The results are in!

The results of the Trick or Treat Trot 5K - also known as Mom's Road Running Debut - have been posted online, and we're proud to say that she was even faster than we thought. You can see the results for yourself here.

Mom finished the race in 31:58.8, a pace of 10:18 per mile; she placed 215th out of 550 women; and she was 42nd out of 106 in her age group (30-34), of which she's near the back end. The winner is in her age group, too, so Mom's competition wasn't half bad.

Pretty good for a beginner, wouldn't you say?

Mom's race

5K race for mom this morning - officially known as the Trick or Treat Trot. There was a lot of nervousness yesterday and this morning, but she's feeling pretty good now. Immediately after she finished, she was about overcome with emotion at the sight of jumping up and down kids holding a sign and cheering, and a Nathan who was so proud. She was very happy finishing with a time of just about 33 minutes. Oh, and watch the video of her finish - and listen all the way to the end!

Halloween or...

Dad and the kids went to The Art Institute today for Costume Creations, which, when we arrived, we discovered was mask-making with assorted art materials.

So Levynn went to work, and Dad and Lincoln went to work, and what we created was, well, we can't really say just yet. One or both could be used for Halloween, the kids say, so we don't want to spoil any surprises.

But we'll keep you posted.

A roof with a view

Last night was the perfect time for us to go to our building's rooftop deck. Mom was home, it was dark before bedtime, and the temperature was in the upper 60s at the end of a beautiful October day.

Marathon Woman

While Dad contents himself with twice-a-week weight workouts in the fitness room downstairs, Mom is running three times a week - with her sights set on the 2010 Chicago Marathon.

Yes, a marathon.

She most recently ran three miles on a track yesterday, and tonight she registered for a 5K (3.1-mile) road race to be held on Sunday. Dad and the kids will be out there cheering for her, as apparently we often will over the next year.

Mark Oct. 10, 2010 on your calendars. Go Mom!

Clever boy

Lincoln is growing fast, folks.

He loves to work on an oversized United States map puzzle so much that he has figured out how to do much of it on his own, and he's learning the states. We have a video of him in action, but it's too long to put on here. You'll just have to see for yourself.

However, you can watch a video of a new skill he has learned at his playgroup: riding a tricycle. He had never tried it until about a month ago, and during the fifth class something suddenly clicked and he started peddling.



But what really makes him a clever boy?

There's a children's verse that Mom has taught the kids. It has many variations, but hers goes like this:

Forehead bumper,
Eye winker,
Tom tinker,
Nose smeller,
Mouth eater,
Chin chopper,
Gully washer, gully washer, gully washer! (and you tickle the child under the chin)

Well, Dad was washing Lincoln in the bathtub on Friday, and, as always, Lincoln reminded Dad not to wash his eyelashes. (Don't ask.) Dad replied, "No, not the eyelids, just the forehead bumper and the nose smeller." And Lincoln added, "And the hair brusher."

Hair brusher! He invented a new line for the verse!

Running through the neighborhood

The Chicago Marathon is underway, and the course passes us just one block from our building. So Dad and the kids walked to the street at 7:40 a.m. - at 32 degrees! - to see who was leading along the fourth mile.

These guys were in the front. Kenya's Samuel Wanjiru, just 22 years old, eventually won the race in the fastest time ever in an American race. He's in this photo, mostly hidden behind the man with the white shirt on the far right.


This guy, amazingly, was doing quite well, too.


This is US marathon star Tera Moody, the first woman to pass us. She didn't win.


This is the view from our window.

"Exemplary work"

Here's a little secret: When the Tribune won a Pulitzer Prize in April 2008 for an investigative reporting series on defective toys, Mom felt a wee bit left out. She edited a couple of follow-up stories, but she wasn't part of the official team that produced the original series in 2007 - before she worked there.

But she may get her turn yet.

Mom was the only editor on a three-part series the newspaper published this week, and its impact was swift.

Here's a note from the Tribune's editor:

Congratulations to the Chicago Tribune team that this week documented the dangers inside Illinois’ nursing homes in our three-part series, "Compromised Care."

David Jackson’s and Gary Marx’ courageous reporting revealed safety lapses that are appalling. Fifteen percent of the population of Illinois nursing homes are felons or mentally ill, and they are mixed with the geriatric population. Helpless elderly people are being killed, injured and victimized in other ways as a result.

David’s and Gary’s reporting prompted Gov. Pat Quinn to immediately appoint a task force to correct these problems while the governor was still in Copenhagen with the Olympic bid team.

Brian Boyer, Ryan Mark and Joe Germuska created a brilliant database, providing citizens with valuable information they can put to work in their lives. This project clearly demonstrated the enormous potential of the news applications team to empower readers.

Photography by Chris Walker, Terrence James and Lane Christiansen personalized the plight of people who live with the dangerous mix of residents inside the homes.

Keith Claxton’s graphics added extra dimension and helped readers quickly digest key information.

Stu Werner and Mary Kate Chambers applied their usual rigorous copy editing skills to the project.

Thanks to George Papajohn, Kaarin Tisue and Karen Flax for their careful attention to the editing and presentation that brought it all home.

This was exemplary work that will make a difference in peoples’ lives.

Bravo, Mary Kate!

Blame it on Rio

Chicago will not host the 2016 Summer Olympics. Rio de Janeiro was elected in the final round of voting between it and Madrid.

Chicago was eliminated in the first round - shocking! say the "experts" who predicted it would be between Chicago and Rio - and then Tokyo was eliminated in the second round.