Two Days..

Only two days to go until we try doing our first sprint triathlon. We had an easy workout this morning, just 5 miles on the bike and a 2 mile run. Jenny is going to leave me in the dust on the run portion of it as she is all about running the 5k in 24 minutes (she can actually run it in like 20 or 21 but she's giving herself a few minutes since she'll be doing this in the third leg of the tri). Me, on the other hand, not being a runner until this year, will be glad to finish the 5K in under 30 minutes and am hoping for 28 minutes. We'll see... I'm now thinking, with two days to go, that I should have sucked it up and bought a new bike. I've been borrowing my moms or my nephews as I don't even own a bike. But I didn't want to put the money in until I new if I would even be able to drag myself across the finish line, since they are anything but cheap. Now, I wish I would have just to save me a little energy on the bike portion.

Oh well, to late to think about that now. I just have to make it through the seaweed and follow my sister across the finish line... Then, it's on to Summerfest where, gasp, I might actually attempt the 10k...

Open Water Swim

Ok, so we are down to six days for this sprint triathlon that we are doing. Swimming in the pool is a piece of cake, 500 yards or 10 laps and it was taking us about 13 minutes. We decided yesterday to combine all three events and do the full length on them all, which actually went well, other than the fact that we did the swim in Clear Lake, which is anything but clear! It was SO sea weedy! YUCK! I hate seaweed and all the stuff in lakes as it is, but this was like lilly pad haven and even once we got quite a ways out past the raft it was still gross. I still had seaweed wrapped around my ankles and I'd find a lilly pad around my shoulders or arms. I couldn't stand it at all... it was almost like panic city. So, after a little venture out and we still couldn't get pass the seaweed, we headed back and ended up with only a 10 minute swim. So, tonight we are headed to a "beach" area at Gun Lake and hoping that it is not so sea weedy and then we can try the open water swim again.

I know we can do the length, and after the 10 minute swim yesterday we finished the bike ride and the 5k run and I lived, and I'm still walking this morning (first time we did all three - we've been doing two things at a time until yesterday). The water even felt almost warm. So, now I'm just praying that Sherman Lake, where the tri is at this weekend, has a nice clear stretch for the swim... If not, the swimmers around me will think I'm the crazy loon in the pack as I swim each stroke saying, "I hate seaweed, I hate seaweed, I hate seaweed...."

Breathe....

Take a deep breath, close your eyes, and pray for patience... That's what I keep telling myself it seems. Everything seems out to "get me" ... work is in a really bad place in my mind right now, it's crazy busy season with football starting, parent's packets to print and organize (about 270 sets of them), school paper due next week, kids head off to camp in 2 days and I still need to do that last minute shopping trip and help get them packed, a wrestling tournament tomorrow, and at some point I need to go back up to the fair and get all of my kids' 4H stuff back out of the booth and then take the booth down... AH!

So, as overwhelming as it seems.... deep breath, maybe a few of them, and maybe a glass of wine Saturday night when most of this is done.... It'll get done. Somehow, someway, by the grace of God giving me patience and that super duper amount of energy (caffeine helps too).

Besides being crazy, this week has been pretty good. The kids did well at fair. Lots of blue ribbons. Jessi got 10 blue ribbons and 1 red. Jason got 6 blue and one red as well as 1 outstanding, 2 best of shows, and 1 gold state fair ribbon! The fair also kept them busy this week while I worked and ran them to and from, but it's good ole' fashioned fun for them, and Robby can't wait to get started in 4H this coming fall!

Anyway, quick little vent to help me practice breathing and thinking! Hope you all have a good weekend!!

Almost the end of July!!

Wow, this summer is just flying by. Life is busy as always, and there isn't much new going on, but I just can't believe that the summer is almost 2/3 done! Where did it go??

I'm in the last few weeks before football season starts and have a list a mile long of the final to-dos for the season. We originally thought that this economy was going to kill our numbers; however, due to a very generous donation from a local judge, we have been able to cover the scholarships that we give to the kids with financial needs and our numbers are back up over 250, with 2 or 3 sign-ups coming in daily! On top of that, I'm working with an attorney to try and obtain non-profit status for our league, officially, and what a load of paperwork that is, but it will all be worth it!

