Quick update

Funny, when I'm running, I always think I'm going to say how awful my run was today. But after I'm done, I feel fantastic. I did 2 one mile repeats today, and got my best mile times yet (9:50, and 10:57). My right hip is sore now, so it'll kill later....

All is well here. We're pretty much over the cold virus that hammered everyone a few weeks ago. Aiden got a glowing report from his teacher at parent teacher conferences. Soccer season ended on a cold and rainy note. Paige loves her dance class, and Aiden will be starting tang soo do (martial arts of some kind) next Monday. Finn is just more and more of a toddler every day- with all of those ups and downs.

Everyone is looking forward to Halloween this week. Hopefully I'll get pics posted up after trick-or-treating. Well, you know how I am about posting these days.... ;)

Friday run.

OMG, I swear these runs are getting harder, and not easier! I did 1 mile repeats today, felt like my first mile time was better. Oh well. I'm dripping sweat, and I guess that's what matters.

Inside track at the rec center today. Running 2 miles isn't getting any easier, but I think it's because my mile time is getting faster. I did 1 mile repeats today. Wednesday I'll go for the full 2 miles again. Bought pants that fit yesterday, in a size that I like to buy.... Lol.

Now if only I had more willpower when it comes to sweets.....

Running update

Sunny this morning, but a balmy 60 degrees! It's been hard so far this week, me talking up every step to myself. But, I got 2.24 miles out of myself today! Tomorrow I also have yoga, so maybe I'll take it easy on myself and only do a mile and a half.... ;) I ran the outside track around the rec center- it's definitely different than the inside track. A lot bumpier, with more ups and downs, not to mention dealing with whatever the weather decides to give me. But I won't be able to run outside much longer, so I'm getting out there.

We made it to the pumpkin patch this week, and I have some good pics. A post for that is coming soon.... Just not right now. :)

2 MILES!!!!

Woohoo!!!! I ran my 2 miles today!!! On the inside track at the rec center.... that's 10 times around their circle. It wasn't as awesome as yesterday's run. Apparently running after an hour of yoga makes one's muscles happier. Of course I left my Nike+ sport band at home, so I can't document my triumph on the Nike site, but oh well. I know I did it, and that's what counts. So, what's next, you ask.... I have no idea!!!

(Run from Monday- I have yet to go today....)
I was slow to start today, but felt pretty good after running the first half mile. Loved the weather this am. Walked a half mile, then ran 1.5 miles, then walked another 1/4 mile. Beginning to think the 2 miles might really happen... Lol.. I have a couple friends asking already when I'm going to join them for a 5K. I'm thinking not until late next spring.
bet I'll do at least one, though.

On a totally different thought... I'm going to praise the virtues of my iPod for a minute or two. I'm not bad with technology- I get computers, I love my Blackberry, blah blah blah. I am, however, usually a little slow to come to the latest in technology- or even things that have been around awhile. We bought our first iPod last spring. Before that, I never really thought we needed one. We don't listen to music in the house much, and there were CDs for the car. Why did we need one of those expensive little music players anyway?
Well, since I've been "running", I've fallen in love with our iPod. All our favorite CDs in one place- that can fit in my pocket!!! Chris bought me a docking station today, since I've started carting around the iPod while I'm cleaning, folding laundry, etc. Woohoo!!! A vast legion of music right at my fingertips!!! No carting lugging around a CD wallet/book/suitcase, no more flipping thru discs, no more skips from those inevitable scratches. We've even started just buying the music downloads from Amazon. No more discs at all!!!! In short, I love it.

I didn't end up running today. first day I've missed totally in 7 weeks. But, by God, sometimes you just run (ha ha) out of time.......

I'm almost there....

What a great jog this morning. I went to the local high school and used their track. Time to really measure distance, instead of time.

Walked 2 laps, ran a mile, walked a lap, then ran another mile. Cooled down with a final lap walking. Holy cow!!! I never could finish even one lap around the track- even in high school. I actually liked running on the track, too. Less to trip over... Didn't really have to think about much of anything. It's easier to run when I can get inside my head, and not worry too much about what is going on around me. You know, my screaming muscles, other people, cracks in the sidewalk... Just as long as I have a good playlist on the ipod, I'm set.

