A new milestone for Kate

Several weeks ago we told Kate that she had to learn how to ride a bike by her birthday.  We knew this would open the door to so much more exploring of the neighborhood and Ryan and I were both anxious to get rid of the loudness that surrounds a set of training wheels on a cheap bike.  Kate was a little hesitant at 1st but agreed to work on it every night last week while I was traveling for work.  Tuesday night consisted of a lot of Ryan running beside the bike letting go for 50-100 feet at a time.  By Wednesday she has gained a little more confidence and once her best friend Grace came out to ride with her, she was off.  She watched Grace go down the street 1 time and she looked back at Ryan and said, "daddy you can let go now."  This will not be the last time that phrase is uttered from her mouth and I am sure it will make me cry each and every time she says it.  Daddy letting go of his little girl.

Once she did it, she has never looked back.  We have explored several holes of the golf course each of the last several nights and hooked up the bike carriage to the back of my bike so Jake gets to join in on the nightly fun!  I am so proud of her as she is of herself.  Here are a few videos and action shots of the big milestone.

Happy Father's Day

I could go on and on about how wonderful a dad Ryan is to the kids but will save it for another night when I have more time to write!  To say that he is the best is an understatement.  There are so many times over the past 6 years that we have been parents together that I stop and cherish the moment of what it means for my kids to have a dad like Ryan.  His strengths are my weaknesses and vice versa, which generally creates a great balance.

Earlier today I was reflecting back upon the pictures of the past several months and there are so many of him with each of the kids and the camera captured nothing but pure joy.  Here are a few of my favorites.

One of the best parts of this weekend was Kate's request to use her own money to buy 2 white t-shirts at Target so she could paint on them.  As we were discussing what she wanted to put on them she said "Happy Father's Day Dad".  I think Ryan's heart melted just a little. 

We tried to spoil him with lots of good food and a relaxing day at home (minus the hundred errands he ran with us this morning).  We love you Ryan/Daddy and could not get through this thing called life without you!  Thank you for all you do for me and for being the best role model I could ever ask for my kids.

Friendships

On Friday night I had the opportunity to meet up with 3 of my teammates from UK.  Kristi, Misty, and I live within 15 miles from each other but we still don't see each other often enough.  Colleen lives just up the road in Indianapolis and I am ashamed to say that she has been there for 4 years and I have not made the time to visit!  I must put the regret of lost friendships behind me and focus on what I can control and that is reconnecting.

It was wonderful to meet up with the girls and catch up on all the happenings of 6 years.  So much has changed in our lives but our story telling was just the same - at least Colleen's story telling was the same :)  We shared a few drinks, laughed on all the craziness, and tried to catch up the best we could.  I look forward to our next visit!

36...my oh my!!!

Last Saturday morning, daddy surprised the girls with a manicure and pedicure at one of the local nail salons in Westport Village.  We had the afternoon to ourselves and I can't think of a more perfect way to spend my 36th birthday.  Morning swim lessons and errands with the family, a date with Kate to the nail salon, and dinner and drinks with Ryan, Jon and April.  Perfecto.

Kate loved all the attention and the added artwork on her nails.  On her toes she alternated hot pink and neon green with white polka dots all over and on her fingers she alternated bright purple and neon green with gold glitter all over.  The more bling the better.  I got the usual!

While we were in the salon, there was another mother-daughter pair who where about 20 years older.  I hope that we can always share this special treat!

Our little swimmer

Kate accepted our challenge to add 2 new activities to her schedule with flying colors.  She continues with guitar each week and in April, started swim lessons.  She is already part fish based on the fact that she swims in our pool most days but needed to put some time into learning the different strokes in order to make the swim team.  We signed her up at the YMCA since it is most convenient and she has proven to be a quick learner.  We had to miss 2 lessons because of the 1/2 marathon and the trip to the lake so in just 4, 45-minute classes, she learned the back stroke and is improving in freestyle.

She loves the water and I hope she always will.  When I watch her I have one of those parenting instincts that she might be pretty good.  Now I know as her mom I will always be biased but it just seems to come so easy.  We have advanced her to private swim lessons with the same coach, which provides her 45 minutes of undivided attention.  Last Sunday was our 1st private and boy was she tired by the end of it.  Swimming laps non-stop for 45 minutes is tough, even for a 5 year old.

Here is a video of her backstroke.

Here is a video of her freestyle.  I will try and get some more video tomorrow as she is learning to breath to the side and is doing it now without the kickboard.

Lastly, here is a reality check that she is only 5.  I looked back the day as we were on our way to her lesson and this is what I saw!  So innocent, silly, and sweet all in the same picture.

Memorial Day Weekend

A brief get-away is exactly what my body has been craving! With the loss of Cooper and increased travel and stress load at work, I needed a little break from every day life. The Nodine's invited us to Lake Hamilton and we welcomed the opportunity to take a short family vacation.

