10 Months Old

Jack has been crawling for a little over 2 months now. He is very good at it. He follows me around the house as I get my work done. He likes to open cupboards, drawers, and doors. He likes to explore new parts of the house. He likes to climb up the staris, but has not yet mastered coming down.
Jack loves to eat. If he sees me put something into my mouth without offering him a bite he becomes very upset. His favorites are graham crackers, gold fish, and fruit puffs.
He learned how to play patty-cake and wave bye-bye. He says "ma-ma" and "ba-ba" and makes an assortment of other random noises. He likes to be with his mommy and daddy. They make him laugh pretty hard.
He is such a good boy and we love him so much. It has been a wonderful 10 months with him in our family.
Here are some pics of what he's been up to.

Drinking juice with his feet up...


Unrolling all the toilet paper...


Getting into the cupboards...


Sleeping...


Looking adorable in his new winter hat...

I Did it Again

What?

13.1 miles. Nichole and I ran the Provo Halloween Half Marathon (the most fun you can have in Provo without getting arrested). We dressed up like Peter Pan and his Shadow.
We have had such a good time training for this race. We've been running together 2 to 3 times per week for about 4 months now, so this was a landmark day for us... one that we have been looking forward to and preparing for. I am proud of us for accomplishing our goal. It has been so nice to do something for myself. When Jack joined our family, there was an adjustment period where I didn't have much time or energy to do things for myself (not complaining, it's just the way it had to be). When we started running, I quickly started to feel better in both body and mind. Taking time to do something I wanted to do to improve myself has been wonderful and therapeutic. Thanks Nichole, for having this great idea and for being my partner through this.

I really enjoy running races. I like that they give me a reason to workout, a goal, a purpose. I have a full schedule of race goals for the next few months...
November: Thanksgiving 5K
April: Salt Lake City Half Marathon
June: Wasatch Back Relay
August: Hobble Creek Half Marathon

If anyone is interested in training for or running any or all of these races with me, do it.

Jack-o-Lantern

So this is a little past due, but I wanted to show you all how cute Jack looked on Halloween. We debated between Jack in the Box, Cracker Jack, Jack @$$ (kidding... we don't hate our child), and Jack-O-Lantern. We found this cute costume on diapers.com at a discounted price, so it was an easy choice.

The Mile High Half

I did it. I ran 13.1 miles on Sunday. It was awesome. Tara and I have been training for this for the last 13 weeks. It feels weird that it's over just like that...the thing I've been working for and training so hard for is finished. I accomplished my goal, but as life goes, I had a few last-minute issues to hold me up a little. I was totally psyched and felt prepared to run the race. I did my last long training run about a week before race day. The next morning, I woke up with a fever... "oh no," I thought. Over the weekend, it turned into a pretty bad case of bronchitis. Respiratory illness and running are not compatible. On Monday, I went to the Dr. and got on some antibiotics and an inhaler. I was not able to run until Friday and it was only 2.5 miles, and it hurt my lungs. I was feeling alright by bedtime on Saturday. I wanted to be sure to get enough rest, so I went to bed early. At 1 a.m., Jack (who has been sleeping through the night for months) decided that he didn't want to sleep. I fed him thinking that he would eat and go back down... no such luck. He was awake until 4 a.m. and so was I. Once we started running, I felt pretty good. I am happy with my accomplishment and I am proud of myself and my sister for finishing what we set out to do. The above picture is us at the finish line with our other sis, Carlie (who was an awesome help with Jack during the race).
Jack and I headed out to Denver last Saturday morning. We had a fun time with Tara, Rusty, Halle, Josh, Blake and Carlie. Michael had to stay home and work (someone had to foot the bill for our trip...). It was fun to hang out with my sisters doing a little shopping and lunching and movieing. Carlie went home on Monday morning and it's too bad because she missed out on the adventure to the pumpkin patch. The kids loved petting the animals and climbing around on the pumpkins.

