Saturday, May 29, 2010

Crossfit games Dirty South regional!!

I am loving the Crossfit games!! My parents have been awesome taking care of the boys while I watch and cheer. My gym is putting in one heck of a performance. Our team is in 10th, coach AJ is in 11th (while battling a torn muscle), and coach Michelle is in 1st!!! One more day to go!
Here is the team getting ready for the tire flip/burpee event.



And now underway...


Here is coach Michelle.






I have so many more pictures on my camera, I will load them up once we get home.

The RVing is going well. The boys are sleeping great! The shower water pressure leaves something to be desired, but is liveable. I really couldn't ask for this trip to go much better. It has greatly exceeded my expectations. Tomorrow night we head over to Disney! Looking forward to it.

I really have so much more to tell, I am just too tired to sit up and type it on my iPhone. :). I'll type more tomorrow when the games are over. Fingers crossed that I will be reporting good news. I love Crossfit! This community just rocks!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Thursday, May 27, 2010

"big ol' rolling turd coming through"

We set off in my parents' RV today (just I case you didn't catch the reference to the movie RV in my title). We are on our way to Jacksonville. The boys have been good but they definitely do not have the patience for lengthy sitting spells. Cavan is certainly better at it than Pierson. Cav sits and happily watches a movie or plays games on his ipod. Pierson just sits and complains "I-wan-out!!!". This is after he has tossed his ipod, binky, and toys on the floor. Thank goodness they both slept for the first hour or so, only about 4 hours of driving with them awake. :P




I wish Keith could be here to see how excited Cav is about going to a campground (actually an RV park) and staying in the home truck. He would get a kick out of it. Not sure Cav is excited about going to see the Crossfit games, but I know Pete will be. Pete loves watching people Crossfit. He will sit on my lap and happily watch a workout. Then he likes to have his turn to play with the equipment, which will probably be frowned upon at the games. I hope there is a playground nearby.

After the games we get to take the RV to the Fort Wilderness Campground in Disney World. It should be a good time provided the boys actually sleep. (catching on to what my biggest concern is?). I am sure I will have some interesting things to talk about on this trip. Apparently there are places at campgrounds and rv parks called "comfort houses", which are essentially a giant public bathroom. So glad I splurged and bought a pair or $2.50 rubber flip flops at Target. Who knows what will be growing in those places. So I would get ready for some laughs over the next couple of days. For now, signing off from the comfort of the "home truck".




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Its a home truck

Today was a busy day as usual in the house of Mann Mayhem. :) I got a workout and then I had to go to the tile store again with Rick, and my parents watched the boys while I was gone. We had dinner with my brother and his family, as well as my grandparents. It was nice because Pierson sat next to Pops, and due to his shyness, he barely moved. Nice to have a well behaved little monkey at dinner for one. Cavan got wedged between my mother and my brother, which also caused him to be quite quiet. What also helped was that he was about ready to fall asleep at the table. Poor guy was exhausted after playing with Bumpa all day long. After startling him awake a few times, we left the table with a mostly awake Cavan.

This is when the excitement began. We finally got to go see my parents new RV. I know, instantly a million movie references come to mind. Robin Williams in RV with his "big ol' rolling turd", and Robert DeNiro in Meet the Folkers with "the highlight of their twilight". This RV is really quite simple, definitely smaller than the ones in both of those movies. However, my boys absolutely loved it! Cav thought it was an RV trailer and as soon as he saw it he exclaimed "Its a home truck!!". He was thrilled that somehow they mixed a home with a truck. The boys excitedly ran laps back and forth. They climbed up on the bed, clamored across it and then slid back down to the floor. Cav sat in the driver's seat and cracked up laughing as he beeped the horn on the RV. Pierson sat in the passenger seat just happy to along for the ride. It was quite the spectacle to see them. It makes me hopeful that our trip this weekend in the RV will go well. My only big concern is the sleeping arrangements. Pierson can be so picky about how he sleeps, lets hope he cooperates. He got me up at 530am today and I have been exhausted ever since.

