A King's Life

Another Soccer Season

2011-10-22T14:38:00.005-05:00

Lincoln wrapped up another successful soccer season this weekend. His team - the "Stompers" - were undefeated. This was his third season with the Stompers, and he's enjoying it more each time. Guy also really had fun getting out and about and playing with all the younger siblings (most of whom he goes to "school" with).

Trail Running

2011-10-22T14:29:00.006-05:00

Last weekend, I did the Cow Pie Trail Run half-marathon in Loup City. It was the first running of the half-marathon and 2nd annual trail run supporting the Rebecca Adams Green Foundation (there was a 5K only last year).

There were about 30 people running the half, and the competition was fierce. The top three finishers had all qualified for and run the Boston Marathon recently. The day was perfect but windy, and by the end of the race, I was ready for some BBQ - and my finisher's cowboy hat.

The whole family was there to watch, and the kids enjoyed the hayrack ride. I strongly encourage anyone looking for a good run in Central Nebraska to mark your calendars for the Cow Pie Trail Run in 2012. I plan on being there - and being ready for the hills this year.

Summer Recap

2011-09-25T14:19:00.008-05:00

Since we have been neglecting our blog and summer is officially over, we decided to do a quick summer recap. Over the summer, we:

Spent 4th of July with our families,
Celebrated Linda's birthday,
Went to New York City for our 10th anniversary (while my parents watched our kids), and
Enjoyed getting Lincoln and Guy on the soccer field for the Fall season.

Jackson County Triathlon

2011-08-21T19:37:00.005-05:00

Tracy and I did the Jackson County Triathlon today. It was a beautiful, foggy morning, and Linda and the kids were out to watch the race. Lucky for me, the swim course was accidentally shortened to around 300M because of the overnight currents in the lake. A short swim made for a fast day.

Lincoln's License to Ride

2011-07-25T20:07:00.001-05:00

For Lincoln's fifth birthday, Scott and I bought him a used bike from the Trek store. He had been riding a 12-inch bike with training wheels that Scott's mom bought at a garage sale, but we thought having a new bike would motivate him to try riding without the training wheels - and free up the other bike for Guy. We had Lincoln try out the bikes at the store, and at the advice of a Trek employee bought him another 12-inch bike, which is small enough for him to put both feet on the ground while he's riding (very important, as we've discovered!).

Lincoln's been diligent about practicing, and yesterday on the way home from Tracy and Joni's the practice paid off. We filmed him riding all by himself - a huge achievement! He's also pretty good at stopping, and can sometimes get himself started, too!

Now that it looks like bicycling is well underway, all he needs is to work on his swimming and he can start entering some triathlons!

Lincoln's almost 5 years old

2011-06-26T13:12:00.003-05:00

This weekend we celebrated Lincoln's 5th birthday (his actual b-day is next week). Lincoln had a few school friends over to the house, and of course Mary and Randy and Tracy and Joni (and families) were there for the festivities. The weather was perfect, so we were able to turn the kids loose outside.

Linda's big experiment was creating a doughnut mountain instead of the typical birthday cake. The kids loved it, and we still have tons of doughnut holes left over. Note: One 50-pack of Munchkins from Dunkin' Donuts is enough to feed eight pre-schoolers. We opted for two packs (to be safe) and are now paying the price.

Our big gift to Lincoln was a new bike - a two-wheeler. Our hope is to transition him to the new bike (sans training wheels) by the end of the summer and transition Guy to Lincoln's old bike (with training wheels).

He was excited about the bike, but he's not too sure about this whole "no training wheels" thing. Results TBD.

Hospital Hill

2011-06-05T12:20:00.006-05:00

Last weekend was my second running of the Hospital Hill half-marathon. As the name implies, it is hilly - and on race day it was also very hot. I managed to finish, though, and get a very nice medal.

I tried to train "smarter" this year by running lots of hills during my training, but it was still a very tough day. I started out faster than I should have, and the heat didn't help. Luckily there were sprinklers along the route to cool us off, and a few spectators even offered us ice!

The best part of the race, though, was seeing Guy, Lincoln, and Scott along the route cheering me on. They stopped at two places(and the finish) and gave me high-fives as I went by. It was awesome having them there and helped keep me going. Now to start training for Hospital Hill 2012!

Guy's first week of "big boy school"

2011-06-05T12:19:00.002-05:00

Last week marked an important day for our family - both boys are finally at the same daycare! Scott and I were sad to be leaving his old daycare, as the teachers there were wonderful and Guy really liked being there. We had always planned on moving him to Lincoln's daycare, though (since it has the Montessori preschool attached to it), and Memorial Day weekend seemed like a good time to make the switch.
Guy has handled the transition pretty well. He does fine at drop-off since Lincoln is there with him, but the teachers say he has some trouble when it's time for him to go to his own classroom. His new teacher is very nice, though, and he really seems to like her. It also doesn't hurt that his new school has "frosty treat Monday" - every Monday during the summer they get a visit from the ice-cream man!
Here's a picture of Guy on his first day at "big boy school".

Soccer Season Finale

2011-05-29T13:29:00.002-05:00

Last weekend was Lincoln's last soccer game of the Spring season. The Stompers won convincingly, as they have most of the season, and afterwards they got medals and took a team photo.

Lincoln had a fun season, and he got steadily more excited about the games as the season progressed. Guy also enjoyed the games (and practices) as he got to run around with all the younger brothers and sisters. We're looking forward to taking the Summer off and then gearing up for the Fall season.

Running, Digging, and a Parade

2011-05-15T12:23:00.000-05:00

It's been another busy few weeks for us. Scott ran the Lincoln Half-Marathon two weeks ago, setting a PR, and we both ran the Corporate Challenge 5K last weekend. This time, we both set PRs (although it's been a couple of years since I've run a 5K). Both Guy and Lincoln were on hand to cheer us on at the 5K - men and women run separately so we didn't have to leave them unattended.

After the 5K, we took a quick break and then headed to the Spirit of Mission Days parade. Lincoln's favorite part was the real, working tank at the end of the parade. It was actually pretty awesome - it took up almost the entire two lanes of Johnson Drive.

Of course, last Sunday was also Mother's Day. Scott cooked me breakfast, and the boys gave me an awesome card and some chocolate. We got a lot of outdoor work done, too. I planted beans, peas, carrots, and potatoes in my garden, and Lincoln and Guy helped me pick out some flowers to plant in our planters. Our house is ready for spring!

Run, Run, Run

2011-04-19T10:00:00.001-05:00

It's Spring-time and racing season has begun once again. Everyone in the family has run one race already. While the boys and I are only doing running races this year, Scott will be doing some triathlons again.

Rock the Parkway

I ran the Rock the Parkway 10k for the second time in early April. It was a bit chilly, but the sun was out and I managed to beat last year's time by five minutes. Lincoln, Guy, and Scott made a nice cheering section near the finish line, and Lincoln even gave me a big "high-five" as I ran past.

Brew to Brew

Two weeks ago, Scott, Tracy, Randy, Kevin, and Nancy did the Brew to Brew 44 mile team relay race from Kansas City to Lawrence. The "brew" comes from starting at Boulevard brewery in KC and ending at the Free State brewery in Lawrence. It was a lot of fun, but the winds topped 30+ mph and the heat was in the mid-80's. Overall, our team finished in 10th place - not a bad showing for a bunch of amatures.

Trolley Run

Lincoln and Guy ran their own race on Sunday - the Kid's Trolley Run. Scott and I have ran the adult race in the past, but it didn't fit in our training schedules this year. It was fun just cheering the boys on this year. Lincoln did great, but Guy was a bit afraid of the mascots and I ended up carrying/dragging him across the 10-yard race course. They both still got blue ribbons, though!

Spring has sprung?

2011-03-27T17:30:00.001-05:00

I realize it's snowing outside as I write this, but I'm still thinking about Spring. To celebrate the new season, Scott and I have made some big changes to our house. One thing we've never really liked about the house is that there was no way to get to our backyard without going downstairs or through the garage. That made it difficult to grill or to have outdoor dinners. We decided to build a deck off of our dining room, and replace the window in the dining room with a sliding-glass door.

We had one of Scott's fellow Ultimate frisbee players, who is also a contractor, do the work. The result is amazing, and better than I imagined. With the new door Lincoln and Guy can easily get to the back yard to play, and we've already had people over for dinner. We're looking forward to a fun summer with our new deck!

We don't have any good deck pictures right now, but I'm sure we will soon. We do however have pictures of the kids riding their bikes outside during this afternoon's late-Spring snow storm. We're tired of snow pictures, but the weather hasn't cooperated lately. We are all anxiously waiting for warmer weather when hats, gloves, and coats aren't needed.

Ski trip!

2011-02-26T14:30:00.004-06:00

Last week we took our (mostly) annual family ski trip to Colorado. This year was special because it was Lincoln's first year on skis and in ski school. The trip was great with good weather, good snow. Somehow we also survived nearly 24 hours in the car together.

