Naperville Triathalon

I have always wanted to do a triathlon. Not a real Iron man one, just a small sprint one to test the waters. My friend from work, Holly, and her sister-in-law Michelle and I decided to sign up for the US Women's Triathlon Series in Naperville IL. The event was scheduled for June 14th, a Sunday. I had a difficult time with the training due to my getting bronchitis halfway through. This put a bit of a damper on my training, but still I was psyched to complete this. Considering I already signed up and couldn't get any refunds, there wasn't an option! The course was a 1/2 mile swim, 15 mile bike, and 3.1 mile run. Now, I am an exerciser to begin with, but just that. I typically would work out 3 times per week, and usually run and lift weights. The swimming was going to throw me, but I would muddle through it. My normal swimming is this...I don't! But since I was going to have to swim a 1/2 mile, I figured I'd better practice. So, I went to the WAC about 1 or 2 times each week and just swam my half mile. This usually took me about 25 minutes or so. A week or so before the tri, Holly and I looked at last years times for each event, and noticed that nobody took longer than 30 min to swim....WHAT?????? SERIOUSLY???? I was a bit worried, but would somehow have to swim faster than that. On top of that, we were "highly suggested" to wear wet suits, since it had been like 60 degrees out for the past week and rainy.
Jeff and Maddy came with to cheer me on, that was the best part. It was fun to look for them at each transition. Overall, it was an awesome experience. I did SOOOO much better than I thought...and now am compelled to "tri" another sometime down the road. I guess I should better wait until I feel better. I now am stuck at home with mono, that SUCKS!

This is a picture of the day before the event. We had to pick up our race numbers, get our arms and legs marked with our numbers! It was fun.





The next few are on the bike! It was quite hard to get a good picture, since I was going sooooo fast....hahaha







This is where we swam. It was a man-made quarry, but more like a pool. Which made for an easier swim than an open lake!



Hooray! We made it!



Thanks for cheering me on Maddy!

Wedding time!!

Oh how I miss weddings! There was a period of our lives when I swear we had a wedding to attend a few times each month. That might be a slight exaggeration, but still, there was a lot! Now we are heading into work-friends weddings. These sometimes make me feel old, but I still have tons of fun none-the-less. I classify myself in the mid-range category. No longer single, but my kids aren't quite out of the house yet. So, i am not really THAT old. Only in how you perceive yourself I guess. My friend Michelle asked me to do her flowers for the wedding. Just the wedding bouquet, bridesmaids, and table decorations. I was really excited, and a bit nervous, maybe a lot nervous, but I was excited! For those who do not know, I have taken a few floral design classes, and done a few arrangements for work, but never a wedding. This was all laid out on the table, but still we agreed:)
It is crazy how much florists make for weddings, it obviously takes a lot of time to do all the arranging, but still, its a lot of $$$. I was able to order the flowers for about $300, which under normal circumstances, a florist would likely charge 1000-1200 or so. The bouquet was a red color, made up of red roses, Burgundy calla lilies, black baracarra roses, and red hypercium berries. I was happy with the turn out, would change a few things for next time, if there is a next time, but otherwise I was happy! And Michelle too! I will have to get some pics of her with her dress. She looked like a princess!!








The bridesmaids arrangements were very simple, 9 white spider mum, with a lemon leaf border. They were cute and fit well with the dresses.



The table arrangements were very simple, but elegant. A single long-stemmed red rose, with white daisies surrounding it. At the bottom of each vase, were red stones that complemented the roses and rose petals. 3 votives were on each table with red rose petals strewn around (courtesy of Jeff). He was a HUGE help with the table decorations. Thanks sweetie!!



The wedding itself was a blast, lots of dancing and fun! I don't think I sat down for 15 whole minutes. It was a lot if fun, and I look forward to being "those girls" at the next work wedding. Good Luck Alyssa!!!

