Volleyball Stars

We were finally able to see Landon's nieces play volleyball at their school. It was nice to see the girls in action and they were great! I am not being bias either. They really were strong players and we are so proud of them. Below are some pictures of Katelynn in action. It just so happened to be her birthday too, so she definitely had a little extra pep in her step! Unfortunately I didn't get any good photos of Kloe in action, but there are some great ones of her and the monkey's at the bottom of the post.

Tony was so proud of his birthday girl!

Meanwhile... my girls were up to their usual selves. Making faces, eating anything they could get their hands on and getting as much attention from family as possible. Kloe "Klo-klo" was ready available to play some pat-e-cake and ball tossing. Thanks for the fun Kloe!

Nautica Malibu Triathlon

Last Friday we headed over to the Nautica Malibu Triathlon for Landon's first go at an Olympic triathlon distance. An Olympic distance is a 1.5k swim, 40k bike, and 10k run (in miles: .93m swim, 24m bike, 6.2m run). It was a great day for a triathlon. A little cold for the spectators from the Valley, but great for the athletes. The ocean was smooth and there was very little wind for the bike and run. Unfortunately it was not a good race for Landon. Right away one of his calves started cramping during the swim making it difficult to kick, but he still carried on. During the bike he struggled with even more leg cramps, a flat tire and some brake issues. Still he continued on! Landon tried to walk a few times during the run, but couldn't get any relief from the cramps. He finished the race at 2:44:17. Landon was certainly discouraged by all the cramping, but was happy to have completed his first Olympic distance. Right away he did some research on the cramping and is pretty sure it was due to dehydration and possibly some vitamin deficiency. He will definitely be sure to hydrate efficiently for his next race! Landon's training partner Brian did a great job on his race. I think he even surprised himself at how well he did. His finish time was about 2:35. His wife and kids were very proud of him too.
The event itself was great. The race was well organized with clear start and finish points. The landscape was beautiful and it was fun to see a few celebs. Friday night we bumped into Matt Reid at our hotel (pictures at bottom of post). He was past years winner of the triathlon as well as this years. He was amazingly fast and made it all look effortless. My friend Susie and I saw Trista Sutter (The Bachelorette), whose husband Ryan was competing, as well as we were arms distance from Paul Mitchell. We didn't stay for the celeb race on Sunday. I'd like to do that next time, because there is also a tot trot that would be fun to enter Halina in. The girls had a blast playing with the Groh's. Their oldest pretty much babysat Elise the whole time, she even pushed the stroller as we went from start point to start point. Overall it was a fun and relaxing trip and I hope Landon isn't too discouraged, so we can go next year and he can redeem himself!

So Many Poses!

Curiostiy...

Look who I found smelling the flowers! Every time Landon buys me flowers the girls are all over them. Elise thought she would help herself to a smell. Halina always wants one of her own in a vase or to carry around too. I think next Spring I'll plant some bouquet flowers for this very reason.

7th Wedding Anniversary

It really is mind boggling how quick time passes us by. It seems like only yesterday Landon and I were taking our first steps as a newly married couple. Moving in together for the first time. Buying things for the home we both liked. Staying up late. Laughing a lot. Taking new jobs and venturing down new career paths. Defining who we were as a couple and establishing what we wanted to be about. Now, we are fully fledged into marriage. Raising two adorable little girls whose decibel levels are ever increasing. Sustaining a curious little dog whose decibel levels are also on the higher end of the scale which has lead us to invest in a bark collar. Don't worry we haven't tried it on the girls! However, Halina did wonder how it would look on her baby sister. She was quickly reprimanded and now knows the severity of her fashion choices for her little sis. Nevertheless our life together is loud, chaotic and exhilarating as ever! We are grateful to God for our own little family as well as so many great extended family members and friends. We are also grateful for a loving Church family and for the organizations and clubs we belong to. All of which keeps our marriage thriving. Here's to another exciting year!

For our usual Anniversary night out we went tot dinner at Tommy's and then saw the movie Inception. I did not like the ending by the way! We had a nice relaxing and distraction free evening. The girls had a wonderful time at the "Fun Girls Club" too. Landon's sister Kris kept the girls for the evening with the help of her two teenage daughters that my girls idolize.

Seriously, honey? No texting during our Anniversary dinner! However, it was work related and only happened once.

Playtime During MOPS Registration

Registration and a bouncy house play date is always exciting and fun! It was great to see familiar MOPS Mom's faces again. MOPS has been a great place for the girls and I to have fun, learn some new things, make friends and, for me, to find encouragement as a Mom! It is always a relief to know that my children are not the only ones who do odd and bizarre things!

Elise must have had her baby doll stolen from her a dozen times. I kept seeing one child run around with it, drop it, then another little one would snatch it and carry on the pattern. Below are some pictures of Ella and Elise sharing the baby. I'm not sure if Elise is about to pat Ella on the back or smack her. You tell me! There weren't any tears so the conduct must have been civil.

Haley and Hallie did pretty good waiting in line to go up the giant bouncy house slides. Can you tell how excited they really were?

Sleeping In Church

Precious sleeping baby. I wonder what she is dreaming about? After worship Elise was rocked to sleep by her Auntie Kris. The last several services Elise has fallen asleep just after her Papa starts preaching.. Hopefully she won't make this a pattern as she gets older!

Grandparents Quick Visit

My parents drove in last Saturday afternoon to visit us for two nights. They are venturing on a two week road trip to see family and friends while my Dad is on Summer break from school. Their destinations include, but not limited to, California, Arizona, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. Basically they are traveling to hot, hotter and then very humid locations. I'm sure they will feel very good when they return to the cool NW.
Although our time with my parents was short we enjoyed every second with them. Grandpa played some boardgames with Halina and Grandma got talked into watching some of Halina's favorite princess movies. Both girls put on many little dance and tricks show's for them. They were oh so cute! The temperature here was pretty mild, so we did some barbecuing and walks around the neighborhood too. On Sunday Landon and my Dad went up to Keweah Delta lake and did some swimming with one of Landon's triathalon buddies. Overall it was a delightful visit and we are all looking forward to the next one.

Making Attempts at Blogging Again : Highlights Since My Last Posting

Since my laptop started having problems and with Landon working from home (which means he is on our desktop all day long) it has been difficult to keep up with blogging. However, even with two busy little girls and a growing calendar of events I am going to make an attempt at blogging consistently again. We will see how it goes!

Here are some highlights since my last post:

Elise turned ONE!!!

Visalia Triathalon. Landon did great, but was hit by an oncoming bicyclist. Ouch!Landon and I finished out first half marathon. Loved it and can't wait to do our next one in November.
My neighbor Marie had her little boy on May 19. We are so happy for her and her family!
Landon's cousin got married in June. Allison was a stunning bride!
Father's Day! The Brokaw Family broke away from New China this year and tried a new Chinese restaurant. We are quite adventurous!
My friend Jaimee and her family dedicated their youngest daughter to Jesus! I was so glad to be there to witness it.
We went to WA for my Dad's 60th Birthday. We ran a 5k as a family, as well as celebrated his birthday with fireworks (it was the 4th!) and many friends from the neighborhood.
Jaime Balmer's (soon to be Greene) Bachelorette weekend! I traveled to San Francisco for the celebration. It was my first time being away from my precious baby girls. I missed my family, but had so much fun with all the ladies exploring SF and Wine Country.