tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-241428442024-03-14T02:22:02.772-07:00Breakfast With AliciaAliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.comBlogger195125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-46580990392426498382012-05-30T18:41:00.001-07:002012-05-30T18:41:58.704-07:00Coop's last day of kindergarten.You expect to be emotional when dropping them off on their first day of kindergarten but the emotions you feel on their last day is unexpected! lol Congrats to my baby boy, Coops! He is growing up!<br />
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<br />Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-47472767092487193492012-01-02T14:45:00.000-08:002012-01-02T14:45:20.447-08:00It's 2012! Happy New Year!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ianO-6oomus/TwImPRpt5eI/AAAAAAAABxQ/tj0pAtoFMGI/s1600/2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ianO-6oomus/TwImPRpt5eI/AAAAAAAABxQ/tj0pAtoFMGI/s400/2012.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>I stopped by my blog today just to check out how I did on last year's resolutions. One of them was to post to this blog 2-3 times a month. Well, I did post 3 times in 2011 so I'd say that's a <strike>great big success</strike> huge FAILure! Oh, well. Resolutions were made to be broken, right?<br />
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2011 really was a great year for us. Personally, I ran 3 marathons, 2 half marathons, a 10k, 3 5ks and Ragnar. I raised money for a fantastic teacher while training for my last marathon and I qualified and joined the Marathon Maniacs. I've also made some new friends, read lots of good books and thoroughly enjoyed my first year back as a primary teacher. <br />
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Our vacations were short but fun. As a family, we went to St. George, Disneyland, Park City, Lagoon for a couple days and even flew to South Carolina for Thanksgiving. As a couple, Will and I went to San Francisco and I also spent a few days with my girlfriends in Southern Utah. Will got away to Vegas with his buddy Seth for a couple days, too.<br />
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Coleman and Cooper continue to grow and I continue to struggle with the internal conflict of being happy to watch them grow vs. being sad that I can't stop time and have them be my "little" ones just a bit longer. Coleman is insightful and kind. Cooper is energetic and precarious. They couldn't be more different and each year that passes proves it even more. I love being a mom. I am in love with those kids. They. Are. Everything.<br />
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Well, this wouldn't be a proper New Year's post without at least a couple resolutions so here goes-<br />
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<strong>In 2012,</strong><br />
<ul><li><span style="color: #b45f06;"><strong>I will continue running throughout the year and run at least 2 marathons.</strong></span> (A good number since that is how many I'm signed up for already.) My foot is injured and I'm not sure how well I'll be running once I get back to it so no time goals for now.</li>
<li><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">I will work on magnifying my callings at church</span></strong> (my current callings are primary teacher, yw asst camp director and visiting teacher). I will focus on making sure my primary kids, the young women and the ladies I visit teach know I love them through acts of service and kindness. </li>
<li><strong><span style="color: #0b5394;">I will apply to go back to school</span></strong> and start finishing what I started all those years ago.</li>
<li><strong><span style="color: #741b47;">I will focus on the health of my family</span></strong> and be sure to feed them healthy, well thought out meals and set a good example for my boys with my own healthy habits.</li>
<li><strong><span style="color: #990000;">I will build my food storage</span></strong>, buying at least one thing a week to add to it <u>and</u></li>
<li><strong><span style="color: #351c75;">I will find and maintain balance in my life</span></strong>, remembering that, when I put my Father in Heaven first, He will help me to keep things in perspective.</li>
</ul>I kinda' feel like I should be saying amen after all that. Haha. Nothing like setting new goals to remind you what's really important. <br />
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I'd say that's a good list for now.<br />
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Happy 2012, all!Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-55803795401194370282011-04-18T01:32:00.000-07:002011-04-18T01:32:29.570-07:00California Dreamin'We had originally scheduled our trip to California for the first week of March but I *still* had to flu (after 2 weeks!) so we canceled our hotel reservations and decided that we would go during Spring Break, almost 6 wks later. Let me tell you, that was a LONG 6 wks! We love this yearly trip and couldn't wait for a little down time. When Spring Break finally arrived, we packed up the boys (and nearly half our belongings) and headed south!<br />
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<b>Day 1</b>- We left Saturday morning and drove through snow (for 4 hours!) until we hit St. George. The weather was so terrible when we left home that it just made us feel all the better to leave it behind. Once we hit Cali, the sun was shining and the skies were clear. We knew we were in for a great week. That night we settled into our hotel room and got poki bowls from our favorite sushi spot.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOZyTQW6A75V7vYuWRk82F35DZxS6SDtxhX2qWOmS2_WdYp8PDQoyINtVPVunE68c0MrOv1pl_GbVoVjQ025C0qlucrqCI6dDNKTlxo2mln_KeekFGHDTbkfNGn-pK9U8FWEC3/s1600/IMAG0192.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOZyTQW6A75V7vYuWRk82F35DZxS6SDtxhX2qWOmS2_WdYp8PDQoyINtVPVunE68c0MrOv1pl_GbVoVjQ025C0qlucrqCI6dDNKTlxo2mln_KeekFGHDTbkfNGn-pK9U8FWEC3/s320/IMAG0192.jpg" width="320" /> </a></td><td style="text-align: center;"> </td><td style="text-align: center;"> </td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yum! Poki!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td></tr>
