Threesome

Shhhh she has head lice...

Shhhh it's Maya. It seems that due to Maya's thick head of hair and her inherited ability to allow bugs to take up residence in her hair she has head lice..... again. Thanks sister of Luke's which shall remain unnamed.

The summer camp where she went with Stephanie this summer had an outbreak while she was there so....she came home with it. This time another little girl in her class had it and Maya sat within five feet of her so.........another round of the chemicals, tree oil shampoo every night, many loads of laundry, tears, videos, and combing sessions.

I sleep with her and have yet to get it. This is way I think some people just are susceptible.

Whats Up with......

.....a home having two Christmas trees? And while I'm at it. Whats up with a home having both of those trees up already???

LOL

Hilarious stuff like this is why the internet is awesome.

Also this is the best opical illusion ever. Squares A and B are the same shade of gray. No seriously, they are.

Ode to Toast

One of the things I never understood about Luke was why he liked toast. He would happily eat endless meals of toast and tea if I wasn't around to feed him.
Perhaps I thought it was gross cause growing up i'm sure my mother purchased the cheapest whitest bread around which i'm sure tasted gross. Perhaps it is beacuse it seems boring. Or perhaps it is because there is no sugar involved that cause me to turn my nose up at toast.

However now I see the light.
I do not how this liking of toast with a smig of butter came to be. Perhaps curiously finally got me, or perhaps laziness did, or perhaps it is truly amazing bread that isn't 99cents loaf.

In any case I now see myself as a statistic in the form of how many pounds of butter I eat a year.

Just Saying...

...babies would be so much funner to have around if they didn't cry.

Look how many teeth I have now!!

Costumes and Candy

Here is Mayas princess dress that i crafted from my own design and sewing machine. No plan and no pattern makes for some potty words.

Ever is a sock monster, the monster that steals socks and leaves you with singles. A product of my OWN imagination.

The candy haul. We placed no limits on eating it this weekend but she had to share. There is no candy left and we all have Halloween hangovers.

I'm a priare princess. The hat was from Mayas baby costume a few years ago and I made the pinafore in ten minites. Luke was the cat in the hat but was grumpy and washed off his makeup before I got to take a picture.

Pumpkins

Mayas creation. She drew and I cut.

Lukes Zombie pumpkin.

EVERybody loves Halloween.

Annes masterpiece.

Busy

Ever has learned to drag the step up to the counter and climb up to find whatever he can reach.

We have learned to not leave large butchering knives where he can grasp them and bang them against the counter, the cat, or himself.

Re- Fashioned

I wore this dress as a little girl and for some reason my mother kept it, and for some reason i spent time adding trim, frills and blows to make it just much more girly.
In comparison, I wore this when I was age sevenish and I was always a string bean, however Maya is four and there isn't alot of room in the shoulders.

It's desided

There should be a ban on the skinny skater jeans. While we are at it, especially with skater shoes. Even more especially on girls of the non Skater type.

We demand a return of baggy underwear showing Skater fashion.

Sorry Kyle.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATHIE

HAppy five years older then me day!!!

Can we both drink out of the toiliet??

Niagara Falls Half Marathon

In the short:

Goals- Under 1:45, Top 10 age category.

Achieved- Chip time- 1:39:57, 6/132 Females 30-35. 19/851 Females overall. 136/1457 Overall Male and female.


In the long: Mostly just written for my own memories.

