Crimping My Style

This is my bike.  It is a very nice and beautiful bike and it is crimping my style  Well, actually to be fair, my two sons are crimping my style with the aid of this nice and beautiful bike.  I have already shared with you how James had me on a trainer in what seemed like minutes of getting home with it on Friday night. CBT decided Saturday night was his night to work me out.  (He hasn't ridden in months so I'm not sure why this became such a critical mission.)

Last night, CBT decided again that we should ride.  No problem because I definitely need the exercise.  Keith set the timer for the 24 minutes that Christopher decided we needed to ride (not more and not less - exactly 24).  We started getting close to 24 minutes and suddenly we needed to go for 30 sprinting (more or less) the entire last minute after quite a few mini sprints throughout the ride.  Of course, not to be outdone by his brother, James set up his bike and we go for another 30 minutes.  An entire hour on that bike.  I'm sure at some point my bottom will stop being sore.

While all this riding is great, it is keeping me from scrapbooking (yep, falling behind on that schedule for 2007), taking more pictures (so I can get behind on 2009 also), and all my favorite blogs.  Oh well , I guess getting in shape and not having to pay for TWO personal trainers is worth it.

Spring Yet?

At our old house we would have daffodils blooming by now.  Almost always, our Early Sensations would be in bloom by January 25th.   We got them at White Flower Farm many years ago.  This weekend,  I was ready to see those sweet little flowers but alas we didn't luck out in getting any of those bulbs when we randomly dug some up to bring over.

I made a trek outside to see if I could find any harbinger of spring outside.  I did find one lone bloom on one of our lenten roses.  That was just the little promise I needed.

Annual Awards

Last night was the annual cycling awards dinner for the club we belong to.  (That would be the familial "we" not the literal we.)  It was pretty fun.  I haven't seen a lot of these adults in several months since work has kept me busy and we haven't had races to spend hours and hours together to visit with each other.

Last night was really Phillip's night, except that little incident where some of the parents ganged up against him in his making a case for a new bike before our first race in a few weeks.  (Sorry if you're supposed to have one "l" - I can never keep it straight and sorry I wasn't totally helpful in your arguments.)  He racked up all kind of awards as well he should have.  Phillip is the National Champ in time trialing for his age group and overall good kid.  We are all very, very proud of him.  

His mom, who I got to know pretty well last summer during our trip to California, is someone I really like.  She was not to be outdone by her son Phillip so she came up with her own awards for all the parents who helped get us through the trip last year.  Here she is in the floral pink presenting a gift to another mom.  You could definitely tell she has a marketing background. "Entertaining" is not quite descriptive enough especially as Phillip was having to stand there quite mortified.  That in and of itself was hysterical to me, at least.

Thankfully, we did come away with some awards.  James set the time trial record for 10-year-olds for the club. 

And, Christopher set the 7-year-old record.  He's still trying to decide how much he likes cycling.  He KNOWS he doesn't like it when it's cold.  (And guess where he got that from?)

I was able to visit with one of my favorite people, too.  A hero of sorts...an inspiration.  Isn't she just beautiful?  Jenny was diagnosed with breast cancer last year, but I swear you would never know if someone didn't tell you.  That girl rode with the team throughout her chemo.  Said it helped it get out of her system.  She has had the most unbelievable, faith-filled attitude.  I just love her.

Would you do me a favor and say a little prayer for her as she is finishing up her treatment?   She is just the best and I would appreciate it.

_________________________________________

Unrelated topic - if you want to see some pics of Christopher's game yesterday go to candisnaps

It Finally Happened

What do "Spin it out," Let's do intervals," "Don't give up," and "Quit complaining," all have in common?  These are all phrases (or something very close to them) that I heard tonight.

After almost two years of hinting, badgering, begging and encouraging me, the boys took me to get a bike for my birthday.  A real bike.  A Blue road bike.  It's a RD1.  When James first told me he thought I should get that particular model, I thought he said "already won."  I thought it would rather cool to have a bike that already won a race.  It took us 10-15 minutes to figure out that Keith and James were on one page and I was on a totally other page.

When we got to the Bicycle Doctor to pick out a bike, it quickly became clear that James with input from his dad were going to need to make all the decisions because I hadn't a clue.

What also became clear is that James expected me to do a trainer ride....tonight.  Never mind that I didn't have shoes or pedals.  We got the pedals and I was going to borrow his shoes.  (Yes, I can now wear HIS shoes.)  Long story short, that plan didn't work so I borrowed Christopher's old cages....so here I am doing a trainer ride.

  

James is a tough personal trainer.  I think it was the end of the first 30 second sprint interval when I thought I was going to die.  Then, around the third one when my foot started cramping that I wished I was.  Dead, that is.  Not really, but man, he was tough.  He kept saying, "Mommy, you only have ten more minutes."  Then it was eight minutes, then seven minutes.  He had no idea that that sounded like an absolute eternity.

Finally, we were done.  I'm sure I'm a better person for it.  And maybe I won't hear anymore about a new bike for a while.

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The Bedhead

I admit it.  I do love that bedhead.  Maybe it's because it reminds me of his toddler years.  Or, maybe it's because it reminds me of those models that are making way too much money.

That said, it is getting a little long.  I almost had him convinced to get it slightly trimmed.  We were going to go by and get it cut on the way home from the office on one of my days off.  I had to run down and sign something.  "Mr. Bennett"  also affectionately known as BAW brought down the paperwork and engaged in the hair discussion.

Didn't I know that this is absolutely the style now?  Everyone wishes they could have this hair.  We all know that BAW has great taste and is the picture of style.  The stop on the way home quickly became deferred.  Good thing I adore that look...and the ham that comes with it.

Wednesday - Must Be Cleveland

This is the dash of my car.  5:41 AM and I'm entering I-285, which is the interstate perimeter around Atlanta for those of you not from these parts.  That means my alarm was going off at 4:41 AM.  And, yes that temperature reading is saying 21.  I believe we have established that I do not like cold weather.  I also do not like getting up before 5 AM.  This is a bad combination.

My day didn't get much better when I got to the airport.  Terminal C is not close to the parking lot and Gate 36....well, let's just say I got my exercise in.

When we arrived in Cleveland (late because we had to de-ice...now that's something you don't do in Atlanta very often) there was snow everywhere.  My cab driver told me it was about 10 degrees.  Ouch!  She laughed  that I had on ear muffs and gloves just to walk through baggage claim and the ten feet outside to get to the cab.

Even with  lots of sunshine there was lots of snow when it was time to come home.  Thankfully, it was a day trip and I got home without incident.  

Scrapbooking Update

During our New Year's visit, I helped my sister crop some pages.  I was reminded of that this weekend.  It was cold and rainy so I spent a decent amount of time cropping myself.  

Cropping may be an exaggeration.  I put over 30 12x12 pages worth of New York trip pages together.  We went last December and had a great time.  (I have made James promise he will never allow us to take 250 pictures of any trip ever again.  Ever.  Never ever.)  Now, back to my exaggeration.  I was basically slapping pictures on blank pages.  No journaling or ornamentation.  Just pictures on pages.  I did have the foresight to get some pretty black, glittery paper.  I thought that would be a great way to tie all the pictures together without much effort.  I bought all the black glittery paper Hobby Lobby had.  Three trips later and all the red and white glittery paper there, all the pictures are "cropped." 

My Hero

It was very cold in Atlanta this morning.  Somewhere in the teens.  So cold that I didn't even want to know so I didn't check.  So cold that we had to tell James he couldn't go to ride the 50 this morning because his gear is only good to about 20.  I think a part of him was relieved and a part disappointed because today's ride was clearly going to set the record (and they do track those kind of things).  I am somewhat concerned about some of those people.

When we got back from CBT's game this morning it felt a little chilly downstairs so my sweet hubby went to check the thermostat.

This, my friends, is never a good sign.  We bumped it up to 72 to see if we could make it come on...it had been set on 68.  When your thermostat is set on 68 and the temperature is 61, you have a problem.  We know this because when we first moved in, the unit didn't work.  Of course, my husband would have known there was a problem just by looking at this because he is incredibly smart.  He also has a better memory than I do so he remembered a conversation almost three years ago, which I would have never remembered.  

