The Race...sigh...

God has a sense of humor.

I spent 6 weeks training for this 5K. I was determined to do awesomely. My goal was to place, but if that was out of the question, I at least wanted to say I ran the entire 3.1 miles.

I didn't do either. But I'm okay with it.

It was 89 degrees and humid the day of the race. I might have grown up in Arizona, but heat and I have been enemies since I was a newborn (ask my mom about the BYU football game she took me to as a baby). In 70 degree weather I can run a 5K without even getting winded. At 89 degrees, I can't run without getting dizzy.

I also failed to anticipate one major factor in my competition: who in their right mind wants to run a 5K with a jogging stroller? That's right. Only moms who probably run a 7 or 8 minute mile without their strollers. When I saw the other three women with strollers, I knew there was no way I was going to place. But that's okay. It was for a good cause, and I had fun chatting with my friends (after the race--during the race I only had enough breath to pant out 'Hey' as I passed by).

I don't have any pictures because Debbie hasn't passed them off to me yet. But I'm determined to do better next year. And Seth and I will continue to run 2-3 miles a couple days a week.

Stupid 89 degree weather...

Picture Album

I'd like to share my Walmart Digital Photo Center photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.

This is for our family: If you want to look and tell me what pictures you want (size, number) I'll get them ordered for you.

They're HERE...

I LOVE Jon's face in this one...

Krystal, we love you.

25 Years of Wisdom, or How We Spent our Birthdays

I think I was 10 years old when I started thinking about my birthdays in longer intervals than 'next year I'll be 11'. I remember laying on my bed and figuring it out:

"In the year 2000, I'll be 15 years old
In 2005, I'll be 20.
And in 2010, I'll be 25!

Dang. 25 is really old."

And that's where it would end. I never kept going past 25.

So it's kind of an uncanny experience to reach the end of my childhood birthday calculations. Next year I'll be...26? That wasn't on my list!

It's not that I think 26 (or 25, for that matter) is old. Not at all. It's just that somehow it's become the boundary when a person goes from 'growing up' to 'grown up.' I'm not sure why this is a little scary for me. For Pete's sake: I'm already married with a kid and a house! How much more grown up can I get? I guess it's just the ending of an era, which is sad and exciting all at once.

Or maybe it's just that my Beehives laughed at me when I didn't know who Ne-Yo or Justin Biber were (or how to pronounce their names). Twenty-five and I'm already out of touch!

We were pretty mellow as far as birthdays go this year. Dinner at P.F. Chang's (tradition) followed by some homemade (by me) cheesecake at Debbie's (she and Nikki were babysitting Seth while we went to dinner). Jon's birthday was when the real fun started: Scott, Mary & Rebekah came to visit for the weekend!

The adorable Miss Rebekah

Not long after they got here, Scott confessed: "We didn't come just to see you guys. We really came so Rebekah could play with Seth."

Still figuring each other out--this was right after they got here

Rebekah observing Seth's tutorial on How to Throw Wood Chips

This girl loves balls. And getting both of them to look at the camera is a joke.

I was a little worried how the Seth-Rebekah dynamic would go, since Seth was rotten the first night (he was tired and Rebekah was in his chair at dinner. Bad combination). But the next day they were playing like best friends. Rebekah loved following Seth around, and Seth loved having someone to squeal with (and someone who didn't steal his toys or try to mother him like his other girlfriends). They really did play amazingly well together.

A cousin duet

It was a nice weekend--just hanging out and relaxing. Of course, we did rope them into coming to our ward Memorial Day Breakfast (I had to be there to help out with the games). But they survived. It was sad to see them go. Seth woke up from his nap and wandered around the house looking for 'Bekah.' Wish you guys lived closer!

How they spent Sunday afternoon--jumping on the bed and squealing like banshees
(which, coincidentally, is Mary's newest vocabulary word, thanks to our game of Cranium)

Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes and gifts! We were really spoiled this year. Jon got me (for my birthday/Mother's Day) a bike trailer so I can take Seth on rides. Woo hoo!! I got Jon a bunch of shirts. That's what he wanted: nice shirts and to not have to go with me to shop for them.

My bike trailer (which also doubles as a stroller). I love it!

And our BIG not-actually-birthday-but-happened-to-be-around-the-same-time gift? A king-sized bed! We are SO spoiled! The good news is that if you come visit us now, you can sleep in a queen sized bed on a frame instead of a full-sized mattress (no box spring) on the floor. We're moving up in the world! (Pictures to come once Lenae helps me finish picking out curtains that match the new bedspread).

Finally, thank you to everyone who offered advice on Seth's eating and leaf-phobia. We'll let you know how it works out!

And, for the grandparents (I don't expect anyone who isn't family to sit through this one): Seth and Rebekah having a blast together.

Help, please?

We need help. Our son is almost two, and it shows.

The fear of leaves that was so cute a month or two ago? It's gotten worse. Pieces of parsley in alfredo sauce? 'Yeeves.' Dead worms on the sidewalk. 'Yeeves.' Basically anything Seth doesn't want to eat (beans, potatoes, pasta, you name it)? 'Yeeves.' Today he stood on the sidewalk outside for 20 minutes because there was a single leaf on our steps. I refused to go get him. Eventually he braved the terrifying leaf and made it to the house, but not without many tears.

So here's the question: do I force him to deal with the leaf issue, or does that just traumatize him? Is this something I should just let slide because he'll grow out of it? Anyone else out there with a child who has totally irrational fears? For Pete's sake--at least I was afraid of wolves!

Issue #2: food. Our good little eater has begun a downhill spiral. At dinner tonight he wouldn't eat a single thing. So what do we do? Force him to eat? Keep offering him the food he rejected at every meal? Let him live on olives, Parmesan cheese and bread?

I know it's a phase, but it's a phase that my sisters and I didn't grow out of until college. Jon and family, on the other hand, ate all the good stuff growing up and (generally) liked it. So what do you do with your picky eater?

Any advice would be great. I'm already grilling my mom and trying to get Jon to grill his (it's not working too well). I love that little man, but sometimes he's a stinker!

One of These Things is not like the Other Things

We got back from the cruise to find a garden that was going crazy (thanks to Shawn and Krystal for watering it while we were gone). I was weeding around the strawberries when I noticed this:See that green-stemmed plant by the strawberries? Not a weed. It's a green bean sprout. Wondering how it got there? Here's your answer: Seth. I was planting the beans (NOT in the strawberries) and he wanted to help. I gave him a few seeds to play with. Next thing I know he has his little shovel out and is 'planting' them in the strawberries. I didn't really care since they were all on the surface and wouldn't grow. Apparently he got at least one buried well enough!

Now for some random updates:

The weekend after I got home from the cruise was our Stake Youth Conference (vacation is officially over--reality is back!). We were chaperons for three boys from the Chesapeake Ward, which was an interesting experience. No complaints, though. They were great. I got to spend Saturday afternoon with our girls, which was actually a lot of fun. They all had a good time.

The stake had rented out this blow-up obstacle course race for the kids. They had a great time for an hour or two, then had to go inside to get ready for the evening. Which left the course empty. Which meant it was Seth's turn for a go. I really thought he would hate it. I thought he would panic halfway through and Jon would have to carry him out. Wrong, wrong, wrong. The only panicking he did was when we made him leave.

Getting a little help from Daddy

One happy little boy going down the slide

Yesterday we had Debbie, Angelina and Olivia (a foster child they're temporarily taking care of) over to play. Of course, the first thing they headed for was the water table:

Needless to say, we spent the rest of the afternoon in our diapers. I love getting together with Debbie and her girls--the kids always play SO well together, which means Debbie and I get to sit and chat. It's awesome.

And I have Debbie to thank for this next picture, too:
That, my friends is my 'new' jogging stroller, passed along by Debbie. Her dad found it by a dumpster and brought it to her, but she never uses it. She offered it to me, and I definitely accepted. I actually have one that was given to me by another friend (I have AWESOME friends) but it's an older model of the same stroller. Neither of them are in great condition (the one in the picture has a duct-taped handlebar that's all sticky) but they work for running!

Which leads me to my final point (and by 'point' I mean complaint). I'm training for this 5K that I'm determined to place in. For the past month I've been slapping Seth into the jogging stroller at least 3 times a week and running 2-3 miles. And here's the thing that kills me--my time stinks. Absolutely stinks. I'm running more than a 10 minute mile (pathetic). The worst part? My time isn't getting better. It's the uphill that's killing me--pushing 50+ pounds of baby and stroller up a hill is going to slow you down. But seriously? 12 minute miles? I might as well be walking! I'm just praying the race is on level ground. Then I have a chance.

But I have 2 and a half more weeks. I'm pushing myself, trying to improve. Because I WANT TO WIN A PRIZE, DANG IT.

(There's not a competitive bone in my body, I swear.)

PS--See those MONSTER peas in the background of that picture? They have honestly grown at least a foot in the past week. So far, so good. Tomatoes are also looking good, and the beans. My spinach was a total disaster--the leaves turned yellow and it stopped growing. Darn. I'll try again in the fall.

For Old Time's Sake

Dear Ashlee and Rachelle,

Remember that freak blizzard that hit Logan just before I moved to Arizona (and Rachelle, didn't you move, too)?

Remember the huge snow pile that accumulated behind my house?

Remember how we turned it into a cave?

And remember this picture?

I just found it the other day and thought I'd post it for you. Sorry for the quality--it's definitely pre-digital camera era.

Man, being eleven was awesome. As long as I don't think too hard about what I wore or how I did (or, rather, DIDN'T do) my hair, that is...

I'm running a 5K. And so should you.

Remember this gem from last year?

Well, I'm doing it again. It's a fundraiser for the Inner Harbor Ward. The money goes to help their youth go to Girls' Camp and Scout Camp. There are prizes and raffle prizes donated by sponsors. Plus, you get a T-shirt!

The race is Saturday, June 12 at 9am. This time it's just in Forest Hill (only 30 minutes away) instead of the 90 or so minute drive last year. It's $20 to register. Go to www.active.com and enter the keyword 'junebug jitter'.

Here's the best part--this is a very, very low-key race. Last year there were only a few serious competitors. Mostly it's families with children doing a little running, some speed walking, and a lot of walking. So if you're not looking for a serious race, this is a good place to start. I ran it last year without any training, and I was in the first 1/3 of the racers to finish. So come run with me! It's a good cause!

Disclaimer: By 'come run with me' I mean come run silently next to me. I am not one of those cool people who can run 3 miles and still have breath left over for talking. Also, by 'run with me' I mean 'keep up with me.' I'm not waiting on you walkers--now that they have a separate category for 'women with strollers' I'm determined to place. How determined? I ran two miles this morning and tomorrow it will be three! So watch out, all the rest of you mommies with jogging strollers!

Why, yes. We are spoiled rotten.

As we were walking along the beach, I told Jon how spoiled I think we are. In less than five years, we've been on two cruises PLUS a two week vacation in Hawaii. Don't think we take it for granted--we know how blessed we are to have been able to do all this. But still--we're spoiled.

And so, for those who care, here's a recap of our adventure:

Wednesday April 28th

Seth and I survived a 5 hour flight from Baltimore to Phoenix. It was nothing short of a miracle--our flight was entirely full, with the exception of two seats. And guess who got one of those empty seats? Seth! Between having his own seat and and all my frantic prayers from the month previous, this was easily the best flight I've ever had with Seth. Absolute miracle.

Thursday April 29th--Sunday May 2nd

Seth and I loved spending some time in Tucson with my family. He loves all the toys Grandma spoils him with and all the animals to pester (two dogs, two cats). He's even picked up some new words: cactus, Bruce (one of the dogs), Mojo (cat), Bubba (Aunt Bethany) and lawnmower (Grandpa). Actually, 'lawnmower' isn't a new word, but that is now Grandpa's official name. That's what he gets for mowing the lawn the first day Seth saw him.

Monday May 3rd

My flight left Phoenix at 7:30 am, which meant Mom & I had to be up at 3:30am (flights into/out of Phoenix are much cheaper than Tucson, unfortunately). It was hard to leave Seth. I wasn't worried about him, but I felt guilty for leaving him without a mom and a dad. But I have to confess--flights without children are actually pretty relaxing.

My friend Joe was kind enough to pick me up from the airport and take me to the port. I showed up exactly the same time Jon did. Once we got settled, we headed off to explore the ship.

We've been on one other cruise (honeymoon, with Royal Caribbean). This time, because of cheaper prices and advice from the former cruise ship worker, Warnick, we were going with Celebrity. Warnick told us Celebrity was usually much quieter, with more places to be by yourself. Since Jon and I are anti-social, we liked that idea a lot. On Royal Caribbean there were ALWAYS hoards of people, wherever we went.
Our ship was the Celebrity Century, which is Celebrity's oldest (and smallest) ship. We didn't mind the older ship, and we loved the smaller size. What we didn't love was that we somehow ended up on a geriatric cruise. Okay, not really, but 60-70% of the other cruisers were over 60. And the ship catered to that. Meaning that breakfast started at 7 and that the pools (including the hot tubs) closed at 8pm. Our dinner seating was at 6pm, which meant by the time we got done, we were never able to get in the hot tub. That really ticked me off. Also, the basketballs in the court were totally flat and the ping pong table was broken. Which left shuffleboard, crossword puzzles and Sudoku. I think I read 5 books on this cruise, for lack of anything else to do. But I also realize that had we cruised on a ship with all the amenties (indoor pool, rock climbing wall, etc) we would have been packed in like sardines. So it was probably worth it. Except the hot tubs.

Tuesday May 4th

We were at sea this day, so we entertained ourselves by playing in the ship's gym (I'd never used an elliptical before), trying out the pool, and enjoying the first 'formal night.' I was excited to wear my new dress, and I'm sad we didn't get a good picture of the two of us. We had a woman from our table take some pictures, but she didn't get the full length.
And, my hairspray completely emptied itself all over Jon's luggage, so my hair is less than perfect. Meh.

Wednesday May 5th

First stop: Grand Cayman. Thanks to some insider advice from Warnick, we skipped the ridiculously expensive excursions and headed out on our own. And, thanks to Joe & Amber, we didn't have to pay for snorkeling gear. We have awesome friends.

Like our goggle marks?

Unfortunately, Hanauma Bay has apparently ruined snorkeling for us. After something as incredible as that, average snorkeling just doesn't cut it. But we had a good time just floating around. And I got to see some squid, which was cool (Jon missed them).We also bought Jon some sweet, sweet sunglasses. He forgot his at home. I just borrowed some from a sister (not sure which) since one of my Beehives stole mine.

Thursday May 6th

Second stop: Cozumel, Mexico. Instead of Playa Mia, which Warnick suggested, we went to Paradise Beach. It was cheaper and not as crowded, but for all I know we made a huge mistake and missed out on Playa Mia. I'm sure Warnick will let me know...Regardless, we had a really good time. We paid $12 each for wristbands that gave us unlimited access to kayaks, snorkeling gear, paddle boards, and all these water toys:
Unfortunately the trampolines were in desperate need of replacement, so that was lame. But we had lots of fun on the slides and the climbing wall thing. Oh, and trying to run across the strip between those two trampolines on the left. Very entertaining to watch.

I didn't get any pictures of us on the paddle boards, but here's what it would have looked like:I'm proud to say I never fell off! Jon, on the other hand... But I can't gloat too much--my board was wider and shorter than his, so it was much easier to stay up. This was probably my favorite thing we did that day, even though we were both really sore the next morning.

Additional benefits: AMAZING beef burrito and free Internet. Oh, and here's Jon in his new suit:
Friday May 7th

Third port: Playa del Carmen, Mexico. This was literally just a few miles from Cozumel (Cozumel is an island, Playa del Carmen is on the mainland). Absolutely the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen. They were long, shallow, warm, and the water was gorgeous:

Our ship from the beach

And here's us, all ready to take a swim:

Yep. After spending all day in the sun at Cozumel, our sunburned skin (despite repeat applications) needed a break. But you'd better believe I regretted that decision as soon as I saw the beach. Next time (wishful thinking) I will save my skin for Playa del Carmen.

Instead, we used this day to shop.
Blech. That's how we both felt about it. Neither of us are big shoppers, so the constant hounding from EVERY store we passed was really irritating. So was the feeling that we got really ripped off, despite getting a price that was 1/6 the "original" price. But I was excited to find a little carved elephant for Seth. My parents got me one when they took me and my sister to Tijuana as babies (an experience that still gives my mother the jibblies).

Basically, it was hot, humid and we spent more money than I wanted to. And we didn't get in the water. Not my favorite day of the cruise.

Saturday May 8th

Sea day! More Sudoku and crossword puzzles. And, of course, formal night #2. Which also meant Baked Alaska and roses for all the women (for Mother's Day):

Same black dress, different sweater...

Jon's really into this Latin thing. You should have seen the accompanying dance.

Another self-portrait

By this point we realized we're pretty rotten vacationers. We were tired of just relaxing and having nothing to do. I knew I would regret feeling that way as soon as I got back to reality, but still. If you don't drink or gamble, there's not that much to do on a cruise ship while it's at sea...

Sunday May 9th

Thanks to Warnick (again!) we had directions to the Branch on Key West. After a week on a cruise ship (Jon called it a "floating great and spacious building") we were dying for something spiritual. There ended up being two other LDS couples there from our ship, both from Utah of course. ;) We even stayed for all three hours, but only because we all wanted to share a van back to the ship. Had it been up to me we would have left after sacrament meeting, but I'm glad it wasn't up to me. I needed to be at church much more than I needed to be at the beach.

And that's exactly what happened. After church, the ride back to the ship, and lunch, we were running short on time. We grabbed our stuff and headed for the beach, only to find out that we had to pay to get in. We had no cash on us and there wasn't time to go back to get it. So no Key West beach for us.

A good summation of my feelings about missing the beach.

We went to the ship's pool instead, but it was a poor substitute. I was disappointed that we missed the beach on our last day of cruising.

Monday May 10th

After a final breakfast onboard, we got off the ship in Miami. We were supposed to meet up with Joe & Amber for lunch as a thank-you for all their chauffeuring, but Amber had some serious studying to do and couldn't make it (I'm still sad about that). Instead, Joe dropped us off at Miami Beach. We got to spend several hours there before our flights left. I was thrilled! Jon said it was my blessing for going to church the day before. It was a lovely beach day. We just relaxed in the water and walked around. Besides the part where I almost lost my wedding ring, it was perfect.

Jon on Miami Beach. And he really was excited to be there, I swear!

Of course, it wasn't until I got on the airplane that I realized I was roasted. Being a red-head is awesome sometimes.

Aunt Kay was sweet enough to pick me up from the Phoenix airport and entertain me until my mom could get there. Kay and her husband, Wes, are the Mesa Temple directors. It was good to see them--I don't think I've seen them since our wedding in 2005.

Seth was pretty shocked to see me the next morning. When I went in to get him he just stared at me. But then he spent the rest of the day being clingy and whiny. Poor kid. He finally gets used to the idea of his parents ditching him and then we come back! I was so happy to see him again. I missed my Monster Man!

I only had one full day in Tucson before we had to leave. My poor mom made so many trips to the Phoenix airport--I hope we were worth it, Mom! I paid her off in new blinds for her kitchen and bathroom, but that definitely wasn't enough. Thank you for being such a good Grandma! We'll spend lots of time on Skype so Seth won't forget you!

The flight home was decent. He didn't have his own seat or sleep at ALL (he had one 20 minute nap the entire day) but he was remarkably good. All the same, I was glad to get off that plane. Seth was more excited than I was--about 5 minutes before the plane landed he starting saying, "Daddy? Go. Daddy." He was so excited to see Jon.
And so we're back to real life now. It was the perfect vacation, and I'm glad we had the chance to do it.

PS--Should you see me in the hallway on Sunday and notice a slight pooch in my belly, let me assure you that it is NOT a baby. It is, in fact, the creme brulee and lobster bisque that I had EVERY NIGHT for dinner while on the cruise. You'd better believe I ate everything I wanted to--it's not like we'll be eating like that again!

Yardwork!

I remember as a kid meandering through my grandparents' garden, munching on raspberries and peas. There's nothing like plucking something straight out of the garden and plopping it in your mouth.

I also remember growing a garden at our house in North Logan. All I really remember getting out of it was some pumpkins, but I probably wouldn't have eaten anything that came out of it at that point (I was a monstrously picky eater until college).

But then we moved to Arizona right before I turned 12. And that was the end of my gardening experiences. Anything that will grow in Arizona will grow without much help (cactus, citrus trees, beautiful, poisonous flowers). But a standard garden? Not a chance.

After 13 years of having no experience with growing anything besides a pea plant for a Young Women (it never grew), I thought I wouldn't have much desire/talent. But it turns out that it's slightly addicting.

We started last summer with a tomato plant and a container of chives. We got lots of delicious tomatoes, and fresh chives (they're still going strong, one year later). So this year we decided to try a little more.

Since we're in a townhome with a tiny backyard, we can't have a legitimate garden. Instead, we do container gardening on our deck. So here's what we have growing this year:

Strawberries...


...and peas


Chives and dill weed
(and if you know anything about dill weed, you'll laugh at the size of my pot. Obviously I didn't do my research before I planted this one)


Spinach (behind) and green beans (we had issues with the first planting--it rained too much and the seeds all rotted besides this one. I just planted some more)


And one of our two glorious tomato plants. I'm so excited!

We also have a tiny little raspberry bush given to us by someone in the ward. I didn't get a picture, but at this point it's so tiny it won't be much to look at.

Besides gardening, we've spent our weekend doing yardwork. It's exhausting, but I really enjoy it. Here's what we were up to this weekend:

When we bought our house, the stairs up to the front door looked like this:

All the dirt under them had settled or eroded. You could see straight through to the other side. Not good.

Now our stairs look like this:We packed the space underneath the steps with rocks, pounded in a liner to keep said rocks in place, and then seeded all the dirt patches around the edges.

Jon's big project (besides the steps) was this:
See that lovely hose holder thing? It wasn't there before.
I'm so glad to finally have one. Maybe next year that bush will actually be able to grow since it won't be crushed by our hose...

And this was my big project:
I trimmed the stupid spiky bush on the left (it's beautiful, but nasty), and planted those mystery flowers. My neighbor was given a bunch of them and passed her extras on to me. We don't have any idea what they are. I know they're perennials (bulbs), and am fairly sure they're irises, but we probably won't find out until next year when they bloom. All I know is that they aren't daffodils. Thats the extent of my flower knowledge.

More mystery flowers around the tree (which I trimmed). I also mulched everything (with Seth's help). Seth's main jobs were to dig up what I already planted and to scatter grass seed where it wasn't actually needed. He was very proficient at both...

On an unrelated topic: is it possible to be addicted to running? It's the strangest thing--I loathe running, despite every attempt to convince myself to like it (I think this is partially because I have exercise-induced asthma and I start wheezing like an old horse). The whole time I'm doing it, I can't wait to be done.

But the past week I've been running several times with Seth in the jogging stroller. The run is about a mile and a third, and about half of it is uphill (ish). My time isn't impressive, but it's getting better. But I hate running.

So here's my question: why do I want to do it? Why am I looking forward to running tomorrow? I hate running, but I love how I feel after I'm done.

See, Kellie? All that running in Texarkana wasn't totally wasted on me...