I just enrolled both kids in soccer this fall through the YMCA (Caitlin was a little miffed that we didn't enroll her last spring, so I remedied that!) And I accepted the Publicity Coordinator position in the MOPS group I'll be attending this fall If you don't see or hear from me until Christmas, this will be why! The fall is looking pretty busy for this stay-at-home mom type. Brandon will be in 2nd grade. Caitlin will be in Pre-K 3 mornings a week. Along with MOPS and Bible study, and all the other stuff I randomly do, I'll have most days full. It will be a good change from summer, where I am with kids all day, every day.
I'm craving the structure of the school year, although I can't say I'm looking forward to school starting in a mere 2 1/2 weeks! We've had a full summer. It's been a lot better than last summer, which was just weirder than weird. This year we were in California with one set of grandparents, Florida for vacation, VBS sports camp, preschool day camp, grandparents coming......all good things. But even with the ability to sleep in some days, the days I'm home are full days trying to keep the kids entertained. I've threatened to string the kids up by their toenails if I hear "Mom, I'm bored!" one more time (Brandon doesn't take me seriously, but Caitlin holds her toes now when she's not sure what to do). Soon it will be all over, and I'll be back to my 6:00 am mornings - wailing plaintively about how I miss summer. Such is the cycle of the year, I guess. Even Brandon told me recently that he misses school. Yay! Caitlin definitely misses her friends, although I'm not sure she misses learning. I'm glad the kids are looking forward to school starting, too. It'll make mid-August a lot easier to take.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Almost
I almost became a Coloradoan yesterday. Almost.
It happened as I was taking Caitlin to day camp, and Brandon to VBS soccer camp. We left at 8:15 in the morning. During the school year that's positively late for us, but it's pretty early in the morning these days. The road I drive to Caitlin's school cuts through a shopping center with a Target, Michael's, Whole Foods, etc., and the speed limit raises up to a normal speed as you pass Costco at the end of the center. I was tootling along past Costco, quite happy at my slow shopping center speed, when I noticed a few cars seemly piling up behind me. I'd already passed the raised speed limit, and could go 50 MPH, but instead was still meandering at 35 MPH. I quickly raised my speed, and happily continued the 5 or so miles to school. Even though we're on a country road (with a gorgeous view of the Rockies, I might add), you really can't pass other cars. I don't want to be that person slowing everyone down. It's frustrating to be stuck behind a slow driver - a scenario I know all too well!
I'm not sure what was going on with me. Maybe I was still in vacation mode. Maybe (more likely) I was tired. Either way, it was a shock to me that I was driving so slow. I'm not the speed demon I use to be, but I still take the speed limit as just that - the speed you can attain in good weather. Not merely a suggestion of how fast you could go if you really wanted to.
Today I was back to my normal self. Out there, gettin' frustrated, yet again, with the Colorado drivers who think that the numbers on the speed limit sign are waayyyy too high. Frustrated with the drivers who have no idea about fast and slow lanes. Frustrated and talking (in my car, mind you) to the other drivers that yellow does not mean stop. Wondering why so many large trucks drive through Boulder instead of taking I-25 through the state. And still frustrated that there is no efficient way to get through Boulder (it's been a couple of months since I had to drive through the town with a time limit to meet). I was almost gone, but I'm back now. Hello!
It happened as I was taking Caitlin to day camp, and Brandon to VBS soccer camp. We left at 8:15 in the morning. During the school year that's positively late for us, but it's pretty early in the morning these days. The road I drive to Caitlin's school cuts through a shopping center with a Target, Michael's, Whole Foods, etc., and the speed limit raises up to a normal speed as you pass Costco at the end of the center. I was tootling along past Costco, quite happy at my slow shopping center speed, when I noticed a few cars seemly piling up behind me. I'd already passed the raised speed limit, and could go 50 MPH, but instead was still meandering at 35 MPH. I quickly raised my speed, and happily continued the 5 or so miles to school. Even though we're on a country road (with a gorgeous view of the Rockies, I might add), you really can't pass other cars. I don't want to be that person slowing everyone down. It's frustrating to be stuck behind a slow driver - a scenario I know all too well!
I'm not sure what was going on with me. Maybe I was still in vacation mode. Maybe (more likely) I was tired. Either way, it was a shock to me that I was driving so slow. I'm not the speed demon I use to be, but I still take the speed limit as just that - the speed you can attain in good weather. Not merely a suggestion of how fast you could go if you really wanted to.
Today I was back to my normal self. Out there, gettin' frustrated, yet again, with the Colorado drivers who think that the numbers on the speed limit sign are waayyyy too high. Frustrated with the drivers who have no idea about fast and slow lanes. Frustrated and talking (in my car, mind you) to the other drivers that yellow does not mean stop. Wondering why so many large trucks drive through Boulder instead of taking I-25 through the state. And still frustrated that there is no efficient way to get through Boulder (it's been a couple of months since I had to drive through the town with a time limit to meet). I was almost gone, but I'm back now. Hello!