Weekend Retreat

Last weekend, Michael and I packed our bags, dropped Jack off with the Grandparents, and headed up to Snowbird for the weekend. It was fun to spend some un-interuppted time with my husband.
Oktoberfest is going on right now, so there was plenty of free entertainment. We also got free tram passes with our room, so we rode to the top and hiked around for a while. It was nice to be away without really going anywhere.
It was a little bit hard for me to leave Jack (this was the first time we left him overnight), but he did well and it was extra fun to see him when we got back.

Granduer Peak

Since Michael and I both worked on Labor Day, we had our own special holiday the following Friday. We took the day off and headed up to Grandeur Peak. It's a beautiful hike with the trail head in Milcreek Canyon. It is about 6 miles round trip, with the way up a fairly steep incline, and the way back a nice, easy, downhill stroll. We made the mistake of starting at noon on a very, very hot day, but despite the heat, we made it to the top in pretty good time.
Jack is such a good sport about our family hikes. He seems to enjoy being packed up mountains on his daddy's back. He really only fussed when he was hungry. Perhaps our enthusiasm for the outdoors has been genetically passed on to our child :).

Goodbye Old Friend

It's time to say goodbye to an old faithful friend... my car. I bought my 1998 Honda Civic with the help of my parents in November of 2002. We've been many places together since then. It came with me when I got married and was our only vehicle until we bought the Liberty a couple of months ago. I put 113,532 (someone else put 33000) miles on it.
On Tuesday, Michael was driving it home from work. He got off the freeway and was stopped at a red light on the off-ramp. A guy fell asleep at the wheel and rear ended our car. Of course, the guy who fell asleep is irresponsible and doesn't have car insurance, so our insurance company has to cover everything and we have to pay our deductible. Grrrrrrrrrrrrr. The adjuster looked at it this morning and decided it was totaled. So we are now looking for another car... NOT what we wanted to do this weekend.
Oh well. I'm sure something will work out. By the way, Michael was not injured at all in the accident. I wish I had a picture of it to go along with this post, but you'll just have to imagine what it might have looked like all mashed up...

Happy Life

Do you ever have one of those days when something just hits you?

Today is an ordinary day. It started with a brief visit to the dermatologist who examined a "changing" mole I have on my shoulder. "It's nothing" he said. Then Jack and I came home and spent the day together playing with toys, doing laundry, baking, snuggling, etc.

Throughout my day, I just keep having the thought "my life is good." I am in a great place right now. I am young, healthy, happy, in love with the best man, have the sweetest baby, a good job, a nice home, wonderful friends, and I'm near a supportive and loving family. What more could I want?... (maybe a little more disposable cash, but I'm not going to complain).

Jack is 6 Months

Jack had his 6 month photo shoot last week and we just got the pics back. My brother, Landon's girlfriend, Megan has recently started her own photography business, so we wanted to be supporters. She did a great job. I guess it's hard to take a bad picture of such a cute little guy though.

Jack has grown a lot in the last 6 months. He now weighs 16 lbs 12 oz (about 10 lbs more than when he was born). He is a joy to be around and Michael and I are so happy to have him in our family. At 6 months Jack
-Is able to sit up all by himself
-Chews on anything and everything he can get his hands on
-Is growing his first tooth
-Is continuing to develop his funny little personality
-Is starting to eat solid foods
-Is finally mobile (if you count rolling around the floor from toy to toy).

Family Picnic and Canyon Drive

On Saturday, we went up American Fork Canyon for a picnic. We drove up to A meadow above the Timpanooke trail head (same place where Michael asked me to marry him).

After our picnic, we decided that since we now have a car that works off road, we would go on a little exploratory drive. The drive was beautiful. There were wildflowers everywhere. We found a few trail heads for hikes that we might go back to. We assumed that the road would come out another canyon, but instead, it took us a little over 1 and 1/2 hours to get to a dead end. So we had to back-track our whole trip. It was still fun and beautiful.

