Cowboy Zebra

We broke out the slip-n-slide and the kids have been playing on that all afternoon.

The rest of this week we've made wave makers in bottles (one with colored water and oil and one with colored corn syrup and oil), experimented with waves in the horse trough, read lots of books about oceans, and worked on a poem. Here is Ian's poem which is a result of me asking him to describe sights, sounds, smells, etc.

Things on the Beach
By Ian Bailey

I hear waves. I hear the motors of boats. I hear seagulls.

I see a seal. I see sand. I see crabs. I see sticks on the beach. I see an eel fish. I see shells.

I smell the seawater.

I feel how the shells hurt my feet. The water feels very cold.

I like to fly kites there. I like to skip rocks. I hunt for clams. I like to look for shells and crabs under rocks.

The crabs walk sideways and they try to pinch me when I pick them up. The birds fly around and catch fish. The fish swim with their fins.

The tides go in and out. The gravity by the moon pulls the water.

I wish I could stay all day.

Maggie loves to sing along with the fridge magnet ABC's.

I was preparing a whole chicken for supper tonight when Maggie walked in and saw the bird and said, "Wook! A Fwoggy!" I pointed to the chicken and said, "This is a froggy?" "Yes! Wook, Eh-yut (Elliott), a fwoggy!" She left the room and came back in holding a train. As I was bending down to put the chicken into the oven, Maggie said, "Here fwoggy, a twain, see fwoggy? Wook!" I told her I was putting it in the oven now and she said, "Ok, bye-bye fwoggy!"
Maggie does like frogs and pretends to be one often, hopping around and saying ribbit. She also loves to wear the froggy towel after bath time. Try to give her a live frog, though, and she squeals and runs away.

On the way to the library today, Ian shouts out, "Hey! There's a Starbucks over there!" Elliott replied in his Grover-like voice, "Starwars Bucks?". "No" Ian said, "STARbucks. And it's a wonderful restaurant. They have really yummy chocolate milk and they have sandwiches...I think. And they have really sweety things, too! That place is just the best!"

So now we have Starwars Bucks, Old McDonalds, Red Robinhood, The Women's Retreatment, and Father Abraham Lincoln in the repertoire of funny mispronunciations from the boys.

So a friend and I signed up to be in a triathlon this summer. The one we are doing is an all women's event and it starts with a 1/2 mile swim, then a 12 mile bike, then a 3 mile run. The biggest reason we are doing this is so that we will have a goal to work towards and stay motivated to keep exercising! While I've got a ways to go until I hit my goal weight, I have lost 30 pounds since July! While not fast, I can swim at least 1/2 a mile in the pool (when it warms up we'll try some open water swims). I can certainly run 3 miles (most Saturdays I go on a four or five mile run). But it's been 10 years or so that I'd ridden a bike anything more than a few miles. Last Saturday when I took my new bike out I got a flat at mile 7. I took it out again yesterday, but it was raining, windy and cold, so I only went 6 or 7 miles again. Today I was able to go just over 12 miles and it was GREAT! It took me 63 minutes. It feels good to have that one under my belt. But even more, the ride was just fun! Ok, the hills going up, not so much, but the scenery, the smells of the saltwater, the woodsmoke, the freshly cut grass, the sounds of the birds on the quiet country roads, the pastoral countryside...it was all just wonderful. And Charlie, I didn't pass any wackos, and I had my cell phone with me and had mapped out the route for Nathan ahead of time. Anyway, when I got back I decided to try to run for a mile. I felt like a square blob trying to run after biking. But after about a half a mile it started to feel more normal!

Nathan played Happy Birthday on the guitar. After the party he practiced and now can play it without all the stalls!