Halloween

Trick-or-treating was a success tonight.  The girls didn't decided until about 30 minutes before we left the house what they wanted to wear, and when they finally did, L was a fairy and E was the Sugar Plum fairy.  They are exhausted from being sick, too, so I'm just glad they made it around the block!

E as the Sugar Plum Fairy, eating her crown wand.

L as Rosetta the fairy (Tinkerbell friend).

Belle, Daddy, E, and L in the kitchen before trick-or-treating.

Me, E, and L sitting on the kitchen floor.

Bad phone call

L still wasn't feeling great this morning, but she was okay enough that I thought maybe she could do preschool for the morning.  She really wanted to go because they were going to do their Halloween celebration today, and she wanted to give her friends the treats she got (as well as receive some).  So, after letting her sleep until almost 6:45am, we got her and E ready for the day, ate breakfast, loaded up the car, and dropped L off at school.

E and I came home, talked to the neighbor lady, took a bunch of baby stuff to the children's resale shop, ran an errand at Trader Joe's for the neighbor lady, came home and gave it to her, and then came inside to relax for a bit before having lunch/getting L from school.  The phone was ringing, and the caller ID said the preschool's name.  Uh oh, L must be too sick to stay.  Hmm.

Me:  Hello?
Lady:  Hi, this is **** from Preschool, calling about your daughter, L.  She fell off a high piece of equipment on the playground just now and hit her head.  [Teacher's name] thinks she should be picked up by you.
Me: ....I'll be there in 10 minutes.

I did better than that - I got E in the car, drove like a maniac to the school, and basically ran to her classroom in about 7 minutes.  Keep in mind that it usually takes us 5 minutes to load, 10 minutes to drive, and then 5 more minutes to unload/go to the classroom.  I peeked in the classroom window before I knocked and saw poor L sitting at the table next to her teacher, doing her art project with everyone else, but her teacher had a bag of ice held up to the back of her head.  Her teacher said that L is so happy all the time and she'd never seen her cry, so when she started screaming/crying on the playground after falling, she knew it wasn't good, hence her getting someone to call me.

When I came in, L looked at me with these big, tired, unhappy eyes and I could have just cried.  I felt so bad for her.  Not only did she hit her head, she was also a big snotty mess from her cold.  I guess it decided to rear its ugly head more while she was at school.  Knowing that she was okay, just sick and slightly bruised, was such a relief.  It seriously felt like my head got 10 pounds lighter when I realized she was okay and not in need of immediate transport to the doctor/hospital.  I signed her out, loaded her and E up in the car, drove home, and just gave her (and E) a whole bunch of attention before lunch.  They loved it.  I asked L what happened and she said she fell, she hit her head, and it hurt.   Thank goodness she was acting pretty normal, just tired from her cold.  She took a decent nap and then was dancing all over the house.  THANK GOODNESS!

If I can't handle phone calls like this when she's young, how am I going to be when she's older and the school calls?!??  I should probably find the number for a good cardiologist now, lol...

Cleaning and sorting

Since L and E are both coming down with colds (I think I am too, as I feel like I could throw up right now), we spent the day at home not doing a whole lot of anything.  That meant I had time to sort through the girls' rooms, straighten out their closets, sort clothes (too small so pack away, too big for E so pack away for later, and too big for L so pack in her closet for later), put away and sort toys, figure out to do with L's 673961 stuffed animals that have been displaced due to the new bed, and get screamed at by both girls because of some infraction the other sister committed and/or they just don't feel good.  Lovely.  At least the rooms now resemble organization in some form.  Also, the resale shop is getting a s* load of stuff from us when I get down there again soon.  I feel like the day was wasted since I couldn't get a run in, or run errands, or do much of anything, but this had to be done at some point.  I'm hoping to do the same to our master bedroom closet soon too!

L's new bed, part 2

Last weekend, we bought L's new bed from IKEA.  Friday, I picked up L's new mattress from the furniture store.  Yesterday, the husband (with a bit of help from me) spent most of the day putting together the damn thing.  It's finally in her room, she loves it, and she slept in it for the first time last night (only a few wake-ups, but I think that's from her not feeling so well).  I can't believe that she's ready to move from a toddler bed to a twin bed!  These girls are growing up way too fast.

Still a work in progress, but ta-da!  Here's what she has thus far.

