above .500

June just went off to bed, so my four days of solo dad duty have essentially come to an end; Adrienne will be home in about two hours. If I had to rate these past four days in terms of wins and losses, I'd say we finished with two wins, one loss, and one tie.

On Saturday, June was simply at her worst. She woke up in an awful mood, and unfortunately, things didn't improve much as the day wore on.

Sunday was a 180 degree turn from Saturday. I don't think a single tear was shed the entire day.

Memorial Day was somewhere in the middle. One moment she was laughing, the next moment she was crying... such is the life of a toddler.

And today we managed a very good day with a run, a trip to the Museum of Life and Science, lunch at Guajillos, and swimming at the Y.

I can't wait for Adrienne to get back, but I have to admit, I was more than a tiny bit sad putting June down in her crib tonight because it marked the end of our four day father-daughter adventure.

Here's Junie doing her Eddie the Eagle impersonation during our picnic at Duke Gardens on Sunday...


Duke Gardens recommends feeding the ducks cracked corn rather than bread, so we made a trip to the local feed store before our picnic. Smallest package of cracked corn: 25 lbs - a little bigger than June. Anybody need some cracked corn?

And here's a shot of her putting the feed into action...

On Memorial Day, our neighbors Gary, Kirstin, and their daughter Rachel had us over for a bbq. They're very generous and invite us over for nearly every holiday. Some other friends of ours, Jed, Kerry, and their daughter Lily, were also in attendance. The girls had a smashing time. Much to my satisfaction, June didn't succumb to the peer pressure from the older, more worldly girls (I think both are five or six months June's elder) and managed to keep her diaper and most of her clothes on. Here are June, Rachel, and Lily in the playhouse...

June and Rachel sitting in a pool of water...


June working on her bubble blowing...


Rachel and Lily on the keys, June on the saucers...


Today's trip to Life and Science. The indoor toddler play area is hard to beat, but is it really wise to have an activity station that helps toddlers hone their latch opening skills? June spent a solid twenty minutes mastering her craft...


And finally, here she is getting ready to take a dip this afternoon. Her bathing suit is too much , isn't it?

mom on the run

I'm not sure if Adrienne has mentioned it in a past post, but she will be running in Boston's Run to Remember half-marathon on Sunday. Today she finished her last training run before the big day. For the past few months she and her good friend Emilie, who lives in Maine, have been virtual training partners. They'll meet up in Boston on Saturday and run together on Sunday... a great way to spend the weekend indeed. Congrats to both of them for making it to the starting line healthy and injury free. Enjoy the run and have fun in Boston! Junie and I are looking forward to the race reports.

The astonishing disappearing locopop

What's a locopop? A locopop is a wonderful thing....just ask Junie.
We recently made a warm afternoon trip to the Locopop shop. June had her very own pop for only the second time ever (the first time was on my birthday in March). Strawberries and cream for her, cookies and cream for Lloyd, mango-chile for me. Watch that strawberries and cream get smaller....and smaller....and smaller....

rain delay

Yesterday, Lauren, Foster, Adrienne, June and I went to Tyler's (same place I had lunch with June on Saturday -- happens to be a minute walk from the baseball stadium) with the hopes that the rain would let up and the Durham Bulls would play. The rain kept falling, so we sat down for an early dinner. Turned out it was a little too early (5:30ish) for June. She had no interest in being confined to a high chair and she let it be known. She just had a lot of excess energy to burn. Adrienne walked her around inside the restaurant for a few minutes, but June wanted to go outside and that's exactly where she went. We all took turns watching her as she ran around blissfully in the rain. The Tobacco Campus has a large, beautiful lawn in its center and June made sure to test all of its puddles for depth and splashability. Watching her have so much fun certainly made up for the missed Bulls game. The game did eventually start two-and-a-half hours late, but by that time, June was at home getting her bath.

this and that

Quite a full day indeed. After I returned from my early morning run (it was beautiful, by the way: 50's, blue skies, and birds singing), Adrienne took off for Charlotte to attend the Nascar Sprint All-Star Challenge with her sister, Lauren, and her husband, Foster; this should definitely gain Adrienne some street cred in these parts (the South)-- something I have none of.

