Elwell Zoo

Valentines Day Dinner and Fun(early)

2012-02-09T16:14:00.000-08:00

On Saturday we had our 4th annual Valentines Date with the Carvers! It was the ladies turn to plan so we took the easy way out. There was a MMA fight the guys wanted to go to(a guy from Silver Creek Ward was fighting) so we planned dinner at Stanley and Seafort and then we headed to the fight. It was a really fun night. I think we are going to go to Taiki's next fight as well. It was pretty cool to see, especially when a fight broke out in the audience between a girl fighter and another girl. It really isn't the scene we are used to but we still had a great time!

~Cierra's 4th grade singing concert~

2012-02-09T10:04:00.000-08:00

Cierra had her 4th grade concert where they sang some cute songs. My favorite song was: A-your adorable, because she also sang that in preschool and it made me remember her at that age. I guess she decided she needed to grow up and get attitude. I love her anyway!

Lake Washington

2012-02-09T10:01:00.000-08:00

Sean and I at Lake Washington when we went away for our 12th anniversary:)

District Wreslting tournament!

2012-02-09T09:53:00.000-08:00

Connor tried wrestling for his first time this year and loved it. He did really well. He was able to wrestle on the Varsity team for some of his matches in the 92lb weight class. He made it to Districts and took 5th place. We were so proud of him for trying something he hadn't done before and working hard at it.

Storm hits Washington

2012-02-09T09:38:00.000-08:00

We had a big storm hit that brought rain, sleet, snow, hail, wind, ice and everything else that could possibly come. It took our power for 3 days. Connor was able to build a snowman before it all turned to ice.

Our tree in the front yard barely survived with all that ice on it.

The kids had fun building an igloo in the Conner's yard.(or should I say Anna had fun building an igloo.:))

What do you do when the power is out for 3 days. Play games, fight with your siblings, drive your mother crazy, go out to dinner, and go out to the car to charge your cell phone every once in awhile. I was about to go crazy!

No Sun Fun Run!

2012-02-09T08:25:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago my parents, Mindy, Shay, Chance, Austin, Cierra and I ran a 5k at Heritage park. It was a bit chilly for my blood, but it is so much fun to run these races together.(Even if we aren't all together the whole time) Cierra didn't get her best time but she had fun running with Shay.

Mom and Dad-

My mom's Birthday

2012-02-08T18:37:00.000-08:00

My mom had a birthday in January and we went and had Mexican to celebrate! I love my mom very much. I talk to her almost everyday. She is the one I call when I need anything. A shoulder to cry on, a pep talk, or a babysitter:) I am so lucky to have my momonly 4 miles away. I hope that never changes.

My mom is like me when I take pictures. It takes a few to get a good shot. See below and you will know what I mean!

I think this is the winner!

I love you mom!

New Years!

2012-02-08T18:30:00.000-08:00

This year we brought in the New Year at home. We rented movies, got treats and spent it together as a family. (except Kaylee, she was of course with her friends. She was safe at her friends house, we even drove by to make sure)

Connor can't make it past 8 let alone midnight! We woke him right before it struck midnight to do the poppers:)

Cierra had to have sparkling cider for the occasion!

Here is the mess at the Elwell house. It lasted about 5 minutes before Sean got out the vacuum and cleaned it all up.

So far, 2012 has not been very good to us, but we are hopeful things will change soon.

Christmas!

2012-02-08T12:22:00.000-08:00

Christmas came and went so fast this year, I barely knew it was here. By far, my worst year for picture taking. Going to Hawaii less than a month before really threw me off. We had a great Christmas and did what we always do. We went to my parents on Christmas eve and spent the night there. We enjoyed great company, great food and I guess some great football as well.

This is my parents tree right before the chaos hit:)

7 kids anxiously waiting for the go ahead!

The kids all got what they wanted plus some. I always say I'm going to cut back and I never do.(Yes, Sean I'm admitting it!)

Kaylee is worn out!

Sadly, I only had my phone at my parents, so all the pictures were taken with that. I usually am a big picture taker but lately I have been slacking. I'm going to try and change that!

We got our tree the day after we got back from our trip so we could enjoy it for 19 days. It wasn't the same as having it up the whole month.

It was Kaylee's turn to put the star on the top this year.

Now that it is February, I hope you all had Merry Christmas!!!:)

Christmas Rush Fun Run!

2012-01-18T21:36:00.000-08:00

The week after we got back from Hawaii we(me, cierra, my mom and dad, Mindy, Doug, Chance, Austin and Shay)participated in the Christmas Rush 5k. We nearly froze to death, but it was still fun. I decided to walk it with my mom and Mindy went with Cierra.(Cierra runs much better if I'm not there nagging her!) This was my mom and dads first 5k. I'm so proud of their accomplishment. They just signed up to do a half marathon with Mindy and I in April. i can't wait.

Most of Cierra's run club was running it too. This is great motivation to her and I love seeing all the girls out there together. We are doing another 5k this Saturday if all the snow melts.

HAPPY 12 YEARS TO US!!!

2012-01-18T21:26:00.000-08:00

Sean and I celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary on December 17th.(I know I'm a little late, but better late than never, right?)
We had our ward Christmas party on that night so we took the kids and had a great Luau dinner. Sean surprised me by talking to Santa ahead of time and giving him a dozen roses to give to me from him. It was very sweet.
A few days after that Sean took me on a fun little getaway to the Woodmark Hotel in Kirkland. It was right on Lake Washington and was so pretty. We had a fabulous time and a wonderful dinner. I'm very grateful to have my parents that watched our kids while we were gone.
Sean and I have had our moments but I love him more everyday. I am so grateful for him and the love and support he provides me and the kids. I can't wait to spend forever with him.

No School!

2012-01-18T18:14:00.000-08:00

Today was a no school day due to about 6 inches of snow that fell last night. We got to have some fun today and Sean even got the day off. I don't really like the cold weather, but all my kids do. They were outside almost all day! We are all snuggled in to have some family movie time now!
The Gailey's kept Connor, Cierra and Brooke last night and they enjoyed play in the snow with them. We went to my parents to play with the Quad's and the Razor also.

Dad and Brooke sledding!

Cierra being brave!

They made it down safe and sound!

She's such a cutie!

Cierra and Shay getting ready to fly down the hill!

Brooke decided she didn't need a sled.

Of course when I tried it, I took a spill and I didn't have on snow pants. Can you say COLD!!!

Razor Time!(by this time Brooke was in getting warm and couldn't bring herself to get all dressed up again and go out!)

Connor doing donuts on the Quad!

They got a little stuck in the woods but Sean managed to get out.

Maui 2011

2011-12-18T17:47:00.000-08:00

What a fun trip we had to Maui! It was the best family vacation ever. My whole family went, including my parents, and the Gailey family. We enjoyed 10 sunny days together. I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend the beginning of this holiday season. We are truly blessed. It would not have been possible without the generosity of my awesome parents! We love you!!!

While we were in Maui we had many days on the beach just having fun boogie boarding, swimming, snorkeling and soaking up the sun. We also went on a snorkeling excursion where we saw many fish and even a few turtles. One night we went in to Kaanapali and enjoyed a Luau which was awesome. The kids loved it and the food was delicious. We did some exploring and shopping but mainly just took it easy and enjoyed being together as a family. I will always remember the fun we had and I know the kids will too.

I didn't think Brooke would be able to snorkel, but I was sure wrong. She is such a "fish", it didn't take her long to figure it out and I was with her when we saw our first turtle. She was so excited.

Connor enjoyed it all. He was not afraid to try anything and was in the water 24/7!!

Me, grandpa, Kaylee, Cierra and Brooke on the snorkeling boat!

All 13 of us! I'm so blessed we all get along! I love my family!

Connor and Chance snorkeling

Kaylee and Chance

Turtle!!!!! My goal was to see a turtle while we were here and I did it! Yippee!

Kaylee, Brooke and Me!Cierra, Mindy and Shay!My mom and dad:)

Sean, Connor, Kaylee, Jodi, and cousin it! Brooke was back at the condos with grandma.

You can't go to Hawaii and not enjoy some shaved ice. It was yummy!

This tree was amazing. It had so many little trees growing off of it. It was really cool to see.

This was before Brooke knew how to snorkel and she was using a board that had a window so she could see all the fish.Brooke and Sean

The gang!

Brooke and Sean again

Cierra getting ready to head out!

Sean and Connor boogie boarding

relaxing in the warm sun.

We saw more than a few of these around!

Yes, that would be a penguin with Kaylee.

Mindy and Doug at the Luau!

Sean and I at the Luau!

Grandma and Grandpa at the Luau!

The food that was Sooo good!

We loved the fire show. Brooke didn't take her eyes off of it for a minute.

Boogie boarding in a puddle at the beach when the waves were just too big to go in.

This would be the wave that knocked Sean off his boogie board. He hit his head hard on the sand. We are so lucky he didn't do more damage.

This is what it looked like right after it happened. Skip down a few pictures and that is what it looked like the next day. It is pretty much healed now, except a little scar.

We loved the condo pool and was there every day after a long day at the beach.

Fred's was a really good Mexican restaurant where we all went for dinner.

Brooke was a little whiny by day 9. Sher was beyond exhausted!

Here is the aftermath!

Hawaii was amazing. This was my 4th time there but it was Sean and the kids first time. They all loved it. Sean loved the warmth and the smell of all the flowers. We can't wait to go back although it may just be Sean and I next time.

