Excited for the NEW YEAR!!

I don't know about you...but I am SO excited for the new year. 2009 was a tough one...and I'm very excited to move on from this past year.

Here are the top 10 reasons I am excited for the New Year...

10. Lucy, my little lover, FINALLY gets to start Kindergarten! This would be on the top of the list...but its Kindergarten...still a huge pain in the butt with the whole half day business. Next year...1st grade will make the top of the list for sure!

9. Kaibo is going to start either running, biking, swimming, rugby, soccer, baseball...SOMETHING! I am bound and determined to get that boy out and interested in something this year. Maybe get him to do a sprint tri!

8. Zoe will be hopefully getting her back tuck this year. That girl is stronger than she knows what to do with. She is so athletic...maybe get her doing a tri this year too!

7. I get to finally start my business/club/race idea! I have a website...but nothing built yet. I will have more time to get it going past the new year and am SO excited! More to come on this later!

6. Going to train and do an ULTRA relay this year! This is going to be tough...but DANGIT I want to do it!

5. I'm going to try to ski again this year. Its been a few years...but no time like the present.

4. I get to go to school full time starting the new year... Which means....

3. I will be graduating and will be a Master Esthetician in 2010!

2. I will finally be working in either a medical spa or hopefully for a plastic surgeon this year and can start my new career.

1. Doing my FIRST HALF IRONMAN!!!

Wait...is that really going to be the highlight of my 2010? Ok...so they may not be in order. Basically I'm really excited to get moving on with my life...wrap things up at my old job...get going to school full time...graduate...start working...play with my kids like crazy...and TRAIN like a mutha!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

It's Finally Over!

Christmas is OVER! Sorry to sound like a scrooge...but I am so glad to get the year moving on for a few reasons. I didn't get to have my kids with me this year during Christmas. I got to have them for 5 hours on Christmas eve and had to have them promptly back to their dads by 7 for a "family" party they had to get to. Interesting thing was that come to find out...it was some of MY "family". Huh...weird! Another story for another day:)

I really tried to maintain the attitude of "its just another day" so that I wouldn't get sad or feel sorry for myself not being with the kids. It was tough waking up on Christmas morning and not opening presents with them or doing the whole Santa Claus thing the night before...setting out milk cookies...and then seeing how crazily excited they were for what Santa brought them. That makes me sad that I missed that...but know that they had a great Christmas all the same. So at the end of the day it isn't about what I missed as much as if the kids still had a great day and just got to be kids.

I had a great day regardless. SO much yummy food at two different stops. Oh gosh...I love food! We also got to see the Hess family Christmas video which was hilarious as usual...even my best best friend Neil made an appearance!

The days to follow were so relaxing and nice I didn't want them to end! I went on a fantastic trail run with Shaun and Ziggy. It was beautiful, sunny, snowy, and bright! Ziggy was treating me like I was a sheep, herding me right up the mountain. She was RIGHT on my heels and wouldn't pass me. I loved the company since Shaun is much too fast and just leaves ya in the dust...always circles back around of course to make sure you're alive...but pretty much super fast.

Now back to life...work...school...and my most favorite cutest kiddos!

Family Progressive Dinner

Every year my family does a Christmas progressive dinner. We start at one house with appetizers, have a little program or talent by that family and then move to the next house for soup...salad...you get the picture. We had our annual progressive dinner last night and it was a hit! It was so fun to see everyone's festive houses all decorated...although when it comes to me and my sisters Christmas trees...when you've seen one, you've seen em all (Taipan decor)!

We had SO much food that by the time we got to the main course...no one was eating. We had a few games along the way...one that resulted in a 15 way tie. It was a pretty easy game apparently:) So my crazy sister decided that there was only one way to determine the winner....DANCE OFF! Which was to be judged by my 87 year old hip grandma. We also had our special guest Neil (33 year old cute as a bear autistic friend) who would be competing. For his solo, he did a few pelvic thrusts right at my grandma...oh it was fancy! She was laughing so hard she was crying. My dad pulled off a few awesome moves as well. I'm talking flash dance/footloose style! After a long battle of dancing to the death... the winner was Heather and Neil as a team. They won a pair of awesome holiday socks...which they determined they would just take turns wearing since Neil does reside in Heathers basement.