They posted the workouts today for the Crossfit Games 2010 Dirty South Regionals. I am getting so excited to watch my coaches and our affiliate team compete. (That is where we are headed in the RV). I think it will be awesome to see the competitive side of Crossfit.

Well, like I said, I got up at 530am, so I am going to finish watching Glee and then get some much needed rest. Fingers crossed that my boys decide to sleep in past 6am and that I get to hear from my husband tomorrow. I am enjoying my daily emails or phone calls. It has helped ease my nerves a bit so I have one less thing to worry about.

Monday, May 24, 2010

Meltdown!!!

Things are generally ok with me and the boys. Not always smooth, but we recover from our bumps quickly. Today, however, would bring new meaning to the word meltdown.

I had to go out for a good portion of the day today. My dad was kind enough to watch the boys as I ran around desperately seeking a tile for our kitchen backsplash with our builder Rick. The boys had fun, they played ourside a lot. They were so happy to see me when I came home. It was so nice. My dad and I took the boys (and their cousin) in the pool. The boys had a ball. Even Pierson jumps in the water all by himself. He is so proud of himself, yelling "watch Bumpa" anytime my father dares pay attention to another grandson of his. The boys were exhausted and it was time for dinner so we got them out of the pool. And that's when the meltdowns began. Both Cavan and Pierson were a mess. Thankfully Pierson pulled himself together enough to eat. Cav however was a tantruming mess! After an hour or more of screaming and crying, a few vodka drinks for mom, lots of bribery, Cavan finally ate enough of his dinner. And what do you know, his attitude instantly improved. All I can say is it's a good thing these boys are cute.






Keith called today. It was so nice hearing his voice. It's amazing how the sound of him talking just instantly calms me and makes me smile. I think he has a similar effect on his boys. They definitely miss their daddy. When I mentioned him to Cav, Cav lost it. Screaming about how he wanted daddy right now. Sometimes I want to throw fits when I miss Keith, so I can relate to Cav's outburst.

I think I may bring the boys on my errands tomorrow. The errands will take longer, but at least they may actually be happy. Let's hope!

Hope your Monday involved far fewer tears than mine did!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Introducing my new favorite...

Alcoholic beverage!!! I just found three olives brand vodka today (thanks to my sister in law Meg). I bought grape and watermelon vodka. I tried mixing them with diet sprite to keep it nice and light. I am in love with the watermelon! Yum!!!!

Some other great things. Had a fabulous lunch with my awesome family at a restaurant by the water called Marker Four. They are known for their seafood (duh). I had a pretty good ceasar salad with grilled cod. Then we got delicious ice cream at Nokomis groves.









The boys got vanilla, I got chocolate lime swirl. So good!



My grandparents treated to both lunch and ice cream. What a great treat.

When we got home the boys went in the pool with their cousins, uncle and grandparents while I went to the store. I first went to my favorite store for alcoholic beverages Total Wines and More where I bought the vodkas. Then I went to Fresh Market to pick up stuff to make some quiches and salad for dinner.

Finally, we closed out our evening with a skype call from Keith. What a wonderful treat getting to see my hubby. It's amazing how seeing him can make me feel like a giddy teenager. I just love my husband so much. And seeing the boys getting excited about their daddy was heartwarming.

Well here is my first attempt at video in my blog, it's a video of Pete playing on the phone trying to call his daddy. Cav is making a racket in the background with his cousin. Hope this video works.

YouTube Video

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Friday, May 21, 2010

Seriously? Any more ER visits?

So I would love to know why it is that as soon as my husband leaves my life falls spectacularly to pieces. It never fails. Last night my poor puppy needed a quick trip to the ER vet. She had a cyst rupture on her back and lets just say it was disgusting! Thank goodness for my Mom the nurse and my sister in law, the future doctor, or I may have just tossed my cookies and hid in the closet. My father was kind enough to volunteer to take my pup to the vet while I put my over tired boys to bed. The doc said she will be fine, and gave us some meds to put on her back. The fun part (sarcasm) is that he found a suspicious lump on her back that we need to have removed and checked for cancer. Grrrrrrrrreat. Just what I need right now while I am doing the single Mom thing. Our pup with the ailment, Sweet Pea, is on the right. Our other furball, Miss Piggy, is on the left.