Costco Trip!

2011-11-07T10:21:00.000-08:00

I went to Costco with a budget to spend 340.00 on the things I needed. I didn't use a calculator and didn't even add it up it my head. When all was said and done, my total was 340.01. Dang, I'm good!:)

Terrific Kids!

2011-11-06T10:01:00.000-08:00

Last week I received two different letters in the mail saying that Cierra and Brooke would be receiving an award at the "Terrific Kids" assembly. Brooke was getting an award for being respectful and Cierra would be getting one for having all of her work turned in on time. I was so proud that they both got an award at the very first assembly of the year. Both of the girls have been doing really well this year and I love both of their teachers.

Brooke and her 1st grade teacher, Mrs. Smith.

Cierra with her friend, Phoebe.

Cierra and her 4th grade teacher, Mrs. Alston.

What a great day to be a mom!!

Halloween 2011

2011-11-04T18:36:00.000-07:00

We had a good week leading up to Halloween. We went to a annual Halloween party we go to every year and had a lot of fun. Sean and I were prisoners. Not original, but it worked last minute.

I brought my camera to the party but the battery died. I was so bummed because there were so many awesome costumes. I did get one of Jen and Josh. They looked great as the queen and the Mad Hatter.

Lisa and I didn't plan the duplicate costume but it was fun to match since we will be related in about 10 years when Connor marries her Daughter, Ellie.

We had fun carving pumpkins like every year. Brooke is the only one that needed help so the others went to town. Kaylee even likes to do it still. Hopefully we still have a couple more years to do it all as a family.

This is at our church trunk or treat. Connor had a great time with his friends. Cierra had fun too. Kaylee passed out candy and chose not to wear her costume(zombie princess-which I never got pictures since she only wore it when she was at her dads). It was a sad year for Brooke. She got a fever a few days before and wasn't able to do the trunk or treat or trick or trick on Halloween night. She took it better than me. I was sad for her. I did take her bucket around at the trunk or treat and got candy for her, and her brother and sister were so nice to share.

Connor and Cousin It (Indy)

my 50's girl! (I love this girl!)

checking out the loot and sorting it all!

And Halloween is over for another year!!! I actually made it through Halloween without having one single piece of candy! I was pretty proud of myself since I love candy!

Career Day

2011-10-25T16:17:00.000-07:00

Last week it was Career Day at Cierra and Brooke's school. Sean was so nice to take time out of his busy day to come. He put together a power point presentation that he gave 8 times to different kids. I came along to help and serve all 200 kids a sample of the soup that Sean's company makes. It was a big hit. All the kids loved it. Cierra was very excited that he came. Brooke's class didn't get to come because it was just for the older grades but we brought soup to her whole class to try.

Sean works so hard at his job. He has a lot of responsibility and it was fun to hear more about his job and what he does!

Cierra loves the Broccoli Cheddar but 90% of the kids chose the chicken noodle. I should have known that was the safer choice for kids.

Leavenworth 2011 Half Marathon

2011-10-19T16:34:00.000-07:00

Leavenworth this year was a little different then the last 5 years. We decided it would be a grand idea to bring our kids with us this time. I only brought Cierra and Brooke because Kaylee had just had four teeth taken out and Connor wanted to stay at the Gailey's so he wouldn't miss his soccer game. The five of us(Soila, Jill, Anna, Tiffany and I)rented a house right outside of Leavenworth. The kids(all 15 of them) had a blast playing with each other and the adults had fun too. Although next year it will be a girl's weekend again. I need the break every so often.

I have finally hit burn out on running so this race was just fun for me. Jill and I ran together and we had fun. No pressure for a great time(2:16), just took our time and enjoyed the scenery. I love Leavenworth this time of year. It is so pretty.

This is where all the kids slept. Tiffany was the lucky one to sleep with them. Not sure how she got so lucky but Brooke and I had a bed upstairs that was quite comfortable.

We took the kids in town for some Gustav's and walking around to look at all the shops. It was a lot of fun.

Brynnley, Cierra and Kelsey

Tiffany, me, Ashley and Jill.(Ashley came along to help Anna with her kids) Anna was back at the house by this point and who knows where Soila was.

Love the leaves!

You can't go to Leavenworth and not have ice cream! It was yummy!:)

So I will be taking 2 weeks off from running and then I will be back. I already miss it and it has only been 5 days. I'm working with a personal trainer and it had been nice to mix it up. My body needs it. I am hoping to run the Newport marathon next year and the Wenatchee, Snoqualmie, Leavenworth, and Rock and Roll half marathons.

I love to see the Temple!

2011-10-13T14:04:00.001-07:00

Our family had a very special weekend this past week. My parents went to the temple for the first time. It was amazing being there with them. This is something very special to our family. I love my eternal family more than anything!

My parents with all the grand kids(except Blake)

being silly:)

Most of our friends had left before we got a picture but here is who was left.

The Family and my parent's awesome visiting and home teachers.

Bishop Barker and President McCombs with my parents

The Gailey's

The Elwell's-the weather turned out really nice but it was windy so excuse the hair...and Connor's face-can't blame that on the wind though!

Watch out, I feel my craftiness coming....

2011-10-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

I haven't made anything crafty in a long time. I think I want to start again. This week, Amy came over and we got to visit and make this fun Halloween wreath. We have never been able to to hang out without kids but they were all in school and it was so much fun.

Stay tuned for a monthly craft class Amy and I are going to be doing:)

5 days with Janna

2011-10-13T12:45:00.001-07:00

Janna(Sean's daughter) came to visit us over her fall break from school. She is attending the University of Utah and we were so glad we could have her come for a few days. All the kids absolutely adore her! We had a wonderful weekend with her. We went to the temple on Saturday and then out to dinner with my whole family. We also went to Fright Fest at wild Waves. It was fun to do all the rides and go through Boo ville. Sean, Janna and Brooke decided to skip the haunted house so I went with Cierra, Connor and Kaylee. We waited in line for over an hour and then headed in. I was pretty sure I could handle it.....boy was I wrong! It was so scary! I was glad Cierra was nearly going in to cardiac arrest from being so scared, that we had to leave. As soon as we could we found the nearest emergency exit we were outta there!! Kaylee and Connor lasted a minute longer but had to also go out an emergency exit too. We are a bunch of wimps! But seriously, it was scary! That night Cierra slept in our room on the floor but she has been fine ever since then. Luckily I didn't scar her for life!

On Monday, Sean and Janna went to Seattle when all the kids were in school. I stayed home so they could enjoy a daddy daughter day! It was good for them. Janna is the best! She is so kind and loving and caring. We couldn't have asked for a better daughter. She is too sweet!

We had family night at Elements, the frozen Yogurt shop in downtown Puyallup! They had the best cake batter frozen yogurt. I may or may not have had any........

I am so blessed to have such an amazing family! I love you Sean! I love you Janna! I love you Kaylee! I love you Connor! I love you Cierra! I love you Brooke!

Sean and his addiction!

2011-10-06T13:42:00.001-07:00

If you didn't know, Sean loves the Dallas Cowboys! He has a million Dallas Cowboys shirts, jackets, hats, etc! You don't want to be anywhere near if the Cowboys are losing. He yells and screams at the TV. If they are winning he yells and screams and claps his hands so hard I think we are having a earthquake. Our neighbors know if there is a game on by the way our house shakes. Connor has been following in his footsteps and acting the same way. It is kind of crazy.
Anyway, I was looking in our closet this morning and I glanced at Sean's shoes. Seriously, who needs 9 pairs of Nike shoes. (6 of them being blue and gray-Cowboy colors) This may not seem like a ton of shoes but those are just his Nikes. He has a ton more of other shoes. He is worse than a woman! I need new running shoes about every 3 months, so I admit I have to buy a lot of shoes but when I get a new pair, I donate the old pair. I'm running out of space in my closet because of his shoes!

Sean is addicted to the Cowboys, Shoes, cleaning the floors, washing the cars and mowing the lawn, but most of all he is addicted to me which I love. He always wants to be with me and he gets moody when we don't get to spend enough time together. I love him more than anything and appreciate how hard he works for our family!:)

Families are Forever!

2011-09-29T10:43:00.000-07:00

I love my mom and dad and sister so much! I am so blessed to live so close to them. Thank you for all you do for my family Mom, Dad and Mindy!!! Love you!

The Bathroom problem!

2011-09-29T10:37:00.003-07:00

If you remember from a previous post a few month ago, we put in new flooring in the kitchen, laundry room and bathroom. Well, yesterday Sean was walking in the bathroom and noticed that the floor felt a little squishy! And his worst fears came true as he pulled up a board. The toilet had leaked underneath and the floor was all wet. Luckily we hadn't taken the other flooring out so the sub flooring did not get ruined. We just had to rip it ll out, order more boards, wait for them to come, let them sit in our house for a few days and then replace them. Bummer deal but it could have been a lot worse. It could have gone all the way into the kitchen. I'm counting my blessings right now!

