RLCA Field Hockey 2012 Video

2012 Dover Air Force Base Heritage Half Marathon

On June 10th, Mom ran in her second half marathon this season.  That being the Dover Air Force Base Heritage Half Marathon.  Yes, that date does ring a bell for you:  It was also our anniversary.

The morning started quite early.  We had the whole family packed in the van and on the road by 6AM.  Eating breakfast en-route,we arrived at the base a little before 7AM.  Mom quickly met up with some friends who had also signed up for the race.  The whole brightly colored crew donned their bibs, made small talk, then made their way to the start line.

With the sun up, and the heat rising, the siren sounded around 8AM, and off they went.  The course for this particular gem was a 'there and back':  Racers began at the Air Mobility Command Museum, snaked around the perimeter of the runways to the far corner of the base, then made their way back to the museum.

With mom out on her whirlwind tour of the base, the kids and I toured the museum.  Surprisingly, the kids were really into this.  We got to climb in two planes out on the tarmac then made our way into the hanger where, among a wealth of other things, there was a beautifully restored B17 on display.

While we chilled in the air conditioned hanger, Mom fought heat, a lack of shade, raw boredom, and a shortage of cups at the water stations.  Her official time is clocked at 2:18:53.  This was 'gun time' as this was not a chip race.  She finished 110th overall, out of 194 racers, and 10th out of 20 in her division.  And she persisted to run the entire course.  This is all the more impressive given the nature of the day and course.

Congratulations, Mom.  We're all very proud of you.

Ocean City Maryland Half Marathon

This past weekend, Mom took part in her second ever half marathon:  The Ocean City Maryland Half Marathon/5K.  The event is a point-to-point race that begins at the Inlet and ends at Assateague Island.

Our adventure began Friday night when Mom and I said "au revoir" to the kids then raced down the peninsula to pick up her runner's packet at the Francis Scott Key Resort.  The resort was mobbed with runners and their support coming in from all over the globe.  With packet in hand, we were then off to the condo to turn in and rest up for the soon to arrive 7AM start.

We awoke around 5:30 Saturday morning.  With the sun not yet up, we prepped quickly then dashed out the door.  At the Inlet, we snagged one of the few remaining parking spots, then made our through the crowd to the start line.  Mom stretched, tweaked her music playlist, and the next thing we knew, the siren sounded and away she went.

The course started by snaking around the parking lot, dog-legged around the pier, headed north up the concrete portion of the boardwalk, then banked left at N. Division St, passing under the Ocean City Arch.  From there, Mom and the other racers crossed the Rt 50 bridge then diverted through a few neighborhoods while basically working southward on Rt 611 toward Assateague.  Overall, the course was very flat, save for the whopper of bridge entering Assateague near the end.

When Mom crossed the finish line, she found herself placing 1173 out of 1876 total runners and 106 out of 231 in her division.  She completed the course in 2:14:24 (chip time), notably shaving about 2 minutes off her time at the Delaware Half last year.

The post-race party was held at Seacrets night club.  While the club in and of itself is something to behold, the parking situation was bad, the line to enter the building worse, and apparently the wait time for food was atrocious.  We benefited from heading to the condo first to allow Julie time to clean up then heading over to the club.  By the time we got there, a lot of folks had cleared out and we actually had a decent time.

The rest of the weekend consisted of walks on the beach, movie time, an amazing meal at Ruth's Chris Steak House, and ice cream at Dumser's.  Yum.

Congratulations, Mom.  You never cease to amaze me.

Birthday Bonanza

This month saw the passing of a couple of milestone birthdays for the Tokarski family.

First up, earlier in the month, Mom celebrated her 40th.  Per her own pointed direction, we kept the celebrations muted and celebrated with just family.

The following week saw Abigail cross over into the wondrous world of teenage-hood by celebrating her 13th.  Aside from the standard family fare, we also took an evening and had over a small horde of friends.  Activities included dinner, a bonfire, s'mores, and a late movie rental.

Happy Birthday to both of you.

Turkey Trot 2011

This past Saturday, November 19th, as a spur of the moment thing, Mom decided to take part in the 38th annual Turkey Trot 10k in Newark. 

