First Triathlon

After a summer of swimming lessons, both Nina and Rollin learning to ride bikes without training wheels, and tons of running around the yard, I thought a perfect ending to the summer would be a kid's triathlon. Kirkland held a kid's triathlon on Saturday as a prelude to the much larger adult event on Sunday. Sela and Nina were excited about the idea and I knew that once we got to the race, Rollin would be dying to participate. I just went ahead and signed them all up. He was the only 3 year old, but there were several fours so I knew he could blend in. Lisa signed Sam up as well so we met for one official training session at the river trail to try and give the kids an idea of the running and biking distances. They were super pumped and confident after this test run of sorts.

We also did some bike trading. When it was all said and done, Sela rode her new bike, Sam rode Nina's (it was Sela's old one that Nina can ride but isn't too comfortable on just yet), Rollin rode Sam's cool green bike, and Nina rode Rollin's yellow spider bike. Everyone was super stoked with their set of wheels!

The morning of the triathlon it was pouring rain. It had been sunny and gorgeous the day before, of course. And the day after, I might add. Anyway, I decided to go get the packets early and bring the kids down closer to the race time so they wouldn't get tired of waiting in the rain. Well, things moved much faster than they publicized and we barely made it back in time to get the bikes checked into the transition area and the kids all ready to go.

There was some confusion as to the Swim division versus the Swim/Splash division so I figured for the first year they would all go in Swim/Splash. Plus the water was pretty chilly. It turns out the swim/splash was all splash and no real swim. Sela should have done the swim, but they all had so much fun anyway. Next year we'll know better and won't worry about the proper attire for each leg of the race. Most just stayed in their wet bathing suits. Some kids kept their swim caps on under their helmets, others ran through the finish line with their bike helmets on, etc, etc. Basically they all just wanted to GO GO GO and did not care about proper footwear or staying warm. Rollin did great and biked his little heart out. Nina loves to run so she came across the finish line with a skip in her step. And Sela was asking to do it again next year right away. For some reason, even though the kids had timing chips on, their times didn't get recorded so we don't know what their times were. But that's okay. It was all about the experience.

This little race was such fun for the kids. I just loved cheering them on from the sidelines. They felt like they accomplished something big. We definitely have ourselves a new tradition!

I used my little waterproof camera because of the rain, so the pictures are pretty lousy.




Sela said they all had some pre-race jitters while waiting and that Rollin and Nina looked "really scared."


And they're off!

Sela and Sam

These kids will do anything for a medal!

Go Nina!

Rollin never changed shoes for the run! I think his competitive juices took over and there was no time to waste!

Sam did awesome!

Happy are kids who finish and have buckets of candy, crackers, and water bottles waiting!

Goodness Grapes

Jock and Jill

Zig ran the Jock and Jill half marathon on Labor Day. I thought he did great having only been back into fairly serious running for about a month. He ran a 7 minute mile and his time was 1:34. He, of course, was not satisfied. He beat his time from the last half marathon he ran ten years ago on our honeymoon in Paris. It drizzled the whole time, which actually felt good.

I ran the 4.2 miler. My motivation was to finish fast enough that I could run to the car, drive home, nurse Evan, and see Zig finish. I did that. Fortunately, we live right up the hill from where the race took place. Another highlight of the race for me was having an eight year old running at my heals the whole time. Nothing says you suck like getting beat by a small child (yes, she passed me at the end). I ran a 10.2 minute mile. In other words, I ran slow :) I've run about six times in 8 months so I wasn't trying to break any records. But it was fun and a great start to the day.

We're getting there....

We're slowing falling back into a routine. And it does feel nice. I enjoy having the little boys at home in the morning. And I look forward to meeting Nina at the bus. She loves school so far and told me she enjoys "chatting" with Kate and Carly on the bus ride home. All three girls sit together in a seat. Sela's teacher has a class pet, a guinea pig. Need I say more? Sela is in heaven.

Rollin helped me make an after-school snack for the girls. We tried out the 101cookbooks Peanut Butter Crispy Treats and they were delicious. They could have been less sweet so I'll probably cut down on the maple syrup next time. But they were easy and Rollin could not wait to serve them to Nina and her friend, Kate.

Even little guys can make these!

Sensitivity training might be in order....

As we walked out of the tennis club tonight, I held the door open for a man about my age in a wheel chair. No legs from about the knees down. I glanced at Rollin and he had that look. The look all moms know. The wheels are turning and something highly inappropriate that will likely embarass both parties is about to be uttered.

He hesitated but still looked puzzled, even anxious. The man in the wheel chair was between us so coughing loudly, talking over him, or redirecting his attention were not possible.

Then Rollin moved very close to the man and politely said "uh, could you please not run over me with that thing!"

