Snow!

A little while ago, it was so cold here that I told Skyler "If it rains, it's going to snow on the mountain!" Sure enough, a couple of days later it started raining and our nearby mountain was full of snow. We decided to head up there to play in it for an afternoon before it all melted.

Here it is, from a distance. We're about 10-15 minutes from the base of the mountain but then it takes about another 20-25 to get up to the top.

We drove up and they had the road closed about 2 miles from the top because of ice on the roads. We parked where we could and got out. Skyler was THRILLED with the amount of snow there was (trust me, it was very little!) but she didn't care. She jumped out and immediately started making snowballs to throw at me!

She was determined to sled down whatever slope we could find. She wasn't going very fast but having a blast!

Then she got the great idea (yeah, right) to walk the rest of the way to the summit of the mountain. Now this coming from the girl who can't walk down the block without asking to be held. I never thought she'd make it but we didn't have a schedule. I thought I'd just let her try and see how far we got. We could always turn around.

Here she is at the beginning of the hike. It's pretty much all up hill and the shady spots were very icy. She stopped every time there was a patch of snow to try and make a snow angel.

or to just climb in the snow

We were about 3/4 of the way up and she got thirsty. Well, I didn't bring ANYTHING with me. Hey, I didn't think we'd get a block, much less 2 miles! I had a bottle of water and snacks in the car but nothing with me. So, I told her to eat snow, only the untouched snow. Nothing that had been touched, stepped on, poked at, or peed on. That seemed to tide her over for a while. But she was determined to keep going!

Notice in this picture that the road is still clear of snow. There's ice in patches but most of the snow is still on the sides of the road.


Then we turned the corner and everything was just covered!

Then we went down our secret little sledding road that nobody really knows about and she really got some good sledding in.

After we were done sledding it was time to head back to the car before it got dark. That is when the real complaining started. She was fine with leaving, in fact I pulled her on the sled for probably 1/4 of the way. After that she CRIED . THE . ENTIRE . WAY . DOWN! She was cold, she was itchy (probably from being a little wet), she was tired, she was thirsty, she HATED the snow, she never wanted to come back to the snow, she's so glad we don't live in the snow...I heard it all. I was so happy to get back to the car! It was a tough day of hiking and being cold but it was worth it!

Disney World recap

I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to get this out and that I've been so out of the loop. I've been super busy with work, orders, Skyler's school, Christmas, you name it! I wanted to get this recap written down before I forgot all about our trip!

Day 1: Magic Kingdom and Epcot

On our first day we woke up bright and early and headed over to Magic Kingdom to be there when it opened at 10. If you've never been to Disney World, you arrive at the "Transportation Center" where either you park or a shuttle drops you off. Then you can get on either the monorail to take you to Epcot or the Magic Kingdom or you can get on a ferry to take you to Magic Kingdom. We chose the Ferry and it was a beautiful view from the dock.

We've been to Disneyland multiple times so we knew most of the rides at the Magic Kingdom but what we didn't expect was for those familiar rides to be different. It was so strange riding Pirates of the Carribean or The Jungle Cruise and to have them be different than the ride we've been riding all our lives! Here's Skyler and Steve on Thunder Mountain Railroad:

After spending a while at MK we took the monorail over to Epcot. We didn't have a lot of time but managed to ride a few rides and have dinner in Japan.

It was FREEZING in Florida but we still had a good time.

Day 2: Hollywood Studios

After arriving in Hollywood Studios we immediately went straight for the Tower of Terror (which last year was Skyler's favorite ride at Disneyland). She was so excited to go again. I think she forgot what it was all about because after getting off she was so terrified she probably didn't talk for about 20 minutes! She said she would NEVER go on it again! Toy Story Mania is a really fun ride but probably our longest line we had to wait in. You get to wear 3D glasses though which is always fun.

We also discovered Skyler's new favorite ride, The Rockin' Roller Coaster. She's never been on an upside down roller coaster and this one goes upside down 3 times! We went on it 4 times that day.

Day 3: Downtown Disney, Magic Kingdom

We had special tickets for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas in the evening so we spent the afternoon at Downtown Disney having lunch and shopping. Then over to Magic Kingdom for the party. They had free hot chocolate, cookies, and apple slices,

a special Christmas parade (which we were front row for), a special lighting of the castle,

(Skyler thought this was pretty cool!)

and SNOW on Main Street! It was a lot of fun getting to go to a special party. We've never done anything like that before. Oh, did I mention it was cold? Skyler is wearing 2 sweatshirts in this picture!

Day 4: Animal Kingdom

We started out at Animal Kingdom by going on the safari ride which was cool to see some animals a little closer up than you would at a zoo. Then it was off to Skyler's new favorite ride, Expedition Everest!

