The Marathoning Kocubinskis

It was only about 5 or 6 years ago that Matt would say "There is no reason to run unless someone is chasing you."  Boy have times changed.  He's a very active guy and needs to do something physical to burn off energy several days a week, but he has never been a fan of the gym.  Before having kids, he would go hiking.  He still does sometimes (though not as often as he'd like), but hiking takes a pretty good chunk out the day and he didn't want to spend that much time away from us (awww), so he picked up running because it was a good cardio workout that he could do anytime, anywhere for any amount of time.  And now here it is, fall of 2012 and he recently ran his 3rd marathon.  He got to run this year with his sister Julia, who now has 2 marathons under her belt.  They both finished in their best times yet and felt pretty good when they were finished.   Sue also came to town to hang out with us and watch her two very athletic children run 26.2 miles. 

The kids showing some love

Matt at about the halfway point

I still can't believe she was smiling after 11+ miles.

Finished!

Ready to go out for a celebratory dinner

Sue the proud mom

While Sue and Julia were here, we also took advantage of one of the beautiful fall days to take the kids to fly a kite at a park near our house.  The kids had fun in spite of the fact that we weren't all that successful at kite flying.

We had a great time and I was so happy to see Matt and Julia do so well at something they had trained for so long.  Maybe next year we'll be able to see them complete the NY Marthon.  Stay tuned.

Another First

Well, last week was another busy one.  The biggest event of the week was Max's first day of preschool.  I still can't get over how fast time is going.  My darling boy confidently walked into his new school like he owned the place.  I was so proud of him!  We were lucky because we got to meet most of his classmates and their parents at the Teddy Bear Parade in Gresham the Saturday before school started.  All the kids got their hair done by Gwyn of Pengwyn's Salon, so their theme was penguins.  The kids had a blast!  Max rode his tricycle and Evelyn walked with me.  Then we had lunch in a park nearby with all the kids.  I really liked everyone and Max's teacher is great.  We are very happy that we found his little school.

Max riding in the Teddy Bear Parade!

I was trying to get Evelyn to smile and wave.  She waved.

Max and his penguin

The whole crew

Evelyn and her fancy hairdo.  I wish I could have Gwyn do her hair every day.

Cool dude

Ready to go to school!

Happy as usual

Off he went!

After bringing Max home from school, I took off for Seattle for the night to see MADONNA with Sue, Julia and Sue's friend Mary.  It was a great show!  I was even able to stay awake past midnight to enjoy it.  Ha! Ha!  The next morning we all headed back to Portland because Julia was going to be running in the Portland Marathon with Matt (more on that later).  I also have to give a shout out to my mom who drove all the way up here for a very quick trip in order to stay with the kids while Matt worked and I got my concert on.  Thanks Mom!!   

Julia and I waiting for the show to start

On the rooftop of our hotel downtown Seattle

Performing 'Like a Prayer'

Vogue!!!

Madonna showing her support

It was a VERY fun (Madonna!) and bittersweet (Max growing so fast!) week.  Our fall fun continues...

                                                                                                                                                                               

A New Place to Play

I've come to realize that Portland is a city full of treasures that are just waiting to be discovered.  I don't think we'll ever experience all the the fun and exciting things the city has to offer, but we're sure having a blast trying.  The most recent gem we visited was discovered by my friend Meadowlark as she was looking for somewhere to have a play date with our kids.  It's a beautiful park called Leach Botanical Gardens that is so close to our house that I'm surprised we've hadn't discovered it before.  It's right in the city, but is so peaceful and quiet you feel you're out in the country.  Max, Evelyn, and friends Brady, Ashton and Blake had so much fun running on the trails and exploring the park.  We sat at some benches near a giant stone hearth.  It's hard to describe, but I can say it was absolutely beautiful.

The boys hanging out in the hearth

Having a blast running through the woods

Snack time!

Cottage in the woods

Brady was cracking Evelyn up!

Silly kids

We're looking forward to having more play dates there.  The kids had so much fun and I have a feeling there is much more of that place to discover!

Running in to Fall

My favorite season has arrived!!!  Today is officially the first day of autumn, but our new traditional fall kick-off is when Matt does the Warrior Dash race.  It's a hard-core 5k filled with obstacles that ends with a mud pit covered in barbed wire and jumping through fire.  Matt is a pro and loves it.  And after the race is over, there is a band and giant turkey legs for the runners to enjoy.  This was Matt's third year doing it.  Maybe I'll be joining him next year.  We'll see...

