Remembrance Day

Growing up in Canada November 11th, known there as Remembrance Day, was typically cold, gray and dreary. The trees were completely bare of leaves by this time and there always seemed to be a threat of rain. We observed the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month in the center of town at the Cenotaph freezing in our girl guide or boy scout uniforms. The veterans and the cadets marched with the school bands. It was a day to remember the sacrifices of the veterans and their fallen comrades. It all seemed so historical, a thing of the past not to be forgotten, but somehow over. Veterans were grandfathers and great uncles, not young people. And their fallen comrades were names and faded pictures, not anyone us kids actually knew.



But on this Veterans Day I remember a 23 year old soldier. Lt. Dennis Zilinski was killed in action in Bayji, Iraq on November 19, 2005. We met Dennis 6 years ago during his senior year at West Point. He was the captain of the swim team and an active member of the Cadet Chapel. Jason was an officer representative for the swim team so we got to accompany the team to meets and attend their end of the year banquet. Dennis was a leader, quick with a smile and so full of promise and potential. And now he's gone.

I've been thinking about writing this blog for a while so Sunday I went on line to make sure I had Dennis' information correct to share with you when I discovered this celebration of Dennis' life, a 3 mile road race in New Jersey with an option for those of us around the world to participate. This site is a wonderful tribute to Dennis.
http://www.runwithdennis.org/index.html

I discovered the event a half hour before it began on Sunday morning so Jason and I were able to do our own little run but I will be actively recruiting runners for next year's Hawaiian chapter of the Run With Dennis Race. A great way to honor an outstanding young officer and veteran for Veterans Day.

Beach Mom recruiting

I've been hesitating to write this blog for fear my little crew of new Beach Moms will disband but we're growing and I'm so excited! For a long time I have wanted to get a Moms Swim Club organized where we have enough Moms to divide into two groups one to swim and one to watch kids play on the beach. Up until recently I haven't met a whole lot of swimming moms looking for this kind of arrangement. Last year I had Kelley (sniff, sniff) who had the same childcare restraints I did, a surfing husband, loved to chase turtles and we were the same speed!! And then she moved away (more sniffing) but I know she'll come back to visit me soon (hint, hint!). So this summer Hubby did the Mountain Man Triathlon and I bumped into an old running partner, from when Hannah was a baby, and she was interested in swimming! We are currently up to 4 members but at least 4 more have expressed interest and its awesome! We even saw a turtle at Lanikai last week, which has never happened to me before! We also saw dolphins at the start of the Splash and Dash race on Saturday before we got in the water, another first for Kaneohe Bay! In other news:

I love this picture of Hannah and her ballerina buddies. This is their costume for an upcoming performance. They were allowed to try it on to make sure it fit and then ordered to put it away until show time. We of course put it on at home to show Dad and immediately got something on it, Hannah is convinced the audience will be far enough away not to see it. She clearly has learned laundry skills from her Mom, if no one sees it, its not really there.

Ella is an awesome Mom, she has four kids, 2 girls and 2 boys (although I've only ever seen one of the boys- maybe the other is away at college or something). And she tucks them all in at night and dresses the one that has a change of clothes every morning. When we go to a pool or water slide she strips baby down and takes her on the water slide naked, neatly seated between her own little legs. She has "Brand New Baby" on in the above picture. This is the one that goes with her everywhere. "Big Sister" generally naps in the car while we do errands or stays home. And the boy I have seen (Peter Pan doll) usually stays home. I don't know how she manages them all but she's doing a great job.

The Artist. Hannah has recently decided that she is an artist and it is so fun to watch her create. Mind you, we are personally responsible for great destruction of rain forests with all the paper she is going through but sometimes we head outside and use our awesome driveway canvass. We have the sweetest Tutu neighbor who has adopted the girls and keeps them supplied with sidewalk chalk and pads of paper. Thankfully our neighbors that share our driveway don't seem to mind all the fairy villages and mermaid scenes we create!

Learning by accident

This is what a homeschool house looks like. I had manage to get both the front room and the back room tidy and then I saw the stairs. They were using the broom to "paint" the walls. Not sure why I even bother most days!

We're moving along through grade 1 and some days are better than others. Last week we had a couple of nice experiences. We were at the beach on Monday morning waiting for our other "Beach Moms" to show up for our Monday morning swim and we started to dig a sand castle since the beach was thickly lined with Portuguese Man-O-Wars and the girls were not interested in risking it. While we were digging we found a long thread and as we pulled it out and brushed it off we discovered it was a necklace. So we continued to dig and found a bobby pin and a toothbrush. As a result I was able to remind Hannah what we had learned from our History CD's (Story of the World-Ancient Times, so awesome!!) about archeology and looking for artifacts and what could we tell about who had been here before us. We managed to chat about how the area would need to be marked off into sections so when we come back we know where we left off and where items were found. We also talked about the tools used by archeologists and how careful they had to be with what they found and where. Hands on is when she really makes the connections.

Hannah is also enjoying drawing and writing. She is constantly writing and drawing on everything and I do my best not to think about all the trees that are dying for her art. Seriously we have given her a block of computer paper and said go to town and she is! After listening to "The Greeks" (Story of the World) she started drawing Cyclops. Men Cyclops, women Cyclops, families of Cyclops. Our current favorite movies is Disney's Princess and The Frog, the main character is working hard to open her own restaurant so the other morning Hannah started creating breakfast menus and listing all the possible options we had. I've also taken advantage of the story being set in New Orleans to talk a little bit about jazz music, Hurricane Katrina and American geography. Its amazing what creeps into their little minds when they're not expecting it.

A Day Off

Today we finally hit the beach as a family and it was awesome! Lately Ella has been anti-beach which has made being a Beach Mom challenging. Today we dug out the kayak, dusted it off and paddled out to Flat Island. I'm sure we're quite a site the four of us piled in, along with Ella's Bath Baby who enjoyed having her head dunked into the water as we bounced in the waves. The girls were scouting for turtles and taking turns dipping their toes in the ocean. Finally Hannah got brave enough to jump in and float next to the kayak. We got out and explored Flat Island for a while and managed to see one turtle pop its head up for a quick breathe.

Next we portaged across the mouth of the canal and headed down the stream along side the golf course. The girls loved watching the fish jumping out of the water and spotting crabs basking on the rocks. As we were heading back to Kailua Beach through the shallow waters under the bridge Hannah saw a large crab, Jason tried to pick it up but this was one tough crab! He was in it to win it. The danced around for a bit, each grabbing for the other when the crab decided enough was enough and went for Jason's ankle. At this point Jason relented and Mr. Crab scurried off in the other direction. Unfortunately we also saw 5 dead puffer fish, apparently this has been common on the islands this summer and they're trying to figure out what is causing it.

After a yummy lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant, home of the massive Margarita, we headed to our friend Matt's lanai for an incredible view of the Blue Angels air show. It was up close and very, very loud. After the show we headed home and while the girls watched a movie Mom got in a run. I've signed up for the marathon but haven't quite committed to it yet. I've done it twice before so its not just a matter of finishing it this year, I'd like to race it. Catch is I'm not sure I can make it a priority. Still deciding. But while I do I'll enjoy the occasional family day off.

What's New

The original plan was to blog every other day and then life got in the way. Its been over 6 weeks and lots is new. Dad started a new job (while trying to finish the last one, fun, fun), Mama got a new bike (which then went on sale, thanks Frank) , Hannah started a new sport, soccer (Go Sweettarts!) and Ella is starting to sound out letters, so we've all been busy.

We're back to homeschooling and so far so good. We've been reading about determination and one of the stories was about Lance Armstrong and the Tour de France. Hannah drew a picture, this is huge progress because Hannah has never really liked to sit and do anything.



Still trying to fit in lots of beach time. This is the second Sea Slug we've found at Lanikai. He's very pretty.




This is the pretty pink table and chairs Ella picked out this week and I assembled it for her. However rather than the tea parties I had envisioned, this is how they spent their afternoon. Playing in the box. Yes, it was a boat and Ella was sailing away to France when Hannah decided she should go too, so they packed in all their belongings and a cell phone in case they get lost. It was going to take 3 days but then there was a Tsunami on the lake so they had to take a lunch break.

Next they had a "stamp fight", Crayola has new markers which have stamps on the end in the shapes of hearts, dolphins etc. So they decided to "stamp" each other. Mom bellows, "We only write on paper, not people!" When I return to the scene I see thisthey have scotch taped paper to themselves and have continued their fencing. They are beginning to join forces, I'm doomed.

Happy Birthday!

Birthday Girls!

Yesterday was Hannah's birthday and Ella's is Monday so we traditionally do one joint birthday party. After 5 years of big pool parties, I decided it was time to have a small party. We planned to do the "you're turning 6, you can have 6 friends." It was good in theory, in reality though we had 28 kids. We had a Peter Pan theme, complete with Tinkerbell Bouncy House and Captain Hook Pinata. The Pirates played water balloon catch (thanks to Auntie Kristin that filled all those balloons!!) and ate cake decorated with pixie dust. Today we are recovering!

If a tree falls on a runway

I have a philosophy of racing question, if you win a race but there isn't an official time do you still have bragging rights? There are certain unwritten rules of racing that newbies are not always aware of but learn with experience. For example it is not generally acceptable to wear a race shirt for a race you didn't do or finish. You also don't wear the race shirt while you're doing the race, its for afterwards when you're all hot and sweaty. Another rule is for spectators, if you're watching a friend race and they are gaining ground on the person in front of them you don't yell out, "Hey Bob, you can catch that guy! Go faster!" That kills the element of surprise for the intended victim and they will then sprint away. My question is if you win a race but there isn't an official time, do you still have bragging rights? Let me explain.

I was supposed to help out with Freedom Fest this weekend but circumstances didn't allow for that to happen. I had assumed that most of the July 4th races were on Saturday so I didn't pre-register for any of them, thinking I'd be at the Ranch. Saturday evening I discovered the Marine Corps Runway 5km was actually Sunday morning and their website didn't explicitly say no race day registration. I've done a lot of races on the Marine Base and they always seem happy to take money race day so I lined up my race gear and set my alarm.

