Thursday, July 31, 2008

Family night at the movies

Tonight after dinner we decided to take the kids to the movies on base to see Kung Fu Panda. It was hilarious and we all had a good time. I just hope the movie doesn't give Jake any ideas about doing Kung Fu.

Here is a short clip of the movie, a must see for anyone needing a good laugh.

Funny wife video

you will love this video that a friend just sent me.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

1st day of school, playgroup and chess game

Today was Amanda's 1st day back at school. She had a good day and likes her new teacher and classmates. She is growing up way too fast.
Jake after making his parachute man at playgroup today. There was about 10-12 kids and we had a really good time.
It doesn't take much for a 3 year old to have fun, especially when you throw something up in the air and he tries to catch it on the way down

After craft class we decided to stay for the 2nd hour which was a music class. Jake made a new friend today and his name was Nathan. They were a blast to watch running around.
One of those truly important moments in life to watch Jake having a wonderful time with his new friend
While cooking dinner Amanda decided she would show Jake how to play chess. She has learned the rules of chess and plays very good for her age.
Jake thinks he has mastered the game already.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Amanda's creatative school supply box

Amanda's 1st homework assignment was to create a supply box for her school supplies. Instead of using a milk carton, Lynn was able to find these really nice boxes and all we needed to do was add Amanda's little personal touch.
We started out with just a few pictures but decided to add almost 60 pictures to her box.
School starts tomorrow and we are hoping for another good teacher like we ended the school year with last year.

Friday, July 25, 2008

New Teacher

Today, Amanda and I got to meet her new 2nd grade teacher, Mrs. Knopp. She seemed very nice and very organized. After we put all of her school supplies away and signed in she had made these beautiful butterfly poems for the kids to pick out and I thought about the poem all day. I'm not sure if there is many lessons more important than this one.

Butterfly in the Wind
A child is like a butterfly in the wind:
some can fly higher than others; but each one flies
the best that it can.
Why compare one against the other?
Each one is different.
Each one is special.
Each one is beautiful.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Trip to the Zoo and Back to School supplies

This afternoon Lynn took the kids to the zoo for a little fun with the animals before school starts next week.
Here's Amanda posing for a quick picture by the fish tank you can crawl through.
Jake and Amanda love to go in the petting zoo and play with the goats. Jake laughs so hard when they lick his hands.

Tonight I had to finish marking all of Amanda's school supplies. Every single item must be marked with her name (yes every pencil). She starts school next Tuesday and she has 10 boys and 9 other girls in her class. We are just hoping she has a teacher as good as her 1st grade teacher from Hickam was last year.

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Long slow run

This morning's plan was to run 12 miles to the tower and back. I met up with Ben, Casey and Marcus - No Dev - I think he was cuddled up to the pillow this morning. We all started out at a slow 9min pace for about the first 1.5 mile then Ben lifted the pace and never looked back running several miles in the very low 7's. I kept to my game plan to maintain the same pace for the entire run. No issues at all and it was nice to get in a long run for the week Dev, I hope the Dora pillow was comfy this morning

Saturday, July 19, 2008

Fast 50 miler

This morning's ride was a classic. I met up with Ben S. Casey and waited for Dev to arrive to head out to Kunia and KoleKole Pass. We also planned on meeting Shane en route at a predetermined location. 3 miles into the ride I heard a Pop and then clank/clank. I had broke a spoke on my rear wheel, fortunately everyone stopped and Ben provided a quick short term solution to the problem and allowed me to keep riding.
These are the speedsters of the bunch. The lightest guy is the fastest and the other two guys follow suit according to their weight.
Here is a chart of the total elevation for today's ride, 1670 ft at the top.
Red line shows the path we took to ride 50 miles in 3 hours 11 mins. During one stretch of the hwy we were able to maintain an avg speed of 31.3 mph max speed 36.4 for a 3 mile section which equates to 3 miles in 5 mins 45 sec.
On the way home we decided to stop at the bike shop to have them fix my wheel. Mel loaned me a wheel until the parts arrive to fix my wheel. While waiting we all weighed our bikes and the S-Works Roubaix tipped the scales at 17lbs 3 oz, with the Garmin Edge and hand pump attached.

Friday, July 18, 2008

Preventative Maintenance is a MUST

Tonight was supposed to be a relaxing Friday evening with the kids, however I decided with the help of Ben to re-wrap my handlebars. While waiting on Ben to arrive I took the old wrap off and discovered my handlebars were cracked over halfway through on the left side. I called Ben to tell him there was no sense in coming over and he said you have 45 mins to get to the bike shop. The kids and I jumped into high gear and headed to the Bike shop. Luckily traffic wasn't bad and we made it in 15 mins.


Brandon and Mel hooked me up in 10 mins to swap my bars out with a matching new handlebar (thank God for warranties) and then it was off to Ben's for help with wrapping and changing out the front cable. As always Ben has tools out and can quickly but very professional handle maintenance with a bike. On the way home Amanda said it's a good thing you know Ben since he can quickly fix your bike and I told her she was correct. Thanks Ben for dropping everything you had plan to help me out and get me back on the road for tomorrow's ride.