Trunk or Treat

We took the girls to the YMCA tonight for the annual Trunk or Treat festivities.  L was so excited to be wearing her Princess Tiana costume, while E only decided about five minutes before we left the house that she wanted to wear her Cinderella costume.  We met up with the in-laws, played games, got lots of treats from the vendors, and L went down the inflatable slide and bounced in the bounce house.  She was quite upset that she lost her hair bow in the bounce house, but luckily I had sense to get two of them when I purchased them, so there's a spare.

E and L sitting on the firetruck.

Helping E throw tennis balls into buckets (we missed on all throws).

L sliding down the giant inflatable slide.

L & E's accomplishments

E has been potty training herself for about a month now.  How awesome is that?  I haven't had to do much of anything!  Today, she actually went #2 in the potty all on her own.  I think she was a little scared doing it (she kept trying to stand up while making her deposit), but she did it and was so proud of herself when she was finished.  L and I cheered for her and she got M&Ms!  I believe next week we will start some hard-care potty training with cloth undies.  Go E!

Cute little E is growing up way too fast!

L has finally learned how to pedal her tricycle.  FINALLY.  We've had that damn thing since she was 18 months old!  She finally accomplished it inside yesterday afternoon, and then we went out in the cul-de-sac this morning for her to enjoy herself.  The happy look on her face was priceless - she was over the moon at being able to get around on it!  However, the tricycle almost seems small for her now - eep!  I think it might be time to think about a bicycle with training wheels, lol.  Go L!

L finally pedaling her tricycle, and having a blast!

Chipotle

I used to hate Mexican food, period.  I wouldn't eat it, I wouldn't order it, and I certainly wouldn't go willingly to a Mexican restaurant.  Now, I realize it's because I was used to the "southwestern" cuisine of the Midwest which, frankly, sucks goat tail compared to authentic Mexican cuisine. 

The husband worked on me for years, slowly introducing foods to me that I found surprisingly awesome.  First burritos, then enchiladas, and so on.  I've discovered that I don't like beans in my Mexican food, I have to have the mild salsa, and the only way to eat an enchilada is with red sauce.  It's been a pleasant journey!

Chipotle was one of those restaurants I couldn't stand and wouldn't go near.  Why would I?  It's MEXICAN FOOD.  Well, within the last few months, I've suddenly found myself craving it all the freaking time.  I want a chicken burrito with brown cilantro lime rice, no beans, mild salsa, TONS of sour cream (I never used to like that either!), lettuce, and cheese, all on a wonderfully massive tortilla.  HEAVEN!  My poor waist line is definitely feeling it.

The husband asked what I wanted for dinner tonight, since Thursday is always our take-out night.  I said "as if you need to ask!"  So, after work, it's off to Chipotle.  Score!

It's been another one of Those Days...

Today was definitely one of those days where I couldn't understand why everything was going the way it went.  It just...defied explanation.

At breakfast this morning, both girls managed to make a mess of all of their clothes.  I'm talking shirt, pants, and diaper/underwear.  Ridiculous.  I had to clean all that up and then get them new clothes. 

Then, I decided to do a quick 20-minute kickboxing session with my DVD.  I always tell the girls to STAY AWAY FROM ME while I'm doing it because I don't want them to get accidentally hurt.  In fact, if they stray within five feet of me, I move away from them.  I've been known to do my workouts in the kitchen on the tile in order to make sure no one gets injured.  Today, though, they would not leave me alone and kept getting under foot.  I turned around at one point and my knee went straight into E's forehead.  I was mortified, pissed, and trying to comfort a shocked/surprised/slightly hurt E who was crying hysterically.  Honestly, I think it hurt ME more than her because my knee was smarting for quite awhile after that!

After my workout, we go up to the hallway with the girls' rooms and their bathroom.  I always shower in there if they are home and awake so that they can play in their rooms.  They love it!  I hopped in the shower, was cleaning myself up, when all of a sudden the light went out.  Since I leave the door open to hear them, I knew someone had come in to turn it off.  It didn't take me more than two seconds to figure out that it was E, since she has figured out how to move the stools to under the light switches to turn them on/off (and she started giggling).  ARGH.

I gave up on getting anything done around the house just because both girls were so ornery.  So, off to the mall we went so that A) they could play and burn off some energy, and B) I could make a return I needed to make.  That actually went well, including the girls being super good at the Disney Store.  Yay for that!

