The Team Schmitty Report

2012-01-18T06:42:00.001-07:00

Dear WinterBike, Good job today. You may look like shit. You might not have 4inch or studded tires, or any derailleurs. Your paint job might not match my kit and you might not have Moonlander or Mukluk decals on your top tube but that's OK, I know you can't help that. Your drive train might be covered in rust, your seat post seized in place and duct tape might be holding your fender together. You might have two different pedals and your rear brake may be missing along with one of your grips but that's cool, nobody's perfect. You may have been abandoned in the alley trash but I still love you Mr. Pacific Ricochet. Thanks for getting me to work and my boys to school.Everyday. You're alright by me. Cheers.Ty

2011-12-31T17:27:00.002-07:00

Happy 5th Birthday, Jameson. Out to breakfast, movie at the State Theater, Count-Down-to-Noon at the Children's Museum, party with friends, asleep by 6:30 on New Year's Eve. Doesn't get much better.

2011-12-31T16:42:00.001-07:00

test

2011-10-03T15:30:00.004-07:00

october means mountain bike racing so it was go!time for the team this past weekend. we all made the trek north to the nubs nob ski hill for some fun on the dirt at the crybaby classic. sunny, beautiful fall temps made for a great day in the woods. mum rode awesome (2nd in the elite field), dad mustered a less than awesome performance finishing 7th in the elite field. carter wins the 5-7year old division scoring some sweet schwag and a cool plaque. jamo, one of only a few 4year olds, nets a solid 5th place.

here's a vid of the kid's race:

write up on the team's site:

2weeks till the peak2peak race. 5till the big daddy, iceman.

2011-08-31T05:02:00.003-07:00

2011-08-28
Day #12
This is it. Last day but we've got lots to do. Up at 7. Rice cripies. Gallon of coffee. On bikes, with dad and carter on the tag-a-long and layne pulling sadie and jamo in the chariot. Pedaling to assiniboine park to check out the brand new nature playground! It was awesome. Really awesome. Best park we've ever been too and we've been to a lot of parks. Water feature, slides, climbing ropes, hills, swings, gardens. Unreal. We need one in TC. Dad's old university roommate corey and his wife and 2boys (exact same age to the month as us) met us there so we stay awhile to play and visit. Quick ride home for lunch, an hour of wii while dad packs, some last goodbyes and we're off to the ywg airport. Breeze through customs and security (minus 2organges and an allen wrench) and we're on our way to ohare at 250. Delayed 1hour there due to hurricane irene but we survive and make it to tc around 9. So excited to see mum. Great trip but good to be home too!

2011-08-30T04:50:00.002-07:00

2011-08-27
Day #11
Boys up way too early again. Lucky layne has coffee and breakfast ready then we're out the door to walk down to the assiniboine river to play. Water is really high and the boys had fun walking on all the wash up trees. 10 o'clock and it's time for riley's birthday party at kidcity. That place is awesome. Huge play structure inside a warehouse with indoor soccer/basketball, wii, air hockey and foosball too. So fun even with the 100 crazy kids running around at mach9. Lunch at the lafonds and then some downtime with the incredibles in their fancy, theater-like attic. Splash pad park is next at vimy ridge park which is just 1block away. So fun as the boys and 3girls rock the place despite the frigid water...dad does not partake! Our day keeps on rolling as we all walk back down to sadie's, love the wosely neighborhood!, house for supper. Veggie burgers, corn on the cob and potatoes with layne working the grill and jenn in the kitchen. Yumms! Boys beyond tired. Dad cranky. Collapsed into unconsciousness around 830.

2011-08-29T04:58:00.002-07:00

Day #10
Before we head out for the longass ride back to winnipeg, dad gets out early for one more ride around aberdeen. Riding was actually fairly decent with a nice mix of urban/county/dirt roads. No flats or getting lost either so that was nice. Back in the yukon with gma tenley at the helm (she drove the whole way...with dad riding shotgun on kid duty) and we're off. Northbound on I29 stopping in grandforks to walk around UND. Dad's first time back since he graduated in 1999 so it fun to visit the campus again. Stopped at the new bookstore for a while to get some coffee/chocolate milk, play checkers and read books. After a couple hours down memory lane we're in the car for another 200km getting to great gma audrey's place around 630. Got a pizza and salad for dinner and visited a bit before going over to sadie's place to crash. Long, long day in the car so the boys went straight to bed. Good to be back in the 'peg.

2011-08-26

2011-08-29T04:41:00.003-07:00

2011-08-25
day #9
Boys beat everyone up again and are out the door before 7. Walk over to margaret's to visit. Another game of sorry! then back to great gma's to say bye to the dauphin schmidts. Carter and dad ride over to melgaard to practice playground "perimetering" where carter goes around and around the outside of the structure collecting "points, money and items". Strange game but it keeps him busy so dad can read the paper. Ride down to the library after to hang out and read. Carter finds some babymouse, scooby-doo and binky books while dad reads the newspaper...again. Back home for lunch.....mmm corn and tomato/cucumber sammich. Next the boys drive out to wylie lake but the beach sand isn't great and the lake is a bit muddy for the boys...so spoiled with our bay back in tc. Home for a bit for more sorry! (love that game...great gma wins all 3) and to watch little league baseball and some bike racing before gma takes the boys to go see spy kids at the theater while dad goes for a ride out to richmond lake. More yummy local veggies for dinner then off to bed early. Last day in aberdeen was a good one!

