P365 - 2016 - Day 305 - Happy Halloween 2016

P365 - 2016 - Day 305 - Happy Halloween 2016

Happy Halloween 2016 from Buddy the Elf, Dorothy, and Michealangelo.   I am so happy that they all still find the fun in this holiday.  I hope they always do!

P365 - 2016 - Day 304 - last night

P365 - 2016 - Day 304 - last night

We made it to the Chegg tonight for their last night of the season.  I can hardly believe that it is the end of October already.

P365 - 2016 - Day 303 - a look back

P365 - 2016 - Day 303 - a look back

Holidays always make me sentimental.  Truth be told, many things make me sentimental....but for some reason, I am most aware of the passage of time at Halloween.  I am so happy that my kids still enjoy the fun of dressing up and I hope they always do..... Here's a look back at the past 8 years of fun and creative costumes with my three favorite monsters.

P365 - 2016 - Day 302 - sabbatical

P365 - 2016 - Day 302 - sabbatical

The last sabbatical that My Wonderful Husband had was the year that The Boy started kindergarten and The Bear and The Princess were in second grade.  I remember at the time thinking that the next time he would be on sabbatical would be the year  that The Bear and The Princess start high school and The Boy is in 7th grade.  At the time that seemed like a million years away...... and look where we are now.  My Wonderful Husband's sabbatical has been approved for Fall 2017 - the year that we will be sending all three kids over the bridge to high school and middle school.  Time really does fly. Congrats to my handsome professor on his sabbatical!

P365 - 2016 - Day 301 - my last 6th grader

P365 - 2016 - Day 301 - my last 6th grader

How did we get here already?  Who is this grown up kid?  I really have to stop blinking.  My youngest "baby", the Littlest Leonard, my last 6th grader.....this is his last year in elementary school before he makes the trip "over the bridge" to the middle school next year.  I can hardly believe it. Love this handsome guy.

P365 - 2016 - Day 300 - SRMS National Junior Honor Society

P365 - 2016 - Day 300 - SRMS National Junior Honor Society

Congratulations to The Princess on her induction in to the SRMS National Junior Honor Society! We are very proud of her hard work and dedication!

P365 - 2016 - Day 299 - 2016 Shore Conference Champs

P365 - 2016 - Day 299 - 2016 Shore Conference Champs

Congratulations to the SRMS Boys soccer team.  They won their last game and clinched the title - 2016 Shore Conference Champs!  Way to go boys!

P365 - 2016 - Day 298 - a great photo

P365 - 2016 -Day 298 - a great photo

It's not actually a photo from today but it's a photo they brought home today.... the SRMS 8th grade Washington DC trip.  What a great a photo. :-)

P365 - 2016 - Day 297 - the game...and a beer

P365 - 2016 - Day 297 - the game...and a beer

It's Sunday night and the game is on.  The Pooch wanted in on the game...and a beer.

P365 - 2016 - Day 296 - perfect fit

P365 - 2016 - Day 296 - perfect fit

He only changed his mind once...but when he did, I think we came up with the PERFECT costume.  A 6ft tall human who thinks he is an elf seems like the perfect fit for The Bear.  Just waiting on a wig and some pants to arrive to add to my handy work and I think he will be the perfect Buddy.

P365 - 2016 - Day 295 - thirty years ago...to now

P365 - 2016 - Day 295 - thirty years ago...to now

Thirty years ago, my mom made me this Dorothy costume for Halloween.  While I am a crafty and creative person who wields a mean hot glue gun, my mom was truly talented and could sew anything. Thirty years ago when I was in 8th grade, I asked her to make this dress for me and she didn't hesitate to whip it up.  Flash forward those thirty years to now and The Princess is now in 8th grade and was looking for a Halloween idea.  I threw out several suggestions and then remembered that this was sitting in a storage box.  It turns out that my 2.0 version fit right in to this costume and was excited at the prospect of wearing it for Halloween.  I can not tell you how happy that made me and I am certain that Gigi is smiling in Heaven that she will be wearing it this year.  I crafted some ruby red Vans to personalize this costume to The Princess and then found some great accessories for her friend to be The Wicked Witch of the West.  I can't wait to see this all put together!

P365 - 2016 - Day 294 - (pre)Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

P365 - 2016 - Day 294 - (pre)Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

It's that time of year again...time for me to buck the system of store bought costumes and flex my creative muscles.  This year I offered to make the group costumes for The Boy and his friends, so the stakes were higher than just pleasing my own kids.  I have a couple more things to finish to make this turtles complete, not the least of which is the shells.... I hope that these (pre)Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are happy with their costumes.  I think they came out great and I had fun making them.