When I arrived at the race that morning I was informed yes I could register but there were no shirts, which is fine. Truth be told MCBH usually has really ugly, big Marine looking shirts. Best women's race shirts on the island "Na Wahine" hands down! But then they explained they were also out of race numbers. Huh? I asked the registration lady if anyone would actually care if I didn't pay and she said, "Nope! But you're not covered for liability." I had already signed my name on the paper and the money goes towards a Marine unit anyways so its a good cause. Also if the money will help keep the Base doing their awesome races I'm happy to contribute.

My race plan was to go as hard and fast for as long as I could and if I blew up on the runway so be it. We all took off and I managed to pass a few people in the beginning but then people started to pass me. Quite a few people passed me but I was pleased to note that only one girl in a pink t-shirt went flying by. Up ahead I could see another lady with a strong steady pace so my goal was to run my race but to try and catch up. The lady in pink was long gone but the race is on the runway so you never really lose sight of the racers.

I slowly caught up and passed the lady in black and could see the lady in pink wasn't that far ahead. I had no idea how many women were in the front pack but I decided to push it and try and catch the pink lady. The finish line was through a line up of 18 planes here for the Rim Pac Exercise and I managed to catch and pass the pink lady half way through the planes. I ran across the mat, got a drink of water and checked my time 22:55. My fastest time ever! Wahoo.

So out of curiosity I stuck around to hear the official times to see where I would have placed. I listened to my age group and would have won it. I decided to see what overall was and they announced first place was 22:53. So I would have gotten second place but when the winner came to collect her prize and it was the pink lady! Huh. Then I realized I hadn't stopped my watch right away so my actual time was a little faster.

So here's my question, I registered, I paid my fee, I ran fast, do I get bragging rights?

The Price of a Blog

So while I was training for Honu I wasn't blogging much. There are only so many hours I can leave my home undefended before it is in a state past repair. I forgot this on Saturday as I wrote my epic 3 part blog. Turns out the cost of writing my blog is my home and sanity. It started innocently enough with Hannah asking for glue. For those of you who know Hannah sitting is not an activity she does willingly so arts and crafts are not her thing at all. So I jumped at this opportunity, a voice in the back of my head said, "This could get messy." To which I answered, "Childhood is supposed to be messy, creativity is messy, chill." So I get Hannah the glue, grab my coffee and head to my computer to compose.

It was too quite but I ignored it. No one was fighting but I ignored it. Eventually I needed something downstairs, probably more coffee, on my way down I ran into Hannah on her way up with an upside down bottle of glitter. "Excuse me?!?" Hannah,"I wanted it to be like Peter Pan. This is fairy dust." I follow the "fairy dust" trail from the stairs, through the kitchen and into the front room where the "fairy dust" stockpiles are spread all over the floor waiting to be distributed to every nook and cranny of my home.

All that glitters is not gold because in our house everything glitters. Carpet, walls, toys, children, pets. For those of you with glitter experience you know we will be sparkly for months, for those of you without glitter heed this warning, do not bring it into your home and for those of you with really mean streaks its a great gift for small relatives that live far, far away. Jason has already requested no more glitter, "I can't go to work with glitter on my uniform" and he's not due to put a uniform back on for another month but he knows its lasting power.

Still standing

I hit T2 and I’m so happy, rack my bike, stash my bike jersey, find a volunteer to apply sunscreen to my back and head to the potty. (Hey, when you’ve been pregnant as many times as I have your bladder has suffered enough abuse and refuses to be ignored!) As I head out on the run I look at my fellow runners and listen to their groans and pants. After the solitude of the bike I realize I’m not too excited to be hanging out with these people for the next two hours. I want to run my own race and not be tempted to run someone else’s like the guy in front of me. He is determined not to be passed by a girl so he takes off and 50 yards along he’s walking. Later dude.

I am so happy to be off the bike and to know I’m going to finish I’m floating! I’m also passing a lot of people, mostly walkers but a few runners. The aid stations are loaded like an all you can eat buffet, for people who consider ice, sponges and gels consumables. And despite the fact I’m not lacking for fluid or calories I can’t help myself. One guy even has my much desired Raspberry Cream Power Gel, so I grab it and decide to save it for mile 6. Wow, mile 3 already? Sweet. I see Alicia up ahead and decide I’m going to try and catch up, gradually. One aid station is playing 2 Legit 2 Quit and I find myself doing a little happy dance. I make it through the clover leaf run, three short out and backs and know I’m heading for the “Road to Hell” and it earned its name but on the positive side I start seeing people I know, Amy and Erick aka Wonder Woman and Superman are there cheering everyone on. I see Michelle A, Marcy and Gwen on the run. While I was on the bike I was convinced everyone was already done and enjoying post race massages. It was comforting to know there were others out there still suffering with me.

