the fact that I (fingers crossed) will have a new nephew by the time we go home in September ;) Baby Kendahl is anxious to meet the world and almost made an appearance last night!
moments like these which truly show how sweet and clueless children can be
our first match of the season is today, 3:30pm against Cardinal Newman @ GGP. GO RED DEVILS!!!
only 5 days until we celebrate the wedding of these two lovely friends
Per my previous post, I mentioned after the amazing race 5k we completed Saturday, we were heading down to Los Gatos to attend/participate in Hits for Hospice. A late afternoon filled with tennis, cocktails, and dinner all for a charity that recently became close to my heart. Hospice in Louisville was the care-giver (during the end of their days) for all 3 of my grandparents who passed away in the last year and a half. They helped ease the pain and suffering of my dying Mamas & Papa so I was happy to play some tennis and raise money for Hospice of the Valley (the local chapter here).
center court
check in table
intense play
raffle prizes
the t-shirt
The sun was out and people were in great spirits with a packed house. All courts at Courtside were full with tennis lovers and their families & friends. I got to play 24 games of tennis which was a lot of fun and enjoyed visiting with the Wednesday night crew I have been playing with over the past few months. They always know how to have a good time!
hard work treated to a glass of wine
fire pit dinner
Gordon Collins, the GM of Courtside Tennis
After play, we enjoyed cocktails and appetizers on the top deck. The apps included steak skewers, veggie shooters, gourmet cheese, and artichoke & bacon dip. As the sun went down, we sat around the fire pits for some dinner. The menu included tenderloin, grilled chicken, potato salad, corn on the cob, roasted veggies, and fresh rolls. We enjoyed the comical mc'ing from Ben Queen who was an instrumental part in bringing this event about after both of his parents utilized Hospice's care.
All in all, it was a wonderful evening.
So to continue our very athletic weekend, we decided to play 9 holes of golf on Sunday. We teetered with just hitting some balls on the range, but we both really wanted to actually play some golf. A little par 3 course down in Foster City seemed like a great option so we headed south for the afternoon. Decked out in my professional golf attire accessorized by my full on set of Callaway clubs, I felt rather confident in my ability appearance looking like a golfer. It wasn't until I realized that we might have to pair up with another two-some on the course did I panic. Sure enough, Ryan party of 2 would be teeing off with Charles party of 2. Too late to back out now as I felt a tinge of anxiety.
his & hers
off the tee
kite boarders enjoying the sunshine
gorgeous view from the course
3rd whole picture
Well if you fear playing with randoms on account of your inabilities to golf under pressure, I would assume the preferred partners would be young kids. Lucky for me, the good Lord was on my side and blessed us with Charlie (Charles) & Eric. Two 8th grade boys who had their mom as a caddy. Around 3pm, our party of 5 teed off on the first whole. Pumped to report that I only biffed one drive while the other 8 went far & high & mostly straight. As for my chipping game, that was not too shabby either. It was that darn putting part that caused me to double bogey most holes. Nonetheless, we had a blast and enjoyed learning all about 8th grade in Menlo Park.
I am a lot of things. I can do a lot of things. I am not a runner. I cannot run. This is not a mental thing. I just loathe the thought of running. I hate the act of running. Every time I attempt to run, I can go approximately 2.5 minutes before the cramps set in. I accredit the cramps to that joyous emergency appendectomy I had back in the 4th grade and the idiotic nurse who left a gauze in for 24 hrs which ended up growing to the inside of my stomach resulting in the lovely doctor telling me that at the ripe age of 9 I was going to die. To give me an even bigger complex, my surgeries had created such a mess that they were unable to sew my tummy up causing it to naturally heal. I was promised a very thin line at the age of 16 but here I am 12 years past age 16 with a non-thin line and an extremely noticeable scar. A scar that I blame for my inability to run due to its position on my side and the pinching it creates with each movement. The scar does not contribute positively to the constant organ dance party that occurs during the exercise of running. An organ dance party that beats to its own drum; something equated to oh say house music and a full blown rave. Hence why running does go so pleasantly for me.
I can still remember the first time Ryan asked me to go running with him. I still smoked cigarettes then and drank adult beverages frequently. Also known as my "PB stage" when I lived in Pacific Beach and lacked any real responsibility. I wasn't not in shape. I played tennis 5+ days a week and worked out via elliptical or walking, and we had been on a few minor hikes around Santa Monica. But the thought of running made me 1. want to vomit because like I mentioned above I despise it and 2. running somehow reminded me of Ryan's past, a past that I preferred not to think about or be related to. In relationships, I have always had a protective nature of wanting to create my own memories, traditions, rituals, etc. Anyhow, trying to continue to impress him during my "interview" period, I hesitantly agreed. Horrible. My organ dance party started about 10 seconds into the jog. Perfect for a girl who hates running and who's running partner thought he was the next marathon great. I think we maybe ran together one other time...until today.