Half Marathon,Soccer and the Puyallup Fair

2011-09-19T06:50:00.000-07:00

Early Saturday morning, Sean and I woke up to head to the JBLM half Marathon on base. The race didn't start until 8 but to get on base was no easy task. We finally arrived along with Tamee and Jenny and got ready to run our hearts out. The race started and it was fine until about mile 2 and then the rain came down. And it didn't let up for the next 11.1 miles. We were all cold and wet. I ran very slow, even walking at times. I wasn't into the race at all and I started it knowing I wasn't going to break any times, I was just running it to get ready for Leavenworth which is 4 weeks away. I finished around 2:14(my fastest is 1:56). Sean came in at 2:01 barely breaking a sweat.:) I think I'm burned out on running and I'm ready to change it up a little. Starting a gym today so hopefully that will mix things up a little. And it's here again....another season of soccer. Connor had his first game on Saturday as well. He loved playing and had a good time but unfortunately they lost. Hope this Saturday goes better.

Connor just got done bouncing it off his head.(that would explain the weird look!)

After Connor's soccer game Sean and I took Cierra and Brooke to the Puyallup Fair. Kaylee and Connor were with their dad so it worked out perfectly since they both went on Fair day with friends. I told them if they went with friends, they would miss our family fair day. They didn't seem to mind. I guess they are teenagers...

Afterwards we went to Elements, the new frozen yogurt shop downtown. It was super yummy!:)

(excuse Sean's look, I think he has a brain freeze!)

Girls Camp 2011

2011-09-13T08:56:00.000-07:00

This year I was able to go to Girls camp with Kaylee. I had so much fun and so do she. I wasn't over her group but got to see her often. She brought her friend, Ashley.(of course) I was partnered up with someone I had never met before and came away with a really close friend. Kirsten was amazing to be with and we have grown really close. It was so much fun. We were over a 2nd year group and they were called the Oompa Loompas!

This is Kaylee doing her skit:

This is my group of girls!

The 2nd years got to do a 5 mile hike. It was so pretty!

Kirsten and our YCL's!

Kaylee and Ashley being themselves!

The oompa loompas doing there skit:

Camp this year was at Ensign Ranch which is beautiful. The girls got to ride horses, do a ropes course, float the river, play on a hug water slide, do arts and crafts, do service projects and much more.

Ragnar 2011

2011-09-13T08:11:00.001-07:00

One of the most amazing experiences in my life would be the Ragnar Relay I did in July. It is such a cool thing to do at least once in your life. You get a team of 12 people together and run 190 miles relay style. I had 3 legs running from 4 to 8 miles. It took us nearly 28 hours to complete it. I didn't know I could go on such little sleep, not the best of food in my tummy , and running at 4pm, 3am and 8am but I did. I really enjoyed this experience and if I had the opportunity to do it again with 11 friends, I would take it in a heartbeat!:

One of the requirements(not really) is to decorate your van that you are following along in. Our team name was "Pimp My Stride" We got a lot of compliments along the way!
The first 6 to start:

This is a guy that was suppose to do the race last year but days before, was in a motorcycle accident and couldn't do it. He came back to do it this year and was amazing. It really makes you grateful for what you have. Anna insisted on getting a picture with him. (we all thought he was really cute!:))

Here I am getting the bracelet from Tori in her tutu at the exchange to run my first leg.

Water break courtesy of Libby and Andrea!

Almost there:

Van 1 meeting up with Van 2: Anna, Tasha, Me and Carrie

Anna and I resting our heads for a few hours in between legs.

Another fun guy we met along the way. It is really cool how everyone cheers you on and supports you through these 190 miles.

At the finish line: We all made it!

The scariest thing for me was running in the dark and afraid of getting lost. I wrote directions all up and down my arm and I had Anna following pretty close behind me when it was pitch black! It wasn't too bad, but still very scary!

Another summer playing at Wild Waves!

2011-09-12T20:21:00.001-07:00

We love to play at Wild Waves during the summer. My parents get the kids and I passes every year for Christmas and we love it. It is a fun way to enjoy the sun and get the kids exhausted!
We went about 8 times this summer. We mostly went with Mindy and her kids but sometimes we would bring friends too.
On the day I brought my camera, the Gailey's were there and we brought Maegan with us too.
We always bring our lunch and go out in the parking lot and eat it but on this day we bought pizza and ate inside!:)

another summer that has come and gone! We will see you again in 2012 Wild Waves!

Capital Building Fireworks!

2011-09-12T19:40:00.000-07:00

I took the kids to the capital building to watch the fireworks with the Grendell family in late July.
They put on a really good show. Sean was on a work trip so he couldn't come but we still had fun!

Brooke and Andrew

Kaylee and I!

Hannah and Kaylee

The view from where we were sitting.

Thanks for the invite Amy!:)

Youth Hike

2011-09-12T19:32:00.000-07:00

I was in charge of planning an activity for the youth of our church and so I planned a hike. It was a little hard for some of the kids but everyone made it to the top. It got dark on the way back down so it was a little scary but we all made it safe and sound!

Sean's Company picnic

2011-09-12T17:20:00.001-07:00

Sean's work throws an awesome summer barbecue. We always have so much fun going. Usually we walk away with a few prizes they raffle off, but this year we didn't win anything. It was still so mcuh fun!

They won because of me!

The Lise and Faith memorial run

2011-09-12T11:47:00.001-07:00

Cierra and some of her run club friends did a local 5k race in August. It was fun for her since it was a trail that she was familiar with by our house. She struggled a little bit with the race but she finished and that is all I ask of her. She has an awesome running coach that really helps her so I am excited to see how she does in the future. I would have never done this at her age and I am proud of her. This is her 3rd race in a year!:) GO CIERRA!!!

Maegan and Cierra

All the Run Club girls!

The Girls with their 2 awesome coaches, Tiffany and Maria.

The girls with their parents that ran with them.

Almost done!

Brooke and Daddy were at the finish line cheering us on!

*this race was a benefit race for a girl I had played basketball with a few times. She was running while she was 8 months pregnant and got hit from behind, when a driver fell asleep at the wheel and killed her and her baby instantly. We were so sad to hear about this tragedy. We were at least glad we could help in a small way by participating in this race to help raise money for her 2 young boys.

Cierra is 10!

2011-09-10T15:38:00.001-07:00

Cierra is finally into the double digits! The big 10! She's been looking forward to this birthday for months. She invited 11 girls to her party and all 11 came. Whew! that was a lot of screaming girls. They had a great time though! We played some games, decorated mini cakes, made flower clips and ran around acting like tweenagers!

Baylie gave Cierra a card that had 1 dollar bills that kept coming out. Cierra loved it.

I thought I said 6 on the trampoline at a time......

No boys were allowed(not even daddy) but they managed to find one in the neighborhood that I think they all have a cruash on. Adam was a good sport and I'm pretty sure he loved the attention.

I love my boogie woogie! Happy 10th Birthday Cierra!

Kaylee is 14

2011-09-10T15:12:00.001-07:00

Kaylee is apparently to old to have a birthday party(which I am totally ok with!) anymore so her and Ashley went to Wild Waves for the day and then Ally came over afterwards. They had pizza and ice cream cake. Later that night, Ashley and Kaylee went to the mall and saw a movie. Kaylee and I went shopping and she picked out clothes for her birthday presents a few days earlier. Much easier than trying to pick something out for her.

Love this girl and all her craziness! I worry about her being too boy crazy but I guess that's what happens when you have a 14 year old:)

(maybe someday she actually get up the nerve to talk to TYLER HUMPHRIES instead of just stalking him!) I'm really ok if she doesn't though!

Connor is 12!!!

2011-09-10T14:59:00.000-07:00

Connor turned 12 on August 24th and he was definitely ready. He was excited to finally move out of primary and into the Young Men's program. He recently went on a 50 mile bike ride with some of the Young Men and had a great time, although it was really hard for him. He couldn't really walk the next day but still said it was fun.

Connor decided to have a repeat of last year and have a "campout" at the Meadow with his friends. I brought pizza and the cake and ice cream for them but other than that, Sean was in charge. They were able to do the zipline that was there and play some games. It was all good until about 3am when the sprinklers turned on and they got wet and had to move the tent. Needless to say, they didn't get much sleep.

HaPpY BiRtHdAy to the sweetest 12 year old I know. He is so polite and caring. How did I get so lucky?

Build-a-Bear, Family Fun center, Hotel Pool, EMP, and Pike Place Market

2011-09-07T13:00:00.000-07:00

Sean took last week off so we can enjoy some family time before the kids went back to school. We took a day and went and had some fun in Renton and Seattle. Kaylee, Cierra and Brooke choose to go to Build a bear and Connor chose the Family Fun Center. We got a hotel and played in the pool and then went out to dinner. The next day we hit Seattle. We enjoyed the EMP(experience music project) which was fun(but not worth the money, luckily we weren't paying) and then went to Pike's Place Market and the famous gum wall.

Some may say Kaylee is a little old for a build a bear, but I thought it was great she wanted to do this with her sisters! We had a lot of fun picking the bears and choosing their outfits. (I forgot to get a picture of the finished bears!)

I love getting away from our house where all the distractions are to enjoy some real fun family time! We had a blast!:)

Is it really September?

2011-09-06T12:52:00.000-07:00

September came way too fast this year! How did that happen? School started last week and I can hardly believe it. The long awaited time when I have all 4 of my children in school all day long! What am I going to do with myself? I'm sure I will think of plenty to keep me busy, like blogging. I'm so behind, it's crazy. It may not seem like such a big deal but since this is my way of journaling I need to catch up. I will start with the first day of school and work backwards. It will be a little out of order but it will be easier for me.

