Back in October, my brother and hubby did the Xterra Triathlon up at North Lake Tahoe.  The day of the race, the water was so rough that all small boats were ordered off the lake and the swim part of the triathlon was cancelled.  I just remembered that I never posted the below pics, which show that when there is a small boat advisory on Lake Tahoe THEY ARE SO NOT KIDDING.

Sorry I’ve been slacking.  Only excuse is I don’t have much to say…

Took Little Miss to the grocery store tonight, where she turned into poltergeist child and started throwing a fit, which included chucking a can of green beans out of the cart and screaming at me, “NO I WILL NOT STOP YELLING AT YOU.”  I went through the store doing my best to ignore her tantrum and the looks of bystandards, and when we got in line at the checkout as a last resort, I asked her, “do you need a hug?”

She did.  Tantrum over.  Had no idea this one would be so easy to stop.

(And to you people out there without children:  if someone gets in the line behind you to pay at the grocery store with a child having a melt down, PLEASE let them go ahead of you.  I wanted to strangle the lady ahead of me that didn’t show that courtesy, and then held up the express lane for 5 minutes with a price check.)

Here are the pics I promised:

Little Miss started at her new in-home daycare yesterday.  Being a typical Mom, I was overthinking things, and actually didn’t sleep very well on Sunday night, as I was debating if I had made the right choice, and was wondering how the transition would go.

I cleared my calendar at work in the morning so that I could stay with her until she was comfortable.  I didn’t want anything to be rushed in the transition.  We walked in, and Little Miss was soon giving two hugs to Mary Poppins (code name for our daycare provider).  I chatted with Mary P. for a few minutes, and then Little Miss looks up at me and says, “go to work, Mom.”

It really took me by surprise.  Part of me feels like my baby is growing up.  Maybe it’s a sign that she’ll like this place better.  And of course, there was also the maternal guilt that kicked in that she is so used to me leaving her during the day that it is expected.

The day went well at Mary Poppins’ house.  They played with play dough, and Mary’s 6 year old daughter took Little Miss under her wing, and played dress up with her and rode bikes with her.  I think this is going to go well. 

What isn’t going well is swimming lessons.  After two months of participating in weekly grossly over-priced swim lessons, Little Miss has made nary any progress.  At most lessons, she screams and cries, and I’ve begun to think I’m doing more harm than good at this point.  Last night, the second I told her we were going to swim lessons, she burst out in tears, and I had to bribe her to even go.  I filled out our withdrawl form last night, but unfortunately, we’re still obligated for one more month (2 lessons of which we’ll be out of town, and no make up lessons are allowed). 

If only I had the capital to open up my own lessons business…  These people have such a hold on the market that some competition would do them good.

I think we’ll take up swim lessons again in the Spring.  I’m hoping that by then, Little Miss will decide swimming can be fun and will want to do it.

As for the weekend, we had JB’s parents in town, and Little Miss just thrived under her doting grandparents’ attention.  We ate some great food (mmm…  sushi), and JB and I even got a quick date to the Chocolate Bar, where I paired port wine with a truffle (YUM). 

We’re starting to get snow in the mountains, so I’m hoping to be skiing soon!

Oh, that reminds me…  I went to the UNR Ski Swap this weekend and got Little Miss skis, boots and a helmet.  It’s amazing how much they can charge for used, crappy equipment.  Anyway, when I tried to put a helmet on her head, she started screaming, “I DON’T WANT TO GO SKIING TODAY”, which was just lovely.  JB has proclaimed that she’ll be just as miserable with skiing as she has been with swimming, but I have hope that it will be better…  I really don’t have plans to do much skiing with her this year, I just want to introduce her to it, and have something to do with her when we’re switching off skiing.

The words of my sister in law have been echoing in my head…  She said that Little Miss is an individual, and I have to respect that (or words to that effect).  Perhaps this is God’s way of telling me not to shove my favorite activities down her throat and let her choose what she will excel in.  That’s fine and all, but she’ll definitely have to do her time at the ski slopes and at the lakes in the summers, as that is just what we do as a family!

Enough rambling.  More later.

I am getting old.  Last night, I was happily asleep in my Heavenly Bed at the Westin until 1am, when a party erupted in the room next door.  Some woman was belting out Air Supply’s “I’m all out of love” and there was loud talking and laughing and OMG, I was pissed.  After about a half an hour of this, I called the hotel front desk, who sent security to the room.

