I got my 30,000 steps yesterday! (So did Robyn) We walked and then I gardened all day long. It is finally starting to cool off, which makes it hard to have an excuse not to be outside. I mowed, then started on the killer weeds. I helped Robyn in her yard. (Well I helped her laugh when the wheelbarrow kept tipping over sideways!) It was a good start, my flower bed looks good, but I am going to be out there all day again, hopefully making even more progress. Ow.
When I got my pedometer, I had the goal of 10,000 steps a day. Most days, I have easily exceeded that number mainly because of my morning walks with my walking buddy, Robyn. Last week, I challenged her to hit 20,000 in a day, thinking it would be hard to do. Well, she hit it twice before I had a chance to think about the extra steps. (Maybe if I wasn't such a sissy and would play volleyball with her, I would have hit it too.) Yesterday, we set out for a big walk and walked to the park, let the kids play for a while, ate lunch and walked home. It was 6.5 miles! Later in the afternoon, I went for an easy bike ride. I ended the day with 24,000 steps! I was feeling so good until this morning Robyn told me that she ended the day with over 28,000 steps. I am thinking I am going to challenge her to hit 30,000. Do you think the kids will mind that we will be gone walking all day? I have almost completed the trail, 2,650 miles! I just need to walk across Washington and cross the border into Canada. Sounds easy, right???
When Shanna got home from school yesterday, I asked her to brush out her hair so that I could fix it for dance. I didn't mean literally brush out her hair. She came back holding a clump of her hair and said with a smile on her face, "Look Mom! This fell out!" Did she think I would be impressed or pleased? I went through all of the logical questions, such as: did you cut your hair, did you have a large tangle, did someone pull your hair at school, was someone sitting behind you in school with scissors, etc... She just kept saying "no". A mother can usually tell when one of her kids is lying, and I wasn't picking up that on my mom radar. So, then I start worrying about what might be wrong with her that would make a large clump of hair fall out of her head.
Last night, Texas Roadhouse had a fund raiser for Shanna's school where they donated 10% of their proceeds to her school. While we were there, they had their mascot, a stuffed armadillo walking around, giving the kids "high 5", etc. Kaci was terrified of him. I explained to her that it was only a person wearing a costume like people do for Halloween, but it didn't help much. Every time he would come around, she would freak out.
The night went on, and Little Miss Sparkle lost her sparkle, and started to show her almost 3 year old fireworks. Tyler told her that if she wasn't smiling when Andy the Armadillo came around, he would get her. So, she plastered this fake smile to her grumpy face! When he would come closer to the table, she would grin her obviously fake smile even bigger. It was hilarious. We were laughing so hard, that we forgot we were grouchy about taking "grouchy" to a restaurant.
We'll try a different approach this week. I am going to tell myself all day how much I love Mondays. I am going to try to be bummed out when the day is over. I am going to embrace all of the Monday craziness and maybe try to add some more, self inflicted craziness.
My good friend gave me this for my birthday, and told me I'd probably need them some day. Thanks, Sherry, we broke them open this afternoon. (On a positive note, both the Patriots and "that other team" won today. I wonder who Tyler will cheer for next week??)
Yippee, Wahoo, we woke up to rain!! Not just sprinkling, a hard downpour that you can hear from inside the house! It smells so good, and it is only in the 70s. We drove up the canyon to Zion National Park, and went to the farmer's market for some heirloom tomatoes, fresh basil, zucchini, raspberry pepper jelly and..... some pictures of ostriches!
If you were a crayon, what color would you be? S: Periwinkle K: Pink
What is the last thing you ate? S: Brownie K: Sandwich
Who is the last person you talked to on the phone? S: Dad K: Daddy
What is your favorite holiday? S: Christmas K: My birthday
What is your favorite tv show? S: Hannah Montana (definitely) K:Barney
What is your favorite drink? S: Vanilla Coke K: Sprite
What is your favorite food? S: Whipped Cream K: Chicken Fingers
I have just lost a battle with a two year old. This picture shows a little bit of spunk, but this afternoon, it wasn't just spunk she was showing. I remember having the same battles with Shanna at this age, couldn't I have learned my lesson then? How hard should it be to put a tired little girl down for a nap? How did my sweet "girlfriend" turn into this little monster who kicks and hits and talks back? I was up most of the night with her legs cramping, so I am not at my best after only getting a few hours of sleep. But, come on! I think of myself as a responsible adult who handles conflict fairly well. Why is it so hard to manage my own daughter??? The really scary thing is that I remember a certain 3 year old's tantrums being worse that a 2 year old's tantrums! Did I mention Kaci turns 3 in about two weeks? I might just start throwing my own tantrums until someone gives me a nap.
The Three Rules of Life
It was a hot sunny Saturday afternoon, just perfect for the Dixie Round Up Parade. Shanna had a great time, her dance team won 2nd place for their age category. The male "drill" team which is the dads and brothers, carrying their drills won 1st place for their category. Tyler didn't march because of his hurt knee though. The kids had fun seeing the horses, firetrucks and tanks.
I can't believe it. We actually stayed up late waiting for our daughter to come home from her Friday night date. Her "date" was with her good friend Shelly at the rodeo. She came home all smiles and full of stories about her fun night! It felt weird not having her around, but it was fun spending quality time with Kaci. We went to the drive through at Wendy's and watched Kaci thoroughly enjoy one of her first Happy Meals at home on a pink blanket in front of a movie. It was so much fun to watch her.
Kaci and I were talking about her upcoming birthday yesterday. (She turns 3 on October 4th) In her sweetest little girl voice, she asked "Mommy, can I have a birthday party?" I thought that was so sweet of her to ask! Shanna had her first friend birthday party when she was 3, so I guess it is time for Kaci to start having them too! She has a guest list, she has a theme, and she knows what she wants: a pink bike with training wheels with a pink water bottle cage. I guess I better get busy looking for one!
I have to get at least 10,000 steps a day. Last night, I was pacing the bedroom to get my last few steps in. Some days, I get over 15,000 steps though when I take a good walk in the morning. I have been doing the challenge for 11 days, and already have over 130,000 steps! It is amazing how many steps you take just doing your normal routine. The website that I use shows your progress along a trail you choose. I am doing the Pacific Crest Trail, which is 2,650 miles from Mexico all the way up the California coast into Canada. It shows you pictures and fun facts of where you would be on the trail. I don't think I would enjoy camping on the road, but it would be fun to do a real walking challenge like this someday.
God Bless America
Halloween is like next week. Shanna decided she wanted to be her new idol, Hannah Montana. (Which by the way, is actually a pretty good singer. Tyler downloaded some of her songs for Shanna on his Ipod and I was rocking out to a 14 year old while I was mowing the other day!) So her costume was easy enough, as not surprisingly Hanna Montana has her own clothing line. So, we bought some Hannah Montana jeans, Hannah Montana shirt and Hannah Montana jacket, 20% and free shipping. We now have a Halloween costume and a fall outfit. Yeah!
Shanna pointed out one of her favorite cartoon characters from when she was little, "Stephanie" from "Lazy Town" to Kaci, and Kaci loved her because she has pink hair. Yesterday at Target, they were putting their costumes out, and Kaci spotted the "pink hair costume!" It is so cute on her, she could totally do the pink hair thing. It is amazing how much older she looks with a full head of hair! :)
Yesterday, Kaci picked out a game to buy with her allowance. It was one of those "blasts from the past", a toy I remember from my childhood. It seems as though about 5 years ago, all of the popular toys from the 80s started to reappear. Was it that toy makers were getting so uncreative and uninspired that they couldn't come up with new toys? Or was it that the 80s were so great that they just had to bring back their favorite things from their childhood. I think it is the latter. I have so enjoyed watching my kids play with the same fun things that I liked when I was little. I find it so funny when Shanna tries to tell me about this cool new toy, and I already know the theme song!! Am I cool or what?
