Fall, Break.

I had started to feel that our current pace of life would be doable if each day were followed by a recovery day - a day to let the muscles recuperate before you pushed their limits again, to clear the track before the runners reassembled at the starting line. While the weekend serves this function for most people, for us it is the most heavily weighted part of the week. But last October, Rich took time off during the school's fall break, and we were blessed with nearly two weeks worth of recovery days.

First we stayed at a cabin in Pine, AZ which the boys went nuts over. We played lots of ping pong and hiked and explored.

When we got home, Luke made my fall break by learning to ride a bike (we'd been working on it for a while). To try out his skills, we went on a 3 mile ride with me running alongside him. We circled the two lakes in our community, affording him the opportunity to assume the role of nature guide. He told me his theories on catching fish, about the "mating up" practices of ducks, and how the sex of a baby duck is determined by the temperature of the egg. I don't know how many of these facts are accurate, but I have a hunch that a lot probably are, which is worrisome. Anyway, we were gone so long that Rich almost came to look for us (he didn't factor getting off your bike every time you see a lizard into the expected time).

Meanwhile Jack was making plans to be in the Big Leagues. He asked his Dad if he knew what he needed to do to help him get there. He said yes, he did. They bought some bases and set up a pitchback net, and much practice ensued. Jack told me that if he made it he would pay to fly me to his games, and that Dad could have a new career because others would want him to coach them into the majors as well.

And meanwhile those meanwhiles, we watched the Rangers in the playoffs. It was a good thing Rich was on vacation, because as he said, he'd been waiting for his team to be in the playoffs since he was four, and last year was a disappointment. This year would prove disappointing as well, but a good series nonetheless and a great thing to do on fall break.

It was the most rested we'd felt in a few years. And I realized that I could make it with a little tweaking to my training plan: I may not get a recovery day between each day, but if I take it one quarter at a time, there'll be a nice little break from the free-fall.