{this moment}

{this moment} For me, a Sunday ritual of reflection. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.


Completely inspired by Soulemama. If you are inspired to do the same, leave your link in the comments for all of us to enjoy.

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Family Time: new bike!

Creating a content-rich blog has proved to be an intriguing, fulfilling, and interesting process. Check back on Monday for my post on Sibling Rivalry!

In the meantime, a quick snapshot of our Friday will be the topic today. This morning started early at 5:45am. Ted bounded into the room, crushed that the Tooth Fairy hadn't left him any money (oops.) Unable to face two hours of over-tired children, we spent a lazy hour in bed cuddling before having breakfast at our favorite coffee shop, Ozo.

After school, Mae and I brought the boys' bikes to the bike store to be tuned up for the season. Mae, who has been knocking her knees on the handlebars of her 16" bike for a while now, test-drove a few different models of 20" bikes. She chose a purple Specialized bike with one hand brake and the foot brakes. This is the same type of bike Sam has and she's ridden his with ease.

I am glad she didn't choose the one with gears and only hand breaks. I made that mistake with tiny five-year-old Ted and he was a timid biker for a long time, before he grew into his bike. It's funny how eager I seem to be to push Ted along to the next milestone while dragging my feet with Sam and Mae.

She was so excited that we decided to drop the boys' bikes off at school, drive home, then bike back to pick them up (they elected to stay in After-Care with their buddies rather than accompany us to the bike store). I thought Ole deserved a walk and the sun was out (finally!). It seemed like such a perfect day.

Did you hear the music of doom in that last sentence? As soon as the boys hopped on their bikes to join us on the return trip, the heavens opened. It rained. It poured. It hailed. (Yes, really). It thundered. There was much lightening. There were many, many tears.

We eventually made it home and after toweling off, snuggled together in bed lamenting our poor choice of timing. After a time, everyone recovered and we were off to TKD and dinner at Red Robin with our neighbors. Whew. That was an epic ride I won't soon forget!

clipped in, baby!

Today at my bike fit (we had to order an extra short stem which delayed the original fit a few months) I swapped my cages for clips. (Why are they called clip-LESS pedals? I don't understand.) Tonight while riding to the store I had my first crash (I practiced a lot at the fitting but ...) I'm fine with only a few cuts and scrapes, but the kids were horrified! I think they thought I'd react the way they react to injury (i.e. lots of screaming) but I distracted them by showing off my wounds. From then on, I unclipped WAY before approaching a stop. Geesh!

It was raining this morning so Sylvie and I ditched our ride and went to Flatirons to try out a spin class. It was Sylvie's first spin class and I think she was traumatized, but I loved it! Tomorrow I'll run with Wendy during Sunday School. Next Friday-Saturday is Rosh Hashanah and next Sunday is the 1/2 Marathon!

CF Ride

Wow, this week has vanished too! It was everyone's first full week of school. Ted is loving it - so enthusiastic and WAY excited for Outdoor Ed week (the 2/3 class will go to Keystone Science School for 2 nights/3 days, coming up in 2 weeks!). Sam LOVES Kindergarten and thinks it's too short and that Fridays are boring. I think he'd love enrichment, but we're keeping it at half day for this semester. He is REALLY into drawing lately and has become very prolific. Our fridge is well decorated! Mae requested to go to school every day but not do enrichment, so we switched that up for her. I think she really enjoys the Tue/Thu class because she's with her little girlfriends. On MWF she's in a class with kiddos she knows, but that aren't her "group." (This may be on purpose, but it's still a bummer.) This way, she'll be with her peeps twice a week and making new friends the other 3 days. Plus, they DO keep the doors between the classrooms open most of the time and they do play outside half the day.
I am looking forward to a good week ahead. Last week was my recoup week from the tri and it was a pleasure to chill out. I had a lovely long run on Tuesday (prepping for the 1/2 marathon on 9/20) and a great ride up Left Hand Canyon on Thursday with Wendy (not all the way to Jamestown - we turned around at Buckingham Park, but I'm going to try to go a bit further this week.) That was good prep for Saturday, which was the 29 mile CF Ride. Similar to the Walk, this is a big fundraiser for CF and it's the first year I've been able to participate. Biking was so foreign to me that I couldn't imagine doing such a thing in years past. This was a beautiful ride, full of amazing scenery, great aid stations and a gorgeous day to boot. A GREAT experience. Then this morning during Sunday School (Sam's 1st day of Sunday School!) I did an 80 minute run. I was tired but it felt fine and comfortable. Next week is 100 minutes. I'm really enjoying running longer - I've missed it!
Tuesday begins the TriBabes membership (elite athlete status - ha ha!) at Flatirons Athletic Club, so I'm going to investigate their spin classes, pre-masters swim classes and perhaps even some yoga. I'm excited.
The house is clean, groceries are in the fridge, dinners are planned for the week and lunches are made for tomorrow. I plan to do laundry tomorrow (they should be finished with the basement SOON, they say. I miss my washer/dryer). Can't ask for a better start to a fresh week.

I did it!

This morning I met Sylvie for a 12 mile ride up to Eldorado Springs and back. It was awesome. I did have my share of adventure; I threw my chain. A kindly older gentleman stopped to help us and I learned how to maneuver it, rather than force it on, which is what I'd done in the past. Note to self: don't shift to the lowest gear when already on the lowest gear on the other side. Now I know. We made it up, admired the GORGEOUS scenery and had some water (still not confident enough to grab water while riding on the road) and rode back. The last hill on Marshall Road was fine! I really like this bike. My right hand did fall asleep, so I'll mention that at my fitting next week; it just means my reach is too far. All in all, a fabulous ride that left both of us wanting to go farther. Next week we'll either start at my house or do something else. Woo hoo!

Then we ran, which was a weird experience. And we saw a snake - not a rattler, but still! It was much harder than I thought it would be, so we ran-walked it. I came home, showered and took a 2 hour nap (!), then went to my final rehearsal for the Jewish Festival tomorrow. It's been nice being alone all day, I have to admit. I love the quiet. Now, before my family gets back, I should fold some laundry. What a great day.

biking

There was no school today (thank you, Presidents!) and the boys had a biking clinic at the new Boulder Indoor Cycling place, co-owned by Boulder Indoor Soccer, whom we love. They did lots of stunts and had a good time. Sam was FRIED by the end and very grumpy, but Ted enjoyed it. Jack and Jason were there, as was Sierra. We all went to O's for pizza afterwards and I got some sweet shots. Sam wouldn't smile, so that's why he's not in the pictures. It wasn't for lack of trying! Ted and Sierra have a very sweet relationship. They are too young to admit it, but they are a great match. They both love biking, soccer and books. For a 1st grader, those make the perfect friendship. I think they look so beautiful together.

Jack and Ted, fresh off the track, hot and sweaty! Very brief video to come later on. This was fun!