P365 - 2016 - Day 293 - Every.where.he.goes

P365 - 2016 - Day 293 - Every.where.he.goes

It is very possibly - actually it is quite certain - that this silly dog has no idea that this furry tail is attached to his own body.  He spends hours of his life trying to catch the furry thing that keeps following him.  Every.where.he.goes.  Every once in awhile, he catches it and even then he is very suspicious of it.

P365 - 2016 - Day 292 - in this moment

P365 - 2016 - Day 292 - in this moment

Evenings are hectic in this household.  Heck, mornings, afternoons, weekdays, and weekends are all pretty hectic with three kids and two adults and all of our schedules.  Many days it can all become too much and I might be known to unravel a bit at the sheer volume of things to do.  But at the same time, I try to remind myself that the schedules, the hecticness (is that a word? no? well it is now), the list of things to do....all of that is what makes this crazy life, our life.  I remind myself that Time is a sneaky thief and before I know it, he will try to steal away all of these moments to add to the collection of years.  In other words, there will come a time when we are not this hectic, we are not torn in a million directions, I will not have three lunches to make (ok that might be ok), I will not have homework to help with or dinner to somehow make in between dropping off and picking up....and I know that I will miss it all.  So, I try to savor it sometimes and nights like tonight are the perfect night to do that.  With two teenagers and one preteen in the house I am sure that you can understand that a night where everyone is happy is a rare night.  Tonight was that rare night.  I managed to get to The Princess' home soccer game yesterday and The Bear's game today.  After his game, I dropped The Boy at his practice and went back to the school to pick up The Princess who was on her way back from her away game.  After taking the two 8th graders home, I cooked the chicken cutlets I have already prepared and left to pick up The Boy from practice.  When I came home, I found these two doing homework together at the counter, helping each other, talking, and laughing.  The Boy joined right in while he got himself a plate of dinner and I just smiled to myself.  I still had dishes to clean and lunches to make, not to mention socks and underwear that still needed to be folded...but in the meantime, I was just listening to these three great kids and savoring the hecticness of it all.  I was soaking in the voices all talking at the same time, the laughter, even the mess.  I was living in this moment because this is our life.  And it's pretty awesome.

P365 - 2016 - Day 291 - training

P365 - 2016 - Day 291 - training

I am 99% sure that I registering for my second marathon in March... I love the structure of training for a marathon and I love the challenge of completing one.  I needed to figure out my plan and make sure that March would work for me, so I printed out my trusty calendars and got planning.  Ok...maybe I am more than 99% sure.... I really just need to register.

P365 - 2016 - Day 290 - first "brick"

P365 - 2016 - Day 290 - first "brick"

I did my first "brick"... I biked over 10 miles and ran a fast 2 mile run right after.  I am slowly making strides towards my triathlon goal.... now if it weren't for that pesky swimming part that I keep putting off.

P365 - 2016 - Day 289 - long drive...nose in a book

P365 - 2016 - Day 289 - long drive...nose in a book

The Boy and I had a long drive to his soccer game so we went prepared.  I had several Jimmy Buffett cds (because, as it turns out, one of kids is a Buffett fan), he had his iPod and he had a book.  It made my heart swell to see him put the device down and pick up his book for the ride.  I love seeing my kids have a nose in a book.

P365 - 2016 - Day 288 - Our fourth "baby"

P365 - 2016 - Day 288 - Our fourth "baby"

Our fourth "baby" had double ear infections and needed to go to the vet.  He was slightly nervous about the whole thing.....he channelled his inner lap dog and he even hid under that chair at one point.  But when he realized that the doctor was making his ears feel better, he seemed to relax.  As much as this pooch can relax.

P365 - 2016 - Day 287 - and they're off

P365 - 2016 - Day 287 - and they're off

And they're off.... at zero dark hundred we set out to get to the middle school to board the buses for DC.  I have never seen happier kids who had to wake up at 3:15am.  They were even smiling.  I hope they have a great (and safe) time in DC!!!

P365 - 2016 - Day 286 - packed and ready

P365 - 2016 - Day 286 - packed and ready

They are packed and ready to go....and I can not believe that my two 8th graders are heading off to DC for an overnight class trip tomorrow.  They are so excited and I am so nervous... but excited for them.

P365 - 2016 - Day 285 - My Tuesday recovery plan

P365 - 2016 - Day 285 - My Tuesday recovery plan

What do you do when you have a terrible cold and cough and need to rest and recovery?  Binge watch Parenthood on Netflix.  This was my Tuesday recovery plan.

P365 - 2016 - Day 284 - My Monday recovery

P365 - 2016 - Day 284 - My Monday recovery

Everything comes with a price, I suppose....  The price for running the LBI 18 mile in the rain, wind, and cold was a cough that required my inhaler.  My Monday recovery looked like this.  On the up side, my legs felt great and I if I wasn't coughing up a lung, I could have gone out for a run.