My home little Idaho

Terri- I hope you of all people appreciate the title of this post!
We had a GREAT trip to Boise ID for the first and second round of the NCAA tournament. Jeff's parents, us, and the Ig's all took the trip out west to follow MU (and WI...ok). When we were watching the selection show, we were pretty much thinking that we would maybe end up in KC, or Dayton or someplace a bit closer. I was secretly hoping that if we were going to be sent to a land far, far away, then let it be warm MIAMI... NO, no, no, silly little MU fans, let's send you to Boise Idaho. I had to ask Jeff if that was a dry state (?????), the answer was an eye-roll and no. So we scrambled, along with the Ig's, and booked our flight to Boise, with one stop along the way. Now I don't travel that often, but I should have known that when you really want to get somewhere, that is where the trouble happens. We were stuck on the tarmac for approximately 3 hrs in Denver. The flight from Milw to Denver was great, so what could I expect?? We finally arrived in Boise around 6:30 and tired as hell, but we were on vacation right?? After dinner at a fantastic little pizza place, FLying Pie Pizza, Iggy, Jeff and I went out for a beer at yippe applebee's. We still hadn't got the lay of the land, and we were tired, so we wanted somewhere close. We got there to watch the end of the first night of BB games and asked the server to turn on the volume. And his response, was "It is against the law" Some sort of copyright nonsense. So, this is how Boise is....hmmmmmm.
Next day, we were up and ready for some great basketball, and that is exactly what we saw. MU and WI brought a victory, so we were set for games on Sunday. The worst would be sitting in BOISE, with your team losing in the first round.
In between the MU and WI game, there was a big break. We met up with the Serb's at a micro brew called the The Ram. It was across the street from the Taco Bell Arena (note to those that were wondering, they do not sell taco's inside...seriously) IT happened to be the nicest day in Boise (milw for that matter), about 70 degrees, I could be lying, but it was THAT nice. We sat out on the patio which was awesome, and had some beer and fish and chips. Note/Quote: we are traveling with the Pope (ie. Jeff's dad) so we had to abide by the no meat on Friday, with the exception of out counterparts, the IG's, who ate triple meat. No, I did not sneak any chicken.....It really was a fun time there, Portland State and XU had their pep rallies there, so that was a lot of fun. I am not sure who noticed this, but we happend to see Jerry Glanville, who is the head FB coach at Portand State. Now, for those not football saavy, Jerry dresses like Johnny Cash and was the head coach for the Falcons 1990-1993...yes, he is the one that let Favre go...yiippee) So, we have a picture with him, which is amusing in itself.
Saturday we headed south to Jackpot, NV Cactus Pete's for a little gambling and road trip. It was about 2.5 hours away and it was well worth any time that it would have taken to get down there. We played Blackjack for most of the time, and I was down to my final 5 dollars of my allotted $100. I had to reach in my pocket for some singles to double down and from that point I think I may have lost 10 hands. I ended up coloring up $750, so that was great. Jeff won in blackjack too, but his claim to fame is sticking some random money into a slot and somehow winning $400. This happens EVERYTIME we go to Vegas, I swear!!
Sunday was the second round of the tourney. MU was playing Mizzou (who is now on my 5 yr hate list) and they lost, no need to get into the sucky details. WI lost also, however, they won us some $ at Cactus Pete's.
All in all, we had a great time. It was a lot of fun just packing up and heading out, not sure really where you are going until a few days before. My parents watched the kids for this long 5 day trip. We do owe them big time, as I was reminded!!

Here is a slide show of some of the pics from out west!!

Life's Love's Tag

Life's Love's Tag

Instructions: "It's the simple things in life!"
List 20 simple things you love about life!

1. Daisy's
2. The kids giggling
3. The smell of campfires
4. Going to work out
5. Chocolate shakes and french fries
6. NCAA BB tournament time
7. Going grocery shopping...by myself
8. Licking the beaters off the mixer
9. Getting a real live letter in my mailbox, not my inbox
10. Girls night out
11. Snuggling
12. Hearing leaves crunching under my feet in the fall
13. Reading a good book
14. with a good cup of tea
15. Summer in WI
16. Sleeping with the windows open
17. Thunderstorms
18. Pickle chips
19. Friends and family
20. Memories