</tbody></table><b>Day 2</b>- We had originally planned on going to the beach on Sunday but at the last minute we decided to do our first day at Disneyland instead. We figured it may be better to have a rest day on Tuesday, in the midst of all the theme park madness. This ended up being a really good decision.<br />
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As soon as our shuttle arrived at Disney, we went right to guest services to pick up what I like to call our Autism Fastpass. This little card is like GOLD! We get on every ride with no wait. Such a beautiful thing. I used to feel a little guilty using it but now I just see it as the universe's way of paying us back for all the struggles. Having a child with autism doesn't come with many perks so we really relish this one. Will and I joked with each other that some people would pay any amount of money for a card like this. You wouldn't believe how much you can see and do in one day when you don't have to wait in lines.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We're at Disneyland!</td></tr>
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Anyway, I digress. Where was I? Oh yeah, so we got our pass and started the boys out slowly on the kiddie rides. The boys took turns picking rides and we rode everything we wanted to ride in Fantasyland by lunch so we headed to Tomorrowland. We made it to the Jedi Academy show a few minutes early and made some signs while we waited.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFWR5-NIudF9rOHxbWu_zfo41pdnOKuBYgyJG7juKUBWpTvrVtixTszJEXVNLhA-dXcRE-lwgKZXr9RG8geHnxXZBvTqxg5XJcsmdotqHvaUN6DVAWudSL6z_-uiDBimKEC8R1/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFWR5-NIudF9rOHxbWu_zfo41pdnOKuBYgyJG7juKUBWpTvrVtixTszJEXVNLhA-dXcRE-lwgKZXr9RG8geHnxXZBvTqxg5XJcsmdotqHvaUN6DVAWudSL6z_-uiDBimKEC8R1/s320/Disneyland+%252711+020.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They were the first ones picked!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table>Cooper takes the Jedi training very seriously and even stood solemnly with his hands clasped behind his back as the Jedis made there way out to the stage. It was his way of showing reverence and respect for them. All the other kids were jumping up and down yelling but not Cooper. He's a true Padawan. Haha! That kid cracks me up. Coleman couldn't have cared less about it all. This pic kinda shows that. Cooper is all ready to fight and Coleman? He is staring at his feet, off in a Fantasyland off his own, I'm sure.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigRGhBtJ3wYRZEg7IW_EdjLskL6FUWMRD9oyJVG_VIBASBM1j8-VxscOjuMh_prZASAqWVToUR6Q4n9WLlghsrL5ngWXexCjEI96pBmrark3l2thp0vsLC6cC4_G5pHFtUcDfk/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigRGhBtJ3wYRZEg7IW_EdjLskL6FUWMRD9oyJVG_VIBASBM1j8-VxscOjuMh_prZASAqWVToUR6Q4n9WLlghsrL5ngWXexCjEI96pBmrark3l2thp0vsLC6cC4_G5pHFtUcDfk/s320/Disneyland+%252711+030.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Next, we headed over the other side of the park to explore. Coleman started feeling not so great while we were on Tom Sawyer Island so we rested for a while and I made sure he drank some water. He had been complaining a little about his tummy hurting earlier but I didn't think too much of it since he wasn't making a big deal of it. We then rode the Winnie the Pooh ride and I bought a treat next door to officially end my 30 day sugar detox. This was a big deal so I wanted something GOOD. I bought a $5 Mickey chocolate and ended my streak. Not the best chocolate I've eaten but any sugar at all would've put a smile on my face at that point. Oh, happy day! I was back on the sugar-guzzlin' wagon! :)<br />
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A little bit later, we headed to Downtown Disney to look around and when we stopped to get the boys some cotton candy, Coleman, without warning, threw up right in front of the cart. No "I-think-I-need-to-hurl" look on his face. Not even a preemptive dry heave to warn us. It must have surprised him as much as it did us because he just stood there. I quickly pushed him over to the bushes behind the cotton candy cart to finish up. Poor guy. Throwing up at Disneyland. :( But not 5 minutes later, he said, "I feel way better!" and we continued on with our day. He is such a trooper. <br />
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<b>Day 3</b>- Disney's California Adventure- More rides. Coleman and I rode a lot of the rides together that Will didn't want to ride (namely the ferris wheel and, well, anything else that goes in a circle.) Cooper was still a little gun shy about most the rides in DCA.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigVB_iH5RK7l7un1KGuQ1Iogat_VpB50VI52hX5IkbZ5mR65cUrwyNOU23AChgyO0CwGBhhNeHcAJC8uedRa7hG22OYY8VLOahFEERzqZxETzx5h1L8Su7m_7jSl0pH6cRElTR/s1600/2011-04-17+Disneyland+%252711.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigVB_iH5RK7l7un1KGuQ1Iogat_VpB50VI52hX5IkbZ5mR65cUrwyNOU23AChgyO0CwGBhhNeHcAJC8uedRa7hG22OYY8VLOahFEERzqZxETzx5h1L8Su7m_7jSl0pH6cRElTR/s320/2011-04-17+Disneyland+%252711.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>We didn't split up too often, though. We rode the Toy Story ride together.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg66-gB9S0jByx19PYcXPmZ50_9Rr_RRuWkw2jyxJCLsUCq-y_ddfHcLAQwsgpUtpoDgajhdmKqjbTuhbnxBqN6Hvwx9iIRN8PAn8dFLxeSJ1zkAGWVqDhylyxH29TfJPjClm-b/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+077.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg66-gB9S0jByx19PYcXPmZ50_9Rr_RRuWkw2jyxJCLsUCq-y_ddfHcLAQwsgpUtpoDgajhdmKqjbTuhbnxBqN6Hvwx9iIRN8PAn8dFLxeSJ1zkAGWVqDhylyxH29TfJPjClm-b/s320/Disneyland+%252711+077.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>And the Bug's Land rides.