Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Okay, so it has been forever since I have posted. My early New Year's Resolution will be to post every week. We just got back from a great trip to Arizona. We spent 5 days in Sun City West with Kristi's parents, and sister and 5 days in Gilbert with my family. The weather was just great and the trip went off without too many hitches. On the way down the van started having starting issues. At one point in Tonopah, Nevada (Officially in the middle of nowhere) it wouldn't start. I called AAA and they said they had to send a truck from Las Vegas so it would be 2 hours. We had driven through the night and stopped there for breakfast at about 8am. After we ate I went out to the van and it started (one last time). I never turned the van off again until we got to the hotel in Arizona. I just didn't want to risk it.

We made it and the shut the van off and it never started again. I messed with it a bit but no luck. The next morning I got up and changed the started and voila no problems any more. I sheered one bolt off so two bolts have to hold it. Anyway, we went to the Arizona Zoo and the kids had a great time and got to pet some giraffe's which is really a wierd experience. We swam and ate (too much) but had fun. I was trying NOT to think of the Ironman coming up but it was hard. It kind of ruins the vacation but oh well.

Went to my folks place on Wednesday and the kids swam and we ate more. We ate a bunch, not good for the Ironman but oh well. On Thursday I went and checked in for the race and started getting nervous because you had to think about it. It literally had no idea what to expect. I kept having visions of people crawling across the line and puking along the course. I figured that would be me. Anyway, Kristi and I went to the pre-race dinner on Friday night with another couple from Central Point Oregon who we met through this Ironman race. We picked them up from their hotel and ate food that literally had no taste. A waste of $25 bucks for Kristi's meal but was fun to be together. The dinner was outside along Tempe Town Lake with 2500 or my closest friends so that was cool. They had the youngest competitor and oldest come on stage and the people who had lost the most weight and then Rudy Garcia-Tolson. If you don't know of him google his name and read about this motivational young man. Basically he had his legs amputated above mid thigh because of some medical conditions at around age 5. Since they he has, Oh nothing, won gold medals in swimming and competed in numerous athletic events and been a motivation to young kids with similar disabilities. However, he has never been able to complete a full ironman. He tried in Hawaii last month but did not make the bike cut-off. Long story short, HE MADE IT!!! I yelled at him each time I saw him and he motivated us all back.

Anyway, the race went better than I had expected and I finished in 13hours and 11minutes. I figured it would be at least 14 hours so I'm fine with the outcome. I can do better though and will try again next year. I think it is a bit addictive. I really enjoyed myself. Kristi and the kids and all the relatives wore TEAM KANTOLA shirts so that was cool. Seeing them each time throughout the day just gave me more energy. I actually felt good the next day. Felt like I should go for a long walk or a swim to loosen the muscles up a bit, but instead drove 9 hours to Fresno where we stayed the night. The next day sat another 12 hours driving back home. We had 7 kids, cousin Jordan and Niece Kendall, and a English Mastiff in the van for two days of driving, but it went well.

I am now officially and IRONMAN. I don't feel different but look forward to doing it again. I'll post more often, I promise.

Been a While

March was a busy month so I haven't posted in a while. Kailin had a birthday, Kaleb had a birthday and we had an anniversary this month also. That along with a camping trip and about 60 hours of OT at work between training things I went to and just shift OT didn't leave much time to post much.

I've got some pictures of Kona as he is getting big. He is probably close to 60 or 70 pounds now. He has started obedience training also.

Kaleb is starting baseball so he has practice twice a week so that keeps us busy also. I have been fighting a couple of injuries to my right knee and hip that have thrown a wrench into my training so that hasn't been so good. I had an MRI on my hip last week that showed some type of damage in the hip socket. So I'm not sure exactly what that means but I am feeling much better now and have started back training so hopefully it will hold out until after the ironman.

Anyway, other than that things are business as usual.

Happy Birthday Kailin!!!

My sweetie turned 10 this week. I can't believe she is in double digits already. Kristi put on a great birthday party to celebrate the day. Kailin had 4 of her best buddies over to spend the night. They started out with manicures at the beauty college and then home for hot dogs and cake. Then Tiffany came over and all of the girls got facials and pedicures. So in short, they got pampered all night long.

Kailin got a new bike which is what she said she wanted. All in all I think she had a great time. Thank you mommie for all of your hard work. You're the best!!!

