Talkin' Track

I hope she catches the track bug.  I have always thought highly of it and its benefits.  

Her first track meet.  4th grade.  4 schools.

The Annual Festival of Milking-It-For-All-Its-Worth

My babes showing me the love.

 Olivia's Muffins for Mom breakfast at school

 She took a lot of Rob and a lot of me and combined it to make herself the tallest kid in her 1st grade class.  

Breakfast in bed with some of my very very favorites.  I never get to eat that many raspberries in one sitting.  Although, I did have a little beggar friend that hogged a few but she was so darn adorable that I didn't mind.

Gifts throughout the day.

Best gift from this one!!

Pesto chicken, french bread, watermelon, corn on the cob.

I thank God every day I was chosen to keep these children safe and happy.  I can't wait to become their best friend, not just mom.

At the speed of light...she is joyfully 1

May 18, 2013

Throughout the day, I had moments of reflection.  

Reflecting back to what I thought about the day she was born.

May 18, 2012

As I sat in the glow of the sunlit window, a purring tiny butterball of skin, sniffles and softness beside me. I breathe in, congratulating myself on doing the hardest thing any human can go through and the fact that I lived through it.  Beating the odds for the 5th time.  Lucky. I let my eyelids open and close, quietly and slowly and listened as muffled voices and joyful conversations happen downstairs.  Peace.  Content.  Preparation period before the crying and exhaustion set in.  Completely worn out but ready to run a marathon with the hormones battling around inside me.

I had planned on going to a church rummage sale and it is anticipated every year...alas, I went into labor the night before.  I was seriously considering going anyway since she would most definitely sleep the whole time I would be gone but we, as women, believe that we are more capable than we really are.  We are so overcome with exhaustion and bliss that the endorphins make you believe you can pick right up on normal life.  That is a big fat lie.  In reality, your body has just created a small universe and we NEED to sit down and do nothing but stare at our tiny milky ways.  So, being the wise, mother of 5 that I was, sat right down and let reality take over.  

back to May 18, 2013...

As I walked up the steps of the Presbyterian Church's annual garage sale, I was overcome with a wave of utter disbelief.  I was here, a year later, at the very rummage sale I had to miss.  It took me to a tiny happy place where the wind whispers in the trees, the sun always shines and where babies are minutes new.  It was my right of passage.  I had made it through the year and she is thriving!  I am thriving!  Babies are magical.

***************

Her day.  My 5th child to turn 1.  

Means low maintenance.

Under the sea marshmallow pops.

Static electricity balloons

A crepe paper sea, floating fish and a picnic table cloth.  

The birthday girl waits in anticipation...asking if it's time yet??!!

The cake.  A large, pathetic lavender cupcake from the grocery store.

Easy.

Not sure.

Trying it out for size.

The verdict?

It is GOOD!

Permission granted?

OK!  Green light!

Even more sugar.

Capturing her most famous year!!

Rachel Owens Photography

Ever hear of Team Thack Attack?

The Green River Marathon holds a special place in my heart.  I first ran this route in 2009 with 4 friends and I promised to come back.  This time I invited some family members to join me and boy did we love every second!!  

With team shirts and plenty of spirit, we hit the road in groups of 1 and 2.  The 26.2 mile route was split up so that everyone had 2 or 3 legs. 

 

Favorite part...running with my 3 sisters.

Unofficial Green River Marathon cheering squad.

Cathy and Julie

Susan

 Katelyn

Slade

A perfect day.  

Accomplishment is my chocolate

"I can go?!" is the reply that fell with surprise from my lips as I asked Rob if I could go on a "scrapbooking" weekend with my friend Lori.

Almost 3 full days to sit on my behind and focus on finishing years worth of projects.  I was pumped and couldn't think of a more luxurious getaway even if a massage on a beach in the Virgin Islands was offered.

So, I packed up a small craft store in the back of her van and we left one Friday afternoon in February.

*Now the reason I inform you of this trip is to let you know that if this sounds at all appetizing, you can also go.  They do it twice a year, two different locations but the outcome is the same. Just give me a ringy ding and I will hook you up with the details.

This particular location that they frequent every year in February is called The Great Escape in Monroe.  It is catered especially for scrapbookers, quilters and crafters.

 The room is set up with your very own table, wire shelf, chair and garbage can.  Bring extension cords, lighting and any luxuries you want at your fingertips.

All set up!!

Not so much into the traditional scrapbooking, more digital blog books for me.  I ended up spending Friday evening until midnight consolidating my hardcopy journals from 2007.

Saturday was a marathon of creating my 2011 digital blog book and let me tell you...pushing the SUBMIT button after 17 hours of staring at the screen and whisking my finished project off to publishing is one of the greater feelings in life!!  

Offering up 15 rooms (single, double and triples available), we checked into our dormitory and staked our personal space.  

Being fully catered for every meal, there was little to interrupt your trains of thought.  I haven't been on a thought train for that long of a ride in years.  It felt so good to focus.  Even clean up was done for you.  You could be the "eat and run" girl because that is the way it is set up.

Over the course of the weekend, we dined on lasagna, breakfast casserole, sandwiches, tacos, salads, desserts each night and any other food we brought.

But, there must always be a table full of treats to nibble on and Lori's contribution of Ghiradelli chocolate fit that bill.  

 Like I said, scrapbookers paradise!!  A die-cut machine with over 600 dies.  You could spend all day just at this station.  BYOP!

 One of the best tips Lori gave me the week prior was to have a crockpot meal in the fridge ready for the husband to pop in and press ON Sunday morning.  Nothing is worse than coming home from a relaxing weekend than to hungry, impatient kids.  Have dinner hot and ready when you walk in the door.  Roast beef was my poison.  

 These kinds of texts are a good thing when you have replenished your patience tank!

Incredibly rewarding was my overall feeling after 3days and 2 nights away.  I crossed some major projects off my "weighing me down" list and catching up on your memory logs records is really addicting.  Sensational was all this weekend was.  If you want 48 hours of "get'er dun" then you need to plan this into your yearly schedule.  I know it will be a regular trip for me.

My favorite things:

• Your personal area is open 24 hours.  You can stay up all night, get up at 5am or take a nap if you want to.  I even stole away for a run on Saturday and church on Sunday.  Monroe is just down the hill so you can get away for lunch, shopping or coffee.  
• Several times, in an effort to really hunker down and power through, I would put on my headset, crank up the tunes and blur out the chatter.  Lori and I were even bopping to the beat of our own music Sunday afternoon.  Silly to the uninformed onlooker, quite thrilling to the listener.  
• Boasting wifi, I could check email, facebook or just surf if I needed a break from my work.  I brought a large bin, a rolling cart, my entire desktop computer and my duffle bag and I am pretty sure I was the lightest traveler there.  Most came with bins and boxes and bags of crafting stuff.  Bring what you want, get into it!!
• Since I was watching my calorie intake, I brought my own food and with a fully stocked kitchen, there was no problem making my hot cereal in the morning.  
• Creative Memories is the sponsor of these weekends so of course they want you to buy their stuff.  Many discounts and supplies are available for purchase.