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXbxa5rdCbHazmvUSVeYqj9jwx9-zTODmVx1C3tq440oP3cF9r4Y26J9cw0uf_W06WN2HDcIM5tdZghF0xn6a59A26-nSVwQYuJrLZLn4TxG2ObaOqspb_G16ihg-91otWSxCz/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+094.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXbxa5rdCbHazmvUSVeYqj9jwx9-zTODmVx1C3tq440oP3cF9r4Y26J9cw0uf_W06WN2HDcIM5tdZghF0xn6a59A26-nSVwQYuJrLZLn4TxG2ObaOqspb_G16ihg-91otWSxCz/s320/Disneyland+%252711+094.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Plus, we all happily learned how to draw Grumpy at the Animation Academy.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh79EiaJcV8FdL1VmTu_3Kcgq6p9Yvi1LPudEuUDsTr34NDu_TI0C52-FYKIy-dmQLJYRVGRti3zu3RyZF9eGnkHapV74VI9WJbvTzDnc31XLky9EjUqryVcaeAodCkMwm_4tTw/s1600/2011-04-17+Disneyland+%2527111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh79EiaJcV8FdL1VmTu_3Kcgq6p9Yvi1LPudEuUDsTr34NDu_TI0C52-FYKIy-dmQLJYRVGRti3zu3RyZF9eGnkHapV74VI9WJbvTzDnc31XLky9EjUqryVcaeAodCkMwm_4tTw/s320/2011-04-17+Disneyland+%2527111.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Well, most of us. One of us was "grumpy" about not being able to keep up.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy0PIegpUy1kO-z4blkMqYclh0a15w2t9CNTdyTeiVgtNxf1baHl4y5X51lg-PVc5BXUMn4ErUKwMMzaHlskLOMoqfEHhaZ0LOJgowUBbJX56yNLUSCT1xyo49jSLTA-fb2teS/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+104.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy0PIegpUy1kO-z4blkMqYclh0a15w2t9CNTdyTeiVgtNxf1baHl4y5X51lg-PVc5BXUMn4ErUKwMMzaHlskLOMoqfEHhaZ0LOJgowUBbJX56yNLUSCT1xyo49jSLTA-fb2teS/s320/Disneyland+%252711+104.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poor Cooper. He was so sad. Looks good to me, though!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table>We ended our long day with Soarin' Over California<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU6bwngBk3XTQrroijDtjGAq1DtP41jfz4Sq3Q6w0aNt9P2zmWv0J7EfJ-52L4y-gx9l-Q1yUEuNEdpxVmc6PAVJ-g1ruhdqpPbUCcewhzOECXDAWgACc7CDma-zxtYCe8Nrho/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+122.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU6bwngBk3XTQrroijDtjGAq1DtP41jfz4Sq3Q6w0aNt9P2zmWv0J7EfJ-52L4y-gx9l-Q1yUEuNEdpxVmc6PAVJ-g1ruhdqpPbUCcewhzOECXDAWgACc7CDma-zxtYCe8Nrho/s320/Disneyland+%252711+122.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> and a quick pic in front of the Tron lights. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8-XC3gHR1nqYUw1KsqmVhE2smwz7x2YDfZPGDr5uBtqM6dLoYagB0Uloo8KbES-7dzc99kVHV__Ov66DSTHehPLUNBM7P_ITPGydfAunrdTIhCv_9L5Fc8b026dVByzK1dBEc/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+120.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8-XC3gHR1nqYUw1KsqmVhE2smwz7x2YDfZPGDr5uBtqM6dLoYagB0Uloo8KbES-7dzc99kVHV__Ov66DSTHehPLUNBM7P_ITPGydfAunrdTIhCv_9L5Fc8b026dVByzK1dBEc/s320/Disneyland+%252711+120.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Another day at the park, another night of pure exhaustion. Hotel beds never felt so comfortable. :)<br />
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<b>Day 4</b>- Rest Day!- Will and I love the rest days because we basically just roam around looking for unique places to eat. The boys went swimming that morning for a couple of hours at the hotel pool. (A side note: Cooper really swam! He was swimming underwater just like a little fish.) After swimming, we went to Trader Joe's and picked up some fun food- yuca chips, cocoa nibs, sprouted wheat bagels, peanut butter cream cheese. I love this store. So much cool stuff! After Trader Joe's we went to H&M and I bought some super stylish jeans for little Coops. Then, we drove to Newport Beach and ate an amazing seafood joint, Bear Flag Fish Co. So good! Then it was over to the pier to see the ocean and put our feet in the water. Although, the boys couldn't help but go in a little deeper. They weren't in swim trunks and we had no towels with us but how could I tell them to not go in. It's the ocean!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6EQhMQ0DiqTJsMx4kass_WtfOq2RNzdpktH7ubGCuDhqnlYIdNgzpYDIrUVYHwGDovskovnXKznpYuzLaJ6YnVsrVvAafLt4ZN39Ps5MS1_4V4Z9oGYKMRTOP795bisZxA-m/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+138.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6EQhMQ0DiqTJsMx4kass_WtfOq2RNzdpktH7ubGCuDhqnlYIdNgzpYDIrUVYHwGDovskovnXKznpYuzLaJ6YnVsrVvAafLt4ZN39Ps5MS1_4V4Z9oGYKMRTOP795bisZxA-m/s320/Disneyland+%252711+138.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>After a little frolicking, we grabbed a couple doughnuts from a boardwalk bakery and bought some smoked salmon from another seafood place and headed back to the hotel. Another full day of active resting. Loving vacation!<br />
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<b>Day 5</b>- Legoland!-<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEnV7pAf08XSES3xJmD8mYmVrhM-dZnjfgsNCVHjxfemPL_wVsUFdkQ0qKkYsuz3LYVG7iupxtAIvm1Y7uaY1FQfLR0Ktx4Q2X-niTthg3uyZEnMdZY5l-lMEu2a3lhVFue3Iw/s1600/IMAG0220.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEnV7pAf08XSES3xJmD8mYmVrhM-dZnjfgsNCVHjxfemPL_wVsUFdkQ0qKkYsuz3LYVG7iupxtAIvm1Y7uaY1FQfLR0Ktx4Q2X-niTthg3uyZEnMdZY5l-lMEu2a3lhVFue3Iw/s320/IMAG0220.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>We had never gone to Legoland in the past but Cooper is such a Star Wars Lego superfan that we decided to give it a go this year. We had heard that it was great for smaller kiddos so we knew the boys would like it. All the rides were low on the intensity scale, which Cooper really liked. The lines were short and the park is clean and well-maintained. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6YiJOuMmAxgZydxV5c793EqOIiJRSghn4e_qLeGVifvEHIwy_MgmdzaIzDCU0MnOTKKPB7a8yI3AVaT5LGtcjRsyP5-CYGV1ytwIl-iLP_W7JTKiMPEXXJTB75CvcH8LxkLTL/s1600/2011_04_13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6YiJOuMmAxgZydxV5c793EqOIiJRSghn4e_qLeGVifvEHIwy_MgmdzaIzDCU0MnOTKKPB7a8yI3AVaT5LGtcjRsyP5-CYGV1ytwIl-iLP_W7JTKiMPEXXJTB75CvcH8LxkLTL/s320/2011_04_13.