Sunset BOB Run

Point Isabel: credit

I have been wanting to do a sunset run all week in the worst way. With sunset finally closer to 6pm then 5pm, I hate missing the opportunity of running during this beautiful time of day. There are many advantages to living in the East Bay. Beautiful runs at sunset with a view of the water and Golden Gate Bridget is among my favorite.

Unfortunately, DH has been out of town and baby girl is not very happy around this time of night. She usually goes to bed around 6pm (I know, how lucky are we?) and is too cranky from about 5:30pm on to sit in the stroller.

Last night, though, it was finally too beautiful for me to pass up. 'The baby can make it through a 3-miler', I told myself. I even had my secret baby pleasing weapon with me, a sucker. So, with my fingers crossed, we headed to Point Isabel for some quality scenic time.

Right away, she wasn't too pleased. Warily, I gave her the sucker right at the beginning of the run... usually a sucker buys me at least 20 min of happy baby riding. Baby girl turned into a viper though, and instead of quietly 'sucking' her treat, she chewed the darn thing! I got maybe 10 minutes of peace before she was fretting to get out of there. Sigh.

An apple got me 5 more minutes of peace (to our turn around point) and then there was nothing to do but run back to the car ASAP as she did her best David Copperfield impression to try and get out of the stroller straps. (By the time we were at the car, both arms were free and she was trying to get her legs through the strap at her waist. Not possible, of course, but she was determined!)

Ah well, that's the give-and-take of parenthood. At least I got to enjoy the sunset... even if I did wish I had brought some music with me to drown out the baby complaining.*

*Apologies to all other walkers/joggers/bike riders who had to deal with my fussy baby's noise. My bad.

Tilden Park 'Trail' Run

Yesterday, baby girl and I completed a beautiful 'trail' run in Tilden Park. I qualify 'trail' because, since we had the BOB stroller, we used the paved trail, Nimitz Way.

View from Nimitz Way trail: credit

I'm disappointed in myself for forgetting the camera, since this trail is sooooo beautiful. With DH out of town, though, it's a miracle I managed to get there with baby girl and enough treats to keep her happy during the run!

My original plan was to take baby girl to the Lawrence Hall of Science and wear her out so she would sleep during the run and I could do the full 8 miles of the trail (4 out, 4 back).

Things started out right on target. We had a great time at the Hall of Science. It doesn't hurt that, as a UC Berkeley employee, we got in free! Baby girl was definitely tired and had a great lunch before we headed to the trail. So, I though I was set for a wonderful, peaceful run.

Unfortunately, stubborn baby girl wouldn't fall asleep! I shouldn't have expected otherwise, really. She hasn't fallen asleep in the stroller since she was 4 months old and could sit upright in them. The world is just too exciting and we were in such a beautiful location!

So, my run was peppered with a stream of baby commentary and lost item retrieval (socks, shoes, hat, blanket, sippy cups, and snacks all narrowly avoided being left behind!). Since she was up, I cut the run short to six miles. It was still wonderful to be out on such a beautiful day and in such a wonderful location!

First vs. Second Pregnancy: The First Trimester

Since 'announcing' our pregnancy, many people have been asking me how this pregnancy differs from my first one, if at all. While not very running related, I give you my observations on this pregnancy vs. the first one, so far:

Month1

Month 2

Month 3 

Don't miss the Second Trimester and Third Trimester =)

Pregnant Running: Take 2!

Hey there, little guy/gal!

Yay, I have another baby on the way! Unfortunately, this means I'm officially back to being a preggo runner. This is not my favorite running state. The plus side, for me at least, is that this motivates a return to running blogging!

I have just exited the first trimester (13 weeks, 5 days right now) and already my running is suffering from lack of motivation. First trimester nausea, exhaustion (from the pregnancy and my toddler!) and the short winter days all conspired to keep me from doing much running the last few months. I did get a half marathon in there, at 10 weeks, but it was a 'fingers-crossed' run, not one I was well prepared for =)

Now, with first trimester symptoms subsiding and slightly more daylight, I'm hoping I'll be able to get some quality running in, even if it is at my preggo conversation pace. In any case, I'm happy to be back!