wow, 10 whole days!

I haven't gone that long without blogging in a really long time!! I still have more to catch up on and pictures to post, but not tonight. This whole last week has been so full and busy. Last weekend was all about the play. Then we jumped right to Thanksgiving. We celebrate with Glade's family on the night before Thanksgiving. I spent that day making pies and rolls for the next day's dinner with just our family. Then we went to the Inner Stake Center for dinner with all of the Smiths. The kids love that so much. A whole gym to run and play and spend time with cousins.

Thanksgiving morning we all woke up early and headed to the Turkey Trot. That's a whole nother post. After, we came home, got all the food cooking and got shower and changed. We were all starving so we decided not to wait for the turkey, but just have ham for lunch. Then later, when the turkey was done, we ate that with all the left overs. After lunch we all laid down for a short nap. Normally we head to the movies with friends, but I just didn't have the energy and everyone was still sleeping when we would have needed to leave. Instead, we just hung out, had dessert and planned out Black Friday.

Here's where it gets good. Toys R Us and Wal Mart through a kink into the plans by opening at night instead of early in the morning. My boys really wanted to participate, so they volunteered to go sit in line at Toys R Us. They showed up and 7:30 pm with lawn chairs and dvd players to wait it out. Unfortunately they were stuck in between foul mouthed smokers, but they toughed it out. Just before 10pm, mom came back to do the shopping. By then, the line was twice around the building. They didn't get in till 10:45 and not out until 12:15. Crazy. They got everything we needed and were home by 1am. Then the greatest mom in the world was back up and out by 4 am to grab stuff from Kmart for me.

In the meantime, I was up at 2:30 and was headed to Kohls, which opened at 3am. I decided to check something online and realized I could order lots of what I needed online instead of going to all the stores. I ordered my stuff from Wal Mart and even got free shipping. Nice. I texted the girls to stay in bed, I didn't need them anymore. They didn't complain about that. I ran to WalMart, where the crowd had thinned and found that most of the pallets of stuff I still wanted were empty. Fortunately, they had about 6 carts of go-backs. I found everything I wanted in the carts! Went straight to the check out that was completely empty and was out of there in no time flat. Off to Kohl's!

Kohl's was a joke. Got the three things I wanted and got in the line that started at the front of the store, snaked back to the back and around to the side and back up front. I waited about 15 min and decided I was not missing out on the Target sales for this. I took my goods and stuffed them under a rack of men's suit pants and hoped they were there when I came back. Off to Target!

Target was a zoo. I was smart enough to not use a cart so I squirmed through the masses of grid locked carts and got what I needed. I wasn't rude, but definitely aggressive. Back to Kohl's!

My stuff was still at Kohl's so I got back in the exact same end of the line spot I was in before. After half an hour, a lady said if we filled out a form for a credit card, we could go straight to the front of the line, SOLD! Not only did I get to check out right away, but I also got 20% off everything I bought that day. That made my very cute boots free!! I met mom back at Kmart, checked out there and went to meet Tracie for breakfast. The three of us refueled and headed back to Target, WalMart and Kohls for the less important things. We were done by 11 am. Eight solid hours! I have only a few little things left, but other than that, I'm done!!

Saturday we took the kids to see Tangled, which was really good and that night went to see Brooklyn and Glade sing in the Stake Choir Concert. I was very ready for my Sunday day of rest! Did I mention that Chelsey was here for all of that? She and Whitley and I did a little shopping Saturday morning and had lunch together, which was nice for a little girl time. We got the trees put up at some point and lots of the rest put out, but now the house is a wreck. I definitely need the week to start and get things all back to normal. I love my family and feel so blessed for all the great things in my life!

Alice in Wonderland Jr.

This year's play was Alice in Wonderland Jr. As always, the kids were fabulous. Whitley was the second leading role and one of three Cheshire cats. She is a natural. Rhett was a Wonder Kid. This was a group of about 12 kids that were on and off the stage the whole time. He totally rocks it on the stage. Another natural. Stephen, Brooklyn and Dalin were Royal Cards. They didn't get to go on till the last few scenes, but they all did great. Stephen was the lead card and even had some lines. Brooklyn and Dalin got to be the guards during the trial. They all love it and I love watching them. The whole play was so colorful and fun to watch. Bo can't wait till he's old enough to participate!

I only got the back of Brooklyn, pictures were hard because they wouldn't let me use a flash so any picture that had movement was blurry.

Dalin was very dramatic and enjoyed his stint front and center. What a ham!

Brooklyn and Dalin

Stephen was the guard for Alice during the trial.

Painting the Roses Red - Dalin #4

Stephen - #2

Rhett forgot to put his hat on for this scene, but boy does that kid have some moves!

The three Cheshire Cats. Whitley is orange.

Gorgeous!

Have you ever seen anything like it??? I love this girl!

Cross Country

This year both Rhett and Brookyn are doing Cross Country. They had their first meet on Friday against two other schools. Our school took top 12 for the boys with Rhett coming in 9th. I believe his time was about 10 and a half minutes for a mile and a half. He did really well. I love to see him do something that comes so naturally for him.

Brooklyn, who has never run, wanted to do it as well. She still has a lot of work to do, but I was so proud of her for finishing. Her time was 17 and a half minutes. She did a lot of walking, but she kept going and that's what's important at this point. I'm hoping it will only take a few times of doing something "hard" and her seeing that she can do it, then she'll have more confidence in herself. I really love watching them run. Great job!!

Random

I seriously can't keep my days straight. So I will just put the things I wanted to remember regardless if they are in the right order or not. Bo and I canned potatoes together. I totally enjoyed his help and constant questions. It was a great time to explain about following the prophet. All my boys finally got hair cuts, I even let Stephen do Rhett's since he was just getting it buzzed. I have gotten giddy while looking at Black Friday ads! 10 more days! Got my van washed and ten seconds after Katy got in, she drew on the window with a chocolate pretzel. I found totally cute dresses for the girls for Christmas. Had lunch with two great friends. Running fast is fun! I almost ran my fastest mile and I wasn't even trying. I have to stop eating so much chocolate. I think that sums up the important stuff. The kids have play practice every night and their performance this weekend so hopefully I'll have pics of that soon. Maybe THEN life will settle a little!

Vroooommm!!

That's my life, flying by without me even getting a chance for a breath. Chelsey came on Wednesday instead of Thursday. We had a great weekend, well I did anyway! I can't even begin to put a time frame on all the things we did. We shopped and had dinner with Grandma. We had a fun night out playing laser tag with a bunch of friends. Chelsey couldn't find anyone to go with her so she stayed home for this one. Whitley, however, brought her "crush" for the past 4 years. They were super sports to hang out with a bunch of old people all night. I had a really great time and am so thankful for all the wonderful people in my life.

Saturday I ran in the morning and had intentions of running 7 miles, thinking maybe even 8. Ha! I also decided to do a little hill training. Totally kicked my butt. I was seriously huffing and puffing by the time I got to the top of the hill. I only made it 6.5 but I was actually sore the next day. I haven't been sore in a while. When I got home, Glade informed me that his brother, Kent, was in the hospital on life support so we went there to be with his family. It was great that Chelsey was here to take care of things while we were gone.

Kent looks awful. He is a 41 year old man who looks 80 and frail laying in that bed. He has drank heavily for the last 21 years. His liver is shot and some other things they haven't clearly defined to us yet. While we were there, they took him to remove some water from around his lungs. He will be sedated for 3 days while they try to control it. After that, they will see what happens and get his say on whether or not they continue to save him. Very sad situation. Mostly for his parents and his children. Totally broke my heart for all of them. I never want to have to be that mom.

We missed the adult session of Stake Conference being at the hospital, but we had regular Stake Conference the next day. It was actually a broadcast from Salt Lake. That morning, we had a big Sunday breakfast and it was so great to have everyone there. We all laughed and had a really nice time. After church, we came home and since it was the second Sunday, we didn't have the whole family coming over so we had our own big dinner. I had a roast in the crock pot, made corn casserole and potatoes and gravy. Yum! Again with how great it was to have the whole family together. After dinner I canned some of the 50 lbs of potatoes I had just gotten, gave all the boys haircuts and clipped my coupons. Stephen helped me and endured sitting through the Christmas Shoes with me. He is such a suck up and I totally love it! What a fabulous day.

Chelsey called about 9:30 pm once she got back to Flagstaff and informed us that she forgot her backpack with her homework and laptop in it. She was going to drive back down and drive through the night to get back home. I was seriously not happy about that. Glade drove and met her half way, neither got home before 1:30 or 2 am. Stinkin girl!!

Oh yah, Thursday was Bunko. I love my Bunko friends. I always say I'm going to go and be quiet and not be so "there" but I never succeed. I love that they still let me come anyway!

Lastly, while I was at the hospital, there was a church wide leadership training meeting. I was informed on Sunday morning that they have eliminated my calling, Activities Chair. What?? I have no idea where that came from or what they will actually do but I guess that means I will be getting a new calling. I can't say that makes me so happy. I just got used to the idea and had the whole year planned. Nice.

