Halloween

Kaitlyn had our fun girls day at Gardiner Village with my nieces, sister-in-law, and mother-in-law.  We went to Breakfast with a Witch and wandered around doing the scavenger hunt on a beautiful fall morning.  Skyler ended up tagging along since the older boys in the family were all at the deer hunt.  I forgot the stroller and that kid is finally really starting to grow!  I thought my arms might fall off by the time we were done!

Brooklyn, Kaitlyn and Morgan

Skyler quickly decided Halloween is not his favorite holiday.  I went to help with Kaitlyn's class party and he was clinging to me the whole time because he wasn't sure about all the costumes the kids were wearing.  One of the other moms had fake eyelashes on and they seemed to terrify him!  Jason has always said the minions in Despicable Me remind him of Skyler so that's what I got him for his costume.  He was adorable!

I thought it would be cute to get a Gru costume for Jason to go along with it but what I didn't anticipate was Skyler being terrified of the mask!  Here's what happened when Jason put it on.

He didn't even have it on long enough to get the shape right from being all folded up in the package.  He didn't look much like Gru without the mask but Skyler wasn't having anything to do with him with it on.  Kaitlyn was Merida and I have to say that her personality fit the costume well!

 I tried and tried to convince my boys that the point of a Halloween costume was to dress up as someone or at least something.  But after being told a hundred times that this is what everyone is dressing up as for Halloween, I bought the Morphsuits for them.

Andrew was too old to hang out with his Dad so he went over to a friend's house and came home with a big bag of candy.  The rest of the kids took off from our house with Jason.

I didn't think Skyler would last long because as they headed out I walked outside and handed each of the kids glow sticks which ended up being another thing that, strangely enough, Skyler was terrified of!  But it was over an hour later before they all came back happy with bags full of candy.

Fall, a Long Bike Ride, and a New Truck

My dad stayed at our house for a couple weeks.  As always he was busy doing projects I never get around to.  We did manage to pull him away from the house one day for some fun.  We took the kids out to Black Island Farm.  It was someplace I had never been but always wanted to take the kids.  I was worried Andrew and Jared might be too old to enjoy it but there was a lot of fun stuff for everyone to enjoy.

 I'm not sure where this dare devil came from wanting to go down the slide head first!

 When I sent Andrew up with Skyler to go down the slide this wasn't exactly what I had in mind...  But he made it down in one piece and enjoyed it enough to want to go again.

Who would have thought a sand box filled with corn kernels would be so much fun?  Skyler could have stayed in there all day and his older siblings enjoyed it almost as much!

Andrew, Jared and Kaitlyn all took a turn being buried in the corn.  Skyler seemed to really enjoy helping, especially throwing the corn in their faces!  Grandpa even joined in the fun burying the kids.

Last, we were off exploring the corn maze.  By this point I thought Skyler would fall asleep in the stroller for sure but he was having way too much fun and prefered riding on Andrew's shoulders.

And now for some other things that have been happening in our house lately.  Jason offered to watch Skyler for me one morning and I got to enjoy one last beautiful fall morning on the trails, this time on my bike with my friend Natalie.  We did some serious climbing up the sardine trail at Snowbasin and we may not have broken any speed records but the view was amazing and the ride down was fun!

Andrew finished the last requirement for his Eagle!  He and Jason did a 50 mile bike ride to finish off his cycling merit badge.

Here they are ready to start.  Andrew looks excited but I'm not sure about Jason!

One of the last beautiful fall days of the year!

Just over half way when I took them lunch in Roy.  They don't even look tired yet!

50 miles completed and ready for a ride home in West Bountiful!

We have been shopping for a truck for quite some time.  In September we decided the truck we really wanted didn't actually exist so we ordered one from the factory.  It has been a long wait but it finally arrived!

Happy new truck owner.  I hope I get to drive it some time...

I have never actually owned a brand new car before.  I had to get a picture of the odometer at 4!

Who's new toy is this?  Guess where the kids all jumped in as soon as we got home.

Family Pictures 2013

My kids (and husband) all grumble when it's time for family pictures but I do it anyway because I really want them.  Skyler was having a really rough afternoon with a molar trying to break through but we got some cute pictures anyway.

 

Jared's 11th Birthday

For about two weeks before Jared's birthday he was giving us a constant countdown and asking nonstop if we could celebrate early.  I told him his wait was payback for the last two weeks I was pregnant with him and had to wait!  I made him his favorite breakfast, french toast made out of cinnamon burst bread from Great Harvest and I took Dunkin Donuts to his class for his birthday treat.  But I think he was most excited for the Lego set he had asked for.  When it was time for presents I tricked him a little.  After I wrapped the Legos I put them inside a duffel bag I had bought for his football equipment and then wrapped up the duffel bag.  I think he was a little confused by the big package that obviously wasn't Legos.

Kaitlyn's present for Jared: a portrait.

Here's a look at Jared at 11.

What he likes: Legos, his iPod, football, sleeping in, cheesecake, candy, cookies, anything sweet, soccer and football jerseys, basketball shorts, The Hobbit (movie), reading (yay!  I thought this day would never come but I often have to tell him to turn out the lights and put the book away at night now), staying up late, playing with his baby brother, camping, backpacking, and fishing with his dad.

What he doesn't like: cleaning his room, bathroom, ect., going to school, waking up in the morning, running, roller coasters, wearing long pants (even in the winter), getting his hair cut, and getting his picture taken.

What I love about Jared: his smile (the real one with his teeth that he doesn't like to show for pictures anymore), his hugs (I don't get a lot of those anymore either), what a great big brother he is to Skyler (you should see Skyler's face light up when Jared walks in the room), his enthusiasm about life, and I love listening to him play the piano even if he doesn't like to do it.

The week after his birthday I sent him off to his first day at boy scouts.  I have to say I was quite sad to put away the cub scout shirt for the next seven years.  This boy is growing too fast!

Andrew's 14!

Andrew turned 14 the beginning of this month.  I think he's grown at least half a foot in the last year.  He's not quite as tall as me yet but he's getting close and it's strange to look at him at eye level now instead of looking down at him.  He's a teenager in every way now and although he has his moments he is such a great kid that I feel privileged to be his mom.  After school I took him to pick up his birthday present.  He had outgrown his bike a while ago so we got him a new mountain bike.

He headed out for a bike ride with Jason after we got home.  It's usually really nice weather for his birthday but this year snowflakes were falling as they left for their bike ride.  We tried to buy the bike big so it would last for a while but I was surprised how well it fit him now.  If he keeps growing this quickly he might need another one next year!

At 14 lighting the candles on the cake is much more exciting than blowing them out!

The day after his birthday we left for St. George for the marathon.  Jason threw his and Andrew's bikes on the bike rack so they could try out some trails there.  It was tough to find much time between the race and our church conference that was going on that weekend but they got in a couple of rides with some beautiful scenery.  Andrew's gotten to be a great mountain biker and loves to try new trails.

In our church boys can be ordained to the office of a teacher in the Aaronic Priesthood when they turn 14.  We enjoyed having several family members there to support Andrew in this step in his life.  I'm so proud of him for the decisions he's making and the young man he has become.

Yes, he's as tall as Grandma now and if I wasn't wearing my highest heels in this picture, he's getting pretty close to me too.

Here's a look at Andrew at 14.

What he likes: Legos, running, Minecraft, piano (most of the time), playing with his little brother Skyler, getting straight A's in school, mountain biking, scouts, waking up early, backpacking with his Dad, The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings books and movies, pizza, pasta, and Skittles.

What he doesn't like: mowing the lawn, vegetables, rice, trying new foods (yes, he is as picky as ever), practicing the piano (sometimes), cleaning the bathroom, and getting his hair cut.

What I love about Andrew: his happy outgoing personality, his enthusiasm about everything, he's hardworking and a great student, he's fun to run and bike with, his smile and dimples are still adorable, he's a great helper around the house, he is so cute with his baby brother and a great babysitter for me.

