These boys bowl me over

Saturday afternoon was my time to babysit my adorable, all-boy-all-the-time, nephews. They can definitely be a handful, and are great birth control, but man do I love them.  They are so fun!

We hit up Incredabowl in South OP to knock down some pins. They are such goofballs - and so animated!

Sean was pretty serious about his turns. He'd watch the ball roll down the alley until it could roll no more. And he'd be so nervous seeing where it would end up! See nervous stances in the following photos. At one point he was so focused on the pins that he accidentally let the ball roll backwards towards my toes instead!

Ian is Mr. Crazypants. He'd be rolling on the floor after a bad throw, and doing some serious celebrating after he got a spare!

Little Jacob though, man is he a baller! The only one of us to get a strike and ended up winning by 10 pins!!

This is his game face. Grr. Watch out brothers. I'm comin' for ya!

Highlights of the outing at the bowling alley: playing with the balls and the fan in the ball return.

Making the computer screen beep!

Seeing who can hold on to the most balls at once.

 But most importantly, quality time with those we love!!!

After our epic bowling adventure, we went to Petland to see all the animals. Jacob got to hold a one-pound Peagle puppy (pekingese and beagle mix). Ian and Jake held bunny rabbits. They all played with the dwarf hamsters and the hermit crabs. Of course, they wanted to take them all home with them! Luckily, we got an ice cream call from Uncle Timmy that rescued those poor animals from a dubious fate!

Dogs Night Out

Somehow, I recently found a website and group called Dogs Life KC. They showcase tons of cool stuff for people like me that are crazy about their pups. I heard about this event, Dogs Night Out, and called up another dog-loving buddy to go with me.

Its sponsored by Three Dog Bakery, a local business turned international, and portions of the proceeds went to their charitable foundation. Apparently they do these events regulary, even though this was the first time I attended. Btw, my favorite thing about Three Dog is how they make everything dog-related. You can shop in their "Dogalog" and put items in your shopping "basset", and they have assort"mutts" of treats that are just tasty!

I had to flip a coin to decide which dog to take. Stella won. Next time, I'll find a way to take them both. Here's the menu from our night out.

And this is what Stella thinks when she finds out what she's gotten herself into:

We started off with a Yappatizer Basket. The guy we shared a table with thought these were for the humans, so he had a bite. He said they weren't all that tasty. You'd never have known it though, because Stella and Laila LOVED it!

After the yappatizers, the girls got some good play time in. Of course, they almost tripped Kmac several times, but they were having so much fun!

Course Number 2: Tasty! I love the parsley accent!

It's agood thing Stella has learned to sit and lay down, she was able to work for the food!

Man, did she love it!!

This is our appetizer - crab cakes. Mmm! They were falling apart, but they were pretty tasty.

While we ate, Stella just wanted some more! She was a hit though, being the only puppy among the crowd.

The main course - beef stew! mmmmm. It looks like something that just came out of my crock pot!

Holy cow, did the dogs love this! Lady couldn't get enough, she kept trying to find more and more.

And my favorite course - dessert! This labrador bar was peanut butter, banana and carob. I wanted to eat it myself.

Since BDR had already fed the dogs (oops!) I made sure to bring home leftovers so Stella didn't eat too much, and Peter was able to enjoy some of the goodness as well.

And they sent us home with a pupcake for later. Its so cute - it looks like a little red velvet cupcake, and I want to eat it myself!

I can't wait for another event like this! Peter would've just had a blast and I felt bad I couldn't take them both.

Ooh, I almost forgot! Stella is now famous! Fox 4 News did a story on the event that was on the 10:00 news. You can see the clip here....

Pimp My Ride

For the past several months, I've been fighting with my long-loved 1999 Jeep Cherokee. We've been through about 100,000 miles together. But lately, its been breaking on me regularly. I had to fix one thing after the other, after the other. Most recently replacing the radiator in December.

