Fox Cities Half Marathon Losers!

This weekend was the final weekend for our Biggest Loser Challenge at work. We did our final weigh in at 5pm. It was interesting since every other weigh in was first thing in the am, so we didn't have to eat anything before it. This happy girl is our WINNER!
This was Tammy and her Husband, Tim. She has been VERY lucky, he has been an HUGE motivator in this competition. He filled in for one of our girls that wasn't able to make it at the last minute, so he was able to be in the race with us.

Check out her BEFORE photo... Unfortunately the T-shirt doesn't do her justice, she looks GREAT!

Me, Sharon, Angie and Katie are all trying to keep our bodies warm while we wait for the beginning of the race to start. It was in the low 50's this am.

This is my bud Juls from way back. I have known her since I was in Elementary School. I was lucky enough to have her join me in this challenge which really helped make it more fun.

Just before the race, Dr Al Came up to us and gave us one of his famous pep talks. His Wife was doing the full marathon. She qualified for Boston today. She did great!

The short wait for the long start. There was over 6,000 people registered for today's race. You can see the balloon arch way up in the distance. Sharon, Angie and Tammy are waiting patiently in front of us.

Katie and Julie are coming up to the first stop in the race. A lot of the water stations were themed. The first one was M*A*S*H themed, complete with a Dr and a guy in a dress and boa! Loved it! I had to us the porta potty and it took me so long to wait for people that I had to run about 4/10's of a mile to catch up to Julie and Katie that I told to keep walking and I would catch up.

I didn't take many pictures from miles 2 thru 8, but at Mile 9.5 we were cheered on by an adorable young man, and his dad. Juls stopped to get some love and then we continued on to the finish line.

The finishing line balloon arch. Tammy, her husband Tim and Toni wait patiently as Teri is making her way into finish the race. We were all waiting to cheer her on, she managed a high five for us! Woo Hoo!! Finished Strong, she did.

I was so proud of all of these girls, they all pushed themselves to finish in under 4.5 hours!! They really accepted the challenge and excelled at it! They were so proud themselves as you can see, we even received some very heavy medals. I was hoping they all would've been able to join us. We missed 2 of our Losers, but we still had a great turn out! It was a Perfect day, um, minus my sore toe.... about mile 8 it was getting sore. This is my pretty blood blister that I ended up with... But it was all worth it...because...

I got my flowers from the girls and my new finishers medal!

The Notebook kid

Brock is my ADD child.
He was diagnosed early in elementary school with learning disability's and attention deficit disorder.
I heard once the reason kids with ADD fidget is because it is easier for them to focus. Brock shakes his legs a lot. Many times we will be sitting in our car at an intersection and his legs' movement rocks the car while we wait. He also has other habits.
He has to write himself notes. He says it is to remind him of things. But the only trouble is he has SO MANY that he forgets that he wrote things down or loses them. It is almost comical how he is with all these notes. He writes notes like...

Things to to monday.
wake up.
get dressed (really ?)
eat breakfast (um. no you can take a break on that today)
play on runescape (ok. do you really think you need to write this one down, B?)

Reece says "BROCK, NO MATTER HOW MANY TIME YOU WRITE 'WAKE REECE UP' YOU ALWAYS SEEM TO FORGET!" My kids love to get up insanely early... at 4am to play on the internet. BUT I block them til 5am at least, so they must sleep in. Reece likes to sleep more than Brock, but I just consider that a part of his 'disability'.

He has to speak to himself a loud. He obsesses a bit about things. Such as shots. He hates 'em. Borderline TERRIFIED. He is already worrying about his booster for Tetnus. yep. EIGHT more years.

At the last check up the MD said "It sounds like he needs a notebook to write things down." What a great idea.
So tonight, I finally dug out a notebook and said "Brock this is YOUR NOTE BOOK, FOR NOTES. Use it. Please."

sigh.

I feel like I am such a slacker Mom, but it has been a busy week.

We were visited by our nephew, Gage, this week on Wednesday and Thursday.


Tuesday was the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL here, and Zeb began a full day of school. He really likes it. I think he likes being able to play with friends his age, and loves riding the bus!
As most Mom's this week, I couldn't resist taking my pic with him... I had to!
We sat in the back of the Durango and waited for the bus to pull up in front of our house. He rides the 'monkey' bus, which is SO like him, at least that is what I told him.




Tonight was a nice night and I probably should have gotten a run in, but I was a slacker. I signed up for net flix and so I had a movie that I wanted to see and the kids wanted to play with their friends, so I got to quietly watch a movie. It was a nice night to a CRAZY BUSY week at work. (and home!)

Tonight, we picked out costumes for Reece and Zeb. Reece is going to be a brainwashed child. Zeb a ninja. (no surprise, since that is what Reece was last year.)
Brock is going to be himself with a glowing nail headband.

I have been a slacker, so tomorrow I will be riding my bike in to work at the Y. Hopefully it won't rain. I think I am going to rent out a locker at the Y so I no longer have to ride with my back pack anymore. I guess I haven't necessarily been a slacker, but between painting the basement, school, laundry and cleaning I haven't really sat down much but I still feel like a slacker.

Well, it is bed time already!!
Wow!

I just had to post something to let you know I am alive.

I have just been so busy...