We went on this ride 5 times this day. We really got good at figuring out how to go on a ride as many times as possible. Skyler even met a friend in line and after much sweet talking, got her dad to let the two girls ride together on the ride. I'm so sad we didn't get her contact information because Skyler talked about her for 3 days straight!

I think this was our favorite park. The streets are decorated exactly like they would look in Africa or Nepal. It's just amazing. You really feel like you're there. We could have spent a lot more time here.

Day 5: Hollywood Studios and Epcot

At this point we were just trying to get to everything that we hadn't seen the first time around. We saw a couple of shows and went on a few rides. We were able to go on Rockin' Roller Coaster 3 more times bringing our total up to 7 times on this ride! Then it was back over to Epcot. We tried to get reservations to eat at some fun restaurants but everything was booked so we ended up having fish and chips in the UK. Steve was happy with his Guiness!

Day 6: Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom

This was our last day in the parks. We started out by getting fast passes for Everest, meeting all the characters and getting Skyler's face painted,

looking at a few animals, and then grabbing some lunch. While we were getting situated and josteling food I looked over and spotted a friend of mine, from California, and her entire family! I knew they were going to Disney World and that this would be their first day in the parks. I assumed they'd start in the Magic Kingdom and I had left her a message but didn't hear back from her. How random that we would run into each other! We managed to go on Everest another 4 times bringing our grand total to 9 times! This was everyone's favorite ride! Then it was back over to the Magic Kingdom for one last whirl wind around the park. Skyler decided she wanted to stand in line to see the princesses. She's never done this before so we let her. She was so excited!

Here's my summary: it was really cold, really hard to get around (the monorail only goes to 2 out of the 4 parks), and really tiring. We had fun but I think we'll stick to Disneyland from now on!

mystery revealed!

Most of you guessed the "mystery vacation." We went to Disney World! We just got back on Monday. I'm still downloading pictures so I'll post those probably this weekend.

We woke Skyler up at 5am last Monday and of course I had to take a picture! Good morning sunshine!

A friend of ours got her a Disney World sweatshirt a year or so ago for Christmas so after we got her dressed we asked her if she wanted to know where we were going. We put her sweatshirt on her and told her to look in the mirror (remember, it was 5am so she was a little out of it, not at all aware of what we were dressing her in).

She was so excited and couldn't believe we woke her up "IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT!" More updates to follow...

mystery vacation

We've been planning a vacation for a while now, maybe 3 months or more, but we've kept the destination a secret from our 5 1/2 year old. At first we just didn't talk about it and she had no idea we were going anywhere. Then, as it got closer, we mentioned it because it was apparent on the calendar that we were traveling in November.

However, we didn't want to tell her where we were going because she'd be so excited, all we'd hear about every day is her asking when we were leaving. So, we decided to do something different.

We are giving her a clue every day (or each day she asks). At first she was trying to guess with every clue and I finally told her that even if she guessed correctly, I wasn't going to tell her. I said she could keep all the clues fresh in her mind and think about how they all go together, then the day we leave she can guess, and if she guesses correctly, we'll tell her.

Here are her clues:

1. It's far away

2. there's wild animals there

3. there's water there

4. she knows someone who lives there

5. we can eat food from around the world

6. lots of people go there

7. mom and dad have never been there (this totally stumped her! She thought for sure we were going to Disneyland but we've been there before. She also wondered how we knew what was there if we had never been there before?)

8. there are pirates there

9. we might go on a boat while we're there

10. there will be lots of walking

11. there are hotels there (and therefore, she concluded that we will be staying overnight)

We leave Monday. Do you know where we're going???

MIA

Eek! Has it really been almost a month since my last post? I guess I've been a little busy. It's apparent by the fact that I've got 273 posts to catch up on Bloglines! Life will slow down a little next weeked since everything I'm doing right now is leading up to that. Here's what I'm working on:

1. my sister-in-law is moving in with us this weekend for 5 months! I love her to death but this means getting her room ready. My mom stays in our guest room when she comes over every week and it's also where I store all of my wrapping paper, prom dresses (yes, I still have my prom dresses!), my wedding dress, old momentos, and a whole cabinet full of gifts for upcoming occasions. Now, not only do I have to clean all of that out and find a new home for it, I have to clean out the playroom so that, when my mom comes over every week, she has a place to sleep. Goodbuy play kitchen, hello grandma!

2. My church puts on a Holiday Boutique every year that I'm participating in again this year. It's next Wed. and Thurs. so I'm frantically trying to sew and get everything ready for that. I'll post some things I'm working on later. No time now!