P365 - 2016 - Day 283 - LBI 18 mile

P365 - 2016 - Day 283 - LBI 18 mile

This was my fourth year of running the LBI 18 mile race.  I woke up in the morning to the sound of rain and wind and congested head.  Not ideal circumstances, to say the least.  But, the thing I have embraced about running in the past year is the unpredictable.  I have spent the past year pushing myself outside of my comfort zone (with a little help from my friends...).  I trained through the winter, in wind and rain, and in the dark of night and before the sun.  I have learned to just run, regardless.  Circumstances and conditions are not always going to be ideal (in running and in life) but I have worked on not letting that stop me from accomplishing my goal.  This day was no different....and luckily, at the last minute I ended up with a little help from my friends.  A couple of friends that were not planning to run, had a change of plans and heart and joined me in the rain and wind to run this island.  My goal had been to set a PR for this run.  I wanted to break 3 hours, unfortunately the weather had a different plan.  I am not going to lie.... this run was HARD this year.  Physically and mentally.   I was fighting a cold and with 30 plus mph winds and driving rain, my back was not happy.... but mostly, I was having a hard time getting out of my way and out of my own head.  Everything was great at the halfway mark and it looked like we were going to finish under 3 hours....  Then the wind picked up, the rain got harder, and I felt like I was running against a brick wall.  I am so thankful that my friend stayed by my side through all of my head games with myself.  She talked some sense into me and when I realized that I was not going to break 3 hours....I was ok.  Given the conditions, the fact that I finished in 3 hours 9 minutes is something that I am really proud of.  In the end, it was hard...but with that challenge comes the satisfaction of knowing I did it and I accept those bragging rights.

P365 - 2016 - Day 282 - so very proud

P365 - 2016  - Day 282 - so very proud

I am so very proud of The Princess and this outstanding accomplishment!

P365 - 2016 - Day 281 - and they're off

P365 - 2016 - Day 281 - and they're off

And they are off.... on their way to the WAGS tournament in VA for the weekend.  The boys will both be at EDP tournaments here in NJ - in two separate locations just to make things more interesting - and I will be running the LBI 18.  It's a busy weekend for The Leonard Five.

P365 - 2016 - Day 280 - 4th time

P365 - 2016 - Day 280 - 4th time

With a busy Saturday full of soccer tournaments, it was looking like I wouldn't be able to pick up my race packet for Sunday.  Thankfully the race coordinator let me pick it up early.... so here it is - my 4th time running the LBI 18 mile run.  Hoping that the weather is kind to me so I can get a PR.

P365 - 2016 - Day 279 - takes a lot of work

P365 - 2016 - Day 279 - takes a lot of work

From late night homework and studying with the 6th grader to dinner and homework in the car in between practices with one of the 8th graders.  The Princess has back to back practices on Monday and Wednesday and with about a half hour in between before meeting her carpool ride, there was time to bang out some homework and have a quick bite to eat.  I really applaud all three of our kids for finding the balance between school and sports.  It takes a lot of work and that does not go unnoticed.

P365 - 2016 - Day 278 - concentration and determination

P365 - 2016 - Day 278 - concentration and determination

It was a late night of homework.  The Boy started his homework after school and before soccer practice, but he had a math test to study for also and wanted some extra time and help.  So after getting home from picking him up from practice and his brother and sister from their middle school games, we sat down to go over the math unit review.  This was the look of concentration and determination as he went through the problems.

P365 - 2016 - Day 277 - one of my favorite days

P365 - 2016 - Day 277 - one of my favorite days

This may be one of my favorite days of the year.  The day the lights on the boulevard begin to blink.  It's not simply because the island gets quieter....although that is a definite perk.  I like when it gets quiet.  It's not that cars are no longer stopped at the red light at the other corner blaring music. Although that gets super old, super fast so it's nice to not have to deal anymore.  It's not just that it means less crowds, more familiar faces, and a return to the small town feel.  Although, I really do love that part of living here.  No, a huge reason that the sight of the blinking lots makes me smile is because the many, many trips that I have to take off and on the island to soccer practices and games becomes much quicker and easier.

P365 - 2016 - Day 276 - Our two 8th graders

P365 - 2016 - Day 276 - Our two 8th graders

Wow... how did we get here so fast and how do I slow down the hands of time?  Our two 8th graders.... so proud of who they are becoming!

P365 - 2016 - Day 275 - dinner

P365  - 2016 - Day 275 - dinner

It was a slow soccer day... The Boy was the only one with a game.  After getting my last long training run in before the LBI 18, The Bear, The Princess, and I stayed behind while My Wonderful Husband took The Boy to his game and we did a little shopping to get them ready for their 8th grade trip to DC next week.  When we all met back at home, we opted for some Chegg for dinner since it will be closing for the winter before you know it.  It was a dinner full of many laughs and moments that I wish I could have frozen to remember always.  I'll have to settle for some photos.