2020 – June 08 – Checkin’ In – Lucas McLaurin – Sherpa #4 joins us (4/28/2020)

Introducing Sherpa # 4 – Lucas McLaurin – arrived 04/28/2020 at 23:42 MDT

Checkin’ IN!!!

Arrival of Lucas – April 28, 2020

So, after Liz scheduled her induction for the upcoming Friday, Lucas McLaurin decided to change that timeline. More or less here’s a quick story of the lead up:

Liz’s water broke at approx 7:30 pm on April 28th. Liz called out to mewith vigor, as I was about to gather Juniper and Astrid for a 5 k run in our double-seat Bob jogger. Well, at 11:42 pm Lucas McLaurin, a hungry and healthy little boy foiled his Friday induction plans. Weighing in at 7 lbs 4 Oz and measuring 18.5 inches (which I think was way off, but ok), with some minor bruising and an endurance minded pulse. Liz is healthy and recovering, Lucas is seemingly healthy. Grateful for all the well wishes, and we truly are grateful for a wonderful blessing amid the unprecedented strangeness of current times. Our hearts and home is full.

So, Sherpa #4 (Lucas) decided to show up and we have been crazy keeping up. Gratefully I am able to use 20 business days of paternity leave from my company. It’s a great benefit. Further given it is Covid19 season, it’s a wonderful distraction. We have been vigilant in keeping him growing. Helping him through his UV Light light experience due to high bilirubin counts.

All suited up for his U/V light sessions

He’s been a treat. Dennis, Juniper and Astrid have all become enamored with him! We will see just how long that lasts. I am happy to report on June 8, that they all still love him. Ya, its taken me awhile to get this post out the door.

May 20, 2020

Right after we got Lucas home. Due to Covid19 protocols, the kidlets couldn’t come to the hospital, so this is them meeting Lucas McLaurin.

So after 3 weeks, Lucas is here, he is progressing, and growing and pooping, and eating and pooping and eating. He has 3 siblings that adore him so far and a sleepless Momma and Daddy hanging in there the best we can. Despite the challenges with the Covid19 protocols and restrictions, many have reached out and supplied meals (social distancing norms followed) and we have received plenty of gifts for Mr. Lucas. We are grateful for a relatively straight-forward and uneventful delivery. Liz I am sure is grateful to her anesthesiologist and his understanding of chemistry ! Grateful to Dr. Noorda and the many other attending nurses in the Logan Regional hospital and its ‘Newborn’ wing. Things were great for us. We were grateful that I was able to be there, and that the nursery was available for the little sleep and recovery/relief that Liz got while I was trying to handle the kidlets at home. Grateful to the friends that were able to step in as we all trust and respect each other in our diligence and application of kindness, tolerance and not being idiots during a pandemic.

There is a lot to update here. Every time I sit down to post something here, I get pulled into chaos.

Example #1:

Decided to transform front yard, add brick work, landscape paper and mulch.

Example #2:

The plumbing in Dennis’ bathroom caused a redo of his closet

So here I am again and I will attempt to catch up. Needless to say, my work outs have been a bit sporadic with all the stress and sleep deprivation, but I can’t control much of that. So I am not dwelling on that, I will dwell on what I can control.

Refocus on training

This has been a bit of a challenge. Albeit welcomed, the new dynamics of our growing family will take time. In all honesty I anticipate that the Ironman St. George event that was delayed and postponed until September 19th, will ultimately be delayed one more time. This whole year of 2020 has been unprecedented and unique to the generations living. Many in the USA were not prepared for something like this. In all honesty, had I not begun re-framing my own mind, I think Liz and I may have fallen prey to being unprepared as well. However, with all the head-space and other dynamics that have occurred since that moment in a plane in 2013, here we are. My training is less than perfect, but I have been focusing on the simple things and getting into a good base.

