Outside Temp: 75 F (it hasn't cooled off like it usually does. I think we're in for thunderstorms tonight... I can smell rain)
What I cooked today:
Burgers and Pasta: I was so tired, I almost made them go without dinner. Boy, is my family lucky that I worry about actually feeding them.
Update:
We went into Stanford today. I had to run some errands, so the kids (minus Ryan, I didn't want to risk it with his new line), jumped in the car with me, and we headed east.
We stopped at the Elevator in Geyser, to pick up some chicken feed. As luck would have it, the cat that lives there had her kitten. So stinking cute. I think the kitten is about 4 weeks old, still mewing and so small. Of course, Katie fell in love, and spent the entire time coo-ing over the kitten. I think we are going to have to break down soon, if only to get her to stop her begging for a cat.
After that, we headed over to the library in Stanford. The kids had some books to return, and wanted to get a few more. The librarian over there is amazing. I guess it helps that there are so few kids, but she knows everyone, what they like, what they've read, etc. She had asked her son about a book for Allen, and was looking for it. There was some confusion over whether her son had brought it back or if it was still at the house. So, since her son was at the pool, she told us to ask him and then come back.
So, after I finished my other errands, we went over to the pool. The kids are getting so much better at both swimming and diving. Allen is loving the diving board, and he's showing off his back and front flips (of course, the front flips usually end up in a flop of some kind, but he is getting better).
Connor was able to dive (head first) off the board for the first time. He has always been nervous about diving head first, ever since the last time, when he belly flopped. It made quite an impression. But, one of the nice ladies in Stanford offered to help him out, and show him how. I was able to stand back and watch. Amazingly, he listened to her, and (perhaps because it wasn't me) he managed to get into the water head first. After about 3-4 more tries, he was able to go off the board! Woo hoo!
Katie has been practicing her swimming. She hasn't had much practice before now, so she was very unsure of herself. We went back and forth a few times, with me giving her pointers (your head needs to be in the water, cup your hands, don't forget to kick, etc). After about 30 minutes, she decided she was ready to try going from side to side. She did great. So, we moved up to the deep end (10 feet) and she decided to swim side to side in the deep end. I think she was a little surprised when she reached the end with no problems. Slow and steady, don't freak out, don't forget to kick. You should have seen the smile on her face! She was so proud of herself! So, she had to swim back and forth a few more times, just to prove that she could. Amazing!
While we were at the pool, we met a very nice older gentleman, and we started talking. It turned out he was part of a group that were bicycling across the country. There were 2 older men, a middle aged man, a younger man (probably in his late 20's, early 30's) and a younger woman (in her mid 20's). They started out in Washington and were biking the whole way. One of the older men used a recombinant bicycle, where he could use his arms to peddle, instead of his legs. Both men were probably in their mid 70's. The whole group was inspiring, although I know that I'm too lazy to ride a bike across the country!
After the pool, we went back to the library. The librarian's son said that he book was there, but she still couldn't find it. So, being the awesome librarian that she was, she left us in charge of the library for a few minutes, while she went home to look for it! After about 10 minutes, she came back, very upset because she couldn't find it. Then, she happened to look at the bookshelf where she puts 'reserved' books, and there it was, with his name on it! We had a great laugh over the concept of putting things where they belong, and never finding them again!
Of course, with our busy day (which, of course, required a trip to the little grocery store for ice cream), I was pooped, and immediately fell into bed when we got home. I wonder if my sunburn had anything to do with that...
Showing posts with label Stanford Pool. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Stanford Pool. Show all posts
Monday, August 6, 2012
Thursday, July 19, 2012
July 18, 2012
Outside Temp: 66 F (we had a high of 97 today, totally ugh. We managed to keep the house in the mid 80's but it still was annoying.)
What I cooked today:
Chinese Chicken: I must really love my family, because I managed to make both chicken and fried rice for dinner. The phrase 'slaving over a hot stove' came to mind. I'm going to break down and get a BBQ.
Update:
I really hate the heat. Just in case I hadn't mentioned that before.
