Memorial Day

This afternoon we visited the graves of AH's grandparents with his mom and sister.  The cemetery was beautiful with rows of tall flags billowing in the breeze and small flags marking all the headstones of the veterans.  I captured this image of them listening while Grandma showed my children a photo of their great grandparents and shared a little of their history with them.   Great Grandpa grew up on a farm and was the only boy in his family.  He learned at an early age to work hard and save his money - a key to his success later in life.  Great Grandma was the youngest of 14 children.  She had said, "What if my parents had decided to stop at 13."  Thankfully they didn't and I've only heard how wonderful she was since I married AH.  I am sorry I didn't get a chance to meet her but I see her kindness in my MIL every day.

It was such a beautiful sweet moment.

Flip Flops

The last few weeks Beeb has been pestering me to buy her some new flip-flops.  I've been reluctant to do so this early in the season, not knowing how long our beautiful weather would last (so far it's been a nice couple of weeks).  Finally today I purchased her new summer staple and she was eager to try them on after school.  As she was coaxing her foot into the second shoe she muttered, "Now let's go see how they flop."

Bearly There

Beeb has had love for a certain stuffed bear since before Christmas. 

{Santa did not bring her the bear, he has only so much room on his sleigh.}

Beeb has begged and pleaded for the bear for many months, driving her parents nearly crazy and causing them to curse Costco for still carrying this bear 6 months later.

Our neighbor went out of town for 10 days and hired Beeb to care for her cats.  Beeb was in cat heaven even though it meant cleaning out their litter boxes. 

Beeb earned quite a bit of money for her temporary job.

Guess what Beeb decided to buy with some of her money.

His name is Brownie.

Brownie is 53" tall.

Beeb is not 53" tall.

Guess how AH found Beeb in her room this evening.

 We'll see who wins the war of the bed tonight.

A First!

Today was the day of my very first half marathon.  I have been very anxious about this race for over a month, which is very unlike me.  I am usually pretty laid back about these sorts of things (running).  I had been having small panic attacks this last week that I hadn't experience in any prior race (quick heart rate, shaking hands, etc.). 

I woke up at around 3:00am this morning and tossed and turned for an hour before I was able to get back to sleep and then I didn't want to get up when my alarm went off at 6:00am.  I volunteered to help out with some early morning day-of-race registration.  It was a good decision.  It kept my mind busy and unable to think about how nervous I should be prior to the start of the run otherwise I might have had a full blown panic attack!

I met up with my running buddies and we started out the run together at a pretty quick 8 minute pace for the first few miles.  I realized that even though I could run that pace I couldn't do it for all 13 miles and that I was wearing myself out quickly so I slowed down and found my groove.  As a result of being toward the front of the pack in the beginning and starting out fast I spent the rest of the race having people pass me but I was okay with it (though I didn't love it). 

Now running on my own (each member of our group went on to run at their own pace) I settled in to a more reasonable speed for me.  I felt a lag of energy after having exerted myself the first 3 miles (which I did in 24 minutes) but here's where the training paid off.  I knew that as I stuck with it I would recover my energy and probably even have some at the end.  For the most part the course was flat and took us through some really beautiful scenery.  Volunteers were at specific mile markers offering water, Gatorade, and Gu.  It was so nice to have them out their cheering us on and offering much needed moral support.

My confidence increased when I reached the half way mark and I knew I would be able to finish without having to walk or stop.  However I then seconded guessed myself when the final back road we were on seemed to last FOREVER.  It messed with my perception of the total distance.  I didn't realize that we would be running 8 1/2 miles out and then turn around and do 4.6 miles back to the finish.  In my training we would either go half the distance out, turn around and run back, or run the distance straight through one way.  Of course once I hit the turn around point and had less than 5 miles back to the finish I was pretty happy.

I spent three days prior to the race really carb loading to ensure that I would not hit the proverbial "wall".  I did hit it on a training day and it was not fun.  This time I didn't feel like I hit it but there was a section, right around mile 9 or 10, where our course had a steady hill that had to be dealt with while maintaining my current pace.  Normally I avoid hills if at all possible but with this one I knew I was strong enough to take it on without losing momentum.  It actually felt good to maintain my pace while using some force to do so and then to be rewarded with a nice flat surface afterward helped me to increase my speed slightly.  It empowered me.  I physically felt really strong and capable. 

As I came into the final loop I was happy to see one of my buddy's cheering me on (she finished a good 15 minutes before me).  I spotted AH and Beeb as I entered the track for my final loop.  Beeb hopped on the the track with me and we ran the final lap together.  (Mr. B was handing out water to the finishers.)  I had a woman next to me who seemed determined to pass me and I was just as determined not to let her.  As a sprinter in my former running life this is an area I excel at, and now combine it with the strength my legs have from all the distance training and I was ready to kick it into high gear and finish well in front of her.  At one point, as we rounded the last corner, Beeb shouted, "Mommy you're going too fast for me to keep up."  It's nice to know I've still got it after all these years!