Stress of 4 kidlets

We are in the throws of identifying how this circus will be with 4 kiddos. So far, there have been great days, basic days and days we almost come off the rails. What does that mean? We are normal. We are each trying to be better, well at least Liz and I. We are grateful for Dennis. He is a brilliant 14 y/o boy who is entering high school of some form this year. Juniper just has a joy and zest for life and we hope to not break or destroy that. Astrid is our female brute, she is an explosive mix of Dennis and Juniper – Did I mention explosive. Lucas is well, he’s about 6-ish weeks old now and, we still don’t know what we are doing other than our best.

Life without swim

I guess this is the hardest part of all things Covid and new kidlet in the household. The local gym I use thanks to Liz working for trade in the kid’s club had to close to align itself with State of Utah recommendations and guidelines. To that end, no pool time. The local OWS options were still too cold. In the mean time, i have bought new Roka R1 Swim Goggles and I also picked up an SLs3 Swim buoy. I think Liz sees it more than me, I am just doing my best to get needed things done and help here where she normally gets to things while I am working. Being on Paternity has allowed me to focus more on her and the kids, but that paternity has come and gone now. Yes I started the post long ago and am just now getting to it. Overall, I learned after my first 70.3 event, to not disrespect the swim. Along the way. It has become my “sanctuary” where I can just go and let all things melt away as it were. It’s become a great this is just what I do 3-4 times a week. With Liz trying to determine if she will go back to the club and that will determine what I need to do to try and keep up the swimming. i have access to OWS now and will start focusing on that but that is at least 40 minutes or so to get ready and get to the water and then the same to get home. Not to mention the fun of if there is enough parking etc. It just makes things more entertaining trying to get thing normalized for this training cycle.

Finishing cycle block

Before Lucas showed up I was in a good cycling block. I have wasted away from good. I have switched to running but let’s stop here and talk about cycling. I am liking the trainer. What I have noticed on the Rouvy stuff is that it is quite literal in its interpretation of data. So, if I import a file and am riding that, and I had a hard stop for a quick break outdoors – then when I am riding that file and I hit that point I go from normal resistance to 100 percent. Those hard and abrupt stops have surprised me. Other than that I really like the technology and the platform. With all the recent changes of Strava and stuff, I am liking this platform. So, I was grooving really goo getting 3-4 rides in and getting my legs back. Time to get back into the groove and get 1 hour rides where I can. I like a few of the rides and I was using those as baselines to monitor and get my legs back and also incorporate strength and endurance build ups.

Begin running base

I have been really getting back into runs. I just ordered and got my fave shoes back, and they feel great and need to have a break in run – tonight. MEN’S WAVEKNIT™ C1 RUNNING SHOE (Mizuno Official Link) — here is a runnersworld review.

I have a lot of general miles on my On Running shoes, I tend to use the CloudFlow and love the shoe. I just want to go back to a sturdy shoe. I have been really running slow and trying to stay back in and under zone 2. So far it is paying off, as I am quite fatigued with all the unanticipated stress of the new family dynamic. I mean I knew it was coming, but didn’t know what it truly meant. It just means tired. Like tired, a lot. IT also means a tired wife.

But my runs and building back base have been good. I have had a few places where I add in a solid effort and I have seen great pulses of life occur, and not on downhills. I have come to like a specific running route. I also added a big change heading up a hill all the way up to the mouth of Dry Canyon.

Here’s the link: First ‘long” run in some time. And so it comes back…

SO, I will keep going slow, loading in the builds and try to get to Ironman Marathon strength by September 19. It seems daunting sure, but i will just put my head down and hope it all comes together through the hard work I anticipate putting in.