To try to help keep the house a little cooler, Patrick rigged up a 'swamp cooler'. He took our box fan, attached some filter material to the front. Set the bottom of the filter material in a boot tray and poured water over the filter material. With the fan going, it would blow through the water and the air would be a little cooler. It did drop the house temperature by a few degrees, so I couldn't complain.
Of course, the boot tray had a hole in it, which means that when the water drained down the filter into the boot tray, it then drained onto the floor. But, we figured it out after about 15 minutes, when the water seemed to mysteriously disappear.
Once the temperature cooled off a little, we dismantled out 'swamp cooler', because we needed the box fan for the window. I'm expecting to rebuild it tomorrow. This heat wave is expected to last a few days, at least!
This evening, we took the kids over to Stanford to go swimming. It seems a little silly to drive 30 minutes over to Stanford, when the Belt pool is only 15 minutes away, but the Stanford pool has a diving board, and those are just plain cool. We only stayed for about an hour (ish), but the kids had a great time. Connor and Katie are getting comfortable in the deep end, and, although their swimming skills are not stellar, they can hold their own in the 10ft deep section.
They are all diving off the board, although Katie still needs to learn to dive, like hands first, instead of jump, feet first. She did a few great belly flops today, but by the end, she was almost there. Even Ryan wanted to jump off the diving board. He had a floaty ring, and, with me treading water below the board, he just jumped right off. The kid has no fear.
Once we got home, I realized that I had forgotten to take Ryan to summer school today. Oh my goodness! Apparently, when we set up Wednesday and Friday for summer school, I had forgotten to put it on my calendar. And if the calendar doesn't remind me, I'm lost. So, I'll call his teacher tomorrow and apologize profusely. Hopefully, she will still let me bring him in on Friday, if I promise not to forget!
What I cooked today:
Chinese Chicken: I must really love my family, because I managed to make both chicken and fried rice for dinner. The phrase 'slaving over a hot stove' came to mind. I'm going to break down and get a BBQ.
Update:
I really hate the heat. Just in case I hadn't mentioned that before.
To try to help keep the house a little cooler, Patrick rigged up a 'swamp cooler'. He took our box fan, attached some filter material to the front. Set the bottom of the filter material in a boot tray and poured water over the filter material. With the fan going, it would blow through the water and the air would be a little cooler. It did drop the house temperature by a few degrees, so I couldn't complain.
Of course, the boot tray had a hole in it, which means that when the water drained down the filter into the boot tray, it then drained onto the floor. But, we figured it out after about 15 minutes, when the water seemed to mysteriously disappear.
Once the temperature cooled off a little, we dismantled out 'swamp cooler', because we needed the box fan for the window. I'm expecting to rebuild it tomorrow. This heat wave is expected to last a few days, at least!
This evening, we took the kids over to Stanford to go swimming. It seems a little silly to drive 30 minutes over to Stanford, when the Belt pool is only 15 minutes away, but the Stanford pool has a diving board, and those are just plain cool. We only stayed for about an hour (ish), but the kids had a great time. Connor and Katie are getting comfortable in the deep end, and, although their swimming skills are not stellar, they can hold their own in the 10ft deep section.
They are all diving off the board, although Katie still needs to learn to dive, like hands first, instead of jump, feet first. She did a few great belly flops today, but by the end, she was almost there. Even Ryan wanted to jump off the diving board. He had a floaty ring, and, with me treading water below the board, he just jumped right off. The kid has no fear.
Once we got home, I realized that I had forgotten to take Ryan to summer school today. Oh my goodness! Apparently, when we set up Wednesday and Friday for summer school, I had forgotten to put it on my calendar. And if the calendar doesn't remind me, I'm lost. So, I'll call his teacher tomorrow and apologize profusely. Hopefully, she will still let me bring him in on Friday, if I promise not to forget!
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
July 11, 2012
Outside Temp: 65 F (It wasn't as hot today, only in the high 80's)
What I cooked today:
Burgers and Tater Tots: I actually turned on my oven and cooked something today! The family was so excited that I actually cooked!
