we did it because we love you. Because we want what is best for you.
Thankfully, this weekend we’ve had the best sort of distraction from all this school stuff. Auntie Erin, Uncle Dave, Jones and Eli are here visiting for a few days. We’ve had a wonderful time together, and even got to take Jones for his first big boat ride, watching the dolphins swim up the Skidaway River and even taking a dip ourselves.
There are so many other things I wanted to write about in this letter, but the school situation has taken over most of my mental real estate right now. So I decided to split your letter into parts, because I still need to tell you about your birthday, about your first pet (!!), and more.
But for now, we’re getting ready to head to your favorite restaurant, The Crab Shack, with two of your favorite cousins. I’ll write again soon, my love.
Two more entries from the running archive.
May 13, 2011 – The 20-minute Run
Over the past few days, every
time I thought about today’s run I felt nervous butterflies in my
stomach. Prior to this week, my longest run intervals had been 5
minutes. Wednesday my Couch to 5K training called for 8 minutes, and
then – are you kidding me? – today called for 20 minutes. How was I
supposed to magically go from 5-minute run segments to a 20-minute run
in one week?
In reality I guess it wasn’t that drastic. My
overall workouts have had me running 20 minutes, but with walking breaks
in between. This run just eliminated those walking breaks. But
mentally, this seemed like a big leap. Could I really run that long
without walking?
Last night, I laid out my favorite running
clothes and planned my route through the neighborhood. When my alarm
went off this morning I couldn’t decide if I was excited or dreading the
run, and the truth is, probably both.
Instead of listening to
music, I opted for a podcast which was a good choice. I tried to hone in
on the conversation and ignore that nagging doubt in my head that said,
“You totally cannot do this.”
That negative voice pipes in just a
few minutes into my run most days. But I find that if I keep going, I
usually settle into a rhythm and the running gets easier. That voice
grows quiet, and today I was happily surprised when my training app
announced I’d reached the halfway point of my run. I’d made it that far
without checking my phone in desperation to see how much time was left
on the run. The run was difficult, but I made it all 20 minutes without
walking.
Maybe there is hope for me?
June 24, 2011
Tomorrow
is a big day – my first race. It has been over a month since I wrote
about running, but not because I quit running. Although the week after
my last post was my most challenging week of training so far.
Week
7 of Couch to 5K has you running 25 minutes each of the three days with
no walking breaks. I hadn’t realized how much I needed those walking
breaks. The first 20 minutes of those runs were tough, but the last 5
were brutal (I still feel a little embarrassed saying that – all you
endurance runners can stop laughing now). Even running early in the
morning, I’d have sweat dripping off my face, my arms, running down my
legs. I’d feel like throwing up. I’d want to walk, but I was terrified
that if I let myself walk I’d let myself down. So I kept running.
I
survived week 7, and to my own surprise, I survived week 8 and week 9,
finally finishing the Couch to 5K program on June 8. That was a really
great day, and I felt an awful lot of pride in myself for completing
three sets of 30-minute runs.
I was, however, disappointed to
find out that although I’d completed the program, I wasn’t yet running a
5K distance. The program is assuming I’m running a 10-minute mile, able
to complete a 5K distance during that 30 minute run. But I’m at around
12-minute miles, or about 2.5 miles during those 30 minutes. Even though
my training app was finished, I knew I needed to change my focus from
how many minutes I was running to how many miles.
Once, since
finishing the Couch to 5K app, I made myself run 3 miles with no breaks.
It was super tough but I did it, although I haven’t repeated it again. I
started adding walking breaks back into my runs and I have really mixed
feelings about this. Probably a topic for another post.
So …
tomorrow. My goal from day one was to run a 5K without walking. I’m
hoping the race-day adrenaline provides the extra boost I know I’ll
need.
Another entry from the running archives. This post was written on May 12.
Over the past few weeks
I’ve discovered another unexpected benefit of running. It’s so simple
it shouldn’t have come as a surprise, but it was something I’d just
never considered. Running is a very portable hobby, with the added bonus
that I end up exercising while out of town and exploring new areas at
the same time.
When the elliptical was my preferred method of
exercise, being out of town and away from the gym usually meant taking a
break from the workouts. Or if I had out-of-town access to exercise
equipment, it was a drag to break away from the time with friends and
family to work out.
A few weeks ago, we traveled up to Tennessee
to visit my parents for Easter weekend. I packed my new, fancy shoes and
Lee and I headed out twice to run. We enjoyed the opportunity to run
together – a luxury we don’t have at home. The hills were a real
challenge, but we were distracted by the scenery, with beautiful
wildflowers blanketing the rolling green fields around the neighborhood. I
was exercising, but it felt more like a treat to be outside enjoying
the pretty area, the great weather and Lee’s company.
The next
weekend we went camping and I packed the shoes again. The campground is
large and spreads out along the beach on Hunting Island in South
Carolina. I wanted a chance to explore the campground, so Saturday after
breakfast, I laced up and did my workout along the campground road with beautiful scenery to distract me from the difficulty of the run.
