From One Mom to Another: Tips on Disney, Races and Kids

Off to Kindergarten and High School It is that time again for school to start and routine to take over.  Our summer was fun.  We took our annual adventures to Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks and took some extra trips to Colorado and Idaho.  Today, was the first day of school for Sydnee (K) and Hunter (11).  That means this weekend I had to make sure we had school supplies and food to make it through the week.  My hubby and I work full-time so we are trying to balance school, work, extracurricular activities and our health.  I have found a couple great ways to make sure we all get a little me time and don't have to live off drive-thru.  10 crockpot meals ready to go! First thing I did was buy school supplies in June/July before the rush.  I purchased them as they went on sale and spread them out over several shopping trips.  I bought some commonly used items (paper, notebooks, pencils, etc.) and put them in the sch...

Me, my sister, my mom, grandma Last weekend I drove to Colorado with Jacob, my mother, and the two girls to attend my grandmother's 100th birthday party.  It was a wonderful trip where we enjoyed each other's company and celebrated the life of one of the happiest people I know.   Sydnee and I enter Wyoming DAY 1: We drove from our house in Montana to Pueblo, Colorado.  We took Jacob's car which seats 7 because Sydnee is still in a car seat and Skylar sleeps anytime a car is moving and she's not behind the wheel.  Here's a couple of other hints to making a road trip with a 4 year old and 18 year old more fun (or at least tolerable). Tip 1 : Do not wake the 18 year and make sure she has a plug for her phone to charge.  Tip 2: Pack tons of snacks even though you can buy them at the gas station, this will reduce stops.  I also packed Sydnee some workbooks, plenty of toys and her iPad.  This kept her busy and comfy the whole trip. I am ...

(The 2017 race was held July 9)   The Missoula 1/2 Marathon is my big race for this year and most years.  This year marked my 7th half marathon.  I love running in my home town, course is flat and beautiful and Run Wild Missoula does a great job with the entire weekend.    Race prep starts early, like October when I sign up for the race because it is only $75 if you sign up early.  The website is easy to find and use: http://www.missoulamarathon.org/   Then I am locked in and it forces me to start training and increasing mileage, even in the winter when running on the treadmill or in cleats is a must.    Fast forward to July.  Marathon weekend starts on Friday with activities, speakers and the beer run.  I skipped these because I had to work.  Saturday is the 5k, the kids' marathon and the race expo.  I normally volunteer at the expo but this year was unable to because of personal commitments so my weekend...

So, normally I write about racing or some outdoor activity and I did run a huge race over the weekend but my pictures aren't in so I'll save that for later.  This week is a helpful hint blog:  "What do I do with all these pictures my kids make at school?"   I hear that a lot from other moms.  There is only so much fridge space and you feel bad throwing them away.... So here is what a mother of three talented kiddos does.  Step 1.   I differentiate between a coloring page and an art project.  This is more important in the 0-6 crowd.  Color pages get recycled or a short life on the fridge.  Art projects move to step 2 . Step 2.   Does it have an imprint of a foot or hand?                      Yes? Label with the artist's name, age and year. Move to step 4.              ...

Adapt and Overcome This is a slogan the US Marine Corps likes to use, I heard it A LOT when I attended air refueling school in my early years in the Navy.  Back then it meant things like, deal with the fact you are the only girl in this school and the closest women's bathroom is 3 buildings away.  Yes, I will walk in when you are at the urinal and no, I don't care.   But that is a different story for a different time. This week's story is about our Father's Day trip to Glacier National Park.  This is a view from Rocky Point a quick .25 mile hike from our camp spot.     Every picture in today's blog is going to look beautiful and like we are having a great time.  Well, the park is beautiful and we did have a great time, but I also don't take pictures of the issues that happen along the way (usually).  We almost always go camping Father's Day weekend, it is either right after or before my husband's birthday and it is usu...

Last weekend I went to Colorado with Skylar.  She was officially a high school graduate, although she has been out of school since November, and we wanted a girls trip.  I decided to pair it with my Skirt Sports Ambassador retreat so off to Boulder we went.  Colorado is beautiful this time of year as you can see from this first photo.   This is the view from my Saturday morning hike that was part of the retreat.  The retreat was a blast!  As a sorority girl and HR professional you would think I would be over my fear of meeting new people, but nope.  I parked the car Saturday morning about three blocks from the park where we were meeting for the hike and it took a good 5 minutes for me to get out.  By the time I had walked the three blocks to the circle of women dressed like me my heart rate was over 120 bpm.  I had read these women's social media post and had tons in common with them but they were all the cool girls and here I was ...

11 Miles to Paradise: http://www.runnersedgemt.com/events/eleven-miles-to-paradise-trail-race/ The second/third weekend in May brings my favorite trail race of the year, 11 Miles to Paradise.  This race is hosted by Runner's Edge Missoula and fills up fast.  In fact, this year it filled up in less than 15 minutes and I was so glad I got in.  Jacob and I ran this year which means we had to leave the small one with nana.  The race kicks off outside of St Regis but you get bussed there from Quinn Hot Springs.  Quinn is a little over an hour drive from Missoula so we leave the house pretty early on Sunday morning.  This year the weather was beautiful and we were excited.  You can tell by the photos below that the weather can go either way.  The best part is that after running a wonderful trail with tons of hills for 10.6 miles you board a bus for a quick ride back to Quinn's and jump into the pools.  There are several pools that are f...