Kirkland Triathlon 2012

A goal was accomplished today - I completed the Kirkland Triathlon!  The race itself was certainly an accomlishment but more than the 1/2 mile swim/14 mile bike/5k run, it represented the fact that I have reclaimed my habit of working out.  Ever since my back injury in March 2011, I have been side-lined due to the recovery and then pregnancy.  But I am back!

It not only takes self-discipline to get in my workouts, but it takes the support of Brett and the kids to allow me the time.  That in itself is something I feel so fortunate for. 

We were lucky with the sunshine for the race but it was 42 degrees at the start.  With too much waiting in the beginning of the race, I did experience my hands and feet completely numb for 2 hours.  Other than that, the race was great! 

The running course went down our street and there was my family waiting for me. It was a huge motivation to know that they would be there ready to cheer me on. A very fond memory that I hope to cherish forever was having a friend join me for the last half of the 5k.   Due to the delayed start, those kids waited a long time.

Love this photo...Oli has spotted me and Julia is peeking around him to see if it could really be true...has mom finally come up that hill? 

Oli ran with me to the end of the block for the turn-around and then said he would keep going with me.  He turned out to be serious, he ran the 1.5 miles back to the finish line.  We didn't know it, but he had planned to do this all along...he fessed up when he admitted that when he was getting dressed, he chose his running clothes and running shoes.

The best part of the day was having him run with me...it didn't take but 3 minutes for his endorphins to kick in and he didn't stop talking.  Hyper focused on the race and cheering everyone else on.  We got the loudest applause crossing the finish line as a pair...particularly since we were sprinting.  He challenged me to race him to the finish line...how could I resist? 

 

Another fond memory I will have is captured in that last photo.  I had called Brett to say that Oli had made it all the way back with me and we would be walking home soon.  He was gushing about the photos and how it captured Oli looking up at me with 'hero worship' in his eyes.  What a nice thing to know.

First Giggle!

Tyler is 4 months old today -- and I am falling head over heels in love with this guy.  His nickname may have to be Troop, as in Trooper.  He is along for the ride and seems content to be so.  He gets a lot of love from his sister and his older brother tolerates him pretty well too.  But Oli often says a little bashfully, "I look forward to when Tyler is Julia's age.".  Julia and Oli continue to have a very special bond...

The first giggles sure make him the center of attention these past few days!  Could anything be cuter?

Happy 38th, Brett!

We celebrated Brett's birthday yesterday with a massage during the day and a family party that night (ice cream cake, home made gifts...you know the type).  Happy Birthday to the best husband ever!

 

The best part was the kids enjoying the bubble wrap...excuse the nudity, Julia was painting one last gift for Daddy before the bubble wrap was discovered.

 

 

Happy birthday, honey!

Windependent's Maiden Voyage

There is so much catch-up to do on posting photos on the blog - here is one!

 

Two weeks ago we spent a couple of nights on the boat - one at the dock and one anchored off Lopez Island at Spencer's Spit.  It was a very enjoyable 48 hours even if there was a long list of things that went wrong with the boat.  Good thing Brett isn't working and good thing the boat is a fun thing for him to play with and fix...it is a good pair right now. 

 

Major things that went wrong:

  - Main Sail wouldn't come out properly

  - Anchor wouldn't work...first to go down and then to come up.  Brett got the ultimate workout.  Crossfit has nothing on pulling up 120 feet of chain.

  - The outboard on the dinghy didn't work...now that would have been better to be figured out before we had our two little ones and us on the dinghy. 

 

 

All in all we survived and we are beginning our collection of sailing stories.



 

You may be seeing more pictures of me behind the wheel (or, more aptly said, "at the helm").  I took 5 hours of 1:1 sailing lessons today on Windependent.  Don't worry Captain Brett...she is still your boat, just trying to learn how to be the best crew for you!

What Julia does to pass time while we are underway.

 

 

Gotogo is Julia's invisible friend.  He got to come sailing too.

 

 

Julia'ism #11:

 

She looked out at nighttime and said, "the dark is on" (like "lights are on")

Flag Football

Oli is doing flag football again this year.  He is excited about it because:

 1. He likes running.

 2. He likes throwing things.

 3. He likes that they can now pull each others' shorts down.

 

 

Not sure the last one is an official rule.



