1/2 Marathon

Just before the race- It was SOOOOO cold before the sun came over the ridge. 

After the race with my supportive fans


I can officially say that I've run a half marathon (13.1 miles) and I'm so glad it's over! I finished in just under 2 hours and 13 minutes (sounds good to anyone who doesn't run, huh?). I had LOTS of technical difficulties. I was disappointed & hoped to have had a better time, but hey- I finished! I'm thankful to Laura who get me on track while we trained with the long runs & for my sister in-law Renee who joined in on the last couple runs... even though she totally beat me. There's another picture of me crossing the finish line as proof & I'll add it the post once I get it. Thanks to Mark for bringing the girls so they could watch me finish... What a sweetie!

No love like sisterly love

Every once is awhile there are moments where Paige and Claire really get along... they don't last long and I happened to catch one of them on film. Paige had just woke up from her nap (hence no shorts- they make her hot while she sleeps). Paige was very excited to see Claire & they were watching a show together momentarily & caught in the act. They were being so cute! Claire absolutely adores Paige, head locks & all......

Together Again

May 24th-

Josh is finally home! After two years in Mexico serving a mission, my baby brother Josh is back. He's the youngest, but not so small anymore. For pictures of the actual homecoming, you can check out Melissa's blog or my Moms. They have cool slideshows. All the siblings went out to dinner together & thankfully Melissa brought her camera (she's so good about that). I love this picture! It was SO fun to be together and nice not to have kids with us that night. Thanks for Grandmas & Grandpas that love our kids! 

Paige loves FHE!

We decided after one very difficult Sunday that Paige needed to learn about being reverent. Sundays are usually challenging since our ward meets at 1:30pm- the same time Paige takes a much needed nap. Three hours is a long time for a 3 year old & even longer when they have to stay seated & haven't had a nap.

We thought Family Home Evening would be the perfect way to start teaching Paige about proper church behavior- the basics like sitting in your chair, not running in the halls away from your teacher, etc (it was a rough Sunday for our Paige). 

Paige LOVED F.H.E.! The song, the lesson about being reverent & the treat- Green ice cream (mint & chip)! We didn't think much of it, other than that we prayed Paigey would remember the things we taught her the following Sunday. It actually worked (for the most part). She was much better in primary the following week and she was very excited to have family home evening again. She would talk about it and ask if we could have it again. She was so cute about it- I figure if I didn't blog it now, I'd forget she enjoyed it. We keep it simple & very short, and I feel like a good Mom for actually doing something right :0)

Paige got to be the helper on the last day of preschool. They had a princess party & all got to wear their princess dresses. I'll have to get pictures from my Mom so I can post them. As the helper, you get to bring sharing, be the line leader, lead the pledge and bring the snack. I thought a princess party needed princess worthy snacks. I thought it would be fun to incorporate this into our FHE activity & treat. We dipped marshmallows into melted chocolate & then into sprinkles. I thought Paige would fun & take pride in her snack at preschool the next day. She LOVED it & we had fun as a family (Claire was already in bed so she wasn't included). Here are the finished marshmallows and Paigey post treat. 

Out of order

I'm not really good with journaling and blogging is my attempt at keeping track of my life- mostly for the sake of my girls. I will obviously not be able to remember everything that happens. I'm doing my best to blog in order, but I'm behind... the dates are mostly for my sake until I can figure out how to rearrange the posts. If I was smart enough, I'd just post things in order....

Back to Disneyland

May 21st-

My sister in-law Jamie, my sister Melissa & I took the kids to Disneyland and left the babies with grandmas. We had so much fun together (but we missed Claire & Dylan). Paige loves her cousins! We spent a lot of time at California Adventure. The Pixar parade is super cute. Paige loved it since she's very into Monster's Inc & the Incredibles right now. We had front row seating despite the crazy tourists who tried to "squeeze" their way in at the last minute. Suckers seem to be make waiting much more bearible for kids 19 months- 3 1/2 years old. 

 The weather was perfect and it wasn't too crowded. We ended up staying until they closed and the kids crashed all the way home. Luke crashed while waiting for the last ride- we're chalking it up to the benadryl... poor kid.  Kaylee was not so sure about the first ride, but Luke & Paige loved it.  

Luckily we didn't go the following day (thanks to Melissa who had a baby shower)- that's when the crazy weather hit. Mark was home from work and out mowing the lawn when the first thunder storm came through. Mark is a die hard & once the rain stopped he was back outside to finish. 

I went to the gym later that afternoon (blue skies & no rain) and when I came out the weather was crazy. It was raining pretty hard & dark outside. People were saying to drive safe because their had been some tornados! Huh? The four mile drive home was so scary. I HATE thunder & it was loud with lighting right behind it. I was afraid a tornado would get me before I could make it home... what a wimp! Love the rain, hate all the other stuff. I'm so spoiled from living in California most of my life and always having nice weather. Except for the crazy heat- I'm so thankful for air conditioning!

Claire is ONE!

This is my FAVORITE picture of Claire when she was only a few days old

I can't believe Claire is already ONE year old! This year has gone by sooo fast. Claire is always trying to keep up with her big sister & keeping us entertained (& on our toes). She loves to climb on anything & everthing! I can't let her out of my site for long. 

Claire was so hard in the beginning. She was very fussy & we were spoiled from Paige. Claire has come into her own & is so much fun. We love her to pieces. Happy Birthday sweetheart!

On Claire's actual birthday -May 30th, we decided to let her have a cupcake (I had leftover batter from her cake so I let Paige "decorate" a couple and they both got to have one). Claire wasn't afraid to get messy & decided that fingers to the mouth took longer than just face directly into the cupcake. She was so CUTE! Wish I had it on video.. but hopefully we can borrow the video from Grammy. 

 

Paige knows best!

Our sweet little Paige always has something fun to say. It is late & after blog-hopping for way too long & prolonging my own blogging, I remembered this......

Yesterday Mark was hosing off the patio before family came over for Claire's 1st birthday party (check back for blog entry of hilarious cake pics). Paige was outside "helping" Mark. 

Paige- Dad, I'm thirsty. I need a drink from the hose

Mark- Sorry Paige. Hose water isn't good for you. Bugs can crawl up the hose. You don't want to drink from it

Paige- But MOM says it okay

Mark- Sometimes Moms are wrong. You're not drinking from the hose. 

Paige- My MOM is perfect

Awwww...... how sweet it that! I have a lot to live up to if she really thinks that. Glad to know by letting her get drinks from the hose, I'm perfect :0)