Happy Holiday!

It has been a whirlwind since my last blog.... I cannot believe it was in November. The past month or so has been busy with various holiday activities... such fun! I love the holidays but I am also ready for recovery after them. We did do a couple fun things- one was my daughter was a little mouse in the Nutcracker. (see pic) . What a wonderful opportunity for her, she absolutely loved it! We also attended a doll tea- all 3 girls love their dolls and this was a fun new thing to try. We also saw Santa at the Wildlife Experience nearby our house. Outside and beautiful albeit brain freeze cold that night! Our holidays were spent with family which is always fun watching all the cousins reconnect. Now it is time to focus on 2009!!

Trail Dust Video

thought I would post this video of the girls line dancing!

Halloween

Sorry a bit out of sequence here but I just realized I never posted a Halloween pic of the girls. Katelynne was a flapper, Amanda a Panda (really??) and Devon was a frog! They were darling and we had lovely weather here in Colorado which is notorious for being cold and miserable on Halloween. It was a nice treat to see all the kid's costumes and the parents sitting outside passing out the treats! Unfortunately, the night before, my girlfriend Kristen's dog was attacked by a mountain lion. An 85 pound lab, Ally whose 10 month old puppy, Sadie saved her by chasing the mountain lion back into the scrub oak! Needless to say we were all with our kids as they trick or treated!!

Amanda's Birthday!

Wow it has been a busy few weeks! My older girls were off school and while they were off Devon had a week break and 2 Fridays too! We have kept busy, mostly with playdates, movie trips, shopping excursions, swimming trips and birthday parties (Nov is a busy month!). I have also had several trunk shows during their break and now I need to catch up on my work!! They head back Monday so I will be busy playing "catch up".

Amanda turns 9 tomorrow! We had her birthday party last night at Trail Dust Steakhouse with 10 friends of hers. They had a ball!! Learned how to line dance and went up and down the slide a gazillion times!!

Tomorrow is her actual birthday and my girls each get to pick a meal out for their birthday. Amanda wants to go to a Japanese restaurant and have hibachi. Katelynne has Nutcracker rehearsal most of the afternoon so we hope to hit a movie first. Amanda also had a Swim Meet this morning, she had to get up REALLY early after a late night but it was her last meet as an 8 & under- now she gets to swim 50s which is up and back....

Marathons and Wine!

Well my husband and I got away for a few days.... without kids. It was hard on all of us. The kids stayed with their grandparents which hasn't happened for them so there was a bit of a learning curve for all involved! We headed out Sat to San Fran as I was going to do the women's marathon! Cars, trains, planes, trains and a bit of a lost walk around San Fran, we arrived at the Marriott hotel and checked in! We then walked over to the EXPO. It was VERY crowded!! I picked up my stuff and we checked out the Nike goodies. I told my husband he had it lucky as I bought 2 pairs of socks and a cap! They were personalizing sweatshirts and other items, very cool but I didn't want to wait in the long lines. We had a walk, some shopping and then went out for early Italian at Kuletos. Seems a lot of people had the same restaurant on their mind! I had a wonderful big bowl of pasta! Got a good nights sleep which is unusual for me. We were able to walk to the start which is a huge plus for me!! We started in the dark even though it was 7, the air was brisk and there was a good wind unfortunately. I opted for a short sleeve and shorts but could have worn a lightweight long sleeve. I had no idea what to expect so I popped in my corale and chatted with a lot of friendly women. I think 1000 of the finishers were men. We were off and I started cruising downhill. Felt really good, the air brought out my asthma but after a few hacks (sorry to those around me) I felt pretty clear! I enjoyed the run at sea level :-) The course was beautiful and provided stunning views, especially from the tops of the hills we climbed! There were more hills that I had psyched myself up for in the first 1/2. I didn't have my Garmin set to tell me cumulative time, just pace and mileage so I had no idea what I would do. In the end I squeaked in under 3:28 at a 3:27. I was happy, I got a bit tired at the end but no major cramping or bathroom breaks. I picked up my Tiffany necklace which is VERY cool! You can see my pic holding it at the finish line!! We waited in a long line for the bus which was heated and took us back to Union Square. A quick turnaround and we were off to wine country! We stayed at the Sonoma Mission Inn and did a tour at Vianasa on the way! Lovely wines and great food too!! We had a nice dinner that night and an early turn in and lie in! My kind of trip! The next day it was off for more wine tasting and tours, lunch and another nice dinner. We then caught an early flight out Tuesday morning and returned to the kiddos! A fun but brief getaway for my husband and I's 11th wedding anniversary!

Sleep

Well just a few days out before the Nike womens marathon. I am very excited to run this. Sort of wish I had allocated a bit more time to train but sometimes it just doesn't happen. I am looking forward to the chocolate aid station, the pedi station, the jamba juice aid station. I think this will be a lot of fun!! I am a little concerned as Devon, my youngest, has been determined to not let me sleep. Last night wasn't so bad but the night before I was up at midnight, 1, 3, 5, 6. So much for deep sleep! Luckily I can fall back asleep easily! Katelynne is home this week with symptoms of strep- low grade fever, headache, tummy ache but so far her culture is negative? Unfortunately for her it is her last week before tracking off so she is bummed. Plus she isn't sooo sick, just enough to keep her home so as to not spread the germies. Well that is about all for today! My photo today is Devon in her Halloween costume- she is a froggie!

Mimzy is Here!

Most of you are asking who is Mimzy? She is our newest addition to the family! A beautiful little 3 month old calico girl. She is the sweetest baby, she purrs at everything, even in this crazy loud house!! I am attaching her first photo! She barely weighs in at 2 pounds, that could be because we cannot get her to stay still on the scale. Anyhow... the Wilkins girls are in love! She is such a little prissy thing, so different than Tigger who drinks by sticking his entire head in the water bowl and comes up dripping! Mimzy is very clean!!

Speaking of clean, I have 2 girls upstairs in a bath while daddy helps Katelynne make a bit of progress on her book report! I say a bit because there is not much actual work going on. Katelynne is easily distracted!

Tomorrow is a run with friends which should be fun! I hope my legs feel better. The last run I felt like I had two tree posts! I have been fighting off this root canal thing and a cold. The Root Canal Guy (what is their official title?) gave me some wicked medicine to help heal it and so far it is working! My hope is my stomach likes it ok!

Well I spose I am going to make some brownies or something sweet- gotta test out that tooth :-)