1st grader!!

Yep, that's right!  My baby is a first grader!!  For those of you that understand the importance of that...HUGE!  First grade means ALL DAY.  She catches the bus at 8:50a.m. and doesn't get home until 3:45pm.  The first week of school was a little rough but we made it through it!  Brooklyn LOVES school and whenever it's summertime or even the weekend she's asking when she gets to go back to school, so I knew she was really excited about it.  The first little hiccup was the bus driver...oh boy the bus driver.  Last year Brooklyn's bus driver was one of her favorite parts about Kindergarten.  He was a little old man who told jokes, made them laugh, and was just plain sweet.  This year, NOT THE CASE.  The first day of school he was super late because he made them have assigned seats (which Brooklyn didn't get to sit by one of her best friends so they both got off of the bus in tears over that)  on the way home from school the first day I witnessed the bus driver SCREAMING (like in your face, shaking. spit everywhere kind of screaming.  I counted 4 little kids crying off of the bus.  He didn't yell at Brooklyn ever but it scared her so bad that during the next 3 prayers that was all her and her brothers prayed about "Pls help Brooklyn's bus driver to be nice.") which I DID NOT LIKE.  So as soon as I got home I called the transportation dept. and complained.  They called me back the next morning and come to find out 12 moms had been into their office THAT MORNING complaining about the same thing.  To make a long story short, the head of the transportation department called me and apologized over and over.  They had cameras on the bus so saw his behavior and reassured me he would no longer be the bus driver.  Yep, when the Ma-Ma bear claws come out..!  Brooklyn got the teacher I was hoping for so I was super happy about that, BUT, 2 days before school she had her baby!  So Brooklyn has a sub (which she was nervous about as well) but then on top of that, the school decided that there were to many 1st graders in each classroom so were randomly going to select a few students from each class and make another 1st grade class with them.  Brooklyn was terrified she was going to get switched into the other class but we made it through and she gets to stay with her sub/teacher so she's a happy camper!  Her teacher is only out for a few weeks so I'm super excited she got this teacher and can't wait to watch my little girl learn to her heart's desire!  So, now that all of that is over and we are a little more settled, this next weeks should be a lot better.  She's having a little bit of a hard time adjusting to how long 1st grade is and comes home exhausted...and STARVING.  But besides that she loves it and can't seem to talk enough about it.

The week before school started I started thinking about how crazy it is that I have a 6 year old already.  I can't believe my only daughter is officially in full on school now!  I know how nervous she was to start school so to surprise her I went and bought her a beautiful silver Tinkerbell necklace.  The morning before she left I gave it to her and explained how proud of her I was and how much mommy and daddy love her.  That this necklace was to be a reminder for her during the day of how much she is loved, and if she ever gets nervous just to hold on to the Tinkerbell charm and it will make her nerves go away.  She of course LOVED it, and I kid you not that girl wheres it everywhere.  She now believes there is magic power in it that helps her feel better, so she won't take it off!  ha ha

Brooklyn is the best sister ever and such a big helper to me!  I miss her like crazy during the day, and sometimes get a little tired of the wrestling, ninja turtle, action hero conversations during my days now instead of our daily dance parties and talk about hair , barbies, baby dolls and all of the important girls stuff!! But I do lover hearing about how much fun she had at school and all of the fun friends she is making at recess.  She loves eating lunch at school and loves sharing all of what she learned that day when she gets home.  It's an amazing thing to watch your kids grow up right before your eyes.  It's funny being parents because sometimes I can't wait for my little ones to get a little older so they aren't so much work, but then they start to get older and I want to freeze time so they will stop growing up!  Thank you to all of the friends and family out there who are are an influence in my kids' lives and help them along the way...it definitely takes a village.  Thank you Brooklyn for being such such a good girl, a peacemaker, an example to your brothers and friends, for having such a positive attitude and for your tender little heart that melts mine every day.  Your daddy and I hope that you have a love for school and realize how important school and your education is even at this age. We want the best for you and hope you always choose the right and see the good in everyone. WE LOVE YOU, thank you for being our everything!  Here are a fun few facts about my little princess that at this age:

-Loves the color blue

-Loves dance but also loves soccer, riding her bike, and swims like a fish

-Is always the tallest in everything she does gradwise because of her legs that go on for days

-Has the most beautiful hair in the world and every person that sees it or trims it for me comments on how thick it is.  Something you will probably hate while you're younger but love as you're older. 