Mom and I awoke early and headed out to Handloff Park.  With a chill in the air and a frost on the grass, Mom registered on the spot and found herself amid a field of 248 runners.

When all was said and done, Mom finished the hilly course in 56.53, coming in 132nd over all and 11th in her age bracket (full results here).

Glasgow Fiasco 2011

Yesterday, September 26th, Alex and Mom (and Aidan) took part in the rescheduled 3rd Annual Glasgow Fiasco 5k Run/Walk at Glasgow Park.

The event kicked off with the Kiddie K which Aidan spontaneously took part.  Little guy came home with a medal for his participation which he was very excited about.


After the Kiddie K, the main event kicked off.  Alex and Mom started off in the back of pack of 71 participants.  After running the whole thing, never breaking to walk, they completed it in 29:40 (37th overall) and 29:53 (38th overall) respectively.  Mom even brought home a plaque, coming in second in her division. 

It should be noted, this is Alex's first official run ever.  And as for Mom, this run took place only 9 days after her 2nd and last surgery.

Congratulations, all of you.  Job well done.

Delaware Marathon Running Festival 2011

Runners have this unique way of encouraging one another. They say things like, "Oh, if you can run a 5k you can definitely run a 10k," and, "Oh, if you can run a 10k you can definitely run a half-marathon," and so on and so forth.

It was this logic that led us to this morning's outing: Mom's competing in her first half-marathon. The event was the 8th Annual Delaware Marathon Running Festival.

Mom found herself among a field of 925 (registered) runners running in the half (with another 715 running the full marathon). The course started at Tubman Garrett Park on the Wilmington Riverfront and snaked around the city hitting Bancroft Parkway, Wawaset Park, Union Street and Little Italy.

In the end, Mom finished 419th overall and 31st (out of 63) in her age group. She completed the course in 2:17, having run the entire time (complete results here). Truly amazing! Way to go, Mom!

Of Socks and Explosives

This evening, the girls treated us to a sock skating show, replete with costumes and wigs.

In the midst of the show, Mom states:
Is the kind of stuff I would have done if I had a sister? My brother and I just blew things up...

Running...Farther

Several months ago, Mom set her eye on a goal. That goal was competing in her first 10k run. After setting the bar, Mom spent the following months progressively increasing her distance during her runs about our neighborhood.



Finally, the culmination of all her hard training came about this past Saturday. Amid a field of 228 runners, and several good friends, Mom took part in the 37th Annual Turkey Trot in Newark.

In the end, having actually ran the entire course, Mom crossed the finish line in 54:08. That time was good enough to place her 106th overall and 6th in her age group (full results here). Amazing!

Mom, with friends Tracy (left) and Ellen (middle).
Tracy placed 77th/3rd while Ellen placed 103th/2nd.
Congratulations, Ladies!

Williamsburg Field Trip

As the kids are getting older, and their personalities are becoming more their own, I really want to have them post their own perspective on their own happenings more often. So, in that spirit, here is Alex recapping the 8th grade class trip to Williamsburg, VA on October 14th & 15th:

We got on the bus at 5:00 in the morning and drove to Jamestown for our first tour. (With a detour into D.C.) It was just a re-creation of the fort… the only REALLY cool thing was a guy firing a gun. Then we went to the site of the real Jamestown. It was mostly piles of bricks 2 rows high forming the outlines of where buildings were. Then we went to the hotel, got settled, and chilled for 2 hours. (coffeecoffeecoffecoffeecoffeecoffee) Then we went to Applebee’s and waited a half hour for a server, another half hour for our drinks, and then ANOTHER half hour for our food… by then we had about 10 minutes to eat before boarding the bus to go to historic Williamsburg. It was a night tour and we went through 3 or 4 shops then went back to the hotel. Then we wound down for the night… well… everybody except my room… (it was REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY disturbing…) We woke up, packed up our stuff, ate a big breakfast, (doughnuts… OMNOMNOM) and then headed out to Williamsburg. This time we could see where we had gone the previous night. We walked around with the tour going through various buildings (including a woodshop built over a creek… who DOES that??) then stopped to eat pizza and Dr. Pepper. (through a coffee cup lid…) then roamed for another half hour … and got a pound of jelly beans… OMNOMNOMNOM. Then we went on a scavenger hunt. After that mom went into some store (with me behind her) and we bought… a pencil. Then we boarded the bus then left… with a pound of jelly beans… OMNOMNOMNOM. And guess what? It rained both days!! And guess what else? OMNOMNOMNOM.

