As I was Saying...

This week is absolutely flying by. I really don't have much to say other than things like: "stop biting your brother", "get out of the neighbors tree", "please don't push your brother off the porch", and I may have even been overheard saying "i hope he bites you". Not proud of that last one, but when Merrick decided to pester Jericho to tears, I didn't have much sympathy for the biting that was definitely likely to occur. I mean, everyone knows you DON'T stick your hand in a wild animals mouth. Duh.

So as I was saying, there isn't much room left in my busy schedule of 'what day is it again and someone make these kids stop fighting' for blog posting. I feel like that's ok, though. I do have other things going on, this just happens to be the one that gets nixed when the crazy is happening. Maybe I should just take up blogging when the kids graduate? By then it probably won't be cool to blog anymore though. So there's that...also I realize I've managed to make a whole blog post out of the fact that I don't have time to post a blog. I think that's probably some type of side effect of only speaking to people who don't listen all day. This blog HAS to listen, so by golly I'm gonna tell it what's up.

As bad as these babies are, they still are pretty cute. I like looking at pictures of them...I think mostly because in the pictures they can't talk. Pictures are silent. Silence is golden and also I'd probably give someone something golden for 2 minutes of said silence. But I know I would and will miss the noise one day. Maybe by the time they are gone they'll have done so much damage to my hearing I'll have the ringing in my ears to keep me busy. ;)

You did what???

That seems to be the general reaction when I tell people about what Billy and I did this past weekend. I think mostly people are confused, then when they get their questions answered they decide it's confirmed. Those Barrons are cuh-razy people. We ran a race called Ragnar this past weekend with some great new friends. Click on the link for more info...but the synopsis is: "You and 11 of your craziest friends pile into two vans and tag team running 200(ish) miles, day and night, relay-style. Only one runner hits the road at a time. Each participant runs three times, with each leg ranging between 3-8 miles and varying in difficulty." So, yeah, there you have it. Some call it crazy, but we called it lots of fun. (Here are a few shots of our decorated "van"...our team name was Tape a Cheetah to Her Back. Inspired by the AT&T commercial.)

Not gonna lie, there were painful moments. My total mileage ended up being a little over 22 miles for the race, Billy was about 16. (I ran two 9 milers, and then a 4 miler.) I don't think I really started to hurt until most of the way through my middle 9 miler. This one was a run with just under 1,000ft of elevation gain, done at about 4:15 am, through the dark woods. There were often other runners around me, or the vans of other teams passing by me, but several times I couldn't see anyone in front of me, or anyone behind me. And then there were those eyes in the woods. I tried to convince myself they weren't really eyes...but then they moved. *EEEEEK!* I knew I shouldn't have looked away from the trail. ;)

My teammates all did an awesome job of knocking out their individual parts of the race, some of them running up unbelievable hills at unbelievable speeds, and often in the middle of the night with nothing but a headlamp to light to way and cows mooing in the fields to keep you company. Some of the legs of the race our van would be able to come alongside and offer support or just yell at our runners for moral support. Runners love to be yelled at, just another little thing that makes them special, kind of like the guy running with his underwear overtop of his shorts, and the guy in the fairy wings. You never know what you might see at a race.

When we finally crossed the finish line, altogether as a team, it was an awesome feeling of accomplishment. We had run 200 miles, not stopping as a team, for about 29 hours worth of running. There was a lot of determination, planning, training, sweating, chocolate milk chugging and laughing that went into making that happen. I'm so glad we were able to be a part of it. We made some great new friends, have a great new story to share, a shiny new medal to hang up, and a little bit of swagger in our step...although that part might just be the sore legs talking. ;)

It's Universal

I always love to post photos of my kids, while we are shopping, with random objects on their heads. Target is always great for this type of entertainment. I think entertaining myself like this is one of the things that has kept me sane while shopping with 3 children. Here we have a fine example of stuff-on-their-heads, this time from Walmart:
  You're welcome. ;) I felt much better about my little hobby when Billy sent me this picture he took while in Target later that same day:

It made me feel a bit more normal to see that this behavior is universal.

Virginia State Fair

It had been a few years since we had been to the State Fair. Last time we went Jericho was still in my belly, and therefore a little easier to contain. This year he was a man on a mission...to get out of his stroller and run away from home. I let him out of his rolling prison a few times and followed closely behind him...he really didn't have any destination in mind, he just wanted to be free to rub his hands on as many germy surfaces as possible.

