Love, love, loving Spring Break . . .

We have been on Spring Break this week. All of us. And this has been a wonderful mix of relaxation, productivity, relationship and solitude. Exactly what I/we needed. Here a run through of some of the highlights of the week:

Running: I have thoroughly enjoyed running over break. By the time I return to work on Monday I will have run a whopping 39 miles over break. I am training for another half marathon next month with my eye on a full marathon in the next six months or so. Running has become quite the addiction for me: it clears my head, helps me manage stress, gives me time to think and pray, and lets me get away with eating a lot of food. While in the past I have always considered myself a lover of running in solitude, over the last few months I have learned to truly enjoy running with people. Among the highlights of this week were running the Westport St. Patricks Day 4 mile run with two friends from work and getting to go on three fantstic training runs with my friend, Kristin.

Sophia's party: We wrapped up what seemed to be a two week celebration of Sophia's birthday last Sunday with a party for Sophia and her friends at Fun Run. (See previous post for all of the glorious details.)

Date night: Tuesday night my wonderful mother kept Grant and Sophia overnight so that Travis and I could have a date night. It was a win all the way around as Grant and Sophia love spending time at Grandma's and Travis and I love spending time alone once in a while. I'm pretty sure Grandma would say she enjoys having the kiddos too. Travis and I enjoyed dinner out and then decided to embark on a little home improvement project. See below.

Home improvement: On the first Friday night of Spring Break we decided to rearrange our living room and basement furniture. We have moved our TV out of the living room on the main floor down to the basement. I like it. Then we debated between painting the living room and painting the kitchen cabinets. The cabinets won if only because we were more confident in our color choice for those and our ability to accomplish the task without either making out house look worse or succumbing to marital discord over the whole project. We are quite pleased with the finished product.

Before

And after

Play dates: What would time off school be without a few playdates?!? On Thursday the weather was absolutely georgous, so we rounded up some friends, both for the kids and for me, and hit the park with our bikes. We could not have had a more beautiful day for playing outside. Nothing like wearing the kids out with fresh air and exercise while I get to gab it up with my "Mommy friends". On Friday Grant spent several hours playing at a friends house as well. (I tell you what, that kid has come a long way!)

A parade of bikes, scooters, and big wheels on the way to the neighborhood park.

Sophia and her friend, Asher, who she tends to refer to as "You know, that boy I like to play Super Heros with".

So, we are down to just a regular weekend left of Spring Break. Hoping that the time we enjoyed over break will give us the endurance to make it through the last quater of the school year. It won't be long . . .