Moab 1/2 Marathon

Last weekend we packed up the kids and headed to Moab, just a 5 hour drive away! Back in early December, Adam, a bunch of our friends and I registered for and were accepted to run in the Moab 1/2 Marathon! The last time we ran it was in 2006 so we were really looking forward to it this year. Then, I got pregnant, and my training came to a SREECHING halt when I couldn't lift my head of the pillow, let a lone run 5 plus miles to train. So I became the cheerleader! Though it was hard not to be one of those crossing the finish line, it was fun to cheer everyone on as they did.

We arrived Friday evening in Moab and the town was buzzing with excitement! We were meeting up with the Armstrongs, who had driven in from Utah, and their friends, Niesha and Scott Degering. They had put our names in at a great pasta restaurant so while they waited to be seated, we went to the Registration Center to pick up our packets and race bibs. Of course since I had paid for the race I was definitely picking up the registration packet with all the nick nacks! After grabbing our stuff, we walked over to the restaurant just in time to sit down (thanks Armstrongs :-) and order! This year we brought the kids with us and they had a blast playing with McRae and Ty! After dinner we headed to our hotel for some swimming (not me) and playing!

Saturday morning dawned and the runners (Adam, Mindy, Tanya Petry, Erin and Sverre Jensen, Paul Forsythe, Vicki and Scott Fairchild, their friends Tammi and Tarick and Scott Degering) all headed off to the race while Kerri, Yvette and I hung back to take care of the kids. I was quite a site before I met up with Yvette having Erin's 2youngest kids and my own 4. Erin's baby is 8 months old and we were all laughing as I walked through the hotel lobby carrying a baby and being 5 months pregnant! Yvette volunteered to be on baby duty, saving me from looking too stereotypically Utahn (no offense Utahns!)

Erin was the first to finish beating Adam AGAIN! She's just too fast for ya babe! (and lets add that she is 8 months post baby! What a woman!)

The race started at 10am so we made our way to the finish line area and let the kids play at the park for awhile before setting up our spot on the bleachers to catch a glimpse as the runners came across! Yvette and I were a tidbit emotional watching the runners come in. Yvette had trained for up until a few weeks ago when she got bronchitis and was no longer able to run and well, you know my story! We both vowed to run it next year!

Adam approaching the finish line! Can you see him? :-)
Adam passing us just a few yards from finishing!
Reaching for a sweaty, congratulations hug (which he did not get until after he was showered and clean)! Sorry this preggo lady doesn't do sweaty and smelly too well these days!

I was so proud of everyone as I watched them all finish the race! Adam was a ROCK STAR finishing faster than he did last time at 1:52:48 averaging about an 8 1/2 minute mile! Erin still beat him though :-).
Sverre was next to finish. I love the casual, "this is no big deal" bent wrist! :-) hilarious!
Mindy-all smiles! That girl was amazing and with the all the crap she has dealt with health wise over the past few years, I'm SOOOOOO proud of her!

Mindy was also a ROCK STAR finishing the race in under 2 1/2 hours. She didn't train at all AND bought new shoes the night before leaving to come to Moab! We all told her she was crazy but she showed us by only getting one little tiny blister!

Vicki hadn't ever run any kind of distance race before and Erin, Yvette and I walked toward the corner she'd be coming around to cheer her on. She had on a bright yellow top and we saw her before she saw us so we started screaming and hollering for her. We're SOOOO proud of her too! Everyone else was amazing too, all finishing the race! I know to all of you who ran it talking about next year may be a little premature but just so ya'll know, I expect you there, cheering me on next year :-)!

Paul almost to the finish line! He had no idea we were all there cheering for him! He was focused on finishing!
Tammi being cheered on by her hubby Tarick, who had already finished!
Vicki and Scott! Talk about awesome! Vicki suffered from a foot injury during training and Scott broke his back a year and a half ago in a Mtn. Bike accident! These two are the epitomy of overcoming the odds and accomplishing goals! (And Scott turned 40 four days after the race!)


Later that afternoon, we took the kids to Arches National Park to hike to THE Arch!

Adam and I had tried hiking it the last time we were there with friends but it got too dark and we had to turn back! This time, we started earlier and with the warm weather and great friends, we all had a blast. Walking up the ledge and around the corner to see the Arch was totally surreal! Though I'd never seent the arch in real life it seemed like I had been there before because of all the pictures I've seen of it! The kids did great on the hike, especially Garett! Everytime we hike, no matter where we are, he LOVES it! It's AWESOME!

Tanya ran the race too but no one saw her finish :-)! We were looking so hard for her and missed her! Sorry Tan! Anyway, she and her girls, along with Yvette and her kids, came hiking with us while Bill and Hogan Mtn. Biked and Paul slept!

This picture doesn't show but the kids are sitting in this huge cut out in a rock along the hiking trail. Poor Annie had gone swimming in the morning and the chlorine had burned one of her eyes. When the wind started blow on the trail it irritated it to the point that she could hardly open her eyes! She was a trooper though and pushed onward to the top of the trail!

Logan, Ty and G! Everytime we tried to take a picture of Ty and G, Logan HAD to be in it too!

Annie and G having a brother/sister moment on the trail!
The Arch!! Annie, Garett, Logan and Adam hiked all the way to the arch and stood underneath it!
Spencer, McRae and I hung back to take pics!
Best Buds!!
Adam and Me
The kids at the top of the trail!
Our family of 6 for only another 4 months!

By the time we made it down to the cars we were starving and headed off to our favorite Moab Mexican Restaurant (how many Mexican Restaurants can there be in Moab though?) and had a yummy dinner! OF course it was back to the pool for a late night swim and then we all fell into bed!

Sunday dawned and we said our goodbyes and headed home! We were sad to leave our friends but so glad we were able to spend a few days together! Love You Guys!

Goodbye Moab, we'll see you next year....

Anyone interested in running it next year, let me know and I'll email you the registration info when it comes!

PS-I'm so mad I don't have any pictures of Mindy and Kerry or Niesha and Scott or their girls! Kerry took a billion pictures so I didn't pull my camera out very often in hopes that he'd share the love! Kerry, I'm still waiting for that email with pictures attached :-)

Most of you already know....

Sorry I haven't posted this yet! I guess because I couldn't wait to tell people the news and had to email it and facebook it just to be sure my knews was being READ :-) That said, most of you already know that:

IT'S A GIRL!!!!


Yes, after much fretting and stewing over what the baby would be, we found out last week that this baby is a girl!!!! When the ultrasound tech showed us the "part", I could see right away that it was a girl! I said "Its a girl isn't it?" and she said "You're right, its a girl". I immediately started to cry in disbelief!

I'm still a bit shocked by it all and am not used to the idea of another girl yet. We've been a one girl family for so long that wrapping my brain around another girl is completely foreign, though totally exciting! :-)

Anywho, to those not on facebook or on my email. I'm sorry it took a little longer for me to tell you! We are having a GIRL!!!

PS-i'd post the ultrasound picture but I'd have to take a picture of a picture, and I think its a little embarassing for the little thing to have her "part" shown to the world! Just trust me when I tell you she's a girl :-)

Introducing Our Little "Lucy"

I know I am probably going to hear a lot of grief about this one, but I'm prepared for it so here we go!

A few weeks ago Annie and Adam had a Daddy/Daughter Date! Their plan was to go see the movie "Inkheart". They ended up getting there too late and decided to see "Hotel For Dogs" instead. Thus our story begins.....

I was quietly sitting at home wondering what treat they were going to bring home to me as I had put in an order for something "sweet" :-). Logan was in bed and Spencer and G were watching a movie downstairs when the phone call came. In anticipation of my "treat announcement" Annie and Adam proceded to tell me they were at the pet store in the mall and there was a "bagel" (a cross between a beagle and a bassett hound) puppy for sale and Annie was in deep smitt! They were calling to ask if they could buy her and bring her home! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------!!! These lines are representative of the complete silence they heard on their end of the phone after asking me such a question! "NO WAY!!!" was my answer. "NO WAY!!!! Adam what are you thinking! I'm pregnant and sick and you want to bring home a PUPPY???? NO WAY!!!!" I couldn't believe they would even ask! So as the evening proceeded, I started receiving text message pictures of this adorable little puppy with Annie holding her. Admittedly my heart was softening to mush just looking at the blurry, blackberry phone pictures!

INTERJECT: I need to interject here and share a little history! Annie is a dog LOVER! She has wanted a dog ever since I can remember! I also have always wanted a dog thinking we'd get one when the kids were older! Adam and I had talked a lot before we knew I was pregnant and decided we would get the kids a puppy for Christmas. Then, I got pregnant and all thoughts of puppy plans were completely forgotten!

BACK TO THE STORY: After lots of telephone discussion I told Adam that as cute as that pet store puppy was, I had done enough research to know NOT to buy a puppy on a whim, and NOT to buy a puppy from a puppy store without knowing anything about the breeder for fear it came from a puppy mill. Adam finally agreed and we hung up agreeing that the next day we would make some phone calls to find out more about the dog and where she came from! When Annie got home I told her if that puppy was supposed to be ours she'd be there on Monday. Well, the next day, after church we called the pet store and she had been sold. Annie cried the saddest cry I've ever seen her cry. She was SOOOOO sad. Nestled into her daddy's arms I mouthed to Adam "THIS is all your fault" (that's two things that have been his fault lately :-). To cheer Annie up I told her we'd start looking on line at dog breeders and see if we could find any puppies that we liked. So we spent all afternoon looking at adorable puppy pictures. From researching breeds of dogs that are good for families on and off over the past few years, we had looked at Golden Retrievers, Labradors, Puggles (pugs and beagle mix) and Beagles. Beagles seemed to be a good fit for us as they dont' get too big, they are great with kids and friendly with other dogs. So the search for a Beagle began. There were a ton of adorable ones that we looked at and I started emailing the owners. Without ALL the details, the one I fell for at first sight was from a family in Texas. They had their own two dogs, both purebred Beagles, that they breed. They had one little boy of their own and their two dogs. No puppy mill, no HUGE breeding facility, just a home where they loved their dogs.
After MUCH debate, discussion, listing of pros and cons and considering the ramifications of having a puppy and 4 1/2 months later a new baby, we decided to go for it. Our kids are at such a great age to be able to help with a dog. They are interested and not too busy with friends, sports and social events to be able to enjoy her and help with her. So without the kids knowing, we put a deposit down on the cute little Beagle Puppy from Texas. She was only 5 weeks old at the time. We had three weeks to think, reconsider, research and prepare. I thought after the deposit money went in that I would FREAK out but I didn't! I kept waiting to have a meltdown moment but didn't. Even up to the night before picking her up at the airport. No meltdown.
So, yesterday my neighbor, good friend and puppy lover, Lynette, came with me to go to the airport to pick her up while all the kids were at school (Spencer was home sick so I told him I was running errands and would be home later). When they brought her out in her TEENSY TINY Kennel, I was shocked at how small she is. The pictures we had seen made her look much larger. Instantly I was hooked and so was Lynette. We both oooooed and awwwwwwed at her, signed the papers, tried to get her to go potty (a no go) and then climbed into the car for the 45 min. drive home. Happily I will report that she didn't pee in the car and once home she waited til we put her down on the grass to have her "moment"-which was a LONG one- showing that if needed, she can hold it! Good Puppy!

SPENCER'S Reaction: As soon as I got home I went in the house and told Spencer I needed him to help me bring some things in from the car. He got up off the couch and followed me out to the back of the car where Lynette was standing holding her. His face says it all! Watch the video:

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LOGAN's Reaction: Logan was the next one home! Adam came home from work early and picked Logan up from Preschool on the way. As they drove into the driveway we saw Logan's little face peek out the window and turn to confusion! He couldn't take his eyes off the dog as he climbed out of the car and went straight towards her. He was a little nervous at first but warmed right up!

