Running in the Rain, Just Running in the Rain

Remember yesterday? I was whining and complaining about a little rain? Well, we got rain!
Here I am right before the race at 5:15am!! Notice the tilted picture? That's because Todd was still in bed and barely even sitting up.


Here is my own personal cheering section:
(note the ground is still dry)

Todd said that while the kids were waiting for me they were watching all the runners go by and started saying things like, "Poor Mommy! She's going to come in last!" He had to reassure them that it was great for ANYONE to just finish and that I was most certainly NOT going to be last!

When I got close to where they were waiting for me I saw them first. I got so choked with emotion (I can't believe I'm doing this! There is my wonderful family who loves me enough to stand in the rain to cheer me on!) that I literally couldn't speak. I wanted to call out to them but had to compose myself first. When they finally saw me I was right in front of them. All that waiting for a few seconds to see and cheer me on.

And now the ground is wet! This is me at mile 9.5! Not too bad, huh?



At around mile 6 my friend Lynde had turned to me and asked if it was just her or did the mile markers seem to be coming up fast? I agreed! I felt so good. Almost like I was flying! Then the rain started at mile 7. After the initial shock of the rain washing sweat into my eyes and making them burn it really was refreshing!

Does the rain make my butt look big?

My friend Lynde is in pink and her friend Becki is in the grey shirt. They were smart and wore hats. Note to self: in the future if rain is in the forecast... wear a hat!!!

At home with Kyle showing off my medal:

Let the knee icing begin!

All in all I was really pleased with my time 2:24:18 I averaged an 11min mile. Not fast, but considering I ran the whole way, not too bad either.

And now... now I have just finished registering Todd and I for the 1/2 Marathon in Maine on September 19th.

Maine here we come!!

Oh yeah, when will my knees be ready to run again?

What is the deal here???

So if you have been following me for a bit you know that my new thing is running and there is a race... a 1/2 marathon... TOMORROW!!!

It is raining.

It is not supposed to stop till like the end of the week or something like that.

It is supposed to be raining DURING the race tomorrow.

I (most certainly) did not train to run in the rain. I like things to be a certain way. My way! This was not in the plan.

Todd says to suck it up and stop being a baby. More refreshing to run in the rain instead of blazing heat. Remember the first weekend of May 9 years ago when you walked in the AVON 3 day walk? Remember the unseasonably HOT 98 degree weather??!!! Well you did that no problem and came home and took a test and found you were pregnant with Julianna! If you can do that then you can certainly do this!!!

At this point all I hear is blah, blah blah... didn't train all this time to quit now... blah, blah, blah...

UGH!! I DOOOOON'T WAAAAAAAAAAANT TO RUN IN THE RAAAAAAAAAIN!!!!!!

Fine, I'll go! I just reserve the right to whine about it!

Heard around the House

As the kids were playing Hide-and-Seek:
Kyle: (in total sister adoration) "Julianna, you know all the best hiding places! You're a really good hider!"
Julianna: "Mmm Hmm! That's how I roll, baby!"

Jake: "Awwwwwww!" (pointing to Penny, walking to Penny, and falling on Penny in a canine adoring hug)

Drew: (When found at 6:10am curled up in a little ball on the floor of the bathroom) "I'm just trying to wake up all the way." Riiiiiight... honey you know you can do that more comfortably in bed?

Happy Easter Everyone!

Have a blessed day everyone! We live because He died! The tomb is empty!

Click on the "Praying for Stellan" button on the right to read what MckMama wrote today on Easter... I couldn't say it any better myself!

God bless you today and always!
Love,
~Michelle

Ode to a goldfish named "Swim"

*** Update on the Update***

As if destroying the wooden crosses wasn't enough... next playtime outside Penny decided to eat seafood for dinner. Ick!! She stunk soooooooo bad!

Never fear... Todd gave her a bath and now she smells like roses!

Oh and don't tell Drew about the seafood! Ugh, I can already picture his horrified expression!



*** Update***
Glide died two days later. Another burial took place. The little graves were marked with stick "crosses". Penny (while Drew wasn't looking) had playtime with the sticks.

-------------------------------------------------------

ORIGINAL POST:


Once there were two goldfish
one named Swim
one Glide.
Our hearts are shattered
for Swim
he has... died.


Drew loved to watch him
swim round in his tank.
Imagine his sorrow when Swim
went belly up
and sank.


Swim was a gift from Mommy to Drew
when they went out on a date.
Now he is buried
out by the back gate.



Little Swim little Swim
there's nothing more to do
but say, "Farewell my friend!"
And bid you, "Adieu".


Seriously folks! Is there anything more pitiful than the death of a child's first pet? Even if it is a goldfish?