Glasgow Fiasco

Its madness I tell you: 5 blog posts in 5 consecutive days. That's got to be a record. Speaking of records...

On Saturday, August 21st Mom took part in her third run of the season: The 2nd Annual Glasgow Fiasco 5K Run/Walk.



The all important results: Mom completed the new course in 26.14; her best time yet! She came in 53rd out of 162 participants and 4th in her division.

Congratulations, Mom!

More Victory...and More Defeat...

Saturday, June 5th, Mom's morning started quite early as she dashed out the door to take part in her 2nd run of this season. This time it was the 2nd Annual Blue Hen 5k which ran through the heart of the UD campus.

This was Mom's largest event to date with 259 participants. Her results: She finished 68th overall and 6th in her division. Officially, she finished with a time of 26.17, which, while technically her best time to date, in my humble opinion, doesn't reflect her true time as she got held up in the large group off the start.

Mom, along with friend Brenda and Brenda's husband, DJ,
both of whom also competed in the run.

The reason we have only minimal pictures of this achievement was because at the same time, I loaded the kids and myself into the truck (...have I mentioned I got a truck?) and headed south to the Kirkwood Soccer Club (which is curiously close to nothing Kirkwood-related). Alex's team, the GRPC Inferno, had made it to the playoffs with an undefeated record of 6 wins and 1 tie.

The Inferno started off with a 9AM playoff game against the WYMCA Galaxy. The Galaxy was a team they had soundly defeated earlier in the season. Though the Galaxy showed significant improvement, the game still belonged to the Inferno.



The win put the Inferno in the Finals, pitted against the HSC Red Bull; a hulking team with a matching undefeated record that the Inferno had not yet faced. Our boys and girls found themselves hot, tired, and, for the first time all season, nervous about a game.

After an all too brief respite, with the sun bearing down and the heat building, play commenced. The Inferno scored first, injecting some much needed energy into the kids, but the Red Bull tied it up before half time.

The second half kicked off and the score remained tied as time ticked away. We watched these boys and girls give their all as they were roughed up by the opposition. Unfortunately, late in the game, the Red Bull scored. With mere moments left on the clock, the Inferno simply wasn't able to even it up.

At the end of the day, the Inferno took 2nd place in the league. Congratulations, Team!

What follows is a brief highlight reel I assembled as a memento for the team...

Ms Abigail Goes to Washington DC

On Thursday, May 6th, Abigail and Mom went to Washington DC with Abigail's 5th grade class. DC is always a great trip and this year was no exception.

Aside from the usual visits to the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument, the World War II Memorial and several Smithsonian museums, Abigail and the class had a bonus: Public Service Recognition Week.

Over 100 federal, civilian, and military agencies converged on the National Mall and gave the kids a chance to climb aboard military vehicles and meet the men and women who help keep our great country safe.

Of Victory...and Defeat

This past weekend was a busy one. Beginning Thursday night, Alex headed to Dover to take part in the last Math League competition of the season. The event was followed by an awards ceremony in which Alex's team took 2nd place for their grade level in the state.

On Saturday morning, Alex and I took Abigail over to St. Marks High School for her first stab at the Science Olympiad. Saturday was a do-over as snow had canceled the first attempt back in February. She competed in the Science Bowl, Write It/Do It, Food Science, and Chopper Challenge events. In the end, much to her disappointment, she didn't place. But on the bright side, RLCA as a whole did bring home several medals (complete results here). And there's always next year.