Last
weekend we went up to Winder to visit with the Valles family, and I got
to watch Andrew run a 5K. It looked simultaneously fun and
intimidating, but as soon as it was over I headed out for a run through
their neighborhood. I was thankful again for the new setting for my
workout, and ran with a little extra inspiration after watching the
racers that morning.
Lee and I have our 10th anniversary trip to
Jamaica coming up in a few weeks, and I’ve already been thinking I’ll
have to leave the shoes at home. There is nowhere to run in the small,
cliff-side resort, and I wouldn’t feel safe leaving the security of the
guard shack and heading out on the Jamaican roads myself. So I’m
lamenting that I can run that week – guess that’s a pretty good sign,
right?
That Boo is one crafty lady. She and Camille created this one-of-a-kind t-shirt with just cardstock and bleach water, and I think it’s super cute. I plan to steal the idea and use it over and over again. And share it with you, of course.
Step 1: Have your child draw something on a piece of cardstock. Cut it out.
Step 2: Take the project outside and put some newspaper or more cardstock inside the shirt to keep the back of the shirt from getting wet when you spray the front. Place the cut-out on the front of the t-shirt. Spray the front design area liberally with a mixture of bleach and water.
Step 3: Rinse the shirt to remove the bleach water solution.
And voila! Your kid has a super cool, super unique addition to his or her wardrobe.
Camille’s creation was of a mama and baby dinosaur. The baby dino was so tiny that Boo didn’t even know if it would show up on the shirt, but there she is under her mama’s legs, cute as can be. I love this shirt. It is so Camille!
Although the weather gives no hint that the end of summer is nearing, my calendar indicates otherwise. Two weeks are all we have left of summer break. Just two weeks until my big girl goes to the Big K (the school, not the soda).
I wasn’t sure what to expect of this summer, logistically. It was our first summer without regular childcare, and although my hours are flexible, I still needed to work. In early spring I began researching summer camps, trying to find a few she’d like and that were spaced out every other week or so – one week to work, and then a week to play.
Of course, her favorite camps by far were Boo Camp (several days with Alva in
Fitzgerald) and Nana and Granddaddy Camp (several days with the grands in Tennessee).
But who wouldn’t love a week of being catered to and pampered by some of
your favorite family members?
But as for the more traditional camps, I must say, I think we planned and chose well. She did an animal camp at Oatland Island, an art camp with the City of Savannah, a theater camp with Savannah Children’s Theater and Vacation Bible School at church.
I really didn’t know if Camille would like all these camps – she used to get so shy and nervous about being left somewhere new – who could blame her? But I think a real key to our success was that she did each of these camps with a buddy.
(It may look like Camille’s head is being attacked by a strange animal, but don’t worry, it’s a rabbit hat. And that dinosaur is Ellanor, one of Camille’s best pals and her buddy for theater camp.)
This arrangement was great for me too, because the moms and I could take turns with car pool or watch the kids after camp so the other could stay and work a little longer.
So, two weeks left. We have no more camps on the calendar, so that means I’ll be doing a bit of juggling with work, but I intend to enjoy as much of these two weeks as I can before school starts. The pool, the beach, the boat, the movies, and best of all, a visit from Erin and the fam! Still a lot we want to do in just two weeks. Looking forward to it.
Another post from the running archives!
April 28, 2011 – So, I splurged on the new running shoes earlier
this month and I’m really enjoying them. My shin pain has disappeared
and so far not resurfaced.
I remember buying new athletic shoes as a
child and truly believing they made me run and jump faster. I always
wore them out of the store, excited to see what I could accomplish in my
new kicks. So are these shoes really helping or is it just that “new
shoe” mentality? I think they are helping me physically, but I know they are helping me mentally, so I’ll take it.
Buying
them was a new experience for me because, for the first time, I told
myself not to care what the shoes looked like. I went to our local Fleet
Feet store where, after having me walk around the store barefoot to
evaluate my step, they had me try on several pairs of shoes.
The first pair had horrific fluorescent green and pink accents. I needed to shield my eyes when they came out of the shoe box. But … I liked the cushion so I walked around
in them a bit. The arch didn’t feel quite right though so we tried on
several more. I kept going back to a pair of Brooks. No fancy gels,
no funky air cushion, but they felt light and secure and didn’t rub my
feet when I jogged around the store.
And let me add that jogging
around the store was a little strange – running past people browsing the
running pants and sports bras. But others were running around the store
too, so if I looked like a fool at least I had company. Then I gave the
shoes a quick jog on the store’s treadmill before deciding to keep
them, despite the Tennessee orange accents (shudder).
I really
wanted to wear them out of the store like I did when I was a kid, but I waited until I was in my car to slip them back on. Other than that car
ride home, I’m only using them for running. That is supposed to improve
their longevity, but also serves as motivation for me. I love my new
shoes, so I look forwarding to lacing them up for my workouts.
I walked into the theater with mixed emotions. Finally – FINALLY – I was going to see the last Harry Potter movie.
