It seems like just yesterday my kids liked each other.

Actually, it was last week:

And then one day I woke up to this crap:

The eye rolling, exasperated sighs, that whiney yelling sound that makes you want to gouge your eyes out with a toothpick, and the ornery look in Bode's eye that just screams "guilty as charged."

It came out of nowhere and it is unrelenting. You know what else came out of nowhere? My new drinking habit.

It's going to be a long eight years with these two under the same roof.

If you're not one of Mia's grandmothers you may want to skip this.

If you're still reading, don't say you weren't warned.

Let's just call it like it is: Mia rocked the 4th grade musical. She just did.

The day before, however, she was rocking a 102 degree fever and a "barking seal" cough. A trip to the doctor and a giant shot in the leg was enough to get her back.

 Mia hasn't napped in the middle of the day since she was 18 months old. I wish I were exaggerating.

Mia's awesome new music teacher:

Although you can't see her face at all in this video, you still get the point - she has a flair for the dramatic.

The best part of every show is all the love you get afterwards:

I can't stop being proud of this sweet girl. This quiet, contemplative little person who loves the stage - go figure.

Clearly, all my genes are recessive.

This is Andy at age seven. Seriously, how is this not Bode?

If only his eyes were open....We had to explain to the kids about the days of yesteryear when you took a picture and had to actually wait a week before you saw if it turned out or not. They were mortified.

Mia + Pinterest = Me taking less naps

Mia has a list of about nine gabillion projects that she plans to accomplish every week thanks to the bane of my existence, Pinterest. 

The only use I have for Pinterest is to find more recipes involving chocolate and the occasional therapy worksheet. The rest of that crap makes me kind of crazy. Case in point: chalkboard signs. 

Anyway, Mia has been dying to make her own lipsticks. When I hear the words "homemade lipstick" I immediately think "worst mess in the history of messes." However, leave it to Mia to handle this project like the little expert that she is.

 She promised me that it would be easy and she was actually right. Non-toxic crayons and coconut oil - that's it.

 Ten minutes later she had her aunts' Christmas gifts complete (Aubrie and Maresa, act surprised when you open it).

I'm tellin' ya, you've got to get yourself a ten-year-old girl. They are the most fun ever.

We ran another race and lived to tell about it.

My fab running partner and I ran another half marathon the other day. These are our we-are-going-to-dominate-this-race-and-we-are-pretty-much-God's-gift-to-the-planet faces.  

Mark's awesome wife cheered for us along the entire course. She also took lots of pictures of us almost dying.

These are our well-that-was-harder-than-I-thought faces. I don't even remember taking this picture. I think I may have been unconscious.

 So, naturally, we are now training for a full. 

Remember this amazing lady? Less than a year ago she had a mastectomy while pregnant then went through chemo and radiation after giving birth with no drugs. Last week she dominated the half marathon:

At the risk of sounding completely obnoxious, I love running. I love the pain. I love the challenge. I love the rush. I love the high. I love all the cheeseburgers I eat afterwards. I love it all.