I couldn't ask for a nicer 14 year old! 

A Perfect Day for Running!

It's hard to believe that just earlier this year I was still trying to break three hours in the marathon.  This has been a fantastic year for running for me, probably my best ever.  I've run a PR in everything and it has felt almost easy.  A lot of people were asking me what I thought I could run in St. George and I was hesitant to say it out loud but I really felt like if I ran a great race I could run under 2:50 and finish in the top five women.  But I knew it was going to take a perfect day, both weather and how I was feeling.  I knew I was in the best marathon shape I've ever been in, but there are so many uncontrollable factors that get in the way for marathon running.  I was keeping my fingers crossed that everything would go in my favor this year.

The week of the race I was frustrated to find out that I had been cut out of the elite division.  When I registered for the race in April I still hadn't run a marathon since I had Skyler, and predicted I would finish around 2:56.  I was told they set the cutoff this year at 2:55.  The race directors wouldn't listen to any amount of arguing that I had since run that fast and deserved to be in that group.  I spent a lot of the week angry with the race directors and frustrated that people had obviously exaggerated on their finishing times to get in that group.  I felt I was at a disadvantage not getting the perks of the elite aid stations that the runners I was racing against were getting.  It even started putting doubts in my mind that maybe I was overestimating what I could do.  After several days of all these negative thoughts I realized I needed to forget it and just get ready to race.

This was my third race on this course and the last two attempts were during record heat waves.  Heat has always been my worst enemy when it comes to racing.  The weather forecast was looking ideal: a cold front just in time for the marathon.  I was feeling terrific on marathon morning, although I didn't sleep much the night before thanks to my nerves.  I got on the shuttle at the hotel at 4:30 in the morning and got on a bus to the start line much quicker than I expected.  I met a new friend staying at our hotel and enjoyed the bus ride with her to the start.  We arrived at the start line around 5:15, way too early.  It was cold and I had an hour and a half until the start.  Luckily I had come well prepared with several layers of clothes and claimed a spot close to a fire.  The wind was blowing fairly hard but it was looking like it was going to be a tail wind.  I soon found some of my friends and training partners and we were warming up and getting ready to start the race.

At 6:45 the gun was off and we were running in the pitch dark.  I kept a warm-up shirt and gloves on for the beginning of the race and was excited with the perfect conditions for running.  It was cool and the wind was pushing us from behind.  I knew there would be a lot of runners that would go out fast.  I tried to follow my coach's advise: be patient and wait for the second half of the race.  I was trying to run my first half around 1:27 and planned to run the second half faster for a finish somewhere around 2:50.  I found a group of women that were running the same plan as me and the four of us worked through the first half together.  Jasmine Sessions and Missy Allred were super nice to share their bottles with me at the aid stations when they realized I didn't have any.  It was great to have a group to work with and it made the first miles pass so quickly.

At 10K I was at 40:35 averaging 6:32 mile pace.  That was right where I wanted to be since the first seven miles are some gradual downhill and the hills were coming up in the next seven miles.  I'm not sure what place we were in at that point but probably somewhere between 20 to 30 for the women.  At seven miles we reached the town of Veyo.  It was finally warm enough to ditch my warm-up shirt by the side of the road.  I was feeling good and ready to charge up the hill but stuck with the group I was with and kept reminding myself that I was saving it for the second half.  Veyo hill is the biggest, longest hill in the course.  It stretches for about a mile and we went up it in 7:20.  We were starting to pass a lot of people as the hills kept going through the next several miles. Jasmine and I started to pull away from the other girls we were running with at about 12 miles when it flattens out a bit.  I realized we had fallen off the pace I wanted to run a little but not so far we couldn't make it up later.  We crossed the half marathon in 1:27:56 averaging 6:42 miles.  It looked like we were in a good place to run low 2:50s.  Maybe if everything went perfect we still had a chance to go under 2:50.

