Just a quick update before I retire to the couch. We had a busy Saturday today. It started bright and early. I’ve been coaching a Girls On The Run team at my school and today was the big 5K culmination event. The sky was dark and rain was pouring down when I woke up at 5:15 to get ready to go. I was not excited. I had told the kids that I might not see them in the morning because I had to leave so early, so they decided to get up extra early as well to see me before I headed out. Not exactly my plan, but it was ok. I packed rain gear, extra clothes, umbrella, etc. Everything in plastic bags because I have no idea how waterproof my backpack is. The race was about and hour and a half way, but I met the other coaches at a mid-way point and we carpooled together. That was nice. When we met the rain was subsiding and by the time we got to the race the skies were blue and the rain was gone. Yay!!

The day ended up being perfect. Sunny, breezy, cool, but perfect for running. We had a good turn out, I ran almost the entire 5K, and everyone had a great time. On the way home Alan texted me saying he was taking the kids to the playground, so when I got home the house was empty. I showered, scrubbed the Girls On The Run temporary tattoo on my cheek, but it didn’t come off, then settled in for some UVEI writing. Not a lot, but some. I have a TON to do this week. The final push before graduation in a few weeks.

When Alan got home with the kids, Eve and I headed out for a birthday party. It was a carnival theme and tons of fun. I ate lots of popcorn and m&ms and drank lemonade. The kids ran and played. I chatted with other parents and everyone was happy.

Back home we ordered pizza for dinner and relaxed with an episode of Cosmos. Generally a pretty cool show, but I’ll confess I dozed for much of this one. Eve snuggled on my lap and I couldn’t keep my eyes open!

Kids are in bed now and I’ll be there soon. I’ll post more later. Lex has a birthday coming right up and I foresee some free time in my future… eventually! For the next few weeks I’ll be busy!

I couldn’t have asked for a nicer Mother’s Day this year. Yesterday Alan and Lex cleaned the cars, which is awesome! This morning Eve made me a “surprise” breakfast. I say “surprise” because last night she asked me what I like for breakfast, how to make it, how to make tea, etc. so I had a bit of a hint. :) I read the paper and drank my tea. The kids played nicely. Then we went outside to work in the garden. Alan mowed the lawn while Eve and I prepped the small garden in the backyard for its third incarnation. It started as a veggie garden, spent a few years as a dirt patch/truck work site, and is now being reborn as Eve’s flower garden. She’s pretty excited and that makes me happy.

Eve’s Mother’s Day note from school

After lunch we went on a Valley Quest hike along a flowing brook. The weather was perfect, the walk was beautiful and just challenging enough, and we found the Valley Quest box! Those hikes are always better when we’re able to find the box at the end. :)

We saw ducks swimming in the brook, then two started fighting a bit further down. Lex whipped out his binoculars and I whipped out the camera. :)

There’s always time to pose for momma!

The spring water was chilly!

Eve, off to catch a butterfly.

We came across a pretty cool bridge.

Is the Valley Quest box in there? I’ll have you know Lex is using a flashlight he built with his SnapCircuit set and Alan is using his phone’s flashlight. Geeks through and through.

Ahh… that’s the rock the clue was talking about.

Someone built a lean-to against one side of the giant rock. The Valley Quest box, however, was not there.

Found it! Lex wrote a nice note and we all signed our names.

Then we went wading in the cold spring water.

Happy family on Mother’s Day.

Dad and daughter.

We kept hiking for awhile further up the river and came across some beautiful sights, like this waterfall.

This is that cool bridge on the way back.

After the hike we stopped in town for gelato. I’m not sure I’ve ever had gelato before. It reminded me of eating cool frosting. I had coconut and dark chocolate. Yum! Then we came home to relax for the rest of the day. I’m still preparing for my interview tomorrow so I got more of that work done. Lex is working on science project. Everyone is happy. Alan is heading out momentarily to pick up some dinner for us. The kids are almost in bed and I’m looking forward to kicking back with some wine, tofu teriyaki and sushi, and Anchorman 2 on the big screen!

Happy Mother’s Day!

My kiddos have great memories. They tell me things all the time that they remember from books or movies or BrainPop. Eve one day busted out a ton of facts about caves that she had read weeks ago in a book during a reading test.

However, occasionally I find myself surprised by things they don’t remember. A few weeks ago we went to a party at “the bouncy house,” a fun play place we used to go to all the time when they were little. The place has a bouncy house and lots of mats for climbing and tumbling. They hold an open playgroup twice a week and we went regularly for a year or more when the kids were smaller. We stopped going when they became the “big” kids and started trampling the little ones. I found out at this party that Eve had no recollection of the place. When we got there she seemed to remember a bit, or maybe was just humoring me. I mentioned it to Lex later in the day and he had no memory of it either.