Monday, July 12, 2010
Anna Maria
Greetings from Anna Maria Island in Florida! On Saturday we trekked out to the airport and made our way from the middle of the country to a coastal section of the country. It's good to be by the beach again.
So far, so good. We are loving the beauty of Florida. The colors are lovely, especially the amazing variations in the water. Blues, whites, greens, teals - all surrounded by green flora and amazingly white sand. And the sand here..... it's as soft as powdered sugar! The shells and bits of ground up shells make it much more rough, but the sand itself is lovely! The gulf coast beach water is as warm as bath water. It's so completely different from the Pacific ocean. You actually want to be in the water here, and your feet don't slowly succumb to hypothermia.
We rented a little bungalow in Holmes Beach on Anna Maria Island. We are two blocks from the ocean one way, and I think it's 3 in the other direction. Our place has a pool in the back yard, which has officially transformed us into the best parents ever, according to the kids. They are having so much fun. It's much easier to watch them and swim with them in a private pool versus the public pools in our town (not to mention we don't have to deal with all the nasty chlorine). Not having the life jackets has also been good, as the kids' confidence and swimming abilities have improved. Brandon especially. Caitlin is our fish, but Brandon has taken to jumping off one end of the pool and swimming underwater as much as he can to to the other side of the pool. They just love having a pool. We've noticed that Caitlin gets all whiny when we take her away from the water, either the pool or the beach. We've also noticed she's exhausted at the end of the day and is asleep almost as soon as her head hits the pillow. Score!
Now that we've lived in Colorado, land of no moisture, for 3 years, my ability to handle humidity has gone waaayyyy downhill. The almost 70% humidity levels we're experiencing here make the mild 85 degree weather feel 7-10 degrees hotter. We notice that the heat rises as we leave the island, and we feel hotter and stickier away from the beach breezes. I've heard it's better for my skin, though, and I don't feel the need to slather on lotion all the time. Floridians must just get use to the weather eventually. I mean, my parents aren't nearly as bothered by the central valley heat as I am, so one can only conclude that you get use to weather you live in. Eventually. I'm glad we have A/C in our rental house. I'm not sure I'd last a whole week here without it. This might be the most humid place I've ever been. It feels the same in the water as it does out of the water. And it's can feel hard to take a deep breath at times, despite the higher amounts of oxygen here than what we're use to.
Brian is cooking a yummy dinner, so I'm going to sign off now and get to setting the table. I'm sure we'll either head out to the beach after dinner, or head back into the pool. I'll post pictures after we get home so you can share in the beautiful sights of Florida.
So far, so good. We are loving the beauty of Florida. The colors are lovely, especially the amazing variations in the water. Blues, whites, greens, teals - all surrounded by green flora and amazingly white sand. And the sand here..... it's as soft as powdered sugar! The shells and bits of ground up shells make it much more rough, but the sand itself is lovely! The gulf coast beach water is as warm as bath water. It's so completely different from the Pacific ocean. You actually want to be in the water here, and your feet don't slowly succumb to hypothermia.
We rented a little bungalow in Holmes Beach on Anna Maria Island. We are two blocks from the ocean one way, and I think it's 3 in the other direction. Our place has a pool in the back yard, which has officially transformed us into the best parents ever, according to the kids. They are having so much fun. It's much easier to watch them and swim with them in a private pool versus the public pools in our town (not to mention we don't have to deal with all the nasty chlorine). Not having the life jackets has also been good, as the kids' confidence and swimming abilities have improved. Brandon especially. Caitlin is our fish, but Brandon has taken to jumping off one end of the pool and swimming underwater as much as he can to to the other side of the pool. They just love having a pool. We've noticed that Caitlin gets all whiny when we take her away from the water, either the pool or the beach. We've also noticed she's exhausted at the end of the day and is asleep almost as soon as her head hits the pillow. Score!
Now that we've lived in Colorado, land of no moisture, for 3 years, my ability to handle humidity has gone waaayyyy downhill. The almost 70% humidity levels we're experiencing here make the mild 85 degree weather feel 7-10 degrees hotter. We notice that the heat rises as we leave the island, and we feel hotter and stickier away from the beach breezes. I've heard it's better for my skin, though, and I don't feel the need to slather on lotion all the time. Floridians must just get use to the weather eventually. I mean, my parents aren't nearly as bothered by the central valley heat as I am, so one can only conclude that you get use to weather you live in. Eventually. I'm glad we have A/C in our rental house. I'm not sure I'd last a whole week here without it. This might be the most humid place I've ever been. It feels the same in the water as it does out of the water. And it's can feel hard to take a deep breath at times, despite the higher amounts of oxygen here than what we're use to.
Brian is cooking a yummy dinner, so I'm going to sign off now and get to setting the table. I'm sure we'll either head out to the beach after dinner, or head back into the pool. I'll post pictures after we get home so you can share in the beautiful sights of Florida.
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