Some Serious Pork is Flying High

For those of you who have been around since the early days of Jabbering Jaime (my first blog) you'll remember that when I mention pigs flying it refers to me exercising; well ladies and gentlemen the entire effing sty has lifted off! I started running almost daily three, or maybe it was four, weeks ago and my crazy (you'll understand why in a minute) sister-in-law/friend Joanne joined me last week.

Now here's the reason I say the entire sty has taken flight and that Joanne is slightly crazed. We've decided to take part in a triathlon on September 6th. I give Joanne full credit for this insanely fabulous idea - I'm nervous and excited and a little bit thrilled that I now have a serious goal to work towards. We made the decision yesterday and hit the community pool last night to swim 30 laps (660 m); my body is in surprisingly little pain today considering.

I am a pretty determined and goal oriented person but I have a hell of a time sticking to any exercise routine. Mike put it perfectly last night when he said to me that having this goal in sight is exactly what I need to get fit; I'm determined to complete this triathlon and am stoked that Joanne will be at my side when it happens!

We're not exactly sure which of the events we're going to take part in, the options we are looking at are the Super Sprint Triathlon (swim 375m, bike 10k, run 2.5) or the Sprint Triathlon (swim 750m, bike 20k, run 5k). I am definitely leaning towards the Super Sprint at this point in time but we'll see where we are in a month... maybe by then that will seem easy. Both are all women events and totally doable with the right amount of training. The swimming portion is what I'm most worried about since it's open water but I'm a pretty strong swimmer and with a little over two months to train I'm certain I can pull off at least 375m.

CRAZY huh?! If you know me you'll agree... Off to hit the roads dans la bicyclette, wish me luck!

Fab Pick of Forever Ago

This toy sewing machine by Wood Clinic is to die for! Not only is this the most beautiful machine I've ever seen, it was handmade in Vancouver. Go Canada! There are a few different 'models' to choose from so be sure to check out Wood Clinic's Etsy shop to see the others. Love it!

A Beautiful Name for a Beautiful Girl

I wanted to wait until she announced it herself before I opened my (sometimes overly) big mouth here at Gingham Skies...

Welcome to the world Miss. Jade Violet Alisa L! I cannot wait to sniff your sweet baby smell and tickle your soft baby skin. Congratulations to Mommy, Daddy and big dog Niko. I'm looking forward to making my way to Someday Farms in July to meet the new addition and to snap some photos of the new farm babe and family.

Wishing Miss. Jade a life full of nothing but goodness!

Creating 101

An evening with some of my work friends resulted in a full belly and these lovely bits:

Thanks, Liz for the card making class! Having a template to follow was grrrrreat, I'm so much better at making cards when I'm not having to rely on my own creativity to guide me!

So crafty!

9

Tim Burton is one talented individual. I was thrilled to hear that he's working on Alice In Wonderland but that film isn't being released until 2010. 9 on the other hand is being released in September and it looks awesome!

Check out this trailer:

Fab Pick of... Awhile Ago

Deadpan Alley is partially at fault for my new found love of 2-D birds - the 3-D kind are still not welcome to come within 5 feet of me - it seems that lately I just can't seem to get enough of birds on fabric, crafts and paper. All of the birdie drawings found over in Deadpan Alley's shop and blog are freaking adorable! I'm smitten.

Loved

Grad day was perfect.

The best part was being surrounded by my biggest supporters: my family.

Without the love and support of my husband, our parents, our brothers and sisters and our amazing friends, the past four years of my life would have been extremely difficult. I am very very proud of myself for managing to earn my BA and my BEd in just four years while working but without Mike I don't think I would have taken the plunge in the first place, nor would I have gotten through this experience sane! Thanks, babe!!

Sporting the Gown and Hood

I've had an absolutely perfect day. I'm going to sip a glass of wine and stare at the beautiful roses and tropical flowers sitting on my dining room table; I'll tell you all about my day tomorrow.



I'm a teacher: I have the paper to prove it.

Super Big Thank!

I really like receiving mail (excluding bills) but I LOVE opening the mail box to find a package addressed to yours truly even more!

Lucky me won the recent giveaway that took place at Pattern & Perspective!! Look how sweetly my goodies were wrapped.

I now know firsthand what fabulous quality MOO cards are and I'll definitely be ordering my biz cards from the site in the future. These little courtesy cards are awesome and if you're nice to me you might end up with one... if you're not you still may because some simply say "YOU...." so I can fill in the blank with whatever nasty thing I want to.

Oh and the CD - some lovely folky bits, a fab addition to the package! Thanks SO very much!!