Happenings....

Sorry for the lack of pictures on this post. This is more of an informational post :)

A few months ago, I was told by my doctor that I would have to have a partial hysterectomy due to the fact that my uterus was prolapsing....falling out. Also prolapsing was my bladder -- so that's why I couldn't laugh or cough without peeing -- At first, when he told me this, I was fine. No big deal right? No more birth control, no more monthly cycles....and I get to keep the ovaries so NO HORMONES! Win win. Oddly enough, a few weeks later, I went through this weird, albeit short, mourning moment. Like "wow...I really cant have anymore babies" (as if I actually wanted more...NOT). I felt like I was going to be less of a woman or something. It was weird and thankfully short lived and replaced by extreme anxiety over the surgery itself.

A few weeks before the surgery, I went to see my endocrinologist to get my annual thyroid tests done. I had been feeling extremely tired every day in the afternoon to the point where just the thought of getting off the couch made me want to cry. I was even nervous driving....falling asleep at stop lights is never a good sign. The results of the tests were inconclusive really but she decided to put me on thyroid medication anyway....a small dose...just to see if it would help. So far, I think it is helping. That afternoon fatigue seems to have gone away significantly.

Unfortunately one of the tests that measures blood protein and is a good indicator of future heart trouble came back super high. She was concerned enough that she put me on Lipitor to help bring the number down. What that test did for me though was send me into a tailspin of anxiety over the upcoming surgery. Considering my family heart history, this was not good news. Also one of the nodules that I have growing on my thyroid grew large enough over the past year that they want to do a biopsy on it. Talk about everything hitting me at once. Welcome to the 40's I guess....

To make this long health saga short(er), the week before my surgery was spent doing more tests and more tests to make sure my heart was OK. Turns out it is just fine. No signs of anything that would cause problems. I did reschedule the thyroid biopsy however, because I simply had no time to get it done and it was lower on the priority list at the time.

August 3rd came and I had the hysterectomy and bladder repair. (picture of my liquid meal after surgery...haha) Surgery went great and I spent a night and day in the hospital. I've been home for 4 days now and am doing well...still a little sore of course but on the mend! The kids have been great to wait on me and help me out around the house. (secretly I think they are really ready to have their old mom back though)

School starts in a few weeks and I think we are all ready for it! It has been a nice summer but due to me being in school we haven't been able to do much and the kids are kinda going stir crazy. It will be nice to be back on a schedule. I only have 3 semesters left until I graduate! Its feeling so close now....I can hardly wait!

Goodbye Dr. Tom....

All you mothers out there know how important it is to have a good pediatrician, right? Well, in my humble opinion, we had the best one out there. Dr. Tom Metcalf has been our pediatrician for the better part of 10 years with the exception of the little hiatus' we took to Arizona and Kentucky. I never liked any of the others we had as much as him so as soon as we returned to Utah, we went right back to him. He is so kind and gentle and the best part is that he actually listens to the mother. He feels that a mothers instinct should not be ignored....When he isnt working in the office he spends his time in Washington as an advocate for childrens health.Well, sadly, he has retired. We are going to miss him, but he hand picked his replacement so I trust completely that we will like her too. Here are the kids at his retirement party with Dr. Tom. He had clowns there for all the kids and they made Addison a princess crown out of balloons....

.

Evan, Our Little Trooper....

Well, I guess Little isnt really the best word to describe our BIG 8 year old...but what a trooper he has been. 2 days after I got home from my "girls trip", Evan had surgery. He had his tonsils removed, his adenoids removed, a cauterizing of one side of his nose, AND if that werent enough, they removed/reduced his turbinates (I have no clue what these are exactly except that they have something to do with the septum and that his were too big and blocking his airway.) He has a deviated septum also but that wont get repaired until he is 16. So, anyway....he was so brave even though we could tell he was quite nervous.


He is such a sweet boy and I hated seeing him walk away with the anesthesiologist but, this surgery will really help him in so many ways so I just kept telling myself that. He had very supportive siblings who wanted to be part of the whole deal, except the actual surgery of course.

