Iowa Games

For fun, we decided to sign Alena up for the Iowa Games.  It was originally Justin's idea and it sounded like a good idea.  Plus, since we are living in Ames, it was very convenient.

Alena has never ran in any organized event.  Nor were we sure she could even run 100 meters. A month or so before the race, we headed to Ames High for a couple practice runs on the track.  Walking onto that track brought back many wonderful memories. I loved running track, especially hurdles and had such a positive experience at Ames High.  

She didn't seem to have any difficulty completing 100 meters but we decided not to push it to 200 meters.  When I was signing her up, I also decided to sign her up for the long jump, just for fun.

The morning of the games, we drove out to the Cyclone Sports Complex.  We noticed people walking in with canopies, coolers, camping chairs, etc.  All we had were a couple bottles of water and some sunscreen.  It was obvious we were Iowa Games virgins but none the less we had a great time and a good first experience.

The long jump was first and since Alena was in the 6 and under group she got to jump first.  Luckily we had enough time to do a few practice runs because she had NEVER done this before.  She's a quick learner and caught on right away.  I was pleased when she didn't scratch her first jump so she would at least get a jump that would count.  She ended up completing all 4 jumps without any scratches and won 2nd place. She was thrilled!  

Her long jump medal

Next up were the 8-10 year old girls. I was surprised at the number of girls wearing track spikes and in track uniforms!  Apparently, there are numerous track clubs around the state that athletes can be a part of.  I had no idea.  Either this wasn't available when I was in school, or I didn't know anyone who was a part of them.  That just seems too young to me.  One particular girl even had a USA tank top she wore for the meet!  I have a feeling as my children continue to participate in activities, many things will surprise me!  

We then sat in the stands to watch a few of the running events before Alena's 100 meter dash.  While getting checked in for the race, we watched the 100 meter hurdles and 110 meter hurdles.  Alena was scared of the starting gun, and nearly had a break down while lining up for her race. Justin was already down near the finish line, planning to video tape her run.  I had to think fast to get her to calm down. I told her she could cover her ears, lined up her in lane 5, and then I headed halfway down the home stretch so I could cheer her on.  

As she waited for the gun to go off she stood there just as I said:  With her hands over her ears. Needless to say she didn't have the best start but then took off.  Although she looked around and behind her nearly the entire race, she ended up winning the race.  Her smile was huge and we were all so proud of her.

She had a fun time and it was very well organized.  I definitely think we will do this again.  I may even look into running something...

We finished the weekend with a trip to Polk City's town festival, a movie at the theater (I highly recommend Inside Out), and two trips to the pool.  My nieces were in town so it was a crowded house but a lot of fun!

I've had lots of fun seeing old high school classmates and teachers while in Ames.  One afternoon after swimming at the indoor pool Alena and I took a trip into the high school gymnasium, and I took her down memory lane:

State champion shuttle hurdle team-Sophomore year

The year Ames won the team championship-Freshman year

We won the pentathlon championship two years in a row

The only school record of mine that still remains

This sort of makes me feel like Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite: "Back in '82 I used to be able to throw a pigskin a quarter of a mile."  Honestly, it's been years since I've thought of these accomplishments and they are pretty small compared to what many other classmates did.  It's still fun to look back at these memories.

Gone Too Soon

I lost another high school classmate this week. That makes four.  Four lives taken much too soon. I've only been out of high school for 16 years. This is the prime of our lives. We should be settled in our careers and starting families.  We shouldn't be saying goodbye.

One drug overdose, one heart attack, one sudden cardiac arrest.  I don't know what caused the last classmate to leave this Earth and maybe I don't want to know.

Many people say it takes something like this to realize that life is too short. Ironically, this entire summer I have been consumed with this knowledge.  I've had these moments, when I'm watching my children with their grandparents, that I know someday memories will no longer be able to be made with them.

I have come to the realization that my parents won't be around forever. As I look into the future, thinking about watching my children participate in activities, make friends, graduate, get married and have children, I had this assumption that my parents will be there to witness it all.  But what if they aren't?  I imagine them guiding me through all the challenges of raising a child, watching my failures and my successes.  Helping me when I'm busy and drowning with numerous school activities, but laughing along with me through the struggles. 

I picture my parents sitting in the bleachers during track meets, soccer games, and softball games.  I see them crammed into auditoriums for band concerts, swing choir and award ceremonies.  Or traveling together to out of town meets and new vacation spots. 

I've mentioned this before: I lost my last living grandparent when I was in 7th grade.  Many classmates had grandparents there to watch every one of their sporting events, witness their graduation, and hold their great grandchildren.  I always wanted that.  Now more than ever, I realize how important that is to me.  But I do know this is out of my hands. 

So I will take any opportunity to spend time with my parents. To allow my children to enjoy activities with them. To make unforgettable memories.  To take too many pictures and videos.  To laugh together, be silly together, and play together.  To just BE together.  We never know how much time we have.

Going Green

I've always been a little afraid of the green smoothies.  The color is a little turn off and quite frankly, I don't really care for the veggies that make up these infamous green smoothies.


HOWEVER, I recently had a very delicious smoothie from a health food café a couple weeks. On a whim, I met my cousin for lunch near her office and talked myself into giving one of these smoothies a taste.  (She told me it was good, and I trust her taste buds!).  This particular smoothie had kale, spinach and mango.  3 foods I really don't care for!


I was immediately hooked, In fact, I haven't stopped thinking about how good that smoothie was.   It's a good thing the café is a little far away, or I would have made at least two more trips down there for another one.  It was fantastic!  Knowing, I am eating about 3 cups of green vegetables is a bonus as well. 


So, I have been on the hunt to find a recipe similar to this one.  I'm still hunting...


Meanwhile, during our weekly family grocery outing, I suggested making green smoothies to Alena.  I was really worried that if she knew what a green smoothie was composed of she would instantly be turned off.  Surprisingly, she was really excited. So while getting our other fruits and veggies, I picked up some kale and mangoes. 

I make smoothies a lot at home especially because we have had a plethora of fresh strawberries and blueberries living on my parent's "plantation."  My kids drink these up like they are sipping down ice cold lemonade on a hot day so I usually wait to serve them after dinner or as a snack.

A few days ago, I created my own green smoothie, sans a recipe!  I just dumped and mixed, crossing my fingers that something delicious (or at least edible) would be created.  When I mentioned I had made a green smoothie they were ecstatic.  After dinner, I poured them each a little to try and watched for their reaction.

Three thumbs up!  Alena thought it tasted like a cupcake (weird!) and they all loved the green mustache they got.  (I had to take multiple photos to show them).  We finished the rest of the smoothie before bedtime.

I'm excited to continue to experiment with these green smoothies and will need to purchase a new blender/vitamix after the move.  

Go, Go, Go

As usual, we decided to cram as much as possible into this weekend as there was so much going on!

After a much needed girls night out for Firefly Country Nights Thursday night, Friday afternoon we watched Alena participate in the Battle of the Bands at school before taking advantage of the zoo being open in the evening.  We spent nearly 3 hours at the zoo enjoying the animals and special activities they had for the kids.  (Why is it the animals are so much more entertaining after hours?).

Battle of the Bands

I don't know what she is doing but I love her dimples in this pic

Saturday morning, all 7 of us piled into the van and we headed to Grundy Center for the Felix Grundy Festival.  When Justin's parents still lived in Grundy we were annual attendees.  Now that his parents don't live there, it's a little harder to get there but it is still a fun time.  I love all the free activities for the kids, (jump houses, rock climbing, face painting, etc).  The pool is open for a couple hours before the parade and this is the perfect pool for little ones.  There are two separate areas that the kids can play in without me having an anxiety attack that someone will go under water.  The parade in the late afternoon is always a great way to end the day.  Each year I have wanted to have a caricature completed of the kids but the line has always been so long.  Thankfully, mom volunteered to stand in line so I could check that off the list of things to do. I think it turned out pretty cute.

After 9 mini donuts

I just can't cut her hair yet

Out, sucker and all

Sunday afternoon was HOT. We had planned to go to the Ledges again but decided to hit the pool instead. After the twins woke from their nap, we headed to the Nevada pool.  This has quickly become one of my favorite pools and it is actually closer to my parent's house than the Ames pool.  Alena is finally tall enough to ride the slides, (at least to Nevada's standards-the height requirement is the same at Ames but they wouldn't let her ride). We had a blast riding on inflatables down the slide.

Back to the grind tomorrow as I leave home early to travel to Southern Iowa...

Eye Exam For a 2 Year Old

Every year the Lions Club comes to the daycare to do a vision screening for all the kiddos there.  I've usually never thought twice about this annual eye exam.  I sign the dotted line which allows my kids to be evaluated and glance quickly at the results when I get them weeks later.  Until this year...

Alena and Lauren passed their evaluation with flying colors, but Caleb didn't.  Instead he came home with a list of local optometrists and ophthalmologists and a "strong" recommendation that we schedule for him to see one.

Huh?!  I hadn't noticed any abnormality in his eyes and from what I can see he doesn't seem to have any difficulty with vision.  There was concern for anisocoria, (one pupil smaller than the other), which immediately threw up lots of alarms in my head.  (It is sometimes a HUGE disadvantage to work in the medical field).

I thought, how could I have missed unequal pupils in my 2 year old?  How could my pediatrician not have picked up on this? He was seen by the Lion's Club last year and his evaluation was normal!  Of course, I felt guilty that something serious may have been overlooked.

I quickly scheduled him with a pediatric ophthalmologist in Des Moines (there is only one clinic in central Iowa!), so his appointment was a few weeks ago.  Great, 3 weeks to worry about this...and 3 weeks to carefully examine my child's eyes, looking for other significant symptoms which could indicate something serious.  I know I could have scheduled him with an optometrist the following day but I really wanted a pediatric ophthalmologist to see him, especially after finding out my insurance would cover the visit.

Appointment Day:

I decided to take him to his appointment myself, knowing that he is normally such an easy going guy.  Plus, he was REALLY excited to go to the "eye doctor" so I was crossing my fingers that this 2 hour appointment would not be a disaster.

We were the first appointment of the morning, which was a plus.  The waiting room was full of fun toys, and Caleb especially loved playing with the large tractor and trailer.  Soon after arriving we were taken back to the exam room.  He quickly jumped into the exam chair by himself and was such a trooper during the initial part of the exam.

Here is where I was glad I chose a pediatric ophthalmologist: I was very impressed with all the "tools" she used to keep him looking in the direction she wanted him to.  I'm sure it's challenging to do an eye exam on a 2 year old, but all her tricks worked like a charm for him.  An entire wall was full of entertainment she had control of with a switch:  A dancing rainbow pig, 3 plastic penguins who went around and around, a small TV with images that kept changing, a tiger that roared...  She was so good with him.  After that part of the exam, we went into the room where the eye drops would be placed.  He laid on top of a dinosaur table while the tech placed 3 different drops in each eye.  He did great and was rewarded with a sticker and more time playing in the waiting room while we waited for his eyes to dilate.

Each box had something different to keep his attention during the exam

The final part of the exam was quick and we were finally given a diagnosis:  A normal variance of anisocoria!  This is a normal finding in 20% of the population, and my little one just has to be in the minority.  Whew, all those big, bad and ugly diagnoses that went through my head when I first learned of this abnormality were erased. We did find out that he is far-sighted (which is common at this age), and hopefully something he will outgrow.  He will follow up in 1 year for another evaluation.

When God created him he must not have paid as much attention to the left side of his body, (it probably didn't help that another human was being created at the same time).  Both abnormalities he has had have been on the left side.  Let's hope we don't discover any more issues!

