My gosh, it has been months!
Well we have just been busy. We had a great summer. Dan and I went to Jamaica in July with 2 other couples and had a marvelous time. Then in August we went to Ohio with the kids for a week, then finishing the last weekend renting a house with Dan's family and a visit to Cedar Point. We also had t-ball, gymnastics, dance, and many playdates.
Now we are back to school. Megan is a big first grader at her new school, St. Peter's. She looks so adorable in her uniform. Ryan has adjusted to his 4 year old preschool class at Kensington. Ryan's teachers kept commenting to us about him being such a good listener, and what a good student he is, and how they have fallen in love with him, and for a while Dan and I would look at each other and say, "They have the right kid, right?" He seems to be a completely different child at school.
Dan and I are getting right back into the teaching swing. I am pretty excited about my schedule this year. I am co-teaching for several groups this year so I am looking forward to that.
Well it is a school night so I had best get my booty to bed!
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Summer Fun!
I am exhausted from all the super-fun we have been having this week.
Thursday we went to the Cell to see the Sox sweep the Braves. Well, Dan ended up having class so I took my nephew and the kids and met up with friends and their kids. We actually had some pretty decent seats, something that we don't usually do with the kids. And again, I seem to have a magical touch at the ballpark, but I leaned over to the kids in the 8th inning and said, I feel like this one is going to be homer, and wouldn't you know it, Paul Konerko hit one into the seats!
Yesterday the kids and I drove up to Delavan for an absolutely fantastic day of swimming and boating. The kids are getting braver in the water every day! The kids loved tubing, and are already planning when they can try it again! I had an awesome ride in the tube, and Auntie Gretchen was able to finally flip me off after several attempts on the wild ride. It was awesome! Well, I thought it was awesome, my little protector Ryan apparently kept reading her the riot act. Something to the effect of "That's my mom, I said slow down!" And he was very concerned about me when I flipped into the water. He always takes such good care of me!
Today I went for a nice 5 mile run while the kids were in art class. Then we checked out the farmers market, a couple of garage sales, and decided to spend the afternoon swimming in the pool. Megan has made it swimming across the pool and back for the first time today without her floatie! And then Ryan surprised me by swimming out to us without his floatie on! I think we finally have some swimmers here!
Thursday we went to the Cell to see the Sox sweep the Braves. Well, Dan ended up having class so I took my nephew and the kids and met up with friends and their kids. We actually had some pretty decent seats, something that we don't usually do with the kids. And again, I seem to have a magical touch at the ballpark, but I leaned over to the kids in the 8th inning and said, I feel like this one is going to be homer, and wouldn't you know it, Paul Konerko hit one into the seats!
Yesterday the kids and I drove up to Delavan for an absolutely fantastic day of swimming and boating. The kids are getting braver in the water every day! The kids loved tubing, and are already planning when they can try it again! I had an awesome ride in the tube, and Auntie Gretchen was able to finally flip me off after several attempts on the wild ride. It was awesome! Well, I thought it was awesome, my little protector Ryan apparently kept reading her the riot act. Something to the effect of "That's my mom, I said slow down!" And he was very concerned about me when I flipped into the water. He always takes such good care of me!
Today I went for a nice 5 mile run while the kids were in art class. Then we checked out the farmers market, a couple of garage sales, and decided to spend the afternoon swimming in the pool. Megan has made it swimming across the pool and back for the first time today without her floatie! And then Ryan surprised me by swimming out to us without his floatie on! I think we finally have some swimmers here!
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Medical Updates
Ok, well that sounds way more serious than it is. Today the kids had their 6 and 4 year old check-ups. Good news all around.
Best news of all- Megan is back on the growth charts! Yay! Last year she had fallen off the chart below the first percentile. This year she has grown like a weed, she is way up to the 3rd percentile! But she has always hovered around the 5th so the doctor was quite pleased. And of course we were super-excited because she is now 42 inches which means hello roller coasters-here we come (ok, maybe only a few more rides, but that was such a huge marker for us)! She also weighs in at a whopping 39 pounds.
Ryan is also growing nicely, keeping along his growth line. He is now 35 pounds and 39 1/2 inches staying right near the 10th percentile. He was also tested for diabetes and got a clean bill! I wanted the pediatrician to check him just to make sure because he sometimes seems to be really thirsty, and while I think it is just his active personality with his family history I figured it was better to err on the side of being overly cautious.
We came home and spent the afternoon swimming in our pool. What fun! Iwill have to post some pictures of the kids in their crazy get-ups. These two, I swear that could not have looked goofier, but they had so much fun. They wore bathing caps and swim goggles in addition to the floaty suits. They got pretty good at swimming with their heads under water, so hey if they need to get all crazy to do it that is fine by me!
And more good news, Megan is nearly riding her two-wheeler! She asked me to let go today (this is a HUGE step) and she even made it about 20 or 30 feet. I think she will get the hang of it pretty soon.
Ok, off to go enjoy more summertime fun!