I actually really wanted this race to be a marathon- but between an injury and the stress of going back to work, I just wasn't able to get enough long runs in sooo a half. I had felt that the 21km distance was a tad jinxed as two previous attempts had been aborted. Once related to injury and another due to the growing fetus of Ever.
We went down to Niagara falls on Saturday and spent the night in a hotel and praise be to God I was able to get a ride to the start with another Saugeen Tri member. Ever was awake q 2hours just wanting to nurse and fussing. He fell asleep late and woke early so basically I don't really know why I even went to bed. Coffee was a good thing. I bought my morning porage and the hotel heated it up for me.
The biggest concern was what to wear in relation to the weather. The wind can be nasty along the river and it threatened rain but in the end I decided upon long sleeve tech shirt and carpi's. I wore a long sleeve cotton that was for the salvation army until the first aid station then just left it. At times I wished I was in shorts but overall felt good- and cute.
Started out with the 1:45 pace bunny but really didn't want to limit myself to that time so set out to go as fast as I could for as long as I could and basically that lasted for seven miles. I then did three at a more relaxed pace. Then I felt bad and really wanted to make it in under 1:40 soo I did my best to pick it up. It hurt- alot. I spent alot of the race running with a man from Trois Rivere Quebec who spoke broken English, and men. I didn't see a single female from about Mile four until the end..and those were already finished. Although there was a woman who finished less then a minute before me.
I found the course pretty, but slightly boring. The aid stations were staffed by very enthusiastic high school kids so there was alot of energy when you passed through them. The course is harder to access so there wasn't alot of spectators. As it is a very flat course there wasn't any hill challenges either soo I can't say that I am desperate to do it again.
Used Honey stingers chews for energy- just didn't give me the kick like GU's do. Lesson learned. As well they are bulky to carry. Took in a mouthful of water at about half of the aid stations.
Finnish line was COLD and windy....and Luke negated to bring me clothes to the finish so we left quickly. Food was crap. EXCEPT for chocolate milk. They even gave Maya and Luke a carton and a micro fibre towel. Probably cause I was sooo excited to see milk and verbally shared that with the hand out girl.

Question

After trying on clothes at a retail establishment do you hang them up or do just hand them in a lump to the employees? I want answers as to the excepted cultural practice.

And while we are at it would somebody just tell me what to wear? Seriously I cleaned out my closet, no more regularly visiting 1996 via what I am wearing. Thus it is getting a bit drafty what with me being naked and all on account of the no clothes to wear.

Quote

OBSESSED is just a word the LAZY use to describe the DEDICATED

Poster Child

My kid is famous.

Wanted: Olympic Wrestler

Olympic Quality wrestler is needed for diapering and clothing duties of one (1) 12-month old child. Those with having medals and/or talents in one-armed submissions (the other will be used to diaper or cloth the child) will be considered first.
The child is extremely talented in twisting and squirmed out of most holds and positions. Extreme care must be taken in avoiding bruising, suffocation and broken limbs. Only those considered for interviews will be contacted, thank you for you time.
The following is a picture of the child in an aggressive stance.

Hi Ho Hi Ho, off to work she goes.

Its amazing how easy it is to forget these things when Anne isn't working.
Its Thanksgiving and she is working 12hr days Saturday, Sunday and Monday. This is what happens pretty much every major holiday, or every second one anyway.
The funny thing is that I am totally fine with it, I grew up with my parents doing the same thing. Ever is getting more fun to play with and Maya is getting better at helping and entertaining herself which makes the whole weekend enjoyable. Much more than when Anne does nights anyway.
This morning I took the kids to meet with some friends (other "medical widows") at a conservation area and we hung out and let the kids play and had a great time. Tomorrow we are going to my aunts to have thanksgiving with the family that IS still around and I am sure I will enjoy myself thoroughly.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

WHAT SHE THINKS.....
So working indoors on a absolutely fabulous weekend when I just happen to want to get some long runs in, and have some family time that involves hiking to an epic vista...just sucks.
It would have not minded, just accepted I was was needed...but iiiiiitttttttt wwwwaasss sooooo sllloowwww. Am wanting some direction in my work..is this were I am really to be??

When I am old and my bones rattle, and I can hardly move, and I have to pee every hour....PLEASE for everybody's sake just put a catheter in.

As spoken by the nurse who just might go insane if she hears a white haired woman croak the words 'I have to pee' one more time.

Ever Man

Ever seems to have the music in him, and thus he just can't stop moving to the beat. I actually think he has rhythm. And on another note, I fear Maya will be asked to leave her tap dance lessons due to her lack of rhythm and utter absence of co-ordination.

Addicted

I can't stop thinking about nor eating Reese Peanut Butter Bites. As a treat for working nights these past two nights I bought a 240ml package for each night and ate them both. Gluttonous

On the plus side it is cheaper then smoking, although I'm not sure which is worst for your health.