Working

painting

cleaning

painting

laundry

running...

painting...

working...

watering... (my FOUR, yes FOUR PUMPKINS! OH YEAH!)

cleaning...

oh yeah, and sleeping, but man where is the time going?
Geez... now, sleepy time again.
: )
Good night!

Oh,
and say a little prayer for the Mom and family of a guy I worked with at the Y last weekend. His name was Chris and he passed away in his sleep on Saturday night. I worked with him on Saturday (and about once or twice a month). He was 59 and a personal trainer at the Y. It was a shock for us. He was a great guy and is going to deeply missed by us at the Y and anyone that knew him I am sure. I am so sad to hear he is gone...

Thanks for all the pizza, Chris!

Ok, that was painful.

So my alarm blissfully tries to wake me at 4am, I hit snooze.
Five minutes later, it manages to get me out of bed. My body was moving, but my mind was says "Maybe it will be raining and I can go back to bed?".

I check the weather online.

Kinda looks like a storm briefly coming through our area! Then I begin to think of the other girls that were supposed to meet us and I can't just not show up. Even if there is a storm.

I grab my rain gear and hope that they are worried about the weather too and head out the door.
Yes. At 4:30am.
I was supposed to meet her at 4:45am at Y I work at, so I could shower and get ready for work there.

As I drive I see no one in the parking lot, waiting for me, so I drive further to see if Tammy and her hubby are walking up the trail. Sure enough they are comin'. Bummer. I have to do it.

"I am hungry" I thought. They were far enough away that I was able to stop by Mc Donalds for breakfast and eat it before they got to me. I need energy, Right? Of Course!

I sat in the car a short time before they came to meet me. It was still black out. I didn't know how the storm was looking so I brought my rain gear with me. They were booking right along when I joined them. She apologized for going so fast, but I was ok.

The plan was to walk to our work, Aurora in KK and back then I was going to walk all the way to their house and then back to the Y.

About 45 minutes into our walk the rain began. It was more like a mist again. We liked getting cooled off a bit but the water.

We walked to a gas station for potty break and headed back out to the Y. We stopped at the Y for some water and continued on to Tammy's house.
My left lower leg started to ache. Specifically the tibialis anterior. (According to the picture on the right) Tammy was game for running a bit which helped ease the pain, but didn't help the tiredness, of the walk. I made it to Tammy's at mile 9 for me, 10.5 for her.
After some water and a very appreciated banana I headed back to the Y. I decided to continue on going down to the end of her street and taking a different way to the Y. I ran 2/3 of it just to get it over with. I was tired. I had tried to get someone to take over my hours at the Y, but I had no takers. I made it to my car about 8am after 11.64 miles. I now know that last bit was the LONG ROUTE. I added almost 2 miles to an already long enough route!
Ok so it wasn't the 100 mile Lean Horse ultra that Mr. Geek Grl is RUNNing today (yes, he is running 10x my short route, and hoping to finish within 24 hrs!) Good Luck to Mr Geek Grl! WOW!
This was the route we took...

So I am home from the Y, I am not in pain, but my body just wants to lay down and not move. I kind feel like a slug. I am trying to help Zeb learn how to tie his new shoes. Thankfully that requires no leg movement. Right now he is taking a much deserved mental break.
We are trying to figure out how to make supper without me having to move.
Dang, I think my break is coming to an end.
*sigh*
It was nice while it lasted.

I am trying to get sleepy.

I have to get up early tomorrow because I am going for a 10 mile walk.

At 4:30 in the morning.

*sigh*

Not getting to sleepy.

So I will tell you about my day.

Today I took off the day from work so I could organize and get a grip on 'pre' school stuff. I managed a 5.45 mile run this am. It was overcast, but it was EXTREMELY HUMID. I would rather have sun and dry, at least you can randomly catch some shade. I am not sure how long it took me because my watch band was broke and so I didn't have it with me.
I came home woke up Duner, who worked nights last night and we headed to Appleton. Duner had to donate plasma, so the kids and I did some more shopping (for shoes) and got some tickets to the Great Outdoors festival at EAA in Oshkosh. Zeb cried all the way out of the store because he didn't want me to buy shoes that required him to tie his shoes. *sigh* Oh to have those issues.

We picked up some NAKED brand fruit smoothies while we were picking up the tickets. Naked drinks have one pound of fruit in each bottle.
My favorite is Strawberry Kiwi Kick. It is supposed to deliver energy. I could use it after my run that morning.
Reece also chose an energy booster, called Orange Mango Machine.
Zeb picked Blueberry Pomegranate. It was an antioxidant booster.
Brock picked one called Protein Zone. It had pineapple, coconut and banana. 30 GRAMS OF PROTEIN!! Now that is a ton of protein!

How did they rate?
Reece liked his... It was like Tang.
Zeb liked his... It was always by his side til it was gone. I didn't get a chance to try it.
Brock did not like his. At first he did, but it had a chalk like texture he couldn't get over. But that was ok, since Duner could use the extra protein since he donates plasma.

