Christmas Eve, Day, Trains

Christmas was a nice and relaxing time for us this year. Mark had to work on Christmas Day and Eve so we e-mailed Santa and asked him to come a day late....he obliged! On our Christmas Eve, mom, Dave, Andy and the kids and I all just literally hung out and munched goodies all day. Christmas morning brought a fun time, bright and early. We opened presents and enjoyed time as a family once again...this time with Mark. Mom got Rock Band 2 and Mario Kart for her Wii and we had fun with that. Andon and mark played with the train a lot and we got some really cute pictures of them doing so...especially Andon. The pictures of the kids all dressed up was on the real Christmas Eve before we headed out to church. The kids did really well as they sat in the "grown up" room together. Hope everyone else had a Merry Christmas!

Weight Loss...Almost 1 year Later

Well, I write this 28 lbs lighter and at least 27 inches smaller! I started the year with my first boot camp, did Hot Mommy Boot Camp this summer and have completed the rest on my own cycling, changing my diet and staying motivated! I have lost 6.3% body fat, most of which was after my boot camps were over and I am now in my size 6's again! I even bought a size 4 pair of jeans for the first time since I can remember! I feel great and have included some before pics and recent pics...I can really notice the change in my face. It's funny how few pictures there are of me before I lost weight...I guess that I was subconsciously avoiding the evidence! I am really proud of myself and although I am still battling those last 4 or 5 lbs (which I am trying to shed before February...the last ones are the hardest though), I am still extremely happy! It took a year but it should stay off!!! Now watch, we'll get pregnant again and the journey will begin once again!

First two are me around my heaviest...


The next pic is a cycling shot from September...

One in October...

Taken end of November...

This blows me away...
BEFORE
AFTER

Merry Christ-Mas!

The gap that we could never reach across was bridged when God Himself came down, in the flesh of Jesus Christ, to forever carry our burdens of sin. A gift that is readily given to all who shall receive it...let us celebrate the birth of that gift. May He be remembered this Christ-mas and may blessings of joy be received!
Love,
January

Blogger Backgrounds

Ahhhh HAAA! I think I fixed the blogging problem! I hated (as did Kelly and I'm sure a few others) the way my last blog read. I love the idea but just couldn't figure out why it was so hard to read. I finally made it much more legible by changing my template through blogger first...what do you think????

Do we, or do we not??? and January's New Job

Warning....this is about as deep as January gets on the blog.....

So Mark and I have been talking....do we have more kids or do we not? We both have mixed feelings...The kids will be going to kindergarten next year and that leaves the question do I go back to teaching? The answer to that is no mostly because my cert expires on my birthday this year but also because I just don't want to be committed full time to a job where I will not be able to help in their classroom and be part of their education...I mean that IS my forte! But, I'll feel guilty staying home if the kids are in school (half day or full day will depend on the school we enroll them in and that's a completely different discussion) and what do I do with my time? Clean? Run errands? Become the room parent? Volunteer more?

I go through stages where I think we really would love to be blessed with another baby...probably another set of twins...but is that just because I loved being pregnant (other than the 1st trimester)? Because my good friend, Kelly, is 17 weeks along with her first little girl? I don't know. But then I go through stages where I like being able to do more "stuff" with the kids being older...babies really do keep you from doing a lot of things (all worth it, of course). What about cycling? When will we find time to do that? Plus I just worked SOOO hard at losing 28 lbs and getting below my pre-pregnancy weight! Ok, so really that's not a concern...I did it once and I can do it again! I'm just enjoying wearing size 6's!!! Then there are the issues that we are having with Andon...he's a VERY strong-willed child. Will he outgrow that? Will it get worse if a baby comes? By the way, both kids have already picked names for our new babies....Avery wants to name our baby girl Sarah and Andon wants to name our baby boy Malachai (we'll work on that one with him).