2011-08-25T08:41:00.002-07:00

2011-08-24
Day #8
Dad and the boys are up first, imagine that!, so they all scarf down a bowl of cereal and head out to ride over to melgaard park. school just got started here so we rode with a bunch of kids on their way to simmons elementary. got yelled at by the crossing lady for not walking our bikes across the crosswalk, "sorry, we're from michigan!", replied dad. Skate park and playground action then back home for a second breakfast...great gma's famous french toast with karo syrup.mmmmm...yummos! next adventure has gma, boys and cousins heading out to storybook land while dad road the 30lbs beast commuter bike of uncle taylor out to mina lake. everyone gets home in time for lunch and a couple games of sorry! then over to margaret's to watch rio the movie. third adventure of the day and we all head back down to melgaard park to play and take pictures. local sweet corn, green beans and carrots for dinner then some soccer, frisbee, wrestling, basketball in the backyard. fun times with the cousins!

2011-08-24T11:24:00.002-07:00

2011-08-23
Day #7
Back on the road heading southeast to aberdeen, sd. Carter and dad got up early to walk down to the grocery store for breakfast then back to the pool for another 2 hours of fun. Easy 3hrs in the car through the great plains. Got to great gma imogene's around 1:30. Had some lunch, played sorry! then dad and carter went for a cruise to check out the town. Found a skate park, cool playground and a nice bike path by the moccasin creek. Home for dinner and some playing in the backyard. Hot and sticky!! 94F. Auntie margaret and uncle tom come over for a visit then it's off to bed. 4th different bed of the trip. Boys don't care they're asleep within 4minutes.

2011-08-23T15:18:00.003-07:00

2011-08-22
day #6
Transfer day! Dad is having a rough time sleeping in with his squirmy bed partner carter so he got up at 5 to start packing the car. Taking the 3 bikes and bunch of other stuff. Lucky gma drives a big svu pig. South on highway 10 through the park, brandon, boisevain, peace gardens into north dakota to bismarck. aka the biz. Uncle taylor, gma tenley and gpa tom all went to school here and dad used to live here when he was little so it was a little homecoming of sorts. Hotel had an awesome water slide and splash pad so the boys loved it. By way of sink-or-swim jamo learned how to swim and carter was all by himself on the big slide. walked down to taco john's for dinner then back to the pool for awhile before bed. sharing a room with gma tenley and her snoring actually wasn't too terrible.

2011-08-21T19:18:00.002-07:00

2011-08-21
Day #5
Last day in Dauphin. Dad gets up at 5:45 to get one more ride in at the park. So quiet, calm, beautiful. Riding Mountain is a great place to pedal a bike. Boys go over to the cousins for a bit in the morning. Carter gets some quality wii time in so he's happy. Home for burritos then to rachelle's, mum's friend, for a little photo shoot with gma and her 5 grandkids. Goes surprisingly well. Then we're off to vermillion park where they're having "family day". Carnival like games as a fundraiser for a local charity. Boys have a blast winning all sorts of junk. Mountain bike home through the trails to get our swimming trunks then back to rachelle's for a quick dip. Sunny. Warm. Another perfect day. After swimming we ride, lots of bike riding today!, way over to the cousins for some playing before dinner back over at gma's. Dad leaves to go for a mountain bike ride with a buddy while gma puts the boys to bed. Long, fun sunday. Off to north dakota tomorrow.

2011-08-21T08:42:00.002-07:00

2011-08-20
Day #4
Dad leaves early to ride up to clear lake while the boys and gma pack the car then drive up there to meet him. Saw 2 deers, a mama black bear and 2 cubs and a big ol' mama moose! "Boo in the Park", halloween in august cause the town is closed in october!?!, is happening so the boys don some sweet wizard costumes and off we went. Carter was excited as there was even a quidditch match to play, he's turned into a full fledged harry potter maniac.Lots of canadian candy scored in the trick or treat bags...smarties, coffee crisp, old dutch chips. mmmm jumk food. Wasagaming was totally hoping. Tons of people on a beautiful saturday. 100th anniversary party going on with a free concert by canadian country band Emerson Drive. Kind of a big deal. Cousins meet us up there for some playing at the park, beach, pier, bounce house with some ice cream as a finale. Jamo crashes on the way home and stays asleep through the night. Tired little boy!!

2011-08-20T17:40:00.003-07:00

2011-08-19
Day #3
Up at 6! Dad borrows a bike and rides to moon lake and back. Gets battered by a stiff 35kph prairie crosswind but is super happy to be in riding mountain national park again. Cousins come over to go to the park at henderson school with the boys. Some lunch and more yardwork then we head out for a little ride, jamo on the "green hornet" and carter pedaling the "blue big horn", around town...main street, vermillion, kirby park then macneil school (dad's elementary school). cousins come back over for dinner and another raging brush fueled bonfire. Later dad and carter ride down to steve's house then over to his parents for a visit. Have fun and even score some veggies from their garden. Back home late and jamo is already asleep.

2011-08-19T05:22:00.004-07:00

2011-08-17
day #2
Chuck makes breakfast then we walk down to darwin park for some playing. Some new rockets from gma keep them entertained. Boys then leave to go ride the polaris "side-by-side" with chuck on the red river floodway. Carter gets to drive and jamo catches a grasshopper that he keeps and brings home in a bottle. Some downtime before going over to great gma’s place for lunch. She just moved into a new place and it's very nice. Fancy dining room where the staff takes your order and serve you. Sammiches and salad to eat then we go watch a music performance. 1hr of sinatra/show tunes that carter patiently sits through while jamo curls up on the chair and sleeps. Carter's patients pays off in 3!! (at the behast of great gma) pieces of cake afterward...Dad does not approve but remains silent. Keep trip to a music store off pembina for gma tenley then back to bon's for pizza then bed. Sleeping by 8....so tired tonight.