Today Paige had her annual trip to the fire station with her preschool. The same crew of guys was on today that we met last year. She had a great time, and was way more into it this year. She loved answering questions, and didn't hesitate to approach the lucky one who got to suit up in full gear. I think that's my favorite part of the trip. No, not cause I think firemen are hot.... But because the kids get to see and hear what the (wo)men look like if there was an actual fire, and they were being rescued. It's pretty cool. I guess me and Chris should make a fire plan to teach the kids.

I think I'm going to make a hair appointment today. It's time for a cut, and some new color. And I have to go in to see my GI doc tomorrow. I'm really not looking forward to that. I'll let you all know what goes down.

Hope you're having a great day!

Much better!

Wow! So much better than yesterday! I did Tuesday's workout- Walked "briskly" X10 minutes, jogged 1 mile (without stopping!), walked 5 minutes, then jogged another 3/4 mile. I ran out of route and time. I ran after work, and was tired and ready to come home to bed. The other runs with the 30 seconds in between jogs was just too difficuly- all that starting and stopping. I thought it might just be easier to keep going and pound out that first mile. It was slow, but I was right! I've never jogged an entire mile before.... ever. A pretty big accomplishment for me.

It's off to work for me again tonight. Finn actually called me Mama this morning.

So, overall a good day!

ugh

Shitty, shitty, shitty "run" today... The first time in 7 weeks that I threw in the towel and quit halfway through the workout. Everything hurt, burned, or ached from my toes to my gluts, and 30 sec in between is not enough time. I'll try again tomorrow. I also went at 1030 in the morning when the sun was shining. I prefer either earlier am or evening when the sun isn't so high in the sky. So much as I hate to do it, I'm going to go in the morning when I get off work. As I stand here typing, I can feel the muscles in my bum twitching....

The kids have soccer today. I think I'd better bring the sunscreen. If my botched run was any indication, it's going to be hot today- especially by the time we get to the games.

1/5 tonight. I felt like I was trying to slog thru molasses.... Ugh. The mile time was much better, but I did the "short" course because it was so awful. Tonight my calves weren't tired, but my shins were crampy- that's unusual. Hopefully Saturday's run is better. Though how I'm going to do a 30sec/5min is anyone's guess. 1 minute is barely enough recovery time. But I know it'll happen. I'll push myself to do it.

I didn't make it to the concert tonight. There were all kinds of things going on that conspired to keep me from going. But ultimately, there was just too much going on this week. Luckily, both the co-workers I was going to go with also had other things going on. So, we passed the tickets on to some one else who appreciated them more than we did!

The house is quiet now that we are down to just our 3 kids again. Seem a little strange.... ;)

Went running at dusk; the weather was perfect. 2/5 today. My mile time wasn't as good today, but I ran for a few longer stretches. And I wasn't really trying for time tonight. One good thing.... that left foot didn't go numb!

We've been having a great visit with Jamie and her kids. I love when all the kids are entertained!!!

I'm headed to the Brad Paisley concert tomorrow night with a couple friends from work. Even though we haven't planned our night yet (lol)I'm still really looking forward to it.

Running at noon- no bueno! The sun was HOT, even it is was only in the 70s. Mile time much better today, but it HURT!!! I'm dumping sweat. Of course, I feel fabulous right now. Also did the "short" course today. My second 2/5. Tuesday is going to SUCK.... I drop to my first 1/5. I bet the mile time will suffer. But hey, at least I know I can pick it up if I want to....

Lots ahead

It's starting to get dark sooner. I did a 2/5 today. I thought it felt great, and not slow. But I'm disappointed in my mile time. Oh well- it'll get better. And just about the time my calves stop burning, the bottoms of my feet go numb. I still need to get down to the running shop and have my shoes evaluated.....

The kids had soccer today. They both played great games, as always.

I'm getting ready to work the next two nights. Then family is coming for a couple nights next week. along with dance class, soccer practice and pictures, plus the Brad Paisley concert. Oh yeah, and add preschool, elementary school, Chris' job, and Finn into that mix. And the 5 piles of laundry that need to get done......

And I think me and a friend are still going to try to have a TrueBlood season 3 marathon next Friday.

Busy much???

Finn, 18 months

My, my how the time flies.....

Our Bubba is 18 months old now, and is definitely a full-fledged toddler.

He walks, runs, and climbs. He's figured out how to cart the step-stool around to help him obtain the things he wants. Which, of course, is always something I don't want him to have. We recently found him sitting in the bathroom sink, soaked from head to toe, but happy as a clam.