Quote of the week: "What smells so good...is it you or the banana bread?" Bo

Finally

Finally! After a week of 90 degree weather, it's finally cooled off enough to feel a little like fall. This week is in the 70's. The days are still warm enough to be warm, but when the sun goes down, it's actually chilly. This morning it's a brisk 46 degrees. It's funny how quickly it changes, not a lot of middle ground here. It's been nice to shoo the kids outside and not feel guilty about it. Unfortunately the tramp has no mat and the swing set has not swings. Guess I should get on that. I think my house is actually dirtier since they are outside so much. Maybe not quite so cluttered, but the amount of grass, dirt and sand that comes in makes up for it.

I have 4 kids in track right now. How exciting is that? Brooklyn and Rhett are doing cross country and Whitley and Stephen are doing pre-track. It's only been a few days, but I'm going to make them stick it out. Makes a lot of running around for me, but I think it's worth it. There are only two more weeks until their performance of Alice in Wonderland so then things will slow way down. Right now we are at practices almost every night of the week. Makes for no cooking dinner for me! It's a grab and go for the next week or so.

Chelsey is coming home on Thursday. It will be fun having her here for a few days. She is experiencing her first cold spell and is ready for some warm weather. We have a lot going on this weekend so I hope she doesn't get lost in the shuffle.

Yesterday, my old and dear friend Leslie came and helped me finish my box of apples. We cranked through 3 batches of apple pie filling. It was so much easier having another pair of hands. Thanks Leslie!! That night, mom came over to do frozen breakfast burritos so she could have a nutritious breakfast without having to cook every morning. Unfortunately I had to run and get kids right in the middle and she ended up doing it mostly by herself. Sorry mom!

This is what I saw when I went out to check on Bo and Katy. I guess it just comes naturally.


Today really was a great day. Even with the few little snags, I went to bed feeling very content and blessed. Should I be nervous that things are going so well right now??

Casa Grande Triathlon

I did it! It was a sprint, quarter mile swim, 10.6 mile bike and 3 mile run. I knew the swim would be rough and I was going to train for it, but after a few times at the pool....I just didn't want to go back. I knew I could do the bike but I wanted to train for that as well but after a few times on the bike.....I just didn't want to get back on. Why am I doing this?? So I ran...a lot....and hoped that would get me through. I have to preface with an unlucky turn of events that made this just one dimension more interesting. The day before:

I got stung by a scorpion on my big toe. It hurt! All day it was tingly and numb and just plain uncomfortable. By night time, I could still feel it and it hurt to walk on it. I was really worried about how I would run in the morning. After a restless night's sleep, we got up around 4:30 to head out. It was still tingly but not sore. I took a bunch of Ibuprofen just to be sure and it must have worked cuz I felt fine after that.

The swim was a complete joke. Seriously, a circus in the water. They started you by time (how long you thought it would take you) so of course I was near the end. So were all the other people who didn't swim. After an hour of waiting for all the real swimmers to get in, my chance finally came. Let me just start by saying I wasn't halfway down the first lane before I swigged a bunch of water and was totally choking. The rest went just as badly. Did I mention...circus in the water?? In the end I was able to make it through in about 13 minutes. I just wanted to get it done

On to the bike. I guess I took too long in transition...some people don't think you should dry off, or put on chap stick or anything like that, but I found it necessary. I eventually made it out and started riding. I did the bike in about exactly what I figured I would. Boy my legs were tired though! I have to say it was really fun to pass people. Usually I'm the one being passed but not today! Really, I was just ready to get off. My bike said I did it in 42 minutes, but the timing chip says 47. It includes both transition times.

I applied more chap stick and headed out for my run. I did better than my time suggests because I crossed the timing line, but didn't start running for about another minute. I had to get my iPod ready! Anyway, the run was hard. It was on rough terrain, up and down tiny hills, big rocks and oh yeah, it was hot! Luckily they had water stations. Again, I got to pass lots of people! My iPod said I ran it in 28 min but the timer said 29.

My total time was 1 hour and 29 minutes. My goal was to finish under 1:30. I guess that makes it a success. I can't say I had fun doing it and I never felt that adrenaline rush so I'm going to say at this point that tri's are not my thing. I did learn that they had a duathlon that day as well. That's a run bike run race. I may try that next year. I'm glad I did it and now I can say that I have. On to more running!!

