Swimming in 24 inches of water

We had a run/swim date with my friend C tonight.  To be honest, our run sucked - we ran probably 0.1 miles.  That's right, one tenth of a mile.  It just didn't work out with the kids, so we called it an evening and then drove them to the community pool.  That went much better - swimming, splashing, and fun all around (well, except for I, who wasn't allowed to swim because he didn't finish his dinner).  I love the kiddie pool especially because it was only two feet deep all around, had a huge shade cover over it, and lots of lounge chairs around to watch the little ones.  I was completely comfortable just sitting on the steps into the pool watching the girls play because it was only two feet deep and they were within easy reach.  YAY! 

L & E in the pool.  They are standing on the bottom!

E was thrilled to be able to stand on the bottom and walk all around the pool.  Still not thrilled about getting her face wet (going underwater) though.

E watches I run around the pool area in his shirt and undies.  :p

P and L play in the pool.  They had a ball jumping, splashing, swimming, flipping, and being rambunctious 4-year-old kids.

L says "let me out, I want to go to the big pool!"

Threatening college

We (the girls and I) had lunch today with my mother-in-law at her high school.  It was great - we went and got McDonalds, brought it back to her school, and ate together around her students' tables.  While in there, I saw this poster on the wall:

I realize that this is the mascot of the university, but he's got guns!  I told my mother-in-law that maybe they should change the tag line to "Live, Learn and Thrive...OR ELSE" since he has the weapons.  HA!  I wonder if they've had any super anti-gun people complain about it.  Maybe it's an old poster?  Still gave me a good laugh.

Randomness in our household

The girls were so bored this morning that I created a scavenger hunt for them.  It was fairly easy and they had a ball:  find something purple, something to eat, something square, something fuzzy, etc.  "Something funny" turned into a funny face.  Here they are with their haul:

"something fuzzy" for E was the red hat - for L, it was Belle!

Then, after lunch, I walked over into the living room to see what the girls were doing and was rendered speechless.  Apparently, L and E were playing Mommy and Baby, so L was trying to breastfeed E.  Just...I can laugh about it now, but at the time I was mortified! 

I guess that's one way to do it...

Ticket to Ride

If you don't know the game, I highly suggest you go learn about it and its sister Ticket to Ride Europe.

Now, leave me alone while I go back to my game.

Date night!

My in-laws wanted to have the girls spend the night tonight, so the husband and I turned it into a date night.  Yay!  We haven't had one of these in awhile!  After dropping off the girls, we went to Barnes and Noble to peruse the stacks.  I ended up getting a phonics workbook for L while the husband got a puzzle cube.  Then, we drove through the rain to Five Guys (burgers) to pick up dinner, then drove home to set up for movie night!

We ended up watching both Galaxy Quest and Hunger Games.  Both are well done in two completely different veins.  Galaxy Quest was just funny throughout - the writers did a great job crafting the movie, while the actors seemed to be having too much fun with their parts.  Hunger Games was very true to the book, which made it extremely uncomfortable to watch at times (since we knew what was coming).  I just wish the actor that played Peeta was a little bit better looking!

Now to bed, and before 11pm!  Hahahahaha!

Another sad day in waiting for a puppy

Our breeder emailed us tonight to let us know that the puppies, due today, didn't make it.  The way she described it sounded almost like a phantom pregnancy, where the mother gives all outward (and inward) signs of being pregnant but no fetus(es) actually exist.  She said that they had only expected about 2-3 puppies since she was so small, but then it just didn't go as intended.

So, breeder #1 told us no puppy due to there only being four in the litter and we were past #4 in line in September.

Breeder #2's entire litter was stillborn in early March.

We decided to stick with breeder #2 for her next litter, and this is what happens.

Good freaking god.

I like breeder #2, so when she recommended in her email that we contact her good friend in Phoenix, breeder #3, who has a litter due around August 23rd.  So, I called breeder #3 tonight.  She was very pleasant, still has puppies available (she had just started accepting deposits yesterday), and wants me to fill out a questionnaire and visit her home.  Apparently, breeder #2 already told her about us, which made breeder #3 all the more willing to work with us and what we want (female, uncropped ears, good with children, potential running partner).  Yay for that?  Maybe.