And then it’s mile 10. I have a brief moment of doubt when I realize I have never done more then 10 miles in my training. I recently changed my running form and had to start at 0 and build my mileage up from the beginning. It was tough but well worth it. So I did a quick mental check, feet felt fine, legs, gut, IT band was a little tight but not painful in the least, bladder. Dang. The power of suggestion. Just the fact that there was a port a potty on the course was enough for me to have to stop. And yes, this is my 4^th trip but I’m almost there. So I head for home, no more stopping, no more grazing, just running. And I’m passing people. People walking, jogging and running. And then it’s the last mile and I’m sprinting! (When I looked at my official race photos later, I literally have both feet off the ground in each picture.) I see the water, the bridge and finally the end. Its been 6 hours and 45 minutes. 4 minutes faster than the Tupper Lake Half Ironman I did in 2003. I’m done! Jason and the girls meet me with a big hug and kiss and then Hannah immediately has a tantrum. I just look at him and we agree they should just go back to the condo. I grab my finishers t-shirt (a medium since all the smalls were collected an hour ago- seriously why do they always run out of smalls at races?) my food, said a quick hello to everyone and walked back to the condo to bask in the sheer joy of being done!

I don’t know if I’ll do Honu again, especially if I re-read this blog before registering but it was an amazing day and I am grateful for all the triathletes who trained with me (Camp Bennett), guided me, lent me gear (thank you Marcy!!), answered my questions and calmed my nerves! I’m especially grateful for my husband who supports me (emotionally, mentally, financially and physically) and encourages me. He also does a wonderful job of holds down the fort so I can train. Thank you for continuing to make all my dreams come true.

The Epic Bike Ride

Triathletes are always looking for ways to shave time off their races. When I get to that level of racing I’m guessing the first place I’ll look is at my 5 minute transition times. I like to have a snack, dry my hair a little, put on some socks etc. The catch is I know I’m going to be on the bike longer than most so I’d better be comfy. Thankfully the day before Marcy had made a comment about the bike course. I had looked at the map and hadn’t realized that before we head North we head South for a 10 mile loop. It would really have messed with my head if I hadn’t discovered this until volunteers started waving me in the opposite direction I had planned to go. It was a good way to start the bike, lots of people passing me (par for the course) but also the chance for a quick turn around and see that there were still a lot of people behind me too!

The bike is the most feared segment of the race for me. A lot of people had expressed their concern or dislike of the run course but all I could think was, “How bad can it be, you don’t have to do it on your bike!” My whole focus for this race was to survive the 56 miles, I wasn’t even thinking of the half marathon at the end. So we headed up to Haiwi and it’s a long way. Luckily there was lots to keep me occupied, bikers, a noisy rumble strip, lava rocks and thorns to watch out for. My game plan called for me to have a gel every half hour and as much water as I could get into me. I had discovered the Quick Stop on the Marine Corps Base sold the gels I liked for 99 cents so I loaded up. At the half hour mark I have my gel, one slug of it and I realize, “Oh, it’s the raspberry cream not the razz flavor I like. Shoot, this is going to be a really long day.” I had a water bottle on the front of my bike, a speed fill on the frame and a pink camel bak, which earned me some “Go pink backpack girl, go!” from spectators. I wanted to finish this race without crawling or getting dehydrated, primarily because my daughters don’t understand recovery and could care less if I made poor nutrition decisions on the race yesterday, Sponge Bob is on and breakfast needs to be served, NOW! So of course all this fluid going in means it has to come out and as previously mentioned I’m going to be on the bike easily an hour longer than my “competitors” so I need to make good decisions about whether sitting in my own urine makes sense to save me 2 minutes, yah it doesn’t. So I stop at the aid station, went potty, refilled my speedbottle and found a second wind.

The only problem was mentally I was ready for the turn around which didn’t come for another 20 miles of up hill climbing. I also finally caught sight of the fast bikers heading back down the hill. I did some quick math and realized it would probably be at least 45 minutes until I was where they were now, ugh. Also at this point the gusts of wind are appearing out of nowhere and blowing me around. I’ve got my body contoured so that I’m driving into the wind sideways in hopes of minimizing my lateral travel. In the end it was more of a mental attack than a physical one but it did shake me up a little bit. Finally after much wondering what I was doing and would the turn around ever come, it did! So I got off to pee!

The week before the race I noticed one of my cables had slipped out of the groove so I took it to a bike shop to get an assessment if it was an actual problem or not to worry about it. The mechanic quickly popped it into place and sent me on my way. However when I rode afterwards it no longer shifted, hmm, that can’t be good. So I tried a different bike shop. They tweaked it and told me there wasn’t a problem and thoughtfully explained to me how to shift the gears on my bike of 10 years. Grrr. This is not going well. After the second “tune up” the gears at least shifted but boy did they complain about it! So my game plan for the bike, shift as little as possible. I know, I know but what can you do? So I’m heading down this volcano, with Joy’s advice ringing in my ears, “No brakes!” frantically praying to God or the deities of the Big Island as I’m unclear on jurisdiction and am not in a position to tick anyone off when I attempt to shift for a rolling hill and my chain falls off. Dang it. I’m not 100% sure I know how to put it back on but I have traditionally learned most of my bike mechanic skills in the middle of a race so I take a stab at it and successfully manage to get it back on, whew!

