tired of being sick

i think i've just about kicked a 4th head cold in 3 months. actually felt like getting on the bike and spinning for 30 minutes on the trainer tonight ... first i have felt like doing any physical activity for days.

the recycled colds this winter have made it hard to get in any sort of a routine and feel productive and efficient at anything. i spend a week being sick, a week catching up from being sick, a week of "yay! i'm getting back in a routine, i love exercising and feeling smart" then boom i'm sick again ... lather rinse repeat.

went and saw my doc today; she's suffering through her 3rd cold of the winter. i think i'll call it ultimate sympathy to share a box of kleenex and a cup of 'Gypsy Cold Care' tea with my doc while we chatted, drew blood, and gave me another vitamin b shot in the rear. (there was much hand washing and sanitizing taking place.) :)

hurry up spring! i'm tired of winter and tired of being sick!!

worst april fools joke ever!

big white fluffy snowflakes are falling from the sky .... Again!
it is sticking to the yard and bushes and trees.
this is stupid!
ok God, how about a nice shout of "April Fools!" and a gorgeous 68 and sunny tomorrow.

night skiing!

"All my patience is about to pay off," Andy declared on our way home from snoqualmie late on saturday night. Andy has spent three trips to the slopes this winter: hanging on the green runs, watching me panic getting on the chair lift, watching me bite it over and over again getting off said chair lift, and watching me ski with a death grip on my poles. (did you know those poles were supposed to be used for something more than helping you stand back up after you fall down?!)


it was absolutly dumping and gorgous on saturday night! kari met us up there. it was lots of fun to hang out with kari and experience a sport not involving 2 wheels for a change.
4+ inches of snow accumulated on our cars between 7-10pm. it was so much fun to ski in all the fluff.

kari has only snowboarded a hand full of times; andy rented a snowboard this trip; so he wouldn't be too bored watching us trying to learn. Andy was pleased that he hasn't lost all his snowboard skills. he hasn't snowboarded for 5 or 6 years.

kari and i both had monumental breakthroughs in the snow! we are very close to graduating from the green runs! andy is very ready for all his patience to pay off. :)



the arrangement of the vents in my new helmet created a great mohawk style.

Operation: Creative Space, Phase 1

it's finally time to get started on creating my creative space ... andy had to work today, so i cleared the room, pulled out trim, old window treatments, etc. the walls are spackle and ready to be sanded. andy hates this type of work ... he should give me a big kiss for doing it myself.

ok, i've discovered the joys of downhill skiing in the last couple months ... finally got the call from andy that he's done at work, so i'm off w/ our ski gear ... night skiing at snoqualmi this evening! more on that later!! :) enough work! time to play!!

tia runs?

i entered and completed my first 5K on sunday afternoon. my very first running event as an adult!
my conclusions? running is hard. and for some reason, not nearly as satisfying as riding a bike.
yet, i still feel drawn to dabble in some different types of events this season as i rebuild my fitness.



yay! jazz hands! i was quite proud of my christmas motif. as it was hail/snowing on us at the start, it seemed rather fitting.

this is the first run i've done outside this year. i've been jogging on the tredmill at the gym, and doing some walking during lunch outside (among other stuff). my body reminded me on monday, that running outside is a lot different than walking.



still a sprinter at heart:
see that chick in the pink -- i had to dust her by the time we got to the finish line, which was just at the top of that rise. and then i felt like i was going to hurl ... guess there are a few similarities to racing a bike.

i met all my goals for the race.
1. i didn't chicken out - i actually showed up.
2. i confidently placed myself toward the front of the start line.
3. i finished! didn't take any walk breaks - ran the whole thing.
4. my finish time was where i thought i should be, based on what i can do in the gym... way to not be a slacker outside on the road.

bye bye hair!

it was time to lose the hair ...
before:


after:


i have about 11 inches of ponytail to donate. my head feels so free and light! i love it!!
it's still long enough to get in a ponytail, which was my only real requirement. :)
my little social experiment is to see how long it takes the guys i work with to notice that i'm minus a foot of hair.

the frog is back!!!!

i love frogs!
last spring a frog moved into one of our "water features" in the back yard. i was ecstatic. i love nature in my yard. i want nature to feel comfortable just doing it's nature thing in my yard. last year this frog sat out there singing for weeks - then one night - there were 2 frogs singing - i assume he finally got his lady b/c later, in early summer, there were tadpoles and then little frogs in our so called "water feature".
tonight is the first night that i have heard my frog. he's back!
yay spring!

oh, and Happy Birthday Andy!!! (he's 33 today! old geezer!)

Pre-Spring?!

we got this catalog in the mail just after christmas -- what the hell kind of season is "PreSpring"? at that point i decided it described the total blah of cold and rain and snow and general ick that plagued us after the holidays until spring actually began.

well, i think this week really begins "PreSpring" - and i present the following photo evidence from my garden as proof that spring really is just around the corner....


dafadills! poking their little green heads out of the dirt!


first blooms on the first rhodie!

iris! just one of my many gigantic fields of iris, streching after a long winter's nap.

