Happy, Happy Birthday, Jackie!

Sending out very special birthday wishes to my very best friend, Jackie! Aubrey, Murph and I hope you have a very special day. And thanks again for being my wife - we love you!

XOXO,
Jeff

Sky's The Limit

How many times in life do we underestimate someone because of how they look, how they act, or, in a situation I witnessed personally over the weekend, how old they are. Our little girl, Aubrey is really beginning to grow up. Jackie, Murph and I laugh about her assertiveness and the fact that she is never at a loss for confidence. She really believes she can achieve anything - a trait that has taken me years to develop. So as we headed to the park yesterday to fly her new Elmo kite that Jackie had recently purchased for her, we painstakingly explained to her that this was a toy that she could watch but probably couldn't fly herself. Of course, after each of us had a try at launching this little piece of plastic and canvas into the air, we finally determined that Elmo was indeed not meant to fly. As you'll see in the video below, little Aubs had other ideas. After picking the handle and string up herself, the kite miraculously went airborne and, showing all of us how it is done, she enjoyed the best flight of the day. The moral of the story? Never underestimate the power of the human spirit . . . even if it comes in a body that is just two years old and weighs less than 30 pounds.





Although Jackie's birthday is this Wednesday, we started the party early, as the Roberts family headed out for a night at one of our favorite restaurants - Bravo!



You realize you're a very lucky man when one of your favorite people in life just happens to also be your son!



We ended our night by playing in the backyard, where Aubs was inspired to actually stand up on a skateboard after watching Murph show her how it's done. (We have a great video of this but are experiencing technical difficulties. We'll save it for another post!)


Thanks, as always, for reading. Until next time, remember to pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Every Second Counts

How much time does it take to realize - or miss out on - a dream? How about seven little seconds. The time that separated Kara Goucher, Nike poster girl and one of my favorite athletes, from becoming the first American to win the Boston Marathon since 1985. Just seven seconds behind the winner, Kara completed her second ever marathon this morning by finishing in third place. Although an obviously outstanding performance in just her second marathon, Kara was devastated and reduced to tears. A true competitor and all-around nice person, she'll be back.

On a much, much, much lesser scale, I have to say I can relate to how she feels. On Sunday in the St. Louis Half-Marathon, I finished in the Top 100 of 10,000 runners but came up 18 seconds - 18 seconds - short of qualifying for this year's New York City Marathon (my very favorite race). And I can honestly say that the tears rolling down my cheeks at the finish were raindrops from the torrential downpour! (That's my story and I'm sticking to it.)

Like Kara, I have a short memory when it comes to endurance sports disappointments. She probably is already contemplating how she can gain an extra second here or there in next year's race. And me? I was out the door early this morning and back on the run. Lots to train for - more half-marathons, races, and triathlons this summer, followed by the Chicago Marathon in October, where I will attempt to qualify for Boston - the holy grail of marathons.

Here's to making every second count - on and off the course.

Talk to you soon. Until then, remember to pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Less Talk. More Hop.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, consider this a very long post. The Roberts family had a great Easter weekend. Murph spent the first part of it with us before heading north with his mom to visit family. Jackie kept us busy all weekend with Easter fun, including coloring eggs and an early morning Easter egg hunt on Sunday morning that absolutely thrilled Aubrey. After that, it was off to visit Grandma Roberts for Easter brunch. Hop on board and join us for a little Easter fun!

















Happy Easter everyone and talk to you soon. Until then, remember to pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Rejected!

Ever have the opposite of writer's block? You know the scenario where your mind is spinning with so many timely topics and ideas that you can't choose just one? Here are a few that didn't quite make the cut:

TOP 5 REJECTED BLOG TOPICS

5. "Barney Is Dead" - Tips on how to explain to your two-year-old that Barney has gone the way of all dinosaurs and is now extinct - along with all of his DVDs and CD soundtracks. We can continue to be a "happy family", just without purple T-Rexes.

4. "In Your Face(book)" - What to do when you no longer recognize all of your "friends" on facebook and are inundated by constant updates such as "Taking my dog Fluffy to the groomer, then stopping by my doctor to have a hemorrhoid checked out." TMI anyone?

3. "D.C. Overexposure" - Coping with a president who seems to never stop campaigning although he has already been elected. Maybe some of my hard-earned stimulous dollars can go toward buying this guy his own TV network so he doesn't keep bumping my favorite shows? Just a thought.


2. "That Sinking Feeling" - Channeling your inner plumber to cope with good sinks that go bad. (As in your son accidentally knocks a candle into your porcelain sink and shatters it. But if Murph had not done this, I probably would have!)

And the #1 Rejected Blog Topic:

1. "When April Fool's Pranks Go Wrong" - Repairing relationships with friends, family, and co-workers in the aftermath of a tall tale involving bicycles, croissants, and berets.

Talk to you soon. Until then, remember to pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Je Suis Désolé !

English translation? I am sorry! Yesterday's April Fool's ("poisson d'avril" in French) post created an instant firestorm of email replies, text messages, and voice mails. To those of you who instantly picked up on it, good catch. To those who didn't - GOTCHA! To everyone, je suis désolé. I KNOW there will be paybacks and I am sure I will end up French Fried.

As I told my sister Sheila (who is finally speaking to me again after being "misled" by the news), the best part of writing the post was an opportunity to describe my dream job. For a split second, in spite of my devious intentions, it felt like it was really happening - and it felt great! My wife Jackie said to bookmark this post and maybe one day soon we will be sending it out again - and it won't be a prank. Added incentive to pick up the pace and chase more dreams, no matter how distant they may seem. I send that positive wish to each one of you.

Until next time, remember - don't believe everything you read!

- Jeff

Bonjour Paris!

After just finishing up a full morning of negotiations, I am excited (and terrified) to announce that the Roberts family is moving to . . . France! And very soon. I have accepted a position as the European Blog Director for VeloNews (www.velonews.com), the cycling industry's premier online and print publication. I will be providing web updates and interviews for all of cycling's major races, including the Giro d' Italia (Tour of Italy) in May, Le Tour de France (July), and other key events throughout the year. This is a full time gig, so we will be living in Paris (and traveling throughout Europe) for approximately nine months out of the year, then spending three months each year (November, December, January) stateside in New York City, where VeloNews is headquartered.

My head is spinning and sorry I have not be in touch with each of you personally, but time is of the essence. We leave for Paris a week from Friday. I am assigned to cover all of the Spring Classics, beginning with Paris Roubaix on April 13th in northern France. Jackie has found an American academy in Paris that will accept Aubrey for her schooling and Murphy will be joining us later this summer. We will be staying at a condo near the center of Paris that I negotiated through the publication. I will forward more info - new phone numbers, addresses, etc. as I have them.

My focus on learning French was only partially a hobby. I had proposed this position to the management at VeloNews about two years ago and finally it has all fallen into place! Now I will get to merge three of my great passions - writing, travel, and cycling. Jackie is nervous, but very excited for our new adventure! Merci et au revoir! We will be in touch soon!

- Jeff