Race Report

This past weekend was a busy race weekend for us. First, Tracey participated in the Muskegon Chronicle Seaway Run 5K where she ran an awesome race! She finished with a time of 26:13! This was good for 8th place in her age group out of 36! Kyle, Clara, and I joined her as spectators and had a great time. The kids really liked watching Mommy run and cheered super loud when she went by. We are very proud of her.

As for me, I participated in the Block 58 Triathlon in Muskegon on Sunday. I competed in the long course, which consisted of a 1500m swim, a 35 mile bike, and a 7.1 mile run. I ended up 3rd in my age group (out of 4). I know what you are thinking....3rd out of 4? I did run a great race, but my age group was highly competitive. I am anxious to see the results posted online soon so I can see where I officially placed overall - hopefully, somewhere in the top 10. My time ended up at about 2:50. Tracey, Kyle, and Clara drove around to different locations on the course to cheer me on. It was greatly appreciated and gave me a boost whenever I saw them - especially at the end when both Clara and Kyle joined me on the course! In fact, Kyle ran across the finish line with me. It was great!

Here are a few pictures from my race. Unfortunately, we forgot the camera for Tracey's race.

Three New Foods

This past week, our very picky eater Clara tried three new foods! You wouldn't think that would big such a big deal, but it is for us. The foods she tried (and liked) are orange juice, popcorn (compliments of Craig), and chocolate pudding. Clara has always liked vanilla pudding, but we could never get her to eat chocolate pudding, until recently . . . . . . imagine that! Today I gave her chocolate pudding, and when I came back a couple minutes later, it was gone, although she was scraping out every last bite. Below is what she looked like when she was done with her pudding. I think she liked it a lot. What do you think? :)

Hand, foot and mouth . . . . what?

Clara has hand, foot and mouth disease! I knew she was coming down with something on Sunday, when she had a fever all day long and loss of appetite. Her fever got as high as 103.7 degrees. However, I couldn't figure out what was wrong with her and she seemed all better by Monday morning. I guess we chalked it up to a twenty-four hour bug. Then, when I picked her up from daycare yesterday, they pointed out some spots on Clara's hands and feet. I called our pediatrician's office this morning, and sure enough . . . . . she has all the symptoms of hand, foot and mouth disesase. Doesn't that sound just awful? Neither of my kids have had this before, so this is new for us. It actually sounds worse than what it really is, I think. Hand, foot and mouth disease is a viral infection which causes red spots on the hands, feet, and mouth area . . . . . usually inside the mouth. Some of the spots look like little blisters. Anyway, it's a viral infection, so there is nothing they could prescribe for Clara. It just has to run its course, which usually takes 3-7 days. I stayed home from work with Clara today, and Craig will stay home with her tomorrow. The worst part is that I had to cancel Clara's swallow study at Mary Free Bed tomorrow because she is contagious. So, we will have to wait another month before she gets that testing done.

On a related note, I took Clara to Zeeland Community Hospital this past Friday for some more blood work (they want to rule out celiac disease, which I'm confident she does not have). Anyway, they tried one arm and were unsuccessful (poor girl), then the other, and no suck luck! The nurses felt awful, but they just could not get any blood drawn. Kids her age have very small veins. We will try again in another few weeks. By the way, Kyle came with me to the hospital and he was very, very good. I think he was just glad that he did not have to get any pokes this time around.

Finally, I am posting another picture of Kyle from the other night, when we watered the flowers together. Isn't he cute? I just love his dimples. :)

Watering the Flowers

Tonight Kyle told us he wanted to water the flowers outside. This would include our day lillies and carpet roses. So, we looked for the watering can and couldn't find it. Then we looked for the kids small beach bucket, and couldn't find that, either.

Why is it I knew where everything was before I had kids? :)

Anyway, we ended up using a couple of plastic cups, and that worked just fine. I even managed to snap a few pictures of Kyle along the way. I am posting my favorite picture of him from tonight. Sometimes it is nice to take time and water the flowers.

Upcoming Races

The racing season is kicking into high gear for us. Next week, Tracey will be running the Chronicle Seaway Run 5K on Saturday and I will be participating in the Block 58 Triathlon on Sunday - both events in Muskegon. Today, I registered myself for the Allendale 5K Cross Country run and signed Kyle up for the kids run at the same 4th of July event. When I went to their website to sign us up, I noticed that Kyle is on the main page from last year. Check it out here - he is famous! Beyond these races, we have a smattering of other events covering 5K's, 10 milers, century rides (100 miles), olympic tri's, a half marathon, kid's runs, and the Ironman! It is going to be fun! Stay tuned to hear more about it.

Outdoor Dining

Today the weather was so nice we ate lunch and dinner outside on the deck. Here is a picture of Kyle and Clara eating their lunch at the picnic table. We love eating outside whenever we can.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend, everyone. :)

Great Wolf Lodge

This past Sunday, we packed up the Tribute and headed north to one of our favorite vacation spots - the Great Wolf Lodge in Traverse City. We absolutely love the Great Wolf Lodge! We have been there four times in the past four years. It is very kid and family friendly. If you have not been there before, I highly recommend it.

Our trip this year was special because it was in honor of my parents 40th wedding anniversary. We met my parents up there, along with my sister and her whole family. There were 10 of us altogether, including four kids under the age of six. Needless to say, our destination needed to be somewhere that was kid friendly and family friendly.

Overall, we had a great time! My parents had a room right next to ours and Susan, Dave, Reilly and Addie were just down the hall. Some of the highlights of our trip were of course the indoor waterpark, wine tasting at Chateau Grand Traverse, dinner at The Bowery (one of our favorite restaurants), and a trip to Grand Traverse Pie Company before heading home. Below are a few pictures for you. I didn't take as many pictures this year as I normally do . . . . . probably because we had our hands full with Kyle and Clara.

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

Safety Town

Kyle is participating in a program right now through his school called Safety Town. It meets for two hours every day for a two week period. It is great way for him to learn about various safety procedures. Here is a brief breakdown of the topics that are covered during Safety Town:

Day 1 - Introductions to Safety Town
Day 2 - Stranger Danger, and Railroad Safety
Day 3 - Bus Safety
Day 4 - Police Officer and Safety Belts
Day 5 - Firemen
Day 6 - Poisons and Medicines
Day 7 - Water Safety
Day 8 - Bicycle Safety
Day 9 - Emergency Medical Unit (EMS)
Day 10 - Graduation Ceremony

Kyle came home from daycare yesterday super excited because he got to ride on a school bus! Safety Town has been a great program for him thus far. We are glad our school district offers a program like this for children his age.

Happy Anniversary

Craig and I celebrated our 11 year wedding anniversary this past Saturday! I can't believe it's been 11 years already (not including the seven years we dated, either). We celebrated by going out for dinner AND a movie, which is rare for us. We usually just do one or the other. Anyway, we had dinner at Leo's in downtown Grand Rapids, then saw the new Indiana Jones movie. It was a great date night!

Clara's Birthday Party

Here are some pictures from Clara's second birthday party, which was last weekend. Thank you to everyone who came. We had a great time and enjoyed seeing everyone.

Last Soccer Game

This past Saturday was Kyle's last soccer game for the spring season. It was a beautiful day for a game, and his team won! Other than that, I don't have much to say because I spent half the game trying to calm Clara down (she was having a bad day). Anyway, it is amazing how all of the kids on his team improved over the past few months. Kyle loves soccer and we will be signing him up for it again this fall.

His team celebrated the end of the season by having a soccer party last night. The kids were supposed to play against the adults in a game, but the rain did not allow for that. Fortunately, we were under a pavillion, so we were still able to have a cookout. We had a great time! The most exciting part was when Kyle received a trophy and certificate, which all the kids received. It was a nice ending to the season.

Road Trip

Last Friday was my first Friday off, and I spent the day with my dear friend Lisa. :) We decided it would be fun to take a road trip, so we headed to IKEA for the day (in Canton). I had never been there, nor had Lisa, so we were definitely IKEA "newbies." It was a lot of fun and we had a successful shopping experience, once we learned how to naviagate our way through the HUGE store. Anyway, we both found some great items . . . . . and great deals. IKEA is known for their deals. For instance, I bought some decorative rocks for $1.49! What a deal! I also bought a picture to hang above our bed, some crib bedding, and other miscellaneous items. If you have not been to IKEA, and you like to shop, this is a must do activity!

On the way home from Canton, we drove into a terrible thunderstorm. I had to turn my hazard lights on and pull over to the side of the highway at one point. I have never had to do that in my life, but it was bad - no visibility! Better to be safe than sorry, right? It made our road trip somewhat adventurous, and one we will likely not forget. Thanks Lisa, for spending the day with me. It was fun. :)

Escape Artist!

Tonight we learned that our cat Max can escape off our deck by squeezing through the railings. He is a little escape artist! Yep, that's right . . . . . . . and look where he headed - straight for our pool. Believe it or not, this is the cat that LOVES water. Yep. He would have been swimming if Craig hadn't noticed him ready to dive in. We have been letting Max hang out on the deck because he likes to lay in the sun, but we won't being doing that anymore . . . . . . at least not without adult supervision. :)

Poor old Max. He is getting old . . . . he is sixteen and a half. My mom says she thinks he has arthritis by the way that he walks. I am taking him to the vet on Friday to see if there is anything they can do to help him. He is an awesome cat and I hope he lives to be at least 20!

Happy Birthday Clara!

Clara turned two today! I can't believe it's been two years since Clara entered our lives. She is becoming such a big girl . . . . and SO independent. We are blessed to have her; she really has rounded out our family nicely.

Oh, and Kyle wants me to mention how much he is looking forward to Clara's birthday party this weekend . . . . . in only six more days, but who's counting?

Happy Birthday Clara! We love you.