We'll talk further with breeder #3.  I have a feeling we'll go with her and her litter, but I'm not going to get excited about it this time.  Three times we've waited for a litter and walked away empty handed.  No more name discussion, buying things we'll need for a puppy, or (for me) thinking about when the puppies are coming.  I'm not even going to talk about this with the girls either, not until the puppies are out, settled, and we know there's one for us.  I get too emotionally attached to the litter buggers, and it breaks my heart every single time we don't get one.

Good god, how does anyone survive a miscarriage of their own child?  I can't even handle losing a puppy that I never had in the first place!

Age and technical issues

I really hate dealing with anything technological with my parents, especially on the computer.  Heck, I hate dealing with my parents most of the time, but this especially kills me.  Case in point - Skype was not working last night for me or for them.  I couldn't see anyone that was online, and neither could they.  So, this means that there isn't a particular problem on either of our ends, but rather a connection problem with Skype or a Skype-related issue, right?  No.  According to my father, it was a computer problem on my end first, and then he had to reload his entire computer system from two weeks ago to solve the problem.  Bull$hit.  Like I'm going to trust the computer word of a man that can't type, can't close his laptop anymore because of poor care, and doesn't listen to a f*ing word I say. 

This morning, I got on Skype no problem with my friend C.  Obviously, no problems this morning.  Then, we hopped online this afternoon with my mother.  Skype is working again without issues - hurrah for that.  Thank goodness my father wasn't around, or else I'm sure I would have found some way to say that his solution was ridiculous, over the top, and absolutely unnecessary. 

Grr.

Oh, CMT, how I love thee

Another trip to the Children's Museum.  Another great time.  I also love that I only paid $0.85 for 1.5 hours of parking downtown. 

L made new friends.

Dr. L, DVM, hard at work.

E cleaning her puppy.

Dr. L and Dr. E working on the pets.

Dr. E and Dr. L consult on a particularly difficult case.

Bum leg

I've been ignoring it for awhile, but it seems I really can't anymore: my leg is injured.  It sucks.  I wanted to run seven miles on hills this past weekend, but when the pain started getting unbearable around mile 2, I knew it wasn't going to happen.  Instead, I did 5+ miles with just a bit of hills and quite a few breaks to stretch and rest the muscle/tendon/whatever-the-hell-it-is-that's-not-working-right. 

Tonight, I did a slow 2.5-mile run to test it out.  At the very end of my run, I could definitely feel it starting to creep back into the painful realm; however, prior to that, it was okay.  I've tried resting it, stretching it really well, ice, heat, and even doing other cross training beyond running to help it.  Nada.  I wonder what the heck it is?

I just need it to go away so that I can resume my normal running load.  I hate running at 80%.  Yuck.

Lunch play date

We had lunch with L's preschool friend B today at his house, and both L and E had a great time making their own pizzas, playing, having shaved ice, and kissing baby T to death.  I loved holding baby T as he slept in my arms - baby snores are so adorable!  L got peed on while helping to change T's diaper, and then T exploded in his diaper while she was holding him (thankfully, no leaks).  Quite amusing.  B decided he loved E and was hugging/kissing her the entire time.  These kids are just too funny!

My view for most of the morning.  *melts*

Sitting down for lunch.

L inhaled her entire cheese pizza.  It was kind of shocking how well she ate.

E wanted salad salad salad.  Such a funny eater!

B had a really cool gorilla cup, and he grazed throughout lunch time.

B's mom getting the shaved ice machine to go.  They all loved it!

All four kids on the bench out front.  Smoosh time!

Kid time

I love getting to spend time with my niece and nephew.  Since they live in California, I only see them a handful of times a year.  It's amazing how fast they grow!  I know I should realize that, having two of my own, but it still is a bit startling whenever I see them and see what they can do now versus the last time I saw them.  Still, love those two.  Love spending time with them.  Love seeing what crazy/cute thing they come up with next!

