Return To Bradbury Mountain...

With slightly cooler weather on Saturday morning, and thinking that the boys needed a different walk and that they could be in the car for longer - we decided to head to Bradbury Mountain, outside of Freeport, Maine. It's been awhile since we were all there and we have been on and off since we first came to Maine - though we have never run around it (hopefully that will change soon...). It's a popular destination for mountain bikers from the Portland area, and has many trails for hiking and trail running. While it's called a mountain, it more like a rather large hill, though it does offer stunning views back towards Freeport and the Atlantic from the top.

So off we set towards the top, which doesn't take too long since we decided not to take the longer Boundary trail this time. Kiltie was doing his level best to 'reclaim' the mountain as his patch with much marking, though Sammy is nearly as prolific these days too. We nearly saw a mountain biker come a cropper - but he regained his composure and made the steep descent with ease.

Rafi, was enjoying being carried by Al, watching the dogs and seemingly being content as we recalled previous visits - and at the top we stopped for a few photographs before heading back down the way we came. Kiltie and Sammy seemed to love being back on the trails and Rafi again was content as we navigated down some slippery slopes back towards the car park. What a lovely Saturday morning, with family in nature...

Then and Now...

Then...





And now... yes, I bought the same outfit but in a much bigger size :)

2 Steps...

Raf took his first steps today. Both Rich and I were there to see them, but he didn't totter over to us... no! One of our favourite people came to lunch today and somehow managed to coax Raf to take some steps. Joel was brandishing a little tea candle, and Raf was just desperate to get his mitts on it! It was all very exciting. Below is a photo of the moment just preceding those little steps... He took more later that afternoon and he was incredibly happy with himself. What a wonderful day...

And we also had a lovely time with our friend, Joel.

Teething and Shots

Raf is currently dealing with the dreaded first year molars. He's in a lot of pain, poor baby. I am kicking myself for not yet ordering an amber necklace, which are meant to be really helpful, so teething tablets and baby medicine are what we have.. and, oh, cuddles, too. Sleep is interesting right now, and this morning I was so tired (a week with 7 or 8 wakings) that Rich took Raf downstairs at 6ish (I'm usually up by then) and I slept until after 7:30am. This is very unusual! Boy, I am hoping these teeth come through soon. As I type Raf is asleep on me.. let's hope he catches up on his disrupted sleep.

Added to the teeth, Raf has a vax yesterday at his one year check up. We've been quite anxious about his jabs and have been getting them done slowly... We caught up on one yesterday but we put off the MMR. The link between that and autism is pretty much discredited, but you can't help but think 'what if...'. On the other hand these are horrible illnesses. Measles can be quite dangerous, and mumps can leave little boys sterile, so we are planning on getting it... Any words of wisdom would be welcome!

Here are the stats from yesterday:

Weight: 22 pounds 8 oz (around 43rd percentile)
Length: 30 inches (around 50th percentile)
Head: 19.5 inches (yes, huge! 100th percentile!)

He looks much bigger than he is, I think, as people often comment on how big he is yet he's only around the 50th percentile, so quite average :) My guess is that it's the head!!!!

Finally, here are a few pics from our photo session a couple of weeks ago. We went and picked some prints out yesterday (blew the budget, of course), but they were very sweet! What can you do... ?

3 things.

1) We have found a nanny!

2) Raf says 'ball' (ba) and today he said 'bye-bye' (bi bi) and waved as Jess left.

3) Raf rolled off the bed last night.. poor baby.

Chariot.

I've already mentioned that Rich and I are training for some multi-sport events. I have a tri and Rich has a duathlon coming up. Finding time to train for these isn't easy, but we're trying to be supportive of one another because it really feels important to everyone that we have something else to focus on - outside of work - otherwise it would be easy to be consumed by Raf. That wouldn't be a bad thing, perhaps, but I do think I might go a bit bonkers.. so, to preempt that we're making the time to run, bike, and swim - though swimming is hard to do.