2011-08-18T15:43:00.004-07:00

2011-08-16
Day#1
Hot, sunny, bluebird beach day! Before we fly out though we had to do some errands...library, bike shop, condo then to DQ for some ice cream. Back home for lunch with mum then to the secret beach for a quick dip in the bay. Next we're off to the airport around 2:30 in the jetta. Flight to Chicago was a fast 1 hour. Boys very excited. Jamo’s first time on a plane! Not scared at all although carter a little nervous and keeps closing the window. 2hours to kill in Ohare. Super busy (on a Tuesday!?!) but luckily we find a cool play area to run around in for a bit. We score front row seats on the way to winnipeg with another packed plane!?! Carter makes a friend with a lady he’s sitting next to (played solitaire with her on her phone) while jamo takes a nap beside dad. Gma meets us at the airport and drives us to bon and chuck’s. Little cereal before bed. Jamo gets dad and carter sleeps with snoring gma.

2011-08-15T15:41:00.000-07:00

road trip north.
dad and boys head to manitoba sans mum for visit to the motherland.
daily blog posts for the travelogue to follow.

2011-07-14T13:25:00.003-07:00

Carter had his 7-year-check-up with the doctor this afternoon. Carter loves the doctor but hates shots. Last time he had to get shots 4 nurses had to come in to hold him down. So we were going into the visit thinking "no shots." Well, it turns out there is a new vaccine for Hep A and because we take trips to Tucson the doctor recommended it for both boys. Carter decided that Jameson should go first. Jamo jumps up on the table, puts his hands behind his head like he's lounging at the beach and didn't even blink when the needle went it. Carter asked Jamo what it was like. Jamo's replay, "it was like eating candy." So he's not only fearless, he also has a ridiculous pain tolerance. BTW, Carter was brave too and we all went out for ice cream.

2011-07-08T09:50:00.005-07:00

The making of a pie eating champion:

2007 - age 3

2008 - age 4

2009 - age 5

2010 - age 6

2011 - age 7

2011-07-05T10:44:00.003-07:00

They did it again! National Cherry Festival 4 and 7 year old Pie Eating Contest WINNERS!

2011-07-03T09:30:00.005-07:00

The team hosted a neighborhood Canada Day porch party Friday night complete with beer and street hockey. It was a great way to kick off of unofficial start of summer.

2011-06-15T10:29:00.004-07:00

Sorry all you loyal blog readers. We took a little break and now we're back.
Since we've been back from Tucson:
1. Dad went to uncle Tannin's wedding in Calgary.
2. Mum won a MTB race (Dad's first DNF due to branch in the wheel breaking 5 spokes 1/4 mile into the race)
3. Carter turned 7 with a camping party at Timber Ridge logging in at least 15 hours of dodge ball.
4. Jameson graduated from dad school while Carter graduated from first grade.
5. Mum turned 37 (old!)
6. Carter won first bike race. Tour de Mont Pleasant crit.
7. Dad upgraded to category 2 after many years of trying. Guess it was the new bike!
8. Lots and lots of skate park time and finally the weather is getting nice enough to go to the beach.
We promise to be better about blogging. Thanks for reading...

2011-04-04T17:21:00.006-07:00

We're back home now but here's a recap of our last few days in the old pueblo:

3.28.11 Mum and dad leave early to ride to the tippy top of mt lemmon while the boys hang out with grandma. They drive the jetta up to windy point to meet mum and dad then go hiking/bouldering. Great place to explore...Carter is really into climbing things. Jamo falls asleep on the way home while the rest of us hang out and rest. Chess club at 3:30 so dad, carter and grandma walk down to the library where carter plays 3 and wins 1 (battles Ocean again and finally gets one). Mum and jamo meet them there then everyone walks down to la salsa for dinner. Beans and cheese for the team...grandma eats chicken. Clean plates all around....again. Home for some showers then play lego minotaur game. It's pretty fun.

3.29.11 TMR for mum and dad. Leaving earlier this week so they have to out the door at 6:20...everyone still sleeping except for jamo who scores some PBS kids. Boys hang out with grandma, carter does some homework (writes a nice letter to beth the librarian). Grandma and boys walk down to wholefoods for some fruit and snacks then stop at may's counter for some mac n cheese and applesauce. Meet mum and dad at home then drive down to rio vista park for a meetup with lucas, izzie, zac and some new friends nevan and phoebe (kids of rua from squamish bc who mum and dad met on their bike ride). Home for a bit to rest and start packing (second to last day). Carter, grandma and dad walk down to the libray to read and return all of our books. Carter plays a quick video game with the "hanging at himmel" crew before going home for dinner. Mum makes some yummy coconut curry tofu and fruit salad. Long day, no naps, hotter too (80F) so we're all in bed by 7.

3.30.11 Last ride for mum and dad. They join the WMR group out to lemmon but then turn off (Mum: "i'm so done with that mountain") to do a lap of saguaro national park...mum's favorite ride. Boys spend the morning with grandma again...we love grandma....carter does one last report...on javelinas. After mum and dad get back, boys, grandma and dad walk down to playground to play some before grandma took the boys to a matinee...Tangled. Jessica stops by to pick up the burley but forgets the cover so mum bikes down there to return it. Unfortunately, she gets a flat (without extra tube/pump) by the university so she has to walk it to the bike shop to fix. Bummer. Been pretty lucky with flats though, here's the team's tally: mum 2, dad 1, carter 1 and jameson 1. Packing, laundry, cleaning for most of the afternoon then we drive up to the adams' to drop off some gear. Have some dessert, say our goodbyes then go to the finger rock trail for one last sunset hike. Boys have a blast and grandma manages to survive in her flip flops. Quick stop at toby's to say bye then home to bed. Last night at 1224.

