Baby Animal Days (2 1/2 Weeks Later! I am slow at posting pictures once again!)

HELLO EVERYONE! (revised)

I have a lot of posting to do! And since it's 10:46 PM, I might not get it all done tonight But I have a bunch of pictures that I've wanted to post and also some journaling. So you might be seeing a few posts from me this week. (Keyword: might!)

First of all, I need some advice... a lot of times on Sunday evenings, like tonight, I find myself cleaning! I know that isn't the best time to clean and I have been trying to come up with a system so that I can clean more during the week. But, I find that during the week I get so busy with the everyday grind that I don't get a lot of cleaning done and so by the time Sunday comes around I feel the pressure to do it before another busy week starts!

I am just wondering how other people do their cleaning. I know this is lame and not a huge deal, but it is to me! Anyway, I like having routines or schedules so I have tried that before but I haven't kept with it. Example: Sweep and mop floors on Monday, clean bathrooms Tuesday, etc. etc. you get my point. Does anyone else do this? How do you guys get your house cleaning done? Any help would be much appreciated!

Second...I have had so many people tell me how they hate running and they don't know how they could do a marathon or half-marathon because they hate to run so bad. I honestly am not a huge fan of running either. I like it more now of course, but that's only because I've been doing it for a while and I see the benefits of it now. Also, I didn't exercise regularly before and having a goal is the ONLY thing that got me to do it. I listen to music while I run and that helps A LOT! For me it makes the time go by faster and makes it more enjoyable. I also have to say that in the beginning I didn't hardly run at all. I would alternate walking and running/jogging and I still do that. I can't run for very long without stopping to walk for a little break to catch my breath. I have heard of some people that can't run or they don't like to run and so they have walked the half-marathon and I think that's awesome! Just getting out there and exercising and getting the mileage in is the great thing!

Since running I haven't lost as much weight as I had hoped, but I'm in better shape and more toned so I feel a lot better about myself. I also think I am a stronger person on the inside because of setting and accomplishing a goal (and pushing myself to get out of bed and exercise!). I would also push myself while running and thinking that I have to keep going even when it is hard because that is when I am growing the most...not just physically but mentally. I remember Brent telling me a quote that he heard on his mission that says something like, "We grow the most when we are out of our comfort zone." Something to that effect...you get my point. I have heard that running is a lot MENTAL and I agree. I've also learned that if you think it is going to suck and you tell yourself that then it will! What you see is what you get!

I just had to post this because all of you who have said you hate running and wish you liked it could totally do it! It's all in your head! I know you can do it and I will support you 100%. I am a stronger happier person because of training for the half-marathons and I know you guys would be too! So get out there and start running/exercising! And if you live in Cache Valley I will totally exercise with you! Now what is your excuse?

Okay, now that I've given you guys a little pep talk I have to get to bed so that I can get up in the morning to do what I've told you all to do!

The Half-Marathon Post!

Sorry everyone! I have been meaning to post about the half-marathon by now, but I have been busy! I would have done it this morning, but I have been babysitting all morning. I had a few comments from people telling me to hurry up and post about it! So here it is.

Okay, on to the good stuff! The atmosphere there that morning was amazing! As we arrived at the starting line to stretch and get ready there was a church choir singing and tons of people! The excitement of it all just gets you so pumped up! For those who don't know, the people who did the half-marathon were me, Brent, Brent's brother Brian, Brian's wife Jaimee, and Jaimee's sister Rachel. There were also three other people there that are friends of Rachel's. They drove from Las Vegas to run in it with us! We took a few pictures from my camera phone...
My final time was 2:39:36 which is an average of 12 minutes and 10 seconds per mile. For me that is a pretty good pace! I could have been even faster if I wouldn't have had to stop and use the bathroom though! Anyone who has had a baby probably understands that you just can't hold it like you used to! And I didn't want to try and hold my pee for 9 or 10 more miles! That would have been miserable. So I am happy with the results. What kept me going the most was if I would stop to walk and catch my breath I would see all of these people passing me so I'd have to get running again! It's that competitiveness in me I guess.

I have to say that having so many people around you doing the same thing is just awesome! There were 3,819 people that did the half-marathon alone! Plus all of the people running the full marathon and the 5K race. My favorite was all of the people on the side of the road cheering us on. I felt like we were in a parade or something! Some of the signs I saw said, "GO, YOUR NAME, GO!" and of course, "Run Forrest Run!" it was hilarious. There were also two helicopters flying above us for the news.

And Brent did awesome for hardly training! His final time was 2:19:01! Good job honey!

Thanks to everyone for all of your support in this! I didn't know I had so many fans! I have such wonderful family and friends and I am very grateful. And thanks to my mom for coming to Salt Lake with us to take care of Gavin! I'm probably going to be doing the Bear Lake half-marathon in June, so anyone who would like to join me please do! The more the merrier!

Saturday...

I had to copy Jaimee and do a post about this Saturday because it is the big Salt Lake City half-marathon! I am really excited to go down there and accomplish this goal I have been working on for so long. We are leaving Friday afternoon and staying in the Marriott at the U. I will be honest, I am a little nervous! But I know it will be great!

I also have to say thanks to all of those people who have helped and supported me in this goal! Thanks to Brent for being patient with me when I couldn't get out of bed! ("Boogins! Get up!") Thanks to Brian and Jaimee for letting us stay at your house and Brian for listening for and watching Gavin so much. Thanks to Adam and Rachel for letting us impose! And for the times you also listened for and watched Gavin. Thanks to my mom for encouraging me and being my biggest fan and for helping with Gavin! Thanks to my grandma for watching Gavin for me when I was in Tremonton so I could go run! Thanks to all of the friends and family members who have shown their love. And thanks to all of those people who told me I was crazy for doing this...one of my favorite quotes says, "Sometimes in life you have to be a little crazy so that you don't go insane." Not sure who said that, but I like it.

Wish me luck. Ready or not here it comes!

Swim Lessons, Cache Valley Weather, Emma Smith...

So, yes, this post is really three posts all mixed into one. I have been having thoughts about posting these for the past few days and thought I would just slap them all together and get it over with!

SWIM LESSONS...
Here are some pictures of Gavin and I at swim lessons. He has been doing really well in the water. He gets pretty distracted with the basketball hoop though! This kid LOVES basketball already! He points to it and wants me to lift him up so that he can touch the net. When I do he gets so excited and squeals and kicks his legs! He says "Buh Ball" (for basketball).

It is cute except for the fact that we are supposed to be working on swimming! So I found him a little basketball hoop that we put up at our house so that maybe the novelty of basketball will wear off for him and he might concentrate more on swimming when we are at the pool! We will see I guess. Spencer and Jaimee are in our class and it is nice to have someone we know there!

CACHE VALLEY WEATHER...The other morning for the half-marathon training I was supposed to do 3 miles of cross training so I decided to go for a bike ride for part of it. As I was riding along I found it ironic that the song I was listening to was Sheryl Crow's "Soak Up the Sun" and this is what my surroundings looked like...

I seriously took this picture from my cell phone! Honestly! It's April! Let's have a little sunshine!

EMMA SMITH...
My mom and I went to see the movie "Emma Smith: My Story" yesterday. I thought it was really good and I learned new things about Emma that I didn't know before. Has anyone ever heard the song "Emma" from the "Joseph, A Nashville Tribute to the Prophet" CD? It is so good! Seeing this movie reminded me of that song. Here are some of the lyrics (Written by Jason Deere):

"With the world on your shoulders

When the nights had grown colder

You seemed to weather every storm

With a queen’s grace

When you lost your husband

When you buried your children

I’m sure the angels stood in reverence as you prayed

How much can one heart take?"

I am always amazed at all of the things Joseph and Emma went through. I can't imagine losing one child and they lost 6 (I think! Correct me if I am wrong.) They had such amazing strength and courage and I am SO glad they did!

WOW! 2 posts in one week...must be a new record for me!

Our Trip to Willow Park Zoo...

Gavin and I took a little trip to Willow Park last week. It was a pretty nice day so we were excited to get out of the house for a little while. We ate lunch, played on the playground and walked around to see the animals. He loved all of the animals, but he especially liked the ducks! It was so cute because he knows quite a few words in sign language and when he would see a duck he would get a big smile on his face and do the sign for 'duck'. He was so excited.

Snowmobile Hill Climbs...

On Saturday Brent, Gavin and I went up to Beaver Mountain to watch the snowmobile hill climbs. It was awesome! It was pretty cold, but then there would be those moments where the wind would stop blowing and the sun would shine to keep us warm for a few minutes! It was a pretty day and we had a good time. One of our neighbors and his family compete, so it was cool to see them in action!

In this picture Gavin is eating a french fry and he loves them! So Brent dipped one in ketchup and he loved it even more!

Here he is reaching for another fry. I think he ate more fries than Brent did!

Brent and Gavin enjoying the action! And yes, Gavin is eating yet another french fry. We'll fatten this kid up one way or another!

Oh yeah, just a little up-date...I started babysitting two mornings a week for a family in our neighborhood. They have seven kids, and I watch the two youngest boys: Brandon is 4 and Braden is 2. I am going to babysit them for 2 months. It has been pretty interesting so far! More than anything I did this because I knew it would be good for Gavin and for me. Right now I am trying to come up with fun activities to keep the 4 year old entertained! Any suggestions?

I also signed Gavin up for swim lessons two nights a week. It is a "Mommy and Me" class where I am in the pool with him. We have only had two lessons but it has been good so far! And Gavin seems to enjoy it. He just loves getting in the water! He has done really well with all of it. Even getting dunked! My only challenge is trying to keep him focused! He gets so distracted with the basketball hoop! I will have to post some pictures later.

Add training for the half-marathon to all of this and my life has become pretty hectic! But it is good for me. Builds character, right? We'll see!

Here are some late Easter pictures!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!

I am slow in posting these, but I'm going to do it anyway!

My boys doing some building with Gavin's blocks...
(Okay, this wasn't from Easter, but I thought it was cute so I'm posting it anyway.)

Gavin attacking Brent...

Learning how to hunt for Easter eggs... "Sisters, sisters, never were there such devoted sisters" (If anyone can name that movie I will be so proud!) Me and my awesome sister Ronda...

I love this kid...

The End!