Finn's exploring the world of verbal communication.... and not just by screaming in different tones, either. He can count to ten, and say hi and bye. His favorite phrase is "Oh yeah!!!" He also says something that disturbingly sounds like "shit", but I don't really think that's what he's saying.....

He's turning into a picky eater, but hopefully nowhere near the quality of his big brother. Although, slather something in Nutella, and he's almost sure to eat it. He's also figured out how to pick all the M&Ms out of trail mix, leaving the rest. Sheesh.

We've decided not to cut his hair until after Halloween. He's going to be a garden gnome, and we figure the wild hair will go along just fine with the costume.

Finn still loves to snuggle- especially during his favorite morning show- Special Agent Oso, that crazy bear found on the Disney Channel. Chris and I don't quite want to load his backpack down with rocks and toss him into Candy Cane river, but it's a close thing some days.

We're enjoying watching Finn grow into his personality, even if I do miss him being a baby sometimes. Currently he's climbing on the couch with a juice box in one of those juice-box-holder-thingies. And I'm praying that he doesn't get the box out and squeeze juice all over my couch. Well, I guess there are worse things.....

Well.....

Wow- let's see if I even remember how to do this.....

Even though the warm weather still lingers, summer is officially over at our house. The kids are back in school, fall soccer has started, and our break from crazy schedules is over.

Aiden started first grade this year- his first ever all-day class. At first I wasn't sure that I was going to like him being gone all day. But you know what? It's not as bad as I though it was going to be. It helps that I know he really likes his school. I'm not totally thrilled at packing his lunch every morning, but oh well....Aiden is slowly adjusting to his schedule, too. He doesn't come home and complain any more that his day was "soooooooo loooooong". This is his second year at the dual language school. I'm noticing more and more of his homework coming home in Spanish. I'm thankful that I know at least a little bit, or I'm not sure how I would ever manage to help him luckily, math is pretty universal, so Chris can help with that.

Paige started her second year of preschool. We have her in class at our local rec center. the year got off to a bit of a rocky start (for me and Chris anyway) because Paige's teacher from last year chose not to return to teaching this year. *sigh* Funny enough, though, her teacher this year was Aiden's class aide at Teaching World the last year he was there. Things are a little different in Miss Anna's class. We are all getting used to it and adjusting. Paige a little better than me and Chris, I think. She is still enjoying the benefits of gymnastics, rock climbing, and swimming that the rec center has to offer.

Finn will get his own post in a few minutes, so I'm going to skip him here. Sorry, Bubba.

Fall soccer started again last week. I think it will be a little less crazy than last year. Aiden's coach is married to Paige's coach, and that means only one practice night a week and our games don't overlap on Saturdays. Woohoo!!!! Both the kids are wearing red and black this year. Aiden's team gets to introduce the goalie position this year, too- which suits him just fine. He prefers to be in the goal box. The kid has figured out that he doesn't have to run on the field as much if he's trying to defend the goal...... Aiden's team this year is the Black Widows, and Paige's is the Red Dragons. Paige;s coach is new to coaching her own team, and likened the first game to "trying to herd butterflies". It was pretty funny.

Paige also started her very first dance class last week. I finally located a dance studio in Nampa where she could do ballet. Well, I guess the credit should go to one of the other soccer moms- her daughters are on Paige's team, and she was telling me how that had been in dance class before. Right now she's in an intro class, so she does beginning ballet and an "intro to movement". We're not allowed to stay and watch, but they do have several parent observation classes throughout the year. She is so excited. And I never knew how hard it would be to find the correct ballet slippers for her....

Let's see..... I have started exercising again, too. I decided to take up jogging. Crazy, right. Yeah, well..... I needed to do something. One of my friends from nursing school is training for a marathon right now- she has made an amazing personal transformation over the last few years. So, she directed me to a beginning running program at runningplanet.com. It's a walking/jogging plan that takes you from basically nothing to jogging 2 miles in an 8 week time period. I'm about halfway through the 5th week. I'm to a point where I can jog/run for a 5 minute span of time, with decreasing increments of walking in between. Today I walked 3 min, ran 5 min. I'm pretty amazed at this point that I can keep up with myself!!! I've come to love my ipod over the last 5 weeks, too....

