Swimming Lessons!

Kai is on week 4 (out of 4) of his first session of swimming lessons, and we couldn't be prouder! His first class was pretty rough, but after a class adjustment (switching him to the one his best buddy from preschool is in) he has been doing fabulously and making great strides! I am sad this is the last week, as he is just finally starting to get comfortable and relaxing a bit, but I will definitely watch for fall/ winter classes at this great indoor pool. He can now do a full front and back float with coaches assistance, blow bubbles, and not freak out when he gets his face wet or goes underwater. Not bad for his first go...

Here's a few pictures from week 2 of lessons. Notice how he won't do a full front float, but now he can!

"They want us to do what?!?"

Jumping in!

Yay! Smiles!

Blowing bubbles

Preparing to front float...

Attempting the front float...

Ladybugs

It has been all ladybugs all the time around our house! Kai has taken a recent fascination with them, and will hunt through the yard for minutes at a time (OK, that's a LONG time in Kai-land) in search of these beloved creatures. It is also the name of his class at school. So, he loves searching for ladybugs, and he is a ladybug. Luckily, in our yard he doesn't have to search far. See the plant in the picture below? It's a hops plant which came with our new house. Not sure why, but ladybugs LOVE it! We call it the ladybug bush. One morning last week, we counted 55 ladybugs on this bush.

I tend to not allow him to bring insects or wildlife into the house. However, somehow this little guy ended up in his room. Probably was stuck to his clothes or something, maybe he put it in his pocket... I wouldn't put it past him! Anyway, Kai played with this little ladybug for what seemed like an eternity. In reality, it was probably only about 15 minutes, but that is a record breaking length for him to keep his attention on one thing.

Unfortunately, the little bug above met his end by falling between the wood boards of our deck. It was a heart wrenching moment for our 3 year old little bug lover. But, fortunately, he only had to walk a few feet and glance at our "ladybug bush" to find another friend!

My Little Track Star

Last week Kai participated in his first track meet. Same sort of event as what I participated in, only for kids age 1-12. He did phenomenal! He did three events; softball throw, long jump and 60m dash. He did them all with amazing confidence for his age and experience with "competition"... which would be none. He was throwing the softball farther and straighter than 4 and 5 year old boys, and the long jump... well, I'll let that one speak for itself!

He was catching some serious air! Most of the kids in his age group (1-3) would run up to the sand, stop, and hop in. Not my boy! He ran with all his might, and leapt into the sand. We have hardly even practiced this at home. Recently, he's been having fun with Joe and I making a hurdle out of our arms and jumping over it. That's really the only practice he's had at running and jumping, except of course in his everyday play.

He got a little more shy in the 60m dash, it was pretty overwhelming. Lots of parents lining the track and cheering; lots of kids running all at the same time. He still did it, and did great, but it was the only event that he looked back for me and wanted me to come with him. He definitely did best in the "one at a time"events.

We got some great video of all three events, but blogger will not let me upload them... URGH! You'll have to be happy with the picture above, it's the best shot of the night, and pretty much sums it up. Joe and I were beaming with pride, amazed at the confidence and skills our little guy is developing.

With all the track meeting, blueberry picking and playing at our park, we've been super busy lately. I've had to work extra due to our office moving locations (which is complete and my schedule is back to normal... thank goodness), and just your general summertime craziness. By the end of last week, it was starting to show. Our sweet little boy had turned into somewhat of a holy terror. Luckily, we seem to be back on track after a quiet weekend at home with just the three of us. Good thing, cause this coming weekend we've got big fun planned!!

