A Play Date at Kate's

Tonight Dave and I had a dinner out with friends that are involved in the Marriage Ministry work we do. Since my parents are out of town we did not have a babysitter! We dropped our kids off at our friends house for a play date.

Sean & Jen have a little girl the same age as our girls and a baby that's about 7 months old.

Jen was on call - and of course about 20 minutes after we left she got called into work. That left Sean and the 4 kids under 3! Yikes!!

They all had so much fun!! The girls just had a blast with their friends. They pained little wooden cars - preparing for the Pine Wood Derby. They'll be talking about this for a long time!!! Ev had a blast jumping on their bed!! And, Erin was in love with all the babydolls!

We are so lucky to have such good friends!

My first donation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I got my first donation today ... from a complete stranger!!!

Dave and I were at dinner with 4 friends. I mentioned to my friends that I am doing the walk and started talking about it. A woman came by our table and handed me a check for $20! She said she overheard I am doing the walk and since she had done it a few years ago, she wanted to be a donor for me. I was shocked! She made my night!

What a reminder that kindness and generosity is everywhere.

Left, Right, Left...

Well, training has begun - and I am already sore!

I walked 5 miles on Tuesday and went to the gym today for another 5 mile walk. I have also mapped out 5 mile routes by the house.

Thankfully, the girls love going to Bally's, so it is not difficult to train. On my first walk I was interrupted to change the girls diapers. But, that's not too bad!

If only mother nature would comply and warm things up I could train outdoors!

Since I am a believer in cross training, not all of my training will be walks, but will include biking and elliptical. I really like the elliptical - and biking outdoors.

I am going to keep a ticker of how many miles/minutes I walk (and cross train) as well as other info you might chuckle at - like my blister count - I've already had 1!!

Stats:
Miles Walked: 10
Time Walked: 2 hours, 40 minutes
Cross Training Time: 0
Blisters: 1

We're Home!

Well, we're home! We've been home for about a week and it is so nice to be back home. It is always nice to be back home. Nothing beats sleeping in your own bed.

Let me tell you about our delightful flights home!

We had 2 flights. Fort Myers to Atlanta was fabulous - absolutely great! The layover was just fine - we grabbed dinner and stretched our legs. We were off to such a great start!!!

Then - I entered the 5th dimension of hell.

While boarding our flight from Atlanta to Chicago I was walking down 1st class and nearly fell over. Our original flight had changed and we were now in an airplane with only 2 seats on each side of the aisle. I started to get nervous.

The girls jumped in the seats next to each other and started off just fine. The flight attendants came by (the supposedly full flight) and told me the kids could not sit alone, but we would need to switch so I was with one and one took the seat I was in - next to a 30ish man. He piped in that he did not want to sit with "one of those." Okay - so the attendant told me we must sit in the order we were ticketed - which was the girls in A and B and me across the aisle in C. I figured this would be okay because once we got in the air I could move and it would all work out.

Now the girls are very comfy and have figured out just how much fun an airplane ride can be - they figured out how to raise and lower the tray - and the armrest. They were grabbing each others noses and doing everything else possible to have a blast! And, they were getting loud and it was making me crazy! I would tell them "do not touch that!" Erin would mimic back (while touching it) "do not touch that!"

Okay - we're just about to take off, right? Not so fast. We still had to sit on the tarmac for 80 minutes, as the winds were too strong. And, I was not allowed to get out of my seat to switch with one of them or have them on my lap or anything. I just sat about 4 feet away from them (and they knew I was not able to do a darn thing). They had fun doing everything I was trying to tell them not to do - and I was at a totally loss. They were not fussing or crying - just not being good little travelers that sit quietly and don't touch anything - hey, they're not even 3 yet. I bribed them with everyhting I had. They ate a sleeve of Fig Newtons and that didn't seem to make them happy - or calm. I can't imagine why all that sugar didn't help calm them....

Finally, we took off - and the rest of the flight went smoothly. I moved over and they took turns in my lap. Ev also joined the man that did not want to be near her. She sat like an angel. He did not seem happy.

We got home and they were estatic to see Daddy!! They were so happy.

A few stories...

- Erin and Ev were playing while I was working on my computer - we were all in the same room. They were playing with a suitcase - seemed pretty harmless. They were having a blast - hooting and hollering. Then, they ran over to me and one sniff told me what they were up to. Swagger. They got into Dave's deodorant and painted it all over their arms and legs - and they stank!

- Their new favorite game is hide and seek. My mom started playing it with them and it is all they want to do - hide Mr. Monkey. They are not very good at covering their eyes during the hide part! I took a video of this and will post when I get home and have a stronger connection.

