Slide Show Time!

A slide show for your viewing pleasure. There were a million more, but you better believe I only included the flattering pictures of me in my bikini. Yeah, thanks.

I know the pictures are tiny, so here is the link you can see the full size ones, if you are moved to do so. http://picasaweb.google.com/heather.furlong/May09?authkey=Gv1sRgCIWWv7vu9uyRLg&feat=directlink

Mother's Day Beach Trip

We went down to Ormond Beach, FL this past week for a few days. Even though the weather was overcast most of the time we were there, we had fun. I know an excessively pale member of the Furlong family who will remain nameless, Leo, found it to be quite delightful.

Beau is quite the good little traveler. We purchased a portable DVD player before going, and thanks to that and a half dozen Elmo, Nemo, Baby Einstein videos, those of us in the back seats were thoroughly entertained. Between movies, meals, and naps peppered in, the eight hours it took us to get there flew by.

So, it turns out my baby is a total beach bum. We put him down when we first arrived at the beach and he made a bee line for the ocean and ran straight in. He wouldn't sit down for a second. He had better things to do than just sit in the sand and play. So we walked...and walked...and walked... He loved saying "hey!" to everyone he passed.

As I am sorting through the literally hundreds of pictures we took, I'll let to peek at these two videos. Now, the first one I took, and you will see how I try to capture my son enjoying the beach. We will really be able to look back on it and remember the great time we had...The second one I only included to show you people why I can't give my husband the camera. Make sure your sound is on.

So I will get on those pictures...check back soon.

The other half of the week we were up in Charlotte/Greensboro NC for Jackie's graduation from UNCG! A whole post for that coming soon too!

I'm Baaaaack

*clearing throat

Um. Hi.

I don't know if you remember me, or even if you are still checking in with us here...as it's been a while. But it's been a crazy couple of weeks, and things have finally started calming down and easing into the laze of summer.

Anyway, Leo is out of town this week, and before he left I had two requests from my husband: Don't go to Target unattended, and post some pictures of Beau. Well, I figured I could do at least one of the two...

So this is how we spent our Cinco De Mayo... Strolling around the neighborhood in Ralph Lauren, and hanging out in our Pottery Barn chair watching Sesame Street and HGTV. We had spaghetti for dinner. Ole.

Tweet Tweet

So, in an effort to stay young and hip, I decided to give "Twitter" a go. I linked my updates, or "tweets", over there to the side...right on top....see it? I do like that I can do quick updates via my phone. We'll see if it is really worth all the hype.

After my show closes this Sunday, I'll have a lot more time for blogging... This weekend is sold out! Yay!

Oops.

We are recycle freaks. Or, I should say, Leo is a recycle freak. I really am trying. I want to be. I am tired of Leo going to put something in the trash and fishing out a scrap of paper I scribbled a note on and reprimanding me for not putting it in the recycle pile.

The thing is, we don't have a recycle pick up here, so we spend the weeks accumulating a massive amount of food boxes, magazines and newspapers, plastic bags, and, well, beer cans... We have a huge beat up laundry basket that we dump things in. Then, every couple weeks, Leo loads it, and all the other boxes and bins, into the truck and takes to the big recycle drop off.

Leo and Beau went on a walk Saturday morning after I left for work. As they rounded the corner Leo told me he saw said laundry basket on the street at our neighbor's house down the street.

Weird. That looks exactly like our beat up bin.

And upon closer look, seemed to be very VERY similar to the things that we use and recycle.

Come to find out that our recyclables had been removed from our garage and strewn about the street. Our down-the-street-neighbors just collected what they could from the road and put in on their curb so as not to have trash blowing around the entire neighborhood.

It must have been the neighborhood kids! What hoodlums! They must have come in our garage while it was open and decided to cause a bit a trouble.

Wait. A. Minute.

It all starts coming back to me.

