May Totals

I know you're waiting with bated breath for this. . .

This month I:

Ran 28 miles - (14 more than last month)

Biked 59 miles (whoops. . . 7 less!!!)

Swam 6 miles (one more)

Overall I am happy and where I should be. First race is two weeks from today. I'm getting excited! And in a stroke of good fortune, my Allergist of all people offered to let me use his sweet Tri bike for the next three weeks (instead of Gordon's mountain bike). He is a cyclist and was asking me about my training and was particularly interested in my biking. When he asked what kind of a bike I was riding, he was appalled to hear it was a mountain bike. I couldn't believe it when he offered to loan me his road bike (out of his arsenal of bikes, I think he has 6!). There are some good and generous people out there! I see this man once a year for a check up, he is very trusting. I'm excited to get out and ride. Looking forward to June 13th. . .

the Scooty and the Cutie

Do you know what a pedal-less bike is? We got one for Chandler for Christmas, and we always enjoy watching him sail around the neighborhood on his "scooty" bike. He can fly along almost as fast as the big guys, and he loves it! Here is a little sampling.

And, the cutie. Here is Emilee in her latest "mama-designed one of a kind." When I saw the fabric it called to me like a siren and insisted that I make it into a dress for a little girl who looks lovely in turquoise. So I did.Gordon asked me Sunday afternoon if I was going to start making a new dress for her to wear to church every week, and I must admit I thought that it sounded like quite a bit of fun. But I will try to restrain myself. Maybe.

Happy Trails

Yesterday Gordon went off on an adventure with the "big boys" and the boy scouts. They hiked 5 miles, to the top and back of Saddle Mountain. They hiked up and out of the clouds, and into a sunny day at the top. Everyone returned happy and exhausted!

While they were gone, I took the opportunity to zip down to Woodburn with the two little guys, to get Emilee some real shoes for outside playtime. What I thought would be a quick trip turned into quite an ordeal due to the craziness that is an outlet mall on a holiday weekend. It hadn't even crossed my mind! But, we survived, and Emilee now has shoes. Hurray!

cute is never out of season

While Gordon was out of town this week, I took some scraps I had and made this most darling coat for Emilee. It's sized to fit her next fall, so it's a little big still. I made it out of a piece of quilt that I had chopped off a Queen sized coverlet to make it fit a twin, and I'm so glad I did, because not only I, but Emilee thinks it's the cutest thing ever. This is the first thing I've made that I've seen true appreciation for (from her that is). She loves it! She won't let me take it off her and she even asks to wear it. She'll point to it and do her sign for more. It's perhaps one of the most satisfying feelings I've ever had finishing a project. And all it cost me was a package of snaps and some time.

Not to mention that it's the cutest thing ever. Even if summer is quickly approaching, now I have a good reason to welcome the cold weather again next fall (and maybe I'll just roll those sleeves up for blustery spring days now)! Hurray for cute!

Sicky Poo

Poor little Emilee is an icky sicky poo. She has some wheezing and a fever, and just doesn't feel well. So, now we get to do these little breathing treatments every few hours. Here she is demonstrating. . .

" See guys, I just stick it on like this and breathe. . ."
NOT. Even though she seems all just fine and dandy about it in the photos, she HATES it with a passion. When I get it down from the shelf she starts to panic, thrashing about and pushing it away as best she can. It's hard to hog tie her down and make her take it, but she breathes so much better afterwards. Unfortunately, it makes her kind of jumpy, which is making sleep kind of hard. Poor little thing! I hope it's a speedy recovery!

Toddling Along!

It's official! After a little "walking intervention" this weekend with Daddy and I, Emilee has gained some new found confidence! Do I have to call her a toddler now?

A visit from Laura

This weekend my dear friend Laura came for a visit with her cute little boy Grayden. Laura and I go back 16 years, we figured out! We really became friends our Junior year of High School. Here we are at our 18th birthday party that we planned and threw together, looking oh so young, and wearing our cutest outfits, I'm sure. And apparently we had a pinata! (I only remember the limbo, no pinata!)
Heading off to the Prom with Jamie there in the middle. . .