Update:
I got the pictures from yesterday uploaded... This is the creek behind our house. I'm sure there are thousands of reasons why this is a bad idea (I'm thinking about bugs and germs and grosser things that might be in this creek), but it was so hot and it was beautiful and the water was (mostly) clear (until our wandering around kicked up the bottom).
The water was probably in the 60's, which was perfect while it was in the 90's outside. We started out slow, not sure if they really wanted to be in the creek. After about 30 minutes, they were all waist deep. And within the hour, they were swimming and playing! So much fun! Even Patrick and I got in and played with them. Ryan was up at Grandma's, so he didn't go in (which was probably for the best, with infections and all).
What I cooked today:
Burgers and Tater Tots: I actually turned on my oven and cooked something today! The family was so excited that I actually cooked!
Update:
I got the pictures from yesterday uploaded... This is the creek behind our house. I'm sure there are thousands of reasons why this is a bad idea (I'm thinking about bugs and germs and grosser things that might be in this creek), but it was so hot and it was beautiful and the water was (mostly) clear (until our wandering around kicked up the bottom).
The water was probably in the 60's, which was perfect while it was in the 90's outside. We started out slow, not sure if they really wanted to be in the creek. After about 30 minutes, they were all waist deep. And within the hour, they were swimming and playing! So much fun! Even Patrick and I got in and played with them. Ryan was up at Grandma's, so he didn't go in (which was probably for the best, with infections and all).
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So, that was yesterday. Today, Patrick and I both worked for a few hours this morning. Then, feeling a little guilty (and having the nagging list of things that needed to be done), the kids and I went into Stanford. I tried to get my fingerprints for my relief position at the post office, but the sheriff wasn't there. I went to the bank, but I needed Katie's SSN card to open her a savings account. The kids loved the Library, returned books they've already read, and picked up new ones. Then we made it over to the Stanford Pool, where I let them play for about an hour. That guilt thing is popping back up, since I left Ryan at Grandma's house. But, I'll make sure to bring him next time! This evening, I got to go to Book Club, which was great! I was a little nervous, since I didn't really like the book. Should I say that I didn't like it? Would people get offended, in the sense that I was criticizing something they liked? In the end, I should have known better than to be worried. The women in this book club are awesome and, once I got there, I was totally comfortable being honest about my opinion. And, while some women really liked it, some others didn't. And that's okay! What a novel concept! A beautiful sunset greeted me as I drove home through one of the prettiest canyons in Montana. Life doesn't get much better. |
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Saturday, July 7, 2012
July 7, 2012
Outside Temp: 67 F (It got into the 90's today! Ugh, but no complaints considering how hot it is in other areas of the country!)
What I cooked today:
Orange Chicken (with fried rice): There is a big difference between using your normal pots and pans, and using other people's pots and pans. We cooked up at the Grandparents house, and Grandma has some really nice cookware. She also had a really nice cooktop. Both of which, I have no idea how to use. So, my chicken didn't get seared, like it normally does, it just cooked, which in turn, made the chicken a little tough and it didn't take the sauce the way it normally does. Oh well, the chicken tasted fine, and everyone ate it up, so I guess it wasn't too bad. On the other side, she has this really awesome cook pot/wok, that was huge and I could make my fried rice and no rice spilled over the sides. I totally want one of those!
Update:
We went over to the Stanford Pool today. Of course, the morning consisted of me scrounging around for Katie's bathing suit, which has gone missing. Perhaps it didn't make the move with us, since this is the first time this summer that she has needed it. After about an hour, and about 20 boxes of random items (I did find Patrick's bathing suit, some old pictures I thought I lost, and my nightgowns, which would be useful now that it's warm at night and sweats just aren't necessary), I decided that I would run into town and pick her up a new one.
I know, a run into Great Falls isn't something I usually do on a whim, but she really needed a real bathing suit, so we just pushed back our 'start time', and she and I jumped in the car and raced into town.
Katie, being her mother's daughter, picked up the plain blue and purple suit, and said, "I'll take this one." I did require that she try it on first, and when it fit, she was done. We were out of there in less than 10 minutes (we did have to run over and pick up goggles... oh, and these sheets are on sale and aren't they cute?... And we totally needed a bag of Skittles.).