I hear security come by and tell them to be quiet, and as soon as they were gone, the party raged on with more rousing 80s tunes.  I turned on the TV trying to drown it out.  I was miserable.  I banged on the wall a few times…  And after another hour of this, I called security a second time, who assured me that the ‘unregistered guests’ in the room had been escorted out.  I asked for ear plugs, but they didn’t have any (mental note to travel with those from now on).

I don’t function well on lack of sleep.  And I was so pissed that by the time the party died down at like 2:30am, I couldn’t get back to sleep.  I was very tempted to bang on their door this morning to show them how it feels to be woken up.

So here is the kicker…  I meet up with a co-worker this morning to walk to our meeting together, and I tell her how I’m low on sleep because there was a party in the room next door, and she busts up laughing…  Come to find out, that room was full of three of my co-workers (good God, it sounded like 30).  The girl belting out 80s tunes at 2am?  One of my good friends.  And evidently SHE called security on me because I was banging on the wall. 

I don’t know how she does it.  That co-worker, who had to be sloused last night, is leading today’s seminar, and she is chipper as can be.  Meanwhile, I was sober and just a grumpy old woman, and I’m dragging. 

It sucks getting old.

Oh, and my partying friend?!  She’s like 10 years older than me.  I guess it’s all a state of mind.

I think my life is on fast forward right now, and my blog is suffering.  I have tons of pics to post from Pumpkin Patches (did 3 visits) to Halloween, but that will have to wait until I return from Seattle, where I sit right now.

I’m meeting in a building in downtown Bellevue, on the 11th floor with an amazing view of Belleview and Seattle.  If you could just get rid of the layer of clouds, I’d love it here.

Halloween was full of princess fun.  Little Miss picked out a “snow princess” costume, which I told her was Cinderella, as the Cinderella Disney costumes were overpriced pieces of you know what.  Anyway, she spent the day with her cousins, one of which was also Cinderella (Little Miss had a blue dress, my niece had a pink one).  The parade of princesses was adorable.  I took the two Cinderellas (pronounced Cinderwella by Little Miss) to my work for cubicle trick or treating, and we joined my sister in law and both nieces for trick or treating in their neighborhood.  The girls were thrilled with all of the candy. 

We pretty much avoided our neighborhood until 8pm, as it is out of control on Halloween…  All of the streets in our neighborhood were lined with cars on both sides from people driving into our area, and the streets were so crowded with rowdy teenagers that you can hardly drive.  Oh, and they are RUDE.  I put a bowl full of candy on the porch around 8, and it was gone within 5 min.  No one seemed to want the snack packs of pretzels I put out.  Anyway, thankfully no vandalism to our house due to our absence for most of the night.

Back to my business trip, I have two long days of meetings, but the reward is staying in a super nice hotel (Westin — love that Heavenly Bed) and dinner tonight at a wine bar and we’re doing a cooking class at the Culinary Institute tomorrow night for our dinner.  Yum.

A video of Little Miss’s latest trick.

Ten years ago I…

1. Was 23
2. Was living in Berkeley, Michigan (Detroit suburb) and dating casually
3. Was working for General Motors
4. Was attending grad school at Wayne State University
5. Had a cat named Gato

5 things on today’s to-do list . . .

1. Strength training workout
2. Get Little Miss’s “Well Child” form signed by her doctor
3. Harrass my IT Help Desk about fixing my computer (the dinosaur is killing me)
4. Determine if I’m doing a date night babysitting swap with my sister in law
5. Make dinner (chicken breast wrapped around asparagus and cheese

5 snacks I enjoy . . .

1. Almonds
2. Apples
3. Protein bar/protein shake
4. Yogurt
5. String cheese
6. CHOCOLATE

5 things I would do if I were a millionnaire . . .

1. Quit my job so that I could spend more time with Little Miss
2. Start my own business of a pool in South Reno
3. Volunteer
4. Buy my parents and in-laws houses nearby
5. Buy a sports car (still miss my Trans Am)
6. Travel the world with my family

5 places I have lived . . .

1. Albuquerque, NM
2. Las Cruces, NM
3. Fremont, CA
4. Southeast MI (Southgate and Berkeley)
5. Reno, NV

5 jobs I have had . . .

1. Swim instructor/Swim Coach
2. Lifeguard/Lifeguard supervisor
3. District Sales Manager
4. Internet Marketing Manager/Director
5. Program Manager

Inspired by Krisalis.

So a few of you know that I had two openings come up on daycare lists within the past week.  When the first one came up — a list I had been on for two years — I was having a lot of qualms making the decision.  I literally lost sleep, as I could weigh the pros and cons of each, and it seemed to be a wash, but with daycare lists being so crazy, it is rare that you actually have a choice.

And then, to my surprise, I got a call from an in-home care provider yesterday, one I had been on her list for six months.  I have always been wary of in-home care providers, but the second I walked into her house yesterday, I had a sense of calm and knew this is what I’ve been looking for. 

The care provider, we’ll call her Mary Poppins, as she kind of exudes that magical likability, is this adorable mid-thirties woman with bright sparkling eyes and a warming smile.  She is super sharp, and I could tell that she would be much more stimulating for my daughter than the daycare workers we’ve experienced, who tend to be young girls without much direction in life.  And her husband is a sherrif…

The house was immaculent, with a nice backyard, where the kids can play a majority of the day, and experience all of the weather — from rain to snow, to pool/splash days in the backyard.  Our current facility limits outdoor time if the weather seems at all imclement, and I always felt bad for Little Miss being trapped inside for weeks at a time in the winter.  So after a week of laboring over a decision between two daycares, I made the decision within minutes that this would be Little Miss’s new place during the week.  And I think she agrees, as she said, “I’m never going back to *daycare name* again” as we drove away.

Back to Mary Poppins, though, she is a health nut that provides all the food for the children.  You don’t know how much time that will save me, and it is so nice not to have to struggle with the sugary food that is made available at my current daycare.  The kids get a hot, homemade breakfast of waffles, pancakes or eggs every morning, and they’ll occasionally make cookies together…  I tell you….  MARY POPPINS.  The cookies are a special treat, instead of a daily regimine. 

I’ll turn in my 2 week notice at our current facility today…  Which doesn’t seem daunting to most of you, but it’s a pretty big decision in such a competitive market for childcare.  Anyway, I’m going with my gut on this one, and my gut hasn’t steered me wrong many times.

OK, I finally have time to write about my first 10K.  I know for many people, a 10K is child’s play (like my brother, sister in law and hubby).  For me, though, it was a big accomplishment.  I started running for fitness at about 19, where I would repeatedly run 2 miles at a time (not including my record setting 2 week track career in high school, ended early by shin splints). 

I have done many 5K runs, which always seemed like a REALLY long run for me, and I remember going out before the race to run 3 miles, to make sure I could actually complete the race.  Last Fall, I began trail running, which reinvigorated my running, and I found I was able to start increasing my mileage, gradually.  I set my New Year’s Resolution this year (yes, I had just ONE) to run a 10K by the end of the year.  In the winter, I was plagued by colds or aching joints, etc., but this Fall, I’ve been able to break through those issues to do my first 10K.  It was a big mental barrier for me, as I never believed I was built for running, or that I could run much farther than 3 miles, much less double that.

The race was early Sunday morning.  I had been having asthma issues when I ran the prior week, so I doped myself up with Singulair and multiple hits to my inhaler.  JB went with me, and we met up with a friend of mine who was visiting from Colorado.  I kept telling my friend that I run slow, and to not feel like she needed to stay with me, but we both got into chatting, and she stayed with me for 3 miles.  During those 3 miles, I was definitely pushing at a faster pace than I would have without her, and she was running much slower than her normal pace.  Anyway, at 3 miles, she decided to break away, and I turned up the iPod and got into my normal running pace.

The race was sponsored by my company, with 50 of my co-workers volunteering, so every mile or so, there would be a rest station with a bunch of my co-workers cheering, which I think made me push harder, as you don’t want to look like you’re hurting in front of your co-workers! 

The race was at Damonte High School, which backs up to the Virginia Mountains, where wild horses frequently graze.  They made an announcement prior to the start that there could be wild horses on the course, and to watch out for horse dung.  And what do you know — I saw many piles of horse poop, but the majority were on the sidewalk…  I thought it funny that the horses have been using the sidewalks.

The race was rather uneventful.  I ran with inhaler in hand, but luckily didn’t have to hit on it.  As I came to the finish, I saw a 10 year old boy running beside me for the last 50 yards.  I looked over and said, “race ya”, and we sprinted into the finish.  Now I’m not much of a sprinter, so he was pulling ahead, but slowed down right before the finish line, where I then sprinted past and said, “shouldn’t have stopped”!  I’m sure he told his parents about the old lady that beat him.  I’m hoping the race photographer caught that, as I think it’d be a really funny picture.

So, I’m proud of breaking down my mental and physical barriers, but know that I’m still on the beginner end of the spectrum of running.  My average pace was 10:45 per mile, and the woman that won my age group, well she was doing 5:45 per mile.  But hey, it felt good, and I have two more 10Ks planned before the end of the year, with the goal to break an hour, shaving at least 6 minutes off my time.

I’ve been toying with the idea of a half marathon in my future.  I’ll keep you posted with that!

My shiny new computer that I got last month died.  Now I’m back on the machine I call “The Beast”, and I’ve been watching it clock all day long.

But the good news is that I finished the 10K!  More on that later…  Must try to get work done on this dinosaur of a computer…

Here is the conversation that happend in our house last night:

JB:  THE RED SOCKS WON!  IT WAS THE BIGGEST POST SEASON UPSET IN OVER 80 YEARS!  blah blah blah blah blah blah blah……….  *insert about 5 minutes of excited chatter here*

LB: (after seeing a blurb on ESPN about the game) THEY HAVE  A PLAYER NAMED COCO CRISP?!!!!!!  Seriously?!  Coco Crisp?

Sorry, but I find that much more entertaining.  That’s even worse than Ocho Cinco.

I’m back from spending yesterday at the Squaw Valley Ropes Course.  It was AWESOME.  So awesome that I’ll call it my second best day of work, as the first best day was our ski day at Squaw a few years back.

Anyhow, we were split into groups, and my group decided I’d be the first person to climb.  We were harnessed in, and then a man offered to be my belay…  He was a tiny man who was LITERALLY FROM ETHIOPIA.  I told him, “I’m sorry, but I really don’t want to make you fly when I try to rapel down.”  He argued with me, saying he was sure he weighed more than me, and I had to be adament…  I didn’t want to be the person that made the Ethiopian launch 5 feet off the ground!

Anyway, I did four of the courses..  The first one was a wire bridge, which was really easy.  The next one was a climb up a 200 foot (at least) tree.  It was like my childhood fantasies come true.  I was so happy to keep climbing and climbing, and then you ring a bell when you reach the top.  Another fun one was climbing up a telephone pole, then standing on top and jumping to catch a trapeze.  The standing on the telephone pole got me so worked up with adrenaline that my hands got sweaty and I fell right off that trapeze when I caught it.

So here are my pictures.  Wow.  So cool.  I’m totally taking people up there next summer with me!

(I used the multiple upload tool in WordPress, and it evidently didn’t like two of my pics, and then doesn’t provide a way for me to delete them…  Sorry for the broken images below.  Each picture can be expanded if you click on them.)

My, how the time flies.  We spent Friday through Sunday in Palo Alto, CA visiting JB’s parents.  It was a nice, relaxing weekend with perfect weather and fun outings.  I have pictures to post later from our visit to the Palo Alto Zoo and a local pumpkin patch. 

I’m ramping up for my first 10K run on Sunday.  Unfortunately, the combination of allergies and running has been triggering my asthma lately, so I may have to run with my inhaler in hand!  It’s frustrating to have my heart rate pretty low, but not to be able to catch my breath!

This afternoon, I’m headed to Squaw Valley to do the ropes course with co-workers.  Should be a blast!

More later!

Happy Anniversary, JB.  We were married four years ago today, and it is amazing how much we have accomplished in that time.  I look forward to celebrating many more years with you!

*smooch*

(I wanted to post a wedding pic, but those are on my other computer…)

My parents are in town visiting, so we’ve been busy spending quality time with them and my brother’s family.  On Sunday, Mom, Little Miss and I did the Race for the Cure in honor of my Aunt, who is a survivor of breast cancer.  It was a beautiful morning, and it was so special having three generations participating in honor of my aunt.  I actually did the 5K run, which was very challenging because there were like 5 gazillion hills on the course, and when I finished, I turned around and walked back to meet my Mom, daughter, and co-workers.  I got to walk a little over a mile with them. 

Anyway, here is the pic.  Pink power!!!

Me, Mom and Little Miss at the Race for the Cure