June and I stayed behind and headed to the Little Gym for 45 minutes of jumping and somersaulting. We're both becoming quite proficient at both. After class, we quickly stopped by the farmer's market and snagged the strawberries and eggs Adrienne asked us to procure. Junie barely had a chance to get her hands sandy in the sandbox (there's a small sandbox next to the market pavilion) before we cruised over to Duke's football stadium for the "Walk for the Animals." June was in doggie heaven. There were dogs everywhere. We spent most of our time watching the flyball competition. Here's June checking out some of the action...


The animal walk festivities were winding down and our appetites were ramping up, so we got back in the car and made our way to Tyler's for lunch. Nothing really significant to note beyond sunny, 70 degree weather and outdoor eating with Junie... doesn't get much better than that now does it? Here she is with her crayons and some of the wonderful water features of the American Tobacco Campus in the background...


After lunch we both enjoyed lengthy naps. Recharged from our respective slumbers, we made a late afternoon dash to the Bimbé Festival at the Historic Durham Bulls Athletic Park (the one in the movie). Unfortunately, the festival, at least while we were there, suffered from a trio of problems that seems to affect far too many festivals: excessively muddy grass, less than entertaining musical entertainment, and far too many booths selling candles, body lotions, or both (who's buying this stuff?). Nevertheless, I snapped these photos to prove we were there...



We returned home and read books and June played with her toys until the beginning of the Preakness Stakes. June must think we're horse fanatics because the last time we had the TV on for her was to watch the Kentucky Derby. She just points at the screen and says "neigh, neigh" repeatedly (actually sounds more like "knee, knee"). Maybe she's waiting to see if he wins the Belmont Stakes, but June didn't seem too impressed with Big Brown's victory today: by the time he crossed the finish, she was already building something new with her blocks.

As usual, dinner, bath, a few books, and a couple of songs soon followed before she slipped off into dreamland.

Adrienne returns tomorrow and Lauren and Foster will be spending at least one night here. Assuming the weather holds, we'll be attending a late afternoon Bulls game tomorrow. We'll keep you posted.

up and down

Yesterday I ran the Buncombe Trail 34 Mile Run in South Carolina's Sumter National Forest. The race director's description of the course read, "there aren't a lot of hills on the course." Given that the race director, Terri Hayes, has completed over 200 ultramarathons, it should have dawned on me that her definition of a "hill" might be a little different than mine. I actually expressed concern to Adrienne on Saturday that the course might be too flat. Well, the total ascent turned out to be just shy of 2300 feet. 2300 vertical feet spread out across 34 miles is very runnable, but it's still a good amount of climbing-- the Grandfather Mountain Marathon that I ran in 2004 had less.

Anyways, the course was beautiful and in great shape.

(a few of the horses I saw along the way)

It wasn't especially well marked in places, so I was lucky to have had other runners nearby to let me know when I missed a turn. My worst navigation blunder cost me no more than a half mile. The finisher immediately ahead of me ran at least an extra mile and a half; some runners had unplanned 45 minute detours due to missed turns. The weather, low 80s and sunny, was a bit warmer than I would have preferred, but fortunately, the vast majority of the course was well covered single track trail; we've had a cool spring here in NC, so I'm not especially well acclimated to warmer temperatures. Despite no entry fee, this race was really well supported. Along the course, I had bananas, watermelon, S!Caps (electrolyte replacement capsules), a lot of fluid, and my favorite mid-race fuel: boiled potatoes. I've been a bit under the weather, so I felt a bit lethargic out on the course. By mile 27, I was truly in "get there" mode. I just put one foot in front of the other and continued my way to the finish. Despite not feeling my best, I ran a good race and finished in 3rd place with a time of 5:53:46 (note: if you'd also like to finish high up in the standings, do like I do and enter races, like this one, with only 21 competitors).


In the finishing area I had a few hot dogs and some macaroni and cheese. Terri hand-made the finishers "medals" and wrote my time on the back. It certainly ranks as one of my favorite prizes for finishing a race.

