Beaverdam Olympic Triathlon

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

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

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!

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

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

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!