GO MU

So tonight is the BIG game...MU vs UCONN, #10 vs #2. I am so excited for this game, T minus 4 hours. I am convinced this is the year for MU to go big or go home this coming NCAA tourney. Jeff, I, his parents, and Ig and Anne are planning on following MU for the first and second round of the NCAA tournament. Now obviously we do not know where they will end up playing until selection sunday. But, they could end up in one of eight places; Boise (yuk), Minneapolis, Miami, KC, Dayton (Jeff's Alma mater), Miami (nice), Greensboro, Portland, and one more place that I cannot remember. We are really hoping for MN, it is drivable which is a huge plus, also they have a casino, which makes everyone in our group happy. Ig just sent me an e-mail about potential sites MU could end up, all based on the seed they receive. I am sure most people don't really care about this, but I am super psyched. We will see, its a tough schedule ahead, still have to make it through Louisville and Pitt. We will see, but for now...GO WARRIORS!!!!

I love Wednesday's...not

Does everyone know that I hate Wednesday's???? I swear, the kids know that I don't like Wednesday's, and they know how to push every button. Jeff bowls on Wednesday, which makes for a really long day, because he doesn't come home before bowling. On another note, I love having the evening (once kids go to bed), to myself. I can actually use the GUIDE on the TV to find out what is on. The aforementioned post notes the channel surfing nonsense. My Wednesday nights are pretty much the same. Clean up mess from kids, maybe exercise (usually wed is my off day), get jammies on, throw a load of laundry in, pour myself a glass of wine, and watch some TV. I should probably read a book, like the book club book I should be reading, or maybe studying for my personal training exam. I do enjoy the Wednesday's after Maddy and Winn are sleeping! I enjoy then when they are awake too...but in a different way:)

Book Club

I am bound and determined to make the next book club, unless I am down for the count like last time. I just purchased the new book, Revolutionary Road, which is now a movie with Kate Winslet and Leo DiCaprio (did I spell that right). No, Jeff, its not TITANIC, which I think is Jeff's least favorite movie. There are a number of movies that when Jeff is channel surfing (lets touch on that later), that he tries to quickly pass up as though I never saw them. But I do! I few are Footloose, any Die Hard movies, Oceans Eleven or 12 or 13 or 14 or 15, Fried Green Tomatoes, and the list goes on. I could watch any of these movies at any given time and not be tired of them. So...I got the book and will start my read. First I have to catch up on my Tivo shows...priorities you know!

deep thoughts, by Jack Handy

It is 10:00pm and Jeff has gone back to work. Here I sit playing poker. And drinking a glass of wine. And folding laundry. And cleaning up the house. And watching Private Practice...Can you say multitasking?? Would our husbands be able to do this?? My guess is no. Well, really it is my 2nd glass of wine.
I hosted a playdate today at our house. We got on the conversation of moving. The ladies that were there live in Milwaukee, about 2 blocks from Tosa. They are apparently on the waiting list for Tosa schools, and supposedly are interested in moving into Tosa. Funny thing, that we are thinking of moving and heads turned when I mentioned that we may put the house up for sale in spring. Could it really be that easy? Probably not, but wouldn't it be nice? I look at homes every day, of course finding lots of things that we like, now. It would be so great if we could sell our house quick (would that be a miracle in the economic status we are in), and then buy one of the many we like. It is nice to know that people that potentially are interested in moving to tosa, say that your home is move-in-condition, and they would be very interested in when we put it on the market???? I guess we will see what will happen. All I know is that if I have a counter next to my stove I may be the happiest person ever...

Happy New Year

I just wanted to wish everyone a safe and Happy New Year's! We are heading over to the Iggy's for some New Years fun tonight. We have been getting together with them for the past 5 years or so. We do our usual steak on the grill, often lobster tails (on hold this year) and MAYBE a few cocktails. It should be a fun time with all the kids playing together, that IS the plan, but we will see. Then we set up the annual Royal Rummy event. This is great, we all played this game when we were kids and we decided to bring it back some years ago. Of course, the gamblers that we are, we feel the need to add some $ in, as opposed to the chips that are given to us. It's lots of fun! This year Anne's sister and family will be in as well, that's an extra 3 kids thrown in, besides our 2 and "T". Looking forward to a fun night with friends.

O Christmas tree

Every year, I attempt to put my Christmas decorations out early, yet here I sit with only a few up. The village is up and running, the tree having only lights is starting to look better, and that is about it. I do have the boxes of ornaments and decorations right here next to me. Does that count for something?
We got out tree from Jeff's brother-in-law Scott. It is beautiful, and HUGE! We usually put the tree in the sunroon, and also a table with the nativity set. We have the tree, and that may be about it for this year. I love having a huge tree, it is great. We will decorate it tonight, Maddy cannot wait another minute. Winston is putting everything on the tree, a balloon, Percy (that is part of Thomas the Train for those who have no idea what I am talking about).
Jeff is home sick, finally catching whatever I had. I do think I started this whole sickness thing early November, and still haven't kicked it quite yet. I am guessing because I rarely have time to rest, but that is just a guess?

GNO

Last night, Tracy hosted our monthly Girls Night Out! And what a hoot it was... We decided to have a cookie exchange, order out some dinner, have some wine, make some roll out butter cookies. We really had a great time, lots of fun, and lots of laughs! I have to say, it might be high on my list of GNO. It was nice to visit with all my wonderful friends, what could be better during the Holiday season. I am so blessed to have each of of you in my life!
























Here are a list of my predictions based on last night
~Nicki will become a master cookie decorator
~Tracy will become addicted to Facebook like her fellow GNO counterparts
I know I am missing some classic lines from last night...feel free to add on!

gooooo Marquette

So, every year Marquette plays WI. They rotate home court every year, and this year it was here at the BC. Now, I thoroughly enjoy bragging rights each year if MU happens to win (love ya Tracy). I do support my WI teams, but I have such a hard time cheering for any WI when it has to do with anything MU. Now, this really relates only to BB, since MU has no football or hockey or any of those other sports. So I am a HUGE MU fan!! Nothing beTTer than an MU win, however. I was a bit worried for the first half and the first 15 min of the second half...and I really didn't feel great when WI scored so fast in the last few minutes (what was that all about). But the best team prevails this year. Ha Ha, I had to write that in (Tracy). Kidding really...???? No, but I am happy we won. Till we meet again.



Yes, the score was 61-58.

We went out to Sobelmans, which just happens to be THE BEST BURGER place EVER...seriously. I had to take this picture of this triple or quadruple (is there such thing) burger that these kids ordered. Yes, I say kids, since they were like 18 yrs old...wow...

Thanks Nicki...

for introducing me to Facebook...why did you do this to me? I feel slightly addicted already. It's funny, having conversations with people that I was in school with 15 years ago. It's interesting to read all this stuff from people, truly amazing that we have this sort of technology. I love it!!

thanksgiving feast...for 13 or 15

I am having Thanksgiving dinner here at our home, and I am super excited! I don't get the opportunity to "have" a holiday where I get to cook, bring out the good china, and all the other "fun" that goes along with it. I invited my parents, and Tim and Emily over for dinner. Then we found out that Jeff's sister Mary Jo and the family are coming into town for Thanksgiving this year. They usually have Thanksgiving in Wi Rapids each year, and Jeff and I will go up there every other year. It's so hard to have to split holiday's between families, but that is how it works...we all do it. I wish I could go up there and come back with a snap of my fingers, but unfortunately it takes 3 hrs...Anyways, this year Jeff and I invited everyone over here, since Mary Jo and the fam were in town anyways. Also Jeff's mom has to work at Boston Store at 3 AM the next day, that sucks. So I think that it will work out great! I may be a crazy person, but it will be worth it. I will be in cahoots with Nicki when I cook the turkey. Last time I talked with her, she was looking for tips on cooking a turkey and I proclaimed that it really is not that hard. So we may be on the phone back and forth to figure it all out! I am in the process of making up the menu. Everyone is pitching in and bringing something so maybe the chaos will be kept to a minimum...yeah right! What would the holidays be without chaos???