Our family narrowly escaped the flu and the sickness that's been traveling around town, but our niece Madeline wasn't so lucky. Tracy and Joni needed a vacation from their vacation as they didn't get much sleep.

Lincoln enjoyed skiing, and he survived a day of ski school - but he did have matted, sweaty helmet hair and was ready to go home when we picked him up. His most memorable moment on skis was when get got away from my Mom on the bunny hill and nearly plowed into a girl on a snowboard. Mom had to run after him (in ski boots), dive, and knock him down to prevent the collision. We got a good laugh out of it, and I caught the aftermath on film.

Guy isn't so fond of the cold, but we got him out of the condo for a couple of days to hang out with us on the slopes. He spent a lot of time watching Lincoln ski - one day sitting on a bench (below) and the next day in a sled. Getting a little time in the snow coupled with watching Despicable Me about 100 times kept Guy entertained.

We can see clearly now the snow is gone

2011-02-13T14:04:00.005-06:00

February is only half over, and so far it's been pretty exciting. The beginning of the month hit us with snowpocalypse 2011, with both boys being out of daycare for two days and Scott and I taking some half-days. Lincoln loved the snow and took advantage of the weather to practice skiing. Guy wasn't too fond of being bundled and wanted to go inside as soon as he was outside.

Shortly afterward cousin Madeline celebrated her first birthday party and Grandma and Grandpa King came for a visit. It warmed up enough for snow-building, and Lincoln, Mike, and Scott built an awesome snow fort.

Yet another snow and more temperate weather the following week got the boys outside again and building snowmen and snow-chairs.

The cold snap broke this week (just in time for Scott's birthday!) and Guy got to finally cruise around on his bike. Lincoln was a typical boy and spent some time knocking down the snowman and snow fort. We are all looking forward to spring and lots more (warm!) time outside.

Second Son Turns 2

2011-01-31T18:38:00.004-06:00

When Guy was born, everyone told us that we wouldn't have as much time to chronicle his every milestone like we did with Lincoln. It seems that advice is coming true, as it's been almost a week since Guy's 2-year appointment and I'm just now blogging the results. In the meantime we've had lots of fun playing in the snow, building a snowman, and watching Cars again and again and again (Guy is the same age that Lincoln was when Lincoln fell in love with that movie).

Guy clocked in at an impressive 27 pounds at his checkup. He's in the 50th percentile for height and weight, and 80th percentile for head size. Luckily he didn't need any shots, and it looks like he's on target for all of his developmental milestones.

Below is a collection of Guy photos that Lincoln, our budding photographer, took with my iPod. Enjoy.

Winter Fun

2011-01-15T14:28:00.004-06:00

We finally got some real snow this week - enough to cancel school for two days and leave us with cabin fever.

Earlier this week the high temperature was 10 degrees at best, but we still ventured outside for some snow fun. Guy has proven to be a summer boy. He doesn't care much for the below-freezing temperatures. Lincoln, on the other hand, really enjoys it.

Today, with the temperature climbing into the low 30's, we went back out to do some sledding. Guy wasn't into it, so he stayed inside with Linda. Lincoln and I did a little sledding and practiced skiing a bit before we hit the real mountains next month.

Christmas Recap

2011-01-08T22:10:00.002-06:00

Now that we've had a week to settle back into our regular routine, I thought it would be nice to give a recap of our Christmas holiday. We've already mentioned Guy's birthday - after we returned to KC we had a Christmas/New Year's celebration with my parents at Mary and Randy's house. Mary got a birthday cake for Guy, and he had a blast blowing out the candles.

Also that night the kids (and the adults) had lots of fun opening gifts and generally causing a huge mess. My mom got all of the boys Star Wars light sabers.

We spent the Christmas weekend with Scott's parents. We braved the cold to practice our shooting skills and ride on Mike and Shirley's new four-wheeler. We also got to do some ice-skating - the river had flooded a nearby park and then froze, creating a huge sheet of ice. The boys had lots of fun exploring the ice and we managed to stay (mostly) upright.

Happy Birthday, Guy!

2010-12-29T07:38:00.001-06:00

Guy recently celebrated his 2nd birthday in style - with a bundled-up 4-wheeler ride with Grandma and Lincoln. We'll plan a full-blown birthday party with a cake, candles, and friends in the summer.

It's hard to believe our"baby" is already two years old. It's certainly been a busy two years with our two active boys. Guy loves playing with his trains (he calls them "choo-choos") so we got him a Cranky Crane for his birthday. He has also recently developed an interest in the TV. He loves to watch (what else?) train shows - Micky Mouse Choo-choo Express is his current favorite. Of course, Guy's all-time ultimate favorite game is "doing exactly what Lincoln is doing". The two of them can play together pretty well, although they often want to play with the same toy at the same time. I think we've "solved" this problem, though - two of everything!

Snoooooow!

2010-12-12T20:31:00.003-06:00

We woke up this morning to our first now of Winter. Sub-20 degree temperatures accompanied the snow, but we still managed to bundle up the kids and get out for a while. We finished off our snowy play time with a nice cup of hot chocolate.

I also got to take advantage of the snow and freezing temperatures and bundle up and play Ultimate for a couple of hours. I guess I'll never grow up - I love playing in the snow (and I have the frost bitten toes to show for it).

Jus' Mowin'

2010-12-05T18:52:00.003-06:00

Last weekend we took advantage of the nice weather and tackled the leaves in our back yard. As a four-mower family, we were all able to get in on the action. Scott bought a new mower recently and I got to try it out as he used the old one to tackle the larger piles, while each of the boys has their own.

*** Note that even though Scott is not pictured mowing, he is in fact our official mower. The picture below shows about the second time in our marriage that I have operated a lawn mower.

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-27T15:59:00.006-06:00

We hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving! My parents came to Kansas City for the extended weekend and Scott and I hosted Thanksgiving. We did a lot of cooking - the little boys and I made a pecan pie a few days in advance (which Lincoln did not eat as apparently he's a pumpkin pie fan), and Randy and Mary brought over their new deep fryer so the big boys could cook up a delicious Turkey.

Guy, Lincoln, and Everett enjoyed Uncrustables and juice boxes at the Kids Table while we ate the good stuff upstairs. After a day of eating, my mom, Mary and I headed out Friday morning to do a little shopping. We used to be up at 4:00 am for the sales, but this year we slept in until 6:30. We still managed to cross off a big chunk of our Christmas lists, though! That afternoon we got some more time with baby Grayson and we tried out Randy's xBox-Kinect.

It's sad that the weekend's almost over, but we still have a lot of wrapping, decorating, and crafting to keep us occupied until Christmas!

Weekend fun

2010-11-17T21:05:00.002-06:00

My parents were in town for a fun-filled weekend, and on Saturday we went to a Parents as Teachers event that included a mini children's zoo with a puppy, hamsters, and a gerbil. It also had a couple of snakes and a tarantula. Guy was pretty interested in the snake - he certainly does not get that from me. Lincoln preferred to color pictures of animals rather than looking at or touching them.

We also took advantage of the beautiful weather to do some work outside. We started getting our yard ready for the winter (raked leaves, etc.) and helped Tracy and Joni hang Christmas lights. At the end of it all, Guy was ready for a break and a little snack.

Halloween!!

2010-11-04T18:31:00.000-05:00

I hope everyone had a nice Halloween! Halloween is one of my favorite holidays, and this year we had great weather for all of the weekend's events. We let Lincoln pick out his costume this year and he chose Spiderman. The costume we got was awesome - the fake muscles looked great on him! Guy got to wear the skunk costume that Lincoln wore a couple of years ago, and even though it was a bit tight in the shoulders he really liked it.

The festivities began on Friday with two Halloween parties - first at Lincoln's daycare (where Lincoln only took off his mask to eat) and then at his friend's house.

On Saturday both the boys wore their costumes to Science City for their Mad Scientist event. The event was so-so (maybe it was geared towards older kids?), but we still had fun.

Finally, on Sunday we went trick-or-treating!! We walked over to Tracy and Joni's house to get some cute kid photos, and then trick-or-treated our way home. The boys got some nice treats, although Guy didn't quite understand that the candy was supposed to go in his bucket and not directly into his mouth!

Grayson, Welcome to the Family

2010-10-31T15:25:00.002-05:00

This week we welcomed a new member to our extended family - Grayson. Mary and Randy are proud new parents, and Everett is a proud big brother. We visited them at home this morning and Linda got to enjoy some baby-time.

Grayson will probably grow-up to be the toughest of the bunch because he has three older cousins/siblings to battle with. I'm certain there will never be a dull moment when they are all together.

Fall Fun

2010-10-24T18:59:00.005-05:00

Fall is my favorite time of year, and after the beautiful day we had yesterday I think it may be the boys' favorite season, too. I made some pumpkin bread at lunchtime, and after Lincoln and Guy woke up from naps we each had a slice and headed outside to make a nice big pile of leaves in the yard. They both had lots of fun diving and burying themselves in the leaves, and Scott and I even took a turn.