On Friday, I was leaving work for the weekend and the Jeep wouldn't start. We jumped the battery and nothing. We got it towed to my mechanic and found out it needed a new starter. Ugh. $450 please.

I just couldn't justify it, so on Saturday I started test driving. I was so not looking forward to car shopping, dreading it, in fact. But on Sunday, I was excited so I got ready to go out. Woops. Car dealers are closed on Sunday. Grr. Frustrating.

I dropped BDR off at work at 6:30 Monday morning and headed in to my office to get some stuff done. At about 10:30 I wrapped up and headed back out to find my new wheels.

Frank Ancona Honda - creepy sales guy. Decent car, CR-V. Moved on pretty quickly.

Olathe Ford - pretty amazing 2008 Escape Limited. White tan leather interior. But it was 2WD. I took it to the aforementioned mechanic and they said it was in great shape.

Van Chevrolet - drove a brand new 2011 Equinox. Pretty much fell in love. A guy I grew up next door to is a bigwig there, so I felt safe. Which is huge when you're investing that much money in a purchase.

I was there for dang near 6 hours and couldn't make up my mind. New, pretty, fancy, decked out ride or great deal on a good used vehicle. It was tough and I was really torn, but I finally bit the bullet.

So here it is: 2011 Chevy Equinox, all wheel drive, sun/moonroof (I still don't know the difference!), remote start, cool back up camera that pops up in the rearview mirror, audio controls on the steering wheel. Its pretty much got everything I could want, sans leather and heat seaters.

And its brand.spanking.new!!! See only 78 miles on it when I drove off the lot!

So even though I will miss the Jeep and our awesome off-road adventures (that I haven't taken in years!) and the ability to load up the dogs and not worry about things getting dirty and hairy and smelly (can't do that anymore!) ...

My ride is now officially Pimped.

I'm alive.

I know I haven't posted this week. I am alive. I'm just really busy. I bought a new car on Monday and have been crazy catching up on work - Yea! More updates to come when I have a free second to breathe!

TGIF!

Happy Friday everyone! Here's a quick recap of my week in photos.

1. This is how I woke up on Thursday morning. Totally burritoed in by my babies. We were all so warm and snuggly, it was hard to get up!

2. Luckily, we didn't need to get up because this is what was waiting for us outside.... Yep, inches upon inches of snow. And even more today!

3. Stella's new favorite place to chill out - the bottom of my coffee table. I guess its cozy and safe. Before long she won't be able to fit there anymore. She's already doubled in size since we got her about a month ago!

Trish on the Run

As many of my faithful readers now, I have a warm place in my heart for an organization called Girls on the Run. I'm on the board for our local council, and give a lot of my time to helping the movement grow in KC.

GOTR is a non-profit after school program for girls in grades 3-8. It teaches self-esteem, nutrition, how to deal with bullies, how to be a good friend.... all those intangible and invaluable lessons that young girls today really need. Here's the cool part - GOTR teaches all these things through RUNNING! Each activity involves getting active and getting out of the "girl box" - being yourself and being proud of who you are!

So, really, its pretty much the coolest program ever.

When I did Ironman Wisconsin in 2009, I was part of the Janus Charity Challenge and raised almost $10,000 for GOTR locally. Its time for me to do some more fundraising.... this time through the GOTR Solemates program while running Rock the Parkway Half Marathon on April 2. Last year at this race, it was freezing rain and just awful weather. But I'm not scared, because I'm out there running so other girls can have their opportunity to get out of the girl box themselves. Running did that for me, and I know it can help them!

Here's your opportunites to help these girls too...

1. Donate to the cause! Visit this website and make a donation to Girls on the Run. I've committed to a minimum of $500 by April 2nd, and I need all the help I can get.

2. Become a Solemate yourself! If you want to run Rock the Parkway with me, and raise money for our council -- I promise you won't regret it. Just leave a comment and I'll get you the info on how to get set up!

