Carpooling

Can you believe the gas prices these days? I'm sure you can, since we are all feeling the increases at the pump. Craig and I decided a few weeks ago to start carpooling one day a week and that has been working well for us. We both have fairly long commutes to work, so even one day a week makes a difference in our gas budget. We figure we are saving about $40-$50 a month by implementing this change. Plus, it's nice to be able to drive together and catch up on things during the commute. The only downside is I have to get dropped off a little early in order for Craig to make it to work by 8:00 a.m. We are lucky that we work close enough to one another (about 10 minutes apart) that this is an option for us. Does anyone else have suggestions on reducing their mileage (besides getting a hybrid and/or just staying home all the time)? I heard driving slower helps too, but Craig isn't crazy about that one - ha ha! :)

Last Friday!

Today was my last Friday at work until early September! Every year, I save up my vacation time and take Fridays off during the months of June, July and August. I am very much looking forward to having four-day work weeks instead of five. It occurred to me recently that I haven't had a full vacation day since last August . . . . in other words - nine months! Boy, I sure won't do that again. It will be nice to have shorter work weeks for a while. Hopefully, my days off will be a good balance of fun and productivity. :)

Come On Over!

Come on over, everyone . . . . our deck is finally done! Well, with the exception of some post caps, but that is no big deal. This weekend we will work on getting our patio furniture and grill on the deck. Oh, and by the way, our cat Max seems to like the deck, too. :)

Coming Along

The deck is coming along. They worked on it all day today and got most of the railing done, except for the staircase. We are looking forward to having it done very soon.

On a different note, I stayed home with Clara today. She has viral pink eye and is contagious. Craig will be staying home with her tomorrow, and hopefully she can go back to daycare on Friday. One of the ladies at daycare told me that there was another case of pink eye, along with four cases of hand, foot and mouth disease! So, I was glad to have Clara home today, away from all the germs. Hopefully, she won't get that, too.

Kyle's New Bike

Check out Kyle's new bike! He is pretty excited about it . . . . AND it is his new favorite color - red. Kyle totally outgrew his last bike. It was the bike we got him for Christmas when he was two years old! It was a 12 inch bike and this one is a 16 inch. Clara will inherit his old bike (lucky girl, huh?). His old bike was red, and Craig claims he can make it more "girly" for her. I think we both like the idea of being able to recycle it and not having to buy another one.

Anyway, we went for a bike ride tonight and Kyle is super fast on it . . . . . much faster than on his old bike. I seriously could not keep up with him, or Craig, for that matter. I feel like the "old mom" who can't keep up with her kids anymore. Oh well. We are looking forward to lots of bike rides this summer. :)

Ready for Summer!

Yesterday, Kyle and Clara put their bathing suits on for the first time this year. The weather was so nice, we turned their sprinkler on and they had a great time running through the water. Coincindentally, so did three boys from the neighborhood who did not have their bathing suits on! They originally came over to show Kyle a praying mantis they had found (yuck!). In any case, a great time was had by all.

While the kids were playing, Craig and I set up the kiddie pool in the back yard. We set it up early this year, but wanted to get it done while we had time this weekend. The water temperature was only 60 degrees last night, so it will be a few weeks before they can enjoy it.

Speaking of water, I signed Kyle up for swimming lessons today. He starts June 17 at the YMCA in downtown Grand Rapids. We have a family membership there, so he is already familiar with the facility and pool. Kyle is not afraid of water at all, but he definitely needs to learn how to swim. Hopefully, he will pick it up quickly.

That's all for now.

TJ :)

Deck Update

Well, it took a while for our deck materials to arrive, but it was worth the wait. Thank you to Scott and Jenni for all of your help with this! We really appreciate it. Our builder laid all of the deck boards yesterday. Now he just has to come back and do the railing. The deck will be completely done by May 30. Here are some updated photos for you.

Busy, Busy Week

It's been a busy week in the James-Heer household! Here is a quick recap/overview.

On Monday, Clara had her last Kindermusik class for the year and Kyle had his usual soccer practice.

On Tuesday, I had to work late. I led a virtual (online) chat for prospective graduate students. When I got home, Craig stayed up until 1:00 a.m., preparing for a big presentation for work.

On Wednesday, I had to work late again . . . two nights in a row! I went to the annual awards program at Coopersville High School and awarded over $54,000 in scholarship money to graduating seniors. Well, not personally, but on behalf of GVSU. :) This is one of the things I love most about my job. When I got home, Craig stayed up again until 11:00 p.m. preparing for his presentation.

Today was Craig's big presentation at work. He facilitated a project portfolio meeting, which lasted for six hours!!! Needless to say, we are both feeling a little tired and drained tonight, although Craig still managed to bike for 45 minutes and run for 30 minutes when he got home.

Tomorrow we are going to pick out some trees for our yard. We will be ordering 14 trees - 11 blue spruce and 3 crab apples. They should help "spruce" up our yard a bit. :) Our lot originally had zero trees on it. We put in four trees when we built the house, and added eight silver maples last year. Craig wants to plant six apple trees as well, but that will probably be next year.

Finally, Kyle and Clara are both doing great! Clara is starting to use the potty! Not all of the time, but most of the time. I am still not convinced she is ready for this, but the ladies at daycare tell me that potty training a girl can sometimes be (and I emphasize sometimes) very easy . . . . at least easier than potty training a boy. I guess time will tell.

L & L Printing vs. Coopersville Dental

Kyle's soccer team, L & L Printing, played their third game this past Saturday. They played the Coopersville Dental team, and they were very good! Kyle's team trailed throughout most of the game, but somehow managed to tie them in the end, with a score of 4 to 4. Kyle did not score any goals this week, but he got to play goalee for the very first time. He did very well, and blocked several attempted shots. However, there were times when the action was at the other end of the field and you could tell Kyle was bored. In fact, a plane flew overhead at one point and I noticed that Kyle was more interested it watching it fly by then the game. He is definitely better suited to be in the action. Hopefully there will be lots of action next week because Grandma Kat, Cam, Dria, Payton and Taylor are planning to come and watch. Go Kyle!

