Happy Halloween

M was a fairy witch and A was a lobster bake!!

Meet Bartha

CHRIS IS BACK!!!

The girls and I could hardly wait. We missed him lots. The night before M came into my room a little after 9 (she had been in bed for about an hour obviously too excited to sleep) to tell me that her daddy was going to pick her up from school at lunch. She was so excited she couldn’t even sleep during her nap at school (and she always takes a nap there). He picked the girls up early from school and went to the library. That’s their thing.

He and Brian had a fantastic time on the ride. They met a lot of new, fun and interesting people. They were in Austin Texas most of the time. He had never been to Austin before and thought the city was awesome. He described it as similar in feel to Portland, OR, without the crappy weather (sorry, Uncle Mike and MelMel). He thinks I would love it so we are going to plan a vacation there some time soon. While he was in Austin he was able to do some around town rides and joined Jeff on some of his interviews with the local media. He had lunch with Desiree Ficker---a pro triathlete. He said she was really cool. Although she seemed embarrassed, she even brought some magazines to sign for the group. He also toured the Livestrong Foundation , Mellow Johnny's Bike Shop, and last but not least they joined Lance Armstrong on a bike ride around Austin. Chris is a big fan of Lance so this ride was SUPER cool, once in a lifetime type of experience.

Thanks to everyone for your support of the guys and the Pablove Foundation! You can follow the rest of Jeff's trip at Pablove.org. They have three more weeks to go -- good luck!

Halloween Party

Spoooooky coooooookies (with fluff...yummy)

M's Fairy Witch Hat

Ms. Alice's famous witch's brew---each year she puts on this magic show for the kids. They (and the adults) LOVE it. Thanks, Ms. Alice.

Gottcha, Big Mike!

PS. A's pics didn't turn out. More cute pics of her to come!!!

Pablove Day 2

Chris and Brian road 123 miles today to Austin. I haven't received the "ride report" from Chris yet but he said over the phone that it was a beautiful, memorable ride. When I talked to him tonight he and Brian were stopping in for their SECOND dinner of the tonight---pho I believe. Guess they worked up an appetite, huh!

Houston to Brenham morning dedication with Brian and Chris.

Brenham to Austin morning dedication with Brian and Chris

Oh, and I watched a movie at the movie theater by MYSELF today for the first time in ages. It was awesome (and the movie was as well...Where the Wild Things Are).

Pablove Day 1

After a slight weather delay, Chris and Brian made it to Houston last night. I'm told they had an amazing creole smorgasbord of gumbo and jambalaya at Jeff Castelaz's gracious in laws in. This morning they embarked on their first of several riding days in east Texas. The boys were joining Jeff and his coach, Rick, who have been cycling from St. Augustine, FL to L.A., averaging around 100 miles per day. While they are usually riding in their "twosome", today they had a "fivesome", accompanied by Kurt, a seigneur from Uncle Mikes stomping grounds, Portland.

They awoke to chilly temps for Texas, fully clad with cold weather clothing, and finished in the mid 70s, full sunshine, with a pair of drenched shorts and fully open and saturated jerseys. Chris described the ride as incredible: no potholes, a vehicle riding 20 feet behind them to protect them from car drivers, and no "curfew" from the wife. They finished their 78 mile journey in Brenham, TX, with a lunch of grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches, salad, and protein recovery shakes. Chris was then offered a chance to do something he hasn't been able to do in years (according to him)...take a nap, lay around in the hotel and watch Mel Brooks movies until dinner is ready!

Tomorrow they are off to Austin.

Pablove Across America

Brian and Chris spinning in our basement yesterday morning.

Why? For Pablove Across America. Next week they will be riding 285+ miles over 3 days in eastern Texas. One of Brian's friends, Jeff, lost his 6 year old son Pablo to cancer earlier this year...he was only 6 years old. In an effort to support children who are undergoing arduous and extremely long treatments, Jeff started the Pablove Foundation which provides resources to allow kids to be kids during their medical treatments. Please visit the Pablove Foundation to learn more concerning the foundation as well as see the daily video blogs documenting the ride. I understand that these are really tight economic times but ANY support you are able to give to this cause is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Science Museum

Yesterday we spent the day with the Pettit boys at the Science Museum. We checked out the new You exhibit and the trains (the kids favorite). The You exhibit is really cool and was my favorite. It's an interactive exhibit that examines not only your physical being but also takes into account your personality and the environment in which you live---mind, body and spirit kind of thing. There was a game where you strapped a magnetic thing to your head and tried not to think. Chris and I competed and guess who won.....yep, Chris. That's one game that I don't mind losing :-)) We had a blast!

Promotion

It turns out that my boss is not a sore loser after all--remember I beat him at indoor racing a couple of weeks ago. Today I was promoted to Senior Counsel. Yippee!!!

The Girls

Congrats, Rob

And, yes it was that COLD!!!! Argghhh. Not ready for this.

Monster Mash

Check this out...just click on the image above. Thanks, Mel!

The Dentist

Ever since M was old enough we have made a huge deal over M brushing her teeth. Yummy tasting toothpaste and mouthwash, cute brushes, colorful floss. Our strategy has proven successful as she is an avid little brusher....never forgets. In fact, a couple of times this summer we were out late and she fell asleep on the drive home. We put her straight to bed only to have her wake up in distress because she didn't brush her teeth. OK, maybe I have taken this thing a little far by drilling into her head that she has to brush her teeth or her teeth will fall out. On the other hand, it has worked :-))

Over the weekend, M had her first dentist check up with Dr. George. She goes to all of our checkups so she knows and loves Dr. George. However, as you can expect, she was very concerned and kept asking if it was going to hurt. It took a little cajoling (her Barbie that she brought along for the trip needed to have her teeth checked too, right?!) and a lot of patience on the part of Dr. George, but she finally hopped in the chair. She was so excited about her "shiny" teeth afterwards and told everyone that would listen. Priceless.

Sweet Kisses

Sometimes the tests of a 4 year old cause you to temporarily forget the sweet nature of that 4 year old. Tonight I was reminded of how adorable M truly is. At bedtime M said: "I'm going to take all of your kisses and put them in my heart and never let them go. Until I say so."

My response: LOTS OF KISSES!!!

Vroom, vroom

If you want a great overall workout you should try indoor racing. Yesterday I had a work function at Chicago Indoor Racing and it was a blast. I am extremely sore today! We raced a Grand Prix which meant it was 4 races at 20 laps each. Doesn't sound like much, huh!!! Oh no. It was exhausting. My ankles, wrists, abs, forearms, biceps...man, they hurt. But so much fun. Oh, and I came in second overall. I beat my boss so that is probably not the way to go if you are wanting a promotion. What can I say, I'm competitive at sports!!! I will definitely do that again!