2011-03-26T19:22:00.003-07:00

week #3.5. republished with permission:

3.25.11 Arizona sonora desert museum today. Mum bikes out and boys take the jetta stopping at gates pass for some hiking/bouldering first. Fun! In the museum at 9...reptiles, bear, deer, coati, wolves then the raptor show. Watch the "animals on the run" program in the theater then some lunch, aviary, otters, beaver and ice cream. Desert loop trail to see some coyote and javelina then to the 2nd free flight show this time with harris hawks. Really cool. 5.5 hours and way too much sun later we limp back home for a little siesta. Boys walk down to the park to play a bit before dinner. Long day. So tired. Dad and boys asleep by 7.

3.26.11 Dad at the shootout one last time. Carter does some early morning homework then mum and boys walk down to the library to get some new books. Lucas' 5th birthday party today so we drive out to rio vista park with our bikes. Lots of kids, great eats and beautiful warm sunshine. Hang out for 4 hours. Have an awesome time. Adams' come too. Back home to watch the arizona basketball team lose to uconn. Bummer. Quick trip to the park for some pull-ups and playground playing. Team schmitty tostadas for dinner then showers then books then bed. Before 7 again!!

2011-03-19T07:04:00.004-07:00

another excerpt from the team's journal. Week 3 of camp:

3.16.11 Mum rides with the WMR group out to saguaro east for a couple laps. She gets back just in time to take the Whittakers to the airport. It's their last day here. Boys and mum go to the pool after and dad meets them there after he did some shopping at TraderJoe's (our big bucket of PB is gone already?). 3hrs of swimming fun (it's a great place...especially when it's 88F) then back home for some relaxing. Jamo naps while carter and dad walk down to the library to "read to a dog". Boomerang is there this time and is much more mellow than Champ. Actually, he just sleeps while carter reads him his chess book. Back home for dinner then off to bed. Carter is beyond tired.

3.17.11 Mum leaves early to ride up lemmon. Boys stay home, do some homework before driving to rio vista park around 9 to meet bailey and paige. Dad and mike leave to ride once mum gets back. Another hot day, mid eighties again, it's been really warm this year. Cool off at home in bed with the fans going trying to take naps to no avail. Family shower then we walk down to the library to read to a dog again, he's a new one but no one can remember his name. Carter does some homework with the "homework helper" lady while dad and jamo leave to play at the playground. It's st. pattie's day today and there's a college kegger going on at the park!? Couple pull-ups (carter can do one by himself now) then we walk down to la salsa for dinner. We eat everything in sight cause it so so good. Walk down to blenman school for a little playing before heading home. Pretty sunset walking west on drachman tonight.

2011-03-11T08:24:00.004-07:00

week #2:

3.8.11 Dad and Jason leave to go ride with Tuesday Morning group. Huge group...100 riders! Mum and boys take the trailer downtown to the Barry's to play and drink coffee. They ride back back home to meet Dad when he then puts them back into the trailer to ride over to the university to meet Maggie for lunch. La Salsa! Our first time and it was DeeeeLicious. Cruise back home after for some down time, homework and chess playing. Later the boys walk to the library for a bit then to the playground. Home for dinner...beans and rice then showers then family movie night...Cats and Dogs!

3.9.11 Carter wakes up with one less tooth! Finds it in his bed and insists on keeping it in his pocket. Mum and Jason ride the Wednesday Morning group out to Saguaro. Boys stay home to do homework, fix Carter's flat and clean up. Ride over to Himmel park for some PE and playing. Carter looses his tooth near the monster slide... imagine that! Jamo parks his bike at the library and hops in the trailer to ride over to WholeFoods. Carter does great riding his own bike down 3rd St. Back home for lunch then Dad leaves for a quick spin before we all head down to the university. Find a little grassy area near the dorms to play catch with the football and frisbee. Cruise over to the co-op for some tofu and veggies for stirfry tonight. Jamo falls asleep on the way home. Dad takes a little nap on the couch too while mum and Carter walk down to the library to go to the "read to a dog program". Carter reads a bunch, like 50minutes, to Champ the Golden Retriever (not a very good listener though...) and has a good time. Jamo still sleeping in the trailer. Dad whips up some "no-measure" stirfry...so yummy! Jamo wakes up screaming and goes straight into the bedroom....back to sleep. Carter plays some chess with Jason then off to bed. Long day. Sleep by 8. Jamo still asleep, pulls off a 15hr nap!

2011-03-08T14:56:00.004-07:00

another excerpt from the team's training log:

3.4.11 Mum rides early. Boys ride over to WholeFoods to get some fruit then over to the library for storytime. Miss Beth is still there and she remembers Carter from when we use to come (5years ago?). Jamo has a bit of a meltdown due to a painting incident so we leave to go back home. Pack lunch to go for a picnic with Barry's at the new Rio Vista park with mum pulling boys in trailer. Dad meets them there after his ride. Fly kites, dig in sand and play with Jack and Lucas. What a great Park. Jamo takes a nap in the trailer on the way home (we love trailer naps!)Yummy cabbage stirfry by dad for dinner then showers then bed.

3.5.11 Dad rides shootout and mum and boys bike up to Brandi Fenton park to meet Adams'. Morgan and Dad meet them over there after the ride. Play with Izabel and Izaac and have a great time. Back home via Treat for lunch then over to library before driving up to Adams' for dinner. Mum bikes up to the top of Swan(steep!) while boys stop at Sunflower to get some greens. Great dinner...Curried tofu with popsicles for dessert. Drive back home after a beautiful sunset.