The heating guy casually mentioned that when it gets really, really cold (I'm sure teens qualify for this), this little pipe that carries water outside (which I'm sure has a really technical name) can freeze up.  The container from which the water is being carried can fill up and the unit just shuts off.  That is a problem when it is very, very cold outside.  My very smart, sweet husband remembered this casual, almost in passing conversation and pumped the water out of said container.  He also braved the very cold weather outside and cleared the ice from the tube.

Whew....we have heat again.  How long until spring?

I've been Interviewed

Sorry, no pictures today, but maybe it'll be somewhat entertaining.  My bffm has interviewed me.  I have to tell you that it totally stressed me out, particularly question #5.  Don't skip to the end, though.  Below is the interview.

1.   What's your favorite story featuring your Dad from your childhood?  Well, there are so many to choose from.  There's getting lost in June with long sleeves in the Conecuh River swamp, camping all the way from Alabama to Wyoming and back for an entire month, "it's not a finger" - probably a post in and of itself, but there are definitely two finalists.  

The first has to do with catching and killing some kind of flying critter in our 1920s home.  (You must understand that there are many, many openings in a 1920s home and all sorts of critters can come in.)  This particular night, I believe it was a large mosquito who had been pestering my parents around bedtime.  My dad was coming to the rescue.  For some reason, all three of us kids were in their bedroom.  You must visualize him in baseball-ready position, ready to pounce, ready to annihilate that mosquito....in his underwear.  He always slept in his underwear.  I believe it was my sister who coined "SuperFrog" about that time.  We laughed until we cried, but....

I think the one that we still laugh even harder about is the time we were watching TV.  This time Daddy was again in his "sleeping attire," but in the den.  We had a good friend, Gwen, who would just come walking into our house.  No knocking.  No warning.  Just in she waltz.  She was  part of our family so it was no big deal.  One night my little brother - ok, some of you have already figured out where this is going - decided to sneak outside and pretend to be Gwen.  In he came.  Daddy hurdled the back of his Lazyboy and covered the next 10 feet with one only foot touching down.  I am not lying.  He was to the top of their loft bedroom with maybe two more steps.  It was a super bionic SuperFrog moment.  We still laugh until we have tears thinking about that moment.  And I didn't encourage my little brother, at all.  Honest.  Our family so loves to laugh.  

Ok.  That was probably a little more than you expected.  I will do better.

2.  You are a wonderful scrapbooker, and you and I went to a scrapbook convention one year even though we didn't exactly fit in.  Why do you scrapbook?  I want CBT and JST to remember everything.  Awww.  Who am I kidding?  I want to remember everything.  We are so blessed and I find that flipping through those pages is a reminder of God's faithfulness and blessings.  I scrapped a page of a wreck I had about 18 months ago and was reminded of how much more seriously injured I should have been.  I have such a horrible memory.  (And it is fun to watch them enjoy looking at the pictures.)

3.  What kind of clothes are you most comfortable in?  Totally depends.  I really like being "dressed" for work.  We have a business casual policy, but I'm usually in a suit.  But, once I get home I would prefer to go straight to pajamas.  In deference to the men in my house, you will typically find me in some kind of workout pants and top  (and always barefoot or socks if it's cold).

4.  What is your motto?  I don't know if I have a motto.  I think Keith would probably say it's, "Git 'er done."  Once I decide I want to do something, I tend to bully my way through it.  I like to think it might be more lofty like Jeremiah 29:11.  "I know the plans I have for you.  Plans for your welfare and not your calamity."  In other words, God's got it under control so I can chill I little.  Maybe it's that's what I wish my motto was :)

5.  You are a wonderful hostess.  If you could invite any 5 people from history for dinner, who would you invite and what would you cook?  Did I just say chill?  This question totally stressed me out.  I thought of all kind of interesting people, but they just wouldn't go together.  You will see that I ended up with a group that would certainly have something in common, but I think would still have lively conversation.  I will have to have several other dinners to accommodate some of the other guests.  I still can't figure out how to host the Union and Confederate invitees, though.

I digress...here's my list.  I think Martin Luther would be very interesting.  He seemed like a jovial kind of fellow who like to stir things up.  I wanted to have a couple so I selected John and Abigail Adams.  They seem like were so sweet together.  I really wanted to invite Catherine the Great, but, well....you can imagine why she got scrapped.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer seems like a very interesting choice.  Someone who was willing to stand up to such incredible evil.  Lastly, I would want to have Keith's great Aunt Pearl.  She was a missionary to China and was captured by the Japanese, who held her as a POW.  After the war she went back to be a missionary to the Japanese people.  From what I know of her, she was a fascinating person.

This group may be slightly too political for Aunt Pearl, but I would make sure she was between Abigail and Keith.  

Then, what to cook?!  After thinking about the different tastes, I decided my basic Sunday dinner would be least offensive to the most.  

Aunt Pat's Salad

Pot Roast

Mashed Potatoes with Gravy

Buffet Green Beans

Corn Rice Casserole

Congealed Salad (can't remember the real name, but it has lemon jello, cheddar cheese, pineapple, nuts - yummy)

Rolls

Sweet Tea, of course

Homemade Ice Cream (if summer)

Bread Pudding (if winter)

Now if you would like to be interview, here are the directions:

1.  Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."

2.  I will respond by emailing you five questions.  (I get to pick the questions.)

3.  You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.

4.  You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.

5.  When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

This Economy's A Mess

I don't talk about work very much, but as I was sitting at my desk looking outside today I was reminded of one of the reasons we have a mess.  Can you see the crane behind this church?

And, this building below?  It's going to have about as many tenants when it's finished as it does right now.  (And no, those people walking around aren't tenants.  They're construction workers.)  There are going to be more buildings than we have people.

And, more borrowers than lenders.  And therein lies the problem.  As all those loans that are out there today come due, not all them will get refinanced.  Some of the borrowers should have never borrowed money to begin with and others just got caught up in the cycle of credit.  Hold on...this year's going to be a doozy.

  

Way to Go, James

It's getting closer....that first race.  About 6 weeks by my count to February 14th.  The Tundra Time Trial always kicks off the season.  I've heard it can be really, really cold sometimes for that race.  Have I ever mentioned that I don't like really, really cold?  It's nice and all just around the holidays and then I'm done.  But, I digress.

On our team we don't worry about rankings or trying to get a higher ranking.  The coaches pick different winners for the different races and the goal is for that kid to win.  That's what success is - knowing team strategy and working together.  Often, it's not the best/strongest racer on the team.  It's kind of cool that way.  Because of that, we are encouraged to not follow the rankings or pay them much attention.  That said, I was on the USA Cycling website tonight making sure they had received the parent waiver (so James could race in said Tundra Time Trial) and I saw this...wait before you look ahead.  Blue Bicycles said they might use this picture of James in the catalog this year.  Hubby took that picture.  I think he was thinking of a Blue ad when he took it.

Ok, it's extra teeny, tiny print because I just learned tonight how to grab a screenprint on my Mac and convert it to a JPEG so you'll just have to trust me.  It says that, at least tonight, James is ranked #3 in the country against all licensed 10-12 year olds.  That very well will may change, but I think it's kind of neat.  Of course, I am his mom.  Guess I'm supposed to think it's neat.  Psst.  Just don't tell coach I peeked, ok?  I don't want to get into trouble.

2009 - Is It Over, Yet?

I have been back at work for three full days now.  2008 turned out to be a very long year and not necessarily a very good one.  I had a nice break at the end of it and I was determined to come back energized, renewed.  I was going to be motivated - have a good attitude.  And I did.  Until today.  

