Bring on the Boys!

 The week before the Tour de Cure ride, Ryan's two oldest boys joined us for a week of fun. It's so great when cousins get together, even if they've been apart for a while.  They see each other and seem to start playing a game right where they left off.  People asked me if I was crazy to take on two more boys.  I told them that the only thing I had to do was supply more food than usual, they entertain each other.

Mason sported the best chocolate milk mustache I have ever seen, and with that expression he takes on a dictator feel, don't you think?

The classic game of Twister was used so much the poor spinner was dismantled after all these years.  No worries, I will purchase another twister game and we can play double twister with more people!

I did decide after letting them play inside, outside and upside down at our house, that maybe we needed a change of scenery.  The boys took turns with our three tennis rackets and then when they spotted the sprinklers on they made for the water. 

 The swing set was well used while Sam and Mason were here.  While I was in the kitchen preparing more food, I spotted them playing. . . what shall I call it? Human obstacle course? Whack-a-boy? Swings of death?  Three boys got on the swings and went as high as they could while another boy tried to run a straight line back and forth. D.J. is pictured above and below, successfully navigating the three swingers.  And what did I do to prevent a possible trip to the ER?  Laugh and take pictures.

The landing between the boys' rooms is a popular place for card games. Devin, Tessa, Chase and Chloe joined us for a Friday night spaghetti dinner before the ride the next day. . 9 cousins! 

After the bike ride, the Astlings, the Watsons, and Ryan/Wendy Wheeler Families converged for burgers and merriment.  We've wizened up enough to not let the kids know if the food is ready or not so the adults get a chair and the table and good conversation.

Between Moab with the Astlings and Wheeler cousin visits, we've had a great season of family fun!

End of School Year and Elementary School for D.J.

Our second and beloved son, Dallin Jay, is moving on to Jr. High.  This is by no means an indication of how old I am, but an indication of what a great young man he is turning into, with a sprinkling of teen-ager.  Alright, I'm old.

D.J. gradutaed from the D.A.R.E. program (Drug Abuse Resistance Education), a great program taught by police officers about non-violent confrontation in resisting bullying, drugs and other negative peer pressure.  In the above picture the officer asked for people who were good at math and D.J. readily volunteered.

D.J. and James played flag football this Spring. Apparently he doesn't think he needs to pick up any pointers from James's game because he's playing a game of Magic the Gathering with Spencer.

I may have mentioned his sweet Mother's Day outfit before, but just in case I didn't, I'd like to make sure it is immortalized.

At 6th grade graduation, groups of 6th graders stood up to recite a short poem, song or positive thought.  D.J. is doing so with Graham, Hannah and Annalyn.

Getting ready to walk the red carpet!

Each 6th grader had to share six words that summed up who they are.  D.J.'s six words were: "I'm made of sports and math."

At the end of the school year, our district has a math and science competition for all students who do well with six math and science activities: Set, Krypto, Kenken, making catapults, structures out of a surprise resource (newspaper), and wind vehicles.  D.J. did well with Krypto, which is a card game where you combine four numbers using standard math operations to create a target number.  He is really good at it. It hurts my brain.

The theme for the 6th grade graduation was "Be the Star of Your Life!"  D.J. certainly is.

Tour de Cure 2014

The Tour de Cure 2014 was a great success!  Things that were improved upon from last year are: Nine people on my team!  Woohoo! Lowering my basal rate, riding with my husband, brother, sister and friends (missed my Dad though - but don't worry I made beeping noises to help us remember his heart monitor), cloud cover, less wind and a better route.

My team raised over $2,000 dollars!  Thanks to them for fundraising and to all who donated!  Here we are at the start line: Ryan Wheeler, Loni Watson, Mark Astling, Lisa Astling, Casey Smith, Jackie Smith, Eric Smith, Kim Barton and Matt Barton.  I think I only listed to my ipod 3 times because we had so much fun talking with each other.

I don't get concentrated sibling talk time very often, so it was fun to have that on our ride.

Here's the man that helped pushed me to get in better shape this year, he pushed me to ride faster and longer.

It was such a beautiful ride out to the wild bird conservation area and through farmlands. The weather was a little chilly, but the sun finally came out toward the end.

My awesome friend Kim who didn't end up training very much, but rode the whole 55 miles anyway because she is Wonder Woman.