At my house for our talent, Zoe and Lucy did a few magnificent tumbling passes. Zoe showed off her roundoff back handspring that she will be doing at her performance tonight. Kai had a temporary moment of Christmas Kai (when Kai turns into a completely different kid...probably due to the overstimulation of sugar and fun during the holidays.). But all in all...it was fantastic! Can't wait for next year!

Ugly Sweaters Galore!

We had a first annual Ugly Sweater Party this past Saturday night. Oh it was a good one! We had lots of our friends come over to Shaun's..the requirement was to wear an ugly Christmas sweater. My mom has a plethera of holiday sweaters...none really were that ugly though...just more festive than anything. Cody and Nicholle had some pretty dang good ones...Cody's had a sweater that sported a pair of pom poms that tied at the neck...oh gosh that was good! Nicholle even had a tole painted wood necklace to top off her holiday outfit. And Shaun was the official "mistletoe tester". Well at least that's what his shirt said. We had SO much yummy holiday food...and so many laughs that night. So glad I have such good friends!

I actually got in a lottery!?

So...if you know me and my luck with getting in a race that has a lottery...its pretty bad. In fact so bad that I can say that there is not a single race that I have actually got in that has a lottery. But it looks like the race gods are smiling down on me now...because I actually got into a race with a lottery! The Canyonlands half marathon in Moab. We are going to head down with a group of our friends...Cody Nicholle, Carol, Pedro, Shaun, and Lisa. Its going to be a good one. I am going to try to set a time goal of under 2 hours. And since I havent been running AT ALL lately it will be a lofty goal to meet. I'm excited to have something to start training for again...and good friends to train with.
I'll be posting my progress along the way!

Hello Again:)

Like usual...I've taken a break from blogging. Its beginning to be a theme:) So let me recap the summer. I had a GREAT summer! I had a great time with my kids along with a great break. I cracked my head open on the trails....Hiked a couple of awesome peaks. Learned how to mountain bike and totally loved it..I also went to Sonoma for a week which was simply beautfiul to see Shaun do the Ironman. I got the swine flu which was not so fun...but hey...I survived. I did a few races...nothing too crazy. Got first place in my age group at the Alta Down hill dash...that was a huge highlight for me! Went to a couple of concerts. To wrap it up...it was a good one! Here are some pics of the highlights.

So to start blogging about my life now...here is where I currently am in life.

I am back in school and taking it seriously! Not that I wasnt before...I am just really starting to love the medical end of things and REALLY am going to put my efforts into getting into a medical spa or plastic surgeons office. I absolutely LOVE learning about the make up of the skin and why things happen in your skin. It is so fascinating to me:) But I am a business chica deep down and have a huge desire to start my own thing too. We'll see how it goes.

I have my sweet Kai living with me now...oh boy you have no idea how hard that was for me to not have my boy with me. It was heartbreaking to me. I feel so much better about life having him in my home with his sisters. He and Zoe are in school and are doing great. Lulu and I chill together alot throughout the day. Its great!

So there you have it...I'll do my best to get blogging so I dont feel like I have to recap the last 6 months.

And on that...I leave you with a quote... Something that I say to myself often...not often enough:)

"Stop wearing your wishbone where your backbone ought to be." — Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia)

BEST NEWS EVER!!!

This is a really weird blog post for me...But this is dang good info!

So ladies...and maybe gents...Here is a problem that I KNOW many of you have experienced. Ya know when you get that musty smell because your deodorant has just STOPPED working. You try different flavors...brands...everything...and NOTHING works! Well if you don't know what I'm talking about...get off my blog :) Kidding...anyway. I was having this problem not too long ago and it was buggin me bad. I texted my friends asking what kind of deodorant they use...went and bought 3 different kinds. NOTHING was working still. I knew this was an epidemic amongst ladies, but no one ever talks about it. Well if you know me...there's nothing I'm afraid of talking about when it comes to this stuff. So I did what I always do to find useless information, diagnose diseases, cure bed wetting, find out why my hands get wrinkly in the shower etc. I googled it. And here is what I found... I am posting it for all you stinky ladies out there that are suffering in silence and believe me...so is your man (if you have one.)

