Winner!

Were any of you bored enough to read my list of 100 things about me ? If so, I'm sorry that you will never get back those wasted minutes. If not, here's what random fact #92 was:

92. I win stuff--books at conferences, makeup, jewelry, cooking utensils and other wares at home parties, a bike, photo session, $50 gift certificate to a clothing store, etc.

I am happy to report that I did not jinx myself by writing down this ever-evidenced life phenomenon and have won yet another prize to add to my list...

a year's supply of KT Tape

I became a *fan* of KT tape on FaceBook and won 12 rolls of the magical, mystical sports adhesive from Runner's Corner in Orem, UT which my darling sis-in-law picked up for me today. I am anxiously engaged in researching its uses but have yet to discover if 'cover the mouth of your loud and/or snotty child' is a recommended employ.

Don't you love this guy??

I do!
Happy 39th birthday, Brenty-Boo!

Brent is the greatest husband, friend, and dad. Any frustration I've had during our marriage usually ends with me wondering how he puts up with the redhead he asked to marry him.

Cute stories or things about Brent:

• Brent brought exactly $0.00 on our first date. He HAD money, he just didn't bring any with him.
• Brent was my test subject on many an IQ test while I was in graduate school. He was the perfect subject because I could get to almost all parts of the test. He just kept going and going and getting everything right. He's a smarty!
• Brent cried at the birth of Todd. (Sorry for blowing your tough-guy cover, Honey.) He's a tender guy but it takes something big--at least 7lbs 14 oz--to get a reaction.
• A few years ago Brent was out with some missionaries from our church. One of the people they visited asked Brent if he was preparing to go on a mission, typically undertaken by 'men' in our church at 19 years of age...He was 33!
• Brent doesn't like to wait to surprise people. When we got engaged, he wanted to call his parents right then. He also wanted to notify people minutes after the second line on the pregnancy tests showed up with each of our kids. Even for birthdays or at Christmastime he gives me lots of opportunities to open my gifts early! I don't have a sturdy delay-of-gratification quality but knowing he wants me to open the presents makes me want to wait!

I love you, Brent!
(And I'm glad you're my age now :) )

Crash!

With how much driving I do, it was inevitable. Today I got in an accident. I was talking on the phone to Rita while going through the construction zone on north-bound I-15. Suddenly the cars in front of me stopped. I was able to *barely* stop in time, but the car behind me couldn't and neither could the two cars behind him. I got smashed--multiple times--into the car in front of me. The phone went flying out of my hand. Once I saw that it was over I picked it back up and assured Rita I was OK.

There was also a car up ahead that couldn't stop. In all, there were seven cars that were damaged. No one was seriously injured, but they did put a neck brace on one guy as a precaution. (They didn't call an ambulance.)

I don't think my car is totaled, but it took some damage to both the front and rear. The car behind me was banged up pretty badly.

I feared they would cite me for running into the guy in front of me. But, he vouched for me and told the police that I had stopped completely before being pushed into him. So, no injuries and no ticket. I feel pretty lucky.

Summer So Far

We're having a fun and busy summer. Here's a little about what has occupied our time lately.

Party at the Point:
We partied in West Point on July 3rd with Brent's brother's and sister's families. Brent was in a 3-on-3 tournament (until a guy on his team came to blows with an opponent--niiiice) and the rest of us enjoyed spectating, visiting, fun face painting, and eating. The fireworks were fantastic! Alec covered his ears the whole time but still enjoyed the show.
Liberty Run
Todd and I ran the Layton Liberty 5K with lots of neighborhood friends. He didn't beat any of his previous times and felt a little sad but I think I've finally convinced him that getting out of bed to run when you don't have to is an accomplishment. I love this kid!
A Thrilling July 4th
With nothing planned for the 4th, we were pleased to receive an impromptu invite from Quincey and family. Deeeelicious salad and pizza were followed by fireworks and dancing. Trey is shown in the foreground trying his best to burn down the neighborhood with a blow torch. (Really not. I was very impressed that he was so safe!) What a fun kid. He was especially nice to Kenna as he showed her the ins and outs of pyromania ;). Troy contributed to the show by engineering makeshift water bottle-meets-explosives-and-duct tape fire crackers. Very fun. Quincey spent most of her day intensely studying and practicing an internet tutorial of Michael Jackson's Thriller dance, Thrill The World. Yep, she's a zombie dancer extraordinaire. You can see her in the blurred background of the photo trippin' the lights.
Super Sunny St. George
It was so great to take Alec, Kenna, my sister and her kids to St. George for a non-stop party in the sun. We did a tiny bit of shopping and went to the St. George Temple and Visitors' Center one day. Other than that, we spent hours doing our best to spur freckle-growth, avoid sunburns, and turn blonde hair green by hanging at the pool. So fun.
Scout Camp
Todd wasn't able to come to St. George with us because he was busy being a grown up kid attending Scout Camp. He was gone from early, EARLY (4:30) Monday morning to Saturday afternoon. I missed him tremendously and worried about him even more. Judging from the pleasant, positive attitude and numerous hugs, he missed us too. While there he completed the requirements for 2 merit badges, went on a 10.2 mile hike, got hot, got cold, went swimming, and did lots of other dirty boy stuff.

Ogden Nature Park Splash Pad
A few friends and I took our kiddos to a splash pad in South Ogden. It was an ordeal trying to find the hidden park but worth it when we got there. The kids loooooved running in and out of the cold water followed by warming in the sun. We had a yummy lunch and stayed for longer than planned because everyone was happy. Here are a few of the beautiful pictures my friend Mandy took. (She sent me a lot more pics but I get worried about putting other people's cute kids on here...Is there some kind of blog picture post etiquette/ethical code that I should know about regarding this??)
Upcoming events:
* I ran the Speedy Spaniard 10K in Spanish Fork this morning and will report later.

* Brent is currently camped in Burley, Idaho where he awaits the pinnacle of his Triathalon training, THE SPUDMAN. I think he's going to rock it. He's been working so hard to get ready.

* Expect a post about recent PROJECTS. I've been trying to catch up on house maintenance that is sorely overdue. I painted our front door a great yellowy-green and our garage door a horrible color which needs to be repainted. The deck has been sanded and stained and the playplace is next in line. Todd his going to help gut the flower beds as part of a merit badge requirement and I would love to sand and paint my inside stair railing and kitchen table and chairs. Much to Brent's chagrin, lots of these projects require his very reluctant involvement. We struggle to get along when there is hard work to be done so wish him luck in withstanding Hurricane Rita.

Congratulations, Kenna

Congratulations to Kenna for scoring in the top 10% nationally on the Iowa Tests. This certificate came for her in the mail.

Echo Tri

I did the Echo Triathlon this past Saturday. You can read my race report here. Here are a few pics:Getting out of the water after the swim.Biking up the canyon.
This is about mile 4 of the run, with Echo Reservoir in the background.

This fist pump is to celebrate beating my goal time by three minutes.

Goodbye Grade Six

This handsome kid is officially out of Elementary school after a short, unimaginative-but-well-attended ceremony made it so. ;) Todd was his typical self at the festivity throwing a fist pump to the crowd after receiving his diploma which he promptly made fun of for being so juvenile. Jr. High, here he comes!

End of School Activites

I thought it might never end but school if finally O-V-E-R for my big kids!! The typical time-wasting last days of traditional school ends up to be about 3 weeks long on a year round track schedule. Here's what we were up to last week.

Another parent and I organized a morning full of Olympic activities for Todd's class during the last week of school. It was nice to see how well the students interacted and got along with each other. No one student dominated all of the events and many kids succeeded at different things. A few students were reluctant to join in, but a reminder that these games beat the heck out of doing Math encouraged participation. A fun day with fun kids.

Alec and I volunteered to help with Field Day on a hot, hot afternoon. As you can see, I manned the football throw activity.

Kenna had a "late over" party to celebrate the last day of school. Don't let their sweet smiles fool you, these girls know how to have a good, LOUD time. They painted their nails (and my kitchen table), sang Taylor Swift songs at the top of their lungs, made crazy cookies, and had lots of fun. Cutie patootie good friends. We loved having them over.

As reward for not terrorizing Kenna and company during her (brother-bugging) party, Todd invited a friend to the family celebration that we attended with my sis-in-law in West Point. I am thankful that my kids have such great friends. I feel lucky to like the kids they hang out with.

Sew Fun

Although my to-do list hasn't shortened since last week's discouraged vent, a sure way to distract me from my own tally of tasks is to get me to do someone else's!

Last week a cute girl in our neighborhood called in a panic. She needed a costume skirt sewn for a play performance that evening. I happily welcomed the opportunity to share my sewing skill since I had so many other non-preferred things I should have been doing! We sewed up a darling black skirt and she and her mom went home relieved. I really do love saving the day for someone :) (A related rant for another time will be my self-deprecating exposition on talent shows...I stink at anything that could be showcased on a stage! Okay, okay, another day.)

It's a mess and a hassle to get out all of my sewing stuff so since my table was newly cluttered, I plowed through some other projects that have been waiting for my attention. The pictures are lousy quality but here's the evidence of a productive couple of days. (Although, the bathrooms still need to be cleaned.)

