Wanted : Two Front Teeth and Cake!!

A week before the big 7, she lost her 2nd front tooth. Signs of the times... she's turning into a full-fledged kid.

While I definitely miss their cute, little baby and toddler stages, this age also has some perks. Like for instance, when I decided to make a cake for Emilia's cake decorating play date, the kiddos re-confirmed that I have no need to purchase an additional kitchen gadget, such as a Cuisinart Stand Mixer. The kids are saving me $300+.



Now, why can't the kids be this enthused to help me out normally in other areas (aka cleaning up, getting dining table ready for dinner, etc).

Emilia's BFF came over and the kids had a birthday play date where the theme was cake decorating. There were two all-white cakes from a local bakery, and I made an additional four 1-layer vegan chocolate cakes for the younger siblings & others to decorate. It was also for Liam to eat, since you know, he's still allergic to eggs.

The younger siblings.

The kids decorated with homemade buttercream frosting of 5 various colors, frosting gels, sprinkles, and gummy bears... apparently the gummy bears on cake was a big hit. Liam got to it first before the other kids, so his cake is loaded with minimal frosting, but lots of gummy bears.

Emilia's 7th...



This bday play date turned out great. It was all about having a special day with a close friend and doing special activities. She didn't, and hasn't, asked once about presents. Okay, she did ask for cake... and she got lots of it. Anyhow, at 7 years old, I'm quite happy at the little person she's become.

Sleeping In = Furniture Rearrangement

Backtracking to earlier, during the start of summer...
The kids wake up before we do nowadays, and on days when they have a couple of wake hours before us, this is what happens.

But how can I be mad at them when they are reading on their own??!

Oh yeh, that's right. It's a mess! I believe this creation is a two person car... or a train. Definitely some automotive vehicle that's for SuperHeroes.

On another weekend, I beat them to it and used a toy Build and Play Fort Construction set the kids received last Xmas as a gift. Fort success!! Minimal furniture rearrangement!

Kids loved it and played it in for a few hours.

Liam enjoying the fort - laying down while eating strawberries and contemplating the meaning of the fort...

It was fun for a few hours, and then it was more fun tearing it apart and building something else!

And the most recent weekend morning wake up findings. It's their home, compartmentalized for functionality.

The kids win. Maybe I'll give them back some of their toys!

Liam's Song & Dance Debut

Liam's musical theater debut! The teachers were worried that he wasn't going to sing and perform on stage.. but my little introvert did a pretty good job considering he wouldn't perform on stage the whole week during practice.

Song highlights from Liam's performance:







Liam's solo:



Somehow I don't think show business is his calling...

The Three Piggy Opera

Backtracking... this was back in early March. Emilia's kindergarten class put on a performance of "The Three Piggy Opera" for the parents and family. Emilia's part was one out of three narrators of the story.

Emilia's narration at 0:21, 1:10, 2:12, and 2:56 in the video clip below.



Ryan practiced with Emilia the weeks prior to the play. They would sing the songs during dinner time and Emilia would practice reading her narration part. It helps too, that E, though in Kindergarten, is one of the more proficient readers in the class, and reading at 2nd grade level. (Yes, proud mom boasting moment!!) The fact that Emilia is reading books on her own now also influences Liam. He tries to read books on his own and is also one of the top readers in his pre-school class.

End of "The Three Piggy Opera".



Yup. Pretty cute. Her first play and she hammed it up!

Boys Will Be Boys

We took the kiddies to check out Emilia's new school for next year. While we were at it, they boys had a little duel...



Emilia had no interesting in dueling balloons, instead she opted for flower power.

And an inflatable jumper & slide.

And best of all, Elsa apparently goes to her new school!

Besides fun festivities, the kids also did a little Spartan training on the playground.

Yup. I think she's going to like her new school!!

Sunshine Giggles

Liam and Emilia were independently playing on the deck. Emilia was busy sitting close by to the screen door and in my direct eye sight. She was busy peeling stickers off a sticker book. Liam was on the other side of the deck, short out of eye sight. I could hear his little footsteps running away, and then stopping... and then bursts of giggles, and then footsteps running back. Still short out of eye sight. He kept doing this, back and forth, with bursts of laughter and giggles. What was going on?

Me: "Liam, what are you doing?"
Liam runs back to me with a big smile, and says with delight: "The sun is tickling my eyes!"

He then runs off again, and more bursts of giggles. =)

If we could all see the world and appreciate it through the eyes of a child. Happiness and fun is as simple as feeling the warmth of the sun.

The fun continued with a snack time picnic to enjoy the last rays of the sun today.

When was the last time you stopped to feel the sun on your eyelashes? When was the last time you had a picnic or ate outside? Enjoy the simple things in life. Thanks Liam for the reminder.

#simple_joys

2014 Summer Update : The Parents

So... continuation of the 2014 Summer Update edition.

Ryan Updates :

Ryan has been extremely busy with juggling home projects, work projects, maintaining everything, and taking care of the kiddies. The home project list is long as he continues to fix and create a great home and environment for us and the kiddies. Depending on near future events or plans, some projects get reshuffled to the top of the priority list.

Such as when the fires came through a few months ago. Re-assessment on fire safety led to the removal of the big pine tree close to the house. Pines are notorious fire hazards, and since this is a high fire hazard season, removal makes sense.



The deck is unofficially done! So.. that means it's not done done, but done enough so that we get to use it and enjoy it. We needed the deck to be safe and functional as we hosted a baby shower for a friend and Emilia and Liam's UnBirthday Party earlier in the year.

