baby goldies...

Our friends the Yergensen's had puppies. Well, Goldie had puppies. 9 of them. We went over to hold them a few weeks ago. First off, they were the cutest, softest things I have ever seen. They all whimper, all the time. They didn't even have their eyes open when we met them. Molly jumped right in. She made sure to rotate between all the dogs, and to flash me super-cheesy happy faces. :) Margaret was timid, until Melissa walked her through it. She did great. She really did. I think she may be an animal lover. She just needs to learn to stop carrying them around by their necks. I swore she was going to break some of those poor puppies.

the good stuff...

I told you she liked pickles.

She really, really likes them. She claps while she chews.

My kids are wierd. They don't eat much. What they DO eat, is totally strange. I've done a food post before, years ago, but things have changed. I need to document what they like. No one is digging pizza right now. We go to Little C's pretty regularly, but now we just get 4 orders of breadsticks and call it dinner. Have you had those things?! Why are they so freaking delicious to me? I'm not sure about the calorie count, and I'm not going to try and find out either. We put some lettuce beside them on the plate and feel really good about it. By the way, my kids call lettuce salad. I have corrected Lizzy at least a dozen times.

They all like hot sauce. On everything. They like all things hot. Orange chicken from Panda Express (which Dave can make even better than they can). Jalapeno jelly. Radishes. My wasabi almonds. Slim Jims. Maybe the "hot" drowns out flavors they don't like, I don't know.

They love candy. REALLY love it. They are into these things we found at Macey's called HI CHEWS. They are pretty great. I love them too and now know to hide them when I buy some.

I kind of can't stop eating cinnamon raisin bread. It reminds me of my grandparents beach house in Seaside Heights NJ. I'm pretty sure we ate it there a lot. I could be wrong. Who cares. It makes me think of Grandy and Grampy. I love them and I miss them.

As much as the kids love candy, they love fruits and veggies more. Isn't that crazy?? They especially love when I roast stuff. Our thing right now is kale chips. Yeah, kale. Rinse it, tear it up into small pieces, spray some olive oil on it, and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper. They come out crispy and salty and delicious. The 3 big kids devour it. And it leaves nice green chunks in your teeth. Roasted asparagus is gone before I can even THINK about saving a few for Dave. Fish...they love it. Jicama...love.

Why do they have to make chips and candy so easy?

the graduate...

Molly graduated from The Little Learner's Pre Kindergarten last night in a moving, standing room only, ceremony. :) It was absolutely perfect. Mrs. Taylor has been a dream. The most organized pre-k teacher I have ever met...and I just happen to have met a lot. She and her husband are going on a mission for 3 years so I'll have to find someone else for Margie. Sad.

Anyhow, back to Molly. She was so proud last night. You can tell by looking at her hands. Proud and a little bit nervous. She had been asking all day how many more hours. She threatened me that if I was not nice to her, I would not be invited to her graduation party. Niceness included getting off of the computer. Yup...she's still hung up on that.

She is a doll. Really spunky and feisty at home, mellow and well behaved when she's out. Can't really complain. She is a REALLY good girl when it counts. I love her so much.

Yay for Molly! She was ALL OVER a quick photoshoot, and had lots of creative ideas. :)

Could you just EAT her in that cap? I could.

lakeside runs...

The Red Rock Relay. Moab, Utah. 70 miles. 6 runners. 2 legs each. 10.5 hours. I LOVED it. Our team was oozing with speedy talent. Greg and Kris Tina Danklef, Chris and Jennie (am I right with the "ie"?) Smith, Tara James, and yours truly.

The drive down was a riot. I love the drive down to anything. You're excited, there are snacks at your fingertips, LOTS of laughing, lots of anticipation. I love my friends. I love the ones I was with and the ones who were texting me from home.

Greg started us off at 6:10 am with a gorgeous, 6-ish mile, sunrise run through the canyon along the Green River. Seriously breathtaking. The air was so crisp and clean. Relays are so fun and social. We ride along in the van stopping every mile or so to cheer on our runner and get them water, etc. We decided to take my van so we could fit the 6 of us. Greg drove for me. What a peach. Really though, I may have put people's lives at risk. I really appreciated it.

Next was Chris. He was awesome. He started training on Thursday. Didn't really matter. This is him just seconds after one of his kills. You can click it to see it larger. WOOT!

KT was next. 5 miles of hills. I am just going to say one thing here. Actually, two. This girl is tough as nails...and I love her. Way to go Kitty!

The handoff to Tara. We had a bracelet baton to pass. I ended up with the thing at home. The kids thought it was awesome until I told them it was covered in sweat from 6 people. They haven't touched it since.

Tara is a beast. She ran 5 miles straight uphill. I think she climbed 1000 feet. She just wouldn't quit. Do you know how hard hills are?

Tara to Jennie. Jennie ran our next uphill run. 2-point-something miles of steep business.

I had the next uphill leg. 3 miles. It was rough. I had only run 3 times in the last 5 weeks, so I was beyond anxious. Hills were a thing of the past. I had gotten so I actually liked them. Not Saturday. I had to walk several times for a few seconds. Still managed to kill 2 men though. Check out the smile on my face after I passed this guy. :)

Time for Kris Tina again. This time it was an insane uphill climb. Just under 3 miles. It was ridiculous! Switchbacks at who KNOWS what %incline. She's the tiny gray dot in the bottom right of the picture. I would have stopped. Tapped out. Asked for a pinch runner. Not KT. She was fabulous!