Home for lunch, where they yelled/screamed songs through most of it.  Then upstairs for naptime, where L threw a fit because I gave E a M&M for using the potty (training method) and not her.  NAP TIME.  Thank goodness they slept, because I needed it too!  Then, a snack, episode of Dora the Explorer, Skyping with my parents, dinner (silliness ensued), and then prep for bedtime and bedtime.  It seems that there was something with everything to make it One Of Those Days. 

It's almost 8pm and I'm ready to just go to bed!

Cleaning the house

I sense a theme this week...

I tend to put off cleaning the house until it looks like a hurricane has just gone through.  Why?  There doesn't seem to be a point to picking up and cleaning things every day when it will just happen again the next day - might as well leave the mess for a little longer.  By the time I get around to picking things up, vacuuming, and straightening things, the house seems to sigh with relief that someone is finally doing something.  The toys get sorted and put away (sometimes with help), cushions are put back on couches, diapers are put back in one place, clothes are put in the hamper, dog toys go back to the dog's area, drawing materials and implements are put back on the toddler table, floors are vacuumed, items are dusted, and tiles are mopped.  It really truly takes most of the day to do this, and then I have two little ones that follow behind me undoing everything I just did.  So, it takes longer.  And I get more frustrated with every pass.  By the time I finish, I love the way the house looks, but I'm so jaded that I think "wtf did I just do that for?  no one appreciates it." 

So, today I cleaned.  I'm nearly done, but I'm at that jaded point of thinking "why bother?"  We'll see if it continues or if I just give up.  Heck, when the girls went down for a nap, I decided to blow off some steam by doing a DVD workout - maybe when they wake up I'll find another way to procrastinate!

Ode to laundry

Monday is laundry day in our household.  Actually, Monday is Oh-My-God-There-Are-No-Clean-Clothes-Left-For-ANYONE-In-This-Household-I'd-Better-Wash-Something day in our household.  On a typical Monday, I will do anywhere from 4-8 loads of laundry.  It usually breaks down like this:

1.  E's clothes and bedding (if necessary)
2.  L's clothes and bedding (if necessary)
3.  My workout clothes
4.  Dark clothes & towels
5.  Light clothes & towels
6.  Bedding (as needed)
7.  Anything that was overlooked earlier, or anything still smelly and needing another wash
8.  Another load that was created during the day and now needs to be washed

Washing, drying, and folding take up a bulk of the day, believe it or not.  Moving it around is a challenge because, inevitably, someone is trying to get into the washer, the dryer, the dirty clothes, the clean clothes, or just blocking my way by dancing half naked between me and the machines.  Putting it all away takes awhile - I've been known to put away the husband and I's clothes on Friday (folded already, of course).  Of course, no matter what I do, there is always clothes piled up somewhere in the house.  It's a vicious cycle.

Tuesday will thus be known as Laundry Recovery day...

Buckelew Farms

Every year since L was born, we have gone to the pumpkin patch at Buckelew Farms (Three Points, AZ).  We get our pumpkins from out in the fields, get awesome food, roam the crafts area, play on hay bales and various other things, and then drive home with konked out people in the back seats.  This year was no different, except no one slept on the way back.  E is now big enough to wander the fields and pick pumpkins herself, so she had a great time finding "her" pumpkin (a little orange one), while L found a great pumpkin to decorate for herself that was bigger than her head.  We didn't get as many pumpkins this year as we have in the past (we've learned, lol!), but we were able to play on more things since the girls are bigger.  L had a great time climbing hay bales and wandering around, while both L and E loved the bounce house they played in.  I found some cute stuff in the arts & crafts tent for both Halloween and just in general, while the husband stocked up on incense (I really don't know what he likes about it so much, it's weird). 

When we got back to my in-laws' place, we all crashed for awhile, then we ate pumpkin pancakes (from a mix), other goodies, and carved/decorated pumpkins.  L and E put stickers on their pumpkins as well as painted them.  The husband and I worked together to carve a pumpkin.  It turned out well! 

At bath time tonight, my husband asked the girls what their favorite part of the day was.  L said "playing!"  E said "ice cream!"  Ah, yes, the food and playing at their grandparents' house.  What about all pumpkin patch stuff we planned for so long to do with them?  Kids...lol!

Riding in the wagon out to the pumpkin patch

E found her pumpkin!

L found her pumpkin too!

