Scoopin' Poop

I gave the kids their list of chores today and they divvied them up.  Josh and Mattea ended up with the job of scoopin' poop.  Lucky for them, it was a beautiful sunny day, so they turned on some music and got to work.  Mattea was holding the bag and Josh was the scooper.  I was cleaning up the kitchen and periodically checking on them.  I was honestly amazed at how long they stayed at it.  Every once in a while, I would hear Mattea yell "Josh is throwing poop at me." and then he would say "No, I'm not."  One time, I looked out and saw Josh sitting in the tree.  I asked him if he was finding any poop up there.  Without missing a beat, he said "I'm the teller.  I tell Mattea where the poop is and she picks it up."  Man, he's smooth.  I'm not sure how he talked her into holding the bag AND scoopin' the poop while he watched told her where the piles were from the tree, but he did.  When I told Jeff about it later, he replied "He's ready for management." 

Crossfit -- I drank the Kool-Aid!

On Tuesday, January 3rd 2012, I started at Crossfit South Aurora (CFSA) with my friend and neighbor, Johnna.  We have been going 4-5 times a week since we started (that's 10 weeks, people!!!) which amazes me since I tend to go in spurts with my exercise habits.  Most of what you see in this Crossfit video is what we do for workouts.  They are intense and make you feel like you might throw up or pass out, but you get through it and then you have this amazing feeling of accomplishment.  I recently saw another blog post on how this woman feels about Crossfit and it totally hit home, so I'm going to steal some of her words to explain this crazy workout regime that I love.

I love Crossfit.  I love it when I go to the website to look at the WOD (workout of the day) and immediately start having heart palpitations.  I love it when I get anxious before a WOD and wonder if I’ll be able to finish.  I love it when we get to lift weights.  I love it when I can RX the workout (do it exactly as written with no modifications for weight).  I love talking to people about Crossfit.  I love seeing new people come in to start doing Crossfit.  I love watching Crossfit commercials on TV.  I love seeing Bob Harper put the Biggest Loser contestants through Crossfit workouts.  I love it when the WOD makes me sore... REALLY sore.  I love it when I don't think I can do another rep and I push through the pain and do it anyway.  I love it when I have to use extra lotion on my hands to soften the blisters.  I love it when there are pull-ups in the WOD because the more I do them, the sooner it will be that I can do them without using a band!  I love it that I don't have to do girl style push-ups anymore.  I love the feeling of motivation and competition during a WOD.  I love the AMAZING feeling I have when I finish a workout.  I love Crossfit.  Yeah, love is crazy!

Funny things kids say

Here is a recent conversation between Josh and I.

Josh:  How long was Dad's flight to Alaska?
Me:  The first leg was about 2 hours and the second leg was probably 4 hours.
Josh:  Wow... I wonder how many times he peed.
Me:  You are so weird, Josh.
Josh:  Tell me about it.

Vegas, baby!!!

Jeff and I spent several days in Vegas to celebrate my 40th birthday.  We met up with Julie & Kevin Mishler; Denise Jacobsen and her friend, Terri; Tara & Kevin Herd; Lisa Donlea and her friend, Dede; Mike & Molly Rauzi and Dan & Dani Brown.  We walked around and saw the sights, caught a Blue Man Group performance, had some adult beverages, gambled, listened to a live band, danced on a rooftop at a trendy club (which Jeff hated!), ate at some amazing buffets, posed with all of the costumed "street people", rode a roller coaster, partied in the hallway outside of Lisa's room, went downtown to Fremont Street, saw the Bellagio fountain show and saw the lights of Vegas from the top of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris.  We had a really great time and I was beyond happy that all of these people were willing to come celebrate with me.  Much thanks to Pete & Carol for flying out to watch our kids while we went.  It was so nice not having to worry about the monkeys while we were having a great time.  A special thanks to Julie for the amazing scrapbook she created containing 40 years of memories.  I will cherish it forever!  I guess my birthday celebrations are now over and I should move on to regular life.  I am totally cool with being 40.  The year is off to a great start!!!

Our ride to the Flamingo where Julie saw DONNY OSMOND!!!

 Terri, Denise and I posing with Hello Kitty -- this one's for you, Mattea!!!

 Me and BumbleBee from Transformers -- this one's for you, Alex & Josh!!!

 Tara & I at the Blue Man Group show -- friends since the playpen

The girls with Optimus Prime and BumbleBee

The girls with Spartacus

 Jeff & I with Captain America, Batman and Spiderman

Me with SpongeBob and Patrick -- this one's for you, Mattea!!!

Me doing a handstand on the bridge over the Strip -- i mean, why wouldn't ya???

Partying in the hallway -- that's how we roll!

 Kevin and his "wives" at the Golden Nugget on Fremont Street

 Kevin and his "women" at the VooDoo Lounge on the rooftop of the Rio

City lights from the top of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris

Twins

This is Josh and his "twin"/BFF, Cameron.  They met at Rolling Hills and have been best friends ever since.  They aren't in the same class, but they play together at recess and love hanging out after school and on the weekends. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Mattea and I started our Valentine's Day really, really, really early today.  Unfortunately, that meant she started vomiting at 2am this morning after going to bed with a tummy ache.  My poor sweet baby was sick almost every half hour until 7am.  It was a rough night and it broke my heart to tell her that she couldn't go to school today and would miss the class party.  We sent her valentines to school with Josh so her friends would get those and she gave Daddy her homemade valentine this morning which pretty much melted his heart.  That was about as ambitious as she got today.  She spent the rest of the day on the couch sipping water and apple juice.  She enjoyed a popsicle and some yogurt later in the afternoon and then took a big nap. 

Alex came home from school with a handmade card for Mattea.  What a sweetheart!  When Josh got home, he gave her a hug and told her that he hoped she felt better soon.  Aunt Julie's package showed up as well and Mattea was happy to receive some special presents to cheer her up.  Grandma & Grandpa's card put a smile on her face, too.  Finally, her sweet teacher, Mrs. Marshall, delivered her Valentines bag so she could enjoy the cards her friends sent to her.  Although she was incredibly sick on such a fun day, she was definitely feeling the love!  Needless to say, we are going to have a low-key night here at the Dolan household.  Here's to hoping Jeff brings dinner home!!!  (Honey -- are you reading this???)

I guess I was too far away to pick up the sound for this video, but it's still so sweet to see Alex reading his card to Mattea and her tucking it close to her heart.  His card said "To Mattea - I hope you get better.  I love you this much" (There's a picture) and then it says "which is to the moon and back.  Happy Valentine's Day, Love Alex" 

I took these pictures of Mattea yesterday before school to make Jeff's valentine.  They spell out Mattea's valentine message to all of you!!!

Could she BE any cuter???

Play it again, Alex

Alex started taking piano lessons on January 9th this year.  I'm so impressed with how quickly he has caught on.  He was in Choir for the first semester of this year, so that likely helped him be able to read the music more easily.  For now, he practices on the keyboard, but if he continues to do this and loves it, we might have to look into a used piano.  I love hearing him play!