We are planning a big DisneyWorld trip in June with the Chicago Bibbey's so I would like to wait until after that (Disney is just not as fun when you are pregnant) but sometime's I just wish that God would give us a surprise pregnancy so we didn't have to decide the timing. It's His perfect timing anyways, right?
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As mentioned above, I have been contemplating going back to work when the kids go to kindergarten. Our Children's Director at church has always said, "Before you go back to teaching, come talk to me because I want to hire you in Children's Ministry." Well, she contacted me two weeks ago and said that a mid week position opened up, effective ASAP, and she thought of me . We began to talk about the different needs right now and as it turns out, they are looking to make some changes..."all the people are on the right bus, just not in the right seat". The offer was made to come on as the N-2's Director as of January 1 and while it isn't the timeline we had anticipated, we decided that it was something to consider. A lot can be done from home, the kids can come with me when I need to go to "work" at church and the pay will help supplement our income allowing Mark to release a little stress about finances! The tough part is it's a weekend commitment for all 4 services (2 Sat night and 3 on Sun morning)...something that will take some adjusting for us all! I am also still the MOPS Coordinator, which was my first commitment, so that will be an additional balancing act! We will also have to stop fostering dogs once Charlie, our current foster, gets adopted because we just can't get them to events on weekends nor have patience to try and teach old dogs new tricks (like peeing outside)! Well, after much prayer and discussions with Mark, I accepted the position so I will be the new N-2's Director effective January 1...not full time, just a 15 hour part-time salary gig.

Please pray with me during this adjustment period...I feel that it's the right decision but everyone will need to be flexible as we get a routine set!

Well, that's enough from me this morning....

Holiday Parties

Is it just me or does it seem like there are many more Christmas parties to attend this year than usual? Usually we have just one or two but this year it was 6! Yes we had a lot of fun at them, getting to spend time without kids with friends, but I'm just exhausted! It's 1 week before Christmas and we still have 2 more to go!

I am having my first annual Girls Night Cookie and Ornament Exchange here tomorrow night and am really surprised that we will have 30-40 people, kids, friends, moms and grandmas, attending this close to Christmas. I was thinking that with it being the Friday before Christmas and kids being out of school that we would have a lot of people who couldn't come and that we would start small for our first one....not so much, only 4 people can't come and most are bringing 1 or 2 guests! Don't get me wrong, the more the merrier and I'm really excited and glad that it was a good date, it's just not what I expected! I'll post some pics....this is a tradition that I am looking forward to keeping up until Avery starts her own!

Grandma and Grandpa Visit for Thanksgiving

We had a nice visit with Mark's mom and dad who drove all the way out from WY! THey stayed for just shy of a week and the kids really enjyed having Grandma and Grandpa around! We went to the ASU game the day after Thanksgiving and then to the Tempe Parade of Lights. Here are some of our favorite pictures...

Southwest Airlines Kid Christmas Party

Today was our first time attending the SWA Kid Christmas Party! We had a lot of fun and it was just like going to a carnival! There were rides, Santa, live singing and dancing, food, a car show, there were helicopters and planes...really fun! Here are some of our favorite pics...

4th file, 4th picture...

Per request by my Auntie Jellie....here's my picture from my 4th file, 4th picture...I know it's of Andon's head injury (no stitches, by the way just an ugly bruise and red mark of course, the day before we were scheduled to take their 4 year pictures)!!! This was posted back in June too titled, "No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed" because guess what Andon was doing??? Yep, jumping on the bed! He hit his head on a crate that Avery had in her room where she put her books she reads before she falls asleep. That crate is long gone by now!

If you are reading this then you really need to do the same....4th file, 4th picture!

Family Pictures

We had some pictures taken for the church directory...we got some cute pictures but I'm not thrilled with the ones of Avery and Andon so we are off to get their way-to-late 4 year pictures tomorrow...I'll post them as soon as I get them!

Halloween and Yet another cyclists

~As promised here's a pictures of all 5 cousins, AKA, the Wiz Kids, at Halloween...


~Well, we knew it wouldn't be long but a few days after, Avery became a non-training wheel cyclist! She is getting so much more confident now!

Another cyclist in the house...

Timeline...

October 30- We head to Chicago for Halloween and Andon is in awe of his cousin Nathan's ability to ride his bike without training wheels...too bad Andon has ZERO balance on his bike with training wheels.