So What else did we do today?
Grabbed some food from Burger King and headed to the Outdoor festival. The kids road bikes, shot bows, road 4 wheelers, fished for catfish, tested canoes and kayaks (saw someone fall into the water), watched some dogs jump into water to retrieve things, and road the tram tractor... which Zeb loved.
Oh yeah and got some sunburn, just a bit. It was overcast and somewhat rainy, er, misty today. It was just enough to annoy you, but not enough to water my plants or trees. Then again, we weren't home, but I am pretty sure it was the same here.
*sigh*
Oh, and I tried this really good beer battered Tilapia recipe tonight! It is supposed to be good for you too! I found it at Real Age.com, Check it out! Real Age has this 'age calculator' that tells your 'real age' instead of your natural age. It says I am 18 months younger than I really am. Thats nice.
ok.
Time to sleep.
now.

Obsessions

Zeb was in on Tuesday for a check up and shots. Since then Brock has been asking me about every 4 hours if he will need any shots next week when it is his turn. EVERY 4 HOURS. He even called me twice at work to see if I asked the nurses yet.
There is a way to look it up online but you need to enter info, but for some reason I wasn't able to do that at home.
I didn't want to bother the nurses, because they are busy enough with stuff at work. I finally was able to bring it up and print it off at work for him, through the state website.
It said he doesn't need any shots. BUT... The nurses (and probably DR) do recommend kids his age getting the shot for Meningitis. It is not required for now, but recommended.
I told him he did not need any shots but I explained the Meningitis shot to him. He said he would rather die of the disease than get the shot. If you saw us try to get him his tetanus shot update 2 years ago, you would understand why I am not pushing this right now.

Hmmm. Maybe I should see about something for ANXIETY or OCD? WOW!

Reece was trying to talk him into it, and told him "If you would die I would miss you, Brock!"
All together now... Awwww...
How sweet is that!

It is kinda strange how Reece is almost looking forward to getting some shots next week.
What a difference the kids are!

Basement Update

Our Drywall guys left today, they were all done by 6pm. Yep. It only took two days. They were great! Bellis Plastering is who did it, if anyone needs some work done, they are well worth it! The layed down paper and tarps all over, and cleaned up everything when they were done. I think they cleaned up better than me! It looks Awesome! Um, ok not so pretty on this wall , but just wait!
I spent 2 hours on Sunday hanging pegboard in out basement to organize some of our stuff in the new workshop. Note the new switch plate. Aren't the flowers pretty? he. he.
This is the finished walls in the main room. It looks like a neat paint job right now, but that is because the walls are still wet.
The other direction, our new TV/ Computer area. They did a great job fixing out crappy outlet cutting job!
This is the bump out area where we are eventually going to put the 'game' or 'model' table. Zeb is so excited, he wants to build model cars with Dad. We told him we can't buy any 'til our basement is done.
My head is spinning with all the different paint colors I can chose from. The wall behind the pool table I am thinking of putting a big 'Wisconsin' W. The Wall to the right would be nice for maybe a Green Bay Packer 'G'. Then, of course, we would need a wall for the Brewers... hmmm.
This will be the new 'kitchen' area. It will have a sink, mini fridge, microwave and Do you see our new water access shut off in the ceiling? Nice, Eh?

Motivation

Summer is winding down... Fast.
Kids need to get back to school. The are getting LAZY.
Last night Reece wanted to go the a local Video store. "Oh, No" I said, " I don't think the way this house looks, it deserves a video store run tonight."
It would be one thing if they were too busy playing with friends or exploring the neighborhood, but they were inside all day. Doing 'nothing'.
I don't like 'boredom'. They have no reason to be bored. They have a bike. They have an awesome neighborhood. Creek nearby, loads of wildlife, 2 nearby parks, and legos... It was a BEAUTIFUL DAY on Friday. They could have been outside, but no they watch some kind of box all day. Computer or TV they did nothing but sit all day.
So...
I came home and announced "I am going for a run and you all are coming with me! Z (aka 5 yr old) will ride his bike next to me... Reece and Brock you go on your bikes the 7 mile route and head home."
"I don't want to ride my bike. Can I run the loop?" Reece asked.(aka the 1.2 mile loop known as our neighborhood)
"No." I said. Not wanting to run the loop with him.
"How about 2 loops?" He asked.
"Hmmm. OK." I said. "But I am running it with you."
"Darn." He said.

So Zeb, Reece and I head out on the loop, while Brock headed out on the 7 mile ride.
Zeb grabbed a water bottle and put on his helmet. We made it to the corner when Zeb started asking us to stop. He was having a hard time riding and holding the beverage. I grabbed it and started to run with it. Shortly after that Reece started whining about how hard it was and how he needed to WALK. This kid has 2 speeds. He is like his dad. Full force fast or walk. I tried to tell him it is still a run (ok, maybe jog) if you SLOW DOWN. You don't have to just walk.
I eventually let him walk but I had to run backwards to keep my eye on him, and it was just a break. I did the first loop with him and then we had to stop back at the house to let him have a drink, then we did the second loop.
This time Zeb didn't want Reece to have any of his water and somehow Z figured out how to ride with the water bottle in hand this time. I had to chuckle as he rode his bike away from Reece as he was running up to him to get a drink. I like to think of it as MOTIVATION.
It took me 30 minutes to run/walk 2.4 miles with him and 35 minutes to run 3.3 miles after that with out him.
It kinda feels good to know you can out run your kid, but I would LOVE FOR THAT TO CHANGE! Maybe I need to figure out his kind of Motivation.