Gross... no really, it is

So this morning Ever has his usual poop while we were getting breakfast ready. Or so we thought.
So he's crawling around and Mayas saying "Ever you're REALLY stinky!" I look at him and you get tell he is really poopy. Then I step in some cat barf, only its not cat barf but diarrhea leaking out of Ever's diaper.
Then we couldn't find wipes. Oh such a wonderful start to a day.

Race Tee- Shirts

In case anybody is intrested .. he is a photo of all the race shirts I got this year... and I didn't even get shirts from all the races I was in..either they were not offered or I just didn't want it.
FYI- If you are a race director. I DO NOT WANT anymore, unless it is techincal.

I like my Chocolate Tofu Cake

Happy Birthday Baby Boy

The little man turned one today! To celebrate he vomited all over everything last night- and as a gift we gave him gravel suppositories!! Ahh good times.

Today the sickness vanished and he was able to enjoy his big day. A new outfit to church, two cakes, swimming, fun with his family made the day special. Sad thing is he really does not have any friends to invite over. There are other little boys, but they are all older then him and bigger. Although apparently he beats up on the other little boy who is older at the babysitters.

In the skills department he is standing independently after pulling him self up, crawling like lighting, walking with help, and wanting to climb everything. He says 'at' for cat. Mimics what we are saying with about a 10% success rate. Ie. hot, nice doggie. If we sing he 'sings' along. Loves all music and dances to most everything. His fine motor seems to be good. With Maya I just thought she was average in all she did, but I think he is superbaby. How many other one year olds make scribbles with pens?? Occasionally gets puzzle pieces in properly?? Of course I do not want him to be too smart cause then I would worry about autism.

He is 22.6lbs, has 6 full teeth and one just popped out today.

But it wasn't broken

So I started back to work two weeks ago. Just long enough for the corporation to change completely how nurses chart, give out medications and basically how you spend your day. Previously we had lovely paper and pen to write down our patients progress, use a medication administration record on paper to give medications, and generally managed to keep organized in our heads. Now thanks to Cerner we use tick boxes to chart our patients status, take a laptop from patient to patient and use the scroll button to hand out medications, and follow pre determined tasks so we don't forget anything. I am not going to say anything negative in case there are spies but ....the paper worked.

Life with Me

I saw this list on RunningMania and seriously laughed out loud. I think it gives a glimpse of what goes through my head...and what what Luke lives with.



Dating a triathlete... "I am an outdoors type of person." Really means: I train in any type of weather. If it's raining, snowing, 90 degrees w/100 percent humidity, or winds gusting at 30 mph. I don't want to hear any complaints because I will still train in it and you're just a big wuss for complaining about it.

"I enjoy riding my bike." Really means: with or w/o aero bars, alone or in a peleton, I don't care. If you can't do a spur of the moment 30 miler then you're not my type. I will let you draft, but if you can't hang and I drop you - I will see you later. I am a capable mechanic, but don't expect me to change your flats or tune your bike. You need to learn that on your own.

"I enjoy jogging." Really means: Let's run hills until we puke. I have just as many shoes as you only mine are better because they are functional and all look the same.

"I enjoy dining out." Really means: I enjoy eating out, in or anywhere else I can find food. Don't be shy because with the amount of food I eat, you can have that main entree instead of a salad and you will still look as though you eat like a rabbit in comparison. Don't get your limbs too close though as I may take a bite out of you. Most importantly don't expect any taste off my plate unless you can bring something to the party like more food. Eventually though if your not burning 4,000 calories a day your going to plump up and have a terrible complex due to watching me eat deserts and not gain any weight. Friends and family will eventually decide not to dine with us anymore due to my horrid table manners. Oh, and don't ask me any questions during breakfast, Mid Morning Lunch, Lunch, Afternoon lunch, Dinner or Recovery Dinner as it does not lend to efficient food intake.

"I enjoy quiet walks on the beach." Really means: Walks on the beach warming up into an 8 mile run and then plunging myself in the ocean for a 2 miler. If you get in my way you're going to find out what mass start is and let me assure you that you don't want to find out.

"I find fulfillment in charitable work." Really means: If I am not racing, I am volunteering and I expect you to be there along side me as I stand out in 90 degree weather for 8 hours handing out sports drink to cyclists going 20 mph. Just stick the ol' arm out there and hope it doesn't get taken off.

