I'll be Darned

Yesterday, on the way to church, this guys was fussing and complaining. Christian, turned around and said

"James, you just need to find your moment of zen."

And then he was fine.

TRI the Lake

I swam/biked/ran my first triathlon on Saturday and I still have the #116 tatooed on my arm. I'm going to try another...but I think I'll train for it next time. I swam 400m, biked 13 miles, and ran 3 miles.

The swim was a lake open water swim. The lake is in the greater Boston area...it was NAAAAAASTY! I couldn't see my fingertips when they were stretched out in front of me. Forget about swimming fast to beat the next person, I was swimming fast to get out of the lake.

The biking part was ridiculous. I was on a mountain bike and EVERYONE else was on a road bike. I didn't realize there was such a huge difference between the two types of bikes. I might as well had been on a beach cruiser with a little old granny bell on it...at least then my patootie wouldn't be as sore as it. Beach cruisers have cushy double-wide seats.

I was second out of the water, and then everyone passed me on the bike. I made up a lot of ground on the running, but I don't know my exact placing or time. I tried to find the results online, but my google powers aren't up to speed today...maybe the bacteria from the lake is eating my brain!

Itchy Itchy

Since April, I have had poison ivy 3 times. I'm currently recovering from my fifth case of poison ivy in one year. I think I will buy my anit-itch-aloe-cream-goop from Costco now.

I'm In Love

Today, I'm in love...I'm in love with being a mom. This morning, we had nothing on the calendar. I love open days...not having to rush from one thing to the next. Instead, we mosied from one activity to the next and picked all the dandelions along the way.

James has the most delightful discovery squills. Daniel has lots of 3-year-old enthusiasm and zest for life. There was plenty of squilling and enthusiasm today.

Lunch found us enjoying a delicious pb&j sandwich while discussing the finer points of tractors and combines. Later, while James was tucked in for a nap, Daniel and I read books on the couch while it rained outside. Then the squills and enthusiasm were back this afternoon at the swimming pool.

Both kiddos devoured dinner. They fell asleep the instant their heads hit the pillow. I just peeked in on them...they are wiped out with grins on their faces. What adventures will tomorrow bring? We have one thing on the calendar.

Ownership is Overrated

Sorry, no new or interesting news.


We are slaves to our yard.

Boston Summer 2009

"Families are like fudge... mostly sweet with a few nuts."

- Author Unknown

Here is some of the sweet...

And some of the nuts...

Lobsta' Lunch

Scooper Bowl 2009

I almost aborted mission to the Scooper Bowl this morning as we were standing at the bus stop in the pouring rain with two not-so-rested children. Before the code red alarm sounded, I talked myself into pressing on, because if we didn't make it today, we would have to wait a WHOLE year to try again.



The Scooper Bowl is an all-you-can-eat ice cream love fest (and raises money for cancer research). We ate all we could. I was wishing I had elastic waist pants like my kids had on.

Best Ice Cream
Ben & Jerry's "Strawberry Cheesecake"

Runner Up
Baskin Robbin's "Peppermint Patty"

Nastiest Ice Cream
Baskin Robbin's "Cotton Candy" & "Rock n Roll Swirl"

Our Scooper Bowl trophy (a collection of all our ice cream cups...18!)

Lest you think I'm that irresponsible of a parent, I will tell you I only let the kids sample a small bite out of each cup and threw the rest of the ice cream away...even the good flavors. Turns out diminishing marginal returns holds true with ice cream too!

Miraculously, both kids fell asleep in the car on the way home. It must be the sugar crash. Maybe I will feed them ice cream for lunch everyday.

Newport, RI

We found another New England gem this weekend. A Chowda' Festival took us to Newport, RI and it was love at first sight. Now we're just waiting for any friends or family to visit so we can show you all our New England treasures.

When you visit us, we'll take you to Newport. The day will unfold something like this....sailing, fresh seafood lunch, explore some mansions and lighthouse, and finish the day off with an ice cream cone walk on the wharf. Any takers?!?!?



We also visited with one of Christian's old mission companions in CT, who is totally posing in this picture.

"Give Me Cookie!! Yum, yum, yum, yum."

Don't try this at home, but its ok in the hotel

All in a Day's Work

I assigned James to take care of the little...

weed and...

rock problem in our garden.

Do I Stop This?

Tara: What are you doing?

Daniel: Making a swimming pool.

Engineer vs. Nature vs. Turf Diving

Now we have cleared out the shrubs and vinca, the rock is not aesthetically located. Stay tuned to see who wins the intense battle. All three competitors bring different strengths to the battle field. It is a battle of sweat, mind, and muscle (engineer) vs. stubborness (rock) vs. sheer enjoyment (Daniel).

If I were a betting woman, I would bet on the mind...sorry honey, your guns aren't that big...almost big enough though.