2011-03-04T15:55:00.003-07:00

exerted from the team's travelogue:

Notes from the Road: TC to AZ February 2011
1. Don't let Dad drive at night in the winter. He's not a good driver. Fairly dangerous in fact.
2. Is it necessary to leave at 0300 on the first day?
3. McDonalds with a play area is actually OK on a road trip especially when it's rainy and cold out (shhh don't tell anyone).
4. Days inns are nice except maybe not the one in downtown Albuquerque.
5. It can get really really windy in north Texas. Crazy windy. Note the massive wind farms and the rest areas with tornado shelters.
6. The jetta is not a race car so don't drive it like one cause it won't like it.
7. Oklahoma and New Mexico are humongous states and take forever to drive through.
8. Maybe stop at the Presidential library in Springfield, IL next year?
9. Carter can play checkers, solitaire and tetris all day.
10. Jameson will take a nap on a 5 minute trip in town but not on a 16 hour cross-country trek.

2011-02-18T13:35:00.000-07:00

2011-02-02T16:56:00.002-07:00

only three more weeks of winter for the schmidt's then we'll be all done with skiing videos. promise.

2011-01-11T18:21:00.001-07:00

more skiing from our hickory hills:

2011-01-03T07:58:00.004-07:00

although his grades were less than stellar, jameson has graduated from dad school and moved on up to preschool. today was his first day at eastern elementary (carter's school too). he's pretty pumped...

2011-01-01T13:47:00.006-07:00

another year around the sun for the jamo. we strive to someday celebrate like this...

but until then crafts, cake and friends is more our style. happy birthday jamo and happy new year to everybody else who is unfortunate to not have a birthday on new year's eve.

2010-12-27T11:45:00.001-07:00

we've been skiing a ton at Hickory Hills.

2010-12-13T10:12:00.005-07:00

snow day today! this video was taken after our first real snow. what's happening to us right now is just ridiculous. 2 feet of new snow, frigid temps, blustery winds. kind of like manitoba in october ;-)

2010-11-30T08:47:00.002-07:00

half bday for carter today.
officially 6.5.
some of his latest obsessions:
- money. specifically the saving of it in his new bank account.
- snakes.
- origami thus the sweet samurai helmets.

- big boy books: beast quest, magic tree house, dinosaur cove, bailey school kids etc
- collecting pop cans to support #1.
good times.

2010-11-20T14:21:00.003-07:00

well fall has arrived in force after a couple weeks of indian summer, 28F this morning but we still went out with dad to rip around the skate park. brrrr. thick mitts, ski helmet and winter boots are now necessary to bike to school. chicken's water freezes everynight so we've been having to go break it up in the mornings. dad is getting the winter bikes ready for the snow and even has one for carter to try. skis are ready, sleds, skates and snowshoes are down so all we need now is some snow.
we all did the iceman race a couple weeks ago. mum did awesome, dad ok and the boys tore
up the snocone.

2010-11-01T09:05:00.004-07:00

another successful halloween on washington street despite running out of candy by 6:30.

2010-10-22T15:45:00.000-07:00

big first grader

2010-10-21T14:57:00.003-07:00

jamo, mum and cody went on a nice hike this chilly afternoon on one of the many boardman river trails while dad and i were stuck at work and school. no wonder jamo says he never wants to start school. they had a great time.

2010-10-11T12:47:00.002-07:00

Jenny, Astrogirl, and Rye-balls

Sunny and Georgia

2010-10-08T16:13:00.006-07:00

this past weekend was the crybaby classic, a new local mountain bike race held at a ski resort. the name is a reference to how you feel after 1000 feet of climbing per lap. dad raced earlier in the morning in the expert category, 3 laps, and took 3rd. mum raced in her first pro/elite race, 4 laps, and got 2nd. she doesn't look much like a mountain biker out there but the hills helped her make up for what she lacks in cojones. jamo got to be cheerleader while carter stayed in tc and went to soccer with the phillips'.
it has been an amazing week weather wise. shorts and t-shirts, which is pretty unbelievable in northern michigan this time of year. mum has been riding her bike a lot in the afternoon while jamo plays at rebecca's house. two of the days mum came home to messages on the phone from school. one said "carter thought he was supposed to ride his bike home and is sitting here in the office waiting patiently for someone to pick him up". jennise saved the day on that one. and the other said "carter is sitting here in the office with a very large bump on his head." might be time for a cell phone.

here are some pictures from the race.

2010-09-30T15:36:00.004-07:00

you know you're getting old when you can spend 5 whole days away from mum and dad and not miss anybody except for maybe the dog. carter flew on a plane (one small melt down on the first flight from fear of crashing) with grandma to florida to visit nana and papa. highlights include library, swimming the pool, aquarium, cartoon network, ice cream, busch gardens and of course hanging out with nana, papa and grandma. he had so much fun he didn't even mind missing school.
sad to say, jamo missed his carter about as much as carter missed him. he enjoyed being king of the roust getting a few special things of his own.

2010-09-28T16:24:00.004-07:00

jameson showing off some pretty rad tricks at the skate park

2010-09-16T13:11:00.001-07:00

2010-09-11T13:03:00.002-07:00

even the schmidt boys can't resist beyonce

2010-09-09T09:12:00.004-07:00

the team got a new video camera. too bad it takes about 2 hours to upload a video.

2010-09-08T09:55:00.001-07:00

first full day of dad school

2010-09-07T12:46:00.002-07:00

10 reasons to be VERY excited about first grade

1. getting to know my new teacher
2. seeing my buddies every day
3. mum packing my special lunch
4. checking out books at the school library
5. snack-time
6. recess
7. having a break from jamo
8. gym class
9. riding my bike to school and riding the bus home
9. NO MORE OF DAD'S BEANS AND RICE!

Summer vacation ends

2010-09-06T09:38:00.001-07:00

carter makes the record eagle

Summer vacation ends

2010-09-06T06:52:00.001-07:00

carter makes "photo of the day" in the record eagle today.