So I take off again, and this time manage to pass someone, of course she’s walking her bike but she still has a race number so that’s all that matters. I call out and ask if she’s okay and she says, “Salt, I need salt.” Hmm, I don’t have any, I tell her but then realize I do have some bloks so I pull over to go back and hand them to her when another biker arrives on the scene who does have salt tablets so I take off. I’m sure at this point many triathletes (if they’re even still reading) are shaking their heads. I think we’re actually not supposed to assist each other but its now the 3 hour mark, we are still far from T2 and it’s a different kind of race. Its not about slots, the drafting judges are long gone and they’re actually hoping we will draft if it means they can finally close the bike course. At this point none of us are really racing each other, we’re racing the clock and the course and our heads.

I do a mental check and I’m doing okay. I’m more than halfway there, I put my chain back on, I’m heading downhill and I’m not walking my bike on the side of the road begging for salt. I’m good to go. I just keep biking and start singing Queen’s song, “I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bike”. We’re heading back, we’re on our way to the Fairmont and I’m so excited I’m actually passing people! I see Mike and smile for the camera. When I see the actual turn off to the Fairmont I start to giggle! Yahoo, its almost over. Hmm, except the 13 mile run. Bike time 3: 52, under 4, not the 3:30 I was dreaming of but I'm still moving!

Honu Race Report (finally)

Its been almost a month since Honu so I figured it was my last chance to actually do a race report. I was waiting to post pictures but Blogger is having none of that so I'll edit them in when it decides to co-operate. I’ve had the chance to read some other race reports and mine will be longer than those since my race lasted an hour and a half longer. Yes, going fast is great but the true test of endurance is to just stay on the course as long as you can and still keep going.

The Swim

Mass start 1500 people, sounds awesome doesn’t it? My original plan was to hang back, let the fast, slot-focused people go and then just do my thing but then I realized how many people that left, about 1400. Normally the swim doesn’t phase me but after reading a local athlete’s blog about a training group coaching swimmers on how to shove others under the water and swim over them, I nervously realized there may be some athletes looking to purposely move me out of the way and not just accidentally swim over me. Finally I decided I’d rather take my chances with the strong swimmers and hope a gap opens when they all take off then to just get slammed around by the panicking weak swimmers.

I headed off to the deep water where the lifeguards were trying to keep people behind the start line without too much luck and waited for the cannon. BOOM! Away we went, the beginning of a very long day! A typical start, everyone on top of each other and I did have one locked in moment where I started to doubt my game plan but I very quickly realized it wasn’t going to be any better anywhere else and so far I hadn’t really been kicked, punched or slapped, I was doing well! I made it to the first buoy and was a little too far inside so I had to swim under the buoy (making sure I was going around the outside of the rope) which was a move I was a little concerned about feeling there may not be a window for me to surface once I cleared the buoy.

It was a tougher swim than I had anticipated but I’m not sure if it was due to the chop or the sheer number of swimmers. As we swam the buoy line a lifeguard, on a board keep yelling, “Move Left!” So I kept moving in left much to the annoyance of the guy to my left. I am a notorious zigzagger when I swim. I once won a lake swim at West Point only to have a guy on shore comment to me, “You know you’d be much faster if you swam in a straight line. I think you did twice the distance of everyone else.” So this poor guy had to contend with me crowding into him constantly but we got around all the buoys, at which point I realized perhaps the lifeguard wasn’t yelling at me personally and that my line was actually fine. Oh, well.

The day before the swim the family and I headed to the beach, along with every other athlete on the Kohala Coast to check out the swim course. I started chatting with this lady who managed to convince me that it was a triangular course and that the buoys were going to be brought in closer to shore. I realize now it was just wishful thinking on her part and even though I had read the official swim map and was fully briefed on the fact it was a rectangular course as soon as I rounded the last buoy on the top line I angled in for the finish. At this point two things occurred, the swimmer behind me started slapping the crap out of my feet and the crowd thinned out. The crowd thinning out often happens on the last stretch of swim races as those with juice left throw it into overdrive and those hitting the wall just start looking at the coral, so I wasn’t too concerned about it until I realized it wasn’t just thinning out it was barren. Damn it! I looked over my left shoulder and there is the swimming highway to the last buoy. So I turn completely around and head down to the last buoy. I’m not sure if my toe tapper was aware we were going the wrong way and just trying to redirect his mule or if I was just slowing down and he was catching up but after the 45 degree turn he disappeared, preferring to draft a swimmer actually doing the race course.

Finally land ho! I exited and was a little disappointed with my swim time of 37 minutes but I also knew I haven’t been putting the time into the pool and that there was so much left of today it would be better for me to play it safe on the swim in order to finish the bike.

The View from the bike

Sometime in the next six weeks I need to get really good at bike riding so I can survive the 56 mile portion of the half ironman in June. As a result I have been spending more time on the bike. A lot of it in my living room.

As you can see there are all kinds of wonderful things and ways for 2 industrious girls to entertain themselves. Despite this abundance of educational and imaginative opportunities their favorites activities include building forts with the couch pillows, broom wars and laundry basket derbies. These are fine activities but they usually require Mom hauling herself off the bike just as she's got a groove going in order to protect pictures on the wall, confiscate jousting equipment, referee the game "hug attack" or rescue the cat. Sometimes I'll just turn up the ipod and check out the other view.