Well, that's a lot from the Ida'vasa peanut gallery. I'm going to do my best to start updating more regularly again. Even if it's just to copy and paste my run status from the Nike site to here.... :)

Back to School???

It always seems that at the end of the summer, we always ask "Where did the summer go???" Well, it's no different this year. Except that this summer really is over sooner. My kids are going back to school this week. Don't ask me why, but our school district decided that it would be better for the kids to head back during the middle of sunshiny (though hot) August, just to turn around and let them our at the end of probably rainy, cool May. Where is the logic in that??? They (whoever "they" are) said that the parents in the district voted this new calendar in. What I want to know is which parents? No one ever asked me what I thought......

Anyhow. it has been a good, bad, and inbetween summer. We still haven't made it to the water park, and who knows if we will. But the kids did get to go to the beach, and we managed to squeeze in a few extra visits with family. Aiden will start all day school this year, and I'm still not sure how I feel about that. Can you imagine introducing that kid to cafeteria lunches??? I sure can't. Paige will give preschool another round, and Finn will just be along for the ride. I see crazy schedules and new adventures in our future.

Here are some pictures from the last few weeks.....

My new haircut. It was time for the longer hair to go!!!

I let a bakery take care of Chris's birthday cake this year. Lucky for me, everyone liked it!!!
My boys.

One of my favorite pictures in a long time. The only thing that would make it even better is if Finn were in it, too.

Happy end of summer everyone! Here's to ushering in cooler weather (ha!), new adventures, and good memories.

Vacation

Ahhhh.... Vacation. Most vacations are supposed to be relaxing, right? Well, ours was a whirlwind adventure of driving, visiting, beach hopping, aquarium exploring, barbecuing, swimming, and driving. Did I say driving already??? Well, that should tell you just how much driving Chris did (thanks, Honey!!!).

Sometimes, I think pictures can capture more than words. Here are a ton of pics from our vacay. I'll explain some of them along the way.

After spending the night with our friends, the Roths, we all packed up and headed to the Oregon coast. Our first stop was in Tillamook, where the cheese factory is. This is a prerequisite stop for ANY trip to the Oregon coast. Tillamook puts out the best cheese and ice cream around. The factory was packed!!! The kids were fascinated with the cheese packaging process that was visible through the observatory windows. Aiden loved the cheese samples, and Paige and Finn (and me) were all over the ice cream. I took a picture of this picture because I thought it was hilarious. I am easily amused, after all....


Here are Aiden and Paige at the cheese factory. They are posing with the fake cows up on the observatory deck- though you really can't see the cows.

After Tillamook, we traveled down Hwy 101 to Lincoln City, our ultimate destination. Jamie booked us a beautiful room at a beautiful hotel (both of which I neglected to get pics of...). This is a picture of the kids on the beach that evening. Yes, in July. The Oregon coast is not your typical summertime beach. Even in August, you're lucky if you can make it to the beach in shorts, without a sweatshirt. As you can see, it was VERY windy that evening. So much so that Finn could barely stand up. Funny enough, after we left the beach and had dinner, we took the kids swimming in the hotel pool....

The next day, we decided to take a drive. Finn needed to nap, and he was NOT having any part of napping in the hotel room. Before we knew it, we were driving into Newport. Newport is the home of a fantastic aquarium that we love. In fact, the kids prefer the aquarium over the zoo. So, we made a snap decision to visit the aquarium while we were there. Especially since the beach was foggy and cold. Go figure. Paige loved the giant crabs, Aiden loved learning about the octopus from the college kid that was there teaching, and I loved the otters. I think Finn liked the jellyfish the best, and Chris just enjoyed the kids' excitement.

This is a picture of the coast from our car. I was trying to capture the low, dark, ominous cloud bank that was hanging out over the ocean. You can see the ocean, the cloud bank, then the sky above it. By afternoon, those clouds had moved in to cover the beach and the road.

Since I couldn't wrangle the kids for a pic together, I tried to get one of me with all the kids.

We love taking pics of the kids in the sand with their names. Aiden and Paige thought is was cool. Finn did not.

Me and Chris

After we left the beach behind, we headed up to the Vancouver (WA, not BC) area to spend a little time with Chris' family. An afternoon barbecue was on the agenda. Did you know that when we get together with Chris' immediate family, there are 29 people??? And 17 of those people are all our kids!!! It's a ton of fun. I really love the chance to see everyone in one place. It makes me and Chris both wish we lived closer to everyone. The pic above is all the grandkids and Mom and Pop.

