This Hurts My Head & My Heart

Someone please teach me how to make time slow down a bit.  It is just like I was warned, those sweet-sad eyes said it all, but I was oblivious.  And now here it is, racing by, and I have to remember to try and catch my breath, make the memory, and have some hope for whatever is infinite.

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

I completely forgot to pack the "real" camera and had to take the 2014 pic with my iphone.  All things considered, it is not too bad (I did not even get a chance to edit it).  James looks like such a big boy in this picture.  I am not sure I will be able to convince him to pose for these annual pics in the future.  This one took some effort and was groan inducing.  Mamas can be such buzzkills.

How Freakin' Cute

Is this lil' guy...

The Jedis (oh yeah - May the 4th be with you)

Spring baseball started this weekend and I love love love seeing the little dudes out there chasing after the ball.  They are starting to understand the basics of what is supposed to go on out there, but really it is just like watching the bad news bears and it totally warms my heart.  & I love having Luz with me on the sidelines, breaking down the at-bats, sizing up the players.  My girl loves sports, but (for better or for worse : /) she LOVES softball/baseball.  This is her last year of coach-pitch, and (at least I am hinting at it) maybe the last year of softball.

We bought a pitch/catch/return net for the front yard and - as awesome as it is (and it really is super-cool) - after less than an hour of some game that Christian invented, we experienced the absolute worst fit of poor sportsmanship I have ever witnessed in my entire life, courtesy of James.  No question Christian completely egged it on, but James was absolutely out of control when he lost.  I was thinking that being part of a team and playing a variety of sports from from age 3 on would create a healthier approach.   I suppose some of it is just nature.  Needless to say, I don't know how much of the pitch/catch/return net I can take if this is what I have to look forward to each time.

Spring & if then Summer

It has been so long that it took a few tries to get the password right when I logged in the Blogger account.  I somehow convinced myself that life was much more hectic when the kiddos were newborns and toddlers.  People told me otherwise, but I never believed it.  I was sure that when they became more independent, started evolving into their own little people, it would free up time for me.  I would read more, run more, work more, clean more, REST more.  Wow.  I was wrong.  I have, perhaps, learned to prioritize a little better than in the past.  What that means, however, is that blogging falls in a place that is near the bottom of the list, close to putting away clothes and cleaning/dusting the baseboards (yes, that one is actually on my list).

So, here's what has been going on, just in case you don't feel like you have been properly updated via Facebook and Instagram.

Soccer season ended and both kids ended the season on high notes.  Luz improved a ton over the past few months and even got a few goals.  James spent most of his season dancing around the ball, but moving quickly and with great gusto.  Here he is at his last game, getting some serious sideline coaching from Christian and more interested in my camera lens:

Here he is, post-trophy ceremony. I think it is absolutely insane that every kid gets a trophy, but that is a blog post for another day.  The shelves are already filled with trophies that just were not earned.  The trophy only lasted a few nights on the bookshelf.  James called me into the room and told me it was glowing and freaking him out because it looked like scary, golden eyes.  The trophy is now in my room and I don't plan to hold on to it until he outgrows his nightmares (James' unhealthy sleep hygiene is also a post for another day).

Post-game pile-on and snowballs:

Then there was Easter and time with cousins and lazy afternoons in Thibodaux and crawfish and corn-hole and egg hunts and baseball practice:

Lucy with cousins, Jack and William

James, yes that's his Thanksgiving headgear:

When I looked back at the pictures that I have taken over the last few months this one in particular caught my eye and made my heart ache a little because he looks so old.  Maybe it is because he is drinking a Coke (I was not the adult that allowed him to have this - one guess who it was)?

James & Jack, waiting for the next round of corn-hole:

 Ready to hunt:

Luz w/ Walker, playing with stickers:

Family Easter Sunday pic - what is up with all of the dogs!!!  They were everywhere, and really wanted in on the photo:

Jamesy, blowing bubbles:

There are many more pics and stories to tell.  I promise I will get to them soon, but I have a few more things on my list to tackle before bedtime, you understand!

Two-Wheelin'

Just in case you missed it when I shouted from the rooftops and it happened to sneak past you in the Instagram and Facebook (and, gosh, maybe even Twitter) feeds, here it is - Lucy riding a bike WITHOUT training wheels:

If you want more advice about how to get your kid to ride happily on two wheels, I cannot help much.  I can only share my experience and maybe from that you can, at least, extrapolate what not to do.  It took 3 years, two bikes, one helmet, more bribes than I can count and one patient uncle.  And what Christian and I were not able to accomplish in 3 years of trying, Uncle Richmond accomplished in about 30 minutes on a quiet street.  

Lucy's first bike was a really cute, multi-colored trike.  Although she was never too enthusiastic about riding it, she did, occasionally with much prodding.  Christian campaigned for one of those itty bitty two-wheelers with training wheels for Lucy when she turned 3.  I put my foot down thinking it was just one more unnecessary toy.  When Lu turned 5 we got her a Schwinn with training wheels.  We got her a new helmet. She loved them both.  That is, she loved the way they both looked.  She did ok on the bike the wobbling made her nervous and the cracks on the sidewalk made it tough for her to every get up much speed or confidence.  We took her to Audubon Park now and then and sometimes she looked comfortable on the bike but she never really asked to ride.  When she was 5.5 we started experimenting with two-wheeling without the training wheels.  The practices usually occurred at the park near our house where the sidewalk is (relatively) even and there is a large grassy area.  The first attempt was lousy and she shrieked the entire time and let go of the bike and grabbed whoever was holding it and running alongside her.  She stopped pedaling, she insisted she would fall and never once, not a single time in about 20 different attempts over the course of the next 3 years did she ever pedal more than about 3 rotations without someone holding the back of the bike.  

