May 22, 2011

MY Favorite Days

  • My first date with Craig: March 25, 1993
  • Day I got baptized: April 8, 1997
  • Day I got engaged: December 18, 1997
  • Day I got married: June 19, 1999
  • Luke's birth date: October 6, 2004
  • Lydia's birth date: August 24, 2007
  • Skydiving in July, 2009- This doesn't quite fit in this list, but as far as my most memorable days, it's "up there" (ha ha    Get it?  I said "up there"  hee hee)
AND NOW...
  • Luke's baptism: May 22, 2011

I feel incredibly blessed
that this list is still growing!

A Bird's Business

Look at my new hanging flower basket.
Pretty, right?  Well look more closely...
See it yet?  Look closer...
Now, do you see it?  Yep - 2 days after hanging it, a momma dove claimed it. 
 Then she left some treasures and day after day we waited.
 15 days later... two teeny miracles appeared.
I like them this way too, all cute and fuzzy- before they start squawking and crapping on my car.

Body Rippling

This is the faster way my kids have discovered to go down our stairs.  Lydia typically "wins".... as she's shockingly swift and surprisingly smooth with her rippling descent!

May 10, 2011

Tooth Fairy... wherefor art thou?

Luke lost his first tooth!  And I wasn't there.... boooooo

Craig had the kids at the YMCA for swim lessons, and he & Luke are in a disagreement as to where the tooth might be.  Luke thinks he swallowed it during dinner, and Craig thinks it's in the pool.
Both scenarios are terrible and gross.
When I got home this evening, Craig told me Luke had written a note to stuff into the pocket in his Tooth Fairy Pillow.

It read, "Dear Tooth Fairy,
I promise I lost my tooth. Love, Luke"
CUTE!
So I tip-toed into his room after he dozed off and sure enough...the Tooth Fairy did pay a visit. There's now a crisp dollar bill nicely rolled up and sticking out of the pocket, as well as some shiny gold glitter (aka FAIRY DUST) sprinkled about.
As far as the tooth???
Either the Pool Fairy or the Poop Fairy
won dibs on it this time.

May 6, 2011

My Little Lydia

Today while sorting through some toys, Lydia and I had a discussion that left me chuckling.

I was setting aside baby toys for us to get rid of when Lydia told me we should keep them in case we can get another baby.
I laughed and said, we're not going to get anymore babies.
She looked unsettled and asked why.
I answered that we're finished having babies in our family; God isn't going to give us any more.

Her reply???   Maybe we can BUY one.

- Sometimes... just sometimes,
I don't have to have the last word.

Parkapaloosa

It's been rain... day after day for what seems likes MONTHS!  So, you can imagine my excitement to wake up to what might be a "nice" day.  I had a to-do list a mile long, but I decided to have an impromptu outing with the kids.
They were excited to dress when I told them we would go to a park.
So we went... to a park
then another park
then another park
then another
then another
and another
and another
and finally one more after that

Yep... 8 parks in under 3 hours.  PLUS, we grabbed Subway in the middle there somewhere and enjoyed lunch at one of the picnic shelters.
(Luke told me I should call the newspaper and they can put it in the World Record Book!)

- We're fortunate to be surrounded by so many neighborhood & community parks that it made it rather easy to visit so many, without much driving time.

For some of our more familiar parks, I gave them just 10 quick minutes to bust a move and try to do everything they wanted before it was time to leave.  They cracked me up as they flew around determined to touch every single piece of equipment.  Then we added in some parks that we frequently drive-by, but have never actually stopped in to play.  In fact, we found a new favorite!!!!

I wish I would have taken my camera!
Maybe next time, right?
I did tell the kids that someday we would try to break our record and do TEN in one day!
Parkapaloosa Part II

May 2, 2011

13.1 Done!

Well, I didn't get to prepare the way I'd planned.
The most I'd run was the 10K- which by the way- I feel I was pretty committed and successful in my training up until that point!
Then I got lazy!
I had only done a small handful of runs over the last couple of weeks.  I stayed in complete denial about what I was up against until just days before the "big race". 
But...
A BIG But...
- I set a goal and I felt determined to meet it!!!

So, Craig and I were up and at 'em at 4am on Saturday morning and headed down to a dreary starting line.  It didn't take long and bang... off we went like piggies from a corral
(it WAS the Flying Pig, afterall).
Fortunately, the rain was light, and at one point the sun even peeked out to kiss our foreheads. 

Now, fast forward to mile 11...
the rain started to tinkle on us again and I began to realize I was ready to accomplish a very big moment in my life.  It's a little hard to think too proudly of it, because of course my awesome hubby was out there doubling my numbers every step of the way.
(He did the FULL marathon.)
To stay motivated, I had to stay focused though that it WAS a big deal and I SHOULD feel proud.
So, I passed the 11 mile mark and not only did I get drips of rain, but my eyes suddenly got blurred with a massive river of tears.  I could barely focus, literally.  I maintained composure and started bustin' a move with a great deal of enthusiasm and new-found energy.  The cheering crowd thickened at this point too.
I crossed the line, got my medal, ate some yummy snacks, and then had to take a sucky TWO MILE hike back to our car!!!!!  No joke!  How did we NOT realize that we should have parked at the FINISH line, not the START line!  I admit that was a miserable and very anti-climatic ending to the experience!
Craig finished like a machine and we swapped stories about experience.  Here were things we saw that were especially memorable:
  • A sign that read "Chuck Norris never ran a marathon!"
  • A person wearing a bigfoot costume with a sign saying "Run Human Run"
  • An Elvis impersonator singing karaoke at the Krohn Conservatory
  • A couple of runners dressed as Wonder Woman and the guy from The Incredibles
  • Some runners in pirate pig costumes
  • A runner with a shirt saying, "I've run a marathon in all 50 states... TWICE"
  • An accapella men's group at Eden Park
  • A sign about halfway that said "You're regretting it now, aren't you?"
  • A sign that read, "Don't stop!  Everyone's watching!"

It's ironic that BEFORE the race began, I would have sworn that I would never want to do it again,
But...
A BIG But....
I actually did enjoy it so much that I anticipate I'll do it again.  And then maybe again. And who knows.... maybe someday I'll double my number too!!!!!!

Anywho, thanks for those that were supportive and encouraging.  Plus those that were holding me accountable to meet my goal.
You ALL are appreciated!

You know what else would be appreciated?
A massage!!!  ha ha