After we came inside it was time for another fall tradition - carving the pumpkin! Lincoln picked out a moon and stars theme, and Scott set to work on the pumpkin Lincoln picked out a couple of weeks ago with Grandma and Grandpa King. The boys were interested in the carving for about five minutes, and then wandered off while Scott finished the pumpkin. I think it turned out pretty nice!

This week has much more Halloween fun in store - a "pumpkin hunt" at Lincoln's school, and costume parties at both boys' daycare. I'll be spending the week "taste-testing" the Halloween candy, and hopefully there will be enough left for the trick-or-treaters next Sunday!

26.2 (Round 2)

2010-10-22T20:53:00.003-05:00

After Tracy and I ran last year's Kansas City Marathon, I said it was fun but it would be a long time before I do *that* again. Well, I guess a "long time" means exactly one year because last week Randy and I ran the KC Marathon.

I was much more reasonable about my pacing this year, so when I finished I wasn't a total physical and emotional wreck, which was a nice change for Linda and the kids. It was a great experience, and now I say again that it will be a long time until I do that again.

Here's a photo of me and Randy after the finish, and Lincoln patiently waiting for me at the finish line.

Crusin'

2010-10-05T21:01:00.003-05:00

Over the last few weeks Guy has become a pro at riding his his Radio Flyer "bike" around the driveway. Now he cruises around any chance he gets, which includes before school, after school, and any other time he can sneak outside for a minute. This weekend he even rode all the way to the park by himself (with Grandma King's supervision, of course).

Recently I grabbed the camera and got some footage of an early morning, before school riding session. Enjoy!

Livin' the easy life...

2010-09-25T09:09:00.004-05:00

Hard to believe, but my Dad retired a couple of weeks ago after 30+ years at LES (Lincoln Electric System)! He's looking forward to lots of relaxing days, leisurely breakfasts with my mom and their friends, and exciting cruises. We're looking forward to lots of visits from Grandma and Grandpa!

Congratulations Dad!!

Goodbye Summer

2010-09-16T20:45:00.008-05:00

Lincoln has gone back to pre-school, the pool has closed, it gets dark earlier, and the temperatures have finally dropped out of the 90's. I guess that means another summer has come and gone.

Last weekend we did get to have one last summer hurrah with the garden hose. We're trying to patch a couple of areas of our lawn, so we've been watering our new grass. The kids love to take that opportunity to get completely soaked and covered in grass.

Labor Day Weekend

2010-09-06T14:19:00.005-05:00

We hope everyone had a pleasant Labor Day weekend. We celebrated the holiday with Grandma and Grandpa King and Tracy, Joni, and Madeline. We started with a visit to the KC Zoo to see the new polar bear exhibit. The polar bear was exciting (and definitely worth the visit), but Lincoln and Guy really enjoyed getting to feed the sheep. In the second picture, my arm is raised up to keep the food pellets safe while I handed them one-by-one to Lincoln.

Back at the house, Lincoln gathered up some sticks and Tracy and Grandma King made a pretty awesome tipi. Lincoln declared that it would be a good hiding place for animals but probably not giraffes since their necks would be too long to fit inside.

Meanwhile, Guy and Grandpa Guy did some Very Important Work on the tricycle. You should always keep your gear in tip-top shape.

Soccer Practice

2010-08-31T21:12:00.002-05:00

Last week marked a major milestone for our family: we became a soccer family as Lincoln had his first practice of the season. This week Scott got some great photos of him in action. Each practice starts with some drills and ends with a scrimmage. The scrimmages are fun to watch as all of the boys chase after the ball, knocking each other over, and occasionally making a goal. Lincoln loves it!

Guy doesn't play on the team, but he does have his own soccer ball. There's a little girl his age that he hangs out with during the practice, but mostly he just enjoys being outside for the evening.

Corn, Slippers, and a Triathlon

2010-08-27T21:20:00.003-05:00

That's what we've been doing recently - eating corn from our garden, knitting slippers for Lincoln, and running triathlons.

First, we recently picked our second batch of corn from our garden. We've only got a few, small ears, but it's still an accomplishment for us to get anything edible from the garden.

Second, Lincoln went back to pre-school this week with a brand new pair of slippers (a mandatory item for pre-school). Linda knitted him a cool pair of red and orange slippers (he picked the colors). They look a little crazy in this picture because this is before they were felted and shrunk. After the felting they turned out great, and Lincoln was thrilled.

Lastly, I did my second triathlon last weekend. This time Tracy, Randy, and I all punished ourselves. We had a great time, and everyone (Joni, Mary, Linda, and the kids) came out to watch. The only bummer is that I won't be able to do another tri until next summer - the season is pretty much over.

Being neighborly

2010-08-18T20:40:00.000-05:00

This weekend was our annual neighborhood picnic. As usual there was lots of fun stuff including a police car, a fire truck, balloon animals, and an ice-cream truck. It was fun seeing some of the other kids in the neighborhood, and chatting with the parents. Both Lincoln and Guy got balloon dogs, but sadly Guy's had an early demise after he tried to play with it on some dried grass.

Unfortunately we didn't take any photos at the picnic, so instead we have a video montage of Guy on his favorite ride-on toy. We have several "real" ride-on toys in and around our house, but Guy seems to prefer smaller vehicles that aren't really meant to carry actual children (in addition to this fire truck, there is also a tractor he rides on that is even smaller). I predict he'll grow up to be in the circus riding one of those teeny-tiny-too-small clown bikes.

Let the chase begin

2010-08-01T20:46:00.003-05:00

Since we had great weather this evening, we got the kids outside and tried to wear them out before bedtime. As you'll see, they loved chasing Lincoln's remote controlled Bumblebee (the Camaro from Transformers). We only captured 20+ seconds of this on film, but the whole "chasing" event went on for minutes. It's amazing what can keep a kid occupied.

P.S. I'm not sure what Guy picks up and eats at the end of the video, but he's still alive at the time of this post so I guess it wasn't too bad.

Carb Loading

2010-07-20T20:47:00.000-05:00

This weekend I did the Midwest Mayhem Triathlon (my first tri). I was dreading the swim, but I survived and it actually felt pretty good. Hopefully this will be the first of many tri's in my future. I've already got my eyes on the Jackson Country Triathlon, and I'm expecting Randy and Tracy to join me.

Of course, it's difficult to do a triathlon without some big-time carb-loading. Luckily Linda's been digging up potatoes in the garden. It's exciting to dig around in the dirt and discover real, edible food. There's also corn and bean plants that look like they might be providing dinner for us soon.

Summer Vacation

2010-07-11T12:26:00.003-05:00

Last week the family took a much-needed vacation to Breckenridge, Colorado with Mary, Randy, and Everett. We packed a lot of fun into our four days there - one of the highlights was a ride on the Georgetown Loop Railroad's authentic, 1900's era steam train. The train itself was awesome, and the trip through the valley (about 1/2 hour long - perfect for preschoolers) was beautiful.

Scott and Randy took one morning to climb two of Colorado's 14,000 foot peaks. They summited both Gray's and Torrey's peaks, and this now makes three "14'ers" for both of them. Mary and I spent the morning visiting the local donut shop and taking the boys to an old gold mine, where they got to pet real, live mules.

We also took advantage of Breck's new (free!) gondola. At the "top" (which is actually the base of the ski resort) Scott and Lincoln went down an alpine slide at Breckenridge's Peak 8 area. Much to our surprise Lincoln loved the chair lift (a prerequisite for this winter's ski trip) and the slide. Lincoln wanted to go again, but since it was *not* free, we appeased him with another trip on the gondola.

The biggest surprise of the trip was that we made the 10-hour trip from Denver in one piece. We made some stategically-timed stops to let the boys run off some steam, and were home in our beds a little after midnight.

4 years later...

2010-06-30T22:10:00.000-05:00

It’s hard to believe, but our little baby is now four years old! While Lincoln's actual birthday is today, we had a birthday party last Sunday to celebrate. Luckily our family room is large enough to hold a lot of people, because almost everyone we invited was able to attend. We had seven 4-year olds, plus parents and assorted family in attendance. Overall it was a success!

We started off with a couple of semi-organized games – pin the tail on the cow and limbo. It worked pretty well, considering that there were 4-year-olds involved. Most of the game time, though, was spent playing with trains and determining who was best friends with who.

The highlight of the party was the cake and presents (of course!) Lincoln helped me bake white cupcakes the day before, and I added “Mickey Mouse” heads to them – ice cream scoops with two chocolate cookies for ears. At Lincoln’s request (or insistence, as it were), we also had a small round cake for blowing out candles.

As for gifts, Lincoln received some pretty cool stuff – including lots of car stuff, motorcycles, and games. Here he is wearing another of his gifts – a superhero cape customized with an “L”. After he put it on all of his friends asked him if he could fly. He can’t yet, but he’s still trying!

Tour de Grandparents

2010-06-23T19:44:00.001-05:00

While Scott was off having fun bicycling, Lincoln, Guy, and I went on our own tour - first to Grandma and Grandpa Kings, and then on to Grandma and Grandpa Hauner's. To add to the fun (and chaos) we were joined by Everett and Mary. The boys had a great time together, and the adults had an interesting time trying to keep up with three very active boys.