Here's how the deck looks populated with party people.

It can hold quite a few people. =)

The avocados were harvested around May this year and, as expected, it was the lowest yielding crop on the records. Other growers around here are also yielding 30% from their norm. With so much going on and a poor avocado season, we ended up not having the yearly AvocadoFest.. for a 3rd year in a row.

We usually save one tree from being harvested so that we can pick and eat for the remainder of the season. However, the end of the season is near and we had to pick off our last remaining avocado tree.



The last of our avos for the season...

Not only is the deck done, but also grass area under the deck. The kids and I love the under-the-deck area especially since it provides shade and has a relaxed feel hanging out on the lawn. I use it a lot for exercising on, and the kids like going bare feet in it and playing lawn games.

Ryan has a grand plan for the overall development of this place. Even I don't know what it is! But this here is the foundation of something I know the kids and I will like. I cannot wait for this area to be built up. I am pretty sure once the grand plan is done, we'll be staying home even more often than we do now!

In the meantime, we're using this area as a makeshift Spartan spear throw training area and the kids use this area like a dirt box (not at the same time.. since that wouldn't be safe.) I'm even contemplating setting up a temporary gladiator jousting arena.





And the kids area has gotten a few upgrades.. a climbing structure, a bench, and a newly cut pine table/boxjump/etc.

Mr. Bunny makes a frequent appearance too. It lives in back of the workshop.

So, you remember the Spartan Race we were suppose to do back in January? Well, that never happened since I had knee surgery. The Spartan Sprint (3+ mile race) was postponed to the next available Spartan Race in our area. Well, that is the Spartan Beast (12+ miles, 25 obstacle) course this coming September. At the time we did the transfer, it was still a good year away. I had hoped we would ease into the Spartan Race series with the Sprint, but the ultimate goal.. my goal for the past 3 years, has always been the Beast. So.. in 3 months time, Ryan and I will be running the Beast. Crunch time!

So, in Ryan's free time (which is none), he has been building obstacles to help with our (really it's more for me) training. He has built mens/womens slosh pipes, a rope climb, bucket carry, rock carry, and spear throw. All according to Spartan guidelines.




(Notice our different techniques to get up that rope.)

Connie Updates :

Obsessive compulsiveness is still ever present and any free time is spent on training. Focus is still getting the knee back to 100% and myself back to pre-injury condition. Currently the knee is at 85-90%. Goal is to get my knee (and mind) functioning confidently to run long distance and to handle jumping. Training has slowly increased as the months passed, and now am at a good point of doing cross-training regiment, 6 days/week, which include physical therapy exercises, Pilates, Olympic weight-lifting, rock climbing, trail or hill running, and HIIT (High-Intensity-Interval-Training) with plyometrics.

Yes. Olympic-weightlifting! I am part of a barbell club now and get Oly weight-lifting training from a 20+ year USAW National coach. Turns out MOST EVERYTHING I learned about weight-lifting from Crossfit was WRONG. Back to re-learning the basics and already seeing the benefits. (Roger, if you are reading this, you HAVE to come down and have a one-on-one session with my coach!)

Doing some "cleaning" on a weekend. =)



My form still needs work. The barbell still travels a little horizontal versus straight up vertical, but it's slowly coming along. Oly lifting has helped tremendously in posture, recognizing left/right side imbalances, and has allowed the knee to strengthen faster and regain a wider range of motion.

I also completed the 2 month Paleo challenge back in February through April and successfully decreased body fat by 3.7%. Since then I have maintained a modified Paleo, focusing on more veggie/fruit intake and varying my protein intake to incorporate a little of non-Paleo plant-based protein (non-GMO soy and chia seeds) for protein variety. I have happily steadied to a 17% body fat and back in the "athletic" category.

Other than working out as much as I can and experimenting with healthy food recipes, I have also been hosting a "Mama's Workout" group Sunday mornings where the neighborhood mamas and kids come over and the moms get a workout while the kids have a play date (multitasking!Score!).

It's been going pretty well that we've even had a few friends and acquaintances, Spartan dads, join for a Spartan Obstacle Training workout session. With the current run of American Ninja Warrior Season 6 on TV along with Spartan Race prep, there is an excitement of discussing new obstacles and obstacle strategies and developing a "wish list" of obstacles in our yard. I cannot wait to see what more obstacles Ryan will build in our home training playground! Stay tuned!

Here's our "Devil Steps" obstacle (yes.. it's just an open staircase):

Pretty much the yard has become a playground for both the adults and the kiddies. Lots of fun for all of us.

Beach Day!

Backtracking..

Sometime this summer... the kiddies made it out to the beach! Yeh! Unfortunately our track record for beach outings so far is once a summer.

Summer Days at the Park

JTree 2013: Part II

Dirt. Dirt. and Mo' Dirt. Did I mention that the kids LOVE dirt & sand & rocks? JTree is even better than toys cause it's like one big sandbox with no boundaries.

Liam knows I do not like him eating dirt.. and so when he sees me looking, he specifically grabs a handful and taunts me that he'll eat it.

This rock, however, he really was gnawing on it...

Innocent looking face .. while grabbing a handful of sand...

The two kiddies are getting along. There is just so much sand & dirt, they are willing to share!

"Here you go, mama. I'll share dirt with you too!"

And yes, he was rolling in the dirt prior to taking this photo.

The key to successful sharing... provide them with dirt!