We're mostly able to do as much as we do because of our beloved Chariot. This is a run stroller that can run, walk, hike, and, with the right attachments, it can be used as a bike trailer and as a ski-stroller. Seriously, you can by a ski adapter and x.c ski or snowshoe. Now this cost more - much more - than my first second hand car(!), but it's been totally worth it. We do most of our runs together - all three of us - and at least a bike ride or two a week. Biking is quite nerve wracking, though, as you have to ride on the road to get to some nearby trails. Until yesterday I would be the one to pull Raf (who is by no means a lightweight!), and Rich would ride behind us, making sure cars didn't come near us. That was my job last night and this morning... and I felt like a mama-bear protecting her little cub.

Tuesday mornings are our favourite session (are they yours, Rich?). On most Tuesdays we're out the door by 6-6:30am to run intervals around the block. We warm up by pushing the stroller and then, as one of us runs an interval, the other person walks with Raf... and then we swap. We really get an excellent workout this way, and it's efficient. The other fav is our long run on the trail. Raf usually falls asleep, but by the time we reach the end he usually wakes up and we take a dip in Otter Pond.

Today I wanted to get a long ride in on my bike, but I didn't fancy like being out for 3 hours without Raf, so we headed out all together for 22 miles. Raf LOVED it.. he would laugh and wave every time I rode next to him. When we all arrived home I headed out on my own for 90 minutes to make for a nice 50 mile bike ride.

I spliced a couple of clips together...



This is a picture of the first time we used the Chariot... we ran round the block and the wheel fell off! We actually caught it on film, which i'm sure I'll get around to posting one day. It was quite funny.


Yesterday we got another connector for Rich's bike so that he was able to pull Raf. It was very nice just riding beside them, I tell you!




Raf loves the Chariot... he often sleeps in there, but today, whilst I rode beside him when I could, he laughed and smiled and waved every time he saw me!

Where have we been?!

Gah, it's been a week since I posted any thing.. Life is very busy, and, oddly, it seems even more busy than when I';m at work full-time.. We have so much going on and it's hard not to feel the absence of family who might be able to help out here or there. But, it's all good, in spite of the stress... so, WHAT have we been up to?!

1) We've been 'enjoying' something of a heatwave this past 2-3 weeks, which means that we've been spending quite a bit of time at the lake - both Sebago Lake (where we got married) and Otter Pond, a beautiful pond near to our house.



2) I'm training for a triathlon and Rich is planning on a duathlon. I'm wearing so many hats these days - from mama to department chair - and I sometimes have the sense that my life will revolve around meeting needs, so this is something I do in the hope of creating a little more balance. Frankly it's hard to find the time, and it causes its own brand of stress, but it's totally worth the sacrifices for both of us, and we manage to take Raf in the stroller and trailer at least 3-5 times a week so that we 'train' as a family. Raf loves the running/cycle trailer, which is very good news! This evening we rode to the lake and I had a quick dip but had to come home because a thunder storm was brewing... Raf LOVES to be in the water (did I write about his swim class?), and when I say 'kick those feet' he really seems to know to kick them as he lies on his tummy.

3) We are in the process of searching for a new nanny... Sigh. Jen is BRILLIANT and we absolutely adore her but the nanny share we're currently doing is a bit stressful. We share Jen with another couple who have a son Raf's age, but we have to drive to their house and its a long way away, so we're going to hire someone to come to our house. We're not ready - and I don't think Raf is - for Raf to be in a daycare type setting. We're interviewing a few people this week....

4) Jess our other baby-sitter (who also does some cleaning once a week) is working out great. She is very good with Raf and he is getting to new and different people. Rich and I have yet to really take advantage of the bit of time we have as we're always playing catch up with chores... or we go for a bike ride :)

5) On Sunday we had Raf's first year pics taken. We went to Pineland farm and spent a lovely sunny morning with the photographers who took his newborn shots. Trying to organize outfits was not easy! Can't wait for the proofs.

6) It's summer.. it's Tour de France time! Only a week left, but nothing is more summery to us than three weeks of cycling.