We were back home by 1:00, and the boys were all ready to go. We ran up to pick up my mother, and I was finally able to show her Geyser and Stanford. We drove around the school and the town of Geyser and then headed the 15 miles into Stanford. We were going to stop and the Library, but it was closed (which worked out, since we were behind schedule anyway).
The pool is awesome! It's very large, with a diving board and a couple slides. They have a young kids section, where Ryan can touch the ground. Then the middle section, which is about 4-5 feet. Then the deep section (about 9-10 feet) with a diving board. Fortunately, they also had those foam noodles, so my kids who are not strong swimmers, could still feel comfortable playing. Ryan and I spent most of the time playing around in the first two sections, since I didn't feel comfortable taking him into the deep section (I wonder why?).
We played around for a little less than 2 hours. The kids had some friends that just happen to be there, so that was fun. The only problem was that I didn't put enough sunscreen on, so I got a little burned. Of course, the kids were all fine!
After the pool, we got cleaned up and headed into Church, with my mom. After church, we went up to the Grandparents and had a great dinner.
The only sad part is that today is my mom's last day in Montana... she's heading home tomorrow. What an awesome trip for us! I only hope that we can get her up here again soon!
What I cooked today:
Orange Chicken (with fried rice): There is a big difference between using your normal pots and pans, and using other people's pots and pans. We cooked up at the Grandparents house, and Grandma has some really nice cookware. She also had a really nice cooktop. Both of which, I have no idea how to use. So, my chicken didn't get seared, like it normally does, it just cooked, which in turn, made the chicken a little tough and it didn't take the sauce the way it normally does. Oh well, the chicken tasted fine, and everyone ate it up, so I guess it wasn't too bad. On the other side, she has this really awesome cook pot/wok, that was huge and I could make my fried rice and no rice spilled over the sides. I totally want one of those!
Update:
We went over to the Stanford Pool today. Of course, the morning consisted of me scrounging around for Katie's bathing suit, which has gone missing. Perhaps it didn't make the move with us, since this is the first time this summer that she has needed it. After about an hour, and about 20 boxes of random items (I did find Patrick's bathing suit, some old pictures I thought I lost, and my nightgowns, which would be useful now that it's warm at night and sweats just aren't necessary), I decided that I would run into town and pick her up a new one.
I know, a run into Great Falls isn't something I usually do on a whim, but she really needed a real bathing suit, so we just pushed back our 'start time', and she and I jumped in the car and raced into town.
Katie, being her mother's daughter, picked up the plain blue and purple suit, and said, "I'll take this one." I did require that she try it on first, and when it fit, she was done. We were out of there in less than 10 minutes (we did have to run over and pick up goggles... oh, and these sheets are on sale and aren't they cute?... And we totally needed a bag of Skittles.).
We were back home by 1:00, and the boys were all ready to go. We ran up to pick up my mother, and I was finally able to show her Geyser and Stanford. We drove around the school and the town of Geyser and then headed the 15 miles into Stanford. We were going to stop and the Library, but it was closed (which worked out, since we were behind schedule anyway).
The pool is awesome! It's very large, with a diving board and a couple slides. They have a young kids section, where Ryan can touch the ground. Then the middle section, which is about 4-5 feet. Then the deep section (about 9-10 feet) with a diving board. Fortunately, they also had those foam noodles, so my kids who are not strong swimmers, could still feel comfortable playing. Ryan and I spent most of the time playing around in the first two sections, since I didn't feel comfortable taking him into the deep section (I wonder why?).
We played around for a little less than 2 hours. The kids had some friends that just happen to be there, so that was fun. The only problem was that I didn't put enough sunscreen on, so I got a little burned. Of course, the kids were all fine!
After the pool, we got cleaned up and headed into Church, with my mom. After church, we went up to the Grandparents and had a great dinner.
The only sad part is that today is my mom's last day in Montana... she's heading home tomorrow. What an awesome trip for us! I only hope that we can get her up here again soon!
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