All day yesterday that little fishy struggled to stay "belly down" and keep swimming. But alas, late into the evening it became evident that there was going to be a funeral. Yes a funeral and not a flushing (which is what I would prefer but hey, it's not my little fishy pet! He is (ah em) was Drew's).


Early this morning Todd got up to walk the Fool (Penny the dog). By the way early means 5:30am. When he came back he reported that Swim was indeed gone. AND a hole was dug and waiting for Drew to wake up. What good Daddy!!


We didn't have to wait long. While Todd was showering Drew got up and went down to check on his beloved fish. I found him sniffing (crying but trying no to) by the little tank.


This is what the backyard looked like at 6:20 this morning.


That's Todd and Drew praying over the grave.


See, isn't Todd great?! He earned his "Daddy badge" before I even had my morning coffee today!

Daddy's turn

Here is a survey I saw on Emilie's blog and gave to (K) Kyle age 4, (D) Drew age 6, (J) Julianna age 8 about Daddy age 38.

1.What is something Daddy always says to you?

K- Do you want to come with me to the store?

D- I love you.

J- I love you.

2. What makes Daddy happy?

K- if I do something for him.

D- hugging him and like doing something that’s really good without being asked.

J- When I obey him.

3. What makes Daddy sad?

K- If I don’t do something for him.

D- ignoring him when he asks me something. (interesting... he DOES realize this)

J- When he looses a basketball game. Like the one where he lost the championship. (ouch, but oh so true)

4. How does your Daddy make you laugh?

K- by doing funny things.

D- we wrestle and he tickles me.

J- By doing funny things.

5. What was your Daddy like as a child?

K- I don’t know.

D- a disobeyer, everyone sins. Then in a very sad pitiful voice…Talking about Daddy makes me wish he were here. (you're eating this up aren't you baby?)

J- probably full of great ideas.

6. How old is your Daddy?

K- 22

D- 38

J- 37

7. How tall is your Daddy?

K- 10 feet tall. (we always knew you were his hero!)

D- 7 inches (you think Daddy’s 7 inches?) ok, 8?
J- 4-5 feet?

8. What is his favorite thing to do?

K- go to work.

D- Watch TV.

J- He likes to play with us.

9. What does your Daddy do when you're not around?

K- working on the computer.

D- he does the computer

J- play on the computer

10. If your Daddy becomes famous, what will it be for?

K- I don’t know.

D- because he’s rich. (hahahahahahahahahahahahah)

J- For being a good basketball player

11. What is your Daddy really good at?

K- reading

D- teaching basketball

J- playing basketball

12. What is your Daddy not very good at?

K- if you’re not reading good

D- I never saw him do anything he wasn’t good at. (Todd, did you pay him?)

J- crying

13. What does your Daddy do for his job?

K- he goes to work!

D- he gets money at his work.

J- coach basketball

14. What is your Dad's favorite food?

K- everything!

D- Raisin Bran

J- cereal

15. What makes you proud of your Daddy?

K- When he says thanks for coming to the store with me!

D- I don’t know (that’s ok Todd, he wasn’t proud of me either!)

J- that he loves me and cares for me a lot.

16. If your Daddy were a cartoon character, who would he be?

K- Yoshi or something

D- Curious George

J- Handy Manny (because Daddy fixed the toilet)

17. What do you and your Daddy do together

K- go to the store with each other.

D- we wrestle and play together

J- play Sorry

18. How are you and your Daddy the same?

K- if we wear the same things.

D- our hair

J- we both have brown hair and we are both tall

19. How are you and your Daddy different?

K- if we wear different things.

D- He has those little spikes on his chin (whiskers).

J- I’m a girl and he is a boy. (duh)

20. How do you know your Daddy loves you?

K- he gives me a hug.

D- by telling me he loves me everyday.

J- he says it a lot.

21. What does your Daddy like most about your Mommy?

K- hugging her.

D- the way she looks.

J- that she’s a nice wife and doesn’t yell at him all that much. (again, hahahahahaha!)

22. Where is your Daddy’s favorite place to go?

K- to go to Chick-fil-a with us

D- to go play basketball.

J- basketball practice.

AND THIS IS MY OWN ADDITION TO THIS QUIZ...

What I love most about Todd... (in no particular order)

10- He is committed.

9- Loves Jesus

8- Would rather play with the kids than play basketball contrary to what they say!

7- Doesn't get worked up and emotional like his wife... stays even and calm... like a rock!

6- Reads Bible stories to the kids almost every night.

5- He doesn't give up.

4- (A twist on Dr. Seuss) He means what he says and he says what he meant, my Todd he is faithful 100 percent!

3- He cleans.

2- He cooks.

1- He does the grocery shopping!!!

SORRY YOU CAN'T HAVE HIM, HE IS OURS!!!

