Diary of a wanna-be superwoman

HOME! Happy and Sad!

2011-01-09T05:19:00.001-08:00

So we are home, after we bookended our trip with delays and cancellations due to snow. The southeast is preparing for a snow storm and the grocery store was insane! I had to drive my cart through the aisles like I was on the streets of Mumbai! After trying to get a full nights sleep and realizing we are all still on some weird time zone, and waking up at various times in the middle of the night, we are both thrilled to be back home and sad that the trip is over.

Jason is up with me this morning and I queried him to see what he will miss about India and what he is happy about to be back home. Here is what he said:

Things I will miss about India:

apple juice - India has the best apple juice (probably because its about 150% sugar)

hashbrowns - India makes the best hash browns

uncles and family - It was great spending so much time with the family and my kids are really missing everyone

monkeys - they are hilarious,and aggressive and my kids were both scared and fascinated with them at the same time.

Offering lower prices for everything

Watching Aunt Elizabeth bargain (she was hilarious and great at this, she is a lawyer after all, so the arguing was definitely her forte)

Seeing pop pop talk in Hindi/Gujarati to everyone. I think the kids were fascinated when we landed in Delhi and my dad broke out in Hindi fluently!

Reasons why I am happy to be back home:

My hot shower and warm bed

milk - the milk in India tasted nasty (the kids have already gone through a 1/2 gallon!)

internet - the kids did NOT like having to wait to get to wi-fi access hubs to download new apps for their iTouches

Toothpaste - the kids 'watermelon-flavored' toothpaste was confiscated by indian security and they had to use our regular 'minty toothpaste' on the whole trip, which they hated!

Water - brushing our teeth with water from the sink, and not having to keep their moths closed while taking a shower!

How awesome is it that he had these great observations! I agree with everything he said, except I would add COFFEE to the list of reasons why I am happy to be back home!

Going home...sort of

2011-01-08T00:39:00.000-08:00

So we left for the airport in Delhi 9pm India time, took a flight to Amsterdam, and then a flight to newark. After 30+ hours of travelling, we got through immigration and customs to find our flight to Raleigh was cancelled. AAARGH! We got a hotel room and are in Newark until noon Saturday. Of course we are all screwed up time-wise so we are all awake at 3am in the hotel!

The good news is we all got BURGERS last night for dinner! Oh they were so good.

Its funny, my kids keep asking when we will be back in america... like New Jersey doesnt count!

So, we will attempt to get home today, oh please let us get home, we need a few days of normalcy so badly before school and work starts again!

Truly this has been the most amazing trip that none of us will forget this for a long time - partly because Travis took over 7000 pictures and videos! Also all of our suitcases smell like India so we will have a reminder for a while as those will have to air out!

Indian DISCO

2011-01-07T02:22:00.000-08:00

OUr cousin Sanjou took usto an Indian Disco. It was great fun and there was fantastic peopple watching! We were exhausted! I will post more commentary later about the disco!

Elephanta

2011-01-05T08:57:00.000-08:00

This morning, we mobilized, took our immodium and headed to the India gate to do some sightseeing and catch a private, "very decorated" boat to Elephanta Island. Last night we arranged to have a private boat take us to the Island so we didnt have to deal with getting on a boat with all other tourists, and so we would be able to go on our own timescale.

We decided to take a taxi to the India Gate so the kids didn't have to walk. When we asked the bellman to hail 3 taxis for us, they all looked at us in disbelief and claimed our destination was in walking distance. We insisted and got in the taxis anyway. Literally 2 blocks later, the taxis stopped. the funny thing was that the taxi holding my father, the only Indian Speaking person in the group, was nowhere to be found. Apparently that taxi took him for a much longer ride. While we waited for dad's taxi, the price continually increased. Finally the last taxi arrived and we settled up and then went to go find our boat. that was yet another adventure. we couldn't find our boat, so Dad left us in the middle of the area while we huddled together to protect the kids from creepers (people who want to touch them) and hussled our boat. We finally found our boat, and boarded.

India Gate

Taj Palace

View of our boat from the harbour

All of us on our boat

Sammy and Jason enjoying the ride

View of Taj Palace and India gate from the boat as we pulled away

Sammy asked me twice, "Mommy will this boat fall apart?"

Dock at Elephanta

The caves at Elephanta - sammy was so exhausted after climbing up all the stairs, she couldn't even stand up for the picture

The monkeys at Elephanta are aggressive. This one stole my wipes!

Random cow with travis and David

On the boat ride home

Bhutas do Bombay

2011-01-04T18:09:00.000-08:00

Because my father is from Mumbai, we have the distinction of seeing Mumbai as locals would, as we have spent many time in non-tourist areas,and my kids have seen a Mumbai that they never would see if they weren't here with my Dad. We continue to have many adventures and lots of laughs.

This is us outside the hotel waiting for our cars in the morning

First stop we headed to Suresh's house - my Father's friend from kindergarten. His grandson was at the house and my kids instantly made friends with him as they sat in the swing in the living room together

Dad, Asha, Suresh, and Mom

Travis and David sharing camera stories

Then we went to a local place for idli and dosa. The place was called Cafe Mysore, and we paid double price to sit in the airconditioned section! this was Travis and Elizabeth's first adventure into real local Gujarati food... and they loved it!

Jason even enjoyed some Thumbs Up - India's version of coke, but with no carbonation and a little curry!

Travis eating dosa which he claims, "Its just like hush puppies!"

Outside the restaurant

The other constant throughout this trip has been the Bhuta Immodium exchange. Courtesy of the food, water, and lack of sleep, and time change, all of us have become dependent on Immodium on this trip. In the mornings before we leave we all check our personal supply and start bargaining and exchanging to ensure we have enough to get through the day. In a country where bathrooms are scarce and also extremely dirty, or just holes in the ground, Immodium has become crack to the Bhutas. Today I probably would have sold my first born for some.

Planning

2011-01-03T20:23:00.001-08:00

So, a theme of our vacation has been making plans. Apparently anytime we discuss the plans for the day, its a very LONG discussion that usually lasts all day and involves many phone calls, conferences and involved parties. Literally we have too many chiefs and not enough Indians, pun intended. So, here we are today in Mumbai, starting off the day as we usually do, by making millions of phone calls, trying to figure confirm the plans we already made and confirmed many times the day before. Inevitably the plans change... many times. Our plans for each day change so often, its comical to some and stressful to others which makes for a great family dynamic when those of us who are laughing at those who are upset or stressed. Always in the background, my dad is on the phone speaking in Hindi or Gujarati, and making more plans, which we all know nothing about because we only speak English.

Per usually my youngest brother comes to the rescue and coordinates all of the crazy bhutas and pulls as all together. I usually just sit in the corner and drink a few glasses of wine, or take a xanax and then when someone tells us to go, I get up and go!

This is what our apartment looks like most of the time where Dad is on the phone and he and Brian are holding a planning session.

Mumbai day 1, visiting family and SHOPPING

2011-01-03T19:40:00.001-08:00

We spent the day visiting family and exploring the non-tourist areas of Mumbai. We had a great time, and experienced Mumbai like no tourist would! the kids saw life on the streets and Sammy asked, "Why doesn't India have trash cans?" Since we were in more local areas of the city, we certainly created a scene when we got out of our cars, as many indians in those areas have never seen people with white skin and blond hair. Sarah, Miles, Sammy and Elizabeth seem to be the biggest attention attractors!

Sarah and Elizabeth attempting to bargain for a few scarves!

Street market in Badran

Outside 'Cottons' where we found great scarves and some other fun stuff!

We visited my Aunt Rama (Dad's Sister) and had a wonderful meal of traditional pani puri and gujarati gantia

Aunt Rama gave all of the women these beautiful handbags as a gift!

Rama feeding her brother

Pani Puri

The girls eating at Rama's

Funny t-shirt outside of Aunt Rama's house

Then we traveled into Matunga to go and visit The house on Vatsraj Lane (my great grandfather's name) to see the house that my father grew up in. He had 5 brothers and 1 sister, all living in this house. In its day it was a beautiful building, but what we saw yesterday was so run down and heartbreaking to know what it once was.

View from the front balcony

Famous trunk in the kitchen supposedly containing all of the large pots and pans to entertain large amounts of people, and no one has the key and it hasn't been opened in years

The kitchen of the house

Mom and the kids on the front balcony

View from the front balcony

Some views from the inside of the house

The beautiful ceiling - nad painted, and in bad shape

Sammy posed outside of our hotel before we go going in the morning

Pool at the hotel

The kids went back to the hotel and swam while we continued to shop. Today, we are visiting more family, heading to the beach and doing more SHOPPING!

To Mumbai!

2011-01-02T12:31:00.000-08:00

Luckily my stomach bug was only 24 hours! I recovered and we all woke up early to pack up and head to the airport for our flight to Mumbai. We flew Kingfisher airlines, and for a 90 minute flight we were served hot meals, as much drinks as we want, a movie, and fantastic service. So we have found one thing that India is by far superior than the US in: domestic flights!

Here is a pic of Travis watching the in-flight entertainment, with a look of confusion on his h=face, probably because it was in Hindi!

So we landed in Mumbai and my family met us at the airport, had 4 air-conditioned cars waiting for us, and snacks etc. They all spoke english and it was great! We got to our hotel which is a luxury 4 BR apartment in the ritziest part of town, and breathed a huge sigh of relief as well actually got hot showers, nice meals, good wine, and a good nights sleep!

Tomorrow we will go see the house in Matunga where dad grew up and then spend the rest of the day SHOPPING!!!!!!

Qutab Minar

2011-01-02T12:22:00.000-08:00

New years day started with a bang for me as I woke up with some sort of the stomach bug. I tried to rally to go with everyone to see Qutab Minar but ended up puking in he parking lot, in the grounds of the monument and again on the street outside of the bus. That's when I knew my day was over and I had to go back to lie down. I bravely left Travis with the Kids to explore the rest of Delhi while Mom and I went back to the hotel in a taxi, hired by my Dad, with a non-english speaking driver! Here are a few of the pictures I took during the few lucid moments I had at Qutab Minar. Travis took pictures from the rest of the day, so I will post those when i can!

Of course the kids found places to climb!

I literally threw up in the grass right before I saw this sign - tghought it was ironic!

The kids also visited Humayun's Tomb, and Jantar Mantar which Travis said they LOVED.

Fatehpur Sikri

2010-12-31T09:13:00.000-08:00

the legend is that Fatehpour Sikri is a city that was built outside of Delhi, and then abandoned due to lack of water. Now its a fantastic arena for kids to run around and of course, climb! there were great views and we had a great time, minus the creepy people trying to take pictures on Miles and Sammy! The real adventure though happened outside the monument. First we all had to use the toilet, and for us to agree to use a public toilet in India, you MUST be desperate. Second, we learned you must pay to use the toilet, and the rates are different based on whether you are going to go #1 or #2. Sadly I had to ask my son if he was planning to poop before he went to the bathroom! Also, Sarah and I decided to use the public toilet so we approached with our own toilet seat covers, wipes and our own toilet paper. After we figured it all out in the dark, the attendant would not let us leave without paying. We had no money, and so finally he accepted a US dollar, and we were allowed to leave.

We thought it was funny that the sign implies equivalence between stables, sara and a harem (sara being my sister in law)

Great pic of Dave and Elizabeth

Sammy on the roof

Of course jason found lots of places to climb

Exhausted crew

2010-12-31T09:09:00.000-08:00

...and this is what we looked like after the Agra fort on the bus. Actually this is what we all looked like every time we got in the bus!

Agra Fort

2010-12-31T08:51:00.000-08:00

We went to the Agra Fort today which was where Shah Jahan was imprisoned after he built the Taj for his deceased wife. He was captured by his youngest son, Aurangzeb after he killed his 2 older brothers. His prison cell has a very clear view of the Taj Mahal, for added torture, Its an amazing fort and we had a blast running around!

I tried to take a picture of this monkey opening a pack of ciggies but then it went after Jason who had a lollipop in his mouth!

Typical scene, Dad on the cell phone making arrangements while we sightsee

mmmm.... drinking water from a bucket!

The best part of the Red Fort visit was Travis had his try at bargaining. He spotted a small wooden chess set that he wanted on the way into the fort as we were attacked by all of the street vendors. S as we left the fort Travis, Dad and David set off to go buy one and bargain for a good price. david successfully got the price from 800 rupees to 300, and then he asked Travis if this was okay. Travis replied, "I would have paid 450!" And then we learned that Travis would do NO more negotiating for us on this trip. It was funny! He got his chess set by the way, as David jumped in, solved the problem, and we paid 300 rupees.

What a difference a good nights sleep makes!

2010-12-31T08:37:00.000-08:00

Its like we slept in a Holiday In Express and now can perform surgery! What a difference a night at the five star Trident makes! We had a great dinner and all slept a full night's sleep and look how great we all looked in the morning! Sammy even had hot chocolate while we enjoyed our first cup of real coffee in DAYS! The hotel had ping pong which was a hit with the kids, and we even got some family pictures!

Behind the scenes

2010-12-30T15:55:00.001-08:00

So much has happened in the last week, and I haven't been able to write about the massive comedy of errors, good luck and bad luck we have had. Our vacation plans are constantly changing as we are at the complete mercy of others here in a foreign country where only one of us speaks the language. Some have been trustworthy and completely dependable. Some have not been.

When we arrived in Delhi, the driver of the party van we had arrived was already ticked because we had changed our plans due to our 2 day delay in newark. That, ,and showing up at midnight with the most ridiculous amount of luggage did not for a friendship make. The next monring when our trip from Delhi to agra took longer than expected he started complaining about our plans to go to Jaipur that night, driving late and then getting up early the next morning again.

So we left him and spent our fantastic time at the Taj. Knowing we still had a 5 hours drive to Jaipur tonight, we crammed ourselves (yes all 11 of us) into an auto rickshaw and stopped at a western style hotel for dinner. None of the wait staff spoke english and I spent the first 30 minutes washing Sammy's glow blanket out in the bathroom sink as she had thrown up on it too. We ordered, and then waited. Nothing . After 90 minutes the waiter came back to out table and asked if he could substitute all of the chicken we ordered for mutton. We said no. My brothers then got involved. We ended up just paying for our beers and leaving the restaurant. Hungry, starving and a little drunk we walked back to the party van knowing we had a long trip ahead and that we would be eating snacks for dinner. When we got there, the driver refused to take us to jaipur, which is where we had a hotel reservation. Instead he dropped us at a hotel in Agra and David and Brian used their charm to get us 4 rooms here at the Trident. I am pretty sure David's mustache played a role in this, but we ended up at THE MOST LUXURIOUS hotel ever! The staff immediately took our dirty clothes and washed them for us - returning them to us hot and pressed! There was a potter sitting in the breezeway that let my kids try their hand at throwing pots. There is a sitar player here, and... a fantastic restaurant... with PIZZA for the kids.
So, in all, this was a blessing as we all got a full nights sleep which we havent had in days and a good meal, and some good wine. Not sure what today brings but I am sure it will be an adventure.

I have noticed that people here are fascinated with us - specifically my nephew Miles and Sammy. Maybe because they have blond hair, maybe because they are cute as shit, but people take pictures of us, and continue to try and touch Sammy and Miles' head. we have been keeping them in the stroller as much as possible but truly its unnerving. I cant tell you ow any times we have posed for our own pictures and people just jump in and start taking pictures of us. Its funny but also envokes the mama bear reaction in me aggressively protecting my kids!

We should be bak in Delhi tonight at Harry's bed and breakfast so I am sure I will have moe pictures and more stories tonight!

Taj Mahal, Agra

2010-12-30T08:45:00.000-08:00

Miles LOVED the Taj Mahal!

bargaining - tghis time about price of pictures the guys take of us without our permission

The kids were fascinated by intricate hand work!

We woke up early this morning after a solid 3 hours of sleep, packed up again and got o our 20 passenger party bus to head to Agra. Our day started with the amazing idli and sambar yum! The bus ride which should have taken 3 hours, took over 5, and resulted in cranky adults and poor car sick sammy, who decided to puke all over me. At one point our driver randomly pulled to the side of the road, turned off the car and got out and walked away. As we were looking out the window a monkey on a stick popped up and made the kids laugh so hard, we had o give the guy a few rupees. Of course that started a landslide of begging culminating in one mane so aggressive as to wedge his hand into the window of our bus to prevent us from closing the winndow! Finally we arrived in Agra and headed straigh to the Taj, after a quick wardrobe change for me, we hopped on the horse rides to take us to the gate. Obviously this was one of Sammy's favorite parts of the trip.

Not sure how this worked out but we put Travis and my kids in one buggy on their own. three white people in a buggy unattended = a huge target for selling stupid souveniers and beggars. At one point Travis asked what to do, I said, " say no and dont make eye contact!"

Alas we finally arrived to the Taj. After early 40 hours straight of travelling, we were there. sarah, Elizabeth, Mom, Sammy and I got in the girls line which of course moved much faster than the men's line. Probably b/c women are just more effecient. just sayin' After going through security and having my orange confiscated we were in! But, then we had to wait for the boys so we took a few pics waiting. It was at this point i also noticed people staring at Samy as they passed by and even touching her!

Then the men arrived and we were ready to rock and roll.

So we spent the next 4 hours wandering around the most fanstastic monument and man-made wonder of the world. I have to say this is the 3rd time I have been there and it still takes my breath away!

The Bhutafamily has arrived!

2010-12-29T18:22:00.001-08:00

This is a picture of just our carryon lggage. We needed 12 carts of luggage filled to the max for everything.

As we waited for our luggage, miles tested his new backpack!

So we landed in Delhi at midnight, got through immigration and customs just fine. Then we all decided we needed some bottled water, so of course we had to negotiate on the price of water! Yes we negotiated and fro 2 dollars US got 15 bottles of water.

We then climbed into our insane disco party van and went to the hotel for a few hours of sleep before heading to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. many more pictures to follow.

2010-12-29T18:02:00.000-08:00

Dont you love it when a plan comes together?
On sunday our flight was cancelled and we were practically stranded at newark airport in a b;lizzard until we found an off-duty cabbie who said he would take all of us back to our hotel. It required 3 trips and he couldnt even get to the hotel due to blizzard conditions! Bfeore we left theairport, the airlines told us there was no way that we were getting out of the US until thursday. Then, the creation of the Bhuta War room began! We set up 4 laptops, 4 phones and lots of people in charge and worked out a deal where we could get out to amsterdam on tuesday at 6:30. Of course we were still in newark, so tat meant renting 2 minivans and driving frokm newark to dulles at the crack of dawn. Once we got to dulles, we saw our flight was on time and then the intense negotiations began! My parents literally spent 2 hours arguring and discussing with the agent how to get the best seats on all flights. It was absurd.

This is the 2 hour scene as we were checking in. Most people take about 15 minutes to check their bags for an international flight. the Bhuta family takes 2 hours. We documented the scene, and I took a picture of elizabeth taking pictures!

Miles didn't seem to care - he was just happy that his cousins were slipping him some chips! After we got through security, we rushed to the charging stations to chage up all ipods, kindles, laptops, phones, and cameras!

So, the plan worked the flight took off on time, and has a smooth transition in amsterdam, and landed in delhi on time!

Dec 26th - Falling in Love with Newark - not!

2010-12-26T12:49:00.000-08:00

Travel Day - we woke up early in Newark in the airport to learn that most domestic flights wwre cancelled sue to blizzard like consditions. May parent quickly rode over to the riport to see if there were oter flight options while we had greakafast and swam in the hotel pool.

The all the bhutas united and checked in at once. It was a mad house with all the luggage and true sigjht to be seen!

David's moustache is indeed real, even though Sammy tries to pull it off everythime she sees it!

So, this is what we are looking at as we wait at the gate. Hopefully our flight will still go, but in the meantime, we decided we needed a few drinks to tide us over!

Christmas Day - change of plans!

2010-12-25T09:27:00.001-08:00

So we had a great Christams morning starting with the kids sleeping LATE! Travis apparently threatened them within an inch of their life last nght if they came out of their rooms so this morning at 7, we went to check on them and they were sitting in their beds awake, just waiting for us! Ahh, the power of Christmas!

Then, we checked the weather as tomorrow is supposed to be departure day. Apparently the greater Raleigh area is preparing for snow-pocalypse 2010 (3-6") and so we decided to change our flights to Newark to TODAY. This decision has resulted in frantic last minute packing, cleaning, undecorating the house and getting the tree out. So, we literally rolled the tree out to the curb at 8:30 this morning. I am sure the neighbors are laughing at us.

While Travis and I ran around like chickens with our heads off booking last minute hotels, cleaning up toyys, taking out the trash, doing dishes and laundry and shutting the house down, the kids were a GREAT help (see picture below).

So, its official, WE ARE ALL PACKED and ready to go. Had to get a picture of all of our luggage. How we will get this all through the airports I have no idea, but I can proise you it will be an adventure!

Tonight we will be in Newark (I know you are all jealous) and then we will be flying to amsterdam tomorrow evening. Not sure what we will do all day tomorrow but I canbet it will have something to do with wreaking havoc in the hilton and swimming in their indoor pool.

Xmas Eve

2010-12-24T07:15:00.001-08:00

The Christmas spirit is in full swing at the Wills house as the kids woke up at 5am, just in the excitement of Christmas Eve! I dont know what exactly that means for tomorrow but I know its going to be an early morning!

When the kids woke up so early we told them to go away and find something to do while mommy and daddy slept. This is what I woke up to. Fail.

They have also been playing the Wii for 4 hours. This pictures was taken minutes before Jason smacked sammy in the head with the Wii remote during a mean backhand in tennis. This is the second time Jason's backhand and Sammy's head have collided in the past few days. Fail.

Meanwhile, the grownups are packing and organizing as we leave for our trip in 2 days and cannot wait!

Just for the occasion my awesome brother grew his Indian 'stache. He is actually quite proud of this, which is concerning. I am almost certain however, he will be the biggest hit in the Indian Discos!!! Fail.

Let me re-introduce myself....

2010-12-14T18:43:00.000-08:00

Okay, its been a year. I know. No excuses except i fell of the blogging wagon. I cannot tell you how many people have asked me to start this up again. Our family is headed to India in 10 days so what better time to start up my blogging again than on the cusp of a once-in-a-lifetime holiday?

I thought I would start by re-introducing myself. I am anji and this is my blog. I plan to talk about all the crazy stuff that goes on my life, laugh a lot and tell random stories that are hopefully coherent. I have two amazing kids, sammy and jason. they are the light of my life, and pretty darn cute too. My hubby and I are celebrating our 10th year of marriage soon and its hard to believe I am more in love with him today than I was when I married him.

Enough of the gushy stuff. I am a mom, wife, triathlete, engineer, joke teller, bad driver and mediocre cook. In that order.

I plan to use this blog re-start to detail our travels as the Bhutas venture to Delhi, Agra, Jaipur and Mumbai.

Then after we get back I will continue to use this blog to tell everyone how awesome I am.

Please keep checking this blog for updates!

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-25T04:41:00.000-08:00

This entry is dedicated solely to Thanksgiving which seems to be bogarted entuirely this year by the retail industry. In years past the radio stations would at least wait until AFTER Thankgiving to start playing Christmas music. And last year there was actually a section in Target dedicated to thankgiving and fall decorations. That did not happen this year. TWO local radio stations started playing holiday music on November 1st, and simultaneously Target forgot Thanksgiving and put out Christmas decorations. Poor little forgotten holiday - and its the one I love most! I dont want Thanksgiving to be an afterthought - we should celebrate as it is intended to be recognized: a day of thanks, a shitload of food, football, afternoon naps, and awkward family moments.

Of course I will provide the obligatory "what I am thankful for list."

1. My family - kids, husband, brothers, sis in laws, nephew, parents, cousins - you name it. I have always recognized the importance of family but I think this year I really started to understand what that cliche means. I have the best family and our moments together are always filled with laughter.

2.My new job. Its been many years since I have looked forward to going into work every day and feeling like I might be making a difference. Luckily I have that job now, I start in 2 weeks and I couldn't be more excited

3. Designer Jeans. these amaze me. How can these jeans make my ass look so good when other seemingly equivalent jeans don't? Its a miracle of modern fashion - ranks right up there with spanx and sticker bras!

4. martinis. i love martinis, but every time I turn around there is some new exotic flavor. I admit I do enjoy tasting them, but I always come back to old faithful vodka dirty martini.

5. laughter. I am so lucky to have friends and family that surround me with laughter and fun. This is the most important thing to me. No matter what I always try to keep a sense of humor. This morning I caught Jason peeing in a pitch black bathroom with the door closed. When I asked him how he knows where to "go" he replied, "Mom, I have AWESOME night vision!" I love that stuff - hilarious!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Sea World, San Diego

2009-11-11T17:15:00.000-08:00

We were able to steal away the day before my brother's wedding to spend some time in Sea World.

The loved the dolphins!

Sammy and Jason enjoying the dolphins... and some random kid that got pushed into the picture!

I instantly fell in love with Sea World - where else can you get a bud light lime and cotton candy at 9:30am?!

Of course the highlight for sammy was meeting Sammy the Clydesdale!

This is the picture I took ab9out 10 minutes before our family experienced a massive dysfunctional moment as I convinced my family to sit "up closse" to the shamu show so we could see better. Well we were in the soak zone, and it was salt water and we got SOAKED. Shamu tidal waved on us, the kids instantly freaked out as both got salt water in their eyes and scraped knees and Travis deserted me in the family bathroom with screaming children so he could procure another beer. Afterwards, it is very funny but for about 15 minutes I think we would have been great candidates for the Jerry Springer dysfunctional family special.

After the "shamu" incident... we paid 60 dollars for a pizza for our family, and took a much more somber ride so we could recap and pull ourselves together. It worked and we ended up having a great time.

Other than Shamu emotionally scarring our children for life, it was a great trip!

Temecula California

2009-11-11T17:02:00.001-08:00

My brother David got married and we all flew out to Temecula California to visit and stay for the week. Temecula is southern cali's wine country and it was beautiful! On Friday, David's wonderful friends invited us to their house in San Diego for brunch and to check out their Ferrari Enzo and Carrera GT! They even let my kids clomb around in the cars _ I was holding my breath but luckily nothing broke!

we all stayed at this fantastic rental house which was so much more fun than staying in a hotel. The house came with a pool with a waterfall, a hot tub, and a 45 lb turtle names 'Flash' that you could feed lettuce too! The kids LOVED it!

One of the BEST parts of all being in the same house for the days before the wedding was that we had lots of time to play with my nephew Miles (5 months!) He is the cutest little boy and such a good baby!

David and Elizabeth's Wedding 11-1-09

2009-11-11T16:37:00.003-08:00

So we all flew to temecula for a fantastic wedding of my brother to Elizabeth. It was a beautiful ceremony and everything went perfectly. Of course for me, the stars of the day were MY children who were all dressed up, well behaved and absolutely adorable!

Here are some pictures I took of the day

In the limo on the way to the spa

Mom, Dad, David and the lovely bride Elizabeth

Elizabeth and I messing around before the wedding

Sammy all dressed up with her hair done and everything - she really thought she was a princess and that the day was actually about her!

Super sweet photo of my little guy all dressed up!

My 2 favorite guys looking super handsome!

I love this picture - right after the ceremony the kids instantly found rocks to kick around and some dirt to play it!

The photograoher took some FANTASTIC pictures, here is the link to some he posted for public viewing

http://blog.ashcraftphoto.net/

David and Elizabeth

2009-11-11T16:37:00.001-08:00

Pricess Sammy

2009-10-17T16:02:00.000-07:00

Sammy went to abirthday party at this sweet lady's house where she dresses these little girls in elaborate gowns, does their hair, make-up and nails, and outfits them with jewelery and shoes. the after a red carpet show, they all have a fancy tea party, complete with finger sandwiches, cupcakes, and tea!

Sammy and her buddies getting all dolled up!

Shoes are ESSENTIAL to complete the outfit! The tea party

Posing with her friends after the party!

Jason's Bouldering Competition

2009-10-17T15:47:00.000-07:00

Finally, jason had a rock climbing competition locally so I was able to go and see what this is all about. It was a bouldering competition, which means climbing without ropes (yikes), so lots of spotting and lots of crash pads on the floors. He did great, I was very proud.

Coach Jason F checking out the competition

The Wills men before the competition

jason's first climb

Jason topping out on his first climb
At the top of the boulder

Pinehurst Olympic Triathlon 2009

2009-10-17T15:32:00.001-07:00

This was the 2nd year I did this race, and I am sure I will be doing it again next year. Its the last race in the NC triathlon series and its a BEAUTIFUL swim and FUN event. I always meet the nicest people and have the best time. That was true for this year too. This year was particularly special b/c my friend from Australia was visiting so she came along! Jen and I have known each other longer that Travis and I have known each other and no matter how much time we are apart, we always have such a great time together. I love her dearly, and am so lucky to have her!

The weather channel predicted cold rain, but luckily the rain held off for the morning. The water was a PERFECT 72 at start, and the sun even came out a few times during the bike and the run. I did run the race knowing I had a hernia. Given that injury, the only part of the race where I suffered was the run. My swim was strong and despite and insanely TOUGH bike course I felt strong and had one of the better times in my age group.

Now I am recovering with minimal training, and hoping I am healthy enough to start training next month for 2010 Triathlon season!

Jen and me at the beginning of the race

Sammy was helping me get psyched for the swim

Damn! I look so bad ass in this pic!

Finishing the bike leg - it was a doozie!Finishing the race, I managed a smile even after I had to stop and push my guts back into my abdomen at mile #2!

Girls Weekend - Museum of Life and Science

2009-10-03T16:32:00.000-07:00

North Carolina Museum of Life and Science
Sammy and I met our frrind Liz and her son benjamin at the museum to continue enjoying the most beautiful weather!

Benjamin working hard at the water exhibit

Sammy using her muscles

Liz and Benjamin

Benjamin showing Sammy how to do it

Looking at the animals

Butterfly House

Sammy LOVED the butterflies!

Digging for fossils on the dinosaur trail

Its a good thing Sammy wore her digging clothes

"I think I found something."

More Water displays!

Waiting for the train ride

Making funny faces

On the train, so excited!

O boy were we excited

In the spaceship

Of course Sammy found a horse!

What a great day. The weather was always perfect and Sammy did great all day - without a nap! Now she is sleeping over and Grandma and Papa's and I am enjoying and an evening of mojitos and catching up with my DVR.

Girls Weekend - Farmers Market

2009-10-03T16:28:00.000-07:00

NC farmers market.

Sammy and I went in search of apples, peaches and pumpkins at the local farmers market. Truthfully it was the most beautiful day I have seen all year and we just felt we needed to enjoy the fresh air as much as possible today.

Girls Weekend - part 1

2009-10-02T16:01:00.000-07:00

This weekend the boys are off camping and rock climbing in western NC, so us girls have the house to ourselves. Sammy insisted that we paint our toenails tonight. Somehow she convinced me to let her paint my nails. Yikes!

Sammy picked out the color all by herself.

And she concentrated so hard while she was painting

And... this is what your toes look like after you let a 3 year old paint them!

Sammy's cute toes.

2009-09-26T09:07:00.000-07:00

We ran the womes's distrance festival 5K this morning. It was my friend Kelsi's FIRST race. She did awesome and we were all so proud of her! Sammy also ran her first race and she is very proud of her! Also I PR'ed with a 24:38 and won 2nd in my age group! I would say it was a successful event and definitely worth waking everyone up early!

Preparing for the race with kelsi and Maggie

all lined up at the start

sammy and mom spectating

Kelsi and Maggie finishing strong and with smiles on their faces!

Sammy and Jason always find puppies to coo over

Taking Sammy to the start of the Kids race

Sammy got a medal!

Showing off her medal

She is on cloud nine about her first running race
Meanwhile.... Jason spent the morning climbing, Surprised anyone?

Beautiful Girl

2009-09-23T14:26:00.000-07:00

Sammy is truly a girlie girl. This morning she woke up very excited about picture day at school because she got to wear her new dress and matching SHOES! Travis and Sammy had a great photo session this morning. Oh my sweet baby girl is growing up so quickly. I look at these pictures and I have bittersweet feeling as I am so proud of the little girl she has become but at the same time I have to realize she is not my baby anymore!

Kids Riding Bikes

2009-09-22T06:15:00.000-07:00

So we took the kids to a local elementary school to practise riding their bikes and Jason picked it up right away! Here's a cutre video Travis got!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvlCP3MFOKU

I am a complete slacker

2009-08-31T17:13:00.000-07:00

I have been so bad about updating my blog! So Sorry! In the last 6 weeks, we went on our annual Bhuta Beach bonanza, my dear grandmother passed away, I have been training a lot and working my rear end off. Here is the link to the photo album from our beach trip

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=290755&id=550650087&l=305a5c67a9

Thr big thing happening with our family is our upcoming trip to Cali for my brother David's wedding! All 4 of us are in the wedding. Sammy is so excited to "be a princess" and Mom and I definitely had fun taking her shopping! Here are the pictures of my little princess in her dress.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=302693&id=550650087&l=2a37730de6

this weekend we are off to Va. Beach to visit our friends Brad and Cindy - Cindy and I plan to tear one up this weekend, so if we survive and the pictures are appropriate for posting, I will be sure to share!

2009 Triangle Triathlon

2009-07-14T11:23:00.000-07:00

I competed in the triangle triathlon for the 2nd year in a row. This year the location was "upgraded"to the local lake next to the nuclear power plant. The lake was warm, as expected, and I might even grow a third nipple after being in the lake used as cooling water for the nuclear power plant!

the swim was competitive! The water was choppy and there was a strong current. Othwise I had a good swim, and apparently so did everyone else in my wave, darn it!

Having a little fun as I come out of transition and start the bike ride. It was a great course so pretty and great rolling hills!

Okay my transitions still completely suck! I swear I spent at least 45 second tying my darn shoes! Trav took a picture of me tying my shoes!

the run was hilly and hot... and on GRAVEL! I was not prepared for that at all, but managed through it, with a run PR of 26 minutes
I ran a good race - my personal record and never felt stronger. I definitely earned an afternoon nap and a few adult beverages, which I got later that day!

Jason's 1st Day of Kindergarten

2009-07-13T06:31:00.000-07:00

Jason grew up this morning! Well actually he had been growing up for the last 5+ years but I refused to aknowledge this fact until this morning, when he got onto the "big yellow" by himself. I must admit I had a momemt of anxiety and some tears! I also had to resist every bone in my body that urged me to hop in the car, and follow the bust to ensure he makes it to school! But alas, I didn't follow the bus and my son has taken his first bus ride by himself! I am so proud, and so sad that my baby is no longer my baby!

Jaosn did got to kindergarten for a "practise day" last week. He LOVED it and was so excited to go today. He claimed the best part of his new school is that nap time if very short! He also loves buying his lunch! He even bought lima beans for himself!

Summer Daze

2009-06-29T00:26:00.000-07:00

With temperatures consistently in the 90s we are officially in the midst of summer, which means home-made popsicles and LOTS of time at the pool!

Sammy being a little pool diva

Jason loves using Travis as a rock wall. I think they call this "deep water dynos."

BASF Triathlon

2009-06-28T17:14:00.000-07:00

BASF Sprint Tri - This was my best race yet. For the first time i went into a race aiming for a goal time rather tha "just finishing." It paid off! I had a GREAT run, and the best transition times ever! Thanks to Trav for being the ultimate cheerleader!

Jason Climbing Video

2009-06-26T11:06:00.000-07:00

Click on the following link for Jason's Pilot mountain rock climbing video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaxeXdSJS0U

Jason the Climber

2009-06-24T07:13:00.000-07:00

So Jason has gotten into Rock Climbing, and I have never seen this boy as focused and continually interested in anything in his life! He has been on the LTF Rock Climbing team for 6 months now and eats, breathes, and talks rock climbing 24 hours a day! The really impressive part is that he is VERY good. And I don't just say this because I am his mom and, as I should be, biased. His coaches all adore him and he has particularly taken to one, Coach Jason.

Coach Jason is one of the nicest people I have ever met - we have gotten to know him through LTF Rock Climbing and are lucky to consider him a friend. Our Jason ADORES him, for good reason and I cannot think of a better person as a role model for my little guy, other than his father (who so totally rocks! Holla!) Travis and I have been so impressed by Coach Jason and his true heart (no pun intended, as he is currently recovering from open heart emergency surgery) and I feel he loves our little guy as much as we do, and that is so rare to find in this world! As a mether who continually worries whether I am raising my children with strong morals and sense of self, this type of interaction is validation that we might be doing a few things correctly.

This past weekend the team took a trip to Pilot Mountain for Jason Wills' first top rope climbing other than indoor rock walls. I have never seen my son so excited and so proud of himself than when he returned from the trip. The pictures are amazing, but what is more amazing is some of the video captured by Travis - in HD of course! As Jason is climbing, the video camera catches some background conversations of people talking about my little guy and his natural climbing ability. Its so cute, and makes Travis and I very proud!

Yesterday I took my Jason to the gym for some climbing and I witnessed what everyone has been saying first hand. After I forgot how to tie him in and belay him. He scaled up this wall like a spider. Whats more amazing is that immediately prior to that an adult male (who looked pretty strong to me) was STRUGGLING on the exact same route and never made it to the top. I was truly impressed, but more importantly soooooo proud of my little boy!

I cannot believe that in 2 weeks we will be sending him off on his FIRST day of kindergarten. I am sure I will cry, as my little Jason is no longer my little boy.

Here are some pics of my little climber. Now we just have to work on teaching him how NOT to climb other people's property!

Girls Day

2009-06-21T10:45:00.001-07:00

Fathers Day 2009 - Travis and Jason took off EARLY this morning to go climbing at Pilot Mountain, so Sammy and I spent some quality girl tme together

After shopping for shoes - we went out for lunch

Sammy Loves Camille's Cafe!

Waiting for our food

Then we took off to the salon for mani-pedis!

Sammy says the water is HOT!
But she got used to it (and ended up enjoying it!)

Sammy was getting a little bored!

It took a tota of 3 women to get her nails and toenails painted

She said at the end, " Mom I feel like a very tired princess!"

HOT HOT HOT

2009-06-21T10:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the hottest day we have had so far for 2009 - 102 degrees. The pool was so crowded it was not even reaxing so we just let the kids play with water outside.

Race for the cure

2009-06-18T17:43:00.000-07:00

We did the race for the cure for the TENTH year in a row! This year I ran the women's race pushing Sammy in the stroller and Travis and Jason BOTH ran the competitive race!

Jason's Graduation

2009-06-18T17:33:00.000-07:00

Jason's preschool had a graduation ceremony...

Is it a little silly to have pomp and circumstance for 5 year olds? Yes.

Did I pay too much $$ for a cap and gown for a five year old? Yes.

Did I have tears in my eyes? Yes.

Was I super proud of my son? Yes.

Will I do it again for Sammy (and cry all over again)? Yes.

Welcome Miles David Bhuta!

2009-06-17T09:04:00.000-07:00

Miles David Bhuita was born on Friday 5/22. I am iofficially an aunt! Congrats to Brian (my lil bro) and sarah!!! He is so damn cute, I cannot wait to get my hands on him!

OBX Trip

2009-06-17T08:35:00.000-07:00

In May we rented a house with dear friends and had a great time. It was not so relaxing but we definitely had lots of fun - especially after the kiddos went to bed!

Sammy being a beach bum

Sammy and I

The ladies

Travis and Sammy took afternoon naps together - so sweet!

The Wills kids mowing on some chicken wings, courtesy of Daddy Wills

Anji and Travis after the kids went to bed

Darn cute picture of kids in their jammies

The family

Me and sammy hanging in the pool

Diana and Me chillin

Cuteness - its no surprise she gets away with pretty much everything b/c she is so cute!

The Wills

Awww, still in love after EIGHT years

Jason losing his shorts in the pool

Jason climbing - he even made it into a promotional video for Kitty Hawk Kites!

Jason and Grayson on the sand dunes

Crab Fishing

The kids at dinner

6 adults, 7 kids under the age of 6, and we are all still alive! Actually is was a great vacation with lotf of fun with good friends and good food and great drink.

I am so embarrassed!!!!

2009-06-16T12:42:00.000-07:00

I know, I know its been 6 weeks since I last posted. I have no other excuse than I have been sooooo incredibly busy. Things are seemingly slowing down and I think I will have some time to catch up! In the last month, so much has happened!

We went on a beach trip to OBX - 6 ADULTS AND 7 KIDS UNDER THE AGE OF 6, AND EVERYONE SURVIVED!!

My brother Brian had his baby, Miles David Bhuta on 5/22! - He is damn cute! I havent gotten my hands on him yet but when I do I am not sure i will give him back!

My cuz, Sonal and our friend Matt got married, it was a great weekend with great friends and of course we have TONS of pictures

Jason ran his 2nd 5K Race - we are so proud! In the same race I pushed sammy in the stroller and was the first woman to cross the finish line with a stroller - girl power!

I promise pictures are coming!

Trip to philly

2009-05-05T15:41:00.000-07:00

Its been a long time since I updated the site! But for good reason! A few weeks ago the gals went on a road trip to philly for Sarah's baby shower! It was a great trip! Here are some of the highlights

Full albums are located at the following links

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=251275&id=550650087&l=fd97dd1bbd

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=251268&id=550650087&l=9cd87ee2ec

Road Trip!
I was so proud of Sammy and how well she did on the long car ride!

Sarahs Baby Shower

And luckily we were able to find time for a brunch on Sunday before we all had to go home!

Beaverdam Olympic Triathlon

2009-04-19T18:35:00.000-07:00

First Race of the season at Falls Lake. I knew it would be cold so I was prepared for that. I had no idea how hilly the bike and run courses would be! Other than a disappointing swim I had a strong bike and strong run. It the beginning of the swim I got smacked and my goggles came off. Between the freezing water temp and treading water, it took me a while to gain my bearings, adding at least 8 minutes onto my swim time. Once I got going though I felt strong and was swimming well. My mom who is the ultimate cheerleader took the following pics!

The Swim

I am not gonna lie, it was damn cold. At the last minute I decided to put on neoprene booties and a thermal cap that my friend let me borrow, and I was so glad I did!

Basically my face says, "holy crap that was COLD!"

The Bike - a little hilly and a lot of windy! This is always my most favorite leg. And it was so pretty out my then - I even chicked a guy (when a girl passes a guy, the he got CHICKED!)

Transition - definitely not my strongest point, hopefully this will improve!

The Run

This was HILLY! The pictures dont do the hills justice. Despite that I had a strong run, and felt great throughout, which I was pleased with!

Finish

I had enough in me to finish strong and then eat a turkey sandwich!

Then on the way home I clipped a curb, popped a tire and caused significant damage to 2 rims of my car. I guess you could say I went out with a bang!?

Milestones

2009-04-14T06:56:00.000-07:00

We've hit a few milestones with the kids this week and thought I would share because at the end of the day I am not ashamed to be a proud mama! These are definitely not any milestones that would be listed in books, medical journals or baby books, but still are important as they illustrate a child's personality, willingness to learn and sense of humor (which you all know is the most important to me)!

Yesterday Jason asked for "tie shoes. Until now all of his shoes have been secured with velcro because quite frankly I am a lazy mom and need EVERY minute I can get in the mornings. I took him yesterday to get some running tie shoes, and he immediately took them out of the box when we got home and started to learn to tie his own shoes. He got frustrated quickly and declared he would "never learn how to tie his own shoes" then went to bed. This morning he got up, got himself dressed and took it upon himself to figure out this bow thing once and for all... and he tied his own shoes. He was so proud, and we snapped this great pic of him before he left for school.

This morning Sammy asked me to "braid her hair so she can be friends with Rebecca." Just last week she would scream as if in horrendous pain when I would even touch her hair and now she wants me to style it in the mornings - I love it! She was also proud of her braid and was willing to pose for the camera.

Other funny things/milestones:
Potty

Sammy is going poo in the potty and is completely out of pull ups! Never mind the fact that she asks for two thousand dollars every time she poos. That's some expensive SH!t
Jason has made it one week without wearing a pull-up at night!!! I truly cannot wait for the day when I do not have to buy any pull ups!

Getting along

We have seen a huge change in Sammy and Jason's interactions with each other in the past few weeks. When no one is looking Jason really takes Sammy under his wing and plays so well with her. She adores these times (and so do we)
Other times, they fight like two rabid cats. Screeching, name calling and Sammy hits. Jason doesn't hit Sammy, which is a great thing and I think it shows what a fantastic and protective older brother he will be when they are older.

Height and Weight

Jason has shot up another inch, which is insane to realize he is 75% of my height now
Sammy gained a pound - we think. She eats like its her last meal at all times but somehow doesn't gain anything. That's due to a phenomenon that we chemical engineers call a "mass balance."

No more baby furniture in the house

Travis and I officially met a milestone when we gave away the last remaining baby item,s (besides clothes) to my brother Brian and his wife Sarah. I am not going to lie that a few tears were shed realizing we will never have little infants sleep in that crib again - or will not be spending any more nights sleeping in the recliner.
On the flip side, we wont be changing poopy diapers, or filling bottles, or making formula, or cleaning binkies, or sterilizing nipples (not mine, I mean for the bottle) or sleeping an avg of 4 hrs per night!

Easter Morning

2009-04-12T07:24:00.000-07:00

The magic of a holiday with young children smacked us in the face this morning at 530am when the kids were WIDE awake and ready to see if the Easter Bunny had come to hide their eggs! By 730 am, the candy was eaten out of their baskets, all the eggs were found, a few were eaten and the kids were dressed and ready to PLAY! Here's to hoping for an early nap!

Eggs!

2009-04-12T07:17:00.000-07:00

The kids were off today for Good Friday, and we dyes eggs to get ready for the Easter Bunny's visit. At the end Jason's hands and forearms were completely blue, and Sammy had a few less eggs because she ate a few along the way!

One CRAZY Weekend

2009-04-06T16:32:00.001-07:00

Travis and I have always wondered what our true capacity for "busy" is. Well this weekend we figured it out. Apparently in one weekend it IS humanly possible to fit in a 3000m swim, spin class, 10K road race, and a 50 mile bike ride, while selling over $300 worth of junk on craigslist. And those activities were just for me. Meanwhile, Travis enlisted the help of Kelley and my dad to complete phase 3 of the rock wall, put up a zip line, and watch some basketball and drink a "few" beers. We also managed a wonderful Easter dinner (a week early) with my parents and grandparents including a fun egg hunt for the kids. Oh wait, Sammy had ballet and Jason had tee-ball too! Phew!

Cary Road Race

Sammy and my mom were my offical cheer squad while I ran a 10K road race

Sammy's First Ballet lesson

Okay, CUTENESS alert - Sammy was so excited about ballet, it was damn adorable. She was also very excited about the "special ballet shoes" That's my girl!

Jason's Tee ball

Just stop the cuteness already. Not only is jason ridonkulously cute in his little uniform, but he was so happy he got the #13 jersey! Very funny!

Rock Wall and Zip Line

The rock wall is complete!

Phase 3 was installed thanks to the tireless efforts of my dad and Kelley. Special thanks are provided to Budweiser and Michelob

Yes the wall has night-time lighting too! Soon it will have HD capacity and lossless sound

And this is my father's contribution - a ZIP LINE! According to my dad, all kids should have 2 things growing up, a zip line and a tree house. Funny that we didn't have either as kids.

Next plans - NONE! We are exhausted! This coming weekend we plan to RELAX!

Projects, Princess and Playdate

2009-04-02T06:36:00.000-07:00

Projects

We are so lucky to have my parents close by. We try to have Sunday dinner with them every week. This is a tradition I grew up with and hope to carry through to my children. Its important to have more formal sit down dinners on a regular basis for so many reasons. Besides the comaraderie of family and friends around the dinner table, its a great time to try new recipes, use our dining room (holla Teri) and introduce the kids to new foods and tastes. This sunday we were at my parents for a barbeque and per usual they always plan ahead and have some special projects for the kids.

Jason worked very hard a assembling some legos

Travis and Sammy worked to paint and decorate some disney fairy princess flower pots.

Ballerina Princess

Another reason that it is so special to hae my parents nearby is that my mo has literally saved all of my special outfits and trinkets. On Sunday, Grandma got out MY first tutu and it was Sammy's size! Of course she LOVED wearing it and we literally had to convince her not to sleep in it!

Playdate

Finally we are starting to experience warmer weather which really helps with our playdates with Sara Jane and Sophia. Its very sweet to see that the 4 kids still play nicely together even though they are all diferent ages and dont always love playing the same games

Of course Jason found something to climb!

Rock Wall

2009-03-24T07:12:00.000-07:00

You all know Jason is really into rockclimbing, and therefore attempts to climb any and all pieces of furniture in my house which is getting very annoying. So, Travis and my Dad built a rock wall outside so he would have more opportunities to blow off his steam. Here's to hoping this works and Jason stops climbing my door frames and cabinets!

Fantabulous Weather

2009-03-18T16:33:00.000-07:00

So it was finally a real NC spring day - sunny and 70, which was much needed after FIVE days of cold rain! So as soon as we got home I said to my kids, "get out of the house!" They played so nicely on the playground with each other I managed to take a few snaps.

Jason was climbing...shocker!

FUN weekend

2009-03-15T17:57:00.000-07:00

We had some friends over on Friday night and I got to use my dining room AND my new couches!!!

Ron started the night off by climbing my door frames - and teaching jason to do the same

Ron made it all the way to the top - we are so proud!
Then Travis/Jason had a chicken fight with Alfred/James

James and I had lots of Zen!

New Couches!

2009-03-15T17:37:00.000-07:00

Yea! The kids now have a place to sit - and so do we! I LOVE my new couches - completely transforms my TV watching experience! Well, Travis also recalibrated the sounds system based on the new furniture layout, so maybe that has something to do with it, but I officially was LAZY this weekend. Other than training and laundry, I did nothing all weekend except sit on my couches!

Couchless Kids

2009-03-13T11:47:00.000-07:00

So the family room has no couches in it because we are getting new ones delivered today! When the kids woke up they still wanted to cuddle and watch TV so they found little spots on the floor - poor kids! It was so cute I had to take a few pictures!

Picture Day!

2009-03-10T09:57:00.000-07:00

Today is picture day for the kids at school, so I dressed them in coordinating outfits. Sammy of course loves to dress up, but Jason had a fit that he wasn't allowed to wear "soft pants." After some significant coaxing an dbribing, we finally got them seated for a few at home pictures. For anyone who has tried to do this, taking pictures of your kids when you really want them to turn out wqell is quite stressful. I think you moms will appreciate this series of pictures I took this morning.

Basketball and Barbeques

2009-03-07T16:23:00.000-08:00

We FINALLY had a warm day and enjoyed every minute of it!

Jason has his last basketball game at EIGHT in the morning and HE SCORED HIS FIRST BASKET!!!

And of course the warm weather meant our first real barbeque and dinner outside. What better way to celebrate the arrival of spring than 10 pounds of dead animal on the grill!

Travis is the GRILLMASTER - funny that I took this picture when he wasn't actually cooking anything on the grill!

Kids love watremelon!

Sleepy Head

2009-03-05T14:16:00.001-08:00

Sammy loves preschool so much she made it the WHOLE day today without a nap! She never fussed and her workers said she ahd a great day. But when we got home, she passed out on teh couch - something she has never done before. So of course I took pictures of my sleeping beauty!

Snow Day, Take 2

2009-03-02T17:33:00.000-08:00

So, a crazy thing happened - we had a SNOW DAY in March in NC! Here are some pictures of the day.

Jason and Mom sharing a laugh

Throwing a snowball at Dad

Another one!

My snow princess

Sammy only lasted about 15 minutes in the snow, but ate plenty!

Fun With Magnets and Princess Dress up

2009-02-27T08:15:00.000-08:00

Last night Travis and Jason did their first pofficial science project - make an electromagnet! Jason was so into it. He is our little engineer in training!

Meanwhile Sammy embraced her inner princess...

Travis, the Duck and the Bunny

2009-02-26T12:09:00.000-08:00

We went to a friend's house for Bunco on Saturday night and Travis got the prize for scoring the most Buncos. He also had a lot of wins with his partner, the duck. Aren't they a cute couple?

Samantha's 3rd Birthday Party

2009-02-24T16:56:00.000-08:00

Samantha requested a Gymnatics Princess birthday and so she got it.

Sammy's Birthday

2009-02-19T12:19:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my special Princess! I cannot believe she is already THREE. We decided to have a little party for her at school, while her Gymnastics birthday party is planned for this weekend.

And at home we made cupcakes and opened her Barbie in the evening.

BIRTHDAY BUTT!

You just gotta love this - poor Sammy has such a small butt that she literally cannot keep her pants up. Its so cute, I had to take a picture and post it!

Myrtle Beach Trip

2009-02-19T10:45:00.000-08:00

We made a trip to Myrtle Beach for the weekend for the Marathon and took the kids and my parents along!

We visited the Ripley's Aquarium, which the kids LOVED!

Pre-race meal at Olive Garden

Morning of the race - 5:30am and Trav is ready to go!

I rode my nike in attempt to meet travis at multiple points

It alsways cracks me up how LONG the lines for the port-o-potties are before races

Post race traditoinal meal of beer and chicken wings

Eye Heart Travis

2009-02-11T10:46:00.002-08:00

Okay so I am not really a big fan of Valentine's Day, but I do agree with Hallmark in that it is a good opportunity to remind your special someone (and remind yourself too) how special they are to you. Since my kids normally get the spotlight (let's face it though they are damn cute) Travis gets center stage for this post

15 Reasons I love Travis

1. He is a runner and therefore has great legs and great endurance - 'nuff said

2. He is GREAT dad

3. He is an engineer and gets my stupid heat and material transfer jokes (or at least pretends to)

4. He is also a reality TV junkie with me and is not afraid to admit it

5. I love that I have a live-in IT support person (most of the time at least)

6. He is seriously the best cook on the grill - his burgers and wings are amazing

7. I have absorbed through osmosis a significant amount of information about HD TV's, computer video capture cards and other electronic techie things and therefore can "hang" with the geeks I work with, and they are always surprised I know what the difference between 1080i and 760p is.

8. Everyone who meets Travis loves him and sees what a great guy he is (and then wonders why he is with me)

9. Travis makes me laugh even when I am so mad I could pop his head off!

10. He has promised to drive my minivan permanently so I can have a new sporty mid-life crisis car in 2 years.

11. He is my #1 biggest fan and althetic supporter (that didn't sound right, I just mean he is always cheering for me at my races even though I am slow, he's not actually a jock strap)

12. Travis is closer to my brothers than I am and I love that they are buddies

13. He let me paint my kitchen Carolina Blue, but we are not Tarheel fans - please, we are still definitely wolfpack fans

14. It still surprises me when he compliments me or tells me I look nice - usually its when I have put little or no effort into my attire or makeup/hair

15. He lets me shop and never questions my purchases!

Cold Ride and Superbowl Sunday

2009-02-03T10:01:00.000-08:00

Cold Sunday Ride - so I finally broke out the winter gear and stopped wussing out about riding outside and went for a nice 30 miler on superbowl sunday morning. Not gonna lie, it is COLD! Trav took a few pics of me looking like a weirdo.

Superbowl Sunday - Sammy helped me make brownies. She was great at cracking the eggs and stirring, and an EXPERT at licking the bowl afterwards!

During the Superbowl we had our own halftime show consisting of wings and Sammy dancing in her new princess dress. Matt LOVED the dress and tried to do some performing, but it didn't fit him :(

Haircut and Rock Climbing

2009-01-31T16:03:00.000-08:00

Samantha got her hair cut by Cindy, who is awesome and she does my hair and Aunt Sonal's hair too. I have known cindy for 8 years so she gushes over Sammy when she comes in. This is the first time Samantha let her cut AND style her hair, and she acted like such a little pincess.

Notice how she sits with her legs crossed like a lady
She even was reading a magazine! All done - doesn't she look pretty?

We've taken Jason rock climbing a few times and he is completely hooked. He asks to go everyday. I took him today and snapped some shots of my little monkey. Now that he knows how to go for holds and do power moves though, he treats all public places as opportunties to practice. A few days ago he scaled the inside of the bathroom stall and climbed up and out instead of using the door while Sammy and I were still in the stall. Yesterday he climbed onto the conveyor at Target in the checkout aisle in a matter of milliseconds.

All ready to go in his new climbing shoes!

At the top! I thought it was really high!

Jason is HD Compatible

2009-01-28T10:44:00.000-08:00

So, its official that both Travis and Jason are more tech-savvy than I am. Yesterday I was truing to turn on Spongebob for Jason and he got frustrated with how long it was taking and grabbed the remote and did it himself! He even pointed out that he chose Nickelodeon HD, not the analog channel. Boy did I feel useless.

Sammy's Sick Day

2009-01-28T06:58:00.000-08:00

This week Sammy wasn't feeling well so she stayed home with Daddy. She is a Daddy's girl through and through and only wants him when she is not feeling well. The spent the evening cuddling on the couch.

Then after being a good girl at the doctor, Sammy suckered Travis into buying her something. She picked out a bride's dress and was very proud of it!

Very funny!

Girls Day

2009-01-25T14:13:00.001-08:00

Jason and Travis were off to go rockclimbing, and do boy stuff all day, so Sammy and I had some serious girl time.

I am a big girl and don't need a booster chair anymore!

I drink from a big girl cup!

I share my blueberries!

I check my hair and make-up in my compact

I am a princess

SNOW DAY!

2009-01-20T06:23:00.000-08:00

North Carolina actually got snow - about 4 inches which has completely shut down the state. I think the mayor is about to declare a national state of emergency. So, we PLAYED! More pics later!

The kids were SO excited this morning - almost as excited as Christmas Day!

WE dressed Sammy like Ralphie's brother from the Christmas Story so she had trouble walking without help!

SLEDDING!!!!

Daddy Time is Special Time

2009-01-19T11:33:00.000-08:00

I was not feeling well this weekend so Travis stepped up and took on the role of Mr. Mom. A few times I snuck down to say hi to everyone and get Tea and meds, and I caught some very precious moments that would only happen with Daddy

WRESTLING!!

Sammy went poo!

I have say this is bittersweet b/c I have been working on Sammy an dthe potty for months and just like that, she goes poo for Travis. So I am both somewhat frustrated (b/c I wanted the glory) and excited b/c she is officially in panties!

We Heart Chicken Wings

2009-01-15T14:24:00.000-08:00

Travis' DNA is active in the Wills Children

Our kids LOVE chicken wings. I know its a surprise for a lot of people but its true. These kids will tear up a family pack of wings with barbeque sauce. Of course in honor of their dad, we had to document the latest Wills Wing Fest!

Barack OBrian?

2009-01-13T12:35:00.000-08:00

Jason is CONVINCED that Uncle Brian (my brother) looks just like Barack Obama - what do you think?

While the cat is away...

2009-01-11T16:53:00.000-08:00

I have always wondered exactly what happens when we are gone and Grandma and Papa have the kids. They are ALWAYS excited to see my parents which is very sweet. Now I know why. Its so precious that my kids have established such a unique and special relationship with their grandparents. This is priceless.

Eating Chocolate Pudding!

THese pictures are either 1. Grandpa playing Choo Choo or 2. The kids practicing CPR after the wore out Grandpa. Regardless they are having fun and everyone is alive, woo hoo!

Surprise from Norway

2009-01-06T14:10:00.001-08:00

Thank You Aunt Margie!

Today a special something PINK came in the mail for Sammy and she LOVED it!

Opening the package

Trying on the sunglasses

The whole outfit - isn't it ADORABLE?!?!

Kid Exchange

2009-01-06T10:45:00.000-08:00

My girlfriend Kirsten and I decided the BEST gift we could give each other was an evening without kids. So we took her boys for one night and she and her husband (THE metro Zach) took our kids for one night. Kirsten's boys and Jason are BUDDIES! It's so fun to see them play together!

Resolutions

2008-12-31T16:00:00.000-08:00

So I know its cheesy but I always make a few resolutions for the upcoming year

1. Eat Better and Cook More - i made this promise last year and I actually did it
2. Shop less, play more - pretty sure I will play more, not so sure about the shopping less part because why stop doing something I am SOOOOO good at?
3. Spend more quality time with hubby - I just have to figure out how to stay up past 8pm and add 4 more hours in every day.
4. Better myself - i have a 3 step plan for this one: a) train for a half ironman b) work on my core to obtain the flat tummy and c) get a boob job.

Lessons Learned from 2008
1. I don't work for money (although that's a nice perk). I work because I am a better mom and wife for it.

2. My husband and kids are not perfect, and that's why I love them, and that's what makes them special and unique (and somewhat unpredictable)

3. I have the best girlfriends in the world who literally would do anything for me (although honestly I haven't really challenged that to the limit yet....)

4. At the end of the day the most important thing in life is family and a great pair of boots.

Trip to Philadelphia

2008-12-31T15:16:00.000-08:00

We made our trip to philadelphia to see family and friends. We dragged the kids from place to place and allowed no naps all four days. Surprisingly we only had a few meltdowns. Unfortunately one of those meltdowns culminated with Samantha kicking my Uncle Mark in the nuts and serving a left hook to my Uncle Bill. Otherwise our trip was successful and we had a great time.

Traveling - Jason and Sammy loved the airplane and rental car buses...

And our pilot spent 15 minutes with Jason prior to the flight making him a Navy Jet Fighter out of a $2 bill!

The kids LOVE hotels! There was a lot of jumping on the beds... and therefore a few boo boos!

We had our traditional Christmas Sushi Dinner with Brian, Sarah, Mom, Dad and Bob and Lisa. The kids even had a good time and we caught them in a rare "hug" moment.

Then Jason and Travis spent the next few hours "digesting their sushi" in the hotel hot tub, resulting in a VERY hard sleep - too sweet to resist taking a picture.

Brian, Sarah and Travis took Jason to his first trip to Pat's Steaks in south Philly - at 11:00pm! While Travis and Brian ate themselves stupid with cheesesteaks, Jason ate the cheese fries and a deep-fried hot dog.

My Uncle Karl was nice enough to organize a fantastic Glick Christmas get-together, and there was a great turnout. I will post those pictures later because there are LOTS!

Wills Christmas Day

2008-12-30T17:02:00.000-08:00

Christmas Morning

Our day started EARLY as the kids woke up in anticipation of seeing the results from Santa's visit. We crept downstairs until suddenly Travis yelled, WAIT! I have to get the HD videos loaded and recording! So we waited at the top of the stairs for Travis to get all of the videography equipment set up, calibrated and balanced. Then was the big moment - we all came down the stars and saw that Santa had indeed visited two little children!

Christmas Eve was spent at the Bhuta's for ham and time with extended family

On Xmas morning Sammy got exhauted pretty early on.

Santa's presents resulted in many projects for Jason and Dad - this is iCoaster, an electronic, magnetic, musical marble run. TV the cat especially liked this one

And of course LEGOS, the ultimate toy for boys, the greatest challenge to vacuum cleaners and the ultimate in self control when you step on and try not to cuss out loud!

Sammy won the "cutest child" contest by dressing in her Tinkerbelle costume, and have a tea party with Tinkerbelle

In all Christmas day was spent with family and playing lots with the kids - perfect in my books!

Merry Christmas (and Happy Hannukah)!

2008-12-24T05:56:00.000-08:00

Its the most wonderful time of the year.

The kids are so into Santa and Christmas this year. Jason even gets the idea that it is better to give than receive.. at some level as he is furioulsy been making cards and other arts and crafts for others this year to give as presents. Its very cute.

Making Cookies for Santa's arrival

Ingredients were: lots of sugar, lots of love and a HUGE mess for Mommy to clean up afterwards. Therefore I am SURE Santa will just LOVE these cookies tonight.

Happy Hannukah?

In attempt to be diversity changea agents at the house this year, Jason decided to make a very elaborate Menorah out of construction paper. He was so proud, and I didn't have the haert to tell him we are not Jewish. So, here's a shout out to all the Jews in our lives!

Playtime

2008-12-23T05:35:00.000-08:00

I wish I were a kid - when every day is play time!

Monkey Joes - an indoor bouncy place that is insane with bratty kids (not mine of course) and chaos. The kids love it and the parents are happy to have a place to bring their kids on yucky cold rainy days. We were there for Alastair's birthday party!

Sammy loved this place

Making silly faces - well at least Sammy is.

Playdate with SJ and Sophia

Jason's longtime (aka 3 years) girlfriend and her sister came over for pizza and playing. They had a blast as usual. Its so nice to have such great friends.

The fearless four (We put Tracy to work, she doesn't get to play)

Buddies for life

How many kids can you fit on a bean bag chair?

Exploring the Castle Bed

Potty Training?

2008-12-18T10:58:00.001-08:00

Do we dare jinx it? Sammy seems to have suddenly taken interest in the potty and has even made it a few days without accidents at school. Of course being the proud mom, I had to document the process.

Preparing...

Working hard - look at the concentration!

Ta Da! Sammy is so proud of the pee pee!

Halburnts Holiday Party

2008-12-18T06:46:00.000-08:00

Sonal and Matt hosted a fantastic holiday party that Jason and I went to. (Travis was recovering from his marathon that morning with some Yuengling at home) Jason was especially proud that he got to go to a grown-up party. Of course we left before the real partying began, but here are pictures of everyone before the drinking started.

The guys pretending to be pensive

Jason and Click were instant buddies. Probably because Click was sharing his "lemonade" with Jason, and could talk about Legos and Transformers for hours.

The girls looking FABULOUS!

Its not a party without Crazy Uncle Matt!

The hosts - and super adorable couple!

White Elephant Present Time - we are so grateful Jason got an appropriate gift!

Jim Beam - EVRYONE's friend during the holiday season!

HUMONGOUS SMORES!
Big Blue Ball - this was a funny one and got passed around a lot

We are so lucky to have great friends and so much laughter in our lives. Thanks Sonal and Matt for hosting a great party! If this is an indication of how much fun we will have at your wedding, its gonna be OFF THE HOOK!

New Love

2008-12-16T16:15:00.000-08:00

Have you tried this? If not, you should!

Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka. So I live in the south but have never been a huge fan of sweet tea. But you put some of this vodka in it, or mix this with some lemonade and its liquid heaven! Now I can say I like sweet tea like a real southerner!

So, maybe I should submit and get some marketing reimbursement from Firefly?

Travis' FOURTH marathon

2008-12-14T18:04:00.000-08:00

We travelled to Charlotte this weekend for the Thunder Road Marathon, one of the hilliest courses in the US! Travis is in the best physical shape of his life and he was very prepared for this one. Anji spent the day being a water bottle, banana and gel sherpa. And yet I managed to wreck Travis' car only once by backing into a pole!

I am so proud of Travis for finishing this race - I think its one of the most grueling things you can do to your bady and Travis has done it 4 times now - and plans more for 2009! I am positive I could never run a marathon, so that makes me even more proud of Travis seeing how hard it really is!

I only got pictures of Travis warming up b/c it was so hard to get pictures along the course, and then I messed up at the end (probably because I was nervous about telling Travis I backed his car into a pole)! But even warming up he is serious (and cute!)

Happy Birthday Travis!

2008-12-11T06:23:00.000-08:00

Last night we went out with Sonal and Matt, aka The Halburnts, and had a great time celebrating the holidays and Travis' Birthday. I am especially excited because for the next six months I can accurately claim that Travis is OLDER than me!!!

I know I look like I have been drinking in this picture, but I was actually the DD!

Brothers gotta hug, man! This picture was taken after a VERY INTENSE "discussion" about who is the leader of the aerialbots. Thank goodness they agreed to disagree otherwise they were going to go into fisticuffs!

All 4 Bhutas = 2 tall white guys and 2 small Indian girls

Basketball Practice, Playing with Sister, and Stupid Cat

2008-12-09T07:29:00.000-08:00

Basketball!

Jason had his first basketball practice on Saturday! He is so cute with the other boys out there and was actually quite good. His team is the Bears. Other teams in the league are animal names too like cheetahs, lions etc... then I guess they started to run out of animal names because they actually named a team the Horned Frogs - thank goodness Jason's not on that team.

Jason and the Bears stretching (don't they look so intimidating?)...

Some one-on-one time with the coach

Trains = sweet moments

Then, that afternoon, Travis and Jason set up the train set in Jason's room and we witnessed a rare few moments of the kids playing together. Normally Sammy is too little for Jason's things but this time he took her under his wing and invited her up into his bed to "drive the train."

The setup (Travis has already planned the upgrades to the set - additional track etc.)

Cute moments of a loving brother and sister playing peacefully - don't we wish this happened all the time!?

Stupid Cat TV Wills

On another note, I think we have the dumbest cat on the face of this earth. We got him 3 years ago when Jason insisted on naming him TV Wills (appropriate, huh?). The cat hates me and LOVES all kids, which is unusual.

In this picture he let them paint him. The crazy part is the cat let's the kids paint him all the timeAnd in this picture, the cat wouln't move while I was making the bed, so I put the sheets on anyway.

Despite his apparent lack of fight or flight instinct, we keep him around because he is great with the kids and ADORES Jason!

Tranji's Night Out

2008-12-07T16:28:00.000-08:00

Travis' company had their annual holiday party on Friday. Unfortunately BOTH of us were battling sinus infections so our big night out was an early one.

Tranji all ready to go (after a caramel macchiato and mucinex)

And a picture with Travis' boss and wife.

Its beginning to look a lot like...

2008-12-03T07:42:00.001-08:00

A few more pictures from the past week as we are starting to decorate and prepare for the holidays!

Granny Teri helping the kids make a "candy house" They really enjoyed this project!

Black Friday Shoe Shopping. Sammy was so excited about her new pink shoes with green flowers and then she willingly posed with a life-size dinosaur outside the store! Notice the "posed" hand on her hip!

Then we got the Christmas Tree and Decorated it

Check out our silver balls!

Sweetness! Jason got excited when he found this ornament of Sammy as a baby!

And Sammy felt the need to do her Tai Chi while decorating the tree. I think it has something to do with toddler feng shui they are teaching her at daycare!

And then of course there was plenty of relaxing afterwards

Just so you know, this is how Jason relaxes... he shapes himself like a rocket and "takes off from the couch." We are so proud. It is this type of activity that keeps the Western Wake Emergency room as our #1 on speed dial. All of you who have boys know exactly whay I am talking about - holla!!

Thanksgiving and Granny Teri's Visit

2008-11-30T16:21:00.000-08:00

We had a great Turkey day visit from Teri (Trav's mom)!

Travis fried the turkey....

And Teri helped carve (and pick at the skin!)...

And a picture of my first official thanksgiving formal table in my new dining room!

We are so grateful Teri made the long drive to come see us and spend a few precious days! Can;t wait to see you soon!

Day After....

2008-11-28T07:48:00.001-08:00

I have to take something back. I said in my previous post I was thankful for alcohol. This morning I am NOT thankful for tequila. HOwever, I am very thankful for advil and coffee!

Thankful

2008-11-25T18:10:00.000-08:00

This is the time of year we all feel very thankful for the big and little things in our lives. Of course I could provide a list of thousands of items, but after much thought, deliberation and a few drinks, I have narrowed down my "thankful list" to the following 4 items.

1. FAMILY - they know me and STILL love me. They make me laugh and cry. My family and our closeness provides hope for the future of my children that a strong family unit IS possible and thriving in this modern time.

2. FRIENDS - I definitely have the best friends. I can honestly say my girlfriends are always there for me no matter what. My girlfriends are also some of the craziest people I know which makes our times together exciting and fun. If nothing else my friends provide a standard or control (in the experimental sense) for being crazy. If ever I think I might be losing my mind, I generally call one of my girlfriends and realize, I am not so crazy afterall!

Tracy trying to pop my head off with her biceps

Notice Diana trying to take me out on this water slide

3. RUNNING and TRIATHLONS - I know this seems silly but this year I competed (and did well) in 2 half marathons, 3 triathlons (one olympic distance) and too many running races to count (both with and without the stroller). Running as part of NCRC is something my whole family can do together, promoting a healthy lifestyle for our kids. My tri's are mine and give me a sense of accomplishment and pride. More importantly I am healthier than I have ever been and that is a wonderful feeling.

4. ALCOHOL and PHARMACEUTICS - yea I know I joke about this but I am truly thankful for the advances of modern medicine and the ability of brewmasters to discover a method of brewing lower calorie and lower carb beer. My friend recently introduced me to MGD 64 and I think I am in love. With only 64 calories, I can have twice as many!

This is Aunt Margie still loving me after we had a "few" of the above mentioned items

So this thursday, as I am at home with my family (after running the 8K turkey trot at 8am!), cooking dinner, drinking wine with my mother in law, and talking on the phone with my girlfriends I will feel peaceful and happy as I stop and purposefully take a moment to be thankful for all I have. And then a child will pummell me in the crotch with his/her head....

Happy Early Thanksgiving!

2008-11-24T07:02:00.000-08:00

We celebrated thanksgiving on Sunday with Anji's parents - the Bhuta way!

Me and Nana - right after she told me my face is "not skinny"

A beautifully Set table

Does anyone else see the irony in the vegetarian carving the turkey?

Ready to eat

Who doesn't love crazy Uncle Matt?

We are so thrilled he is officially part of the family!

Awwwww...