"I enjoy sharing quiet moments together." Really means: It's taper time. Just back off because I am strategizing and in a pissy mood because I am worried about my "A" race and can't workout.

"I am an active person." Really means: Aside from my 40 hour job, and the 8 mandatory hours of sleep a night. 10 hours a week are devoted to me during the off-season and 25 during race season leaving us 4 hours. 2 of which are spent inhaling food and you not talking to me, so let's make the best of the 2 hours we will spend together on average each day. If you are a licensed message therapist or doctor this would make the most optimal use of our time together. Nutritionist is also acceptable, but I probably already know just as much as you.

"I enjoy road trips and leisurely drives." Really means: You have your choice of Wisconsin, Idaho, Florida, California, Arizona, and New York, but don't expect to do much site seeing. If I get enough support from you we might be able to include Hawaii in there.

"I enjoy site seeing." Really means: Lets grab a mountain bike and get our HR's up to 200. There's plenty of time to look around on the descent as trees and bushes whiz by you at 40 mph.

"I like stimulating conversation." Really means: while we are running, we can talk about food. Then we can talk about how we decided what to wear on this run based on the temperature at start time versus the temperature at the time we expect to finish, how horribly out of shape we are, how many miles we did last week, and how many we will do this week and next week. Then we can talk about food.

"I enjoy relaxing soaks in the tub." Really Means: I'm going to stop on the way home and buy two bags of ice, throw them in the tub with some water, and sit in this torture chamber for 30 minutes.

"I'm interested in photography" Really Means: My camera is permanently perched a tripod in front of my trainer. I obsess over taking photos of my bike position and analyzing them to get the perfect setup.

"I'm into in technology" Really Means: My HRM and bike computer are my best friends. Until you can give me some hard data that can improve my training, don't bother trying to buddy up to me. You could one day break into the top three if I find you as entertaining on long runs and rides as my mp3 player.

Things to consider when buying a bunk bed.

I could survive for 1 minute, 3 seconds chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor

Shoes

I think the running shoes are about to overtake us. They might be reproducing.

Reading Buddies

Forward Facing

Back up your stuff!

I am surpised it hasn't happened before, but today I had a customer cry.
I probably won't be able to get their data off their ailing hard drive and I told them.
There is still hope, but it doesn't look good.

Also, if you are a customer, don't get mad at me because I am asking you questions so I can understand what it is exactly you need me to fix. Saying that your icon thingie is missing and you want it back doesn't help me.

Ninja Cat -the art of moving without moving

I don't think Mango does this but I wish he did.

Attention Programmers

Here is how you can make your millions....

I want a program where I can add all my cookbooks and scan all my loose recipes to a database . Then I can search MY recipes for zucchini muffins vs me searching in all of the cookbooks for that perfect one that I have made before.

Look Carefully

....................and you see a slightly enlarged uterus with a fetus inside!! Congratulations Annie and John.








PS Can I borrow your skinny clothes?

So last night Maya had a bubble bath. We are having all sorts of fun and then ALL THE SUDDENT THIS BATH TROLL JUMPED OUT AT US.

Well, after the initial fright, we all calmed down, named him chompers and decided to keep him.

Wasaga Beach Try a Tri

Well I did it- completed my first triathlon. What follows may be way to detailed for anybody other than one one fan to read. Thanks for all your support Luke!!!

We spent the previous night in Barrie with Annie and had a really relaxed morning arriving at race site at 1030 so we would be able to check out the other members in the saugeen tri club who where doing other races. As we pulled into the parking lot and walked to the race site I was getting very nervous- the waves looked slightly rough but not rough enough to cancel the swim. BUT I was wrong!! Instead of swimming in frigid Georgian bay we swam in freezing Nottawasaga River. Thank goodness I was able to borrow a half wet suit.
I started in the second wave- blue caps. I tried to positon myself away from the crowd, which meant to treaded water for a few minutes in the deepest part of the river. The 400 metre distance I tried to visualize as once around the track. It really didn't seem that long from the shore, nor did it seem like it would be rough once I was in the water. However once the gun went off- it was long and it was rough. I remember cough and getting water up my nose at one point and thinking where the heck are the life guards I'm about to drown out here. Despite getting some swim coaching from the tri club couch I kept my head above water THE ENTIRE TIME and did not establish a rhythmic breathing pattern at all. I also spent at least 100metres of the race my back. My swim result was 181/255. 12:52. My goal time was 15min. I know I was one of the last in my wave the get out of the water. First transition was great. Ran right out the water- passing many people walking, striping out of my wet suit as I ran. Took the time and sat on the ground to put on my shoes. Discovered that wiping my feet with the wet wetsuit was better then my towel. Then I had a stretch of bad luck.

