My Runner Girl

I run, but I don't consider myself a runner. I'm not fast and I don't have that runner's physique. Whenever I run a race, I feel out of place amongst all those "real" runners. I think that some people are just born with a special something that makes them a good runner. I do not have it. My daughter Carolyn, on the other hand, does.

Over the last several weeks I have been training with Carolyn and four of her friends from church for a 5k. All of the girls worked so hard. During our practice runs, I would stay with the slower girls while Carolyn and a couple others ran ahead. I had no idea what kind of times she was getting.

They made their matching tye dye t-shirts to wear for the race.

Today was race day. I was near the back of the pack at the starting line and Carolyn and her friends were closer. After the race began I gradually passed her friends. I thought surely Carolyn would start walking sometime and I'd catch up to her. Turns out I never did catch up to her. She came in at 28:52, her PR by several minutes. I am still in shock at what an amazing time she got. I am so proud of her!

Now she has her sights set on the "So Long" run at school. They have it at the end of every year for the fifth graders. The top three boys and top three girls are awarded with a medal in front of the entire student body. With her determination and her mad running skills, I don't doubt that she'll be able to place in that race. I keep asking her and she keeps telling me that the parents don't come and watch, but if I can find out what time it is you better believe I'm going to be there to cheer on my baby!

(I also got my PR today, 29:51. I wanted to break 30 and I did it...barely!)

Orlando Vacation, Part II

Emma with her souvenir of choice.

The next day was our magical Magic Kingdom day. Thanks to smaller January crowds and fast passes we were able to do just about every attraction in the park. The weather was gorgeous. It couldn't have been a more perfect day.




Audrey was able to wow the crowd with her mad hula hooping skills.





Proof that I was actually there. This is the only picture I'm in
out of the few hundred we have of the trip.



The last thing we did was visit Mickey. With a stroke of luck, Minnie was there too.

Orlando Vacation, Part I

As a Christmas present to the girls, we took them on a trip to Orlando. They had two days off school in January and we thought that would be the perfect time to go. When we first started talking about going, we were planning on driving. But then Greg figured out that his frequesnt flier miles would cover five of the six of us (yes, he has been travelling that much lately) and it was a no-brainer.

It snowed the morning we left. It made going to Florida
in the middle of winter that much sweeter.

It was Emma's first time on a plane. She was so nervous but she ended up loving it. When we landed she was so mad and confused that the plane didn't take us to Disney World.

We had dinner at Steak 'n Shake

 then went to Downtown Disney, where the kids tried on just about every pair of ears,

got a sprinkling of pixie dust,

rocked out at a dance party,

and rode the carousel.

The next day we went to Clearwater, a beach on the Gulf coast. It was a little chilly to be swimming at the beach, but it was fun anyway.

We spent the rest of the day warming up at the heated pool and hot tub at the resort.

 

Halloween 2011

Another Halloween down and I made it out alive. This year really wasn't that bad. I actually enjoyed making what I did of the costumes. I think we've hit a relatively easy stage of life. With three in school full time, no diapers, they all sleep through the night. Not too much hormonal drama yet. It's quite nice. Here's the rundown on each of their costumes:

No, she's not throwing gang signs, she's showing off her manicure. Carolyn was a spa girl. She found the idea online. I made the eye mask out of scraps from Emma's costume.

Molly was Alice in Wonderland. My mom made her the blue dress to wear to church. One Sunday, someone commented that it was just like Alice's dress without the apron. So she decided she wanted to be Alice this year. I made the apron out of scrap drapery lining that I had.

Audrey wanted to be a mermaid so she wore the costume that I made for Molly a few years ago. Easy!

Emma wanted to be a "purple princess Emma." She wanted it to be sparkly and to have three bows becuase she's three. You can't see in the picture that the fabric has glittery specks. I added two bows to the sleeves to make three. I got the necklace at the Children's Place. We were there shopping and she kept whining because she wanted something and I kept saying, "No, no." But when I finally saw what it was she wanted, it was just. so. her.  I had to buy it.  I'm such a sucker. I guess that's what happens with the youngest child.

Whirlwind Summer

Was that the fastest summer ever or what? So many things to blog about that are past thier blogging prime . . . lost in the land of Shouldabloggedaboutitsooner. There was our two-week vacation in July, the first week spent in Palmyra, Niagra Falls, and Kirtland with Greg's family. The second week was in Hilton Head Island, SC with my family. Carolyn posted pictures on her blog. There were also Audrey's first lost teeth, Molly's bold new haircut, and Carolyn's trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando. Then there was the battering we've been getting from mother nature in the form of an earthquake, hurricane, and a tropical storm. The hurricane will probably get it's own blog post because we have quite the story to tell. Oh, and I can't forget the first day of school, which actually started two days late because of the hurricane. (Who's ever heard of the first day of school being cancelled?) And Audrey started kindergarten! She's been having trouble getting used to the get-up-and-go routine since she prefers the get-up-and-lounge-around routine that she's used to. But I think she loves it. And I love having only one kid during the day. I've actually been getting some projects done. Wait 'til you see my living room. It's come a long way since the last time you saw it. Still more to do but I'm happy with the direction it's going.