This picture was taken specifically for Matt Watson.  He had fun with it.  A few of the stops had themes, a Hawaiian one (with a lady handing out Hawaiian lei necklaces, yelling "Hey did you get lied?" haha), and a super hero one.  The Beaver was at the super hero/Wells Fargo stop, but I couldn't figure out why they needed a Beaver for a mascot.

I really didn't think I would cry at the finish line because I did that once already.  But, I did.  It's a great feeling to know you've got the love and support from friends and family. 

 Ryan's daughter Morgan came to celebrate with us.  In fact, his whole family waited at the last mile for us, while Wendy snapped some pictures.

When we got home, we were greeted with this sign and black, red and white balloons.  Thank you to the mysterious person who made me feel even more love and support.  This mysterious person put signs and balloons on all of my rider friend's homes as well. Also, thank you to Granna for getting to our house at 6:30 AM to stay with the boys, take them to flag football and nourishing them!

Some things I learned on this ride:  I started with lower blood sugar than I wanted to.  Usually after I eat breakfast and just sit (riding in the car to the race) my blood sugar runs a little higher, which would be good to start the race.  But instead it went low, for whatever reason, so right before we started I ate a Cliff bar without giving insulin since I was low and was about to exercise for a long time.  Throughout the first 15 miles I remained consistently at 90 mg, which was fine and at the first rest stop it was about that, so I ate a 1/4 sandwich and a 1/2 banana and a little Gatorade, again not giving insulin because I was in the low range.  I guess the sandwich and banana in combination with the Cliff Bar and only my basal rate insulin and exercise, was not enough to keep my blood sugar down, so it jump up higher than I expected.  I was feeling sluggish so I had to make an unexpected stop to check my blood sugar and give 1.5 units of insulin and then .5 more units after the next 7 miles.  After that I was in my sweet zone to ride well, though I didn't eat much after the first snack stop and sadly was not able to eat Red Vines this year.  Maybe next year.  Always something to learn.

Some other things I learned were: Ryan told me about a low-blood sugar episode when we were young that I didn't remember, when he found me convulsing in my bedroom with low blood sugar and he ran to get Mom and Dad.  Thanks Ryan for helping me then and now!  I rode with Eric Smith, whose Dad is Type I Diabetic and he told me stories about his Dad with diabetes. Along the race, people who pass me and others riding a red jersey, yell "Go Red Rider!"  Ryan asked me if I got sick of that.  I told him I love it because at a ride like this, there is a sense of empathy and camaraderie.  I know when someone yells "Go Red Rider!" that they understand in detail what I have to do everyday, where the general public are only aware of they scary headlines and news stories.  When I say "Go Red Rider!" to someone else, I wonder: Do they get up at 2:30 am every night to check my blood sugar like I do? Or do they have to eat at about the same times every day, like I have to plan for?  Or are you going to check your blood sugar at the next stop like me?  I suppose there are some that might wonder why I even do a ride like this if it's so much trouble.  Because I can.  Because the mental, emotional and physical benefits far outweigh the extra work it takes to figure out how to do it.  Because I've been blessed to live in a time where it only takes 5 seconds to check my blood sugar level and give my insulin with a push of a button.  Doing a ride like this is completely worth the effort.

Three other people have already requested to ride with me next year.  Hooray!

Last Days of School 2014

This school year goes on record as the fastest one we've had yet.  I can remember the beginning and the end, but the middle gets kind of fuzzy.  I don't think I've been more excited for the end of a school year.  It has been a busy one and I'm ready for the slower pace of summer (says the person who loves to keep busy).  Here are a few of the events of the last week of school:

James received his 3rd grade Doctorate Degree.  You may now call him Dr. James.  It was a close call, since we had been letting his spelling studies slide.  But he made it up by getting 101% on his last test. Whew!  He chose a BYU seat cushion as his prize (to bother his Dad), which he used for three full days at his desk.

Dad got to come to this last degree advancement.  Two proud people right here.

D.J.'s teacher decided to have an auction with leftover items in her classroom.  He was more than happy to bid on a 2 pound bag of Sour Patch Kids (yuck), but less than happy when I reminded him that he couldn't eat them for another 14 months until he gets his braces off.  If he does eat them, along with a swig of the cream soda, thankfully he purchased a VeggieTales singing toothbrush.  He loves to play this. All day. He said when the toothbrush was on the auction block, only one person bid - $5. He quickly came in at $10 and he became the proud owner. I'm still trying to figure out why his teacher had an extra VeggieTale toothbrush lying around.