At Grandma and Grandpa Kings, we spent our first evening at the pool where Lincoln, Everett, and Guy all had fun floating and kicking. Guy proved to be our water baby by wading out until he was up to his chin in water. We originally had hoped to visit the Loup River the next morning, but were met by rain. When we finally made it to the river, it was too high from the rain to wade in, so we played on the swings and headed to Jenner's Park (where there is an actual, old bear cage from when it was a zoo).

We headed out to Grandma and Grandpa Hauner's that evening so we could get an early start the next morning at the Lincoln Children's zoo. The weather cooperated this time, and we had a fun morning with Grandma Hauner visiting the animals and (of course!) riding the train.

It was an exciting weekend overall, and now we're ready for a vacation to recover from our vacation!

BRAN 2010

2010-06-13T13:11:00.004-05:00

We're back home, unpacked, and dried out from BRAN 2010. Tracy, Randy, and I did 230+ miles during the last 3 days of the week, and Dad, Aaron, and Kyle did the full ~500 mile ride, 7-day ride across Nebraska.

The weather was pretty crappy with rain, wind, and thunderstorms almost every night and a few of the days, but in the end good times prevailed.

I've posted a few other BRAN pictures from the start and finish - but I didn't have a camera during the ride. Aaron took some great riding action shots that we'll try to share later.

Summertime, Here we come

2010-05-31T16:04:00.007-05:00

Summer is not officially here, but it's getting close - and it certainly has felt like it lately. With Summer approaching Lincoln recently finished his first year of Little House preschool, and he got to sing in their annual end-of-year concert. The Little House kids did a few patriotic songs to open the show. Lincoln had been practicing the songs at home for days, and he did good under the pressures of the stage. It was fun to see him in his first "school program."

We also welcomed Summer with a trip to Jiggle Jam this weekend. It was fun (as usual), and this was Guy's first trip where he was old enough to enjoy it. Everett (and Mary and Randy) were also there, and the big boys really liked the "train" ride.

And lastly, next weekend Linda's months of training finally pay off - she's running the Hospital Hill half-marathon. We'll have pictures and stories to post after she's done. We wish her luck!

And, just because no post is complete without a cute picture of a toddler wearing sunglasses - here you go.

Our Busy May Days

2010-05-09T19:55:00.007-05:00

Last week we were in Nebraska for the Lincoln Marathon. The kids got some good Grandma and Grandpa time, and I ran the 1/2 marathon on Sunday - it was a great day for running, and Lincoln always puts on a great race. After the Trolley Run the previous week and the Corporate Challenge 5K this weekend that makes three races in three weeks for me. Now I'm ready to get out my bike and take a little break from running.

The finish line of this year's Lincoln Marathon was on the 50-yard line inside of Memorial Stadium and included a brief appearance on the HuskerVision jumbo screen (that's me on the right of the screen about to enter the stadium). The second picture is me and Kevin post race (this was Kevin's first 1/2 marathon).

This weekend was the annual Spirit of Mission Days festival, which includes a parade, a carnival, and local vendors. Everett and Madeline (and their parents) watched the parade with us, and while I think they liked the rescue/police vehicles, bands, and the other attractions, our boys mostly enjoyed the candy. Afterwards we had fun riding a couple of the carnival rides.

The BIG DAY

2010-04-25T18:59:00.005-05:00

After weeks of training, the Big Day finally arrived today - the Trolley Run. It's a family tradition for us - Scott and I have both run the 4-mile race for several years, and Lincoln has participated in the Kid's Trolley Run for the past two years. Guy got to enjoy his inaugural "run" this year - although I'm not sure he understood why I was dragging him across a small patch of grass. Scott and I both were both happy with our times (a PR for me and Scott was only 15 seconds off his Trolley Run PR), but the biggest "event" was watching Lincoln run all by himself - with no hand-holding by me (sniff, sniff).

As usual, this was a big family event. Scott's parents watched the boys and Madeline during the regular run and joined us for the Kid's run. Joni and Tracy both ran, and while Madeline was too small to run this year, I'm sure she'll be running circles around the boys next year! Everett also did the Kid's run, and did a fabulous job.

Overall it was a great (and tiring) weekend - we all took a two-hour nap today!

Zoo trip!

2010-04-18T19:19:00.005-05:00

Yesterday was a beautiful spring day, and we took advantage of the nice weather to take our first trip to the zoo. Lincoln was mildly interested in the Tigers and Orangutans we saw, but he was mostly interested in taking as many train rides as possible. Luckily we bought a season pass this year with unlimited train, tram, and carousel rides. After two train rides, Lincoln had his first-ever carousel ride.

As Scott mentioned in his earlier post, we are trying our hand at gardening this summer. So far I have pepper plants sprouting in egg cartons in the kitchen, and the boys have helped me plant lettuce, onions, and potatoes in the back yard. I am now anxiously waiting to see what will grow.

A Garden Party

2010-04-13T21:14:00.003-05:00

This weekend we took advantage of the nice weather and started prepping what will become Linda's first-ever garden. We're not totally sure that anything will actually grow there, but we're going to give it a shot anyway.

So far all that we've accomplished is confirming that Guy is afraid of the tiller and creating the boys a new, dirty place to play.

Running Around

2010-04-05T21:36:00.006-05:00

There's been a lot going on with us the past two weeks - so much that we've not even had time to blog about it.

Two weeks ago I ran my first 10k at the very first Rock the Parkway. The morning started out cold and wet (41 degrees and drizzly) and it started pouring rain around the time I got to mile 2. I still managed to finish the race in about an hour and 4 minutes, and I was rewarded at the end by my own personal cheering section - Scott brought the boys out to watch my big finish. Lincoln and Guy stayed stayed warm and dry in our running/bike stroller.

Last weekend for Easter we ran down to Lincoln to visit grandma and grandpa Hauner. Both of the boys' daycare were closed on Friday, so we had a long weekend. Lincoln had fun hanging out with Everett and they decorated eggs on Saturday. That night, he told me that he wanted the Easter bunny to turn the "real" hard-boiled eggs into eggs filled with candy. That would explain why, on Sunday morning, he refused to collect the real eggs in his basket.

Easter was not quite so fun for Guy - or for Scott, who was up all night with him. He came down with a case of bronchialitis and spent Saturday night wheezing (when he wasn't crying). Luckily he seems to have recovered and spent today after daycare running around the house.

Grandpa

2010-03-25T18:22:00.001-05:00

The King family had big a loss last week when my (Scott's) Grandfather, Bob King, passed away. Grandpa had a good 85 years of life - traveling the world with the Navy during WWII, raising a great family, and truly making his mark on the country through his work with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

We were lucky enough to have him meet and get to know both Lincoln and Guy. They're probably too young to really remember him, but we will be certain that they know he was a great father and grandfather.

(P.S. This picture is a bit dated, since it seems that Guy can hardly hold his head up, but it's the best I could find right now.)

No blogging for busy parents

2010-03-23T20:02:00.010-05:00

Okay, it's been weeks since our last post, and we don't have a good excuse. It basically comes down to being busy and forgetting about the blog. We haven't been busy with anything in particular - just work, kids, running, and trying to stay warm/dry in this lovely "Spring" weather.

Lincoln is still enjoying his preschool life. As summer approaches, he's getting excited about his daycare's summer program. They have plans for field trips, swimming, and some visits from Wayside Waifs. He's also thrilled to have "frosty treat Monday" back - that's when the ice cream truck stops by daycare each Monday and the kids get to pick a treat.

Guys is doing great. He's approaching 15 months and is walking, "talking," and wrestling with Lincoln all the time. He loves going outside, so we're loving the extra daylight in the evenings.

Linda has her first big race coming up this weekend. She's running the 10K at the inaugural Rock the Parkway race. The kids and I will be cheering her on.

I'm getting ready for the Lincoln 1/2 Marathon and a slew of Corporate Challenge events. I'm also again planning to do parts of BRAN (Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska), and this year we may have a much bigger crew - including Dad, Tracy, Randy, and my cousin Aaron.

Weekend weather advisory

2010-03-08T21:02:00.003-06:00

Mother Nature finally gave us some nice weather this weekend. The temperature got into the upper-50's, so we got the family outside to burn off some pent-up winter energy. Making the weekend even better, we also got a special visit from Grandma and Grandpa Hauner and Mary, Randy, and Everett.

After a hard day of playing outside, there's no better way to relax than on your Grandma's lap with a good book.

Race Season

2010-02-18T20:22:00.004-06:00

It's rumored that spring is coming sometime to Kansas City, and with it comes racing season for our family. I'm starting the season off with a double first: I'll be running my first 10K at the first annual Rock the Parkway run at the end of March. I've been training for the past couple of weeks, and even ran five miles for the first time last Sunday. If all goes well, I'd like to run my first 1/2 marathon later in the summer at the Hospital Hill run.

