Best Vacay this year ;).

We recently returned from a very long vacation to Florida (Disney World) and a Disney Cruise.  Was it fun?  Yes, is the answer you're looking for.  In the past we have done the parks and then the cruise.  This time we switched it up and did Disney World last and realized we liked the first scenario better.  Ah well, you live you learn.  Usually.

 Will zonked on the plane.

 Lizzy wearing her sunnies.  She had to put them on when she was informed that we were over Florida.

Lizzy and I on the Magical Express.

Before the cruise we went to Disney World for one evening and Islands of Adventure to see Harry Potter World for a day.  Super fun.  The butter beer really is as good as people kept telling me. Hogsmede was unbelievably adorable.  I recommend it.  We also visited Doctor Suess Land while at Islands of Adventure.  The kids liked it...me, not so much.  It was just sort of tacky.  We also tried some mad roller coasters.  Fun yet headache inducing.

 Hagrid's Hut.  How cute is that?

Will and 80's Lizzy waiting in line for some ride.  I think it was some raft ride that we all got unbelievably wet on.

We went on a new boat this time, the Disney Fantasy, and it's amazing.  A. MA. ZING.  The thing is huge.  And beautiful.  I didn't take very many pictures of the ship.  Not sure why.  But we checked out a few things right when we got on, kids club being one of them.

 A periscope of some sort.

They had themed rooms.  They were all too cute.

 Our first port was Grand Cayman and it's everything people say it is.  I really loved it.  We took a catamaran ride out to a sandbar where stingrays gather to be fed.  What an experience.  We were able to hold them, feed them (watch out for this particular activity, we almost lost our thumbs to their crazy suction), and kiss them.  They feel like silk and are unbelievably heavy.  They look so light and elegant in the water, so I had no clue they'd have such heft.  Will loved it, Lizzy...had to be coerced.  It's fine, she only threw a medium fit over holding one ;).

 The littles on the net on the catamaran.

 Steve and I catamaraning.

 Will fixing to kiss Goldie.

 Lizzy being forced to touch a stingray.

 My mom getting ready to kiss Goldie.  This is amazing, she hates the water.

 Cute Will.

 My sister Haley kissing Goldie.

 Holding Goldie.  She was fabulous.

 My nephew Logan holding one of the males.

 Steve holding Goldie.

 Will driving the boat.  I noticed that the boat was driving all wonky and realized that the captain was really letting the kids drive.  Hilares.

 Logan driving.

 Captain Lizzy.

The whole crew on the catamaran.

Later we went snorkeling and Lizzy was like a little fish.  Will wanted nothing to do with it since the water was rough, but Lizzy had the time of her life holding Steve's hand and checking out the sea creatures.  This was my favorite day in port.  I'd really love to go back to Grand Cayman and check it out a bit more.

This is just a recap of our first few days.  I'll have to post the rest some other time because Lizzy keeps plaguing my heart out to get her stinking Jeep going.

Peace out,

Heidi

Just some fun things

I do still knit. I've been such a noblog that I've forgotten to post quite a few knitting projects. Duh. I've also been made to feel very guilty while reading many of your blogs. Not that you've made me feel that way intentionally, you're just so bloody productive! Note to self: knit more stuff.

I knit Steve and Will some matchy matchy fair isle hats. They're made from the most fab cashmere that Steve bought for me at Purl Soho. I was nervous working with it the whole time because it's so blasted expensive that mistakes just made me nuts. Ah well, they turned out great. It's Tiennie's fabulous Norwegian Star Earflap Hat pattern again. If you're wanting to try fair isle and haven't yet, or if you just want a quick and impressive knit, this is the hat you're looking for.

Just finished Steve's hat at the gym's swimming pool. Nothing like being surrounded by chlorine and heat and cashmere.

Will in his dapper hat, eating something. I believe this is the last time I ever saw him in this hat, which is why I don't knit for my kids. This first attempt was originally intended for Steve but I buggered up my gauge.

Pattern: Norwegian Star Earflap Hat by Tiennie

Yarn: Jade Sapphire Mongolian Cashmere

Needles: US #8 circular and dpns

For: Steve and Will

I also whipped up a lovely Gaptastic Cowl. I love it so much that it has replaced my lulu lemon scarf of delight that I wear every. single. day. It's so snuggly and toasty and je t'aime the little pop of color and chunkity chunk stitch.

This is the only picture I could be bothered to take. I wanted to write a post so I snapped it in the car whilst waiting for one of the kids to be finished with some activity or other. I figured it showcased the stitch well enough.

Pattern: Gaptastic Cowl by Jen Giegley

Yarn: Some no name Michael's brand in 50/50 wool/acryclic

Needles: US #15 circular (nice and quick...ish)

For: Moi

Anyway, I'm currently knitting some Rainbow Bright socks (which will probably take me the rest of my life) and I'm DYING to knit Elijah by Ysolda Teague (my friend was knitting him the other night and he's too cute for words), so there will be other knitting posts shrotishly.

Peace out,

Heidi

Just reminiscing...

I LOVE that my kids aren't babies anymore. I've really loved (most parts of) all the stages, but to me, they're easier as they get older. That being said, I have the cutest kids on earth. Really. I'm just feeling really grateful for my family today.

Will was such a silly little guy.

And large. He liked being naked and eating.

Lizzy was dramatic from the start.

And also an elf.

Will LOVED helping with Lizzy. They've always been good buddies.

And good buddies with the dogs.

Peace out,

Heidi

Thank you Pinterest!

Pinterest, you dark horse. I thought you'd be something I could just browse and have fun with. Not so. You force me to make things. So many things. You've forced me to stop saying, "I'm not really creative" because no will believe me anymore. I've ripped off so many ideas from you that I've officially become a "crafter". I've made things to wear, gifts of all sorts, decorations galore... I've even made my own dishwashing detergent. Below are some of the things I have made after pinning my face off. Enjoy.

Mustaches on a stick. My kids pretend they're French when they're wearing them.

Fabric scrap flowers. This one was glued to a pin and stuck on this onesie for my great niece.

More fabric flowers. Some are glued to barrettes and some to pins. It's a multi use craft.

A mustache on a pin. I gave it to my great niece to stick on a onesie.

Mustache binkies. So help me...

A binkie in use on my great niece.

Multi use piece of fabric. Cut some arm holes and use it as a vesty thingy or twirl it up and use it for a scarf.

Another shot of the fabric thingy.

Washers stamped with metal alphabet stamps. This one didn't turn out so well, but I've made others and they're adorbs.

I even learned how to carve my own rubber stamp. Seriously.

We recently had my mom's 60th birthday party and it was a Pinterest spectacular. I can hardly contain my creativity, or your creativity, as the case may be.

Peace out and happy pinning!

Heidi

Fit as Fiddles

I always intended to raise my kids to be interested in physical activity and exercise. Obviously the most important way to do this, as a parent, is by example. I've always been interested in exercise and nutrition and have done races in some form or other since I was a teenager. There's something so exciting and positive in a race atmosphere. Everyone is there for the same purpose; to stay fit and compete in a positive way.

Recently Steve and I did Slam the Dam in Lake Mead. We did this race last year when Steve was very very sick (he emptied 4.7 million oz. of phlegm into the lake). Our times weren't stellar but I was really proud because of how sick Steve was and that he finished his first open water race regardless of this.

This year Steve tore his ACL two months before the race. Honestly. His doctor didn't know if he'd be ready to do a race so soon after his surgery. He was verboten from entering the water on his own (people get a little crazy on entry and he didn't want him knocked over) and he had to be very careful with his kick in case of re injury.

In addition to Steve's drama, I had a little ambulance ride and a stay in the emergency room about a month before the race due to anaphylactic shock brought on by some herbs I took. So lame. It derailed my training quite a bit as I kept having symptoms for a week until the herbs were completely out of my system.

Long story (slightly) short, both finished the race. Huzzah! Steve beat his time from last year by 8 minutes and I beat mine by 4. Still not fabbity fab but it was defo an improvement and we're vair vair and thrice vair happy.

We forgot to take any pictures of the race so the above is one lifted from the Slam the Dam website. I want to thank my dad for rowing for us to keep us safe. He was my original example of staying fit and has participated in many of the same races as me as well as rowing in this one for us. Go dad!

Will has been asking us all year if he can run in a race. This summer was a bit of a fiasco because of Steve's knee. I don't really run anymore because of a back injury. However, since he wanted it so badly, we knew we'd have to find a way to do it.

We found the SoJo Marathon and Half Marathon which had a kids race (1/2 mile!) and knew we'd found our race ;). Will was so excited and Lizzy decided she wanted to race too. I wasn't too keen on Lizzy racing because she tends to cry when she does something she thinks is hard and she's mildly (read: huge understatement) lazy. Whatevs. We signed them both up the night before the race.

Race morning was very exciting. They got their best running clothes and shoes on and we headed out to the park. Will was very nervous because he "thought he would do something wrong" and Lizzy promised not to cry ;).

Walking across the parking lot to the race start

Getting out pre-race nerves...

At the start. I know I'm partial but how cute are these two?!

AND THEY'RE OFF!

They both took off like shots. It was so cute. The excitement was palpable. At about the halfway mark, they both got winded and said their "hearts hurt". The drama with these two is a bit over the top. I tried to keep them positive by telling them we were almost there and then we rounded a corner where people were cheering and they knew they could finish. When we saw Steve and my dad cheering us on, they took of like the wind again and rounded the corner to the finish.

After passing the "half Tardis-es" (Lizzy's term), we were in the home stretch ;)

They were SO proud of themselves. I got a bit teary watching them. Even though this race distance was small, they had accomplished something huge for them

All done and posing for Steve. Look at their proud little faces.

They both got blue ribbons (which, if you ask them, means they won), water and ice cream sandwiches, and swag bags with water bottles and fanny packs. They thought that was the bee's knees. They also both kept talking about it all day, showcasing their pride. Cute little bugs.

I'm so proud of Steve and my little doodles for accomplishing their goals. Steve had to work hard to get in shape for his race after his knee injury and these two finished their first race and won! I really hope we can keep this up throughout their lives. Exercise keeps me happy and healthy and has prevented me from falling into the sedentary trap that so many people with chronic injuries fall into. I'm so happy for the example of fitness in my life and will continue to be an example for my family. Viva la fitness!

Peace out,

Heidi

First Days

Will and Lizzy both went back to school recently. Will to first grade and Lizzy to her second year of preschool. Will was so excited to start first grade because he wanted to eat lunch at the cafeteria (with lunch from home since he refuses to eat school lunch) and he was going to be beginning the Mandarin Immersion program. Half his day is in English and half in Chinese. He loves it and it's so cute to hear him counting etc, in Chinese.

Lizzy nearly died of excitement when school started again for her. She ran right in and gave her teacher a hug. She isn't afraid of anything and has zero anxiety about school.

Will's first day was hard for me. He seems so little to be away from me all day. They gave all the first graders a "sixth grade helper" to make sure they got to lunch and had a fun time at recess. He wasn't afraid at all, which is good because we've been dealing with some anxiety with him over the summer.

All in all, back to school has been a fabulous time. I get 3 days a week where I don't have any kids for 2 hours. What the WHAT?! It's zing. I've been able to FINALLY get up to the reservoir and swim. Huzzah!

Waiting in line to go into the school.

Heading in!

Riding home (his new fabulous big boy adventure).

Lizzy "smiling" outside the school.

Lizzy with her teacher, Mrs. Hawes, finding her spot at the table.

Peace out,

Heidi