3. My MOMS Club puts on a Regional Luncheon every year for all the chapters in our Region and ours is next weekend in San Francisco. Because it's local, I've foolishly taken on some of the coordinating. With another volunteer we're doing ALL of the centerpieces for the luncheon, 34 tables! I'll post pictures of those later, again, no time! This year I've also taken on the task of the slide show. This is something that someone else has done every year and just couldn't take it on this year. For some reason I agreed to do it. It's a BIG deal people! Everyone is going to stop what they're doing, all 300 people, and watch and listen (yes, I have to pick out music too!) to my slide show. Aah! I'm already getting nervous! In addition to this, I'm also in charge of our chapter's raffle basket. Again, wait for the pictures but let me just tell you, this one's a doozie! So far the retail value of the contents exceeds $1400 and there's still one thing I'm waiting on. It's going to be sooooo cool!

And just because I like to include pictures, here's a random one from my yard:

So, aside from the above things, I'm not up to much. What have you been up to???

we have a visitor!

Over the weekend we had a visitor set up house outside on our porch!

She took over the porch light:

the pumpkins:

and then later came back and brought all of her babies with her!

I'll think we'll keep her...at least until Nov. 1.

First Triathlon...

CHECK! DONE! CROSSED OFF LIST!

My first triathlon was this weekend and it was so much fun! This is going to be a long post because I want to remember everything.

I had been training for 4 months for the See Jane Run Triathlon and the day was finally upon me. I was feeling pretty nervous for a couple of days before the race. On edge, not able to concentrate, with a million things to do before Saturday. On Thursday, after picking up Skyler from school, we drove out to Oakland to the See Jane Run store and picked up my race packet. Then I had to stop by the bike shop on the way home to get my brakes adjusted. On Friday night we met up with my friend Carrie for a carbo load dinner. Then home to pack my bag and get everything ready.

On Saturday I woke up at 6am and got dressed in my swim outfit (tri shorts, a sports bra, and a tri top) with warm clothes on over (it was 57 degrees outside). Then I got all my water and electrolyte drinks together, quickly made a bagel with peanut butter, grabbed a banana and hit the road. I was meeting at my friend's house at 6:30. We arrived at the lake (Shadow Cliffs) at about 7:15. Our wave was hitting the beach at 8:20am.

I had been feeling really anxious about the swim so about 9 days before the race I started positive imaging. As I fell asleep at night I would envision getting in the water, slowing down my breathing, taking each stroke, rounding the bouy, crossing the lake and heading toward the other bouy, etc. until I was exiting the water feeling great and strong. Well, I think it totally worked! When we got to the lake I wasn't nervous about the swim AT ALL! I even brought a little anxiety spray that you spray inside your mouth and I didn't even need it.


After setting up our transition area, getting our time chips, and getting body marked we were ready. A friend of ours, who was originally doing the triathlon with us but got injured, showed up to cheer us on and take pictures. Thanks Tracie! We walked down to the beach and got in the water to warm up a little and get used to the temperature. Then they were calling our wave to get into position. This is us just before warming up. I'm in the middle, number 327:



SWIM:
The water level was really low in the lake this year so we had to go into the water a ways before starting. This meant we were standing on ground that isn't usually stood on because the water is usually too deep. Let me just tell you, it was DISGUSTING! It was like standing in pudding up to your knees. Every step you sunk down into...something. Everyone was happy to start swimming so we wouldn't have to stand in it! I did the swim in 12:26 (1/4 mile swim). This is really good for me because each time I had practiced the swim in the lake it had taken me 14 min. That's me on the far left in the pink cap starting my swim:


BIKE:
The bike was pretty easy. Nothing to really report. I had taped some food to my bike so I could eat it during the ride and I think that really helped. It was 11 miles and I did it in 40 minutes. It normally would take me about 50-55 min. to ride 11 miles (I'm not a very strong bike rider) so I was very pleased with this time!

RUN:
This was a lot easier than I had anticipated. I felt great and maybe it was the food I'd eaten on the bike but I had more energy than I thought I would. It wasn't too hot so I was able to push myself a little more. I did walk some of it because there are about 4 hills on the course that I wasn't about to run over. The 3 mile course took me about 38 min which is a little longer than usual but I'm attributing that to the hills.

Here we are afterwards with "Super Jane."



Of course we had to buy some comemorative gear to celebrate our success:


All in all, my goal was to finish in under 2 hours and I finished in 1:36! I'm very happy with my time and I had so much fun. I couldn't have done it without my 2 friends right along side me and my friends on the sidelines cheering me on. And of course it wouldn't be the same without the free celebratory beer afterwards!


It was a lot of fun and I can't wait to do something like it again!

Fall Decorating

I just love Fall! I'm so happy it's officially only 2 days away and that the weather is starting to chill around here (we even had a few sprinkles last night!).