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Cooper also got his Star Wars Lego fix.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv0yp1KEDjROIZ5wW4PX_XNKSAXmElZ5laaKN28QOAqLvujrdj5cpSJM9Lq-19w13xsE4oYRV6w-xmqJ5xymeY02p5aFu8bbtYW91xVDE_wrDw9U5gswCKGBsbapPQGm-Ctr2Y/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+153.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv0yp1KEDjROIZ5wW4PX_XNKSAXmElZ5laaKN28QOAqLvujrdj5cpSJM9Lq-19w13xsE4oYRV6w-xmqJ5xymeY02p5aFu8bbtYW91xVDE_wrDw9U5gswCKGBsbapPQGm-Ctr2Y/s320/Disneyland+%252711+153.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3bV1WL0FvaUkY22bmvSeSkHr6Ej61_RhFNH3Lq11PuFBRVbw6aRBgXfuepDUgfyf3KR6pLX53mmz_rCF2nmifcci00WsaZx0HsgWSC6zjTAvOon3thF4BLtvbz90b_dyLRDuX/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+152.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3bV1WL0FvaUkY22bmvSeSkHr6Ej61_RhFNH3Lq11PuFBRVbw6aRBgXfuepDUgfyf3KR6pLX53mmz_rCF2nmifcci00WsaZx0HsgWSC6zjTAvOon3thF4BLtvbz90b_dyLRDuX/s320/Disneyland+%252711+152.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Coleman rode a semi-fast but still very small coaster here and was really warming up to the idea of riding some of the bigger coasters at Disney.<br />
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<b>Day 6</b>- Our last day in California. :( We spent the day going back and forth between Disneyland and California Adventure, riding everything that we missed the first couple of days. Coleman had finally built the nerve to ride the big coasters so he and Will started the day by riding Space Mountain. Then Coleman and I tried out the Matterhorn. I totally forgot my camera in the rush to catch the shuttle that morning so I only got a couple pics with my camera phone. Here's a pic of a pic of Coleman and I on California Screamin'. That was a big deal.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3CAW6orq1M2pAVodDsuAU5Uyv9DlC719J-t2DWMzmUVj_GDj5XpluQjv5JQDzfgNM5jQHD7GUvKVYUQ-8YVH7Dk6dND1Ya58lgjILsSkqd7zGEUsjtyh6sRb5yxW1KK3ovXHp/s1600/IMAG0222.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3CAW6orq1M2pAVodDsuAU5Uyv9DlC719J-t2DWMzmUVj_GDj5XpluQjv5JQDzfgNM5jQHD7GUvKVYUQ-8YVH7Dk6dND1Ya58lgjILsSkqd7zGEUsjtyh6sRb5yxW1KK3ovXHp/s320/IMAG0222.jpg" width="179" /></a></div>I was so impressed that he rode it. He was really scared while we were in line but afterward, it was all he could talk about and he even rode it again with Will. We were very proud of him for overcoming his fear. The day seemed to go by so quickly and before we knew it we were watching the World of Color show and enjoying our final moments at the park.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0DZPyot6cOfANy_H1ku9gAQ2IRWS9JCRGMok1r8XNjJsKrr4g-Z6etf_zAnSE2Q-oic2G9HTS2SqyPZF7fbbX1w1P-bYnFxwlerrNZ64VTc1d5MvG8uQkgNTlmonwFTa0Tuyd/s1600/Disneyland+%252711+130.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0DZPyot6cOfANy_H1ku9gAQ2IRWS9JCRGMok1r8XNjJsKrr4g-Z6etf_zAnSE2Q-oic2G9HTS2SqyPZF7fbbX1w1P-bYnFxwlerrNZ64VTc1d5MvG8uQkgNTlmonwFTa0Tuyd/s320/Disneyland+%252711+130.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>We arrived back at our hotel at midnight. We were all exhausted once again. Gotta' love an active vacation. ;) <br />
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<b>Day 7</b>- After sleeping in, we got all packed up and headed home. We were so sad to leave, as always. What a blessing this last week was to us. So many fun memories were made. I loved being able to spend all this time together. I can't wait until the next trip we take together.Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-76978464159111381732011-03-15T12:54:00.000-07:002011-03-15T12:54:41.317-07:00Coleman is 9!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD_Puxr733_KLBrgECAMkJITR_OWDqWGQD6P5Mi0YJxM2qjXzSTg8B626uhZMSbdv-aKk0SvRzA737sZ1wh3rLfzxeebXavHQz4UINfCFm4YDgqyfPFf-8E0aGvmTHuMS_QP96/s1600/Coleman+02-03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD_Puxr733_KLBrgECAMkJITR_OWDqWGQD6P5Mi0YJxM2qjXzSTg8B626uhZMSbdv-aKk0SvRzA737sZ1wh3rLfzxeebXavHQz4UINfCFm4YDgqyfPFf-8E0aGvmTHuMS_QP96/s640/Coleman+02-03.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coleman over the years. He's so grown up!<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">My firstborn babe turns 9 today and I'm finding myself oddly emotional over it all. Where has the time gone?! My sweet little baby is now my sweet not-so-little kiddo. I keep asking him to stop growing but he says he can't help it. :( So, I guess all I can do is learn to appreciate right now. With that in mind, here are my top 10 favorite things about Coleman.</div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><ol><li>Coleman cares SO much about doing what's right. He is determined to be the type of boy that his Heavenly Father wants him to be. He is always reminding us to pray and read our scriptures and is such a good example to us all.</li>
<li>Coleman will do anything for his little brother. From the time Cooper was a baby Coleman has shared everything with him. We remind Cooper often how lucky he is to have such a loving big brother.</li>
<li>Coleman is really creative and loves to write. He is constantly brewing up new ideas for scripts for movies, shows, etc. And he is a very smart, witty writer. He loves when his stories make me laugh. And they do. Often.</li>
<li>Coleman is so affectionate. He gives me (and Dad and Cooper) several hugs and kisses throughout the day. This morning he told me that he doesn't care what he gets for his birthday as long as he has Mom, Dad and Cooper. This boy has his priorities straight! :)</li>
<li>Coleman has an amazing mind. I would just love to step inside his brain for just a moment to see how it all works. He never forgets anything! And some subjects (ie. tv and movie ratings) he knows all the way down to the tiniest detail. It's fascinating.</li>
<li>I don't even remember the last time Coleman got in trouble. He seriously does everything I ask, when I ask. He doesn't lollygag or second guess me. Such an obedient lad. :)</li>