$ and more $

I admit it.
We caved.
We threw in the towel, waved the white flag, whatever you want to call it.
We are having someone do the muddin' and texture on the walls in the basement.
It would have easily taken me 4 weeks and they can have it done in 2 days.
TWO DAYS! What?? That is what he says, but I would not be surprised if it took a bit longer.

On a related note I have found some excellent websites to SAVE $!
rtownshopper.com has some awesome money saving certificates. A lot of the items are 50% off or MORE! I don't know if everyone's area's are in it but in the Fox Valley it saves a ton!
Family 4 pack of Tickets at the Shawano Speedway is normally $30 bucks, you can buy a certificate for $12!! Zeb and Duner Love that !
Badger Sports Park $20 certificate for $10 bucks!
Bowl 3 games at 10th Frame Bowling Alley for $3 (Value is $10 bucks!)
They have a bunch of restaurants, salons, retailers and hotels! Well worth the look!!

A coworker of mine told me about freecycle.org.
It is a really cool site that has people trying to give freely to keep items out of the landfills. I love the idea! It is a win, win on so many levels. She even tried to get a microwave for over your range that she saw listed, but it was gone. Can you imagine? FREE! Wow!
I will be listing some of the stuff I have when the basement is done. What a great way to lose stuff!

Legoland Chicago?

I picked up some excellent deals as far as clothes for school shopping online at childrens place.com, gap.com and Old Navy.com. Lots of T-shirts, and some jeans. I love that I didn't have to leave the house and the kids didn't drive me nuts begging to eat at Mc Donalds!

I was picking up a lego magazine that they left in the bathroom and I came across a ad for Legoland Chicago. Hmmm. I didn't know they had such a thing! Maybe I will have to see if any sister's or anyone else would be interested in joining me, taking the kiddos on a fall break down to a Schaumburg (a suburb of Chicago) for a weekend. Maybe stop by IKEA. I am hoping to have a new kids bedroom by then so I may need a few items to organize it. Hmmmm.

I also hear many great things about Shedd Aquarium. I would love to check that out too!

Anyone up for a fall trip? Say October-ish?

Access Shut off...

* Cue the Brady Bunch theme music... *

Here's a story...
Of a Man named Duner,
who was trying to drywall the basement...

One wall of the shower,
had a faucet,
he wasn't sure what it meant.

So, he grabbed his drill
and his wife said "Oh,no!~
I wouldn't do that if I were you!"
The drill began,
the water shot,
straight to his socks!

Til' the wife ran to the water main and stopped it.
Then they knew that it was much more than for looks.
Yes, it was live... And very filled with water.
That didn't want to shut off...

Access shut off..
Access shut off...
Yes, that's the way to make access to shut off!


Thank you very much,
Ahem...

Really cool, huh?
: )
So what have we learned?
Now we have an access panel to shut off the H20, some fresh drywall that is now wet, a working drain in the shower and a dehumidifier in our basement to dry it up quickly... Fun times!!

Moral of the story? YES, WOMEN SHOULD BE HEARD AND LISTENED TOO!

Mt: Olympus Day 1 & 2

Zeb's first ride was on Poseidon It is a neat track lots of circles, and goes 'under water'. Zeb got to ride with Duner for a lot of the Go Karts.

These bumper boats were the SLOWEST things one earth. It was not a ride to go on if you were looking to get wet. Brock was trying his best here... He is in the #2 boat.


Reece got to try his luck at the batting cages. I missed most of this because I was watching this...

Zeb got to actually DRIVE HIS OWN CAR! He was super duper excited. He loved it!

He was so fast it was hard to get a nice picture of him. They have 2 tracks that he was able to ride on by himself~ I was able to get the first one because he hadn't moved yet. (He is the 2nd from last in this picture.)

Zooom! There he goes!!

We went for a Dells Duck ride that was included in the park admission and it took us past an animal farm/ petting zoo. One that you can feed and pet the deer. They also had elk and some white antlered animals from some other country. (I forgot what they were called)

While Zeb rode some kiddie airplane rides, Brock and Reece volunteered to watch Zeb so Duner and I could go on the Pegasus coaster. It was all right turns, mainly, but it still had some drops that took your breath away. I tried to take Reece on it later and actually got him up to the platform, but then he chickened out as the coaster pulled in and he walked away. : (

This was the coaster I went on by myself, while Duner and the boys rode their first Go Kart ride. I am amazed anyone is able to record anything on these rides... this is crazy.

This one gave me a headache!





This was where we spent most of our time on Tuesday. We spent 11am to 2pm and 4pm to 6pm in the wave pool called Poseidon's Rage. It shoots out a 8 foot wave every 2 minutes, but it felt like every 45 seconds. Duner, Brock and Reece spent most of there time in the water about 4 to 5 feet high and let the wave push them back in. One time Duner got slammed into someone and has had a stiff neck ever since. Zeb and I hung out in the 2 ft section. He loved to run out to the end of the water and run back in as the wave would come to the shore. We put a life jacket on him, just to be safe. He loved it. A few times he scraped his elbow or knee, but he kept going for more.
This movie shows how they make the waves, it is really cool. A wave would shoot out you would hear a puff of air like a whale blowing, then screams from the crowd. EVERY TIME! Duner and the kids stayed on the front line the whole time.
***WARNING: MUSIC IS THE EXPLICIT VERSION KANYE WEST'S SONG STRONGER***



We took a break and tried out The River Troy, which is like a lazy river, but after 30 minutes the kids needed some food and a break. We never did make it to the other end of the park. The kids just didn't want to leave the wave pool. But that's ok, we did a lot of rides the day before.

We all got sun kissed. We even put multiple layers of sun screen during the activities. Zeb fought me putting sunscreen on his face but you could see where I wasn't able to get too close to his eyes and on his for head.
We had to take a break (Zeb and I) and he rode the kiddie coaster!! He even put his arm up a few times during the rides! It was great~!

Well, We came home and settled in for the night. The kids had a BLAST. We even did some mini golf, and GUESS WHO GOT A HOLE IN ONE!! I just love that, especially since it happened just as Duner was telling me I was doing it WRONG!!! Ha! Gotta love it!

Definitely in the plans for next summer! The kids are already talking about it!

It was picture day for Reece and Brock today, so they have some color to their photos. Opps!

Day 1: Mt Olympus Experience, Um.... Almost!

After Lake Delton, it was still too early to check in to the hotel, so we grabbed some lunch and decided to try the 'dry' rides at Mt. Olympus. They had all kinds of Go Kart tracks and roller coasters. The Trojan Horse is part of one of the kart tracks!
The weather was lookin' stormy so we weren't sure what to do.
Well, I didn't want to just wait and see, time was wastin' so we grabbed our tickets and went to the counter to get our wristbands. I figured, at least we are able to bypass this step next time we come back.
As we got to the ticket counter the rain came. And I mean BUCKETS.... Wow. I am not a fan of hanging outside when it storms so we ran back to the car, but it didn't help much we were SOAKED! We didn't even go on a water ride!!
It was about 1:30, check in at our motel wasn't till 3pm, but we were hoping they would let us check in early. Thankfully they did. So we went for a swim....

Our hotel was a nice place.

Older. Way older, but it was very well maintained. The check in woman was very nice and from another country and I think one of the owners. She had a dog in the lobby that was waiting to enter the main house. Almost like a polish accent.

The main building of this place was a older home, but the lobby was in immaculate condition. Even the light fixtures were sparkling.

I stayed in other hotels that are newer but not NEARLY kept up as well. They were close enough that we walked to the 'downtown' Tuesday night. It was a great day for a walk.





















It had one indoor pool with a whirlpool and sauna, outdoor pool with swing set, ping pong table and shuffle board. Lots of grass to play in. They supplied badminton equipment too if you wanted. All Free! They had 2 residential Grey squirrels that would let you get really close to. Duner and Reece were both pretty good at Ping pong, Brock and I played Shuffle board while Zeb wandered between us.










It also has nice trails in the back. It is right on the main drag,but with all the large trees you don't hear all the noise.
We saw lots of deer tracks on these trails.

After the weather passed and we got some swim time in at the hotel, we headed to Mt. Olympus again for some rides...

Here is a great video I found on Youtube! Enjoy!

Day One- Lake Delton Visit.

Monday morning we loaded the car and drove to Wisconsin Dells. We got there at 10:30 and we couldn't check in to our hotel yet. So, We took a drive to see Lake Delton. Lake Delton was a man made lake that was dug about 80 years ago, and with the mass of water we recieved this year, it washed away into the Wisconsin River. Along with a few homes...

Yep. It's gone.

We drove in just north of the 'red zone' where the water washed away the area. About the only vehicles they allow are the 'Dells Ducks' on the tour route, of course.











Nothing left but an outboard motor,










lots of old cans










and mud.... er, what used to be mud.












We walked about 20 feet of shore along the north side of the lake. We also walked into the center of the lake on these dried up clumps of mud.




Some people really missed their swimming beach so they bought pools set them up on the beach.

I was surprised, we didn't see more fish.

We only saw one dead one.







There were some pontoon boats still halfway up sitting awkwardly on some docks.










There was a section that had a lot of pretty neat rock. It was like chunks of sand rock. If there is such a thing.


Next adventure... Day 1: Our Mt Olympus experience... um, almost....

Healthy travels?

Since we are going away for a few days, I really don't want to waste all the hard work I have done this summer as far as eating right and exercising. So, I challenged myself to bring a BUNCH of healthy snacks with us on this trip.
Not only will it save us some $. Which we really need right now. It will also so the kids how to eat right even when your away from home.
Today we took every water bottle I have, about 10 or so, and we filled them halfway with water and put them in the freezer for the night so we can fill them the rest of the way in the morning and put them in the cooler for later.
We also made some Jell-o with gelatin so we can have finger Jell-o by the pool later. (Our Hotel has an indoor and outdoor pools.) Zeb requested vanilla pudding. So I made some (sugar free) and put in containers to bring with. I think Duner will be finishing that off.
We cut up green peppers, cauliflower, and carrots to bring with.
We are bringing some grapes, apples, bananas, peaches and applesauce.
I also cut up cantaloupe.
We are going to bring some whole wheat and oat bagels, whole wheat English muffins to have for breakfast or lunch, for sandwiches.
Now I like my salt from time to time, so I did pick up some cheese curds, but I am not a huge curd person... um.. unless they are deep fried and breaded, so I will be safe since these are not. We also have reduced fat pringles for a snack as well. Not great, but I do have some pretzels.

