It was a gorgeous day for the 5K trail run which included short walls to scale, a waist deep wade through the lake, a rope wall and then the final mud crawl before the finish line.
{the perfect place for [a kodak moment]}
{thank goodness for bandanas}
{“go daddy go” ~ bib #1620}
{in the white shirt…off to get into his corral}
{in the far lane behind the person on their knees in the orange shirt}
{i don’t know why they bother passing out bibs}
{off to the showers}
{cool dog tag medal}
{quick picnic before heading home}
By the way, the edamame hummus at TJ’s is AWESOME!
*****
Jay did great and wants to try the 10K next year.
I’m going to definitely do the 5K and see how that goes….better work on my upper body strength!
The nice thing is that the lake is literally 15 minutes from our house.
Anyone wanna get a little team together, dress up and do it with me next year?
Put aside an old pair of tennies and let’s get dirty!
This morning as we were walking to school, my {most worn} pair of black Havs broke.
Just like that.
We were about 2 minutes into the stroll and boom…the little between-the-toe part gave way and snapped in two.
I was bummed…we turned around and walked home, carrying the retired right foot flop.
Why couldn’t it have been my $1 pair from Old Navy?
Anywhoo, Elliott suggested we drive so we wouldn’t be late as a result of my faulty flip flop {She is SO my daughter! All my “C’mon, let’s go! We’re going to be late!” panics must have sunken in}.
R.I.P old black ones.
*****
We survived our first t-ball practice last night.
So cute….
{warming up}
{batter up}
{learning to field the ball}
Great team with nice parents. Should be an awesome season…
Go Orioles!
*****
Looking forward to a busy weekend.
Friday afternoon playdate. Dance class. Souplantation for din din. Mad Hatter Tea Birthday Party tomorrow. Errands. Jay’s doing a {fun} 5K {I should be doing it, too!}. Picnic at the lake on Sunday afternoon.
*****
This morning I got rid of more crap and did my S.V.S. {sweep, vacuum, swiffer} and if I missed anything, too bad! It’ll still be there on Wednesday when I do it again to get ready for Lolo, Lola & Gramma K’s arrival for Easter.
Oh, and the Easter Bunny will be picking up a few things this weekend! He just did the math and realized that baskets need to be filled in almost a week!
Just look through pics on your cell phone from years ago while waiting in the school valet line…ones you’d forgotten you ever took.
*****
Off to take the little guy in the orange turtle shirt to his first t-ball practice!
Sigh.
{Just made a mental note to get to The Children’s Place for some more graphic tees for Holden. They have the CUTEST ones for boys ~ they are inexpensive and last forever! LOVED that orange turtle tee….}
I was just marking some things on the calendar and realized that we have all sorts of good stuff already lined up for the rest of 2011.
T-ball starting tomorrow. Easter. Birthday parties. Baby showers. End-of-the-school-year celebrations. Dance recital. Summer camps. A trip east to Myrtle Beach. Yosemite. Back-to-school. Blog Sugar. Fall goodness. And then the holidays all over again.
As much as I love having lots of things on the calendar, I love to be home almost as much. I really do love my Mondays & Wednesdays around the house getting caught up so that we can have fun on the weekends. Laundry, cleaning, organizing, sitting out in the patio having breakfast and lunch with Holden. I am happier when the house is in order and I am caught up on the laundry ~ yes, I am that mom. I know that chores and cleaning can wait ’til tomorrow, but I just cannot let our little nest get too out of control. That is when I get irritable and all around unhappy.
It’s daily that I try to find the balance between {having fun} and {taking care of business}.
A busy calendar vs. productive days at home.
I am content with both, but one cannot take place without the other.
A couple months ago I ordered Wendy Hagen’s, Totally Desperate Mom, from my local Barnes & Noble.
I immediately began reading it and noticed right away that it’s a very quick and easy read if you don’t have to deal with sippy cup refills, short order mac n cheese requests, wiping butts, cleaning up dog vomit, sopping up spills, crustless pb&j’s, cleaning, vacuuming, laundry, time outs, picking up dog poop, practicing sight words, helping with homework, unloading the dishwasher and the like.
I {finally} finished up this book over Spring Break and wanted to offer my review…
This book is a necessity and full of {nutrients} for ALL moms.
Wendy offers faith and hope for moms who have suffered the loss of a child or women having difficulty conceiving, encouragement and support for {present} moms and a raw, honest warning of what is to come for {future} mamas!
There were many “oh good, I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks/does this” moments along the way in this book for me. Some tears and giggles preceded and followed these thoughts, too.
This book is a must for your mama library and a nice read if you have a couple hours {alone} out by the pool or at the beach!
Please visit Wendy’s blog here and order your book here now!
You are more than welcome to borrow mine as long as you don’t have any outstanding library fees. 😉
Checking into your {hotel} and finding this on the dresser:
Sitting out overlooking a full Lake Hodges, flipping through months of Coastal Living mags and sipping wine while Gramma and the kids are at the park.
Putting the Sea World passes to good use:
{if a wedgie prevents your child from ending up in the dolphin tank, I’m all for it}
Spring Break means meeting up with dear friends from back in the day and realizing that you could stay up all night chatting:
{OK, so some cell phone pics are better than others…..}
Spring Break means visiting your {almost} 102-year old great great cousin at the old folks home and forgetting the camera {shame on me!}. The kids blew bubbles in the dining room while the residents looked on, laughed and waited for lunch to be served.
I overheard two little ladies exchanging thoughts and information…one asked, “How long have you lived here?” The other answered, “Forever and two days!” then laughed a little as if she knew there was nothing she could do about it but make the best of it all.