Top Chef

Thanks to Tracy, I am now addicted to Top Chef. My mouth is watering as we speak, delicious. I did realize this show was on TV, hence my enjoyment for cooking, but I didn't realize what I was missing! With my addiction to NBC, ABC, and FOX shows, I found the missing link on BRAVO. Why didn't I realize this? Great, now more shows to catch up on.
Girls Night Out tonight...Hooray...I need it! We are heading out to Il Mito Enoteca, for some wine and apps. They have a great menu and wine list, and I have heard by a fellow book club member that it is great place. It's about 3 blocks from my house, and I have been eyeing it up everytime we take a walk over by North Ave. Check back for the full write up!

Barefoot Bloggers-Herb Roasted Onions

The first recipe of the month on Barefoot Bloggers was chosen by Kelly from Baking with the Boys. I made Herb Roasted Onions, which was found on the food network website, which I love immensely. I was happy to see this recipe, firstly because I am short on time (when am I not) and secondly, because I love onions. I will be the only one eating this delicious dish, perhaps I can convince my 2 1/2 yr old daughter or 1 year old son to try them. Try them, try them you will see. I do not like them Sam I am. This is what Maddy says when I try to get her to eat new things.
On to the cooking...

Ingredients

1 red onion
1 yellow onion
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup good olive oil
1/2 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Remove the stem end of each onion and carefully slice off the brown part of the root end, leaving the root intact. Peel the onion. Stand each onion root end up on a cutting board and cut the onion in wedges through the root. Place the wedges in a bowl.



For the dressing, combine the lemon juice, mustard, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Pour the dressing over the onions and toss well.


With a slotted spoon, transfer the onions to a sheet pan, reserving the vinaigrette that remains in the bowl. Bake the onions for 30 to 45 minutes, until tender and browned. Toss the onions once during cooking. Remove from the oven, and drizzle with the reserved dressing. Sprinkle with parsley, season to taste and serve warm or at room temperature.



If you like onions, you have to make this. It literally took 5 minutes to prep and then put in the oven for 30 minutes. It would be great with a roasted chicken, which I did not make, but sure sounds good.

Halloween, see you next year!

Jeff and I decided to go out for Halloween this year. It has been a while since we have gone "out" for Halloween, costumes and all. The Captain was out again, in full force. This was the 10th anniversary of CC. I was joking with Jeff that he should really try to fix his mustache on the CC costume. I really think it would be much better. What do I know? We get to Kelly's Bleachers at around 8ish, the costume contest was supposed to be judging at 10 o'clock. Now being familiar with costume contests, I knew this would be pushed way back to at least 11:00pm. We were trying to get to a few contests if we could to increase the chances of winning. We ended up at Kelly's for most of the night, but it was well worth it. The second we walked in, Jeff was surrounded by fans of the Captain. I still don't really get the whole CC thing. I wasn't allowed to eat CC when I was little, so maybe this distaste stems from that??? He did look good, 250.00 good, in fact. It came down to CC vs Michael Phelps (oooh baby). Jeff won by a pretty good amount, but Phelps did give him a run. We met Julie (aka Amy Winehouse) out also, and we had a great time. I wonder if the Captain will be back next year, might be time for a new idea......

To finish the basement or to not finish the basement...

