5 in 5

This weekend I got to be "Runner Rose" instead of "Mom Rose" or "Nurse Rose." I drove up to Ogden Friday night and picked up my race packet. Then I drove to the finish line to see what I would be running to.

After I had the minis I needed to have a goal for me to work on personally. I wanted it to be a hobby and me time. Since running is my favorite hobby, and the Ogden marathon is on my race list, I signed up for the Ogden marathon. It was a little premature because I thought since I was running 5-6 times a week that training would be do able but that was not always the case during my training.
Recovering from twins has been harder on my body, not always getting a great sleep made it hard, and working part time added to the difficulty. I tried selling my race spot about half way through. It didn't sell and so I kept training. I had an ear infection a few weeks ago that took over 2 weeks to clear up and two round of antibiotics. That didn't help make training easier but I stuck with it.


 Today I woke up at 3:25 am. I set 5 alarms so I wouldn't sleep in. I stayed at Betsy's house so I wouldn't have as far to drive. I accidentally set off my car alarm while trying to leave. Hopefully I didn't wake up too many of her neighbors.

I loaded the bus at 4:45 and got to the start line at 5:45. The race didn't start until 7:15! So all of us runners sat around fire pits and tried to stay warm. It was long and boring.

The race started at 7:15 and my toes were numb from the cold. I could see dark clouds coming and thankfully my toes thawed by mile 2 before the rain started at mile 3. From there on out it rained the whole time. It was so brutal. By mile 16 I couldn't feel my arms/hands. I stopped by the medic station and got a garbage bag. This helped a ton! Especially because the rain and wind picked up as I got closer to the mouth of the canyon. Betsy met me outside the canyon with dry gloves. She was my support crew. She is the best and has helped me at 3 of my marathons. I finished the marathon in 4 hours and 31 minutes. It is my worst personal time yet. While I was running I knew my pace was slow. At first I was discouraged and then I decided that I was happy because I completed my goal.


Betsy took this and it was right before I crossed the finished line. I had a big smile on my face because I was about to cross the finish line.
I have now run five marathons in five years. I'm not sure what is next on the horizon but I definitely don't want to run another marathon in a crazy rain storm again for a very, very long time!

Fathers and Sons

The thing I love about fathers and sons is that it gives me a chance to spend time with fewer of my kids and it gives Marshall a chance too. I was planning on Kaden and James going with Marshall. Lynnlee and I planned a girls night with out to eat/drive thru window at McDonalds (easier with the minis) and a Barbie movie. Well, Kaden ended up throwing up all day which meant he crashed our girls night. Thankfully he was ok with pancakes for dinner and a Barbie movie. He even slept in his own bed and Lynnlee got to sleep in my room which is her favorite when Marshall is gone.

It was a stake camp out and James had fun playing with other kids from his school and our neighborhood. Marshall took his parent's trailer so it kept them dry through the night. I think it has rained every year over the weekend of fathers and sons.

Sunday Minis

The trouble I have with blogging is that my mind goes blank when I sit down to write about the experience or pictures. While I am in the moment I can think of a million things I want to write about.


The minis are so much fun as they crawl, sit, stand, and roam all around. I need to keep the video camera handy because there are so many funny moments throughout the day. One day I heard them laughing together and when I came around the corner they were standing up together holding onto the same toy laughing.


When I was playing the piano one day they came crawling in so fast and stood up by me. So after I let them sit on the bench and try it out.

I filled up the bath with a few inches of water and didn't make them sit in their bath chairs. They loved their freedom!

I still title the post Sunday Minis but I haven't actually taken their picture on Sundays for the last few weeks. Due to sickness or naps it hasn't worked out so I take them during the week. I will leave the title for now in hopes that we get back to our regular Sunday picture schedule.

I feel like a broken record saying this but the minis are sick again. It seems like every 3 weeks they come down with a cough and runny nose. Sienna has it worse this time. I couldn't get one of her big facial smiles for the picture. She has also learned how to take off her head bands.

Walk-a-thon

James had a walk-a-thon at school last week. Lynnlee and I tagged along. We ran around the field a few times with him. It's always a good time with these two. Also, the weather was cloudy but still warm and it didn't start raining until it was over.

Birthday and Mother's Day

My birthday kicked off the night before. Marshall came home early from work and helped get dinner ready. It is always stressful from 4:00-6:00 even when I don't work so on the nights I work it is craziness. I was so grateful to have him home and make that time go by smoothly before I left to work.

Then they surprised me at work with a birthday cake and treats. I was not thrilled about being at work prior to this so when I saw their bright, happy faces it totally made my night. They sang to me and brought tears to my eyes because I love their cuteness so much.

I got to sleep after work the next morning. My mom is so awesome and comes the day after I work so I can get some sleep. I would not be able to function without her! That night we went to Cafe Rio for dinner. It's one of my most favorite places. I could eat there everyday.

The best birthday present was Marshall surprising me with golfing with him and my sisters. We love to golf. It doesn't mean we are good but it's still really fun.

My cute sisters, Ali and Betsy.
We really missed Katie and wish she lived closer!

Sorry for the picture overload but we had fun taking pictures while waiting to tee off.

We had a fun family weekend and since my birthday is close to Mother's Day we found something fun to do everyday. Saturday we went to the dinosaur museum.

This girl came up with this all on her own. She makes me laugh.

Saturday night we celebrated Mother's Day and my birthday with my family. It was rainy and we enjoyed staying in and hanging out while my kids played with their cousins.

We stayed really last and everyone fell asleep on the way home. Lynnlee climbed into Marshall's arms so he could carry her to bed. I'm not sure how she thought this would be comfortable.

Marshall let me relax on Mother's Day after church. Later we played games and then went on a bike ride. I was suppose to work but thankfully my department was slow and I got to be on call instead.

I definitely felt loved this weekend!

Lynnlee's Check Up

Lynnlee had her annual heart check up this week. We saw a new cardiologist because in the last year her cardiac surgeon and cardiologist  both moved out of state. It was sad to see them go but thankfully there are lots of great cardiologists at Primary Children's. Her new cardiologist is the one who diagnosed her when she was 28 weeks in my womb. It was interesting talking to him about how far she has come since we saw him last. I can still remember that appointment when he told us what was wrong with her heart, what the first few years of her life would be like, and what surgeries she would have. It was so overwhelming at the time but we took it day by day and surgery by surgery and now she only has check ups once a year. It's amazing!

First she had an echo-cardiogram at her appointment, then an EKG and lastly the doctor did an assessment. Everything was positive and her heart is doing really. He said hopefully it will continue like this for years to come. When she gets a little older he will start checking her liver but for now it is doing well. With the surgeries she's had for her tricuspid atresia, she has a higher chance of liver problems. So for now we are riding the wave of her healthy heart and hopefully it lasts for a long time!

Sunday Minis

My minis are looking more grown up each week. I haven't been very good about getting them dressed everyday but I'm working on it. Don't get me wrong, I change their clothes every day and they get bathed regularly but they usually stay in sleepers all the time. They take two naps each day and teir naps around around two hours so I just feel like it would be more comfortable for them to be in sleepers.
Today they each wore shoes for the first time. Just the soft moccasin type. They didn't seemed to be bothered by them and they could still climb up on everything without a problem.

They are constantly stealing toys from each other, steam rolling over, pushing, etc. For now it's entertaining but I'm sure it will get old in a few months.

They are mostly not phased by it all though. Tag is totally pushing her head down and she is playing on like nothing is going on.

Lunch Time

I've heard of other moms meeting their kids for lunch at their school and I thought it was kind of weird. I really had no plans of ever doing that. That all changed when James told me he wanted to go to the book fair together and that we could go during his lunch time. I assumed he met after he finished eating I would meet him at the library. Then he asked really sweetly if I would come and eat with him and then we could go to the book fair. I agreed after realizing how much it meant to him. I'm always looking for ways to give James attention and spend time with him since I see him the least of all my children. School days are long and the time from after school until bed goes by so quickly.

Lynnlee wanted to come with and so we went through the cafeteria line with James and then shared a table with these fun and crazy boys.

Lynnlee loved every minute of it too. It made her excited for her years to come in elementary school. Then we went to the book fair.