... funny things are everywhere

addictions, past and present...

So the boys came home yesterday... and James stepped onto the tennis court for the first time in almost two weeks... and I spent the day at work in an office setting where 60% of my coworkers are on holidays this week.

Jamesie's take on his return to tennis? It was good to be back, but he said his timing was off, and he shanked a LOT of balls during his first twenty minutes of hitting. After that, he did settle in and started hitting better. More importantly, though, his shoulder felt good... a great relief to him, his coach... and to his dad and me.

Speaking of tennis, the US Open started today. :)

Mike and I dropped by on Steph and Hoa in their new house yesterday. I made a card. First bit of crafting in months. Every time I haul out my paper trimmer and tape runner, I realize how much I miss it.

The card I made (see first photo below) looks pretty much like the cards I made all the time back then... I am so out of touch with current trends. I used to be bugged by stuff like that. Not so much any more.

Meanwhile, I find myself now twenty years into my running addiction. I remember getting hooked on running during my lunch hours when I was a grad student, working at a lab not too far from my current office. Today, I went out and braved the humid summer heat for a fast-paced 5k... I managed to avoid being run over by an inattentive driver... and, while I was out, I snapped the second photo down by the river, all while lamenting the end of summer just around the corner.

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Spring... no, wait... summer!

First outdoor lesson of the year for James' group. Loved watching them! Such a talented bunch...

Still waiting for James to step up and work hard. Not sure if he's ever going to want it but, at this age, it's gotta come from him.

Oh well. It's time for me to get back on the court. Outdoor tennis is soooo much better. It's the way it was intended to be played. :)

another page... and other stuff too...

I find it hard to believe how many pages I've made lately. I think I've done more scrapping in the first two months of 2013 than I did in all of 2012!

I'm glad to be back in the game. I'm really trying to keep it simple so that I don't waste what little time I have to scrap... and so I don't get discouraged. Eventually I'm gonna get bored though. Each page ends up looking pretty much the same as the last one!

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So yesterday, I played tennis for the fourth time this year. I can't believe how little I'm playing these days, but I have this persistent injury that is aggravated by all the running, stopping and starting on the hard surface. I have to say that I miss it terribly.

Last spring, I took some lessons from a different coach than the one I started with, and he told me a few things that really helped my game a lot. I think my biggest problem is that I don't watch the ball come off my opponent's racquet, so I don't start moving early enough. My anticipation and set up need work. My fitness, agility and even my groundstrokes are decent enough... I don't always see the ball well. But I'm aware of it now, so it's getting better.

If only my achilles injury would go away...

** stretching at the end of the tennis social at the OAC last night :)

 

Sunday FunDay

I had a jam-packed day today. Doggie playdate. Lunch at Grandpa John's place. Tennis matchplay for Jamesie. No downtime for me.

But hey, that's okay. I like my on-the-go life.

James is playing well these days. It's great to see his style of play evolving. I think he's learning some tactics that compliment his aggressive hitting, and it's leading to more success on court which, in turn, makes him willing to focus and work harder.

Also he's got a mental toughness that he didn't have before, so he's becoming more of a competitor... something I was worried might never happen. Yay James!

Is it bad that I want my kid to want to succeed? I mean, I don't actually are if he wins or loses. I just want him to care about doing his best.

Lessons learned on the tennis court translate well to real life.

Set goals. Work hard. Achieve. Be happy. Repeat often.

** aggressive forehand winner

ice pellets and freezing rain...

On our way to tennis on Sunday, with ice pellets falling from the sky:

J: Mom, it feels like those little candies... you know...
Me: Do you mean pop rocks?
J: Yah, that's it!

.....

On our way to tennis on Monday, with light freezing drizzle falling from the sky:

Me: In just a few months, we'll be back on these courts, hitting tennis balls outside again.

only one month left?!

I cannot believe how quickly November has sped by. My birthday came and went without much fanfare. I am now another year older but feeling no wiser for that extra candle on the cake.

* circus afro, circus afro, polkadot polkadot polkadot afro

Thomas came downstairs dressed like a clown to wish me a happy birthday. Yikes! After seeing this, I finally understand how some people are afraid of clowns.