A couple of haircuts

With school starting in just 10 days for Amanda we decided to get a back to school haircut and of course Jake is already for a haircut. I'm not sure if he likes the clippers tickling him or the treats once he's done. Both did very well today getting haircuts and getting the majority of the back to school supplies. Amanda enjoying being pampered
Jake sporting his new handsome look
Amanda being cute - wait didn't she get a haircut - I can't even tell

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Sunday morning 65 mile ride

This morning Dev and I set out for a good 65 mile endurance ride at 0600 to increase our "tour de Hickam" miles. We rode through downtown Waikiki, past Diamond head through Hawaii Kai and past Hanauma Bay to Makapuu point where we turned around and headed back. Overall we rode 65 miles in 3 hrs. 53 mins with an avg speed 16.7 mph and burned 4200 calories.
Here is a picture with Waikiki in the far background off my right shoulder.
Once home we had the water slide set up and running and the kids had several hours of fun in the sun. Once complete they decided to snugly and watch Shrek on the laptop together. (It doesn't get any better than this)
Then to top the evening off Ben brought his puppy over for Amanda to play with and have a couple of burgers and hot dogs with us. Very nice weekend for the whole family - just to dang short.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Easy 42 mile ride

0545 this morning met with Ben S. for an easy spin day of riding, around 0620 Dev decided to join us and then we met Ben A. on Ford Island to continue our ride. No agenda for today's ride since both Ben's are racing tomorrow Kalaeloa Criterium put on by the HACC cycling club. Good luck to everyone that races and remember to keep the rubber side down. Overall we were able to ride 42 miles in 2 hrs. 40 mins. Very nice ride this morning with nice company.
Last night I decided to stop in @ GNC to see if our weekly supply of FRS had arrived (since no one had called) and there on the shelf they were . I asked Sabrina (store mgr) why no one called and she had forgot to ensure the guys called us while she was on leave. Instead of leaving them on the shelf I decided to stock up and let Dev and Ben get next weeks shipment.
I will share if the price is right.

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

New Semester

With a new semester kicking off this week, Lynn has been very busy preparing to teach 3 classes this quarter. We've decided to go virtual with her material and create her a teaching blog - Lynn's blog . Not too bad for her 1st blog site

Today was yet another rest day from running/biking with the Chief on leave this week I've been busier than normal and just can't find the time to get out of the office. Maybe I will need to take some leave this month.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

It's not always about "Speed"

I finally got back in the saddle today from the ride around Oahu last Thursday and it felt really good. Instead of our typically hammerfest today's ride was a little more structured with several short intervals with recoveries thrown in to allow for 100% effort. I felt stronger today than I ever have and I was able to knock out some serious sprints and get my heart rate to 180 bpm. I need more quality training vs. just riding around
Thanks to both Ben's for all the coaching and advise to keep me in the pack today.

Sunday, July 6, 2008

Busy Weekend

Friday evening we invited Ben, Casey, Dev and family over for a little 4th of July BBQ. Nothing to big, just the usual hot dogs, hamburgers and a few side dishes to include my homemade cheesecake.
Everyone just chilling in the back yard waiting on the food and fireworks to start from the Navy base on Pearl Harbor. Fireworks started @ 9:00 and was very a nice show right in front of our house
Sat. night Lynn and I had a date downtown in Waikiki which included dinner at a new restaurant called the Yard house which was really good.
And we topped the evening off with a Mai-Tai
And last but not least I got a new toy (click on video). Hope everyone had as good of 4th of July weekend as the Soots family.


Friday, July 4, 2008

Ride around Oahu 123 miles

Yesterday several HACC members decided they would join up with Scott to ride around the island. At the last minute Scott's plans changed, however the wheels were already in motion and 13 riders headed out on a journey around Oahu. Only 1 flat tire and a couple injured riders that ran into each other was enough drama for the day. Several individuals were only riding to Kailua and back (80) miles and the remaining 8 riders continue our journey around the island as you can see by the red line below. Overall 123 miles, 7hrs 23 minutes & 7780 calories later we were home. What an experience. One of the riders stated " Once you have ridden around the island the first time, you are forever changed".
Here is the entire group on our way to Kailua

Here we are headed through downtown Waikiki
As you can see the chart below it is a relatively flat ride until we got to mile 90 and took on Pineapple hill with an elevation of over 1000 ft. Add 90 deg heat and a strong head wind made this very tough climb both physically and mentally. Thanks to John for all the coaching/pulling along the way. Just when I would start thinking are we there yet, he would come along and get me refocused on getting to the next water stationI listen to Ben regarding proper nutrition and hydration for this trip and it paid off. I consumed 2675 calories, 450 grams of carbs, 104 grams of Protein and drank 224 oz of water or 1.75 gallons (I didn't need to use the bathroom the entire ride). I also took 10 Electrolyte tablets to aid in replenishment of much needed electrolytes and minerals. When I returned home I was feeling pretty good about my accomplishment and even better when I noticed I weighed the exact same as I did in the morning which told me I accomplished my goal of proper nutrition/hydration.