January 23rd to January 29th

Week of Jan 15th

I was not looking forward to this theme.

Fast forward to Sunday afternoon. Paul went to play guitar w some guys, kids were with their mom, 5 loads of laundry were almost done, and all my other craft projects stalled out. I had already Skyped with Elli, Michael and the Cutest Girls in the Universe (why can’t THAT be a theme!?) so I got out the quilt project. Excuse me…The Quilt Project.

And it occurred to me as I laid out 64 square feet of fabric of my life…

This is my self-portrait.

I have filled in the 2 gaps, but did not retake the pic. Used the T shirt that was our coaching "uniform" when Paul and I coached Tyler's basketball team this season.

Of course I got behind quickly (very similar to my athletic races these days), but am not caught up, have a custom template that I love and am ready to share! Some things will overlap, some will be new (like you probably don’t need a play by play of Maggie and I making a car trip to the store to get me a Diet Pepsi on my work-at-home Tuesdays), and some are too big to share in the photo-a-day/page-a-week project (of course I am talking about my grandmother-in-law shanking my tire story).

Would love any suggestions for photo ops, questions you have about our daily do-ings and requests.

January 1-7, 2012

This week’s theme was “I Dreamed a Dream” in honor of the MLK holiday. Welp, on Monday Paul was at work, kids were at Robin’s and I had the whole day to make my dream come true. I went to the Natural Science Center with a plan to work on aperture and shutter speed. It was pretty chilly, but the tigers did not disappoint. I set up “camp” near their enclosure and went to work taking photos and notes as I clicked. After awhile a little girl came up asking me what I was doing. I told her I was taking pictures of the tigers.

Then she asked me, “For a book?”

I smiled to myself and said, “Someday, kiddo. Someday.”

Now I need your help because I want to be a professional photographer. Biz sent me a link to a contest that I KNOW I can win if you take a second to vote. I entered the following 4 photos, vote for 1 or all, plus please forward to everyone in your email contacts, please!

Bird at sunrise

To vote for “Bird at sunrise” click here: http://bit.ly/nNgrxp

Having a blast on the boogie board!

To vote for “Having a blast on the boogie board” click here: http://bit.ly/rdN35U

Sunrise on N Myrtle Beach

To vote for “Sunrise on N Myrtle Beach” click here: http://bit.ly/p8CPTy

Water fun!

To vote for “Water fun!” click here: http://bit.ly/pXjpuq

There were 11 obstacles over the course, the last one being a knee deep mud pit with barbed wire over it forcing you to crawl through the mud. My (luckily old about to be donated) running shoes sucked right off my feet the first 2 steps into the pit. I should have trusted my instincts and cannonballed into the pit.

Spectators lined the length of the mudpit.

Two obstacles worried me the most. First was the 2 story high wall to scale over. There was a rope you could climb, but I hadn’t done that since 6th grade… MANY lbs ago. There were 2x4s every 5 feet or so on the side to climb up. I used a combination of rope and 2×4 to get up and over. Second was “Black Out.”  I am not really fond of the dark at all.  This was a short tent-like structure covered in black plastic in the middle of the woods. It was about knee-high, about 50 yards long. We army crawled through it trying not to run into each other. Every 10 yards or so we ran face-first into plastic flaps hanging down, making us think that we were almost done, only to crawl into another “room.”

Maybe I should have a little more sense, but I was not really nervous about the 2nd to last obstacle–jumping over fire. Twice.

Demonstrating my mad vertical leap over the fire pit.

Chris from the Greensboro store’s paint department recommended the Homax kit:

Homax Caulk Refinishing Kit

Not only did it have a tool to remove caulk, but it also had a separate tool for applying the caulk! All for $5!! It kicked ass for removing the caulk.  I used it when applying the silicone caulk and got the opposite result. It looked like butt when I used it on the silicone caulk. When I used it on the latex caulk (long story why I used 2 kinds of caulk), it was back to kicking ass instead of looking like ass. Interesting findings. I am glad I bought it even if Paul did laugh at me. He recommended I use a screw driver. Funny thing was my dad said he often just used a screw driver.

Maybe the moral of the story is not buy the proper tools for the job. Instead it is girls really do marry their fathers!

The four of us (Mom, Dad and twelve-year-old twin boys) are bicycling from Alaska to Argentina. When we reach the southernmost tip of South America, Davy and Daryl will become the new Guinness World Record holders as the youngest people to cycle the Pan-American Highway!

Wow. It makes me think about long bike rides that Paul and I have gone on. Let’s just say that Paul now carries some cheese to go with my whine. Now add 2 kids, whoa. Then doing school on the road–they call it roadschooling, like homeschooling–get it!? HA! Again, I think about nights at the table with Anna and/or Tyler with their homework. Tears flow, voices are raised, frustration abounds. Then add on prep with no supplies except that which you find on the road or carry on your bike?!

