This little space has been conspicuously running light lately. It’s a little hard to talk about because I miss it SO much. I am still trying to heal from another injury and I feel very impatient. I have spent a few weeks hoping that resting it will help (and it has…..a little). But now I have decided to change course and hit recovery hard with all the things I can think of to do.

https://blog.mapmyrun.com/12-ways-to-make-a-comeback-with-runners-knee/

Meanwhile, these two are loving morning snuggles.

We spent the morning getting ready for our camping trip.

Then we had some friends over for a play date.

The kids helped me put together this snack board and were very excited to share it with their friends.

___________________________________________________________

Anyone come back from runner’s knee? All advice appreciated!

My day was full with these nuts

• 

• 

• 

I have completely lost the habit of taking pictures throughout the day and always wish I had taken more, so now I need to slow down and take more pics. Part of the issue right now is that Emmy is rarely wearing pants, she is a new potty trainer and it’s often easier just to let her run around in undies.

We did our usual playground with friends in the morning, this one included a splash pad so that was good.

We then grabbed ice cream and met Cory at his work. The kids have been missing him so much now that he is at the office so much. We drove by where he works on our way to the playground and Emmy said “that’s where daddy lives”.

While visiting Cory one of his coworkers mentioned how bad the air was and that she never exercises outside when the AQI is above 120. She is a very good athlete so I figure it’s a good rule to follow.

She shared that she uses purple air which I will be using to monitor our air quality.

We spent the afternoon camped out at the pool, squeezing all the summer we can into what’s left!

Dinner at home then the bedtime hustle which is always too late and we REALLY need to improve on before school starts!

Reading with Cannon is one of my greatest joys.

__________________________________________________________________________

How is your air this summer?

In a weird turn of events I actually needed a sweatshirt in the morning after four inches of rain fell overnight.

Even though we will be back to highs in to 90s a slight chill in the morning is a reminder of the change of seasons that is coming. I am really hoping I will be back out and running soon so I can enjoy fall mornings out running they are my favorite.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Some favorite fall runs….

The weather turned around so we got the bounce house out for the kids while Cory and I did some yard work.

The kids enjoyed some ice cream cones.

We attempted to watch Harry Potter but the kids decided that playing with trains was better.

______________________________________

Do your kids like Harry Potter?

What season is your favorite? Summer is my favorite season in general, but my favorite running season is Fall.

It’s Back to School time and striving to enjoy the last weeks of summer as much as possible time.

Cannon starts school on August 18th and Emmy starts shortly after on the 24th. While we are trying to get everything organized, prepared and scheduled I am also trying to be very present and enjoy these last few weeks of summer together. This includes:

• Less screen time
• More time outside
• More time at the pool
• visiting as many playgrounds as possible
• One last camping trip (we will still camp during the school year but we will have to go for shorter trips around Cannon’s school schedule)
• Enjoy the slow mornings while we can!

Lot’s of time will also be spent getting organized, packing backpacks, picking out first day of school clothes, taking pictures and trying not to cry.

My goals for August are to:

• Create a list of things we want to do and create a schedule
• Get in a routine of getting up early to exercise
• Help the kids transition to school as best I can
• Plan fun meals and activities for their first days of school

July was amazing and fast and I just want to go back to relive all of it!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

**Except for getting sick, I could go without

I LOVE a fresh new month, what are you looking forward to?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/olympics/2021/07/31/track-and-field-nails-hair/

I personally love athletes expressing themselves and bringing whatever makes them feel best to the games. Anyone have something they wear to race that makes them feel confident? I like to have a bracelet that I wear all through my training that reminds me of all the work I have done on race day.

As for us we are up to our summer time favorites:

Going to the carwash and hanging in the third row while I vacuum out their cracker encrusted car seats.

We then hit up the “barnyard park” not the true name, just what Cannon calls it.

• 

• 

It’s a fun park and we are enjoying these last few weeks of summer as much as we can.

This swing reminds of playing in Munich.

2019 babies, making me miss international travel.

Where will you go first when it is safe to travel again?

Just in case no one has told you, tomorrow is Harry Potter’s Birthday.

It’s a perfect day for us to settle in for a movie marathon since we are under a flood warning.

I mean, the kids probably won’t let us get away with that, but we can dream.

Hope everyone is staying safe!

Here are some of my favorite untold stories from my phone:

I love this picture of Cannon with Humphry, telling me how it is…

Humphry waiting for the bus in Aspen.

• 

• 

• 

How expressive Emmy is!

Cannon doing great at this 5 year well check.

Feeling shocked that our grocery store already has Halloween items out.

The kids cheering for Cory after he finished his gravel bike race.

Finding all the rocks to climb on, I LOVE the mountains in the summer.

Celebrating Cory’s race.

Appreciating this cyclist’s superstition and pinning his 13 on upside down.

Finding new to us playgrounds.

Here’s to getting as many adventures in as possible in what we have left of summer!

I posted a fews days ago about our Occasion Bins and wanted to share our back to school bins since one of our favorite shops is having a great sale.

The bins are far from done but we are gathering items as they roll in.

These are bento boxes from Stuck on You that we love (they are having a 25% off sale now). We have had the smaller bento box snack size boxes for two years now and they look like new! They are perfect for little fingers to be able to open on their own and the kids love getting to pick the theme.

This year we got Cannon the large bento box for this year because he will be at school for a full day. We also bought him the cooler but it’s still on it’s way.

A few other small shops we love are Chalk Designs by ME that made the shelf sign and Pearl and Jane made the garland.

• 

• 

We are adding their required supplies plus some fun extras like books and chalk boards.

It’s no secret that we LOVE to hike.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

One hike that we go back to many times is Lily Lake near Estes Park.

One of the reasons we love it is that it is super family friendly and very accessible. Cory even “hiked” around the lake right before he had his achilles repaired.

• 

• 

The kids were just 1 month and 23 months old at the time. He did push the stroller all the way around the lake in a walking boot.

If you are feeling more adventurous you can hike up around the mountain and add on many more miles depending on what you are looking for. The kids love the upper route because you get to scramble on rocks and have amazing views from the top.

This trail is technically in Rocky Mountain National Park but outside the gates so you don’t need to pay an entry fee.

There are bathrooms at the trail head but unfortunately dogs are not allowed past the parking lot.

We loved our visit this past weekend and were discussing how this would be the perfect place to start snowshoeing with the kids.

What’s one of your favorite hikes?

Timothy Olson set the men’s FKT for the PCT….

Timothy Olson Sets the Men’s Supported Pacific Crest Trail FKT

Running for almost 52 days averaging over 50 every single day….can you imagine? I can’t, I can barely imagine running 50 miles on one day.

I loved this news from Pink, and really hope that this publicity causes the rules for women’s “uniform” in sport to be evaluated.

I have always loved the Olympics and held them in high esteem, some news lately has me questioning the ethics of the IOC but we are still enjoying routing for Team USA and hoping for the very best for all the athletes.

Are you watching the Olympics? If so what is your favorite sport to watch?