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.

With our special-order Sun Prairie Grass-Fed Beef, we prepared two delicious pot roasts, using two different recipes, and homemade pumpkin pie with the last of our garden pumpkin for our Christmas Eve meal. Everyone ate it up, even picky little Riona! We then opened our presents and watched as the girls squealed over every little item. The best was when Mythili and Isabella opened their iPod with an amazed expression and Isabella said, “I’ve wanted an iPod my whole life!” which is probably, sadly, true.

The next morning, Santa brought Isabella a Barbie scooter, Mythili yet another Barbie set with formal wear for Ken and Barbie, and Riona a new train set to add on to the one we already have that she cherishes so much. The girls just LOVED their Santa presents–he somehow knew exactly what to get them! Truly magical!

We went to Grandma and Grandpa’s house for dinner, the best Christmas dinner ever–prime rib that Dad gets for free every year from his job. As usual, it was mouthwatering, and just writing about it now makes me already look forward to next year.

By the weekend, everyone was gone, and I felt like I was running a bed and breakfast, washing a million sheets–again–and cleaning up holiday remnants. After a couple of days of recovery, we celebrated Dad’s birthday with snowshoeing and cross country skiing in the mountains, then came back into town to celebrate New Year’s Eve with the Mentzers. We partied hard to bring in the new year, and the kids, as usual, had a total blast.

And here we are, MLK day, year two of us participating in the Denver Marade. I’ll say it again–I loved it last year and I loved it again. It makes this day so much more meaningful. But if you’d like to read more about what the Marade is like, check out my new writing blog: Step Write Up.

So, that is what I’ve been busy doing, in addition to working full time, running the Girl Scout troop, selling cookies, and spending quality time with three little girls every day… life is good.

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.

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!

We have relished the last two weekends, mostly work-free, though Bruce’s homework and my U. of Phoenix training have snuck into our lives daily. Last weekend we spent the night at Grandma and Granpa’s, then took the girls sledding in Rocky Mountain National Park. Though there wasn’t much snow, it was enough to entertain those younger than 6. We went out to lunch in Estes Park and, as usual, were disappointed by the lack of decent restaurants there. I think we’ve tried just about every one over the years! But we redeemed it with some delicious homemade candy from one of the endless sweet shops.

This past weekend, I took the girls on a ten-mile bike ride. Earlier in the week, when we discovered Bruce’s tire was still flat, I reluctantly piled all three of them into the trailer (which technically is for 2 kids and has a weight limit of 100 pounds, but who’s counting?) and rode them to the library, a 6-mile roundtrip. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as intolerable as it sounds, so on Saturday, another beautiful day, we rode along the Tollgate Creek Trail and stopped at the illustrious “blue” playground in Horseshoe Park. The girls were thrilled, and I felt satisfied that, pulling them which is at the least equal to my weight, 10 miles really equals 20. That afternoon, a former coworker of mine had a “recession” party. I think we all needed one, because that was about the best party I’ve been to in years! The next day, we relaxed, went to the library, and played games all afternoon.

Life is all about the weekends, sleeping in, filling the days with fun activities, and forgetting about why we have to go back to work… at least for a while. And with the beautiful weather we are so lucky to have, and the three glorious girls we are blessed with, it feels like the weekend every day.