Paige had a blast playing with her cousins. So did Aiden. But the boys were so busy, they wouldn't hold still to pose for a pic.

Our family

Next, we made the drive over Mt. Hood to spend some time with my family. The kids got a kick out of the drive over Hood, especially after Chris told them it is a live volcano. Paige swore she saw penguins in the snow on the top. I didn't get any pictures at my parents' .... I always forget to!!! We visited with a family I babysat for when I was a teenager, spent some time with Gigi and Grasshopper, made it through a storm with hail the size of marbles, and spent some time in the pool.

After 6 days on the road, it was time to pack up and head home again. We had a fantastic time on our whirlwind vacation, but it IS always nice to be home again.

A long overdue visit

When we moved to our "new" town 9 years ago so I could start my new career, Chris and I met Autumn and Doug. They had moved to town recently; Autumn was a new nurse, too and we would be starting at the same hospital, on the same unit.

Over the next 6 1/2 years, we worked together, lived together briefly, then lived in the same neighborhood for awhile before they landed a spot with 5 acres. We spent holidays together, had our babies together, then watched our babies grow into kids. 2 1/2 years ago, they moved back to Oregon. Very sad for us all, but lucky for us within driving distance.

Well, it took us those 2 1/2 years, but we finally made it out to them to spend a couple days. The 4th of July holiday and a long "weekend" for me was a great excuse. However, I hope it doesn't take me another 2 1/2 years to get back out there.... We had a fantastic time!!!

It was a busy, fun-packed, exhausting weekend- especially for the kids. We took them to the park, then swimming, they got to stay up late watching movies. Autumn and I had some girl time at a movie of our own. Then we packed everyone into the cars at dusk and hit a double-feature drive in. The kids watched about half of Marmaduke before crashing in sleeping bags outside (well, except for Brenna- Autumn's oldest. She made it all the way to the 2nd movie!). We had a 4th of July barbecue lunch complete with oreo milkshakes courtesy of Uncle Doug. The kids "swam" in the kiddie pool, ran away from the puppy, and were crazy for two days straight. (Lucky for us parents, they all got along the entire time....)

Before we knew it, it was time to pack up and head home again. The kids started swimming lessons this morning, but I'm sure before too much longer I'll hear, "Mom, I'm boooo-ooored..... What are we going to do today????"

Thanks for a great weekend, Autumn, Doug, Brenna, and Carlee!!!

Watching Avatar long past normal bedtime.
Finn climbing up at the playground. Aiden took down the slide, and he had a blast.

Wow, she's smiling for the camera!!!

Aiden is smiling, too. How'd I get so lucky??? I was pushing my luck for a pic of all my kids, though. When I tried, Finn ran, and the big kids had pained looks on their faces.

All bundled up at the drive-in.

Milkshake mustaches!!! Carlee, Paige, and Brenna loved the oreo shakes.

Dog-piling Chris!!!



More summer memories to come!

We're still here....

Well, I haven't had much to say the last couple of weeks. And really, I don't have a whole lot new to say right now. But life does go on. So here are some pictures of life in the last few weeks...

First, Aiden got a much needed hair cut.

This is before:

And this is after!!! There WAS a boy hiding under all that hair...

We caught some ants to put in the ant habitat Aiden got for his birthday. It took them about three days, but the ants are finally digging tunnels. We're going to catch more to help with the work tomorrow.

Finn decided that mixing mud for mud pies in my flower pot was great fun.


And then, Mama gave him part of a leftover brownie with whipped cream on it. He smiled after the picture was taken, of course....

I guess we need to move the kids' watercolors to a higher shelf. Or feed Finn more...

The weather finally warmed up enough to get out the requisite three-ring inflatable kiddie pool for summer. I love this pic of the kids jumping:

Along with warm weather and "swimming" comes picnics in the backyard. Good times.

Check the little one's curly hair. Every now and then, we get actual ringlets.

Then there's always time for a silly self-portrait with mom. We had a couple pics of dad, too, but they were from the kids' photography stock....

In the next couple weeks, we're looking forward to a trip to LaGrande to hang with some good friends for a couple days, swimming lessons, and more sunshine.