Alex followed this up with a morning soccer game at the Middletown Village fields. He is currently playing in a competition league for the GRPC Inferno. The week before was their first game which they won 7-3 against the MOT Dynamo. This week was a bit more of a squeaker. The competition, the MOT Wizards, was the first to score and the Inferno had to work hard to tie it up before half-time. After the break, the Inferno scored mid-way through the half and was able to hold off the opposition despite some tough shots on their goal. Congratulations team!

While the soccer game and the Science Olympiad were going on, Mom was at Wilmington Christian School taking part in the 8th annual Connie Dietrich Memorial 5k Run/Walk. Despite a fairly difficult course, Mom managed to finish the course in 26.31 minutes, coming in 1st in her age group, 3rd overall female, and 24th out of a total of 115 competitors (full results here). Awesome! Congratulations!

Quilting for a Cause

Per Mom:

Each elementary class at RLCA was asked to make an art/craft project that would be auctioned off to raise money for the school. Amanda's 3rd grade class decided to make a quilt; each of the kids got to decorate a square and then I put them all together and made a quilt with them.

February's Birthdays

Well, we somehow managed to squeeze in both Mom's and Abigail's birthdays this month. It took 4 separate events, each with their own cake, spread across 3 weeks, but we did it.

Some quick snaps are included below.

Happy Birthday you two...

Runners Take Your Marks...Again

On Sunday, September 27th, Mom took part in her third 5k Run/Walk this summer season. Again taking place at Glasgow Park, this time the proceeds went towards curing Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva (FOP).

The results: Mom came in 23rd out of 89 participants, finishing 2nd in her class (30-39 year old women). The big news is that she finished the course in 26 minutes 50 seconds. That's a full 3 minutes faster than her previous 2 runs this seasons. Way to go, Mom!

Running for a Cause

This past Saturday, Mom took part in her second 5k run of the season; the Red Lion Glasgow Fiasco 5K Run/Walk at Glasgow Park. The race attracted 150 attendants and proceeds benefit the RLCA Athletic Boosters Club.

In contrast to the last race she took part in, the GCA Runaway back in June, this time we opted to leave the kids at home with Grammy due to the miserable weather. In fact, we were seriously doubting the race would even happen when the radar showed approaching thunderstorms. But by God's good grace, when race time rolled around, we were blessed with a break in the deluge.

Of course, the important bit - The results: Mom finished the course in 29.50, coming in 79th. More importantly, she placed 2nd in the 30-39 year women class. Woo hoo! Not bad when you consider the puddles, mud, and 77 year old men she had to dodge. Way to go, Mom!

(Full results are available here (PDF).)

Next on the agenda? Mom keeps bringing up the idea of doing a triathlon. And a friend at church suggested they take part in a biathlon (I think she meant duathlon, but I needed a reason to post this pic).

So, So Busy...

I was trying to address separate events with separate posts, but I'm quickly falling behind and am going to forget things if I push them back too far. So here's a recap of everything (that I can remember) from the last 2 weeks.

On Friday, May 29th, the RLCA Marching Band and After School Choir, which includes Abigail and Amanda, sang the national anthem at Frawley Stadium as the opening to the evening Blue Rocks game. Note the umbrellas in the stands behind the kids: Yes, it rained. Buckets, in fact. But the kids soldiered on and did a great job. The rains eventually ended and the evening improved greatly.

As for the game, the Rocks were playing the Myrtle Beach Pelicans and held their own for 13 innings before losing on an error.

Then, just this past Saturday, June 6th (Happy Birthday, Uncle Jason) Mommy took part in her second ever 5K run (the first being in college...so its been a while). The event was the GCA Runaway 5K Run/Walk which supported the initiation of GCA's athletic program next year.

The result? Mommy completed the run in 29 min 38 sec and came in 40th out of 104 participants. And she ran the whole thing, never breaking stride once. Congratulations, Mommy!

She's so excited that she plans on signing up for another run in August.

That evening, seeking more abuse, we packed up the horde and headed into town for Newark Night. Honestly, I wish I had a picture: Main St was a sea of people from end to end. It was pretty crazy.

On our return trip from trekking the length of Main St, we bumped into The Juggling Hoffmans. And it wasn't long before one of the kids was roped into the action. Check it out below.