2 of my 3 running buddies. (#3 is in California celebrating the return of her husband from an extended business trip (3 months) with her kids at Disneyland)

The end, after my 1/4 mile sprint, I was so out of breath and my legs and calves instantly started cramping.  Not the best feeling in the world.

Toothless

Mr. B hates to have AH brush his teeth and tonight was no exception.  Mr. B tried everything he could think to get out of AH's strict oral hygiene routine.  Exasperated he declared, "Why do you always pick on me?  You don't ever brush Beeb's teeth!"

AH quickly replied, "That's because Beeb doesn't have any teeth right now.  You have expensive adult teeth and she has none!" 

Mr. B couldn't help but laugh a little, as did Beeb, which with her big toothless grin only proved AH's point.

To date neither of the children have had cavities (or any other dental issues) thanks to AH's hyper hygienic ways.  Unfortunately his commitment to good oral hygiene was reaffirmed when it was recently announced that our niece had 5 cavities at her last visit to the dentist.  Somehow I can see Mr. B at 16 still sitting on the bathroom counter with AH moving that electric toothbrush around his mouth . . .  scary!

Disneyland USA

A few months ago I was perusing the www and kept coming across ads for Disneyland.  AH and I have talked many times about taking the kids there but have been waiting for them to be the perfect age . . .  seems like this year they are the in that perfect zone so I booked a trip that night to spend our mid-winter break at the Happiest Place on Earth.  AH are getting smarter in our advanced years and we DID NOT tell the kids about the trip in order to ensure that we all got a good nights sleep before our very very early morning flight.

The morning of the trip I first snuck into Beeb's room and gently shook her awake.  She ignored me. 

I said to her, "Beeb it's time to get up." 

She still ignored me. 

Then I said, "Beeb how about we go on an adventure today?" 

No response. 

"How about we go on a plane ride today?" 

Still no response. 

"How about we go to Disneyland today?" 

Nothing . . .  I think she actually may have fallen back to sleep. 

"Beeb wake up.  We are going to Disneyland today!" 

FINALLY a response. "No we're not." 

"Yes we are."

"No.  We are going to Grandma's this morning." She still has her eyes closed.

"Yes we are.  That's because Grandma and Grandpa are taking us to the airport this morning because we are going to Disneyland today!"

It finally starts to sink in a bit.  "Really?"

"Yes, really!"

That got her attention.  She finally got up and started yelling that we were going to Disneyland and then started getting dressed.  Then I went into Mr. B's room and had nearly the exact same conversation and response from him, though it did help that Beeb came running into his room screaming that we were going to Disneyland.  And so the adventure began. . .

We arrived that afternoon and checked out Downtown Disney, bought souvenirs and picked up our park passes for our stay.  We were all pretty tired after a 4:00am wake-up so we went to bed and tried to get a bit of sleep.

Thanks for taking the picture daddy!

We'd received lots of great Disney advice from family and friends so when the park opened we headed straight for the Star Tours ride.  The kids were completely mesmerized just by the things to see while waiting in line.  The actual ride blew them away and made me totally nauseated (I subsequently closed my eyes during the other many times we did went on it).  I will admit that it was very cool and that not knowing which show you'll experience made it extra exciting and new each time (during the short periods of time that I had my eyes open).

We drove some fancy new cars: 

Explored Toon Town:

Made friends with a goat (the goat loved Mr. B)

Visited Tarzan's Treehouse:

Canoed around Tom Sawyers Island:

.

Got wet on Splash Mountain: 

(Beeb has her head down, hiding behind AH, so she wouldn't get wet. 

It didn't work - she and I got soaked)

Beeb was picked first for training to become a Jedi:

Mr. B ticked the wrong people off:

Battled:

 Graduated Jedi training:

Had some fun waiting for Indiana Jones:

Learned to drive the Indy way:

Ran out of steam:

Had fun with Nemo:

Got a little Goofy:

Put on some weight:

Saw Radiator Springs:

Became bugs:

Screamed our way through California Screaming eight times!:

Begged Daddy for a piggy-back ride:

Took a piggy-back from anyone who'd give it:

Did some weight training:

Stood next to some freaky strangers (we now know who they are):

Loved Big Thunder Mountain:

Hung with Phineas and Ferb (mom had no idea who they were):

Earned our Wilderness Explores Badges and hung with dog:

Loved Sully:

Stayed up way too late: 

Crashed in our hotel room:

It was a great adventure - so much more than what is pictured here.  The kid's were exactly the perfect age to enjoy all that the parks had to offer.  They are already asking when we can go back again; a sure sign of a good time!

Running & Naps

My running is ramping up as we get closer to our 1/2 marathon date.  Saturday morning I met the ladies and we ran 12 miles (12 freaking miles!).  I felt really great until about the last 3/4 mile and then my legs just really didn't want to pick themselves up anymore.  It was the strangest sensation because usually it is my brain that says "Stop!" or "I'm so bored - why am I doing this?" but this time my upper body was feeling great and I just ran out of endurance in my legs (though I made it to the end).  The amazing thing is knowing that now my legs are stronger and next weekend when I run 13 miles the 12 will be easier and my legs will probably seize up at 12.25 miles instead of 11.25.  My world has turned upside down.