Best news of all- Megan is back on the growth charts! Yay! Last year she had fallen off the chart below the first percentile. This year she has grown like a weed, she is way up to the 3rd percentile! But she has always hovered around the 5th so the doctor was quite pleased. And of course we were super-excited because she is now 42 inches which means hello roller coasters-here we come (ok, maybe only a few more rides, but that was such a huge marker for us)! She also weighs in at a whopping 39 pounds.
Ryan is also growing nicely, keeping along his growth line. He is now 35 pounds and 39 1/2 inches staying right near the 10th percentile. He was also tested for diabetes and got a clean bill! I wanted the pediatrician to check him just to make sure because he sometimes seems to be really thirsty, and while I think it is just his active personality with his family history I figured it was better to err on the side of being overly cautious.
We came home and spent the afternoon swimming in our pool. What fun! Iwill have to post some pictures of the kids in their crazy get-ups. These two, I swear that could not have looked goofier, but they had so much fun. They wore bathing caps and swim goggles in addition to the floaty suits. They got pretty good at swimming with their heads under water, so hey if they need to get all crazy to do it that is fine by me!
And more good news, Megan is nearly riding her two-wheeler! She asked me to let go today (this is a HUGE step) and she even made it about 20 or 30 feet. I think she will get the hang of it pretty soon.
Ok, off to go enjoy more summertime fun!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
I Rock!
Today I completed my first sprint triathlon. It was amazing, what an experience. I think I have found the sport for me!
I completed the entire race in 1:51:43. And I achieved all the personal goals that I set for myself: don't drown, don't fall off the bike, finish (not last), and under 2 hours. The last goal was really a hope since I thought it was a long shot!
I definitely plan to do this race again-I think I may have even talked a few family members into joining me next year! There are some things I would do differently, like remember what to do when I get in the water! It was amazing, I haven't been training all that long, but I have really been consistently practicing the swimming as I suspected that would be my weakest link. Man, I hit the water and totally forgot all the practicing I had been doing. Maybe I just kicked into survival mode or something, but anything that poor Dan had me work on (and I really had made HUGE strides in this) went out the water when I felt that cold water and got my first gulp. But I guess it wasn't all that bad because my anticipated time to swim was 10:30 and I finished that leg in 7:51.
Then it was off to the bikes. Again I laid out my energy chews and my gum, and forgot to take either one. Oh well. Previously I had practiced this course, the first time took me 1:05 and the second 1:00. Not today. Today I made it in 54:59! I felt pretty good on the bike. Maybe next time I could give a little more here.
Last leg was the run. Now this part I imagined would be tough since my legs felt like jello, and no imagination necessary, this was tough! It was a 4.1 mile race to the beer, and the first mile took me a little over 12 minutes, but then I started to get some feeling back into my legs and was able to finish in 43 minutes.
It was such an exciting day! Oh so much fun! And I did it all with my good friend Maggie-who will be my partner again this year for the Muddy Buddy race on August 1. Not a triathlon, just running and biking with some obstacles and a giant mud crawl at the end! We are some crazy ladies!
I completed the entire race in 1:51:43. And I achieved all the personal goals that I set for myself: don't drown, don't fall off the bike, finish (not last), and under 2 hours. The last goal was really a hope since I thought it was a long shot!
I definitely plan to do this race again-I think I may have even talked a few family members into joining me next year! There are some things I would do differently, like remember what to do when I get in the water! It was amazing, I haven't been training all that long, but I have really been consistently practicing the swimming as I suspected that would be my weakest link. Man, I hit the water and totally forgot all the practicing I had been doing. Maybe I just kicked into survival mode or something, but anything that poor Dan had me work on (and I really had made HUGE strides in this) went out the water when I felt that cold water and got my first gulp. But I guess it wasn't all that bad because my anticipated time to swim was 10:30 and I finished that leg in 7:51.
Then it was off to the bikes. Again I laid out my energy chews and my gum, and forgot to take either one. Oh well. Previously I had practiced this course, the first time took me 1:05 and the second 1:00. Not today. Today I made it in 54:59! I felt pretty good on the bike. Maybe next time I could give a little more here.
Last leg was the run. Now this part I imagined would be tough since my legs felt like jello, and no imagination necessary, this was tough! It was a 4.1 mile race to the beer, and the first mile took me a little over 12 minutes, but then I started to get some feeling back into my legs and was able to finish in 43 minutes.
It was such an exciting day! Oh so much fun! And I did it all with my good friend Maggie-who will be my partner again this year for the Muddy Buddy race on August 1. Not a triathlon, just running and biking with some obstacles and a giant mud crawl at the end! We are some crazy ladies!
Tuesday, June 01, 2010
The Countdown...
Our many events/activities are ending with many more beginning in the next few days and weeks.
Dan and I finish school some time tomorrow. I say sometime because technically we have to stay until 3:00, but in all my years there I have never stayed that long, but you just never know. The teachers at my school plan to promptly head over to the bars to beging a pub crawl (or if we get really lazy a pub sit-we just sit in the same chairs at the first bar for the whole day!)