As traumatizing as it was to experience the dog heading to the ER, my son heading to the ER is far more frightening. I was trying to be a good daughter/house guest, and help my Mom prepare dinner. My father had volunteered to take the boys outside. As he was getting them ready, I accidentally dropped a jar of peppercorns. It shattered on the floor. I was cleaning it up when I heard the most awful hurt cry coming from the other room. Any Mommy out there knows the difference between an ouch cry and a true hurt cry. My poor little Pierson was bawling his eyes out. My Dad tried to comfort him, nothing...My Mom tried to comfort him, nothing. He came to me, sobbing, then he picked his head up and I noticed the blood on my shirt. I looked at my baby's beautiful face and noticed his nose was bleeding. My heart sank. My Dad said his best guess was that Pierson injured himself on the dowel he was walking around with as a cane. We were concerned that he had been chewing on the dowel and that he may have damaged his palate, so my father and I rushed him to the ER. After about half an hour we discovered that he was just fine. The bleeding had stopped and he was so relaxed, that he actually took at nap in the waiting room. We decided to forgo the doctor and head home. My best guess is that the little goober took a good whack to the nose with that stupid dowel. Just thankful that he is ok now and there is no permanent damage to that perfect little face (not that I am bias).

I needed a few mojitos tonight to calm down. Like I said, my hubby leaves and our world crumbles. I am just so thankful to have my family reinforcements around. They help so much, both morally and just giving me a break. Today my break consisted of a hellish workout. 400m of lunges with a 25 lbs kettlebell held over my head. It was 91 degrees out here, so it was brutal!! I managed to finish in 22 minutes and 46 seconds. Lets see how my back end feels tomorrow after so many darn lunges.

Hoping tomorrow goes smoother. I am missing my hubby dearly and hope that he gets to call again tomorrow. He has only been gone two days, but honestly it feels like it has been so much longer than that.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

The adventures never end

When traveling with two young children, you must always be prepared for the unexpected. Today I asked our fantastic babysitter Erin to help me bring the boys to the airport. She was also bringing my car back home for me so it wouldn't be stuck at the airport for months on end. We started out on time. Everything was going great. A little too smooth in the great scheme of things. Cav started complaining. "my belly hurts. I want to go home. I need water". I turn around to witness my big boy vomit all over himself and his car seat. I pull the car over and run over to his rescue. I pull him out of his seat and help him crouch down on the side of the road. My poor little guy. Miss Erin does not miss a beat, grabs some baby wipes and starts cleaning out Cav's car seat. I wait until Cavan is done spewing, and help him out of his vomit soaked clothing. Wipe him down with a wipe and help put on the extra outfit I had on hand in my car. One of the most awful outfits (a free t-shirt he got from his bday at monkey joes and a pair of shiny black basketball shorts). Luckily the next time cav got sick in the car I had a bucket ready. The good news is he ate a cheeseburger then slept on the plane.




Meanwhile, Pierson drove me crazy and kept me busy. We watched the intro to Mickey mouse clubhouse about a dozen times. Played with a balloon that I had only slightly inflated (makes a fantastic airplane toy). Ate snacks, looked at skymall, then started looking at the spirit magazine. Those geniuses at Spirit put a picture of cookie monster on the second page. Pierson was thrilled. "hi cookie!!!" as he waved at the magazine. Then he ripped the page of the magazine, looked at me and said "I rip". Crazy little 18 month old stole the picture of cookie monster.

I got lots of compliments about my boys and how well they travel. One woman give me four lollipops to give to the boys. They were thrilled. All in all an eventful trip, as usual. My poor hubby has had a long uncomfortable journey that still isn't over yet. Nothing like a 6'3" man with 42" shoulders stuck in a middle coach seat for 10+ hours. I miss my man and so do the boys. They ask for him constantly.

What are some of your more memorable travel adventures?