The Mommy Quiz

Here is a survey I saw on Facebook and gave to (K) Kyle age 4, (D) Drew age 6, (J) Julianna age 8 and Mommy age 39.

1.What is something Mom always says to you?
K- You’re welcome
D- I love you
J- I love you

2. What makes Mom happy?
K- cleaning the mirror
D- doing something right and making things neat and when I do what I need to do without being asked
J- Running on the treadmill

3. What makes Mom sad?
K- If I don’t do anything for you
D- not doing the right thing or fighting and ending up killing someone. (ok that's a scary answer)
J- When we disobey

4. How does your Mom make you laugh?
K- (giggling hysterically) I don’t know
D- you tickle me
J- By doing funny things

5. What was your Mom like as a child?
K- Hm, that’s hard
D- a disobeyer
J- nice

6. How old is your Mom?
K- 21 (good boy!!)
D- 40 (hey, watch it! Not... yet...)
J- 37? Or 38? 38!!

7. How tall is your Mom?
K- so big
D- Oh come on! I don’t know that answer! How tall are you?
J- 3-4 feet

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
K- read
D- Bible study
J- run on the treadmill

9. What does your Mom do when you're not around?
K- doing scrapbook
D- do the computer
J- Read

10. If your Mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
K- That’s hard
D- I don’t know how you become famous
J- Getting in good shape (awesome!!)

11. What is your Mom really good at?
K- reading
D- exercising
J- Loving me

12. What is your Mom not very good at?
K- if you’re not reading good
D- games (hey!!)
J- Steering a motorboat (uh, ok that’s random)

13. What does your Mom do for her job?
K- work on the computer
D- You look at stuff on the computer like messages
J- watching us

14. What is your Mom's favorite food?
K- cake
D- cake, ice cream (boys, boys, boys- you have me confused with Daddy!)
J- apples

15. What makes you proud of your Mom?
K- the green shirt you wear(green is Kyle’s fav color)
D- I don’t know
J- that you love me

16. If your Mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
K-Peach or Daisy from Mario party
D- Mini Mouse
J- Mini Mouse

17. What do you and your Mom do together
K- play stuff on the computer
D- play games with each other
J- talk

18. How are you and your Mom the same?
K- if I wear the same shirt and the same pants and the same socks
D-dimples
J- we both love to read

19. How are you and your Mom different?
K- if we wear different things
D- the clothes that we wear
J- we have different taste in clothes (oh brother here we go!)

20. How do you know your Mom loves you?
K- cause I’m so cute
D- you tell me so
J- cause you say it

21. What does your Mom like most about your Dad?
K- like hug him and stuff
D- that you love him
J- that he’s a nice husband

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
K- like Chick-fil-a
D- Panera
J- in our basement on our treadmill

Follow-Up

Jake's ears are now fine! Yahoo! I took him to the doctor for a follow up visit this morning and he gave me the "all clear".

AND (because Tiercy asked) Drew only had a virus the last time we took him to the ER. We weren't really sure what the stomach ache was all about... gas maybe? :) After we brought him home he had about a day more of a fever then he was fine (relatively speaking)!

xo

I've got a whole lotta catching up to do!!

Hi there fans! Are you still out there? Wow it's been a long time since I've posted last. So much has happened! Let's start with birthdays!

Julianna turned 8 January 10th.

She enjoyed helping me make her cake.

We had a simple party here at the house for Julianna and all her friends. They had a great time helping our not so little girl turn another year older!

Then in February we had two birthdays and Jake's dedication.

Drew's birthday was on Monday the 9th of February but we celebrated his party with all his friends on Saturday the 7th which was really Jake's first birthday! Got that?

Sunday the 8th of February we dedicated Jake in church.

Yes, it appears that while we were standing up in front of the church and Daddy was reading scripture verses over Jake, Drew took that moment to, for some strange reason, kiss Jake's shoe!

And then when we wanted to take this picture:

Drew was nowhere to be found!

Later that afternoon my family headed to our house for lunch and a family party for our 2 February boys. Here is Jake's first birthday cake! He was so funny eating his first cake. He grabbed the cupcake we gave him and started sucking on it till he fell over on his highchair tray. He was so tired from being up all morning and into the afternoon without a nap.

Monday, February 9th was Drew's 6th birthday. We have a tradition in our family that the birthday boy (or girl) gets cinnamon rolls on the special Celebrate plate on their birthday morning!

So... apparently we are not allowed to have a month in 2009 that is not without its troubles. In January Drew had a high fever for several days. By the evening of the 3rd day he started crying and clutching his lower right abdomen in pain. I called the doctor and they told us to go to the ER to make sure it was not appendicitis.

4 hours later with everything except for severe gas pains ruled out we got to return home. Did I mention that this was a scrap booking night so my friends were scrapping at my house without me? Thankfully they were able to watch the other kids while I took Drew to the hospital. Todd had a basketball game to coach but he left it early to meet us at the hospital.

