Cool link.

This is an update to my last biking log. I found a website that records routes you take, milage, feet of incline... I put in the route I took, and it tells me how much elevation I gained on my last ride: 574 feet. The first day of RAGBRAI we climb 4000+, so I am guessing that riding in this area is going to help me a LOT with getting used to hills.

I just did the route that I took to Bible Study a couple of weeks ago into strong headwinds. That shows .6 miles less than the odometer on my bike, and the elevation graph doesn't show the HUGE hill I had to climb at the end. However, I am guessing the elevation increase is probably in the ballpark, as I am coming away from the river as I bike -almost 384 feet of climb. It sure felt like a LOT more that day!

Log.

Total mileage to date: 44 miles. A LONG way to go to get to 1000 before the last week in July, but the good news is that I did the same ride I started with - 12.8 miles and shaved 13 minutes off of my time. Then I rode home on the streets - up and down some killer hills. I worked hard, but got home a lot more quickly. I think that has something to do with coasting down some of those hills (top speed 31.2 mph!) NO shame about coasting here. :o) Now to clean the kitchen, organize my home and get ready for a fun cookout with great friends tonight.

Lungs.

Appointment today. Not going to do anything till we find out how much the problems are being caused by the allergies. Not torture for me today. :o)

Hives and Answers

Yesterday afternoon I had a follow up appointment with the ENT specialist. They did allergy testing on me. 25 shots to a 2 inch square of my arm. Then a steroid shot to my butt. I reacted strongly to almost every single thing - dust, trees, mold, weeds... I ended up with hives all over my upper body till about 9:30 at night. There is a really good chance that all my sinus issues will be resolved as we treat the allergy issues. I start with getting shots every Monday morning, and figuring out how to fix any mold problems that may exist in our home. I am so thankful to start getting real answers. Today I have a second appointment with lung doctors to find out more about my asthma problems.

Nesting Geese Week 2.

This is the second week we have walked out on the boardwalk to watch the nesting geese. These geese are RIGHT next to the boardwalk. Last week they were building their nest. This week they have eggs (we got a quick glimpse of at least 4 - Nana showed great restraint and didn't poke her with a stick to get her off the nest!) Last week the big male in the front came at the boys hissing - I hissed back and he has pretty much left us alone ever since. We were told this is their 4th year nesting in this same spot (the female is banded.)This nest was being sat on last week and this week. We did get to see eggs in the nest, but it was too far away to get a good picture of them (there was major drama of a bachelor male trying to climb up on the little island - then the mate came flying in and ran him off - the boys are starting to really enjoy the drama of nature unfolding as they learn to watch and listen.)
This couple is on the other side of the boardwalk, and they were building their nest still. I am guessing they will be sitting on eggs next week.
Nana and the boys looked it up, and they sit for about 4 weeks, so we are guessing 2 more weeks till we see the first goslings.

Skating Lessons.

I finally remembered to take my camera! The bad news is that I got a funky glare off the glass in a lot of my pictures. This week Seth looked like a pro skating backwards. Gavin has a hard time with backwards, but is working so hard! Gramma Nana got to come see this week and was VERY impressed with their progress.Both boys skating backwards!

Colorado Weekend Getaway

Abby and I got a weekend with no kids thanks to our loving and supportive husbands. For me, this couldn't have come at a better time. I had a long drive each way, but it was totally worth it. We found an inexpensive B&B, went shopping (the quilt store and the mall), ate Greek gyros (Abby for the first time), Abby got her hair done, we went to the flea market because we felt like it (Andrew made fun of my Aztec salad servers that I got a good deal on), and worked on sewing projects for uninterrupted hours. We planned on going to Church in the City on Sunday morning, but the weather forcasted snow - and the clouds rolled in as we were loading the car. We decided I needed to make a quick getaway. I tried outrunning the storm and was on the edge of the cloud cover till halfway through Nebraska, with crazy strong winds the whole way. We have the winds and clouds here at home today, but it was nice to finally see the storm in my rearview window. Here are my only pictures:
Abby and I lost in the parking lot looking for the car.The storm in the rearview mirror with blue skies ahead.