You think that is too much???

YOU HAVE NOT HAD TO FEED MY CHILDREN.

It is not perfect, but it a lifestyle that I can live with ... not a diet.

I am beat. Now I nap.

Decisions, Decisions

Ok, Ahem.
We reached a decision and we went with....

The BLACK Saturn Vue!!!

The almighty $ Won. The kids LOVE IT!
We really like how roomy it is inside and how quiet it is outside and how little it costs to fill 'er up!! Only $48.00! Our truck is more like $80, but still not as bad as someone truck I know that is over $100. I asked her how she fills it up because most pumps shut off after a set amount. She has to do it twice when she fills up. How frustrating. But at least the cost is going down! I saw $3.71. Woo Hoo~

I am busy doing laundry and catching up on some housework before heading to Wisconsin Dells on Monday. I am going to bring a cooler stocked with bagels, HEALTHY snacks and sandwiches, so we don't spend so much of our time and money in the dining areas. Our hotel has a trail, indoor and outdoor pools and a park area. The website says they have bonfires too! How fun!

A said bit of news...
For Those of you not in our neck of the woods, please keep the employees of the Stora Enso/ Midtec/ Repap / New Page, what ever you want to call it... in your thoughts... They announced on Wednesday they are shutting down that plant. Over 470 people will be losing their jobs between now and Sept 1 of this year. Just one month's notice (or less). We will soon have over 650 people in the valley that used to have nice paying jobs. OUCH!

Dr Al's nurse's husband will be one, my friend (Amanda's) dad worked there and some guys that used to work with Duner back in January of 2002 at the Stora Enso Appleton Refiber plant went there when they shut it down.

I am sure there are a lot more than I can think of right now, but just please keep them in your thoughts and prayers during this time.
We thought they were so lucky to have been able to stay there.

What a bummer. Just when you think you are safe.

Where did the Summer Go?

Where on earth did the summer go?
Next week is already picture day and registration for Brock and Reece. I am pretty excited about this, since Reece normally takes crappy pictures for some reason or another. Either it is his forced smile, or a stain on his shirt. One year I had to get his picture retaken 3 times! Argh! Very frustrating...

I have had to work or show up at work every day for a week and I have to work til Sunday when I am finally off for almost a week. I am looking forward to that break. Next Saturday we have a neighborhood block party that the kids really are looking forward to. They eat lots, drink lots (of soda) and get to play all kinds of games with the whole neighborhood. I get to cook a dessert and TRY to avoid the huge amounts of food calling my name... Geez. Then Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday we will be in Wisconsin Dells with the kiddo's. Mt Olympus is calling our names this year. (And we will HAVE to visit Paul Bunyans!)

We are also buying a new SUV. and getting rid of the Camry. It will be a Saturn. We had one (Black) all picked out and ready to buy, when Duner found another one (Silver) that we also liked, but it is more $, less miles and it has a sunroof (which I like). Grrr. But since Duner already put $ down on the Black one, if we change our mind and go with the Silver, we are out about $350 bucks. So now we are wondering if the extra $ is worth getting exactly what we want. Hmmm.

Today is supposed to be Brock's first payday. He is super excited. He has big plans for his tiny paycheck. He wanted to become a member of a website called Runescape, but in August the fees are going from$5 bucks a month to 6 and that may not be ok. I told him he needs to save some of his $, and give some to church. (So he can learn how to budget his $) He loves to spend his cash. Anytime he has money his mind races to figure out how it can leave his hands as quickly as possible.

I worked 1 hour on the drywall in our basement this weekend. I am officially doing the part I HATE. I am slapping 'mud' on the seams and making them pretty and I HATE IT. If you want me to be instantly crabby? Just add some mud and an unfinished ceiling calling my name. Yuck.
You basically are putting 'mud' on the ceiling and hoping it doesn't fall onto the floor in chunks because you want to get finished so fast because you HATE doing it in the first place. It kinda fells like painting a HUGE ceiling but for all your hard work you only get a 8 foot section done at a time, when it feels like you did 50 feet. Grrr. If you are reading this, consider yourself invited to come over and help! : )
Well I have to get ready to weigh in today. I was avoiding the kitchen by typing this up, sorry it is so long...Have a great day!

Healthy Choices

So I am trying some new recipes with the Sparkpeople.com meal plan.
I figure if it is good for me it is good for the family.