Congrats Lynn!!!

Lynn (andy's aunt) was diagnosed with breast cancer in late feburary/early march of this year. she has undergone 20-some weeks of chemo, surgery, and 5 weeks of radiation. on friday, she finished her last radiation treatment.

Lynn you are amazing!!
We love you!

Operation Front Door: Update #5

Complete!
Well, at least operational. we've still got some trim work to do ... and i need to peel off some green tape. :)

check out the happy couple! (can you believe it's still snowing?!?! this is andy's fault you know.)



we've sent erik home, cleaned up, and freed the kitties!


it's still snowing ....
(erik made it home safe and sound.)

Operation Front Door: Update #4

well, the boys are on the 3rd trip to lowes for the day. i've turned on music something other than andy's 3 christmas albums (ahhhhh, that's nice). the fire is still burning.

outside temp: 37 degrees

inside temp: 68.3 degrees

a few snowflakes stuck to andy's car while i was out on the last lowes run.

the kitties are hudldling for warm in our bedroom, where they have been trapped all stinking day. they have actually been really chill. amazing.

oakley has been hanging out by herself in this kitty bed everytime i've gone back to check on them.

i've destroyed the kitchen again creating a gigantic pot of lentil soup and some yummy smelling pumpkin (read butternut squash) spice bread.

andy's been working on the hardware. i guess that's a good sign that the end is near. they left for lowes muttering router bits, screws ... i dunno exactly what they are up to. but there hasn't been much swearing, so i assume things are going pretty well. :)

Operation Front Door: Update #3

The moment of truth! Test Fit. IT FITS!

andy is proud that he has mastered his tape measure skills.

toasty fire in the fire place.

Operation Front Door: Update #2

the boys got some plastic sheeting up over the front door opening. i got a fire going in the fireplace, and the house is actually pretty warm out here in the kitchen/living room area now.

erik did something fancy with concrete to make a base for the new door to sit on.

the boys having a pizza break for lunch while the concrete dries.

P.S. andy's prediction -- snow -- yes, we are having snow flurries this afternoon. can you believe it?

Operation Front Door: Update #1

the boys have been fed.
the kitchen is mostly cleaned up.
the boys are on their first trip to lowes.
my toes are cold.
i might have to actually put on shoes, instead of my standard fuzzy socks and birks.

Operation Front Door: Predictions

weeks and weeks ago .... when it was looking like we might actually get the new door installed before christmas .... andy predicted, "you know, whatever day we schedule to install the door, it's going to snow .... ".

well, it's not snowing, there's not a foot of snow on the ground ...


but it IS the coldest day we've had so far this winter. thank you cold arctic blast from the north ... i love being bundled from head to toe in my kitchen.

andy's friend erik was over here bright and early ... they have finally gotten started. i promised them breakfast of waffles .... so i better get started. a photo first .... more updates later ....

it's cold in here!

someone (me) is lazy about turning up the heat in the house -- go put on a sweatshirt!

the kitties snuggle for warmth.

yoga second impressions

so, i gave yoga a second chance. this time entering the room with the attitude that i was going to stretch, relax, and let go, rather than going to exercise.

i was a total wreck trying the half moon pose with my little block. my sense of balance was greatly challenged ... anyone who has followed me down the trail on a mountain bike will have no problem believing this.

so i suck. i'm challenged. yoga is now interesting to me.

andy says, "you are so predictable."

me and grandpa

a couple pictures from my recent trip to "the motherland" as andy calls it.

Indiana, that would be.

mom and i spent an afternoon hanging out with grandpa and helping him put together this ridiculously difficult puzzle.

being ornery and giving folks you love a hard time runs in the family. no question really where i inherited that from.

i remember when i was maybe 5 or 6, my grandpa had dentures. he thought it would be funny to pop his teeth out at me. it scared the crap out of me. he was laughing, i was crying. i remember running and hiding in the shed where the riding mower was stored. i think my mom came and got me; and grandpa apologized, probably calling me honey.

yoga first impressions

after much encouragement from lots of different folks .... i finally tried my first yoga class last night. my doc has been suggesting it as a way to relax and let go of stress. i've always thought it sounds kind of boring, and not active enough to really be considered exercise.

i finally stepped out of my little box and went to a class last night. can't say all my pre-conceived notions were shattered. i didn't break a sweat (can it be exercise if you're not sweating?) i did feel pretty mellow & relaxed and my muscles were all stretched and noodley. today i'm feeling some arm and back muscles, but i think those have more to do with getting back in the pool for a swim on monday, or the yard of bark mulch i moved yesterday afternoon for my real exercise.

i'll give it a few more tries. it's just not very competitive; i haven't figured out how to win. :)

... on life and health ...

"When health is absent, wisdom cannot reveal itself, art cannot manifest, strength cannot fight, wealth becomes useless, and intelligence cannot be applied." ~Herophilus 300 BC

feel like i have been living this simple quote for the last year. fighting my way back to good health ...