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The hole

Life without Keith pretty much stinks. He is without a doubt the most loving and supportive person, and I am trying to get by now without my rock. My husband loves me unconditionally. He really does. I never imagined meeting someone who loves me as much as he does, I guess I thought love like this only existed in fairy tales an sappy romance movies. Its an amazing feeling to have this person, who was basically a stranger 4+ years ago, think of me in such a positive light. And the amazing part is how much I reciprocate. When Keith isn't here its always tough. He has had to go away a lot because of training or schools, so we get used to him being gone. Deployments are different though. It feels so different. Maybe its knowing that he is halfway across the world, or maybe its because I know he is being put in harms way. It is probably a combination of both. I have this empty feeling in my chest. This hole. Its something that truthfully I think only a military wife will ever understand. I know plenty of people that have to spend months apart from their spouse for business reasons, but I can assure you that is different. I never had this empty feeling when Keith left for a training mission. I missed him, yes, but that emptiness didn't exist. I guess that is a feeling reserved especially for deployments.

Sorry if it seems like I am beating a dead horse. I tend to find when Keith is deployed people trying to liken their situation to mine. "Oh my husband traveled all of the time, so I know what you are going through". To which my snotty side wants to reply "oh so the Taliban was trying to blow up your husband while he was sleeping/driving/eating too?". I know the snide comments will not get me far so I usually swallow them down. I really think I should wear a shirt though, for at least the first week or two, that says "My husband just deployed". That way people would understand when I start crying for no reason or why I am a little snippy with my children. I am not trying to be, I am just trying to cope with everything.

Last night Cavan and I had a mini cry fest together. He came out of his bedroom with his eyes filled with tears. He said "I miss Daddy! He's not here to nuggle me. I'm so lonely." Keith always puts Cav to bed. That is his special time with Daddy alone. They lay down together and watch a movie of Cav's choice. I hugged Cav tightly and started to tear up. I asked him if he wanted to stay in my room instead. He shook his head and ran into my room. He slept in Keith's spot last night. It helped make that king sized bed seem a lot less large and it helped Cav feel less lonely.

Thank you Mad and Linds for commenting on my really sad post. And Mad, thank you so much for offering to come stay with us last night. You are really a wonderful person and a fabulous friend. I apologize that these posts are going to be kind of depressing for a bit. I promise it will get better soon. The boys and I are headed to FL tomorrow. Our flight leaves in the afternoon. I am looking forward to getting to my parents house. Its full of people and distractions. I need to get away from all of Keith's stuff. Seeing his clothes in the closet, his hat on the banister, shorts in the laundry, is enough to make me lose my composure. Wish me luck, flying with a preschooler and a toddler is always an adventure.

And I am going to close with a few pictures that I just uploaded from my recently broken camera. :) Enjoy.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

He is actually leaving

As I write this blog, I'm enjoying my last evening as a family for who knows how long. My hubby just took off his wedding band and locked it into the safe until he comes home. It was painful to watch. He gave his boys the stuffed dogs he made for them at build a bear. They both kept pushing the buttons to hear the message their dad had recorded for them. The boys and I made him a pillow case covered in hand prints and a few messages. Keith made placemats for the boys with pictures of them together on them (thank you Kelly for the fabulous idea and supplies). We have talked with Cav about daddy going away. He keeps saying he doesn't wand him to go. I know how he feels. Tonight we will go through our last bed time routine as a family ever in this house. It's part of what is making this deployment even harder, the fact that when we get back we will be in an all new house. It's a good thing, but sad at the same time. We have been in our house since Cav was about 4 months old. It's hard to imagine calling anywhere else home. I'm still trying to accept everything.

A few positives to note...got a great workout today (snatched 100 lbs three times and cleaned 130 lbs two times, as well as rowed 749 meters in a tabata row). Keith was here for the awful discovery I made on our screened porch today. A MOUSE!! So glad I didn't have to face that alone. And finally we had a delicious meal that I made and we enjoyed with my in laws. The boys loved having grandma and grandpa here. I'm really going to miss evenings like this. I cannot wait to have another one.

