Welcome Home Oz

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So, here’s the thing: we had to put down our beloved dog Tyson last Fall, and we miss him terribly.  We’ve cried, I’ve sobbed, we’ve mourned.  And we still miss him terribly.  So… we are getting a puppy.

In fact, our new puppy comes home with just 10 days.  His name is Oz (a tribute to the time both my husband and I spent in Australia, independent of each other, more than a decade ago) and he is a Chocolate Labradoodle, who will be eight weeks old when he joins our crew.

We met Oz and his brothers and sisters two weeks ago, when we went to ‘choose’ our puppy.  But, the truth is, he chose us.  As our family sat on the floor amongst four beyond-adorable puppies, Oz waddled over to me and curled up in my lap.  There he stayed, as my four-year-old rubbed his head and poked his belly, and my one-year-old tugged on his ears.  It seemed he had found his missing piece, just as we had found ours.  You know when you just know?  I just knew.  Oz was for us.

To say we are excited is an understatement.  I know it’s going to take a lot of work and cost a lot of money, and I know that some people think we’re jumping in over our heads.  For us, it’s all worth it.  I want my kids to grow up knowing the love that a pet can provide.  I want my kids to grow up knowing the responsibility that a pet can provide.  I want my kids to grow up knowing the loyalty and companionship and joy that a pet can provide.  And I want the love, responsibility, loyalty and companionship that Oz can provide.

Welcome home Oz.

   Ash Casey OzDrew Chris Oz

Running Scared?

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We can put metal detectors inside stadiums.  We can put security guards inside schools.  We can put security screening inside airports.  But we cannot run a marathon without feeling vulnerable.  Not after yesterday.  Not after the carnage, the panic, the awfulness, the violence, the terror, the evil that happened in Boston.

I ran the Boston Marathon in 2003…

Race Last Name, First Name
(Sex/Age)		 Time OverAll
Place		 Sex Place
/
Div Place		 DIV Net Time City, State, Country
Boston Marathon
4/21/03		 Swelin, Ashley J. (F23) 3:45:56 6251 1124 / 889 FOpen 3:38:40 Toronto, ON, Canada

It’s been ten years since I high-fived the students cheering at Wellesley College, willed myself up Heartbreak Hill, and cried tears of pride and joy along the finishing stretch on Boylston Street.

I originally wrote today’s blog post last week, and titled it ‘Boston’- I was going to share with you all of the things that running Boston taught me.  Silly things, like how sunburned you can get over the course of 26.2 miles in Boston in April.  Inspiring things, like “you cannot run fast if you do not put in the training.  The same goes for anything in life.  Work hard”.  Special things, like how your parents will do anything for you- even come to Boston and stand five-people-deep for four hours for the chance to watch you cross the finish line. It’s been ten years since my parents stood right where yesterday’s second bomb went off.  

But you know what, fellow runners?  We must unite.  We must be strong.  We must not be scared to go to a movie, or send our kids to school and ourselves to work, or go to Boston and run a marathon. I can’t make sense of this tragedy because it’s senseless.  I can’t explain this tragedy because it’s inexplicable.  I can’t imagine this tragedy because it’s unimaginable.  But when these senseless, inexplicable, unimaginable tragedies happen, we must cope.

And the way most runners cope is to run.  We cope and we run and we run and we cope… and the miles tick by.

I’m going for a run.

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Happy Anniversary to my Blog!

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I started this blog as a way to reach out and share my experiences, to allow my patients and my readers to get to know me better, and to write about my ‘adventures of health, fitness, and parenthood’.  But it’s morphed into more than that- it’s become my creative outlet, my diary, and my memory bank all rolled into one.  This week marks the one-year anniversary of www.drworobec.com.  And what a year it’s been.

It’s been a year of ups (I Hope You Always) and downs (Farewell, Our Loyal Friend), trials (Memories for Sale) and tribulations (I am a Transplant. And it’s Christmastime), criticism (Yes, I Paint my Son’s Fingernails) and praise (The Art of Humility).

From my first post (Lance Armstrong and Me: the Online Experience) to my favorite post (10 Lessons that Dads WILL Teach their Daughters), I have enjoyed sitting down every week and pouring my feelings onto the computer screen.  I hope you feel that realness conveyed in my words.

I’ve written a lot about nutrition (Food for Thought), Crossfit (This Thing Called ‘The Open’), and running (21.1Kms of Friendship).

I’ve written a lot about my children (My 6-month-old Loves Chicken), my parenting style (‘It’s Not Babysitting, It’s Parenting), and the mundane goings-on of my everyday life (Sunday at 3:00).

I’ve written a lot about chiropractic (I am a Chiropractor), my patients (I Want to Thank You), and my views on health (“I Don’t Have Time to Exercise”).

I’ve been overwhelmed by the response to some (Wear the Dress Socks), and surprised by the lack of response to others (Dear NHL).

I’ve cried hard (Break the Silence), I’ve smiled hard (It’s More than a Piano), and I’ve thought hard (Cancer is a Powerful Word).

I’ve had a good year.

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