November 4- Mark takes Andon and Avery's training wheels and pedals off so they can use their feet to learn how to balance. They head down to the greenbelt by our house and get some momentum going down the hills.

November 7- We head outside and start rolling down the driveway without pedals or training wheels. They do great!

November 8- We head over to the greenbelt, put the pedals back on and help them down the hill...the kids both need help as they start to go down the hill and then are able to balance on their own on the flats. On the way home, ANDON STARTS RIDING ALL ON HIS OWN! Avery still weeble-wobbles and is about 85% there! Unbelieveable! Grandma and Grandpas watch out...he can't wait to show you so be ready!!!!

I started to lose it ....he doesn't need me anymore for one more thing...balling my eyes out for about 10 minutes. I'm better now and realize that this will be happening more and more now! I love these kiddos!!!! They grow us so fast!

Halloween...Trunk or Treating

Well, our Dorothy and Green Lollipop Munchkin had a lot of fun Trunk or Treating at preschool last Wednesday. They had a little program for us and then we dressed them in our costume and went to each of the parents' trunks and the kids had a blast! Out of 5 girls, there were 3 Dorothys!!! As soon as Andon made it out to the driveway he dropped his lollipop....go figure! So it shattered into a thousand pieces (luckily in saran wrap) and Mark made him a paper one that he refused to carry on Halloween night...so everyone thought he was the screcrow! Yes, we did manage to get to Chicago for Halloween night but Michele has all the photos on her camera since we left ours at home! As soon as I get them I'll post them :) ENJOY!

New Kids on the Block and Canyon lake

Yes, that's right....I went with Kelly and Shelly to the New Kids concert. Make fun all you want but it was such a fun night! We went out to dinner and then were brought right back to the 80's for an awesome concert! Here are some pics...

A few days later Mark and I took the kids up to Canyon Lake for a picnic. It didn't go as planned and we ended up opening the back of the 4-Runner and eating at a little pull out but it was a nice family day with beautiful weather!!!!

On Wednesday we head up to Chicago for Halloween...all the cousins are Wizard of Oz characters and I can't wait to see them all together!!! We will have pictures galore, I'm sure....

Weight Loss Update!!!

Well, I just wanted to report that I am officially down 26 lbs and at least 24 inches (knee, thigh, waist, abdomen, and diaphragm only)!!!! My pre-pregnancy weight goal is only 1 lb away, however, I always said that once I reach goal I will readjust if needed. Well, I would like to get down about 6-11 lbs more and then I'll officially be in maintenance phase....I am so proud of myself!!!! Cycling, watching calories, Arbonne 7-day Cleanse and Alternate Day Eating are what did it for me! I'll have Mark take some pictures to post and I'll try and dig up some pre-weight loss before photos, too.

Cochise Classic

Last weekend, Mark and I drove down to Mexico...well 1 mile away from Mexico...and participated in the Cochise Classic 92 mile race, well, er, ride. We were aiming to get me Platinum status which cuts off at 5hrs 15 minutes for women (4 hrs 15 mins for men) and we needed to maintain an average speed of 17.2 mph which really is a piece of cake in normal conditions. On Friday, the night before the ride, we survived pouring rain with predictions of thunderstorms, rain and high winds...not good news to maintain that average speed. Great, huh! SO we spent some time praying for no rain. He listened because we woke up to black skies but no rain. The wind was picking up very slightly....we were hearing news that the longer distance groups had "torrential downpours"....great, right?

When we pushed off at 6:30am, the temp was beautiful...not cold at all...and no rain, still! As we approached the climb up to Bisbee, we were getting a bit nervous because of the BLACK, rain-filled clouds, yet till no rain. We made it to the top in really no problem...then came the best part of riding tandem.....54 MPH on the way down!!!! It was amazing and still, no rain! We cruised along and turned the corner where the wind was picking up...never fun on a bike, especially a tandem. So we made it along that straight, no problem again...average speed and time WAY ahead of schedule. We made 1 3 minute stop to refill water and shove some food in at a rest stop.