Occasionally I do make it outside. I was working on the hills across the street the other day, trying to be brave enough to descend without the brakes. My pep talk include, "Well if I'm going down I could just land on a grave, that should be relatively soft." Yay, I need some work on my pep talks.

This is from one of my favorite places to ride, I love it because there is very little car traffic and the cars that are there move slowly. However as you can see from the photo there are planes! The first time I saw the plane go across the bridge I was about to ride under I thought it was an optical illusion. Nope! I've never actually been under the bridge when a plane has headed to the runway and think I will continue to avoid it, its probably pretty loud in there.

All played out, wish I could join them!

A Week In The Life

Sometimes when people find out we homeschool I get that sad look, like they imagine I'm stuck at home all day forcing my children to do calculus. Nothing could be further than the truth! A week in the life.Homeschool Science Club drawing pictures of insects.

Swim lessons with Mark the Shark.

Homeschool field trip to the Kualoa Ranch and fish ponds.

Ballet class with the incredible Miss Nicole.

Some backyard gardening.

Lunch date with Dad at the Discovery Center.

Toddler gym.

Homeschool gym class at the Hawaii Academy.

As I've said before, the key to being a stay at home mom is to not stay home!

House of the warrior

Last week was the 12^th annual Hale Koa Biathlon, one of my favorite races for a number of reasons including its one of the only events on this super fast island that I have actually placed in my age group. My friend Katey explained this phenomenon is due to the fact the Straub Women’s 10k is the next day so serious runners are there and serious triathletes are somewhere on their bikes. However there were some seriously fast ladies there including my training pal Kelley. I was watching her go from a distance and was marveling at her pace and the fast ladies she was passing (the guys left 5 minutes before us or there would have been some severely bruised egos, guys HATE to be passed by chicks!).

This race is also a favorite of mine because I love the Hale Koa (House of the Warrior) Hotel. In 2000 when Jason and I were just dating we came out here to visit from New York/Canada so he could check out the University of Hawaii where we was convinced the Army would send him to do his Masters (silly dreamer). He told me he had gotten us reservations at the “Army hotel” needless to say my expectations were not considerably high. I was expecting some kind of barracks complete with cots and wool blankets when we pull up to the Hale Koa’s open air, flower gushing lobby. I was shocked, it was so beautiful, did he have the wrong address? We had a wonderful honeymoon type vacation with lots of sunshine, surfing, plumerias and mai tais. Both of us fell in love with Hawaii. Shortly after that Jason became a Grad student at UH.

In 2001 when Jason and I decided to get married it was going to be a quick little deal with a Justice of the Peace but before we knew it we had a cast of 13 making the trip to Hawaii. We decided to keep it simple and got married at Magic Island on a Thursday morning and headed to the Hale Koa for our ‘”reception”, attending the Hale Koa Luau featuring lounge lizard, king of cheese Danny Couch. A good time was had by all!

Since then we’ve visited the Hale Koa on a number of occasions, I think its fair to say Hannah learned to swim in their baby pool, a group of new moms used to meet up there since it’s the perfect size for little people. Ella is following in her footsteps.

Last year Hannah at the age of 4 did her first run swim run and it was so stinking cute I almost cried. This year she did even better, making it to the middle of the pack and I think she had more fun since Mom hung back and let her mingle with her other age groupers rather than fussing over her goggles or swim cap. They line the kids up according to age and the big kids go first so the little ones can see what they are supposed to do, well that’s the idea anyways. Hannah’s been to enough races to have an idea of what she’s supposed to do and I think the best part is just for her to have an appreciation for participating. Mom and Dad are certainly not the fastest people on the course when she watches us but she sees us smiling and having fun and doing our best and that’s all we wish for her. We'll be back again next year and maybe we'll even convince Ella to have a go!

My New Bike Trainer

Meet Hannah. Okay, so she’s not new I’ve had her 5 ½ years going on 6 but she’s taken on a new role as my bike trainer. She’s been Mom’s head cheerleader for a while now, hanging out at races, helping Dad watch little sister while Mom trains but with Dad’s encouragement she has become Mom’s bike coach.

Since she could speak she has coached me on my real bike trainer “Go, Mom, go! Faster, faster”, but now, thanks to Dad, we’re hitting the open road. Hannah has had her own bike for two years but attempts at family bike rides have lasted 10 minutes and required a lot of coaxing, bribes and eventually threats. So Dad bought a bike trailer to attach to his bike while I ride my beach bike with the baby seat and Ella. Dad decided it might be a good idea for us to switch and put the trailer on my mountain bike so I could get some extra miles in when Ella naps and he works on his dissertation. We decided to do a test run of the Mom/Hannah combo over at the Marine Corp Base as they have a nice flat bike lane.

In the triathlon the bike is definitely my weakest event. I need to spend more hours in the saddle and since my husband does need to complete his PhD by August, I need to find ways to fit in extra workouts with kids in tow. I have a double jogger which makes it possible to have both kids with me while providing added resistance training in the form of 80 lbs of squabbling siblings. It even has a rain guard which one likes on in the rain and the other hates. However it kills my form. So we’ll try the bike.

