Meet Of Champs

(for some reason I can't click and drag these pics down to the bottom where I want them. Sorry they're supposed to be at the end of the post)

Yesterday was the meet of all swim meets, the best of the best...The Meet of Champs. Swimmers from the central Arkansas region had to qualify to enter. Isaac qualified in freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, IM (100 meter medley), and relay. It was so much fun to be around so many good swimmers. Isaac was pumped. He did fantastic. Better than we anticipated. He broke his own person records by seconds. He came in 6th place over all in his age division for freestyle, 2nd place in IM, 3rd in relay, 9th in butterfly. His shinning moment came during backstroke. He is the Champion...not to be beat. He came away in 1st place over all in backstroke. There's a kid he has raced against a few times named Joseph Pots...watch for him in the Olympics. This kid is amazing...true talent and skill. His times are phenomenal for an 8 year old. Isaac's #1 goal was to beat him in something...he did it in backstroke. Watch the great defeat. Two timers stood up at the end so you can't actually see him touch the wall, but you can see the win.

Coach Janet was jumping up and down. So excited to see her new swimmer take gold. At the End of the Year Party last night she told us Isaac broke the 11 year record set back in 1998. The record was 25 meter backstroke in 21.84 seconds. Isaac is now the record holder at 21.00 seconds. Couldn't be more proud of him. He has worked hard and swam fast. I think we found a new passion for him.

Last night was also the End of the the Year Party for the swim team. We had hamburgers, hot dogs, the kids all got their trophies and medals. Then we went swimming (what else do you do as a swim team?) It was a lot of fun. At the end they pulled all the kids out of the pool and threw in tons of quarters. The kids all dove in and got as many as they could. Hayden came away with 75 cents, Isaac with $3.75, and Caite was too tired to get back in. It's a fun tradition.

She learned it from Isaac

Isaac is known for taking a spoon to the peanut butter jar. He taught Halle. She loves it.

And she's off!

Caite has conquered the 2 wheeler. Thanks to Isaac who took off the training wheels even when she didn't want them off. And thanks to Seles, our cute 12 year old neighbor, who wanted to run around the cul-de-sack with her. A little practice with mom this morning and she's got it down.

The 4th

We had a really fun 4th of July! Aaron had the day off, which hasn't happened since we've lived here. We went to our little Maumelle Parade. When I say little, I mean really little. I think it was over in 15 minutes. But they threw LOTS of candy. And that's really the only reason the kids want to go. Then we went to the Crandalls for a BBQ with lots of friends. It was fun to just relax and eat good food and catch up with everyone. The men had fun setting of fire works...I think they had more fun than the kids. When it got dark we went over to the lake for fireworks. We had fun, the kids had fun, it was nice to spend the whole day together. That really doesn't happen very often.

Tagged

I was tagged by my Sister in law, Kara

What is your current obsession?
finishing my parents mission scrapbook

What do you hate that most everyone else seems to love?
semisweet chocolate chip cookies....must be milk chocolate

What are you wearing today?
white shorts and a pink shirt

What’s for dinner?
meat loaf, baked potatoes, corn

What would you eat for your last meal?
Cafe Rio sweet pork burrito enchilada style

What’s the last thing you bought?
milk

What are you listening to right now?
Halle saying, "Mama, mama", she's trying to climb in my lap

What do you think of the person who tagged you?
Love her and her sense of adventure.

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
Close to our families

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
Italy

What do you do for fun?
spend time with friends

What’s your favourite quote?
Nike: Just do it

What is your favourite color?
red

What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe?
jean shorts?

What is your dream job?
good question...don't know

Describe your personal style.
Simple, traditional

What’s your favourite tree?
Aspen

What are you going to do after this?
laundry

What’s your favourite fruit?
fresh peaches

What inspires you?
my husband

Who was the last person you kissed?
my hubby (unless you count little kisses for my kids, then it was Halle)
What are you currently reading?
No time to read these days, I fall asleep every time I try

Go to your bookshelf, take down the first book with a red spine you see, turn to page 26 and type out the first line
"Agents with a pKa closer to the body's pH have the faster onset, because a major amount of local anesthetic exists in the uncharged form, the form that crosses the nerve membrane."

What delighted you the most today?
it's still early, but I did get to take a shower uninterrupted...doesn't happen very often

What do you do to "escape" the real world?
turn a movie on for the kids and go in my room


The rules:1. Respond and rework; answer the questions on your blog, replace one question you dislike with a question of your invention, add one more question of your own. (I didn't add another--this took me way too long!)2. Tag eight other people. (okay, so I didn't tag anyone. Do it if you want.)

Our week

It was HOT really HOT this week. We spent A LOT of time at the pool. We had swim team every morning and then would go back to play in the afternoon. We found a church that has a 2 story indoor play area that is open to the public. The kids had fun playing. We will be heading back there soon.
We had a swim meet on Saturday. This time it was indoors, thank heavens. It was just me and the kids at this one, so I was thankful I didn't have to chase them around in 101 degrees. The team we raced were great, by far the strongest and hardest team so far. Isaac held his own, although he didn't come home with 5 first place ribbons. 2 firsts, 2 seconds, and a DQ on butterfly. It was funny, when the horn went off to start the race, he dove in and did a few freestyle strokes before he remembered it was the butterfly. He had first if he wasn't disqualified.

lined up and ready to go.

Waiting around in the gym. these meets are way too long for the little kids. 4 hours.

Today was stake conference at church. I don't know why I even tried to go. We got there a little bit early to get a seat. And we were out in the hall just after the opening prayer. Halle is a mess. Of course when I take Halle out they all follow. They ended up fighting in the hall over who was going to sit where and then the fought over the crayons and everything else. I was there a total of 45 minutes and said "I can't do this". So we came home, only to have more fighting and arguing. It's been one of those days every mom has, where I question my ability to parent an wonder why I wanted to be a mom. So for now if any one wants an 8 year old and a 4 year old (which happen to be 2 boys) let me know :) I think raising boys is my test in life. On a happy note the girls looks cute today.

my heart is heavy

I have a best friend Stephanie. We lived by each other in Pennylane Townhouses when we were first married. We had babies at the same time, and became really good friends, really fast. Due to our moving around so much the past 6 years, we haven't lived close to each other. But we talk all the time and I see her for a few minutes every time we go to Utah. Next to Aaron she knows me best. We trust each other, we understand each other, we keep each other grounded. Everyone needs a Stephanie.

She called yesterday afternoon and asked if Aaron was home. "Nope". "Didn't think so, but I thought I would try." She never talks to Aaron, so I asked what was going on. She took her baby (7 months old) to the doctor yesterday because she had developed an odd rash on her legs. Her pediatrician sent her to the hospital for blood test. She was scared and wanted to know what might be going on.

After many tests, both yesterday and today, leukemia is the diagnosis. My heart aches because hers does. I was strong on the phone when she called a few minutes ago because she needed me to be. We talked about how it will bring her family closer, and hopefully make her husband a stronger member of the Church. We talked about Gods Plan and tried to stay positive. But right now my heart is heavy. I'm sad for her. I wish I could be there with her and help with her other kids. So for now I pray for Stephanie and her sweet little one. Please bring them peace.