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All the same, we have survived and made it into the fall. Mythili began kindergarten this year, and has adapted well to only listening to Spanish all day long. She is already learning some new phrases and repeating them at home, though she did admit the other day, “My teacher finally understanded me when I told her, ‘I have Girl Scouts.’” (Her teacher doesn’t speak English–ironic, right?). While she is a bit tired at the end of the day, she seems to like school, and has also enjoyed joining our Girl Scout troop.

Meanwhile, Riona began her one and only year of preschool. To say she loves it would be an understatement. She knows details about her teachers’ interests and lives and has made a few friends already, though at first she was a bit shy. Bruce has also been taking her to Prairie Preschool at the Plains Conservation Center, where she gets to ride the wagon, feed the chickens, pick vegetables from the garden, and pet the snakes!

Isabella is a full-fledged school girl, delving into complicated subtraction and word problems, reading short books in Spanish, and longer chapter books in English. She and Mythili both participate in a once-weekly after school activity: for Isabella, dance class, and Mythili, art. Both girls are enjoying their school year.

In addition to the usual day-to-day activities, we went troop camping this year at Twisted Pine Girl Scout Camp just outside of Genessee. The girls had a blast creating survival bags, hiking and observing nature, learning about and searching for constellations, singing songs and telling stories around the campfire, and playing outside in the homemade tee-pee. The lodge was amazing, with three large bedrooms, a decent sized bathroom, and a huge, fully stocked kitchen! We can’t wait to try out all the Girl Scout properties and have already booked a different camp, Meadow Mountain Ranch near Estes Park, for some winter fun in January.

In addition to working with new teams this year and teaching a computer class (ACK!), I am also very busy teaching three University of Phoenix online classes back to back until December 20th! In addition to cramming in bike rides to school and walking thousands of steps for our district’s pedometer competitions, busy is the only way to describe my life right now. Fortunately, Bruce has been amazing, taking the kids to and from school, doing all the shopping and errands, cooking delicious meals every night, and dealing with our breakdown-central van. Thank goodness for some stress relief!

On the weekends, we’ve been enjoying the glorious Indian Summer weather in Colorado with long bike rides, hikes, and trips to various farmers’ markets to pick up fresh eggs, vegetables, and Colorado peaches and apples. And of course we made our annual visit to the Aurora Jack-o-Launch, watching the pumpkins fly through the air from their catapult and rifle-like contraptions, enjoying some Dry Dock beer, and watching the kids create crafts and play in the corn box (rather than sand box). Now that autumn is upon us, we’re hoping things will settle down a bit and we can r-e-l-a-x!

Back in April Apple came out with a new device called the iPad. If you are not familiar with it you can check out their webpage about it here. It is basically a large iPod touch or iPhone except much more useful because of the larger screen. Well being the tech geek I am, I of course was very excited about the iPad. I had to curb most of my enthusiasm since it is a pretty expensive device and we couldn’t really afford buying another luxury tech item. Well little did I know that my wonderful wife was planning on buying me one for Father’s Day/birthday this year.

I had been sick for a few days and was stuck in bed, so this finally gave Karen the time she needed to get to the Apple store to pick up her surprise gift. She arrived there to find they were all sold out. She didn’t have any idea how quickly the iPads were selling out and didn’t think to call the store first. She was quite frustrated that Apple’s website said nothing about the iPads being sold out. While in the store she signed up for some service that was suppose to email her when an iPad was available for purchase. Well the guy at the store called the house instead and left a couple of messages for her. Being sick I never heard the phone ring but later heard the messages and of course ruined her surprise.

Well it didn’t all turn out bad. Me, being the geek I am, follow the tech news quite closely and knew that the Best Buy stores also sold the iPad. Yay! So we looked on their website and found one store in our area that had the exact model she wanted to buy. We made the quick jaunt down to the store, with Karen speed driving all the way, and was able to pick up the iPad before our trip.

Needless to say, Karen is a very thoughtful and loving wife who treats her husband way too good.

Thank you for such a great gift babe!

Oh and I was able to type this post using the iPad and the onscreen keyboard. With a little getting use to, it works very well.

