Busy Busy!

We started out with some triathlon training, followed by a nap on the way home, and dinner out to refuel.

This was Shelly's last day of swimming training. We've been swimming twice a week for the last month. While everyone else plays around, we swim laps. "Was that 8 or 9 laps? 9? No, I think only 8. No I won't compromise, we're doing 10 today!" Every new place we swam had its own little hiccups. We couldn't find the locker rooms, restrooms, an open locker, an empty lane to swim in. After a month of that, we're experts. (Except, apparently even the EXPERTS can forget to bring their towels to the pool. Cue the drying off with a T-shirt...)

And we both know - she's GOT this thing. We'll gather up our equipment, load up the bikes and head out to Whitewater next Sunday for Shelly's grand adventure in the Tri. I am SO proud of her!

We're Ready!

We are so ready for warm weather. Warm weather activities have begun, despite the continuing cold temperatures. Campfires, playing in the garden, bike rides, stopping off at any place with a little green to go for a walk, search for good sticks, look for trouble... (And maybe stopping off for ice cream? As if its already summer? As I type this its snowing outside, an inch already on the ground.)

Elijah's shoes have started to wear off on the toes where he's dragging them to slow down when riding the wooden bike. I can see they're not going to last long, the question is, do I find him some new shoes for this summer, and watch him wear the toes completely off, or let him tough it out once the toes on these are gone?

Opening Day

This has been a long.... long.... winter. Too many days with the kids home from school because of cold weather. Record snowfall, record cold. We started out March with more snow. My mom's voice ringing in my ears, "In March the wind blows down the door, and blows my soup upon the floor..."

Now, March 14, finally, temps in the 40's and it feels like summer. Archer has been begging for days to bring his bike up out of the basement so he can cruise the neighborhood but I've been putting him off. Its just so cold out. Today, he took matters into his own hands and started to bring it up himself. He would have probably made it, if not for the little (or big?) scare downstairs. I know he wants to say ghost, haunted, some kind of scary story. But he knows better than that, he wouldn't say it to me but he was terrified. His story got me secretly scared and I almost wouldn't have gone down if it weren't for Shelly, she wanted her bike too so she led the way. I didn't let on about how I was quaking inside, we dug her bike out from under all the bigger bikes (why do we have 47 bikes down there???), grabbed E's little wooden bike under one arm and Shell's under the other and climbed back out of the dungeon basement. Only glancing back over my shoulder once to make sure nothing was following us.

A quick rush to find shoes, sweatshirts, helmets and then... Silence inside the house for about twenty minutes while they enjoyed their newfound freedom. Speed, coasting, peddling, tight circles and wide turns and enjoying the wind in their faces and the sun in their eyes. Twenty minutes. The wind finally crept in under their sweatshirts, tummies growling because its been thirty minutes since they last ate, they eventually all came in hungry and freezing nearly to death.

Opening Day for the biking season didn't last too long, but the kids have been out, the bikes are in the garage and there's no going back to the basement now. Spring, Summer, something with warmer temperatures is on the way!!

In March the wind blows down the door
And spills my soup upon the floor
It laps it up and roars for more
Blowing once, blowing twice
Blowing chicken soup with rice

~ Maurice Sendak

 

Today

Today is FINALLY the day when we could leave the house on a whim without winter coats, hats, gloves, scarves, boots. Today is the day when I said, "want to go on an adventure?" And they followed me out the door and we went to the woods and explored God's great gift of nature. There was plenty of green among all the dead looking leaves, little sprouts here and there to show that spring has definitely arrived. And we even spotted a couple of turtles and countless frogs in the pond. When the kids were quiet we could hear them calling, the frogs were singing of spring too, I think. But we couldn't hear them for long, the kids started back up with shouting their discoveries, and Shelly with her songs of warm weather and sunshine.

First we consulted the maps, determined where we were and where we wanted to go (Archer was the leader but E made his opinion pretty clear too).

I happily took my place at the back of the pack and followed our leaders across the boardwalk (there were bees... they made the kids a bit nervous but we didn't have much choice, forge ahead!).

There were a few stops for "Mom take a picture of me here!"

Shelly is a blossoming photographer with her new film camera.

The first time we passed the pond we didn't see much, bu the second time around we slowed down. Watched the ripples in the water and carefully, slowly, we were able to spot frogs! E entertained himself with throwing sticks into the water.

And finally, a kind hiker paused to take a picture of us as we crossed paths, he on his way to the pond and river, us on our way home.

I love these times, spontaneous and not rushed by any schedule, just letting the kids decide which path to take next and when to go home. What a GREAT way to start our weekend!!

Warm Weather Injuries

This has been the strangest winter I can ever remember, with hardly any snow and such warm temperatures that we never even put the kids' bikes away. In January Archer was riding his bike around the block!

The warmer air that's been blessing us lately has brought everyone out of their houses for some time in the sunshine and it's not without consequences. Shelly returned from two days at Grandma and Grandpa's house with a bruise and scrape on her forehead, along with scrapes on her arms and legs. They were the result of a collision with her brother as they made a trip around the block - she was running, he was on his bike and an unfortunate series of circumstances resulted in Archer and Shelly in a heap under the bike. I'm not sure how Archer escaped without injury, other than maybe his sister softened the fall?

Yesterday we went for a walk around the block and Elijah got to hold a worm for the first time. He didn't like it (surprise!). And when we were exactly half way, at the farthest spot from home, he wiped out. On his face. Scraped the bottom of his chin badly and came up covered in gravel and grime. Its pretty ugly looking, it probably still hurts. Not that its slowing him down. This morning we went outside to look at the sky on the driveway (Shelly's chalk masterpiece) and on the way in he wiped out again. This time its his knees. Well, you know his knees would have been fine, if he had been wearing pants. But who needs pants (or shorts) on a beautiful sunny day like today? I wonder if I'll have to keep him in pants all summer to protect his legs, its what happened with Shelly, I always made sure her knees were covered because she seemed to fall so often - hopefully she's past that now. But E - well, he's still a beginner at this walking thing, and with so many other people to chase after, there's no reason to slow down now!