Updates

Simone:

Wants to be a cheerleader for Halloween

Singing Call Me Maybe, Firework and Dumb Dog (from Annie) she knows all the words

Kindergarten and all her new cute little friends

Going to gymnastics with the 10 year olds!  She thinks she's pretty special.

Doing backwalkovers, and cartwheeling everywhere

Going to "Polar Express" (otherwise known as Arctic Circle) to redeem her free twist cone.

Favorite food is young coconuts

Plays in the basement with her friends all day long.  

Loves animals, especially the neighbors dogs.

Hard worker!  Really great at folding and making her bed, even cleans my room sometimes

Never has shoes on 

Monet:

Wants to be Effie Trinket for Halloween, but might be Katniss since it will be easier

Reading lots and lots of books!  Loving the Janitor series and new Rick Riordan Mark of Athena

Getting really great at Lacrosse!

Starting basketball on an AAU team

Lots of homework, she is so responsible in practicing piano and doing her school work

Standing up for kids that were getting picked on in her class (25 boys and 8 girls in her class--poor teacher)

Doing Activity Days with mom (best church calling ever)

Great friends in this area

Best babysitter ever, adored by Soren

Beautiful hair!  Monet even does Simone's hair for me now.  She's gotten really good at French braids.

Super clean, super organized 

Helps Simone with homework and teaches her tricks for memorizing things like our phone number

Always remembers to say Thank You.

Memorizes movie quotes and conversations so effortlessly.  

Perfect handwriting especially the cursive

Loves doing her nails

Came in third in her grade at the school fundraiser 5K

Miles:

Will be Napoleon Dynamite for Halloween, practicing his "Gosh!"

Learning how to spell is hard when you are as creative as Miles--100% on the spelling tests 3 weeks in a row earned him a trip to get yogurt with mom.

Reading to earn time on minecraft.  But really, it is like he is just doing time.  He doesn't love it yet.

Entered the reflections contest and he is sure he is going to win with his story, "Money Blast Catch"

playing flag football and starting basketball

I had to chuckle after parent teacher conferences.  A lot of firsts.  His teacher makes them miss Friday Fun if they don't turn in their homework, and she is strict.  He missed it once, and that was it.  I never have to remind him.  Love that teacher.

Currently sleeps on the floor of the girls room every night because he just really likes to be with other people and Soren doesn't count yet.

Got a new Michael Jordan cap and he loves it.  Although he doesn't know who Michael Jordan is, and thought the Jump Man was Dwight Howard.  LOL.

Checks the internet for Minecraft Legos regularly.  They are sure hard to find!
Finally lost two teeth!  We're waiting for the short tooth up top to come out next

Elise:

Crazy busy girl.  8+ hours/week of Lacrosse, up to 5 in basketball, Young Womens, Piano, Cello, Academy Honors classes at school with lots of homework--Elise is up to her ears in busy.  I feel like her personal time manager.  It will be much easier next week when regular Lacrosse ends.

Currently at Frightmares with her friends.  Some nice mom drove them all in their RV.

I am very entertained by reading her text messages.  

Messy, Messy room.  I guess when you are in and out as much as she is, I can understand it.  But part of the problem is that when she cleans, she REALLY cleans and it takes a long time.

Loved shopping at Scheels!  Nike store was fun too.

Wants to be a doTERRA rep when she grows up.  So cute.  She calls it "doTERRA person"

Just finished reading "Maze Runner" and "I am Number Four" during fall break

Planned the best FHE we've ever had.  Miles's trash talking "40 points" accompanied by his dance moves will go down in the family history book as the funniest moment so far.  Kudos to Elise for her effort and creativity.  

Knows the name of every song and artist on the radio.

6 Months

Soren is 6 Months!

Height: 27.5 inches

Weight: 16.2 lbs

New Skills:  Eating, Sitting, Pulling cups onto mommy's lap, Planks, catapulting spoons and their contents onto mommy's head, scooting, "petting" Sugar.  Poor Sug has to survive another baby/toddler.
Favorite New Foods:  He hated the baby food so far but he likes rice cereal, beans and oatmeal!  He tolerated the avocado and banana.  He did like sucking on a peach but I was worried he'd gum off a chunk.

Funny Habits: pulling his hair while he is nursing.  Pulling my hair too.