We did all kinds of different stuff at the fair. We rode a bunch of stuff, ate a bunch of stuff, looked at some animals, and watched a "circus". As you can see from the picture below, Jericho was seriously suspicious of the camels in the circus. He decided they needed to not be let out of his sight, as anything that crazy looking was not to be trusted. Merrick and Tirzah enjoyed the show, but Merrick was convinced that what he was watching wasn't "real". I guess circuses only exist on TV. ;)

Speaking of eating stuff, we had all kinds of fried nonsense...(I feel like the state fair was no place for my paleo diet, so I left that at home.)...fried cheesecake and reese cups, cotton candy, popcorn and multi-colored slushies. We offered some cotton candy to Jericho, but he seemed to think we were trying to feed him something toxic and literally spit it out. He's probably the smart one. After Merrick downed his slushie he literally went to another level with hyperactivity. I was holding his hand while we were walking, and I think my shoulder is out of socket.

We also got to feed a giraffe, which was only ok with one of the hooligans. Tirzah is the next wild animal tamer in the family, which might come in handy with her brothers. Merrick took one look at that giant animal coming his direction and dropped his carrot and ran. Honestly it was a little intimidating, and gross...good thing I have three kids so I'm used to being drooled on. Jericho also wasn't a fan of the giraffe...or horses...or goats...or pigs. He cried when we parked him too close to the (miniature) horse. He cried when we parked him too close to the llama. He cried when he petted the goat. That was his own idea...he just decided after the fact that it was a bad one.

Thankfully both older kiddos were big enough for the rides this year. Jericho was not big enough, but he tried to get onto the boat ride anyway. He was under the rope and halfway up the stairs before we realized he'd escaped. (He is the kind of kid those crazy leashes are made for.) Merrick didn't like said boat ride, but Tirzah loved it. He did ride his first coaster though...so he's braver than his mommy-who-doesn't-do-rollercoasters.

It was one of those days that you know you'll remember for a long time, despite some craziness. I love days like that with my people...the ones you look back on and just get a warm feeling. Oh wait...maybe that was just Jericho gagging himself and throwing up half his dinner on the stroller, and then peeing out his diaper. ;)

What the Week

Not really sure where that week went. Seems like it flew by in a blur of dentists and school work and visiting with family and random other things like Billy working 170 hours a week...at least it feels like he works that many hours. I often refer to myself as a "Northwestern widow". I think his job switch will be worth it in the long run, but right now I just want to take a shower without 3 kids ripping open the curtain. And yes, they do that.

I kept meaning to blog, (so be prepared for the weekly recap photo dump blog style today) I keep meaning to do lots of things, like brush my hair...but it just gets lots in the shuffle, and the breaking up of scuffles. Scuffle is Jericho's middle name. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. (You're thinking "no she didn't just compare her baby to the devil"...) He especially likes to prowl during school.

As you can see from the above example...he had stolen one too many worksheets that day, and got the smack down.

 Merrick DID read a few words this week...which was really encouraging for both of us.

Above you have 'hooligans at the dentist'...I'm fairly certain that office is closed down now. At least when we want to schedule an appointment they are. ;) Merrick is terrified of the dentist, and as much as I feel so bad for him, I also feel bad for the person trying to pry open his jaws.

We got some good visit time with Miss Judah Rose this week. Here we have an example of the baby who never wants to be held (Jericho...you can't tame that beast) who just HAS to be held because mommy is holding someone else.

Here we have us, trying on some headlamps at a local outdoor store. Me and Billy have a 2 day relay race (Ragnar) coming up, which will involve some long runs on pitch black dark trails in the middle of the night...so this is quite necessary.

While cleaning out a closet, the hooligans spotted my dress and wanted to play dress up. Fun for them, but I can't breathe. Also while taking this shot I notice I REALLY need to clean the mirror, and I have two photo bombers. Such is a mom's life.

Yes, that is the shattered remains of my mantle decor. Merrick swung off the mantle one too many times playing "ninja warrior", and the glue (yes, GLUE, who puts a mantle on with GLUE?!) broke loose and EVERYTHING fell in the floor. Most of it was broken. I only cried for an hour or two. Glad he wasn't cut, but can I sue American Ninja Warrior for this? I mean, people have sued for dumber things, right? ;) Totally kidding...I take full responsibility for his wild behavior because ya know...he's mine.

 Jericho's new favorite hobby. And no I don't tell him to stop, because then he goes all Miley Cyrus on me and it's "we can't stop...and we won't stop...". Ya know how babies do. I hope he will eventually grow out of this.

Lastly, I have learned that it's never a good idea to let the kids get Jericho up from his nap. I will probably forget this life lesson next time he's screaming to get up and I need someone to entertain him until I can JUST GET A SHOWER. I think if I've learned one thing as a mom, it's that it's a luxury to shower without people falling into the tub and dropping your clean towel in the toilet. I need to run for now. Duty calls. Merrick is out back spraying his sister (an unwilling target) with the garden hose.