3 Races, 3 PR's, 1 Week

Last week I did something I never imagined I could do. I ran in 3 races in one week, and I PR'd all of them! As I mentioned in my last post, on July 4th, I ran in our city's traditional Independence Day race, that was PR #1. On Thursday last week I participated in my first track meet, an "all comer's" meet put on by the track club in our city. I ran the jogger's mile, which I completed in 6 minutes and 43 seconds! Total shock! That is the absolute fastest I have ever run a mile. On Saturday I ran in the "Turkey Trot" (8K) in my brother's town. I have run it about 5 times, and always just miss getting a ribbon. Since I've been faster lately, I had high hopes of finally placing. My running legs did not let me down. I finished in 37:29 (another PR), and came in second in my division! Ahhh... what a sense of accomplishment!

Up until a couple years ago I was a very solid 10 minute mile runner. I've been getting a little faster over time, but in the past few months I have (seemingly out of no-where) gotten this tremendous need for speed! I'm really not sure what is going on, but it feels great, I feel great and I have no plan to slow down anytime soon!

Approx. half way through the trot

Crossing the finish line

Me & my ribbon!

Cousin Peter and Kai

I could not have done this without all the support of my family. Thanks to Mom and Dad, Dan and Joanna for helping with K on Saturday (and taking the great pics), and a million- trillion thanks to my dear hubby for being so supportive and helping me get my "running time". Love you all!!

Independence Day

Hope you all had a safe and fun 4th of July! We enjoyed a fun, low-key family day. The day started early with my traditional 4th of July race. I had a great race, and got a PR (personal record) for that course. I've run it (probably) 5 out of the past 8 years. It's a tough course, with the first mile being a huge hill, then down and flat and fast. I always feel like I'm going to die at the end, but can't resist doing it again the next year. It's a great community event, and I'll get my name in the paper today! Much thanks to my hubby for getting out early and bringing Kai to see me finish!

After the race we ran a few quick errands, then brought K home in attempt of nap time (note *attempt*). Nap was a no-go, so we moved on to lunch, then a little work around the house. Mid-afternoon we headed out to our favorite local farm for their free watermelon feed, and more strawberries. I think we got the last of their berries; it took us about 40 minutes to find just enough to make some fresh strawberry shortcakes. As we headed home, Kai (of course) fell asleep in the car, and ended up taking a short, late afternoon nap. Then it was dinner time; grilled hamburgers, grilled veggies (farm fresh), watermelon (farm fresh), and beans. We decided to burn daylight by taking a walk around our neighborhood, ran into some of our new friends, and they invited us to join them in their yard for marshmallow roasting and fireworks. We had a great time, although K was a little unsure of the fireworks. We came home, did our own few fireworks, washed up the boy and headed to bed.

We somehow got only one picture yesterday (I think Joe has a few more on his phone), Kai eating his pot stickers at lunch with chopsticks. Not bad for only his second attempt!

Down by the River

Last weekend we went up to P-town for a quick visit and some family birthday celebrations. My grandma turned 98 (!) and our niece turned 1. We had a great time as always with our families, and even found a few moments to enjoy the beautiful Sunday morning on the gorgeous waterfront.

Just a few...

... pictures of what we've been up to lately...

Bean bag sittin'

Yard playin'

Road trippin'

Beach combin'

Silly facin'

Butterfly watchin'

Animal watchin'

Flyin'

Space Needlin'

Wafflin'

Monorailin'

Scooterin'

Yes, we've been busy the past few weeks. We took a long weekend road trip to Seattle a couple weeks ago, which included a side trip to my uncle's house on Puget Sound. We had a great time, made even better by only a few 3 year old meltdowns!

Back at home, we've been enjoying summer (finally!). Except for today, the past week has been beautiful weather! Kai got his first scooter and has been working on perfecting his skills.

We're still here!

Yes! We are still here! It's been a while since I've been able to post. We've been having internet troubles and it's been taking me forever to get even logged in, much less post or upload anything. Couple that with summer having *finally* arrived in our region and two weekends out of town, and you get.... no posts! Sorry.

Hopefully later today or tomorrow I will have time to upload some pics and tell you all about the wonderful fun we've been having around here!

Till then... enjoy the sun!

Foto Finish Friday

Popsicle for breakfast = One HAPPY little boy!

I think Kai was pretty sure he'd died and gone to heaven when I suggested a popsicle for breakfast today! Am I a cool Mom or what?? OK, you got me... it was just frozen OJ. ;-)

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Big changes this week!

K started preschool! We've been thinking of making the switch from his home based daycare to preschool (and aftercare) for a while. We wanted to give him some time after moving to our new house to adjust before making the change in his daycare. Last Thursday was his last day at daycare (where he's gone for 2 years) and this Wednesday (2 days ago) was his first day of preschool. We are so happy with the school we found (which came highly recommended from a co-worker of mine), and he is loving it so far! His first day was a half day (since I actually had the day off work). The drop-off went fine, but I sure got teary eyed when I picked him up! I watched him for a few minutes from the hall, sitting and interacting with his classmates and he just looked (and acted) so grown up!

We had quite a challenging time last weekend behavior wise. So much so that I pulled out my Love&Logic book for a little refresher. We've reintroduced a few techniques and what a difference!

All in all we had a great week around here! So much positive behavior, and great reports from his new teachers! I am beaming with pride for my little guy today!

Here are a few pictures from his first day of school:

Eating breakfast and acting silly, of course!

All ready to go!

More silliness!!

My "Baby"

Today K got a hold of his blue flight bag (which came from Korea with him, packed for his flight and some things from his foster mother) and unpacked the whole thing. That's where we keep all of his things that came from Korea with him. When we went to put it all back in later this afternoon, I decided to take the opportunity to explain to him what was in there and what it was used for or why we felt it was special enough to keep. I got to his outfit that he was wearing on his flight to us and he knew exactly what to do with it. Try it on, of course! I actually thought it fit him pretty good for him being 2 and a half years too old to wear it! And of course, the outfit was not complete without the binky (which he never used as an infant).

Amidst all the excitement of this crazy episode, Joe got home from work. We took the opportunity for some "then" and "now" photos.

"Then"

"Now"

I love that he is really starting to develop a sense of humor, and is starting to make jokes and do funny stuff like this. He cracks himself up on a constant basis. Oh, how I love my silly boys!

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Sittin' on Daddy's new ride

Guess he approves!

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Way up high...

On the side...

Way down low...

Too slow Joe!

See his face? He thinks he's so cool! We met this random little boy at the garden last weekend. Kai was getting bored with looking at the flowers when we approached this meadow and boy. I told him to go see if he wanted to play. He walked right up to him and asked, "Do you want to play with me?" They immediately began chasing each other in circles, playing some game they clearly knew the rules to without even talking it over. It was so cute!

slappy cakes

While visiting our families this past weekend, we had the chance to try a new (to us) restaurant called Slappy Cakes. When first hearing about this restaurant, I have to say I was skeptical. The big thing at this place is making your own pancakes. My immediate response was, "Why would I want to go out to eat someplace where I have to make my own pancakes, and keep my 3 year old away from the hot griddle??" The answer: Because it's a totally fun and unique dining experience!!

The griddle is built into the center of the table, and does not get hot around the edges (forgot the fancy name for it). I don't think it gets too hot in the center either, because our cakes cooked fairly slow and never burnt. You can choose from 4 different types of batter which come to you in a squeeze bottle, and there is an endless list of toppings and mix-ins you can add to your pancakes. Kai did so great, he never tried to touch the griddle, and even got to squeeze out his own pancake! They were so yummy, hot off the griddle, and cooked to our specifications.

The best part, since we had to wait patiently for each cake to cook, I'm sure I ate half as many as I would have if I had been presented with a plate full of pancakes. And all for a very reasonable price!

Breakfast wouldn't be complete with a monkey at the table.

Joe and his Mom, eagerly waiting to see how this all works!

Slappy cakes coming and going!

Some of our topping choices;

blueberries, chocolate chips and bacon.

For our toppings, we decided to each choose one. Grandma Sue's was pecans. Because of the latest trend in gourmet chocolates, I made a pancake with bacon and chocolate chips. Very tasty.

Our weekend away was otherwise very fun and eventful! A visit to Crystal Springs garden with my parents, date night for Joe and I (thanks to Grandma and Grandpa!), a trip to OMSI to visit Samson, and a first birthday party for my cousin! We were in town barely 24 hours and made the most of every minute!!

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Another happy customer!

Mother's Day 2010

What a great Mother's Day weekend! I was blessed to be able to spend time with my wonderful Mother yesterday, and spent all day today with my boys! Since becoming a mother 2 years ago, I've really come to understand what being a mom really means, and have become all the more grateful for everything my Mom (and Dad) have done for me. I always think, no one can understand parenthood until they enter it!Yesterday we hosted my family for an early Mother's Day lunch. The weather was fantastic and we spent pretty much the whole time outside, kids squealing (mostly) with glee as they ran through the yard. I love having a house full of happy people!

My Mom, niece and the "cupcake tree"!

Today was pretty low key. We just hung out as a family. I enjoyed a private tour of the rhodie garden on my early morning run. Went to church, got my free coffee from Dutch Br0s. Kai gave me my gift... a nap! Attempted to plant my new raspberry plants, until the thunder and downpour. We decided outdoor activities were out, so we headed to the mall for a treat (carmel apple... my fav!), and playing on the indoor playground. After dinner we all watched Mary Poppins. Best of all... minimal whining and arguing from the little guy!

Mother's Day photo... 2010

My silly little man!

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Here's my big finish!

Sunday was a great racing day and I did better than I would have ever imagined! The second time in my life I actually felt like an athlete. I started a blog post about the race, and I'll have to finish it one of these days!

13 miles of Memories

My half marathon, as I remember it. The night of the race I sat down and outlined this post, with a vivid memory from each mile of the race. After time, all the miles run together. I really wish I'd thought to do this earlier, with previous races. This just might become a new tradition!

1. My emotions at the start of this race really surprised me. Through training I felt somewhat disconnected and didn't feel I'd really trained that hard. I was surprised when I was on the verge of tears for the first mile, overwhelmed by the other runners, spectators and what we were all about to accomplish.

2. I came upon a man who had what sounded like $5 worth of change in his pockets. Spent the mile pondering how he could even get his feet off the ground; his pockets were loaded with so much stuff that his hips were about double their actual size. And me, with nothing on me but clothes, shoes, iP0d, and some sharkies stuffed in my pocket.

3. Caught up to the 4:15 pacer, and had to hold myself back not to pass him.

4. This was my first race where I listened to music. By this point, I was feeling really disassociated from the race and decided to turn it off. I couldn't hear the other runners, the rhythm of their running, and most importantly, I couldn't hear the crowds cheering! And yes... there were crowds!

5. Overheard the 4:15 pacer saying his pace was 9:43 minute miles, and decided I could go a little faster... buh bye!!

6. Hit the 10K maker in under an hour... way under an hour! This was approximately my half way point.

7. Realized finishing in under 2 hrs was possible, contemplated going faster, and did!!

8. Long before I reached the high school on our route, I could hear the crowds cheering us on. This was one of the advertised "best spots to watch from", so there were lots of people there! I didn't know any of them, but to me, they were all cheering for ME!! I thanked them profusely as I passed by.

9. Pancake station... uh, no thanks!

10. Caught up to the 4:00 pacer. I was starting to get a little tired, but felt like I could pass them. I knew were would break apart from the marathoners soon, so I held back until that happened. We'll just call it a "little break".

11. Reached River trail and broke apart from the marathoners. I decided to bring back the music (no spectators on this portion) and picked up the pace.

12. One more mile! Didn't even slow down crossing the final bridge! I can do it!

13. Entered Hayward field... what an amazing feeling to end a fantastic race on the track of legends. My feet hit the turf and it felt great, so I gave it all I could and finished super strong!!

Can't wait to see how the second half turns out...