Fortunately the guy had a sense of humor and he started laughing. He said "Don't worry, I have twin four year olds!"

Never, ever a dull moment with Rollin.

treehouse

It's been a long wait for these anxious little kiddoes. About 16 months or so. But Ben and Eric worked like crazy to get the treehouse ready this week and Saturday afternoon the big moment arrived. No one has been allowed up since the beginning so all the kids have seen has been from below which has totally added to the magic and anticipation. I think they must have asked Eric a hundred times on Friday "is it done yet?" Zig spent a few hours Saturday morning adding some fun touches to the inside. And then we gathered the kids along with Sophia, Emma, and Sydney and led them up to their new little getaway in the trees. I don't know what I enjoyed more, watching Zig beam as they explored their new space or the looks on the kids faces. What a memorable day! The videographer had some difficulties so you might get a little motion sick watching this :)

After more than a year of waiting, the treehouse is finally complete. Come on in!




Rollin was just a little bit excited.


A ramp leads to a swinging bridge


The front door

the kids made a "no shoe" rule

this is the ladder leading up to the loft

Another way to get to the treehouse is to climb the ropes


Some of the windows salvaged from an old tear down house and painted

back porch


who's lookin' out the window!



the old bed...the cushions were white so they are being recovered



monkey ropes beneath

the table is one of Zig's finds

Ben made a balance beam

tire swing from a racing tire



more fun on the ropes

Can we just live here? It would be so much easier to keep clean ;)


And the man who built it all!
To say the kids adore Eric is an understatement!


Zig came up with the design and most of the details and Eric made it happen. They make a great team!

Back to School

I am so not ready for summer's end. I mean REALLY, REALLY not prepared. Summer was going along so nicely and them BOOM. Done. I felt like I had things under control this summer and somewhat organized. This is partly because I was putting things off because it was summer. Now I have schedules, parent nights, classes, etc., and the calendar is filling up so very quickly. I flipped backward to July yesterday and saw almost a blank slate. It felt so calm, and I longed for a few more weeks with all the kids home. I am a summertime Mom for sure!

Typically I look forward to fall with more excitement. I usually feel ready for the change, the food, the crisp cool weather, the structure, and all the fun firsts that a new school year brings. But I'm just not there yet.

However, school started today anyway. And I tried to show some enthusiasm even though I am incredibly bummed that our blissful summer has come to a screeching halt. I think the reason we had such a wonderful summer is because we didn't overschedule. We did our tennis, the occasional outing, but stayed home a lot. Everyone was happier and Evan was able to fall into a nice little schedule.

I took the girls school shopping this weekend. We all went looking for jeans and shock of the century, each one of us had luck at the Gap of all places! They have tons of new styles and have recently done a complete overhaul of their jeans for both kids and adults. It was awesome. I didn't expect to actually find jeans that looked half way decent but I found four styles that I loved. And an even a bigger shocker is that they aren't $150 bucks like all the jeans seem to be now. They're around $60. This made for a very good day. Shallow I know, but jeans and bathing suits are so tough and to hit a home run in at least one of those departments was nice. I don't expect the same for the bathing suit search. Somehow Nina smooth talked her way into another new pair of shoes!

Tuesday we had the Meet and Greet at the school. Andrea came to watch the boys while I took Sela and Nina to get little pedicures to celebrate the beginning of a new school year. And their feet were in DESPERATE need of some attention. Sela's were literally stained brown from playing so hard outside this summer. I kept telling her to wash her feet when I would catch a glimpse at home and she kept saying "I did, MOM!! They're clean!" I decided it was time to see the professionals. She and Nina loved the entire process and couldn't believe how soft their feet felt. They enjoyed being pampered and expressed a desire to do this every month. I explained to them that it was a special treat and I didn't get my first pedicure until I was in college. We then headed to the school to see their new classrooms and meet the teachers.

Both girls have wonderful teachers. Sela's class only has 20 children. Two of Nina's best buddies from church are in her class along with a neighbor which helps make the transition easier.

Nina found her bee to place in the beehive. I felt more excited after the meet and greet! There was so much enthusiasm and energy from both the kids and teachers which was fun to see.

These girls were excited...and silly! They had a special breakfast of strawberries and cream, scrambled eggs, and a pan au chocolate. Then we scrambled to the car to meet the bus.

My baby girl off to Kindergarten
More kids at the bus this year!
Nina and Sydney, our next door neighbor!

Nina arriving at school...a little bit nervous.
There's Sela praying I'm not taking pictures of her :) This little boy who sat next to her, Matthew, is the sweetest kid.

Time to say goodbye.

Nina found her friend, Kate. She now looks far less nervous. They held hands all the way to the classroom.

We love you, Nina!

And just like that, we closed the door on summer!