Feliz Navidad

Christmas morning highlights!

 

Family First

We woke up to Santa is our own house Christmas morning but being in charge of Christmas Eve dinner and more amazing is that we used the china we got for our wedding! {Only took 7 years!} The meal wasn't very fancy, certainly wasn't a Nonnie or Grammy spread and ignore the casual place mats, but it was delicious and kid-friendly so we all enjoyed it. Munchkin especially enjoyed drinking out of the tea cup.

Driving back into town on Christmas Eve didn't leave time to prepare much at home so I reserved a ham at HoneyBaked Ham Company. Picking up in the afternoon on Christmas Eve could have been terrible but it was a great experience! Fantastic customers service, very organized and the most pleasant staff, one even scanned a previous customer's coupon on my order saving me $4.

Unseasonably Warm!

December 22 and today's agenda included running (in a tank top and shorts), washing the car and swimming in an outdoor pool! These activities don't exactly say Christmas time but for this warm-weathered gal it was wonderful. #christmasinthesouth

Giddy-up

She received this bouncy ball for her birthday last year but never quite had the coordination down to enjoy it. That is no longer an issue and this is easily her new favorite past time! And yes, it absolutely is a horse. She shouts "giddy-up cabarrito" because apparently Dora said something to this effect one time. (I looked it up and caballo is Spanish for horse. Close enough?!)

Egg Yolk Paint

This afternoon we tried a new spin on cookie decorating... we painted them with egg yolk and it was great! The consistency kept it from running all over the place and it was sticky enough to put sprinkles on as well, and the best part it kept these two toddlers focused and entertained the entire process! (I color matched the brushes to the "paint" to keep the colors from all turning brown which helped.)


 










DIRECTIONS: In small cup or bowl, stir one egg yolk with a small amount of food coloring. 
Use a clean brush and "paint" the cookies.
Bake as normal. 

Happy Holidays

Just approved the proof of this year's Christmas Card... well, with an estimated delivery date of December 27 I think it is safe to call it a New Year's Card! (I did change Merry Christmas to Happy Holidays to help cover my bases.)

Didn't realize there was a week less between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year until recently. We just had these pictures taken this past weekend. Then, never found time to do my favorite standing holiday tradition of decorating Nonnie's tree or the new tradition-in-the-making of doing cookies with the little cousins.

{Photo Credit: Emily Barnes} 

All Aboard!

These two were too cute at The Polar Express event we went to tonight. Seems everyone thought they were sisters but they look more like prom dates in this picture.

Suzie Snowflake

Winter Recital 2013!!!

Black Friday

This was us today! Even bought it right off the showroom floor. Yah for a new car!

Happy Thanksgiving from The Marques

Before the Greensboro Gobbler. They changed the 5k course this year so you only went around the hilly park once but still couldn't convince anyone else to join us this cold morning. Thanks dad for chauffeuring us! :-)

A good attempt at a full family photo. Teva was not sure about getting up on that sofa with us.

The next generation of  "The Kids' Table"! I think it is safe to say the girls liked it.

Master Chef-in-Training

Grammy got us matching aprons so since "we" were tasked with providing dessert for her preschool Thanksgiving Feast, she asked to wear them. {Her favorite things to do are crack the eggs and lick the batter - obvious choices!}

 

 

Yellow Band

The piece of yellow elastic around her next may not seem like much but let me assure you, it is a big deal!

Addie & Samantha have been taking swim lessons with "Coach Dave, THE WAVE!" {I need to upload a video of her saying his name!} In 8 lessons she has learned how to float on her back, float on her tummy, tread water and just SWIM! The yellow bands grants her access to the slide but mostly it means confidence and freedom... for us both! I no longer have to be within arms reach of her.

I was so proud of her, I could hardly stand it! She is pretty proud of herself too and has worn her yellow band to school the entire week. We start another round of swim lessons in January. Warning: I might cry whenever she earns her green band because there will be no denying how grown up she is.