2010-09-02T16:05:00.005-07:00

here are some videos from the cherry roubaix road race. these were taken at the top of narlock, one of the harder climbs of the race and also the KOM for mum on the first lap.

dad is at 1:13 and 5:28. mum is at 3:18 (KOM) and 8:08

mum is at 4:20 and 6:47. dad is at 7:35

2010-08-30T16:49:00.007-07:00

the road racing season has officially come to an end and not a moment to soon. mum and dad both raced this weekend in the cherry roubaix. it started friday afternoon with mum winning a new fixed gear bike by racing up wayne hill. it's her regular friday morning ride so she's had lots of practice. friday night was drag race style sprints on the streets of downtown. mum made it to the finals but missed out on the plasma TV by a bike length. saturday afternoon was the crit. jamo and i raced first. i learned a very important lession. "never rest during a race". dad raced next. he attacked early and hard and stayed away for about 5 laps and ended up 25th. mum attacked early and hard and stayed away with two others on her wheel and ended up 2nd. she got her picture on the front cover of sunday's sport section in the record eagle. sunday was the long, hot, hard road race. dad attacked early and hard and finished 8th. mum again attacked and got beat by the same girl from the night before again finishing 2nd. it's still summertime here so we're going to enjoy a few more beach days before school starts. t-minus 7 days. but who's counting. certainly not mum.

2010-08-19T13:55:00.003-07:00

gramma tenley was in town last week. she flew in tuesday evening. wednesday we went to the northwestern michigan fair with her, mum and grandma mary lou. lots of rides, animals, and great people watching. thursday we gave her some bike riding lessons and made her ride all over town. mum and dad went up to marquette friday with another hagerty couple to race the ore to shore mountain bike epic. it's a 48 mile point to point race. dad rode with mum and helped her come in 8th overall and 1st in her age group and finish in 3:01. we hung out in traverse city with gramma and got completely spoiled and didn't miss mum or dad at all. we were very sad when gramma left monday after a too short visit.

2010-08-18T09:45:00.004-07:00

these pictures were taken a couple a weeks ago at auntie maddies "welcome home from south africa, congrates on your high school graduation, happy birthday, and good luck at michigan state university" party. it was at a friends house who happened to have a spring fed pond in their backyard. jamo and i spent all afternoon catching crayfish. we caught probably close to 100 of them and dumped them all back in when we left. only a couple of them went belly up. mum and dad got to relax and enjoy the party. what fun.

2010-08-07T17:16:00.005-07:00

things have been going great with cody. he's probably the best dog ever. sorry indy, we loved you too but this dog is unbelievably good. he walks without a leash, waits outside the library, loves spending time inside the bike shop, loves the beach, listens, and is so calm around the house you forget he's even around. he's fitting into our family perfectly.

another lovely day at the beach...

2010-07-28T11:13:00.005-07:00

we are the lucky foster family of cody, an 8-year-old yellow lab. cody will be living with us for the next year while his family is in california. he's a super good dog and will be a fun addition to our family even if it is temporary. you'll see lots of pictures of him over the next year i'm sure.

2010-07-27T17:54:00.006-07:00

today our baby birds flew the coop. they've been hanging out in the fern on our front porch for the last three weeks. it's been a lot of fun watching and listening to them. we're happy to say all three survived. today they're off on their own. good luck little birds.

7-7-10

7-14-10

7-21-10

7-27-10

2010-07-19T10:48:00.002-07:00

back alley bike riding

2010-07-14T12:39:00.004-07:00

a day at the beach

can be very exhausting

2010-07-10T12:05:00.004-07:00

forget lemonade. we have rollie pollies for sale on washington street.

2010-07-05T15:14:00.007-07:00

it's that time of the year again.... cherry festival has arrived. bring on the cherry pie!

game face

jamo holding his own against the 3-year-olds

diving right in

napkin please

all cleaned up before the contest is even over

champion pie eaters...

2010-06-29T04:26:00.002-07:00

another exciting day for team schmitty. jamo learned to ride a two wheeler. just two days shy of turning 3 1/2. way to go jamo! he's already planning his first race. he's going to race with mum while dad and i cheer him on.

2010-06-28T11:58:00.004-07:00

big birthday weekend for dad. he turned 34 friday. we spent most of it in the car driving to marquette for superior bike fest. friday night was the crit. mum attacked on the 4th lap and one other girl was able to go with her. they ended up lapping the field and mum got second in the sprint finish. saturday was the road race. dad rode like a champ attacking relentlessly finally able to make something stick. he took second in a two man sprint. sunday was the circuit race. here's the finish...mum's in blue and white.

2010-06-23T17:54:00.003-07:00

jackie joyner found a new home and not a day too soon. yesterday he was up at 6am making sure everyone within a 1/2 mile radius knew the sun was up. this is a picture of georgia. she's the hen version of that curious monkey. you can see how she got the name.

2010-06-16T09:55:00.005-07:00

turns out jackie joyner is actually usain bolt. the cock-a-doodle-doo this morning was a little unexpected.
anyone want a rooster? gramma tenley? he would make a nice birthday present. happy birthday!

2010-06-15T05:13:00.002-07:00

more coop loop stuff:

some pics

blog

more pics at flickr

2010-06-14T15:19:00.002-07:00

photo stolen from the great photographer gary howe

what a fun weekend! saturday was the first annual, much anticipated, well attended TC coup loop. we met about 50 other people for a bike tour of 7 coups all within the TC city limits. our coup was not a part of the loop but maybe next year. we got some great ideas to spice ours up.

sunday, grandma came and picked us up for another 1st annual event. this one was the TC dairy festival. here's the story behind the festival.

"Colantha's Story
Of the 96 Holstein-Friesian cows that comprised the former Traverse City State Hospital’s herd, Colantha was by far the most prolific. In 1926, she produced 22,918 pounds of milk in a single year, making her the highest producer in the world! In her lifetime, from 1916 to 1932, her total production was 200,114.9 pounds of milk. According to a Federal census during that same year, the State average production was 3,918 lbs. of milk per cow per year!"

while we were at the festival mum and dad got to go on a 3+ hour mountain bike ride together on mum's new birthday bike.

we all chilled in the afternoon watching a little footy and were in bed by 6:30.

2010-06-02T16:36:00.003-07:00

jamo helped make cupcakes for carter's class

2010-06-01T13:40:00.001-07:00

Will came over just in time to get himself a #3. we may have a new team schmitty barbershop customer

2010-05-31T23:11:00.000-07:00

happy birthday to me! six! wow! what a great weekend. we had a party with the auties and great grandma's sunday and party with friends at the park monday. my neighbor, Will, turned 6 on the same day so we had a party together with lots of our old friends and new school friends.
we've been busy around here. we had our first of many planned camping adventures, dad's been tending to his gardens, mum's been winning more bike races, i'm practicing my bike handling skills at the skate park and jamo's been busy being a typical 3-year-old.
summer has arrived in northern michigan. sunday was so hot that mum actually went under in the bay. we trying to remember if she even went swimming at all last year. looks like we're heading to the beach today after two #3's.

2010-05-08T17:21:00.004-07:00

happy mum's day!!

mine is pretty fast...

how 'bout yours?

2010-05-05T11:01:00.003-07:00

2010-04-28T16:49:00.004-07:00

first day outside. the chicks seem to have reached the awkward teenage years. not quite the cute little babies they once were. a mixture of fluff and feathers. they also aren't the most photogenic creatures. especially the one on the right. they sure did love being outside with lots of digging and scratching. dad's working hard on the coup. should be done this weekend.

2010-04-17T05:28:00.002-07:00

washington street chickens!

6 lovely girls, just 2 weeks old now. got them last weekend at a farm near buckley, picked out 2 barred rocks, 2 silver laced wyandottes, 1 araucana and 1 austrolorp. they're so cute and it's been a ton of fun having them peep peeping in the sunroom.

2010-04-09T11:24:00.011-07:00

here are some pictures from tucson:
"A" mountain

hiking gates pass

sabino canyon

visit from gramma tenley (don't look directly at her legs...may cause blindness)

visit from uncle tannin

2010-03-31T14:22:00.002-07:00

this is a shot of the arc outside our favorite library, santa rosa. it frames "A mountain" and is pretty cool.

well that's about it. 5 weeks already? time flies.

our last week ended with uncle tannin coming for a visit. we did lots: showed him around downtown, took him to brandi fenton park for some playing, running/hiking/bouldering at saguaro national park, burritos at the u of arizona with a trolley ride taboot plus various excursions to our favorite haunts including santa rosa park, children's museum sandbox and the main library.

jetta is packed and ready to go. gonna drop the uncle of at the airport at 3am then on I10 eastbound by 3:10. big 1000mile push to oklahoma city tomorrow then to springfield, il on monday. wish us luck.

mucho gracias tucson!

2010-03-28T06:44:00.002-07:00

here's a shot of the rillito river on our favorite bike/multi-use path. when we first got here it was raging bank to bank with all the run-off snow from the mountains but has since slowed to a trickle. we hiked down into it on friday while we were at a BBQ at the tucson raquet club with the barrys. pretty cool to have such a big seasonal river in the middle of the desert.

well week #4 is coming to an end. gma tenley made it back to manitoba safe. we had a great visit. mum and dad were especially grateful for being able to ride their bikes together three straight days. the boys loved just having their gma around who is "way nicer than dad".

yesterday we spent the whole dad at himmel park to take in the "solar rock" festivities, tucson's first all solar powered musicfest. pretty fun with lots of kids activities and booths promoting sustainable/renewable energy. boys liked the wormfarm the best while dad thought sonar and run boy run were great bands and sounding awesome despite the gusty winds.

big day today with our weekly Sunday trip to mcdonald park this morning for mum/dad to ride up mt. lemmon then back here to go lucas' 4th bday party and then to a dinner party at the woertzels, whew! this holiday is exhausting!

2010-03-20T06:40:00.001-07:00

st. patty's day parade last sunday. it came right by our place...bagpipes, celtic dancers, crazy people throwing candy etc. good times. also had a big festival at armory park where jamo and carter attacked the bounce houses with a vengeance.

first day of the year in the 80Fs came on tuesday. spring has sprung in the desert. dad likes the 60s but mum is happy. we spent the afternoon at reid park's aquatic center. water features, a lazy river and all shaded by an enormous canopy. plus at $6 for the whole family what's not to like.

we're starting to get to know some of our neighbors. armory park is a pretty friendly place. we're also on first name basis with the librarians at santa rosa who are all very cool. the F16 flyovers (from the airforce base)which seem to be an all day occurrence and the 4am train whistle which runs downtown have been a bit harder to get used to.

week #3 ended with the arrival of gma tenley who is bunking with carter in the living room of our spacious 600sq ft casa. the boys picked her up at the airport thursday, we spent all day friday at the children's museum and we now just got back from exploring downtown and the 4th ave street fair on foot. whew! think she's a tad tired now as she's taking a nap and snoring loudly.

on to week #4.