Ok...first off...the reason for the smell is this. The sweat that comes out of your glands is odorless. It is clean. Its when it sits in your pits amongst bacteria that is dwelling in a warm moist place that it starts to stink up the place. Its the bacteria that causes the smell. Deodorant is just masking that smell...so if you have bacteria pits...it is just adding smell good to bacteria pits. Bad combo. Now...don't get all sad that you have bacteria in your pits. Fact of life...get over it. Onward.

Here is the solution. So all of those Dove, Jergens, Suave, Oil of Olay body washes that you are using for moisture...are doing NOTHING to clean your skin...NOTHING NOTHING NOTHING! When you wash your hands...do you wash your hands with lotion? Helz NO sista! You make sure you have something with anti-bacterial properties to kill the bacteria on your hands. You see where I'm going with this?! You need an anti-bacterial soap for your pits to clean the bacteria and break up that cocktail party that your sweat, bacteria, and deodorant have been having. Have you noticed that when you clean your armpits with one of the moisturizing body washes mentioned above that your armpits almost feel like your deodorant has created a barrier and it doesn't clean it totally. That is because you are washing your armpits with LOTION....LOTION I tell you! Ok...a fancy form of lathering lotion...but nothing that will strip away the old deodorant totally...clean the bacteria away and leave you fresh as a daisy.

Now...the hard part is finding the anti-bacterial soap. TaDa! DIAL! Dial is one of the only brands that makes a body wash that is anti bacterial for your body. Now, when it comes to you just being a huge sweater...ya know...wet pits all the time. Not really my issue, but there is another trick. There is some stuff called Certain Dri. It has no smell good so it is strictly an anti-perspirant...and you put it on at night. Its active ingredient is called Aluminum Chloride. This ingredient will actually help your body not create as much sweat in your underarms which will lessen the amount of moisture. It does this by making your pores smaller in your underarm area. Now...don't get me wrong...i am a huge fan of sweating. Its an awesome way to detox and cleanse your body...but your armpits don't NEED to sweat at their full sweat potential.

After putting this on at night...I use my regular deodorant in the morning to give me a fresh scent and it works like a charm! So before you even think of changing deodorants due to musty stinky pit problem... go pick yourself up some anti-bacterial Dial.

You can thank me later:)

Women of Steel

Well... Race season is ON! Love it. This past weekend I did the "Women of Steel" Tri in AF. It was a little sprint in a pool...a course that I have done many times. I had a great race! I felt really good...minus one little tidbit...when I started riding, my seat was as low as it could go. We had dropped it when putting it on the bike rack from Vegas and I hadn't rode since. Lesson Learned! I started pedaling and immediately felt like I was on a little kids bike. Probably looked pretty funny too! Regardless...it all worked out and I had a great time. It was the fastest that I had done that course yet...probably because every time I do that course in the past...it is FREEZING!!! Nice to have a warm race!

Irongirl... Not to be confused with Ironman...Triathlon

What a fun weekend and race. It was a weekend of crazy funny moments, great relaxation, and good times with good people.



Nazi Security Guard
Got into town on Thursday afternoon. Thursday night we were about to head out on the town for dinner when Shaun suggested I try out my new bike shoes and clips. Since I hadn't tried them at all and he thought it would be good to just give it a go out in the parking lot. They were amazing... Nothing like my old egg beater clips that I had before. Clipped in like a dream! Unclipping was a different story. They were a little stiff to get out. It was dark outside and we were quietly just circling the building when a security guard said as we approached... "You can't ride your bike here!" Shaun told him that we were staying there at the condos. The guy tried to tell us that it was against the rule and we need to stop right now... but we continued riding past him towards our building. We were going to head back in when rebel Shaun said, "And one more lap because we're American." I agreed! We thought we were funny and continued on to do our little "we live in a free country and we can ride our bikes if we want to" lap. I then saw the security guard and he was mad. He said, "I said no riding bikes here!" Shaun told him again that we were staying there. He said, "Show me your room Key!" Shaun circled to stop and talk to the guy, I slammed on my breaks to stop and panicked because my feet weren't unclipping. I started yelling, "Shaun Shaun!" because I couldn't un-clip and was slowing down really fast. He said, "It's OK! It's OK!" thinking that I was yelling at him to not confront the security guard. Right then... Crash! I was down... Knee first and then the rest. It hurt like a beast! Both Shaun and the security guard just looked at me like "what the crap!?" I was SO mad that I crashed all because the security guard made us stop so quickly.... And because I'm retarded at unclipping... Oops! I was laying on the ground and was still clipped in and so I couldn't get up. All the while the security guard was still demanding he see a room key. I'm laying there attached to a bike while I'm afraid Shaun is going to freak out on this guy. Shaun helped me off my bike and got me up. Then it was on! We showed the key... All the while I was hobbling holding my bike while I kept trying to pull Shaun back from this guy afraid that they were both going to start dukin' it out. Some words were exchanged and once the security guard realized he was an idiot and we actually were staying there and not hoodlums rolling around his precious parking lot, he tried to be nice and offer to get me some ice. I was not happy about that at all! We basically told him he's done enough damage for the night as we headed back to the room to check out the bodily injury. Nothing to major... Phew! As we recapped it ... I couldn't help but just laugh! No riding bikes? Since when and why!!! Psh! But it was a great freedom lap!



So the next morning we decided to go for a ride... a real ride...at least it was supposed to be. We headed out and I immediately thought I was dying. My GOSH my legs were burning. I couldn't even kind of keep up. Shaun would be waiting for me, barely pedaling at all and I would be dying pedaling as hard as i could just thinking... "Oh crap... Tomorrow I have a race, and I can barely ride my bike." It was the biggest confidence crasher ever. Finally Shaun said, "I can tell you're biked out". A nice way of saying "Why the crap are you so slow?"...so we decided to head back. When we got back to the condo Shaun said, "check and see if your brakes are rubbing." I picked up the back of my bike, spun my wheel and it BARELY turned! My breaks were rubbing my whole ride! I was so annoyed but SO relieved that I wasn't just a complete big wuss! Shaun adjusted it and I was good to go. I would have died doing that race the next day with my bike like that.



Open Water Swim
We headed to the resort that we were staying in for the race. It was beautiful there! It reminded me of Spain or Italy or something that doesn't even resemble Las Vegas. It was The Montelago resort. They have this awesome lake that the hotels sit right on. It is a beautiful lush and green oasis surrounded by desert mountains and hills. I checked in for the race and checked my bike in. I've never done a race that you check your bike in over night. It was weird leaving my bike. We had planned to try to get an open water swim in prior to the race in order to get my nerves calmed since I am terrified of open water! We headed down to the lake... Shaun of course jumps right in. I sit there for a while thinking of getting in. He says patiently, "How long are you going to make me tread water before you get in?" That was my cue to get my butt in that water. I slowly inched in off the dock and panic immediately set in. I was terrified of what was underneath me, around me, basically anywhere that I couldn't see. Completely freaking out. I doggy paddled to Shaun panicing the whole way. He said, "OK let's go" and started swimming. So I followed him... Scared out of my mind with every stroke! He could hear me freaking out and stopped and said, "OK, what are you scared of?" I didn't want to say... because to say it out loud sounded retarded! He said, "Just tell me". I said "Alligators and sharks". Yep! It sounded even more retarded coming out of my mouth than I thought. He said "Amy! There are no sharks or alligators in Las Vegas! Just concentrate on your swim... Right arm, left arm..right arm, left arm." So I started swimming saying that in my head and it worked. I ended up cutting our swim short because as much as I was getting better I was still scared. By the time we got back to the dock... I was OK... Sort of. Race nerves had definitely set in all day with a crappy ride and a freaky swim.

We had a great dinner at claim jumper.... I had to get boring spaghetti and meatballs (carb loading apparently) while Shaun got some amazing turkey dinner. Luckily he shares pretty well!