As we unload at the Marine Base, Dad explains that Mom hasn’t had the extra weight of the trailer or passenger before and Hannah will need to be patient and sit still while Mom gets the hang of it. As we take off I suffer from my traditional dread of traffic vs. bike but now with the added responsibility that half of my most prized possessions is on board and I’d better not careen us into traffic or trees. As we start off I can feel us beginning to fish tail a little bit, as I glance over my shoulder I see Hannah standing on her pedals, turned around chatting to her Dad behind us. “Sit down!” I hiss. Clearly this is going to be a lot of fun for both of us.

As I start to get the hang of it the bike begins to wiggle again,

“Hannah sit down.”

“There was mud, it was going to get on my shoes I had to pick them up!”

Dad calmly reminds both of us that Mom is new at this and its going to take some time for her to get used to this. Hannah thinks this over, and I know this because Hannah does most of her thinking out loud.

“Mom doesn’t know what she’s doing. She doesn’t know what she’s doing. She doesn’t know what she’s doing.” This wasn’t helping my confidence level but we weren’t wiggling so I let it go, for a while, then it started to grate on my nerves. Then the demands for food started.

“Can we go to MacDonalds””

“No.”

“Please, I’m dying! Can I have ice cream?”

“Its 9:30 Sunday morning. You’re not having ice cream, besides we just had breakfast.”

“I’m thirsty. Do you have any cranberry juice?”

“No, drink your water.”

“I don’t want water. Can we go to the playground? I never get to do anything I want.”

After half an hour of the singing, swinging rider I began to realize the benefits of my coach.

“She doesn’t know what she’s doing, she doesn’t know what she’s doing,” Hannah continues to sing.

“Have you fallen over yet?”

“No!”

“Then clearly I know what I’d doing!! Find a new song to sing, now!”

“The butterfly flies in the sky. Pretty, pretty butterfly.”

Our 3 mile journey certainly felt like 56 miles and then I recognized the brilliance of Dad’s plan. Hannah’s role wasn’t only to strengthen my physical endurance (which her constant swaying and dancing certainly will) but also my emotional and mental endurance. If I could manage to sharpen my focus and block out the endless demands for ice cream, playgrounds and bathroom breaks I might be able to face the challenges on the race course and also any negative thoughts that jump into my head when things don’t go my way. It helps me to work on finding a Zen state even when I’m being bombarded with challenges from the person on the planet who best knows how to push my buttons!

So on the road keep an eye out for the Mom/Hannah combo, we’re hard to miss and if you listen close you can even hear my coach, “Ride like the wind!” (thanks, Electric Company!).

Not staying at the beach today!

At 4 am hubby's cell phone rang and for some reason I decided to go find it. I didn't reach it in time but then the house phone rang. The last time we received a 4 am phone call it was September 11, 2001 so I tend to try and answer those calls. It was our friend Scott in Atlanta making sure we were aware that there was a Tsunamis warning for Hawaii. We checked the NOAA site and sure enough a Tsunamis had been generated and was scheduled to hit Hawaii around 11 am. Then we received a few texts. Not so easy to fall asleep after that but eventually we did. We decided to try to go out for breakfast the reasoning being to eat someone else's food and save ours in case things went bad. We walked down the hill to the coffee shop but it was closed, MacDonald's was closed, except the drive thru and the grocery store was packed so we headed home to a morning of Guy Hagi, weatherman extraordinary.

Thankfully the Tsunami didn't amount to much but I will say I'm impressed with how well the Civil Defense plan was put into action. We've been through a few black outs and know what a pain it can be. Hannah had a ton of questions but luckily we've talked about Tsunamis before and played with the models at the Bishop Museum so it wasn't a foreign concept. We're also not in a flood zone so we didn't have to evacuate or make any flood preparations. Its been a long day and we're still waiting to hear what this tsunamis is going to do in Japan where Uncle Harry and Auntie Tomomi are living.

Hannah's bananas

Actually they are Jason's bananas but that doesn't rhyme. Jason's Mom gave him 3 banana trees in October 2008 for his birthday present and we now have 3 bunches of apple bananas ready to harvest.

Collecting them is a labor intensive activity but they are good! We also originally had 2 papaya trees but one died. The fruit it did have was good and the best part is that Hannah planted the seed for that tree when she was 2 years old with her best buddy Lily!

I would recommend planting papaya seeds for anyone looking for a fun and easy activity with little ones. They love playing in the soil and papaya seeds sprout quickly. Just save some seeds from your next papaya, peel off the slimy seed casing and have the kids stick the seed in the soil in a plastic cup (so you can watch it sprout up and the roots grow down) until its big enough to go into the ground or a pot. Cheap, easy, delicious and educational.

That'll be 5 M&M's please

In the interest of full disclosure, these photos of Hannah cost me 5 Peanut M&Ms. She loves her new board but prefers it at flat Lanikai. Today however Barbers was perfect for her as the waves were tiny.

After some bribing she agreed to a photo session which luckily lead to Mom and Dad pushing her back and forth on the board. Ella also had some fun bouncing in the waves with Elmo of course.

And then Mom had her turn. After some fun in the sun we headed home for naps while Dad headed to Pyramids where hopefully he found some waves too.