In the waiting room.

Then in February Drew and Kyle slammed into each other while running around the inside of their cousin's house. Kyle had a little bump on his forehead. Drew had the worst black eye I have ever seen. This picture was taken after it had the chance to calm down for a few days!

And this month... well this month Jake has ear infections that won't seem to go away! The doctors are talking about putting tubes in his ears. We will keep you posted after the next Dr. visit on Monday.

Finally, here is a picture of Jake sporting the sweater Aunt Ellen knitted for him for his first birthday! Thank you Ellen!! We love it! And... how cute is he??!! And yes, Ellen, the hat is a bit too small :) but we know new baby boys we can pass it along to.

I have actually taken up knitting too! However, scarves are about all I have mastered as of yet. Watch it come Christmastime everyone!

Ok I think that brings us more or less up to date.

Talk to you soon!

xo

I swear it's true... every yucky word!

Here is the e-mail I sent out to a select few on Friday (yesterday) morning:

Titled- 10 Things I hate About Last Night:

OK I'm not sure that there are 10 but there sure are a lot!

1- realizing at 11pm that my p*r**d has started, and also realizing that I am out of supplies and so in order to not have to bring 5 kids to the store today to buy THAT stuff I go out to Giant Eagle at 11pm to buy er... well... supplies!!
2- Julianna waking us up in the wee hours to say that Kyle has crept into bed with her and she can't get him to go back to his sleeping bag(we were babysitting an extra child of good friends who was in Kyle's bed and Kyle got bumped to big sis's room)
3- After Todd goes to get Kyle situated he goes in the bathroom to alternate between throwing up and the other thing that I can't spell but involves your butt and starts with the letter "d"
4- Laying in bed trying to sleep whilst hearing my poor hubby who (bless his poor sick heart) is trying with all his might to do his business quietly
5- hearing coughing/crying noises coming from Julianna's room coupled with the sudden realization of why Kyle was trying to get comfort from someone a little while earlier.
6- getting throw up on me
7- trying to bathe Kyle after starting a load of laundry then hearing that thud, thud, THUD, THUD of the washing machine that is off balance.
8- watching the washing machine actually MOVE across the floor and seeing water under it at the same time
9- getting no sleep
10- hearing Jake just (of course) as my eyes were creeping shut

Whew! Look at that there were 10!!
Of course on the bright side I still have my delightful sense of humor! And the water under the washing machine was only due to the unbalanced load AND the fact that the machine MOVED at least a foot and strained the hoses. I've done several more loads and there is no more water leakage and the original puddle has dried up. So hopefully that was simply due to the machine wandering across the floor and won't happen again?

OK later that night this happened:
***Note the names of the guilty have been deleted as they are now forgiven :)***
OK here is an addition to my day from _ _ _ _ !!!
At dinner time Kyle starts with the diarrhea (thank you spell check for helping me to get that spelling right!) so I'm in the bathroom helping him get cleaned up. I walk out to see that someone has helped them self to a third glass of apple juice. (Mind you if they had asked I was going to say no more, only milk or water at that point). It is a full glass. Very full. As this person gets back to their seat at our kitchen island the bottom of the tumbler does not clear the counter top. Juice spills everywhere. Just an inch from my laptop!! I'm literally cleaning up the last wipe of the mess when a different child comes up from where they are all now playing in the basement to say that someone has clogged up the downstairs toilet!!! At this point I am in tears! I go down to see brown poopy water even with the top of the toilet bowl. I had to scoop poop water out of the toilet to even get the plunger to fit so as not to get nasty water all over the bathroom floor. Then I had to scrub the tub where I had to dump that water! All the while don't forget #1 on the above list!! (shouldn't I be so angry that I've turned huge and green by now?) No one was more shocked than I that I did not yell at the guilty child! I was harsh to the point that they were in tears, yes! (Mind you I was in tears too... so we cried together and hugged and forgave each other) But I did not yell. (that is a huge victory for me) Come to find out that said child knew what they had done. They just didn't think anyone needed to be told about it. I guess they think toilets fix themselves??? Also, judging from the past day of checking the bathroom after they used it this was the first time that they bothered to flush in awhile! How wonderful! (I guess now that my yelling is a bit under control we can work on my sarcasm?)

Once the kids went to bed at 8 I was in bed by 8:30 and thankfully wasn't woken up till Jake got up at 6. I'm laughing now but man, oh man what a day!!!

Maybe one day I will share with all of you about the time the whole Bumgardner family came down with the stomach flu in the same night. For those of you who remember that night, you remember that at the time I listed it as the #1 worst night of my life. Well, yesterday was a good solid #2! I'm so glad it is over and I can laugh now!

Cheer-i-oooo!!