In May, our IMG office decided to go for team bonding in a charity/exercised charged experience: the littleGiant Race which would take place in late August. In an effort to be a team player and take an interest in Ryan's hobby of running, I phoned him to see what he thought about doing the 5k (the 10k or half marathon were clearly not options if I wanted to still be alive post run). He said he was game. Truth be told, I figured since the race took place after my contract at IMG was up then we would somehow "forget" about the race. No such luck. The race bibs came to the house about 2 weeks ago.
official race bibs
A silver lining came when Ryan's knee started acting up last weekend right after his big bike race in Petaluma. I thought oh my saving grace has finally arrived. Strangely enough, I encouraged him to just walk it with me to get a little exercise together.
We arose this morning and headed down to AT&T Park to check in. We passed the half-marathon runners and a few 10k participants along the way as they began their race at 7:30am this morning. As we headed to the start line, I couldn't help but feel a sense of community coupled with some motivation. Right before we took off, Rhea & Emily joined us as the gun fired. We decided to start out jogging/running and see how we did. What I failed to forget was the pride of the man I am marrying...pride that would not allow him to walk. Bum knee or not. Inadvertently, I developed a weird since of pride and felt compelled to run too.
gearing up at the race start
pretending to be the next marathon runner
game faces on
I am surprised delighted to report that I ran the entire5k(3.1 miles) today. It wasn't at record speed, but it was running the whole time which is quite the accomplishment for me. The finish line was on the Giants field crossing home plate which I found gnarly and inspiring. I we even got medals for completing the run. There were volunteer cheerleaders and gospel choirs along the way to help keep us motivated. My organ dance party was in full force, but the feeling of community seemed to drown it out when I thought I needed to walk. It was a pretty powerful experience and a pleasant start to the morning.
I am on the far left in the blue tank with the pink wrap around my waist...heading to the finish line!
5k run complete!
Now don't expect to see me signing up for any half-marathons or marathons for that matter, but I might be able to get through 20 minutes on the treadmill moving forward!
We are off to Los Gatos to play tennis in theHits for Hospice(another great charity event paired with some social tennis)! We really are being good sports on this August Saturday!
As I sit here typing, sipping my glass of wine and typing along on a Friday evening, I can't help but feel a little Murder She Wrote-esque (pardon the fact that Angela Lansbury sipped coffee and solved mysteries). While I do not solve any legit mysteries, I have managed to overcome the first puzzle in my new role as head coach. I successfully completed my first week of practice this evening. I managed to get through 3 days of tryouts, 2 days of practice, a captains' meeting, a team parents meeting, and a team dinner all in my first week without any tears (from myself or the girls) or outbursts. If that isn't success with teenage girls, then I don't know what is.
In all seriousness, I am truly blessed to have a team of very bright, energetic, respectful players. They aren't too shabby at this whole tennis thing either which makes the job much easier ;) I feel that we are off to a great start; one that I have been silently nervous about from the moment I accepted the position. I replaced a coach who had been at SFU for 30+ years. He was the longest reigning coach in school history. Talk about a tall order to fill. Not to mention that the girls respected and appreciated him immensely so I was weary of them carrying that feeling over to me. Happy to report that if this first week is any indication of their thoughts about me, I am passing with flying colors.
Now we dive right into the season: 2 matches next week, 1 match + the 100 team Fresno tournament the following weekend, and 3 matches the week after next. We are wasting no time as we get conditioned, fit, smart, and strategic.
With all of the events we have had recently, it has given me some creative room for scrapbooking. My skills have improved immensely from my first pages which makes me hopeful ;)
A perk of living in the city is being able to take small weekend staycations to the surrounding neighborhoods (i.e. Petaluma). We had planned an overnight trip to visit Kim & Jerrad awhile back that included Kim's CA Bachelorette Party and the Holstein Hundred bike race for Ryan.
We headed up late afternoon Friday and got to Petaluma just after 5pm. Kim & I headed to Sonoma for a girls' night while Ryan enjoyed a man-date with Jerrad. Us girls sipped on champagne and treated ourselves to dinner from Red Grape(a town fave). The boys grilled steaks and veggies accompanied by a few home-brewed beers.
Kim & Ben F. (from the Bachelorette, you know the one who Ashley denied)
personalized wine glasses...precious!
navy & green
game time
personalized bottle of wine for the bride-to-be
man date
The next day as Ryan was cycling along with his co-worker Matthew, I strolled into downtown Petaluma. The town is small and quaint with mini-southern homes lining the streets. I consider P-town to be the antique capital of the world as I must have passed a dozen antique shops as I made my way to Starbucks. After the sun peaked out, my sweater came off and my smile radiated!
Kentucky St in Petaluma
The Market
City Hall
front porch house
so cute
Ryan & Matthew, future Tour de France winners
"The Finish"
The Bullock Man-Cave
Brew Station
Brew labels
I met up with Ryan after his victorious bike ride and we headed back into town to grab lunch at McNear's. We enjoyed mini-sliders (pulled pork, burger, & tri-tip) and ice cold water. Making our way back into the city, we decided to explore the shops of San Rafael, Corte Madera, Larkspur, and San Anselmo. Malls, malls, malls!! We finished up the evening with the flick The Help.
