My Lil' Fashion Plate

Tired?

It's My Birthday!

And in addition to a couple of fabulous presents, Marc, Charlie, Sandy and Lullabelle got me these.  It was a pretty great way to start off my next year.

Thanksgiving 2010

And boy, do we have a lot to be thankful for this year!  And this year, we once again celebrated all the good in our lives by gathering with our family at my aunt's home in Macon.  Marc's parents joined us this year to make it a special first Thanksgiving for Charlie.

  

Charlie was all decked out in his turkey day finest to celebrate his first thanksgiving.

What you don't see is the Gobble, gobble on the bottom of the sock.  SO cute!

The cousins all played together - even on the Nintendo DS.

 And since my birthday was two days later, it was most appropriate to celebrate me!

Grandma Dot and Papa Kirby love it when all the grandboys get together.

And just an aside - what is Bowen doing? I only noticed as I was posting, not when I took the picture. 

 And it isn't Thanksgiving in Macon without lots and lots of family pictures - here are a few

Charlie and his grandparents

The McDonalds

When the sisters get together, they don't stop laughing.

 But, of course, Charlie was the star of the day.  And, along with the doggies, for what we are most thankful!

Watching the Buckeyes Play

Charlie has begun to notice the television.  I guess that means no more Walking Dead or Sons of Anarchy when he's awake!  But Marc did take the opportunity to watch the Buckeyes play this past weekend and begin to teach Charlie all about college football.

Three Months!

Marc's Dating Advice for Charlie

Naughty or Nice?

Charlie met with Santa this weekend.  He asked for more milk, some solid naps, diapers, wipes and fun bath toys.  Since he's been a good boy, I think his chances of racking up on gifts this year are pretty positive.

Family at Ironman

One of the benefits of Ironman being in Florida is that family could come watch.  My mom and Dad joined us, as did Marc's parents and several of his relatives.  Of course, Charlie was the real star of the weekend!

Charlie and Mimi (Marc's Paternal Grandmother)

Charlie and Judy (Marc's Cousin)

Charlie, Judy and Denise (Marc's Father's Sister)

Charlie, Judy and Alec (Marc's Cousin)

Misc. Ironman Shots

The line to check in two days before the race.  It was beyond ridiculous.  From this point the wait was at least two hours.

Charlie asleep in the Baby Bjorn

Ironmen

I'll never be an Ironman, but am proud to be an Ironmate.

Telling us about his two flat tires

Charlie's Raceday Outfit

The Mass Start for the Swim

And Marc's neck from the wetsuit.  (I'll spare you the underarm shot!)

Charlie and Grandma Dot waiting for Marc to run by

Marc's mom waiting to see him run by, too

Marc and his dad after the race



Ironman in Videos

Ironman - The Finish!

Marc finished Ironman Florida in 14 hours, 46 minutes.  It was a rough day for him.  He was well trained and ready for anything.  But it was cold and windy this weekend, with lows in the upper 30s and highs in the 50s.  And his wetsuit tore.  He swam anyway but the tear rubbed him raw.  And he had two flat tires on the bike course.  (Both were the back tire, which is evidently the hardest to change.) Marc had two spare tubes but then was fearful that he would get a third flat and be out of the race.  And then on the run he started to hurt, and it got COLD.

But he finished.  And I couldn't be prouder.

Ironman - Bike and Run

Once you don your bike gear, a volunteer gets your bike ready to go.  Check out Marc in his helmet!

So after 112 mile on the bike, the Ironman will run 26.2 miles.  We were fortunate that we were staying in a condo that was very close to the race site base.  And this run course was another loop, so Marc ran 13.1 miles twice.  The condo's parking lot was right at mile thirteen, so we got to see Marc as he started the run. . .

. . .finished the first loop. . . 

. . .and began the second.



Ironman - It Begins

The Ironman begins with a 2.4 mile swim. That means 2500 folks swimming in the chilly ocean at the same time. 

The athletes go out, swim around some buoys and then head back to shore.

And they have to do it twice - the swim is actually two 1.2 mile loops.

It was hard to find Marc in the sea of wetsuits and swim caps - everyone looks the same. But I did get this shot of him (lower left) as he headed back out for his second loop.

After the swim is complete, the athletes run up and volunteers help take the wetsuits off.  Then they go and change for the 112 bike ride. . .