She got to pick out where she wanted to go for a special treat. I thought for sure ice cream at Chick-fil-A or even a bagel from Panera but she asked to go to Suarez Bakery for a sugar cookie! Well deserved!

Rock 'n' Roll Savannah

Thank you Savannah for a great visit... fun times with great friends, perfect weather, flat course and race times for all to be proud of! Jim made a grand return performance and may have stolen my friend as his running buddy. He and Becky came in under 2 hours with big smiles on their faces. They also have some great race photos I will have to purchase.

I posted a new PR (1:34:04) which made me happy but have to admit I hurt more after this race then did after running either of my fulls, ha! (Oh how good training makes a difference.)

Party, Party, Party, Party!

Including the beach trip, we had out of town plans every weekend in October but we could not let the month completely fly by without celebrating our sweet girl's forth birthday! With so much going on I could not take on hosting any function. We ended up at Brixx for a "make-you-own-pizza" party, (of course still Minnie themed). I gave parents the option to drop off or stay which about half did. I did not manage to get good pictures of the day because was busy keeping the kids corralled and entertained. It was a bit chaotic but all of her buddies were able to attend and she had a fun time! 

The most memorable part may be that the icing on the cute cookies turned all the kids' mouths black.

Being a Rock Star must run in the family

I cannot begin to describe how proud of my mom I am! She just completed her first half marathon and did so in total rock star fashion by coming is 6th in her division with a time of 2:44:23! This from a women who is not a runner but then she still managed to beat plenty who were half her age. (And she was worried about being the last one to cross the finish line or being picked up by the "pace police".)

Some of you are asking, why would she do such a thing? Well she made the mistake of telling me one time that she would like to do a half marathon before she turned 60.  :-)  I am not sure if at the time she really meant it or not but sometime after that Greensboro announced it was going to have an inaugural race plus that race ended up on Living Social. Local and inexpensive?! It seemed like stars were alining so we both signed up! I was so excited to share something I love with someone I love and to be play a part in her victorious moment.

Unfortunately I was unable to be there and do this with her, which I hated, but once I knew there a possiblity of not being there I began reaching out and thinking about how she HAD to still do it. She needed to hear the cheers as she accomplished this awesome fete. Possibly by truly doing this solo, she feels an even deeper sense of pride - or that is just what I am telling myself now. Regardless I had to take the opportunity to brag on her! She might even have caught the "fever" because she is already entertaining thoughts of joining our Greensboro Gobbler crew/tradition... and I cannot wait to have her!

Bull City

First off THANKS Molly & Lane for having us for a visit. Sorry it has taken so long to get up there to see you (and just as long to write a short post). The basic details: We dropped munchkin in Greensboro on the way up so were really able to enjoy hanging out and hopping to a few places. I was also very impressed with the inaugural Bull City Race Fest & Food Truck Rally. Yes this was a combo of some of my favorite things... my family, running, local food and beer! The race also had a costume contest which I think we should all plan on participating in next year.

Since the marathon in April, I have really dailed back the intensity of my running. I actually had only run around 10 miles a few times in the past 5 months and at a relaxed pace. I have told myself that I would like to always be able to run a Half Marathon and this weekend ended up putting that to the test. I had originally signed up for the 5 mile option along with everyone else. However, the friend who first brought the race to my attention was going to be unable to participate anymore. She was signed up for the half which left me with 2 bibs and the option to go a little further. I actually wore both bibs so would technically have the option to decide last minute. Rebecca logged a good half time and Ashley logged the 3rd slowest time for the 5 mile (1hr 39min)... I was surprised "I beat" anyone.

All checked up

She may look happy enough here but moments before she was crying into the nook of my neck/shoulder. At least we were told today was her last shot until she is 10 years old!