Here is how they rated... on a scale system of 1 fork (bad) to 5 forks (excellent).
Italian Veggie bake....... ok, I would say about 2 forks. Baked Veggies... that is pretty much it. I likes my veggies, but not the entire meal. (Thank goodness they let me have cornbread with it)
Kids rating... 1 fork.
Oriental Rice.... definitely 1 fork. Yuck. I like my rice with cinnamon and sugar. (and spray butter) I can eat it, but it has neither salt or sugar. I really need a touch of either.
****Kids rating... 1 fork for Zeb and Reece, 4 forks for Brock. (He INHALED it!) I told him to remove the fork from his plate before he gets hurt.
Salmon Patties... 5 forks! Yum! What can I say, I already made these before, so not anything new there.
****Kids rating...5 forks. No need to ask them to clean their plates with this one.
Portobello Burgers... 5 forks!! Double Yum! It was just like eating steak! Loved it!
****Kids rating ... 2 forks. Reece was the only one that tried it. I also had made hot dogs, just in case and Zeb & Brock, couldn't bring themselves to try it.
Roasted Potato Mix... 4 forks. This may have been better if the recipe told me to cook longer, but they were just a touch hard. Next time I will make it just abit longer.
****Kids rating... 4 forks. They liked this one.
Baked Tater with Broccoli, kidney beans, sweet peppers, low fat cheese and Salsa... 4 forks (surprisingly). I really had my doubts on this one, but I ate what it said (and my plate was FULL). The kids were not home when I ate this one, so I don't have a kids rating for this one.
Rotini with Steamed veggies... 5 forks! This was yummy. I am not a huge pasta fan, but I did like this one. Heck, even the kids did too!
****Kids rating... 4 forks.

Not so fun, and Fun at the Fair

Monday I began the Indoor Half-Ironman at the YMCA.
I swam first at a different Y, because I didn't want to share my lane for almost an hour worth of swimming. I kept having my goggle loosen up on one side, which was kind of nice then I was able to pause for a minute and catch my breath to adjust 'em.
I was going along great when I realized at lap 32, I still had 8 more laps to go. I had forgotten it was 1.2 miles, not just ONE. But I just kept going and got 'er done!
Then I headed to the other Y and hopped on a bike. I did the bike that you sit on like a chair (recumbent), not upright. I must say, I like the normal one better. I felt like I had to work harder to keep my legs horizontal, instead of just spinning. I did manage a short 1.1 miles on the treadmill too.

Tuesday I was pretty busy, but I knew we were taking the kids to the fair, so I wanted to get a good workout in. One hour on the bike. 20 miles.

Ironman totals so far:
Swim: Completed. 1.2 miles.
Bike: 30 miles done. (26 to go)
Run: 1.1 mile done. (12 to go)


Tuesday we took the kids to the fair, enjoyed beer battered cheese curds, funnel cake and corn on the cob. Hungry yet? mmmmm.
I weighed in for the morning and made certain that I worked hard on the bike for an hour that day, so I could enjoy the food at the fair.

On the way to the fair, I could hardly talk to Duner because the kids were making so much noise in the car. They were so excited to get to the fair.
The kids each got to try their fare with the games. They shot down cups to win a couple of plastic guns. Brock chose a large rubber ball instead. The kids spent about 30 minutes running between the Tilt-a-whirl and the Graviton rides. Zeb discovered how fun the Fun Slide was, and hit his head in the 'House of mirrors' by walking into a wall. He went for a couple of spins on a motorcycle and car rides. Zeb also thought the mini tractor pulls were fun. They had some lawn tractor pulls going on that night.

It was free to park and get in last night and they had wristbands for a set price, so the kids got to run and ride all night.

The bad part is the not so nice language that surrounds you and the DRAMA mama that yells and stops her feet 20 feet in one direction, then comes back again to tell all that she is 'outta here' after they don't seem to care that she left in the first place.

Some people are amazing.

It was cute, after with left, I heard Zeb say to Reece "That was a pretty good day, wasn't it Reece? We got our guns... and rides..."

Awwwww.

The big day.

On Tuesday was 'Brock's big day'.
His stack of papers arrived and it was time to deliver. Reece was making quick work of folding and rubber banding the papers while Brock read the 'rules' allowed.

Reece was a bit too excited to get 'er done. He was making the papers into mini bats. I should him how to fold them easier and a bit less like weapons.

Brock had about 4 different forms to fill out with the general questions, of name, address, phone...etc...
He played extra attention to detail, and was asking many questions about our address.
"It says 'street address and number', do I put our street then number after?"
After the first signature he said " What? I have to sign, (grumble)". He then went on to sign 2 more times. Each time moaning about his signature.

Later, He was looking for some wite out so he could fix his signature. I told him to forget it. It is his signature. A Doctor I know only signs with a single letter and a line-ish thing.

In the rules, it says he is not supposed to share the route with out them knowing, so he is going 'hire' Reece to drive him on his bike. Reece has a 'trick' bike, so Brock rides the back spike things while Reece pedals.

At first I thought Reece had the bad end of the deal, but Brock got a nasty little rubber burn on his leg so I think they are about even.

Zeb had a fun week at Kindergarten Readiness class talking about Zoo animals. His favorite is the Zebra, because his name is in part of it. I am going to frame this adorable picture he drew....

How Cute is this!!

Odds -n- Ends

1:Brock soon will be EMPLOYED. Yay! He is super excited right now. He will be delivering a local weekly shopper newspaper for $6 per week. We have to get him a work permit on Monday! Reece was extremely jealous, but Brock is already pawning, er... Sharing the working and payment with Reece. I honestly see Reece keeping up with it more than Brock but you never know. I hope I am wrong. You don't want to ANNOUNCE that to Brock, like Reece has, that is just setting him up to give it up.

2:The legos are now in, what is Brock's Room until we finish the basement. I am sick of the mess. Zeb is no longer allowed to touch them. Reece now has got my permission to take legos from Zeb's hands if he is playing with them.