It was a happy day in our house! Both the Patriots and Broncos won! (The Broncos game was a LOT closer, and resulted in me losing a bet, but at least they won!) Afterwards, the fans spilled out to the back yard to play a little catch of their own.
I think I will start wearing my Patriots jersey today and not take it off until they win tomorrow. Word is that Tom Brady had to miss half of practice on Thrusday because of a right shoulder injury. They will also be without 2 of their best defensive players (Seymore and Harrison) and possibly wide receiver Moss. I wonder what Tyler would think of some new NFL sheets? It could get ugly this season!!
Tyler is almost never wrong about anything though, so of course they won!
I really hate mornings. Well, I hate the way mornings go. If I only had to get up, exercise and get myself ready for the day, I might actually like mornings. But, since I have to get up, get kids up, take care of the dog, clean up the house, iron multiple outfits, get lunches and backpacks ready, start laundry, make breakfast... I hate mornings. Everything comes at me so fast, I just want to get back into bed and ignore it all. No matter how much I try to plan in advanced the night before... something always needs my attention first thing in the morning!
Shanna started 2nd grade. She has a great teacher and loves to play basketball at recess. She is dancing four afternoons a week which she loves. It is teaching her to be responsible for her things and have all of her gear ready the night before or there is a crazy person known as Mom who is scrambling 10 minutes after we were supposed to leave looking for the left shoe, or the only pair of tights that don't have holes in them. She likes the fun Mom better, so she tries really hard to keep track of her own things.
Kaci is slowly getting used to being the only child during the day. She is so cute when she says she is lonely because Shanna is gone. We try to do "school" activities to keep her busy. She loves to read and play with her babies and stuffed animals. She likes to do puzzles and is learning to write her name. She is in a ballet class once a week. She looks so grown up when she is in her class. She is fully potty trained which is great, I did the happy dance when the Pampers coupons came in the mail today because it reminded me that I don't have to buy them anymore!!
We now have a dog! All Shanna wanted for her birthday was a dog. I think she had in mind a little yappy dog that she could keep in her purse, but if I was going to give in on getting one, I got to have a say in what we got. We got a chocolate lab puppy named Cocoa. We have definitely had issues with him, but he is turning out to be a good dog. He is a good walking buddy, well, that is when he isn't pulling me over. We're working on his "walking manners". (We also lo
ve the book "The Loved Dog") It has really been working for training him! He is an outdoor dog, which helps. Sometimes, one more distraction or mess might just send me over the edge, so it is nice to be selective on when he is around! He does get to come in on the tile when he is on his tie down, since it is so hot outside still. He seems to be appreciative when he is inside like he knows it is a privilege and he better be good or he'll be on the other side of the glass again.
croaking. Earlier in the summer, Shanna found a frog at Lowe's and we brought it home, but it was so loud we could hear it croaking when we were inside! It is fun to go outside at night and listen to our waterfall and sounds of nature. After struggling to get it started, the water lettuce and lily pads have taken over the entire surface and we had to thin some out so that we could feed the fish. Somewhere in there we may still have some turtles... I haven't seen them for a while.
een cooking lots and have two great helpers who love to put their aprons on to be "cookers".... I think after 3 years of living in this house, I finally have the garage organized, that feels great.... I am getting ready to plant a fall crop in the garden, the spring crop surprised me and did great! We had a flat tire on the car this week... Cocoa keeps tearing the stuffing out of his toys and beds, and I find myself thinking that the only time I sew any
more is for the DOG.... We have had some amazing storms lately, check out the great picture that Tyler took.....And last but probably the best part of my whole day was when Shanna asked me at bedtime why people on tv like to kiss with their mouths wide open and turn their heads!!