Raw Wednesday #1: a learning experience

Well, last week, I attempted my first Raw Wednesday. I was not as successful as I would have liked. What I learned is that I need a little more prep work. I was eating whole foods, but I completely left out grains, so by about 3 pm, I was absolutely STARVING. I decided to give up and try again next Wed. So I am spending some time making some more hearty raw foods for this coming week. These foods take a little preparation because they have to be sprouted, soaked, and dehydrated. This week I am making Raw Cinnamon Granola and Raw Hummus. This should keep me more satiated. Here is my menu for this Raw Wednesday:

-Breakfast: Raw Cinnamon Granola with Almond milk and fresh fruit
-Lunch: Celery soup with avocado and red bell peppers (I didn't get around to having this for dinner last week)
-Dinner: Green Salad with veggies and hummus
-Dessert: Mango Sorbet (again, didn't get around to this last week)
-Snacks: Raw nuts, veggies with hummus, fresh fruit

If anyone wants to join me for a delicious raw breakfast, here is the recipe for the Granola:

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup slivered raw almonds
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (or more to taste)
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup pure maple syrup

Combine dry ingredients in plastic container. Add syrup and mix well until moderately saturated.
Cover container and dry overnight in refrigerator.

*Note: I have not yet attempted this recipe, so I'm not saying its good, I'm just saying that I'm trying it. I hope it's good...

My first week of training for my half marathon was quite a bit more successful than my first raw Wednesday. I'm up to 4 miles... Woo-hoo.

Raw Wednesdays/ Half Marathon

It seems like everywhere I turn, there is some advertisement for "get thin quick" or "health in a pill." Although some of these programs might be effective, my question is are they healthy? Our country is obsessed with weight and health, but it seems that very few of us are actually taking the right steps to get there (I know there are times in my life when I fall into this category).

I don't believe in being extreme. I want to be healthy. I want to eat well and live an active lifestyle. I want to feel good. I've decided that for me, health is not a number. It's how I feel. It's having balance in my life.

I am turning over a new leaf. Today I begin my journey for better health. I'm starting with 2 steps.

Step 1 is Raw Wednesdays. On Wednesdays, I will only be consuming raw foods. This is my menu for the coming Wednesday:

Breakfast: Berry Salad
Lunch: Greens and Veggie Salad with raw Almonds
Dinner: Celery and Avocado soup
Dessert: Mango Sorbet
Snacks: Whatever I want as long as it's raw

I have been wanting to incorporate more raw foods into my diet for a long time, and I'm going to do raw Wednesdays until I feel like I've learned what I want to learn: planning, recipes I like, how to use a dehydrator, which raw foods I enjoy and which I would prefer to stay away from, what I can eat as a meal vs. snack, etc.

Step 2 is that today is the first day of a 12 week training schedule to run a half marathon. I will be training with my friend Nichole. I am feeling very excited and motivated to get back into shape (and it wouldn't hurt if I lost a few of the lingering baby pounds in the process, but like I said, health is not a number for me).

So, there you have it... my first two steps of my journey for better health... wish me luck. I'll keep you posted.

Jack's First Peak

I love the mountains. I have a sense of freedom when I'm hiking a trail and a wonderful sense of accomplishment when I've reached the summit. I am so happy to live in this beautiful place where I can access freedom and accomplishment so easily.

On Saturday evening, we thought we'd beat the heat and go to a higher altitude for a hike. We did Sunset Peak. The trail head is above Alta at the Albion Basin. We did get out of the heat, but we did not plan for the bugs. All three of us got quite a few mosquito bites... yipes.

Should

Let's talk about the word should. A few years ago, I had a conversation about the word should with my crainosacral therapist and it changed my life. I hate this word and try never to use it. It promotes guilt. For example:

-I should exercise today (even though I've been up all night and I worked all day and I'm exhausted and I'm not really going to exercise).

-I should do the laundry (even though I have a million other things that take priority over the laundry and I'm not actually going to do it).

-I shouldn't eat this cookie (even though I want to and will anyway).

-I should cook more often.

-I shouldn't take a nap.

-I should work more hours.

-I shouldn't buy this item.

-I should etc. etc. etc.

Bottom line... If you're going to do something, do it. If you're not, don't, but for Pete's sake, don't waste your time "shoulding" yourself and feeling guilty about all the things you should be doing. It'll just make you feel worse about yourself and your life.

Our Trip to Colorado

Well, the original plan was to hit both Thailand and Peru before having a baby, but now that Jack is part of our family, we wouldn't trade him for a trip around the world.