Life is beautiful

You know. With all the affairs of the world, from pandemic, to riots, to social and media agitations, if we take a little Ferris Bueller’s Day Off advice and slow down:

So to that end, I have really been concentrating on that. These quotes have really resonated with me during that time:

With all that is going on, I see so many folks just getting caught up in the agitation. It is especially raw at times in social media circles. But in truth, I told a friend that the only difference between real life and social media is volume and frequency. I am disappointed in watching so many folks I trust and admire fall prey to it, and I am not excluded from it either, it happens to me too. So I have to stop, re-calibrate and get back to now. I have to ‘be still’ and like the Dalai lama quote above states, don’t get lost in being able to do nothing. I think that is the current brilliance int he thievery of all things life right now. Many folks influence in ways that steal the now from me and people in general. It is a real battle to not fall prey to that and rise above. And I am finding that in the last 4-5 years where I am lost and current in the ‘now’, I find that is where I find my joy. It doesn’t mean that I don’t pay attention to history and wisdom earned via mine and others experience. IT also doesn’t meant hat I ignore and not be prepared and aware of the patterns and the trajectories I want to chase into the future. But none if it matters if I let anything rob me and place me in the space of being unable to take action. That is where i feel that freedom and choice is lost. That is where accountability slips and becomes ignored. It is no wonder that so many people are influenced to fall to this unfortunate predicament.

This occurs all the time in training or during events. I can only control what I can control. I have to break and slow things downs and just concentrate and identify on what the next right thing is. In reality, i think it really falls back to the notion in Buddhism, you should acknowledge the disruption or agitator (whether it is internal or external), but it doesn’t mean I have to engage with it and have the conversation at that time, and maybe never. I find many people DO NOT know how to do this. They want to cut off all negativity – and that is just as PERVASIVE. I have found in my mis-steps of trying to add a parcel of wisdom I have gleaned but the other person isn’t ready just cut me off, and I have to think like this:

Anyway, luckily I am generally able to catch myself and find a way to re-calibrate. I try to make amends where necessary, and try to maintain solid friendships, acquaintances and mentors when possible. My work life exploded a bit when I came back because I had super fresh eyes and I could tell many were still in the dregs of the deep work we try to accomplish, influence and add value to. Because of this, what I added was perceived as out of balance, so I had to find better ways to deliver my additions. After a little work it is getting better. But yes, given all these factors. I ind life truly is beautiful. I have a gracious and beautiful wife. She let’s me keep coming back home and even allows me a place to sleep at night – most of the time. I have great kids. Each one of them comes with their wonderful and not so wonderful attributes. Both environment – me, and their who they ares make all of that up. It is a pleasure and I am grateful to be part of creating and raising them. hopefully I am not destroying any of them too much in trying to help shape them along the way.

So it is folks. We are in unprecedented times, but I leave me and you with the following inspirational type meme/thoughts. Some of them have resonated with me so well in the last few weeks since Lucas joined us, and others I am still trying to tease out what it all means. Down below I am adding a few extra photos of Lucas for those who have been in a cave and not on Facebook or Instagram to capture.

House Projects

Brick edging and front tree

Liz and I just finally got to what she has always hoped for int he front edging and the extension of the spot here. Cut out sod, by hand, laid the bricking and edging, and also did the tree.

Dennis Closet and leak

This was an adventure. and still is. Overall, we identified the leak, got a plumber to overcome the plumbing issue. I killed and eradicated the Brown slime mold, and I still have the repair the wall. almost there, some pix.

Eufy Doorbell and chime

This was an adventure. In the end, after a friend’s help, thank you Chris, everything powered up. So, I bought a transistor to replace the current seemingly problematic one. Anyway, we took out the old chime, removed it from the wiring and just directly wired the front door. It’s been great thus far.

Eufy by Anker wired doorbell

Garden boxes

Liz wanted me to reinforce certain sections and I added nasty orange construction fencing to deter the deer populations. Of course, we had some cold weather and are hoping the plants make it.

Roof venting feature – dunno what it is called

So, I wanted to update the feature on the roof. I will need to get a better finished shot, but it was bland and yucky, I colored it about the same color as Liz’s front door, and then I added white. I still need to circle back and crisp up the bottom lines. So far its MUCHO better.