Evan takes after his Grandma Ries apparently because they couldnt get him to wake up and stay awake after the surgery. He looks awake here but trust me...he wasn't!


We did finally get him to wake up though and took him home. Notice the glazed and happy expression.....I do not like my kids being in this state of mind!

Everything was great until about midnight that same night....that's when it was hard to be a mother and not know what to do to help my baby :( He was in a lot of pain and the swelling had started so he thought he was choking. He cried and cried and cried. Thank goodness for liquid Lortab!! We have been sleeping on the couches so he can stay propped up and once again the other 2 children, feeling left out, insisted on being included. We made Ian and Addison up some beds on the floor and it was a regular slumber party! Its been fun but not for Evan sadly....today he whimpered that he wished he hadnt had to have it done because he cant eat anything. The ice cream and popcicles arent cutting it anymore I guess! He is doing great though and each day the pain is getting less and less.....in a week the old Evan will be back and breathing a lot better!!

If You Dont Facebook.....

...then you missed the news about Evan. He has been having a lot of trouble over the years with eye pain in the morning and headaches. I took him to the eye doc once and they said his eyes looked fine. So we just kept enduring.... Lately though they seem to be worse. Also, he gets bloody noses very easily and is really hard to wake up in the mornings. His pediatrician suggested I test him for allergies first. Did that. No allergies. Then the allergist suggested I have him see and Ear Nose & Throat doc because his tonsils were pretty large and he thought perhaps getting his adnoids out might help his issues. I put it off for a while (almost a year) because the thought of him having an unnecessary surgery like that made me nervous. But, like I said, lately its just getting worse and he is so miserable. So, the ENT doctor says: He needs his tonsils out; He needs his adnoids out; and he has a deviated septum which needs repair. They cant do the septum surgery until he is 16....hopefully he wont need it by then. But, on June 23rd, he will be getting his tonsils and his adnoids taken out and they will also be cauterizing the inside of his nose to stop the nosebleeds. I'm not looking forward to seeing him go through this but I am encouraged by the doctor telling me that this should solve all of his problems and that he will sleep so much better that we might even be able to wake him up in the morning!! I cant even imagine it.....

Quote to Live By.....

"Today is a new day to recommit to your goals. Think about how you have worked hard to reach your goals and how you deserve to reach them. Don’t be the obstacle in your own way, don’t allow yourself to be. Be the best you can be. Live healthy every day."

- Lora Heyl Erickson

This is going to be my new mantra....something I repeat to myself every day when I look in the mirror. In my daily quest to become a healthier, thinner individual I often browse other websites and blogs for inspiration. Today I read an article on one of my favorite sites, The Blonde Runner, about "self sabotage" and it really hit home. I have always known that for me, it has never been about lack of will power but more about fear, when I eat something that I know I shouldn't. I'm still not sure exactly what it is that I am afraid of when I binge or eat things that I know are harming my body, but I do know that everyday it is getting easier for me to make the right choices. Whatever the fear is that has been keeping me from being the person that I know I am, it is subsiding and I am conquering it one day at a time. Here is the link to this article....maybe it will be inspirational for you too.

http://blonderunner.com/2009/06/17/self-sabotagewhy-do-we-do-it/

Not Quite The End....and an Update....

Well, embarassingly I found out that today was not Evan's last day of school. I called his school to find out why no report cards were not sent home and was told that they would be sent home on the last day of school......Tuesday. Oops. Good thing I called the school I guess.....Evan doesnt agree with me on that. Ian is done though. He brought home his report card today and did fantastic, of course. I was thrilled to see his most recent national reading test. He is reading at a level 5.8 which translates to a fifth grader in his eighth month of school....basically he reads at a 6th grade level. Pretty good for a 2nd grader! The test also states that compared to the rest of the country, he scored higher than 98% of all 2nd graders tested. Way to go Ian! Im very very proud of him. I took this picture this morning on our way off to school thinking it would make a great "last day of school" picture... Oh well, close enough

So, what have we done this week? Well, poor Alec hasn't done much. With the boys at school all day and me home with Addison and Soren, he got a glimpse into our boring day to day life. He did finally venture out and walked down to a strip mall for lunch and to look around some stores. We took the kids out for dinner a couple of nights ago...nothing special, just BK and I took this pic of the boys.

Afterward we hung out in the backyard and watched them play basketball.... The nights have been so nice at 77 degrees.....too bad it cant stay that way!

Tonight we went to the movies again. This time though we split up....Denver and Alec went to see "Star Trek" in one theater and me and the little kids saw the movie "Up". A good time was had by all....both movies received great reviews. Although, I have to say that our movie was quite heavy and sad. I was surprised at the subject matter in the movie. The kids really didnt pick up on it as it was dealing with issues that are far off in the future for them. Aging with regret felt like the central theme throughout the entire movie with a splash of absentee parenting, death, and keeping promises. It did end on a happy note though thankfully. I did think it was a good movie....I was just a little surprised at its serious subject matter.

I am happy to report that our little garden is growing nicely. Our beans are doing fabulously as are our Roma Tomatoes.... the Bell Peppers and Yellow Tomatoes are coming up slowly but are definitely growing. The only plant we have yet to see any of are the Green Onions....time will tell I guess!

Addison went in to the doctor today for a follow-up appointment. Her surgeon/doctor was happy to report that the pathology report came back normal, so no cancerous cells.... her eye looks almost 100% better and he gave me some good instructions and some additional ointment that will help keep these chalazions from returning. Now, it's officially the weekend....hope you all enjoy yours as much as we are going to enjoy ours!

Not Much To Say Here.......

except EW! Her first reaction after getting the patch off was elation....until she looked at the picture. Then her reaction was confusion....but she went right back to elation. She has been a great sport and it doesnt seem to be hurting her so for that I am so happy!

She Made It....

Addison made it through her surgery today without any problems. We are so thankful for that. I was a bit nervous about it and am very relieved to have it over with. She had to be there at 10am and since the procedure itself was only 20 minutes long, I figured I would be there for about 2 hours from start to finish. Ha! Try 4 hours! It was a long day.....so many things to go through with different people, and all before the surgery even started. While they were checking out her vitals and making sure she was healthy, they wanted to dress her in the hospital PJ's and socks. Well, she refused....adamantly. I couldnt even bribe her to wear them. I think she knew that if she put those on, something major was going to happen. So she flipped out everytime we attempted it. The nurse finally gave up and they performed the surgery on her in the dress she showed up in! Addie didnt go in to the OR until 11:40! About 15 minutes before they took her back, the nurse came out and gave her a dose of "Ver-sed" (a relaxant that makes them not care about whats going on and forget everything that happens...I just call it a miracle drug) and about 5 minutes later, Addison was flying high. I have never seen anything like it. She was so out there....she just kept smiling and saying I Love You Mom....and then she would laugh. It was a little bit disturbing though to see her so out of her head. However, this alternative was better than hearing her scream for me as they took her away, and believe me, my daughter would have been Screaming big time. After that experience with Ian, I'll take the High Baby anyday! By noon, the doctor had come out and talked to me about the surgery....explained what they did, and then said he would "summon" me when she began to wake up so I could be there with her. That took another 15 minutes and when I got back to her recovery room, she was screaming and crying wildly! She was sooooo disoriented and agitated by all the cords and the IV and the patch on her eye. I tried to hold her and she just kept kicking.....finally I got her calmed down and she fell asleep in my arms. It broke my heart to see her like that. She slept for about 30 minutes and finally woke up again....this time she was calm and coherent, but still aggrivated about the patch and cords. They require her to stay until she can drink 4 oz of juice without throwing up. She acheived this right away....Im sure the breathing tube left her thirsty. So, now we are home and she is sleeping peacefully....tomorrow morning I can take her eye patch off although Im a little nervous to do it. I hope her eye doesnt look too bad. She was so excited when we got home and Alec arrived. She wants to sit with him and be around him constantly....so cute. Thanks to all for the well wishes and prayers....we appreciate it. Hopefully we wont have to go through this again.

And the Verdict is......

Surgery. Unfortunately, the steroid drops did nothing to shrink the growth (chalazion) in Addisons eye. Therefore, she will have to have surgery in order to slice it off. ASAP. Like Thursday.....if they can fit us in. We are waiting for a call from the surgery scheduler. He also mentioned that because of the way it was protruding off of the lid, he would need to send it to pathology to rule out anything dangerous. I cant even say the word. After they remove it, he will inject a local steroid and prescribe an ointment that will hopefully prevent further chalazions from developing. Apparently this is a genetic thing and they almost always try to make a repeat appearance.

He seems to be a thorough and competent Doctor so I feel confident that he will do what is needed with care and resolve the problem. Im not thrilled about her having to be put under as I still have nightmares from the surgery experience I had with Ian when he was 3.....it was horrible and if I had been the suing type, I would have sued that Phoenix hospital and its staff for their complete indifference that they exhibited toward me and my 3 year old son. It was ridiculous. In fact, Im convinced that they knew they were possibly in some trouble when I got a letter stating that my bill of $1400 was being "forgiven"...hmmmm... Anyway, I'm sure everything will be fine with Addie. Keep her in your thoughts....and her nervous parents too :)

Simply Saturday....

Today was one of those days that remind me...life is good. It started out with my weekly weigh-in. Here is a little background on this "weighty" issue. I have been trying to lose weight for a while now. I have had some success and some miserable failure too. The past 3 months have been so incredibly frustrating that I thought I might just give up and stay fat forever. Luckily, I have a trainer who is an absolute saint in my book. Finally, after 2 months of zero weight loss and what I thought was a lot of effort on my part, I lost 5 pounds this week! Its like my body is finally "getting it". For the first time in my very long dieting history, I believe I have figured it out and only see a much healthier future for me.....I'll keep you updated on my other blog that has been noticeably unattended to for a long time. I'll have to clean the cobwebs off first....

After I weighed in and met with my Aunt, who comes over every Saturday to report about her own dieting efforts, I went to my Personal trainer for my Saturday beat down. I'm starting to really LOVE the pain now that I know it is actually doing something!! Its feels so good to finish that hour with him.... And by the way, there is no secret that I have discovered on this weight loss thing. It literally comes down to consistently eating right and a ton of exercise for me. I keep track of what I eat all day long; I eat something every 3 hours; I exercise for an hour and a half 6 days a week...and that is no joke. When I got home I took Evan to a birthday party and then Ian, Addison and myself went to lunch....and the park, again. The weather is so perfect right now....77 degrees slightly overcast...cool breeze. Perfect. As usual, I took too many pictures but still have to post them here if not for family, for my own satisfaction. Ian ended up running into his classmate Andrew. He was so excited you would have thought he won the lottery....There was a bike race going on at the park and we had to park and walk a bit because they had closed the roads into the park. Addie was amazed watching this massive group of bikers fly past us at a very quick pace....it was kindof exciting to watch!


We are getting ready for Alec's summer visit. He comes in next Thursday. We have some plans for the month that he is here so hopefully it will be fun! Until then, no major plans.... Hope you all enjoy your Memorial Day weekend!

Ever Wonder What a Chalazion Looks Like......?

.....We have a Doctor appointment scheduled since it is not going away as it was supposed to....they will probably have to surgically excise it. Yikes.

Better news is that my elbow culture came back negative for MRSA. Thankfully! It is still painful and swollen but after 5 more days on antibiotics, it should be better. Im a little skeptical since it hasnt helped so far. We'll see.....

The Biggest Loser.....