Please keep my hubby in your thoughts and prayers. I really do hope with all of my heart that he has a safe and quick deployment. Love you baby.





- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Monday, May 17, 2010

Not your typical...

Breakfast! That's right. I am a creature of habit when it comes to my breakfast foods. Every morning, I like to have 3 eggs scrambled, 1/2 cup of oatmeal and a small handful of almonds. Sounds like a lot of food right? Well it's what the zone diet says I can have, so I enjoy it daily. I decided Sunday to get away from my typical breakfast and make some healthy waffles. After scouring the Internet for a good recipe, I came up empty handed. I started brainstorming, a custom waffle recipe can't be that hard. We had some nice ripe bananas, so I decided to use those to sweeten the batter. I added some peanut butter, because really who doesn't love peanut butter and bananas? I used oat flour since I prefer it to wheat flour (almond flour could also work). The result was delicious! The boys scarfed them down and even Keith said they came out great.



PB and Banana Waffles

1 and 1/2 banana

1/4 cup peanut butter (can also use almond butter)

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla

pinch of sea salt

3 egg whites

1/2-3/4 cup oat flour (can also use almond flour, I make oat flour by blending oatmeal into powder)

1/2 tsp baking powder

In food processor or blender puree banana, pb, 2 eggs, vanilla and sea salt. In separate bowl mix egg whites until soft peaks form. Add oat flour to banana mixture. Add baking powder. Gently fold in egg whites. Cook in waffle iron according to manufacturers recommendations.


All in all a fantastic Sunday with my family. I even got to start my day with Pierson snuggles (or nuggles as we call them in our house, thanks to a Cavan mispronunciation).




Big day planned for today. Going to the gym, my in laws come in from RI, getting my hair done, then BBQ with my in laws and our best local friends. It's kind of a going away party for Keith. On the menu...filet mignon, three bean salad, corn on the cob, and homemade gluten free trifle. :). Hoping for a good day!

How was your weekend? Did you do anything special?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Keep on, Keeping on

So I am actually writing this post from my computer, which is not usual for me. :) I seem to never have time to actually sit in front of the computer. I guess we can chalk this one up to me being up at 615am on a Sunday. I heard my hubby hobble out of bed (apparently he hurt his foot) and decided I would rather get up early and enjoy some quiet time with him than sleep another hour or two. I am up now trying to perk up, thank goodness for my morning cup of tea.

I didn't get a chance to write yesterday because I am really trying to focus on family time, which is tough when everybody else has plans. So Friday, we got the boys haircuts. Then we went to Chick Fil A to celebrate our friend's son's birthday. It was a good time, but Keith and I really just wanted to get home. And finally, here is a picture of the gluten free cake that we made the other day.


Yesterday, we got up and I played kitchen scientist again. One of the coaches at my gym, AJ, had been trying to make these nut clusters (they are manufactured by Mrs. Mays...so good). And his version had come out messy and runny. I decided to look into making Paleo brittle. I found a recipe and stole the idea on what temp to cook the honey to. I used raw organic honey and cooked it to 240 degrees, added some raw almonds. Then cooked it until 305 degrees. I threw in some roasted cashews until the nuts were just coated. Spread the mixture onto a jelly roll pan that I lined with parchment paper and lightly greased. Put it in the fridge to cool. When I was ready to leave for the gym, I broke the brittle into pieces and put it in a zip loc bag. All of the coaches at the gym seemed pretty excited to have another type of food to snack on.

I didn't work out yesterday. It was a rest day...finally. Friday's workout was pretty rough. 30 Turkish gets up, 30 kettlebell swings, 30 kettlebell sumo-deadlift high pulls, 5 rounds. It took me 50 min and 36 sec using a 35 lbs kettlebell for the first round and a 25 lbs kettlebell for the remainder. I was dripping in sweat and covered in bruises. A lovely shot of my poor knees.


Here are some pictures of the boys playing around at the gym. They both love it there. Makes a Crossfitting Mama sooooo proud!



And here is a picture of my handsome hubby after getting his butt whooped by some tire flips, overhead squats and double unders on Saturday.