4-Year Well Visit Stats:
Height: 3' 5.4" (83 percentile)
Weight: 37lbs (70 percentile)
BMI: 15.41 (53 percentile)

Yes, they begin checking her BMI?! She also took a hearing and eye exam. Ahhhh, just more evidence that she is a real little person! Some days I just can't believe it.

Talking Food

Cailin and Addie are officially movie buddies. Her mom and I mentioned going to a movie one time and these two have never forgotten it. Today we went to see "the talking food" as Addie has been referring to it as, (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2). It was cute and like any successful children's movie there was an equal amount of humor for the adults... "Ah, there's a leek in the boat!".

I am not one to complain but after the movie we went to tell management about the cleaning crew and how they started cleaning our row and sweeping popcorn from under the little girls fee before the movie was even over. We ended up with free passes and have plans to see Frozen when it comes out in November.

What, I have a FOUR YEAR OLD?!

The weather wasn't looking great but the sun came out to help us celebrate this precious one's birthday in true beach fashion! We grilled out, walked barefoot thru the sand and even flew a kite. We love our annual beach trip and am thankful Addie was surrounded by people that love her so much on her special day.

Halloween Prep

Re-purposing one of her dance costumes into a kitty cat and the brown boa I found on amazon totally makes the outfit. Could not find brown pointy ears anywhere which means I am going to try and rig some up myself. Should that fail I painted this mask that she can keep in her trick-or-treat bag. She enjoyed my make up test for whiskers and is already practicing being in character so will be fully ready for the upcoming holiday! Meow, Hiss Hiss!

 

Zoom!

Jim is in love with his new car, to say the least, and has become a Subaru fanatic. While I did my race today he took Addie to a different race, Global Rally Cross up at Charlotte Motor Speedway... but only after washing his car this morning so it would be all shiny to roll up in.

The ear muffs/head phone (whatever you call them) were perfect. The cars was loud and there were fireworks but she was actually not scared because there were no loud BOOMS to her. These will absolutely be coming along with us next Fourth of July.

Like Daughter, Like Mother

I am now a triathlete too! Ramblin' Rose is the perfect first tri... the distance is very doable plus it wasn't a competitive atmosphere just a supportive one. Since it was a beginner race I actually did quite well, 4/81 in my age group and 18/673 overall. Mostly though I learned a lot and look forward to doing another one next year as well as (possibly) attempting to climb the triathlon ladder*.

Clockwise: 1, Emily & I post race needed to send the mutual friend that introduced us a picture, 2, my bike, one of the many things I borrowed for the race, 3, Kori and I setting up our transition station before the race began, 4, my finishers medal, 5, the three of us at our celebratory lunch

 

*Triathlon races vary in distance. The main race distances are:

1. Sprint Distance - 750 meter (.465 mi) swim, 20 kilometer (12.5 mi) bike, 5 kilometer (3.1 mi) run
2. Intermediate (or Standard) Distance; commonly referred to as "Olympic Distance" - 1.5 kilometer (.93 mi) swim, 40 kilometer (25 mi) bike, 10 kilometer (6.2 mi) run
3. Long Course; commonly referred to as 70.3 or "Half-Ironman" - 1.9 kilometer (1.2 mi) swim, 90 kilometer (56 mi) bike, and a half-marathon: 21.1 kilometer (13.1 mi) run
4. Ultra Distance; commonly referred to as 140.6 or "Ironman" - 3.8 kilometer (2.4 mi) swim, 180.2 kilometer (112 mi) bike, and a full marathon: 42.2 kilometer (26.2 mi) run.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

Guess who was in the Charlotte Observer today?! Naturally my child was not going to give the strange lady with a camera her delightful smile but aren't they adorable all the same?!

Yesterday was the first day of Festival In The Park at Freedom Park. What is newsworthy though is how somebody threw caution to the wind and loved the new adventures she got to enjoy - Carnival Rides! (I know I won't be saying this when she is a teenager, but sometimes peer pressure can be a good thing.)

And of course we had to feed the ducks too!