Mommy Babble

In 2007 my God Daughter Natalie was diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis. Unfortunately this is a condition that is very painful for her and affects her on a daily basis. Natalie’s mom and my long time high school best friend will be riding in the Amgen California Coast Classic which is a bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles. It is a 525 mile bike ride put on by the Arthritis Foundation to raise money for arthritis research, and education programs for children and adults affected by arthritis. Please support Devon as she rides in honor of Natalie.

( Letter Below Written by Devon Linneman)

Hello Friends and Family,

Some of you know that Natalie was diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis about 2 years ago. She has struggled with pain in her back, neck, and feet since she was five years old. She has also suffered from migraine headaches. We assumed that it was growing pains until her hands started swelling up in the winter months. It was at this time that her pediatrician sent us to Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford where she was finally diagnosed. She had swelling and fluid in many of her joints. Come to find out she was in much more pain than she was even letting us know.

Due to the wonderful doctors at Stanford’s Children’s Rheumatology Clinic Natalie is handling this situation with amazing strength, and courage. She is currently playing soccer, volleyball, and is on a swim team. She never misses school, and currently has all A’s on her report card. Natalie’s arthritis is a challenge, but she chooses to take one day at a time.

When Natalie’s doctors heard that I had done triathlons they asked if I would be interested in doing The Amgen California Coast Classic which is a bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles. It is a 525 mile bike ride put on by the Arthritis Foundation to raise money for arthritis research, and education programs for children and adults affected by arthritis. I thought to myself how could I not participate. October 3rd through October 10th I will be riding my bike the 525 mile trip to raise awareness for this cause close to my heart.

If you would like to contribute to this cause my web page is:
http://ccc.nca.kintera.org/ride4natalie

Thank You & God Bless!

Yesterday I took a few quick snapshots of Hadley as she was playing outside.

I have been really busy lately designing websites, it seems to be the season for that because I have been swamped! I typically do not have the time to post about all the designs that I create but I wanted to post about a website that I have been working on for a client of mine. The site is called The Rural Hound and I really love it.

The Rural Hound is a place where you will find unique eco-friendly products for you canine companion. The website is still under construction so check back soon if you are looking for natural and environmentally friendly products for your pooch.

Boutique Website Design by Bling Web Art

Kinley’s Garden Fairy Party Inspiration Board

I have searched the internet high and low for ideas for Kinley’s garden fairy party for her birthday next month. I found that is was very difficult to find ideas that were not totally tacky or just a little too hippy skippy for my taste. After spending countless hours on the internet looking for ideas I have finally put my inspiration board together for her fairy party.

From L to R: Grass Placemat; Paper Lanterns; Pink & Orange Tent: Flower Candles:

I am totally excited to plan her garden fairy party. I envision butterflies hanging from trees and tents, fairy face painting and of course lots of fairy dust.

If you have any great ideas for a little girl fairy party do tell…

My first official weekend of summer started out with a very busy schedule and ended with pure exhaustion. I think that I need another weekend just to catch up on my sleep, I honestly have not felt this tired in a very long time.

First up, I had a sports massage for my pulled hamstring. This was absolutely with out a doubt the most painful massage that I have ever had. For anyone out there who has never had a sports massage I will forewarn you now that it nothing like going to the day spa. Brace yourself for pain and lots of it! Not only was this massage painful but I must say that having a complete stranger massage my bum for an hour was a little bit ummm…. uncomfortable! Other than that it was great. Ha!