It has rained and rained.  God knows we need the rain and I have thanked Him for that blessing every day that He has blessed us with it.  But I need sunshine.  I'm sure He knows that or maybe He is letting me have some suffering that CBT constantly reminds is a good thing.  (Thanks, Pastor Randy.)  And then there's work.  I have frankly had enough of this credit crisis.  It's making my job hard.  I mean really hard.  A big part of what I do is to find debt.  THERE ISN'T ANY!  I feel better now.  (I can't really yell at people at work.  It really isn't considered professional.)  

Today was particularly bad on that front.  Like, expect half the money you thought you were going to get at triple the price and at 10 times the effort.  It was really depressing.  I really just wanted to go home.  And then, and then, James called to say, "Remember when we found a little water in the basement and the roof guy said it wasn't a leak.  Daddy and I have made a lot of progress on finding it."  Of course, that could only mean there was more water in the basement.  And as it turns out, and on the ceilings, walls, and carpets.  Maybe I didn't want to leave after all.

It was finally time to leave.  It was cold and raining. Accuweather did not predict rain this afternoon, but as I'm driving I see this magnificent rainbow.   Actually it was a double rainbow.  I snapped a picture with my phone, but of course, the conversion to jpeg won't upload so you'll just have to imagine it.  (Your imagination is better than my Motorola any way.)  Dark gray skies with the brilliant colors of the rainbow.  I think it was the first time I ever saw a rainbow seem to actually touch the ground.  The buildings and trees seemed hazy with the colors.  

It was a great reminder.  Suffering is good because it reminds me that I am not in control and there is Someone else I can and should lean on.

Chicago Workshop

Me Ra and Brian posted pictures from the workshop my bffm and I went to in November.  I'll let their blog do the talking.  Check out the story and pics here.  We met some other nice people - I especially enjoyed Traci from Ohio and Gretchen.  Absolute sweethearts!

This workshop gave birth to candisnaps.

Arggh. Football.

I am so glad football season is over for us.  We had tickets to the Chik Fil A Bowl to see Georgia Tech (hubby's alma mater) play LSU and I had planned to take the little guys home to Alabama to watch the Tide play Utah.

CBT quickly got bored of the game (and what Tech fan didn't) so he grabbed the camera and started snapping everything in sight.  He is quite creative with the camera.

We don't have many of us together, so this one will be a treasure.

James stayed faithful until the end, donning that awful yellow hair (even on the MARTA train on the way down).  He was quite the target for LSU fan jokes - you can imagine their assumptions about his level of intelligence as he is there with this on his head and SHORTS in the 30 degree weather!!

He was using all angles and shutter speeds.  Yep - you're looking at this one correctly.  He held the camera upside down after he did several self portraits the normal way....my creative child.

Antiques

The two little guys and I went to Alabama to let the big guy have a couple of days off.  We had a great visit except our team didn't do so well.  We were 0-2 for bowl games this year.  I have some good pictures from the Chik Fil A Bowl that I will have to get around to sharing this week.  CBT is quite the photographer we're learning.

My parents have been having a get together for football on January first since I was in junior high.  We still enjoy the opportunity to go back and participate.  Of course, I took lots of pictures, but I really don't have any pictures suitable to put up from the actual get together because they are all of us either barking orders before people arrived, stuffing our faces endlessly, or napping.  I quit taking pictures by the time the game got going because it was pathetic immediately.

I did take some cool shots outside before the festivities started, which will be posted on www.candisnaps.blogstpot.com, and a couple inside.  One inside was of an arrangement my mom had made using some ornaments we had when I was just a wee child.  While taking the picture, I realized that probably makes it an antique.  In this picture, I remember both the gold and the pink balls from my childhood.

Now for an unrelated Public Service Announcement. If you have children - keep them close to you.  We had a little incident at a BP station on the way back from Alabama.  A man quite boldly came up to CBT in an attempt to move him away from where adults were standing.  I yelled at him (as you can imagine.)  I was really surprised at how gutsy he was so all you parents out there - I learned I need to keep a closer eye on my little ones than I thought I did.

Happy New Year's!!

Happy New Year's!!  We hope you have a blessed and prosperous 2009.

(ok, I know he's in shorts, which is a dead give away that it's not New Year's Eve - it was the closest thing I had...have a great one any way.)