Challenging Myself

So, I decided I need to set a big goal and accomplish it for my own self-satisfaction. After having three kids, and being a total couch potatoe, I've decided to train for a half-marathon. I've never been in a real race (I was in a 4x100 relay in a stake track meet and I made us come in third instead of 1st). I don't think that matters. What I'm setting out to do, is get in shape, and have a tangible accomplishment that I can be proud of. This is my new hobby. Today was the first day of my training schedule that I made at runnersworld.com. My feat, 5 miles in 1hour 20 min. I love the clarity and the peace of mind that comes while I'm running. Four miles into my run, the van pulls up next to me and Brandon and the kids are cheering me on. The kids were also pretending like they were the ice cream truck and they were pretending to throw me whatever flavor I asked for. It was so fun! I managed to run my 5 miles in 54 minutes, blowing my goal time out of the water! I think I'm well on my way... stay posted :-)

Stoney Creek

We found a beautiful park called Stoney Creek.

On our first visit, we went for a bike ride on the path around the lake.

Then, we went and splashed in the lake to cool off.

The second time we went, we hiked through the woods.

The kids really like to hike. I can't believe how green everything is!

We were prepared with our swimming suits the second time to the park.

The whole family had fun taking a dip in the lake.

We bought a year pass, so we plan on a lot more hiking and biking.

My Baby is 1 now!

We had a very fun birthday party for Cody. I can't believe my baby is not a baby anymore! The neighbors grandaughter wanted to celebrate with us. Denton and Julia had fun teaching Cody what opening birthday presents is all about. Cody is a sweet little boy. He likes to play with his big brother and sister and make growling noises at them. He can army crawl anywhere he wants to go now. He has no interest in walking or even standing. He loves his little walker that allows him to tag along with mommy a little easier. He's even tall enough he can pull things off of the table when he sneaks into the kitchen in his walker when no one is looking. Cody has 7 teeth now. He will eat just about anything I give him. He has a special little personality that makes anyone around him smile. WE LOVE YOU CODY BEAR!!!

Happy Independence Day!

The picture above is of Julia and her friend Jasmyne.

Sunday night, we sat with our neighbors in their back yard to watch the fireworks in the easement.

It is illegal to have fireworks that go up in the sky, but it isn't inforced,

so everyone drives a few hours to Ohio and buys professional grade fireworks

and lights them off in the easement.

We had fun watching the fireworks, and eating popcycles.

Saturday night, we went to a BBQ at our friends house with 4 other couples.

There was an OB/Gyn resident, a general surgery resident, a podiatrist resident

a podiatrist, and Brandon, traditional resident...

and all of the wives.

It was fun to watch the guys having so much fun lighting the fireworks.

I think they had more fun than the kids did.

Denton and Julia made a lot of new little friends.

The Drive Was a Long one!

Julia is hiding under the blanket.

I was wondering why Cody was so loud and hyper!

I drove 3 hours, Brandon drove 27. He wanted it that way. Ok, I say.

We stopped in Salt Lake to say hi to Brandon's cousin Kara. She's recovering from neck surgery.

While stopped in Salt Lake we also had lunch with two of my brothers and their families.

The trip to Michigan was very long. The kids actually did pretty good. I loved all of the wind-mill fields we drove past. I also loved seeing all of the rivers, and corn fields. I would never attempt that drive alone with the kids. If we go home to visit without Brandon, we are flying!

A Week In the Life

So, we moved out of our home in Henderson on May 28th. We had a ton of help from Alisha, Jennifer, and Stephanie (thank you!) to finish up the packing and then cleaning the entire house. Brandon had a lot of people from the ward come and help pack up the moving van. I was so glad to see Teresa and her kids one last time. During our last few hours cleaning and packing, my friend came to say goodbye and brought a little gift. I was brought to tears as I realized we wouldn't be in the same ward anymore. We will always be friends though! Brandon and I drove to St. George Friday night. Saturday, Brandon and his dad started out for Michigan in the moving van. Brandon and his dad got to stop in Iowa and eat at places Brandon's dad ate at on his mission. They also visited someone Brandon's dad taught on his mission. Brandon spent the week living in a motel, driving around a giant moving truck, and waiting for the house to close. The closing kept getting pushed back, but thankfully, closed and was final the same day Brandon had to return the moving truck (thank goodness for huge blessings!). I have spent the week taking the kids to visit grandpa and grandma Coon, hanging out with grandma Bonewell and TJ, going to the lake and rec center swimming with the Turnbows... all the while feeling like a single parent (I'll have to post pictures later when I get my computer unpacked). Late last night, Brandon flew into Las Vegas and I had to go pick him up. As I came up over the hill and saw all of the Vegas lights, I felt like I was coming home, and felt a wave of sadness as I realized we really had moved out of our home. I told Brandon our bedroom in our Detroit house is going to be decorated like the desert to remind me of home. We still have a few more days in St. George to play. We will be leaving on Thursday to drive to Michigan.

Graduating and Movin' on

After many short nights, and long hours studying, Brandon is graduated from medical school!

Brandon was in the front row of graduated on the stand. He got board, so he started texting everyone in his family silly comments while trying to hide his phone with his program. He may be a Dr., but he is still a kid at heart.

Afterwards, we had a family get to gether at our house.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

For our 7 year anniversary, we went to the top of the Stratesphere. I was so scared even looking down through the glass. There is a new ride that actually lets you free-fall off the edge of the building. I got a little sick to my stomach to watch people jump off the side of the building. Eventually, I agreed to going on a ride that teeters over the edge 115 stories up. I was scared to death, and to top it off, Brandon wanted to be in the front row! It really felt like our seats were going to go flying off and splat down below. After that ride, we went on the "Big Shot" twice. I felt pretty brave to even agree to go on it. I have the picture to show how chicken I really was.

After the rides, we went in the fancy restaurant at the top, and ordered a dessert and listened to a live band. It was a very exciting date. I love you babe!

Denton's Done with Preschool!

Denton loved preschool at the rec center. He made some good friendships and he LOVED his teacher, Miss Jessica. He learned a lot of helpful songs about the months, numbers, letters, and the parts of his face! I can't believe my little guy is ready for big kid school!