I was inspired by Chris to work on my Fall decorating this weekend. Here's what I've come up with so far.

These pumpkins are ones that my mom bought me for Christmas last year so this is the first time they're out and in my kitchen. Sorry about the ugly sweet potatoe sitting next to them!

These are on my mantel in the living room. They may not stay there though. The mantel is a little narrower than I thought and these are breakable. I love them with the clock that my friend Tracie got me for my birthday though!

This is my favorite Southern Living item. She stays up year around but just happens to fit in with my color scheme and with Fall!

This is another Southern Living inspiration. I bought the urn from my favorite SL at Home rep then had her over to put together the arrangement for me. She just has an eye for these kinds of things. This also has been up all year but I just love it! It's in my entryway.

I got these pumpkins from Target today! I just love them and wish I could afford to go back and get more. Can you tell I love pumpkins?

Now I just need to work on my front porch. I'm thinking of something like this:

Do you think it's a little much??

Virgo Celebrations

This past weekend was filled with birthday celebrations. First, on Friday night, all my girlfriends got together for our annual Virgo Birthday Dinner. There were only 2 Virgos there. Myself and a friend:

but there were a couple that had Virgo children and the rest were just along for a fun dinner. We went to a new Mexican restaurant in town, ordered a pitcher of Sangria, and just enjoyed each other's company. Afterwards we went outside to talk for an hour or so. When we all get together it's hard to leave at the end of the night because we're having so much fun!

(Inside joke on the pose...please excuse the silliness!)

Then Saturday night a good friend of mine was celebrating her 40th birthday in the city (San Francisco) at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel. Here I am with the birthday girl on the left:

She was in the Harry Denton suite and Harry Denton himself came up to wish her a Happy Birthday! We hung out in her suite for a while where we ate dinner and birthday cake and then headed up to the Starlight Room for a little dancing.

It was a really fun night! Happy 40th Gina!

Practice does not necessarily make perfect...

On Saturday, See Jane Run put on a practice triathlon to get us ready for the real thing in 3 weeks. It was meant to be just a training day, no pressure, just to get us used to the course and to practice our transitions. It was going to be an early day but I was really excited to get some practice on the course, try out the swim, and test my transitions.

WARNING: This is going to be a long post. Mostly so I have record of all my notes and thoughts. If you're not interested in reading all the boring details about something you would never do anyway, just scroll down to see the pictures. Those are always my favorites to see!

According to the email they sent out it was supposed to be 1/4 mile swim, 8 mile bike, and 2 mile run. My friend Carrie and I got there and set up our transition area. Hers was much more organized than mine but it totally worked for me.

After setting up our transitions we hit the beach for a motivational talk from some training coaches and LUNA Pro Triathlete, Linda Gallo. With 100 degree temperatures looming in the near future, they finally started the practice, 30 minutes late.

As you've probably read in the past, I have a real problem with swimming in the lake. I'm trying to talk myself out of it, trying to have some positive conversations with myself but so far it's not really working.

The lake water is REALLY low right now and the See Jane Run people apparently didn't tell the Regional Park we were even coming so there were no bouys. Instead of the 1/4 mile swim we were told to swim one length of the lap lane which I think is 140 yards. The water there is only chest high. This is good because if anyone panicked they could just stand up, hard though because then you're tempted to stand up instead of actually swimming it.

I'm assuming I was feeling a mixture of anxiety about the lake and adrenaline from doing the practice but I could NOT catch my breath once I hit the water. The funny thing about swimming is you actually have to hold your breath in order to swim properly. When you can't catch your breath, you can't hold your breath, and you can't swim! I probably only did about 3 strokes of freestyle the whole way. It was all breast stroke and side stroke. Anything to get me through it!

Everything else went pretty smoothly. I passed 3 riders on the first hill out of the park which is huge for me. I don't pass anyone! And this was evident in the rest of the bike ride (which ended up being about 8.2 miles) where I was getting passed up like I was standing still! I just kept telling myself "I'm saving myself for the run. All these women are going to die on the run because they're putting it all out there on the bike." I'm not sure that was actually the case but it helped me mentally.

The run started and my calves were a little sore and throughout I had a side ache (which I've only ever had when I'm trying to run too fast.) I've never had sore calves after getting off the bike but maybe I was pushing it a little harder than I thought I was. I also didn't have a lot of fuel in my body. I had only eaten one egg and a corn tortilla for breakfast and no snacks along the course (it just didn't sound good to eat at any point but now I know that was probably a mistake).

The run (which ended up being about 2.67 miles) included a lot more hills than I expected and it was HOT. It ended up being about 101 that day but I'm not sure what the temperature was at this time. No water was provided on the course and I didn't bring any with me so I tried to just take it easy and go as fast as I could without hurting myself. There was a lot of walking and I saw Carrie once during this portion so that was fun and a motivator to keep going. Here we are after the run.

