New Pet

I've had mice, spiders, crickets and all those other typical unwanted guests in my basements over the years. But I can honestly say this is the first time I've had a frog.

I'm not quite sure what to think.

If you can't tell we have the most annoying washing machine set up you can think of. The land lord stuck the washing machine in there with an open pipe that drains onto the floor of the basement into our floor drain with another hose going in. I'm not sure what the other hose is for but of course the water splashes up from the washing machine so we have to keep anything we have stored down there far enough away it wont get wet. I'm sure our new pet loves our washing machine arrangement and I can't complain because at least I don't have to go to the laundromat.

So any suggestions on a name?

Thinking about....

How wonderful it will be when I have trucks and grip tape for my newly made longboard.

Or when I finally get my bindings mounted and can enjoying a beautiful day of fresh powder. It's such a tough life having all these amazing new toys and not being able to use them.

I'm already counting the days until we get to go home to IDAHO and UTAH. I can't wait to see the mountains, family and play in the snow. But until then I'll enjoy this beautiful sunny Des Moines weather and go for a bike ride.

History of Longboarding

Last summer Brad taught me how to longboard. Of course I had no idea what I was doing but I tried to figure it out.

The first time we went Brad nearly panicked thinking he would be explaining my death to my parents. He was trying to catch up to me while I was recklessly flying through the parking lot with no clue how to stop. Somehow I pulled through at the end. Perhaps this lead me to believe I was much better than I actually am.

The next time we went I quickly hopped on the board and took off. I was suppose to follow Brad but once again I was going out of control at a very high speed only this time...I didn't pull through. I fell to the ground and quickly tried to get up noticing blood everywhere. My pants were ripped from the knee down. My knee, elbows, hands and chin were torn up and I was mad. It was my first run of the night I couldn't stop there or I'd never get on a longboard again.

We longboarded a little longer. This time Brad stuck as close to me as possible and when the bleeding got bad enough we finally called it quits for the night and he took me back to his house to pull the gravel out.

It was pretty funny when his mom found Band-Aids, gauze and scissors on the counter the next morning.

Now a year later I am trying to make my own longboard. Brad did most of the wood work. This is what we have so far.

After the cutting and routing.

After priming and taping for the next layer of paint.

After the first layer of paint.

After I took the tape off.

I still have the logo to paint, stain and varnish. So it might be a couple days before I have the final product.

Nobody told me...

It was going to be up hill...

Brad and I decided to participate in the DMU Run-Day-Voo. It was just a simple 5k not that big of deal. We kind of blew it off and didn't do much to prepare. Other than run around Gray's lake a couple of times. note: Gray's Lake is completely flat.

7:30 a.m. the race began, Brad and I were doing great. We passed the first mile marker and still had all the energy in the world. Then I glanced ahead enough to notice we were going to be starting up a hill. No biggy right...THIS HILL NEVER ENDED and I quickly realized just how out of shape I was when it was all I could do to stay ahead of the old man just one step behind me.

Thank goodness it flattened out again around 2.5 miles and I had just enough energy for a final sprint. I just wanted the race to be over.

We did ok, got some free stuff and we might consider doing another 5k in the near future and maybe a 10k in the far future.

Violence on TV

What is it with boys and fighting?

I reluctantly agreed to let Brad go to FIGHT NIGHT last Saturday. It probably sounds like I was reluctant because I don't approve but really it is because I was jealous I wasn't invited.

For all those parents who are worried about the effects of violence on TV and in video games...you should be. Boys will always try to reenact what they see. (explosions, fights, and anything else you can imagine.)

That is right...he got punched in the face. (notice the fat lip)

"you should see the other guy."

Being one of the FIVE

Well you all know that I have never been the least bit concerned about what I eat.  I eat what I want when I want it and it usually consists of CHOCOLATE or anything sweat.  As my grandma would say I've got a sweet tooth.

My dad has always described me in three simple phrases.  Don't think about these too hard.  And don't worry I don't have a complex because of them.

1-I'm the UGLY daughter

2-I'm a hard keep

3-I'm a good  eater

Translation...Mary is the beautiful daughter... I'm the stubborn daughter... I eat a lot.

However since I am now married to a med student taking nutrition classes I have suddenly become a little more concerned with what I eat.  

It could be because everytime I indulge in large quantities of junk food I get threatened. "You're going to get type II diabetes."

Or maybe it's because I hear him talk about his lectures and learned some very interesting fact about my unhealthy eating habits, it's just a little scary.

One thing I learned is that less than five percent of americans do all four of the following.

1- Don't smoke

2- Are a healthy weight

3- Live a moderately active lifestyle

up until now I was feeling pretty confident

4- Eat the daily recommendation of fruits and vegetables...(YES that means I should be eating a minimum of three fruits and three vegtables a day, and NO fruit flavored tootsie rolls from the bank don't count.)

So to make a long post short this is my new goal.  I'm not actually going on a diet but I am determined to be one of the FIVE percent of Americans who do the above mentioned and I'm going to eat my fruits and vegetables.

 

This is my foot

Don't you think it's beautiful?

This summer I participated in a foot study.  The podiatry student working on the study was working in the performance lab where Brad was doing his research.  I was the lucky one that got to help out when they needed more volunteers.  

If anyone is interested in getting foot xray's wearing dots all over your body and having sharpie lines drawn on your foot I'm sure they could use more participants.

Side note:  I have very flexible toes.