Hola! Mi Amigos y Amigas

We made it back, unfortunately, I would of like to have gotten stuck their for a few more days but Puerto Vallarta was great. It was in the mid 80's all week with a little humidity but not bad. I actually didn't sleep that great at night because it was too warm. Since the condo is open air you don't get much cool air out.

Anyway, we had such a great time. We went to Bucerias, Nuevo Vallarta and Punte de Mita which are a couple of small villages to the north of Puerta Vallarta in Nayarit which is the state just north of Jalisco where Puerto Vallarta is. We also went up into the hills south of town and did some sightseeing but mostly we just enjoyed being around each other.

We cooked, read some books, walked on the beach, and played cards all things we never get to do with 5 little helpers around us all of the time. It is so nice just being able to hang out with nowhere to be and all day to get there. We did some shopping and Kristi bought some silver jewelry and I got the boys some soccer jerseys. The girls got some silver jewelry and some small purses. They all get bracelets with their names on em'. Overall we left some money in Mexico.

A huge thank you to grandma for watching the kids. Kody and Kirik were sick so that didn't make it any easier for grandma, but she is a trooper. I was a little dissapointed at how Americanized Puerto Vallarta has become since I'd been there almost 20 years ago. We shopped at Walmart and there is a Home Depot, Sams Club and Costco there now. The grocery stores are as nice as anything here which wasn't that way 20 years ago.

Lastly, we got to see whales from the room on several of the days. This is the time of year for whales to make their trip back south with their babies so we could see both the mom and calf from high up on the cliff. Even got some video.

Its good to be back but just a few more days would also have been nice...

The Basketball Stud

Kody is playing 7th grade basketball this year. The Talmadge Middle School team is undefeated so far and their closest game has been 17 points. They have pretty much been blowing everyone out so far. They have some really good players but mostly its a group of really good kids in terms of behaviour and attitude which is really even more important. Since they have been winning by so much everyone on the team is getting to play an equal amount of time which is also very good for the kids. No one is sitting on the bench so they all get really involven. Kody is the starting off guard and is getting better most games. He still plays basketball like his dad most of the time. In other words he gets the most out of the fouls they give him.

Here are some action pics for the b ball stud.

I'm Baaaack!!!

Okay so a long time has passed since I posted. That is mostly because not too much is going on here. It has been mostly work and training. Kody's basketball team is undefeated and is beating most teams by 20 or more points. Kaleb made a shot that was almost a three pointer in his recent game, so that was cool. Kennedy has been stealing money from the kids and giving it to her friends, $30 dollars at a time, what a giver. Kailin is still in piano lessons, although she says she doesn't want to keep going, and Kirik is doing good and enjoying his pre-school.

Kona is growing like a weed. He is now 38 pounds so he has gained 13 pounds in about 3 weeks. He eats and sleeps most of the time. He is soooo mellow. He has been such a great dog so far. It's about time for some obedience training.

I have been suffering from a hip injury, not sure why but I have been sidelined for a couple of days now. It really bothers me when running so I am going to be swimming and biking for a bit until I get can healed up. Hopefully it will be soon.

I am also participating in a fund raiser for Disabled soldiers through the Challenged Athletes Foundation. Here is a link to my web page if you feel so inclined to participate. The funds go to help disabled military men and women compete in different athletic endeavors. It is in conjunction with my half ironman coming up in California in April.

http://ORCalifornia09.kintera.org/kantola

It's Been Busy

Okay so I haven't posted in a while. We have been busy with the holidays, work and training. Remember the whole Ironman thing. Let's just say I'm pretty tired most of the time when I have free time. It's good for me though.

The Koda experiment didn't go so well. Koda was bounding off the walls 99% of the time and he would just not settle down for anything. We were able to find him a home where he will have less stimulation, i.e. kids, and more one on one time. Reports so far is he is doing really well and they are keeping him in the house most of the time. He is a good dog he just needed more attention than we could give him.

Which means I was able to get a Mastiff. He is the complete opposite of Koda. He is calm, doesn't chase the cats and is pretty much potty trained after 5 days. He is very mellow and the kids don't really get him too excited. I will post some pics. His name is Kona, I know close to Koda but I call him Kona Bear and Kristi calls him Kona Coffee. He came from a breeder in Ohio and has been everything I wanted.

Kody is in basketball, Kailin is still taking piano and Kaleb is also in basketball. Kaleb had his first game last Saturday. Kristi is keeping busy with work and the kids also so the word for the month is busy, busy, busy. I 'll try to keep up better though.

We had a great holidays to include our trip to Arizona, can't wait to go back and visit.