In the afternoon AH and I did some yard work.  My legs were still not fully functioning by this point but I helped where I could.  It was a beautiful sunny day and our whole family was outside enjoying it.  About half way through our work AH told me he didn't need my help right then so I went and sat on the grass to read a magazine and watch the kids playing with their friends in our driveway.  It was so warm with the sun on my back that I put the magazine down and laid back on the grass.  The next thing I know AH is shaking me awake and its been about an hour.  I so needed that nap.  I am always super tired in the afternoon following my long Saturday runs but life goes on and kids need attention and house work still calls out so I don't usually get that nap, but yesterday my body took over and it felt so glorious to sleep with the sun on me.

Give Me a Break!

Today is our first official day of spring break and the kids stayed in their pajamas all day.  I ran 10 miles this morning and then, after getting showered, I stayed in my pajamas the rest of the day too.  We needed it. . . desperately. 

In January AH and I made the tough decision to take Mr. B off his ADHD medication.  We think it may be causing an undesirable side effect and can only find out if that’s the case by removing it from the equation.  It has been hard for us all.  AH and I are refreshing ourselves with “The Incredible Years” program that we did a few years ago, Mr. B is doing a refresher as well.  We haven’t had to deal with some of these behavioral issued in a long time or at this degree and at times I feel like a soldier sent back to the front lines but still suffering from PTSS – all the anxiety came back on very quickly and to a heightened degree – my mind and body do not want to go through it again.    Mr. B and I are now meeting with a specially trained Incredible Years therapist – it’s helping a lot.

This week I had to meet with Mr. B’s principal.  Due to his heightened behavioral issues Mr. B and his teacher have been at each other’s throat and it only seems to be getting worse.  I really need for her to get on board with our program – I need for her to listen to me in order to be able to help her have a wonderful experience with my son (because he really is wonderful especially when you understand how to work with him).  There is no doubt that she is a really great teacher but I need her boss signed on too in order for this all to come together since he is vital in providing encouragement and support to her.  Thankfully our elementary school is fantastic and our Principal had already sent some staff to be trained in the Incredible Years program several years ago just for Mr. B.  It was a great meeting and he fully agreed with me on my plan.  He spoke with Mr. B’s teacher that very day and then called me to say she was very receptive to the plan.  I hope it all works because this program could rock her world if executed properly.

So now I look at a long week of no homework, no lessons, and no plan – just fun.  I am looking forward to taking the kids to the beach for a few days and just spoiling them with undivided “mom” time.  They are looking forward to swimming in the pool, staying up late, eating popcorn while watching movies,  playing at the beach (if it’s not too rainy), sleeping in the loft, and playing with friends. 

Tonight while AH was attending a meeting the kids and I made chocolate chip cookies together and then we pretty much ate them for dinner (very unprecedented for our house).  Hallelujah for Spring Break!

Forts

Warning:  No pictures for this post, though there should be, but I am a bad bad lazy mom.


Mr. B rearranged my living room a few weeks back and made a stellar fort along one of the walls using our couch, all the cushions off the couch and nearly all the blankets (about 5).  The fort stayed up for about 10 days despite my daily pleas to the children and AH to return the family room back to normal.  AH and Mr. B struck a deal that Mr. B could sleep in his fort on a non-school night.  Due to our unusually busy calendar we had two weekends of very late nights and kept putting off the fort sleeping experience, looking for a day when we'd be home and Mr. B could enjoy the whole evening of fort bliss.  This past weekend we gave up and let Mr. B sleep in his fort despite it being 10pm when we got home.  He loved it!

Beeb, not wanting to be left out, wanted a fort to sleep in but Mr. B refused to share the family room (and mom & dad refused to let them sleep in the same room knowing no sleep would actually happen should that occur).  Being a judicious parent I built Beeb a fort in her room between the foot of her bed and her giant doll house.  She was very pleased and actually slept in it two night in a row (to Mr. B's chagrin) because AH is wrapped around her little finger.

I know these are the kinds of memories that will last for them and that makes me very very happy!

A Vortex of Activities

My life is spiralling out of control busy these days.  I simply don't know how working parents or single parents do it without live-in family or paid help.  So I am especially thankful that my husband has a great job that allows me to be home trying to manage the crazy schedules of our own lives, church responsibilities and our childrens' activities. 

One of these nights I will clean off my desk (again), organize all my "to-dos" (maybe even check a few off) and put together a weekly plan to get me back on task so that I can at lease feel some sort of sanity again.

That's it . . .  I have to run my kids up to ski lessons now.

Up To No Good

This is the new desktop background image on my monitor, courtesy of AH, Mr. B and my scanner: