Crickets and Mosquito Bait

Crickets because that is all you have been hearing from this blog lately. 
We are having a great time here and doing lots as usual.  There are just many things going on here and it turns out there is only a limited number of things I can do well, or even mediocre at one time.  Plus every time I think of a writing a blog I feel like I should explain my absence and it isn't inspiring to come up with excuses, so let's just skip it.

I love Texas.  I consider myself a native Houstonian having moved where when I was four.  I heard other parts of the world have four actual seasons, but I have never experienced that so I am pretty good with the two we have here.  Summer and not summer.   This past summer was brutal.  It was HOT.  Many weather related records were broken like - earliest day over 100, latest day over 100, and most consecutive days over 100.  Add to that extreme drought.  (Expected to be the worst on record here in the history of EVER!)
Things are going up in flames here left and right.  I think over 1600 houses have been burned down in wildfires.

Because I hate, hate, hate the cold.  I try to roll with these desert-like conditions.  This summer I tried to get the kids outside as much as possible, but since it was still 100 degrees at 9:00pm that was difficult.  Maybe I should have taught the kids to sleep walk.  I usually ended up whisking them to the park at the crack of 7:00 am and toughing it out outdoors until about 8:30, by which time it was sweltering and we escaped into the air conditioning.

The good part of the heat and drought though was that there were way less mosquitoes this summer.  Last summer we about got carried off by them despite my BIL's mosquito killing concoction of Windex and fabric softener.  (??) 

It has rained twice in the last decade in the last month and now the skeeters are back with a vengeance.  I tried to take the babies outside to play last night and had to wonder once again, "What makes Tayte so delicious to mosquitoes?"  I have never seen anything like it.  You can almost see the swarm of bloodsuckers heading his way when he leaves the house.  Are they just hanging around waiting for my juicy baby to venture outdoors??  At one point he even had his very own repellent fan we clipped to his shirt.  That was in addition to the later of OFF we applied and the citronella candle we forced him to carry.  (Just thought of a new invention......citronella scented outdoor toys like Frisbees and balls!)
Does he smell good to mosquitoes?
Is it his infectious smile?

Maybe they are attracted to the luminescent skin.  (Which I have witnessed sunburning outside for fifteen minutes in FEBRUARY!  Maybe this kid just isn't cut out for Texas.)

(Don't ask why he is sideways.........I just wanted to complete a darn post! I don't have time for obstacles.)

The good news..............as long as I stick close to Tayte I never get a bite?

Look at him.  You wanna bite him too don't ya?

Do you have a delicious person in your family?

Got any solutions?

Better Late............Or Maybe Not

About a hundred years ago my parents took me to Vermont.  Ok.  It was last month.  It feels like a hundred years ago. I did "compete" in a triathlon, but I also was a tourist as this was a tri-cation.  We had a ball.  It was so much fun having my parents all to myself.  Usually I am wanting for attention while they throw money and candy at my children and tell them how cute they are. 
We left outta Houston on Thursday.  All day my MIL who was at home taking care of the kids was searching for the keys to my truck.  I can just picture her searching every nook and cranny because she is focused like that.  Not like me.  I start looking for something and while I am doing that I find something I had previously lost, like a book, then I start reading it and forget what I was doing.  (Kinda like this story........)
Anyway right before I checked my luggage I got an idea.  I opened up my suitcase and there were the keys to my truck.  Shaye had been helping me pack.  I was worried about what else she might have stuck in there.

My mom and I turned into a giggling mess while the safety precautions were being recited on the plane.  My dad tried to pretend he didn't know us.

Oh!  It's been a long time since I have pushed my mom around in a wheelchair.  I guess she had forgotten she permanently fired me from that job.  Hey!!  I only let her go down an incline once.  I only ran into another person once and I did do ANY donuts!!

Once in Vermont we made plans to see the sights.  My mom told my dad.  "We are not going to ____________.  If we take her there she will tell everyone we only took her to lame stuff!"  FINALLY!  I have struck fear into the hearts of my parents with my blogging influence.

First we got lost in Burlington.  I think part of the problem was map scale.  We were looking at the map of Vermont as if it were the map of Texas.  I guess maybe we should have paid more attention to the scale and less attention to the beautiful GREEN around us.
Second we got lost in Burlington.
Third we got lost in Burlington.
:)
Friday before the race we headed to New York and see Fort Tygonorrhea. 
Who knew you could take a thirty minute car ride and be in a whole other state.  Cool.
Fort Typonderosa is a fort used in both the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War.

Apparently they shot boats invading from Lake George.  I was just trying to sound smart there.  I don't know the name of the lake.

My dad broke off from the tour and was clearly trying to decide if he could round up the necessary materials to fire this cannon. 

This is my reenactment of a boat landing at Fort Ticonderoga.  (Yes.  That is the real name.)
After the race we tried to go see the house of Ethan Allen.  There are no pictures of that because we never found it.  It was three miles from us and we drove thirty miles to try to find it.   Again....scale.  During that trip we did go visit what my parents insist was an island, but it was clearly connected to Vermont by a strip of land.  My parents and I are just going to have to agree to disagree.
The landscape there was gorgeous.  Everything was so green and lush.  I hate the cold, but I would love to return for a (short) visit in the winter to see it all covered in a blanket of snow.

The food in Vermont was delicious!!  The night before the race we went to a diner and I was afraid to order anything good because I didn't want to puke on the course.  Soooooo. We returned immediately after the race and I pigged out.

This was my first lobster roll and it was DELICIOUS.  Also it was 1400 calories.  I know because they had the calories listed on the menu.  I noticed that last time I was up north too.  I wish they would start doing that here in Texas.  I feel a need to know how many calories are in chili con queso and guacamole.

My dad refrained from ordering the 2000 calorie dish he really wanted the first night, but he dove into it the next day.

Sadly he had to abort his mission.  He just couldn't finish the meal. Really he barely made a dent in it, but he was exhausted from trying.

All in all I had a great time.  It was so very incredible of my parents to haul my adult butt up there and entertain me and watch me race.  Next year the race is in the same place and I hope to be able to return with The Coach.
My parents stayed in Vermont after I left and got out just in time to miss the bad weather that plagued the area.  I hope that Vermont bounces back from the flooding soon.  It is a beautiful place and all of the people I ran into there were super friendly and welcoming.

I Lovermont

At the beginning of the summer I blogged about how I had qualified for the triathlon National Championships and my parents were taking me.
They did.
Today I am going to write about the race and then tomorrow the trip itself.

Swim

Here I am enjoying a pre race cocktail.  Really it's just gatorade. 
I think I was in the 87th wave to start.  The waves before me had swum in deceptively straight lines leading me to believe there was little current or pull.  So I jumped in under that false assumption and started about ten minutes of treading water.  While I was treading water the announcer announced, "Susan Williams is in the water."  Susan Williams is THE U.S. women's Olympic medalist from the U.S.   I was swimming with her.  We were neck and neck.....right until the horn sounded.
I quickly realized that I was out of my league as the rest of the field pulled ahead of me.  I dealt with that through the first and second buoy and I was being overcome by the next wave at the third.  Then it all fell apart and I considered quitting as a lifeguard tried to beat me into returning to the course with his oar.  The sun was in my eyes, I was swimming in circles, I had a cramp, and some jerk told me I was swimming sideways.  (Just for the record....I MEANT too!)

I am the one splashing around out there WAAAAAYYYYY of course.

The only thing that kept me from giving up was thinking that my parents had funded the whole trip and my mom had walked all the way to the race start.  If I had quit then it would all be a waste.  I never did see that fourth buoy, but I did spot the fifth and figured I might live, so I continued swimming and finally made it to dry land.  I thought I had been out there forever, but it turns out it was right at 38 minutes.  Not much off my usual pace.
Swim - 00:38:17

 Does this outfit make me look fat?


I managed not to pull a glut getting out of my wetsuit and headed on to the next phase.

The Bike
I had rented a very nice tri bike for the occasion instead of paying for my own bike to me dismantled and rebuilt numerous times.  It was awesome.  Shifting was different as were the aero bars and the handle bars, but all in all it was fine.
The idea of hills had me intimidated ever since I signed up for the race.  The first 2.5 miles were total incline.  And to mock me the people ahead of me were FLYING downhill to finish up their bike.  Usually my heart rate is usually only around 180 when I am going all out.  On the bike my heart rate stayed around 225 the entire time.   It was definitely hard, but not impossibly so.  Vermont was beautiful and I had plenty of time to see it. I figure I was in last place because whenever I rode passed a volunteer or officer they started up their engines as if they were done with their shift.
It was quite exhilarating to look down and see my speed as 37.00 mph after the turnaround.  Since I had never ridden the bike other than on the trainer for the fitting I was really praying the brakes worked.  Whew.
The cramp I developed in the swim was noticeable on the bike, but not traumatic.   (That's foreshadowing by the way.)
Bike - 1:27:30

Hallelujah! I survived the bike.  Oh darn....it's time to run.

Run
The run is never my strong point and the feeling that I was in last didn't help.  Neither did the half mile climb to start us off.  UHG.  I walked it and my side was killing me by the time I got to the top.  I walked/ran as best I can.  Five people from my age group passed me which filled me with hope AND despair.  Each time I thought, "I wasn't last!  But I am now."
At one point I was walking and a nice older (very older) lady competitor ran by me and asked if I was injured.  I told her I had a bad cramp and couldn't breath and she encouraged me to run with her nice and slow.  I did run with her for probably a mile and a half and I am so thankful for her encouragement.  She was a previous world qualifier and very interesting too!  By the time she ran off I only had a mile left.

Run - 1:13:22
Finally I reached the finish line and received my finishers medal.  Both my dad and my mom were there to congratulate me.  (Everyone else had packed up and gone home.  Ok.  Not really.)  I was very glad my mom was able to see me race.  I was even more glad my dad had pre agreed to a big honking LUNCH!!
Total - 3:23:46

Can you see them rolling up the carpet after my finish?  Kidding.

Sometimes it is important to just keep going because it turns out I didn't do as poorly at the race as I thought I was doing. I was over my best olympic distance time by about four minutes.  Really with the hills and the unfamiliar bike and all that wasn't too bad.
I came in 106th out of 107 in my age group.  Of course if I were just basing my performance on that I would be disappointed, so it is a good thing I am not.  It's like I told my dad.  I was still getting passed, but I was getting passed by a much better class of athlete!

I was really looking forward to putting that 1800 calories back in my belly!! 

I was an experience I am lucky to have had.  I hope to get a chance to return next year and do a better job since I have one national championship under my belt!  Can't wait.  (Mom and Dad - I will try to save up some money between now and then!!)

Tomorrow I plan to fill you all in on the vacation part of this trication.
Try to contain your excitement.

Partypolooza!

I have been AWOL. I know.  Hey!  I've a little busy.  (Said with my best New Jersey accent - which isn't that good.  In fact it sounds a lot like my Howard Cosell.)

Anyway.  I have been getting farther and farther from blogging as I feel worse and worse about not blogging.  I figured the best way to make a comeback was to just write something.  Anything.
Here goes.

August saw three different birthday celebrations at our house.

Shaye Baby turned two.  How is it possible she is two?  It goes so fast, yet at the same time I can hardly remember our family without her antics.

We had a small celebratory after lunch party.  The good thing about having Sweet Aunt live a block over is that once her and her four boys show up it is an instant party! 
I made a lemon cake from scratch that called for about five cups of sugar.....in just the frosting. (Talk about a party.)

Shaye had several presents, but only one gift bag.  When she turned to exclaim over one of her treasures I just snuck the next gift into the bag.  Genius.

Tell me please how two year old girls know they love a hat and a purse?

Next it was Tanner's turn.
The BIG 13.  I can't imagine how he got this old!

His birthday is actually in July, but with the cruise and all it kept getting pushed back.  It was his year for a real party though, so party we did.  He chose a go cart party.  Great fun was had by all.
Just in case you didn't believe me - here are the pics. 

 Sweet Aunt and Cade

 The Coach and Tayte

My Best Peep Pree and her girly.






The Birthday Boy himself.

                                                                             Speedy Saige

And of course no party is complete unless one of your "grown" ass brothers gets kicked off the go cart track.........I'll let you guess who got kicked off - Guns or Uncle Bachelor.

And last but not least the sweetest three year old on the planet turned into the sweetest four year old.  (My blog, my opinion!)

He is pretty excited.  He wore that crown all week.  I think it had finally met its demise though.

 You might be wondering why we are having a donut party at 8 am in the park.  I'll tell you. Tayte was dying to have a party in the park.  The forecast for the day we planned to have his party was 108.  We decided there was NO WAY we were going to go into the scorching heat to grill.  So...we bought up a couple dozen donuts, stuck some candles in one and ta da........Party!!

Again if you don't believe me....here's a pic.  See?  Invite Sweet Aunt and Sweet Uncle and their sweet boys, throw in one Gramma and one babysitter and instant party.

 Just for the record Shaye totally approved of the donut theme.

So... not even counting my trip to Vermont, and school starting back up....thing have been hopping around here.  And I am infinitely grateful to be celebrating another year with each one of these kiddos.

I hope to stretch this streak into two by writing about the National Championships tomorrow.  I hope you will drop by!!

Saigie's Try

Saigie did a triathlon on Saturday.  I couldn't be prouder of her.  It was the Bridgeland Kids Triathlon. 

The distances were supposed to be one lap of swim in the pool, a 2 mile bike and a .5 mile run. 

Saige said they made her swim 100 meters like the big kids even though she kept, "trying to tell them."

At the finish line I waited for her and told her brothers it would be two more minutes before she got there.  Right when I said that she showed up and she was TRUCKIN'!! 

I was so happy for her accomplishment.  As was the rest of her athletic supporters.

 Shaye hollered for about thirty minutes straight.  It was the cutest thing.  "Go Saigie!!"

And remember no matter what the pesky brothers may claim about Saige's athletic prowess.  If it were easy, they would call it football!! :)

Coed Campout - Follow Up

Thanks all of you for playing along.  It was nice to hear different viewpoints.  Like I said we certainly don't have to agree. 

The setup to this post is here.

Basically here is the denouement.  (Once when I first teaching I was being observed and got nervous and I said that word as it looks...day-now-ment....  Of course my observer was a former English teacher and I got RIPPED!!)

Here is the aftermath of the incident.....

Ty got in the car when I picked him up and started chatting happily about the camp out.  He didn't hesitate to mention there were girls there.  He didn't try to hide that fact.

I got very quiet trying to figure out what was going on with girls being there.  He just kept on chatting causing me to think maybe I was over-reacting, so I stayed quiet.
After a few minutes I guess he noticed my white knuckles on the steering wheel or maybe my clenched jaw.  He asked, "Are you mad at me?"
I told him I had to think it through and determine if I was overreacting or not and we just shouldn't talk until then.
He said he was sorry and that he wondered why I had allowed him to stay.
Duh............Ya told me it was you and one kid.  A GUY kid.

So when I got home I discussed it with The Coach.  I was really hoping he would say it wasn't a big deal about the neighbor girls and we would deal with the shoddy answer to my text and move on.  Instead I went from being the ticked one, to being the voice of reason as The Coach's head exploded and he started looking up military schools on the internet.

The main issue was the fact that I asked who "they" were and Ty did not release all the names.  Point 1 - I didn't ask the right followup question.  Point 2 - I shouldn't have had to. 

As far as the parents......the girls who slept over have lived next door their whole lives.  I am sure they are like sisters to him.  I am certainly not trying to make anything sordid out of an innocent sleep over.  I would have appreciated it had they checked with me, but again the main responsibility is on Ty and me.

He was reminded of OUR expectations. My thinking here is that the first time (well now second) time Ty spends the night with a girl I want it to be at least a big decision, not just some casual thing that happens.  I could be wrong in my thinking, but hey..I have been wrong before.

. P$ didn't see any problem with the coed sleep over part.
That is fine with us.  P$ is just as dedicated to raising morally sound children as I am.   She was allowed to have coed sleepovers when she was a kid and everything turned out just fine.  ( I wasn't even allowed to have a boy in my room!)

So there are both sides of the story. 
Ty was grounded for two weeks for lying by omission.  He seemed to accept his fate.  Maybe he even thought he got off easy.  I mean really grounded is better than military school.

Furthermore this explains why Ty has been in so many of the pictures I have posted lately.  He wasn't allowed to go anywhere without The Coach or me!!

Have YOU ever been to military school?  What was the most (non illegal) trouble you ever got into growing up?

The Incident

I was thinking the other day about how when I post something everyone who comments pretty much agrees with me.  That's great because I am always right.  There I go being hilarious again.

The thought crossed my mind that maybe bloggers just feel like we have to agree and that is not true.  So I am going to tell you about a recent incident at our house and tomorrow I will follow up with the consequences occurring here. 

See...you won't know if you are agreeing or not!!   Aren't I sneaky?
I am looking for a little bit of controversy.  Not a lot. Just enough so that I do not have to start watching soaps or anything.

Just for the record my very best friend in the whole world, P$, and I don't even agree on this. And we still love each other.

Here goes.

A couple of weeks ago Ty, my 15 yo, had the chance to go fishing with his dad during "my" weekend.  I let him go and him and two guy friends and two girls friends had a great time.  On his way home we had the following text conversation.

Ty: They want to know if I can spend the night?
Me: Who is they?
Ty: Trent.  We are going to camp out in his backyard.
Me: Sounds cool.  Have a great time.  Call me in the morning.

I did a tri the next day and in the middle of my nap - of course - Ty called me to come get him.  I did.
In the car he started telling me about all they fun they had during the, "camp out". 

I thought Trent was the only one who was going to be camping so I asked who else was there and he said, "Amanda and Taylor."

Ok - So........I won't tell you which side P$ is on, or what side I am on.
You tell me....what would YOUR reaction have been?

Never Kiss a Gift Gun

From time to time I try to reward The Coach's awesomeness with a gift.
He is awesome with his athletic supported-ness, and his sexy mustached-ness

It never works out. Here is an example.

Idea: 
The idea was to buy The Coach something for Father's Day.  He bought me a cool bike for Mother's Day.  We got him one too and he said that is good enough of a gift. I have been spending a butt load of money to get ready for the cruise, so I wanted to get him something.  (Ok. The most expensive thing I bought was a 100.00 swimsuit, but to me that is a butt load of money.)
He wouldn't give me any hints and said not to get him anything.  We do the budget Dave Ramsey style so it is pretty hard to get hold of any secret gift money.  In the past I would skim money from the grocery money, but with Ty's current 4000 calorie a day intake that just isn't possible.
So I scraped up some allowance.  I fibbed about some gas money.  I Craig's listed some junk around the house. I cashed in our ATM rewards points and I was off.

Gift:
I headed to the gun store with my dad.  There were about a million guns there.  Ty was in heaven.  I knew The Coach needed a .20 gauge.  My dad found a few .20 gauge pumps.  One looked pretty good.  I really wanted to get him a over/under though as I have been intrigued by those since I was a kid shooting my dad's.  The shooter cracks it open after two shots and it spits the empty shells out.  Awesome.
Anyway I found a used one for 200.00 dollars more than I had scraped up.  (Ty offered to lend me the rest of the money.  Isn't he sweet?)  I decided to put the balance on our credit card we never use.

Interruption:
Hey.  You know...if you joke in a gun store full of nervous sales people packing major heat that your husband might get a text that the credit card has been used at the gun store he might not come home fearing a PMS induced murderous rage....no one will laugh.

Back to the story:
I filled out the paperwork for a background check, and all was going swimmingly until I got to the first question.  It said, "Are you going to be the sole owner of this weapon?"  It was a trick.  The penalty for fraudulently buying a weapon for someone else in Texas is 10,000 and ten years in jail.  I know because it is on billboards all over the city.
So I passed the background check and bought the gun.  My stomach was in knots.  The Coach would either be majorly excited, or majorly PISSED that I had put something on the credit card we never used.  I was developing ulcers while I waited to see which.

 The Problem:
When  I got home The Coach asked me to accompany him to the suit store to buy a suit he has to have for the cruise.  As we got into the truck he asked me, "Can I have that red credit card for the suits."  I calmly handed it over, but inside I was dying.  He never uses that card!!  It only has a low limit.  What are the chances?  I needed to smoke.  I don't even smoke.

He shopped FOREVER which is a whole 'nother post.  Finally he made his selections and we waited for the world's oldest and slowest sales person to ring us up.  I was in agony!  My newly developed ulcers were beginning to bleed.  Finally he slid the card through and started wrapping up the deal.

Then
He
Said

"I am sorry. That card was declined."

