Pat yo' OWN self on yo' back!

That's what one of the adorable spectators was cheering as Merritt and I ran past her during the Country Music 1/2 Marathon on Saturday. It made us smile, which is always welcome when you're running 13.1 miles! We finished in 2:11:53. We think that's a great time for two mothers with four children between them (and one on the way, sweet Max, who is eight-months-old today). Training wasn't as easy as it used to be. We had to work around school and swim lessons and colds and more colds to get our runs in. We've had a ton of fun, though. It's almost like therapy, trotting along Bayshore pushing two double strollers filled with wiggly little kiddies. I am very thankful for Miss Merritt and our runs. Here are some cute pics from the finish line, which include photos of Jones, who also ran the half, and Mare and Nat, who were kind enough to give up their morning to meet us at the finish line.









So, as you can already tell, I had a great weekend in Nashville. There are a few places in the world that feel like home to me - obviously Tampa, Arkadelphia and my grandparents' houses in Louisiana - but the person that I am today is from Nashville. It's not where I went to school, but it's where I grew up. I met my husband there and where we were married. And, it's where my best friends are (3/4 of them, anyway, since one currently lives in Memphis). This weekend's trip, though very short, was a good opportunity for me to recharge my batteries with them. Nichols came over from Memphis, which was really the highlight of the weekend because I got to meet her four-month-old, Scarlett (see the photos below, in case you can't tell, she's the tiny little beauty with the porcelain skin, pink cheeks, and huge blue eyes!). Oh, this is really sweet: After the race, all the girls met up for my traditional post-race meal (Mexican, of course!) and Jones' mom, Margie, joined us. We caught her looking up and down the table at each of us and with tears in her eyes, she said, "It does my heart good to see you girls together. There is no time or distance that's ever going to come between you." I couldn't have said it better myself, Mama Margie!

My lovely friends, Mary Ann, Natalie, Nichols, Scarlett, and Jones:



The guest of honor and her glowing mama:



Of course, the best thing about traveling for me is coming home to my husband and children. We went out for some welcome home sushi, which both Cati and Gus love. They love edamame (when you fill his plate with more edamame, Gus says, "Yay, beans!" and grabs them with both hands), miso soup, agedashi tofu, rice, and sweet potato tempura. Cati also likes any rolls that don't have raw fish in them and she especially likes the smelt roe. She told me last night, "Mama, I love these little orange eggs." It's just nice to have a place to go out to eat without having to force my kids to eat or having to pack a bag of crackers and things for them to eat in case they don't like the food. Here are a couple of pictures of them using their chopsticks. Cati's getting really good and last night was the first time that Gus tried to use them to eat. Very cute!!