Does this game look familiar?

Turns out it's just as entertaining to 3rd graders as it is to adults!

And no, the prize was not a camel lamp.

Jay got an email from Santa!

I'm sometimes very easily amused at simple technologies that have been created.

Jay received this video message from Santa today.

Click: Jay's video message from Santa

Too bad this wasn't available when we were kids!

I know Santa isn't the reason for the season, and I know there are people out there that don't believe there is any place for Santa in the Christmas season. I don't think there is anything wrong with adding a little make-believe and imagination to our lives. If we had kids, I would definitely enjoy seeing their reactions to this video. In fact, I can't wait to see Jay's. : )

10 week celebration!

(In case you haven't seen us in the past 10 weeks...)

Jay and I made the decision 10 weeks ago to do something about our ever-growing bellies and laziness, so we enrolled in Farrell's Extreme Body Sculpting in hopes to make some changes.

We thought you might be unsure of what this involves, so we made a little home video montage of our training.

Click here to see: Kelsey and Jay training home video


Alright, so not exactly : ), but we have been working hard. 3 days a week we've spent fitness kickboxing (with punching bags, gloves, etc), and 3 days a week have been resistance training.

Today was the end of our 10 weeks and we had some testing to see if we've made any improvements, or if this has been a colossal waste of time. So here are our results. Since we did this as a team, I thought I would combine our numbers and report our results as a team.

Okay, here we go:

Total pounds lost: 29.4
Total body fat percentage lost: 7.7%
Total inches lost: 33 3/4 inches
Total pants sizes dropped: 4

Here are some other improvements in our testings.
Push-ups in a minutes: 102 more than week 1 testing
Sit-ups in a minute: 39 more than week 1 testing
Sit and reach: 14 1/2 inches more than week 1 testing
Mile run: 3 min 33 seconds faster on our miles

I'm happy to report that team Schmeebs has decided to continue this fitness thing for another year. Jay says that the best way I could wrap up this post about fitness would be to end with a picture of him dancing naked. Seeing as I don't have a picture of that, nor do I ever hope I will, I'm going to leave you instead with that wonderful mental image.

Gender Roles

As you may know, Jay and I aren't much into traditional gender roles.

I do a lot of handy work around the house. When we first moved into our new house, it was more important to me that the garage feels organized, so I did it.

I have atrocious and inconsistent habits when it comes to doing laundry, and it drove Jay crazy - so he does all of our laundry.

We share many other duties that might traditionally go to one gender, and it works out well for us.

But as I sit in my warm house tonight, I am thankful that I was able to take advantage of one traditional gender role this evening.

"Ohh crap, we still have to shovel the driveway," we say almost in unison as we pull up to our house.

"Oh honey, haven't you always said a woman's place is in the kitchen? I will go cook you up something warm, and you go get the driveway done," Kelsey says insincerely.

"Bullsh**. You know I say that sarcastically," Jay retorts.

"I shouldn't always take your words for face value?" Kelsey replies innocently.

"Um no, I'll go shovel now." Jay says dejectedly.

Will this last? No. Will I have to shovel the driveway many times this season? Absolutely, and I'm sure you'll hear more about it.

But for today, this woman is in the kitchen, and I'm lovin' it.

Blue Pop

The following scene took place in my classroom today. Some students had finished their work early and were working on some writing. This is what I stumbled upon and listened in on from a distance....

Drew has been working on a list of "good pops" during his free writing time. A list of "good pops" is just what it sounds like - a list of pops (sodas) he likes to drink. Today Drew was typing his list on the computer to publish and Connor looks over his shoulder.

"You're brainstorming good pops? You have Mt. Dew - my favorite, and Diet Pepsi, my mom's favorite, but you don't have my dad's favorite - Miller Lite," says Connor.

"Miller Lite? That's not a pop, that's beer, Connor," says Drew.

"Really? My dad says his favorite pop is blue pop, and that's Miller Lite," says Connor.

"Miller Lite is beer - which is alcohol you idiot. You didn't know that?" says Drew.

"Guess not," says Connor as he walks away.

Gotta love that blue pop. : )

P.S. - I would have reprimanded Drew for calling Connor and idiot if it weren't for the fact that I had to turn and walk away because I was laughing so hard.