Friday Night Leftovers (not the Mary Poppins edition)

We are in full-go summer mode up here in Alaska, ya'll!  Happy Friday!

• Although we won't hit the summer solstice for another 2 weeks, we are enjoying a full 19 hours of daylight each and everyday.  That equates to a sunrise of 4:30am and a sunset at 11:30pm.  Hello Land of the Midnight Sun!
• Never would I have thought we would consider having a Nanny for the kids now that I'm going back to work, but that is the direction we have turned.  Not the live-in, Mary Poppins kind-of-nanny, but rather the full time care in our home Nanny.  With before & after school care required for Thomas, Abby's gymnastics & speech that we don't want to give up, and not wanting to have to wake the kids at the crack of dawn, it just seems like a logical option for us to consider. 
• Marilyn is ready for potty training.  She insists on "going to the potty" several times a day. 9 out of 10 times though this is milla-seconds after she has already gone in her diaper.  Make no mistake about it though, I am happy she wants to sit on the potty and that she has gone potty several times now.  I guess I need to get situated with the reward cup of lollipops in the bathroom, a box of Pull-Ups and some new girly underwear for her!  This is shaping up to be one of the summer time challenges for sure!
• Did I mention that I am perfectly OK with not having to buy diapers anymore?  Bring on the challenge!
• After many years with the iPhone 3, I just upgraded to the iPhone 5 and so far, I'm impressed.
• I know this sounds awful, but is it terrible of me to want to strangle some of the kids that come into my yard (and garage) to play?  I know, I know...I should just be grateful that my kids like to play in our yard and that kids come to us instead of the alternative.  I'll just be quiet about this now.
• Thomas is now jumping off curbs with his bike & trying to "catch air" over the speed bumps. To say that the big kids are an influence on him is an understatement.  And this is only a month after learning how to ride a bike.
• The 1/2 Marathon is in two weeks.  Let's just put it this way... I've fallen seriously off of my running schedule.  I hope it's not too late.