Helter Skelter Summer

I have been a lazy blogger!! This summer has been crazy busy for me! I generally like to do many things with the kids but stay in town. This summer has been very different. I teach piano from 8-5:30 on Monday and from 8:15-11 on Tuesday. Ivy goes to piano Monday, Ethan to piano Tuesday, Eva to violin Wednesday, Eva to piano Thursday, Ethan to guitar Thursday, and Nathan (and family) to swimming on Thursday night. Add to Tuesday night achievement days, scouts, and youth night. On Wednesday and Friday I take Nathan into Salt Lake for speech--which has been very productive!! For three weeks in June Ethan and Ivy had math camp four days a week and Ethan, Ivy, and Nathan have a reading program they check in with every Monday morning. In addition to that in June: Eva spent a week at Suzuki camp (at Aunt Kerstin's house where she had a blast), Eva and Ethan spent a week in Oregon with Grandma and Grandpa (they had a blast there, too--they were spoiled), we got to keep little cousins Maddie and Gracie for a week (which was SO FUN!! and Grandma Linda got to come that week too), Mom and Dad had a night away at Aunt Kerstin's family cabin (she took our kids for the day--I think she's a saint/we mostly slept)... A few months ago Vince and I auditioned for and joined a community choir--it's something we get to do together on Saturday nights. I like it more than I thought I would. Vince really wanted to join and I was not going to stay home with the kids while he stepped out another evening. It's nice to have something we share together--we don't get many opportunities like that. He's been a bit busy managing many details for a Scout Jamboral to be held out here in August--15,000 to 20,000 scouts are expected to attend. Anyway, the choir has been fun and we had our last performance last week.

I have also been keeping busy with my church callings: teaching Relief Society, visiting teaching 5 sisters, and all the indexing stuff. I have a new calling for the next two years also--girls camp. I have to really get busy on camp stuff because we leave July 26th. We are still looking forward to Aunt Amy and kids visiting for a week in July, a trip in Oregon in August, a party with cousin K in Orem, babysitting the violin teacher's students on Wednesday, a church swim party, and keeping cousins Dallin and Sariah for a couple of days (we're trading since we both have 15 year anniversaries this year!) Eva just said, "You make it sound so busy...it's not that bad..."

So those are most of my excuses for not blogging--part of me feels like I have lost touch with reality. Or is it that I am IN touch with reality--that's probably it although I wish reality entailed me reading and playing/picnicing at the park with the kids like we used to... Eva and Ethan just said, "Yeah, and why don't we play tennis anymore? We don't go on picnics! Just because YOU'RE too busy and don't have time!" As if it's my stuff that plugging the whole schedule. Of course it hasn't been all work and no play--I did take kids to the children's museum, the train museum, and library craft day. Although I'm not planning on any more stuff like that.

This last Saturday Ivy and Nathan went to the parade with Aunt L and Uncle J because Vince and I ran a 5K with Eva and Ethan. Well, we started together....kind of. Vince started at the front because he runs fast and Ethan found a friend to start with. Eva and I started together but she complained of a side ache in the FIRST block so I told her I would see her at the end. Vince placed 8th overall and 2nd in his age group. Eva placed 3rd in her age group. Ethan was 9th. I was...I'm not sure but not in the top ten. We are not sure of our times because the race organizers lost power in the middle of the race and screwed up everyone's times but we're pretty sure that Vince ran it in 18:20 and Ethan in 23-24 minutes, me in 24-25 minutes and we have no idea about Eva but she came in a minute or two after I did. I'm excited because the worst case scenario time for me would be 25:30 and that is two full minutes faster than the last 5K I ran...three years ago. Some funny things about the race:

--Vince woke the kids up and encouraged them to get ready that morning--I don't remember him doing that before for anything else. Ever. He generally gets up with just enough time to get himself ready. After the race he talked to EVERYONE we knew along the parade route on the way to meet up with Ivy and Nathan. He was clearly very proud!

--Ethan insisted in running the race in jeans...he still claims he was not the only runner in jeans. He was.

--Eva wore a cute headband and matching earrings to run in. I still think that's funny.

--Ethan and Eva did not train for the race AT ALL and had a lot of trouble moving around yesterday--Vince and I were a little sore but it felt good to me to see the kids suffering a bit...it made me feel not as old.

--After Vince finished the race and got a drink he ran back to finish the race with each of us. After finishing with Ethan he came to me and I was walking that part...he tried to get me to sprint but I told him No way and to leave me alone. I had decided I just wanted to beat Eva (I had checked and couldn't see her at all so felt pretty safe). He gave up on me and ran back with Eva, who was complimented by strangers by her finish sprint. A few minutes after I finished I saw a friend coming and encouraged her to sprint the last 50 yards--she thought it was a little funny that I made her do it after I basically told Vince to get lost. My problem was I ran the first 2 miles WAY faster than usual for me!

Eva has already found 2 more 5K's in Tooele this summer--they want to run again and have coerced Vince to take them running today for "fun". I have a demented family...