OH MY GOSH SO SO SO SO SO SO FREAKIN' PROUD!!! Justinbustin and his robotics team took first place in core values (essentially teamwork and sportsmanship) today at their robotics tournament and got invited to go to regionals in January!!! I am SO SO SO SO excited!!!

Truthfully, I was looking forward to a HUGE break from robotics after going, going, going the last few months and especially the last few weeks - on top of normal volunteering, work, and life. BUT I am thinking I could run on pure adrenaline from today's tournament until then. I am SO SO proud of them!!

In addition, today's actual tournament wasn't HALF as stressful as last week's practice scrimmage. The scrimmage had fifty people shoving around the tables while the team sent their robots out to do their missions. Today, the tournament was MUCH more organized and only the teams were allowed on the floor with their robots and coaches, and the parents in the bleachers. SO much less stressful without fifty kids shoving around the table.

I did wake up with a stress headache this morning from having nightmares since 3am about forgetting things we needed. Turns out, I did forget two things - the core value (!!) posters we had made, and a kid on the team (!!). But, one of a team member's parents who came called the school vice principal who called a custodian at the school to open the school for them to get the posters, and while they were doing that, I went and picked up the kid who I had forgotten I was supposed to pick up after he texted me, thank goodness. All was well. There was SO MANY other things I did well and DID remember that I couldn't possibly beat myself up for that, as KT and Brando so often reminded me through out the day.

First person I called when we got out was KT. I thanked her for her support these past few weeks when I've sent her texts saying I'm stressed or feeling defeated or worn out. She would text me back how amazing I am for even doing this, how inspiring I am, and what a wonderful thing I am doing. I wish my phone was a smart phone and not a dumb phone so I didn't have to delete everybody's texts and could look back at hers to smile. I still smile when I think about them, though. Everybody needs a best friend like KT. I also told her, shhhhhh, a secret that the core values was my baby, the one I took on because it was a new judging realm this year and nobody seemed to know what to do with it. So I took it on, realizing if it was new and nobody knew what to do with it, I couldn't fail any way. So when the kids won first place in it today I secretly gave myself a pat on the back. I felt that maybe I CAN contribute and maybe I DO have something to offer, as I have been backing off in every other realm except to completely support the coach, send out all emails, do all research, provide all materials, and make suggestions that the coach made the final decision on. Core values is the only one I ran with. Of course, it still wouldn't have happened without the kids and the coach. The kids ARE awesome together and we've been talking the last few days how we haven't had any problems with them, and the coach made several home run suggestions today to do with teamwork. Yet the leading thing was spurred by the thing I came up with and implemented each week. As KT says, I am just "enjoy[ing] the way it makes [me] feel". She's so awesome.


As is my stellar hubby who reminded me this morning as the tournament got rolling and I headed to pick up the other team member, by calling me by name to tell me it's not about what I SHOULD'VE done it's about what I CAN do. I texted him back, "I like when you say my name." and smiled because of his support.

What an amazing, amazing day. Now, I have warned the boys and myself of the down slope after such an amazing adrenaline rush. I am constantly reminding myself so it doesn't hit me too hard!! It already hit Shawners HARD this evening. He is now in bed missing Captain America because of it. He's probably already passed out asleep. If not, I'll go get him in a bit for having a good attitude about going to bed and let him watch a bit.

Justinbustin had a TINY bit of a meltdown. Tiny, big bit, but more Shawners induced, which Brando was put on comedy listening order for the same thing, which I understand. I barely held it together myself while dealing with Shawners on the way home. He finally realized it though and was in sincere tears rather than attitude shouts this evening, so if he's still awake he will see that reward.

And I'm off to finish my port and enjoy the "way it makes me feel" the rest of this evening *smile*.

I Love the Mornings I Wake Up In Love with My Husband All Over Again

I'm loving about my husband...

*Going to a meeting with the principal of the middle school, irritated that I'm a little late, and being totally taken off-guard and breaking into a huge smile when I walk in and see my husband already sitting there, saving a spot for me in the front. Made me feel so special to be one of the only moms with a dad there, too, and one of the few dads there period, and to slide right in next to him and not feel like "the late person" cause I already had my man there.

*Having him say to me I look adorable as we walk out. I told him I was hoping he had noticed when I walked in.

*Having him Brando realize exactly the question I was asking the principal who didn't understand it, and then having Brando explain it to me, and hearing the other parents hear him as well and go "Ooooh, we were totally confused, too" only they were too afraid to speak up and say so like I did

*Walking out and talking to the middle school counselor and telling her that her site is awesome because almost all of the information I got this morning I had already seen on her site and telling her I was going to figure out how to get it emailed to me like she had mentioned somebody was able to do but she didn't do, then hearing Brando say "Oh, yeah, the RSS feed you were talking stands for (blah, blah, blah, I already forgot) and is real easy to do, you can have it update automatically" even though the counselor hadn't mentioned RSS feed at all, she only mentioned that somebody was able to get the updates from her site sent to them via email and she didn't know how they did it. I love that he put two and two together and automatically figured it out. He's so sexy smart.

*Brando figuring out someone was stealing our internet and figured out exactly how to keep them from doing it ie unplugging our wireless router and modem every night and shutting down the computers instead of leaving them plugged in and the computer on like we normally do. No problems since!

*Love having a techie in the house. It's incredibly sexy.

Shift of Focus

I've talked about this before, but my focus has recently shifted from time with my girls, to time with my husband, boys, and our business. It has been interesting to observe what this shift in focus has done. I've discovered I've always been the energy behind my friendships - I'm the one doing the inviting, suggesting plans, thinking of new things to do, and making sure we get together regularly. After being in bed for four weeks, realizing my focus was shifting, and becoming honest with myself through many talks with KT and then, in turn, with my girlfriends about my focus shifting and where I'm at, it's fun to see the turnaround. All of a sudden my girlfriends are stepping up to the plate and asking ME to do things, and making times for ME to meet them places. I can understand why they leaned on me for so long. It's so EASY to say yes when someone else is doing all the work of figuring out where to go, what time, and what day. It's fun being on this end.

By the way, when I say starting a business with Brando, I mean figuring out what the heck running a business is all about. The actual business part is quite a ways away.

Beautiful Sunday

As I sit here on Valentine's Day morning with my fresh cup of coffee and Brando's famous fruit salad, my heart is bursting with the fun of Saturday.

But, Sunday was amazing in it's own right. I'm not one to sit by the sidelines and let life pass me by - usually I take the reins and make sure things happen. So being down and under this week with my back has thrown me for a loop. This weekend I had to lay low - between my back and all the meds I just didn't have the energy to get us doing activities like I normally do. Saturday turned out amazing, thanks to Brando.

Sunday all I wanted to do was say good-bye to my girlfriend who is leaving for a month. I didn't expect us to do anything else, because normally I would be the one to plan that and I didn't for the aforementioned reasons. Brando did take me to say good-bye to my friend. We picked her up and meandered over to a beautiful grassy area in the middle of town where you can see the skyline. Her and I walked to the top of a hill to see the backdrop of the skyline with the grassy area all around us, then I dropped her back off where she needed to meet up with another friend, while the boys stayed and played.

While I was dropping my friend off, the boys discovered an impromptu circus. The performers had brought all their toys out to play - silk ropes, wheels that you stand on and pedal, tight ropes, hula hoops hanging from a tree, and more. My friend and I had seen them from atop the hill, but didn't think about asking what they were up to. The boys and Brando had been brave enough to ask, and when I got back were playing away.

We spent the next three hours there pedaling on the wheels, climbing up the silk ropes (well, the boys did - I would have if my back was not injured and almost did any way until Brando reminded me that I had just said I was at the point where my back is okay but if I do anything to strain it it feels like it would go right back), and hula hooping in the tree.

The boys also found out they meet every Sunday there. I pride myself on researching the heck out of my town and knowing every little in and out, but you just can't research things like this - groups of people spontaneously gathering to share their art. Letting go and letting Brando figure out what to do as a family was a new thing for me, and I would've taken the reins if I had the energy. But now I see what can happen with a little spontaneity and Brando taking the lead, and am more apt to let him take the lead more often.

New Year's Resolutions

Brando did the sweetest thing yesterday in the car on the way to Town Lake for our bike ride and asked us all what our goals, ideas, and things we want to do for the upcoming year are.

Shawners was:

-Wants a laptop

-(oh no! I forget, I will have to ask him again!)

-

Justinbustin wants to:

-snowboard again

-get a laptop

-(oh no! same here)

Mine were:

-Start a work out regime whether it be hot yoga, pole dancing, aerial dance classes, or something else.

-Decorate our home with Brando.

-Support Brando in starting a business this year.

Brando's were:

-Build a business this year

-Work out.

-Have regular family nights/days

-Blog on a regular basis.

It was so good to hear each other's goals and desires and be able to focus on them for each other. Today, Brando and I took our first step towards decorating together! We got some beautiful, functional bookcases at Costco, came home and immediately set them up. Brando and Justinbustin set up the first one together (so sweet!), then Brando set up the second one while Shawners and Justinbustin played Monopoly together. Brando even switched the second one up a bit to make it a little more decorative, put a lamp on it, framed a picture of our wedding renewal, rehung artwork to accomodate the new bookcase, and grabbed flowers from another room to put on two of the shelves. I completed the picture with a vase full of coral from our first trip to Hawaii to celebrate our nine year anniversary. The whole thing makes me smile the hugest smile from cheek to cheek.

Brando also started on his blogging regularly by documenting the process of setting up the bookcase, inspired to not only decorate with me but blog about it by these amazing couples.