Oh, this little girl - she is too awesome.  

A little Hazel moment...

 (at her last gymnastics class...waiting for a stamp on her hand, showing off her ribbon and showing off her sweet moves)

 A much needed haircut.

I seriously adore her. 

We started getting a bit stir-crazy putting up the Christmas decorations...the weather has been amazing, so we headed out for a walk.  Hazel was having a great time on her trike...

but, being the overly kind girl that she is, she insisted on sharing.  First, with Mommy...

and then with Daddy...

our "quick" little walk, ended up taking nearly an hour while we all took turns on the trike.  

And what on earth was Averett doing during all of this? 

Just chilling in his stroller, thinking "Man, they're weird!"

Turkey Trot(ting) on Thanksgiving is the only way to start the day, Seth has informed me that the half last weekend was his grand-running-finale for 2011, thankfully Seth's mom and sister, Joanie, were willing to give it a go. 

As far as brilliant ideas I have had... running a 5K a few days after the half-marathon was not high on the list.  I was a little sore and a little slow (26:20), but it was so much fun.  We are trying to convince Joanie to run cross-country in high-school, hopefully she had a fun time (she kicked butt, especially considering she's only gone on a couple of short runs before). 

Fun was had by all and then it was time to head to our house and get our cook on.  Seth cooked an amazing turkey, he can be in charge of the turkey every year. 

Delicious, delicious, delicious.

Num. Num. Num. 

That would sum up our Thanksgiving Dinner.  Sorry, no real pictures... just imagine awesome-ness.  (Yes, Mom...I did have a centerpiece-ish and matching serving dishes, you would have approved).

Seth and I were so grateful to have Mom and Dad H and Aun-Chovie come to our house.  We are so blessed to live near them and love their company.  Thank you, thank you!

... first Halloween - and boy were you cute! ...

... sitting like a champion ...

... continue to be the happiest baby ...

... size 3 diapers, but only until the box runs out ...

... peas, carrots, butternut squash, broccoli, applesauce, bananas, mangos, prunes, yellow squash, pumpkin - you like this eating thing ...

... f.i.n.a.l.l.y (as of a few days ago) sleeping through the night 9pm - 8am, please, PLEASE don't be another short-lived phase! ...

... let the spit-up continue ...

... your morning naps are awesome, afternoon naps...we're working on it ...

... three meals a day, plus one or two evening snacks ...

... definitely still swaddled ...

... you recognize our voices, and "notice" when we leave the room ...

... you love your bathtime ... 

... you are a droolin' machine, but we know, we know...no teeth yet ...

... your monkey is becoming your favorite naptime buddy ...

... Hazel can make you laugh harder than anyone else ...

Annapolis Half Marathon

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome.

13.1 Hilly Miles

 I can't begin to describe how happy I was about this race.  I have never been very competitive.  I like to run.  I like to finish races.  It's my "me" time.  Not my be-faster-than-someone-else time.  

So, this race I had a few times I was looking at.  This race fell about 7 months post-Averett-arrival.  I ran the Baltimore Half 7 months post-Hazel-arrival.  I knew I had to beat that time (2:21 - a personal worst).  I kind of wanted to beat my old personal best (2:13), and in a perfect world, I super-secretly realllly wanted to beat 2:10 (a 10min/mile pace - my odds of that were about as good as an ice cube in hot hades). 

I felt good.  The weather was perfect.  The course beautiful.  I love Annapolis, and we were able to run all around the Capitol (yes, Annapolis is our state capitol...not Baltimore), the harbor, past the Naval Academy, over the Severn River bridge, past the bag-piper, onto a scenic trail, back over the bridge and on to the stadium.  

Lots of hills.  I love hills.  

I attempted to pace myself, but there were no mile markers (one minor glitch in an inaugural race), I just tried to stay in a "comfortable" zone, keep my head down and put one foot in front of the other.  I crossed the finish line, stopped my watch and glanced down...

1:59:59

I almost wet my pants.  ("almost" being a very vague, generous term).  Never in a million years did I expect that.  I would have been giddy for a 2:09! 

Official race chip-time: 1:59:55. 

Running at 5am all summer, and at 5pm all fall paid off.

Yes.  Annapolis Half, I plan on seeing you again. 

And a big "woot woot" for Seth - he ran the race with a seriously bum-knee.  And did a.w.e.s.o.m.e. 

Oh, and that toenail that died after the Epic Relay?  The one that had just about returned to normal?

Yeah.  It's gone again.