The Great Texas Road Trip!

Damon thought I was crazy when I said I wanted to drive to Texas for our family vacation this summer.  Yes, I was crazy, but we had an amazing vacation that was well worth all the craziness and miles in the car.  I'll have to break the vacation up into sections because it would be a Texas sized blog if I didn't.

First stop- we took off Friday June 7th around 5pm.  We drove to Cortez, Colorado.  We drove through Moab and right past Arches National Park (we decided to save that for a fall field trip).  We were headed into uncharted territory for all of us so it was a bit fun.

After breakfast the next morning we headed into Mesa Verde National Park.  We always joke about how many foreigners we meet at national parks.  The first we met here were from Italy.

 We started at the visitors center and then headed to Spruce Treehouse and the museum.

We then went on a guided tour of Cliff Palace.  It's one of the bigger cliff dwellings in Mesa Verde.  It was amazing!  Noah got to be a pueblo Indian.  After our hike out we stopped for some ice cream.  It seems to be our tradition to get ice cream at the national parks.  It's always so good!

 We saw some interesting landscaping on our drive to Four Corners National Monument and then on to Farmington, New Mexico.  We stayed with our old friends, The Larson's, who used to live near us in San Diego.  There is nothing like seeing friends.  I forgot how much I laugh when I am around them.  The kids enjoyed seeing each other again.  Didn't get any pictures of them though.  Melissa was one of the first people I met when we moved to Scripps Ranch and she befriended me and made me feel so welcome. 

A catch all of sorts

Bits and pieces of our lives the past few weeks that I keep forgetting about.  We've been so busy.  I think I may have mentioned the school activities.  Only 5 more days and I swear they are the longest 5 days ever.

Memorial 5k- I did a 5k race with Adam, Lily and my nephew Ethan.  It was a fun run with the kids.  They had a good time.

Adam's play- Adam was Mr. Banks in his after school drama club's production of Mary Poppins.  He did a great job!  He was also star student in his class.  It was a busy week for him.

Puppet presentation- Adam had to make a puppet and then do some fractured fairy tales with some classmates.  It was pretty silly, but they had a good time doing it.

Swim meet-another swim meet for the kids.  I got to stressed about it so this is the only picture I took the whole day.  I think Damon took some too. 

Lily's Recital-Lily loves to dance.  She was so happy when we found her a jazz class to join after we moved here.  She did great in her new class and is learning lots of new things.  We miss our old friends from our old ballet studio, but she is making new friends here.

She's still baking away.  Her favorite show is still cupcake wars and she invented her own cupcake here.  It was a chocolate marshmallow cream with chocolate frosting.

Memorial Day!

 What is Memorial Day?  Is it the day we officially kick of summer?  Is it a day we get off from school and work?  No.  It is a day to remember.

Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday which occurs every year on the final Monday of May.^[1] Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces.^[2] Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the Union and Confederate soldiers who died in the Civil War. By the 20th century, Memorial Day had been extended to honor all Americans who have died while in the military service. (from wikipedia)

It's a day that I remember those who sacrificed their life for a greater good.  It's a day where the words honor, integrity, sacrifice, service, loyalty, bravery and patriotism mean just that much more and can evoke emotions that normally don't get evoked.  It's a day for us to remember to say thank you to those who aren't around to hear it any more.

I loved driving around my neighborhood today and seeing hundreds of flags flying high and proud.  I loved seeing my daughter come downstairs covered in red, white and blue.  I loved looking at all the pictures friends posted online reminding us what the day is for.  I loved reading the poem by John McCrae, written May 1915;

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Now after all that remembering I'm also ready to kick off the summer, which is my absolute most favorite time of the year.  We had family over, Played games,  BBQd and had an all out good time.  Nothing says summer like the kids running around through the neighborhood playing tag or basketball until it's almost to dark to see.

School Activties

It seems as of late we have had a ton of extra activities to go to through the school.  We had an art show, a 5th grade program, a band concert, a play performance (that's next week), a retirement party, and a DARE graduation (at the same time as an eye appt).

I do try to support all extra activities that the kids do and watch all of them.  This week it was compounded because I have been sick.  I finally accepted the fact that I couldn't do it all even though I like to support the kids.  I don't think I am a bad parent for choosing not to go to the DARE graduation.  I have just accepted that I have limitations and sometimes I just can't do it all.

I guess the kids can just explain that to their shrinks when they are older.  I do love them though.  I think they know that. (no pictures from Noah's band concert.  Just did video there.)

Next week: Adam's Play- He's playing Mr. Banks in Mary Poppins and a swim meet on Friday and Saturday for Lily and Noah.  One more thing, a ballet recital for Lily oh and a pool party for Adam for the 5th graders.  (It's almost summer!!)

Funeral and family

Funerals are never at a convenient time.  One can never plan around one.  So when a death occurs plans need to be changed at a moment's notice.

That's what happened to us last weekend.  Damon's Aunt Siva passed away on Wednesday May 15th.  The next day we found out that the funeral would be on Saturday the 18th.  Damon and I made the call that it was important to attend and for our kids to be there too.

After we made that decision I spent the next hour on the phone with a whole lot of people.  I talked to Damon's mom, my sister, the eye Dr., the school, and the movie theater (we just bought tickets online for a Friday showing and were trying to get our tickets changed).  We packed, cleaned and did laundry.

