Getaway Pictures, Pt. 2

Having Olivia home for nearly one month was wonderful. So very wonderful.

Andrew and I were both grateful to have our full team back together. That's right, we have two "teams" in this family that are based on personality type. They are not exactly Type A vs. Type B (it's probably more complex than that), but our household teams are incredibly distinct and our differences play out in so many ways. Of course one is not better than the other, but each team likes to sarcastically make comparisons. Sometimes it's just a knowing look between team members, other times I'll say to Jon, "Um, he's on your team, so you make sense of it," or he'll roll his eyes and say to me, "That's definitely your team."

My team runs orderly and efficiently, and in my opinion, we just plain make sense! Ha. Though we tend to operate in similar manners, we also like to take on physical challenges together. Over break, Andrew, Olivia, and I picked an ab and back challenge. We had many late night workouts, frequently with our muscles hurting worse because of the uncontrollable laughter.

And for the last several years now, January marks the beginning of a structured running schedule for me in preparation for my spring race. This time around I'm adding speed work in addition to weekly milage increase. My goal is to shave off three minutes (or more!) of my half marathon time. It may seem insignificant but it's an elusive goal I've worked at for nearly 4 years. I'm learning the difference between pace, tempo, and fartlek runs. Unfortunately, I still can't convince anyone else to join me, so I remain the sole runner on this team. That's OK. I'm really quite content competing with myself.

There are currently free weights in the garage and more in the living room. It's so fun to see others motivated in their own way, too.

Well, this post was supposed to be about the family trip we took last month and not about teams or workouts! Santa Barbara used to be our go-to place for quick family refreshments when we lived in the L.A. area, and returning for a few days last month was almost nostalgic. As is typically the case, Jon was doing his best to balance family time and work/study obligations, but a change of scenery is always welcomed.

Olivia has always been a willing subject for pictures, so we took a few quick walks without the guys.

Olivia's roommate is from Santa Barbara. The two girls did not know each other at the beginning of the year, but it was a roommate match made in heaven. She and her two brothers spent an afternoon with us and treated us to a biking tour of the town.

Views from the Santa Barbara courthouse tower

Because normality is overrated...

If you don't understand why I run, then you probably don't understand this either. For your sake I wish you did!

Cutie pie

We noted the same things... flowers and towers and clean white walls against a crisp blue sky.

And just for fun, this is us back in the day riding the Santa Barbara trolly (probably just before making the move away from L.A.). My first visit was when Michael was a new-born, and then many family trips followed. Jon and I spent our 10th anniversary here: we rode horses through the mountains, took on paragliding (solo flight), and first-ever surf lesson. We even spent a Christmas here with Jon's extended family the year Jacob was born.

Tomorrow begins a new semester for everyone, and I sense that we are all prepared to bring it on! Is it a stretch to say that summer is just around the corner?!


~Katherine