I Snuck One Past You, Kid.

This morning, while Chase was playing on the computer and Ellis was playing with the Barbie house, I took a shower. Now this does not sound like a blog worthy event. BUT IT WAS. Why you ask? Don't you shower? Well, yes I do. The difference? Today I was ALONE!


To drive the point home, I was getting dressed and Ellis wandered in and asked me: "Mommy, what is that on your head?" I told her it was a towel. "But Mommy why do you need the towel. Did you take a shower? How did you do that without me?"


Um, I have done it before and hope to do it again.

It's All Greek to Me

*Update: Mark is DNF. Injury must have been too much.

Το ΣΠΑΡΤΑΘΛΟΝ είναι ένας ιστορικός υπερμαραθώνιος που λαμβάνει χώρα στο τέλος του Σεπτέμβρη κάθε χρόνο στην Ελλάδα. Είναι ένας από τους δυσκολότερους αλλά και πιο ικανοποιητικούς αγώνες υπέρ-αποστάσεων στον κόσμο χάριν και στο ιστορικό του υπόβαθρο.


In just a few short hours, Mark is once again going to try to tackle the Spartathon [His best showing was 16th place]. 152 miles. That is English measurement. But it's still Greek to me.

Retraction*

My sincere apology to my sister. Apparently the picture I posted of myself is horrible and insinuating that I thought it was her at first glance is an insult.

I respectfully disagree. [Noooo.... it isn't the best photo I've ever taken. BUT horrible is a bit HARSH.] So there. I take it back. All back. Are you happy????

* All joking aside, I think my sister is a pretty lady and am honored to look like her, even in some random way.

An Unappetising Name - Part II

A recent tantrum had me scratching my head. [Use another word Ellis, what else is it called... PLEASE point to whatever it is that you want!!!] And then, once figuring it out, thinking that two year olds certainly have a way with words.

What should we eat with our Toe Chips? Perhaps we should crack out some Toe Jam. Mmmm, mmmm, mmm.

Five and a Half

Happy Half-Birthday, Chase!

We were discussing birthdays today and Chase asked how long it would be until HER Birthday. In figuring it out, I discovered that it would be EXACTLY 6 months! Today is, in fact, her half-birthday.

Makes me a little sad... how quickly time flies.

In order to mark the occasion, we baked triple berry muffins.

Holy Guacamole!*

"Aye caramba! Who goes there?"
"We go by the name of Los CHiPSos", growled Erik Estrada, the biggest of the small ones. *

Imagine my surprise to receive this picture of my cousin Cynthia. Apparently the evening was topped off by a concert by REO Speedwagon. I think she was tele-ported back to 1979.

*[A bit too much Skippyjon Jones the past two days!]

Gourmet Granola - On a Budget

Mark has expensive taste in snacks... granola in particular. So originally the lock tight container started out as a place for me to rescue the little bits from the bottom of the bags. But what we got was a tasty mixture of different granola. So then I started skimping on the base granola, [Cascadian Farms makes a nice, organic granola that I can get for around $3 a box verses what Mark was getting for more than $6 a bag, and considering how much of it he eats, that is significant!!!] and building on it.

Now I take all those left over bits that would have gotten thrown away. A few almonds here, a few pecans there, peanuts, pistachios, those last few raisins or dried cranberries , strawberries or blueberries that the girls refuse to eat, and much much more. It is added at random times to the lock-tight container and given a shake. And like magic you now have "Gourmet Granola."

An Unappetizing Name

Tonight's dessert.

Ellis: Mommy are those STINKY Buns tasty?

Mommy: Um, they were till you just called them STINKY Buns.

A Big Wind

I worried about Hurricane Ike how it would effect all the relatives in Texas. Funny thing is that we saw more effects here in Ohio [Except for Cynthia's extended house guest.] Fortunately all the family was out of the path of the storm [Austin, Fort Worth, and McGregor]

But here at home we saw Big Winds. The girls were so scared of the sound of the wind around the house that at one point we went for a drive. That was quieter, but still scary.

The aftermath for us was thankfully only a yard full of branches. And the girls like to pick up branches. A task that makes me want to weep. [pun intended... those are weeping willow branches.] So I put the girls to work and am glad to report that we got things picked up enough I was able to mow the grass for what I hope is the last time this fall. Hey, a girl can hope.

Freakish Family Resemblance

Maybe I got up too early today [Ellis rang the bell at 5:15am] or perhaps I am a bit delusional, but while downloading a bunch of random pictures off the camera to the computer, I wondered when I took a picture of my sister. Then I realized that it was ME. Now, the more I look at it the more I wonder why I thought that, but for two ladies that don't really look alike, every now and again the camera catches some quirky angle that makes our children look at pictures of the one another and say "MOMMY."

That's Amore

Tonight, when being tucked into bed, in a partially darkened room, Ellis pointed to me and said:

"Look Mommy. The moon is in your eyes!"