School is going well, I am now 1/3 of the way done! 40 more weeks till my bachelor's degree! As far as I know, I still have a job until at least the end of April 2010. They keep telling us that we will know more in November when they start posting our jobs down in Ohio... so, for now, I am working on my attitude and morale level at work. I never thought of myself as a lazy, care-less attitude type worker, until you know your job is being moved, then it kind of makes it hard to care, especially on those days when it feels like all the work is being dumped on your shoulders. I just want to ask "why bother?" ... so, I am working on keeping a good attitude. I don't enjoy being negative, and I'm not a negative person by nature. So, I'll keep looking for the good in all of this.

Other than that, my sister has whipped me into pretty good shape! I call her drill sergeant Jo... her latest was telling me that sprinting up the hills is good for my butt. But does that mean I HAVE to do it? I did... almost, made it just about to the top before I thought I was going to pass out and my quads were going to explode. This was after our 10 mile bike ride. Have you ever tried to run after biking 10 miles? Doesn't sound too bad, but I guess they call it spider legs... I don't know, but it was the weirdest feeling for the first 1/2 mile or so until I had full control of my lower body.

Today we ran our 5k after swimming - instead of biking the 10 miles - so I did get in my early morning workout. Now, next week, we have to combine and actually practice the whole triathlon all together. I can't wait!! (yes, that was a little sarcastic)! It is kind of fun though. It's a sweaty bonding sisterly experience, and even though she kicks my bootie (she's the marathoner in the family - 26 miles is a piece of cake for her) she is someone who you just want to try and keep up with. I wouldn't make it out of bed at 6am to swim/bike on my own! It's good to have that motivator in your corner! And, since we are at 16 days till the actual tri, it's literally sink or swim!

On top of that, I'm trying to drink lots of water so my body isn't dehydrated, which for me is a challenge since I normally am strictly a coffee drinker.

The kids have been busy. Busy fighting, cleaning, whining about all these chores (I have to remind them once a week that having slaves was why we chose to have kids...), playing, going to all their summer camps, and right now finishing up 4H projects for fair, which is only 2 days away! Jessi is waiting waiting waiting for that big Middle School schedule to get here, along with the orientation dates so she can do her official walk through before school starts! Robby told me yesterday that he is ready for school to start - to be the big kindergartner this year! It's just crazy. I can't believe that I now have TWO kids in middle school.

And, to make me feel even older, yesterday was our 14th year wedding anniversary! Time definitely does fly, but oh, let the good times roll!!

Midnight

The quiet of the house at midnight is kind of nice. My hubby and oldest son are away in Pennsylvania at wrestling camp, the painting/facelift of my home is almost complete and here I am, wide awake, drinking coffee and enjoying the midnight solitude that I rarely have the energy or time to soke in. Not that it's entirely by choice that I sit here, I am supposed to be finishing a paper for tomorrow's class (again, I am the forever procrastinator - I still have 17 hours to go...).

However, as I take a break from the structure of writing, I am enjoying the solitude, the fish tank gurgling, the quiet music in the back ground and the pure peacefulness of the moment. Yes, drink it in while you can, because in a few seven hours or so, the daughter and youngest son will again be picking and needling each other endlessly, the dog will be running around and trying to sit directly on my feet, my "hired" help (Dad) will be here to regrout my tile, and I will have breakfast to make, dishes to do, and the peace and quiet of midnight will be replaced once again with the business that is life.

But for now, a deep breathe, a sip of coffee (raspberry chocolate flavored), writing, and quiet...

My To-Do Lists Gone Wild...

I am not sure why, but it seems that I make time to do "stuff" and then I completely overfill it with my lists and ideas. I have next week off work, my hubbie and oldest boy are headed to Pennsylvania for wrestling camp, and I took the week off while they are gone so I could get the house painted. But it has progressed from redoing my bedroom and bath, to doing the other bathroom as well, and the entryway and hallway, hopefully the kitchen and then maybe, just maybe, the living room. At that point, if I could conceivably get that all done in one week (along with the paper I need to finish for school, the strawberry picking, the tri-training and the day at the beach with my other two kids) that would be practically 9/10 of my entire main floor. I know I will do at least one bathroom, since I already stripped the wallpaper, there is no turning back now...

