Guest Blogger Cristina Peczon-Rodriguez takes on a colorful local 5k race with her son.

If there are two things that my 4 year old likes to do – it’s run around and get dirty. And so when one of my girlfriends posted on Facebook that she was going to join the 5k Color Run in Irvine, I was in even before I could hit send to reply to her post.

One of my biggest frustrations of being a mother of two small children is that I have no time for any exercise. I know everyone says that as the kids get older, you can start to hit the gym or even take your kids with you for one of the Mommy Stroller groups. But I have the kind of boys that don’t do well sitting still –for almost anything. So dragging them with me would be just about impossible without me stressing to near death about them touching equipment that might fall on them. My older one usually won’t have anything to do with his “baby brother’s stroller” unless it means cruising along on my stroller’s skate board attachment, so a regular stroller group is totally out too.

But an event where the actual object of the race is to get covered in as much color as you can stand? Yes, we are definitely in! After talking about what was going to happen in the color slinging event, my husband and I decided that it was going to be better if only my older son Aiden and I joined. It might be a little too long and too intense for my 2 year old to take during what was going to be his nap time.

Not actually a 5k run – more like a 3.1 mile walk – I had promised myself that I was going to train beforehand. However, life as a mother of 2 tends to give priority to just about everything else and so, before the race day actually came I had only prepared by doing three things. I bought a second hand jogging stroller that I didn’t mind getting dirty; I walked a mile around our neighborhood lake exactly once, and the day before the race, I managed to haul my kids to the Road Runner Sports store in Costa Mesa to pick up my packet and grab a couple shirts for the kids. That was it!

We chose to run the afternoon race, thinking my kids might not so be great if we ran first thing in the morning. Scheduled for the run shortly after noon, we decided to leave our place by 10am to make sure we had time to pick up Gatorade on the way, and find a good parking spot. I packed sunscreen and light snacks. I wrapped my phone in plastic wrap, and we were ready to roll. After making our way to the OC Great Park, we met up with my girlfriend and her two boys in their own jogging stroller. We were ready to rock and roll!

Participants from the morning races, caked in cheerful colors, danced and strolled by us as we did our last minute preparations. My girlfriend brought dust masks; bottles of bubbles in case the kids got bored; and various snacks. We all put on sunglasses and her boys even had earmuffs for the loud noise.

The Color Run isn’t your average competitive race. In fact, there is probably as little competition as you could possibly imagine. The race isn’t even timed. Participants start in 5-minute intervals, and you are encouraged to dance, cartwheel, and skip as much as you want.

Participants came in all shapes in sizes. I swear, we were by a runner in an alligator suit. Rainbow wigs were everywhere. Girls dressed in tiny white tank tops with matching mini shorts just waiting to smeared in color. We even spotted a trio of very muscular men wearing nothing but tiny white tight shorts and grey cycling shorts. One of them had a rainbow colored tutu inverted over his head. This was clearly a carefree bunch.

Having one stroller each, my girlfriend Nicole and I maintained a brisk walk to the right of the happy moving bunch with our boys. More serious runners took their own pace on the left. With the hot sun bearing down on our backs, we welcomed the cool breeze that was like our on-call air conditioning to keep us cool. Her boys were asleep within minutes of leaving the starting line while mine spent the entire time talking about all the runners’ cool outfits.

At the first color station, my 4 year old was a little nervous and pulled the cover of the stroller over his head, even though he had both sunglasses and a dust mask on. Once we made it past the station with just a bit of blue on his shoes and lower legs, he decided it was not even remotely scary and he was totally in.

Before each color station, there were porta potties and cute color signs where runners could pause for a photo and catch their breath. Nicole and I stopped at each station for a photo op and my son, Aiden, ran through the color station on foot to give high fives to all the volunteers who were there to douse us with color. He danced through the volunteers who tried to get him with dye and he squealed with happiness and laughter.

The color is actually made of cornstarch mixed with dye. It is completely nontoxic and contrary to what I had expected, didn’t stain. In fact, my 4 year old finished the race looking quite like the happy rainbow that reflected his personality. Aiden begged me to not wash his shirt so that he could wear it to preschool for show and tell and so I treated it with vinegar and ironed it as directed by the Color Run website. But after washing, it turned out to be as clean white as everything else.

But the colorful memories we made were priceless. Thankfully we managed to get enough of them on camera. And since my 4 year old had a grand time getting painted from head to toe, I guess we will have to do it again next year.

Cristina and Aiden all colorful at the end of the race.

About the Author:

Cristina Peczon-Rodriguez was a newscaster, TV host, commercial model, and newspaper columnist in Manila. She now lives in Orange County,CA with her husband and two young sons.

Kid President does it again and delivers a sincere and heartfelt but funny message for moms, just in time for mother’s day!

Your favorite monsters are back! Mike Wazowski and James P. Sullivan will be back this summer in the prequel to ‘Monsters Inc.’ The follow up to the Oscar nominated movie is ‘Monsters University’ which unlocks the door to how Mike and Sulley overcame their differences and became the best of friends. The film opens in U.S. theaters on June 21, 2013, and will be shown in Disney Digital 3D™ in select theaters.

Enjoy the Monsters University movie trailer. Comment below and tell us who your favorite monster is.

If you are a Robert Downey, Jr fan and/or a Superhero fan, then you must be excited to see Iron Man 3 this Friday.  Here’s a clip from the movie just for you.

Tell us what you most look forward to about the movie in the comments below.

A letter to my Sun
by Dagmar Ebaugh (decaturmamaoftwo)

Dear Max:

Six years ago on April 19th my life changed forever as we welcomed YOU, our first child, our son, into our hearts and lives. My universe shifted on its axis and suddenly you became its center.

In the past six years, I’ve watched you grow and blossom, like those crazy time-lapse films, in big and small ways. You sprouted from a stout, pudgy baby to an impossibly tall and lanky kid. I adore your long red tangled hair and your inquisitive, often serious, blue eyes. Your knobby-kneed, arms-akimbo presence in our bed on a weekend morning makes me so happy to be a mom.

Your sweet random letters of “der mommy I luv you!” melt my heart!! I’ve saved every single one of them, complete with “Xs and Os”. Whether you are being kind to, and protective of, those younger than you, or casually conversing with a random grown-up whom you’ve befriended at the grocery store or at the playground – you are a a wonderfully warmhearted “people person”. You literally light up a room with your presence and energy.

You amaze me with your insightful comments and questions, and you tickle me with your quirky humor and creative outpourings of drawings. I love when you read to me, or to your baby sister. I love it when you have a ‘dance party’ and break-dance your little heart out. You are a goofball of the highest order and proud of it. Please always follow your inner drummer. I wish for you that you may dance, paint your toenails rainbow colors, pick dandelion clocks from which to make “flower microphones” and draw contraptions for as long as you desire!

While you are sometimes frustrating, you are never boring – I’ve learned so much from you about myself, about parenting, and about ways to see the world.

Sadly, there are some very ‘un-wonderful’ events in our world. I wish to spare you even the mere knowledge that they exist. But I know I can’t. I wish that you never be hurt or damaged in any way. But I can’t guarantee that. I wish you could spend your entire life being as open-hearted and as inspired by the amazing wonder of our world as you are today. And I will do everything I can to help you become the best “you” you can be.

Happy Birthday and many, many, many happy returns! I love you, my sun, my only son!

Always, your mom (with infinity Xs and Os)

—

About our Guest Blogger:

Dagmar Ebaugh aka DecaturMamaofTwo is a Gemini, a reader, a linguist, and a recently-inspired runner. She is mama to two kids (almost six, and two) and married to a very patient man. Some of her favorites include reading, laughing, eating chocolate and a-hah moments. Her secret vice is reading trashy romances. Currently she is teaching high school French.

First-time cookbook author Linda Bechtel recently held a book signing and cooking demo event at  Surfas Culinary District, which is this awesome restaurant supply store. If you are a foodie, chef or home cook, you would surely be in heaven at Surfas.  Every week, they have cooking demonstrations. I attended Linda Bechtel’s session where she demonstrated how to make a basic meat sauce and her family’s special meatballs.

Linda is a California native and interior designer by trade. And with this book, “My Sicilian Kitchen,” she has combined her passion for Sicilian food, the world of design and her desire to give back.  She is the youngest daughter of Angelo and Margherita Bilo, both Italian immigrants born in Palermo, Sicily. Linda’s interest in cooking and design was cultivated at a young age as she watched her parents create authentic Sicilian recipes from simple, fresh ingredients.

