Still here...

...and making a renewed effort to post. Yes, there has been almost a two year break since my last post, and so many things have happened. Let's see if I can briefly catch you up with my life over the last two years:

*David did get better, we didn't know what it was, we think it was a very mild form of West Nile Virus. He is currently at summer camp, preparing for his last year at St. Joe's as an 8th grader.

*Mackenzie and I got into a minor car accident in late September of 06. It messed up my training schedule and the marathon I was scheduled for in November of 06 became a half- marathon. Fortunately, Mackenzie came away completely unscathed.

*I continued training for my marathon through winter 06/07. Damn hard to do in Idaho when the high for the day is 8.

* Keith's grandmother passed away in mid-February 07, about three weeks before the marathon. Keith went down to be with his Mom for a few days.

*That is also about the time I began dealing with an absolutely miserable case of plantar fascitiis in my right foot. I coddled it, talked to my physical therapist, iced it every day, and severely cut back on training -- I was in taper mode anyway.

*We went to the L.A. Marathon because I knew my body was ready, I just needed to see if I could get my foot to cooperate. It did, until mile 12. I may post about the actual day in some future post, but for now, let's just say it wasn't how I had envisioned my 40th birthday. The next nine months were spent getting my foot back to a place where I wasn't doing the 'grandpa' shuffle every time I walked. Lots of physical therapy, custom orthotics, and a couple of cortisone shots later, I'm pain free, but extremly cautious.

*My dad passed away in June 07. We were long estranged and found out from the only family on my dad's side that we still have a relationship with. The story was kind of in pieces, and I made the decision to fly to Zacatecas to pay my respects to my dad's siblings. My brother didn't go with me, his choice. I am very glad I went and had a chance to catch up with family. But the event was fraught with high drama that I am now glad has passed.

*Keith was kicking around the idea of selling his business. Then, he got an offer. A really good offer. Within three weeks of the final offer, the sale closed and the little blueprint shop was no longer ours by the end of September 07. Considering everything currently going on in the housing market and credit crunch, the timing could not have been more perfect for us. He took some time off before looking for a new job, and hung out at home, drove the kids to school, chaperoned a couple of field trips, met more of the kids' friends, and had time to work on his health. He has just gone back to work, as an area manager for an HR company. He likes it so far.

*I had stopped running because of the pain. But as soon as I could, I started back up again, with the extra 30 pounds I had previously lost. Boy that extra weight sure makes it harder! If I don't have a goal, I don't run. So I chose possibly the hardest thing I could, the Race to Robie Creek in mid-April. Billed as the toughest half marathon in the Northwest, I won't dispute the title. I trained for it, cautiously, and while I did not set a land speed record with my time, I finished it, earned my technical tee (which looks just like the first place guy's tee) and the bragging rights that come with running up and down that mountain. The 30 pounds are still here.

So here I am, with my family. Blessed that we're all here, safe and sound. Glad to be back.