L, V, S, and E - the W grandchildren

Running sights

I only ran three miles this morning, but had an amusing time cataloging all the things I saw on my run:

1.  Security man dancing.  Let me elaborate:  our neighborhood is located right across the street from a former PGA golf course, which is now a golf and spa resort with million-dollar homes.  Since it's so ritzy, there is a guard shack you have to go through to enter, and we can see it from our house.  I occasionally see the security people there doing stuff around the little hut they have, and this morning I saw the security man outside adjusting something.  He was dancing.  It amused me greatly.
2.  Car hitting construction cone.  Just north of the guard shack, there is a new housing community going in.  Not only are they working on the houses being built, but they are widening the road.  There are orange cones and barrels all up and down this stretch.  It's also marked to go 25 mph.  As I was running, I saw a small car come barreling through at probably 45 mph (the normal speed limit on the road), swerve over slightly when he saw me on the side of the road, and knock down an orange cone.  Nice.  How many tries did it take you to pass your driving test, buddy?
3.  Man in underwear getting newspaper in driveway.  Dude, you really need a robe.  Or pants.  Or both?  Yes, both.
4.  Snake on the road.  This is something I see much more in the winter time - snakes come out at dawn/dusk to get warmth on the roadways.  The snake was very small, your typical glossy snake, and just enjoying itself in the middle of one of the lanes.  Not one minute later, a very large pickup truck went past me toward the snake.  Squished?  Probably.
5.  Three women out for a walk arguing.  This was hysterical - really?  At 6am you can find something to argue about loudly while exercising???  You're not walking fast enough then!

I have to do 7 miles tomorrow morning - I wonder what I'll see then?!

A package from Obaasan

My mother sent a package today for us that contained costumes for the girls, an outfit for each of them, and two jars of homemade raspberry jam.  YUM. 

All they need now is a chicken leg in one hand and a giant beer mug in the other.

L pulling off the tags

E's  new outfit - perfect!

L's new outfit (while dancing) - a touch big, but great!

My girls.  <3

Raspberry jam!

Lazy summer days

I love days when we have absolutely nothing that we need to do.  This morning, the girls requested playground time.  Since I figured we wouldn't be able to stay outside too long because of the heat, I took them to the mall.  They had a grand time playing in the play area there for awhile, and then we wandered over to the bookstore when it opened and played in the kids' area upstairs.  When they were done doing that, we wandered over to the clothes store that had just opened up and got L some new things for preschool.  E also got a new shirt and flip-flops, so everyone was happy.  Then, off to home for adventures in What Can Mommy Make For Lunch?  Always entertaining.  I'm sure I forgot to do something, but I don't care - we had a great morning!

Firehouse Visit

This morning, we went to the main fire station downtown to meet up with one L's preschool friend's dad (a fireman) and tour the station.  We were all enthralled by the trucks, firemen, facility, and just being there in general.  My favorite part was watching a fireman slide down the fire pole to his truck.  L's favorite part was listening to the chatter on the radio, especially when they radioed a car fire (hence the guy sliding down the pole to his truck).  E's favorite part was the firetruck piñata in one of the offices!

L and E in the truck.  Our friend's dad, A, drives the Haz-Mat truck!

E inside the truck

Front of the truck

A showing L the inside of his truck

L flashing us with her skorts, in the back of the truck where they test hazardous materials

L, E, and myself on the truck

A's helmet.  It's HEAVY.  He also keeps doorstops (bottom left) and a wood spike (top) to hold open doors and jam automatic sprinklers when at fires.

Piñata!!!!!

Monsoon dance!

Last night, during Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood time for the girls, it started raining.  Since there was no thunder or lightening immediately present, I told the girls they could go outside to play in the rain.  They were so excited and madly scrambled to get on their rain boots and umbrellas.  Then, it was play time!  I was completely soaked standing out there with them, but it was great fun.  It was only after we came back inside that I realized E never had pants on.  Ha!