In the end it was fun and a little bit hard but mostly scary to think that I have to do 3x the length of that swim on race day. I know I can complete the swim. I do it twice a week, just not in the lake! I need to figure out how to get the adrenaline out of my system, or at least in check, before I start the swim. I think that will help a lot. I'm so thankful that I have friends to do this with. There's no way I would be able to push myself to do it alone. Friends are a great thing aren't they?!

Happy Birthday to me!

Today is my birthday and normally I wouldn't advertise that but I just had to pass on what my darling 5 year old gave me. My husband asked what she would like to get mommy for her birthday. "A toothbrush and toothpaste!" So, that's what I got. This coming from the girl that LOVES her toothbrushes and even sleeps with them, so to her, it's a pretty special gift.

I got lots of great phone calls, emails, and gifts dropped on my doorstep from loving friends and family. And my husband got me a pretty special gift too:

This is not the exact necklace but very similar except that instead of rubys it has Aquamarine stones. It's beautiful! I'm so lucky and aside from having a touch of a cold, it was a great day.

First day of school! First day of school!

Monday was Skyler's first day of Kindergarten! She's been so excited all summer to start. She really feels all grown up now. Going into a new school, a new class, new teacher, and all new kids I would have been a ball of anxiety...not her! She was excited to get in there and meet a bunch of new friends. God bless her!

I swear she's not throwing gang signs already. Does this look like a "k" for Kindergarten??!

She'll probably be the tallest in her class for a while :)

Welcome to your new school!

After school (her first day she only went for 90 minutes), we met up with all of our friends, who were also starting Kindergarten that day, for lunch. The boy to her left she's known since the day they were born and all but one of the others she's known since she was about one. Can you tell they're saying "KINDERGARTEN!"?

It was over 100 degrees and they had all been playing on the playground (and running through the sprinklers) at the restaurant, which explains the red faces.

She, and I, made it through her first week. We've already had talks about not teasing people about their names ("Why would anyone name their kid after a clown fish?" If you need more of an explanation let me know), being gracious when someone else succeeds ("I'm mad at them that they were chosen to be the teacher's helper. I wanted to be the teacher's helper."), and trying to pull inappropriate or "disgusting" jokes out of her ("Why did the lady kiss the toilet?" We don't know the answer and neither does she but this is a joke that someone told her at school.). I can't wait to see what the next 9 months bring us!

Training Update

I'm finally coming out of the fog that is the Olympics. I was totally sucked in and found it hard to do much of anything else, except train for my own personal Olympics.

My triathlon training is coming along well (that's me on the left, my friend Carrie on the right). Only 5 more weeks to go! AGHHH!! Things are really ramping up too. The times that I need to train each week have taken a significant increase over the past week. Riding my bike for 70-80 minutes at a time, swimming for 35-40 minutes, and running for 35-40 minutes. All of that twice a week. You'd think right about now, after 11 or 12 weeks of vigorous training that I would have lost some weight? Right? NOPE! Actually, I take that back. I've lost 1 pound. ONE POUND!

Yah, Yah, muscle weighs more than fat, I've heard it over and over. I'm not that strong, there's no way I have THAT much muscle. I need to start losing some weight in order for me to see a change and start getting motivated. People have told me that I look different but I really don't feel different. The only thing I've noticed change is the fact that my endurance has increased. When I first started I had a hard time doing anything but I've definitely seen a change in that. That's good I suppose.

Oh, and apparently this is what I look like when I swim. I'm in the background.

The Olympics are here!

The Olympics are here! As I’ve said before I am a HUGE fan of the Olympics. From as far back as I can remember I’ve been following along. I even won a car during one of the past Olympics!

At tonight’s Opening Ceremonies we will see the Parade of Athletes as over 10,000 athletes from around the world file into the stadium. Greece will lead the way with China coming in last. During the festivities watch out for 5 year old pianist Li Muzi who has been playing since she was 4!

The games start tomorrow morning and will run through August 24th. The event I’m most looking forward to? Swimming! This is who I’ll be watching:


Michael Phelps – At 23, Michael, a Baltimore native, won all 5 of his Olympic Trial races, broke 2 World Records during those trials and holds 4 World Records in the 5 events he’s participating in. Is he good? I’d say so! Can he be beat? Absolutely! It’s going to be some great swimming. (And he's not bad to look at either!) And watch their new suits too. Laser seams, absolutely streamlined.














Katie Hoff – Katie could be called the female version of Michael Phelps. She’s 19 and also from Maryland. At the Olympic Trials she won all 5 of her events breaking one World Record and 2 American Records!