On Friday I took the girls to swim at the club. As I was sitting on the side of the pool watching them I saw that Hadley had decided to take a floating noodle with her out to the middle area of the pool. When she saw one of the big kid’s she tossed her noodle aside so that she could swim to her. Unfortunately, Hadley did not tell anyone what she was doing and ended up in a situation where she could not swim the distance. As I looked over at the lifeguard she was standing up looking at her but she was not moving. It was at that moment that I decided that I would not wait for the lifeguard to save my daughter and I dove into the pool with all my clothes on. Instances like this remind me how much a mom’s instant goes into play, when I saw my daughter go under and struggling to keep her head up there was no question in my mind about jumping into that pool. After I got Haddie out of the pool she was very scared and refused to get back in. Unfortunately, both Kinley & Hadley have completely forgotten everything that they learned at swimming lessons last summer, that was some money well spent! Kinley looks like she is drowning at all times and can barely keep her head above the water as she trends with her arms and her legs. Last weekend my friend Jackie ran to the side of the pool in an effort to save her as she truly looks like she is drowning when she swims. Water safety in extremely important to me. I swam competitively for many years and grew up water skiing on the weekends. I want to make sure that both of my girls can swim and are safe near the water, not that I would ever take my eyes off of them. Today we will start swimming lessons and I pray that Hadley will not have a fear of the water after Friday’s rescue!

That event was just the beginning to a very long weekend. After the rescue effort I would attend two birthday parties, a funeral my first team run for the summer marathon team.

Whew…what a weekend!

Aimee Pool

Tomorrow will be an end to another school year. What is different about this year from the rest is that this will be Kinley’s last day as a preschooler. I have to admit that I have some bittersweet mixed emotions about this. While I am happy and excited to see her go on to kindergarten next year my heart feels a little sad at the same time. It is hard to believe that my first baby girl is growing up so fast. It still feels like yesterday that I was teaching her how to walk. Kinley has grown and changed so much this year. Last year my sweet and shy little girl could hardly look at an adult that she did not know and speak to them. When she did speak she spoke so softly that you could not even hear her. This year Kinley has been blossoming out of her shell. She is actually really funny and has a pretty witty sense of humor that you would not expect from her. She is also able to speak up for herself and talk directly to adults and make eye contact, this is a huge change from a year ago. Kinley is sweet and kind and her unexpected humorous sarcasm that flares off every now and then always cracks us up and seems a bit mature for her age. Kinny is an old soul, she is loving, sensitive and genuinely cares about others!

Tomorrow will also mark the end of Hadley’s first year in preschool. Haddie loves school, her teacher and all of her friends. Hadley is funny, outgoing, talkative, sweet, sassy, feisty and just an all around little firecracker. You would not expect this larger than life personality to come out of this tiny and petite little girl. Hadley can defiantly hold her own and she will tell you exactly what is on her mind, she is a lot like her mommy, God help us! She fully believes that she runs our family and at at times I think that she does. As much as I tell her that she is not in charge I am often picking my battles with the strong willed little girl. Hadley is full of life, she loves music and she loves to sing. She makes songs up constantly about anything and everything. She is very active and she likes to be outdoors. Hadley is a total Mama’s girl and I love that about her. She loves to be the center of attention and she shines when she is performing for people. Hadley has a spark in her eyes and she is a very unique and sweet little person.

So tomorrow we will say goodbye to another school year and hello to summer. As much as I enjoy summertime with my girls it is also a challenge for me. Running two business from home I really value the two half days a week where they are in school and I have some quiet time to get things done. I am not sure what this summer has in store for us but I am sure that it will be very busy.

TTFN….

Aimee Pool

Yesterday was my first day as a run mentor for the Team in Training Summer Marathon Team. I am super excited to be back with TNT for another season. This will be my first time as a mentor and I am really looking forward to that. Unfortunately, I am not starting out the season exactly as I had hoped. I have been working diligently for months now on building my core strength so that I can be a stronger runner than I was during the fall season. I have been doing a ton of circuit training, spinning and running but as I tend to do I totally over did it and ended up injuring myself. Currently I have a pulled hamstring which I should have been resting but again rest is a difficult thing for me so I have only further injured it. So here I sit typing on my blog as my bum sits on an ice pack, fun times! This week I plan to take it easy with my workouts as to give my hamstring a chance to heal. I plan to do a little bit of swimming and some walks along the beach, hopefully I will be ready to run by Saturday.