Moderation Smoderation

Did I recently post about feeling unsettled, maybe a little bored? No real projects on the horizon, nothing to keep me busy? Well of course we can't have a little moderation here, now my plate is heaping and I'm having just a little anxiety. With one big swoop, every weekend till mid January is occupied by some activity that takes some sort of preparation from me. Not just one thing, but lots of times several things on the same day. In reality I'm glad to have stuff going on, but maybe just a little more spaced out would be nice. Right now I'm trying to take it weekend by weekend.

This weekend in particular is a little overwhelming. Saturday is my first triathlon that I'm really not very prepared for. As soon as we are done with that, I have to work at the school carnival for a few hours and right after that is our Red Rock Reunion party. I really hope there is a nap somewhere in there! I had to get the video done this week which is always a challenge. Choosing and sorting through 600 pictures takes some time and I really don't even know what I'm doing so it can get a little frustrating. But it's done and I think it turned out OK.

I still have 40lbs of apples waiting to be canned and 50 lbs of potatoes coming this Saturday. Hopefully next week will be a little less busy than this one was. Today I sat down and went through my coupons and ads and was giddy with anticipation of getting to the store. My counters are totally full with stuff and I'm not sure where I'm going to put it all. This is the time of year to stock up, so I did. I save $90 just in coupons, that doesn't even include all the sale savings. Very exciting!! Mom and I decided to pitch in and put together a "little" box of goodies for Chelsey, our starving college student. It's actually two big boxes with all sorts of stuff for her. I can't wait to see her in a couple of weeks.

Along with all the other things calling my name, I got a sudden urge to clean out all my closets. That's a HUGE project and one I really don't have time for, but every time I open a door, I have to resist pulling everything out and organizing it. All in due time....

Lastly, running is still going really well. Today I ran a 5k in 28 min 21 seconds. The best part was that my first two miles were just under 9 minute miles. I actually thought I might puke towards the end, but no such luck. I was wiped though. It felt really good. I'm so excited for the Turkey Trot to see if I can break an hour. I feel really good about it, but now I just want to do it! I love the holidays for so many reasons. People complain about stretching them out too long, but I don't think they could be long enough!

Trunk or Treat 2010

Halloween came and went in a frenzied blur this year. Because Halloween was on a Sunday, and in trying to keep the Sabbath day holy, we celebrated on Friday night with our ward. This was my first event as ward activities chair so it's never quite as fun as when you get to just show up and enjoy, but I think it went pretty well. The weather was in the 90's and that sucked, but once the sun went down, it wasn't at all cool, but not hot either so I guess that's good. We had a chili and cornbread dinner along with hot dogs for the littler ones. (big ones too!)

After dinner, we did a costume parade but there was no one there to watch it, a a little sad, but what can ya do? To finish off the parade, we had the kids all dance to the Casper slide. I think that went over well for the most part. Then it was off to trick or treat! Katy and Bo did really well at keeping themselves busy and the bigger kids were very helpful with the games. Glade ran the powdered donut eating contest and Nick and his friend Jessie ran the pumpkin bowling. Luckily I had my trusty old sidekick (mom) to help get the kids ready and take pictures while I was running around. I think they all had a really good time.

On Sunday, we had family dinner as usual with lots of treats. The kids never once mentioned about not dressing up or going trick or treating. I'm so glad we didn't give in to the world and decided to stay home on Sunday. I think that lesson to our kids is way more valuable than a sack of candy. Now I'm truly ready for the next few months. SO much going on and to look forward to!

Bo and Katy

Whitley - she put this together herself and in finishing up, she bought her "undie" at GoodWill. She was so embarassed to check out with underwear there.

Rhett really struggled figuring out what he would be happy with. He finally settled on a Jamaican Carrot. Go figure.

On a last minute trip to Walgreens with coupon in hand, Dalin ended up a Ninja.

Brooklyn

Katy was set to be an Indian girl right up until I made that trip to Walgreens. I found this and couldn't resist. She was adorable!

My little Bumble Bee Bo

Stephen only stayed in this getup for the picture. He decided he didn't want to trick or treat and wear the costume. (they are only allowed to get candy if they are dressed up) He and Whitley were leaving trunk or treat to go to the homecoming game. Lucky for him, their school colors are Green and Gold.

Nick and Jessie, they helped set up beforehand along with Stephen so he was home when I took all the pictures. These two were so helpful to me!

Rhett should be a special education teacher. He spent some time pushing Bryce around trick or treating. He loves to help with him and church or wherever we are.

Glade and I getting ready to lead the Casper slide.

My big kids doing the casper slide

My not very unique costume. I had a green tutu to go with it.

This was our pumpkin bowling game. It was a big hit!