Kaylee started 8th grade this year. She loves school (more for the social part) but does well and is glad it has started again. She gets up around 4:45, to catch the bus at 6:45. YES, it takes her that long to get ready. She doesn't like to be rushed. Kaylee tried out for the school volleyball team and made first cuts but didn't make the final cut. She was a little upset but she got over it pretty quickly. She started playing volleyball at Competitive edge 2 nights a week and I know it will really help her. She has Young Women's once a week so she is pretty busy. Needless to say, I don't have to tell her to go to bed each night. She is exhausted and falls into bed almost every night.

Connor started 7th grade this year. He hardly seems old enough but he was excited and ready to go the first day. He was most happy about being able to wear his new shoes to school. Connor has a "girl" that's a friend that he texts back and forth constantly. It's cute but I know I won't think that in a few more years. Her name is Ellie and they have been friends for years. I only note her name here because I want to have proof when they do marry. I take pictures of them together all the time for their wedding album. They just roll their eyes at me when I say this. Connor is playing soccer 2 days a week and does scouts. He loves being outside riding his bike.

Cierra started 4th grade this year and is so excited to learn. She loves her new teacher, Mrs. Alston and looks forward to school every day. She loves wearing her new school outfits and has a birthday coming up in a few days. She is so excited because I told her she could shave her legs when she was 10. Dang! It's here. Cierra is still in run club and has now completed 3 5k races. I'm so proud of her. I hope she gets my passion for running. It's such an amazing feeling! She is also involved with Activity Days and looks forward to it every other week.

Brooke is now a big 1st grader. She grew up way too fast. She loves her teacher, Mrs. Smith and loves wearing her new outfits too. She is working hard to improve her reading and loves to write her numbers to 100. She gets some backwards but loves to try. Brooke lost her first tooth this summer and loves to put her tongue through the hole. You will never catch Brooke inside if the weather is decent. She is always playing with her friends and riding her bike.

I love these kiddos more than anything but I am really looking forward to some peace and quiet. We go, go, go all summer long and now it is time to catch up on everything that needs to be done!:)

Kitchen Remodel~

2011-07-19T17:28:00.000-07:00

A month ago we(meaning I) decided we should remodel the kitchen. We put in laminate flooring, new appliances and a new kitchen sink. It was a lot of work(not for me, but for Doug, Sean and my dad) but it was worth it. I love my new kitchen. It looks so different. I love the way it feels, so inviting and warm!

Thank you to Doug most of all. He did a lot of work and we really appreciate it. My dad came over and assisted too. And Sean put in a lot of work too.

*next up: crown molding and changing out all the doors or painting them. Should be fun....

Independence Day!

2011-07-12T14:00:00.000-07:00

We start our Fourth of July out by running. One of my favorite things to do. Sean, Cierra, Mindy, Grandpa and I did the City blast put on by the YMCA at the Puyallup Fair grounds. We couldn't of asked for a better day! We got down there and ready by 6:45. Sean and I did the 10k and left at 7 and Cierra did the 5k with Mindy and grandpa and left at 7:30. Because the 10k is a 5k course done twice, we past Cierra running. She did a great job and I was very appreciative of the fact my sis and dad came down and did it with her. My dad actually felt good and decided to take off from them and ran the whole thing. I can see him doing another one in the near future.

Sean and I stayed together until mile 5 and then he booked up a major hill and I slowed down. I was about 40 seconds behind him when we finished. It was a great race!

My dad finishing strong!

We went back and ran the last little bit with Cierra. She was happy as can be!:)

Later in the day we went over to the Gailey's for a barbecue with all their neighbors. It was a lot of fun and there was a ton of food! Yummy!

Of course Sean is always throwing around some sort of ball with the kids.

Aren't they so cute and don't they look so young to be grandparents of 7 children ages 6-15?

Imagine that! A picture of Kaylee. She is beautiful, although I think we have a gazillion pictures of her. Mostly taken by herself!

Mindy and Doug

Later in the evening we went back down to the Fair grounds with my parents to watch a show put on by the Foursquare church. It was a ton of fun! They had a country singer, Blaine Larsen there that can really sing performing. They also had some other people singing some top 40 songs which were really good. They played a few games and when they ask for a volunteer, I started waving my hands. I was way in the back but they saw me and I got to go on stage in front of 1000's of people and play two minute to win it games. The first one was "junk in your trunk" which was really embarrassing but I won and the next one was pulling the streamers out of the roll. I won that one too and got a $20 gift card to Elements a new frozen yogurt shop! Yum!

Here is the proof of my embarrassment as Kaylee snapped away. I have about 20 more pictures too:

I'm on the BIG SCREEN!

Topped the night of with an awesome firework Show! 20 minutes of non stop beautiful fireworks!

WoodCreek Landing 2011 Block Party!

2011-07-12T07:00:00.001-07:00

We had an awesome Block Party on the 2nd of July. Anna, Kathryn and I were put in charge and we all took a portion and went with it. It was so much fun. I was in charge of all the games and I have to say the kids loved them.

We started off with a duathlon. We usually do a triathlon but we didn't have access to a pool this year. It was fun anyway and Anna made some fun medals for the kids.

"Who cares if we win or lose, we all get ice cream!!!"

The firetruck came again which was a big hit!

Shay trying to get her donut off her string.

How many cheetos can we get to stick to Cierra's face?

Connor has mastered hula hooping!

Cierra and Shay showing their stuff! The bounce house was fun too. We got a big one this year and we were able to use the hose on it and make a waterslide!

Face Painting courtesy of Kaylee and Ashley!:)

And a picture of Connor and Ellie! Aren't they so cute??

I absolutely love that I live in a fun neighborhood and we can have these fun parties. If I ever wanted to move, I wouldn't just because of our neighbors! Maybe when my kids are grown, I will finally decide to leave:):)

Swimming at Rogers Pool

2011-07-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

Sean had a weeks vacation so we planned something fun to do almost every day he had off. One day we went to Rogers Pool to swim. Brooke brought Baylie and Connor brought Austin.

my camera takes awful pictures with this lighting but you get the point:)

Cousin Sleepovers

2011-07-11T18:00:00.000-07:00

About a year ago we made a family decision(*ok..I guess the truth is, it was a parents decision) that we would not be allowing sleepovers in our household anymore unless it was with family. That means we have a lot of sleepovers with the Gailey Family. Shay spent the night last week and I thought it was so cute when I went to check on her and Cierra.

*back to the no sleepover thing. We had an incident about a year ago and it was the scariest night of my life not knowing where my oldest child was for about 9 hours. I will never go through that again. The parents were to blame but I can't control what goes on outside my home and nothing good happens after midnight so we now have late overs. I will pick up any of my children late so they can have fun at a friends but sleepovers are no good. It is one of the best decisions we have made as parents.....

Connor mows the lawn!

2011-07-11T09:00:00.000-07:00

Connor is now our official "backyard" lawn mower. He has been wanting this job for awhile and I finally felt he was old enough to not get his foot ran over by the lawn mower. He can only do the back though because Sean has specific ways he likes to do the front and it can only be done by him. Seriously! I have mowed it before and he has come behind me and mowed it again so he can get the lines just the way he wants them. Don't get me started on his ocd......... I still love him more than ever though!!!

Zipline, Big Bouncy Balls and roasting smores!

2011-07-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

Recently the Youth had youth conference at the Stake Center. They had some fun activities planned and it all went really well. Sean and I weren't on the planning committee this year but we had friends that were. So when it was all over we brought our kids and played with all the fun stuff. It was a ton of fun for the kids. Our partners in crime were the Conners, the Gaileys, the Wards and the Frinks.

All the kids loved the zipline the best. I have to say it was pretty fun!

Sean couldn't stay on the bouncy ball!

We also got to use these really fun bouncy stilts. Kaylee did pretty well. I tried it but I had flip flops on so it was hard to get my feet to stay in!:)

Daddy Daughter Date to the Space Needle

2011-06-30T07:00:00.000-07:00

Sean took Cierra to the Space Needle on Saturday. It was so cute, Cierra gave Sean a note on Friday that said, "Can we please have a special day on Saturday?" "Please mark the box Yes or No!" How could he turn that down? He thought it was a great idea and immediately knew where he would take her. She has been wanting to go to the space needle for a long time. They started the day off by going out to lunch, then went to the Space needle, then they went over to Pike Place market and then to the famous gum wall. They ended the day with a ice cream at Cold Stone. It was a perfect day for her and I am so glad they could do it!

She was beat on the way home!

P.S.-while Cierra and Daddy were having fun, Brooke and I went shopping. We had a great time getting pedicures, eating lunch and buying some fun things! Kaylee and Connor went with their dad and saw Mr. Popper's Penguins. Next date I will be taking Kaylee out and Sean will be taking Connor. So much fun!!!

Fathers Day 2011

2011-06-29T07:00:00.000-07:00

Who has the best Father in the world?? Me! Me! Me! Well, I guess my sister does too but that is only because we get to share one great man. My dad is the best. He would do anything for anyone and he has such a kind heart. He is just like my grandma(his mom) She did an amazing job raising him and I am so grateful to call this man my dad!

There has been way too many times that I have had to call on him to help me fix something, watch our kids, take our kids somewhere and he never hesitates to say yes.

Thank you Dad for being an amazing example to me and my family!!
We love you!

We had some fun taking some pictures when we went to my parents house on Fathers day:

I love this picture of my mom and dad!

Happy Fathers day!

Field Day 2011 for Cierra and Brooke

2011-06-27T22:31:00.000-07:00

Two different days and two different schools but they were both so much fun and I was glad to be a part of it! Cierra had the nicer day and had some really fun things to do. I was in charge of the obstacle bounce house which Brooke loved, since she got to go on it over and over as we waited for the classes to come out.