It seems a little late to be admitting this now but I am so hooked on this show! Ive watched it before here and there but never have I been glued to the TV the way I have this season. These people have been so inspirational..... I mean seriously, I know it is a reality show and I know that it's all about the producers trying to get viewers but in the end, these are real people. Maybe it was all about the money, or the attention, or whatever but they worked SO hard. And that is what I watch it for. To see very heavy individuals work so hard to change their bodies and their lives has just made me want to do the same. Well, like I said "hook, line, and sinker"...... Next week is the finale to see who wins the whole thing but honestly... it doesnt even matter. They all look awesome. They all did great. But, I really hope Tara wins.

She kicked some serious butt the entire time. For a while, I didnt really like her and I was sick of her winning all of the challenges but for some reason...in the past couple of weeks Ive really changed my tune about her. So what if she won them all....she deserved to! She earned every single win. Im excited to see who wins and in the meantime, I'm feeling so much more positive about running my half marathon in November. These contestants just ran a whole marathon!!! So, now I just know I can do it....if they can, I can.

Gardens and Discoveries....

Well we did it! We finally finished our little box today. I know you are probably already sick of hearing about our "box" but...oh well, we are excited. The kids all helped us plant a few seeds, with the exception of Ian who was at a friends and was quite angry with us for not waiting for him. I reassured him that he can plant the tomato's next week....we wanted to wait another week to make sure there were no more frosts. Anyway....Im really excited to see the little veggies grow! Im sure I will take more unecessary pictures of this project as it progresses....it is a first for me. In this last picture you can see that we placed the box by our little peach tree and our grape vines.....it seemed an appropriate place.

In other news....I just got back from my evening run/walk. Ive started going in the morning at 6am and in the evening at 9pm. I figure a double dose cant hurt...as long as I am careful to take it slow this time. Anyway, I discovered something tonight...actually I noticed it this morning but thought maybe it was just the moment and not permanent. However, tonight I realized that I quite enjoy running without music! It sounds like such a lame thing to be excited about but if you know me then you know how much music helps me exercise. In fact....I would actually get to the gym sometimes and realize I had forgotten my ipod and turn around and either go back home to get it or just go back home. I would experience anxiety over the thought of not having my music. I used to be this way about having water too...the first few months when I started running last year, I would lug my water bottle with me each and every time and drink like a fish the whole time I ran.... I breathe through my mouth so it gets dry really fast and Im nervous about running in the first place so I would get cotton mouth so quick. One day, I didnt have it and realized that I didnt need it! It was very liberating to go out without water after that realization....now I can add music to that freedom. It was so nice today just hearing everything around me....listening to my own breathing....the wind and the birds. It was strangely relaxing! Im so happy to know that I dont need those crutches to get out and run :) After 3 days of this, I am already feeling stronger. I guess I'm not completely starting over. My body is responding as though it remembers this torture from last Fall. This is a good thing....Im hoping to run a 5k with a friend next month.

Allergy Season is Upon Us.....

but it isn't bothering Ian one little bit I am happy to report! Seems the allergy shots are doing their duty. Ian said today that even though the shots sting a little, they are "totally worth not itching my eyes out!"..... As of Monday, he will officially be on the maintenance dose which means he is going from having the shots once a week to once every other week. This will last a month or two and then he will start having them just once a month. Not sure how long he has to do it after that but they are really working and I am so happy that he is not suffering like he used to! He hasnt cried from the shots in quite some time but Monday was a tough one...it was the biggest dose yet and so they had to give it to him in two shots.... one in each arm. The syrum had a lot of "Cat" and "Grass" in it and apparently it is the most painful one to receive....big crocodile tears dripped down his face but he held it together and didnt sob. Poor little guy.... Im so proud of him. He is very brave! Here is a picture of Ian being comforted by Addison and the requisite sucker that he gets each time he is stuck!

Donald Ray Shannon.....