Then we turned the corner to go south back to Douglas.....25 MPH winds RIGHT IN OUR FACES!!! We chugged along passing people left and right to try and keep our time and speed where it needed to be. Not so easy in the windy conditions! I have never heard Mark grunt and get so frustrated that it actually was scaring me.....I can't see the stats and he wasn't telling me what was going on so I didn't know if he was frustrated with me, the wind, a sore bum or what. Well, we turned the last few turns and really kicked it up....and finished with 7 minutes to spare for Platinum!!! It was a hard and awesome ride all at the same time!!!!

We stayed at the historic Gadsden Hotel that was built in 1904, I believe, back in the days of Wyatt Earp. It's said to be haunted, no ghosts that we saw, but it was a little creepy, loud and uncomfortable to stay overnight in. The picture is us on the marble staircase...really beautiful! The other pictures are on our way home in the mining town of Bisbee.

Our next race in the Saturday before Thanksgiving, the El Tour de Tucson, a 109 mile ride that we did last year. Our goal is to do it as fast as we possibly can...last year was 6 hrs and 18 minutes but we were 35 lbs heavier between the two of us and it was also my first big one on the tandem. Wish us luck!!!

It's raining, It's Pouring...wave!

Tonight as we were driving home from church, it started to rain a little bit...

Andon: "Daddy, it's raining, put up the windshield!"

Mark: "What? How can we see if we put up the windshield? (He means the window shades)

Andon (now getting impatient): "Wave, Daddy, wave!!!"

Mark pushed the windshield wipers and Andon was content! I guess he's just like me and doesn't like the StarWars effect of having rain splattered on the windshield!

Swimming Anyone?

Before

After

Our pool, after many chemicals and frustrations, had to be drained yesterday. It was horribly green and we decided that it had to be done! So the kids had some fun helping us capture the some great pics. It's being acid washed as we speak and I'll post pictures when it's all done!

UPDATE: The pool is done, the pool is clean and the pool is blue once again!!!! Swimming anyone????

Funny Farm

Today as I was cleaning up the kitchen I overheard Avery and Andon (who had just made a huge mess in the kids corner but hey, they were playing together and not fighting...but we don't get lunch until it's picked up). They had pulled out some of their Little People, something they haven't played with in forever and of course, just the other day I was contemplating getting rid of them, they were playing with Noah's Ark and The Farm. Avery had just piled up all the animals in the ark, including the chicken, and they both made their way back into Andon's room...

Avery: "Can you watch the animals while I go potty?"

Andon: "Oh, ya...sure"

Avery (from the toilet now): "Make sure they don't run out into the street. They move pretty fast....especially the chicken, he's pretty fast!"

Andon: "They are getting pretty sleepy now, it must be naptime."

Avery: "We'd better go put them to bed now."
So out they both head to put all the aimals to bed on the farm....they are still asleep right now...SHHHH!

Squirmy Wormy

It was apple week at preschool this week and on Monday Avery and Andon were able to have an experience with worms!!! Avery loved them and wanted to touch them more than once, in fact, and Andon had a lot to say about them but wouldn't touch them!

Tour de Tahoe

Well, we did it! 72.3 miles around Lake Tahoe! It was beautiful and great! We started the morning early...5:00am and then headed over to the start line around 6:10am. It was very cold...in the 30s...but honestly, not too bad with a fleece, ear warmers and arm warmers on. I wish I would have worn 2 pairs of socks though!

We stopped twice, once at the first stop to drop off our warm clothes and then again for lunch. Since this was a ride, not a race, we felt ok doing that. The tops were very well stocked and we had potatoes for the first time on a ride! Cousins Subs had subs and much needed salty potato chips as I was cramping a little as we approached the stop. Then we began our 1000 foot climb up to Spooner Junction....then we nearly hit 50 MPH on the way down, going just as fast as the cars!

The picture was on the first climb near Emerald Bay and the next one that I will attach as soon as I get it off of e-mail was at the finish line :)

The next race was planned to be this weekend, the tri-relay with Kelly and Shelly, but we all dropped the ball with registration and will plan to do another one in the future. Countdown to the Cochise County Classic has begun...October 11th :) This will be my last chance for Platinum qualification before El Tour de Tucson in November.