5k for Grace

Grace really loves to run. Not only does she play soccer, but she has also been training every week with a good friend from school. For several weeks now she goes out around the neighborhood with her friend and her friend's mom on a nice 2-3 mile loop. Thank goodness for her mom! I have never really been a fan of running.

Race day finally arrived. Grace woke up extra early, ate some toast, and got herself all prepped for the 5k. It was held in the town of Vienna just down the road. Participants could choose to do a fun run mile or a 5k. All of the proceeds go towards our elementary school.  She was only one of seven other kids in her age group doing the longer race.

Chris was able to go cheer her on and watch her cross the finish. I'm so proud of her and all of her hard work. There were some pretty tough hills to climb, but she hung in there. She made it to the finish in good spirits. Then she got some face paint and we all went to Zinga frozen yogurt to celebrate!

Bridal Shower

This last weekend was extra fun for me. Chris flew back to Virginia to be with the kiddos, while I again took off on a solo trip. This time it was back home to Oregon. My sister and I had been helping my mom plan a bridal shower for my other sister for months. It's a little bit of a challenge to plan something like this from far away.

I arrived around midnight on a Wednesday. I was wiped out! It felt like 3am for me. Thankfully, I was able to sleep in the next day. When I did get up I went with my mom and sister to meet up with my dad for lunch at Chang's Mongolian Grill. I really love that place, and a trip home just isn't complete without it. Afterwards, I had a hair appointment at a local salon. I had planned on getting a bunch cut off, and maybe a few highlights. They took some creative liberty, and I ended up with this:

Yikes! It was pretty much the craziest thing I've ever done to my hair. It wasn't exactly what I was going for, but it's growing on me. 

The day before the shower, Friday, was full of tons of prepping. My fabulous mother in law worked hard on making mini quiches and cinnamon rolls. We got to meet Keara's future mother in law Kelly. We all stayed up late finishing last minute decorations and food for the next day. We even squeezed in a Dairy Queen run. 

Saturday morning was the big event. Everything that we worked so hard on was finally ready. Bree had made tasty lemon poppyseed muffins, Hilary brought a great cheese and cracker platter as well as fruit, and Connie had the tasty cinnamon rolls and quiche. Bree and I had asked Jeff ahead of time a big list of questions about Keara. We also had him write out several things that he loved most about her. We printed and framed some of the quotes.

We served orange juice, raspberry danishes, fresh fruit, yogurt, quiche, cinnamon rolls, cheese & crackers, and poppyseed muffins.

We asked everyone to bring in a recipe to include in the recipe book for Keara.

We had an excellent turnout! Even friends from high school!

Sisters.

Mom & sisters

Mom, Aunt Hilary, sisters, Kelly

We had so much fun! Keara got so many great gifts and it was fun to chat with all of our friends and family. I'm so glad that I was able to go!

That night, after everyone had left, just the five of us went for dinner. It was just my parents and us 3 girls. We hadn't all been together like that in many years. I thought it was extra special. No extra husbands or kids. Just us. We definitely need to do that again sometime. 

The next day my sisters both had to leave. I was able to stay on a couple more days. I took advantage of my time away and got to visit a couple of my good friends, go shopping, and hang out with my mom. I also got some extra baby snuggles with my new niece.

The next time we all get together again will be wedding time! Not much longer. By then I will be packing up my house and setting off on my own new adventure. If I missed you on this trip I apologize. I will have much more time to visit in June/July. 

Some sports pics

The last month has been absolutely crazy! It seems like everyday is packed full of activities. With both girls doing different spring sports we have been running all over.

Apparently the new trend...hot pink with orange. Go Tigers!

Batter up! Claire is starting to like softball a bit more with each game. Go Power!

Only one more month of craziness. We can make it.  I don't know what I will do when Neil plays something too. Life just never stops.

Quickie

Yep, that's right. I got to take a solo flight out to San Francisco to meet up with Chris for a long weekend. We were set to go house hunting with a realtor. We are really trying to find something to buy. It would be great to stop moving around so much. I'm not sure yet if it will work out.

Thankfully we were able to have Chris's parents fly out to our house and watch the kids. It felt so strange to be wandering the airport all alone.

