My better half...

Last Saturday I ran my half marathon. I missed my projected time by 7 minutes, but I felt great for finishing. Celebrate with me, I am practically a runner.

A little bitter, a little sweet

It is hard to put into words what it is like to hand your little child off to the big world of public education, but I did it again yesterday. Sigh, life keeps on going at mach speed. Next week, Mimi meets her teacher, then starts preschool the following week. I see driving, college, marriage and children for them looming on the horizon. Strangely enough, I still see myself as 15, if only I had the energy and the abs that I did back then...

So Sew

I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned that I own a sewing machine, but I do. A fantastic little Bernina that I bought at a garage sale for $35.00. Yes, you read that right. But I don't do much sewing, nothing blog-worthy anyway. I tend to mend things that are falling apart, whip up the occasional tag-blanket for a new baby, head-bands for my head, and a pair of towel pants for B's swimming last winter. But really, I have no real skills, and until now, why even bother trying to improve them when my mother-in-law has mad skills and can help me with anything that I need? Miss Mimi is going to be starting preschool in a few weeks (eeks, I can't believe it!). A girl that loves to dress in beautiful dresses and skirts but can't resist the siren call of a somersault must have some spanky panties to go along with her. So, or should I say 'sew', I've been rummaging around and have determined that there is no such thing as a modest-type of undergarment for a little girl who is out of diapers. I am determined to make my own. Exciting, yes? Today I began Operation Spanky Panties, in which I waged full assault against the dungeon of my laundry room, where there is a very handy shelf/table unit built right in. So far, it has been covered in crap from every station of life, but no more! I cleaned it all out, and got it ready for sewing. Tomorrow, I order my pattern, and perhaps look into buying some nice cotton fabrics and sewing supplies. No child of mine will be showing her Dora undies to the world outside this door, no sir! I can't wait to get started.
Here is the sewing area in all its glory (including the sewing machine up on the second shelf), now all I need is a nice little stool to reach the table and I'll be in business. It still looks a little dull and uninteresting down there, but I plan to paint it as soon as I have some time. Also, for some reason, the perspective in this photo makes it look like there is no room under the table, but there is plenty. Weird. Notice the bin of knitting stuff down on the floor? Yeah, it is lonely and needs my attention too.

I almost forgot to mention that I am running a half-marathon on Saturday, with one of my dearest friends of all time. We are doing the Georgetown to Idaho Springs 1/2 and I am a wee bit nervous, but should probably be more so. I am a little concerned that my shoes have given up the ghost, and there is no money in the running budget for a new pair, nor would I want my first run in a new pair to be that long. So, wish me luck that I will be able to walk, come Saturday around 10:25 am (my projected finish time, if all goes well). Till next time.

Tweaking toward perfection

Ok, I've been playing around a little with background and font color on this here blog. I think things are looking pretty good, official even. We'll see if my new look will inspire some new knitting. Let me know if the font is easier to read now, and don't forget to feed the fish when you stop in!

Here is a lovely flower for what troubles you. Even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. (Although this is a Colorado Columbine, not a lilly of the field, but still.)

Home at last

It's that time of year again, where I lament how fast time flies, how I claim that next summer will be much less busy and how I swear that school starting will be a welcome break from my over-stretched and traveled summer. Whew, glad I got that out of the way.

We had a wonderful trip to VA to see my sister-in-law and her family, which was also the first time 2 of my 3 kids has flown on an airplane. It was quite an adventure, believe me. Let us just say that my kids may have been the reason that half the Midwest missed their connecting flights out of MI. If you flew out of Detroit on June 22, and were stalled by kids stopped on the moving sidewalk, or on the escalators, or at the handless paper dispensers in the bathrooms, or at the check in kiosks or at the applestore vending machine, or fighting over who pushed the buttons on the elevator, I apologize. Those were my kids. The novelty of such things never ceases to amaze my kids. If I hadn't been so freaked out about them being run down by angry travelers, I may have shared in their excitement. As it was, I played the part of the frazzled mom of three young children. They are actually wonderful travelers, in cars, on planes and subways, and every time I saw a toddler throwing themselves to the floor, I counted my blessings that my kids are so great.