We had not made the trip to Hamilton since Jake was 2 months old (Memorial Day weekend 2010).  In fact, we had not experienced any type of family vacation since that weekend!  In place of travel, Ryan and I have enjoyed our time off at home - often catching up on all the "to-do's" that seem to quickly pile up with both of us working.  We have also contemplated whether a trip was "worth it", meaning did the benefit of enjoying someplace new outweight the stress of traveling with a 1 and 5 year old.   Finally, we felt it was time and we enjoyed it beyond belief.

Jake and Kate were just about perfect the entire trip!  The Nodine's are beyond welcoming to our kids, which allows us to relax a little.  Jake is finally at the age where he can communicate his needs and is far more adaptable to different situations than he was 6-12 months ago.  He loved the freedom the lake house has to offer, roaming just about every square inch of the property.  He is also at the age that he can entertain himself and as we found out, all that is really needed is a little sand and a few buckets. 

Luckily for Kate, The Bushee's joined our families at the house for 2 nights.  Peyton (6) and Alex (4) are the sweetest little girls and a perfect match for Kate.  Despite not seeing each other for 2 years, they immediately bonded and were occupied for the remaining of the weekend.  A busy Kate and a content Jake provided Ryan and me a lot of relaxation time!  For the 1st time in I am not sure when, I felt I could take a deep breath and truly enjoy the moment.  The scenery is breathtaking as you can see from the pictures below.  When you have an invitation to Lake Hamilton, who needs anywhere else :)

Reflection back upon this weekend has me really excited to journey down to Saint Simons Island with my family later this summer.  It will be the 1st trip to the beach for our kids and I can't wait to experience all the 1st that come with summer vacations.

Here are some pictures from our perfect weekend.

On Thursday night, we loaded the car and enjoyed the 4 hour road trip with Jon, April and Jones. 

 Kate enjoying the photo op in Jon's hat.

My favorite part of the weekend is the early morning boat rides!  It appears that is Jake's favorite part too!

 Is this a good Father's Day gift or what?

 Jake and Jones conversing about all the changes at the lake since May 2010.

 Kate enjoys the boat any time of day!!!

 I mean really, can you believe the view?  It is even prettier in person.

 Jake occupied himself in this swing for at least 12 hours during our 3 day trip.

 Gibson is the latest addition to the Bushee Family.  He might just be the cutest little boy ever and he definitely gives Jake a run for the money in size!

 Jones enjoying the boat as well.  Maybe it is a tie between Jones and Gibson on cutest boy ever (well, and Jake too)!

 Peyton, Kate and Alex making one of their many trips between the house and the lake.

 Peyton, Kate, Alex, and Leona Nagel taking a quick break for some juice.

 Mindy with 2 of her 3 kiddos.

 Gibson and Jones checking out the water from the boat dock.

 One of the 100 self portrait images we have of these 2.

 Kate and her idol, Bailey Nodine, who is always so sweet to Kate during our visits.

 Jake enjoying the sand pit by the water's edge.

 Jones enjoying it too!

 Kate showing off her 1st sandcastle.  I hate that the pictures isn't of better quality because the castle she made was in resemblance of The Nodine's actual house.

 

A moment Kate has been waiting for

Finally Kate got to experience riding in Aunt Granny's car with the top down!  Her 1st convertible ride is a moment she has been anxiously awaiting and apparently, it was worth the wait.  I am so glad the weather finally cooperated.  Thank you Aunt Granny for letting Kate enjoy her 1st ride with you!  I am sure it won't be her last.

10th 1/2 Marathon

Several weeks ago I completed my 10th 1/2 Marathon!  For those of you that know me, I run for the weight management benefit - not necessarily for the "love" of it!  As a stocky 5'2" ex-gymnast, running is not in my blood but I do it because I know there is nothing better than the euphoria you get after finishing a long run!  The feeling of finishing an early morning run knowing that you still have the rest of the day ahead of you!  The feeling of pushing yourself outside your comfort zone and knowing the power is in your hands in whether or not your finish.

I don't often talk about work on our family blog but my work environment today is so much different than I have experienced since leaving the Navy in 2004.  I am in a leadership role because I love to push people beyond their comfort zone.  I love the feeling of looking back at the previous year's development and know that you played an integral role by challenging them to do new things!  The people I work with today are far more motivating to me than they will ever know.  During my previous DM role, I longed for the day that I challenged someone to do something new and they follow through.  With my new team, they welcome the challenge with open arms.  Here is a great example...

One night this winter, one of my reps and I decided to go running at her local YMCA after work.  I was in Fort Wayne for a few nights and welcomed the idea of getting some fresh air!  When I mentioned that I was training for the Derby Festival 1/2 Marathon, she jumped on the challenge to run it together!  This is the accountability I yearned for during my solo training.  I challenged her to start runnning again but it was her enthusiasm that reenergized me to put in the extra hours of training each week!  Even though she was quite a bit faster, we did the race together.  Mentally we pushed each other to keep running - no matter what!  Thank you Beth for welcoming the challenge and helping me through the long runs!

Here is the before at the start line:

Here is the after: