Swimless in St. Pete

We took a quick trip to St. Petersburg, FL over the last weekend in April for St. Anthony's Triathlon. This is one of the largest triathlons in the country and is the premier Olympic distance event in the SE, with around 4,500 participants. Grandpa Jim and Grandma Sandye came over from New Smyrna to spend the weekend with us. Actually, we put them to work for two days watching the kids and could not have done this event without them!!

One of the main reasons we chose this event was the ocean swim, something that neither one of us had tried before. Saturday, morning, Ann, Steve and Donovan excitedly made our way to the beach for a practice swim in the ocean. When we got there, it was windy with 3 foot breakers... this was not what we had envisioned! Ann and Donovan took off like two seals on holiday through the waves while Steve was fighting off nerves. After a good quarter mile test swim, even Steve felt ready for the swim on Sunday.

Race morning, Sandye and Jim arrived at our room at 5:30am to watch the still sleeping children while we made our way to the race. We had about a mile walk and half way there, we were informed that the swim was canceled due to high winds and large breakers creating dangerous conditions. "This was a historic decision," said the race director. "This is the first time in 26 years that we have had to do this." JUST OUR LUCK!!!

With the exception of the Pros who still swam, the event was turned into a Duathlon, and everyone tried to make the best of it. All of the participants started off in a line just outside the transition area, sent off 2 seconds apart. We ran into the transition area to our bikes, and started on the 40k bike, followed by a 10k run. We both had decent races, but were disappointed about the canceled swim leg of the race (Ann more so than Steve).

If you watch the attached video of the Pros racing, Ann and Steve are in the front row of the crowd at the 1:20 minute mark. We finally made it on YouTube! I guess that the trip was worthwhile after all!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjRUxiT05VA

Ann on the bike...

Steve finishing strong on the run.

We also managed to fit in a trip to Busch Gardens Saturday afternoon. The kids had a blast walking around the park, looking at the animals and taking in a safari through the "Busch." Below are several pictures of our day there...

Easter and Principal Jackson

We know it has been forever since we've posted pictures! It seems like Easter was ages ago... We had some neighbors over for the 2nd annual Schwartz/Escoffery Easter Egg Hunt. Unfortunately, it was wet and rainy outside, so the egg hunt moved indoors, down in the basement. Here are the kids, anxiously waiting for Mr. Steve and Mr. Rich to finish hiding the eggs.

Off they go!!

Even the Abster got into the hunt and found an egg.

Jackson was very disappointed that we did not have carrots for the Easter Bunny. So, he left an apology note for the Bunny and some Oreos. Here, he is reading the Easter Bunny's reply.

Imagine that... Jackson getting Legos for Easter.

Catie was thrilled with her Lion King stuffed animals, Simba and Nala.

Here's Abby with her new baby...

We mentioned a few posts ago, that Jackson won "Principal for the Day" in the silent auction. He took his role very seriously and dressed the part.

Here he is in his office, getting ready for the busy day. He had a blast! First, he went to several classrooms and helped Ms. Wilson with teacher evaluations. He made sure that "all of the teachers were doing what they were supposed to do" and took notes on the "good things that they did." He then called a fire drill and helped make sure that everyone knew what to do in the case of a real fire. Next, he walked on the school nature trail to make sure it was safe for the kids. Finally, he also enjoyed a special lunch with Principal Wilson in the teacher's lounge.

Grandpa is showing us how to be more frugal, by buzzing Jackson's hair in the front doorway. "Welcome to the Schwartzs everybody, just step over the hair"...nice!

Abster is walking all over the place! However, she is using the Jeff Galloway method for running a marathon. Run several miles then walk a mile, only she is walking ten feet and crawling two feet until she gets to her desination.


Abby got a new buggy, but Jackson and Catie quickly took control of it and pushed each other down the drive..."real fast!" It always amazes us how no one wants to play with their own toys.


We attended the Silent Auction and Family Fun Night at Jackson's school. First, we enjoyed dinner brought in from Bambinelli's. Then, we showed off our dancing skills with some "freestyle" moves Jackson taught us. We had a successful night of bidding on various items at the Silent Auction. The highlight was our winning bid on Principal for a 1/2 day, the best $51 we ever spent! Steve was disappointed when he found out that it is Jackson that gets to be Principal and not himself. Jackson has lots of plans for the school, including no homework, and only "Specials" classes (art and PE).

Jackson out on the dance floor...

Jackson and his friend Josh reading Kung Fu Panda... a door prize from the event. Catie even won a Cinderella book.



Jackson's first grade science project was to choose an animal which they would like to learn about, and make a model of the animal. The choice of animal was a no-brainer for Jackson! Above, a possum made out of a milk carton. Thanks Grandma Moe... She kind of forgot the the students are supposed to do most the work...

Spring is here!

Catie will not wear a swim cap in the pool but likes wear it around the house... go figure.

The kids enjoyed a superhero party at Isaac's house few weeks ago!

Jackson had his friend Ian over to play... It was a gorgeous weekend, 70 degrees and sunny both days, so we were able to spend some time outside. Ian and Jackson are two peas in a pod. Both love possums, and as you can see above, both love to be silly!




Abby is into the Big Wheel just like her brother and sister, only she likes to go backwards...




Unfortunately, Jackson shows not desire to play a "regular" sport like baseball. No worries, because Catie and Abby are picking up the slack.

The Great Blizzard of '09!!

The kids sneaked EVERY pillow in the house into our bedroom (on Steve's watch), and had a blast jumping on them and building forts.

Jumpin' on the bed (again, under Steve's watch)...

Here is our "blizzard"! We have gotten about 4 inches so far, and it is still going strong... The kids could not wait to get outside to play in the snow, but had to wait for Abigail to finish her nap.


"Sam" the Snowman looks kind of feeble but it's understandable for our first snowman ... We had a great time working on our snowman and having an intense snow.

Abby's First Birthday Party

We celebrated Abigail's 1st birthday by having some friends over for a little party and cake. Above, Abby is "wrestling" with her friend Ariel.

All the kids, enjoying some pizza.

Our littlest princess during the "Happy Birthday" song...

Abby didn't know quite what to make of the cake. It took some encouragement from Daddy and Catie to get her to try it.

Abby is a future Miss Manners, as she had no desire to make a big mess with her cake like Jackson and Catie did for their 1st birthdays.

The other kids seem to be enjoying the cake more than Abby. Mmmm, finger-licking good! Just think of all the germs on that cake!!!

Jackson had to "create a hat" for the Valentine's Day party at school. He made a Brown Eyes/Valentine's hat as you can see above. Mr. Creativity was a big hit exiting the car pool line this morning.


Below, Abby post-cake...

Happy Birthday Abby!

Happy Birthday Abby!! We can't believe that our little baby is already a year old!! She is standing on her own, but hasn't taken any steps just yet...

One of Abby's favorite tricks is to sneak into the bathroom and get into the toilet paper (and sometimes into the toilet).

Jackson lost his second tooth!