And wearing her mothers old clothes from the seventies for a dance of some sort. That's Jamie there on the end as well. . .

We had so much fun! We headed to the Elementary school carnival with our 5 kids, the farmers market, and just had a wonderful time staying up late (is 11 late for you?, it is for me!) and just catching up. Here is Laura with her cute little Gray - look at those eyes!

And here we are together. I don't know, I think the 16 years has done us both some good, don't you?

Thanks for the wonderful visit Laura! I'm so glad you made your way down right before your big move across the country! The boys adored Gray and haven't stopped talking about him and the cute things he says. I'd say come again soon, but I think Tulsa is a bit of a stretch for a weekend visit! :) So I'll just say thanks again for the fun!

sunny skies make for happy days

Could it be?

Much to my delight, over the past couple of weeks, whenever Emilee wakes up sweaty from a good nap, or takes a dip in a steamy tub, she turns to this. . .

Could this be the begining of another curly top? They are starting to remind me of how these little curls got started about 7 years ago. . .I sure wouldn't mind if the trend continued!

tell me before you pull!!!

Last night I got to try my own hand at a little tooth yanking. I let Aidan turn on the wii, and before he knew it he'd lost his first tooth! He said, "just tell me before you pull!!!" And then was very surprised to learn it was already out.

He's so excited!!!

I can't believe the tooth fairy's going to be coming for two at our house now!

skillz

I don't know why it tickles me so much when I discover my kids can do something (quite well) that I had no idea they could do. Last Friday I picked up a hula hoop at Winco thinking how fun it would be to teach the boys to use it. Aidan quickly showed me that he had already learned that in PE. (as had Ethan) Nothing makes me giggle more right now than watching them swing those hips. Aidan is particularly wiggly! Enjoy!

Ho Daddy!

We are SO ready for a little sunshine around here. It rained BUCKETS and cats and dogs and meatballs today. I kept looking out the window wondering if we should be building an ark. Anyway, it didn't stop us from dreaming a little bit of this summer's adventures to come. Last week I outfitted the boys with "surf camp shoes" (aka Crocs) and this week I picked up some great rash guards at the REI sale. Chandler didn't want to take his off and is already dreaming of a little California sand, surf, and sun.

Standing up for herself

Our girl Emilee is a great stander! She can lean,

and twist,

hold still,

turn,

and flap her arms all around.

and even squat and stand up from the ground on her own.

In fact, she's become quite a talented stander! But ask her to take a step. . . and the answer is no. She always gets down and crawls. She has not taken a step since her first steps on April 6th. One of these days, she's going to take off walking. . . and you better believe I'll be posting when she does, so stay tuned!

Creativity Revisited

After painting my bathroom, I kept looking into the boys bathroom, and thinking how it could really use some sprucing. So, I spruced. This is the before. . . I liked it! But the white on top really needed a new coat, and I just wanted something simpler. So,

this is the after.

I love it! The color is "Aqua Breeze" and that's exactly what it feels like. Refreshing and calm. A little bit turquoise. Ah. . . so much better.

These are some aprons I made for Christmas presents. All the ladies in our family got one this year. Here is a sampling. Cute, huh!

and these fruit pin cushions, love those!
and this one the ladies with summer babies will appreciate. I have finally solved the flutter sleeve problem. No onesie under, their shirts are constantly flying up. Onesie, and they stick out two inches below the sleeves. So annoying. I have been looking for onesies like this forever, but have finally given up. I even tried to write to Carter's to tell them that there was a need and a host of mothers who would buy these, but I got an email back saying they cannot take "consumer suggestions." Humm. . . Anyway, I found some little tanks at Kohls, and stitched them to the bottom of worn out onesies, then trimmed off the top. A five minute project. I'm so excited!

First Recital

Ethan had the opportunity to play in his first piano recital last night. He did a wonderful performance, and we so enjoyed going! We are so pleased at how quickly Ethan has taken to the piano and hope that he will continue right along! Enjoy. . .

The Merry Farmer

and what else. . . STAR WARS!!!