Gratitude

Being the month of Thanksgiving, I decided to document 1 thing every day for which I am grateful.


Nov 1 - Ethan. He is smart and active and energetic and good. He loves to be everybody's friend. Happy birthday, buddy. You are a joy to our family.
Nov 2 - Recovering 1/2 marathon muscles and a strong body that allows me to work hard.
Nov 3 - Greg, who is supportive always encourages me to strive for more.
Nov 4 - My boys - all 4 of them - who give me reason to write, laugh, love and go crazy.
Nov 5 - Perspective.
Nov 6 - Rare weekends with Greg at home with me and the boys.
Nov 7 - To know truth and have the Gospel in my life.
Nov 8 - My parents; truly 2 of my dearest friends and greatest examples.
Nov 9 - My siblings who, in our adult lives, have become some of my favorite friends.
Nov 10 - Home. The location is always changing, but the feeling remains the same.
Nov 11 - The selfless service of my husband, brothers and all those who have given of themselves to preserve the sacred freedoms of this beautiful country. Happy Veteran's Day.
Nov 12 - Good health.
Nov 13 - Resilient children.
Nov 14 - Cold nights filled with good friends, yummy food and loud laughter.
Nov 15 - Little hands that love to hold, little lips that love to kiss and little bodies that love a good snuggle.
Nov 16 - Unsolicited apologies.
Nov 17 - Lincoln. He is sassy and independent and funny. He can melt strangers with a big, cheeked, blue-eyed glance. Happy birthday, turkey face.
Nov 18 - New adventures and opportunities.
Nov 19 - Small and simple things; they always make me the happiest.
Nov 20 - Rare movie theater nights with happy children who fall asleep before the final credits role - and washing machines for mornings after too much soda.
Nov 21 - To have survived the last 2 years with grace and guff, which would have been impossible without the love and support of family and friends.
Nov 22 - Imaginary play.
Nov 23 - To have work.
Nov 24 - Protection from the elements in a warm and comfortable home. It's -14 degrees outside.
Nov 25 - To know the value of being surrounded by good people.
Nov 26 - Porter John. He is warm and loving and resilient and funny. And he refuses to be left in his brothers' dust.
Nov 27 - My parents, again. Their wisdom, advise, guidance, friendship and love are invaluable to me.
Nov 28 - To have my tree up and the Christmas spirit settling in.
Nov 29 - Bedtime.
Nov 30 - For the diaperless family status that is looming.

Turkey Trot

With a looming forecast of -45 degrees, I decided yesterday to skip the 5k Turkey Trot. BUT, when I woke to clear skies this morning and warmer-than-expected temperatures, I couldn't resist. I ended up running in -2 degrees. I wore 2 pairs of leggings, 2 long-sleeve running shirts and my arm wamers under my favorite Lulu sweatshirt, 2 pairs of socks, gloves and a Gortex head sock. I couldn't feel my fingers or my toes and my nose quickly began dispensing ice cubes, but my numb legs ran strong enough, bringing me across the finish line in 27 minutes. And nearly an hour later, I'm still thawing.

What Am I?

It's 6:20 a.m. All 5 members of my little family are packed into my queen-sized bed like sardines. Appendages are like tentacles, nobody goes untouched. Feeling silly, dad asks, "If momma were an animal, what would she be?"

In order of response:

Lincoln: A hunkback whale
Ethan: A stinkbug
Porter: A booger.

It's good to be loved.

Happy Birthday, Link!

If you ask Lincoln how old he is these days, he will put up his fingers one at a time and tell you, "One, two, phree, FOUR!" He asked me the day before his birthday how old he would be when it wasn't his birthday anymore and when he wasn't 3. After a long discussion, I think we've finally got the concept of being 1 year older for a whole year. Lincoln loves to imagine. His life revolves around Go Diego Go these days, and you can frequently find him bossing around his Baby Jaguar (played, most of the time willingly, by Porter). He loves to draw and to sing when he thinks no one is listening. He is an independent little bugger, but for all his sassiness, he always gives double the love.

4-year-old favorites:

Color - Pink (hey - I'm just the messenger, people)
Food - Dry cheerios
Song - Angel Lullaby
Movie - Little Mermaid
Activity - Playing and jumping on the trampoline
Friend - Samantha
Thing to do with daddy - Build with Lincoln Logs
What he loves most - His stuffed puppy



Happy Birthday, Link! We love you up to Heavenly Father's power (which is, for those of you who don't know, Lincoln's catch phrase for the ultimate one-up; no one can trump it).

Happy Birthday, Ethan!

Okay, so I'm a week late, but he's still 6! Ethan really is a light to our family. He's smart and funny and goofy and handsome and full of love. I quizzed him last week about his 6-year-old favorites and this is where he stands:

Color - Brown
Food - Sandwiches
Song - Theme song from Ben 10: Ultimate Alien
Movie - How to Train Your Dragon
Activity at School - Recess
Friends - Luke and Mandy
Thing to do with Dad - Play with Boone

When I asked him what he loves most, he said, "Um . . . mommy and daddy . . . but PUH-leez don't add that on the blog!" Too late, buddy.

Another year older, smarter and, of course, sassier. We love you, Ethan!

Words To Live By

"Happiness does not depend on what happens outside of you

but on what happens inside of you;

it is measured by the spirit with which you meet the problems of life."

~Harold B. Lee

Halloween 1/2 Marathon

Things 1 and 2

13.1 miles. I survived. But only by the skin of my teeth. Shelle and I got up just after 4 in the morning, dressed up as Dr. Seuss' "Things" and were on the first bus out of the parking lot at 5:30, shuttling us up to Aspen Grove where we proceeded to wait over 3 hours for the race to begin.

Obviously, we weren't the only "Things" on the mountain. I think there ended up being 5-6 pairs, but we definitely had the best hair!

The first 5 miles were straight. down. hill. And they flew by. At least until mile 5. I believe someone then proceeded to drop a brick wall right in front of me. It really was a beautiful run, full of panoramic views of Mt. Timpanogos and trails winding through canopies of aspens shedding golden leaves. Admittedly, though, my eyes were usually on the cement right in front of my feet. Second only to natural childbirth, this was definitely the hardest physical accomplishment on my bucket list. But totally worth it!

Awful picture, but squinting without my glasses, I'm pretty sure I was screaming silently, "WHERE IS THE STINKIN' FINISH LINE!?!?"

When we finished, we guzzled water, gobbled oranges and tried our hardest not to fall over and die. I ran on Saturday. 3 days ago. I am JUST beginning to feel less crippled and am finally regaining my ability to walk almost normally. When the race ended, I thought to myself that I would never put myself through it again. But now, 3 days later, I'm already planning to participate in next year's Halloween 1/2. Anyone want to join up? I'm already brainstorming costume ideas . . .

I hoped to finish in 1:55 minutes, thinking that was totally optimistic, best-case scenario. I ended up running 13.1 miles in 1:49:48, taking 58th place in my age group (24-29), 265th female runner and 588th overall. Considering there were close to 3000 runners, I'm feeling pretty accomplished! And Michelle beat her time from last year by 9 minutes!

Oh, and just because it deserves mentioning, the 1st place runner crossed the finish line at 1:05. Seriously? I'm pretty sure he's superhuman or something.