The Rundown

I'm baaaack!

Did you miss me?

No?

Well, I didn't really miss blogging either. Does that mean it's time to call it quits?

Perhaps my three month blogging hiatus was due to my joining Facebook.

Yes, I joined Facebook.

I swore I never would. I heard about people who were addicted and would waste hours on it. But I was also feeling like I was missing out on everything. There would be conversations like this:

Me: "What?! They're moving?!"

Facebook using friend: "Yeah, she posted it on Facebook."

So, I'm in the loop now. And I now have a quicker and easier way to share the highlights of my mundane life with the world. But for those of you who are not my Facebook friends, here's some of what you've missed over the last three months.

CAROLYN

She turned 10! It seems like just a couple years ago that she was a terror of a toddler. Luckily, she outgrew that and she is such a mature and responsible girl. She's gotten straight A's since last year, when they first start getting letter grades. I joke with her about when she'll get her first B on a report card. She just had her spring concert at school. She plays the flute and sings in the chorus and in girls' ensemble, a more elite chorus that she had to try out for.

MOLLY

She turned eight and was baptized. Instead of a birthday party she chose to go to Hersheypark. We had a fun time despite the 40-something degree weather. There was a 70% chance of rain and it was cloudy all day but the most we got was a misting. She just commented the other day that she wished the water rides had been open. Ha!

AUDREY

I told her to give me a ballet pose and this is what she did. Love it!

She turned five and we were able to fulfill her dream of having a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party. Ticket blaster, medal, inflatable token crown...she got it all. She also just had her first (and maybe last) dance recital. She took jazz and ballet this year. I thought that if any of my kids would turn out to be a dancer it would be her. But when she was onstage she was more interested in picking up fallen sequins off the floor than dancing. She also just had her preschool graduation and she is all registered for kindergarten! I can't wait!

EMMA

She is almost three and is as cute as ever. I just can't get enough of her delicious cheeks. I still see her as my baby but I'm sure not to say it in front of her or she'll say, "I not a baby. I a big girl!" She'll start preschool in the fall. I am already fantasizing about all the errands I'll be able to run during those two hours, twice a week.

PROJECTS

They've been pretty non-existent lately. I did finish sewing some curtains for the kitchen. It's not the best picture but you get the idea. I've been trying to muster up the courage and energy to attack my next big idea: painting the piano. I'll write a post if/when I get that done...or maybe I'll just post it on Facebook.

Conversation With Carolyn

I was driving Carolyn to her soccer game the other day and she said, "Mommy, that Tempurpedic sign is . . . wierd."

I looked at it and laughed. How did I never notice that their logo is a nude woman? I said, "Yeah, they're just trying to show you that their mattresses support you so your body can stay straight."

Carolyn replied, "But they're NAKED!"

The Coolest Tween Room Ever

Ever since we moved in this house, I've wanted to put a built-in window seat and desk in Carolyn's room. I always have to mull over an idea like this--let it float around in my head for a while (usually at least a year), decide exactly how I want to do it, and make sure I want to do it enough to spend the money on it. A few months ago we even sat down with a person at Home Depot to go over what cabinetry we'd need. I just still wasn't ready to pull the trigger yet. Then one day, I happened to be at Lowes and saw that their in-stock cabinetry was on clearance for 50% off. Score! Between our local store and another nearby Lowes, we were able to get all of the cabinets we needed. It did take a little creativity, like cutting off the drawer of a cabinet to make it desk height. We also used wall cabinets to make the bench and had to build a base for it to sit on and a frame to go behind it, since wall cabinets are 12" deep and base cabinets are 24". we even made our own filler pieces by cutting up white shelves, which was so much cheaper than buying actual filler pieces. Here's the before:

And the after:

I bought her quilt several months ago after a long, hard search. I wanted something tasteful, something that she and I would like, and I wanted it to be a style that she wouldn't outgrow in a few years. I had no idea how many tacky kid bedspreads there are out there. Will someone please tell the bedding industry that preteen girl beds don't have to be garish?

I still have a long list of projects for her room, like crown molding for the cabinets, cushion and pillows for the bench, some sort of fabric on the window, tufted headboard, and a euro sham for her bed. Maybe now that the craziness of December is over I'll be able to get some of them done.