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Jamesie played in a tournament at the OAC last weekend. He was the runner-up in the consolation draw. Not bad, eh?

* Jamesie won a really tough match in the 2nd round of the consolation draw on his way to this medal.

His tennis is coming along, but he's still not as fierce a competitor as I'd like to see, so I'm trying to see tennis a character-building exercise for him. Confidence. Work ethic. You know... :)

.....

So it's been a lazy Saturday morning for me so far... I walked the dog, drank my coffee while software was updating on my computer... but now I have to get going. Do I get groceries or review a work-related document? Neither sounds particularly appealing to me.

*sigh*

Oh well, if I wait long enough, I'll run out of time before I have to be at the club to teach my spin class. ;)

keeping my eye on the prize...

Ummmm... remind me again... what's the prize?

It's crazy here. Here we are at the end of October, and I've done nearly nothing that I've put on my To Do list. You know, the one that exists only in my head because I'm too scared to actually write any of it down. Because to do so would potentially set me up for failure and/or disappointment.

No, not really. That last part is 100% not true.

It's not.

N.
O.
T.

Not.

I am not afraid to commit. I am not afraid of failure. I'm just too danged busy chasing my own tail around in circles to do anything about it.

.....

James and I went to Toronto this past weekend. We were gone for 37 hours in total: including 12 hours driving there and back; about five hours visiting with family; and a few hours playing in a tennis tournament. Well, he played... I did the Tennis Mom thing.

My mom and dad were up from Nova Scotia, and my Aunt Shirley and my cousin, Tiffany, were in TO from Hong Kong. Even though our time with them was short (just a few hours), it meant a lot to me to be able to see them.

* Tiffany, Shirley, Mom, me and Dad

* me with my cousin's son, Aidan

Chinese food = yum
Tennis tournament = fun + good effort + goal setting opportunity

James played well at the Rookie event in Burlington. He won the matches I expected him to win (and he didn't mess around or lose games in winning those matches), and he lost in the quarterfinals against a boy he could have beaten, if he'd managed to stay focused and keep his nerve up. But that's something that he needs to work on. He knows that, though, and I think he may finally be ready (emotionally, mentally...) to take on that challenge.

Or so he says.

But I'm trying hard not to be a CRAZY tennis mom.

Trying. So. Hard. ;)

.....

Anyway, just before we left TO for Ottawa, we made a detour to a Lego store...

* James indulges in a pick-a-brick binge.

Life is good.

I need to remember that.

Often.

the end

It's coming up to the end of the academic year, and with that comes the end of James' fall-winter-spring tennis lessons. Where did the past nine months go?!

It's been a year of growth for him, both in terms of his tennis but also on a personal level. He excelled at times, leaving the parents in the viewing gallery in awe, but he also struggled and hit some really low lows. We tried new things (three out-of-town tournaments), pushed limits (training five days a week), celebrated victories, hit the wall, and made some much needed changes (a new lead coach).

This week was report card week for the tennis kids, and it would appear that both coaches are happy with his progress. As the indoor training season comes to an end, there's a marked improvement in his attitude, and I'm hopeful that James will find his groove with his new coach during the summer training academy.

Jamesie, the struggles and hard work will pay off, I promise. You won't likely get rich by winning on the tennis courts, but the life lessons you learn on court will help you grow and succeed.

.....

5x5 Friday (March edition)

Hey, I'm back. :)

Last night, I found a credit card statement with the Typepad annual fee on it, and I had a bit of a "use it or lose it" panic attack. I know I haven't been blogging enough to warrant paying the annual fee, but the thought of shutting this blog down didn't sit well either. My years of writing here have helped me sort through lots of stuff, connected me to some new friends and, most importantly, made me realize what a wonderful (albeit extrememly busy) life I lead.

So with that in mind, I'll think up five lists of five things that I think I might want to revisit at some point in the future. (Because blogging for the memory-keeping is where it's at for me...)

.....