<li>This boy will eat ANYTHING. There is nothing that he won't try. He loves sushi, smoked salmon, and his grandmother's HOT Thai food. He is the easiest kid to cook for. I can make anything I want without a second thought as to if he'll eat it or not.</li>
<li>Coleman is always putting others needs ahead of his own and this quality makes him a great friend. </li>
<li>Coleman is never afraid to be himself. He is who he is, he likes what he likes. And he doesn't try and change himself for anyone. I love this about him!</li>
<li>Coleman is a kind, sweet and an amazing boy! I'm so blessed to be his mom and there's not a day that goes by that I don't remind myself of that.</li>
</ol>Happy birthday to my sweet boy! I love you, Coleman!<br />
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Love, Mom</div></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-44480509109478845412011-01-01T12:46:00.000-08:002011-01-01T12:46:33.505-08:00Happy New Year! It's 2011, y'all!I posted to this blog a total of <b>3</b> times this past year. <span style="font-size: large;"><b>3</b>!</span> Did I have more than 3 great family memories this year? Absolutely! Did I drop the ball when it came to documenting all these great memories? Well, not exactly. I post pictures on Facebook all the time with notes about what we've been up to BUT I need to get blogging again. So, New Year's resolution #1 is to <span style="color: blue;">blog at least 2-3 times a month on the family blog.</span><br />
<br />
Before going any further into my goals for 2011, let's see how I did on last year's goals. Here are the goals I wrote out last Dec.31st. <i><span style="color: purple;">(and how I did on each goal in parentheses).</span></i><br />
<ul><li><span style="font-size: small;"><span><span><b style="color: #38761d;">Running goals: first marathon (1/9/10!), 5k in less than 24 min, 10k in less than 50 min, and a half-marathon in less than 1hr55min.</b><span style="color: lime;"> </span> All will require some work but all are totally attainable. <i><span style="color: purple;">(I'm really proud of how I did on this one. I finished my first marathon on Jan. 9th of this year. Check! I PRed at the Pony Express 5k in June with a time of 23:23! Check! And also PRed at the Halloween Half with a time of 1:50:46! Check! The only 10k I ran was an obstacle course in the mud so no PRs there but I think under 50 is totally doable.)</span></i></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span><span><b style="color: #0b5394;">Be at church <i>on time</i> at least 90% of the time.</b> This one will be difficult since church starts at 9:00am this year and I made it to church on time, oh, about 5% of the time when church started at 1:00pm. Now's a <i>great</i> time to figure out a new Sunday morning regimen that will help us to be more prompt. <i><span style="color: purple;">(I did really pitifully on this one and it really needs to change. We only made it to church on time about a handful of times in 2010. I just can't seem to get it together!)</span></i><span style="color: #741b47;"> <br />
</span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span><span><span style="color: #741b47;"> </span><b style="color: #741b47;">Read my scriptures everyday.</b> My reading has been inconsistent and I need to make sure that I read, even if just a little, everyday. <i><span style="color: purple;">(I did pretty well on this one. Even when I didn't have time to read a chapter, I read a verse or two. I can definitely do better, though.)</span></i></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span><span> <b style="color: #351c75;">Do something nice for someone everyday. </b><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;">Make cookies, write a letter, pay a compliment- be creative and be personal. Surprise people with a nice gesture. Love this one and I'm thinking I'll get the whole family involved. <i><span style="color: purple;">(Check! Well, I didn't really keep track but it seems that there are always opportunities to do something nice for someone, especially at home. Always a great goal, though.)</span></i></span></span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b style="color: #134f5c;">Play in a mixed doubles tennis tournament with hubster.</b> This year, I'm not letting this one beat me. There is a local tournament every year in June and this year I'll be the first to sign up! </span><i style="background-color: white; color: purple;"><span style="font-size: small;">(Oh!!! I let it beat me again! In fact, I think I only picked up a racquet maybe 3-4 times this year. Just been running so much and tennis has taken a back seat. I really miss it, though!)</span></i><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span><span><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;">Lastly, I wasn't even sure that I'd add this one this year, but I do need to lose a few pounds. To be totally honest, marathon training has led me down a path of, well, over-carbing and I'd like to be back to feeling like myself by spring. So, <b style="color: #0b5394;">my last goal is to lose, hmm, let's say 10 pounds</b> and get back to weight-training and feeling light and spry again. <i><span style="color: purple;">(Ugh. I should have trusted my instincts on this one. I did not lose 10 pounds but I have lost and gained and all-in-all pretty much stayed the same. Not such a bad thing. My health goals will be different this year.)</span></i></span></span></span></span></span></li>
</ul><span style="font-size: small;"><span><span><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: purple;"><span style="color: black;">So,</span></span><i><span style="color: purple;"><span style="color: black;"> </span></span></i><span style="color: purple;"><span style="color: black;">what do I want to do this year? Time to set some new goals!</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><span><span><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: purple;"><span style="color: black;">My 2011 Goals </span></span></span></span></span></span></u></span><br />