Don't hate me because I'm...

thin blooded. Yes, this is for my poor old Canadian friends who will read this blog entry and scoff at me. I was once a sturdy warm blooded Atlantic Ocean swimmer who understood any water could be entered in a wetsuit and two swim caps but alas I've been in Hawaii now for a grand total of 7 years and I am now a complete wimp.

Today we had a day that demonstrates why we homeschool. At 7:45 Ella and I were snuggling in bed as she told me about a dream she had about two dogs "woofing" and how one was the Mama and one was the baby and they were running. In the distance we could hear a bugle call and she asked what it was. I explained it was the bell to let the kids across the road know it was time for school to start. The thought of having everyone dressed, fed and out the door lunches in hand by this time always makes me shudder.

So we hopped out of bed and headed downstairs where Jason and Hannah were having breakfast, loaded up the car and headed to Barbers Point for some Monday morning surfing. It was just my size so the kids and Dad picnicd on the beach and Mama went surfing. It was beautiful and I caught the first 3 I went for. After that the pearling began and I had some glorious wipe outs. I headed in to check on the gang and see if anyone was interested in coming out. They declined so I headed out again. After some more short rides and lots of paddling I decided to call it a day since we still had to drive Daddy to work.

This time the girls decided to come in and play. So there is Hannah in her lifejacket and Ella in her $1.99 Elmo floatie (not as trustworthy as a lifejacket apparently) Mom and Dad all bobbing in the shore break. Some of these waves are pretty impressive and if I'd been the lifeguard watching the non-swimmer 2 year old bobbing out there in a swim ring I'd probably have called CPS (Child Protective Services). This is Mama's 3rd trip into the water and unlike Dad she's not sporting neoprene so her teeth begin to chatter. Then her jaw begins to chatter. Then she is shivering so hard her husband teases her the Canadian authorities are going to show up and revoke her citizenship!

Finally I had to surrender as I couldn't even talk I was shivering so much. I felt like I was at NSLS training camp in New Glasgow except it wasn't June in Nova Scotia in a wetsuit starting hypothermia, it was January in Hawaii in board shorts and a rash guard, what can I say, I went soft! Ella and I headed to the beach to wrap up in towels while Dad and Hannah played with my surfboard.

Once we were home Ella crashed for a huge 2 1/2 hours nap and Hannah did her school work. Now most days its a struggle to get Hannah to focus on her work but today she voluntarily turned off the tv and even asked to do more work when we finished! She is also finally making some progress in decoding words!! She's known all the sounds for ages but refuses to look at the page but today she did it, even reading words I didn't help her with, I almost cried I was so proud (and told her so!).

It was a pretty sweet rewarding day, although I am still wearing a sweatshirt and jeans! I may never be warm again!

Rocking Out

This week science club met at Lanikai playground so I threw the double jogger in the back of the van in the hopes of getting a nap/jog in with the girls. Hannah just got new sneakers for running and scootering so I wasn't sure if she was going to run or ride. After the club and some discussion she decided she was worn out from all the playing and opted to ride. As a peacemaker I gave the girls my iphone to listen to some music as we headed around the loop and I tucked my ipod earphones in for some much needed musical motivation. About halfway around I noticed a lot of action from inside the stroller, hand and legs wiggling and much giggling. You have to remember Hannah's about 45 lbs, Ella 25 lbs and the stroller has got to be 10 lbs so when the 80 lbs starts swaying its not helpful to poor old Mom's form! So I pull out my earphones and hear, "All the single ladies, all the single ladies, all the single ladies! Now put your hands up!" And there are my girls hands up in the air singing away, dolly too! What a pair. They also like Gwen Stefani, Pink and Rhianna.

"Just take the photo mom and give us back our iphone!!"

Its funny the music kids tune into despite the vast variety we expose them to. One day last week Hannah was having a tantrum/drama day. At one point she turned to us and said she had a song in her head, she took my iphone and started playing "Do you have the time to listen to me whine about nothing and everything all at once? I am one of those melodramatic fools, neurotic to the bone no doubt about it". Now this girl has had more than her fair share of Laurie Berkner, Putumayo, Sharon, Lois & Bram, Tchaikovsky, Anne Murray, Mozart and Vivaldi but it is Green Day that she identifies with? Its going to be an interesting ride!

Polar Bear Dip 2010

Okay, so not your typical freezing Polar Bear Swim, more of a Monk Seal splash but it was a nice relaxing way to start the New Year.

Its been so nice to have the Grandfolks in town, Jason and I managed to go for a run together, boogie board at Bellows together and snuck off for two dates! Its also nice to have visitors because you stop doing all the day to day stuff you should and do the fun touristy stuff instead. We headed to the North Shore to see the waves and I got to surf. The next morning my ribs and my neck hurt and then I realized, "Oh, yeah, I haven't surfed for 7 months!"

Shortly after these pictures were taken the girls were starving so they headed to the Market with Dad for snacks while I swam the buoy line. Afterwards I was walking up to the Market to meet them and saw the motorcade of black SUV's, Obama was heading for Shave Ice! We didn't get close enough to see him but I'm glad he and his girls are enjoying the finer things Hawaii has to offer!