Monday morning my father in law, Don, passed away. He has been quite ill with cancer and his body finally gave up. I know without a doubt that he is at peace and with our Father in Heaven. A friend of mine suggested that sometimes death is merciful and in this case I think it was. Cancer is a horrible disease that no one should have to suffer through. The toll it takes on the person who has it as well as the loved ones who take care of them is almost too much to bear. It has been a difficult road since Don was diagnosed last June. We have been far away in SLC and unable to help but our hearts were always there. Im so glad Denver had the opportunity to be there for 2 weeks over Christmas to spend time with his dad. It will mean so much to him as he goes through this experience. I know it hurt him not being able to be there at the end.

Don was a very interesting man. I remember the first time I met him I was scared to death. I had a difficult time understanding him because of his thick southern accent and on top of that he is a big man with a deep voice and likes to play jokes and I wasnt quite sure how to take him. His first order of business on this visit was to show me the scariest parts of Kentucky that he could find. He enjoyed watching my eyes get bigger and bigger as I was taken to parts of the mountains that felt like third world countries. He would tell me stories that hardly seemed like they could be true and enjoyed watching my reaction. New Years Eve he brought out the gun. I didnt know what to do and he just laughed and laughed. He got a real kick out of scaring this "big city girl". I was so nervous.....but underneath all of this scarcasm was an incredibly tender man. He loved his family deeply and loved my children with everything that he had. I am so grateful that we were able to live with them for a year so my boys were able to get to know "Dadi" and have some memories of him. Addison wasnt born yet but she has spent time with him on 2 different vacations and now whenever she sees pictures of anyone from Kentucky she always asks about "Dadi".... Don and I butted heads a couple of times while we lived there for that year....it was because we are actually more alike than either of us wanted to admit. Don was stuck in his ways and so am I....but I learned to really appreciate this about him and I wish I would have told him that before he passed. He lived a simple life full of family and friends and love. He was a faithful member of our church and I know that he will be blessed for that. He will be dearly missed by many....... I hope he knew that I loved him.

I May Have Lost My Mind....

So this running thing is kind of taking over my sanity I think. I just signed up to run in a relay race in June. Sounds reasonable at first glance right? I mean that gives me nearly 8 months to keep running and get into better shape. The only thing about this particular relay is that it is 180 miles long and I have to run 3 different legs over a 24 hour period. Each leg is anywhere from 3 to 6 miles and it starts in Logan, Utah and ends in Park City, Utah. Its called the Wasatch Back and you can read about it here.

This is how I ended up here to begin with. It started with my friend Alisha unintentionally putting a bug in my head that I needed to start running in races. Then I started paying attention to that bug. I read about this relay race after running my first 5k a couple of weeks ago.....there was a flyer in my race bag. It sounded interesting and then I found a blog "Marathon Mommies" and someone had posted something there about needing 2 more runners for their team for this same race. I started thinking "wow, if I knew these girls, I would maybe sign up......". Then, the very next morning, I went visiting teaching and when I mentioned that I had sort of taken up running, my partner said "hey my sister just found out she is pregnant and needs someone to take her place in this relay race coming up in June"...... well of course is just happened to be this Wasatch Back relay that I was throwing around in my head! I just sort of felt like it was fate.

So I called her sister up and signed up to take her spot on their team. Then I got online and read more about it....... and now I'm scared. I'm going to have to start running my butt off to get ready for this. Its awesome and scary and crazy...... but awesome! I'm excited and I'm sick at the same time. I'm putting it out there so that I cant back out and you all have to hold me accountable! Basically, it lasts for 24 hours. Our team consists of 12 women and we each run 3 legs each that are 3-6 miles long. So, we will be running through the night, in the mountains (yikes) with little to no sleep and not much food.....like I said, I believe I may have lost my sanity. Here is an excerpt from an article written by one of the runners. You can click on it to read the whole article.

"The Wasatch Back Relay is simultaneously approachable and insane. The
camaraderie was palpable, the scenery breathtaking, and the hijinks hilarious.
Anybody with two vans, 11 friends and at least a mild dose of insanity can
tackle it. Above all, the race is incredibly fun, and both veteran racers and
total amateurs are sure to get a huge kick out of it."

Wish me luck.....

