Taryn's first Triathlon

Taryn did her first triathlon today from the inspiration of her friend Eva. It was a 75 yard swim, 2 mile bike ride, and then a 1/2 mile run. She was a bit nervous, and I was nervous for her.. but as always, she did so awesome. I was so proud of her. She is such an incredible person and can do anything she wants to. I am so lucky to know her.
This is Taryn with Eva after the race. You can see on her face how happy she is. Taryn is the one in orange.
Getting ready for the bike ride...

Finish!!

Erik is 6! (not 60)

We've had a rough two days. The waiting for his birthday has been too much for Erik to bear. He has had meltdowns, screaming, hitting, and tears. He woke up at 6:30 this morning wanting to get started. Lucky for everyone, I convinced him to go back to sleep until 8:15.

Erik is a fun, excited, loving boy. Our family wouldn't be the same without him.

Thanks to everyone who helped make his birthday special!

Kids say the darndest things

Erik says he wouldn't want to be a pirate because they can only see out of one eye, and he can use both his eyes. Also they have to dig for treasure, and that's just too much work... and they don't have microwaves.

Taryn's friend's mom asked her if we would like to make some lemonade, and Taryn told me she told her no, because, you know, it was that Bud Light kind of stuff. (meaning Crystal Light).

Boys

My kids are upstairs having a big fight instead of doing their morning chores. I hear them yell, I hate you, you're stupid, and insults like that. Then Erik come down the stairs and says, "Mommy, here's something that hurts my feelings.....Taryn says she hates Michael Jackson."

Back Yard Fun

One of the benefits of living next to nowhere is the neat animals we find. On one of our walks Friday night, Vic found this lizard on the trail behind our house. He brought it home for Erik to play with. Erik was so thrilled by this thing, and was sad when we had to let him go at the end of the night. We set him in the garden, and Erik woke up bright and early the next morning and went out to see if he could find him again. No luck.

Seattle Art Museum

Today we had an impromptu visit to the Seattle Art Museum. It really didn't turn out to be as much fun as I had expected. There were about four pieces that Erik liked, but mostly he kept asking when it was time to eat lunch. One piece Erik enjoyed was the floor, because it was kind of like our floor. I think the most fun part of the experience for them both was the bus ride back to Vic's office to catch up with our car. I get nervous riding public transit because you never know who you're going to meet, and I'm always afraid of getting on the wrong bus or missing my stop and ending up in Timbuktu. The whole time Erik was waiting for his sundrops (they're like m&m's) that he could have after lunch. So we ate our lunch on the bus and I told him he had to wait until we got to the car for his candy...which turned out to be a blessing, because those of you who know Erik, can guess what's about to happen. We get in the car and Erik buckles his belt and anxiously waits for his sundrops. As we drive off, he rips the bag open too quickly, sundrops go flying everywhere, and he bursts into loud wails.

But it's always fun to try something new.

Resume

So I've been feeling a little down lately. A little depression mixed with PMS and boredom on top.
So I found this job online that I kind of want, and the guy asked me to send him my resume. I sat down to write it and became so overwhelmed. Bothered by the big 8 year gap in my experience and feeling like I have no skills to offer anyone. I searched the net for inspiration, and after starting, stopping, deleting, and starting again, I started getting into a flow. After reviewing my jobs that I've had and the things I learned from them I started to come up with a list of qualifications. By the time I was finished I started feeling pretty good about myself.

Sometimes it takes a little reflection and tooting (ha,ha) one's own horn to lift you up.