Cierra, Maegan and Phoebe waiting in line for it.

Cierra playing a water game with Phoebe.

Cierra and Maegan in class

Brooke testing out the slide before the classes came out!

Cierra's class before they hit the field for Field Day!

Brooke did the "Olympics Field Day" and had a lot of fun. It was a tad bit chilly but both Sean and I got to go see her do her events and it was fun. She participated in the long jump, the 100 yard dash and one other one that I just can't remember.

Brooke and two of her friends in her class.

Brooke thought it was a lot of fun, but Mrs. Bronoske was not there because she was having her baby and Brooke really missed her. She doesn't like change although she did really like the sub the had for the last week of school.

School is out for the summer and we are really enjoying the time off. We will go to Wild Waves weekly( Sean is off this week so he gets to come with us on Friday), go to Banks Lake, go to Silverwood and Kaylee and I get to go to Girls Camp! Before we know it, the summer will be over and school will start again!

Connor's 6th Grade Graduation

2011-06-27T21:51:00.000-07:00

Connor survived Elementary school! I can't believe it! Wahoo! He is off to Junior High. I can't believe I have two kids in Junior High. Where did time go? Connor is actually a great kid. He hardly ever gets in trouble and his grades are good. Connor is very polite and is always telling me thank you. It's really sweet!

This is him getting his certificate of graduation from the principal, Mrs. Krause. His teacher Mr. Wells is there as well.(He had Mr. Wells in 3rd and 6th grade. Connor thought that was pretty cool!)

Don't tell anyone but I need to note this so I can say I told you so to Conor when he gets married. Connor and Ellie have been friends and in the same class for 4 years. They are in the same class at church and they both turn 12 in August. I know Connor has always liked her and I also know that Ellie likes him.I really am quite positive that they will get married someday. Connor is never mean to her and he always talks about her with a sparkle in his eye. I think it is so cute!

Connor and Mr. Wells

Connor and his buddies!

Way to go Connor!

What's been going on?

2011-06-07T13:42:00.000-07:00

ALOT!!

We have been so busy lately but I guess that is not unusual. We like to stay busy but lately I am feeling exhausted. Time to settle down just a little.....

On Saturday I ran my 3rd marathon. I loved it! It was pretty low key and I felt no pressure to go fast and I just enjoyed it. 4 of my friends(Marci, Soila, Marschell and Sonja) did a relay and so I saw them occasionally but other than that I was on my own. The marathon went from Kent to Alki Beach in Seattle. It was amazing! It was a pretty warm day but we also had a nice breeze to go along with it.

This is me as I am coming to the finish! My time was 4 hours and 46 minutes. 3 minutes slower than my first and 9 minutes slower than my second. Oh well, I always have the next one to improve my time.

My parents came to see me finish, which is always amazing. They have been able to come to almost all my races.(Love them!) I was surprised to see Cierra, Brooke, Anna and her kids, and Tiffany and her kids at the finish line. I had no idea they were coming and it was so nice to have them there.

Love you all!!!!!

I had a little incident as we stopped to get some lunch on the way home. I had realized I hadn't eaten anything since 6:30 that morning and after running 26.2 miles that is not very smart. I got really shaky and I came so close to passing out that I thought for sure I was going down. I was able to get my head between my knees and managed to stay upright. I ate my subway and we started to finish our trip home and it happened one more time. We got to a gas station where my mom got me some candy and I starting feeling better. I know I had a super low blood sugar. I learned my lesson. I need to eat right away. I just didn't think about it because most races have a ton of food afterwards and this one did not. I didn't feel hungry so it didn't cross my mind. I will know for next time now!

Connor did track for his school and they had their annual track meet last week as well. Connor participated in the softball throw and the 4 X 100 meter relay! He did awesome and it was fun to watch.

He is officially done with baseball too. He had a great season and really did an amazing job. I loved to go watch his games but sometimes I would get a little stressed. Not sure why, I think I just wanted them to do well.

Didn't get very many pictures this season. There is always next year!

Cierra got an award at the terrific Kids assembly. It was an award for PE. She has improved her mile by 5 minutes. I was very proud of her. I hope she will continue to run. I have found so much joy in it and I hope she can do. She goes to run club once a week and loves going.

And the big news in Brooke's world is that she can finally do the monkey bars. She is so excited and wants to go to the park ALL THE TIME! Next on her list is to loose a tooth and I think that will be coming quick!

Goodbye to Kim!

2011-06-05T10:15:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine moved away last week and we were so sad to see her go. Kim was here only about 10 months, but she was a awesome friend and neighbor and will truly be missed. We had breakfast at the Pancake house(which another one of our neighbors own and you must try if you haven't been there already!) to say goodbye the day before she left. I will stay in touch with her through email and facebook and I promised her I would run a race in Colorado and come see her!

Kim is the one on the left of me holding her little girl, Whitney!:)

Little Si hike

2011-06-03T09:57:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day we took a hike with the Lockwood's, the Green's and the Todd's. We went up to Little Si in in North Bend and we managed to stay dry for the most part. It was a great hike for the kids. It was 4.4 miles round trip and all the kids did extremely well. Brooke got a piggy back ride for just a small portion of it but otherwise walked the whole thing. Cierra didn't have one complaint and it was really just a fun little hike.

Connor was the dare devil of course and was always going off the beaten path to find something to climb.

Connor and Jadon at the top taking a little break!

I love my family!

Afterwards we came home and had a barbecue with about 9 families for our neighborhood. Love these 3 day weekends!

Fort Lewis Mud Run

2011-06-02T16:34:00.000-07:00

Kaylee and I did a mud run on base with the young men and young women from our ward. It was a lot of fun but a little too muddy for me. Kaylee loved it which I am very surprised. The worse part was getting hosed off at the end with some very high pressured hoses. It was freezing.

The girls before we started:
Kaylee was not shy about getting dirty!

I was not thrilled with this part:Overall we had a great time! I am signed up to do the Warriors Dash in a few months with my sister and I hear it is much worse than this. Should be fun!!!!

Tilllicum Village Field Trip

2011-06-01T13:44:00.000-07:00

I was able to go on a field trip with Cierra to Tillicum Village. We(along with her class) took a ferry over to Blake Island where we had a nice sit down lunch of salmon, macaroni and cheese, fruit, corn and bread. It was delicious. The smoked salmon was the best. While we were eating by candlelight we enjoyed quite a show about Indian heritage. It was too dark for pictures of the show but the costumes were really cool. We then walked around the village and on the beach and looked at all the amazing things around the village like the totem poles. The ferry ride back was beautiful and it was fun to do it with two friends, Amber and Kathryn.

Definitely the best field trip I've ever been on.

Cierra and Maegan

Cierra in front of the fire where they smoke the salmon.

Yummy!

The Yummy lunch!

on the beach in the little caves

Cierra and her awesome teacher, Mrs. Beck

Most of the class:

The ferry ride home!

Brooke's Daisy Garden Party

2011-05-24T12:45:00.000-07:00

Broke and I went to her Girl Scout end of the year "Garden Party" which was so amazing. I have such talented friends that really know how to throw a party. We had a delicious lunch and then the girls entertained us. A big thank you to her leaders, Kim, Tiffany and Vivian.
A few days prior, Brooke went with her troop to a bounce house, then to Red Robin for lunch and then to Build a Bear. They used the money to made selling cookies. They had a ton of fun and were exhausted by the time they got home.

The amazing spread!

Girl Scout Promise:

Singing:

Cierra's Choir Performance

2011-05-23T17:16:00.000-07:00

Cierra has been working hard learning songs with her school choir. She first performed at the Rainier's game and then at a Assisted Living facility and then for the final performance at the School. I thought they sounded really good. They sang Star Spangled Banner, High Hopes, Sing a Song, Over the Rainbow, Rainbow Connection, and What a Wonderful World.

She went with her friend Phoebe.

Cierra sings with her Choir at the Rainiers Game!

2011-05-13T21:00:00.000-07:00

Cierra went to a Rainier's Game last week to sing with the Zeiger choir the National Anthem. I unfortunately couldn't be there but she had the next best thing. Grandpa took her and spoiled her. They had a great time and the evening went great for her. She has really been enjoying singing in the Choir.
(I had a softball game, Connor had a baseball game, Kaylee had Young Women's, and Sean was in Texas for a business trip. Needless to say we had to call in Gramps to help and he didn't disappoint! Thanks you dad!!!!)

Cierra got to meet Kado from Deadliest Catch...whoever that is.

I got to see the video on Facebook of her singing posted by another parent and when I told Cierra that I had seen it, first thing she asked me is how many hits it got!-had to laugh at that one. It later got posted on utube and as of a few minutes ago it has had 116 hits. She will be so proud. She is a funny kid:)

Snoqualime Half Marathon

2011-05-10T08:45:00.000-07:00

This past week I had the best run of my life. I really feel like I'm not a natural runner. I had to work hard to get to the point I am now. I started very slow and very slowly I have worked up to my most recent half. My goal going into this half was to finish in under 2 hours. I calculated what my pace would need to be to get a 1:59:59. I needed to keep a 9:09 pace which I thought would be do-able, especially on a flat course such as this one. I didn't want to get my hopes up just in case I was not able to meet my goal. I don't like to fail.
So as I set out with my awesome running buddies, we were keeping about an 8:50 pace and it felt good. I thought I might be able to manage this pace the whole time . So I kept it there and just kept going. About mile 7, Jenny started slowing a little but Soila and I kept our pace. About mile 11 I was having a hard time catching my breath but continued on and finished at 1:56:19 at a 8:53 pace. I was so happy! I felt such a great feeling of accomplishment coming across the finish line. And if I already wasn't hooked, I am now. I'm looking forward to the Green river Marathon in less than 3 weeks where I hope to get a 4:30 (or under) marathon.
So far I have done 8 half marathons and 2 full marathons.