I didn't stick around very long at the finish. I hopped in the car and headed back towards Durham (note: spending three and half hours in the car immediately after running for six hours is not necessarily the best medicine for tight legs). Back in Durham, Adrienne, June, and I went out for barbecue. We're not sure who taught her this, but June said "puppies" when she picked up a hushpuppy from my plate. After dinner, June had her bath and went to sleep, and then Adrienne and I sunk into the couch and enjoyed episodes of What Not to Wear and Cheap Seats. Not a bad way to end the day.

home run

Given that my date only cried once during our time together, by my standards I'd have to say my outing with June was a smashing success. Our trip to the ballpark really couldn't have gone any better. June spent most of her time testing the spring-backed chairs and shuffling her sippy cup from one cup holder to the next. She wasn't particularly interested in the game, or even Wool E. Bull for that matter, but when a helicopter flew overhead, she ran down to the end of row for a better look; the gentleman sitting there looked a bit baffled as this tiny child pointed skyward and tried to explain to him, in her unique way, that he should be excited too. Although she didn't have a hot dog at the game, she still enjoyed a proper all-American lunch: grilled cheese and apple sauce. She was just delightful. We made it all the way through five innings- far exceeding my expectations. When we left, the Bulls led the Richmond Braves 1-0. Turns out, the Bulls scored one more and won 2-0. Not a bad start to the day. Junie's now sleeping happily, and I'm waiting for the interest rate decision from the FOMC. Assuming she's agreeable to another date, we'll probably go for a run together this afternoon. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Update: She said yes! With dozens of dogs to "arf" at and buses to "beep" at, June seemed to enjoy our run-- our second date of the day. I think this relationship might have legs.

five good things

1. This morning I attended the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Spring Breakfast at the RBC Center in Raleigh. Jeff Saturday, center for the Indianapolis Colts, was the keynote speaker and delivered an uplifting message about his athletic experiences and his walk with the Lord. The event was a fundraiser to help send high school athletes to FCA summer camps. Before my senior year in high school, I attended an FCA football camp at Albion College that continues to have a profound impact on my life. It's exciting to think about other young athletes enjoying a similar experience.

2. I met my girls for lunch today at Elmo's Diner. While the latter part of my morning was spent staring at directionless financial markets, they had spent the morning with friends at the Museum of Life and Science. It's always a treat when I get to see them in the middle of the day.

3. I enjoyed perfect weather while running this afternoon-- sixty degrees, a light breeze, and nothing but blue skies. Knowing that 95 degree heat is just around the corner, I'm savoring these last few days of comfort, especially one like today that was 15 degrees below normal.

4. Before dinner, June and I ran around in the grass and chased a few dogs on Duke's east campus. I saw some friends from my Tuesday night running group (I used to be a regular, but now, for one reason or another, my attendance is rather sporadic). After talking with them, we tried out a new playground at a church across the street from campus (I know it's hard to believe... there are, in fact, still playgrounds in Durham that June has not yet test driven). Anyways, we both had a smashing time, and the weather was still perfect.

5. June and I have a date tomorrow. While Adrienne is at work, Junie and I are going to play hooky from our respective responsibilities and attend our first Durham Bulls game of the season. An 11am start and a forecast for sunny skies and 72 degrees should make it ideal conditions for a June-friendly outing-- and June-friendly means Lloyd-friendly. I'll try to take some pictures, but there's a good chance I'll have my hands full. It will be interesting to see if June attempts to stab Wool E. Bull in the eyes again...

the variety show

In general I try to refrain from too much gushing or unabashed admiration of the cuteness of my own child....a little unseemly, no?

But sometimes, I just can't help myself. I almost can't stand the cuteness of the way she says the word "puppies" (occasionally reduced to staggering, clutching my chest, and collapsing). I make her say it about 50 times a day. For now, she's indulging me, but soon a day will come when she's totally over it.

