Thanksgiving Virtual Race

I got a 4 mile run in this morning with my friend Lori. Its my participation in the Thanksgiving Virtual Race sponsored by http://dailyvitaminf.blogspot.com/

The weather was GREAT-50 degrees in November! LOVE IT! We even ran along the route for the local Rec Centers' Thanksgiving day races. It helped us keep our pace up with the slight uphill and we had something to watch-the runners around us. Happy Thanksgiving!

Fall Hike

The kids had a few days off of school for Fall Break in October. I was determined to 'do something'-We needed to 'do something'-something cheap, fun & different. Its fall & the leaves in the mountains were changing, so I planned a little hike for the kids & I.

We don't go hiking. It seems every other weekend we hear of hikers or scouts getting stranded overnight on hikes, or getting stuck in unfamiliar terrain. So it was exciting for everyone just thinking about it. I googled and found a nice little trail and we headed up to a trail by North Canyon Park in Bountiful/North Salt Lake Area.

Jackets, snacks, water, good shoes, camera. OH-the excitement of going on a hike-the kids didn't know what to expect, so they were each trying to bring backpacks, hats, and STUFF. We brought just what mom said we needed.

We walked up the trail. Rocks, sticks, water, dirt, leaves=PURE-NATURAL coolness and excitement. The kids LOVED it. Well-Sophie wasn't a fan of walking, but she walked some....and I carried her some-it was a good workout! Cousin S was in town & joined us. She has older brothers and has gone on much cooler hikes than this, but this was our families first one. She did great!

There was a little stream in the canyon. We stopped and enjoyed the little, simple things we saw. It was really enjoyable.

This sign was knocked over-I was entertained to see the TRAIL CLOSURE sign on the ground. We did NOT make it to the closure part. NO WAY. I set my watch timer to count how long we were gone, so I didn't loose track of time and I texted Jimmy when I could. Again-we are weird. We don't normally go hiking, so we were cautious......lame. huh?

Me & the Kids

LOVE IT

Really cool scenery!

We saw a few other people on our hike-some bikers, a few vehicles, and some HORSES! HOW AWESOME! We talked to the owners some. They let the kids see the horses, and even sit on them. AWESOME! It was a dad & son horse and a cute older couple. They were nice. (then the next day I saw the lady at the store. FUNNY-chances of that)

We had a great hike! It was fun & SO pretty! We will do that again!!

Fall Centennial Spectacular

The Davis County School District held a Fall Centennial Spectacular in October in Bountiful. The weather was PeRfEcT and it was FrEe! I took the girls there after I did the triathlon. It was VERY busy, but it was put together really well . The attendance exceded the organizers expectations! It was fun to see neighbors & friends there, and enjoy the activities.

Pumpkins on display from high school art students.

Sophie had a balloon, but she let go of it. BbYyyyEeeee! She was okay with the balloon being gone for just a second-THEN she started to cry! It was a cute!

Bounce houses & blow up toys. Ashley is being eaten by this dinosaur!

Sarah rode in this bumper-type car. It gives kids the experience of what a crash at 5mph feels like. Its fun to them in this situation, but stresses the importance of seat belt safety.

Warrior Fitness Center pictures

I found these two pictures online via the Hill AFB Warrior Fitness Center.

It was a small tri, as you can see from the start.
See-That's me. This is the start of the bike. I think I passed a few people on the biking-dispite me being so SLOW.

Hill AFB Sprint Triathalon

An uncle of mine found a triathlon on Hill Air Force Base for only $10. He asked some family if they were interested, and for $10, a few of us were interested! The order was run 5K, bike 20K, then swim 400M. Okay-with it being a few weeks away, I knew I could run, but I needed to practice swimming and biking and doing those things in bricks-groups of training.

My friend Donna goes to the South Davis Recreation Center every weekday morning, so I knew I could go swimming with someone. Having someone picking you up at 4:45 am gets you awake!! So I practiced swimming & biking.

The day of the triathlon came! Jimmy was out of town=swell...geez. Gotta figure out what to do with the kiddo's. Charlie was with Jimmy. oh wait--Bummer-Sarah's LAST soccer game of the season just got re-scheduled on the SAME day as the tri. THANKFULLY Jimmy's sister took Sarah to soccer, and my mom watched Ashley & Sophie while I went to Hill AFB.

Here we are getting onto base-via my dad! My brother Jay & I are excited-its our first Tri!
Group shot. My dad, two uncles-Garth & Gene, me & Jay.

Okay-I felt totally cool to have a number written on me! FUN!

We were off-my dad held my camera, but didn't take any pictures.

The 5K was a little more hilly than I expected, but my time was what I planned. 30 minutes or so. Transitioning to bike wasn't hard. Put on a helmet, grab the bike & go.

Hello-how do you ride a bike!?!

I borrowed my brothers mountain bike. I know how to pedal a bike but how do I go fast? Change gears? I was already near the back of the pack and stayed there for the LONG 12 miles! Cool scenery, but man, it was NOT fun or easy! Good downhill till the 6 mile turnaround point. FRUSTRATING. Riding SOLO-almost at the back of the pack.......56 minutes later i was done & defeated. (i am really traumatized at this. grr. how do you ride a bike? I guess a better bike would help and maybe training more.....oh well)

Transition-take off helmet & shoes, shorts and go swim.

This went really well. Better than I expected. By this point, everyone in my family was done, so Jay took some pix of me in the water.

Lovely.....
There were a few more, but um, I don't wanna put a pix of me in a swimming suit up....yikes!

But WE DID IT.

My results:

Overall: 93/112

Gender: 21/27
see-I was at the back of the pack!

I was happy to do it. It was enjoyable. Do I want to do another one-sure for $10. I can say I've done a triathlon! My dad & I-yes-I am still his baby girl!

First Grade is Awesome!

The first graders at Bountiful Elementary took a few field trips this year. One field trip was to the fire station. I didn't go on the field trip, but found a way to help out! The kids were walking to the fire station, which is 1.3 miles away from the school (one way-what a walk!). They walked along Main Street, RIGHT PAST THE HOUSE! Here is a pix from my from yard of the kids walking to the fire station. On the way back to the elementary school, the kids stopped at my house for a water break! I found some other moms that were not attending the field trip, and we set up a little water station in my front yard. It was a little treat for the kids, with a few signs up before they got to my house. It was cute, simple and FUN. It was so cute to see the kiddo's!

The first graders also went to the police station, but I didn't get a picture of that.

Then the pumpkin patch field trip. I didn't attend, but parents were invited to meet the kids at a park for lunch. So we joined Sarah for lunch after that field trip.

Happy Birthday Aunt Mary & Grandma B

Grandma B celebrated her 93rd birthday! Aunt Mary turned 90 years young!

We celebrated with a family trip to Chuck-a-rama. The sisters were joined by their brother, Uncle Vern for the special lunch.

We love Grandma B & Aunt Mary very much! We are happy to have them part of our life and are thankful for the strong women they are.

Here are the boys---Jim-my FIL-always pulls these funny faces for pictures!

I could probably make a slideshow of funny Jim faces just for special picture moments.Much better boys! Lookin good!

Stitches are just as fun coming out!

So here is sophie-all cute with her little stitches in.

After a week & a half, the stitches needed to come out! Here we go to the Doc! Lesson learned last time. Let's strap Sophie down!

Yeah-she didn't like it.

But it was less stress-ful & went quicker!

Stitches OUT.

Snip-Snip-Pull.

wicked scar!