{Pardon me while I go off on a little tangent}
When Elliott was only about 2 months old, Jay accepted a job in San Jose. It was a new chapter we were excited about, but at the same time leaving San Diego was hard. We wanted to share all our favorite things about America’s Finest City with our new daughter, but soon found ourselves creating new memories in the Bay Area.
Moving from SD was the LAST thing I wanted to do after just having Elliott, but it’s what came to us and with no regrets we made the most out of 3 years in Nor Cal. Now, after two and a half years back in So Cal, we’re knocking that out, too. But it’s always good to go back to visit and reminisce.
{OK, we’re back on track}
Spring Break in San Diego also means grabbing Happy Meals and sushi and heading to the very park that you rollerbladed by a million times back in the day {15+ years ago to be exact}…
Spring Break means doing a drive-by of the {beachy slum} apartment you used to rent and finding out that it’s getting a facelift NOW {rather than 15+ years ago!}
Haines Street
Spring Break means stopping at Mr. Frostie for a chocolate dipped cone {the same one mommy went to 30+ years ago!}…
Double-frosty fistin’ it…
And while in Pacific Beach, we drove by the little townhouse that I lived in until I was almost 8 years old…
Wanna know something cah-razy about this little townhouse? Per zillow.com it was valued at almost a million dollars a few years ago!
It does have a gorgeous view of SD bay, coastline, downtown skyline and beyond.
Location, location, location! View, view, view!
Hard to believe that is where I came home from the hospital to…
Spring Break means watching your kids b-line it to the pool and find that they’ve remembered {how to swim} from last summer. Still not water safe by any means, but didn’t forget what they learned 8 months ago.
*****
Spring Break is just a little halfway over and already it has been more than I ever imagined.
Getting together with friends that you haven’t seen in {YEARS!} like it’s nothing. Just meeting up at the same hole-in-the-wall, bellying up to the same place at the bar and getting caught up. Pure and simple. That’s how all friendships should be.
Taking your children back to where you lived and showing them where you went to elementary school, for me, is such a treat. Spending a couple hours at the “beach park” beats Shamu any day!
These things that we did with Elliott and Holden are a mere drop in the San Diego bucket. But the older they get, the more fun it is to show them {my town}.
Although it has been {forever and 2 days} since our address was in SD, it feels just like {yesterday} when you meet up with good friends and return to the places where beautiful memories were made.
And that’s just the way it should be!
Off to see what fun we can have during the rest of Spring Break…
No practical jokes from me today…just some good ‘ol stuff from the book of {LIFE}.
Today I decided to {take time} to do some things. Not rush. Not do them half ass. Not ignore them. But take the time to DO them.
We took the time to leisurely get to and from school this morning. Elliott on her scooter, Holden on his trike and me juggling my ladybug coffee mug while balancing Elliott’s backpack on my right shoulder AND keeping the little orange tricycle rider out of morning traffic. We chatted with friends who passed us in cars along the way. Waved as neighbors left for work.
We got home and I told myself that I was going to take time to fix myself a healthy breakfast rather than just grabbing a Luna bar or slapping peanut butter on some toast and inhaling it.
I scrambled three egg whites with a little red onion and added some salsa, lowfat cheese, a little dollop of sour cream & a sprinkle of cilantro. I toasted a piece of this:
{my new fave ~ the kids don’t like it so it MUST be good}
I took the time to pour myself another cup of coffee and Windex the glass table in the patio. Holden enjoyed his Honey Nut Cheerios and I enjoyed my egg whites. He saw a hummingbird. I thought about my Gam who loved hummingbirds.
I took the time to {finally} dump the rain water out of the big tub, rinse it out and toss old toys…getting the backyard ready for some Spring Break action and more meals outside. Took the slip and slide off the fence before the HOA sent us a note.
Took the time to rerun the load of laundry I left in the washer for 2 days {2 HOT days}…the load that had essentially already dried and didn’t smell so pretty. Jay hates when I do this {which isn’t often}, but I can usually get away with tossing it in the dryer and telling myself not to do it again!
I’m taking time to carefully pack our suitcases for a quick trip down south instead of just throwing a bunch of stuff in that doesn’t end up getting worn and takes up space.
Taking time to sit and soak in a bubble bath and reintroduce my PedEgg to these feet!
Taking the time to put things away where they belong and tidy up because I am happier when this happens.
Taking time this week to chat with friends from across the miles. It always brings a smile to my face and makes me remember “the good ‘ol days”. Lots of “I miss yous” and “Gosh, I wish we could get together soons”.
Taking time to {hopefully} see some old faces this weekend and do some more reminiscing.
*****
I feel like I am always in a rush. Telling the kids, “Hurry up…we’re going to be late!”
While I feel it IS important to be {on time} and realize that with two young children things DO take longer and you WILL rush, I am going to start making every effort to slow down when I can. Take time when I can. For me. For them. For US.
I wanted to get a decorative curtain rod and use clips that I have to hang their cuteness, but I am trying to reduce the amount of holes in the walls. I strung a piece of twine halfway up the stairs on the landing and used some glittery clothespins to secure their masterpieces. I hid the small nails behind the window coverings.
{Looking down from the top of the stairs}
{Looking up from the first flight of stairs}
This morning I added a couple more things ~ I definitely like the addition of more stuff, but the jury is still out on the whole thing. It certainly livens up the boring, drab white-ish walls, though!
I’m thinking that a few larger holes to hold a more substantial rod into the wall are worth these precious pieces of art….your thoughts?
