Hal O Wein!

Well, after two weeks of sickness for 5 out of 6 members of our family, including strep, flu, ear-aches, a burst ear-drum, colds, coughs, and finally pneumonia, Halloween is here . . . and gone!


The girls ended up having a SHORT trick-or-treat outing because they're all a bit 'worn' out, but they all enjoyed getting dressed up. And true to form, they are Princesses again! Yea for an eternal love for princesses, particularly at Halloween when the girls want to wear the same costumes year after year. It's quite nice! (particularly this year ;-) 
(Note: Anastasia & Sabrina did at least switch dresses this year)

As for Gabriel, he WAS going to be a Frog Prince to match all of these lovely princesses, however, as he as pneumonia and didn't go anywhere, I quickly dressed him up in the costume I REALLY wanted him to be:


Patrick Jane on THE MENTALIST:




It's the hair! Love the hair!

Joys of Autumn 2011

Autumn is SO Beautiful in Iowa

We have had lots of fun with our leaves this year! Daddy and the kids enjoyed raking up the leaves into 3 huge piles, and then jumping into them. 

       

 

But the fun didn't stop there! Daddy decided to put the leaves ON the trampoline. Therefore, the kids have been enjoying LITERALLY jumping in the leaves for a few weeks now.


To RESTART the slide-show, click anywhere BUT the center and it will start again. If you click the center of the picture, it will take you to the picture on my Picasa Web Album

Change & Chili Sauce

So, I'm writing about two things that don't relate, but they both recently happened so here we are:


CHANGE: Sabrina started kindergarten this week, so she and Anastasia have been adjusting to life back-in-the-school lane. They're having 'fun' at school, but after school at home there is a bit more crying and outbursts of anger. School is an important part of life, but it is really emotionally hard on kids. So many things to adjust to and work with . . . Whew!

 






CHILI SAUCE - I finally did it! For years I have suffered meatloaf, eggs, meatballs, bean dip, and potatoes WITHOUT the savory sensation of Chili Sauce to make them perfect. 


Why have I gone without? 


Because I'm too far away from my mother who cans it every year. PLUS, I've been too afraid, I suppose, to try and make it myself when I don't have access to my mother's expertise OR her canner.

Well, I decided enough was enough! I had a 1/2 bushel of tomatoes, (thanks to my friend who asked me to glean from her garden while they were out of town), and I would just have to look more short-term and freeze the chili sauce, rather than can it. 


I am so grateful to report my adventure was successful - and deliciously smelly, I must add! For this coming year, I will once again enjoy meatloaf, eggs, meatballs, bean dip, and potatoes to their FULLEST potential! Hoorrah! 

 

Sabrina didn't like the smell of the vinegar

It smelled SO GOOD, though after the
spices were added, and had a chance
to stew for several hours - Mmmm!

Ahhhhh Dinner!

Year Supply of Chili Sauce - Yes!

Personal Mono-log

I AM A TRIATHLETE - I've been saying this to myself for a few weeks now, and I've recently realized why this phrase makes me so excited:

The last several years were hard and stressful, and I lost a bit of myself along the way. The past year, Paul, and then I, began training and competing in sprint triathlons. When I'm running, or riding my bike, or swimming across the lake, I FEEL POWERFUL! The fact that I'm a mother of 4 and still competing makes me feel even more energized. I realize that I could be a serious competitor if I spent LOTS of time training, but for now I will content myself with squeezing in little workouts here and there amidst my busy schedule as a wife/mother.

Becoming an 'athlete' again has re-opened a door in my life that has been left floundering and unfulfilled. I really think that my personal and family life is much better because I am doing this.

I may not be first-in-line to cross the finish line, but I'm not far behind - and that fact makes me smile.

My training has consisted of running for 25 minutes 3-times a week - Anastasia has been instrumental in making this possible. I USUALLY bike once a week on Saturdays, and I've only recently started swimming once a week for about 20 minutes. It's not much, but it's all I will give for now. I love it. I feel alive. And I hope you'll forgive my strong desire to mono-log ;-)

Both Paul & I will be competing in the Quad Cities Triathlon this Saturday. There will be over 700 participants. We'll be swimming 600 meters in West Lake, then biking 15 miles, and then running 3.1 miles. My stomach is already a-flutter with excitement and nervousness. This is the biggest triathlon I've competed in, and I hope I'm not the only one NOT wearing a wet-suit!

Wish us luck for this weekend, and I'll let you know how it turns out . . .

May Madness!!!

Forget about March . . . May takes the cake for madness in our family. Who knew May could be so busy!

Here are the HIGHLIGHTS:

1. Mother's Day was wonderful, even with speaking in church for Mother's Day. ;-) Thanks to all the wonderful Mother's I associate with for giving me such fantastic stories to use in my talk that emulate the Work of Motherhood! It's constant, often crazy, but oh so worth it! 