Friday night after I got home from rehearsal I realized I pulled in the garage a bit too far. I had checked to make sure I didn't run over anything important, like my craft box that I keep right there in the garage. Phew. Just the recycle bin. It was already broken anyway. Good news.

Bad news. As I left for work on Saturday morning, it seems that the recycles tried to hitch a ride. The basket was attached to the front bumper somehow. NO, I didn't hear it Ok? That's the first thing everyone asks when I tell them the story. I guess I was already rocking out before I even left. Somehow, I pulled it all the way out of the driveway and pushed it along our street, I guess until I made the turn. Where it then sat, blew, and rolled all over the neighborhood.

*nervous laughter* Oops.

Easter

Before I get into the Easter photos, I would like to take the time to thank my guest blogger, Leo, for that, um, riveting and witty post last week.

On to Easter! We went to church with my family and then over to my mom and dad's for lunch...with close to 20 other friends and family. Hey, we love to party over here. HE is Risen! Please pass the mac and cheese.

So, my assignment was dessert. I decided to try the cake pops I saw on one of my favorite baking blogs Bakerella. Hers are much cuter and better done than mine...but I guess that's why I don't do a baking blog...right? Anyway, I was pretty proud of myself.

I had high hopes of a great family picture of us dressed in our Easter finest. This is the best one we got. All Beau wanted to do was run around in the yard...as you can see in the following pictures.

J Crew catalog? Anyone?

Definitely not interested in taking a picture with Mom. *sigh*

Hope you all had a Happy Easter! And your photo opps were better than mine.

Extra Extra, More Teeth in the Furlong Household

Beau has doubled his tooth count in just one day. Yes, you heard correctly. Beau now has two teeth on the bottom, and two teeth on the top. Pictures coming as soon as we can get them.

-Dad

Smoke on the Mountain, Fire in my Heart

What's been taking up all my time...and a shameless plug.

I will be in a production of "Smoke on the Mountain: A Homecoming" April 16-26th. It's spring 1945 and the Sanders Family is getting together for one last "sing" at Mount Pleasant Baptist Church before the family takes off in different directions. I play June, the only member of the Sanders Family that doesn't sing. June does, however, sign for the deaf...or something like that...

This show will mark the fourth time I've gotten to play June. (Sanders Family Christmas, 2004 and 2005; Smoke on the Mountain, 2005; and now Smoke on the Mountain Homecoming.) The Sanders Family is a favorite around these parts. If ya'll need a good laugh, come on down and see me.

"Smoke on the Mountain"

"Sanders Family Christmas"

The Money Shot

Over the past couple of weeks we have DOUBLED our tooth inventory. That gives us a grand total of (drum roll please...) TWO. Poor guy is going to be gumming his dinner until he's in kindergarten, I think. In these pictures does he not look like a Leo "mini-me"? I mean, besides the whole two teeth thing.

Race Weekend

I did it and lived to blog about it. Even though technically the race was on Sunday, I feel like I was running a wild and crazy marathon all weekend.

Let me take you back...

Friday afternoon-

The crappy(est) thing about the ING Marathon is they don't mail you your race packet. They hold an "Expo" where you go and get your race bib and timing chip, and you are forced to peruse booths boasting the secret snacks to everlasting energy, and the newest, most technologically advanced non-chaffing running shorts. That's all fine and good, I guess, but too bad a monsoon was moving its way across metro-Atlanta. Beau and I packed up an afternoons worth of snacks and boarded our ark and floated our way down to the Georgia Dome.

I HATE driving in Atlanta. HATE IT. I don't know my way around (shamefully) and even with Garmin (that's a GPS, Mom...hehe) leading the way, it was high stress in my little Civic. I found the Dome fine...now just needed to park... I'm pretty sure that I payed a random bum $10 to park in a lot right there at the front of the Dome...but I didn't care. I was relieved to be there.

So it was pouring. I knew I needed to take Beau in his stroller because I wasn't sure how far we would have to walk, or how long we would have to wait. On the other hand, that meant I was going to ditch the umbrella and just hoof it as fast as possible. I tucked Beau into the stroller covered him up as much as I could, and ran.