This picture is of Jenny, Soila and I after the race. It was the only picture we got and it was taken with Jenny's phone.(not sure why it's so small:))

Brooke's Diversity Project goes to the Puyallup Fair!

2011-05-04T14:18:00.000-07:00

Brooke's cultural project was chosen to be displayed at the Puyallup Spring Fair. They sent us 2 tickets in the mail and she got to go and stand by her project and answer any questions that anyone might ask her. She basically stood by her project and got a picture, hung out for a few minutes and then went and played some games. I was running my marathon in Wenatchee the weekend she needed to be there so Sean took her and had a great time. I also had the camera with me so these are taken with his cell phone.

Great Wolf Lodge

2011-05-02T12:48:00.001-07:00

Last week we went on a little trip to the Great Wolf Lodge! It's about time. I had been trying to talk Sean into it for a long time but he thought it would be a waste of money. We loved it. We all had tons of fun. I don't think I will do it again, but it is definitely something to do once. Maybe a few years down the road we may do it again but we had our fill for awhile. Especially with summer coming up and having Wild Waves passes.

Meaghan who I have babysat forever up until about a year ago, came with us. Cierra loved having her come along.

Kaylee was amazing with Brooke. She is such a good big sister. She is the one that talked Brooke into going on the Tornado. I have never seen Brooke so scared in her life. I think we scarred her. Brooke was able to do everything there and loved it all except that one.

Brooke and Kaylee coming down the slide!

Loved all the space in the room. With 5 kids we had plenty of room for everyone to sleep and be comfortable. That doesn't usually happen when we go to a hotel. We usually have a kid at the end of our bed and one in a chair. We always make it work but this was nice!:)

Cierra studying for the MSP. She is taking it very seriously!

Of course you have to do the Treasure Quest all around the hotel. Connor was the only one that was really into that.

Kaylee is "out" in this picture. She was worn out and everyone else still wanted to swim.

The wave pool! Can you find Cierra and Brooke?

1000's of gallons of water is poured out of a huge bucket right here every so often. Connor is waiting. I think I took the picture a little too soon.

The outside hot tub was fun too. It was fun to sit in the rain and be warm!

Sean and I right before we headed out. What a great memorable trip!

Wenatchee Marathon and Girl's Weekend!

2011-04-25T11:16:00.000-07:00

What a fabulous weekend we had in Wenatchee. I couldn't ask for better friends(and family), weather and the whole reason we were there, a marathon!!!
Not one thing went wrong, unless you count me pulling in the garage with the Thule on before we left. It only scrapped the top and I managed to free myself with the help of a few neighbors.

This picture is at some bike shop where we picked up our packets. Little did we know what was in store for us the next day. This race was hard for me. I guess they all are but I was tired at mile 19 and ready to pack it in. Luckily I had a awesome friend (Jill)that had done the half and was finished and so she ran the last 7 miles with me. I couldn't have done it without her. I did beat my last marathon time , but only by 7 minutes. I'm really trying hard to hit the 4:30 mark when I do the Green River Marathon on June 4th. I know, I'm crazy but that's OK, I like to live on the wild side!:)

We went to Visconti's for dinner the night before the big race. It was yummy. We surprised Anna with a gift(fun pampering stuff and $115 cash!) since she was doing her 10th marathon and she planned this whole weekend. That was no an easy feat, but it all went perfect thanks to her!
She had a little pep talk prepared and gave us all magnets and suckers. It was really nice. The suckers were for us all being suckers and following her on these adventures.

Here is the group of us before the race:

Top left: Jen Simeona, Tari Whitemarsh, Jill Green, me, Mindy Gailey, Carrie Holmes, Marci Sabin, Tasha Allen, Tiffany Shakespeare, Soila Todd, Vivian kerr, Kelly Benner, Marschell Lockwood. Bottom Left: Kathryn Ward, Lisa Saunders, Tamme Villegas, Stephanie Mondrut, Anna Conner, Lindsey Litchfield and Amy Richards. Not pictured: Teresa McConnell

Me and My sis! I was so proud of her for running a 10k. Before she knows it, she will be doing a half:)

the 3 crazy full marathon runners!

this is me at mile 19 when I'm about ready to meet up with Jill. My parents and sister were there to snap the picture and give me some water. It was so good seeing them. I was getting lonely.

Explaining to Jill and Mindy how much this sucks!

Couldn't of asked for a better welcome to the finish line! It will be on of those memories that I will never forget. Thanks ladies for being there!!!!!

After getting showered a few of us went and got an awesome massage(Thank you to Mindy who treated me to mine! It was pure heaven!) we then all went to Red Robin for a nice big juicy burger. It hit the spot!

These were my roomies. Carrie is missing because she had to head out early. We had a great time!

We had way to much junk food, stayed up way too late, talked, and played games. Needless to say we were all exhausted come 2am when we finally hit the pillow. We managed to make it back in time for church but after that I couldn't get off the couch. Like Sean always says, "you play, you pay!!!!" And I did!!!!

I was so grateful to have my parents there to support Mindy and I, and really all the girls. They were great photographers for us. Thanks mom and dad:)

Wenatchee Marathon April 16, 2011

I absolutely ADORE these 4 kiddos!

2011-04-12T11:36:00.000-07:00

My Thoughts:

2011-04-08T08:19:00.000-07:00

I was super excited to be able to make a book out of my blog posts. I love it. It is fun to look back and see what was going on in our lives. It is a great way to journal. Although I try to write in a journal as often as possible, this is fun because it has pictures and sometimes it is just random thoughts like today. I would encourage you to print yours. I have one book done and another one on the way. I have two more to print and then I will be caught up and do it only once a year. It is kind of spendy but so worth it. Cierra challenged me awhile back that if I stayed off Facebook for 40 days she would not eat candy for 40 days. Wow! That is a big thing for her. She loves candy. I knew it would be good for her and also for me so we did it. It has been 32 days! I have gotten a lot done and didn't really realize how much time I was on Facebook. It kind of sucks you in and an hour later you can't believe that much time has past. I think it is a great thing to be able to communicate with others but it is a time waster too. I will go back to it but I will not be on it as much as before. I have learned my lesson. Thank you sweet stubborn Cierra! I am one week away from my Wenatchee trip with about 25 friends. I'm so excited and super nervous. I can't wait to be with friends and have lots of fun together but I am so nervous about this marathon. This is my second one and I am more nervous for this one than my first. I feel like last time I had no expectations and I would just finish it. Now I feel like I need to beat my time and do better. I have put my whole heart into this training. I have logged close to 500 miles in 18 weeks. I ran one 20 miler, one 19 miler, two 18 milers and numerous other runs. My time has improved by about 45 seconds per mile and I feel strong. So now when the big day comes along, can I make it happen? I'm afraid of injury. I have had a little nagging pain in my leg and I have been icing it like crazy and it feels much better but who knows if it will come back when I'm running 26 miles. I guess we will see. I have seen too many injuries occur when you are testing your body to the limit. And running a marathon is definitely testing my body to the limit. Sean has been a great support to me. He keeps telling me I can do it and is very positive. I love him for that and so many other reasons! That is a whole another post, but for now, I guess all I can say is wish me luck and hopefully I will be back with good news. My last marathon was a 4:43 and I hope to get 4:30. That is knocking off 30 seconds per mile. Kind of a lot but I feel like I can do it.

Justin Bieber has lost a leg!

2011-04-05T11:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a sad day in the Elwell household, at least for Brooke. As her and Isaac were playing with her beloved Justin Bieber doll there was an accident with his leg. All I heard was crying coming from both of them and thought one of them had broken a leg. I went to investigate and Isaac was barely able to talk he was so upset. He had accidentally broke JB's leg. Brooke just looked at it and cried. I felt bad for both of them. Then today, Isaac and Kathryn save the day! I picked Isaac up from school and he was so excited. He couldn't wait until we were in the car before he told me he got Brooke a new JB doll and this one sings. He was so excited to come home and give it to Brooke as she got off the bus. Brooke was jumping all over the place she was so happy.

So, once again everything is just grand at the Elwell household. They are now busy playing with him.

(Thanks Kathryn and Isaac! Your the Best!)

Wild and Crazy Spring Break!

2011-04-02T18:33:00.001-07:00

We didn't do anything too exciting this week but we had fun being together. We went on a bike ride to South Hill Park. That was fun but it was a little chilly. Connor and I had a date and went to see Diary of a Wimpy kid 2.( He brought along his friend Matthew). We had a play doh contest and I was the judge. See pictures below. I had to choose Brooke since she is the youngest. Isn't that how it works? Cierra's Brooke's

Can you guess?

Connor was busy doing this so he did not participate in the contest. He is always out here doing flips. He has only fallen off once when he was doing a flip and luckily he landed on his feet. He is a boy top to bottom!