Because I was so busy preparing my talk, I failed to create the awesomest card to wish you all Happy Mother's Day, so here's a piece of what I was GOING to do:

Happy Mother's Day!!!

2. The following Saturday, May 14th, I competed in the Newton, IA SUMMER DAZE Triathlon. I'm so glad I did it . . . but HOLY COW it was COLD!!!

 The race started with a 300 swim, and I did great for the first 100 yards. Then the fact that this was my first time in the water in 8 months caught up with me, and I struggled for the next 200 yards.

Next was the 18 mile bike. The temperature was 47 degrees, with bits of rain, and most horribly - WINDY! The first 9 miles was pretty good. A few fast male bikers passed me up, but I was feeling good. Then we hit the turn around, and not only was it mostly up hill, but it was head-on into the wind.

I was so, so, SO cold. My toes were numb, and my fingers, too. I had to rotate breathing on them so I wouldn't loose my grip on the handle bars. Battling against the wind was so tiring. I wanted to show the world' that a mother-of-4 could do awesome in a triathlon. After SEVERAL more people passed me on the cold, windy up-hill, I changed my tune to "I want to show the world a mother-of-4 can finish the race!" . . . :-D

Finally, I made it back to the transition station. I knew for speed I shouldn't sit down to switch my shoes, but that thought lasted only a brief moment, and I sat down to coax my frozen fingers into removing my bike shoes and replacing them with my running shoes. Thankfully, Paul ran over to cheer me on and get me going!

I started the 3.2 mile run with pretty good speed, considering my tired and frozen state. Aside from the fact that my feet remained numb for 3 miles of the 3.2 mile run, it was really a pretty good run. I kept a fast pace, and really felt good about my run. I finished strong, and all-in-all I think the results were pretty great!

Out of 29 Women I took 4th place, and out of 75 total participants, I took 31st. I'm really happy with the results!

 

3. The next day, we had the chance to watch/participate in baby Rainee's blessing day! I haven't been able to go to the blessing day of a nephew or niece for over 12 years, so this was a treat. Especially considering that Ted & Allie were preparing to move away from Iowa, so this was our last weekend together. For fun, Allison & I crafted together, and took pictures of Rainee!

4. That evening after getting home, we discovered that our preying mantis egg sack that we'd kept all winter from our deceased pet, "Tess," had hatched! We had over 100 baby preying mantis crawling all over our tank. We kept them long enough for Anastasia to present them to her 1st grade class, then we let the remaining survivors go in our yard. I hope they survived! :-D

5. A couple days later, Anastasia participated in her school's RUN INTO SUMMER. She ran a mile, and the kids and I cheered her on. Afterwards, we had a fun picnic and play-time together.



6. A few days after Ana's school run, Sabrina had her preschool graduation. They put on a cute little program, and then she 'graduated!' I know it's just preschool, but perhaps this instills in them to look forward to their next graduation which is only 13 years away . . . :-D It was a great year for Sabrina, and she has grown SO MUCH!



7. That afternoon, Paul and I dropped ALL our kids off at a friend's home, and we headed up to Galena, IL, for Paul's triathlon scheduled for the next day (Saturday.) Last year, if you remember, was an absolute catastrophy!!! This year . . . WAS AWESOME!!!!


Paul and I enjoyed our own bike ride the day before the race, and then the day of the race was super! Because Paul did this triathlon last year, he had something to directly compare to.


This year, Paul's time was 10 MINUTES faster than last year. This year in his age group he placed 17th, and 68th overall. Last year in his age group he placed 41st, and 159th overall (out of 700 participants). Stinkin' awesome!



8. The next few days included a couple dental appointments, and the LAST DAYS OF SCHOOL! Yea! Welcome Summer!!!

 


This week also included May 25th, which is the day that Allison moved away from me. I shed some good tears that day. I was reminded, though, how much my Heavenly Father loves me, because during a time when I needed her most, God gave me my sister to help get me back on my feet. I love you, Allie!

9. For Memorial Day, we drove to Maquoketa Caves. While this was fun, the best part was watching the very different personalities of our girls emerge:


Anastasia - Delirious with the Spirit of Adventure! No path could be left unexplored; no hill left unclimbed; no bug left unbugged! (A powerful combination of both her parents!)


Sabrina - She enjoyed the adventure, but approached things with a bit more apprehension. She said, "At least I'm not as slow as Mom!" and her Mother just let it slide ;-) Afterall, I was playing the part of photographer and not hiking leader.


Samantha - An aggressive climber and steady on her feet! I only saw her stumble one time and she knocked her shin hard enough that it would have forced a holler out of me. . . . She didn't even wince, but just kept on climbing. Sammie could do anything Ana could do. The one thing that slightly held her back was height. The ONLY time she let me hold her hand was when I asked her to hold my hand so I didn't fall ;-D



Like I said, May was Madness - but oh so fun. Hope you enjoyed the updates! Loves!