Virginia was a great time, the kids spent every spare moment in the swimming pool, except for Jack, who spent every spare moment testing the water and freaking out about his face getting splashed. It is time to get that boy into swim lessons. By the end of the week, he was fine, though and was actually enjoying the water. B has spent some time in VA and DC with my mother-in-law, so he was old-hat at most of the activities. We spent two days in DC, which was an adventure. We caravaned in two cars, and yours truly actually drove in the crazy traffic. We saw the Smithsonian and the Lincoln Memorial and walked around the Washington Mall. It was a lot of fun, even when we were hot and the wheels had come off the bus, as far as the kids were concerned.

We also visited Virginia Beach for an afternoon, which was the only thing that Mimi requested we do. We all had good, sandy fun and got lots of sun too. What a great trip!

By the time we flew out, we were all ready for a rest and reprieve at home. But does that sound like a typical summer for us? Oh no. We barely got our bags unpacked and we were packing again, this time to see my family in Durango. I tell ya, it is time to hang up my traveling shoes and put on my slippers. School starts in a mere two weeks, and I am looking forward to the routine and the mellow....wait, didn't I already say all this, last summer??

Say it ain't so

Oh dear, I just saw a headline stating "Day-glo is Back in a Major Way" This makes me want to curl right up in my not-fabulous hoody sweatshirt and out-dated boot cut jeans and cry. Why must we relive the late 80's and early 90's? Didn't that era cause enough sno-blindness the first time around? Sigh, I am too young to be retro. Now I know how my mother must have felt when I wanted to dress in her old 501 Levi's with a pair of Birkenstocks and walk around flashing peace signs and listening to the Beatles. Sorry, mom. I guess I'd better go find my Jackie-O sunglasses, I'm probably gonna be needing them.

Summer in full-force

We are about to end a 2 week travel hiatus when we board a plane early Monday morning, headed toward Virgina to see those people that we love out east. The kids are so excited to be riding a plane, and I'm excited to see a part of the country that I've never been, and some family to boot. We plan to go to DC for a few days to take in some sights there as well. I'm hoping to get the kids on the new playground equipment at a certain Pennsylvania address, and maybe get some fresh produce from their garden while I'm at it. How do you think it will go over? Do you suppose they are more strict about letting people play on their swing set than they are about their airspace??

We spent the first week of summer vacation in New Mexico, visiting our dear friends in Los Alamos and making up for lost time. The kids and I went down for a brief visit over Thanksgiving break, but it was really too short to see everyone and get to spend quality time with each of my friends. This visit was so refreshing and wonderful. We stayed with a family that has become family to us, and we enjoyed a week of staying up late, getting up early, eating a thousand wonderful foods and really, just catching up. It was great, I was zonked, and when we got back to the rancho, our fabulous Albuquerque cousins were there to greet us. It is always so nice to see the kids play with their cousins, and they all get along so great. It is always a special time, and of course I have no pictures, because that is how I seem to vacation. But imagine all the giggling, swinging, running, bed-jumping, ice cream eating, lap-sitting, kid silliness that you can cram into a single day, and you will have a pretty good idea of how things went. We had planned to stay for a few days, but by Sunday night, Jack came to me with his eyes welling with tears and asked if he could just go home. Of my three, he is the one who emotes the most, so I decided it was about time. When I asked B, he said he was really missing his dog, so we packed the car and off we came to surprise Juan 2 days early.

Here is a warning: never surprise a man who has lived as a bachelor for over a week. You wouldn't like to see the state of my kitchen when I got home. I knew that his intention was to fish until his shoulders gave out as often as possible, then collapse in a heap on the couch each night. Apparently, housework didn't figure into that plan until the very last night before, or more likely, the very early morning of my return. Let's just say he doesn't do proactive housework. But it behooves me to call ahead, even when kids want to surprise someone, otherwise, you never know what you might find rotting in the sink when you get home.

We have been enjoying the backyard, which finally has some grass, the kids spent the afternoon out there running in the sprinkler. It looks so much better, and it has really cut down on the dirt that comes into the house. I really love this house, and there is great potential in the backyard, as you can see.

We have a tree that has an aphid problem, but the good part of having aphids is all the ladybugs that are here, there are so many, and if you spend time up-close watching, you can actually see some of them devouring the pesky things. It is worth watching. The kids are as impressed as I am.

This is the Hawthorn tree in full bloom the week before I left, it was so beautiful. There are no blooms left now that it has really turned from spring to summer, but they were a sight to see while they lasted.
If I remember my camera, and then remember to actually use it, there may be a few pictures of our next trip. Until then, keep well, and keep cool. Summer is upon us!