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ANNIE and GARETT'S Reaction: Annie and G were walking up the street from the bus when they came around the corner and saw a bunch of people standing on our front lawn. They both saw the puppy at the same time. Annie started walking fast, giggling the whole time and came straight toward me to take her out of my arms. Garett couldn't stop talking. Is that our Puppy? I had no idea?

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NAMING OUR PUPPY: The kids were each totally in shock! We spent the whole afternoon and evening playing with her, and playing with ALL the neighborhood kids. Each of them wanted to have a say on what we named her. After much debate and going through about a BILLION different names, the kids decided to name her "Lucy". It seems to fit her quite well and though it wasn't even a name on our radar to begin with, we now have a dog named Lucy!
ALL the neighborhood kids
THE TASK AHEAD: I definitely have A LOT of work ahead of me! So far she has done great! We are crate training her and last night she slept, next to my bed, in her crate. She only whimpered a few times at bedtime and then fell asleep until about 1:45 (we went to bed at 9:30). I took her out and then brought her right back to bed. She was wrestless for a few minutes and then went right back to sleep until about 5am where I took her out again. I put her back to bed and she slept until about 6:30 when she heard the kids start to stir! She's been playing with them all morning, let us know she had to go out by standing at the back door, did her potty "biznezz", ate and is now SOUND asleep in her little doggie bed on the floor next to me.

So far this adventure has started out well.....We'll see how it goes in the next few weeks! One thing I know for sure though is DOG WHISPERER HERE I COME!!!!

One Week and COUNTING

You'd think with my 5th child on its way this whole experience would be familiar to me but guess what? This time its not! With my other four children when it came time for me to have my ultrasound, Adam and I decided NOT to find out the baby's sex but to wait until it was born. People often ask "How are you so strong?" or "I could never be that strong". Really people, you could be because its not like you have to be "strong" every second of every day! You only have to be strong on one day during your whole pregnancy. The day of your ultrasound and even then, you only have to be strong when you tell the tech "we don't want to know so please don't tell us!" It's really NOT that hard!

We've done the not finding out out thing FOUR times and have LOVED every part of not knowing. This time however, we have decided to find out. There are many reasons we are finding out at the ultrasound, first on the list being the major "musical bedrooms" we'll be playing regardless of the babies sex! But, with all the excitement as we count down to next week, this unfamiliar territory is giving me the jitters.

What if I am sad about what the baby's sex is? (Everyone knows we want a girl, but I LOVE my boys and KNOW I will love another one just as much! It's ludicrous to think I wouldn't love another boy!! But, I also worry about feeling disappointed which I DON'T want to feel, either way! Make sense?)

Then there is the fear that no matter what they say, a few days later I'll have the feeling I got one time on Christmas when I snooped and found a beautiful pair of Figure Skates only to see them on Christmas Morning as my "Main Gift"! I didn't love the skates any less, but didn't have the fun "surprised" feeling that I normally would get on Christmas! I don't want to regret finding out is what I'm saying! I regretted "snooping" at Christmas and don't want that feeling again!

Of course there is the concern of how other people will respond to my telling them the baby's sex. I think a lot of people see me as completely HEART SET on a girl and so their reactions if its a boy might cause my reaction to change. I would love another girl, but I'm NOT Heart Set on it. In fact, I'm trying to do the opposite and expect the doctor to say its a boy!

Finally there is the reality that comes with finding out the baby's sex. It makes everything so much more real. I'm SOOOOOO excited about this baby, don't get me wrong, but finding out boy or girl I think, makes it more real, and then I'll have to deal with the emotions of all that! :-) (Oh the emotions!)

So, with that little "vent" session, I will say goodnight! A week from tonight I'll be lying in bed, wide awake, watching the minutes DRIP by as I move into this unusual and unfamiliar part of my life as "A person who finds out"! :-)

Wish Me Luck!