Anyway, our big trip for this year was a trip to Erie, Colorado, home of my sister, Tara and her family. Tara had a new baby, Blake, at the end of May, so we went out there to let Jack meet his new cousin. We had a fun time while we were there. Here is a picture of the cousins: Blake, Josh, Halle, Jack. Above is a pic of Blake and Jack. They happened to have matching outfits... we couldn't resist.

On Wednesday, Tara and I had a girls night out. We went to the awesome venue Red Rock Amphitheater and saw Celtic Woman preform. They were fantastic. They had some of the most beautiful voices I have ever heard. There was also a fiddle player who was very entertaining, dancing and jumping all around the stage as she played her instrument. While we girls were enjoying our night out, the men took the children on a little hike. Apparently there was a lot of complaining and crying... sounds like fun.

Thursday we packed up the beach bag and went to Boulder Reservoir. There is a fun little beach area. The kids played in the sand and we all swam around in the water.

Friday, Michael, Jack and I went to Chautauqua Park and hiked around. The Flat Irons Area is beautiful. After a hot afternoon of hiking, we headed over to Pearl Street to get some lunch and do a little shopping. We had gyros from a fun little Mediterranean place.
Later that evening, we enjoyed a neighborhood BBQ in the park and in the Erie tradition, celebrated our country's birthday one day early with fireworks at the golf course. The kids really enjoyed the fireworks... especially Jack and Blake who slept right through them.

Saturday, Michael and Rusty went for a hike. They summited Mt. Bierdstadt at 14,060 feet. This was Michael's first 14er, but I'm sure it won't be his last. While the men were hiking, Tara and I took the kids to a farmers market in Boulder. We enjoyed sampling delicious organic treats and walking around the park. We topped off our outing with lunch on Pearl Street from Old Chicago Pizza. Wow, was it delicious.

We just hung out on Saturday evening and Michael, Jack and I flew home on Sunday. What a fun trip.

One Little Thing

OK... I have a complaint to post...

I like to be kind to the earth and to my pocket book as well, so, recently I've been practicing the art of reusing. Over the past several months, I've purchased several used items including my kitchen table, a pump for my baby's milk, a jogging stroller, and a backpack baby carrier.

I like the idea of reusing something that someone else would have otherwise thrown away. And, I like the concept of paying a fair price for a used item. The problem with several sellers of used items is that they are not selling these items for a fair price.

If you have had something for several years and it has visible signs of your use (even if it doesn't), don't try to get only a few dollars less than the current retail price of the new version of the same item. People act like they are giving you such a good deal... I"m selling this whatever for $10 less than retail (sure, I've been using it for 10 years and I've beat the crap out of it, but hey, it's cheaper for you). I think it's fabulous that so many people are trying to make an extra few bucks on things that we do not need anymore, but don't get greedy... even if the item is in great condition, it is still used and not worth as much as a new one.

Maybe I'm just being cheap...

A Busy Blogless Month

I pretty much dropped off the face of the blogosphere last month. Here's what we've been up to:

We celebrated my niece, Maile's 3rd Birthday by going to the zoo.
You might notice Jack's head popping out of Michael's jacket in front of the giraffes. We had a good time until the flood started. It rained like crazy and we had to wait it out in the cat house.

We celebrated Father's Day by taking Jack for his first hike in Michael's new baby-carrier-backpack, which will from this time forth be known as the Jack-Pack.


I celebrated my 26th birthday. Michael got me a jogging stroller (exactly what I wanted). Then he took me out on a fun date of Indian food (my favorite) and a movie. We also had a little party with my family.

We also had quite an experience when Michael was asked to be in charge of a concession stand at the Lehi Roundup Rodeo. He had to staff it with 15-18 volunteers each night for 3 nights. I worked one night and that was enough for me. We didn't really see each other at all for those 3 days. Thank goodness that's all over.

The last day of June we flew out to Colorado to visit my sister, Tara and her family... post of fun filled trip to Boulder coming soon.

Be Kind in 4 Ways, But Not at 4 Ways

This happens to me a lot...