I'll have more blood work and another doctor's appointment, but hopefully nothing too exciting comes from that.

*Sigh* part II

I'm avoiding my blog. And I think it's avoiding me. We'll give it through the weekend.... Maybe next week I'll feel like sharing our lives again.

Our (crazy busy) week in review...

Well, if I had been a good blogger, I would have captured the adventures of this past week day-by-day. Hmmmmm.... Guess I'm not a good blogger.


So much has happened this week that I barely know where to start. So, in the name of brevity (and mommy brain), I'm only going to hit the highlights. But there are still plenty of those!!!

1.) Our wonderful IFs (intended fathers, for those of you who do not speak the language of surrogacy) traveled from their home in Europe here to our little town to meet me, Chris, and the family in person. They were here for three short (but packed) days. We all had a great time getting to know each other, and were sad the visit had to end so soon. For more on what we did, visit my other blog. The pic below is Finn enjoying his first corn on the cob during dinner with our IFs.

2.) While our IFs were here, we celebrated Aiden's 7th birthday. Goodness, where does the time go??? He is getting SO big! Aiden had a How to Train Your Dragon bday party this year, so my assignment was a dragon cake. It actually turned out pretty well. We went to the farmer's market in town that morning, then had a small party at the house that afternoon. Chris pointed out that Aiden's "over halfway to being a teenager"......

3.) During Aiden's birthday party, my mom and dad arrived to spend the better part of the week with us. Our original plan was to fly to Boston this last Tuesday for my medical screening appt. My parents were going to watch the kids for us while Chris and I were gone. Unfortunately, that trip was postponed, but we were happy to have the visit with my parents instead. They met our IFs, celebrated Aiden's bday with us and his kindergarten graduation, we watched Avatar for the first time (awesome!), and we caught up on the last couple of months.



4.) We said goodbye to our IFs after 3 days, then I worked 2 nights. Crazy to stick the work nights into a week that already had us running.... Last Tuesday morning, I checked into the hospital for some tests. They were a follow up to everything that happened after my gallbladder surgery last summer. Some of my lab values are still high, so my doc decided to do a little further testing. I had to have an MRI, and a liver biopsy. But I was home again and happy after just a few hours. Now I'm just waiting on the results. *sigh* I hate waiting....

5.) Aiden is officially a Kindergarten graduate.... So, next year will bring first grade, and all day school. I'm still trying to figure out what we are going to do about school lunches. The kid is so picky!!! New Horizons is finally getting its own dedicated building, so he will have to move schools. But the building is brand new and gorgeous, so that shouldn't be a hardship at all; and it doesn't hurt that the new building is just a tad closer to the house. Aiden's report card reflected what we already knew- we have a very smart kid on our hands. And learning in two languages does not seem to be slowing him down at all. Below is Aiden with his teacher. She was awesome, and we'll miss her!




6.) Paige also celebrated her last day of school this week. She will move on to the "4 year old class", as she calls it, next year at her school. I tried to get a picture with Paige and our all time favorite preschool teacher, but Paige though it was more important to be photographed with her new purple bucket...... Lol.... Lucky for us, we have the same teacher next year. We'll get the obligatory pic then.

7.) Did I tell everyone that Chris got a job??? Well, he did. It's working with a marketing research firm that he hoped to work with (woo hoo)! So, on top of all this, he had to try to find time to squeeze in hours with his trainer. It's so strange to ask what time he has to be to work in the morning..... ;)

Well, I'm sure I've left things out.... When you're that busy, some things are guaranteed to fall through the cracks. As of today, we are going to settle into our summer schedule. I think we'll still be busy, but not like it's been for the last week and a half or so. Oh yeah, the other good thing that happened this week- my schedule flipped back to normal. I'll be working 3 out of four weekends again, with a schedule that is predictable and perfect for us.

If that's not enough, then I don't know what is!

Busy busy....

It's been awhile. Again. I'd say sorry, but I've been waaaay busy.

Work is killing me; I'm going to be so glad to get back to my "normal" schedule again. The end of this month has just been nuts. 3 nights on, 2 off; then 3 nights on, 2 off; then 2 on, 2 off....... There's not much "off" time there. And on those couple days off, I have to sleep, keep up with things around the house (read: the never-ending piles of laundry), plan for Aiden's birthday in a week, and prepare for my parents coming, as well as the couple we are going to surrogate for. All in the next week.