Natalie Coughlin – I root for Natalie mostly because she’s from the Bay Area (where I live) but also because she’s darn good. She swims 100 meters (2 lengths of a normal pool) backstroke (not the fastest stroke) in under 1 minute! You go girl!

Dara Torres

– At 41 Dara is the oldest woman to qualify for an Olympic Swimming competition. This will be her 5th Olympic games! She won both of her events at Trials and set an American Record but she will be dropping one of her events in order to concentrate on her 50 freestyle (one lap of the pool, a race from one end to the other).

(by the way, swimmers from other countries might be fast but we don’t want them to win so why even talk about them.)

Go USA!

new hair cut

This is what happened when I was cleaning the guest room getting ready for an out of town friend. It was her first self-cut and hopefully her last. What was she thinking! She said she didn't want bangs. That's what we were growing them out for! UGH!!

Notice the longer bangs she cut for herself and then the ones that are right at the scalp. Oh yeah, that'll take a while to grow back.

Inspiration

We went to the fair back in June and I took some pictures but just never posted them. Then on two seperate blogs today I read about carnivals, fairs, and ferris wheels. I figured it was a nudge to post so here is my inspiration for today.

Swim Lessons

Skyler is just finishing up 2 weeks of swim lessons with 2 more weeks to go. She had them last year (private lessons, one on one, 3 times a week for 15 minutes each day) and she was doing really well. She loved her teacher and loved going to lessons. Then this year rolled around and she said she didn't want to go. Her reasoning, she didn't want to put her face in the water.

Well, she was going to go, whether she liked it or not, but where she went was another thing all together. Last year's school is totally hard core. I loved it because they are all about teaching water safety. They want your child to be able to survive if he or she falls in the pool. I don't know about you but I think this is pretty important!

Skyler, on the other hand, sees no importance in this at all. "I don't need to know how to swim. You can just take me around the pool or I'll stay in the shallow end." Uh, I don't think so sister! So, I started to change my way of thinking and started wondering if she needed to see other kids swimming to give her that peer pressure to do better. I also wondered about her not wanting to put her face in the water.

Here are my two compromises: goggles and group lessons! The minute she put those goggles on she could magically swim. It was incredible! She just wasn't liking opening her eyes under water but this has solved that.

And I think the group lessons are working too. There is a little girl in her class that's a pretty good swimmer so that pushes Skyler to try to keep up. Here she is chatting it up with a girl in her class. Such a social butterfly!

No problem! She can even do it with her eyes closed!

She's doing great and today she gets to jump off the diving board into 10 ft of water! Stay tuned to see if I jump in after her or let her teacher catch her...

shopping!

I very rarely buy things for myself and when I do it's not very expensive things but today was an exception. We have a new Anthropologie near by my house and I just had to check it out. In fact I told my husband, because he wouldn't come with me and made me go shopping by myself, that I would not be held accountable for the amount of money I spend. That kind of gave me the green light :)

We are going to a wedding this weekend. Actually my husband is in the wedding, I'm just going to hang out by myself. So, I should at least look good, right? I have a pair of white dress pants that I had planned on wearing but I wanted a new shirt to go with it. This is what I found:

It's so comfortable and looks really good with the white pants. Remember, it's 100 degrees out and the wedding is at a golf course. I think I'll wear a pair of black wedge shoes (even though the top is a dark navy blue or slate)...is that ok?

What about jewelry? I was thinking of wearing gold to dress it up. I saw these earings and necklace there but they were more than I wanted to spend:

I wonder if I could find something similar at Claire's or Target. What do you all think?

another baby gift

I had another baby shower to go to a few weeks ago and at the last minute decided to give this little onesie and matching burp cloth. The new baby's name was going to be Gavin. Didn't it turn out cute?!

Daddy Time

This past weekend my husband and 5 year old daughter decided to camp out in the backyard. They needed some good daddy/daughter time and this was just what they wanted to do!

They had music playing, daddy was BBQing, daughter was eating. They were having a blast!

Here's what was for dinner: grilled hamburgers and corn (and Smore's for dessert, of course!)

After dinner everyone changed into their jammies, zipped up the tent, got all cozy in their bed, and watched a movie (Harry Potter). Isn't that what everyone does when they camp?!

They can't wait to do it again!

New Necklace

I just received a new necklace that I am loving! It is an oval with a cross that says "Faith." Thanks Erin!!

Open Water

When we started this Triathlon training we agreed that it would be a good idea to try the lake swim at least once a month. Today was the day that we decided to do our first trial swim. I had been excited about it but secretly terrified as well. For one, I wasn't completely sure I could swim 400 yards without stopping or having something to hold onto. And two, I was terrified/paranoid/grossed out about the murky water and what lies beneath. In the end, only half of my fears came true.