Our first evening was pretty uneventful except for the fact that we heard Grace was really sick. She ended up being really sick for the majority of my time away. Poor Grandma and Grandpa had to deal with it on their own.

Unfortunately I got really sick too. Here was our big opportunity to eat out at nice places and enjoy some kid free time. I couldn't eat anything. It was really terrible. I ended up drinking sprite and broth for most of the weekend. We were able to at least check out one little bayside park. It felt great to be in the sun and the wind.  

We saw tons of houses over the course of the weekend. We even made an offer on one of them. Too bad the market is crazy right now. Homes are getting multiple offers and going for well over list price. We didn't end up getting the house. Now we have to wait and hope something else will come up. It's crazy stressful. A big thanks to my in-laws for helping out! I'm glad that I at least got to see the area ahead of time.

Easter Fun

Easter is always a fun time. Plenty of eggs to dye, baskets to set out, and lots of candy to eat. This year was pretty low key. Chris had to fly out for the new job in the afternoon. He had just enough time to help with the morning chaos and sugar binging. 

Spring Break Fun

With all of our upcoming craziness we opted to keep things simple for spring break. 

I worked my last shift on Monday. It seemed strange to leave the place. I hadn't been there very long. I guess that made it easier to walk away from. Now I'm on to full time organizing/planning. It's a lot of work!
On Tuesday I decided to take the kids to the rec center for some fun swimming time. We had the kiddie pool to ourselves for about 30 minutes before we were surrounded by camps of kids. We didn't last too long after that. 

Wednesday was April 1st and Chris's birthday. The kids and I spent the day running around shopping and decorating for daddy. We set up streamers and balloons in the kitchen. When he got home we all went to dinner at Sweetwater Tavern. We celebrated with donuts and played Agricola until late. It was a good day.

Thursday was a gorgeous day! I decided to be brave and took the kids to the National Zoo on my own. The drive there was stressful and long! The zoo is literally in the middle of DC. It's nuts! The traffic and parking was a nightmare, but we made it. The zoo itself was really great. Unfortunately, my camera died soon into the trip, but I managed a few shots.

We had a blast exploring the zoo! Loved the lions and baby bears the most. It was great to see so many animals outside playing in the sun. It was the most playful I've ever seen zoo animals. I wish my battery had lasted. Our drive home was just as terrible. I'm glad we did it, but I'm also glad we won't be doing it again. I'd recommend taking the metro if you want to go. 

Today it rained all day. We spent the day at home. Grace had a playdate and Neil went to his speech appointment. Claire had batting practice. Nothing exciting. Hopefully our weekend weather will improve. 

Today was also Chris's last day. He starts on Monday at Netflix. Crazy!! Our roller coaster continues...

Curve balls

I just have to say that I'm so proud of Claire. She is so brave! Here she is at her first ever batting practice for spring softball. She was unsure of where to go, what to do, and generally what was going on. She took it like a champ! I'm hoping that with a little more practice she will feel more confident and have a great first season.

Not only is she handling learning a new sport so well, but she is also digesting the news of our upcoming move with a great amount of courage. For those of you who haven't heard, our lives apparently weren't complicated enough. Our stay on the east coast is coming to an end. Chris accepted a job with Netflix in the bay area of California. He starts in a week and a half!! The kids and I will be staying here until school is out. I feel some deja vu as I type this. Thankfully, he will be flying back every 2 weeks to be with us. 

I am at the moment a giant ball of mixed emotions. On one hand I'm so excited for this great opportunity and for the chance to get back to the west coast. It's so much closer to our families. I love that we'll be able to hop in the van and drive to see them whenever. (only a 10.5 hr drive). On the other hand, moving sucks and I've come to really like the things that we have here. I'm sad for the kids who will be leaving good friends. 

I know that it will all work out though. Already it is going smoother than last time. At least I know what to expect. That really helps. Now I just need to keep my sanity as I try to single parent on and off until June. With two kids in different sports, I'm not quite sure how it will all happen. In the meantime I will be taking notes from Claire. She's so brave and I hope that I can at least come off that way some of the time. :)