Type One With Twins: Adam & Scott's first sun run!

In Vancouver there is an annual 10 km run, aptly named 'The Vancouver Sun Run'! I started doing it with my Mom in 2007 (the year Jamie and I started dating) and Jamie started doing it as well the next year. Over the years, my brother and his girlfriend have joined in as well, and it's a ton of fun getting out there! Last year I didn't run - it wasn't a great idea given the fact I was about 24 weeks pregnant with the boys! My Dad and I went out for breakfast and a nice walk to the finish line instead.

Scott and Adam helping pack

In previous years we've always woken up super early, and parked at the King George skytrain station and entered the city that way. It kind of sucked because it would always be freezing in the morning and warm up throughout the day, so you either need to bring a sweater you leave behind (which they donate, good cause) or else freeze all morning! Don't even get me started on the lack of accessible bathrooms downtown, it's hard competing with 50,000 other runners to go pee before starting. There is a gear check, but I am not a big fan of lineups, so no thanks.

Either way, with our new little tag-alongs we had to switch it up this year. My Mom came up with the awesome idea of going down to Vancouver the day prior and staying overnight, making a little vacation out of it. We booked a 2 bedroom room at the Sutton Place hotel, which is one block away from the starting line. We arrived after the boys afternoon nap, and the room was gorgeous! Huge, with a full kitchen, 2 big bedrooms, cribs in the room, 2 bathrooms - it was great. My Mom and Dad went off to pick up the race packages, and after unpacking (you bring a lot of stuff with two babies!) Jamie and I headed out for a walk with the boys. We went probably about 5-6km, through a lot of residential parts just minutes away from Downtown. I didn't know that there were areas in that area that were actually quiet, it was nice. The boys had another nice snooze during the walk, once they finished stuffing their faces with cheerios.

Scott & Adam checking in to the hotel

Adam & Scott in one of their cribs the hotel provided

We went to Red Robin's for dinner with my parents and the boys were great. They shared a grilled cheese meal, and also ate some cheddar bunnies, veggies, and honeydew. Hungry little guys, always. Back to the hotel after dinner and let the boys play for a bit before bath, milkies, and into their cribs. They went to sleep pretty easily and were down by shortly after 7PM. My Mom did some monitor watching for us, and Jamie and I went out and ate delicious hot dogs from a street cart, exciting stuff! Walked around a little bit, and we were back in the room ready for bed by 9ish.

Scotty in the ergo on our way to dinner

mmmmmm hot dogs!

The night started off really good! Scott woke up when Jamie and I went to bed, but I think that is mostly because the doors all have glass inserts so the entire room was lit up when we were brushing our teeth! Adam slept through until almost 1AM, and around the same for Scott. Problem was - Adam (or was it Scott??) was up by 5 AM ready to party. Finally we got him to snooze for a couple minutes by 6, but by then the other baby was up for the day. Boo - urns. At least we had a Starbucks across the street. I made my way over to Starbucks after we were out of bed, and Jamie made us all breakfast of eggs, hashbrowns etc. It was great having a full kitchen!

Cute snoozy Adam having a morning nap before the run.

My brother and Christine showed up around 9ish and we all got changed and ready to go! We had the boys all bundled up, and loaded with cheerios for the ride. The starting point was just about a block away and we were able to sneak in at just the right point. Took a couple photos before starting and we were in the thick of it! Time to run!

Right before starting!

Originally, I wasn't really sure if I would run the whole thing. Then I decided I would try, and set a goal of 1:30, which was quickly revised to 1:45 to finish. Jamie and I actually ran pretty much the entire time. I guess all of my walking is finally paying off, because I didn't feel like dying at all! Jamie pushed the stroller up the one hill, other than that, I had those little guys in front of me (my choice!) the whole time. It is a bit more of a burn pushing 70 lbs of stroller and babies during a run!

Adam started getting a little cranky, but we managed to keep him okay in order to finish the 10k - that or we just couldn't hear him because we had headphones in, sorry buddy! We finished with a time of 1:18, which I am super happy with! Neither of the boys napped during the run, and Adam fell asleep as soon as we got out of the noise of the finish line... So, what else to do but keep on walking? Scott fell asleep after a while too, so Jamie and I probably put on another 5km at least after the race to make sure both of them got their afternoon naps.

We did it! Scott left, Adam right

My Mom, Andrew and Christine at the finish line

Jamie and I carried the BOB stroller (& babies) up these steps!

Eventually, back to the room. Jamie and I grabbed some pizza for lunch (hey, we ran 10 km, we earned it) and quickly packed up and back home we went. Overall, it was a great time! We had so much fun with my parents (thank you Mommy & Daddy!) and can't wait to do it again next year. I love the Sun Run!!