Chipper Friday

Today is FRIDAY and PAYDAY and CHIPPER FRIDAY!!!

• I love Fridays... especially on weeks where I didn't work on Monday or Tuesday!  BOOYA! 
• I love payday because really, who doesn't??? 
• I love Chipper Friday... mostly because it's OVER!  Chipper Friday is the name of the workout I did this morning.  (Oh no you didn't.)  Oh yes I did.  Here is what I was doing at 6am. (It's why I'm so chipper!!!)

600 METER RUN
50 DOUBLE UNDERS (I can't do double unders yet, so I did 100 singles)
40 MED BALL CLEANS
30 SLAM BALLS
20 PULL UPS (I still have to use a band... I'm getting there!)
20 KETTLE BELL SWINGS 35#
20 BOX JUMPS
600 METER RUN

Happy Friday to you!!!

Kelly Clarkson, y'all!!!

Jeff won tickets to the Kelly Clarkson concert at a dinner auction a couple weeks ago, so three friends and I headed to Broomfield on Sunday night to go to the show.  Kelly Clarkson was the winner of the first season of American Idol and I know why she won... that girl has some CHOPS!  She is an amazing singer and seems very down-to-earth.  She sang some of her old songs and as well as some new ones.  I didn't know all of her new ones, but I have been listening to her new CD non-stop since the concert!  We had such a great time at the concert.  Thanks, Jeff!!!

Tina Timm, Megan Robinson, Joni Gordanier & me

The amazingly talented, Kelly Clarkson

Alex's Piano Recital

Alex just started taking piano lessons on January 9th of this year.  After just nine lessons, he participated in his first recital.  He did a duet with his instructor and they played "Morning".  He did such a great job!!!  He played confidently, took a bow when he was finished and walked back to his seat with a smile on his face.  We could not have been more proud of him!

Although, he is still a beginner, he asked me to get him the sheet music so he could learn the song "Fur Elise", which is his favorite.  He told Aunt Julie about his quest when she was here in February, so she also got the sheet music and is practicing it herself.  I can't wait to hear them play it together!!!

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