Cross Country

Mandy gave us a nice surprise when she decided that she wanted to try cross country. This hits especially close to my heart as this was my main sport through high school and running in general is just my thing. I knew eventually one or some of my children would venture into this sport. Mandy was an unlikely canidate, but I welcome her choice to explore this area. Up until school started the team was practicing at a local park. Mandy would come home & not talk about her runs with the team, but the frogs & catapillars she would find & see on her runs. Now that is my Mandy!

Mandy gets an A for effort though (at least in Mandy terms, not compaired to anyone elses effort) and for her auttitude. She doesn't really complain about the running & practices. In her usual carefree spirit she just goes along with the flow.

We all traveled to see Mandy at her first cross country meet. Here she is lining up with the team:
And they are off:

Mandy in action:

Heading for the finish line:

And her first offical finish of a cross country 2 mile race:

We are very proud of Mandy and look forward to this cross country season!

1st day of school - part 2/Elementry School

Brianna & John continue their education at the same elementry school that we've been attending all these years. Brianna is in 4th grade & John is in 3rd. Here they are walking up to join their classmates.

They line up in different areas outside of the building so I was not able to get pictures of both of them going in with their classes. John is hamming it up as usual. (And that kid behind him is the same age as John, he just comes from taller....bigger parents!)

And, of course, the traditional picture in front of the sign. They still think this is cool! : )

1st day of school - part 1/Jr. High

I wanted to break down the back to school info into each school that the kids are entering. Each school is a different location. They start at different times. And honestly, I take enough pictures to fill a post for each school. : )

This is a special year for Mandy, as she ventures into her first year of Jr. High (or middle school as some schools call them). She has a strong advantage in that she has Angel to help her out, guide her & give her tips on how to manage this transition. Here they are getting ready to leave the house.


As they walked down the driveway and started to walk to the bus stop I took more pictures. Angel (who was not thrilled that I was taking pictures at all) finally turned around and said "MOM! Do you REALLY need to take these pictures." I told her that I would be happy to follow them all the way down to the bus stop and take pictures of them getting on the bus, if that would make her happier. A quick reply of "nooo, moooooooom, that is quite ok" kept her from complaining any more.

It is also tradition that I take pictures in front of the school sign each year. That'll make a neat slideshow someday to see the progress of them through all the years. At the complaints and protest of Angel, I promised her that someday she'll thank me for documenting her school years with such accuracy. That earned me a roll of the eyes.

So they are off to a good start to their school year. Angel in 8th grade & Mandy is 6th grade. We are only one year away from high school....ACK!

Hon 5k

I raced again this weekend. The Hon 5k is a special one to me because my dad has worked for Hon for 27 years. So I like to make my dad extra proud by running this race. It has a nice flat course that winds down the banks of the Mississippi River. Literally I'm running 20 feet from the edge of the river. It's wonderful!

This race is set up a bit different where everyone gets a ribbon upon completion. Otherwise they only have specific awards for the top male & female. So I have no age group to claim a title too. But what I can claim is a personal victory or better known as a PR (personal record). I ran a 21:02, which is by far my fastest 5k time ever. I was extreamly surprised when I rounded the corner to see the clock show a 20 minute time. I had no idea I was that close to 21. My goal going into the race was to run under 22 mintues. I was much further from that goal than I expected. I pushed it out trying to beat the clock to 21 minutes, but couldn't quite beat it. I was still blown away by my performance.

OCD or organizational skills?

I like to be organized. Doesn't always mean that it happens, but I strive for it. I make lists. Have a certain order of doing things. Etc. And I often get fussy if you mess with said list or order. Some might say I get a little OCD in this area. Some examples might include me re-writing a list because someone wrote on it and their handwriting and ink choice does not match mine. That would drive me crazy!!!! So for sanity reasons it's just better to re-write the list than have to look at it's disarray. Also, I will re-fold a whole basket of laundry because someone folded it in a different fashion than what I prefer. That might make me sound really picky or critical. But really, I'm just trying to preserve my sanity! As our family has grown and my time needing more management, I have learned to let a lot of things slide. The above examples don't happen nearly as often.

There are plenty of other ways I can work on with my organizations skills so that it doesn't effect the family. Like.....color coding my closet. See, my closet is MY closet. No one else in the house keeps their items in this closet, but me. So I not only color code my items, but I also hang them according to their style. Long sleeve with long, short with short, workout shirts, tank tops & undershirts, etc. You can see such an examples below. Although now that I look at the picture I see where I could assign certain color hangers to match certain shirt styles. But now, come on, let's not go overboard! : )

Every so often I go into overload and tackle a bigger project. Case in point, the box of picture negatives I found in the basement this summer. They were all just stuffed in there. I ignored the box for some time, but eventually couldn't stand it anymore. So for a week or so I slowly but surely went through all of the negatives & organized them by year. The next step will be to organize them by month as well so that they flow in accordance to the photo albums.

Some may wonder WHY?!?!?! If you know me, you know how much pictures mean to me. I am a fanatic about them. Whether I'm taking them or having them taken. I cherish them so very much. Preserving the negatives takes it all a step further in case anything were to happen to the original picture.

Ok, so now you are for certain that I am wacky. Maybe you already knew that. I think I have a few lists to go make out and laundry to hang in my closet! : )

Watermelon Stampede

I raced last weekend in Muscatine at the Watermelon Stampede. It was a 5k course, which is pretty standard in weekend racing. Since the race took place in my hometown it gives me plenty of chance to see lots of familiar faces. What I wanted the most though was one of the melons they were giving away for FREE! Muscatine has the best melons around.....anywhere. If it's a Muscatine Melon it's good! They randomly drew race numbers to decide the winners. Of course, they drew the number before mine....and the number right after mine....but not mine. Yes, I unashamedly pouted about this for awhile.

It was a good race. Wonderful weather. I raced a good, average-for-me time and placed 1st in my age group. I'll have to run next year & wait to see if I win a melon!

Precious Memories