<ul><li>Running goals: <b><span style="color: #b45f06;">5k in less than 23 minutes, half-marathon in less than 1:50 and two more full marathons. Also, at least 1000 miles for the year.</span></b> Hmm, yep, that'll do.</li>
<li>Volunteer goals: <b style="color: #0b5394;">Work on getting the Utah County Chapter of Train4Autism up and running. Get at least a team of 20 together for the Utah Valley Marathon (full, half, or 5k.)</b> Excited to see where this goal takes me this year. I should get lots of opportunities to have booths at different venues. Will be fun.</li>
<li>Health goals: <b style="color: #990000;">Focus on eating more "clean." Make meal plans every week focusing on healthy ingredients.</b> I actually do pretty well at this most the time. Lately, we've been eating out a little more, though, and I want to make sure that doesn't become a habit, even when things get busy.</li>
<li>Personal goals: Will and I are teaching in primary at church this year and the theme for the year is "I Know the Scriptures are True." My goal is to <b><span style="color: #38761d;">strengthen my own testimony of the scriptures by reading everyday, personally and with my family.</span></b> I know that this goal will not only enrich my life but also my children and the kids in my class at church. Gotta love that!</li>
<li>Blogging goals: It's obvious that I need to be better about documenting our family adventures. So, as I mentioned already, my goal is to <b style="color: #134f5c;">update this blog at least 2-3 times a month.</b> </li>
<li>Parenting goals: <b><span style="color: #741b47;">Plan an activity with each boy once a week.</span></b> I want more one-on-one time with the boys, especially Coleman, so I'm going to make it a priority to plan special activities so that they both get individual time with Mommy. </li>
</ul>I'm thinking those are some good starter goals. I'll add more if I think of any later. Happy New Year! And good luck with your goals this year!Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-47832080310621677052010-10-10T13:41:00.000-07:002010-10-10T13:41:14.648-07:00Friends in Need...are friends indeed!Friday afternoon, Will came home and told me that we were going to spend Saturday morning volunteering. He had called United Way and found a place that we could take the boys and do some much needed work. My first thought- "What about my long run?" (Selfish, but true.) He told me to go on my run and not to worry about volunteering. He would take the boys. Uh. Yeah right. I can't bear when my family does anything without me and to do service without me?! <i>Absolutely</i> no way I could deal with the guilt. After all, I guess I could run later in the day. So, I tapped into his enthusiasm and we headed out Saturday morning to <a href="http://www.friends-in-need.org/">Friends in Need</a><a href="http://www.friends-in-need.org/"> Animal Rescue</a>.<br />
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When we arrived, we were greeted by Karen, who founded the place along with her husband. She gave us brushes and let us get in with the pygmy goats and brush them. The boys and I were really excited to bond with the little goats but Will asked if he could just brush them from outside the gate. Too funny. After everyone laughed at him, he realized that maybe that was a silly notion and he, quite uncomfortably, came in with us. Here we are letting the goats get used to us being in there with them.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpeMjxRTtl0anMYhodrySkeqOXXzeUYgRPDYiQxodWx9iZ5npFxzs_EHTKgKYw3xB6ZIircigVZMRn6A-yqi_rJW30fj0pyeJwlFFxFSYA56tvg43EVUDhz_0QPF1juF86fKft/s1600/Animal+Rescue+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpeMjxRTtl0anMYhodrySkeqOXXzeUYgRPDYiQxodWx9iZ5npFxzs_EHTKgKYw3xB6ZIircigVZMRn6A-yqi_rJW30fj0pyeJwlFFxFSYA56tvg43EVUDhz_0QPF1juF86fKft/s400/Animal+Rescue+005.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Coleman loved the goats. There was one little goat, Annie, that loved being brushed. Many of the animals at this animal rescue had been neglected and mistreated in the past so it was so great to be able to spend some time with them and show them a little attention.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9jMcHNnv3LftOFO52fbtkHwanm8lfjd2lPA1BJHUBocWb5lz-HK-RpKCoL6nXipG3gWoL0gRq3M1UC4XPvYFf_epfbfV0BBpMGNtTAvaLr-hO3UfQFp1bwzo7nXnHTTwSYAaF/s1600/Animal+Rescue+006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9jMcHNnv3LftOFO52fbtkHwanm8lfjd2lPA1BJHUBocWb5lz-HK-RpKCoL6nXipG3gWoL0gRq3M1UC4XPvYFf_epfbfV0BBpMGNtTAvaLr-hO3UfQFp1bwzo7nXnHTTwSYAaF/s400/Animal+Rescue+006.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>After our time with the goats, Karen put us to work painting a couple of their new animal enclosures. The boys worked hard and without complaining. I was really proud of them. The geese were honking away at us while we worked and Coleman said they were saying "Thank You" because we were painting their houses. I like to think so, too.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"> <span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>This first one was going to be used in the goat enclosure.</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsWK-f6-DfevWkaPUqvdhWPC5EpWQ4Zl_pvaocwLf2uQRYpVgLBmscQmX2AZ9v8krbN1Gqoq4CmcmCvjy5TmahoDb-_Y2whnzoEXFIQt-keXpZ5ciCEf3SQQKirZTRK869hZHJ/s1600/Animal+Rescue+010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsWK-f6-DfevWkaPUqvdhWPC5EpWQ4Zl_pvaocwLf2uQRYpVgLBmscQmX2AZ9v8krbN1Gqoq4CmcmCvjy5TmahoDb-_Y2whnzoEXFIQt-keXpZ5ciCEf3SQQKirZTRK869hZHJ/s400/Animal+Rescue+010.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>This one was built for the doves.</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfEKmnLE_tyV1Okc-X1r2yo9iYE02HvF3ftswlOFE-Ab5KkOsVFhfYFZ_lJuk8KV9ltAutxGNbo0knSDEX41arnrAsNJjZgogF0xWaFA2LvGWvy_W3IWUNGo6Lv9i6tqd64xwx/s1600/Animal+Rescue+014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfEKmnLE_tyV1Okc-X1r2yo9iYE02HvF3ftswlOFE-Ab5KkOsVFhfYFZ_lJuk8KV9ltAutxGNbo0knSDEX41arnrAsNJjZgogF0xWaFA2LvGWvy_W3IWUNGo6Lv9i6tqd64xwx/s400/Animal+Rescue+014.