Black and white flower skirt of cute stretch fabric I found for a steal at $2/yard.
Reversible hobo style bag.
Ugly pants turned less ugly bermuda shorts.
Not cute sundress turned great kick-around skirt.

Aprons, aprons, and more aprons. I can't stop making them. They are darling and are the great gifts for lovers of all things culinary. They might even spur a hater into doing something in the kitchen!

3rd Grade Field Trip

I'm not a fan of the kids' year 'round school schedule but one positive thing is that since I'm off for the summer, I am able to participate in more of their school activities.

Tuesday it was the 3rd grade's turn to celebrate a year of hard work by going on a fun field trip. Kenna and classmates saw two shows at the Clark Planetarium and enjoyed the Discovery Gateway Children's Museum. It was lots of fun. When Brent asked Kenna what her favorite part of the day was, she thought for a second and then answered, "That Mom came with us." Awwww. Love that!

Best Dad Ever

Happy Father's Day, Brenty-Boo!

Brent's unusual stance in this photo is in response to several previous midsection shots taken after Alec asked to snap a picture of Brent. This image says a lot about Brent as a dad...

• Brent gladly gave our 3-year-old a short "push here" tutorial before allowing him to manhandle our pricey camera. Brent is a patient teacher and always puts his kids above possessions.

• Brent adjusts to accomodate the needs, wants, and skills of our children without complaint or concern for his own convenience.

• Brent encourages our kids in whatever they want to try. Can't you see the, "Yeah. Like that!" in his eyes?

• Brent's expression also depicts his best personal quality. He is the most accepting father and person one could ever know. The kids and I will never doubt his complete love for any of us.

I love you, Brent. Thank you for being a wonderful dad to our wonderful children.

TRI this!

Brent participated in the Provo Triathlon today. He slept overnight at his brother's house in Orem and I woke up early this morning and drove down to be his cheerleader (an old, fat, unpopular version) and photographer.
SWIM-1500 meters 47:57
InUtah Lake Brent made sure not to open his mouth too wide to avoid getting a carp stuck in his lungs and swam strong. He's been training in a pool and said that the lake was a killer. Not the least of the ardor was cold water (about 65 degrees) and trying to stay straight on the open course. He was a little dizzy when he came out of the water but got his footing and moved to the transition area just fine.
BIKE-40 km 1:19:19
Brent looooooved racing his new bike. The course had a few issues but was great for spectators because it was a lapped route. The Olympic length riders had to make 4 loops and Brent looked strong on every pass. It was a little embarrassing when he shed a tear and kissed his bike goodbye before transitioning to the run.
RUN-10 km 56:42
At his point I left to get a drink--yeah, I'm back ON Diet Dr. Pepper, dangit. The run was also a looped course and I made it back with my 44oz pal in time to see Brent several times. His run time would have been a stretch for me to achieve without swimming and biking beforehand. He's great.

Yay, Brent!! His final time was 3:10:40 and a PR by 8 minutes! His next triatholon is the SPUDMAN in Burley, Idaho on July 25th.

Field Trip Time

I was honored that Todd allowed me to volunteer as a parent chaperon for his class field trip last week. It was a disjointed whirlwind but lots of fun for the kids. We visited Krispie Kreme Doughnuts (and yes, we got a free, HOT one!), went bowling at Fat Cats and ate Pizza-Pasta Factory food, and attended a show at the Ott Planetarium at Weber State University. Todd is a great son, student, friend, and kid. I was semi-surprised that he was as well behaved as he was as he tends to like being the center of LOUD anything. He was great and it was fun to meet a few of the girls he constantly talks about and see how he interacts with his equally nerdy friends. He even gave me a couple of side squishes during the day AND thanked me for coming several times after we were home. I love him.

Holy Crepe!

We indulged in crepes for Sunday lunch a couple of weeks ago. Mmmmm. The sweet memory lingers. Don't you love Kenna's French finger mustache?

Holy crepe! These are good!
1 c flour
2 eggs
1/2 c milk
1/2 c water
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp melted butter

Whisk together flour & eggs. Stir in milk & water. Add salt & butter. Beat until smooth.
Cook 1/4 c batter at a time on a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium-high heat.
Tilt the pan in a circular motion so that the batter coats the surface evenly.
Cook for about 2 minutes until the bottom is light brown.
Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side.
Serve them warm and load them up with delicious fillings...
strawberries, whipped cream, caramel, nuts, bananas, nutella, butter and sugar, etc.

Let it Rain

Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass.
It's about learning to dance in the rain.

(Another lesson I need to learn from my kids! Aren't they fun?!)