Anyway, I'll try to fit it all in, and I'll try to post pictures of my new "colorful" house. Most of the rooms have been "eggshell white" since we built it in 1998. I could never be an interior designer, the color samples and schemes and matching is way to much for my brain. I've been on color overload the last couple weeks since I decided to paint. I've ordered new bathroom stuff from the internet that didn't look at all what I expected, so I returned it an found the "perfect" sets for both bathrooms at Target. Then, I found the perfect comforter set on Amazon.com. Once I decided to actually attempt the kitchen, I found new rugs at JcPenney.com for 60% off! It's like Christmas in July (well almost July). Since everything has been in our house for 11 years now, it is so fun to go pick out new stuff! Of course, the hard part again... is finding the colors to go with what I find. I thought about just picking out colors and painting first and trying to find matching stuff later, but I was afraid of the "what if I can't match it" scenario. So, regardless to say, I've spent more than two weeks looking on the internet for the stuff I like, then trying to match them all to paint samples.

The paint samples, to me, are a living nightmare... I didn't realize the infinity of colors. Avacodo, Olive, Sage - those being the normal names. I found Coffee Bean and Peanut Brittle along with Desert Camel that all kind of match my new bedroom outfit. Then there is Wheat Field, Beehive, Bulgar Wheat, Dakota Hills, Cherrywood, Rhubarb, Fresh Tomato... the list is neverending. These are just the names that have been haunting me. I've read through so many color names that my mind now thinks in those terms. It's scary to watch tv and think, "she has a 'rhubarb' shirt on..." Ah! And when it becomes overwhelming, I remember exactly why it was that I painted it all "eggshell" white so many years ago. Because on top of building the house, picking out carpet, furniture, fixtures, etc... the paint colors WAS too much for me. I tried back then and I think I short circuited an hope for finding enjoyment in the process of color selection for the rest of my life!

I'm all excited to do it though. I love painting, I love manual labor. After my brain has been drained of all the work I do everyday (along with the above color selection process), the thought of manual labor is actually a dream. And I can't wait for my husband to come home to the finished project. But trying to squeeze it all in has me thinking that I will need to go back to work to recover from my vacation! If only work could be considered such...

Why I Like Busy...

Tonight was quiet and relaxing. I had a lovely, peaceful two hours to myself after work when my daughter left for a friend's house, my youngest was at his aunt's after Y camp, and my husband took my oldest son to soccer practice. I can't even remember the last time I was home all alone.
And while it was very nice and peaceful - I got stuff picked up, some extra work done, and one TV show deleted off the tivo box - I think I enjoyed the hours after they got home all the more because of it.

My youngest came home wound up like some crazy kid on a sugar kick straight from Willy Wonka (what in the world does the Y camp feed them when they are there??). He rolled around on the floor laughing insanely at the dog trying to get his rope (my son was of course either laying on it or hiding it somewhere on his person)... It was one of those laughs that just makes you smile, and realize that I wouldn't trade one minute of his laugh for hours and hours of quiet, alone, peaceful serenity.

Then, after my husband left for work, we watched Disney's "Game Plan" on TV. It's such a "feel good" movie, made me cry of course, I'm a baby with any Disney movie. But again, it made me realize that the little bit of quiet that I had earlier, with me actually in charge of the remote, wasn't as great as it felt at the time.

I think I now know why I am constantly busy delving into some other kid sport, function, activity, school work or what not... because, I would rather be busy living any day than sitting by myself "enjoying" quiet time. Because, as it's been said before, there's time to rest when your dead... Right now, I am going to keep on enjoying my crazy busy life, because there is no other way that I would want it.

Drive In Movie Night

We decided to take a family outing to one of the few remaining drive in theaters. My husband used to go all the time as a kid with his family, and I had never been to one, so we packed up the mini van full of kids (two extra - niece and nephew), treats, chairs, blankets and coffee for me, and headed to the Capri Drive In in Coldwater, MI.

It's a good hour away, so it gave the kids a chance to take a little nap on the way down ...

The drive in is actually pretty economical. I was surprised that the ticket prices were cheaper than a normal theater PLUS the cost was for two movies not one. We picked the "Land of the Lost" and "Night at the Museum" combo. It got a little wet at the beginning and the kids and Darrell all ended up in the van, while I tried to keep dry sitting on the bumper under the hatch...

It ended up staying mostly dry, and the kids had a great time. Now the drive in is the only movie they want to see!

