The Craziness that is The Eby Family

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Big House Big Heart Run

A few years ago after my Dad's law partner was diagnosed with ALS and my Dad decided to start a race, The Big House Big Heart, to help raise money for ALS research. The first race was held in 2007 just weeks after my dad's partner passed away. It has been going strong and even grown over the past 4 years. It originally began as just a 1 mile fun run with the finish line being the 50 yard line of Michigan Stadium (The Big House) and 2 years ago they expanded the race to add a 10k and 5k race that also finishes on the stadium field.

2 years ago I ran the 10k with my friend Linsey. It was my first race ever. It was a bit of a struggle, but the feeling of accomplishment at the end was worth all of the pain. I didn't run last year because I had just had Rylan 6 weeks earlier. And this year Linsey and I decided to do the race again, but we would do the 5k so that Linsey's daughter, Eilan, could run with us. Chris was going to be out of town on race day so I decided to run with Rylan in the jogging stroller as well. So it was Me, Linsey, and our daughters to run a 5k.

The race was this past weekend and it went great. We had beautiful weather for the race, I think it was around 65 degrees at the race start. Eilan did great, she ran over half of the 5k with only a few walking breaks, pretty impressive for a 6 year old! The race was much easier for me this time as well. I'm sure I owe most of that to running while I was pregnant with Rylan.

After the race I met up with the boys and my dad to run/walk the 1 mile fun run. The boys have done this for the past 3 years. Last year Chris took them down and did the 1 mile race with the boys, my brother, and my dad. This year Jake and my dad ran together and Brenden, Rylan, and I ran/walked together. Jake and my dad crossed the finish line first and then came back to run through it again with Brenden, Rylan, and me.

It was all a lot of fun and I hope to be able to come back after we move to do it again. And maybe next year Jake can run the 5k too!

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Fall Funk

So I know I usually use this blog to post about the kids and family and how we're all doing here in Michigan, but I need a bit of an outlet right now and I'm going to do it here. I'm in a fall funk and I don't know what else to do.

Last week we thought we were going to get an offer on the house. Our Realtor called us to find out if we'd be able to do a 30 day turn around on our house and that we were the top of the list for the interested buyers. As you can imagine, this caused quite a stir for us. Could we do a 30 day turn around? We could, but it would mean a lot of work to get it done. I would need to go down to Cincinnati ASAP to find a house, we would have to pack and move 3 kids, I would need to get Jake out of school here and registered down there, etc, etc. Our agent told us that the buyers had one more house to see and then would make an offer on our house or the final house they were to look at. Well, they went with the other house and now I'm in a funk.

I was in a bit of a funk before all of that, but the ups and downs of the possibility of it all sent me over the edge. I don't know if its not working as much, not knowing when this move will happen, not having any "me" time, or what. Most likely, its just a combination of it all. I love fall, but for some reason this funk likes to pop up pretty regularly this time of year. And for some reason it is a lot worse this year.

For a lot of years this was the way it was. Fall would roll around and my depression would get worse - for those of you that don't know I suffered from depression for years and was on and off meds for about 7 years for it. Once I had finally decided to take control of my life in 2002 by leaving school and moving back to Michigan, I finally started to really understand myself and how to deal much better. I didn't need meds anymore and for the first time in years there was no fall funk. Sure I've had moments of it popping up, but nothing even close to what I had gone through in the past. But this year? This year it seems to be rearing its ugly head in an almost forgotten way.

The unknown doesn't sit well with me and being in limbo is even worse. And right now I'm dealing with both and I don't like it. I really wish I knew when this move would happen. And I wish I knew what I was going to do once we do move. I know it will all work out the way its supposed to, but I'm having a hard time keeping that thought in the front of my mind as this drags out longer and longer.

Friday, September 23, 2011

New Do!

So many people know that I was prepared for a 3rd boy and found myself a little off guard when the ultrasound revealed I was going to be having a girl - eek! I was a bit apprehensive about having to do all the girlie stuff - pink, bows, dolls, etc. And so far I think I have done a pretty good job of adjusting to life with a girl, but I have by no means gone girlie. I do the occasional pink and dresses, but still so happy to put Rylan in jeans and a t-shirt (like mom). And I love that she likes to play with cars and legos and run all about with the boys outside when they're playing soccer or basketball.

There is one thing though that I have been looking forward to with a girl - fun hairstyles! I'm not talking about all the headbands and bows that you see babies wearing these days. I'm talking about having her hair long enough to start doing fun stuff with it. I love seeing little girls in pig tails, pony tails on the very top of their heads, and other fun things. By the time I was in second grade my mom had cut my hair down to a boy haircut and I had always missed having the fun, cute hairstyles my friends had. So now Rylan's hair is starting to get a bit longer, especially in the back, so I bought some barrettes and hair bands the other day while we were out. Below is a few pictures of Rylan's first hair do! So Cute! Looking forward to lots more fun to come when it gets even longer!

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Back to School...and Life

Well, we're a couple of weeks into the new school year. Jake started 1st grade and is very happy with his new school and new teacher. There are quite a few kids from his old DK class from when he was at Morningstar and he, of course, has made lots of new friends as well. We did have a hiccup on the second day of school by getting a call home from his teacher. Most of it was the same old stuff - Jake is social and isn't always the best at paying attention, nothing new to us. But she was also concerned with how upset and frustrated he got with having to read in class. I have to admit, we could have done more over the summer working with him on his reading. Since bringing this up with us, Jake has been reading everyday and made HUGE improvements. On the first day it took at least an hour to get through a book and now it takes 20-30 minutes. He's recognizing more words and is doing a great job sounding out words to figure them out. The kid is mad smart, unfortunately, most of the time this is what gets in his way ;) I think he's going to have a great year and has also shown us that he will do just fine when we finally make the move to Cincinnati.

