Sunday, December 31, 2017

Friday, December 8, 2017

November 2017

Nov 2-
^Never a shortage of attention. She blends right in. :)
^Monique is moving away to Vegas. Nothing to celebrate about, but I've always been sentimental and needed to send her off knowing what a wonderful friend she is.


Nov 3-
^Steph and I took the kids to a dollar movie- Cars 3. Even if movies are more than a dollar now, and the extras add up, it's worth the time together being entertained. 
^My precious sleeping growing babes.


Nov 4-
^Some more naturally made cookies that are a little healthier and GF. Four ingredients. Any effort counts!
^Just the kids and I. Daddy is taking a break on a guys trip. We hit Thanksgiving Point and then watched a movie together.


Nov 5-
^The guys went to a game and the beach. Not much of an agenda besides chillin, beach and food. A nice deserved break.


Nov 6-
^Same old routines. Home exercises and shakes and then being a mommy helper in Madison's Kindergarten. They are so adorable and innocent. Love to watch them learn.


Nov 7-
^She comes down while I exercise and oft times wants to do what I do. She can do more than me! Strong girl, keep it up!
^The kids did mini Minerettes dance class to support our friend. I think every parent loves watching their kids participate and perform.


Nov 8-
^Why does every kid want to buy things at the book fair?! I did too. They beg, so we usually let them buy one thing, or let them use their own money to purchase.


Nov 9-
^Such good helpers. Just like her fill in big sisters.
^Photoshoot for these adorable smiles.


Nov 11-
^Never too busy to help a friend move! Glad you are closer Steph! Hopefully this is the last move for a while. :)
^Thanks for opening your home to fit me in for a touch up on roots Cam! Such a giver.
^Birthday standard Flemmings date. Thanks for joining us friends!


Nov 13-
^More classtime help. I wasn't able to do this for the older kids as much. Definitely some perks to being the youngest.
^Still making efforts to get together for birthdays periodically. Thanks old, but gorgeous, young and vibrant friends!


Nov 14-
^Plank challenge always delivers!


Nov 15-
^Beautiful skies worth pictures.
^Happy birthday #42 to daddy! Breakfast to start the day and his favorite homemade pumpkin pie to end the day!


Nov 16-
^Another Ray day success. Plenty of snuggles still.
^New phones are always fun. Doesn't he look super jazzed? Nerdball.
^New neato phone tricks. Toys change shape but never go away.


Nov 17-
^Always YES to exercise company. Cutest kind!
^A visit from Jenn! International living in London will make visits more scarce. Thanks for making some time to connect! Gives us all a chance to get together when someone visits.


Nov 18-
^A last minute run to support the A(Andy) to B(Brock) Half Marathon. I was sore by the end, but it was a beautiful run and fun to be with friends for a great work out.


Nov 20-
^She cooperates. Naptime!


Nov 21-
^I made a goal to bring peace to one day for a couple hours each month. It's been a rough few months with discontent. The quiet is so much needed in a messy world. Setting goals is always a good thing. I love these kinds of motivations and feelings for good.


Nov 22-
^We went up to have Ed's ENT friend look in the kids mouths. Fun to peak into the big part of his life once in a while. Thanks for the bread and butter babe.


Nov 23-
^Turkey trot! So thankful for a capable body and mind. Up and around the lake to burn some before the feast.
^Nothing compares to homemade rolls. The one day I have no problem sacrificing the time. Good food is just life!
^I like getting all dressed up for special occasions and love making the kids looks a little extra special too.
^A beautiful sky to look at while we eat and visit.
^Marianne always has a grand spread complete with China from China!
^We aren't really big shoppers, but we ran out and grabbed a few things.


Nov 24-
^Trax to temple square. Going early this year and making it a special adventure.
^We met up with cousins for dinner. Super crowded!
^A big crowd to stick with, but we made it through and made a memory.
^So glad they are mine. Best unit to learn together.


Nov 25-
^Dinner and a movie just because.


Nov 27-
^Lash extensions are pretty great and low maintenance, but so are breaks and naturalness. Taking a break.
^Awarded her calculator for counting to 100! Yay! Progress!
^SO necessary every 6 months for these mouths! We do our best to keep them clean, but they still always need it so much!

^Decorating the tree tradition. We always try and make it a bonding experience.


^Fun to see ornaments that represent our lives and interests. Also love all the symbols of Christmas.


Nov 28-
^Helping make the community festive. Cute snuggly Auz. Exactly how I feel at night. :)


Nov 30-
^Multitasking. Nice work watching after-school TV while feeding Ray on my lap, Kai. Hahaha!


^A quick trip for the guys to celebrate Steve in AZ.

October 2017

Oct 1-
^Hankies came and watched General Conference with us. We ate breakfast, started a puzzle and painted nails.

Oct 2-
^I thought the last time I did St. George in 2013 it would be my last marathon. Then I turned 35 and entered a new age bracket and changed my mind. If I'm really a runner- the ultimate goal is to run Boston, right? So...I will try this year. 3rd time is the charm, right? Running with a pace goal is much more stressful.

Oct 3-
^Last baseball game for the fall. Kai did awesome! He is a great hitter and his catching and throwing has improved.

Oct 4-
^Fluctuation. April vs. October. Felling so much better in every way.
^I'm getting side stitches! Makes me nervous for my upcoming marathon. What's going on?!
^Cams got 1 year pics for Ray. She's a serious one, but beautiful and adorable.

Oct 5-
^Just doing our thing with baby in tow. Looking for family pic outfits. :)
^Daddy-daughter Activity Days. Sarah lives for this kind of thing and plans out way in advance. They played fun games and did cute crafts.

Oct 6-
^Getting in some good stretching before race day. Please work with me, body.
^Since Mare came in town we got together with Kristen for lunch to celebrate Mare's Birthday. 
^Welp! Here we go! Habit for dinner and these yummy GF waffles for fuel during the race.
^The kids LOVE hotel pools. Kai looked a little like Alfalfa. We took the kids for a bit and then had an early bedtime. I slept in Mare's room since we were getting up early.

Oct 7-
^We caught our shuttle at 4:45am and the busses up the canyon at 5:15am. We found a familiar face at the starting line. Thomas! It was cold as usual. Here goes!!
^We started with the 3:45 pace group. Weather was perfect. At mile one my stitches threatened, but thankfully they were short lived. We separated pretty quickly and everyone was feeling good initially. I was thrilled to catch the 3:35 balloons and pushed it to stick with them up Veyo hill. Nothing too steep, but some LONG uphills during the first half. By half way, my quads were SORE. Not quite cramping, but they felt close. I pushed through the pain. Then my right IT band started to hurt. I stopped at every drink station to briefly stretch from 15 miles on.
^By 23 miles I felt spent. That's usually when the crash comes. Mile 25 my left hamstring threatened cramping, so I tried to run with my legs somewhat straight and use my arms to propel me forward. 3:40 was the time I needed to qualify, but pre-race I was told that Bosten runners this year had to be 3.5 minutes faster than qualifying time. :( I gave it my all. I kept saying prayers I could just finish. 
^My official time was 3:37:54. I qualified!! Hoping that will be enough to run Boston 2019. Boston is where I want to finish my marathon running career. Either way, I met my goal and gave it my all with a much tougher pre-training than any other time. Alone. Thanks to my family for their amazing support. There's no one else I cared to see more at the finish. Phew, and OUCH!
^After the race we went to the pool for a bit and relaxed. Later we grabbed dinner, some yummy stuffed avocado's and got a little treat. I think it's deserved! ;)

Oct 9-
^Back to the grind. This is the standard homework scene at our house every afternoon. It takes couple duty and most of our time until dinner. 
^My cute little monsters reading before bed.

Oct 10-
^Tani's cuts. Celeste has beautiful hair so it's no surprise that Timmy has the same. Love his do!

Oct 11-
^Picture day for these cuties! We give the kids pep talks about how to smile normal and just hope for the best. :)
^Fit really just feels good! Flex friday for my challengers!

Oct 12-
^Photoshoot! Fun to capture the cuteness!

Oct 13-
^Meet the Masters for Sarah's class at school. The kids were really good! Great program.
^Then I ran to Madison's class since she got to be Star Student for the day.
^After school we rushed Kai to a scout activity. He loves scouts and is always looking to climb or jump off things while he waits.

Oct 14-
^Coach, and Mama. Call it what you want, but I am teaching them young that they are important and so is their health. I love it when they join in with me. We dance exer-CIZEd today. :)
^We were winter-ready for Allison Krauss and David Gray. Great concert, awesome seats and we all froze a little. We could see Allison's breathe! I love it when the artists sound the same live as they do in the studio.

Oct 15-
^We got a couple shots on my phone. Family pics complete! Even if it can be a little stressful to do this every year, and Ed hates it, I'm so glad we get these. Today felt like it went as perfect as it could have. My favorite people! Thanks Tawni! Here are her picture edits: 










Oct 16-
^Hey! Shopping the clothes section at Costco!
^Keeping up with our family tradition of going to the pumpkin patch.
^Pumpkins, tractors, pics and the corn maze.
^Love this bunch!
^Sarah entered reflections. She painted a pup. She loves art. So glad!

Oct 17-
^See Madison as my bomber? Still trying to keep up with the healthy food options for the fam and they love the fish tacos.

Oct 18-
^Love waking to her asleep in my bed.
^Halloween cookie decor with auntie, Lizzy and Cam!
^The standard spot. She waits every night for Sarah, and even cries during the day. Cute Auz.

Oct 19-
^We HAD to get in at least ONE camping trip! We went to Goblin Valley for the first time. Good night. Not much to do after it gets dark. :)

Oct 20-
^Quick trip, but the kids loved it!
^We went and hiked 'Little Wild Horse Canyon".
^They loved climbing!!
^
^Slot canyons are so cool!
^
^We had to keep reminding the kids to slow a little and not fall off the cliffs. Kai kept sliding down the rocks and got a giant hole in the butt of his pants. Happy kids!

Oct 21-
^Frightmares for Fall Break! We are frequents to Lagoon with our passes.
^The cutest.

Oct 23-
^Seeing mom at school is way cooler than seeing mom at home. So glad I can help more with older kids.

Oct 24-
^Ray snuggled in today. Super tired and adorable. Later I had bunko so I dressed as Carmen San Diego. ;)

Oct 25-
^Zoo day with Cami and Lizzy. I was thinking our passes were still valid. Nope. They expired. :( Great day anyway!
^

Oct 26-
^So fun hiking Bells canyon with these friends! Baby can't stop me. She did great, and fell asleep without a peep. I love being out in beautiful nature and catching up with friends.
^Scouts Pack Meeting. Mmm! Donuts! Jealous!
^Running to Race away Rett Syndrome for sweet Leah and making it to the temple to feel some peace. I made a goal to go monthly and it's been great!

Oct 27-
^Baby Ray is ONE!! What an adorable girl, party, and mama! Love watching my sis as a mom and all the doting. "Ray, a drop of golden sun!"
^I've always wanted to be a leg lamp! Our neighbors threw an amazing Halloween Party! Fun to have a reason to dress up and do something fun.

Oct 28-
^Lagoon gives us memories and Ed and I headaches. hahaha! 
^Last day of the season for us!
^Thanks for the memories! Beautiful foliage for a photo op.
^ After another Halloween party we ran to see Talitha in Quick Wits. 

Oct 29-
^We celebrated Randy's 40th with him. Big year. The kids forget about toys, and then rediscover them. I'm just happy when they get along.

Oct 30-
^The kid's always look forward to Monday's. Tonight we stayed up past bedtime to finish carving pumpkins. Amazing what we do for the kids to make their lives happy and memorable.

Oct 31-
^All black this year. Maleficent, Ninja and bat. Happy Halloween!
^School parade and class parties!
^Trick or Treat! Give us all your candy!;) Ed and I always trade off handing out candy and going out with the kids. Sarah went on her own this year. Friends are her new fave. :(