That is the question...Jeff and I have been considering looking for a bigger house. We seem to be outgrowing our home, well, the toys seem to be multiplying and we are running out of places to put them. It drives me crazy to not have a room that doesn't have toys in it, but it drives Jeff even more crazy. We really need a family room. A place where we can hang out most of the time, a place where we can have a spot for the kids' toys, and a place where Jeff can hang his sports art. It is really nice and I am looking forward to having it hung up. This is coming from the wife who has Brett hung over the fireplace (is it about time to take that down yet???)
We seem to have been pretty set on moving, somewhere possibly in the Brookfield area, still close to work and parents, and downtown.
In the past few weeks, I have been thinking that maybe we COULD stay here. There are 2 things I really want in our house that we don't have; a rec/family room, and an eat in kitchen. It is so hard to keep the dining room free from clutter when that is where we have to eat each day. So, I would consider if we had the basement professionally done and really make it somewhere that we can live in, not a quick shoddy job. Now there is a list of things that we need to fix up in the house now, my list is short, Jeff's probably longer. 1) improve kitchen, how?? I have no idea 2) new windows 3) new driveway (this may be Jeff's #1...hello shoveling 100 inches of snow with a strip of grass down the middle of the driveway...what is the purpose of this????? Sorry 4) fix porch before it crumbles away 5) remodel first floor bathroom 6) Reside garage. There may be more, but the more I think about it, I love my house. I love being able to walk to the library, parks, schools, restaurants, exercise, etc. And I especially love that there are kids everywhere, surrounded by parents that have become friends.
I feel that for us to find a bigger house, we will need significant more money than what we would sell ours for...and would we be able to see it? I think yes, but really you never know. And what are the odds that we would find a house that we don't have to put in money to fix things, or furnish none-the-less. Does it make more sense to spend the money to fix he existing problems??? Who knows, some thinking to do I guess.

and the cooking begins...

OK...the kids are sleeping, finally, so I can start my cooking for the party. The menu is fairly simple. Chili, cornbread, Asian broccoli slaw, fruit platter (courtesy of Terri), veggie platter with spinach and Parmesan dip. And, of course the chips and dips (Anne claims to know a great beer and cheese dip for pretzels), and scrumptious pumpkin dip (thanks Tracy). Mummified hot dogs for the kids with spooooky mac and cheese. Boy am I hungry. Should I really be cooking when I am this hungry?
I just finished making the apple crisp and is cooking as we speak. The recipe is from Tammy from work and is delicious.

6 apples
1 cup water
1 yellow cake mix
1 cup oats
1/2 c brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon ( i added some pumpkin pie spice too)
1/2 cup softened butter

Spray bottom of 9 x 13 pan. Add 6 peeled and sliced apples to the bottom. Add 1 cup water over the apples. Mix together cake mix, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon. Add softened butter and mix, will be crumbly. Sprinkle over the apples and water. Bake 40-50 min 350 degrees. Yummy!!! Ya'll have to let me know what you think tomorrow...

Kids will have (Tracy requests adults too) pumpkin cupcakes and Halloween cookies. As well as way too much candy that will be received during trick or treat. Mom and Dad may find a way for some of the candy to disappear!

I am taking a chili recipe and cornbread from Chelle at Brown Eyed Baker. I may modify a bit because I think I need a little kick to the chili. We will see.

Tracy and the kids came over for a visit today. Maddy and Cooper are so funny. This may be blackmail someday, all the time those 2 spend playing in Maddy's bed. How is that it's ok now, but ask us in 10 years and we may be changing our tune. They played so great together, Emmitt and Winn too! Back to my cooking, just needed a quick break

Halloween is here..........

I am in the midst of putting together my Halloween costume for this saturday. We have trick or treat in our neighborhood in Tosa this year on saturday night. It is a huge deal here at the Ehrhardt home, as it is our favorite holiday. The past few years, I have not had a costume for the annual T or T event, and I feel the wrath of Jeff. Last year, not even 48 hours before Winn was born, I was walking around (waddling around is more like it) in a Harlem Globetrotters costume (Curly none-the-less). I looked quite ridiculous as I was walking around with my every 10 min contractions and a bald wig on my head. Note-I purposely did not insert pic here.
I finally got my act together and came up with an idea...and started it ahead of time. My mom is working on part of it, and I will be taking my well-behaved kids (talk to Tracy) to Bartz's for a few select items. I hope it all turns out. I cannot mention to the world what I will be (nor does anyone really care), but a few select people know. I don't have to elaborate on what Jeff will be, since he is the same thing EVERY year, and it is a huge hit EVERY year. But the Captain (not Morgan) will be out on the streets of Tosa this year again!
Jeff and I are planning on going out on Friday, Halloween night! We are hoping to hit a few costume contests. Captain usually does pretty well at the contests. We will see!! Our Halloween party/Winn's birthday should be quite an event...pics to follow on Pocket Full of Squirrels.