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day! My mother's day celebration actually started a few weeks ago when I went to the Michael Buble concert at the VanAndel Arena in downtown Grand Rapids. It was a great concert that I will never forget.

Then, yesterday . . . . my mom surprised me by showing up at our house just minutes before we left for a wedding. Anyway, she stopped by to personally give me a beautiful azalea shrub (see picture) for mother's day. It is gorgeous, and we can't wait to find a special place for it in our yard.

This morning, I slept in until 7:30 and Craig and Kyle made me my favorite breakfast - pancakes. They even made me one in the shape of a heart to show me how much they love me. :) Kyle and Clara gave me mother's day cards that they made at daycare, and Kyle also made me a beautiful picture frame (see picture). I feel blessed to have such a loving family.

Finally, we want to wish all of our moms (Connie, Kathy & Marilynn) a Happy Mother's Day! We love you and appreciate all you have done for us over the years.

Future Triathlete!

Kyle thought it was pretty funny to wear Craig's swimming goggles today. We thought it was pretty funny, too. :)

Wedding

Following the Riverbank Run and Kyle's soccer game, we attended a wedding and reception. It was for a friend of mine at work. Tracey and I had a great time.

Riverbank Run

Yesterday, I ran in my tenth straight Fifth Third Riverbank Run - the largest 25K in the world. I wasn't sure how it was going to go given that I have taken a new approach to training this year. Unlike years past, I used a heart rate monitor and have been following a relatively intense training plan geared for the Ironman in September. I made a few modifications for the plan to accommodate the 25K race in May, but it still limited me to 3 runs per week so I could fit in swimming and biking. In the past, I would typically run 5-6 times per week in preparation for a race like this.

As for the race, it ended up being a great day. The weather was perfect - about 45 degrees and sunny at the start. I started the race going out slightly faster than normal - about 5:55 per mile for the first 3 miles. Then, I backed off a touch and held about a 6:05-6:10 pace until the hills located from mile 10 to mile 12. There, I hit a few in the 6:15-6:20 range and held that until the end (15.5 miles). According to my heart rate monitor, I had more to give during the race, but my legs were quite fatigued when I went through the hills. I think this is due to only running 3 times per week. In the end, I finished with a 1:36:06, which was my second best time ever. This was good for 70th overall (out of 4,412) and 10th in my age group (out of 324). Click here for the results. I will post the pictures when they become available.

Today, I am taking the day off from training as I am super sore. I am looking forward to using the jacuzzi tub.

GOOOOAAAAAALLLLL

Kyle had his second soccer game today. His team, the Panthers and their opponent, Arby's, tied 4-4. The most exciting part of the game for us was when Kyle scored his first goal!!! He drove the ball down, kicked it hard into the corner of the net, and threw his little arms up into the air when he knew it was good! Then, a few minutes later, he scored a second goal. After that, the Coach switched him to defense. We are super proud of him and are looking forward to his upcoming games.

Feeding Clinic

This morning I (Tracey) took Clara to the doctor, to discuss her eating habits with our pediatrician. As you may know, Clara does not eat well, to put it simply. In fact, this has been an ongoing issue with her since she turned one. We thought she was just a picky eater, but lately I have been thinking otherwise. She turns two in one month, and there hasn't been a lot of progress over the past year. So, I decided it was time to talk to the doctor again. Our pediatrician evaluated her, and although she is progressing somewhat with her weight and length (which is now 20.7 pounds and 31 inches), our doctor is going to do some additional bloodwork on her. Also, she is referring Clara to a feeding clinic (program) at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital in Grand Rapids. They will evaluate her, run some tests, and help us determine what the problem is. I think she has sensory (or texture) aversions, but we shall wait and see.

In preparation for our appointment this morning (and out of frustration), I put together a list of foods that Clara will eat, which includes:
-Banana, poppy seed or pumpkin bread
-Yogurt (custard style)
-Peanut butter (creamy)
-Yogurt covered raisins
-Cereal bars
-Oatmeal with mashed up carrots mixed in
-Cookies
-Milk
-Water
-Pudding
-Dry cereal
-Crackers/chips/pretzels
-Brownies (with carrots mixed in)

These are the ONLY foods Clara will eat. Other foods we have tried, but she will NOT eat are:
-Pancakes (plain, banana & bunny shaped)
-Waffles (plain, chocolate chip & animal shaped)
-Scrambled eggs
-Sausage
-Bread (whole wheat)
-Cheese (cubed, string & fun shapes)
-Fruit (apples, bananas, grapes, mandarin oranges, pears & strawberries)
-Vegetables (broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, corn & green beans)
-Meat sticks (mashed up in yogurt)
-Macaroni and cheese
-Grilled cheese
-Chicken nuggets
-Spaghettios
-Hot dogs (plain & cheese)
-Jelly (strawberry)
-French fries
-Ham
-Mashed potatoes
-Biscuits
-Chicken
-Pasta (plain & cheese tortellini)
-Sandwich meat (bologna, ham & turkey)
-Ice cream (vanilla & vanilla with chocolate)
-Juice (apple & orange)
-Pediasure (alone, mixed with milk & mixed with ice cream)
-Carnation Instant Breakfast (full packet & partial packet to minimize taste difference)

Craig and I have tried everything we can think of to get Clara to eat, but have been unsuccessful. We don't know what to do with her! Hopefully, the staff at Mary Free Bed will be able to help us.