Wasatch Back!!!

We did it!! Another year of riding in a car with 5 other people for over 24 hours!! Running at CRAZY times (morning, night, heat of the day), being a little sick to your stomach and having the time of your life!! This year I was super nervous to run the Wasatch Back Relay. I usually like to take my easy runs and kick back but this year I had one of the hardest runs on the coarse. I ran 3 different legs my first was an easy 3.5 miles the second run was at about 10:00 at night a little hilly and 9.6 miles my third run was INSANE!! 3.6 miles straight uphill. Not just a little climb but about 1400 feet worth!! I was so glad that I was able to finish. I was pretty proud of myself I stuck with it and never gave up. My team was awesome they were all there cheering me on. This year Brandon and Vance Barrett put together a Best Vinyl team. I only knew one other person in the car and the others I met on the coarse. They were all so nice and we all got along really well. It was fun to get to know them all a little better we laughed a lot and had a great time! Thanks to everyone on my team for making this year so much fun. I can't wait for next year!!




running you've got to be kidding me




Our team Stephanie, Dave, Marc, Brandon, me and Justin

One of the million reasons I love being a mom

it's late at night. Really late. I have let my kids stay up and play way to long. It's been a busy day of playing outside with friends. I am trying to get Maggie into bed. She is kneeling down ready to say prayers and I carefully tell her that since she stayed up late playing with friends she will not be getting stories. To which she burries her head in her hands hysterically crying and says "I'm just so sick of mean parents"!! A comment like that makes you feel like a million bucks. Not to mention she is saying it over and over!

Art City Days

Early Saturday morning my awesome hubby ran the Utah Valley Marathon. The race started in Wallsburg going all the way down Provo canyon and ended at the Provo towne center!! The race started at 5:30 and they had pretty good running conditions. The temperature was perfect for running overcast and in the 50's but the first 10 miles they got rained on. Brandon was hoping to finish the marathon in 3 hours 10 minutes and ended coming in 3 hours and 8 minutes!!! His personal best! I couldn't be happier for him he did awesome!! Way to go babe!!!



Coming down the stretch



Brandon and his running partner Joel Eves. They both tore it up!! Joel 3:00 Brandon 3:08 :)

After the race we headed down to main street for the Art City days parade the kids had a ball picking up all the candy and waving to all the people in the parade

Letting go!!

I decided a few weeks ago that this summer I was going to do at least one really fun spontaneous thing with my kids a day. The ideas I've come up with aren't always BIG things but it has to be something we don't do on a regular basis. Some days I have had to be a little creative because my kids have been super busy with karate, basketball camp, baseball games, dance camp and gymnastics but with some careful planning we have been able to spend some real quality time together. Some of the things we have come up with are: getting lunch at Wendy's and eating it upstairs in the playroom, painting rocks, going to the petting farm and then eating at Maggie Moo's ice cream shop, going on a 4 mile run (I pushed Maggs and Brady and Jacks rode his bike), story time at the library, having lots of picnics on the tramp, riding their bikes in the children's parade..........etc. But I think if you asked my kids what their favorite activity has been I think they would say their lemonade stand. My kids have asked me to do a lemonade stand since we've lived in our house (4 years) but I have always said no. We have lots of neighbor kids that sell things and my kids have been involved in helping. So when I told the kids if they finished all their jobs and if I didn't have to get after them we could do one. They were so excited and cute!! After they quickly did their jobs they came out and helped me make homemade chocolate chip cookies. Jacks read the recipe and they all helped dump the ing. in. While I put the dough on the tray they made signs and ate lunch. While I mixed up the punch Jacks set up the table, taped the signs up and got all ready for their customers to come. Our cute little neighbor Ellie came to help set up and sale too. After all that was said and done they ended up making $22!! Not bad for a half days work. Thanks to awesome friends and neighbors my kids are already asking when they could do another one!!!



As a mom doing all of these little activities with my kids has been so rewarding. Some days it has been a challenge for me because it has been hard to fit in the house cleaning, laundry and yard work but I have decided that I have to let some of those things go and realize that my kids aren't going to be little forever. I have loved every minute of the time we have spent together and I hope that as a result we will be closer as a family!