Not many people can make me laugh as much as Greg can. I never knew he could speed walk...like "olympic quality" speed walk. He only did it for a second, to catch his breath, but he was tearing it up!

Chris headed off on his second 7 mile leg. He ran more than any of us. He loved it. Every second of it...except for when he said, "This is the WORST thing I have ever done in my life." Don't worry...he's already planning the next relay.

Tara's next run was the hardest of the race. 7 miles downhill. A 2000 foot descent. Talk about screaming quads. She was a crazy person. She was seriously blazing. She never ceases to amaze me. Something like 7:30 miles. And she made a friend along the way, which, if you know her at all, is no surprise.

Jennie was next up. It should have been a nice 8 mile descent. Instead, it was 8 flat, hot, sunny miles through cow pastures. While she cranked them out, we sat in the van on the side of the road, listening to "Let's Get It On" and watching cows get fresh with each other. Pretty sweet. Jennie is amazing though. She is like a machine, with skinny little legs. She didn't stop once. Didn't drink. And got kills the whole way.

My anxiety was really starting to build by this point. I was next. 7.67 miles. Mostly down with a few little bumps in the middle. A month ago, I would have been all over it. I haven't run more than 4 miles in the last 5 weeks though. My back has been sore. My last leg was the pits. It was hot. It was late afternoon. All things I wasn't used to. I just didn't know if I could do it. KT played a song to get me pumped and I was on my way.

I prayed a lot on this leg. I talked out loud to the Lord and to myself. I ran all but the last 2 miles with no one in sight. He heard me. He blessed me with a cool breeze, a strong back, and a building confidence. I ran the first 5 faster than I ever have. Every time I would see my van pulled off to the side of the road, hear the screaming from my friends, see Tara just ahead of me with some cold water, I would tear up. Such supportive, good people. Things got rough around mile 5 when I was lead off the road, and into the woods. I ran along a path, totally secluded, on sand. Yeah, sand. It was HARD. I lost my groove for awhile. My friends couldn't get to me with water or happy yells. I was alone. I got killed by one guy about halfway through. I kept him in my sights so I wouldn't get attacked by someone hiding in the trees, and got it done. Tara met me out on the road for the last 1/2 mile. It made me so happy. I finished strong. Average pace of 8:34.

What would have made it perfect? If Dave had been there. It was such a great experience. I really, really loved it. I loved the support I felt from my friends, my family, and a loving Heavenly Father, who knew when a cloud would really make my day.

mom...

I was reminded of something the other day by some friends. They were telling me what they were doing for their mom's for the big day. I realized I hadn't bought a single gift to send to mine. I have grown selfish over the years. I know that sounds pretty rough, but let me explain why.

Last year, my Mother's Day was a doozy. I made it that way. I really did. Things were not going exactly how I wanted, the meal wasn't up to my expectations, the kids were being too loud for me. Me, me, me. When did this day become about me? When did I forget that it is really all about MY mother?

Holidays/birthdays get really exhausting for mom's. Let's be honest here. We do most of the prep work, the shopping, the planning. As sweet and wonderful as my husband is, the big days are all me. They wear me out. Quite often, I feel like I've failed. Like I didn't make them special enough for my kids. Like I didn't create enough memories/traditions. I'm just plain tired when they are over. Really tired. SO...when it is my birthday or Mother's Day, I want some VIP treatment.

Here is where I'm missing something. Sure, June 22nd should be about ME, it's the day I was born. But Mother's Day is about others. It is about my sweet mother, Dave's mom, Grandma Bird, the wonderful women surrounding me in my life. It is not about MY dinner, MY relaxing day, MY gifts, but rather how I can show my mom how dear she is to me.

Tomorrow, I will spend the day thinking about the women I love. The women who have shaped and molded me. Women like Barbara Badell, Dixie Archibald, Venice Bird, Reenie Von Stetten, my sisters, but most importantly Mary Jane Temple, my mom. My mom helped create me, and has been molding me into the person that I am today ever since. Her influence is everywhere in my life. It's in my laugh. It's in how I treat people. It's in how I serve at church. It's in my passion for beautiful things. It's in my testimony.

My mom is fun. She loves to laugh. She is really nice. She knows just how to make everyone feel important. She always seemed to know how to make me feel better when I was growing up...whether it was stomach pains, anxiety about school, or a broken heart. Her hands rubbing my back to this day seem gentler than any one else's.

I love my mom. I'm thankful for all she has given me. For all she has taught me. Happy Mother's Day!

*The picture at the top is my mom with #5,6,7&8. Bet you can't tell which one is me. :)

worth it?

This is the kind of thing that makes my heart race. They didn't even know I was taking this. They were REALLY sitting like this together. They really are the best of friends. It's some sort of twin thing. :) I love that they love and depend on eachother.

What I don't love is getting screamed at by my 5 year old with anger management issues. I also don't love when I yell back at her. I don't love the way it makes our house feel. More cuddling, less yelling...please.

who loves her daddy?