Future Warrior

Waiting for Daddy to race

My boys

The kids having a little sword fight while we were waiting for Matt to finish

Unfortunately, my camera battery died before I could get some pics of him finishing and going through the barbed wire and fire, but I did get a shot of the end result on my phone.

Finished, filthy, and exhausted

Matt is also currently training for his third marathon.  One of our other new traditions is for the kids and I to meet him at the Saturday market downtown after he finishes his long runs.  There are fountains there that the kids love to run in  and Matt enjoys sitting and relaxing with a Rogue beer when he's finished.  The summer temps stuck around for most of September, so the kids got a few extra weeks of weather warm enough to play in the water.

Matt has been running quite a bit, but at least we can all have fun with it as a family.  I can't wait to see him and Julia finish the Portland Marathon in a couple of weeks!  Pretty soon we're going to run out of space for all his medals.  He's an extraordinary guy!

Musings of a "Non-Working" Mother

Over the span of my childhood, I wanted to grow up to become (in no particular order) a doctor, veterinarian, ballerina, environmental lawyer, oceanographer, President, or movie star.  As I went into college, I decided to dive into the world of forensics.  And for the record, this was BEFORE CSI came on tv.  At first I wanted to focus on psychology, then ultimately decided on anthropology.  Never once did I ever see myself as a stay-at-home mom.  I wasn't even 100% sold on the idea of having kids.  I wanted to be self-sufficient.  My parents were adamant about my brother and I getting a good education so we could provide for ourselves, and I had no plans to do anything but that.  Even when I met the man of my dreams and knew we would have kids some day,  I still continued on to grad school with a kick-ass career on my mind.  Not working was never an option for me.

Fast forward to 2007.  I was finished with grad school, Matt was finished with nursing school and we got married and moved to Portland.  The plan was for me to put my MA to good use and find a job and Matt would work for a year or two before attending OHSU to get his degree in Nurse Anesthesiology.  But those plans didn't quite pan out.  I was having no luck on the quest for a perfect job and discovered I was pregnant with Max.  SURPRISE!  I gave up on the career hunt and decided to stay with my current employer, REI, since I had such great health insurance.  And in spite of the fact that it wasn't my dream job, it was a great company to work for and I was content there.  But after Max was born something changed.  While I was happy to be working again after my leave, I discovered I missed him terribly.  I cut back to 30 hours a week, but still no longer felt content.  My income barely covered the cost of childcare.  After several months, it became evident that to handle my workload, I needed to work 40 hours a week.  I had to make a choice: either work more, or let them hire someone who could give more time to the job.  I walked away and never looked back.

So here I am now.  A proud stay-at-home mom of two smart, healthy, beautiful kids.  I'm a little ashamed to admit I always looked down my nose on women who were "just" moms.  But as I began my journey into parenthood, I met many other moms who were smart, fashionable, active, and think for themselves.  I have yet to see a pair of mom jeans.  Nobody drives a mini van.  God help me, I'm the only one who wants a mini van (they're so practical!) and I get strange looks whenever I mention it to my mom friends.  I still get a bit self-conscious when someone asks me what I do.  But I am slowly getting over the need to inform people that I have an MA after telling them I'm a mom.  I am proud of what I do, and I know that staying home with the kids has been great for all of us.  Matt will be going back school in the next couple of years and I'll have to go back to work then, but I know I'll never regret taking this time to be at home with our kids.

What I've come to realize is this.  Being a mom is never easy.  Our choices are never easy.  I know women who went back to work full time after having kids.  Some love it, some wish they didn't have to.  I know women who walked away from great careers to stay home with their kids.  I know women who went back part-time.  We all have feelings of guilt whether its because we feel we're not at home enough or because we feel we're not contributing enough financially.  The thing is, we have to do what's best for ourselves and our families and we need to stop judging each other for the choices we make.  I don't call myself a full-time mom because ALL moms are full-time moms.  It's not easy work and we all need to be supportive of each other.  And that's my two cents for the day.

My current employers.  I can't think of any better reason to take a few years off work.