First was getting out of transition- I basically carried my bike over sand hills to get out of transition. There were people everywhere. In most events transition is closed except to the actual participants of the multi sport event. Then I get to the mount line and mount my bike start pedaling and......MY CHAIN WAS OFF. Insert bad language here. I thought that might get me disqualified but I quickly got it back on and pressed on and started passing people ......until a friendly competitor reminded me we were not to pass until after getting out of the provincial part. Again I was sure I would be disqualified but just kept on going trying to make up time. The 10km went by very fast as I worked at catching my breath and passing people. Unfortunately I got stuck behind some people as I went into the park as had to slow down and stay behind them. 62/255 - 22:10- 27.1km/hr. This was a disappointment as I had hoped to maintain 28km/hour.

The run was surprisingly well considering I actually had not had a training run in a few weeks. Even though it was on a beach I really was not expecting the have to run though vast stretches of sand. Did ALOT of passing here. A man who had passed me on the bike called out to me' great run' as I passed him. I think I almost knocked over a water boy because he was in my way- hence another reason why I thought I might be disqualified. My 2.5km run time didn't feel fast but apparently I was. 25/ 255- 10:41- 4:17km. My goal time was 12minutes. I managed to cross the finish line in 50:20. Goal was under 50 minutes. Ever was crying as I crossed the finish line and I could hear him for the last 25 metres and was really bummed after the race. Looking around before the race I wondered why these people where doing try a tri's- they all looked like great athletes. I didn't even want to look at the results because I was sure I would see that I was disqualified. Instead I saw that I WON my age category first out of 29. I just started to laugh. How is it that a person who can barely swim win??? I was 72/255, and 16/148 female. Although of the 16 females that beat me nine were under 20.

I can't say I loved triathlon. I was rather scared swimming and that is due to lack of any sort of training except cardiovascular. I didn't like the short distances of the other disciplines so I don't know that I want to move towards triathlons. I do think that I will work on swimming some over the winter and perhaps do another try a tri or to next summer. I do really like duelathon and want to focus on them for a few years.

I want to publicly thank Andrea V. for being an amazing helper to us yesterday. As the race site was VERY far from our car there was a certain amount of going back to it for stuff and forgetting my swim goggles requiring Luke to start his run training to go back for them. We needed her to watch the kids as I am in no shape to care for anybody before a race. As well as the race site had no food for non competitors and we did not know this thus did not plan accordingly so everybody was waiting for me to finish so I could get some food to share.
Yes we owe you...and I still have your sweatshirt.

Infected

For the past 2 weeks, I have fixed about 15 or so PCs infected with this.
It seems that people are getting some VERY cleverly disguised e-mails as well as messages in facebook that link them to the virus which installs itsleft and reeks havoc like no other spyware I have ever encountered. Plus none of the main anti-spyware programs out there can defend against it properly yet. Though there are some good removal tools. So be careful folks.

Insane

As my calf is still rather tight and sore and I still want one more multi sport race this year I'm going to do a Try a Try this weekend.
I have never taken swimming lessons, I get nervous at Sauble beach in the waves, and quite frankly have never swam 400metres before. I got a couple of tri members and lifeguards to take a look at my swim and they both assured me it is not dangerous for me to be out there.

My goal is not to be rescued by a lifeguard and finish the swim. Prayer is needed, and maybe a wet suit- anybody got one?

First Day of School

Today Maya started her first day of Senior kindergarten french immersion at Dawn view Public school. She was " excited but nervous" to go. No tears except when we tried to take her photo. Minor confusion as she was enrolled in the English kindergarten. She sites the highlight of her day as eating lunch ( Jam sandwich, beans, apple, grapes, and cookie) and the low as not enough free time in the gym.
Perhaps with time we will learn more about what she does all day there.