I understand that you're only trying to be nice when you forfeit your right of way to let someone else go while driving, but this practice has got to stop. For example, at a 4 way stop, just take your turn. It creates too much confusion when you wave to the other person, saying "you go," then they gesture back, "no, you go... after all, it is your turn." then the other person waves back, perhaps a friendly "thank you," but you're not sure if they're saying "no you go," so you think to yourself, "I do have the right of way," and start to ease your way past the stop sign. At the same moment, the other driver puts his foot on the gas pedal. You nearly run into each other in the middle of the intersection, but brake just in time, leaving both drivers feeling frustrated and annoyed. I know you were just trying to be nice, but you nearly caused an accident by doing so.

Certainly, I am not suggesting that we never be kind to others. But when driving, take your turn... oh, and if you're in a crowded parking lot (such as after a concert or sporting event), do the every-other car merging thing. It works wonders.

So, I am listing 4 ways you can be kind, but not at a 4 way stop sign:

1. Invite your neighbors over for dinner
2. Leave a note with the top 100 reasons you love your significant other
3. Allow someone who only has a couple of items in her hand to go in front of you in the grocery store check out line
4. Rewind

Jack is 4 months

Jack turned 4 months old yesterday. We celebrated by going to the doctor for some more shots. Poor little guy.

Jack is a happy and healthy baby. He weighs 14 lb 1.5 oz (34th percentile) and is 25 inches tall (55 th percentile). His favorite thing to do is suck on his fists... sometimes he tries to fit both of them in his mouth at the same time. He is learning how to play with toys and is able to grip thin objects. He loves bath time and will lay in there, kicking his legs off until the water gets cold. He loves to be rocked in the rocking chair and bounced on the big exercise ball. He smiles and laughs and coos. He even sleeps through the night (since he was 7 weeks old). He is so much fun to be around. Here are some of my favorite Jack pics from the last month.

A week of firsts

We had a fun week of firsts at our house:

Last Saturday, I planted my first garden. It is a small 3X5 square foot garden. I'm starting out small during my experimental year, but if I like it and it works, I'm going to do a bigger one next year.

That evening, My mom taught me how to make jam. It was a first for me and it turned out very tasty. I have enough in my freezer to last at least a year.On Monday, Jack had his first of many to come evenings in the canyon. We went up American Fork Canyon and roasted hot dogs and smores over the fire. We forgot to bring condiments, so the dogs were a little dry... oops. Jack enjoyed watching the fire and he liked looking at the rushing river. For a while now, I have been wanting to learn how to make homemade bread. It's just so much better. On Wednesday, I googled the phrase "easy bread recipe" (It's my first time... I don't want to get too complicated) and after sifting through many easy recipes, I decided on "No Knead Wheat Bread" from Betty Crocker. Well, I made bread and it was delicious. I think next week I'll try kneading.After Michael got home from work that evening, we decided to take the new car out for a spin... off road. We geared up and headed up AF canyon again. We have been looking for a new car for a while. We needed a second car and wanted something with 4 wheel drive for all our adventuring, so we ended up with a Jeep Liberty... that fits both our needs and our wants.

So, It was a fun and experimental week. I think I'll do each and every activity again.

Tulip Festival

Last week, I visited Thanksgiving Point's Tulip Festival... Twice. The first time was an activity for Dialysis patients and staff funded by the Kidney Foundation. We had a nice time, but it was windy and cold, so we kind of rushed through the gardens. It was fun to go with Kasey and Brian who also have a little baby, Sam, who was born 4 weeks after Jack.

The second time, Katie and I took Jack and Zeke for a fun filled afternoon. Our favorite part of the day was when a mother said to her crying child, "don't be sad, it's tulip time."

Afterwards, Jack and Zeke crashed on the bean bag at my house.

Nurses Day

Michael sent me flowers at work today. It's Nurses Day. I've never gotten flowers delivered to me at work (or anywhere else) before. I felt so special. Thanks Michael.

Happy Birthday to Michael

Michael turned 26 on Sunday. He is the best husband ever. We spent the entire weekend celebrating his birth.