In addition to hiking, Isabella and I have been super busy with various Girl Scout activities. In addition to our usual biweekly meetings, we hosted our first bridging ceremony at Isabella’s school. This ceremony celebrates the girls moving from one level of Girl Scouts (Daisies) to the next (Brownies). Our troop learned a bridging song sung to the tune of “Frere Jacque” and they each received a certificate, a patch, and got to put on their new Brownie vests after they crossed our homemade bridge. It was a great ceremony, and we celebrated with homemade brownies, of course! We also went to a recruitment celebration where Isabella learned all about different types of animals such as service dogs, Great Danes, and even a horse. Last week, I took all three girls to another GS event–a mother/daughter event. They had different tables set up where the girls could make a potpourri gift for their moms while we made bracelets for them, they got to wear high heels, and then we took quizzes about each other. Now, we are in the midst of planning for our troop camp at the end of August, which, as with everything else with GS, requires a lot of paperwork and training. We’re also going to be doing early bird registration for our troop (another pile of paperwork), so needless to say, I have been very busy!

Besides the Girl Scout activities, Isabella has attended a couple of birthday parties, participated in a dance night at her school, and is getting ready for an end-of-the-year field trip to the zoo. Mythili has been busy practicing her songs and dances for her preschool graduation, took a field trip herself to the Plains Conservation Center, and just got picked by her teachers as Best Kinder Kid!

We celebrated my 32nd birthday with a prime rib dinner at my parents’ house followed by a hike. Bruce got me one of the best gifts ever–a homemade quilt, made by our good friend Heather. It’s a “sister’s choice” pattern in various shades of green to match our bedroom. The work that went into it is incredible, and I will always remember this as one of my most cherished gifts.

Meanwhile, I have been “training” for my half marathon, coming up this Sunday, via the bike. I’ve had a problem with tendonitis and have been unable to run, so I’ve been riding the bike like mad to keep up some form of cardio regime. I know it’s not the same, but at least I will be able to walk/jog the marathon on Sunday morning.

I have also started “teaching” another University of Phoenix course which will carry over into the summer a bit. And we’ve been super busy getting our house all prepped because we found renters–two doctors and their three-year-old-twins–to rent it for the summer while we’re in KY! Just goes to show–if you do good deeds, good things happen. Seems like that’s been happening a lot lately. I mean, I still have a job next year at my school despite the horrid economy, the massive budget cuts in our school district, and having so few students. Hmmm… it must be the weekly brownies and cakes I bake for everyone! (I know it’s not a direct correlation, but those good deeds bounce back, I swear!)

And yes, we are still spending the summer in KY. Baby Lucy is awaiting our arrival, and we’re almost all set to go. We leave the night of May 28, returning July 31. Exciting! If I don’t keep up with this blog, you can check out my other blog–my resolution for 2010 is to write every day: Step Write Up.

She can do so many things for us now–get Riona dressed in her pajamas, fill everyone’s water cup, empty the trashes and recycle bins, clean up her room, dust the shelves, put away the lower dishes. And so many things for herself–ride a two-wheeler, roller skate, in-line skate, ice skate, read the Magic Treehouse books, write letters to and about her boyfriends, read the instructions to and complete her homework… it’s almost too much to take in! Is she still a little girl? Am I still allowed to refer to her as a little girl? I think by the time she’s eight she might be as tall as me!

She decided on an all-girl tea party for her seventh birthday celebration, and when I told her that it would be three hours long, twice the length of most of the parties she attends, she replied, “Three hours is not long enough for me.” And after three hours of tea, sandwiches, cake, eight games, two crafts, and nine screaming girls, she put on a pouty face when it was over and asked, “What now?” Limitless energy! She is the last to go to sleep and the first to awaken.

Isabella, my oldest daughter, still relishes in being the center of attention, just like when she was the baby and was not only the first child, but the first grandchild. She will always be a social butterfly, always fight for her rights, and always know just how to manipulate every situation to her liking. Gee, I wonder where she gets it??

As sad as I was when she began first grade this year, I have come to accept this new age. Seven. Wow. Soon I will have a tween, a teen, a college student, a bride. And I know I will enjoy all of her ages, as screaming and wild as they may be. Happy birthday, little (big) girl!

In addition to the excitement of roller skating and bike riding, Riona has reached her own milestone this past month: potty training. We hunkered down and stuck with it at the very end of Christmas break, and by the end of the first week back to school, she’d mastered the bathroom. After nearly seven NONSTOP years of changing diapers, we are officially beyond the baby stage! Exciting times in the Vittetoe home.

I have been busy working, baking the brownies and a new recipe: flourless chocolate cake (sure to be gone in an hour or less), and keeping up with my new blog. Bruce has been busy coming up with amazing new recipes and creative ideas for our dinner every night–everything from homemade hoagies w/meatballs to pepper lime chicken and latkes. It’s all about the food.

Another exciting event: as I write this post, my sister is in labor with her baby! More news to come when s/he arrives!

February is sure to be as busy. How the time flies when you’re having fun.

Let’s see… where to begin? I reconnected with my old friend Kendall who I used to work with at Bonnie Brae, way back in my former life, and we all went to his fortieth on July 31. He was his usual happy self, and is still teaching middle school music. The next night I visited my friend Andy, who I used to work with at the Continental (again, former life) for his birthday blast. That was a great start to a crazy month!

On August 5, Isabella had the momentous event of beginning first grade, her first time with a male teacher and going to school all day. She was more than a little nervous, especially when she asked a few  weeks beforehand, “Will I be in the morning or afternoon class?” only to discover the dire truth of the all-day classroom. I couldn’t get more than a shy smile out of her as we stood with the other students and parents outside of the school that morning, and the truth is, I couldn’t get much more out of myself. I was crying as I wrote the note to put in her lunchbox, and barely made it through saying goodbye to her before I broke down in tears. It’s just too much–every year when I begin another year of teaching, another year not home with them–it comes crashing down on me, and now she is and forever will be gone all day long, and sometimes I feel that I just can’t bear it… But she made it through her first day, as did I, for I had an interesting plan up my sleeve…

Amazingly, all three of my little angels were able to keep secret my surprise for Bruce’s birthday this year: a kitten. After we took Isabella to school, I “went to Sierra to work,” aka, picked up my newly-re-imaged laptop and headed over to the Dumb Friends League. Ever since my mom got a cat last Christmas, both Bruce and the girls have been mentioning their desire. I didn’t have much trouble at all finding a little gray and white kitten, ready to pick up the next day.

So I had to start work on Bruce’s birthday. What a downer. I gave him his card that morning, and, being Bruce, of course he didn’t expect anything more. He and the younger two had lunch with me, and I promised to pick up Isabella. Unfortunately, the wonderful weather we’ve been having reared its ugly head at precisely the moment I arrived at her school: a ginormous hail storm pelted us both as we dashed across the parking lot. I called Bruce and told him about the hail, adding in a “huge accident” holding up traffic, then drove across town and picked up our new family member. The poor, scared kitten, fresh out of neutering surgery, purred in Isabella’s lap the whole way home, and when we arrived, she held him out and said, “I know you always wanted a boy.” He was more than a little surprised, and quick to come up with a name: Gandalf the Gray (LOTR). Gandalf used his litter right away, and has easily found his place in our bed and next to Luna on her blanket.

Did I mention our anniversary is two days after his birthday? We went to our favorite restaurant, The Melting Pot, this time in Louisville so Grandma and Grandpa could watch the girls. As usual, we had a delicious dinner and a nice, romantic break. We spent the next morning on a hike with my parents and the girls, and then Bruce and I went to get my Boulder fix for the month, picking up tomatoes from the farmers’ market and getting a delicious espresso milkshake on Pearl Street.

Then my students came… and another busy weekend was upon us! I canned tomatoes all day Saturday, after taking the girls to get their pictures taken for Riona’s third birthday. On Sunday, we had a small party with the Mentzer and Schmidt boys, who loved the blow-up water slide better than all three girls combined. Riona helped me make her “baniwa” (vanilla) cake, which she gobbled up with “baniwa” ice cream. I just can’t believe… well, it’s almost too much to bear, seeing them grow up faster than I can stand. Three years have passed? She is still the sweetest, loveliest little girl, with the calmest temperament of anyone I have ever met.

My students returned for a second week of school. Two down and 31 to go, woo-hoo! This weekend we had our Girl Scout unit camp at Cherry Creek Reservoir. It was filled with activities, campfires, s’mores, songs, and swaps–little crafts you put on a pin and hand out to everyone. Spending the weekend with 100 Girl Scouts does sound crazy, but the level of enthusiasm that the girls express, and getting to know my troop members’ parents, truly was a priceless experience. I know that Isabella will always remember her first GS camp, and now that I’ve survived one, we’ll be sure to go every year. The girls were crying this morning when they had to say goodbye, as if they’re not all going to see each other in class… um… tomorrow!

And speaking of tomorrow… Mythili begins “pre-K” tomorrow. Riona was signed up to go, but we’ll just have to give her stubborn butt a few more months of potty training. Mythili will be in the same class as Isabella was in during her second year, with Ms. Teddy Bear and Ms. Jelly Bean, so she’s very excited. She also has a few friends in with her, Mason, Ayden, and Hunter, so the transition should be smooth sailing.

And that’s our insane August. I just have 80 miles to go to reach my goal of riding 300 miles on my bike–did I mention I’ve been riding to work?–for the month, and next weekend, let’s see: I think a nice glass of wine, canning, and sitting around the house sounds nice.

Bruce and I started out the summer with a Rockies game sponsored by the school district where I work. We were able to get great seats behind third base. First, we went out to eat at LoDo Bar and Grill, then headed over to the game, had some cotton candy and Blue Moon beers, and watched the Rockies come back in the bottom of the ninth inning from a 7-6 score to winning the game 8-7! I must say, that was the most exciting baseball game I’ve ever been too! Bruce and I went to a bar and listened to some live music afterward, and then topped off our evening with some highly overpriced coffee and dessert at the Cheesecake Factory. It was the perfect way to begin our summer. We picked up the girls from Grandma and Grandpa’s house the next day and celebrated Grandma’s birthday.

In addition to swim lessons, we have made one visit (on the ONE nice day) to Cherry Creek Reservoir. Riona enjoyed this more than anyone. She is thrilled to just rn out of the water, pile up the sand, roll around and for two hours repeat, “Look at me, Mama!” Isabella and Mythili love to run back and forth between the “beach” and the playground with its ginormous mound of sand that they climb up and down like monkeys.

Last weekend, we rode the bike over to the library while Bruce visited his friend Kasey. The library does a summer reading program every year, and this year we decided to go to the opening celebration. The girls bounced in the bounce house, toured the Arapahoe Sheriff’s mobile unit, and watched a puppet show about safety. They had a blast, and at the end we enjoyed a nice hot dog lunch at their adjacent cafe.  On Sunday, just after a tornado touched down not too far from our house, we enjoyed our first kid birthday party of the summer. My friend Kristen’s little boy, Kylen, turned one, and amidst the trapped-indoor house, parents and kids alike had a great time hanging out.

We have also made one trip to the zoo, watching the streams of lilting cotton from the cotonwood trees fall around us and gather on the ground like snow, watching Riona squeal with delight each time she sees another animal, and never hearing a single complaint about legs hurting as we meander through the huge, beautiful, one-hundred-year-old trees. On this trip, we visited the lorikeet enclosure, where the girls happily fed the brightly colored lorikeets nectar out of a tiny cup.

Yesterday, we had a Girl Scout meeting to practice our flag ceremony and plan who’s bringing what food to our unit camp at the end of August. I think it will be a fun but overwhelming two days in camp with more than a hundred Girl Scouts, but hopefully Isabella will enjoy the experience! And last night we had the Mentzers over for dinner–they have three boys who are the same age as our three girls! The adults had a great time talking while the kids ran in and out of the house chasing each other with pop guns and spreading Legos everywhere.

We have another two weeks of swim lessons before our trip to Rhode Island, and when we return we are tentatively going camping with the Mentzers and then the two older girls will be in a Construction Camp with the two older Mentzer boys at the end of July. We’ll see what we can squeeze in during the meantime…

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So the next night, the girls and I went to a 4-year-old’s birthday party at Chuck-E-Cheese. Not exactly my cup of tea, but that night was all about them. On Thursday afternoon, we had our biweekly Girl Scout meeting. This time the girls were earning their strength and courage petal, so we decided to do a push-up contest. It was pretty hilarious to watch all the 6-year-olds attempting to do push-ups, especially as most of them looked like they were, um, humping the ground!

Meanwhile, I had to administer CSAPs all week, which has its benefits: I was able to read three and a half books! You gotta look at the bright side of those boring days. And to “decompress”, our staff had a happy hour on Friday, and since Isabella was getting her cavities filled and wasn’t going to need me to pick her up, I decided to go. Had a good time hanging out with the people I work with, and then Isabella and I went to a GS birthday party to celebrate the birth of GS and to collect items to make birthday parties in a box for disadvantaged kids. And as if we hadn’t had enough of GS, we did our cookie booth sale at Safeway the next morning, then went out to lunch with the girls from our troop who were there.

This week isn’t as crazy, but Isabella is still in dance and might soon be in soccer (if they get her a coach), and soon Mythili and I will partake in a parent/tot roller hockey course. I’m still wondering how I’m going to juggle all these activities when I have three girls involved in things, but I guess we’ll figure it out!

And, at last, it snowed this morning. Denver weather likes to pretend it’s winter for just the amount of time it takes to drive to work, because by this afternoon, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky or a speck of snow anywhere. I guess I can just give up on having a snow day this year and instead welcome the busy-ness of spring!