So now we aren't sure we will be putting Sydney in the "new" school. Jason started to have a few thoughts against it, as did I. One of the concerns he had, was...how important is consistency at this stage in Sydney's life? Which is also a concern of mine. I've been worried about all the changes we were throwing at her all at once, new school, loss of friends, new baby, etc. We also were concerned about her time with the new baby. If she moved to the new school, she wouldn't be home with me during "maternity leave" so interaction time would be very little. Going to the new school and when I go back to work, the kids would see each other about an hour a day! That just doesn't seem right. So, the new thought is this...keep Sydney in her current daycare at least until the baby is born, they she and I would stay home with the baby for as long as I decide I'm taking off. A plus to this also is that she could see gramma and papa still on Thursdays or whenever we want a free dinner *wink wink*. And then we'll decide if we can find a center where the two of them can attend together or where we'll go from there. We are also looking at putting them into a daycare/school that is close to the house so that either one of us could drop them off or pick them up after work, especially during those times when Jason or I happen to be out of town or at conferences, etc. Anyway, it's just weired when you think a decision has been made and then in about 24 hours thoughts and feelings have changed on the subject. It's amazingly hard choosing what you think is best for your child/children and still weighing in what you can physically do and afford. Yikes!
Okay, so whilst cleaning up my computer and going through some old files, I found this:
I bet you're thinking, "Huh? What?" (Huh what.)
It's BENNY! I have no idea why he has a cast on his leg, and I actually don't remember creating this animation at all. But this basic structure was to be turned into an animated cartoon of his strange-voiced misadventures.
I am so completely and utterly stressed! I realize that this is my "usual" stressful time at work, but it seems like I've had a few more bumps and wrenches than usual along the way. My deadline is quickly approaching, the one I set for myself so that I knew I wouldn't miss the real one has come and gone due to circumstances beyond my control, yet somehow "must" be my fault. I feel that one way to vent this "frustration" and "utter hopelessness" feeling is to use as many words in quotes as possible. I could go on and on about all that I have to do and all that is going wrong, in fact, while in the shower this evening I had even planned out what I was going to say....but, I've decided to focus on the positives going on right now to try to "over-power" those horendous things I have to face. So, here are a few things that are happy for me right now. 1) I love my new hair cut! I thought, what better time to get it done than now, I'm not biking, so I don't need my signature ponies/braids hanging out of my helmet; I'm hiring a new person at work so it's fun to make a first impression with a funky new hairstyle! It would look SO AWSOME with the purple streaks that I've always wanted, but I haven't yet done that, don't know if I will yet. 2) My back acne from being pregnant is all but cleared up! You really don't know how happy this makes me! 3) Sydney is all signed up to start her new school the end of August. This is also a negative for me (she won't be commuting with me like she has been for the past 3 years and won't be close to me during the day :( )so I won't expand much on this or I'll start crying again (I'm really weepy now-a-days...pregnancy...okay okay, it's just enhanced due to pregnancy, I know I'm weepy anyway), but let me just say that it's going to be really great for her. 4) Single digits in the count-down to Trogor's debut. 9 more weeks to go. I'm getting excited to meet this little munchkin! I'm scared to death about having a boy, though, I know absoluting nothing about them. Yes, even having a brother, father, married to a boy, I still know nothing! But I'm sure that I will learn along the way, as I have and continue to do with my girl! Well, I guess I'll go to bed now. I'm going to get up early again to go into work early. Steph, after reading your last post and watching the video, I'm so totally pumped for the Sea Otter Classic! See you in April! --shari--the stressed and waddling p.s. wish I had a picture to post with this!
A mtn biker from Singapore once wrote that he loves mountain biking because it improves fitness at the same time it builds self-confidence, and I would have to agree. It builds confidence not by a perpetual quest for PR times, or miles logged, heart rate, or VO2 max, or anything else that's measurable in numbers. The kind of self-confidence you get from mountain biking is the same kind you get from play. It's the kind that comes from doing what you love.