Looks a lot like the picture of me that was posted on the gym's website, from the rope climbing workout. (nice knee high socks right?)


Well, I'm looking forward to a relaxing Sunday. My in-laws come in tomorrow, and I get my hair cut, so its going to be a busy day. Florida bound with the boys on Thursday, kissing my hubby goodbye on Wednesday. :( Happy Sunday blogging world. Hope you enjoy the remainder of your weekend.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Pukey Brewster

Lol, yes that was a nickname for the second half of our workout today. The first half was 8 sets of 3 reps of front squat. I maxxed out at 180 lbs. Not too shabby! :). Then we followed this with 150 burpees for time. For those that have never done a burpee, you should look it up and give it a shot. One heck of a workout. I managed to do 75 burpees without pausing. I shocked myself making it that far. I then had to break up the last 75 burpees into sets of 5 or 10. I finished after 12 minutes and 34 seconds. I was soaked in sweat. Today was the first day I ever took my shirt off at the gym and walked around in my sports bra. My tank top was drenched and I was covered in dirt. All in all a good trip to the gym.

I got to make a cake and cupcakes today with my dear friend Kelly. It's her son's 7th birthday tomorrow and since he has celiacs disease, we made gluten free cupcakes and cake. They came out adorable and delicious. Guess I should have taken a pic huh?

Luckily my hubby made a reservation at our neighborhood cluhouse for dinner tonight. Such a relief to not have to cook after baking all day. Here are a few pics of my little men having dinner.









Once we got home from dinner we had a nice quiet evening. I read Cav a book and Pierson snuggled daddy.



I love my Cavan kisses! He is so cute!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

So I don't get blood on my hands

My boys are two of the most creative and interesting people I have ever met. My favorite time of day with them is after bath and before bed. Keith usually bathes them and I dry them and try to start dressing them. However dressing them is an incredible task. Neither boys likes clothes and both prefer running around screaming in the raw. While very entertaining, this can be a tough thing to explain to visiting grandparents.

As I write this I am enjoying the building of a roller coaster. Cavan has decided that they will use cushions and pillows to build a roller coaster. Here is Pete stacking his cushions.



Here is Cav knocking down Pete's tower.



Which Pierson found absolutely hysterical. Then Cavan found a pair of my stretchy black gloves. He asked me to help him put them on. Then he said "these are my work gloves, so I don't get my hands bloody". To which my wise guy hubby said "what kind of work are you doing? Moving bodies?"



These boys have turned around an otherwise crappy day. :)

I have decided not to dwell on the obnoxious things I have heard and instead look at the amazing people I am raising. :). I am also going to focus on the positive, like today I climbed the rope at the gym 6 complete times to the ceiling. I am terrified of heights and was never able to do this as a child, so I'm pretty darn proud.

So I'm proud of my boys and my rope climbs, what are you proud of? What made you smile on your difficult days?

- Posted using BlogPress from py iPhone

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Some days just require mojitos!

And today is one of those days. Most days I am ok with the fact that my husband is leaving soon, but today was not one of those ok days. I just felt like having a pity party all day. I think a big reason I felt so down was I had to call and cancel our Disney reservations. We were all looking forward to spending a Disney vacation with very close friends of ours, but we had to cancel because of the deployment. Nothing like a little salt in your wound when Disney tells you it's going to cost you $400 to cancel the trip you never wanted to cancel in the first place. We decided to reschedule to avoid losing money, hopefully we can go in the fall.

So to ease mine and Keith's sadness, I made some delicious sugar free mojitos! I know what you are thinking, how could sugar free mojitos taste good? Well follow my recipe and you won't be disappointed.

Cait's sugar free mojitos



For one drink...
One packet of stevia in the raw
3-5 fresh mint leaves
Juice from one lemon
2 oz plain rum
Ice
Seltzer

Put stevia and mint into glass. Muddle together (mash 'em up together). Add lemon juice, rum, and ice. Stir. Add 2-4 oz of seltzer. Mix together gently and enjoy!

