Annual Fun Run

To me, the words don't go together. I run/jog/power walk/walk to lose weight. My children's school has made this an annual tradition that my kids love. They have balloons leading up to the finish line. Teachers challenge their kids to stay with them on the course. They hand out water bottles.

This year both Emma and Teddy ran the 2 miles instead of 1 mile.

Wyatt, my little kindergarten hero, jogged in the school field. Unfortunately, he couldn't do 2 laps, only 1. However, the little man had croup the night before and was just recovering so I'm giving him kudos for doing 1 lap.


Next year, I hope to keep up with Emma. I think it might take 2 years to get me in shape for Teddy's pace. He's fast and wants to be. I know I can keep up with Wyatt. So here's to Fun for my kids and hopefully weight loss and a more in shape woman for me.

Summer Lesson #6

The end.

I love the end--the end of the story, the wrap-up, the completion of one thing to go on to something new.


I love the end of summer. The last minute hikes in the canyons to see everything before the colors start changing. It finally begins to drop in temperature. My kids fidget in anticipation, excited to wear new clothes bought at the last possible moment--a little big-- in hopes that they will last the school year. My kids and I get a routine back, myself a slave to school bells just as much as when I was in school.

Now, there are NEW stories to read. Science projects to explore. Exciting things to tell each day around the dinner table. Friends seen each day and new ones made. Most importantly, a chance to learn new things and grow.

A chance to read, practice math and spend a couple hours with
other kids learning, instead of all by himself with just mom for company.


A chance to be a great friend, find out about experiments that will drive Mom
crazy as each day something new can be tried, to become more responsible
and crazy smart.


A chance to hone the steel trap of his memory, absorb new facts,
test his physical strength and continue to excel in anything
he desires.

The beginning of new school year is filled with possibilities.

Summer Lesson #5

I love to create or remake.

We had the opportunity to get a locking cabinet. It had been my Great Grandpa's gun cabinet. It had been in my parent's room for over 20 years. My mother was remodeling and since my father only had one shotgun left, they weren't keeping the cabinet.

My husband wanted it. We have few more guns and he was more than happy to keep my father's shotgun safe. However, the front panel was clear glass and the size of the cabinet made it tricky to place in the house. There was only one room it would fit in--my living room.

Despite my husband's desire to be NRA and proud of his guns, I do not decorate my living room to Guns and Ammo taste. So, it was time to be inventive.

For years, my mother had wanted to give the cabinet the stained glass effect. You can paint the glass with lead lines and special paint and TADAAA! You have a beautiful decorated cabinet that women would be willing to display. So, we moved the cabinet to the garage and went to work.

A couple of hours were spent searching and drawing the design. It cost me about $30 in Gallery Glass paint. My mother and I spent 3 days painting.
















The result was perfect. My husband likes it so much, he is willing to go the extra mile and install cabinet lighting to glow from the inside and highlight the glass.

I love looking at and knowing that I helped create it's final look. It gave me the confidence to tackle my next project. I found a functioning piano for $75. The piano cabinet is very sad. Someone cut the piano legs to clear a corner and then tried to glue them back in. It's dented and dinged and pieces were not fitting nicely. So, with my husband's extraordinary carpentry skills, I'm restoring a 1920's piano. I'll share my new project when I've completed it.

Summer Lesson #4

Bribery does not always work.

With a week left of school this last June, I started dreading the fact that two of my children would now spend more of the day together instead of in different classrooms. My 9 year old and 7 year old waste no opportunity to tease, tattle, pick on and generally annoy each other.

So, I came up with a reward system. Each day that no major fighting occurred, I would mark a star on the calendar. When there were 5 stars, we could all choose a $1 movie and go.

So how many times did we make it to the $1 movie theater. That's right, not once.

I did however come up with many clever new consequences. If you say an unkind thing, you can make that person's bed the next morning to do something nice to compensate for the not nice. Physical fighting will not be tolerated in any form and you will be grounded (I had to do this twice). If I have to listen to potty language, you can clean the toilet. Potty language disappeared entirely.

So, how did I survive the summer? Projects, friends and Grandma's. I came up with projects that took us out of the house. I drove them to friend's house to keep them apart. Most importantly, the Grandma's saved us all.

On both sides of the family, they took time to give each child days on their own with just Grandma. My children came home happier with awesome stories and projects they did. Each one felt valued individually and not in relation to their siblings which is the major reason they pick at each other. They want to be noticed above, around, or over their siblings. Mom loves them all but each day they clamor for more proof or fight to the death to get just a little more attention, even the negative kind.

So here's to the Grandma's--summer wouldn't have been the same without them.