Brenden started DK at Morningstar this fall. It was sad to say goodbye to Ms. Melissa, she was his preschool teacher for the past couple of years. I'm sure we'll still see her from time to time on the playground though. Brenden is doing great so far, he likes his class and teachers and is making lots of new friends. He has only been for a week though because he got to go back with my Mom to Arizona for a week. He has been having a blast being the center of attention. I can see how hard it is to be the middle child so its nice for him to have this time. He has been swimming, went to Old Tucson Studios, went to the Airplane museum, and much more. I have a feeling he's not going to want to come home on Wednesday! It has been strange to only have 2 kids at home with me, but I have missed my little man lots and I'm excited to have him home in a couple of days.

The little lady is starting to show her "explosive power". Ginger, my MIL, has this book, "The Secret Language of Birthdays". Its fabulous and lots of fun. Everyday is its own unique day and talks about what people are like on each day, and Rylan's birthday is the day of Explosive Power. When I first saw this I have to admit I was a bit nervous for what this could mean. Well, Rylan is now a crazy woman determined to do what she wants, even if she's not ready, and quick to let us know when she wants something or is frustrated that she can't do/get it herself. She has quite the strong personality and it'll be fun and interesting to continue to watch it come out. She has been quite busy walking/running, climbing, and getting into everything she can. She has 2 new molars and 2 more trying to push through - Fun for all! She's not talking yet, but I think it'll be coming soon. She's doing lots of babbling and loves to have me read her alphabet books to her - 26 books with each letter and 3 pictures and words to go with the letters. I would say we spend close to an hour each day having her bring me a book and read the letter and words for each book and repeat the process with about 10 books each time we do it.

Chris is back to traveling a lot. He has already been to Cleveland, Cincinnati, Kentucky, and is now in Arizona. I refuse to look at his schedule because I know I'll just get depressed ;) He has lots more coming up in the next few weeks then hopefully things will quiet down a bit. Luckily, he has been home mostly on the weekends so we have been able to go to 2 Michigan football games and starting this Saturday he will be coaching Jake's soccer team.

I started back coaching last week. I had had a month off since Nationals. For the most part, I had enjoyed my time away, but it was definitely nice to get back to work. I'm going to be coaching 3 days a week and possibly one more day I will be doing private lessons with 2 of the girls on the team that live in Canada - we're still working it out to see if it will all work. I have NOT missed coaching high school at all. This is the first time in 10 years I haven't coached high school and I'm loving it. However, I'm not getting too attached to my time away as I will probably have to coach high school when we move to make some money.

The house is still on the market and we've gotten some new interest this week. I change my mind almost daily as to whether or not I'm ready for this move. Part of me just wants to get it over and get started in our new town, but then there are the days where the kids are happy playing with their friends in the neighborhood and I'm happy to be coaching at Legacy and I don't want to leave. I guess it'll all happen when its supposed to and I'll be ready.

Friday, August 26, 2011

A day on the lake

Sunday the kids and I went out on Whitmore Lake with my Aunt and Uncle. It was the first time Rylan had been on a boat and the first time for all of us on my Aunt and Uncle's new boat. The boat was awesome and we all had a great time.

When we got to the lake it was lightly sprinkling, but you could see nothing but sun in the distance. It quickly cleared up and we all headed out. Jake was probably the most excited. Brenden was excited, but quickly became apprehensive when he saw my Aunt's dog on board. Brenden refused to get off any of the seats and walk around for nearly all of the excursion. Despite his fear of dogs, he did have a very good time. Rylan had no idea what she was getting into, but quickly found that she loved it. She cruised around the entire boat and even went swimming with my Aunt. All 3 kids got a turn driving the boat, well Rylan only got to sit at the steering wheel while the boat was anchored at the sand bar. It really was a lovely day, the only thing that could have made it better would have been to have Chris there. I guess we'll just have to go out again sometime!

Rylan turns 1!

Happy Birthday to my sweet girl! It's official, she's one and no more babies at the Eby house :( I can't believe how quickly this year has gone by and with the upcoming move to Cincinnati, I'm sure the next year is going to fly by just as quickly. I am a little sad to be done with babies, but luckily so many of my friends are starting to have kids that I can get a baby fix from time to time.

We had a very quiet day for the birthday girl. Chris had to leave for work very early so we weren't able to do much until he came home for a short break. Rylan and I did Skype with my mom so she could say happy birthday and watch Rylan open the presents she had gotten her. And much of the rest of the day was spent playing as usual.

When Chris came home we opened presents, sang happy birthday, and ate cupcakes. I decided to save making a cake for Saturday when we planned to have some friends and their kids over. Rylan LOVED the cupcake! She ate almost the entire thing - it was about the size of her head - and got chocolate everywhere. It was a lot of fun. She wasn't very interested in her gifts, but did like her cards and the bows from the packages. I did get a little freaked out when my dad gave her a tea set and baby doll - girl toys! Ahhhh! What do I do with girl toys?! Anyway, Rylan was back to playing with her brothers cars and legos by the next day, so hopefully I won't have to worry about girl toys for awhile - or ever ;)

All in all, it was a very nice day. We also had a great time on Saturday with a few friends stopping by to wish Rylan Happy Birthday and so I could get my baby fix :)

Rylan also had her 12 month check up and we're pleased to report one happy and healthy girl! For those interested, here are her stats: Weight - 19.64 lbs (25%) Height - 30.51 inches (89%) and Head - 18.5 inches (93%) She's almost the exact same as Brenden was in the percentages at one, so it looks like another long and skinny kid!

And some pictures of the Birthday girl!

CAKE!!!!! - actually, cupcake