L on the tractor board

Our family at the pumpkin patch

Visiting the great grandparents

The last time we saw the husband's mom's parents, it was Labor Day weekend.  The next time we are supposed to see them is Thanksgiving.  That's a long time for the girls to go without their great-grandparents.  So, we arranged to go up yesterday and spend the day/night with them!  It was a great trip.  We got L's new bed, spent quality time with Ho-Ho and Go-Go, relaxed and played a lot, the girls got to go shopping with Ho-Ho (E got a new doll and L got a school bus), and we got to eat all the yummy food she makes.  There is nothing like spending time with them!  I keep reminding myself that Ho-Ho is 80 and Go-Go is 91 now, and that they should be taking it easy, but it's hard to when they act so young and spry with the girls around.  The girls did great in the car too without one of us sitting in the rear back seat to keep them occupied (we had to take it out to make room for the bed box).  I'm so glad we went!

Go-Go (Great-Grandpa H) reading to E

New bed

We picked up L's new bed today at IKEA.  We picked this one out of all the others we could have gone with because it has two ways it can be used - on the floor, like a regular bed (and the way we'll start with it), and lofted, which will create so much more room for L to play in her room.  L was so excited and couldn't understand why we didn't just open the box and pull it out.  Mommy and Daddy need to find time to put it together, and then we need to get a mattress!  For now, it will sit in its box at home.  Hopefully she won't be too exasperated by the wait until next weekend.  ;)

Bed on the floor.  Notice the option of adding a canopy!

Bed lofted.  All you do is flip it over.  How easy is that?  All that extra space too!

Stop! There's a WHAT in the road?

As E and I were going to pick up L at preschool today, I backed out of our driveway and started driving down our street, as usual.  At the end of the street, I always hang a right after I check to make sure no one is coming.  Today, however, I had to stop and park the car.  Why?  There was something in the middle of the road that, while I wasn't going to run over it, might get run over by someone else.  It was a

TORTOISE!

 

 

 

It wasn't just a teeny little one either, it was fairly big!  My guess is that it's someone's pet and escaped the backyard.  Its shell was about 12 inches from neck to tail, and it looked positively miffed that I was stopping his progress across the street.  I picked him up, put him in the yard of the house he was in front of, and told him "don't cross the road or you'll be turtle soup!"  Then, E and I were on our way.

On our way back, I looked for him but he was gone.  His owner must have found him and took him back home, or else he got super speedy and went elsewhere.  Either way, it's not everyday you run into a tortoise crossing the street!

Naked yard party

When it's still 90F at 5pm in the middle of October, I think you're allowed to run around your own backyard in nothing but your underwear.

Running around (I have new grass seed down behind L, that's what the cover is for)

E waving her arms like she just don't care

L in undies and cowboy boots.  Perfect, no?

Parrot, anyone?

I swear that L doesn't listen to me when I ask/tell her to do something.  EVER.  Then, she goes and proves me wrong by parroting what I said to her back at her sister!

*****
Me:  E, where are you going?  E?  E, come back here!  E, where are you?  What are you doing?
L:  Don't worry about her, just worry about yourself.

*****
L:  Gimme that toy.
Me:  What do you say????
L:  Give me that toy, please.
E:  NO!
L:  What do you say????
E:  No, please!

*****
Me: E, take off your shoes, we're inside now.
E:  *ignores*
Me:  E, take off your shoes, please!
E:  *ignores*
L:  E, Mama said take off your shoes!  DO IT!
E:  No!
L:  Take off your shoes!
E:  NO!
L:  *wrestles E to ground, pries off shoes*
E:  NO!  NICE!  (be nice) NIIIIICE!!!!!
L:  You be nice to me, I be your mama!
Me:  No, I'm the mama, you're her big sister, and don't wrestle her like that!
L:  But I a good helper, yes?
Me:  ...

*****
E:  *throws something in anger*
L:  Don't throw things when you angry!  That BAD!

Meals need wheels!

Why is it that no matter what meal I put in front of the girls, if it's a normal typical (good-for-them) meal, they take 30-40 minutes to eat them?  Or, rather, make some semblance of an attempt at eating, playing, and butchering it???  Then, when they get a "junk" meal (e.g. McDonalds happy meal, pizza & fries, etc.), they wolf it down like they haven't been fed in months?  It drives me crazy!  It's always worst when we have to go do something right afterwards, so this tendency drives me BONKERS.  I sure hope it's a phase because I'm getting sick of eating my meal, prodding them to eat theirs, getting out random things that need to be done while they're still eating, completing them, prodding them some more, and literally ordering them through each step of the process (e.g. "Pick up your fork, put food on it, put it in your mouth, chew, swallow"). 