3. Volunteer to coach the program. The Johnson County Council has doubled in size this spring, so we are in desperate need of more coaches! Its after school two days a week for head coaches, one day a week for assistant coaches, at sites all across the county. I guarantee this will be one of the most meaningful experiences you'll ever have!

Life Update

Yesterday was a pretty exciting day to be a cop in KC. There was this huge car chase that went all over KCMO and into Leawood. It kept BDR's morning adrenaline-filled! The story: there was a carjacking, and then the guy bolted and wouldn't stop for the cops. At one point he let a lady out of the car in the middle of nowhere. The chase went on for like 30 minutes before the crazy criminal ran into McDonalds looking like he really needed to pee. Of course about 1,000 cops converged from every door and they brought him out seconds later. I'm wondering if this might be up for a dumbest criminal award?!

My day was not quite as exciting... just work after NOT getting up and heading into the gym as planned. I didn't go over lunch or after work either. And I didn't get up this morning like I wanted to. Man, I'm a slacker! But I did have a little jewelry party with a couple girlfriends, some wine and some sparkly things. It was fun to catch up with them, and learn a bit more about an organziation I'm thinking about joining.

We are now preparing for Snowpocalypse 2011, as weathermen across the networks are predicting between 6-10 inches in KC this afternoon and through the night. I'm no good at cold and snowy weather, especially when the Jeep's heater isn't working. Brrr!!!

Favorite Childhood Games

This week's 10 on Tuesday list... my favorite childhood games! Being the youngest and only girl (by 6 years), I never really had my brothers to play with, luckily there were some neighbor kids that kept me entertained!

1. Colors -- in the pool at the Reheis Country Club, aka my bff's backyard pool. Someone on the diving board is turned around eyes closed, yelling out colors. When your color is called, you have to swim to the other side of the pool as quietly as you can. If the diver hears you, she jumps in and if you get tagged, you're it!

2. Tetris and Zelda on the original NES system. Heck ya! I was never any good at any of the other games (besides Mario that is) but I was lucky if I was ever able to steal some time on the Nintendo from my brothers!

3. Barbies. I had this sweet Barbie dream house, with an elevator and an awesome Jem car that even had a radio in the trunk. It was so rad.

4. Stuck in the Mud. Like tag, but you have to freeze until someone crawls under your legs to unfreeze you!

5. Bombardament. We only played this in Mr. Fink's gym class in grade school. Its dodge ball, but with a way cooler name.

6. Uno. We played all the time around the family table. I was usually the winner. Ooh, and Speed at the Reheis Country Club on our lunch breaks!

7. Heads Up 7 Up. Best school day game when there is a subsitute ever!

8. Red Light Green Light. You have to stop at the red light and can run on the green light. First to the end wins!

9. Pogs. I wasn't very good, but it sure was fun. Gotta love those fads. I think the comparable thing right now is Silly Bandz.

10. And of course my all-time childhood favorite: Basketball! In middle school, I was so sure I was going to play in the newly formed WNBA, marry Raef LaFrentz (I even created a website in his honor in 1997. Who knew there were websites back then!?), star on my high school team as a freshman.... of course all those dreams were slowly brought back to reality by a horrific diaper wearing HS coach who highly preferred the girls that practiced in their sports bras. I played on a travelling summer team for years, the Wichita Chaos later rivaled by the Wichita Elite (sheesh, what brats!) and made some amazing friends from all over town. Ah, memories.

I almost puked this morning.

During my workout. For the first time in a long while.

It was awesome.

I got my butt out of bed and to the gym at 5:30 this morning. Good thing I packed my bag last night, or it woulda been a LOT harder to be successful this morning.

I got to the gym and busted out my iphone to use my new favorite app that you can buy here. I decided to do the "Hurricane" workout. I figured 45 minutes was a good length. Round about 25 minutes I was almost dead.

The app is awesome. You can play your iPod while the trainer talks you thru what to do, on the clock. Here's what I did.