Potty Training Twins is...

...Manageable!

I feel like we are nearing the finish line of this potty training experience. There were many things that frightened the daylights out of me when I was told we were having twins. Among changing twice the diapers, two teething kids, and the expense of raising two more children, I DREADED potty training two children at once!

So, I just didn't.

I'm always scared to say this for fear all mothers will hate me, but we had the easiest time potty training Alena.  She was trained in two days and I can remember just a handful of accidents we had after that moment.  All the fears I had and nightmarish stories mothers told me about just didn't happen.

Because she was so easy, I knew the next two would be much more difficult!  (I couldn't be THAT lucky).

Lauren started to show interest soon after turning 2 and moving into the next classroom at daycare. Many of her friends in that room were older and using the potty so she went along with it. Unfortunately, I was not at all prepared to jump into this, (we were busy packing the house up and figuring out where we were going to live as we would be homeless in less than 3 weeks!).  So I let this moment pass and pretty soon she reverted back to not wanting to use the potty at all.  I really regret not running with it when she was interested but you have to be ALL IN with potty training. No dipping in your toes or wading up to your knees.  Nope, you must be fully submerged for a successful experience.

It took all of us a month or so to adjust to our new living situation and soon after the new year, Lauren seemed interested again. I wasn't going to miss this opportunity a second time so we went for it.  At school she was sat on the potty every 2 hours so we mimicked this at home.  She also got to enjoy juice, a treat in our house, to force her to drink and potty more.  After a few days we felt adventurous enough to run a couple errands, sans diaper.

Although we had lots and lots of success stories, so was scared to poop on the potty.  I. Tried. Everything.  We had many, many, many accidents-some at home, some away from home and there were numerous times I was ready to jump out of the pool and throw in the towel.  But, I knew we needed to push forwards.  I threw away a lot of Minne Mouse, My Little Pony and Hello Kitty underwear.  I've never been one to carry a diaper bag with me when we are out and about. I found I never utilized it and it was too cumbersome.  Unfortunately this came back to bite me a few times.   She shopped commando with me a couple times!

Now 5 months later, I can say we haven't had an accident in quite a while.  She's got this potty thing down!

One down, one to go.

I waited, and waited, and waited to start potty training Caleb, watching for all the telltale signs.  They were never there.  About 6 weeks ago, we noticed he was going potty pretty frequently at daycare so we started working on it at home too. He protested every time we wanted to take him to the potty.  As the days went by, he was having more and more success at school (and some success at home).  Soon he was waking up dry from naps and his teacher told me to take home his diapers.  What!?  I never thought this day would come.

I can honestly say that neither Justin or I, nor Papa or Grandma potty trained that boy.  The credit goes to his two daycare providers. I may gasp at the amount of money we pay for daycare every month but it has been worth every dime, (for numerous reasons)!

He still has some accidents and has needed a little bribing to work on #2, (a tractor ride on Papa's mow mow works well), but I think I can say I have two potty trained 2.5 year olds!

We are on the go people so they've had to adjust to using bathrooms EVERYWHERE.  They are pros at using public potties, porta potties, peeing in a bucket on the boat and pottying in nature.  C especially likes to pee on trees (it's a good thing we won't have trees in our new neighborhood!).

He will hate me for this some day

We still have nighttime training to work but that will come with time.  I can manage using 2 diapers a day, compared to up to 20 diapers a day when they were first born.  I am so glad to be past this stage but it's another sign that these two are growing way too fast!

Impromptu Photo Shoot-Jason's Family

When my brother and family visited over Memorial Day Weekend my sister-in-law wanted me to take some family photos. So an impromptu photo shot was completed.

Honestly, I think there are some great pictures here and I love the setting-my parent's backyard. None of these are edited as my editing software is not on the current computer I am using, (the joys of moving!).  We also shot at probably the worst time of day ever, but it was still pretty successful.

He was a trooper!