-Wants a dog and asks daily for one.  (which we are hoping to accomplish after this winter)
-You get along with pretty much everyone you play with, but as of right now the two you play with the most are Marissa and Bailey.
-You are such a beautiful girl and love getting all dressed up, going to dance class, but at the same time you are SUPER athletic and love playing sports
-Favorite Princess..you like them all, but you love Tinkerbell and her little blue friend Silv
-Favorite Movies: You like alot but as of right now it is Rio and Nomeo and Juliet.
- You can be super timid and shy but at the same time went to Lagoon with us yesterday and went on the White Rollar Coaster, The Colassus, and Wicked...the 3 scariest rides in the park. We had so much fun with you!
-You have a very tender heart and it breaks pretty easy if mom looses her temper with you or if another adult or child gets upset or says anything mean to you. 

-You love animals and want to keep everything as a pet.  This summer that has included our friendly Toad we found in your windowell (Loala the toad that mom fried to death by leaving it out on our table in the back yard) every grasshoper known to man, and I'm pretty sure every rollie pollie in our backyard has been put in a jar somehow. 

- You love being the only girl but still beg mom on a daily basis to have another baby in hopes that it's a girl...good luck convincing your Dad on that one my dear!

-Favorite food: Ham and cheese sandwhich with Miracle whip.  You want it everyday for lunch and if I put Mayo on it you gag and can tell on the first bite!

-Love your mom and dad and the famous two phrases around here, "Love you to the moon and back." and "Best Friends Forever."

*Love you baby!


Waiting for the Bus!

 Cheese!

Brooklyn and one of her best friends Bailey.  These two were inseperable the first week of school.  I have never seen to little girls hold hands so tight in my life.  Thanks to Bailey for helping Brooklyn get around and helping witht he nerves!

Getting on the bus!

Mom taking random class pictures on the first day after having driven down to the school and watched her get off of the bus, walk to her classroom and get settled in.  Trying to make myself leave was the harderst part!

Weddings, Family Reunions, etc..

Well the summer has come to an end! Bitter sweet I know, but we did have a great summer and here is a quick  highlight of what we were up to!  Ben's Brother Jake got married in Arizona in July so Ben and i drove up without kiddos and went to the wedding.  It was so much fun to just get away with just the hubby and to go to Arizona.  It was 114 degrees and miserable outside!!  Although, it was definitely a beautiful place, I loved the palm trees..they're my fav!  Jake and Summer were married at 12:30pm so we were taking pictures right after during the hottest part of the day!!  You couldn't even breathe normal because the air was just so so hot, my lungs were not used that!  Of course while we were all dying of heat and not loving the sun beating down on us my husband makes the comment, " I don't know what you guys are talking about, it's not even hot." (He LOVES the heat and would move to Phoenix in a heartbeat!)  The reception was so fun and event though the 12 hour drive killed my back, it was fun being able to go on a road trip not having to worry about what snacks were being spilled all over the place or who needed to stop every 2 min to go potty.  2 weekends after that was the Fullmer reception so it was in Rexburg, Idaho.  We drove down for that too, kids in tact this time, and they loved it.  Summer's colors were so pretty and they held in in a neighbors backyard...it turned out BEAUTIFUL.  Dru of course was OUT OF CONTROL, tipping over every flower pot he could find, or pulling ever table cloth he could get hands on off, crying every 5 min over falling down or crying because he wanted every person's cupcake he saw them eating.  I lasted 2 hours and then off to Grandmas for bed we went.  It was a super fun weekend having the whole fullmer clan home (6 kids in the family, all married, and 3 have kids so it was quite the event having everyone home all together.  So much fun and whenever I go to Ben's it makes me want to have another baby!  I love the big families!  All of his siblings get along so well and it's a riot when we all get together, I love it!  Then I come back to reality when I'm back home, paying for school clothes, dance, T-ball, doc appts, groceries...and I don't know how people do it with that many kids! 

The other family event we just got home from was the McSpadden family reunion!  Every year during the first weekend of August my dad's family gets together and we have so much fun.  This year we went to Park City.  My uncle rented this AWESOME cabin that slept 25 people that was in the heart of the Mountains and was beautiful!  It was close to a lake, which we played in all day that Friday.  Between all of the uncles there were 3 boats, so we had a blast.  My uncle of course suggested me, my mom, and my sister Kyli tubed in this huge couch like tub he had, so we did.  The water was SOOO choppy that day and I had no idea what I was getting myself into.  I kid you not, we were thrown around like rag dolls!  Finally after a good 15 min. run we hit a wave that was larger then Niagara Falls, flew a good 10 ft in the air and that was the end of it.  I couldn't MOVE my neck for a good week after that experience!  The next day the guys golfed, the girls shopped...pure bliss.  From there I headed to Boise with my fam for the week.  My sister Taucia who wouldn't make it to the family reunion met us there too and we had a great time.  I love that my kids are getting to the ages where they can sleep pretty much wherever and for the most part all sleep through the night..a stage I am thoroughly enjoying!  The week consisted of my mom doing all of our hair of course, a few good runs with my little sister Kyli along with some bike rides around the hood where my mechanical skills came in place quite a few times as her bike chain fell off multiple times. (it was hilarious actually and I was laughing so hard I was crying)  my kids playing with my parents dogs which have lead to to mom and kids wanting a puppy (which there has been allot of talk of getting a Fullmer puppy sometime after Christmas which the kids are thrilled about).  The highlight of the Boise trip was Roaring Springs water park for sure.  We played for hours and hours there and my kids could NOT get enough.  Brooklyn even went on some of the big slides and had a blast!

As you can see it's been a great summer!  I love summertime but was definitely ready for the school year to start and am even a little excited for fall...it's getting to hot for my liking. Thanks to all of the family members who helped with my kids during the trips all of the attention they received...they were spoiled rotten!  I am so lucky to have such wonderful family/extended family and miss you al already!

xoxo

My handsome Talon bug in his sweet little wedding tux..love this boy

Heart breaker anyone?  Yes, he is a stud, I have to say so myself.

My handsome baby boy.  Still cannot believe he is already one and all over the place..officially out of the baby stage..not sure how I feel about that!

My sweet Brooklyn girl..she just started 1st grade believe it or not and I miss her so much all day!! This is the first year she is gone ALL DAY and she is loving it ...mom misses her little helper though and is now stuck at home with all of these boys!! She's at such a fun age though and I'm loving her grow up and all of her fun little stages.

So..we were at the Mesa temple and Ben thought these cactus' were pretty sweet so wanted some pictures by them.  He was cracking me up because he's never super admiment about things but this was one thing he wanted for sure, a picture my the cactus.  So funny

The happy couple!  They are so adorable and so in love, it was fun watching them start their new life!

While we were there we went to visit one of my BEST friends Shellee!  They have been living in Phoenix for a long time now and she has been wanting me to come visit forever...so we finally did!  This girl is quite the trooper lately, she just brought home her adorable baby Brock from the hospital 2 weeks ago, but in this pic he was still in the hospital diagnosed with spina bifida.  It has been quite the roller coaster ride for this little family with baby boy not home yet, mom having MULTIPLE MAJOR surgeries over and over and Grandma taking over.  (Thank goodness for them!) It was so much fun just vising with her though in her BEAUTIFUL home and having some much need high school friend time!  Miss you Shell, thanks so much for making some time for us!

 Uncle Jake and Aunt Summer!! We LOVE Summer!  (and Jake of course! haha!)  She is the PERFECT fit for the family and I couldn't be happier with my new sis in law!

 Here is my one year old trying to figure out what this feeling of mud between his toes is.  He was hilarious that weekend, I loved watching him and all of his reactions to all the new things he was experiencing.  Such a good boy he is!

My amazing little sister Kyli!  I'm still trying to figure out how this once "little girl who I used to have to babysit ever Friday night when I was younger and chased me around the house all of the time" is now a super hot athletic babe who I adore more then anything!  She is truly an amazing girl and even though there were a few cat fights with all 3 of us sister home that next week..we made it through it and we still love each other!  Ha ha...oh that's another blog story for another day! haha, love you sister!!

 Love her!

 The McSpadden clan! Growing every year!

 Can you tell these 2 are brothers...I think so!

Talon loving his life jacket and not wanting to get out of the water...ever!

 Hey mom, watch me dance...for the 100th time today!  This little girl is quite the ballerina and can't wait to start her combo class next week!...mom can't wait either!

 Best friends..lucky for me they love each other and have been good kids this summer.  I still can't believe how fast time is going by and how big my kids are getting!

 Um dirty much?  Look at the adorable face...can't help but love those cheekies!

 There we go, all cleaned up! These huge white things were balloons they hung from the trees, but not before my little Dru B. got his hands on them and popped a good 3 or 4 first!

 Daddy time!  Dad has been quite the busy guy lately and seems to pass by more then we'd like..but when he is home, it's playtime at it's best!  We love him and am so grateful or all he does for our family and for they amazing dad/husband that he is!



My baby is one!!

Wow where has this year gone?!?! I still feel like it was yesterday when I found out that I was
pregnant with Dru, now my youngest baby just turned one years old!! Dru has been the biggest blessing (as are all of my children) in my life and I honestly can't imagine my life without him. He has always been such a happy boy and has added so much joy and happinesss into our family. I thought it would be fun to take a trip down memory lane so here it goes!
All 3 of my pregnancys before Dru have been different. I went a week over mydue date with Brooklyn before they started me, Austin came SUPER fast the day before I was scheduled to be induced, they induced me a week early with Talon, and Dru came 2 weeks early. Ben found out a few months before I had Dru that he was going to have to go to California for 1 week 2 days after my due date, come home for 1 day and then leave for Singapore for 3 weeks. I was super nervous I wasn't going to have Dru by then so 2 weeks before my duedate, explained our dilema, so the doc decided to strip my membranes and see if that would do anything. Everyone I talked to said it didn't do much for them and it was super painful so at first I wasn't going to do it but then decided it wasn't going to hurt anything to try so we did it! (it wasn't really that painful by the way) I don't think Ben has called me more in his life during that time. "Are you ok?" "Any change?" "How are you feeling?" But nothing had changed by the next day so we were a little discouraged. The second day after having had them stripped I woke up in the night having lots of contractions but they kept going away so I kind of ignored them. Ben had a metting that night that he really didn't want to go to so called me around noon that day and said he was coming home and we were going into the doc just to see what the doc said and it would give him an excuse to get out of his meeting..ha ha! ON THE WAY TO THE HOSPITAL, I started having pretty hard contractions. Once I got into the doc I was at a 4 and the nurse admitted me in...good thing Ben jusd "decided" that we were going in or it could have been another "Austin Birth." They gave me my epidural and after they did that everything kind of stopped. I went HOURS of having no contractions and being so done with the whole waiting game. I know that is SOO normal for most girls having their babies, but the longest birth I have ever had was Brooklyn and it was only 4 hours..and this was my FOURTH!! By 8pm that night they decided to break my water and see what happened...sure enough right after they did that it was go time!! Something I have never had happen happened though and I had the WORST labor shakes ever. I guess it's when your body is in shock and i just started shaking like a leaf! They put blankets on me to see if the warmth would help but nothing worked. My teether were chattering, my hands, legs, whole body was shaking like crazy..so weird. I don't know if it was because I had never had that happened or what but I got super nervous/scared and wanted my mom!!! haha! My parents were out of town during this time (which they were super upset about) but Ben parents were on their way from Idaho so I told them to come on up and I wanted them there!! I'm really close to Ben's family, and even though some thought it was weird, Ben's mom was the best comfort during that time (besides my husband of course!!) and having a mom there with me was so nice! Right as they got there i started pushing and here he came!! The doc made me super nervous because I guess the cord was wrapped around his little neck and his heart rate started going up like crazy, so snip snip and out came my baby boy...BRIGHT BLUE!! Oh my goodnes it scared me to death when I first saw him. I kid you not my first reaction was pure panic, I had NEVER seen a baby look like that and he wasn't making any noises. After a few rub downs and patting and flipping over a few times I finally heard the best sound in the world...my little man's first cry! I only got to hold him for a few short seconds and then they rushed him off to get him some oxygen. Of course that worried me and I made Ben go with them so he wasn't alone and would know what was going on. About a half an hour later they brought him back good as new..I was the happiest mommy in the world. He was perfect. TONS of black curly hair!! None of my babies had hair so this was new for me and I was so excited!! 6lbs 14 ounces 19 in. long, so my smallest baby as well! He was adorable and I cannot put into words the joy of holding the newest member of your family and how much happiness I had with just me, Ben and our new little Dru during that moment. This is FOR SURE something I will soooo miss about having babies. The hospital experience is my fav for sure. The other kids of course loved him and LOVED having a new brother in the fam.
You would think after having 4 kids I would have the whole "baby thing" down pat...wrong. I kid you not, it is like starting over all over again with every single one. Up all nights trying to figure out why they don't sleep, trying every bottle in the box along with 5 different binkies, nights and days mixed up, pure panic going out in public for the first few months, a few panic attachks here and there etc...I don't know if it's because I knew this could possibly be our last baby, but I did have a lot more patience and was able to get through the rough nights/days alot better this go around. I actually even enjoyed that time most nights to be honest. After a few months he started to get the hang of it and we worked it out!! And NOW..he's ONE!!
For Dru's birthday we just did the simple cake and ice cream, a few gifts and called it a night! It was pretty funny actually because I was trying to get him to rip the presents open and instead all he wanted to do was crawl away and attack my bows I had just made for Brooklyn. He's walking all over the place now, getting into EVERYTHING, and is quite the little destoryer. BUT, he takes 2 AWESOME naps a day, hardly ever wakes up at night, laughs and smiles constantly, and loves his food so he has been tons of fun.
Thank you for being such a good boy Dru, mommy and daddy love you more then you can EVER imagine. You make my mornings the brightest with that huge smile and jumping up and down in the crib as soon as you see me. You make daddy's night every night when he comes in that back door from work and you speed crawl while laughing hysterically until you get to him because you are SO excited to see him. And you make Brooklyn's day EVERY DAY when you let her cart you around like her little doll and chase your brothers around grabbing at their heels while they laugh cosntatnly. You have made our family complete and we love you so so much!!!

Me and ma-ma Fullmer with Talon
















Here he is!


















Look at those little feet...not so little anymore!

















A few newborn pics

First day home from the hospital TRYING to wake up

Talon, "Mom, when is this baby going back to
the hosptial?"..we did deal with a little sibling

jelousy with Talon but he did pretty good.

Brooklyn helping Dru open a present

Dru's first haircut!! Grandma McSpadden dida great job!

Mom was sad to see his curly locks

go, but he looks like such a big boy now!

Ben and Dru..daddy loves this kid, and LOVES

that he's a daddy boy...for now!

Mommy helping me after having demolished my

birthday cake!

Dru LOVES my cell phone. Every chance he gets

he holds it up to his ear and just yells at the top

of his lungs, it's pretty cute.

Yum!!! So I mad this cake for Dru that was

just one of those cheap box cakes because

our family isn't a huge cake fan and I knew it

would just go to waste. Well while I wasn't looking,

after I gave him a piece on his tray, he grabbed

the WHOLE pan and started going to town. I

took it away from him because I thought he

was going to make himself sick. Oh boy...

screams and tears like you have never heard

or seen before!!!

Did I mention he gets into EVERYTHING. In

this pic he managed to pull out the broom, dump

out a whole sack of Swedish fish, eat some, and

look cute doing it.

My little sister the state champ!!!!!!

So I know this is old news to alot of you, but I never was able to post on my blog about it so wanted to make sure I did real fast!
Yes, that is right, my amazing little sister is officially a state champ!!! Kyli May McSpadden placed first in THREE events during state track this year! The 100, the 4x1 relay, and the 4x4 relay. Not to mention she placed 2nd in the 200m!! She's seriously amazing and it blows my mind how athletic this girl is!! I think my biggest dilemma this year was having to miss state and was not able to watch these races live. I had previously signed up for a marathon that was the SAME weekend as state track this year. If I hadn't been training all year long then I would have just dropped it and went to state instead. I even had plans to still go to state because it was Thursday/Friday and my race wasn't until Saturday. The problem was getting back in time to check in for the race Friday night, not getting into Utah until around 1 or 2 am and having to wake up at 4am to catch the shuttle for my race up the canyon. I actually was going to do that and then came the back problems. 3 weeks before my race I was in the midst of switching out winter/summer clothes for my kids and pulling bins out of the garage. While my kids were watching a movie I went out in the garage to get some bins, bent over to lift one and had the SHARPEST pain radiate through my entire back like I have never felt before. I couldn't stand up, I couldn't sit down, I couldn't move!! Brooklyn walked up right after it happened and went and grabbed the phone for me. I called Ben and just started bawling that I was seriously hurt, and I don't know if was so much the pain or knowing I had a marathon in 3 weeks and had been training forever for it and now might not be able to run it that made me so emotional. He called my friend Jilll and told her to run over until he could get home, and during that time my other neighbor called to ask me a question and all I could do was cry so she ran over. Along with my neighbor across the street seeing all of this happen she ran over as well, so I had 3 wonderful women helping me until Ben got home. ( i know, I have the best friends/neighbors in the world!) I just sat on the end of my couch and could not believe how bad I hurt. During this time Jill decided to call one of our paramedic friends for advice who lived just a few houses down and he ran over to check it out. I WAS SO LUCKY HE WAS THERE!!! He showed up just a few minutes before Ben and was describing what it could be and what he suggested I should do. Right as he was doing that Ben walked in and knew I was in bad shape. As soon as he walked up to me I started feeling super light headed and dizzy, said so, and the next thing I knew I was waking up to Ryan and Ben leaning over me in my living room trying to wake me up. I started panicking and hyperventilating, couldn't breathe, started shaking like crazy, and my hands started doing this weird thing where i had no control over them and they were cramping up. (guess that's what happens when you're body isn't getting enough oxygen.) I then heard Ryan yelling to Jill to call 911 and before I knew it I was being injected with Morphine, and being carried out onto a stretcher. The guy in the ambulance was super nice, gave me some oxygen and calmed me down to where I was somewhat coherent. He started talking to me about my kids, Ben, my life out in Saratoga...but after a few minutes I started thinking about my marathon, who had my kids while this was all going on, what if this happened or that happened, etc...and I started hyperventilating again. The ambulance guy gave me some more oxygen, calmed me down and all was good again. So weird.
So off to the hospital we went. I was hooked up and given all sorts of weird drugs which I HATE! The feeling of not having control over my own body is the worst to me and to tell you the honest truth, the only thing I really remember about the hospital was the nurse asking me if I could be pregnant, me freaking out and saying, "I better not be!" Crying to my Dad about what was going on with him trying to calm me down on the phone, and Ben and Jill visiting with me until I passed out from all of the drugs. The next few days were a blurr. My mom came and stayed with me but I can't remember most of it. I was brought dinner every night by some wonderful friends, but still wouldn't be able to tell you who brought what or when then came, etc..I guess I pretty much just slept and stared at people with a blanke look for 3 days, ha ha.
Anyways, I ended up going to a spinal doctor who said I have something super common which is called degenerative disc disease? I guess a ton of people have it that don't even know they have it and it doesn't even affect most. It's when the spaces between your vertebra's are to spaced out so it causes back pain and some back spasms. He told me I probably wasn't going to be able to run and of course I cried like a baby the whole way home.
The next morning I went to the physical therapist and he was my saving grace. He had me lay down on my back and put both of my legs out to where my toes meet...wow, my right leg was like 5 inches longer then my left. He had me do a few stretches, pushed and pulled on me here and there and before I know it I heard the LOUDEST pop I have ever heard in my life. Yes it killed, but it was like INSTANT relief all of the sudden. Come to find out I had a SI joint come out and along with the disc disease, the joint that popped out had caused me to have a hard core back spasm. He told me to come in every day that week and we would see if he could get me running by the end of the week. The thing I liked about this guy is he is a huge marathon runner so he totally knew where I was coming from so said, "I'm not going to tell you not to run anymore, that would be like telling you not to be happy anymore." I knew right then and there he understood and I had hope. By the end of the week it was like night and day difference and I attempted running. Funny thing, but it actually helped my back to loosen up and it felt great! I got alot of bad looks and some not very nice comments from people seeing me attempt to still do this after having been taken out on a stretcher..especially my family. My Dad made it very clear that if he got another phone call like that again he was going to be super upset, haha. But I survived and did it anyways!! If you're not a runner and didn't train for something for a year then you won't get it! I did it and was very happy I did it, I would have so regretted it if I didn't.

Anyways, back to my little sister, wow sorry for that tangent! Because of the whole back issue, I was nervous what my body would do on such little sleep with this now back problem I have to deal with so I made up my mind not to go. Let me tell you, I love my sisters more then anything in this world and knew before state even occurred that Kyli would probably win it all, so this was a big big deal that I wasn't able to go watch. Kyli has all of my old high school coaches and everything and I was so sad I wasn't going to make it. You can ask my parents, that phone call telling them I wasn't going to make it was pretty dramatic. I'm a pretty calm person until I hear either my dad's or Ben's voice...then it's all over if I'm upset about something. I couldn't even talk I was crying so hard. Kyli totally understood of course, but i was heartbroken!
The nice thing is i was still able to watch her run live online through idahosports.com, so I still got to see her kick everyones trash!! I don't think I have ever been so neverous for any races in my entire life, counting all of my high school and college races!! She did so awesome and I was the proudest sister in the world. Good thing she still has a year in high school so I can come watch her take home 4 golds next year!! She already has college scouts all over her and I love even more that they are all right now from Utah so I can come watch!
So So proud of you little sister, you truly are amazing!!

Here is Klyi recieveing her first gold metal and getting her picture taken by the Idaho Sportsman. They even had a reporter come and interview her after and posted a pretty sweet artcile in the paper about her. I could on and on about this girl!!

26.2 BABY!!

Yea I finally get to post about my FIRST EVER FULL MARATHON!! I First have to tell you that I have the most amazing husband that during all of this was so supportive and I could not have trained for this if it wasn't for his love and support. For those of you that don't know, training for a full marathon is SUPER time consuming. Towards the end of the training, Saturday runs took almost 4 hours. I tried to run as early as I could so I wouldn't take up all of our day but sometimes with this years crazy weather, kids' sports activities and husband's meetings and stuff, it was hard so I'm very grateful for all of that.
Ok, now one more thank you! To the amazing girl that talked me into running this that stuck by me this whole year while training! Without Jill Riley, I would have not have been running at 5 am in the freezing cold winter storms, rain or shine, sometimes so foggy we couldn't even see each other! Through IT band issues, back spasms that were so bad that even one time an ambulance had to come to my house and rush me away...crazy stuff. I have learned that I LOVED accomplishing such a big goal for myself and proving to myself that I was able to finish such something I thought was completely out of my reach. BUT, I also learned that training for a marathon is SUPER SUPER time consuming like I said earlier, so I think I'm going to stick to the half marathons...for now anyways! It's alot of wear and tear on your body running any farther then that and I definitely felt the results of that every weekend on our long runs. I would be so sore sometimes it would take me FOREVER to walk down my stairs. And come Sundays all I wanted to do was sleep the day away because I was physically so so drained!
Now for race day. Kind of frustrating because after all of that training, it actually wasn't my best race day. I didn't feel good from the start thanks to mother nature deciding to visit me a few minutes before, felt like I had no energy from the get go, and pulled a hamstring with about 5 miles still to go which is STILL affecting me. That's the thing about running though, you can train for something forever, but you never know what race day is going to bring..kind of annoying. Jill and I saw Ben and John and right before mile 7 where we were walking for a few to drink some water and take our first energy block. As we walked up to them my sweet husband says, "You're already walking? Are you going to make it?" He seriously thought we were supposed to run the ENTIRE thing and not walk. Seriously?!?! It just cracked me up because sometimes I feel like he doesn't even know me!! I have ran my whole life, but for those of you that don't know Ben, he HATES running!! Not once since we have been together has he ever gone running with me, and this was the FIRST race he has ever come to, so he couldn't understand why we were walking and drinking water..I still laugh when I think about it. And then to top it all off, my sweet Austin says to me, "Um mom...you're not winning." with the most confused look on his face. (p.s. there were over 2,000 runners JUST doing the marathon, let alone a half, a 10k and a 5k. So A TON OF PEOPLE!) Well thank you to the men in my life for having these huge expectations of me not stopping for 26.2 miles and winning the whole marathon....but not happening!! ha ha!
Anyways, as we ran though the Ogden Canyon it was GORGEOUS! It was actually a really beautiful run and I enjoyed that part a ton! By the last few miles Jill and I were both spent and pretty much talking each other through the rest of the race. And I have a few choice words for those who cheer people on during races. For those of you that don't know, during a race, when the runners have already ran 23 miles and you yell,"You're almost there! You only have a 5k left!"...worst thing you could ever say!! If I could have mustered together some energy during that part to talk during that time...I would have yelled at you all to stop saying that! 3 more miles is A LOT MORE when you have already gone that far! So as we turned down main street in Ogden, we were able to see the finish line which was a pretty sweet feeling. But, looking at my watch I knew it was still a whole mile away. LONGEST MILE OF MY LIFE!!! Thanks to Chanudi (who rocked this marathon by the way and even qualified for the Boston in it!) and her husband Scott, they were waiting at the mile marker to cheer me on. I was so thankful for that extra boost and was able finish strong. I was greeted at the finish with my sweet daughter running with me and my family at the end. I can't even tell you how much I love my in-laws by the way. My sister in-law Brittney and her little family live in Ogden so they came to watch, along with my mother in-law, and my brother in-law Jake with his fiance (now wife!! yea!) Summer. They were all so sweet congratulating me and making a big deal out of it. I love them all so much and was so grateful they were able to be there for me.
Sooo, that's it! Since then I have ran here and there, trying not to loose my mileage but at the same time I am a little burnt out running and still trying to stay motivated for my Red Rock Relay race I'm doing in September! Anyways, way happy I did it but way happy it's over!! 26.2!!!!


Thanks husband for all of the love and support!













Me and my side kick! She was seriously the best
person to have ran this with and we became such
good friends through the whole process. Thank
you so much Jill, I could not have done this
without you!













mile 7 looking for my extra energy blocks














Yea we did it!...and you can by the way I look

in these pics!!

Am I done yet??

The supportive fam

Here we come!

Me and Britt...thanks again so much!!

I heart you!!