Let me also add that this was not for a lack of kindness and encouragement.  Christian and I were both incredibly patient and sweet (at least in front of Lucy).  We took breaks.  We didn't push it.  We only took the wheels off when Lu said she was ready.  None of it worked.  

One of my 2014 goals was getting her on two wheels.  I knew she would love it.  I just couldn't figure out a way to convince her.  My mom recently rehabbed a 30 something year old navy blue Schwinn that is a little lower and a lot heavier/sturdier than the one we bought Lu.  I think my sister and little brother both learned how to ride on this bike and so maybe mom was right to bust out the old clunker and bank on some good two wheelin juju.  

After wasting most of the day on my MLK, Jr. holiday I decided I needed to accomplish something and I couldn't run (due to the IT band injury I mentioned in my last post) and didn't feel like working or going to the grocery or cleaning the house.  So, at that point it made sense to get Lu back on two wheels and make it happen.  It was not a total coincidence that I planned it when Richmond was in NOLA.  

There's no question that things felt different when I got Lu out there on the blue Schwinn.  Was it as simple as just a different bike?  Was it the passage of time?  Who knows...but I did get her to pedal about 20 feet without anyone holding her bike.  And then she started to get nervous and I ultimately had to throw in the towel.  At that point Richmond stepped in, I forced myself to keep my mouth shut and about 30 minutes later I walked out on the front porch and took the video I included above.

I remember pushing Lucy in the BOB when she was a baby.  I would circle Audubon Park and point out birds and trees and dogs and bikes.  I remember seeing moms running along side older kids on two wheelers and thinking, "boy, I am going to love it when Lu is riding her bike and I am running right next to her".  Last Saturday we did just that (my IT band injury is improving, slowly, and with the help of acupuncture - more on that journey later)...I ran, she rode and we passed a young mama pushing her baby in their BOB and my eyes welled up with tears.

Newtons for Running

Have you ever spied these guys on the well-toned calves of a runner and thought you just had to have them?

It happened to me frequently for about a year and I just put off the investment for many reasons - 1.  I am a Brooks girl and I have always run happy in Brooks, 2.  Newtons are not cheap (relatively speaking), and 3.  I never felt like a serious enough runner to wear them.  Two full marathons, more 1/2 marathons than I can count, an average 8:30/9:00mm pace, and a weekly regiment of anywhere from 10 to 30 miles over the last 20 or so years (depending on work and babies and spirit) just didn't seem to place me in that upper echelon of runners deserving of such a super-hot shoe.  But I talked about them all the time, coveted them on others, read about them, and fantasized about running in them for so long that I finally decided to get a pair.  And, sadly, the decision coincided with my first ever running injury, the dreaded IT band (I am slowly getting back to my old running routine 6 weeks later thanks to acupuncture, stretching, more stretching, yoga, and foam rolling - more on my injury and recovery soon).  The injury sidelined me mid-way through the training for the Mardi Gras Marathon, this one would have been my third.  The MGM is this Sunday.  I will be standing on the sidelines, green with envy, but trying to remember how good it felt to hear the cheers and shouts of encouragement up and down St. Charles Avenue.  Oh, and I will be wearing my Newtons with pride, because I finally realized that I deserve to.

And have you missed seeing these guys?

These photos are actually about 2 months old!  They are getting so big so fast, but what's new.

Sports 24/7

When I was younger, and even into my college years, I had very little appreciation for professional sports.  Even though I grew up in a house where Sundays meant football was on t.v. all day long and even though I actually played sports in middle and high school (ok, well, 'played' is a bit generous; I was on teams), once I went off to college there were likely weeks, months and maybe even a year there when there was not a single football or baseball game on t.v.  And then one day I met Christian and tolerated the occasional game on in the background while I read a book because I had fallen in love. And then a few more years passed and I might have watched a few minutes here or there and paid attention for one or two of those "you have to see this" plays because I was actually starting to enjoy it. And now it is 17 years later and there is an 8 year-old who hasn't met a sport she doesn't like and a 4 year-old who already knows the colors and quarterbacks of most of the NFL teams.  I suppose what that means is that all weekend long there is a cacophony of sports noise - games on tvs and radios and ESPN highlight clips and You Tube videos capturing the incredible moments we missed - and lots and lots and lots of discussions about who we want to win.  

So, if your house is anything like mine and you were paying attention last night you probably busted out your favorite Red Sox shirt early this morning too:

More Summer?

Unreal.  It is October.  It is actually starting to feel cool (ish) outside and yet I still have not found the time to post the rest of the summertime pics I wanted to share.  The 7th blogiversary came and went and  (I suppose) the hectic pace of life over here in the Vaicius house made it impossible to celebrate the occasion.  Maybe this is just the natural progression of things over here.  I think about it all the time. Eight year old Lucy has some strong opinions already and the start of preteen angst and those things taken together remind me regularly that she just might not want me to broadcast her life over the great interwebs.  There is no real roadmap for this sort of thing. So, perhaps the occasional update for posterity is just about right for everyone.

And on that note, I give you a few of my favorites from our lovely beach vacation: