Bryant's Birthday

Monday was Bryant's 34th Birthday. The kids had picked out the gifts from Bryant with a theme in mind. He has started to work the 3rd shift due to a promotion at work (hurray!!) Maya gave Bryant a neck pillow to use if he got tired driving home from work (she wanted him to be comfortable - never mind that he might fall asleep while driving). Madison chose a steering wheel cover. On his old car he had a Simpson one - no luck in finding one for his new car. Max got him a heated massager that gets plugged into the lighter. He wanted to make that Bryant's back was nice and relaxed as he drove. Pepper (the dog) got him a baseball mitt so he can play with the kids in the backyard and Kari got him a new Dewalt Router Combo Kit.

That night for dinner, Bryant chose to go to McGrath's Fish House. He got fish and the rest of us did not! The kids loved eating out because they got as much soda as they wanted. To end the party, Madi and Max had their Spring Sing concert which we all enjoyed!

Happy Birthday Bryant!! WE LOVE YOU!

Typical Max - loves prizes

I just had to post this so that I will remember.

On Thursday Morning, the kids had left for school and Bryant was eating some Captain Crunch Berries before he went to bed (new shift - more on that in another post). He was eating it without a problem when all of the sudden he spit it back into the bowl. I asked him what was wrong and then he showed me an eraser that goes on the end of a pencil (the kind that goes on top of the one that comes with the pencil). Some how it had gotten into the cereal. Bryant was done eating and gave the rest to our dog.

Fast forward to 3 pm when the kids got home from school. I asked them if they had spilled some Captain Crunch Berries on the table and picked it up. They said no but Max had a look on his face that said he knew something. I asked him what - he told me that he had put the eraser in the cereal as a prize for whoever found it.

Bryant and I had a hard time not laughing and we told Max that we appreciated the prize but next time stick it in a baggie so that it won't be eaten!

Thanks Max for making us laugh and that is typical Max - always wanting a prize in his cereal!

Pat's Run - I finished!!

Masses run by Bryant and the Kids

Waiitng patiently for me to run by!

Here I am - what a lovely face I am making!

Me and Elizabeth after we had finished! WE DID IT!!!

Yesterday was Pat's Run - the race that I had been training for. It had been a while since I had done anything like that. It was me, my friend Elizabeth and 17000 of our closest friends. It went great. I even had extra energy at the end to pass people as we ran up the ramp into Sun Devil Stadium with tons of people cheering us on and ended at the 42 yard line. Bryant brought the kids so that they could cheer me on. I was very happy to see them as I turned the corner and kept on running. Madison wants to do it with me next year and wants to start traning tomorrow. We might wait a few months for her training! It felt great to set a goal and complete it faster than I thought I would. Can't wait for next year to do it faster!

Easter Egg Hunt

Saturday April 11th at the Rapiers - Annual Easter Egg Hunt for the Sherwood Cousins who are in AZ. Each one got to find 12 eggs which means lots of treats!

Litte Vern enjoying the fruits of his hunting - yummy chocolate!!

Madison and Tara off to find other eggs while Maya and Taci check out the gardens

On your mark, get set, GO!! As the youngest - Little Vern got to be the first one out and he was not so sure what to do. That is a mistake that he will not repeat next year!

Listening to Kim give instructions. Look how intently they are looking - I think that they can smell the chocolate.

It was lots of fun and it is something that the cousins look forward to each year!

Pat's Run

Well, I have been training since the beginning of March for my race and it is this Saturday. Thanks to my trainer and running coach Kris, I think that I am ready to run it. Hopefully I won't die but at least I will have completed a goal that I set out for myself and I have come to realize that I actually enjoy running. If you would have asked me that a month ago - I would have told you never, but now I actually do and best thing about running is that my clothes are fitting a lot looser and I have lost some weight.

For those of you who don't know who Pat is - it's Pat Tillman - he played as ASU and the Cardinals before 9/11 and then he joined the Army Rangers and was killed in Afghanistan.

Thanks again to Kris for all of her motivation and encouragement!

Anniversary Gift - Better late than never - Part 1 the Shed

For our Anniversary last year - we talked about getting a shed so we could empty out part of the garage and the rest of the "stuff" in the back yard. Well, Bryant started the shed middle of March and has done a great job. It started with them clearing off the area, bringing in rocks, and pouring cement.

Bryant working the cement mixer. He did a great job laying the cement and the kids loved watching him.

Max and Bryant cleaning the mixer. Max loved using the sprayer to clean it out and to get Bryant wet.

Smoothing out the second part of the pad for the shed! His knee's were a little sore.

Kids hand prints along with Pepper (our dog) It reminded me of the handprints that were done back in NY when we got the pool!

Now that the cement is done, the framing has begun. Until the next time I blog - I am sure the suspense will not kill anyone!