101 Things to do before I die...

I've been thinking about this list of mine lately (probably because it's the new year and I'm thinking of goals and "newness" and change). I just got finished watching the Ironman Triathlon from Kona, Hawaii. I think i've been watching this event, off and on, since I was pretty young. I'd flip the channels on a random saturday during the fall and catch the condensed coverage of the event. I remember always feeling touched by the awesome narration of the event and the heroic accomplishment of the athletes that cross the finish line. And yes...I did get teary eyed then and I full on cry now. I just shake my head and smile and kind of weap as I see these people finish what they sacrificed so much to compete in. The elite athletes finish the 2 mile swim in around 55 minutes, the 150 mile bike ride in under 5 hours and the 26 mile run around 2:45. The "age-grouppers" (people like you and me, but probably a little more commited and motivated) finish in about 12-15 hours. Some finish just before midnight which is the cutoff. There were people who had aritificial limbs, in wheelchairs, short, heavyset, tall, young and old. One of the last people to finish was a woman who had competed in her 17th Ironman. She was 72 years old. The narrator said, "she's 72, how old are you??" He also added, "what did she sacrifice to finish this race? What did that man sacrifice to finish? What did their families sacrifice to help them finish?"
I've always been really impressed with individual events. I'm not so into the traditional team sports that generate millions of dollars to fill their stadiums so people can watch people who get paid gazillions. The endurance athletes are the one's who impress me the most. I love seeing and knowing that they are out there alone with their thoughts and their will to finish and not give up. I grew up standing at the end of many marathons and watching my dad finish, among the elites, and I'd get teary eyed, because I knew how much he had sacrificed to be there. I ran a marathon,and yes, i had water in my eyes because I knew how much I had sacrificed to get to experience that. I've done a few mini triathlons and I have to say that it was a major accomplishment and success for me because everytime I get out of the water I know I didn't drown and I can get on with the run and the bike where I feel more comfortable. Try something hard, accomplish it, and then try something else that is hard. Will I do a full ironman someday? Probably not, but Brad says he wants to do one someday and I will be the one at the finish line...with tears in her eyes.
And this probably should be on my life list, but it isn't. In highschool, I was a closet Neil Diamond fan. Now I am open about my love for his catchy lyrics (seriously, Sweet Caroline, Coming to America, Forever in Blue Jeans, etc.), snazzy diamond studded clothes, (guess you can do that with a gem of a last name), and deep voice. My cute Brad surprised me with a ticket to see him live at the Delta Center (he out did himself with a fun scavenger hunt to lead me to the tickets)Unfortunatly, he will still be in Missouri, but I get to go with my sister. Other members of our family will be there, also, but we're not sitting with them. I can't wait.

Creating.

I've really been trying to get ready for christmas since we've been back from Thanksgiving. This year I wanted to get all my present bought and wrapped (which I did, yeah!) so that I could truly enjoy the spirit of Christmas and family when we go visit in Utah. This year I decided to make several Christmas gifts as well. Luckily I got the last thing finished on Monday because that night Chloe became really sick. Because she has had 2 seizures that have accompanied her 2 major illnesses we are extra cautious when she gets ill. So, long night into a short story. We went to the doc she couldn't find anything, so we went to the hospital and had her blood drawn and she had to have her urine collected via a catheter and then they found some bacteria so she had to have a shot of antibiotic then back today for another dose of antibiotic. It is pretty taumatic to have to hold your child down to have a catheter put in. Yikes! B-rad was able to come with us and help out and that made me so grateful. He's only a second year med student but I find myself asking him 21 questions about everything the doc has said. It helps reassure me. Anyway, here are some pics of what we've been up to.
This is a picture of my dulce de leche plate. If you want to impress your friends take a can on sweetened and condensed milk and put the whole thing (unopened) in a boiling stockpot of water and just let it dance for about 2 hours. Make sure the water never goes under the top of the can. When you remove the cooled can lid you have this rich carmel dip. Amazing, I know! I couldn't believe my eyes.

Me and the Chloe Blue. She has been extra cuddly. Brad got the boot last night and she and I shared the bed. She even took Brads pillow. He loves his down pillow so that was a major sacrifice for him.

My purse. My cute friends were going to help me make this but we never connected so I was kind of forced to just pick through the pattern on my own. Although, i did ask them tons of questions. There was something SO satisfying about finishing this project. I really admire people that can sew. I don't think I can say "i can't sew" anymore because i've really made quite a few things. I've learned quite a lot from my little projects. Namely, it's really important to measure correctly or your pieces don't match up, needle break!, there will be lots of unpicking, and relax your shoulder muscles!!

This was a project my friend showed to us group of med school wives. I made a couple of these. This is the one for Chloe's room. The little red circle is a magnet. I love to jazz things up with sequins.

I really like the show design on a dime. I watch that show and think of all the stuff I could make. If only I had a staple gun, a nail gun, and 1000 dollars. I do have some projects on the new year horizon, though.
And, I decided to opt out of the Christmas card creation this year. I came to this decision after I had already bought the stamps though!! So, know that you are all loved and we will post our Christmas fun later.