2 min - light jog
2 min - slide and glide. I did carioka instead.
1 min - straight leg kicks
1 min - recover (I was thinking I don't need this, this workout is probably going to be too easy for me. Ha.)
30 sec - modified pushups
1 min - squats
1 min - step back lunges
2 min - single leg deadlift
2 min - cross back lunge
1 min - plank row
1 min - russian twists
2 min - opposite leg/arm extension
2 min - side lunge
1 min - jump rope (Ok I was way wrong. This is really kicking my butt.)
1 min - toe touch crunches
30 sec - modified pushups
1 min - squats
2 min - step back lunges
2 min - single leg deadlift
2 min - cross back lunge
1 min - plank row
1 min - russian twist
2 min - opp arm/leg extension
1 min - side lunge
1 min - jump rope
2 min - side lunge
1 min - plank row
2 min - cross back lunge
2 min - single leg deadlift
4 min - stretching

It was the last cross back lunges where I thought I might puke. Ugh. It was hard, I was sweaty, and I know I'm going to feel it for a couple days. It was great!

Of course, as I type up this recap, I realize I did a lot of the workout wrong... All the lunges (side and step back) I did as cross back -- I thought I was doing an awful lot of those! Woops. Good thing I've got massive thighs that can handle it.

(Did I ever mention the story of how BDR told me I had 'Massive Thighs' ... he says he meant it as a compliment, like they are really strong... It definitely didn't come across that way. And I don't let him forget it!)

Hopefully I can get myself out of bed in the morning to give it another go! Maybe I'll try to swim more than 100m ....

On a completely unrelated note - We start puppy class with Stelly Belly tonight! Considering she's already mastered "sit" I think she's going to do really well. Our biggest problem with her right now: deciding if her name really fits her. We're not sure that it does, but we haven't come up with anything better yet....

Happy Monday to everyone. I hope your week has started off as great as mine!! (Its a good hair day to boot!!!!)

Pete's Birthday Party!

My little guy is now 6! I can't believe he's been family for that long!

We had a great birthday party to celebrate. A lot of his furry four-legged friends came over to play and eat cake. Luckily the snow kept the mud off all paws, even if my floors did get a little messy! :-)

We started out playing out back...

Pete says, "C'Mon guys the snow is calling! Let's go wrestle!"

"Or we could play chase!"

"Or we could play follow the leader!"

"Or we could play chicken off the big step on the deck!"

 "But really, we can play whatever you guys want. I'm just happy to have you all here with me and my family!"

We had a pretty good turnout, including the boys in blue from the Leawood PD. (Oh, and Brome from the KCMG office!)

Pete's cousin Dixie (the chocolate lab) even brought her brothers over to play, including 4 year old Jacob who is just getting used to my "new dog" and he says he likes Pete a lot better. I think its because Stella tries to play with him in her puppy way, aka biting at him!

BDR and I had some fun with all our friends and their doggie best friends.

Now the story of the cake. I baked a chocolate on chocolate people cake and then picked up a doggie cake at Land of Paws for Peter and some cookies for his friends.

 It was a really stinkin' cute cake that fit perfectly on a little plate for Peter. It was a little harder icing than Pete is used to so it took him some time to make a dent in it.

 

While Pete was trying his cake, Ryno thought he should taste test the cookies for the other dogs. Hey if Poppy tried it over Christmas its only fair right?! He said it tasted like a stale oreo.

 This close up just might be my favorite shot of the day.

Hey, I told you it took him a while to get any of the cake. At least he got to enjoy it some!

He was licking his chops when I took the plate away, begging for more. 

So were all his buddies!

Here's a few of Pete's friends... Zephyr (with Losee) and Sarge (with Coby). Sarge lives next door and I think will become good friends with Pete and Stella - at least through the pee on the fence wars to see who is really top dog!

Here's me with my babies. You can tell Stella is a typicall toddler - too busy to stay still for even a minute!

BDR and Baby Stella!

Here's the post-party shots.... exhausted!