The big event that our whole family looks forward to, though, is the annual Trolley Run. Scott and I have both done this 4-mile run for a couple of years, and two years ago Lincoln started doing the kid's Trolley Run (in which the littlest kids run about 50 feet in the grass). Last year Guy wasn't walking and didn't participate, but this year the whole family is registered. To ensure that we all post good times, we've been training hard on the treadmill. Guy's pace isn't quite up to par yet, but as you can see in this video Lincoln is helping to coach him along.

Thank-you, Mr. Presidents

2010-02-15T14:02:00.006-06:00

Scott and I are at home today for some rare R&R. President's Day is a holiday for me (part of the joy of working for a bank), and Scott is taking a vacation day. We dropped both of the boys off at school/daycare and spent the day exploring some of KC's local shops. We bought a new can opener at Pryde's Old Westport, ate lunch at Lulu's (one of my favorite restaurants), and visited Planters Seed and Spice (in the River Market) for the first time.

Over the weekend we celebrated both Valentine's Day and Scott's birthday. Since it was cold and rainy the boys didn't get much outdoor time, which is unfortunate since Lincoln had a bowl full of candy from his school Valentine's parties (yes - plural) to burn off. So in lieu of our typical driveway photo, I present a picture of Lincoln and Guy taking a trip in their "train".

...proving once again that all you need to entertain kids is a couple of empty boxes...

Snow...again

2010-02-07T20:46:00.004-06:00

We woke up on Saturday morning to yet another white wonderland. I had to run some errands, and when I returned home I found a massive showman guarding the front lawn (the photo below only shows his bottom half - he actually towers above Scott). I also discovered, via the photographic evidence, that Scott had allowed Lincoln to push Guy around in the dump truck over the icy, snowy driveway. As the video shows, this involved a few harrowing moments...

ps. Despite what you've been seeing in the blog lately, we do actually leave the driveway sometimes. In the past few weeks we've gone to the library, Fritz's, Science City, and several other places...sans camera.

Dear Madeline, Welcome to the family

2010-02-02T19:15:00.002-06:00

On Monday morning, around 6 a.m., the King family grew by one small, dark haired person when Tracy and Joni's new bundle of joy, Madeline, finally arrived. We're all very excited for them, and you can learn all about her at Tracy and Joni's blog.

The boys have not been able to meet Madeline yet because the hospital doesn't allow kids (they're concerned about the H1N1 virus), so we're still waiting to get Lincoln and Guy's reaction to her. We'll post pictures of the whole crew as soon as we have them.

Our Budding Photographer

2010-01-31T18:33:00.006-06:00

Recently, we dug out an old digital camera and let Lincoln take a turn behind the lens. This was Linda and my first digital camera - a gift from my parents from back in 1999 - and we have taken thousands of pictures with it. That being said, when we gave it to Lincoln it took him all of 30 minutes to burn out the flash (which I didn't even realize was possible). He took photo after photo in rapid-fire fashion until the flash stopped working. His photos are now a little blurry and a bit more artistic, but he still loves it. Some of his latest works are on display below. (The first one is my shot of Lincoln in action.)

Time to go outside...Finally!

2010-01-21T19:14:00.008-06:00

Last weekend, Linda hosted a baby shower for Joni (who is due in just a few weeks). While Linda, Mary, and others had brunch at Grand Street Cafe, me and boys hung out at home with Everett.

I was thrilled that it was warm enough to get outside and burn off some steam. I probably wouldn't have survived inside alone with three crazy kids.

We spent our outside time riding bikes, shoveling snow, and playing lawn mower crash-up. A good time was had by all.

Mr. Average

2010-01-14T20:31:00.007-06:00

Guy had his 1-year appointment yesterday and I'm happy to report that he is pretty much average. He weighs 20 pounds (he stood on the regular scale!) and is in the 50th percentile for weight and 75th percentile for height.

Guy had lots of fun at the doctor's office. First he got to play with the toys in the "kids" part of the waiting room, and then he got to play with the tongue depressor the doctor gave him.

Afterwards, he came home and participated in his new favorite hobby - "climbing on chair".

Snow Days

2010-01-14T18:26:00.005-06:00

Kansas City has been a snowy place this year. When we're lucky enough to have the temperature climb into double-digits, we've tried to get outside to burn off some steam and enjoy some time in the snow.

Guy loves the outside but can only last a few minutes before he's freezing. In the mornings he is excited to put on his coat only to be disappointed when he gets put in the car and shuttled off to daycare. Although, as we've said before, he's really liking his new daycare room and the bigger kids to play with.

This week Lincoln got to build his first snowman after the weather finally cooperated. We used what we could find on short notice and put together a somewhat sad looking snowman with an old towel for a scarf, one acorn for an eye, and two small sticks for arms (it's tough finding supplies when there is a foot of snow everywhere). Now every morning and night, Lincoln is excited to go see if his snowman has melted.

The Toddler Room

2010-01-05T20:34:00.002-06:00

We hope everyone is having a good start to the new year. Scott and I spent New Year's Eve in Chicago attending my cousin's wedding (and doing some shopping in the freezing Chicago winter), while the boys spent some quality time with Grandma and Grandpa King.

When we returned to the "real world" Guy had his first day in the toddler room at daycare. We had been preparing for the transition for awhile - getting him used to eating finger foods and easing him out of his morning nap. Guy has been having a bit of separating anxiety lately, so we still expected a bit of crying the first day Scott dropped him off. We needn't have worried, though, as Guy loves his new room. He didn't shed a single tear during the first dropoff, and he was happily playing with the kitchen set when I picked him up that day. I guess he's more independent than we thought!

In honor of my "baby" graduating to toddlerhood, here's a few photos of the boys at Grandma and Grandpa King's

Happy 1st Birthday, Guy!

2009-12-27T10:26:00.002-06:00

Yesterday Guy celebrated his 1st birthday. Our house was filled with not-yet-played with Christmas gifts, but it was time for another celebration.

We had a small party with Grandma and Grandpa Hauner and Mary, Randy, and Everett. Guy enjoyed his cake, but wasn't thrilled with it (it's not baby yogurt, you know). He even managed to keep his shirt on - if you remember Lincoln's first birthday, he ended up eating and opening gifts shirtless. Guy received lots of great gifts, including his very own vacuum cleaner and a mailbox that Lincoln's been playing with all morning.

Guy has really come a long way in his first year. He has been walking since Thanksgiving and can even run a bit. He says "mommy", "daddy", and a form of "banana" (I even thought he said "kitty" once, but he hasn't repeated it). He waves bye-bye and tells himself "no" when he gets too close to the stairs (even though he'll still go up). His favorite game is wrestling with Lincoln, and his favorite foods are yogurt and bananas.

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T14:49:00.005-06:00

Merry Christmas, everyone! We've had a great day - luckily last night Santa was able to find our house in the snow storm.

After opening presents, which included matching his- and hers- sweatshirts for Linda and me (courtesy of Lincoln and his daycare), we all bundled up and went out to clear the driveway of the 6 inches of snow we got last night. It didn't take long before we were all cold and crying, so he headed back inside for lunch.

Lincoln and I went out later in the day to practice skiing with the skis Grandma King got him in Colorado last year. He's a natural but was soon cold and wet, so back inside we went.

Now we're off to Mary and Randy's for dinner with them, Everett, and Grandpa and Grandpa Hauner. Best wishes to all.

Santa Pictures

2009-12-19T12:11:00.004-06:00

Last weekend, my work had our annual Kid's Christmas Party - complete with Santa, crafts, and cookies. We all went, and Lincoln and Guy had a great time.

Before the party, Lincoln had declared that he would not sit on Santa's lap and that he didn't want to talk to Santa either. Guy was indifferent.

When our turn was up, we assumed it would be a "Guy-only" picture. However, we ended up luring Lincoln near Santa with the promise of candy canes, and at the last minute, we sat him on his lap. It all worked very well.

Although Linda and I encouraged Lincoln to tell Santa what he wanted for Christmas, he remained silent and we all decided later that maybe a letter would be more appropriate. Overall, it was a great day.

Belated Thanksgiving

2009-12-08T21:03:00.005-06:00

We just got back from an extended weekend in Lincoln, but as most of my time there was spent doing super-secret Christmas stuff we don't really have any good photos to share. Instead I'll give you a belated Thanksgiving update.

After spending the morning with my parents, we travelled to Hastings for Thanksgiving with the extended King family. Afterwards they played the traditional football game in balmy 60 degree weather. Even Lincoln and I got in on the action!

Here's the actual folks that played. Note that they're wearing matching jerseys.

We spent the rest of the weekend relaxing at Scott's parents. We spent one afternoon walking through Werner park with the boys. Although there was a "path" mowed through the grass, it was still an adventure trying to maneuver the sit'n'stand.

Lincoln also demonstrated his hopscotch skills at the local elementary school.

There was lots of other fun events during the week - Joni's baby shower, Lincoln's first attempt at driving a remote-control car, and even (of course!) some Christmas shopping. I don't think the business will let up until after Christmas.

V is for Visitors

2009-11-23T20:41:00.007-06:00

My parents were in town this weekend, so the kids got a good dose of Grandma and Grandpa King. They picked both boys up from daycare on Friday afternoon, which is a special treat for Lincoln. He looked forward to it all week.