He also went to the shooting range with grandpa. He loved it and can't stop talking about getting his hunting license and going hunting with him.

Sock's has been up to no good. I get one mouse head(sometimes two) and what I think may be the lungs delivered either to my laundry room or to the porch everyday. It is disgusting but inquiring minds needed to know so when I saw her with this mouse I watched what she did. Sure enough she ate the whole thing but the head and the lungs. I know! It's totally gross. Any suggesting on how to get her to stop? We have a field behind our house and I know she hunts all day long. I can't leave her in the house all day, she would go crazy.

I had to "borrow" some eggs from Anna(per her request) on April Fools Day and this is what we got. The kids loved it. They are cupcakes! Aren't they so cute?

Speaking of April Fool's, we got my sister! Kaylee called and told her I had fallen down the stairs. She started to freak out so Kaylee told her she was April Fools-ing her! Hehe!

We(the kids and I) and a few friends went to see HOP yesterday. Super cute movie.

So we just did things here and there this week but it was so nice to sleep in and spend time with the kids.

I finally talked Sean into going to the Great Wolf Lodge and we will be doing that later this month. I'm so excited...the kids are too.

Now if we could only get some more sun and less rain! I have 2 weeks until the Wenatchee Marathon and I am super excited! Can't wait. I am hoping to beat my time from my last one:)

Brooke

2011-03-25T09:14:00.000-07:00

Brooke has taken off with her reading. It is fun to see her so excited to read. She works really hard on sounding out the words and gets so excited when she can read a whole book by herself. She now reads Sean or myself or story before she goes to bed every night. I can't believe my baby girl is growing up. Next year she will be at school all day and I'm going to miss her like crazy. She makes me laugh with her funny personality.:) Keep it up Cookie!

more running pictures from Coach Tiff!

2011-03-25T09:03:00.000-07:00

A few more pictures of Cierra on race day, thanks to tiff!

and her loyal sister waiting for her to cross the finish line!

Cierra's first 5k!

2011-03-20T19:21:00.001-07:00

Cierra did her first 5k race and did so awesome. I am so proud of her. She struggled like I knew she would but she finished and that was all the mattered. She actually PR'd. Her 3 mile that she practiced on Monday was 46 minutes and her race was right under 42 minutes. She did great! She thought it was hard doing it but afterwards she said it was fun and she wanted to do it again. Being a runner, I want more than anything for her to keep it up but I am smart enough to know that she needs to decide if this is something she wants. I wish I would have started earlier but it gives me so much joy now, I would love that for her too.

Cierra did the race with 7 of her friends who all did extremely well. One of her friends did it in 28 minutes which was amazing and one came across the finish line and puked! It was great!

Cierra loves her run club shirt!

This is my friend, and Cierra's run club coach. She is amazing and very knowledgeable in running. We are so lucky for her to volunteer(yes, you heard me, she does this all for nothing!) her time to these girls. She has a passion for running and really puts her heart into it. We couldn't be more grateful to her.

Mindy came with us and ran the 10k. It was her first and she did awesome. She ran the whole 6.2 miles without walking once! Great Job Mindy!

Of course my parents, were there to cheer Cierra and Mindy on, and to watch Brooke and Shay. Since they were the photographers too, I didn't get a picture of them.

I ran the 5k with Cierra to keep her motivated. Sometimes I wonder if she would do better without me there. Oh well, it was fun anyways.

Here is Cierra coming in strong!

Cierra and Izabella-they ran on and off together throughout the race.

Top row:Jill(the other amazing coach and friend),Ellie, Brynnley, Kelsey, Maddy, Tiffany

Middle Row: Kennedi, Jalin, Izabella

Bottom Row:Cierra and Hallie

GO SOUTH HILL RUNNING REBELS!!!!!!

(it was a long day for me running wise: I ran the 5k with Cierra and then I went and found my sister 1.5 miles out on the trail and ran 1.5 miles back with her and then met up with my running partners to do my scheduled 12 miles for my training. So, I got 18 miles in and it felt great. The sun was shining and there is nothing better than running in sun! Last week on our 15 miler we got not only rained on, but soaked to the bone! What a difference sun makes !!!)

Brooke's 6th Birthday and more!

2011-03-07T07:59:00.000-08:00

Brooke decided to take it upon herself and make a peanut butter sandwich, when I was obviously pre-occupied! This is what I came upon. She doesn't like crust so she cut it off. She didn't have much of a sandwich left but I was proud of her for trying! She reminded me that she is 6 now so she can do it all be herself.

A few weeks ago we got some snow and although you can't tell by this picture it is coming down hard. You would think you would find us curled up by the fire watching the snow come down. Nope! Not the Elwell Family. Sean is making the best of his time before he left for a work trip by washing his car. (and mine too! thanks honey!)

I have a friend that is a heart specialist. She was so very nice to come over and do an EKG and ultrasound on Brooke's heart so I didn't have to pay our ridiculous deductible. This was a follow-up from one she had 2 years ago. She has an extra beat in her heart and we just need to keep an eye on it and make sure it doesn't get worse. Everything checked out fine. We were so grateful for her!

Brooke's healthy heart!

We had a little party for Brooke with my family to celebrate her turning 6. We had a turkey dinner and Brooke opened some presents. Her favorite was from my sister, who gave her some Cocoa Pebbles. This mean mom doesn't let her have them so she was so excited to see them!

Kaylee did Brooke's hair and make-up for her party. She looked very grown up for her 6 year old party!
It's a Tinkerbell Party:)

Brooke and Hailey before the party started!

We did crafts!

We decorated cupcakes!

We did nails!

Brooke opened her presents! She loved the Justin Bieber doll she got from Kaylee!

The Party Guests!

We had cake and ice cream!

We did a pinata!

and as always, we jumped on the trampoline!:)

Brooke had a lot of fun on her birthday! I love to see my kiddos happy and she was one happy kid!

Cierra, Brooke and I went with Brooke's girl scout troop and Amy and Maegan to see the play, Cinderella. It was really cute! The girls loved it!

This and That!

2011-02-17T12:50:00.000-08:00

The Elwell household has been very busy lately. Here is just a little bit of what's been going on:

Brooke got her very own Book of Mormon at church on Sunday. She was very proud to have it. She is also giving a talk in primary this coming up Sunday. Her talk is on "The scriptures teach of Heavenly Father's plan." She amazes me. She is learning so much at church and school. She is starting to read words and it is fun to see her get so excited when she can sound something out.

Kaylee is as crazy as ever. She is forever stealing my camera and taking pictures of herself. She is very in to the way she looks and spends a good amount of the day looking in the mirror. She gets up at 4:45 EVERY morning to get ready for school. (That is 2 hours before she has to leave!) She will soon learn that sleep is precious and you should get every possible minute you can.

I volunteer in Brooke's classroom and this week I got to help with her Valentines Party. It was so much fun to see her in class with her friends. She is very friendly and kind to her class mates and that makes me proud. We frosted sugar cookies, played games and handed out Valentine cards.

(A fun Day but tortuous for me since I am still on my "no sweets" kick, and I love sugar cookies. It has been 54 days and I am going strong. I feel so good. My running has improved and I just over all feel like I have more energy. I am trying to continue it until I get to April 16th-my marathon day, but we will see. I take one day at a time!)

Cierra had a concert on Tuesday of this week and it was fun to see her sing and play her recorder. She was very excited for this day and has been counting down for weeks. She sang"Wet me down in Washington", which is appropriate since we have been seeing alot of rain!:) I'm use to it, Sean on the other hand is going crazy.

Kaylee has been through a few different hair colors in the last few months. She went from her natural color of light brown to red and then to dark brown. It's been fun for her but we aren't going to make a habit out of coloring her hair too often.(This is her with her BFF, Ashley!)

This is the time of year I hate the most in the school year! SCIENCE FAIR!!! I despise the science fair. It's more work for the parents than the kids and it is just not fun. Luckily, I bribed Sean a few time into doing most of the work with the kids. He is awesome and is always happy to help with school work. Me on the other hand, would rather poke my eyes out with dull pencils and that is no exaggeration! Connor's was due a few weeks ago and he did pretty good and Cierra's was due today. We(or should I say Cierra and Sean) finished late last night.

Brooke is still falling asleep everywhere. She will get tired and decide to take a nap. She is sleeping on the chairs of our kitchen table wearing her dress up leopard leotard in this picture. And yes, she still sucks her thumb. Only when she is tired but hopefully she will stop one of these years!

Kaylee is staying busy with homework, Young Women's and her social life. Basketball just got over and she had fun doing that. She even made a few baskets. She is improving.

Connor is always making something with duct tape or paper. He loves to play outside with his friends and he is involved in scouts. He is playing indoor soccer and loves it even though they aren't winning too many. Baseball starts up again so and he can't wait for that.

Cierra is busy playing with friends, reading, keeping up with homework, going to Activity Days and doing her run club. She doesn't complain about going and is able to run 2 miles with only a few little walking breaks. She says she wants to run a marathon when she gets older. I know she can do it, she has my determination.

Brooke is always playing in her room with her barbies, legos or dress up. She loves to jump on the trampoline and loves to play with her friends Isaac and Baylie. She is in a daisy troop and is currently selling girl scout cookies.

I love these kiddos of mine and I am so grateful for them in my life.

Sean is very busy with work. He is working way more than he used to but I guess that's what happens when you get a promotion and have more responsible. He is such a hard worker, he amazes me! He is working with the Young Men in our ward and enjoying that. He goes to the Y often to work out and even goes on a run a few days a week.