On top of that, I'm trying to pull the house together and finish up some projects that are long overdue. Like tonight.... Chris and I are going to paint the craft room. I have decorative mirrors to hang, pictures to rotate, and couch cushions to flip.

At some point, I'm going to have to go back to the grocery store, and Costco. Oh yeah, and get ready for the trip to Boston that Chris and I are taking- the week Aiden has his kindergarten graduation and Paige has her last day of school. Thank god soccer ended today- one less thing on our plate. Though we do have two soccer parties to attend in the next two weeks.

Speaking of soccer.... Today was the Jamboree; or the last day of soccer games that was supposed to be like a little carnival. However, Mother Nature had other plans for us. Both the kids only played one of their two games. It was cold (like winter coat cold), damp, and then it started to rain. And rain, and rain......

Where was Spring again???? Oh yeah. Not here.

Right now I'm trying to recharge in the relative quiet. Paige is on her computer, Aiden is cutting out dragons, and Chris is on the X Box. Finn is sleeping soundly in bed. But the quiet moment is fleeting. In 5 minutes, I'm going to get the kids in bed, then break out the paint.

And life goes on.

Pretty awesome Monday night...

Okay, I'm falling behind on the blogging. I know. But let's face it.... Blogging takes time. And sometimes I just don't have that much extra time. And when I do have extra time, I'm usually trying to catch up on a good book, or shows I have on the DVR. Case in point- right now I have 2 episodes of V and an episode of Glee waiting for me. Not to mention all the 16 and Pregnants, and 19 Kids and Counting...... So, I feel like I'm doing pretty good if I get on here once a week.

It's been a great week so far.

Chris and I went to a concert Monday night; one we've been waiting 4 months for. Two of our favorite bands are Sick Puppies and Breaking Benjamin. We've seen Sick Puppies in concert several times, and had always hoped to see Breaking Benjamin (but they don't make it to our part of the world very often). To have them show up in our little town together was unprecedented. Neither one of us cared much about the headlining band- Nickelback.....

The concert rocked. Sick Puppies opened, and we were disappointed that they only had time to play about 4 songs. When they play a smaller venue, and have a chance to get going, they really get the crowd going and rock the house. Even though they were just getting warmed up, their songs were great. And of course, Chris drooled over the bassist, Emma. I just drooled over her boots....



Next was Shinedown. I wasn't too familiar with their music. Overall they were all right. Fit in with the vibe of the music. But I won't be running out to buy their CD any time soon.

Next was the band I was waiting for. Chris and I didn't have very high hopes for Breaking Benjamin's live performance. we love their music on disc, but had seen bits and pieces of recorded performances that didn't look that.... energetic. Thank god we were wrong. Ben and the boys actually put on a really good show. Lively and LOUD- just the way I like it! They also didn't get a chance to perform as much as I would have liked. If I'd had my way, they would have been the headliners....... Maybe someday.

Last was Nickelback. Chris and I were lukewarm about seeing them live. I like their music, and even have one of their CDs, but they're not my favorite. We were so lukewarm, in fact, that we contemplated not even staying for their performance. I'm glad we changed our minds. While not as fantastic as BB or Sick Puppies, they actually rocked. They are very, very good live performers- both the music and their between song entertainment. The lead singer is hilarious, and sounds kinda like Dane Cook when he talks. I think he's funny like Dane Cook, too.....

Overall, it was an awesome night and we had a great time. I had a ton of fun, and would definitely pay the money again to see them. Well, all of them except Shinedown. Now if only Sick Puppies and Breaking Benjamin would tour again together. Alone......

Another note of good news this week.....

Chris got a job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Woohoo!!!!! He'll be working part-time for a national market research firm. It's the perfect place to start. He gets to work from home, and has to go out in the field between 10 and 20 hours a week. This means that we will still be day care free. And maybe, in the coming years, this could turn into an opportunity to grow with the company. Only time will tell!!!

If you aren't following my other blog, things on the surrogacy front are going well, too. Chris and I have been matched with an awesome couple who live in Germany. We have been emailing them regularly, and have talked on the phone once with plans to do so again tomorrow. I have my first medical appointment with their IVF doctor the first week of June. If all goes well at that appt, and once our contracts clear, we will be good to go for meds. And then a transfer!!!

All in all, live is very good for the Ida'vasas these days.