Mountain biking isn't micro-goal-oriented in the same way that running is. When I go mountain biking, I don't time myself. I don't even wear a watch. Most of the time, when I meet my friends in the parking lot to start a ride, we only have a vague idea of where we'll go -- we make up the bulk of it on the fly. I don't know how long the routes are, and since trail conditions can vary greatly from week to week, completing the route faster than last week may or may not even be possible. The goal isn't about turning in a certain time. The goal is to have fun.
That's not to say that when I ride, I don't go really fast, or race my friends. But in mountain biking, "going as fast as you can" can also include waiting for friends at the top of a lung-burning climb, or having them wait for me at the bottom of a technical downhill, or sessioning the same log bridge again and again.
Yes, riding is a different animal. It doesn't allow me to "zone out." When I ride, I'm always mentally engaged with the trail and my surroundings. I'm reading the terrain, processing the information, and making conscious weight-shifts and maneuvers with my body. I don't think about the world's problems; I don't think about my workday; I think about the trail, my body, and my bike, because on a ride, these three things act as one. I'm mentally engaged to keep them in symmetry, because when they're not, crashes ensue.
And speaking of crashes, they are yet another thing that makes mountain biking a great confidence-builder. In mountain biking, *everyone* falls. Everyone. From pros to beginners, everyone takes a tumble. And instead of being seen as a failure, it's seen with a grin as a heroic indication of giving something difficult your best try. You dust yourself off, and get right back on your bike.
I'm a much better runner than I am a mountain biker. I've won a lot of medals, garnered first seeds, and earned All-Conference honors. But I'm a much happier, much more satisfied mountain biker. It could be because mountain biking is an all-around better sport. But maybe the happiness comes from doing what I love.
It's better than Christmas. It's better than the Fourth of July. And I know it's not technically a "real" holiday, but it feels like one. ;)
I had SO MUCH FUN as a volunteer at this year's race weekend. I got free food, free beer, free camping, a bear came right up to my tent and sniffed it -- while I was in it! -- in the middle of the night, I got to see all my friends cross the finish line (as I was tearing finish tags), I met so many nice people, saw The Saddle Tramps (since I didn't have to go to bed early cuz I wasn't racing), watched the River Jump competition (judged by celebrity bike people like Wade Simmons)...
AND... I won this in a raffle:
a $450 RockShox RVLATN -- a sweet fork that has over an inch more travel than my current Fox Float 100.
Downieville rocks! If I don't race it next year, I'm definitely going to volunteer again. Either way, I'm hooked on this race for life.
My company got a call from Journey (yes, the band) last week re: something something, web site, something something, creative project, something something.
WebSight Design: saving the world of rock from crappy web sites since 1995.
Okay! The moment you've all been waiting for....pictures! Now, let's see if I can get them on here. I'm only posting a few, so for the full plethera of pictures, please visit the gillmanjs.shutterfly.com site (will download them on monday at work, so if you are reading this prior to monday at 3:00pm, they probably won't be there).
The 4th of July was pretty fun. Sydney woke up and immediately started begging to go to gramma and papa's house. Mostly because we told her we'd bring her swimming pool down there with us. We went to Provo to view the crafts etc, but it was soooo packed full of people we didn't get to see much. Came back and had hot dogs and hamburgers, potato salad, watermelon, grapes, brownies...it was yummy! Sydney went down for a nap and we played MarioKart and MarioParty on the Wii and had lots of fun. After that, TANK WARS!! Shari destroyed BOTH temples this year....which never happens so I was very excited. Sydney hates fireworks, she didn't want to watche them, or hear them and wanted to be done before we even started. We did get her to get excited about the parachuters even if she had her ears covered the entire time.
Jason has been working exceptionally hard on putting together a cute little world for Sydney's playhouse. A lot of trees were removed, a fence built, gound brought in and leveled, a floor built, sod put in...it was a hot job that she probably won't really appreciate to the full effect until she's 30 and doing it for her daughter hahaha! But she loves it now and has had a fun time watering her plants and helping put everything together.
The baby's room was kind of my project, as with the playhouse area, there are a few details that remain to be finished, but for the most part, the room and furniture are ready for his arrival in about 11 weeks! So, without further ado, view the pictures!