Disney on Ice

I surprised L today with a "special thing" - tickets for her and I to go see Disney on Ice at the convention center.  I knew she would like it because one of the three featured stories was of Tiana, her favorite princess (Princess and the Frog). 

Good thing we went early - 30 minutes prior to the show and we were stuck in traffic downtown as everyone A) tried to get around streetcar construction, and B) tried to get into the convention center.  We finally got into a lot ($8 for parking?!?), parked, and walked into the convention center.  I'd only been there once before, quite a few years ago, and it was a different portion of the building, so I was overwhelmed today as to how big it is on the inside.  There were Disney vendors EVERYWHERE - it was like Disneyland had puked all over the outside and inside of the area.  L, of course, had to get something, but I told her she couldn't get anything unless she ended up getting something for E as well.  So, she ended up getting herself a Tiana figure and E a Rapunzel figure.  Our seats were waaaaay on the far side of the arena - literally, L's seat was next to the aisle, and then the next section over was empty.  We were nearly at the back of our section too, so we were in the very definition of "nosebleed seats." 

As for the show, I was fascinated by the figure skating, logistics of putting on the show, and wondering what life was like for these performers as they constantly traveled.  L was fascinated by the princesses (of course), the stories (Princess and Frog, Cinderella, & Tangled), and narrating her feelings for me during the first half.  During the second half, she was standing and watching everything - I think she was half excited and half couldn't see around the big head in front of her.  I offered to let her sit in my seat or on my lap, but she refused.  Strange child.  Anyway, I think the best part of it all was Tangled's aerial acrobatics along with the ice skating, the fireworks at the very end (indoors!), and watching L's face light up when she recognized all the princesses at the end (they all were there, even ones not in the show). 

I never did anything like this as a child.  Well, I take that back - in elementary school (4th grade?  5th grade?), we had an optional school trip to the circus in Dayton that reminds me very much of the things I saw today (minus ice skating, lol).  I was always super jealous of the kids that got to do things like see Disney on Ice, because my parents were just flat broke and didn't know about any of this kind of stuff.  I promised myself that, if I had kids someday, I'd make sure they got to go to events like that and not be jealous.  It's so much fun to watch all the excited kids during the show!  L was so happy, which made me extremely happy.  We'll have to do something like this again, because she did super excellent throughout the show.  :)

A new arrival

I went out for a run this morning (it was 54F at the time - brr!).  While out on the run, I remember thinking "today would be a great day for my new niece/nephew to be born, because someday s/he could have a birthday on Friday the 13th!"  Honest to goodness, that was my thought.  Finished my run, took L to sports practice, and just basically went about my day like normal.

Laid the girls down for a nap at 12:15pm and then had about 4 phone calls during the next two hours.  FRUSTRATING.  I was so tired and couldn't sleep because so many people kept calling.  I hate political robocalls!  Anyway, the girls were up when the fourth phone call came in, and I noticed it was from my sister-in-law G's cell phone.  I answered.

Me:  Hello?
Her:  Hi!
Baby:  *coooooooo*
Me:  Oh my gosh!

The baby was born today!  And it's a GIRL!!!!!  Her name is V, and my nephew (her brother) S apparently wants to have her all to himself.  ;)  No problems with Mommy or baby, and they're home already.  I'm so excited - a nephew and a niece!  She is so adorable in the few pictures I've seen, and we got to Skype with them tonight to see her precious face yawn, screw up to cry, and pucker up to nurse.  It's too bad they don't make computer screens you can reach through to touch the baby-soft faces and hold them.  It's going to be terribly hard to wait until November?  December? when I eventually get to meet her.  A niece!  A niece!  I get to be auntie to two adorable children now!!!!!!!

I am way too excited about this.  :)

New art canvas

E has found a new canvas for drawing with markers:  herself, especially her belly.  She lifted her shirt up for me today and said "drawing!" while showing off a belly with pink marker all over it.  It was funny until bath time when I tried to get it off - it was a little difficult, even though the markers are labeled "washable."  Why can't she just draw on paper like a normal child?  Or the furniture?  Or even her limbs instead of her tummy?!?!?  *sigh*

Which is cuter?