Friday night, we braved the adventure of restaurant dining and ate at Mama's on 39th street with Mom, Dad, Tracy, and Joni. It's a great diner that's mostly kid friendly and has pages of omelets to choose from (amongst other things).

My parents left for home on Saturday afternoon, and the kids were ready for dinner and bed. As you can see from the picture, Guy melded dinner and bed into one event - is that "binner"? He was beat after a lot of running around (literally) and battling with two new front teeth - that makes 8 teeth in total.

Walker, Baby Ranger

2009-11-15T16:10:00.003-06:00

For the last few weeks, Guy has been able to take 1-2 steps on his own. This week he started walking in earnest, at times going all the way across the living room. In this video he's showing off his new skill, although he's moving much slower than he normally does. We started taping this after he'd been chasing Lincoln around all evening, so by the time we recorded this he was pretty tired.

Picture Time Again

2009-11-08T09:32:00.004-06:00

We had our fall family portraits done with Stacey Schmitz a couple of weeks ago. As usual they turned out great. He took some great photos of the whole family, but I really like these photos of Guy and Lincoln together.

Trick or Treat!

2009-11-02T20:42:00.005-06:00

This weekend, Guy celebrated his first halloween. Luckily, he recovered just in time to enjoy the fun after being sick Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (lucky for Mom and Dad too). As you can see from the pictures, Guy loved playing in the leaves. For all of you that remember this post from November 2006, Guy certainly enjoys the leaves more than Lincoln did.

Since this was the first halloween that Lincoln was really into trick-or-treating, we did some extra walking and visited most of the houses in the neighborhood (at least our little piece of it), and Lincoln has the treats to prove it.

Story-time

2009-10-30T20:37:00.003-05:00

We read stories to Lincoln every night before bed, and when he finds a book he likes we end up reading it over and over (and over and over) again. I had no idea how much sank in until he decided to read some books to us tonight. Scott captured a bit of his storytelling on film - this is actually the third book he read to us (and the least memorized). Extra credit to anyone that can name the book he's reading.

There was a snippet of Guy in that last video, but in case that wasn't enough for your daily Guy fix we have some video of him playing with Lincoln's pull-toy. Guy has had a fever off and on since Wednesday (so apparently the daycare wasn't just imagining it...) so I was home with him today. He seemed a little better this evening, and we're hoping he be recuperated by Trick-or-Treating tomorrow. (Double bonus points if you can name the story Lincoln's reading in this video)

Flu season?

2009-10-28T19:30:00.002-05:00

Considering both kids are in school/daycare and Linda and I work, we feel very lucky not to have been sick yet this year. That being said, I had to pick Guy up from daycare today - he had a (very slight) fever of 100.1 F. We think his daycare is a bit paranoid about their kids and the flu, which isn't such a bad thing, but it stinks when it's your kid who gets sent home.

Anyway, Guy was acting fairly normal this afternoon, so we'll see what tonight and tomorrow bring. We think he's teething again because he's been chomping on everything in sight for the last few days. We'll keep you posted.

26.2

2009-10-19T20:14:00.002-05:00

This weekend, Tracy and I ran the Kansas City Marathon. We both finished the full 26.2 miles and beat our goal times. It was one of the most difficult and fulfilling things that I have ever done. Our entire family was there to cheer us on, and the way the course is setup, they got to see us run by a couple of times.

One Cold Festival

2009-10-12T17:59:00.004-05:00

The Shawnee Indian Mission is right next door to Lincoln's school. Each year they put out signs about their fall festival, but we've never actually gone to it. On Saturday afternoon we had some (rare) free time so we decided to check it out (it's free!). Unfortunately for us, though, the high temperature on Saturday was around 40 degrees.

The festival was a lot of fun, but it would have been even more fun if it wasn't so cold. Lincoln won a cupcake at the cupcake walk, and there were historic re-enactors (and tipis) as well as crafts to make or purchase. The boy scouts also had an obstacle course that will be fun for the boys when they get older.

As you can see in the photos, Guy slept for pretty much the entire trip. As for us, the highlight of the festival was the hot apple cider (yum!).

50%

2009-10-01T20:35:00.004-05:00

Last Monday I took Guy in for his 9-month appointment. He is almost 19 pounds, which puts him in the 50th percentile for weight, and his 28 inches is the 75th percentile. Guy seems huge next to Lincoln (and weighs almost the same), so it is actually surprising to me that he is *only* in the 50th percentile. At the rate he is going, we're predicting that Guy will outweigh Linc by his first birthday.

Guy didn't have any shots scheduled, but I took advantage of the appointment to get him a flu vaccine. He took it like a trooper (didn't even cry!) and so far doesn't seem to have had any reaction. Since this is his first flu shot he only got 1/2 a dose, and we have to take him back for the second half. Scott and I will be getting the flu shot at our workplaces, and we should be able to get one for Lincoln at his school or our county health department. Now we just have to see if we'll be able to get the H1N1 vaccine...

Here's a few shots from this morning of Guy getting some exercise with his walker. He does great pushing this toy around, but he's not so great at steering. He usually ends up stuck up against a wall until we turn him around.

At the park

2009-09-27T14:48:00.004-05:00

Last Friday, we got to spend the evening with Everett. Lincoln and Everett have finally gotten to ages where then can play together and actually have fun. We took advantage of the nice Fall weather to go to the park where Lincoln and Everett got to practice balancing and have good time chasing each other.

Summer League flashback

2009-09-23T21:25:00.005-05:00

This is another flashback post. We haven't gotten too many new pictures recently, so we're relying on the "flashback" to keep things interesting

That being said, here's what we've been doing lately -- I've been running a lot getting ready for the KC Marathon, Linda has been knitting Christmas stockings, Lincoln is enjoying preschool, and Guy is getting teeth and practicing walking (and falling).

Now, back to the flashback. In August, Tracy and I wrapped up our ultimate frisbee summer league with the annual year-end tournament. Linda, the boys, and Joni also came out to watch. It was a sunny, fun day.

Tour of Missouri 2009 Recap

2009-09-20T19:04:00.004-05:00

Last week was the 2009 Tour of Missouri. My parents were in town, and we spent the weekend riding our bikes, talking about bikes, and watching people ride bikes. It was a great weekend.

The 2010 Tour of Missouri is potentially on the State's budget chopping block. There are many sites/blogs out there dedicated to saving the Tour of Missouri. Check out the sites out and write a letter of support to the Governor of Missouri, if you'd like.

Here are some pictures from the time trial in Sedalia, MO on Friday.

Dave Zabriskie - Tour of Missouri 2009 winner

Levi Leipheimer

George Hincapie

Dance Party

2009-09-08T08:28:00.003-05:00

Scott and I never really went to any wild parties in our younger days, so it's somewhat of a surprise that evenings at our house have turned into a crazy dance scene. These videos show some of the shenanigans that go on - the first one shows Guy's new dance moves, including the infamous "head dance". The second one shows Lincoln playing a tune on his improvised "guitar" while a reveler does some damage in the background.

A day at the zoo

2009-09-02T20:57:00.006-05:00

Last Sunday Tracy, Randy, and I got up early and rode the 2009 Tour of Missouri Stage 7 circuit in Kansas City. While we were out having fun, our families (i.e. wives) were back at home making us a great re-fueling breakfast of blueberry and chocolate chip pancakes.

After breakfast, we went to the zoo to enjoy the beautiful 75 degree day. We tried to get pictures of all the kids in one shot, but that proved to be quite difficult. Here's the best we could do.

Lincoln and Everett really liked these rocking chairs that overlooked the lake. Guy's sitting in the new "sit and stand" stroller we bought. It proved to be worth every penny as Lincoln hopped on and off throughout the zoo visit.

There's a little cave in the "Africa" part of the zoo, and the boys had a fun time running in and out of it and smiling for the camera through one of the cracks.

Of course, no blog post would be complete without a picture of Guy sleeping. He stayed awake for most of trip, but by the end he was ready to go home and continue his nap.

Let's go jogging

2009-08-26T20:29:00.005-05:00

I've been at home this week with the boys while Linda was working in Florida. Yesterday evening, we were getting a bit stir crazy, so we collectively decided "when the going gets tough, the tough go jogging."

I packed the boys up in the jogging/bike stroller, and off we went. After a quick 2-mile jog (with a brief stop at the park), we all felt better and were ready for bed.

Getting an education

2009-08-23T18:12:00.004-05:00

Lincoln starts preschool on Wednesday, so Grandma and Grandpa King helped us get an early start on his education this weekend.

We started off with an anatomy lesson, assisted with matching glow-in-the-dark skeleton pjs for Lincoln and Guy (courtesy of Grandma King). This photo was taken while Scott and I were out dinner to celebrate our anniversary - 8 years! Scott's parents and Tracy and Joni entertained the boys while we had a nice evening to ourselves.

Next, Lincoln learned about Tractors (and chickens, and cows, and tepees, and...) at Deanna Rose farmstead. It was a beautiful, cool day - perfect weather for a morning outside.