Must be a universal display of love and adoration.

Brain Drain

Between now and November 17th I will be spending much of my time preparing for PSUG [a premiere Process Automation Event.] Most of you will not give two hoots or a holler about this event... but I thought that I would show you a bit of my efforts.



http://www.rockwellautomation.com/events/automationfair/get/psug/

Ohhh, if you are in Nashville the weekend before, give me a call... I'd love to see anyone who cares. Just know that starting at 8pm on Sunday I have to start what will be an overnight set up. And then be ready to be registering people at 7am. Sure you don't want to join me?????

Exceptionally Ellis

Ellis: [Very seriously] Mommy I need my backpack and my wand.

Mommy: Oh? Where are you going?

Ellis: I am going to ride the lizard bus to lizard school. I will learn to abracadabra you into a frog. Then kiss you and you can be my prince.

Crack Pot

I just had something happen that totally surprised me. Sitting on my counter, happily cooking away was my crock pot. Filled with a beef roast, potatoes and carrots. YUM.

When POP.

A super loud noise brought me to the kitchen. MY CROCK POT CRACKED! A nice hairline fracture along the bottom seam. Beef gravy dripping everywhere... Glad we were home for this one!

Chase's Corner

Out of the mouths of babes come insight into our innermost HUMAN NATURE. I'll let you extract your own lesson from her words.

Moments ago she told me:

"I am right. I know I am right. I am ALWAYS right. Except when I am wrong. Then I am REALLY, REALLY wrong."

Yet Another Job for Mom

Meet our "pets." Yes, Zack is the only REAL pet. Our family cat and companion for Ellis. They have recently bonded. Perhaps all her meowing really means something.

But Chase has a menagerie of virtual pets. Our 2 poodles, Pinky Pie and Princess Beautiful. And a cow named Sparkle. The virtual world appeals to Chase only occasionally, but they do need to be fed and cared for, whether she wants to or not. Guess who has taken on that task. Of course. Mom. And the saddest part of this... is that I LIKE it.

A Serious Addiction

I have a serious addiction. All I want to eat these days are Now and Laters and Red Hots. If I have them at home, I will bypass real food to eat handfuls of candy. [The honest truth is that I just had Now and Laters for breakfast.] Simple solution: don't bring it into the house. Reality: they call to me. Taking it one day at a time.

Even Two Year Olds Have Standards

Ellis fell asleep in the car at 5:30 last night. She remained sleeping till 5:30 this morning. At which time, in an effort to stay horizontal, I offered a juice box and crawled into bed with the crew [See picture example... not from this morning, but you get the idea.] Ellis curled up next to me. Meowed her good morning [For those unfamiliar, Ellis has a cat complex.] But then here's the kicker. To quote Ellis: " Mommy, your teeth are stinky. Go brush them NOW. " Yikes. No free passes. Even at the crack of dawn. I love her, so I went and brushed said teeth.

Going Green

As you can see, this post is not about our efforts to be more Environmentally friendly by carrying our own cloth bags for groceries [which we ARE doing]. Or anything even remotely connected.

This is about the DANGER that might be lurking in a quiet house.

I am blessed to be able to work from home. I am blessed to have two little girls who can play together nicely for large blocks of time, even if it means that it looks like twin tornadoes have hit the house from time to time. [Okay, who am I kidding... MOST of the time!]

But sometimes, a little green monster is lurking. Waiting for just the right moment to pop out and give Mommy a heart attack. Desperately making me want to react, and yet unable to because I am on a CONFERENCE call.

Thank goodness for washable markers that live up to their claims. Thank goodness that Chase didn't have to go to school today looking like a creature from Mars. But I guess that is all from MY perspective. Ellis thought she looked "bootiful!" And you can see it clearly in her smile.

A blog by any other name....

Is still a blog. And yet it was just that... a blog name... that was keeping me from starting one. It seemed to me that I needed something to express who I am. Or what my family is. [For some the choice is obvious. My sister IS a RocketWife.] So I struck out on a mental journey to try to define myself or my life in 3 words or less... without much luck. So I have given up on defining anything. Just decided to share our journey.

Now running has defined many moments of our life as a family. For Mark it is literal. Daily training [check out his training blog if you need a reminder], physical races with real starts and real finish lines. But for me it is figurative. This is a stage race. Any training happens along the way. No one gave me a map. I regularly lose my way. Fall down. Need help and direction. Need my family and friends to be my crew. To cheer my way. This race does not have a DNF option. Injury? Sorry, suck it up. Tired and need a break? Okay, take one. [If you can] The race will still be on, whether you want it to be or not. Rewards? Yes. Everyday if you are willing to look for them.

So, I am inviting you along to be my crew. My support team. To share in the good, the bad, the ugly. The ordinary and the EXTRAordinary things that are part of MY race.