The Coach started to argue with him that there was a 0 balance on the card and I interrupted him saying, "I need to talk to you." I went outside and burst into tears.

Of course I had to spill the beans and explain I had bought him an expensive gift.  Of course he was not mad at me, but was very excited to get his gift.  I gave it to him that night.  I think he likes it.

It is tricky to buy a gun for someone who may be upset that you spent money!  Again..not a funny statement to nervous gun shop sales guys!!

What is the best surprise you have ever pulled off for your spouse?  Are you good at keeping a secret?

She is Baaaaaaack.!!

Saigie has been gone on vacation this week with her best friend and her mom.  They had a great time.  We went to pick Saigie up and she was glad to see us and enjoyed being the center of all of our affection.  We missed her very much
We got into the car and exhaustion set in.

On second thought maybe it was annoyance. 

Extreme annoyance. Ty seemed to need to make up for lost time.

I am not sure what Ty is doing here, but I am sure it is annoying.

Awwwww.  I think they missed each other.

Do your kids go out of town without you in the summer?  Does it drive you crazy? 

Once Upon a Time

It is summer time and I am reminded of Single Parent Vacation.  This is a vacation sponsored by the church for single parents and their kids. 
I went on the vacation two different summers.

The first time I took part the group was headed to a Dude Ranch in Bandera, Texas.  I got the kids ready and we drove three hours to get there.  We had a blast. We ate roasted marshmallows, and rode horses.  The kids swam in the pool and played horseshoes. There were Bible Studies that I to this day remember as being very valuable to me.  Especially at that time.

One day toward the end of the vacation the activity for the day was a river tubing trip.  You know the type. Tubers sit in an inflatable inner tube and lazily float down the river. No problem. 

I had three kids at the time.  Saige was probably 3, Tanner 5, and Ty 8.  They were adorable.  I embarked on the journey.  There were other families tubing and one nice father of three offered to help us.  I told him I had it under control.  (I sometimes have a slight problem asking for or accepting help.  Unless I need my mom's help.  Then I have no problem at all!  Thanks Mom!) I got Ty and Tanner in their tubes and put Saigie on my lap.  .

We got into the water and started our relaxing float. The group was inching further and further away from us.  I tried to get the kids to paddle a little to catch up, but you can probably figure out how well that worked.  I wasn't to worried. I could still see the group and I felt confident that someone would eventually wait for me.  About ten minute later I heard Tanner hollering from behind me.  He had managed to get stuck on some tree roots sticking out of the bank of the river.  We were getting further and further from him.  I hollered for someone ahead to help me, but no one heard. I hopped out of my tube and swam to Ty.  I placed Saigie on his lap and I hooked my tube to his feet.  I gave him instructions. "Do not move for any reason at all.  Hold your sister.  Do not move." 

I swam against the current and fetched Tanner in probably the only twenty feet of river that was over my head.  I pulled him back to where Ty had floated.  While I was gone Saigie had lost her shoes.  Thank God Ty did exactly what I said and didn't move for any reason.  I rounded up the shoes.  Got Saigie back on my lap and continued to float on.

I didn't think that much about for the rest of the float.  That night I laid in bed and thought about the day.  I was overcome with cold chills.  I had put my baby in the lap of my eight year old and left them?  In a river that was clearly over their heads?  They could have drowned.  Both of them.   I was breathless from the thoughts of what could have happened.

Even now I am wondering.  Why didn't I pull Ty and Saige with me back to get Tanner?  Why weren't they wearing life jackets?  What even made me think going tubing with three young kids was a good idea?

Whew.  I have to stop now, my blood pressure is rising.

Thank you God for protecting less than brilliant parents and their babies!

Do you have an harrowing experiences that keep you up at night?

Week One!

I thought this summer I would work on my blog and really write enjoyable stories about my family and capture pictures to fulfill the scrapbook part of this blog.

Ha!

Instead I have been reduced to doing what I am doing right now, hiding out silently in the study while dinner burns so no one will realize I am doing something for myself.  If they realize it all hell will break loose.  Someone will hurt themselves.  Someone else will spill something and inevitably someone will need the computer urgently.
So be very quiet while I quickly fill you in on our week.

Tayte rode a horse and got a trophy at his soccer party!!