-Yesterday Ev skinned her toe on the concrete patio. She was okay with it at the time. It was a little bloody, so we put on a bandage. Once that was on she was no longer able to walk normally, but had to put her weight only on that foots heel. She could not walk unless wearing her purple crocks. Of course, she could run when she got to push the elevator button or it was time for dinner. And, a couple of times she was limping on the wrong foot. But, she was really milking her injury!

- Evie also had a major face plant accident at the beach. She was running toward the water to rinse her hands and tripped on her knees then the force crashed her right on her forehead. She has a nice purple egg on her head.

-

Oh Boy...

Oh Boy... I've made a decision and not yet said it out loud! That's right - I haven't told anyone - just made a commitment to myself and completed an on-line registration for the 3 Day Walk to Fight Breast Cancer. This walk is about 60 miles and takes place in early August - you'll hear plenty about it in the upcoming months.

I did The Avon Breast Cancer walk several years ago - I think it was 2001. I did it by myself and did the entire thing. I walked every stinkin step. It was probably the hardest thing I've ever done. Walking on my own made me totally and completely accountable for the walk. Sometimes I wonder if I had a partner if it would have made it easier to jump on the bus and stop walking.

So, please keep me on track - inspire me - motivate me - kick me in the butt - be my friend. And, if you want to get in shape (like me) think about walking. It'd be nice to have a partner to walk with. But, trust me - if you're my partner ... you're walking the entire walk!

Just One More Day...

until the weather gets nice again!! The last few days have been chilly. But, tomorrow the skies open and we hit the 70s again - can't come soon enough.

We did manage to hit the hot tub yesterday and the girls had a lot of fun splashing in there. Today, we are off to a nature conservancy which will be fun. They are very excited to see the animals. I am sure we'll have some good photos to share with you all. We might also have time for a quick dip in the hot tub - we'll see.

Both girls miss Dave. Erin seems to miss him a bit more than Ev. She was asking him to come home last night - I think she forgot this is not home. She was happy that he sees Buddy (the dog). She also asks about Buddy a lot.

Well, we're off!! Hope you have a good day!! Any special plans???

Pinkie Pie gets a bath...

Many of you have seen Pinkie Pie. She is Evie's baby - the love of her life. And, she is nasty! We think she has hepatitis A. She is really just the grossest thing ever. Although you can see how icky she has gotten, I'll leave her precious smell up to your imagination. Despite her being completely smelly and nasty, Ev loves her. After 6 months, she needs a bath. I fear giving her a bath because she might not be able to sing anymore. But, the germ factor has gotten too strong. So, I am taking a risk, and she is going in the wash.

When I asked Ev this morning if the pony should have a bath Ev said "no". I pressed the issue and she held her stance. But, as I ran the washing machine, she was finally okay tossing her in. Erin threw in Rainbow Dash and I tossed in their monkies.

Survey says...
Well, she is looking pinkalicious!! She is smelling like Tide and Bounce - and I'd even be fine giving her a kiss - if Ev would let me. Ev seems quite pleased with the new and improved Pinkie Pie - and won't let my mom touch her.

She is not 100% dry - but mainly dry. We have not yet heard her sing - she might be quite for a while - a long while. But, pretty as a My Little Pony can be.

Note: No photos of Rainbow Dash are provided because she (or he - depending on the day) was not nearly as dirty as Pinkie Pie.

Day One Without Daddy...

Day One without daddy went pretty well. We started out the morning the same as every other morning - with breakfast! The girls can put back a lot of cereal and raisins!!!

Then, off to visit my friend Eileen from college - and her husband Brian and daughter Josie. We rarely get to see them, so it was a very special treat. The girls just loved playing with Josie's toys and tearing apart their condo. They had a blast and keep talking about going back to Josie's house.

Since the girls did not nap at Josie's place they were off to sleep on the early end. We had a tough time getting a hold of Dave to sing to them before bed, so we called Grandma and she was the pinch hitter - did a very good job! She does a good job singing Teapot and Itsy Bitsy Spider. Thankfully, we did manage to also hear from Dave. Erin had a really good conversation with him over the phone - better than any in the past. It was really cute to listen to. She is definitely missing Daddy. We all do!

Daddy's Out of Here...

Well, the day has come to say goodbye to Dave. He flew home this afternoon to return back to work. I am still in FL with the girls another week and a half.

Erin & Evelyn handled Dave leaving pretty darn well. I think the trip to the park, chicken nuggets and apple slices helped ease the pain of losing daddy. But, all in all we did not have too much whining or moaning about where is daddy.

We'll see what tomorrow brings. But, we have a play date with a friend of mine from Xavier who is in the area visiting her parents, so that will be a lot of fun - and a nice distraction.

Good night for now!!!

Dave - we miss you already!!!