Five things that made me happy this week
1. A friend of mine started taking tennis lessons, and she LOVES it. I hope she'll want to hit with me on the outdoor courts this summer.
2. Watching the dog run around with other dogs in the field behind Thomas' school made me realize how much I love having a dog... and how lucky we are to live in a great neighbourhood where there's lots of space and an abundance of friendly, responsible dog owners with friendly, playful dogs for mine to socialize with.
3. Finding new songs iTunes makes me happy - it's great to have new music to listen to on the bus and to mix into my spin playlists.
4. We've broken the daily high temperature records for almost an entire week running. It was warm over the weekend, and then it got crazy HOT on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Mid-20s is unheard of in Ottawa in mid-March! The average daytime high is 4 degrees Celcius in mid-March.
5. I ran outside for the first time this season. It was a nice, easy run along the Ottawa River at lunchtime. That 4 km felt really, really easy - I guess all that spinning has helped keep my cardiovascular fitness at a decent level over the winter.

Five things I'm looking forward to
1. ComicCon is coming to Ottawa, and Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) is going to be there. Jamesie will be sooooooo excited. Me too! :)
2. Thomas will finally be tall enough for a new bike this summer. I'm looking forward to longer rides with him on a bike that's big enough to go at a decent speed. I think he'll enjoy it too.
3. Lemon turns one year old this weekend. I'm going to look up a doggy cupcake recipe and stage some birthday portraits. I wonder if she'll sit with a party hat on... hmmmm...
4. It looked like they were going to put the nets up on the outdoor courts at the club this week, but it didn't happen. Two nets are up but they haven't been cranked tight yet. Such a teaser! I'm really looking forward to hitting outside in a month or so.
5. It's Friday, so the weekend's nearly here. Yay! I'm looking foward to relaxing and getting some sleep this weekend. :)

Five things we're reading at our place these days
1. Graphic novels (Bone) and comic books (Archie, Calvin and Hobbes, etc.)
2. Study manual for the YMCA's indoor cycling instructor certification *sigh*
3. Tennis magazine - the latest issue, and the boys reread back-issues too.
4. Whatever offerings the Scholastic Book Club had in last month's order forms.
5. Stuff on my iPhone and Mike's iPad (news, blogs, etc.)

Five fun things that don't involve screens
1. Jamesie and I have been playing Star Trek: The Next Generation Monopoly.
2. Thomas played in a squash tournament a few weekends ago, and Jamesie and I went to watch. That goofy photo above was taken between matches.
3. James and I were doing some cross-training (boot-camp style!) just before March Break. I wish he were a little more serious about it. I think he could use a little extra muscle on his tiny frame, and it'd probably improve his tennis game.
4. I've spent time on court with both the boys lately, and I've done a few drop-in clinics too. Tennis rules!
5. Running. I'd forgotten how much I love running outside. I want to sign up for a race with the boys. Must check into that soon so we can start training together.

Five things I've eaten today (some of which I shouldn't have)
1. President's Choice Decadent chocolate chip cookie (only one...)
2. Homemade fruit smoothie spiked with vanilla latte powder mix
3. Breakfast cereal
4. Two cups of coffee
5. Babybel cheese (yum!)

Finally!

After 16 months of tennis lessons, I am finally getting the hang of this game.

Today was part 2 of the epic Backhand v Ball Machine battle. I didn't win, but I managed to get better than I was at the beginning of the hour, so that's a good thing.

Actually, the true test of my progress came on the long weekend while I was on court with the boys. I think I am finally at the stage where I can hit with a fair bit of confidence and not get too frustrated by my inability to keep the ball in play. I hit with each of the boys on the public courts in our neighbourhood, and I daresay it was a decent workout and it was fun. I think we'll be walking over to those courts after dinner on a regular basis this summer. :)

.....

Where does this leave all my other pastimes and/or commitments? Hmmmmm...

* I'll continue to go running once or twice a week at lunchtime at work.

* I'm not sure when I'll ever find time to clean off my desk, but I'd like to scrapbook again. Soon. 

* I am still teaching aerobics twice a week for now, but I may drop down to one class/week this summer. We'll see.

* I'm going to be sooooo happy when the school year is over and I can take a break from school council duties.

* My tennis mom duties will ease up this summer when the boys are in day camps and Mike is off work and able to do all the drop-offs and pick-ups. Yay!

* We are still seriously looking at getting a dog this summer. That is one of the BIG things on my To Do list.

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So much to do. So little time to hit tennis balls. :)