Up and At 'Em

Snow day today. Kids are off school and husband is working from home.

Yet here we are, awake early and facing the effects of the overnight blizzard.

I took in the scenery of the neighborhood.

Ben and Kate tackled the plowed in driveway.

That girl was out there before breakfast!

Go Go Gophers

Looking for a fun family outing? Check out the No. 14  U of M Golden Gophers women's gymnastics team as they compete at the Sports Pavilion on campus. Remaining season schedule is here.

We attended their meet and win against Michigan State. Youth tickets are $5, adults $8, and it is well worth the price. You get to sit close to the action. The whole atmosphere is fun and encourages good sportsmanship and fan participation.

Here's the mascot and team members leading us in the rally song (which is chanted about 118 times throughout the event.)

It is just fun to watch good gymnastics - where the scores hover in the 9.8 region most of the evening. We were close to the beam and marveled at the cool mounts and dismounts.

The night we attended was extra special with an autograph signing by the whole team.

The evening opened with three Special Olympic athletes performing their routines on the floor. It was especially cool for me to see one athlete with downs syndrome perform - she had a strong body and a big smile.

At each meet there is also a performance by a local gymnastics club so you get to see very young gymnasts perform as a whole team on the floor.

One piece of advice: Bring your own water. I practically needed to take out a loan to buy one bottled water for the five of us to share from the concession stand.

Second piece of advice: Plan to spend an extra hour or so watching your young one bend and flip and point and tuck and jump when you get home. She will be inspired after watching these fine athletes.

Hand Towels and Hamstrings

One whole hour?!

Didn't think I could do it. Would have preferred to watch the Olympics live while letting the Lindor Milk Chocolate Truffles my husband gave me on Valentine's Day melt in my mouth.

But I chose to try today's episode from jessicasmithtv.com and I am thankful I did.

Jessica changes it up with this Mash Up video - some kick boxing, core strengthening, jump rope / jack moves, floor work.

I love the use of hand towels. For me it added a whole new dimension to exercise.  I have just enough usable space on our laminate basement floor to follow along. Other things taking up space include a soon to be installed toilet, large assortment of cardboard (to be turned into a medieval castle sometime this week), and just stuff, lots of stuff.



Jessica keeps it lively and fun with this one.

I even said "hello" to my hamstrings. They screamed back, "Stop, we've been happy being so dormant for so long. What is happening?"

An hour well spent.

Ouch Abs

"But it hurts to work out."

I know.

I did this six minute abs workout and ow! ow! ow! ow! ow! ow!......I was very verbal during this workout as my weak abs woke up and realized I was asking them to do things that hadn't been done in years.

I cried out in pain so loud my daughter ran down the stairs and said, "Mom, it sounds like you are giving birth!"

#1: How would she know?

#2: How would I know? C-sections spared me from the trauma of natural child birth.

But this workout below generates the good kind of pain, and it can be modified it to your level of pain tolerance....take it slow, do a few less reps, rest a little longer between moves....it's up to you.

The whole routine goes quickly I promise.



Pain is not an excuse to not exercise. When I feel the burn, I know something is working.

Try it!

It feels so good to have done it. And the pain is temporary. Forgettable. Much like labor is, I am told.

Kate Spade Eyewear

In addition to similar DNA, their surname, and the fact they all live under the same four month old roof, what do these girls have in common?

Yes! They all wear glasses. Eye wear is the new thing in our household. (Aside: I don't ask the girls to pose for photos, other than to ask for a decent smile once in awhile. They do this on their own. Cracks me up.)

Notice The "Beauty Shelf" has a new item.

I feel so left out - of the folks in the family who need corrective lenses, that is.

One daughter wears them all the time, another most of the time, and the third just in school. I guess seeing the board from the back row is a good thing. I learned that she relies mostly on hearing her teachers read their notes rather than on reading them. Ahhh! Well, I can't be on top of everything.

One recent Saturday morning, we headed to Pearl Vision - After the three exams were complete, we took some time to shop. We walked out with a couple of new frames.

That morning I discovered I love Kate Spade eye wear. Really. We all kept pulling them off the display shelf and making a "try on" pile. The choices were all adorable. The color on the inside of the frames seems to make one's eye color pop.

These were my favorite.

The color and detail on the inside of the frames are darling. They make the glasses.

Now I get to see them every day on my lovely daughter!

I have been told by many people that my day is coming and maybe not so far around the corner. Cheaters.

If and when that happens I will definitely be shopping for a look like these. 

I figure if glasses need to be a daily accessory, embrace it - go cute. Go Kate Spade!