Been Up To ...

Despite the cool weather I feel like we've already started Summer, we've been super busy. For example ....
We had a great Easter. We attended a few Easter egg hunts and enjoyed talking with the boys about Christ and why we celebrate the day.As you can see we got plenty of eggs and candy. We had a bon fire with friends. We enjoyed pony rides and playing on the ranch with sticks! It was little boy heaven.

We've enjoyed several afternoons playing at the park with friends. The boys are always too busy running and playing so here's a shot of the girls. I know they look so enthused (read with sarcasm). Had a sleepover with our cousin. They played so hard and laughed so much they took a full 3 hour nap the next day!We've even ridden the train with Aunt Jenny during her visit. Front Runner to Salt Lake was a huge hit. We visited Temple Square and enjoyed lunch out. It was a beautiful spring day.

The weather is finally spring like and summer is just around the corner so hopefully we'll see you out there!

Just Us

Recently I've read a few articles and talked with a few people who feel blogging paints an inaccurate picture. It's a false life that really doesn't exist and is way to cheery. I'm afraid I missed that tutorial when we joined the blogging world. I've tried to share both the good and the rough. Our life is in no way perfect. We really are just trying to share our lives with our family and friends, many of which live very far away. We've tried to illustrate the simply joys of family in a world that says family and kids are way too much trouble and not worth it. To that we say "Really? Family is great and kids are work, but so worth it!" As we look back on previous posts it's easy to see how much the Lord has blessed us. We are truly grateful for the good and the bad. So we'll continue to post snapshots of our lives and hope you enjoy it.

And as if you needed any proof that we're not perfect, here's a picture of a less then perfect moment.

Why is it so tough to get a good picture of all three?

Socks!

Tall socks, short socks, socks with elastic in them, cute socks. It doesn't matter, Audrey won't wear them. She is a pro at taking them off. She can do it fast, she can do it slow, she can even do it on the sly. She sometimes has one sock off before I've even put the other on. With the boys I lost a total of one sock, not one pair, one sock! Audrey loves slipping them off at the grocery store, on the way into church or in the car and somehow they are gone, just gone.

I know what your thinking "So just put them back on". I can't she either intentionally loses them or she yanks them off and sucks on them. I can't put a soggy sock back on! So yes I know my child does not have socks on and it is snowing but I've already been through 3 pairs today and I promise she is happier this way. This girl just loves her toes, and I have to say so do I.

."What Mom?"She had socks on when she got in the car, I promise.

What is it?

It's neither an SUV or a mini van. It fits all of us, and more importantly all of our stuff, and has 10 cup holders. That's right we bought a new car, a Saturn Outlook. It's a crossover that gets between 24-26 miles per gallon. The boys love it. When we bought it they helped wash it, so now they point to all the dirt on the outside and say they missed a spot. We are very excited and feel so blessed. We just need to figure out how to fill all those cup holders because for right now no food or drink is allowed.

We Did It!

We've been training for nearly 5 months and this last weekend was the big day. We ran our half marathon, that is to say we ran 13.1 miles! The big race was in Moab so we made a trip of it. Consider yourself warned there are way too many pics in this post.

On the way down we stopped at the Price Dino museum. I left the camera in the car but it was a hit and a lot of fun.

We arrived in Moab a day early so we could do some hiking in Arches National Park. Aunt Becky and our family friend came with us. We were so grateful to have them there to watch the kids while we ran. We hiked the Double Arch. It was great and the boys were sooo excited to go hiking.

We were lucky enough to have some friends come down with us. Kearsten and I trained together. It was fun to have friends along for all the fun esp because our kids ages match up pretty closely.Both Audrey and Logan had ear infections that were diagnosed the day before we left. Penn had a terrible cold. But we'd trained and paid for this so we felt we needed to go anyway (with the Dr's approval). We should have expected a rough night but literally Spencer and I got no more then 30 mins of sleep that night. Lets just say it was rough. But we were up early and caught the bus up the canyon were we waited for 2 and half hours before the race started. It takes a long time to bus 5,000 runners up the canyon. It was freezing cold at the top but as we ran it warmed up nicely. We finished in less then 2 and half hours. The following picture is not flattering but keep in mind we just ran 13.1 miles with no sleep, plus I had a baby 8 months ago.After the race, a shower and a nap (a ginormous thanks to Becky and Elizabeth for taking the kids for a car ride so we could catch an hour of sleep, it was heavenly!) we were off to the park.After more hiking we headed down to Durango to hang with Uncle Mitch, which is always a good time. Durango has a great train museum the boys enjoyed and I got some divine ribs at the Serious Texas BBQ.Now the big questions: Would I run another? What about a marathon?
The tough answers: Yes I'm considering running another half. I kind of want a do over with sleep! I'm not so sure about the full marathon. My knees have been hurting. I'm not sure they would hold up. I think I'd have to see a doctor or two before I could answer that question. I had a great time and would encourage everyone to set difficult but achievable goals. It's fun to work toward achieving them and it feels great when you accomplish them!

Spring?

Spring?

Where are you? We've been waiting soo long. We're ready for sunscreen, long walks to the park, bike rides and bbq's. We can't wait to plant a garden, water flowers and go camping. Please hurry we simply can't wait much longer and we think Mom might be losing her mind staying inside all day. Thanks,

US

Kids Say the Darndest Things

Logan woke up one morning and just started talking. I'm not sure he's stopped since. It's the cutest thing. He tells me that going to dinner would "be awesome. Really great" or asks "what is Audrey having this day?" when I'm feeding her solids. For Valentines Day dessert we dipped fruit in chocolate. He kept telling us "this is fun! I'm having fun".

Penn doesn't say as much but he still has some gems. When Logan wants to wrestle and he doesn't he tells him "Logan be a nice boy, be a good guy". Penn is always on the move and loves to tell us how "he runs soooo fast" or when he's doing something he thinks is dangerous, like going up the slide instead of down, he says "this not so scary".

We love are boys and are looking forward to what they say next.

Since the Aggies basketball game the boys have loved playing with their basketballs. They throw, "shoot" and randomly yell "Go Aggies!" They even sleep with their balls. I love it, you could say my dreams are coming true.

Audrey is still awesome. While she doesn't pull herself up she can stand alongside the furniture when propped. She's getting so strong. She jabbers all the time, dada is still her favorite, and loves jumping in her bouncer.