Race day!
Got up bright and early...5:30 to be exact. And got ready in a flash. I was excited and felt good. We headed out... Did a good deed along the way and gave a girl walking a ride. Now the thing about all women's races is that they are more than a race... It's a competition of how cute your gear is and most importantly a fashion show.. And if you know me, you'll know I love every minute of it:) It was a very girly event... Girl power every step of the way which can be a little much at times. Got body marked and headed to the swim start. I got in and swam a little to get used to the water and to help avoid a freak out. It worked. The owner of Irongirl got on the loud speaker and basically said "I know you all made major sacrifices to be here today. Remember to leave all your crap behind, this is your day to just enjoy and clear your head of everything except to just race." Nothing was more perfect for me to hear right then. I decided that I would just totally enjoy the whole event.. No stress... No heartache... No worries... Just thoroughly enjoy the moment and have fun. And I did! I may have taken it a little to much to heart. I lallygagged in the water for too long. It wasn't tiring at all in the water... I just didn't want to push it and panic. When I got out I felt a little too good! Ha! Then came the bike... I am a slow poke getting going. But once I got warmed up I felt great and had an awesome ride... Again feeling a little too good:) Along the way I really started to get reflective of how thankful I am that I have a healthy body and am able to do these races. I feel so lucky and so blessed for my ability to finish a race... No matter how slow or fast. I said a little prayer along they way and said thanks. Then came my favorite.. The run! I had an awesome run! It was a hard one... Lots of big hot rocky dusty hills. It was pretty much like leg 5 on Ragnar aka Avon pass. But with some down hills. Not much flat at all. It was VERY dry and hot. Not a single tree shrub or indication of life to be seen. The aid stations were awesome! At mile 2 they were dumping ice in a cooler and I asked if I could take a chunk. I basically had them dump ice down my shirt. It was my own personal cooler of ice and it came in handy for sure! There was so much support and encouragement from all the ladies. Everyone was chatty along the way. I loved it. As I came down off the trail I saw Shaun at the end on his bike. I knew I was getting close. There were 2 chicks in black that I had been trailing and was set out to beat. As I came off the trail I passed the first one... Then the blonde was next. As I was running a guy said to me, "Go get that girl in the black!" as if he was reading my mind! I came down the shoot just dying to pass her. And about 25 feet before the finish line.. Got her!!! That was my big victory of the day!

An annoying part of the race...as girls would come across the finish line the announcer would say "Amy Perez! You are an Irongirl! So and so, you are an Irongirl!" It was honestly a cheap rip off from the Ironman. It was bugging Shaun as well. I have a HUGE respect for the Ironman distance and one day hope to have someone say as I come across a finish line.. "Amy Perez! You are an Ironman!" But I better have just busted out 140.6 miles.... Not my 32.2.

As I came across the finish line, I was soaked from all the ice water I had dumped on me to stay cool. So drenched that I was sloshing in my shoes. At one point I dumped Gatorade instead of water. Oops!!! I ran back to the aid station and they dumped a bucket of water on my head to get rid of the Gatorade.

A great part of that day was Shaun.. He was there at the finish line... And along the course cheering me on. He was the most mobile spectator! He would pop up out of no where along the course because he was rolling around on his bike. It was awesome! I was really happy that he was there to support me and was so grateful for all the work he put into helping me get ready for that day. What a fun race! It was a great experience and even though I wasn't super speedy I sure was happy;)
Great day!

--Amy's 2 cents--

Vegas Bound

So, I'm headed out tomorrow for my race. The Irongirl Vegas Triathlon. I'm not racing until Saturday, but am excited to get some r & r before the race. I'm feeling quite nervous about the open water swim...I am seriously hoping that I can get an open water swim in before the race. I always panick at the start and I just dont want that to happen this go round. Other than that, I am excited for the experience. It is an all girl race...my favorite kind of race. I got a new cute outfit and am all geared up. I just hope that I dont look like a total fool and fall on my bike because I cant unclip or something stupid. My bike skills are pretty rusty this year...spin class just doesn't get you used to it like the real deal.
I dont have a goal to finish it in just yet, but will most definitely report on how it all goes! Until then...Good Luck to Me!