Out of retirement

Gary has not done a bike race since Caroline was born. He has done triathlons or duathlons, but not a traditional bike race weekend like he did for over a decade and a half. He got a new bike for his birthday and had aspirations for just a few time trials (solo racing against the clock) this summer. He did come out of retirement this weekend for the Marx Bensdorf/Smith & Nephew Grand Prix held in Memphis/Collierville. The weekend involved a road race on Saturday morning, a time trial on Saturday night and a criterium on Sunday. His hope was to not embarass himself and to finish. Wow, did he finish!! Saturday he was in a nice breakaway group and took 6th place. Saturday night at the time trial (which historically has been Gary's strongpoint) he took first place and had an average speed of greater than 30 mph!! He was so excited. Sunday he was steady and finished 6th again. All in all, he took 3rd place in the overall for his category. We were so excited to see him enjoy the racing, the heat and his results. Gary even snagged an interview on Fox 13 news which aired on Sunday evening. Go Gary!!

gary getting ready for the criterium

gary (blue helmet, black jersey) working hard in the race

anna was excited to cheer on her daddy

gary being interviewed immediately after the race

Dentist Day

Today we had an early morning appointment at the dentist. This was Caroline's first official visit to have her teeth cleaned. Anna has a loose tooth and was very worried either a) the dentist was going to pull it or b) they were going to knock it out cleaning it and that would hurt. Anna was pretty tentative the whole time BUT she survived. Caroline really did well and sat through the entire checkup without a worry. She got her teeth cleaned and the hygenist and dentist were shocked she did so well for her first visit. Caroline was excited because she got a Dora sticker, a Dora toothbrush and from the prize wall she picked a wand which is PERFECT for princess Caroline. Anna was relieved it was done. The dentist told her that if she would just wiggle it some every day that her loose tooth would be out within the week. Also, of course, the best news a parent can receive, both girls will more than likely need braces. Thank goodness for insurance which covers 75% of that. The girls have close teeth, thanks to the Zyriek genes, and will need to floss regularly. Who can get a 2 and 6 year old to floss well?? We'll do our best. We have two "look mom no cavity kids" for another 6 months.

anna likes that the hygenist gives you sunglasses to wear while having your teeth cleaned so you don't have to look at the bright lights. the panic has not quite set in yet here.

caroline is meeting her hygenist miss jenny. be-be, one of her two baby dolls made the trip and is in the chair next to her.

anna let dr. freeman wiggle her loose tooth so he could provide a prediction.


caroline was quite the champ getting her teeth cleaned.

Father's Day

We celebrated Father's Day a lot this weekend! Saturday night we had my mom and stepfather over for steaks on the grill. The food was great and the company was fun. Sunday morning Gary enjoyed time doing exactly what he likes to do. Breakfast and church with the girls, a great bike ride (in the EXTREME heat) and a swim at the pool. The girls sang to him MANY times throughout the day which was great. Sunday night we enjoyed a cookout with my dad. My nephews are in town and are first staying at my dad's for a few days, so the cousins had fun playing together. All the dads in my life are great!!! My girls are lucky to have Gary be such a great father to them!!

gary with caroline

gary with anna

The heat is on.....

This is a very hot summer so far....so hot the heat index was over 100 this weekend. MLGW is loving all the air conditioners running at full blast but I am sure our checking account won't love the bill at the end of the month!!! We have enjoyed spending time in the pool but even yesterday the water was warm and our feet were burning walking around. If this is what June is like, we are fearing August which is typically our hottest month. Even so, no complaints from the kids about the heat. I try to walk the dog each day but wait until almost dusk because she is worn out by the end. Even so, I must admit that I love the laid back times of the summer. Makes me wish I was a school teacher with summers off, but then how would I possibly entertain the kids all the time?? This week is VBS at church for Anna and Caroline is only going to school 3 days so they can have fun with my nephews Blake (5) and Drew (2) that are in town from Texas while their parents enjoy their 15th anniversary in Turks & Caicos. More pictures of the fun with the cousins to be posted later this week. Stay cool!!

caroline looks like a bug with these anna's goggles on...gotta be like big sister!

gary with caroline. the vest is awesome. definitely good for our escape artist!!

Potty Training

I am WAY over potty training Caroline....she has been using the potty for many, many months. Of course, she stays dry most days at school, so we all know that she can do it, but little Miss Sassy has to put her mind to it to be in the groove at home. Whew!! It really wears me out constantly taking her to the potty. I know that in a few months (hopefully sooner) this will all be in the past, but currently it is crazy!! I've tried to think of new things to incent her to use the potty. We have skittles, we have stickers, we all do the "potty dance"....ask any of the Zyrieks and we can perform it. Definitely the funniest quotes so far came from Caroline last week. I put her on her potty when she woke up last week and told her that all big people use the potty when they wake up...her response "I don't want to be THAT big yet". First runner-up for best quote was when I told her how fun it would be to wear panties all the time and not have to change pull-ups and her response was "I'm not ready for THAT much fun". Oh well. As I have been told, no one goes to kindergarten in diapers....we have progressed to pull ups and she does stay dry most of the time, but I just want it to be DONE!!!!

American Girl Doll FUN!!

On Monday morning, all the girls went to the American Girl Doll Boutique and Bistro in Dallas. Anna got her "Just Like Me" doll for her 6th birthday and I told her that when we went to a city that had a store we could visit and eat there. Dallas has a great store that opened in the last year. We arrived and had her doll's hair styled at the salon. This was a hoot. The doll sits in a salon type chair and they even put a cape around her. Anna got to pick the style and the ribbon colors (which were lost on the trip home, of course) and we shopped around the store. Anna really enjoyed getting to see all the historical dolls set up and all the fun things that you can have for the dolls. She picked out a dress for her doll and then my mom bought she and her doll matching t-shirts. After picking up the doll from the salon, we all proceeded to the bistro for lunch. This was really a great time. Caroline ate from the bitty girl menu, which was plenty for my non-eater!! Anna, mom and I ate from the regular menu. We told them we were celebrating Anna's birthday and they sang to her while bringing her an ice cream sundae. She enjoyed the spotlight. The food was very yummy, the service was perfect and the atmosphere was well thought out. Of course we had a doll seat at the table and had many pictures taken. All throughout our visit girls were arrive with their dolls in tow with friends or family to dine at the bistro. One family made us laugh because the dad and brother came along....much to the brother's amusement. He thought the whole thing was hilarious and every time he made a comment his dad would give him a certain "look" that implied, this is for your sister not you!! I would definitely recommend a visit when your daughter is this age as it is fun and a great place to spend some time with family. Anna was on cloud nine for sure!

anna with "rosie" her doll. rosie had her hair styled and there was a seat for her at the table at the bistro. they really know how to make it fun for the girls and their families!

we let anna celebrate her birthday at the store since she received her doll for her 6th birthday. she loved the singing and blowing out the candle!

love caroline's face....she was having fun but not really enjoying picture taking this day!

the zyrieks after a fun time at the store!

Fun visit to the Big D

I took my mom and the girls to Dallas for a long weekend to help celebrate my nephew Blake's 5th birthday and to do some other fun things. We left on Friday right after the girls were dismissed from their last day of school and drove to Little Rock and flew a Southwest Airlines flight to Dallas. It was so great to have my mom along, especially on the drive when the DVD had finished or on the plane. The girls had SO MUCH FUN with their cousins. My nephew Blake turned five and Drew is only two days younger than Caroline, so they matched up perfectly. We enjoyed family time, pool time, Blake's party at Pump it Up and a trip to the American Girl Doll store (separate post!). We flew/drove back home on Monday night and then proceeded to pack up for round 2 (girls to my parents' house and Gary and I to Jamaica!). Great trip indeed!

mimi with the big kids, blake and anna
anna having fun at blake's pump it up party

the zyrieks girls enjoy the slide

the birthday parents, lydia and james

blake blowing out the candles on his handy manny cake
sassy caroline at the swimming pool