On Saturday evening, we dropped Jack off with my mom and went out. I decided to take him someplace nice that we hadn't been to before... Bambara (it's the restaurant inside the Hotel Monaco). It was very nice and we had a really good time.

On Sunday, he got to open his gift from me... A REI day pack made from recycled materials that was stuffed with all his favorite snacks. We got to have cake and ice cream twice that evening... once at my parents' home, and once with Michael's family. We were all hopped up on sugar.

Monday night, we went out with Michael's parents to Smoky Mountain Pizzeria for yet another celebration.

Now we're all birthdayed out.

5 years ago...

5 years ago last Friday, I ran a marathon. Yes, me... 26.2 miles.

Last Friday, I ran 1.5 miles. It felt like a marathon.

I have about 8 lbs. to loose from the pregnancy. I have been making excuses (some of them legitimate) as to why I am unable to work out:

-I am too tired... I've been up all night with the baby
-My vericose veins are hurting
-I can't work it into my schedule
-Jack is not 3 months old so I can't take him to the daycare

All of these things are resolved (except my veins did hurt last night, but that was the first time in a while), so I am out of excuses.

Oh, and I'm addicted to sugar... do they have rehab for that?

I always say "If it's important, you'll make time for it." So it's time I take my own advice and get going on getting rid of these 8 lbs.

I just found this photo of myself and my two BFFs Melissa (on left) and Katie (on right) after finishing the marathon. They trained with me but were unable to run the race due to injuries.

Working Out Isn't Working Out

Last night Michael and I decided to go to the local rec-center to work out. We bought an annual pass in January. I have not been working out much because of some painful varicose veins leftover from my pregnancy (I tried running about a month ago, but it hurt too much), so when I decided to go try the low-impact elliptical machine, it was kind of a big step for me.
Also, I haven't wanted to take Jack there while he was so young and his immune system was so frail, but he's almost 3 months old now, and he has been out enough that I feel comfortable taking him there.
So anyway Michael went to work out in the weight room and I went over to the cardio side. I had Jack sitting there in his car seat beside me as I began my workout. About 1 min into my warm up, a staff member came up to me and said that I wasn't allowed to have my baby in the cardio room (the last place I had a membership did not allow children in the cardio or weight areas, but did allow infants in car seats, so I figured that this was ok). She said that the reason for this rule was that someone could "fly off a treadmill and injure the baby." She then let me know that I was welcome to take him to the daycare for a small fee of $2.50/hr.
So, I figure that if I workout 5 times/week, it'll cost me $50/ month to put Jack in the daycare to keep him safe from people flying off treadmills (It is only $25/month for our couples pass). I think he is significantly more likely to get injured in the daycare than he is by someone flying off a treadmill.
My point is, I don't mind that you enforce your rules, but please don't tell me some B.S. reason for it like "people flying off treadmills." Just tell me the truth: We want your $2.50/hr.

Jack's Busy Weekend

Jack had kind of a crazy weekend. On Saturday, he went with his mom and dad up to Park City to the Canyons Ski Resort where they were going to watch a pond skimming contest that was advertised as a free event. When we arrived, we were informed that the event was free, but that we each had to pay $15 to get up the gondola to get to the event (the worker also let me know that Jack could go up for free...thanks). We were late and would have only gotten to see a few minutes of the pond skimming, so we decided to spend our $30 at the outlets instead. We bought some new clothes for Jack because his newborn size clothes are getting a little snug. I also got some bigger shirts for myself (hopefully by summer I'll be able to wear last year's clothes a little more comfortably). Michael is the only one who didn't get to buy anything... His clothes still fit him. When we were done shopping, we headed back up to The Canyons for a Wailers concert. I think there is only one guy who was actually in Bob Marley's band, but it was fun anyway. This was Jack's first out of womb concert experience. He enjoyed it so much that he slept through the entire thing.

On Sunday, Jack had his baby blessing at our church. He looked so handsome in his little white tux vest and bow tie. We had our families over for waffles after the blessing. After everybody went home, we three Birds took a long nap. I still need to put the extra table and chairs away... maybe later.

This is a photo of our family members who were able to attend Jack's baby blessing. And I had to put just one more of Jack in his white suit.