After the half Jasmine and I really started to race.  We started to look for runners, especially the women ahead of us and pick them off one at a time.  We dropped into the low six minutes for our mile splits when we hit the downhill and were catching a lot of runners.  When we reached Snow Canyon at mile 15 we had passed a few more women and one of the spectators told us we were in 9th place.  We had broken into the top 10 but I was sure there were still others up ahead we could catch.  Jasmine was great to run with but a couple miles later she said the pace was starting to feel a little too fast for her and she started to drop back.   My quads were starting to burn from the fast downhill running.  I was a little worried by this but at this point I could ignore the pain and it wasn't slowing me down.  I just hoped it didn't get worse.  I crossed the 30K(18.6 miles) split in 2:01:30.  My average pace had dropped back down to 6:31 thanks to some fast downhill miles.  I started to calculate in my head what I could do.  Could I run another 12K in less than 48 minutes? I could see a couple more women up ahead and I picked up the pace working on catching them.  I felt great other than the fact that my quads felt like they were on fire.  With every step I felt a shooting pain in my quads but instead of slowing down I just kept getting faster.

Around mile 18 I hit the last uphill in the course.  While it's not as long and steep as the others, it's late in the race.  I easily passed some runners though and on the next steep downhill mile ran a 5:29!  I was flying past people and had moved into 5th place for the women.  Every mile split I glanced at the clock and tried to figure out how fast I had to keep running.  I soon realized I would be well under 2:50 as long as I didn't slow down.  Maybe a 2:48, or even a 2:47... My quads were screaming at me.  I was on my own now.  There were a few men to pass but it was getting pretty spread out and I couldn't see the 4th place woman ahead of me.  I knew I had a good lead on 6th place and it was so tempting to just coast in those last few miles to town.  Maybe my legs wouldn't hurt so bad if I slowed down a bit.  But I knew I would regret it later if I did.  I knew that I may never get this perfect of conditions again and I would always wonder what I could have done if I'd pushed it a little harder.

The last two miles flatten out a bit as they wind through town.  Jason and my kids were waiting to cheer for me there.  It was so great to see them and get that extra bit of encouragement.  I could really do this!  I was still keeping a 5:50 pace.  I could do anything for just two more miles.  The mile markers that had come so quickly in the beginning were feeling like an eternity now.  With about a mile to go I caught up with a guy who stayed with me and raced me to the finish.  It was just what I needed to keep my pace up and ignore the pain in my legs.  I remembered three years ago coming around that corner and realizing I had fallen just short of my goal.  This year I had made it and with time to spare.  It was a great feeling to come across the finish line in 2:46:13.  They put my 5th place finisher tag  and finisher's medal around my neck.  I was so excited it was hard to even notice how tired I was! I found my friend Rosy Lee who had won the women's race in 2:37.  Jasmine finished in 2:49 in 8th place, her first time under 2:50 and Missy ran a PR 2:53 in 13th and 2nd for masters.  It was an extremely fast year with the top ten all under 2:52.  We were aided by the wind and temperature but there were also some very talented runners there that I felt privileged to be a part of.  I won my age division and my biggest cash prize ever.  My average pace was 6:20.  This means I averaged under 6 minute miles for the second half.  I realized after I finished that I had run my second half of the race in 1:18:17, a full minute faster than my PR in the half marathon.

Women's Top 10 Awards

Age group awards.  Zak James next to me was a teammate of ours at SUU.

In some ways I think I may never be able to run that fast again.  Everything really was perfect on Saturday.  And if I never do run faster I think I will always be really happy with this race.  It was a day to remember.  Yet, I'm also already scheming as to how to get faster.  I negative split (ran the second half faster) by 10 minutes!  While that is amazing, I think if I had it to do over again I would run the first half faster.  Maybe I could have shaved another minute or two off my time.  Of course there is no going back to do things again but I'm already looking forward to the next race and many more to come.  Next up, Boston 2014.  It's going to be a great year!

And I had to include this one last picture where Jared sneaked up on the podium behind me to get in the picture with Skyler.  My family deserves this victory as much as I do it.  They've been right there with me the whole year cheering me on and supporting me.  It takes sacrifice on everyone's part to get where I am and I couldn't do it without my fabulous family!