What do Lao-tzu and Dairy Queen have in common?

I guess you could say I'm hooked.  I never thought I would be a runner but I guess it really is official now. 

This weekend Jennifer and I competed in our second 5k with Jamie and Beth R. (a couple of the other ladies we ran the Race for the Cure with!)  We ran the Beat the Heat which was held at 7:00pm on Saturday night.

Unlike the Race for the Cure, this race was sponsored by a running club and there were only 659 runners.

And ample parking and Port-A-Potties.

There were lots of serious runners at this race.  You know the kind.  The ones that are supper thin and super fast.  But we didn't let that stop us.  Because you have to start somewhere.

They didn't use timing chips at this race so even though my finish time was 5 seconds slower than the first race, I am subtracting at least 30 seconds (or maybe more) to account for the fact that I didn't cross the start line when the gun sounded. 

So there was a little tiny bit of  improvement in my time.  (Good!)  And I haven't been crazy sore like last time.  (Better!)  And I was able to run three miles this morning unlike after the last race when I wasn't able to run three miles again for over a week. (Best!)

So, yes.  I guess I'm hooked!  And I'm still marveling at the fact that 6 months ago I had never even run 1 mile - much less three - consecutively - and in 30 minutes! 

So I guess Lao-tzu was right.  A journey of a million miles really does begin with one step!

Oh, and going to Dairy Queen for Blizzards after the race is a great incentive too!

Here we are before the race getting rained on.  The rain stopped before the race started and left things nice and humid and muggy.  Oh, and aren't we cute in our matching shirts??  Our motto - If you can't be fast, be cute!

Here we are approaching the finishing line.  And yes, that's Jennifer ahead of me.  What can I say, I'm older than she is!

And here I am crossing the finish line.  Jennifer has already crossed and some other person trying to be cute by wearing pink has zoomed in front of me.  (The nerve!)

Home. Even without the donuts it's a very good place to be.

Ahhhhhhh....

That's the sound I made last night when I finally slid into my bed after 11 days of vacation.

Vacation is always great but nothing beats sleeping in your own bed.

We made our annual summer pilgrammage to Cape Cod.  And I must say, it was wonderful.  We had sun the entire week which means I have more sun now on this old body than I have had since before the kids were born and I had time and money (and not much sense) and could go to the tanning bed.

We got to play in the water, build sand castles, ride bikes and eat donuts for breakfast - every day.

That's right.  Donuts for breakfast every day.  (Well, except the morning that we had homemade blueberry buckle and that's basically cake which might as well be a donut.)  So, yes.  Donuts for breakfast every day.

Today will be spent getting back into the groove of things.  Dan's heading off to work.  The kids and I will be playing with our much-missed BFFs at the pool today and I'll be trying to figure out what to do with all the tomatoes and cucumbers that have overtaken our garden.

Yep.  It's good to be home!

All I can do anymore is sigh...

Several months ago at the school book fair, Sarah won this poster.  Adorable, isn't it?  Sarah insisted that she knew just the perfect place to hang it.

This past week we had to have our car serviced.  When I brought it home from the shop, I removed the floor mat and as I was about to throw it away, Sarah said she wanted it.  "It will make the perfect poster!" she exclaimed.  So I let her keep it, assuming she was going to draw something on the back of it.

 

And now this is what Sarah's room looks like:

Yes, you are seeing correctly.  She chose to hang the cat poster underneath the molding near the ceiling and she chose to hang the dirty disposable car mat as a poster.

The Nester's decorating motto is "It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful."  But I think even she would agree that this is just wrong. 

I guess Sarah's decorating motto is:  "Whatever makes me happy and Mommy crazy!"

No matter what you decide to call them, they are good!

When I was a little girl, my paternal grandmother used to live with us.  She had a little apartment in our basement that consisted of a living room, two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom.

Every Sunday after church, my family would squeeze in around her kitchen table and eat Sunday lunch.  My grandmother loved to cook for us.  I think for her, fried chicken, homemade egg noodles, country style green beans, potato salad and whatever dessert she happened to be in the mood to fix was just another way of letting us know she loved us.

My mom has taken on this tradition.  Ever since we moved back here 4 and a half years ago, my mom has cooked Sunday lunch for my family and my brother.  And I think for her, too, it is just one more way of showing us she loves us.

My mom always has desert for us.  Yesterday, she had Ooey Gooey Butter Bars.  She has made these before but the ones she served  yesterday had been made with chocolate cake mix instead of the normal yellow cake mix she normally uses. 

During lunch Sarah asked if it was time to eat the Ishy Squishy Squares yet. 

Last night, before bed, Peter who had been playing outside with the neighbors came in and complained that he was supposed to get another Ooey Gooey Butter Bar after dinner and that he had been too busy playing to get one.

Oh, what the heck, I thought.  I want one too.   

As I was putting the bars on napkins for them, Peter said, "Mommy, hurry up and bring me one of those Squares of Deliciousness! I'm starving!"

I guess no matter what you decide to call them, they are good!

Mom, thanks for all of the delicious lunches and all of the love that is served around your table every Sunday!

Ooey Gooey Butter Bars

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Base
1 box yellow cake mix (or chocolate)
1 egg
1 stick of butter (melted)

Mix together and pat into the bottom of a 13x9 pan.

Topping
2 eggs
1 package cream cheese (softened)
1 stick butter (melted)
1 box of confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Beat ingredients together until smooth.  Pour over the cake mix in the pan.  Bak 35-40 minutes.  Centure should be gooey.  Do not over bake.