My goal for this season is to run the San Francisco Women’s Nike Marathon. The Nike Marathon is a very popular event and the only way to assure a spot is to get in though their lottery or by joining TNT. I entered the Nike lottery but unfortunately I was not selected. I have to admit that the only reason that I want to do this marathon is because you get a Tiffany necklace in replace of a medal, I want my necklace! Just kidding, okay, I am not really kidding I want the Tiffany necklace.

This week also marks my last week of freedom before the kid’s get out of school. That is another great reason to do TNT, I get my ME time which I really need. Don’t get me wrong I love my girls more than anything in the world but the few hours that they go to school are very valuable time for me to do what I want to. The summer brings on it’s own fun and challenges and you will be able to read all about that here on this ever so entertaining blog, jk.. I know it is pretty boring but I never promised that I was a good writer or that I would be able to hold your attention for more than two sentences. If you are still reading this I am sure that I have surely bored you to tears.

Here are some photos of Hadley’s Candy Party.

Haddie had so much fun at her candy party. There was not a lack for candy. We had a large candy buffet table that the children were able to fill there own favor boxes full of candy. I had a lot of fun making chocolate dipped marshmallows and pretzels. Hadley and her friends very enjoyed the mounds of sweets and the mommy’s maybe not so much…

Margarita Cupcakes with Lime Frosting

These yummy looking cupcakes are the perfect treat for summertime. I came across this recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Hostess with the Mostess. I cannot wait to try to make these cupcakes at our next summer BBQ with friends! Yum!

INGREDIENTS

Cupcakes:
1 box white cake mix
8 oz margarita mix (liquid)
2 oz tequila
1 oz Grand Marnier
3 egg whites
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp grated lime zest

Lime Buttercream Icing:
8 Tbsp butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp lime juice (approx 2 fresh limes)
1 Tbsp margarita mix
1 tsp lime zest
5 cups powdered (confectioners’) sugar
cane sugar & fresh limes (for garnish)
*****

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350º and prepare muffin pans.

2. Combine margarita mix, tequila, and Grand Marnier in a large glass and stir well.

3. In large bowl, combine cake mix, egg whites, lime zest, vegetable oil, and margarita mixture from step one. Stir ingredients together, then beat with an electric mixer on low to medium speed for approximately 2-3 minutes.

4. Spoon the batter into prepared muffin pans. Fill each cup/liner about 2/3 full.

5. Bake at recommended temperature on cake mix box (usually 325º - 350º) for 20 - 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.

Icing:
6. In a large bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, lime juice, margarita mix, and lime zest. Beat with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.

7. Add powdered sugar, one cup at a time, and continue beating until smooth. If icing is too thin, add more powdered sugar, a couple tablespoons at a time.

8. Spread icing generously on each cooled cupcake* or use a pastry bag to frost. Sprinkle cane sugar around the edges of the cupcake for a “salt rimmed” look and garnish with lime wheels & wedges.

*Make sure to remove cupcakes from pan and cool completely before frosting.

Tip: Leftover frosting makes a great dip for fruit!

*****

ENJOY!

Today Sean wrote a beautiful poem to Kinley that I just had to post. When he read it to me I could not help but cry, I am a total softy like that about my kid’s. Sean and Kinley have a very special brother sister bond and I think that this poem illustrates that very well.

“Kinley Gayle Pool”

Kinley who has long blonde hair

Who is a beautiful angel

Who is a princess that loves everything

Who is a girl that has no favorites

Who plays in an imaginary world with Ariel and friends

Is a girl who is shy and quite but filled with so many wonders

Is smarter than most girls her age but only shows it around certain people

Who loves to swim for hours at a time

Who when smiles everyone around her becomes happy

Who can color until the crayon wears down in her hand

Who is super creative

Who is just a loving girl

And it’s impossible not to love her back

Love you Kinley,

Bubba