!!!!!!!
But it is the last Harry Potter movie, and that is no cause for joy.
It was a great movie. A fabulous movie. Although to be fair, unless the movie makers strayed too far from the books or one of the three main actors had been replaced, I was bound to like it. As my friend Anna said, “I love those characters so much I could watch them just standing around.” Which is pretty much what Part 1 of this final series was like when I saw it last year. But I was ok with it, because it was Harry Potter.
During tonight’s movie, I cried. I didn’t think I would cry because I’m not a huge movie crier, but I cried. Although I must say, I was most saddened not by the on-screen deaths, but by the closing frame. As the theater lights came up and the credits began, a sadness crept in. I just love the Harry Potter series and I am sad the ride is over.
But then I remembered there is some light at the end of this tunnel. One day, a few years from now, Camille will be ready to begin reading Harry Potter. I’ll read the books with her. I’ll watch the movies with her. And by experiencing this with her, the journey will be fresh for me again.
Something to look forward to.
Happy birthday to you, my 5-year-old girl! You are sleeping soundly (even in bed a bit early) after a very exciting day, which began with getting your very first pet (Piglet the guinea pig!), donuts for breakfast, cake frosting for brunch, presents to open, and topped off with a birthday party at Monkey Joe’s.
I will recap these highlights in time, but right now I find myself focusing less on what we did this day and more on who you are this day.
When you were a tiny baby, when I was bleary-eyed and exhausted, when this parenting thing felt overwhelming, I remember thinking forward to age 4. Not that I was trying to hurry you along, but I imagined 4 to be a pretty perfect age – old enough to be tucked in to bed without a fight, potty trained and more independent, but young enough to still want your parents around and to be amazed about even the small things in the world. And I was right – FOUR WAS AWESOME.
Fortunately, I imagined 4 to be just the beginning of this golden period (I’m trying not to imagine when it might change, like perhaps in those teen years). If my imaginings continue to prove true, 5 should also be stellar.
And just who are you as you turn 5 years old? You are far too complex a human being to adequately sum up in just a few paragraphs, so I won’t try to include a comprehensive list. I’ll just share a few snippets of Camille, Age 5.
You are incredibly affectionate. You will often stop in the middle of whatever you’re doing and say, “Mama, I just love you. You’re the best mama in the whole world.” You have this hug you’ll give when I pick you up (which is getting harder to do the bigger you grow), where you’ll wrap your arms and legs around me tightly and squeeze like a boa constrictor. I don’t know exactly why, but you named it your “bug leg hug,” and it’s a heart melter every time.
You adore horses and barracudas. You are worried about the depletion of the rain forests. You want to be a veterinarian and a paleontologist when you grow up.
You are always listening and absorbing. Recently you pointed to an art print on the wall at a house we were visiting, a print I’d not even bothered to notice, and said, “Mama, I think that’s a Monet.” I had to read the fine print, but confirmed you were right. I had no idea you could recognize his works and style. A few days later, listening to music in the car, you said, “Is that a violin?” At first I said no because I didn’t hear it among the main instruments, but when I stopped to listen – really listen – I could hear it too. I called you a smartypants. And I meant it in the best way.
You want to travel around the world. You don’t like tree sap because it sticks to your bare feet. You love pickles. You do NOT like grill marks on your food.
Speaking of food, you’re a pretty good eater and a very inquisitive one, too. You like to know about the food on your plate – not just what it is but why it is. Those apples – what do they do for me? What’s in that broccoli that makes it healthy? Why can’t I have more macaroni – what’s in macaroni that isn’t good for me?
And you really care. You’ll grab that “broccoli tree” as we call it and announce, “I’m going to have some fiber now.”
You are very sensitive about many things, but about animals in particular, which is why I find it interesting that you have no problem (thus far) with being an omnivore. The other day at dinner, you looked at the meat on your plate and asked, “What is this?”
“It’s pork,” I told you.
“But I mean, what did it come from?”
Pause. Your Daddy and I looked at each other, silently determining the best way to tell you the truth. You finally broke the silence yourself.
“Is it pig meat?” you asked.
“Yes,” I said.
“Oh! Good! Yummy protein!” you exclaimed as you dove right in. Well, that was easy!
Some things you love:
Sand Gnats baseball games
Jelly beans
Animal bones
The colors pink and purple
Being with friends
The pool
Camping
Wearing dresses (that don’t tie in the back)
The beach
Snakes
Adding eyelashes and hairbows to all the animals you draw
Rock music
Kimonos
A schedule
Some things you don’t like:
Getting water in your eyes
Spicy food
Being alone
French fries and most potato-based food
Bugs in the house
When your hands or feet get dirty
Sleeping late
When the squirrels eat our pears
If your ceiling fan or clock is turned off
Some words to describe you:
Generous
Happy
Sympathetic
Adorable
Dramatic
Smart
Sweet
Caring
Compassionate
But most of all, you are you. You are your own Camille. Wonderful, lovable, amazing Camille, and I thank God you are in my life. Happy birthday to you, my love.