Ryan's last school day is Thursday. His last day with our sitter was last week. Megan's last day is Friday, and since that is the last day of school at St. Mary's we are expecting many tears (mostly from me). The Kindergarten is hosting the last school mass, and Megan has been practicing reading her petition. So many goodbyes this year...
This weekend will finish the kids' gymnastics class, and begin the kids' art class, something new for us.
I have been busy "training" for my first triathlon which will be in a mere 13 days. I don't expect to win any awards, just complete the 3 events. I will be swimming 1/4 mile, biking 14.7 miles, and running 4.1 miles. I am really excited about it, and I have found I enjoy biking and swimming far more than I ever thought. I have even started getting used to (and not totally hating) getting up before 5 am to get to the pool for a swim a few days a week, and for those who don't know me well, I am not a morning person! I don't really swim the correct way, and have given up the idea that I will before the race, but since I have my very own swim coach/personal trainer in my house, my goal/his job is for me to learn to swim the right way by the end of the summer. Boy does he have his work cut out!
In the next few weeks the kids will start swimming lessons and t-ball, and Megan will start the big girls gymnastics pre-team.
We are gearing up for our many trips, I am heading to Florida in 3 weeks, Dan and I go to Jamaica in July, and we are wondering where our camper will go this summer. We have plenty of states yet to color in on our map, but we haven't narrowed down where we will head this summer. We are open to any suggestions!
Dan and I finish school some time tomorrow. I say sometime because technically we have to stay until 3:00, but in all my years there I have never stayed that long, but you just never know. The teachers at my school plan to promptly head over to the bars to beging a pub crawl (or if we get really lazy a pub sit-we just sit in the same chairs at the first bar for the whole day!)
Ryan's last school day is Thursday. His last day with our sitter was last week. Megan's last day is Friday, and since that is the last day of school at St. Mary's we are expecting many tears (mostly from me). The Kindergarten is hosting the last school mass, and Megan has been practicing reading her petition. So many goodbyes this year...
This weekend will finish the kids' gymnastics class, and begin the kids' art class, something new for us.
I have been busy "training" for my first triathlon which will be in a mere 13 days. I don't expect to win any awards, just complete the 3 events. I will be swimming 1/4 mile, biking 14.7 miles, and running 4.1 miles. I am really excited about it, and I have found I enjoy biking and swimming far more than I ever thought. I have even started getting used to (and not totally hating) getting up before 5 am to get to the pool for a swim a few days a week, and for those who don't know me well, I am not a morning person! I don't really swim the correct way, and have given up the idea that I will before the race, but since I have my very own swim coach/personal trainer in my house, my goal/his job is for me to learn to swim the right way by the end of the summer. Boy does he have his work cut out!
In the next few weeks the kids will start swimming lessons and t-ball, and Megan will start the big girls gymnastics pre-team.
We are gearing up for our many trips, I am heading to Florida in 3 weeks, Dan and I go to Jamaica in July, and we are wondering where our camper will go this summer. We have plenty of states yet to color in on our map, but we haven't narrowed down where we will head this summer. We are open to any suggestions!
Sunday, April 11, 2010
I Did It!
Dan and I had a little challenge. If I swam 10 laps without stopping and hanging on the wall he would shave his beard. Guess what? I did it. In all I swam 20 laps, but I did the first 10 without stopping. I did stop in the second 10 a couple of times, but all in all it was not bad! Amd now Dan gets to shave!!!! Although he tried to tell me that he said I couldn't put my hand on the wall at all, and I disagreed and said I was turning, not resting. I think he is more surprised that I actually COULD swim since he has never witnessed it before! I will post some pictures of my victory prize as soon as I get it!
Friday, April 09, 2010
My Baby Girl is 6 today!
That's right folks, she's 6!
She is becoming a little older and a little wiser, but I really hope she doesn't grow up too fast. Megan is blossoming in Kindergarten. She loves her teacher, and is really doing quite well with the academics. Megan is always writing or drawing wherever she goes! And if you haven't talked to her in a while, you may not know how fond she is of ... cats! Megan LOVES LOVES LOVES cats, especially her cat Sesame. Chewie is not so bad in her eyes too, but Ses is the clear favorite. And Ses loves Megan right back. Sesame sleeps in her bed, lets Megan dress her like a baby and put her in a doll stroller or carrier, and is just as loving as can be.
And not to be totally left out of the birthdays, Chewie turned 12 yesterday!
April is quite a month for birthdays!
She is becoming a little older and a little wiser, but I really hope she doesn't grow up too fast. Megan is blossoming in Kindergarten. She loves her teacher, and is really doing quite well with the academics. Megan is always writing or drawing wherever she goes! And if you haven't talked to her in a while, you may not know how fond she is of ... cats! Megan LOVES LOVES LOVES cats, especially her cat Sesame. Chewie is not so bad in her eyes too, but Ses is the clear favorite. And Ses loves Megan right back. Sesame sleeps in her bed, lets Megan dress her like a baby and put her in a doll stroller or carrier, and is just as loving as can be.
And not to be totally left out of the birthdays, Chewie turned 12 yesterday!
April is quite a month for birthdays!
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