Which color dog do you find cuter:  the red one or the black one?

Doberman doggies

Now, which look do you like better:  cropped ears or non-cropped ears?

Cropped

Non-cropped

The husband and I are just trying to decide what characteristics to request of a breeder.  Some are really stingy about the ear thing - did you know it's an AKC standard to have Dobermans with cropped ears, and yet the European dog standards state that it's illegal to dock the tails or crop the ears of any dog?  Yeah, real nice there.  We're leaning toward uncropped ears because we're not going to be showing a dog. 

What do you think?

Annoyed running, lol

You know how when you just make a constant sound/hum/pitch with your voice and you go over something bumpy it wavers?  And, as a kid, you thought it was pretty cool?  Well, I can tell you it's annoying as f* when you have to listen to two little girls do it for 2.5 miles without stopping.  No matter what I said, they wouldn't stop.  They found it hysterical after awhile.  Then, they had to do it as loudly as possible.  Then, they had to do it really high/low. 

Thank goodness everyone is at work when we go out, otherwise all the neighbors would have been staring at me like I was driving a looney cart.  Except the neighbor across the street who was outside working on his car - he got to hear it AND get shouted at by the girls ("HI!  HI!  DO YOU LIKE OUR SINGING?  WHAT YOU DOING?!??  MOMMY, SAY HI TO HIM!") 

*headdesk*

Working in the yard

While L was at school this morning, E and I decided to tackle some yard work.  This means that I sweated, mowed, raked, pulled weeds, cleaned up, and got things out/put them away while E played with everything she could get her hands on.  All of the nice grass under the mesquite tree has died, so when I raked it all up, there was nothing but dirt left.  Sad.  We went to Home Depot and got some fertilizer and rye grass seed, so we'll probably start working with those in a few days.  All the stuff we raked up got put into giant orange garbage bags, which E and I put out front.  They have pumpkin faces on them, so we now have giant "puh-kins" out front (as E says).  L was so excited to see them upon her return from school.  I really want the backyard nice for this winter so that we can go out every day and play.  Here's hoping it will be nice with all the work I'm going to put into it!

Kids & hospitals

I emailed L's friend from preschool's mom last night to figure out logistics for our play date on Wednesday.  She emailed back saying sorry, we won't be able to come over, he's in the hospital!  Thankfully, as of tonight he's home, but still.  I hate hearing about any child having to be in the hospital, even if it's just the ER.  Extended stays are even worse, because you know something is seriously wrong.  No child should have to ever suffer in any way and have to be in the hospital.  I wish I could wave a magic wand and make that true, but I know the reality is that some people are just not meant to live past a certain point in their lives.  It stinks, a lot.  I'm hoping that L's friend just had a brief illness and nothing long term, but I guess they're still testing him to figure out what is going on/happened.  Fingers crossed that he doesn't have to go back!

8K Race

Today is the day I've been training for all summer - the 8K race.  I couldn't believe how nervous I was!  Couldn't sleep well at all last night, and then I was just jittery until I got to the actual race site.  The race has two components, of which you can run one - the 8K (4.97 miles) or the 3K (1.86 miles).  Last year, I had just started running two months prior and did the 3K in about 17:30 (9:23/mile) with the girls in the jogging stroller.  I was jealous of the 8Kers, so I decided to do it this year.

This is the first race I've run where there was chip timing.  In other words, when the gun goes off, the timer starts.  Even if you're 30 seconds back from the starting line, that's when your "actual" time starts.  It's kind of unfair, seeing as how you're doing nothing but walking up to the start line in those 30 seconds, to count it toward your total time, but whatever.  This time, with chip timing, my time didn't actually start until I crossed the starting line.  So, that entire slow walk/shuffle up to the line?  Didn't count.  Woohoo! 

My goal was to run the entire thing with no walking.  Did I do it?  No.  However, I still finished the race in the same amount of time that I thought I'd do by running the entire thing.  Wow!  I must have been going much faster than I thought.  Having the Motoactv (thanks, Mom and Dad, for the bday present!) helped because it could tell me my exact speed, though it was going haywire for some reason through most of the course (for example, it told me I was going 7:03/mile for the longest time, and then it suddenly said I was at 11:05/mile, even though I was still going the same speed.  um...okay?  guess i need to work with it more).  I ended up walking a total of three minutes, but I finished the race in 47:10 (chip time - gun time was 47:32).  47:10 = 9:29/mile!  Wahoo!  If I had to choose a time that I was aiming for, I'd say it was 9:30/mile, but even with the walking I got that?  Rock ON!