Favorite song: "we are a happy family" sung by Daddy.  Mommy loves it too.  Especially hearing daddy singing in the really high pitched baby talk voice.   Soren really does love it when Jared sings that song to him.  It is hilarious.  We are all very sick of hearing the Wee Sing songs all the time in the car.


He's had two haircuts already.  His hair reminds me a lot of Elise's when she was a baby.  It is thick and a little unruly.  There are a couple hairs that escaped both haircuts with the clippers, and they are at least three or so inches long.  It is so funny, we should have done a Jedi Braid.  Miles would have loved that!

Soren is soo incredibly sweet and good natured.  We all think he has become a lot easier in the past month or so.  He smiles constantly and really likes to play.  He is always watching Jared and as soon as we look at him he has a ready grin. 

I love this little guy.  There is just something about all that cuddling and cute little chubby thighs that just makes all the long nights worth it.   I think pinching his thighs is therapeutic somehow.  That skin is just heavenly.  It is definitely not easy juggling a baby with older kids.  I used to have a good chunk of time in the day to get things done.  Which is nice because with older kids your whole evening is usually revolving around their sports, homework, meals, etc.  But now, I have cute little Soren in the daytime, and he needs his naps.  Then Simone gets home at noon, and I only have a couple of hours before the big kids are all home again.  It is kind of a chopped up, tethered existence I am living right now.  I love my kids, and I know it won't be like this forever.  But I sure will appreciate having a good solid day to just go get things done eventually.  We visited my grandma at the assisted living center last week and it was a good reminder to enjoy these times.

 

Big Cottonwood Canyon Half Marathon Race Report

I signed up for this race with lofty goals of getting back into running more quickly than I have after having my other babies.  I've run more in the last five years than I have ever run in my life.  It has been easier to find the time when I'm not pregnant, nursing, in school, and the five years between Simone and Soren helped with that.  Running is a bigger part of my life these past few years and when I'm not running, I don't feel like me.  Getting out in the morning beauty is addicting and therapeutic for me.

I thought I was being pretty conservative by giving myself a few months to recover before signing up for the race.  So I mapped out my training on my calendar, and headed into my first long run of six miles a few months ago.  That was the one and only long run I completed.   I hurt for the rest of the day, and it wasn't a good, "worked my legs hard" kind of hurt.  It was an aching joints and inability to walk and IT band pain kind of hurt.  The mind was willing but the body was weak so to speak.  I envied those runners who looked so effortless out there.  I tried Suncrest and ended up walking most of it.  Even running downhill was hard.

So under these conditions, I filled the void of not running by riding my new roadbike.  I've been wanting a roadbike for about 10 years, and this year I finally got one!  Thanks to my older sister Angela who upgraded hers and gave me a great deal on her old one.  I am in love.  Biking doesn't hurt.  I can see so much more since I am covering more ground in a shorter amount of time.

So I basically trained for this half marathon by riding a bike.  I wasn't sure that I was even going to finish and the week of the race I debated selling my spot.  But I decided I would just give it a try.  Our good friends put the race together and a bunch of neighbors were all running it together and I knew I was going to be completely jealous if I didn't try.  Plus, what have I got to lose?  I've run almost a dozen half marathons, I've got nothing to prove.  If I have to be transported down in the medic van, so be it.

The ride up was fun.  I love doing races with friends.  We saw a baby moose in the bushes.  It was dark at the start line.  The race provided space blankets for everyone which was really nice.

After the first mile my foot already hurt.  And I was a little worried.  But I figured I'd try to run at least five miles and then see where I was at.  Five miles came and went and I was feeling good.  No pain, no fatigue except for some soreness, which I expected.  So I decided to speed up and push it a little more.

I made it to ten miles feeling pretty great.  In fact, I don't remember much about the rest of the race.  I felt good, it was pretty.  I was in the zone I guess.  I started making time goals now that I knew I was going to finish just fine.

So I think I ran the last half of the race faster than the first, which has never happened before.  The last mile I pushed it harder and came in at about 2:10.  That is just under a ten minute per mile pace.

I love the shirt, the medals, the sponsors, the swag in the race bag.  The race was awesome.  Best food ever at the finish even.  It is definitely a fast course and next year I'd like to try it again if I don't quit running for biking.  The downhill grade was steep, but I was going to be sore no matter what the course was like, and I probably couldn't have finished if it were not such a downhill.  The canyon and the fall colors were beautiful.  I loved that the pictures from race photographers were free!  I've never even heard of that before.  Such a good value.  This is a great PR race.

The women from our Grand Teton team last year.  Jenny didn't sleep the night before as she and her husband created the race.  They did a GREAT job!

One of the portapotties was tipped over.  The mile 10 one.  That wasn't really a problem since I'd already peed my pants anyway when I tried to speed up.  ; )  I guess the steep grade, my speed and the number of months since giving birth is inversely proportional to my pee threshold. 

Oh well, could be worse.  ; )

California Trip by Monet

I have been waiting for some time for Monet and I to sit down so she could write all about her trip to California to visit Nana and Papa.  Unfortunately with her schoolwork (lots of homework this year) 4 hours a week of basketball, and 5+/week of lacrosse, piano, activity days, etc, it just isn't happening!  We got as far as making an outline, but it takes kids a lot longer to write than it does me.  So while I'm not going to let her forget to do it eventually, I want to write a little bit about this fantastic vacation she had.

Nana and Papa have a great tradition of taking the kids who are 10 years old for a week during the summer.  They pack in all kinds of fun stuff.  Basically, it is a dream vacation for a 10-year-old.  What a fun tradition!  Monet has been looking forward to it for years.

They did makeovers at Libby Lu and then spent a day at Disneyland.  They went to Knott's Berry Farm, an Angels Game, the Beach, Movies, dinner, etc.  Monet especially likes riding in Papa's cool sports car.  She and her friend Talmage are always looking to spot the sports cars on the road, and California is a great place to do that.

I'm not sure how Papa managed to do so many LONG days at the amusement park.  They stayed to the fireworks.  Wow.  I can hardly take more than one day at a time, all that walking is literally miles and miles.  One friend wore a pedometer once and it was about 10 miles or so that she walked in one day.   Monet loved it and was excited to tell me all about it when she got home.  I'll let her write more details of the trip later.

Officially a teenager!

Elise is 13!

We celebrated by having her birthday party with her cute friend Noah.  Noah and Elise have been friends since they were almost one and share the same birthday.  Noah's mom Katie is one of my all time favorite people in the whole world.  We had a lot of fun when they were babies.  Elise was a pretty er...assertive toddler and used to take away Noah's toys, etc.  Finally one day Noah had enough and bit Elise's finger.  After that, whenever I'd mention Noah, she'd say, "Noah bite me."  Every time.  It was kinda funny.

 Elise and Noah at the Zoo when they were 2 years old.

When we moved to this area three years ago, Noah lived just down the street.  It took a couple of years to start talking to each other again, but now they are friends and play night games and hang out with a lot of the same friends, so Noah invited all the boys and Elise invited all the girls.

The younger siblings having a good time

Skye, Elise and Brynn--these girls are some serious athletes!

Hanah and Elise

Cute shoes Hanah colored for Elise!  So creative!

Elise's friends were so sweet and really made her birthday amazing.  They came early and decorated her locker.  One of them passed around notes on the bus and had everyone write notes for Elise, which they put in her locker throughout the day.  She came home with bags of candy, 50+ notes from friends, and glitter trailing her everywhere.

The party was so fun!  Some of the little brothers and sisters also got to come too.  We all had a great time.

Fall at our house

Fall is here!  It is ushered in at our house by the frenzied search for the lost mouthguards.  Lacrosse, gymnastics, basketball, football, homework, music lessons, schedules, carpools, water bottles, signify autumn's arrival at our house.

The kids started school and sports and I've been a little crazy busy.  Today, I was without my partner in carpooling, Jared.  So it was drop off Elise at LAX, drop off Monet at LAX, pick up Elise at LAX, take Miles to get a haircut (school pictures in 2 days), pick up Monet at LAX, drop off Miles at football, pick up Miles at football, and in between all those errands, feed the baby, do the dishes, schedule parent/teacher conferences, pay the bills, take out the dog, help with homework, etc.  We capped off the day with Kneaders for dinner.