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Cooper took his work very seriously. And no complaining! That's a first for him. :)</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSI49jBcci_B8NIeDk3CWFkXQZXO_kaMODD1_U_evUfQCQn4NKDAda-Ka7-EGgskPL6Zi8WXYqTiJAJaaRfqRWmCNqRs4Zs4hxDBh4XZU1sJ34n4xHRU6MGwQ6FHT52d49_s5B/s1600/Animal+Rescue+015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSI49jBcci_B8NIeDk3CWFkXQZXO_kaMODD1_U_evUfQCQn4NKDAda-Ka7-EGgskPL6Zi8WXYqTiJAJaaRfqRWmCNqRs4Zs4hxDBh4XZU1sJ34n4xHRU6MGwQ6FHT52d49_s5B/s400/Animal+Rescue+015.JPG" width="300" /> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So, am I glad I skipped my run to go and volunteer at Friends in Need? Absolutely! A wonderful way to spend a Saturday morning. We were blessed to see the wonderful work they do there and already have plans to go back this Thursday! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-45648468361533139332010-04-04T15:52:00.000-07:002010-04-04T15:58:42.848-07:00Our 2nd annual Disneyland trip!Now that we've gone twice- it's considered a tradition, right? Well, I love this new tradition! Once again, we had such a blast soaking up the sun in Southern California. And once again, we took advantage of every second of this week long trip. Here is a <b>Disneyland 2010 Top 10</b>!<br />
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1. The most memorable moment of the whole trip, for us and the boys alike, was the Jedi Training Academy. Cooper had talked about nothing else the entire time leading up to the trip. He knew that he was destined to be a Jedi. And we were going to have to make it happen. He would need to be picked out of the crowd to participate so we figured our best bet would be to go to the first show of the day. So, we did. And guess what? He wasn't picked. So we came back an hour later for the second show. This time, the Jedi must have felt the force was strong in our family because both boys got picked! They were so excited. Here's little Cooper getting suited up. He was all business.<br />
<ol></ol><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmZyMHAIVIOy8tIIuAsQCKrVAG83V8yOiU1DQHYuVqwJLFtOuFTgGiFvH5Z4N03P-jlZqDi6So-cVXH9MbWEb-SHsdAXbTtICd4YDTnY8wF4cPz5ST-lKPLQ1KIdQtLo_uyDmu/s1600/133.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmZyMHAIVIOy8tIIuAsQCKrVAG83V8yOiU1DQHYuVqwJLFtOuFTgGiFvH5Z4N03P-jlZqDi6So-cVXH9MbWEb-SHsdAXbTtICd4YDTnY8wF4cPz5ST-lKPLQ1KIdQtLo_uyDmu/s320/133.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> And Coleman ready for training.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3QtJyUotFoBr7d_71ICLPiOOGy-ShGZNGKSv_Ag7hBxPoecLfD0nuSqSCGtlZ6Zffdl7mWvlm97oHFYAAY1q1-vhVYBTPofwpy_cALiqJ6vXG4b3edZjJFrWs5zSqTAn2Oaho/s1600/138.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3QtJyUotFoBr7d_71ICLPiOOGy-ShGZNGKSv_Ag7hBxPoecLfD0nuSqSCGtlZ6Zffdl7mWvlm97oHFYAAY1q1-vhVYBTPofwpy_cALiqJ6vXG4b3edZjJFrWs5zSqTAn2Oaho/s320/138.JPG" /></a></div>After being properly trained, the boys got a chance to fight Darth Vader himself!<br />
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We've now been home from this trip for 4 weeks and Cooper is still totally obsessed with everything Star Wars. Anything he can turn into a lightsaber, he does. Yesterday, it was a dowel rod from my cake decorating bin. The day before that, a mailing tube. Before Disneyland, he had Jedi tendencies. After, he is a Jedi master second only to Yoda.<br />
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2. This year, Grandma and Grandpa Verburg accompanied us to SoCal. It was so fun to have them there with us! Not to mention, really nice to actually be able to go on a couple "grown-up" rides while they watched the boys. God bless grandparents! Here are some cute shots with Grandma and Grandpa. Love them! I am blessed with amazing in-laws!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBrK1cX0gW997PdktEXE4tt0YV3Ctt6mzzbBUWdzzYQVIV_bAaBLj7bTer0YtHBvETNQ8FnUnK45Ip7DTig7A5Ei3-1pRuozH4W53Zucm__ORX_sAAtQP6hzz-AKVtHNf0sOxi/s1600/2010-03-07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBrK1cX0gW997PdktEXE4tt0YV3Ctt6mzzbBUWdzzYQVIV_bAaBLj7bTer0YtHBvETNQ8FnUnK45Ip7DTig7A5Ei3-1pRuozH4W53Zucm__ORX_sAAtQP6hzz-AKVtHNf0sOxi/s640/2010-03-07.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
3. One of the first things Coleman said after getting to Disneyland- "I love my life!" And he said it so emphatically! He really meant it. Makes a mom and dad feel really great! We got treated to this fun mantra a couple more times on this trip, too.<br />
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4. You may know that Will is training for his first MMA amateur fight but you wouldn't guess it to see how much of a wimp he is on rides. Case in point-<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"> <i><span style="font-size: x-small;">scared on Tower of Terror</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP8FnsaGYNFaaXdsSo_eqo4CruRYqgVxly8zaPEhydesvs2jOa5dDT2jj3PSnNTznbFtAyGLHBbQlP_4IbF8Cfh_5xoX2k4ZkZoVir7NLx-8E0yyjNj68ch6L4CkLwqXN81QwG/s1600/056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP8FnsaGYNFaaXdsSo_eqo4CruRYqgVxly8zaPEhydesvs2jOa5dDT2jj3PSnNTznbFtAyGLHBbQlP_4IbF8Cfh_5xoX2k4ZkZoVir7NLx-8E0yyjNj68ch6L4CkLwqXN81QwG/s320/056.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>scared on Space Mountain</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPk5jwFb-czbd4qNqRBToDVDM3lP00J3uDTONixKCpsWTu7WXEAH9thpZcI-4Sx0KBtvXR9bcIq0SoVYvswUaFntPQa70NLs9pPcQuQdo2-iQj3LMcT6bi4fLtjQCsexoN2XD5/s1600/232.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPk5jwFb-czbd4qNqRBToDVDM3lP00J3uDTONixKCpsWTu7WXEAH9thpZcI-4Sx0KBtvXR9bcIq0SoVYvswUaFntPQa70NLs9pPcQuQdo2-iQj3LMcT6bi4fLtjQCsexoN2XD5/s320/232.