There were signs everywhere, so it was very well marked, which was a relief. Until the bright orange and blue sign pointed down a huge set of stairs. Geez...We had to get to the lower level before we could even get inside. Which would have been no problem...except not so good with the stroller. Through the downpour I look for an elevator. Probably a good 5 minutes later of running around in the rain I finally found one that went where we needed to go. Come to find out that Beau is now terrified of elevators. Or maybe it was the fact that we were both soaked to the bone and he sensed my frustration, or heard my cussing under my breath knowing I gave up swearing for Lent. One or the other.

Anyway, long story longer, we finally got in and it literally took me five minutes to go through and get my number and packet and we were back in the rain. We finally get home, cold and wet, but mission accomplished.

That night I had rehearsal.

Moving to Saturday (a day before race)...

I worked from 11 to 7 and then went straight to rehearsal. I had decided to spend the night at my parent's house that night because 1)They live right next to where we were rehearsing so I wouldn't have to drive 45 min home and could just jump into bed for a good night's sleep. And 2)I didn't want to have to disrupt Beau's morning by getting everyone up at 5 am to get me to the starting line by 6:30.

Except, I failed to realize that this would be the first night away from Beau EVER. Laying in the bed in my old bedroom, my head just became consumed with thoughts of my baby and anxiety building for the next morning. I knew I would be going down to Centennial Park in a mass of 15,000 people all by my lonesome. Oh yeah, and running 13.1 miles with said 15,000 people. Needless to say, I didn't sleep much.

As you can imagine, 5 am came pretty early. I felt like I had just fallen asleep when I suddenly woke up a couple minutes before I had set my alarm. Ugh. Half an hour later my dad and I were on the road to downtown.

I was nervous about being able to find where I was supposed to go all by myself, but luckily there were people walking all over Atlanta. So, after a quick prayer, Dad just pulled over and I jumped into a mob of spandex-clad people I assumed would lead me to the starting line. And they did.

I failed to mention that this particular morning was quite brisk. And by brisk I mean a nippy 40 degrees. It was freezing. As I was standing there, pretending to be waiting for someone in the mile long potty line, I really began wondering what the hell I was doing. "So, you are standing here by yourself, freezing, waiting anxiously to (maybe) run 13.1 miles that you paid $85 to do so..." And I had forgotten my chapstick. That alone made me want to hail the closest taxi and have him return me to my warm bed, Carmex, and my baby. I was really beginning to doubt myself and I could feel myself teetering on the verge of a panic attack. I could feel my throat getting dry and my eyes getting wet. Crap. Don't cry Heather.

All of a sudden a crowd began to gather around the tent where I was standing. And I believe the following 10 minutes are what got me to that starting line, and to the finish line. A guy got on the loud speaker and turns out he is from a group called Christian Runners. He proceeded to give a short devotional about "running the good race". Run a good race, and you won't be running alone.

"Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us." Hebrews 12:1b

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13.

As I was running the sun came up on the skyline of Atlanta and I filled my lungs with cold southern air and I was grateful. Grateful to have my health, able to run. Grateful for my home, my city, my country. Grateful for my husband and sweet baby. For my friends and family. For the next two hours, over 13.1 miles of Atlanta, I had a heart to heart with God. And before I knew it, I was crossing the finish line.

It was a great experience despite that fact that it took me two hours and three meltdowns to find Leo and Beau after I finished. No lie, I wept to a strange lady after I borrowed her phone to find my husband. I'm just going to chalk that up to exhaustion. That and all I wanted was a latte, my chapstick, a toilet with pipes, and to squeeze my baby boy.

We finally found each other in the sea of people and I had enough time to go home, shower, and turn around and get to rehearsal.

Such is my life.

Anyway, if you made it to the end of this post, I should wrap you in a foil blanket and put a "finisher" medal around your neck. Thanks for finishing.