This evening I was in the kitchen making salad and Eve was hanging out with me. She saw “Pampered Chef” on something and asked what a pampered ch-ef was. I told her it was the name of the company who made the thing and, as the conversation went on, I realized she had no memory of Pampered Chef and my time there. She then spent the next ten minutes combing the kitchen trying to find Pampered Chef things. She didn’t even remember our Pampered Playhouse!

Their baby voices are so stinkin’ cute!

Anyway, none of that should surprise me really. It just seems crazy that things I remember like they were yesterday are completely foreign to them. Things we used to do all the time, they have no recollection of. Sigh.

We had a super fun outing this afternoon. On Monday, when it was nice and warm, we came up with a fun plan to invite a friend out for mini-golf and ice cream. Unfortunately by the time we made it happen, today, it was no longer sunny and warm! We had a great time anyway! I am pretty bad at mini-golf, but playing with these three goofballs was hysterical. And they made me look good! We had to stop (well, chose to stop) several times to let speedier parties play through. Each time the kids were happy to check out the fish or climb on the rocks or just goof off.

When we got done we were all chilly, but determined for ice cream nonetheless!

Lex and I decided to eat our ice cream in the car, while the other two crazies decide the frigid (well, 48 and windy) air was better. After ice cream we (they!) ran around on the playground, rolled down the hills, yelled from the hilltops (echo! echo!) and generally had fun until I said it was time to go home.

We stopped to drop our friend off and ended up running around at his house for another hour while the parents chatted. Needless to say the children feel asleep easily tonight! :)

When I took the pictures off the camera tonight I found I haven’t taken them off all month! Geez, we’re half way through the month already! I think this blog needs a new header too. We went on a great safari earlier this week and I have lots of pictures I’ll post soon. I’ve spent all of my “free” time this week working on a big project for school. I finally got it done tonight and submitted it to my teachers, at 11:24pm!, so now I am free to blog. Or start on the next school/work task to be done. :) But for now, it’s bedtime!

We spent the morning at the science museum today. We don’t go often anymore, but sometimes when we do I’m caught up in memories of the past. We have been going there since Lex was a baby and we always have fun. Actually, we’ve been going there since I was a kid! My kids have grown up there and when we go back it is a startling reminder of just how grown they are. The place today was filled with toddlers and moms with babies in carriers on their bellies. I remember going there when Lex was a 1yr old and Eve was still inside. One day he just wanted to go up and down the stairs. He was indecisive about where he wanted to be and I was “out to here” pregnant with Eve. I was exhausted by the end of that visit! We used to meet friends there on a regular basis. The kids would invariably want to play as far away from each other as possible and my friends and I would look longingly at one another from across the crowded room, but the kids weren’t big enough to be on their own yet. Sometimes the kids would cooperate though and stay in the little kid area for awhile, allowing my friends and I to sit and chat. Those were nice days.

Now they are big kids and they run all over the place, barely needing my attention, and I wish I had my friends around. Now we could all stand together and chat while the big kids roamed free. Sadly our schedules don’t coordinate as easily as they did in the baby days. So instead I hang out, check out the gift shop, explore the exhibits, and keep half an eye on the kids. Sometimes they want to play with me and other times they’re off doing their own things. All grown up.

This afternoon we went grocery shopping and the kids were super helpful. I can send them on “missions” (within a reasonable distance from me) to find items we need to buy. They can read labels and reach the middle shelves, though they still need help with the high shelves. :) When we got home they unloaded all the bags from the car, working together to get the extra heavy ones in.

Then we went to Grandpa’s for dinner. I no longer need to pack special food, booster seats, diaper bags, etc. I told the kids to pack an activity bag and they did, all on their own. I guess I should have packed extra clothes though since they were playing outside and fell in a puddle. Oh well. I was thinking about this blog post on the way over and about just how big they are getting, but then they both ended up crying at Grandpa’s house tonight, Lex ate no dinner (but quickly recovered in time for dessert!), and Eve nearly fell asleep in the car on the way home. She asked to be carried in and snuggled to sleep… so I guess they aren’t TOO grown up yet!

Seven and eight seem so grown up, but when I think about the grand scheme of things they are only just beginning. I have to remind myself of that sometimes! Enjoy the littleness of them while I can because it’s all so fleeting. And, I guess, enjoy the bigness of them too!