I got to have a decent workout today, thankfully my hubby also came. It was nice having him there. We did a lengthy warm up of push ups, squats, pull ups and running. Then we did 6 sets of 3 reps of back squat. I maxxed out at 195 lbs. :). Hubby got 300 lbs. It was a nice heavy lifting day for us.

Ok I decided to post a pic of me since I don't have any good ones of the boys to post right now. Check out my guns! :). I love Crossfit! (Mad recognize my tank?)




Oh and one last picture...



My tea all set up in the morning by my hubby! He does this every morning for me. :)

Sorry for my thoughts being so disjointed, I'm just not thinking clearly today.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Monday, May 10, 2010

There's marshmallow in my garlic press

Today was a somewhat typical Monday. I left my bed, with a Cavan still snoozing in it. To find my handsome hubby putting away the last of the dishes and putting on the tea kettle for my morning tea. He also already had the mug out with a tea bag sitting in it. Such a thoughtful and caring husband. :). After he left for work I began seeking and searching for any food items, sippy cups or other gross stuff our tired eyes may have missed the night before. In the family room I stumbled upon my garlic press with the remains of a mini marshmallow squished in it. Niiiice. Had to have been a brillant plan conjured up by my elder son. He loves "cooking" with my kitchen implements.

Once our fantastic babysitter arrived, I left for the gym. Got a wonderful workout. The prescribed WOD (workout of the day) was 100 double unders (jump rope), followed by 3 rounds of 10 deadlifts at 185 lbs for women, and 400m run. All of that for time. I finished in about 10 minutes and 20 seconds. I also had the pleasure of my hubby being there for the workout. I love working out with Keith. It just motivates me and calms me at the same time.

Once we got home, Keith took the boys fishing at the neighborhood ponds, while I made some phone calls. He then asked me to walk over to the house to see my Mann boys. They were there on the swing set. Here is what I found.












After pushing the boys on the swings for a bit, Pierson and I headed home. Dinner needed to be cooked. I decided to play kitchen scientist and invent a healthier chicken wing recipe. I started with the blue cheese dressing. I used reduced fat crumbled blue cheese mixed in fat free Greek yogurt.



I then roasted the chicken wings on a rack on 350 convect for about 30 minutes.



I melted 1/4 cup of butter and mixed it with 1/4 cup of hot sauce. Then tossed the wings in the sauce.



Absolutely delicious! I know butter isn't the healthiest, but the wings were baked and the dressing was very low fat. :). Plus my hubby was thrilled!

Time to go put the little men to bed. Pierson skipped his nap today, so he is exhausted. Happy Monday everyone!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Mother's day for the mama of mayhem

So the day began with my fantastic husband making the most delicious omelets for us. They were perfect as always. The man just knows how to cook eggs. Here is a picture of my omelet, half gone of course.



Then Pierson decided to help me eat my oatmeal.





Pierson was rocking some nice bedhead. Unfortunately for Pierson, life is just one perpetual bad hair day. Good thing he is cute as a button. He can get away with bad hair.

I decided a workout was necessary today because I had taken the last 3 days off from Crossfit. Since I do not have equipment at home, a run is pretty much my only option. I decide to run a 5k. I hadn't tried running one since last June and that was on a track. Today was the perfect day for running. Cool, sunny, light breeze. I set out for this run aiming to beat my previous neighborhood PR of 27 minutes. It was a good day because I managed to run it in 25 minutes 23 seconds! Not too shabby.

I came home and put Pierson down for a nap while Keith ran to Walmart with Cavan. Shortly after, the doorbell rang and ta-dah! Mother's day flowers!



With the sweetest card!


My hubby is just the best. He made my day!

Keith and Cav returned from Wally World with a new toy. A two person tent that they decided to set up in our family room. The boys absolutely loved it!




We closed out the day with dinner with friends at Ruby Tuesdays. There were 7 children and 5 adults. It was chaos! The good news is nothing was broken the entire meal. The worst thing that happened was some spilled lemonade and lots of shredded cheese littering the floor. :). All in all a successful meal in my book.

Happy Mother's Day to all the Mommies out there!