This Week

With the summer program over at work, I have time to do a few other things. Such as: 

Helping this awesome guy change a transmission...

Cataloging all the books in our Compass Library... (and this is just a small amount of them. My camera isn't big enough to get them all...)

Going shopping with the sister-in-laws and finding things we actually can live without...

And practicing my graffiti skills.

Next week has me taking some of our kids to Missouri for a week of sports camp. I will be without internet, but certianly having a blast and saving up stories for when I get home...

Warrior Dash 2012

Friday marked the ending of my six weeks of summer insanity (aka, Summer LEAP at Compass); an event which required celebrating. No worries, we had planned this one in advance. A little road trip plus a little running plus a few obstacles plus a little mud all equals the perfect way to celebrate, also known as The Warrior Dash. 

After an hour waiting in line for our turn at the parking lot, we quickly got our running stuff on and took a before picture. Notice how clean we are....

The Warrior Dash is a 5k adventure race with 12 obstacles. We ran across rope bridges, crawled under barbed wire (where Anna and I totally owned all the other guys), climbed up walls, jumped over fire, ran through tires and swam through mud. It was a total blast. Anna and I sent the boys on ahead and settled in at a slower pace to enjoy ourselves. Phillip took first in our wave with Josh right behind him, then they waited and waited for the girls to show up.... :) It was sure nice for us to have them cheering  when we swam up out of the mud pit and dashed across the finish line. 

It will take a few more times to be 100% sure, but I think I may have found my sport. I don't know when I have ever had so much fun running. Plus I have another number and medal to add to my recently started collection.... PS, the results came in and 7,700 people ran the Warrior Dash. Phillip came in 7th overall and Josh 29th. That, is what I am talking about.. :) 

Biking in Omaha

My check register shows it being just a little over 3 months ago that I bought my custom built baby named Eve and started on the adventure of being a bike commuter in the great city of Omaha. I just finished 2 weeks of loaning my car out, and hence commuting only with Eve. Well, I mean, I got rides from friends in their cars sometimes, and I got to drive my car on Sunday afternoon, and this awesome guy I know has a motorcycle and took me a few places, but I ran my errands and went to work on my bike. With that behind me, I felt it was a good time to write about a few things I have learned commuting in Omaha the past 3 months. 

 First, let’s set the stage. The last time Emily rode a bike was probably like 8 years ago, and it was on gravel roads with hills. Emily hated it. She had to ride to work until she got her driver’s license. At the time, she thought this was a horrible situation. This spring she thanked her Dad for it.  So, now we have Emily on a road bike (which she has never ridden before) on the streets of Omaha (where she has never lived before) competing with the traffic up the hills to work. Fortunately for me, I have this amazing man who gave me three pieces of advice. One: Stay off the sidewalks, they are suicidal. Two: Ride an arms’ length away from the curb so cars can pass you, but they have to notice you. Three: Be Aware! I was pretty sure there was more to it than that, but considering the amount of bike commuter experience he has compared to mine, I decided to try it. First thing Emily has learned bike commuting in Omaha. Always take advice from other bikers. Pretty much 100% of the time, if something bad (or good) has happened, and they can warn you about it, it will help keep you on the road. This applies to the simplicity of the three above rules. Especially the “Be Aware!” rule. Second thing Emily learned. Biking to work is a fabulous mood enhancer. When I ride 10 minutes to work as opposed to driving 5, I arrive cheerful and on a little adrenaline high. I am not going to deny it, I am a little addicted to the way it puts my day into perspective.

Third thing Emily learned. Everyone likes hot pink bikes, and people in my neighborhood are very happy to tell me how much they love it. I have heard everything from, “DUDE!!!! That is a sweet ride!” to “Get off the road you moron!” and everywhere in between. My pink bike also helped earn me the love of all the children in my apartment complex, who love to touch it, try the pink frog light, and ask me all about it. Fourth thing Emily learned, don’t bite off more than you can chew. This would refer to how much stuff she attempts to cram into her backpack when biking to the grocery store. Let’s just say it is really nice the store is only a few blocks from home… 

Fifth thing Emily learned (and last for this blog post, although there are countless more), just because you are a biker, does not mean you are the smallest thing on the road. Even though sitting between a semi and a school bus at a stoplight might make you feel somewhat vulnerable and puny, always remember there are pedestrians. Including pedestrians who don’t look where they are going, pretend to walk, stop, and at the last second walk out on the street in front of you. These pedestrians can be very thankful for the awesome brakes my man put on Eve’s front tire…

Lately...

My life has been very full lately. Summer at Compass has been both incredibly stretching and incredibly amazing. Just to give you a little taste of what I have been up to lately....

As part of our service learning project, the kids held a lemonade stand to raise money for childhood cancer research. 

Standing on the corner yelling at cars to stop and cheering when our first costumer arrived, laughing until I nearly cried at the commentary, and seeing how excited the kids were when they found out how much money they had raised are memories I will hold for a long time. 

A friend of mine came to teach dance. 

I don't remember the last time I saw them get into a lesson so much. They were loving it! 

Playdough math, and art... 

And jelly bean math...

And puzzles.... 

And drama... 

And pretty much my life has been really, incredibly, amazingly, full and blessed. 

And just in case you were worried that my life is consumed with work, I find time for other things as well. The above story? True story. :) 

Two wheels for two weeks...

I am officially on 2 wheels for the next two weeks. 

Commuter map and super toned legs here we come! 

Becoming an Artist

I decided the other day, after an entire childhood where I shunned art because I was so terrible at drawing even stick people, that I was going to become an artist. This was mostly provoked by the fact that artists can have crazy hair and eclectic wardrobes and everyone applauds them for it. Of course, I had no intention of doing anything different, just owning my crazy hair and eclectic wardrobe a little more. But a few weeks after this decision, I saw a project online that looked so cool, I just had to try. 

First, I had to face my fears and go, alone, to Hobby Lobby. For a person who has never been 'creative', Hobby Lobby with its massive amounts of materials just waiting to be creatively used frightens me. In fact, I know many men who are less afraid of fabric stores than I am of Hobby Lobby. Once I had a purpose in mind though, Hobby Lobby turned out to be the place to go. 

The actual project involved painting a canvas with rubber cement, letting it dry, then painting over the rubber cement with watercolors. I hadn't painted with watercolors since I was probably six. I don't know why I ever stopped. It is highly therapeutic, let me tell you. And just as fun as I had remembered from being six...

Then I had to wait an agonizingly long time for it to dry. This also had not changed from when I was six.. 

Once it was dry I rubbed off the rubber cement and tada! The finished product! I am a long ways from being an artist, but I was inspired to try this again on a bigger canvas. If nothing else, I discovered another thing that I not only enjoy, but that is productive. See, not having internet at home isn't all bad....:) 

Silence...

My blog has been strangely silent lately. Here is why... 

 First there was all this prep work for summer here at Compass. My desk got a little overrun with all the cool things I was pulling together for the kids. 

Oh, and there was getting all the decorations ready. Want to guess what our theme is for reading? 

Then the kids arrived. And my life has been crazy-awesome ever since! 

Field trips are every Friday. Last week we went to the zoo to be the monkeys. I mean to see the monkeys... 

Math class is a blast. 

As is drama.... 

I love it when they enjoy the activities I plan. 

So yeah, the blog silence is not indicative of actual silence in my life. But rather of a very, very full schedule. I hope your summer is shaping up to be at least half as fun as mine!