After spending most of my life in the car in the months following Simone's birth, I've been careful to avoid the same trap.  I sign the kids up for sports that are close to home.  Piano is next door.  I actively recruit for Lacrosse so we can carpool with neighbors.  But last weeks' two days off means I am making up for my carpool substitutions by driving this week.  It is going to be a long one!

doTERRA Convention 2012

Amazing week this week!  I had these grand illusions/delusions that we were going to stay in a hotel downtown across from the Salt Palace and would go back to the hotel and read books while Soren napped.  I thought I'd even hit City Creek and do some shopping.  But Soren had other plans.

He did great for most of the first day.  But all the lights and action resulted in a poor little overstimulated baby had his worst night yet, and I packed up and headed back home.  I did get to go to some of the classes and it was amazing.  An education week for essential oils.  Jared's brother Travis took my place in the hotel room and it made me happy to know that they got to hang out together.  I love seeing how close they are and I hope that Miles and Soren are like that.

Convention is one jam packed week for us.   Jared had over 450 team members attend this year, which is phenomenal.  We've got some amazing leaders working it hard on our team.  It is neat to come away with so much excitement and energy.  We attended the gala with some of our team members.  I got a little teary as we were being recognized for achieving diamond. 

Our strategy in working together in this business is that we both work where we are most effective.  I like paperwork, organizing, planning.  I try to run his errands so he can spend his time doing the things he does best, which generally involves interacting with his team, teaching, etc.  I am excited for the time when I will get to spend more time attending classes and teaching too, but right now we can't both be gone, and this is what works for us.

Jared and Travis won a video contest.  It was pretty clever!  They got to split $1000.  So fun!  I'm not sure what he is going to buy yet.  But he still has his gift card from a 3 on 3 basketball tournament he won last year, so maybe I'll have to help him think of something.  : )  I think it is pretty clever.

What makes the week so fun is that we absolutely adore our leaders, it is so fun to work with friends! 

We forgot the camera, so we have lots of crappy pictures from Jared's phone.

One of Those Days

Today was one of "those" days for one of my girls.  Just makes me want to wrap my arms around her and tell her what an amazing, sweet daughter she is.   Because in all honesty, sometimes I want to be her.  I think if I'd have known her as a kid, she would have been my hero.  I would have wanted her to be my friend.

I certainly experienced my fair share of bad days when I was in jr. high and high school.  There was the time I made the cake that tasted like meatloaf and I was convinced that I was bad at everything.  Or how about when I got such bad grades I got kicked out of my honors classes?  And of course there were lots of bad days associated with boys.

Some days are just like that.  If anything, they have helped me to have a little bit of compassion.  I think one of my most endearing moments with my mom is when I was in High School and had an especially bad day, and she understood.  And I knew that no matter what, she would be there for me when I needed someone to talk to.

4 months old!

Four Months!

Weight: 14 lbs. 2 oz.

Length: 26 inches

Favorite Song: Eensy Weensy Spider

Favorite Show: Backyardigans

New skills: Sucking his thumb, drinking a bottle (insert halleleujah chorus), taking a binky, and reaching for toys, etc.

He loves sitting in the bumbo, playing with his brothers and sisters, and going for walks. He still loves the Baby Bjorn, but not the sling.

We are so, so happy we found a bottle he likes.  It is the Playtex nurser with brown fast flow nipple.   And he loves kids music.  So car rides have become a lot easier. 

He is very vocal and "talks" a lot.  Recently he started entertaining himself when he wakes up.  Instead of crying, he'll talk and coo.  It is so cute.  He likes to blow raspberries and he startles really easily.  When he gets scared he sticks out his little lower lip and makes the cutest pouty face.  We all love it.

We've heard the mad cry now too.  A couple of weeks ago, I started hearing a cry that was really different.  Instead of being all helpless and sweet, it was like he was screaming at me.  ; ) Awww.  Even that was cute.

Hulk and Fidget

Elise came home from hiking with a couple of new pets: Hulk and Fidget, a pair of horny toad lizards.

She found them on the trail, and I'm surprised she could even see them.  They like to bury themselves in mud or sand and wait for insects to come by.  They turned a little orange when they buried themselves in the red sand from the pet store.  They were originally the color of the dirt.  Hopefully their new hue won't make them an easy lunch for predators.

Simone and the other kids adored their little pets and would catch bugs and crickets for them until we finally decided these little guys were probably miserable and we decided to let them go.

Farewell little friends!