Already June?

Wow, I can't believe it is June already. I feel like the summer has gotten away from me and it hasn't really even started yet. It's crazy... One kids' soccer season is done, the older two both have one more week and then a tournament next weekend, and then we can wrap up that sport, for a few months at least.

Football and cheer sign ups are forever ongoing. It seems like the sign up forms trickle in daily into our mailbox, but I cannot complain. This year we added 3 more grade levels and a flag football league, so we now run the league for Kindergarten - 8th grade. And, it seems like we keep adding other stuff to it as well. We are trying to add community involvement into the mix for the kids. Last year, we took the older players and they helped at the local assisted living home in town. I'm hoping this year's project will be to get a team together for the Relay for Life event in our town.

I am also working on getting actual "non-profit" status for us, which I found out will probably, also, be my research project for my bachelor's degree. I have a 6 credit, 250 hour, 50 - 200 page research project due next June... "How to obtain "Non-Profit" status" for our organization looks like what my research will be on. The application alone is scary, but thinking that I need to write a 8 chapter, probably 100 page paper, is even scarier! Again, someone remind me why I didn't finish school when I was 22? But, at least the work I do for our league this year can duplicate work that I need to do to finally get that degree.

So not much else has been going on... work, school, summer break... I'm still running, my sister has me on a "program" for this triathlon, and she informed me she is running another marathon (the whole 26 mile shabang) in October. I'll cheer her on in spirit, my legs were not made for a 3 - 4 hour run (of course for me that would be more like 7 - 8 hours I'm sure). I'm hoping to make it to 6 miles though, I told her I might, or rather MIGHT, try and run the 10k instead of the 5k with her in August, again let me emphasize M-I-G-H-T!!! It does feel good to run again though, the first mile is a killer and then after that it seems to get better - of course I'm only up to 2.5 miles!! I'm sure it gets worse again at some point. And, I've been trying to run with my oldest, who is more than willing to sprint ahead and leave me in his dust. But I have gracefully accepted that I am indeed getting old.

Oh, and I found out that I only have 2, yes TWO years, until he will be taking driver's training! If I didn't feel old before, I am definitely feeling old now! I also found out yesterday that he is now too old for his mommy to follow him around... I chaperoned his class trip to Michigan's Adventure. 225 middle school kids, running free as can be, around the park; five buses full of kids, who managed to intake a lot of sugar and candy right before time to leave... wonderful trip!

Such is life right? Anywhooo.... I guess that's the nutshell recap of the last month, since I've been too busy to keep up to date on this! I have a lot more planned for June as well, including some much needed SCRABOOKING!! It has been forever since I have done anything creative, and I ordered 368 pictures, and all the paper and "stuff" to go with it... Ladies, I do believe that it is time to get this party scrappin'!

Night all... ;-)

Summer Vacation...

I started to make plans earlier this week for a weekend camping trip for our family. Well, low and behold, practically our entire summer is booked already! I had to make up three different summer list/calendars as I kept missing something. Let's see, it's starts the week after school gets out with Ycamp and Football camp, and then there is soccer camp and speed camp. Next, is wrestling camp, quarterback camp, then flag football starts. Then, there is Lake Ann/Church camp, the second session of speed camp, then soccer and football start. Finally, my brother's wedding and Labor Day weekend, and then Thank Goodness SCHOOL STARTS BACK UP!

Crazy! Luckily we were able to get one weekend away in June to go to Petoskey and Mackinaw, and there is always the 4th of July weekend. But for the rest of the summer one of the three kids is busy at one time or another. I think I need to plan better, or at least find camps that collect my kids for me all at the same time! I have high hopes that it will be a good summer though. Busy as always, but good.

Other than that craziness, life has pretty much gotten back to normal since getting back from vacation. No developments of swine flu for us. I finished my last night of my writing class tonight, and will email my final paper to her next week, so I will get a one week break before my Organizations and Environments class starts (eww... business stuff). I plan to read another book, order some new scrapbook stuff, maybe order my vacation pictures, and clean... My poor house, she has been neglected for the last couple weeks! I know big plans to fill my one week, 4 hour section of freedom... Gotta dream big and I'll be glad if I just manage to get one or two of those things done! Oh, and more soccer games.

Here is the latest picture of our youngest kiddo at his last soccer game...