Finally, Lincoln took a flying lesson from Grandpa King. He had a lot of fun watching Grandma and Grandpa fly away in their plane.

Guy may be too young to fly the plane, but he's old enough to help Grandpa do his pre-flight check. Here he is inspecting the underside of the wing. It was an exciting weekend, and now we need a weekend to recover from our weekend!

A big announcement (...but not from us)!

2009-08-16T13:59:00.002-05:00

In case you haven't heard, Tracy and Joni recently made a big announcement. I won't spoil it here, but you can read all about it on their new blog. (www.tracyandjoniking.blogspot.com)

Speed Racer

2009-08-09T19:47:00.005-05:00

Our boys have proven this weekend that they're both shaping up to be good athletes. Lincoln entered his first bike race (the kid's race in the annual Tour of Kansas City) and won a gold medal (technically, it's a gold participation medal). He raced in the training-wheels division, and most of the kids were a lot bigger than him (and fast!). Scott took some exciting video during the actual race. I was cheering from the sidelines while Guy took a catnap.

Guy's daycare was closed last Thursday and Friday, so Scott and I took turns staying home with him. Also a budding athlete, Guy spent most of his days at home climbing on everything and anything available. I walked out of the kitchen to this sight on Friday morning: Guy had pulled himself up on the ottoman. It won't be long before he's running races, too!

Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle

2009-08-05T19:02:00.006-05:00

As anyone with a 7-month old knows, you use a lot of diapers. To help do our part in reusing things, Guy is lucky enough to get a new "toy" every week or so. Here's a picture of him playing in his old diaper box. He just loves saving the environment.

Lincoln does his part to reduce his carbon emissions too by utilizing his new railroad truck. It's a lot of work, but it really saves on gas! (This is a display from the KC Rail Experience at Union Station, by the way, and it's really cool.).

To complete the environmental trifecta, my Mom "recycled" a bike for Lincoln by rescuing it from being unused in someone's garage. Lincoln loves it (he's been riding every night), and we're impressed how quickly he picked up peddling.

A weekend of firsts...

2009-07-27T20:10:00.011-05:00

Last weekend we took a couple of vacation days and went back to Nebraska to spend some time with our parents. We first stopped for a bit in Lincoln and hung out with Linda's parents. Lincoln got to spend some time with Grandma at work with her daycare kids.

After that, we went to Loup City to visit my parents. This is where the firsts begin. Guy had his first trip to the river - and he slept through most of it in Grandma's backpack. Lincoln had fun playing in the sand and water (another first).

Next we went to the lake, and Lincoln had his first experience driving a boat. Needless to say, we spent a lot of time going in circles. My Dad had to take over before we all got sea sick.

We also went to my Uncle Mike's farm to see the tractors and animals. Lincoln liked the cows, was scared of the combine, and loved riding on the 4-wheeler. Guy also got a short turn on the 4-wheeler - under the close supervision of my Dad.

While at the farm, we got to dig potatoes (doesn't get much fresher than that). Lincoln thought this was really cool and has been carrying around a little bag of potatoes ever since. They even went to school with him today.

Lincoln also did his first training ride for the 2010 Tour de France (with a little help from my Dad). This was Lincoln's first ride on a real bike, so it was a big deal.

Guy is mobile...

2009-07-18T20:40:00.005-05:00

Guy is not fully crawling yet, but he's awfully close. He's able to move quickly within a 5 foot radius. Lincoln is not really enjoying Guy getting into all his toys, but he needs to get used to it soon - Guy is speeding up every day.

One of the (few) ways that having two kids is easier than one is the fact that you have a built in entertainer for the youngest. Lincoln provides Guys with hours of entertainment, and Guy is more than happy to sit back and soak it in.

A trip to the KC Zoo...

2009-07-14T21:45:00.004-05:00

Last weekend we took both of our big boys to the Kansas City zoo. It turned out to be a *very* hot day, but it was still a lot of fun. Lincoln got to see elephants and lions, and even got to "shush" some noisy birds.

Guy had a great time despite the heat. His stylish zoo cap (from our earlier trip to the Lincoln zoo) kept the sun off out of his eyes and protected his bald head. Always the stylish fellow, he chooses to wear his cap at a jaunty angle, and acts appropriately blase about having his photo taken.

Guy is 6 months!

2009-07-10T08:26:00.008-05:00

It's hard to believe, but my baby is already 6 months old! Last Wednesday we took both the boys to the doctor (Lincoln had a 3-year checkup), and Guy weighed in at 17 pounds 6 ounces. That puts him in the 50th percentile for weight. For reference, Lincoln weighted 15 pounds at his 9-month appointment, and on Wednesday he weighed 24pounds.

Guy's really starting to do a lot of fun stuff. He's pushing up into "crawling" position, but not quite crawling. His daycare feeds him cereal at lunch, and we feed him cereal and baby food at dinner. So far, sweet potatoes and peas have gotten a "thumbs up" and pears get a "thumbs down". He adores Lincoln and laughs at whatever he does (which in turn has encourage Lincoln to be even more of a ham), and I think he'll crawl soon just so he can follow Lincoln around the house. Lincoln, in turn, enjoys "decorating" guy.

Happy B-day, America!

2009-07-07T20:16:00.007-05:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July holiday. We had a very busy weekend that started with the Villagefest in Prairie Village. After a breakfast of Chris Cakes (gotta love those pancake feeds!), we watched a Chinook helicopter land on the municipal lawn. It was very impressive to watch, and about half the kids watching it started crying when it got close enough that you could feel the wind blasting from its rotors.

After touring through the helicopter, both Lincoln and Guy got a balloon while we explored the rest of the festival. There were lots of activities, including free pony rides. Lincoln had a lot of fun on his very first "real" pony (although he's had a lot of practice on the mechanical horse at the grocery store).

Later that afternoon (after a loooong nap) we headed to Todd and Angela's (Scott's aunt and uncle) house. Austyn was visiting from grand island, and she and Lincoln had fun playing and sharing a Rice Krispies treat. Guy enjoyed hanging out on the lawn.

Todd and Angela had a badminton net set up, but I quickly learned that two 3-year-olds do not make good badminton partners. All in all, though, it was a great holiday. Maybe next year we'll actually get around to doing some fireworks!

The Big Boy Class

2009-07-02T14:15:00.005-05:00

With Lincoln's birthday comes another big milestone - moving to the 3- and 4- year-old (aka "big boy") classroom at daycare. We've been talking about the big move for a couple of months, ever since the first of his friends left his 2-year-old room. He was very excited the move, but I have to admit that I get a little choked up thinking about my little baby is all "grown up". Scott snapped a picture of him on the first day:

Being in the older classroom also means that he gets to start going on field trips, and Lincoln got to go on one (to Wonderscope, a children't museum) the very first day in the new class. On field trip days all of the kids are required to wear their school t-shirt so that the teachers can easily find them. Scott and I quickly discovered that the youth extra-small (the smallest size available) was going to be too big for Lincoln, so I did a little t-shirt surgery so that he wouldn't be tripping over it. I am competent at using a sewing maching, but I am definitely *not* a professional - so while the t-shirt is passable, it is not going to win any style rewards. I will admit, though, that Lincoln thinks the zig-zag stitching is really cool.

Lincoln is 3! (almost)

2009-06-27T20:06:00.005-05:00

Lincoln is turning 3 on Tuesday, so we celebrated today with a dinosaur-themed party.

We invited several kids from Lincoln's class at daycare, as well as our family and friends with kids. We kicked things off with some arts and crafts - we had two kiddie tables and our coffee table filled with fun stuff for kids to create with.

Of course, no party is complete without cake. I got an awesome Dinosaur cake from Judi's Bakery in North KC. They're a local bakery and did a great job (the volcano was pure frosting...yum!)

We cleaned up the crafts and used the two small tables for the kids to eat at. Lincoln loved the cake - as you can see it did not take long for his mouth to turn blue from the frosting.

Guy had fun at the party, too - Joni was kind enough to make sure he had some toys to play with and stayed fed while Scott and I were running around the party. If you look closely at this photo you can see a small dinosaur hiding...we hid some dinosaurs around the room for the kids to find and take home.

All in all, it was a great party. We were a bit worried about how our house would handle 8 kids and 14 adults, but our family room was big enough to handle it - and could have fit a few more. I'm looking forward to many more fun birthday parties for the boys!

Guy's first tooth and a B-day weekend

2009-06-24T21:11:00.006-05:00

This weekend, Guy's first tooth finally broke through. It was a tough battle complete with lots of drool, hand biting, and a little fussiness, but he hung in there. We will work on getting pictures of the new tooth soon.

The other big news of the weekend was my Mom's birthday and Lincoln's pre-birthday. Lincoln's birthday isn't until June 30th, but we let him join in the fun with a little pre-birthday party. It was great, and we've been enjoying Baskin Robins ice cream cake all week.

Guy's 5 month photos...