We have eaten multiple Popsicles on the front porch.  Yes.  Popsicles must be eaten in the partially nude.  That's the rule.

I promise I really do put clothes on Shaye Baby in the summer.

Saige is lucky to have a little brother and sister so she can enjoy "baby" things under the guise of helping them!

We found this water park to walk to Wednesday night while Ty and Tanner are at church.  It took Tayte  a while to get get brave, but they finally did.  Tayte was so cute explaining this to Ty.  He told him, "Aren't you proud of me?  Say you are proud of me."



And finally we have been enjoying the first fruits of The Coach's vegetable garden.  He has planted zucchini, beans, tomatoes, peppers, onions and lettuce.  So far just the tomatoes have been ready.

So we accomplished some goals.  I took pictures.  (It looks like it may be the last week for that since someone - Shaye Baby - stole the SIM card from the computer and hid it somewhere.  I think her goals this summer is to drive me insane.)  We went to parks and we relaxed.  I read two books and I am in the middle of two.
I think we have reached our nutritional goals and our Forced Family Fun goals.

My totals for the week were.
Run: 19.55 miles
Bike: 59.57 miles
Swim: 4200 meters
weights: 1x

I did not meet the yoga goals with the football and volleyball workouts the kids had.  Maybe this week!!

Aren't you proud of me?  Say you are proud of me.
Just kidding of course.

I am fixna to pour a glass of wine now and try to catch up with some of y'all!!

Is it summer for you?  How is it going? OR How much longer do you have to wait?
What is your favorite local word?  Mine is "fixna".

No Wonder

I lost nearly fifteen pounds this school year.  I still have like two to go.  My wine consumption may go up while I am at home with the kids, so that two pounds may never happen.  Whatever.

Before losing any weight I went and had my resting metabolism calculated.  Basically the result was that I could eat around 1500 calories a day and maintain that same weight.  I get to add back in the amount of calories I work off training for triathlon.  That could be any where from 300 - 1200 depending on the workout schedule for the day, usually 600ish.

I monitor the calories in order to lose weight, but also to make sure I have enough fuel to train for an endurance sport.
One of my goals this summer was to help the kids eat healthier.  This morning I nagged talked to Ty about the amount of calories he was taking in.  By 11:30 am he had eaten the following.
Colossal power bar thingie
bottle of Muscle Milk
large orange
one Totino's pizza - the whole pizza, not a slice.
Cesar salad with chicken
Immediately after the pizza and salad he fixed himself a bowl of cereal I could swim in.  I exploded.  I told him it was no wonder there was never any food at our house and our grocery bill was more than our mortgage!!  (Not really) I pointed out to him that it was 11:30 am and he was getting ready to exceed 2000 calories of food!!

I marched into the computer room ready to prove my point.  I looked up the daily caloric needs for a 6'1, 255 pound 15 yo. (I had to look up 19 yo.  They didn't have this information for that size of 15 yo.)
3350
3350 - A DAY
3350 calories a day to main his current weight.
I read on.  It also stated that for every hour of exercise a person of this size completes 600 calories should be added back in.   Ty works out for two hours every morning with the football team, but I am only going to add 600 cuz I figure for some of that time they are getting instructions, or on a water break.  Mostly I will not add 1200 calories back in because I just can't fathom it.

I asked him if he wanted to lose any weight and he said, "some".  (His coaches have told him to trim some fat, but they don't expect to lose actual pounds while lifting so much weight. Just in case you thought I was encouraging my child to be obese.)  To lose one pound a week would want to eat 2850 calories a day.
I can't even imagine.

No wonder our pantry is always bare and my wallet is always empty.

If could eat 3000 calories a day and not gain any weight, what would you eat?

Blog from Shaye

Hi Mom's Blogger Friends,

It's me, Shaye Baby.
I am not sure exactly what you know about me since I can't read, but it occurs to me I might getting a bad rap on this blog. I have been referred to as, "ornery" in real life so I can only imagine the accusations that are flying around here.

Please rest assured I agree with the ornery assessment, but I am here to set the record straight as far as the reasons for it.
Here is a day in my life.

