watch out kerri strug

In case you were alarmed by my absence, I was not involved with the Societe-Generale-rogue-trader scandal. A $7 billion loss -- that's what I call a bad trade.

Here's your weekend recap...

Saturday morning June and I powered up for an active day with an oatmeal and apple sauce breakfast. Adrienne soon joined us, and we headed to our trial class at the Little Gym. The Little Gym is just that, a well-padded gymnastics space for kids four months to twelve years in age. We walked, ran, clapped, log-rolled, sang songs, and helped June climb up, on, and over various obstacles. We learned that unassisted jumping is typically a skill reserved for two-year-olds; according to my calculations, this puts June in the 9000th percentile. Never one to miss a teaching opportunity, I quickly took June aside and told her not to rest on her laurels. I told her there will always be a toddler somewhere in the world trying to knock her off her jumping throne. It's hard to tell if my speech registered.

After class, Adrienne took June to get new shoes. While they shopped, I went running. I feel this weekend's weather was a blessing and a curse. I ran 26 miles Saturday and 10 miles Sunday in shorts and short-sleeves and was actually warm at times. Low 60s is great and all, but it's unlikely that I'll see similar weather on Mt. Mitchell later this month. I'm happy to report that after this weekend I now begin to gradually decrease my training volume until race day. Notwithstanding some very minor tightness in my right leg, I've made it through the lion's share of training injury free; a blessing to be sure.

Following my run and June's nap, I took her to the park with our neighbors Gary, Kirsten, their 22-month-old daughter Rachel, their 5-week-old son Alex, and Kirsten's mom Claudia. Pictured at left is June, Rachel, and Claudia; if you look closely, you can see Kirsten playing peek-a-boo with the girls through the tunnel holes. June and Rachel spent most of their time traversing the tunnel and test-driving an assortment of slides. The weather was so nice it was probably impossible to have a bad time. And after an hour-plus of exploration and fun, we, once again, managed to escape the playground without tears from either one of us.

June woke up Sunday morning in a less-than-wonderful mood; probably just some pre-Super Bowl jitters. Adrienne headed out for groceries while June and I shared breakfast. After drinking some milk and downing some rolled oats, June's mood improved considerably. She soon turned her focus to some of her favorite activities: reading books, bouncing on her zebra, and dancing. When Adrienne returned, she took June to the park (same one as yesterday) with her friend Aaron and his mom, Mary. From what I heard, the slides were the hit of the day.

The rest of Sunday is a bit of a blur; Super Bowl Sunday seems to always be that way for me. I still can't believe that David Tyree catch -- undoubtedly, one of the best I've ever seen. This morning, I told June if she continues to work hard at the gym, she'll soon be making catches like that too.