Summertime and the living is busy.

Fear not!  I am still here!  Between running (or slowly jogging but moving at a pace faster than walking), swim practice, swim meets, playdates, gardening (well, watching Dan garden), errands, laundry, cooking and sometimes house-cleaning and preparing for an upcoming vacation, we have been busy! 

When my sister-in-law Cathy came for Sarah's birthday two weekends ago, she brought goodies.  She always comes bearing gifts for both kids.  This visit, she brought Peter this science kit:

Peter loves science so he was very excited to receive it.  The kids and Aunt Cathy immediately conducted one of the experiments.  They swabbed the insides of their mouths, noses and tongues and placed the "matter" into petri dishes with some sort of gelatine and water mixture and then were told to wait a few days to see if anything grew.

Well, grow it did.

After two and a half weeks, this is what we now have inside the petri dishes:

Pretty disgusting, huh?  I guess the science kit lives up to its name!

Quack! Quack!

My kids have never had official swim lessons - unless you count the two hours they had last summer with our swimming pools life guards.  And to me that doesn't really count.  Because they just spent that time kicking and blowing bubbles.  But I guess you've got to start somewhere.

So this year, I put them on the swim team.  I had heard from several people that it was a great way for the kids to really learn to swim and it was cheap. So guess what kids?  You are going to be on the swim team! 

On the very first night of practice, the coaches had all the kids swim from one end of the pool to the other.  And they told the kids that if they needed to hold the ropes and take a rest and catch their breath they could do that.  Apparently my kids didn't hear that. 

The whistle blew and all 99 kids on the swim team started to swim their first lap.  And while all the kids were swimming, I kept hearing a strange gasping sound.  I said to Jennifer, "What's that strange noise?"  Then a few minutes later I said, "Now I hear crying? Who's crying?"

It turns out the strange gasping sound was Peter trying to catch his breath and the crying was Sarah.  I went to the edge of the pool to check on them and they both got out crying and saying, "We don't  like this.  We don't want to be on the swim team!"

The swim team coach (who also happens to be Sarah's Kindergarten teacher) came over and reassured them that if they needed to catch their breath they could stop and hold the rope. 

And then I gave them a huge pep talk about how we are Cotells and Cotells don't quit.  I said this several times and something seemed to click in their heads.  And for the last two weeks, before every practice, I said, "We are Cotells!  What does that mean?"  And they both answer, "We don't quit!"  And they have been swimming their little hearts out (and taking frequent breaks on the ropes) ever since!

Last night was their first meet and I will admit, I was just as nervous as they were.  Before we pulled out of the driveway, I said a  little prayer out loud in the car.  After which Peter said, "I'm still nervous."  I tried unsussessfully to convince him that nerves would make him go faster.

I am proud to say that Sarah completed all three of her events and Peter completed both of his.  They are both very slow (especially Peter who came in last both times) but they didn't quit even when they were scared or tired. 

Peter was very dejected by his last place finishes so I told him that we aren't going to worry about how he finished against all of the other kids but that we are going to work to improve his time next week.  That seemed to appease him a little.  Although, honestly, I think his main worry is that Sarah is going to get a ribbon and he won't.  (Which she probably will because there weren't as many 6-year-old girl swimmers as there were 7-year-old boy swimmers.)

The team name is the Ducks.  And here are my little ducks.  Quack! Quack!

Before the meet.  (Aren't the cute in their little Speedos?)

Sarah at the beginning of the Freestyle Relay

Here she comes and she's sticking close to that rope!

Made it!

Peter (in lane 2) at the beginning of the 50m Freestyle.

Here he comes - slowly but surely!

And there he goes back to the other end!

Here is Sarah waiting for her next event.  The kids like to write on themselves with Sharpies.  This says, "Go, Ducks, Go!  and Quack!"   (Our team name is the Arcadia Ducks.)

This is what happens when my son is bored at his sister's Daisy Banquet...

...and he gets my camera:

I think his sister may have also been a little bored because I don't think he took all of these by himself!

BFF pictures now. Field Day pictures later.

Yesterday was field day at school and while I took lots of pictures of my kids exhibiting their physical prowess, these turned out to be my favorites:

Sarah and her BFFs Tori and Kysten

Peter's BFFs Turner and Griffen and Peter

I fought the law and the law won.

We had a busy, busy weekend.

Sarah had her friend party on Saturday.  And yes, that means we will be having a family party this weekend.  We like to spread out the love and the parties!

I fought with Sarah over her birthday party when we were making plans.  There is Tea House nearby that hosts birthday parties and special occasions.  They send out the invites, they have tons and tons of princess gowns for the girls to dress up in, they have an etiquette lesson, they have tea with tiny sandwichs, they provide the tea pot shaped birthday cake and they send each girl home with a miniature tea set.

I thought it sounded perfect for Sarah and at six years old, I figured this might be the last opportunity for it.  But when she found out her "boyfriend" Evan couldn't come (I told her girls only at this type of party) she didn't want to do it at the tea house. 

Anyway, we fought and she won.

So we had the party at Cheer Mania.  Cheer Mania is a cheer leading gym but on the weekends the gym is filled with inflatibles, a foam pit and Ms. Debra - the best birthday party hostess ever.

So we went to Cheer Mania and had a great time.  I still would have liked to have had a tea party.  (Pout, pout.)