I am awakened around 6:00 am most days, but other days I stand in my bed and call for a parent to no avail.  If I didn't know better I would think people were ignoring me, but I don't know why.  Shouldn't we all be getting up?
After that rude awakening someone usually shoves a pop tart into my hand and plunks me in the car soggy diaper and all.  No one asks me what flavor Pop Tart I want, or if I even WANT a pop tart.  Some days I really would dig a nice plate of eggs Benedict.

By 6:30 I am dropped at the sitter and I have a pretty good time with all the little ones there. After nap time Mom comes to get me.   (By the way I insist on calling her Daddy.  Just because.)

For the rest of the afternoon and evening my mom flits from room to room.  Who knows what she is doing, None of the possibilities are good.
She could be leaving and I would stuck here with one or more incompetent siblings.  I work to make sure that happens as little as possible.  Screaming helps in this area as no one wants to be left home with a screaming baby.
She could be having a snack and not giving me any.
She could be folding laundry which I must unfold as soon as she turns her back.
Generally in these situations getting hold of a Sharpie or fighting with the cat seems to get her attention. 

Sometimes I manage to get distracted by a toy or usually some kitchen utensils.  This is great until one of the siblings comes by and decides whatever I have is theirs, or otherwise needs to be ripped from my grasp.  Now I could talk, but what is the point when an ear piercing scream works so well?  If it doesn't work....I hit.

Another reason I have to scream is because people are always trying to "help" me.  Rarely are they ever trying to help me do what I want to do and that is frustrating.

Two of my favorite pastimes are refusing to talk and refusing to come when called.
People are always trying to get me to say things.  They tell me, "Say cow, Say Saigie, Say Night Night."   I don't want to say any of that crap.  I am not a dog who does tricks for Pete's sake.  I have my pride.
Running away is great fun.  Especially when no one is playing with me.  It is an instant game.  If I have a toothbrush, or someone's cell phone it is even more fun.  And.  I am fast!

So you see I am not all that bad.  I am the youngest of five and it is important I don't let anyone forget I am here.

What do your kids do for fun?

3 More Days

There are three days left of school.
Due to the budget cuts in Texas schools I was laid off of my summer job.
The Coach and I discussed it and decided it would be more profitable for me to just not work this summer.

For the first time in six years I am going to be a stay at home mom!  (For the summer.)

One of the great things about teaching is the multiple opportunities a year to make or revamp goals.   This is convenient because I have long given up on the goals I made for New Years.  Last year my summer goal was to visit new and different parks.  It was a pretty slacker goal, but we moved twice last summer and I worked summer school.

 (Sniff.  Look at Shaye Baby so little last summer.)

Here are some of my goals for the family this summer.

Better nutrition.  We have fallen into some bad habits here towards the end of the year like Pop Tarts and cokes.  I told the kids we would be sugar free this summer.  That is probably stretching things a bit, but we will try to reduce the junk.  (The older three claim they are going to live with their dad.  Ha!)

Exercise.  Because it is Africa hot here it is hard to get out and romp around during the day, but without multiple sports during the summer we should be able to return to Forced Family Fun in the evenings.

 Here is one of our past "fun" efforts!  Again The Coach would like to remind everyone his tumbler is full of Tom Collins. (Look at Tayte.  He was a BABY!)

 The Coach and I got bikes for Mother's Day, so we can cruise around the neighborhood in style.



Scheduling.  If I don't watch it the kids will be watching cartoons all day while I blog clean up the kitchen five times after each kid eats.  My plan is to go out while it is bearable and get the babies tired enough for a nap.  A rule I always stick to is that breakfast ends at 9:00  After that the kids have to wait until lunch to eat.  Tanner is usually the last one up and has to sprint to the kitchen like O.J. Simpson in an airline commercial to make the deadline.

Tan Man's cute self will be denied breakfast if he can't get downstairs after the kitchen has been cleaned.


Also important in the scheduling area is my workouts.  I will get to sleep late compared to the school year, but I still need to get up early to do the workouts before the oppressive heat sets in.  Plus a big goal is to get to yoga class a couple of times a week. 

Obviously I need to work on my yoga since this is the only pose I know!

And finally I need to take more pictures of this patriotic baby!!  All of them really.  I haven't been as good about it as I should be lately. Just one more thing they will need therapy for one day.

Got any goals or plans this summer?
Got any advice on keeping my sanity with five kids at home for the summer?