*****by the way, these are not pictures of me or anyone I know. I "borrowed" them from the article that I quoted above.... They are racers from last years relay*****

I Did It!......

Today I ran my very first race. It was a 5k and I was very nervous about it. Technically I wasnt as prepared physically as I would have liked to have been but Im still happy that I went through with it. What a great feeling to #1 have it over with and #2 to have DONE IT in the first place! Denver came with the kids and Nate, Alisa and Soren also met me at the finish line. How cool is that? It was great seeing them at the end. Nathan snapped some pictures of me and when I get them I will post them....if they turn out....who knows what my face looked like at the end. I know how I felt and I sure hope it didnt show in the picture! Ha!

Ive been running 2 miles everyday but Sunday on the treadmill. I knew that it would be more difficult running on the ground but it was even harder than I imagined. Not to mention it was 32 degrees outside which made my lungs feel like I was inhaling needles. The first mile was pretty rough.....after that, it was a little easier. I did have to stop and walk up the hills twice but it was for only 60 seconds or so.....then I ran again. My shins are really feeling it right now.

So, there you go! I cant wait until I can run a 5k easily....that will be so great to be that in shape. Out of 435 contestants, I placed 320.....sounds horrible but I consider the fact that over 100 people finished AFTER I did a total success! And out of my age group, 34-39, I placed somewhere right in the middle......awesome.

Its Definitely the Flu....

I said in the previous post that I had thought Addison throwing up was due to candy overload as opposed to a flu.....I was wrong. Denver threw up all last night, I have been throwing up today, Evan threw up on Thursday, Addie on Sunday......the only one left is Ian and he has been on the toilet all day with other "issues"...... Good times. I pray that it is only a 24 hour bug.......

I did, however sick I was, manage to crawl across the street to VOTE today. Hope you all did too.....there is still time for some of you. One vote does make a difference.

YES! .....

I finally ran for 2 miles today! This is very exciting for me....nevermind how long it took me to do it, I'll work on that later. Im just happy to have actually done it. One more mile to go and I will reach my goal of being able to run 3 miles a day. After that my goal will be to complete the 3 miles under a certain time. Im not even sure what time I want that to be but for now I am running a 15 minute mile which is ssslllllooooowwww! Anyway, just wanted to share my good news!

Birthdays and Broken Bones.....

Well, I havent given an update on Alec lately so I will do it now. It seems like we see less and less of him each year as he grows up. He didnt come and stay with us this summer and the boys were a little hurt by that but Im sure one day they will understand when they are 'teenagers' and sports, friends, activities become so important to them. We did see him briefly for the week we were in Kentucky in May and were grateful to have had that time with him. His cousins from France have been staying with him this summer. It was probably good for him to spend some time with them. Here is a picture with them (taken on his bday) and his little sister.

He has started High School this year.....yikes. Denver talked to him on the phone after his first day and Alec told him that someone tried to shove him in a garbage can....some kind of freshman initiation, but they couldnt catch him! He goes to early morning seminary and I hear he doesnt care much for it. I dont know many teens that would be excited to get up that early for church everyday of the week. Its hard enough to get them motivated to go once a week on Sunday! Good job Alec for grinning and bearing it, one day you will be glad you did. I was spoiled I guess and got to have Seminary as part of my regular school day.....thats Utah for you! He is taking choir and we hear that he has been working out with the Basketball team in hopes of trying out. However, the latest news is that during a practice for a play that the choir is putting on, Alec broke his hand.......guess that rules out basketball for now. Here is a picture of Alec and his broken hand.

He also celebrated his 14th birthday last month. We sent him a target gift card which he used to purchase a new Ipod Nano. His mother sent us pictures of his birthday party which was held at Chuck-E-Cheese.....I guess you never grow out of that place. Here he is with his little sister Kiana. Good times.

We wont have Alec for Christmas this year although we are going to try and bring him here for Thanksgiving. We are in the process of trying to get Denver's parents here for a few weeks over the holiday and thought it would be nice to have Alec here as well. If it happens, we will have more pictures of Alec to share with you.