2010-03-13T18:47:00.002-07:00

well we're starting to get settled into our desert life. usually get up ridiculously early, read:5am, breakfast then out the door by first light, usually to a park to play. library, eat, park, hike, eat, bike ride, eat, sleep. it's exhausting. bed by 7.

friday we went boldering/hiking at gates pass. scampering up the big rocks and through the crevices was a blast. carter is a monkey with no fear. we saw lots of cacti too: cholla, saguaro, barrel, pincushion, prickly pear. good times.

yesterday we went hiking at sabino canyon where the creek was absolutely raging with all the mountain snow meltoff. it was so cold but so fun. boys and dad jump in for a soak which felt great in the hot-to-the-pasty-white-michiganders 70F and sunny temps.

this morning we're off to the university or arizona for their book festival then probably down 4th avenue for some hanging out.

adios amigos.

2010-03-09T11:41:00.002-07:00

great first week here:

- our little casita is wonderful. it's in the historic armory park neighborhood. it's been fun to be living in downtown tucson amongst all the hustle and bustle. our landlady is a professional indie rock/folk singer-songwriter. she's french. dad has been trying his francais without much luck.

- the desert is very green this year. they've had a bunch of rain so once the desert bloom it should be amazing, there's a ton of snow in the mountains too.

- we've been having a blast exploring downtown...joel d valdez and santa rosa libraries, st. augustine's cathedral, presidio park, tucson children's museum, armory park, 17th st. market.

- went to the zoo on a free day (dad's favorite word) which was awesome...jamo's fav: polar bear, carter's: giraffe, dad's: tiger eating the whole cow leg

- 5 parks so far: ironhorse, santa rosa, himmel, reid and macdonald

2010-03-02T09:13:00.003-07:00

we made it tucson! three long days of driving. everybody did great. even dad who suprised everybody, even himself. stopped in joplin, mo the first night, and albuquerque the second. our new home is pretty close to downtown and we were able to walk to the library this morning. we don't have a phone, tv, or a computer so we'll be a little out of touch but should make it to the library at least every other day to check email and such. dad is out for a bike ride this morning so we're out exploring the mum. just need to find a trailer and we'll be all set.

2010-02-15T15:46:00.011-07:00

what a weekend. we kicked it off friday night with our first trip to the mountain. that's crystal mountain and it's more like a hill but it's more mountainous than hickory where we usually ski. they have an awesome magic carpet on the bunny and real chair lifts on the big hills. jamo even made his first trip down a big hill.
saturday we woke up in a foul mood due to our lack of sleep friday night but managed to make it to the winter wonder fest. we were in a much better mood once we got there on account of the pony rides, snowshoe race, frozen fish toss and best of all, snowmobile rides.
sunday was another marathon of events. we first went skiing at hickory. jamo went down birch and jack's trail but the most amazing part was that he made it up the tow ropes to get to those hills all by himself. that's pretty unheard of for a 3 year old. we then went straight to lucy's birthday party at the children's museum. it was a two cupcake a piece party. my favorite kind. then, if that wasn't enough, we went to great grandma's for dinner with the whole family. cousin dustin brought his wii and jamo and i were never to be seen again.
today we went sledding at the civic center and tonight i have skiing but jamo didn't quite make it. wonder if he'll sleep through the night in those things?

2010-02-08T18:39:00.005-07:00

great weekend. lots of sun. warmish. missed out on the skating again though which is weird cause we have 2 outdoor rinks 3-4blocks away but we just can't seem to make it happen. batting only .800 with our winter olympics competition, not so good.

had to come home from school today cause i was sick. bummer.

dad's seems to be making progress on the chicken coop without any major catastrophes. weird.

jamo is a great little skier. up the tow rope and down the bunny solo.

3 more weeks of winter bike commuting and mum is leading with only 1 crash to dad's 3 (all on titus road?!?!)

i wonder what anna banana in the 'peg is doin??

2010-02-02T19:04:00.002-07:00

4 out of 5 events for the team this past weekend, everything but the skating, nuts...we'll get it next week, here's a recap:

snowshoe: dad runs at hickory
alpine ski: jamo and me and hickory for 2hrs
xc ski: couple laps for mum at hickory saturday then 15k at the vasa sunday am
sledding: jamo and me saturday at pathfinders winterfest then sunday pm with the phillips' on their awesome cardboard-eagle-sled thingy at the civic center
skating: nada although we did find a new rink over at traverse heights elementary

2010-01-28T08:15:00.003-07:00

just getting over our first case of sickies in a long time. felt pretty rough last week, so much so that i missed school friday and skiing sat. think we're on the up and up though so that's good.
winter is back here after a few weeks of aprilish weather. the rain and 40F degrees ruined the ski slopes and xc trails but it looks like the lake effect snow making machine has been turned back on so we're happy.
jameson is going up and down the bunny on his own now and i ski all by myself down all the runs at hickory including the black diamond pete and all the jumps too.
dad had a couple 4th place finishes in the 5mile frozen foot race and the 10k bigfoot snowsnoe race.
mum has mastered riding the rollers with no hands which the boys are very impressed with.
january is almost done?!?!? only 4 more weekends left until we leave for tucson...our goal is to complete the team schmitty winter olympiad each weekend...downhill ski, xc ski, snowshoe, sledding and skating. not sure if that will be possible but we're gonna give 'er a go.

2010-01-17T11:57:00.005-07:00

we can almost say that jamo is a skier. he can go up the tow rope by himself, go down the hill without falling (most of the time) and even turn a little. he just can't stop which is a problem for the people at the bottom.

2010-01-13T18:03:00.000-07:00

one of our favs from 09

2010-01-10T13:43:00.006-07:00

the team made its editorial debut in the local weekly news magazine. see pages 8-9.

2010-01-01T14:34:00.005-07:00

1.....

2.....

3!!!!!!!

2010-01-01T07:58:00.001-07:00