As for me, I am ALWAYS busy. I don't know which end is up at time but I wouldn't have it any other way. I work part-time with two elderly people helping them with things at their home. I babysit 3 days a week for Isaac.(brooke's best friend) I am currently playing basketball once a week which is very exhausting and stressful and times but I enjoy it. I am currently training for a marathon that is in April and I feel like I am running constantly. In reality it is only about 40 miles a week. I think that's about it beside running the kids around and taking care of them and occasionally seeing Sean for a date night or two. I am truly blessed!

DC/New York Trip!

2011-02-15T12:03:00.000-08:00

What a awesome opportunity I had to make a trip to DC and New York with Anna to visit Michelle. We had 5 days to see a ton of stuff and we managed to see most of what we wanted to. We had amazing girl bonding time and saw sight after sight after sight! We left on February 3rd and came back late on the 7th. The flight there was a lot of fun, Anna and I got in trouble from a flight attendant for being too loud. That started the weekend off right and we didn't stop laughing the whole time. We landed in DC in the evening. Michelle got caught up at work(Do you know who she works for? me neither but it's someone very important and their kids go to school with the Obama kids) So we ventured out into a cab in hopes to find her apartment. We did, but barely. Those taxi drivers are CRAZY. We took many while we were there and I feared for my life every time.

We got to her apartment unloaded and then walked down to Georgetown. It was fun but we were so tired we went back and waited for Michelle. We talked for hours and then hit the hay so we could be ready for our 18 mile adventure run in the morning. Michelle had to work for a little bit so we took that opportunity to do our long run. We ran over the whole town of DC. We saw all the monuments(we went back later to take pictures),the White House, the Supreme Court, Botanical Gardens, air and flight museum and much more that I can't even think of right now. It was the best run I have ever been on. Didn't seem like 18 miles since we were seeing so much. We had one cliff bar to split the whole time and we were starving when we got back.

We walked up to the National Cathedral Church to see it but it was closed so we didn't go inside. It was beautiful on the outside though. Earlier when we were running by we heard children singing from it and it sounded amazing!

The night we went contra dancing. Have you heard of it? Probably not! I hadn't either but it was so much fun. A little scary, but fun. You have a partner and sometimes they get a little into it and the stare you down.(supposedly if you look your partner in the eye, you won't get dizzy-it just freaked me out) This is Michelle and Anna showing off some of the partners they had when we got home.

This was the only slightly rainy day and this is the Supreme Court. When Anna and I were on our run we stopped by and went inside. We were all sweaty and gross but they were letting people come in and look around and we didn't want to miss our chance. We used the bathroom and looked around and continued on.

The White House. Funny, I thought it was much bigger. So many police officers, it was crazy. At one point during our run I rounded a corner and came face to face with a police officer wearing a mask and holding a big machine gun. I screamed.

Went to the Smithsonian and looked at everything there. I loved looking at all the First Ladies dresses. This is Michelle Obamas.

Ruby Red Slippers from the Wizard of OZ:)

This was at the Museum of natural History. Very impressive!

We went to a restaurant called The Hook and it was so delicious. Loved it!

The Korean War memorial

Amazing monuments!

This was us waiting for the bus to go to New York. This is Mike and we got to know him quite well on the 4 hour bus ride. We are friends now and we can't wait for an invitation to his wedding someday!(thank godness for facebook to keep us connected!)

Took a walk in Central Park! It was amazing and beautiful with all the snow on the ground.

I bought some nuts in Central Park from this guy. He was excited to get his picture taken!:)

Went in to FAO Schwartz and played on the big piano. Kids kept getting in our way though. How rude! Didn't they know I have always wanted to do this since I watched the movie Big.

Went in to buy myself a bracelet but then decided not to!(hehe)

Saw Wicked which was the most awesome thing I have ever seen. It was so well done, I loved it. Probably the highlight of the trip.

Went into the M and M store and danced to "Everybody Dance now!"

I hailed a cab and it started to slow down and then sped up right as he got to me. I guess I didn't get in fast enough. Another one came 2 seconds later and we jumped in quickly!

The famous"bull" that I had never heard of. Oh well, still took a picture of it!

Coming home on the bus. We arrived back in DC about 3:30am. It was a busy and fun day. Needless to say we slept all the way home. Well, I guess Anna didn't because she was snapping pictures of us. Don't ask what is on Michelle's head. I'm not quite sure.

World War II memorial.

We also went to the "money store".(where they make all the paper money) I really wanted to do this so I was excited to do the tour. I bought the kids $2 bills. We also went to the Holocaust museum. It was very depressing for me. But I was glad I went.

I'm sure I am missing a few things but that is mostly it. I had a blast and I am so grateful to Michelle for taking us in and showing us the sights. It was great to see her again and we can't wait to visit again. Anna was so much fun and it was nice to hang out without kids and the business of life. I love you girls and I will always remember this trip!

Running

2011-02-01T16:00:00.000-08:00

I feel like I need to write about running because it has become my life. The video attached explains me to a T. I never thought I would call myself a runner but it has happened. When I'm not taking care of my family, I am running, thinking about running, washing my running clothes so they will be ready for my next run, looking up ways to run faster, wondering what to eat so that it doesn't affect my running, and going to bed early so I can run the next day.
I must say I'm officially addicted. I admit it is a good addiction, as long as my body can take it but it is still funny to me. I hated running when I was younger. I hated that feeling of being out of breath. I now love to get to that point where I can barely breathe. It is a feeling of accomplishment.
I am in the middle of training for a marathon and look forward to my runs. I ran 16 miles last week and it felt awesome. I wasn't sore the next day and I went faster than I ever had before with that many miles. I have set a goal to run 5 marathons before I turn 40. I have a feeling I will do more than that. I think 2 a year is a good goal, along with a few half marathons added in. Anna, my neighbor and friend has motivated me to run and I hope that I can do that too.
My sister is now running and I know she will get to the point when she wants to run a half marathon. She is doing the 10k in Wenatchee when I do my marathon. I am so proud of her. She has come along way. It is fun to see my great friend Amy running. She has lost over 50 pounds and is running all the time. You both rock and I love that you have the determination to keep going! The sky is the limit!
I'm passionate about running and it feels good. I love just running and feeling the fresh air in my face. I love having so many friends that I can run with. They help and inspire me to keep going!
If you have ever thought you couldn't do something, think again. This was the farthest thing from my mind even 5 years ago. I would have said you were crazy to be running a marathon. Well, I guess the joke is on me and I am the crazy one!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cw5MHsO-JI8

Musuem of Flight with Connor's class

2011-01-28T09:32:00.001-08:00

On Tuesday I went on a field trip with Connor's 6th grade class. It was fun for the kids and I was glad to be able to go. Connor was so sweet. As all the kids went to the back of the bus and I sat in the front(so I wouldn't puke) Connor didn't hesitate to sit by me and talk to me the whole way there. I love that he is so sensitive and that he is not afraid to show he loves me.

These were the kids I was in charge of. Thankfully I didn't lose any of them!:)

This is the whole class:

Connor loved the simulator ride. He would have kept going on it if it weren't $5 a ride.

Mom's 60th Surprise Party!

2011-01-26T11:56:00.000-08:00

I've thrown surprise parties before and usually the person I am throwing it for finds out or has suspicions of a party. I could tell by the look on my mom's face when she walked in my door, she had no idea. It was perfect! Mindy and I pulled it off. My mom deserves the best and hopefully she thought it was! Her sister and brother-in-law came from Yakima and then we had some family and friends that live around here. My dad helped by keeping it quiet and getting her here without spilling the beans!

Pictures were taken by Kaylee. She was the photographer for the night. Thanks Kaylee!

She is a little shocked!

Hugs were all around! My mom and her sister Teri!

The party planners!

Mom and Dad! Don't they look so young for 60? I think so!

Doug, Mindy and Shay

Mom opening the personalized water globe we gave her. It has a picture of the grandkids in it with a inscription on the bottom.

My mom and I are very close. I pretty much talk to her everyday. She is always there with helpful advice or to just let me vent about something. She is encouraging and strong. She has to come to almost every single one of my races and it makes me so happy to see her at the finish line. It means a lot to me. I can count on her for anything. If we need help with the kids, she is there. No questions asked! I know she loves me and I love her.

I remember a day not too long ago that she showed up at my house with my dad and sister.My sister sent the kids upstairs and I knew something was wrong. They said they had to tell me something and I knew it was bad. I was scared to death and I didn't even know what it was. My mom then told me she had Leukemia. I felt like my world came crashing down.

After a lot of prayer I really felt like everything was going to be ok. My mom is strong and I knew she would be able to get through this. My mom means so much to me. I didn't want to see her in pain.

I'm happy to say almost 2 years later she is doing very well. She takes medication everyday and goes in for regular checkups. I know she will be around for a very long time!

I love you Mom!

Respect Award

2011-01-24T15:11:00.000-08:00

Connor received the award for respect this month. It makes me proud to know that he is being respectful at school.(since it doesn't always happen at home!)
He really is a good boy most of the time. I can't believe he is going to Junior High in the fall. Crazy!

Not a good picture but had to note his friend Ellie(far left). I think he will marry her someday. They have been in the same class for 4 years. They have always been friends and I think it's cute. One day Connor forgot his lunch and Ellie came to the rescue and shared hers. I thought that was so sweet!:)

Good Job Connor!