Thanks to Lloyd's lightning quick reflexes, it is now digitally immortalized. Another new word that kills me: "raisins", which comes out exactly like "reezees". Here are those, plus a grab bag of tricks and goodies from a very typical day at home:

Shouldn't we all maybe say puppies that way? Isn't it sort of exactly the right spirit of the word?

our bouncing baby girl

can i get some help over here?

"Uh-oh...uh-oh...uh-oh..."

That's how June woke us up this morning. It wasn't a crisis, but she said it with enough gusto to let us know she needed some assistance. She had thrown all of her stuffed animals out of the crib, and when I entered her room, she was staring helplessly down at her toys that now rested on the floor. As I put the four or five stuffed animals back into her crib, I got carried away and, much to June's delight, I buried her under several of the other stuffed toys that stay in her room. Unfortunately, the two pictures I snapped failed to capture the joy and cuteness of the moment. Instead, the pictures appear to have captured the after effects of a stuffed animal induced bender of sorts-- the type of thing you might be warned about on an after-school special.

splish splash

To me, nothing is more entertaining or rewarding these days than taking June swimming at the Y. Adrienne and I took her there last week, and yesterday I had her there on my own. She just squeals with delight. Her frantic foot stamping is something to behold. She launches herself down the kiddie slide with reckless abandon, she occasionally pauses to study the other swimmers, and when she loses her balance and submerges herself, she remains utterly unfazed. Of course, leaving the pool isn't always welcomed, but it's easy for me to deal with a minor protest when so many giggles precede it.

Winter camping. In April. In North Carolina.

So, here's what happened:

To our amazement, our backpacking adventure started with snow. A local outfitter dropped us off at the north end of the Art Loeb trail as the flurries started coalescing into big, fat flake-balls. The forecast predicted Sunday night would be the coldest and there may be some light snowfall. So off we went in the warmest gear we had packed and our rainjackets.

The plan was to spend 2 nights on the trail and hike through the 30 miles back to the southern trailhead, where we had parked the Volvo. Things didn't go exactly as anticipated, starting with a time-consuming scramble to find a ride to the trailhead after the outfitter we originally planned to use informed us they could no longer operate a shuttle. I will go ahead and spoil the surprise and tell you we had a great time and everything was totally fine (and be warned: portions of this tale definitely make us sound foolish/deranged). But there was a bit of excitement and a tense (haha--tents?) moment or two along the way. Here's my version of events:

Steep, rocky, rugged and beautiful terrain, all the more so with a dusting of snow.

Still just a dusting--nothing to worry about, right? Just an ephemeral, whimsical bit of fun to add some vividness to the telling of the tale....

...except that it kept on snowing and snowing, and as we ascended the side of the mountain and started along the ridge, the wind picked up, the terrain became steeper, rockier, and more treacherous, and the daylight started to wane.

We pressed on in search of a campsite further along the trail to compensate for our late start Monday afternoon. But, finding none and feeling the acute need to find a safe place to spend the night, we turned back and retraced our steps for at least a mile to go back to a site we had passed quite a bit earlier. Demoralizing as it was to turn back in the opposite direction, it was the only prudent decision under the circumstances (but wouldn't you know it? The next morning we discovered a campsite not 300 yards beyond where we turned back. Oy.)

With a huge sigh of relief, we rediscovered the campsite and threw our tent together still with some daylight. At that point there was nothing to do but zip ourselves into our sleeping bags and try to warm up, so by 7:30 pm that's exactly what we had done. And we did not emerge from the safety of our bags for the next 12 hours. For dinner it was trail mix, mini snickers bars, and sad, cold pb & j sandwiches on whole wheat pita, eaten from inside our bags, only sticking our arms far enough out of our bags to assemble and consume that humble meal. Not the hearty rice skillet camp dinner I had planned, but edifying enough.