2009-06-20T22:07:00.007-05:00

It's a running joke among people with multiple children that the second (or third, or fourth...) child gets the short shift when it comes to getting photos taken. We've certainly been busy with our own activities and all of craziness that comes with having a preschooler and a baby, so it's hard to take the time to commemorate all of the little milestones that Guy has been hitting (rolling over, blowing spit bubbles...).

Luckily our friend Stacey Schmitz is a wonderful photographer, and last week he spent some time capturing the cute things that Guy's been up to.

You can see Guy in all of his cute glory on Stacey's photo blog.

BRAN and a visit with the grandparents

2009-06-16T20:32:00.006-05:00

Last weekend, Scott did three days of BRAN (Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska) with his Dad. Since Scott was going to be out of town, it was an excellent opportunity for me to take the boys to visit my parents. On Wednesday night we met up with Mike, and Guy and Lincoln got to see Grandpa's tent. As Scott got ready to spend three days traveling nearly 200 miles and sleeping in a tent, the boys and I drove to Lincoln to sleep in a nice warm bed and visit...

...The Lincoln Children's Zoo! My mom and I had fun taking Lincoln and Guy to visit the zoo. Lincoln enjoyed seeing the animals (especially the snakes!), but his favorite part of the trip was riding on the train. The weather was perfect for a zoo trip - not too cool and not too hot.

Even Guy got to ride on the train! We couldn't get him to look at the camera because he was too busy watching the train conductor.

Grandma was very generous and let the boys pick out a souvenir from the gift shop. Lincoln chose a snake (of course!), and Guy chose a very cute baseball cap with a frog on it (although grandma may have influenced his decision).

We came back to KC just in time for Everett's 2nd birthday party (although we forgot to take our camera!) I'll finish with this photo of Lincoln and Guy playing together. Lincoln was helping Guy drive his "car", and Guy loved it!

Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska (BRAN)

2009-06-08T20:38:00.002-05:00

This week the annual Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska (BRAN) is happening, and my Dad is riding for the second year. I think this year's BRAN covers 450 miles in 7 days.

Not to be left out of the fun, I'm riding too (but only for 3 of the 7 days). I'm excited and a little nervous. I've been doing a lot more running than biking lately, so hopefully I'm in good enough shape to survive the 80+ mile ride on day 2 of my journey.

To help stay in touch while I'm out, I setup a Twitter account where you can follow me if you wish.

The family that runs together stays together

2009-06-07T16:15:00.010-05:00

This has been an action packed week for our family with the Corporate Challenge (KCCC) track meet, the Hospital Hill run, and the KCCC duathlon.

On Friday, I ran on two relay teams at the KCCC track meet. We won silver medals in both events. The two medals weighed almost as much as Lincoln, who, along with Linda and Guy, was cheering me on at the track.

On Saturday, Linda and Joni ran the Hospital HIll 5K. Me, Lincoln, Guy, and Tracy were there to cheer them on. It was a fun race that was really well organized. By the way, "hill" in the name refers to a mile long fairly steep hill running through midtown KC.

Before the race

During the race

After the race

The last event of the weekend was the KCCC duathlon (run-bike-run). I finished the duathlon this morning in 1 hour and 23 minutes - 13 minutes faster than last year. That improved time was mostly due to my new road bike, but I did run a bit faster too.

A Friend Comes to Visit

2009-05-31T18:26:00.008-05:00

We went to visit a special "friend" this weekend - Thomas the Tank Engine! Lincoln and I got to ride on an actual Thomas Train (or a least, a train that was pulled by Thomas). And after the train ride there was lots of fun stuff to do - there was a petting zoo, an inflatable "bouncer" (I have no idea what they're really called), bubbles and, of course, lots of Thomas stuff to play with - and buy.

As for Guy, he is growing bigger every day. He loves to roll on the floor (and he can go pretty far!) and I'm sure it will only be a matter of time before he's sitting all by himself. For now, though, he enjoys sitting in his Bumbo seat. Scott took this really cute picture of him. He doesn't have any hair (or teeth) yet, but I think he's adorable!

We know what we did this weekend

2009-05-26T21:01:00.011-05:00

For Memorial Day weekend, Scott and I decided to have a quiet and relaxing 3-day weekend at home. As you'll see, you can really pack a lot of activities into a 3-day weekend!

First off, Scott and Lincoln actually got some work done by painting some boards to put into the kitchen. Here you can see the two different painting "outfits" that Lincoln wore (although the second doesn't really count as an "outfit"...)

On Saturday we went to Jiggle Jam, which is a kid's music festival held at Crown Center. Lincoln loved taking a ride on the little "train" - he just smiled and waved to us the whole time. Later, we stopped at the Wonderscope tent for...more painting! Lincoln got his own ice-cream and then practiced drawing on, and cleaning, a window.

Guy was a champ the whole time and hung out while Lincoln tried out all of the fun activities.

On Sunday we did some grilling with Mary, Randy, and Everett for lunch and then visited Tracy and Joni for dinner and More Grilling (it was Memorial Day weekend, after all)!

It was a fun weekend, but I think we need another weekend to recover from our weekend!

Everyone loves a parade

2009-05-20T20:46:00.005-05:00

A couple of weeks ago (I know, we're behind), we went to the Mission Days Parade. This was Lincoln's 2nd parade, and Guy's first. Lincoln enjoyed it, but realized that everything in a parade is very loud - fire trucks run their sirens, cars honk their horns, and bands play loud music. You'll noticed Lincoln's hands over his ears in the first picture.

Guy, on the other hand, didn't mind the parade noise. Probably because he lives in a house with a two-year-old that doesn't know the meaning of quite.

After a busy weekend, we were all ready for a good nap...

Lincoln and the Dragon

2009-05-17T19:33:00.003-05:00

First, a little backstory: When we moved into our house, the previous owner had painted a big dragon in what is now Lincoln's room. When we repainted last year we opted to keep the dragon because it looks really cool. We've told Lincoln that "Petey" will bring him good dreams and scare away bears (Lincoln is afraid of bears).

In the last couple of weeks Lincoln has really started to enjoy drawing and painting. He mostly just scribbles, but recently I was showing him how to draw people - with eyes, a nose, a mouth, etc. I drew pictures of him, Guy, Scott, and myself. Scott filmed him as he started to draw a face of his own:

Now this is runing

2009-05-09T21:13:00.002-05:00

I realize that you're probably getting tired of running posts, but that's the mode we're in right now, so please stick with us.

I was talking to a coworker about - wait for it - running, and he mentioned that his son is an ultramarathoner (i.e. runs 50+ mile races). He's preparing for the Badwater Ultramarathon in Death Valley, CA, which is a 135 mile race in 135 degree heat in July.

He's keeping a blog as he prepares. I think it's amazing that people can do this, so I wanted to share it with you. Enjoy.

On the Run - Part 2

2009-05-03T18:08:00.008-05:00

As Linda mentioned in the previous post, it's running season for our family. Round two of our annual races is the Lincoln Marathon. This is my 4th year running the 1/2 marathon, and this year Tracy and our cousin Aaron joined me. It was a perfect day, and we had the whole family there to cheer us on (excluding Guy who stayed with Linda's parents).

Despite the perfect conditions and a lot of training, I ran 1 minute slower than last year. I was still happy with my time, and I felt good the whole run (and the next day).

This is me rounding the final turn and waving to my adoring fans. It feels great to see the finish line.

Here are Tracy, Aaron, Lincoln, and I post race. As you can see, Tracy and Lincoln were the only ones not cool enough to wear the free Lincoln Marathon visors. You'll also notice that Lincoln is eating my Power Bar. We're not sure it's good for two-year-olds to eat Power Bars, but he needed the energy.

On The Run - Part 1

2009-05-03T17:32:00.004-05:00

It's springtime again in Kansas City, which means it's the start of running and biking season. Last week we kicked off the season with the Trolley Run, a 4-mile run that follows the route of a (you guessed it!) old trolley track path. The Trolley Run is a lot of fun because not only does it have a 4-mile run for Scott and me, it also has a kid's run that Lincoln has participated in for the last two years. I ran a personal best of 40 minutes - although in the interest of disclosure, all of the previous years I've run I've either been pregnant or pushing a stroller.

For Lincoln's run, he got his very own number and got to "race" about ten yards.

Just like the "big" race, there was also a lot of free food and drinks for the participants. Lincoln cooled off with a glass of juice and filled up on a chocolate-chip muffin. They also had face painting and balloon animals.

At the end of the race Lincoln received a blue ribbon, which is now proudly displayed on our fridge. Next year we're looking forward to Guy running.

Guy's 4-month birthday and first rollover

2009-04-29T06:46:00.007-05:00

Guy had his 4-month birthday (and check-up) the other day. He's doing great. He weighed 14 lbs. 9 oz. (75th percentile) and was 26 inches long (90th percentile). The check-up also included a bunch of shots, which made for a somewhat fussy evening, but all is better now.

In other Guy news, he has started to rollover from his back to his front. He's been doing it at daycare for awhile now. He's also done it a few times at home, but he has never wanted to perform for the camera. Well, last night we finally got a rollover on tape. Here's the proof.