Friday morning we were in the car and heading down to Mortensen Manor.  After we got in the kids wasted no time getting in the pool and hanging out with their cousins.

Damon also helped Reed set up a volleyball net in the back yard.  The kids managed to play a couple games of volleyball as well.

 On the 18th we went to the funeral.  The nice thing about funerals is that you get to see a lot of family.  The service was nice.  At the end when the coffin was being taken away all the Samoans sang a song acapella.  They do that at every funeral.  It was really neat to hear.

 We drove back to Salt Lake on Sunday.  It was a very short trip, but a nice one.  We are glad we made it.  Family is more important than any other obligation one may have.

Mother's Day Love

Mother's day is always on Sunday.  That means we have to get ourselves to church and things as well as have a relaxing morning where I'm supposed to enjoy the day.  HA!

I was treated with a yummy omelet breakfast and a smoothie on my new vitamix.  It's super cool.  After breakfast we rushed out the door to get to church on time.

 Next step:  make yummy snunch (lunch of snacks).  Damon got fruits and cheeses and crackers.  It was so great and he made another smoothie.


Dinner was a fabulous rib eye steak with potatoes, rolls and a big yummy salad.  Damon made a fudge strawberry truffle cake for dessert.  It took him all day and it was beautiful.  We ate it with homemade vanilla ice cream.

 It was so yummy.  I know I was loved and appreciated this day.  It's nice not to have to cook at one meal.  Damon does such a wonderful job when he is in the kitchen.  He should be in it more often!!

An accomplished resolution

Way back in December when my family was together making our new year's resolutions one of mine was to run a half marathon.  It had been on my list the year before and I hadn't done it so I felt like I needed to put it on for another year.

With the move and everything that happened the first 2 months of this year it was easy to become a bit depressed.  Exercising was the only thing I had to help motivate me during the day while the kids were at school and Damon was at work.  We joined a gym (I think for my sanity) and I found a great class that got me really running again.  The class also had a great trainer who pushed me when all I wanted to do was stop.

So about mid February I found a 1/2 marathon that I could do.  I was excited.  Then I found out we had a swim meet the same day.  I didn't let it set me back. I found another run for the weekend after the swim meet.  This was my chance.  I threw myself into training and continued to push my limits and miles on the treadmill.  I had to do all my training indoors because I am not a cold weather runner.

The race was down in Provo which is about 25 minutes away.  I found out that I had to be down there before 5:30am even though the race didn't start until 7am.  So with the alarm set for 4am I woke up at 3:45am and started getting ready.  Damon offered to drive me down there and then come back later with the kids.  I thought that was very nice of him.  We got down to Provo at 5am and Damon said goodbye.  I went and picked up my number and timing chip and then boarded a school bus that was taking us up to the start line inside Provo Canyon.

It was weird doing a race where I didn't know anyone.  I've always had someone with me at a race.  But just like the rest of the journey that I had been on since January I was used to being alone.  We got to the starting area and it was freezing and really dark.  There were lots of fires going to keep us warm and everyone became really social as we were all huddled near each other for warmth. 

My race was starting at 7:10am and about 6:50am I headed over to the starting line and started getting ready.  By this time I couldn't feel my toes or fingers.  I just kept telling myself once I got going I would be warm again.

The gun fired and we were off.  I didn't really know where we were except near the river.  My run was slow to begin because everything was cold, but it started to warm up after 10 minutes or so.  All I had with me was my watch to help me keep time.  There weren't any mile markers at the beginning of the race so I just kept running and assuming what mile I was on by what time was on my watch.  The run was very pretty.  We were on a river trail with the canyon surrounding us and the river right next to us.  We passed campers along the way.  I felt very much at peace.  Running near the river was like running near the lake down in San Diego which made it feel familiar and comforting.

During my training I had paced myself for a 10-10:30 minute mile.  So by the time I found my first mile marker at mile 9 (I went 9 miles without even thinking about it!!) I was surprised to see the time on my watch which read 1:23.  My last training run had me at mile 8 at 1:23.  I felt like shouting out loud a cheer of triumph.  I managed a little fist pump.  I didn't want to throw off my groove. 

When I hit mile 10 I slowed down to a walk to take off my long sleeve shirt (I was finally warm and the sun was out) and grab a quick bite of a power bar.  I also knew the rest of the run was a quick 5k which I knew was nice and easy for me.  My quads were really sore about mile 11 and then my knees about mile 12, but I was so close to the finish line I didn't want to stop or slow down.  I was so happy to see marker 12 that I touched the sign as I ran by it.

As I approached the finish line I started looking for my family.  I was searching the crowds for my biggest fans and support system.  Finally I heard Lily's voice saying "there she is" and knew exactly where to look.  They were cheering a clapping and taking pictures of course.  It was wonderful to see their supporting faces.

I crossed the finish line at 2:04.25.  My goal had been 2:10 so I was quite happy and very relieved.  This was a small physical victory for me but also a mental one.  This move and starting over in a new location has been really hard and down right lonely at times, but just like in a race with the proper physical and mental training what seems like the impossible becomes possible. I can accomplish anything I put my mind to. 

Next goal:  Provo Half Ironman or Full Marathon.