Before the first bell of the last day rung, I took D.J. and James to get flowers for their teachers as a thank you.  They wrote little thank you notes in the van before entering the school.  While James was writing, he asked me: "Mom, if I spelled her name wrong would it make it more tragic?"  What?  D.J. clued in on it and said, "Oh, yeah, if I write, 'you is teaching me good grammar' that would be really tragic! Let's do it!"  And he proceeds to tell me about a Foxtrot comic where there was a tattoo involving the word "mother" and one suggests to the other that if "mother" was spelled wrong, it would be more tragic.  No kidding.  Thanks Foxtrot. I nipped that in the bud.  I'm glad he thought to ask me first, because I'm sure the day will come when he won't.

During the last week, Mrs. Parrish, James's teacher, had the kids dissect owl pellets during the final week.  So James came home with a ziplock bag filled with water and digested rat remains.  When asked why the remains were in water, James told me it was to get the fur off the bones. You should see my face as I type this.  It is scrunched up in disgust, just as it was every time I looked at the bag that, "MUST NOT BE THROWN AWAY," on my kitchen counter where I prepare food.  I moved it from sight, but I just knew where it was (via eyes in the back of my head) and I finally told James to put it somewhere else.  I don't know where that somewhere else is.  I should probably check into that. Thanks a lot Mrs. Parrish.

James, the party boy, wanted to have friends over to our house to celebrate the last day of school.  While I was reluctant, I knew it would be nice to have entertainment for him and I'm sure other mothers felt the same way.  So this motley crew from his class piled in my van and started in on popsicles when we arrived at home.

I learned something new this year about the end of school: the Jr. High has yearbook signing day on the last day, during which the students pick up their yearbooks, have a few friends sign it and leave.  So, Spencer, Seth and a new friend Kellen (a.k.a. Key Lime Pie) had a Super Mario Kart marathon beginning at 9:30 a.m. because they have not yet reached the point where they care about many people signing their yearbooks and will only get girls to sign it on a dare. D.J. joined them when he got home after 6th grade advancement at 10:30.  Note to self: the last day of school, is not your last day to have quiet time, you must have quiet time the previous Tuesday or something.

While the older boys were intensely involved in the bazillionth race, the younger boys ambushed them with Nerf guns.  War ensued.  Nerf, sticks, PVC pipes, plastic balls, socks and tents were involved.  I vetoed the use of marbles, golf balls and broken PVC pipes while they stared at me like I was a fun Nazi.

After a movie (Aliens in the Attic - yet again), though I had pizza ready, they were restless and needed to move after 1 1/2 hours of not moving, not to mention the unlimited cookies, licorice, chips and root beer were vying for grastric space.  A rousing game of capture the flag began and didn't end until the older boys tricked the younger boys into thinking their flag had disappeared. 

I guess the junk food - or junkier food - filled them up pretty well because not much pizza was consumed after that, or it may be the fact that they were distracted by Magic the Gathering cards, Yu-Gi-Oh cards or Pokemon cards until their mothers picked them up and who were met with requests to stay longer.  I responded that we close up shop at 7 pm, after 9 1/2 hours of friends, I'm punching my card.  It was a fun day though and I'm glad my boys have good friends around them!

Moab Pre-Wedding Party

David and Lieve are getting married this summer! Hooray!  They are getting married in Belgium, but wanted to celebrate with some of their Colorado and Salt Lake friends, so they picked a midpoint to do so: Moab, one of their favorite places.  We were happy they invited us and quickly said yes, as we love spending time with them and we love Moab! We shared in renting a cabin in the beautiful La Sal mountains, with four other families.  We had a wonderful time with all, exercising, talking, playing games, eating and resting.

We realized that we had not seen David and Lieve for over 1 1/2 years, so everybody was excited to see the changes in the boys.  Here is the first meeting (in real life it wasn't as blurry).  Spencer is taller than Lieve (join the short club) and nearly as tall as David (join the nearly short club with Mark).  Though it looks like Spencer is taller than both, he's stretching a bit. Or David is shrinking.

After a bagel/cream cheese/omlette breakfast, we went on a great hike to fisher towers, which is east of Moab.  It was a perfect day for a hike, not too hot, and cloudy enough for  sun protection.  We thought we were only going to hike for 2.3 miles, but it ended up 4.something.

