Team Taylor's first "race-cation" - good beer, good times, and loooooooong nights...

Age of Lady Kaitlyn:  17 months and 22 days

Family,

And a good Tuesday afternoon to you from the Queen City - what a week to catch you up on!  The

A shot I NEVER thought we'd have - K on the starting
line at 6 in the morning - bright eyed and bushy tailed.

Bull is less than 2 days away from Vegas and fighting a cold as he types this, largely due to the weekend festivities.  And since those will be the feature of this post, let's get amongst it, shall we?

Let's start with "things that make K the cutest kid ever:"

1.  "Hop hop" - So at present, K is OBSESSED with bunnies.  Anytime she sees one in a book, she points to it and ALL OTHER ACTIVITIES FADE AWAY.  She has become a huge fan of the "Golden Books Collection" that Rice's mom gave her, and she will now read that book for HOURS if you let her, just searching the pages for "hop hop."  And while it's more of a "ah ah," there's no question it's what she's saying, as she definite associates that sound (which is unique) with bunnies (many of which bounce around in our back yard as well).  She even says "ah ah" when she climbs onto her bunny rocker, which she can now do all by herself (and really enjoys, for the record).

2.  "Uh oh" - this is the quote you get ANYTIME the house phone rings.  We never answer it, and so K clearly knows it's not part of the "daily routine."  Consequently, she could be eating, playing, going through books, running around the house - you name it - but when that phone rings, she drops everything, looks at us, and says "Uh oh."  Again - and yes, I realized I'm biased, but still - too cute.

3.  "Bubbles" - Team Taylor FINALLY broke out the Bubbles machine this weekend, and the results were priceless.  We fired up the bubble maker on the back porch, and K LOVED it.  Granted, the wind was blowing pretty good, meaning that there were several occasions where a shift in the wind resulted i

n her getting blasted in the face, but she still loved it.   For my part, I didn't realize what cheap entertainment bubbles were. Consequently, this WILL become a regular outdoor occurrence going forward.

4.  "Up!" - in what has become an extension of "night night," K has now started saying "Up!" when she wants to climb the stairs for bed.  Now granted, sometimes it's just because she wants to go to the bonus room and play, but regardless she know has the word "Up!" in her vocabulary, and she walks to the stairs when she says it.  She also points straight up in the air, which is my favorite part.  And furthermore, if you say "Up" and open the gate but she's not ready, she'll calmly walk to the gate and

K hugging this sweet little dog at the
brewery - too cute.

close it slowly for you as it to say "I don't think so, half-wit.  Better luck next season."

5.  "The half step" - So in a big step forward on the motor skills front, K successfully negotiated the half step down to the Bonus room on her own for the first time this week. She just holds onto the doorframe, steadies herself, and then pops down pretty as you please.  It's actually been really amazing to watch her muscle control and development, as her abs are getting stronger every single day.  Plus, it's just insane to watch how she can now climb on furniture that was unattainable just a week ago.  A great example are the couches, which were Mt. Everest as far as she was concerned even in August. Now, however, she's either able to climb them or is almost there, and it's amazing to watch as she tries new positions and hand holds in an effort to pull herself up.

6.  "Mama" - so I realize she's been saying this a TON lately, but now K recognizes her mom (and dad) in photos.  It's so cute - anytime she walks past a photo of Jenny, she stops, points, and says "mama."  Her favorite "family" photo is the canvas of us in Jamaica.  Again - just crazy to watch her start to put it all together...

The week itself was very good.  Jenny was a social butterfly, visiting her friends Leigh and Jill as well as Cuz Megan.  K took it all in stride, and on the whole it was a good week.  We left Charlotte at 2 PM on Friday for the featured activity of the blog - the High Country Half Marathon in Boone, NC.  This was Team Taylor's first "race-cation," and hopes were high going into it - especially with how well K had performed at Amelia Island.  And while we still had a BLAST, this trip was NOT without its challenges.

Friday was GREAT.  We arrived on schedule (2 hours, 20 minutes), check-in was no problem, and the

"Take me with you, daddy!"

room setup was very promising (we had a suite, so K had her own room).  We picked up my race packet and arrived at the dinner spot on time (5:45 PM) - Casa Rustica.  The funny side story is that I thought this place would be totally casual, but we walked in to a FANCY place (odd given the log cabin exterior) where some cats even had sports coats and jackets on.  JT and I were terrified, but as per standard - K was an ANGEL.  Seriously - we have one great kid - as long as you keep feeding her.  This place offered THE BEST pasta I have ever tried (blackened chicken in cajun spices in a blue cheese cream sauce - WOW), and we did have fun.  We knew we were "on the clock," and consequently I found myself less than 100% able to relax and enjoy the meal.  That being said, after it was over I felt very full, very pleased with the selection, and happy that K had been a saint with her food and crayons (we actually had several folks tell us what an angel she was - one lady even held her for a bit!).  It was then to the hotel for bath and bed - which is where the narrative starts to go south...

So K went down at 7:45 but wasn't ready to sleep.  In fact, she fussed (and then cried) until 9:20, at which point she finally passed out.  We fell asleep 18 seconds later, and all was well until 2:45 AM.  At that point, however, we heard our first "mama" of the night, and there was no return to sleep.

So it's funny - we're not sure what actually happened.  Perhaps it was the spicy food.  Perhaps it was teething.  Perhaps it was the new surroundings.  Perhaps it was knowing we were in the next room.  Perhaps it was the noise from the hallway.  Whatever it was, the simple fact was that, despite 90 minutes of JT trying and 90 minutes of me trying, K WOULD NOT GO BACK TO SLEEP.  And so, there I am at 5:30 in the morning, 2 hours from the start of the toughest race I've ever done, drinking coffee and watching as K smashes granola bars with her fists and leaves a trail of ripped Kleenex all over the floor.  JT came in at 5:30 when she smelled the coffee, and the look on her face said it all - it looked like a scene from World War Z.  But at that point, there was only 1 thing to do - load K in the car and head to the race start.  And so off Team Taylor went, complete with a screaming child, out of the hotel and over to the stadium.

"This is just a taste of the terror that
Sauroman can unleash..."

Now I will be honest - on the drive over, I was NOT in the best of moods.  I was frustrated because I wasn't rested.  I was anxious because I knew the run would be tough.  And I was just in shock that, for truly the first time ever, K hadn't slept through the night away from home.  Sure we'd had some early starts and she'd been a bit restless in Jamaica, but she always got a good 8.5-9 hours at a minimum.  So as I pulled up to the stadium, K screaming in the backseat, JT and I looking like something out of a horror film, I couldn't help but feel sorry for myself (pathetic I know, but it's true).  But then we opened those car doors, and everything changed.


Again - I'm not sure if it was the mountain air, the anticipation of the start, or watching the excitement with which K bounded down the track, but suddenly the world was much lighter.  Suddenly I wasn't as worried about finishing the race, as I genuinely felt refreshed and capable of running the race (2 cups of coffee no doubt helped).  My focus was instead on K, as she was ALL OVER THE PLACE!  She loved the track, the field, and especially the stairs of the stadium.

Usain Bolt look out - you have been warned...

So after K and I ran down the track for a bit, JT then walked with K up and down the stairs while I stretched.  What passed was a truly wonderful hour, and I thought there was an outside shot that I just might finish the race.  As fate would have it, I actually did complete it in 1:59:07.  And while I am thrilled with that time, I must confess that the course was short - only 12.82 miles.  All the same, I'll take it given the hills. :-)

On the drive over, I'd already made peace with the fact that I probably wouldn't finish (although JT always knew I'd finish - she told me later).  My goal was to make it to mile 8, and I had already accepted the fact that the journey was the destination, and what I really had wanted the entire time was to be back in shape (which I now am) - the race was just the icing on the cake.  So when I actually did finish and was given a medal that DOUBLED AS A BOTTLE OPENER, life was good.  And then the day only got better.

Dad and Alice had driven over the mountain for the day, and what followed for the rest of the day was a just PERFECT family day out.  Alice had purchased these little pets for K, and she absolutely LOVED them.  K is all about bunnies and dogs, and since both were in there, she was happy as a clam.    We passed the day at a pair of breweries and then back at the hotel for a nightcap with some football, and all was right with the world.  I was drinking good beer, I was visiting family, Dad and Alice were helping watch K some, and I finally got my burger.  All in all, I could NOT complain...at least until 1:12 AM when K woke up.

"Seriously - what's with this guy."

Now honestly, the first night was rough enough, but this one was even worse.  I was in the room with K from 1:12 until 4, and I thought I might break.  I was just so tired (not drunk at all, actually), and after the day I'd had, there just wasn't much energy (or patience) in the tank.  But then, as is normally the case, my wife rocked in and saved the day.

JT had managed to get a little sleep, but by 4 AM she'd had it.  She ordered me - that's right, sports fans - ORDERED me to bed, after which time she took Kaitlyn and said "Night, night."  She then popped her in the pack and play and walked out, leaving K screaming at 4 AM.  5 minutes later, however, K was OUT, and Team Taylor soon followed.  And while I am definitely fighting a cold and feeling quite run down at the moment, I would have been destroyed had JT not come in and saved me.

Sunday was another wonderful day, with Team Taylor driving over to Blowing Rock for lunch with Dad and Alice before driving home.  We then passed the afternoon at home before putting K down at 7:45 PM.  She cried out once but then was PASSED OUT for 12.5 straight hours.  Jenny and I weren't far behind, both sacking out by 10 PM and sleeping until 8:15 the following morning when K awoke.

And so there you have it, an amazing weekend - with 2 very big hiccups.  For us, it was a surreal experience, as we'd never experienced anything like this to date.  And between this and Jenny's foot still being on the mend, Team Taylor is very much questioning whether or not we'll make the trek to Myrtle Beach for the 1/2 marathon in October.  We're not sure if this was just a freak occurrence or if Kaitlyn is truly outgrowing the pack 'n play (which I fear to be the case), but either way it was rough and NOT something we're looking to repeat anytime soon.

For my part, the more I've thought about it, the more I keep coming back to the point that I need to embrace the whole "King in my castle" idea.  We bought a great house that we love very much, and one of the chief goals of buying this house was that we would enjoy it so much we wouldn't want to

"Memories of Jamaica - all the watermelon
you can eat."

leave.  And while there is not doubt we love it and are availing of it, I definitely think I need to focus more on using every facet of this home and this neighborhood vs. pursuing thrills and activities further afield.  For starters, there is some truth in the fact that we need to keep an eye on our finances.  But more importantly, Charlotte and the surrounding area is FILLED with activities, and I need to follow some advice from the tourism board and "discover the state I'm in."  I am resolving to do this more - starting with getting some much needed items addressed around the house (pictures, fans, grill, lights, etc.), after which point Team Taylor will make more and more use of what we have around us.

Ok, that's all the news that's fit to print in this edition.  Speak soon!

Love,

Sam and Jenny