3: I am DOING AN IRONMAN!! Ok, maybe a half Ironman... Ok, maybe an indoor half Ironman... oh yeah, did I mention it can be completed in 28 days? He. He.
Our Local YMCA is doing this INDOOR IRONMAN for their Strong Kids Campaign. We are on the honor system. (Honesty is one of the Y's core values) So we personally keep track of our miles and they keep them posted FOR ALL TO SEE until you complete it. I think I will live at the YMCA on July 21st and 22, just so I can finish in 2 days.
OR Not....
: )

Frustration

Out of frustration today I had the perfect motivation to get out and go for a quick 40 minute run.
Pace was great. Not quite 6 mph but I will take it. It felt good.

I was frustrated because my 5 year old is becoming a little brat.

Yet again we are having trouble picking up our toys. Specifically legos.

After 36 hours of trying various different forms of discipline that did not work (such as taking away his bike, paddling, grounding to his room till it was done, and finally threating to take away his birthday in September) I snapped and told him his birthday was OVER. It was canceled. Not happening.

Then I ran. It worked.

I came home to a half way (yes it was THAT BAD) picked up room!

As I came in my room to go to bed, Reece, feeling bad from my discipline of Zeb wrote me a note....

It said

"Mom, you should give Zeb a birthday party caue I heard you say no birthday party. From one of your kids, not Zeb of course."

Hmmm.
That kid has a heart of gold, considering how many time Zeb has ruined his 'Lego creations'.


I can't wait til they each have there OWN bedroom!!

*sigh*

Only 2 months away till we finish the basement....2 more months.

(Maybe I should threaten to paint his room purple and pink with butterfly's, flowers and hearts!)

Boys can be cruel...

Tonight some boys, 'friends' of Reece, show up.

It was kind of late, so they weren't going to be here long.

30 minutes later I was about to send them home when Reece came in asking if I could send them home, since he was bored.

Ok, I said. Tell them I said it is Time to go.

Just as Reece goes to tell them Brock comes in C-R-Y-I-N-G. Apparently one of the kids threw a ball at his head and kicked him in the groin.

Oh, SNAP.

"WHO!!?" I barked.

'Kyle" He muttered between whimpers.

K was a kid that I have been warned to watch out for. He has a brother that beats on him and treats him like dirt. His parents don't exactly do much about it. I feel bad, but he went to far, for two reasons... 1) Brock had his glasses on. 2) Brock is a 'awkward' and extremely prone to this kind of treatment. He really doesn't need this at his own home. Grrr.

He S-L-O-W-L-Y wandered to the front of the house to get on his bike, where I confronted him.
"So what happened?" I said directed to K, with 3 of his friends by him...
"Um, I didn't think it would hurt him." he says. (??? I know he can be dense but he is not wooden)
"Brock already has a crack in his glasses, and you just threw a ball at his head. Do you know how expensive that is to replace?" Ok, I know, he really probably doesn't care, but geez!!! I was ready to rip.
I asked him if he apologized for doing it and asked him what was stopping him from apologizing to him now... eventually he said he was sorry, but I am sure he won't be coming around here anytime soon.

I am glad I was home.

I really doubt Duner would have done much about that. Now I am supposed to go to sleep. I have no idea how that is going to work...

Fox Firecracker 5k!

Early Friday morning we all got up to wander down to our town's library for a 5k run / walk. Reece was acting like I was torturing him, but by the time we got there we were just fine.

He gets that from his father, who also acted like a pooper when I asked him to meet us there after plasma.

Sheesh.







Since the a Dr we work with was organizing the event, many of the girls from work actually signed up too! It was great to see all the girls doing this too! This was Dr Al's Nurse Tammy and a pharmaceutical Rep, Claudia, with me in the picture.
Tammy was cheering me on at High Cliff this year and hopes to do her very own Triathlon NEXT YEAR!!








This is Katie (on the left) and Angie (right) with yours truly in the mid section! They were thinking of doing the walk portion.
Katie also was cheering me on at High Cliff this year. It is so GREAT to see them here today!











This Race began with

"3 grown men jumping out of a perfectly good airplane"

...as Dr. Al put it. This is the second guy. I missed the first one he was going to fast for me. These pix are kind of deceiving, because he was much closer than he appears in this picture.




This was the 3rd guy. If you saw this arrive and you knew the area, you would be impressed. Needless to say we were on an island in our city, surrounded by water... and utility wires, lots!
They did a great job! I wonder how much that flag slowed him down.








I finished in 32 minutes. I did have to tie my shoe, again. Just like High Cliff. Zeb and Duner came RUNNING in first after me, then Reece, and Brock a little bit later. Zeb did a great job. He REALLY just wanted to finish before Reece. Considering all the hills we did I think we all did a excellent job! (Hey, we even had DONUTS AND COOKIES for the HALF WAY MARKER!!!) HOW COOL IS THAT? (guess who had 2 cookies? Zebbie of course!)
After the race we enjoyed pizza, chocolate milk, and good ol' American apple pie. Then we headed up north to watch the lunch parade at the cabin.

Now we are getting ready to launch some fireworks.

We have helicopters, airplanes, tanks, race cars, and parachutes... Do you see a theme?