Exercise Anyone?

Cade doing a practice run!

Personal Trainer: Ranger

Our little town of Austin hosts a kids track day twice during the summer. The idea is that the kids go out the first time in June and do their best...then return in July and try to beat their times. It was so much fun for the kids to participate. Cade did really well at the ball throw, and took third place in the fifty yard run. Claire did fabulous at the long jump, but fell down running the fifty. I was so proud of her though, because she got up, and crying, still finished the race. We all went out for ice cream to celebrate after the meet was over and praised Claire for finishing. Our family motto, which the kids know, is Connett's Never Quit!

The kids are also in swimming lessons everyday. They are doing really well, and with gas so expensive we walk every morning, to and from the pool! Finn and Jax go in my jogging stroller and Cade and Claire ride their bikes. Cade just learned how to ride a two-wheeler with NO TRAINING WHEELS! Way to go Cader!!! One morning Claire was going really slowly and Cade was down the block in front of us. He turned around and screamed, "Claire, hurry-up...Connett's never quit!" Hey- at least they got the idea!

In other exercise news, I am trying to walk a little bit everyday. I am averaging between fifteen and twenty miles a week. There is a Relay for Life walk to raise money and support for the American Cancer Society in August, and I am trying to get in shape for it. I figured if I took Ranger on my walks at night he would make sure that I went fast! I was right...my legs still hurt! Funny thing though...if your dog out-weighs you by fifty pounds you need two leashes! I realized this last year when walking him. If he sees a rabbit, or another dog, or a really aggressive looking tree...with his weight...HE WINS! Well, hopefully he'll get me into shape soon!

FIRE!!!

Well, we had a fun weekend...I say with sarcasm dripping in my voice! Saturday morning Eric went to play basketball, and then to do errands early in the morning. Claire came and woke me up and she and I went downstairs. As we reached the first floor she tugged my hand and said, "Mommy, why is there smoke in the house?" My first reaction...OH, CRAP!!! I ran to the phone to call Eric, and his cell rang in the kitchen. Why is it that whenever there is an emergency one of our cell phones is left at home? I called Bonnie and lucky for me our good friends Shawn and John were working on her deck. They raced over here, took one look and called the fire department. Shawn brought Cade and Claire to his house to play with his kids while we waited for the fire dept. to show up. About one minute before they arrived, Eric came home...and I was able to melt down a bit.

What they think happened was that during these crazy storms lightning struck the house! The wiring smoldered and eventually shot out of an electrical outlet. The fireman said we were really lucky and to make sure that all our smoke detectors were updated.

Bonnie and I took the kids out to breakfast so that Eric could air out the house, and when we came home we baked cookies for the firemen who had come to the house. We dropped the cookies off at the station and they let the kids climb in all the trucks and play with everything. They even gave the kids fire hats, stickers, and coloring books! So, alls well that ends well. Now, I really do have to repaint the front room!

Cruddy Weather = I Get Things Done!

Doesn't Finnegan look bigger?...Finally!

Finn's new prison...I mean bed!

Well, those of you who aren't in Minnesota...count yourselves lucky! In the last week we've had tornado warnings, tornado watches, and now half our town is underwater! This means that the kids and I have been stuck inside the house for days and days! Fortunatelythere have been many projects to keep us busy. First, I painted the attic and Eric moved the boys beds up there. They love the new digs! Our next project was to assemble Finn's crib. We got a new crib this year and hadn't taken it out of the box yet. Well, yesterday the kids and I put it together. Yes, bow down to my handy skills! Now today, with all the flooding, I had better find another project...or go insane!

I Got Tagged!

Okay- thank you Ashley for tagging me...this one actually looks fun. Well, here we go!

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago-
Graduating from high school
Starting to date Eric
Getting ready for college
Buying a car
Going on a rafting trip

5 Things on my To Do List-
Learn to sew a dress for Claire
Start a Mom Group
Walk with Renee's Cancer Team in August
Get more involved with our community
Spend alone time with each of my kids individually

5 Favoite Snacks/Foods-
Chocolate (can I only put this one time?)
Red Bell Pepper Hummus
Mint Chip Ice Cream
Cake batter (not cooked)
Sourdough Bread

5 Things I would do if I was a billionaire-
Buy a bigger house (and a maid)
Buy Eric the dream car of his choice
Set aside money to buy my children homes/cars
Travel
Bribe my brother to move closer to me

5 Bad habits-
Starting too many projects at one time
Not asking for help when I need it
Complaing about stuff instead of dealing with it
Letting the kids eat in the van to save time
Binging on junk food

5 Places I have lived-
San Francisco (CA)
Orinda (CA)
Forestville (CA)
Arizona
Minnesota

Summer is Here!

Well, school is out...and so is my patience! I swear, it must be some sort of record! Well, yesterday was the last day for the Kindergarteners. After Cade got off of the bus we went out to Culvers for Cade's favorite treat...banana splits. Once they were all hyped up on sugar, I brought them home and left them with Eric so that I could go out to dinner for girls night!

It was great to get out, but the food was blah, and the service was horrible. It took 45 minutes for us to get our appetizers! We are talking about a tiny place with like 10-tables! So, we are crossing Casa Zamoras off of our list. I am still in search of GOOD mexican food...Arizona spoiled me!

The only other BIG thing going on in our lives is that Cade and Jaxon are moving up to our finished attic. I'm sort of jealous...I mean it has cable, phones, etc. I've finished priming it, so tonight I get to paint it a butter yellow color. Once that dries, Cade and Jax picked out a blue paint for all of the alcoves. We are hoping to get them in there by the weekend!

Dancing Claire!

Yesterday, Claire had her end of the year dance recital. Those who know my girl, know that she is the trophy holder for the title, Worlds Most Shy Child. We went, terrified, that she would run screaming when she saw the audience, or simply stand there and refuse to dance. Long story short...she blew us away! She was out on stage with her class, dancing and smiling...she did fabulous! I hope that she had as much fun dancing as we had watching her. It is so great to see her thriving! By the way, there was one girl who stood there and examined her nails for the entire performance...and guess what? IT WASN'T CLAIRE!!! Ha Ha Ha! I had the good kid...which means that the universe will get me some other way...darn it!

More happy news...it is sunny and warm! We bought the kids water guns and boy, do they use them! Cade gets out of Kindergarten on Tuesday...seriously, I am a little bit (okay, a lot) terrified of having him home...everyday...all day...for three months...HELP! Well, I'm sure we'll be fine. It's a good thing that Eric is handy. I mean, really, think of the money we can save if he builds my padded room by himself!