She worked closely with her late father Angelo to carefully translate the handwritten, Italian recipes of the Bilo family.

Published by The Press Group, “My Sicilian Kitchen” is available for purchase via mysiciliankitchen.com, Amazon and Ebay, with a list price of $29.95.

Here is a recipe from “My Sicilian Kitchen:”

MAMA BILO’s Italian Meat SauceServes 8 bowl servings

1 large yellow onion, minced
1/3 cup olive oil
6 cloves fresh garlic, minced
2 28 oz cans tomato sauce
1 28 oz can tomato puree
1 6 oz can tomato paste
6 large sweet basil leaves, minced
1 small bunch fresh Italian parsley, minced
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt, plus extra for meat and pasta water
1 tsp black ground pepper, plus extra for meat
1 tsp dried Italian seasoning
3 Sugar or Equal packets
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup dry red wine
1 lb ground pork, browned with salt and pepper to taste, drained and set aside
1 package mild Italian sausage (5-6) punctured
2 lbs lean ground beef, browned with salt and pepper to taste, drained and set aside
Water (you will be adding approximately 34-oz water along the way during the cooking process; this is an important step.
1 lb dried pasta
Grated parmesan cheese for topping or dollop of mascarpone cheese (optional)

Prepare large stock pot or Dutch oven with olive oil.
Add onion and garlic, saute until transparent, approx. 5 mins. (do not brown).
Add the cooked meat, and sausage.
Add tomato sauce, paste, puree, wine and water.
Add the basil and minced parsley.
Add Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, sugar and baking soda.
Bring to a boil, then cover pot. Lower stove top to low heat.
Continue cooking for additional 3 hours, stirring occasionally.
Do not let sauce settle to the bottom and burn.
When sauce is ready, in a separate stock pot cook pasta in boiling water al dente (approx. 7-10 mins per cooking directions).
Don’t forget to add salt to the water.
Drain well and bring noodles back to the pot, add 2 full ladles of sauce and mix well into the noodles.
Sprinkle with cheese or dollop of mascarpone (optional).

Enjoy!
Recipe courtesy of Linda Bilo- Brechtel, “My Sicilian Kitchen.”

Isn’t it interesting how little kids can be obsessed or shall we say passionate about one thing and from there is born a Disney movie or some other cartoon franchise?  Well, what I mean is… remember the movie “Cars?” Every kid who loves cars loved the movie “Cars.” Every kid that was into trains got into “Thomas the Tank Engine,” and so on.

So if your kid loves planes, what does he have? Nothing. Until now. Disney announced that they will be releasing “Planes,” an action-packed 3D animated comedy adventure featuring Dusty (voice of Dane Cook), a plane with dreams of competing as a high-flying air racer.  The story is about how Dusty’s not exactly built for racing—and he happens to be afraid of heights. So he turns to a seasoned naval aviator who helps him qualify to take on the defending champ of the race circuit. Call it animation inspiration. “Disney’s Planes” takes off in theaters on Aug. 9, 2013. For more information, check out Disney.com/Planes, like us on Facebook: facebook.com/DisneyPlanes and follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/DisneyPictures.

And for Disney and planes fans, here are three images.

Raise your hand if the last movie you’ve seen was a kid movie? Raise your hand if you’ve seen a movie at the movie theater recently. Thanks for the show of hands, that’s what I thought. I haven’t been to a movie theater in a while, and the last time I did, it was at the El Capitan for Wreck it Ralph. See, I told you. Kids Movie.

And that’s why, Oz the Great and Powerful looks like a family treat that both kids and parents can enjoy. I don’t know, I haven’t seen it. Have you?

Here is the Opening Sequence:

Open those windows and let the sunshine in. It’s spring! Here are some spring cleaning tips I gathered from around the interwebs.

photo credit: gwen via photopin cc

Spring Cleaning Tips from the Web

The weather is warmer. The days are longer. And that Goodwill stack you’ve set aside is piling up. There are papers you meant to sort on the table and canned goods in the pantry from the last decade. Time for some spring cleaning.

Storified by Marcie Taylor· Sun, Mar 24 2013 08:44:43