The wind continued to howl like a banshee around us up there at 6,000 feet on top of that ridge, and as it grew dark, we could hear snow falling and falling on the tent as the hours passed. It must have gotten down to about 20 or so degrees, but thanks to modern sleeping bags, thermal layers, fleece hats, and an extra pair of socks (truly the difference between feeling cold and insecure and feeling quite comfortable), we survived. We were even quite toasty snuggled safely inside and protected from the wild weather outside. Lloyd remarked ruefully that our 3 season tent was by definition ill-equipped for our unexpected winter camping, but it held up like a champ. We woke in the morning to find this:

Wow. Snow, and lots of it. More than we'd seen in Durham all winter. But, the sun shone bright and full of promise, and having somehow stayed dry and warm all night, our spirits buoyed and we surprised ourselves by deciding to go on (at my lowest moments the evening before I was imagining hiking down the 6 or so miles back to the trailhead and begging a ride back to our car, retreating to Asheville, finding a nice hotel with a spa and fancy restaurant...). We also knew the forecast predicted a warming trend (although it had also only predicted scattered flurries, so, we took that with a dose of skepticism).

Mmmmm, hot chocolate. Make you feel like a million bucks.

Lloyd's fancy rigging job of the vestibule of the tent.

Winter wonderland.

Within an hour of starting out we were pleased with our decision to continue. And by a few hours in we were rewarded with stunning views of the surrounding mountains and valleys and congratulated ourselves on our hardy natures. Definitely worth the price of admission.

For the record it did warm up; by late afternoon only patches of snow remained except in the darkest, most densely wooded areas.

A few more exciting moments still awaited us, including a wrong turn at the end of day 2 that left us confused and also quite lost. But just when we were starting to worry that the end of the day was fast approaching and we hadn't found the camp shelter the map said we should have already come across and we were facing the possibility of having to find flattest spot to make a camp for the night...the trail intersected with a little mountain road and we waved down the first car to come by.

Fortunately, its occupants were two of the kindest, most generous human beings ever. All we hoped for from them was information about where we were to get back on the right trail and make camp for the night. But when they offered us a ride back to our car, at least a 45 minute drive, totally out of their way, we took them up on it. The gentleman was an experienced outdoorsman who sympathized with our plight. So, in a matter of moments we went from the low of realizing that we were most likely lost and had no idea where to go or when we might get there, to jubilation at the sight of a road and the possibility of solving the mystery of where we were, to complete euphoria at being in a nice little Honda Civic en route back to our Volvo. Lloyd and I had hamburgers, french fries and beers for dinner and set up the tent in the same Pisgah National Forest campground where we had spent the first night before starting our hike, at the southern trailhead. Then we collapsed in absolute exhaustion.

And there ended our assault on the Art Loeb trail. With our late start on day 1 and the time we lost because of weather on days 1 and 2, we had already realized we wouldn't be able to finish the 12 or so mile hike we had left to do the next day to get back to the car (even without a costly wrong turn). But we did about 20 miles in a day and a half and saw incredible scenery along the way and generally really enjoyed ourselves and our adventure. Sitting here writing this in the well-appointed warmth of the kitchen, I wish we could have another go at it right now. As it is, that will probably have to wait a while. But we're determined to have another try at hiking the full trail through. Maybe next time in June, when the rhododendrons are in bloom?

Back at home, it was an incredible thrill to get flying hugs from June and kiss her sweet head after our first trip together without her. She and Grandma and Grandpa had had a wonderful, happy, warm time here on Green Street, a fact for which we were tremendously grateful. Thanks, mom and dad. You're wonderful grandparents.

*****

In other news, a big shout out to our friends Katie and Wade and Jennifer and Chris who between the 4 of them welcomed 2 beautiful baby boys into the world last Monday, April 14th. Asa Thomas and Grover Henry, we're so glad you're both here! Congratulations to you all on such an amazing event! We all 3 can't wait to meet you!

pleading for an extension

hello friends,
lloyd and i are going away for a few days....all by ourselves! grandma and grandpa will be hanging here with june at our house while we escape to the mountains for a few days of camping and hiking. long overdue photo spreads will be posted upon our return. i know, i'm way behind--still to come are photos from nana's visit, easter, and aunt lauren's visit, plus new photos from grandma and grandpa's visit and our trip to the mountains. we'll be back wednesday. have a great week!
xoxo