Lastly, eating. Paul is a frickin’ saint. Anna won’t even eat turkey on her sandwich anymore. Mayo and an American slice of cheese on bread, with the crusts cut off of course. Tyler can change his mind 3-4 times about liking something within the span on the same dinner. Can you imagine traveling to other countries on a bike (talk about a Very Hungry Caterpillar!) then get off and there is no Harris Teeter to go get skim milk, hormone free chicken or ingredients to even make tortillas (not that they have a kitchen to make stuff in anyhow). Don’t even think about access to McDonald’s, Domino’s, etc.

Surfer Laird Hamilton says he lives his life well by doing something to scare himself every day. Whether you prefer scaring, inspiring, motivating yourself, I think it is a good message. This family is a good example of this.

What about the motto you ask? I guess if I am ditching goals, I should ditch mottos too, huh?

OK, off to wander aimlessly through life now…

So, here we are and according to the main page on our website, Paul and I race the White Lake Half Iron Triathlon in 8 days. 8 days?!?!? When did THAT happen?!?! I am only worried about my asthma now. I anticipate the race taking about 7 hours, which is hard enough w/out suffering from or recovering from respiratory illness. But alas, I have this motto…

NEVER FORFEIT AN ENTRY FEE!!!

Last month one reader was inspired to re-start her running career–what does March have in store for you?

Sunday morning jam session

I wanted to add some pics to our site. Not much to say really. Paul has been playing his guitar a lot lately, which has made Anna want to play too. It makes Tyler sad he destroyed his drum set.

Paul, dogs and Barton (L corner of the couch)

The cats have really relaxed quite a bit in the last few months so there are some cute pictures of that too.

Lizardhead (Tyler's Webkinz) on Paulhead

I love this pic of Anna

Goal update: I am doing well at “active recovery.” Better than we are doing at completing unfinished projects, that is for sure. Taxes are done, Anna and I had some girl time (pic here too),

veggies suck but I learned that you get a TON of spinach for only a few calories so that is what is helping me get that goal checked off. Journaling is sketchy, but I have the rest of the week to get 1 more entry.

Tyler and Bluesy bonding

Still on a book slump, but I started Purpose Driven Life this week so perhaps it will be a hit. Everyone else in the world seems to love it according to the critics. Paul’s mom suggested that perhaps because I am on a slump I should write my own book (see bucket list to the right).

Anyhow—see the tab to the right or click here to read my list. PS. I have not been diagnosed w a terminal illness.

XO,

S

Glass Castle by Jeannette Wells is excellent! It is a memoir so although I found it in the non-fiction section, it may very well fall in the category of Million Little Pieces (autobiographical fiction). It was recommended to me by my boss, Lisa Pennington. It is about her family growing up in various places, although her “formative years” were in WVa. It makes crazy look like Beaver Cleaver’s family. But as you will read on the reviews, you can tell as you read the story that she loves her parents and knows they did their best—even at their worst.

Great theme for me as I work on my step-mother skills, which some days seems like all out of a Cinderella fairy tale. Is there a fairy tale where the step mother is NOT wicked? THAT is the book I need to read.

Now Paul has gotten into the act. He purchased several sheets of peg board and put it up in the garage. Then he hung his bike maintenance tools (there are 4 shelves of a workbench full of them). We did this on Sat afternoon so while the kids played outside and Paul did that, I spent all that time cleaning out and organizing the garage! AWESOME! Here are the lessons we have learned:

1–Home Improvement Formula: (# hours spent on project) x (1.79) = number of trips to the home improvement store. It took us 5 trips.

2–We have found the limitation to the Honda Fit (see Laminate Flooring post). We wanted 8×8 peg boards cut in half, and after waiting 38 minutes (literally, I know I exaggerate, but I am not here) for some guy to have 27 cuts made (I counted, thinking of the entertainment you, the reader, would get out of this) we went to the car only to find out 4×4 sheets will not fit in the car.  So we returned to the store for additional cuts (this still counted as 1 trip in the formula). At least we made the man cutting the wood smile.

3–There are always unexpected surprises when you clean out a garage. Like bike tools you have been looking for, toys you didn’t know you had, and dead squirrels. Yep–I moved the steam cleaner and there it was. I think I wet my pants. Tyler offered to pick it up for us. Paul again saved the say with a Wal-Mart plastic bag and plenty of anti-bacterial soap.

Stay tuned for the building of loft storage for the garage! Whooo hoooo!!!

This is a great representation of what I would like out of my 2009. Physical, mental, environmental health and wellness. This is something I have been thinking about for the last month, anticipating the new year and my resolution(s).  What kind of woman (athlete, employee, friend) do I want to be? Wife (training partner, partner)? Step-mother (role model, fun haver)? How do I do that all? Who do I think I am to think I am the first woman to struggle with these questions?

Most of you who know me know I am very black-and-white, VERY uncomfortable with grey area. But that lesson seems to keep offering itself to me to learn. All of what I want to be (see above) is linked to that grey area. Perhaps that is what my 2009 theme needs to be: Grey and loving it! …ok, how about grey and liking it!