 

School Girl

Our precious little school girl did great today!  Her desire to follow the rules was something that we were very proud of even if it did cause her to be a bit more subdued than the Julia we know.   She very much enjoyed her day! 

confidently walking into her classroom.

playing at the rice station...it was the first thing she wanted to play with.  great mess to keep at preschool.

first circle time!

she called tyler to tell him all about school and she got off the phone and told us that tyler was doing tummy-time right now :).

Julia with Teacher Kym during Show and Tell...she brought her stuffed pig named "GOGO"

waiting on the bench until outdoor playtime begins.

even though she seems like such a big girl to us...she is the shortest one in class...but the sweetest, if you ask me.  i know, we couldn't be more biased.

we're so proud of her.

1st day of Preschool tomorrow!

Julia starts preschool tomorrow and she couldn't be more excited!  She has had her backpack packed for a week now and wears it everywhere we go.  And to be honest, I am pretty excited too!  It is "co-op" preschool meaning that she goes 2 days a week and I go one day a week with her and many other parent responsibilities...all of which I am looking forward to.

 

More pictures to come after her first day tomorrow....

 



 

Renaming the boat

So...I have never known Brett to be a very superstitious person.  Isn't it nice to continue to learn about your spouse.  Or maybe he is just superstitious when it comes to very big heavy items with no breaks, such as boats for example.

From the internet,
"Renaming a boat is, of course, not something to be done lightly. Since the beginning of time, sailors have sworn that there are unlucky ships and the unluckiest ships of all are those who have defied the gods and changed their names. So, is there a way to change a name and not incur the wrath of those deities that rule the elements?

 

According to legend, each and every vessel is recorded by name in the Ledger of the Deep and is known personally to Poseidon, or Neptune, the god of the sea. It is logical therefore, if we wish to change the name of our boat, the first thing we must do is to purge its name from the Ledger of the Deep and from Poseidon’s memory."

So, we boarded our boat with the ceremony printed out and ready to perform. It is inclusive of your wife is jumping in the water.  Either Brett was kidding about that part of he found an abridged version - either way, thankfully even though we had a great hot day - no one went in the water. 

While I was 'game' for this, I had wanted to turn it into a party and have all our friends witness and be part of it but time was of the essence because we obviously we didn't want to endure the wrath of the sea gods! 

So while we were on our 2 day maiden voyage, we performed the ceremony.  Complete with something metal you throw overboard with the ship's old name (we used a penny), a bottle of champagne and a compass to accurately toss the champagne in the direction according to the ceremony.

Ship's Old Name: Kale Kia
Ship's New Name: Windependent (we have been told more than once it should have been Wendypendent)

Heading towards the bow with her tether.  Safety first, closely followed by superstitions. 

The ceremony starts, "Oh mighty and great ruler of the seas and oceans, to whom all ships and we who venture upon your vast domain are required to pay homage, implore you in your graciousness to expunge for all time from your records and recollection...." and on and on until you are pouring champagne off to the west.... 

and then off to the east...

and then drinking some and passing it around.

Complete with witnesses that we performed the ceremony and we do hope Windependent and all that sail in her will be blessed with good luck forever more. (PS:  Pictures are deceiving...Julia did not just take or is not about to take a big swig.)

Brett's New Babe!

Well, she's finally here - Brett's new girl. Yes she's a little overweight (by about 22,000lbs) and has a really wide behind, but he loves her so much!

 

Kale Kila is her name, yes we're not so hot on the name either, so look for a renaming post coming shortly.   She's made her way up from California and just needs a little few bits done before she's ready (although it seemed to take a huge amount of Brett's time recently - she does make him happy!).

 

No doubt a lot more to come on this topic in the months ahead  - Ahoy All!!

 

First day of 3rd Grade

Could it really be true that Oli is starting 3rd grade!?  He is one big kid these days.  But still can be found sleeping with a teddy bear...

 



There is so much love between these two.  Oli convinced Julia to join him at his 'back to school' day.  Days later I was talking to Julia about her new preschool that she starts in a week and she wants Oli to go with her.  They want to share everything. 

We're not so sure about the shoes but he LOVES them and does think that they will impress the girls.  Specifically, Grace...he has a major crush on her and she seems to not really care.  However, there are a few girls with big crushes on Oli...

"When I get big, I get to go to school like Oli"