When we arrived at the lake we found a lifeguard that told us that while they are on duty we are only allowed to swim within the bouys. There's a lane set up outside the swimming area that we can do laps in but when they aren't on duty we can swim wherever we want. Next time maybe we'll come back when they aren't on duty so we can swim further out into the lake but for now, we'll do the lane.

The water wasn't too cold and you could actually see the bottom while walking in. That quickly changed. It became dark and green. I have a crazy fear of unknown, dark water where I can't see the bottom or what's in it. That was one of my problems.

To put it simply, I did my swim, as fast as I was physically able, and immediately got out. The water scared me and I think it would have been better to not have my goggles on so I couldn't actually see anything. At one point during my swim I saw bubbles coming up from the bottom. I just prayed it was a plant and not an animal. Acutally, I don't want to know what it was! We ended up swimming about 560 yards in about 19 minutes (the swim for the Triathlon is 400 yards) so we were happy with our first attempt.

One yukky/murky/scary lake swims down, 3 to go!

Holiday Happenings

Our neighboring town is celebrating it's 150th Anniversary. In 1958 they celebrated "Hay Days" with a parade and parties to commemorate their Centennial. Hay Days was the precursor of the current 4th of July Parade and was a four day event. This year they decided to celebrate 50 years since the first Hay Days but instead of a four day event they did it in 4 hours on the 3rd with Children's Carnival Games, a Family Picnic, Hay Rides, Train Rides, an Old Fashioned Bathing Suit Show, and more.

Skyler tried her hand at a fishing game, a "Knock 'Em Down" game, and the good ole sledgehammer!

Then bright and early the next day, on the 4th, we left the house, having already set our chairs out the night before for our annual Parade. The hardest part about the morning of the parade is waiting for the parade to actually start!

Here's what our little town's main street looks like, waiting for the parade to start:

Then the parade itself. I've been going to this parade for 17 years now and it never gets old. It's very small town, a little hokey, but VERY American. Here are some highlights...

Top Left: The Lawnmower Brigade. It just wouldn't be a parade without them! They are out there doing drills, running around being very silly, with their lawnmowers. Very fun!

Top Right: Pearl Harbor Survivors. Really all the service men and women that are in the parade get me emotional. Every year there is at least one in the parade that has just returned from Iraq or somewhere else just as scary. It's so awesome to see them home and safe. The Pearl Harbor Survivors are just precious though. Look how happy they are to be honored in such a way.

Bottom Left: The Blue Star Moms. I'm sure you all have a chapter in your town. These are moms that have children deployed. They walk in the parade carrying pictures of their children. They are so proud but understandably sad at the same time. Look at the woman in the back carrying a picture of 3 of her kids, all in fatigues. It's so inspirational!

Bottom Right: The Clackers. I'm not even sure if this is what they're really called but it's what we've always called them. They're some sort of gun club or rifle club or something. Everyone there looks like they just stepped out of the wild west. These guys signal the end of the parade every year. You can hear them coming a mile away. They walk for a minute, then stop, the guy in the front blows his whistle, and then they shoot off their rifles (or whatever they're called), either one by one or all at once. If you click on the picture you can see EVERYONE covering their ears. It is the loudest thing I've ever heard. And when you hear them coming, anyone with babies or dogs high-tails it outta there because it's a doozie. It wouldn't be the parade without them though.

We ended the day with Smores and fireworks from our backyard. It was a good couple of days and we're pooped. Off to bed for us all! Happy 4th!

Handmade with love...

A friend of mine had a baby boy in March and I'm JUST getting around to giving her something handmade. I gave her the traditional boring baby gift for her shower, something she registered for, I'm sure, although I can't really remember. But, I've been wanting to give her something that I made. So I made him this little onesie that I thought he could wear on Friday if he wants to. If he doesn't wear it on Friday I'm sure he could wear it to a Presidential Rally or to a taping of American Gladiators but I'm hoping he just wears it on Friday :)

Then this afternoon I went over to a friend's house for a "cocktail playgroup" (my favorite kind!) and we decided to break out her jewelry making stash. Here's what I made:

A bracelet and 2 pairs of earings (the other pair of earings aren't pictured here. They were coming out all blurry and I didn't want to fight with the camera). I love them and can't wait to wear them!

The Olympics are coming!

I'm so excited that the Olympics are almost here! I don't know what it is about them but I can't get enough. I watch just about every event or tape them if they're on at odd hours. I find myself crying when they even play the Olympic song on a commercial!