Okay, so I can't get the pictures to post from this stupid computer. If anyone feels like giving me an awsome computer, I wouldn't turn it down. I will try later. Again, you can always visit the shutterfly account tomorrow. I need to lay down!
Okay, the official story is that I was ripping down B-17, going *at least* 45 mph, and right after I passed Mark Weir, this huge mountain lion jumped across the trail and startled me. If anyone asks. That's really what happened. Honest.
Hello all! I've finally got logged into my computer at home. We are having some big problems with it and need to buy a new one. We are currently involved in many projects around the house, the two biggest ones being Sydney's playhouse are and the baby's room. We also had a fun 4th. That being said, I wanted to make sure I could post so that I could post the pictures from everything above. So stay tuned and I will have them on this weekend.....if my computer holds up!
Now, a word from Sydney who is begging me to let her type:
I shot par at Wasatch again. So there's another year I shot par or better. When I can't shoot par or better, then I know I'm REALLY going down hill.
Independence Day this Friday. Need tanks and parachutes for tank wars. And it's going to be hot. Now that's a 4th of July (gopher) we can all sink our teeth into.
For the past year, my office of 5 people have been racing against the clock to implement a new software for the 550 employees in Plant Operations. To give you an idea of the monumental work this was, another department in my building, with less people, has been taking 2 years to implement their software. We were not given that option by the new vice president. He wanted us to not only go through the bid process, but also get it all ready and implemented by the end of June in what really amounted to less than a year. What that did to my boss and my office was a hell I would not want anyone to share. I can say without question that the month of June was the busiest I have EVER been in my entire life. Ever. Today was the culmination of that process for me--my job is to pay people, and previously, it was up to me and a guy in HR to make sure 550 people got paid. To use the analogy of being killed in a plane crash: if that had happened to both me and Matt, the University of Utah would not have been able to pay these employees, and that is not an exaggeration. So today, I had to process the pay period that included the old system up to the 27th of June, and the new system for the last three days of June. It had to work, or more hell was yet to come. All of the overtime we worked, all of the tests we did paid off: the time went through, the programs worked, people will get paid!!!
On Friday the 27th, we had to basically put aside our new system implementation and process University Year End for our department. It requires working a double shift. I didn't get home until 1:00 AM, and basically only got 4 hours of sleep, because I had to go back into work the next morning. Then, that evening, I had a belly dance performance at the Arts Fest! It seems like a dream.... I was running on adrenaline. I wish I could have enjoyed it more!
But the really cool thing is, now that the new system is in place and working, that means I can take days off! I had to make sure I was here every single Monday, Friday, 15, 16, 31, and 1st of every month. Now it's not my responsibility, it's EVERYBODY'S since each employee enters their own time. Another cool thing is, my job is completely different--it's like I started a new job on Monday. And I like this new job! I loved my job before, and I was worried what would happen now. Extra plus: my boss is getting ready to put me and my coworkers through a job reclassification that will end up in another raise for me in a matter of months. I am just really excited that I don't have to shoulder the stress of making sure that 550 people get paid. I am still involved in the process, but it's not ALL ON ME.
Happy Canada Day everybody. I just placed fourth in the Ottawa Canada Day 10K with a time of 33:52. Not bad for my first 10K in approximately eight years. Top three athletes won prize money, though. :( I blame Dad for the fact that I wasn't in the top three, actually. He always tells me, "Take it easy during the first half of the race and then speed up toward [ew, twordz!] the end." So I did that this time - I let the frontrunners take off and I layed back a little. I should have gone with them.
Oh well. I'll know for next time.
Today Canada goes absolutely insane, especially in Ottawa. There is standing room only in the streets. There are major music artists playing free concerts. To eat, you have your choice of burgers and um... burgers. To drink, you have your choice of booze, hooch, or liquid courage. One day a year, everyone in the entire country turns bright red and smiles and says, "I love you, man". A lot. A LOT.
Wish you were here. Marian also wishes you were here. Come up for a visit soon.
