One more tri!

Lowell and I did another triathlon!

We finished...we survived... and Lowell got FIRST (in his age group), and I got third (in my age group and overall for females in my distance).

Let's flash back to 2007 when we did the same triathlon but a) Lowell insisted we do the entire race TOGETHER, and b) it was warm outside so my transition times weren't painfully slow as a result of tortuously yoinking long tights over wet legs... I got FIRST over all females. My time was FIVE WHOLE MINUTES faster than my time this year. It nearly killed me and I cursed Lowell the entire way... but apparently he's my ticket to gold. Dang. I've been de-throned.

Before I delve into the race, let's have a little conversation about goggles. A few years ago, Mom & Dad discovered goggles that are bigger, clearer, and brighter. Lowell and I started wearing them because it's so much easier to see underwater with them. I never saw myself in them until I caught a glimpse of this here picture (bottom left)...

Apparently these goggles won't win any type of aesthetic award! The giant goggles look super dorky on my tiny face (and the nerdy/nervous smirk doesn't help). But hey... I'll take function over fashion if it'll bring my 'A' game with it.

Lowell doesn't look like such a loser in HIS goggles (although I don't have a picture to prove it).

After that dorky goggle interlude, let's back up a smidge...

Getting transition area ready:

START THE RACE!

SWIM!

Generally the volunteers wave a blue flutter board to indicate your last lap, but since Lowell is visually impaired, he requested that they smack him on the head with it. This guys took a friendly approach and kindly pat Lowell's head with his hand...

Transition 1:

BIKE!

Transition 2:

RUN!

FINISH:

First place... (SO proud of him, by the way)

Third place...

Happy family...

The end.

Have you met my hunky hunky spin instructor?

He's both hunky hunky and my spin instructor. And he's MY husband!

Ty in the flesh!

We just spent five glorious days with Marc, Kylie, Tyrn (TIE-rin) & Niko. We settled into a lovely routine with their little family, and were sad to see it come to an end.

Aside from regular Ty snuggles, chatting, laughing, eating, meeting friends, and playing Wii (which by the way was the second time I've been introduced to it and is it ever FUN!), we did a different hike/walk each day. Marc totes mostly-sleeping Ty in his chest carrier, and Kylie regularly converts different aspects of nature into breast-feeding and/or bum-changing perches.

Hike 1: to Seven Sisters...

Ty didn't need to be fed during this shortish jaunt, but Niko sure did need to be bathed! We played a little game of "go-fetch-the-stick-in-the-water-and-then-we'll-scrub-you-down-with-strawberry-shampoo-and-make-you-run-in-the-water-and-fetch-the-stick-several-more-times-to-rinse-you-off". Worked like a charm, and resulted in Niko smelling like a fresh strawberry meadow.

Hike 2: to Chilliwack river with a Pita Pit lunch to devour en route...

(I think Marc & Kylie have earned themselves a Pita Pit endorsement with these photos.)

Make-shift breast-feeding/bum-checking perch #2:

Hike 3: to the Fraser river...

I will be very sad when Ty outgrows his little raincoat. It's soooooo cute (nice work, Nolene)...

Make-shift breast-feeding perch #3:

Hike 4: to Mt. Slesse...

Kylie's walking stick was so staff-like and majestic looking that she claimed she could part the seas (or mountains) with it. So here she is attempting to part the mountains ever so elegantly...

Make-shift breast-feeding/diaper-changing perch #4:

Okay. Hikes and breast-feeding perches over.

I warned you that there would be plenty of auntie-bragging Ty pictures, and I wasn't kidding. Here we go...

Marc used to wear the yellow sleeper in the following picture (not anytime recently- about 31 years ago)...

Ty having a little snooze with Auntie Julie...

Allow me this brief interlude to pop in a picture of our wonderful nephew Niko. He was really truly the first grandchild in the family, and he has grown into such a fabulously obedient dog. He's 85-90 lbs of pure sweetness and we love love LOVE him!...

And now back to precious baby Tyrn...

In the following picture, he's watching Marc & Lowell lift weights. Yes Ty, we were slightly shocked/confused/frightened as well...

Ty is modelling the shirt that we made for him...

I'm going to leave you with a gem. I hope that this last picture burns itself into your retina forEVER. The little Tyster has been losing his locks in a somewhat unfortunate pattern, and Marc- being the loving father that he is- decided to join Ty in his partial hairlessness...

This picture has the amazing ability to be both disgusting and adorable at the same time.

Ty is just so unbelievably precious to us and I'm so excited to watch him grow up. Kylie jokingly mentioned building me a nanny suite, and I chuckled...but seriously. You build it- I'M THERE!