05.29.2015: Biking for Brews

I've been struggling to get motivated to work out again after our Tinkerbell run...and by struggling, I mean like not at all.  So, this week, I slowly started to get back into it.  Haven't felt like running much, and still getting a pain in my foot, so decided biking was a good alternative.  Also, want to take advantage of this amazing weather before it is gone!!

 

Today, I forced Vince to come with me since he hadn't been out doing anything either.  I normally do about an 8 mile roundtrip ride that goes out to the lake, halfway around, and back.  There are some cool houses on the other side of the lake that I like to go check out...very CA looking!  Vince had never been on this route this far before, and was surprised to see the area we ended up in...and how close it is to bike to.  It is actually faster to ride here than drive here since you are on the bike trail through the greenbelt & avoid all the roads, cars & lights.  He suggested we stop at Zipps and have a beer before heading back, so, since I basically dragged him out, I agreed.  It made the uphill trip home a bit harder than usual, but a good beer is always well worth it!

 

My favorite spot to bike/run to...so beautiful and peaceful. Could stay here for hours (if I didn't have to actually have the energy go home at some point!!)

05.23.2015: Lennox-Lextina Baby Shower

While the guys were out shooting, I was finishing up getting ready for the baby shower.  We decorated most of the room yesterday, and today was just the touchups and last minute things....and all the food!  Vince changed up my original menu and wanted to do his fried chicken.  So, we went with some fried chicken, mac & cheese, fruit salad, olive garden salad, greens, and baked beans.  Surprisingly, we did not have a ton of leftovers!  Menu was a hit!

 

We played a few obligatory games....the baby food tasting game for both the adults and the kids.  I like having the kids do the "drink out of the bottle" game instead of the guys doing the beer thing.  Kids seem to enjoy it much better, and it is actually pretty funny!  They are more embarrassed to drink out of the bottles than the guys are!

 

A new game I thought of was to give Lex some "dad advice"...sort of a new take on the standard Advice for Mom thing.  All the entries were anonymous, and Christina was supposed to read them all out loud then pick her favorite - most important advice that Lex needed to know.  Since Christina has been through this before, I figured it would be cute to have one focused around Lex's newbie status.  It was really cute what some of the advice was.  I had the kids do them too, and theirs were priceless!  Avery's advice was "Give him milk".  Another kiddo said "Give Lennox what he wants".  Some of the others:  "Always tell mom she looks great, even when she does not";  "Get yourself some breasts, if you can arrange that"; "Don't use a switch to spank your child - apparently that is considered child abuse in 2015, although Grandma Hearn says its ok"; "Change ALL the diapers"; "If you can still hear the baby crying, turn the music up louder".  It was really cute, and the most practical advice won...basically pamper Mom everyday!

 

We had a great time, as always.  The kiddos played outside (and in the fountain).  We opened a few special bottles of wine...a magnum of Darioush, and a magnum of Qupe.  Both were favorites!!  And of course all the other regular wines, and drinks as well.  Kids overdosed on candy and cupcakes...which was fine because we sent ALL of them to their respective homes at the end of the night! 

 

 

Guys baby food tasting

Testing the palate

Kiddo baby food tasting

Not liking the baby food!

#4 was "Super Gross"

05.23.2015: Go Shoot Something

Brent took the guys out to the desert this morning to do some shooting.  Lex and Vince hadn't had a chance to shoot their AR's that Brent built for them yet...and Brent wanted to take Andrew & his friend Aidan to shoot as well.  Brent can basically run classes out there & charge people for this experience.  He has the full setup, a multitude of fire arms & ammo, and a breakdown of safety classes for the kiddos.  It is a great outing to get to do here in AZ.  There aren't many places left in the US that are just free & open land where you can drive out and shoot some guns.  It is a great perk of living here in Phx!  Everyone had a blast!!

 

 

One of the things I was thinking about as they all headed out was the last time we had a baby shower here this time of year (Avery's) and the guys went shooting in the morning, Dad & Brent were in a car accident on the way home.  I didn't want to jinx it so didn't say anything that morning.  Later that night, Brent and I were talking and he was thinking the same thing!  Luckily there was no repeat performance this year and there were no car accidents!!  

05.22.2015: Happy Birthday Brent

This guy is getting old!!! Good thing I'm not!