Spencer, David, Lieve, D.J., Mark, Stephen and Jenny.

James's pack started leaking and I just couldn't refuse a picture. Hee hee!

There is just something amazing walking among structure such as these.  The world is an amazing place.  What's almost as amazing is that there were rock climbers climbing these things!

Two of my favorite shots on the hike. Cactus flowers and the Colorado River winding through the landscape.

I also just had to include the picture of the trail end because I was the only one who saw it.  It was much farther than 2.3 miles and we thought we would be at the end after every turn, but I hit a groove and walked ahead until I found it.  It's a good thing there is a sign marking the trail end, or I might have walked off a cliff!  I realized as I got back to the trailhead that I should've taken a selfie with the sign, just to confirm that is was me taking the picture. You'll just have to trust me.

David helped James see through a window we found in the rock, walking back to the trailhead.

David was the only merciful hiker toward James at the end of the hike.  He gets the Uncle of the year award for giving James a piggie-back ride and listening to the boys talk about Clash of Clans ALL THE WAY THERE AND ALL THE WAY BACK.

This is a great family picture (thanks Dave), although slightly depressing for me as I am clearly at a height right in between Spencer and D.J. (and I'm standing on higher ground!).

Saturday night was the big party where more of David's and Lieve's friend gathered to celebrate their upcoming nuptuals.  We were entertained by stories about how David and Lieve met and how their engagement came about. Sweet stories indeed!

Sunday was rainy in the La Sal mountains, so all Mountain biking was cancelled.  But we decided to meet Stephen and Jenny in Moab for lunch at the Blu Pig, a visit to the rock shop where we all bought souvenir rocks ("Hey, Lisa, if you scratch my back, I'll but you any rock you want." - Mark)

We followed up the Rock Shop with a river side walk.  Stephen gets another Uncle of the Year award for first, suggesting that he give Spencer, SPENCER, a piggy back ride, and then actually attempting to do it!  Spencer ended up getting dumped on his face and laughter ensued.

After we returned to the cabin, Spencer wanted to go find the pond with the canoes.  It was still sprinkling a little bit, but not enough to impede us.  David showed us the way on the "Shot gun trail" and we came to a pond with a paddle boat and a canoe.  It started raining a little harder, but that didn't stop the boys from playing bumper boat.

Then it started hailing. Just to memorialize it, I made my poor husband go out from under the protection of the little fishing shelter so I could take a picture.

The hot tub was probably one of the most favorite activities, rain or shine. James ended up in the hot tub with the two girls Erica and Emma (5 and 8) one day and when he came in he told me that they were playing imagination with him.  He said they were imagining him to be an animal and they listed all these "girlie" animals.  But then they chose him to be a dolphin and he was ok with that because a dolphin is the second smartest animal in the world.  Whew!

Another favorite "game" to play with the girls was to hide their stuffed animals or keep them hostage.  This was fun for them, but in the end was put to a stop as my ear drums couldn't take it anymore.  Along the line of games, David and Lieve played a new board game with the boys Sunday night and all had fun.  We are glad Lieve will be in the family!

By the way, I bow at Lieve's feet.  She took it upon herself to make her own wedding dress.  Just to make sure she could do it, she made a mock dress.  The dress she is wearing in the picture above is the mock dress.  You can't see all the detail, but I and everyone else was and is impressed!  AND the tie David is wearing is also hand-crafted by Lieve, made from the same material as the dress.  Did I also mention she is a microbiologist?  AND, on the morning of this photo shoot (there were other people there with better cameras than my lowly iphone), she went out with wet hair and it dried beautifully in the great outdoors.  Had I done the same, my pictures would have prompted people to make donations.  Just one more thing on the amazing list of Lieve!

The next Uncle and Aunt of the Year award goes to Stephen and Jenny.  They took the boys on a hike while we rode 30 miles to Potash and back.  It was a perfect day, around 70 degrees and it looked like this:

That little spot down the road is Mark, he is usually ahead of me (in many ways) and I have to pedal hard to keep up with him (in many ways).  I love sharing one more aspect of life with him.

All in all, we had a relaxing, invigorating, entertaining, mind-stimulating, educational, and just plain fun time.  It's good spending time with the Astlings!