So RUGGED

My sister talked me and my mom into doing a 5K obstacle course mud run, at the time I thought, ok I've got plenty of time to train for this, shouldn't be too bad, I used to run 4-5 miles 6 days a week before getting pregnant with Tinley, I got this! I was wrong. My whole family signed up...Jes, Phillip, Carleton, myself, and my parents. The week before the race I wanted to make sure I could do the full length since I'd been slacking at running to say the least. Running with a stroller is a whole new ball game, as it turns out! And when you've been restricted to walking for 10 months, starting to run again was hard to get back into. Anyway, back to the week before the race. I made Carleton push the stroller and I ran 3 miles or so by myself successfully. Ok, I can TOTALLY do this, from everything I've heard it doesn't feel like you're running as far as you are, and the adrenaline pumps in, you barely have time to think of running between obstacles, again wrong! I made the really (REALLY) stupid mistake of not bringing shoes and just banking on using my sister's when she was done. I didn't want to ruin the one good pair of running shoes I had and therefor totally throw away any motivation to exercise. My friends, Ali and Kristin saw a pair of water shoes by the trash that looked clean and said I should just use them. I thought ok that's kind of gross, but that's a good idea and if they weren't gonna judge me for using shoes by the dumpster, then I wasn't above it;) I put the shoes on and immediately noticed two problems, 1. they fit about 2 inches too big for my feet and 2. one the right shoe the rubber/wirey part that goes through a plastic squeeze thing you tighten had been pulled all the way through without a way (at least apparent to me) to re-lace it. Oh well, they were free and they were shoes, and now I didn't have to wear muddy ones. I grabbed a quick bite of granola bar and instantly regret it. I NEVER eat or drink anything before I run, it completely cramps me up, no matter how little my intake, what was I thinking?! But I was pumped, WAY pumped, when we started. I started running, felt a little crampy instantly but ran through it...then we got to the first obstacle a big clay pit where I lost my shoes, multiple times. I turned around to get one of them when it came completely behind and got stuck under the clay. From then on it was downhill. The shoes were like clown shoes flapping up every step I took, every time I picked my right foot up it would whip my other leg with the loose wire, and I kept getting rocks in my shoes. I'd have to stop, sit down take them out when it got unbearable. I felt bad, really bad, for those running with me. They had on proper shoe attire and I'm sure would've run the whole thing but for me slowing them down. Thanks for not giving up on me, guys! I'm happy to say Carleton and I completed every obstacle, and even happier to say we did it together. He looked so bummed watching lady folk pass him, but he stuck it out with me, what a great hubs I've got. My parents and Jes and Phillip went before us so there would be sitters for the kids. We all ended up with some battle wounds, my mom had a deep gash in her knee, all of us but my dad who wore goggles, knee and elbow pads. I thought he was silly looking at first but after every painful scratch and bruise I got, I seriously could feel every one of them, I was wishing I had some protective pads myself! We looked like we'd been attacked by a dog or something with all the cuts and bruises on our arms, legs, hips...everywhere. I had an engagement shoot that night, but luckily they were Carleton's friends and didn't judge our mutilated appearance! Carleton was ready to do another one as soon as it ended, I was just glad I finished. I'd like to do another one to redeem myself, next time I will take what I've learned (read: good shoes) and apply it! It started to rain when we were waiting to go back to our car, poor Tinley got SOAKED while we were waiting for the buses.  She was such a trooper!  Here are some pictures of the event:


and almost two weeks later my legs: The worst of my injuries was a fairly deep gash on my left ankle (not pictured) and some painful bruises on my right knee and leg, you can't really tell but it was very swollen in those two spots)...and that's not fake tanner on my legs, it's good ole' NC clay staining my legs. I'm happy to say, it's all gone now:)

PLEASE VOTE FOR ME!!!

I entered a video in a contest at Sunset Properties.  My video was selected as a finalist and if I get enough votes, we win an ipad!  Voting starts today (Tuesday, Sept. 4th) and ends Saturday, Sept. 15th you can vote once per day.  Please please PLEASE take just a few seconds each day and vote for me.  I'd appreciate it SO very much!


http://promoshq.wildfireapp.com/website/6/contests/225824/voteable_entries/56650807

 The video is A day at the beach, in case it doesn't go directly there:)

Tinley | 9 months

At 9 months Tinley:

- 17.3 lbs
- 28.25 inches long
- Takes between 4 and 6 steps on her own, but gets too excited and runs/falls forward into waiting arms:/
- Still prefers using fingers to walk around and would be happy doing that 15 hours a day.
- Kisses you on the mouth when you say "kiss"...or sometimes just smacks your mouth with her hands...
- Waves and says "hi" and sometimes "bye" (bah- southern little thing)
- Loves most solid foods, she can down a ton of cheerios! Still opens her mouth really wide for every bite.
- Tries taking the spoon to feed herself, I won't let her.
- Has quite the reach and a very fast spin while laying down or sitting on her bum but the second she gets to her knees she quits.
- Is very good at letting you know if she's done eating, see picture with her head turned down and away.
- Says dada or daddy ALL. THE. TIME.
- Is SOOOO ticklish.
- Has 8 teeth.
- Has the most exquisite fine motor skills (she has for a while, but I never mentioned it). She'll find a single strand of thread that's less than a quarter inch long and pick it up, or things the size of poppy seeds. She's nuts!
- Oh and she's learned how to throw her head back and have little tantrums...punk.

Ugh I'm a slacker!

And a big part of that is because... We bought a house. 

 It needs work, A LOT of work. It started out as a nice home, really...minus a few things. Like some home depot-orange walls, popcorn ceilings, and a pretty blah kitchen. We closed the last Friday in June and the next morning started ripping out the junk (read: carpet tiles with trash and debris covering the entire floor...yuck). We got a text from our realtor saying we hadn't "technically" closed yet, so we shouldn't make any major changes until it was legit. So come July 4th while others were at the pool and beach enjoying time off work, we were tearing out the floor, cabinets, countertops etc. I will be sure to post some before and after pictures, but for now, just sit tight. I'm too busy for that!

Tinley | 8 months

At 8 months, Tinley:

-Has 4 bottom teeth and two upper vampire teeth

-Has grown a bunch of hair, so much that you can't see any of her head

-LOVES to feed herself anything and everything

-Really likes puffs and most fruit and veggies, but not meat (we tried babyfood turkey mixed with veggies and she gagged)

-Still spins and rolls...or whines til you move her to get around, rather than crawling

-She will dig her face into the ground and pull up her knees and move them back and forth like she's crawling, but when she's up on her hands her legs are flat out, she's a nut.

-L-O-V-E-S to walk, if you reach out to pick her up she'll grab your fingers and pull herself up to walk around, which makes for a sore back for everyone who walks her

-Get's really excited to be on daddy's shoulders for a walk, we try to do that most evenings

-Says mama and dada (but mostly mama) a lot mixed with other sounds like nana and baba etc.

-Loves to pout out her bottom lip, suck in her top one, and stick her tongue out making lots of bubbles and sending spit flying.  She's a ham.

-And as always, is absolutely adorable:)

She's the cutest vamp I've ever seen...and that's really saying something, have you seen the cast of Vampire Diaries? Sigh.

7 months

 

At 7 months Tinley... 

has 4 teeth
is trying to crawl (army crawl), but usually gets frustrated so she just spins and rolls
loves to eat anything and everything we give her, especially veggies, cereal, beans, and blueberries
 ...ok everything except chicken and veggies, she kept gagging:/
goes to bed between 8-8:15 and wakes up between 6-6:30
loves the pool and has some crazy cute tan lines on the lines on her ankles from keeping her toes pointed up all the time

is starting to get new hair in to replace her bald/thinned spots, phew!  We call her our little baldy sometimes so it's funny when we meet new people and they say they're so jealous of her hair! It started out so thick, it looks like it'll be that way before we know it though
and she's currently sick:(

6 months

 

At 6 six months Tinley:

Weighs 15.0 lbs (still 50th percentile)

is 26 inches long (dropped from 75th to 50th percentile)
has eaten peas, carrots, spinach, green beans <- jar baby food/adult food ->plain baked potato, watermelon, and apple
drinks water from a sippy cup after long hot walks
has 1 tooth (but got her second 6 days later)
spits her tongue out at you and blows bubbles if you do it first, she'll go back and forth for a while
has had her first sleepover away from mom and dad (at mima and papa's house)
has had her first haircut, her two rattails are gone;(
Anytime you bring a spoon up to eat, if Tinley is sitting in your lap or really close, she opens her mouth the whole way up and looks a little disappointed when it goes to your mouth instead of hers
Had her first kiss (Dean Ririe)
Rolls and spins all over the place
Talks and sings a lot...and it's loud!
 Laughs
Has a fake cough she started doing a lot lately, hopefully it doesn't turn into anything!