Feliz Navidad

It was fun to see Donovan so excited about presents. His grandparents & aunts/uncles surprised him with lots of toys, giving us lots of play time every morning. Santa delivered an awesome balance bike, which he totally loved. The continental cycling development squads might wanna take note.

Theresa and I were telling Donovan of the toys we had when we were kids. We were saying how computers did not exist back then, which prompted him to ask in a very matter-of-fact tone, "how did you check your email?". It was very funny, and a little intimidating too, to see that at 3yrs old, he is aware of the heavy influence of technology on daily life.

Though I was pretty beat down with a serious cold for a few days, the holidays were filled with fun. Yesterday I was putting on clothes to go biking, when Donovan asked if we could go 'swimming'. I thought about it for a half-second, and the number of ZEROs I had already racked up this week because of the nasty cold, and a half-second later, I was stuffing my bag with our swim shorts, towel, snacks, etc. We had an absolute blast in the water, and my butt did not miss the bike seat, not even for one second.

Soggy runnin' mess...

That's what you get when you go running on evenings when it rains moderately hard here in Seattle. As silly as I may have looked last nite, I wore my cycling plastic rain jacket, you know, one of them transparent non-breathing rubbery ones. And while I got mildly wet from the inside out, I was immune to the wind and cold rain, and it made for a nice 45min run. My feet were the only part of me that were cold.

So, if you want to keep PNW weather out, try a cycling rubber cape. In my mind, it is easier to unzip stuff than to try to get wet stuff warm.

'Tis the season...

Been meaning to write this for some days, but have been fairly busy.
'Tis the season. To decorate a tree, and hang stuff around the house. To plan Saturdays around going swimming with Donovan, and workouts around parties.



'Tis the season. To spend time with family and friends, to share a yummy plate of food and drink. We recently had a little get-together at our home, which was an absolute blast. The excellent buffet dinner was provided by my sis-in-law, Chef Christina.


Donovan and the rest of the kids had a ton of fun, as evidenced by the state of the basement post-party. Scott (of NUUN) and Shawn (of Blue Seventy) showcased their babysitting skills, and Donovan asked when they'd be coming back to play....



'Tis the season. To recognize how important are the people in our lives. Not because I don't do it at other times of the year, but it is a good time as any to reiterate it to those present. When the people are gone, they are gone for good, and it really sucks when you start filling your head with "I should have..."s. I really miss Mona, and I'm happy for all the people close to us and that are part of Donovan's upbringing.

'Tis the season. To do unstructured training, and do it for fun. To make sure the energy is renewed and the embers in the tummy stay lit. Many are the days ahead with long hours and constant fatigue.


'Tis the season. Peace.