Oh, how I've missed good singing

KK came and visited us today with her dad.  After lunch on Saturday, it was nice to have her come see the girls again.  KK met L when she was about a week from turning 1 (at a Cracker Barrel in Findlay, OH, of all places), and she met E briefly at her wedding when E was 5 months old.  The girls were completely enamored with her (and her dad) while they were here at the house.  KK even indulged them and sang Wizard of Oz songs for them while I played piano.  How GOOD it feels to accompany someone that can truly sing well (instead of my awful self, LOL!)!!!!!  L and E loved listening to her sing, as well as showing off everything about the house to her too.  I went upstairs at one point and found KK curled up in E's room with E and L surrounding her as she read The Three Little Pigs to them.  So cute!  Then, we headed off to lunch at McDonald's so we could continue to chat and the girls could play.  It was so much fun.  I'm sad to see her go, but this just emphasizes the fact that I need to get together with people from high school and college more often!  It's always fun catching up, no matter how apprehensive I am about the whole thing sometimes.  Yay for visiting!

I think KK was getting ready to take pictures of the pets here.

The girls checking out the photos KK just took.

IT'S A MASSIVE POOL NOODLE FIGHT!!!!!

Will the real clone please stand up?

I've had so many people tell me that L looks just like me.  I've told many, many people that I think L is my husband's clone, only female.  You be the judge.

Me, age 4

L, age 4

L, age 3, and Daddy, age 4

There's no comparison, is there?  She's absolutely, positively her daddy's clone.  While she may act like me and have a lot of my mannerisms, L could have totally passed as my husband's sibling (twin!) at this age.

Room Reunion

For lunch today, I got to reunite with my freshman roommate, KR, and my junior roommate, KK, from college.  Ironically, I lived with both of them in room 244 of the building we were in (I lived in the same room for 2.5 years, then 0.5 years in a flat in England, and finally 1 year in a single room in the senior-only dorm).  It was great fun catching up with them about what we've done since college, silly things that happened while we were there, and seeing how things have changed and evolved over time.  I'm happy we were able to spend the time together, and now that I know KR lives in Mesa, maybe I'll have to get together with her again sometime soon (she runs too!).

KK, KR, and I at lunch

Open letters (with pictures)

Dear Barnes & Noble,
     Thank you for having such a great kids' area.  E loves the train tables (especially crawling under them and pretending there is a tunnel) and dancing on the storytime stage.  I appreciate a bookstore that understands kids need an experience as well as books at the store. 
Love, Me

Choo choo - E the train is coming into station!

E kept telling me she was doing ballet on the stage.

Dear Beyond Bread,
     Thank you for having such exceptional muffins for my girls to enjoy after suffering through my eye doctor appointment.  E loved her banana nut muffin, and L loved her blueberry bran muffin.  I loved your free bread samples, eating the remains of their muffins, and helping the dude nearby clean up his spilled drink because your employes were too lazy to do it.
Some Love, Me

Enjoying the muffins.

E & her banana nut muffin

L & the remains of her blueberry bran muffin

Dear Kohl's,
     Thank you for having such nice bedding displays in the back of your store.  According to my youngest daughter, the most comfortable bed you sell has blue blankets on it.  She loved "napping" in them, and it was amusing to watch her bounce on the beds.  Don't worry, I made the beds back up after she was done, and I made her take her shoes off before she got in/on them.
Love, Me

*snooooooooore*

 

 

E:  "This one is JUST RIGHT!"

Dear Lost Dog,
     I'm so glad we met this morning.  Seriously.  I was four miles into a six-mile run when you came leaping out of the bushes at me near a semi-busy road.  I had seen you from a ways back playing in the road but assumed you wandered off when I didn't see you for awhile.  You literally tackled me to the ground and planted many wet kisses on my face while I tried to get you off me.  You were way too excited.  Thank goodness you had an identity collar on (Ruby!) with a phone number so we could call your human mommy to tell her where you were.  She didn't sound surprised at where you were (do you do this often?  hmmm), and you were happy to bounce off into her car.  Next time, please don't lay in wait to surprise me - if you see me again, just wait on the side of the road and I'll come say hi!  The dog fur, paw prints, dirt, and shrubbery clippings you put all over me took awhile to get off, and the scratches you left on me will take awhile to heal, but that's okay.  You just STAY.  STAY HOME.  Good girl.
Love, Me

My leg, courtesy of Ruby the Lost Dog.  Ouch.