That made me 330th out of 631 runners.  Not too shabby!  I was very pleased to finish under 50:00, and was irked that my pacer (the guy I picked to follow most of the race) fizzled out at the end.  Now I've got to figure out what I want to do in December for a race.  Woot!

My competitiveness sucks...

L had her sports practice again this morning, and they finished up their segment on soccer.  Unfortunately for her, she has pretty crappy coordination when it comes to kicking a ball.  She can't do it fast, she can hardly kick the ball anywhere but with her toe, her running is pretty medium paced (no sprinting here!), and she has a hard time following directions when she thinks she can beat someone else at it.  Her competitiveness definitely comes from me - she wants to win, she wants to be good, and she refuses to do something if she knows she can't be the best at it.  Argh.  I know exactly what she's thinking and feeling, so I know nothing I say or do can change her mind.  But still, you gotta try, right?  Then, I become that hovering parent that's constantly pushing their kid to do XYZ, the kind other parents are probably watching and thinking "geez, lady, just let them be kids!"  I don't want to be that parent, but I want L to succeed!  I love to help out the coaches as needed, but I'm not sure exactly how to back my competitive streak out of the whole agenda.  Luckily, next week they start basketball and I'm terrible at that.  L will be just as good as me, if not better!

Must be more sideline, must be more sideline, must be more sideline...

Cleaning windows

I will be the first person to admit that I do not dust or clean windows as often as I should.  My mother never dusted, so it's not something that's ingrained in me to do on a regular basis.  I'm lucky if the house gets dusted once a month.  However, I do vacuum, organize, sort, clean up, and do all kinds of other cleaning.  My house is not a sty (promise!). 

The windows in the house haven't been cleaned in awhile.  That was the first order of business today - to clean the inside.  It wasn't so bad since I've been doing it fairly regularly about once every 1-2 months.  However, the outside of the house?  I could never convince the husband to take off the screens for me, so they had never been cleaned since we moved here  5.5 years ago.  Based on the screws I had to undo to pull off the screens, I'm going to guess it's been much longer than that.  L had amazing fun spraying down the windows for me, and I had a huge amount of shock when I saw the rivers of brown water running off the windows.  Then, glass cleaner.  Wipe it up, check for spots missed, wipe them up.  Then, spray off screens (L helped here too - her maniacal laughter was infectious).  Then, set screens out to dry.  Then, after about 5 minutes (yes, they truly dry that fast out here), put them back up on the windows.  We only did the back and side yard windows, but that took a good hour.  When I came back inside, I almost needed sunglasses to sit in my dining room - there was that much of a difference in light!  Amazing.

Now I'm going to have to do the upstairs windows sometime, and then the front windows.  I wonder how bright the house will be after that?

CMT visit

E and I visited the Children's Museum this morning.  It's been more than a month since we've been there, and they've updated a lot of the exhibits in that time.  E had so much fun wandering around seeing what was new.  Also, with most of the kids in school, there was hardly anyone there to interrupt her fun!  So nice to do.  This makes me feel more "even" with the girls in terms of fun things I do one-on-one with them - CMT with E today, and then Disney on Ice with L next weekend.  Should be awesome!

Hurrah!

No one threw anything out of the jogging stroller today!  :D

Proud mama moment

At school today, I saw a paper puppy hanging on the art clothesline in the room.  There was only one, and it was the sort that you have to cut out, glue together, and put a lot of work into it.  The teacher told me that it was L's puppy, and she was the only one who didn't lose interest after 3 minutes in cutting out the shapes, gluing them together, and completing the project.  In fact, she spent probably a concentrated 20 minutes on it.  She told me "L has such great concentration - no one else in the class comes close!"  Cue great pride swelling out of my chest at my child's obvious genius.

Throwing things...

IF YOU THROW SOMETHING OUT OF THE JOGGING STROLLER WHILE WE'RE OUT AND ABOUT, PLEASE TELL ME RIGHT AWAY.  If I EVER have to drive half the f*ing route again to find my jacket, I'm going to KILL SOMETHING.  Believe me when I tell you I was PISSED OFF AND ABOUT TO GO POSTAL.

Love, Mommy.  <3