I taped the Olympic Trials for Gymnastics, Diving, and Swimming partly so that I could see them and follow along with how the athletes are doing but also to try and get my 5 year old in the spirit. She really has no interest until they're on and she sees how excited I get. Then she really enjoys it. After all, we just saw Michael Phelps and Katie Hoff both break the world record for the 400 IM Swim. How can you not get excited about that!?

I guess you know where you'll find me on the night of August 8th :) I'll be sitting in my family room watching the opening ceremony...crying.

Cutest Wristlet ever!

A few weeks ago I entered a blogging contest for a handmade Wristlet from Boutique NutMeg Designs and won! I received it a week or so ago and have been SO busy that I forgot to show it to you. Look how adorable it is! And the detailed stitching along the edges of the fabric are SO cute!

Best of all, look at the inside!

Thanks so much Meg! Be sure to check out her Etsy store here. Happy Shopping!

good things

Taking my 5 year old to her first pedicure (she said "I feel like a new person!")

Fitting in my 24 minute swim for the week

Wrapping up raffle prizes and gifts for a luncheon this Saturday with friends, 2 bottles of wine, and chocolate cake

Life is good!

cutie

I just love this little guy (a friend of mine's son)

I don't know what it is about him but he just melts my heart!

training update

Well, I'm a week and a half into my triathlon training and it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be! Some people have asked for me to keep them updated on how it's going so here goes...

We're using a training schedule from an online website for beginning triathletes which is proving to be very manageable. Granted it's based on "back of the pack" times which probably means we're all going to come in dead last but that's ok. Here is how my first week looked:

Monday: Swim for 12 minutes, Bike for 24 minutes.
The bike was no problem. I still don't have a bike yet so I was in the gym for this portion. Easy! I watched The View, listened to my IPod every once in a while. It was a breeze! I even hopped on the treadmill and ran for 1/2 mile just to stretch out and loosen up after the bike ride. I was feeling good. Then, later in the day I went for the swim at my friend's pool and discovered something I never knew about myself. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO SWIM! I never took swim lessons but I thought "how hard can it be? I've seen Skyler at swim lessons. It's easy. Breath. Use your arms. Kick. Simple!" WRONG! I now see the reason they put the swim first. Because it's the hardest!

Tuesday: off

Wednesday: Swim for 20 minutes.
More of the same. This time I didn't even try to put my face in the water. I just tried to swim, anyway I could, for 20 minutes. I used a kickboard part of the time, fins part of the time, and the rest of the time I just struggled. It's going to be a long 4 months of this way of swimming! I hope something clicks.

Thursday: Run for 12 minutes.
I got on the treadmill at the gym and ran, and ran, and ran. I did it! Twelve minutes of running without stopping. I didn't think it could be done but I did it and felt fine.

Friday: Bike for 40 minutes.
This time the bike was a little more painful. I still watched TV, listened to my IPod, and tried to relax but my butt was hurting about 3 minutes into it! Why don't they make these seats more comfortable? Then I realize. They probably make them for MEN not WOMEN! Oh well, I power through. Then after the bike I hop on the treadmill again for another 1/2 mile run to loosen up.

Saturday: off

Sunday: Run for 20 minutes.
I had just gotten back from Vegas and I was exhausted! My plan ws to go to the gym and do my run while Steve was putting Skyler down for bed but it just didn't happen. I promised to make up for it the next week.

Monday: Swim for 13 minutes. Bike for 26 minutes.
For me, I felt like run training is more important right now than the bike so today I opted to skip the bike and do the run from yesterday instead. I headed for the gym at 6pm. Not a parking space in sight! So, I left and went to the local middle school to run the track, in 90 degree heat! Even though I was supposed to run for 20 minutes, I was meeting a friend to swim at 7pm and only had time for about 14 minutes so that's what I did. Then drove over to the pool and struggled through the swim.

After my run on Monday, I noticed that I was coughing a LOT! Like I couldn't even finish a sentence without coughing. The next day I was still coughing. My boss thought I was sick. I told her "No. It's just because I ran." She's an ex-nurse and suggested I might have Exercise-Induced Asthma. What? I've never heard of such a thing! Long story short, I now have an inhaler to use before or after I run to see if it makes a difference. I'll keep you posted!

Oh, there are now 11 of us doing this triathlon! The fever is spreading and it's great! Stay tuned...

girl's weekend

I just got back from a girl's weekend to Vegas! What a blast! There were 4 of us that went and it was relaxing, tiring, and funny all rolled into one. I can't wait to do it again!

AND, we flew our new favorite airline...Virgin America! It is so cool. You feel like a rock star because it's just so different from any other airline. The lights inside the cabin are purple and blue creating a "nightclub feel" to the plane. Every seat has a tv where you can listen to music, play video games, watch music videos, TV, or movies. You can even shop from your seat, you just swipe your credit card right on the TV screen! We can't wait to fly them again!