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>really scared on Splash Mountain</i> <i>(this one may be a bit of a stretch)</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWEGGY9drleA6moVbJCjot3GO40XEy1hRMoQZ4Y2c0gE4eUUBOYssMXhBsWOsSOA-VEsSwDmCek6d7-pyCk2Tebpj_DFd2XUmwy5K9xvg45b5cAhyphenhyphenoLMknmiosgUAKpV3-VWj6/s1600/162.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWEGGY9drleA6moVbJCjot3GO40XEy1hRMoQZ4Y2c0gE4eUUBOYssMXhBsWOsSOA-VEsSwDmCek6d7-pyCk2Tebpj_DFd2XUmwy5K9xvg45b5cAhyphenhyphenoLMknmiosgUAKpV3-VWj6/s320/162.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">missing from this photo because he was too scared to get on the Ferris Wheel</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFgQpgPbaWTdC-rMjRIWGZp64aUwROK-73AepBbcUmxkmhTzD01G1rlUEaXfid6Envrrwa_CK8BVo_dPZfQJr8-UwlimDOhqYgUeaDTzFpRXpq0dSH-UsNA-3CEgL5fOnT2OT8/s1600/Disneyland+%2710+033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFgQpgPbaWTdC-rMjRIWGZp64aUwROK-73AepBbcUmxkmhTzD01G1rlUEaXfid6Envrrwa_CK8BVo_dPZfQJr8-UwlimDOhqYgUeaDTzFpRXpq0dSH-UsNA-3CEgL5fOnT2OT8/s320/Disneyland+%2710+033.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">But don't worry, he eventually found something that was more his speed...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Q2d-aB8g6kHULF5MhDNInOMjEIt4Fp-7rVvqqfvTXahW_fYIfQGQNjaGpgEvYeRA0I-nHPoxICEKuCha-qwrXfwlo-9akqoTUDF0sRjD-TdPXTxUPAdOMcRiCRB_VZKwsXql/s1600/060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Q2d-aB8g6kHULF5MhDNInOMjEIt4Fp-7rVvqqfvTXahW_fYIfQGQNjaGpgEvYeRA0I-nHPoxICEKuCha-qwrXfwlo-9akqoTUDF0sRjD-TdPXTxUPAdOMcRiCRB_VZKwsXql/s320/060.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
5. What in the world did we eat to fuel all this fun while we were at Disneyland, you ask? Well, we ate our weight in turkey legs, of course! The turkey legs are amazing and we convinced ourselves they were health food and provided us plenty of protein to fuel our muscles so we ate plenty! At $8 each they were not cheap but what is at Disneyland?!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNfu8sovP2fTS2vvCVsVl7v7ZEVbqHSdeP20zB0_dIszQ-aTtnuabLb-7zJ86mMk_iX_H_5vkUMKnpfI6RO2-X-Ygzed7_nKVQpnOF1nJLaw2LEu4p3XnoaJ7YgT3TIzedDRxX/s1600/2010-03-071.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNfu8sovP2fTS2vvCVsVl7v7ZEVbqHSdeP20zB0_dIszQ-aTtnuabLb-7zJ86mMk_iX_H_5vkUMKnpfI6RO2-X-Ygzed7_nKVQpnOF1nJLaw2LEu4p3XnoaJ7YgT3TIzedDRxX/s640/2010-03-071.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Notice the grease smudge in the middle of our "sharing" pic? Oh yeah! Health food!</i></span> <span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Ha ha!</i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">6. Speaking of food, this year we took a mental health day while in SoCal and ventured away from the park and out into the real world. We spent a leisurely day at the Asian mall in Little Saigon and at the LA Farmers Market. I think both of these places are going to part of our yearly itinerary from now on. Just look at all the yummy food we bought that day! Asian, Cajun and French food + treats from the bakery and chocolate shop. Oh man! It's a wonder I didn't gain more weight than I did that week!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN9t-WF0v0Yn8QjRo-UD2fGM_o0R-L4G_MWeKWE8c7699Br-XIELaq-QuTaJqN8DL4U9c8YndtthqQqCwDh1Qg-eIPdxP9xBytcVoaLPA1vWAbZ9DyuyYYfbjW6yNo-UDTnvCp/s1600/215.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN9t-WF0v0Yn8QjRo-UD2fGM_o0R-L4G_MWeKWE8c7699Br-XIELaq-QuTaJqN8DL4U9c8YndtthqQqCwDh1Qg-eIPdxP9xBytcVoaLPA1vWAbZ9DyuyYYfbjW6yNo-UDTnvCp/s400/215.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">7. Coleman has turned into our very own Forrest Gump as of lately. From being in a magazine to having his name used in a book by his favorite author, this kid just always seems to be in the spotlight without ever really trying to be (or caring to be). It cracks me up how apathetic he is about it all. That being said, it was no surprise that, on this trip to Disney, Coleman won the Screamer of the Day Contest at the Monster's Inc. ride that allowed us to be first on the ride and first to ride anytime we wanted to the rest of the day. Go Coleman! This kid is a stud!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF1jPvHK7aFWAab7hXBw_ewXFc2OezlvqQEgRnTBBPc5IV933hpiUL5uQVG9CktXPIsG9PLPHU0wt0iPtn6v5WI1cIJg6fXW9dinc3L4cSlrcwxhnn8chu1dlzpwuFapn0F2g2/s1600/052.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF1jPvHK7aFWAab7hXBw_ewXFc2OezlvqQEgRnTBBPc5IV933hpiUL5uQVG9CktXPIsG9PLPHU0wt0iPtn6v5WI1cIJg6fXW9dinc3L4cSlrcwxhnn8chu1dlzpwuFapn0F2g2/s400/052.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">8. Last year, we decided to hit the beach for one day and we were thrilled to have beautiful, warm weather. We frolicked at the beach and soaked up the sun. This year? Well, yes we still frolicked but it was tepid frolicking. A little too cool to spend much time in the water but we walked along the boardwalk and went to lunch at The Crab Cooker so still a fantastic day!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ZLtLVCDMpw5H5YWTLcxO6GKHDLkoriJKl1DuC581W7bGvCJ72vg5tKYXqDavhru6FqxUDjwYB1MSQx8bRlFNhRA0cUzl7i1XGFxFss_Yj7TOoRZX7UdHvnG8WO0IuL0AnMjr/s1600/2010-03-072.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ZLtLVCDMpw5H5YWTLcxO6GKHDLkoriJKl1DuC581W7bGvCJ72vg5tKYXqDavhru6FqxUDjwYB1MSQx8bRlFNhRA0cUzl7i1XGFxFss_Yj7TOoRZX7UdHvnG8WO0IuL0AnMjr/s640/2010-03-072.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">9. Will and I ran in a half-marathon in Vegas on the way back to Utah- check that report out<a href="http://aliciaruns.blogspot.com/2010/03/red-rock-12-marathon-full-recap.html"> HERE</a>!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">10. To see any other pics that you didn't see here, check out <a href="http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=154394&id=700878232&l=321f894b4f">my photo album</a>.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">There you go! At long last, the Disneyland blog post! I'm apparently running about a month behind but it's Spring Break so I'm hoping to catch up. Hope everyone is having a fantastic Easter!</div>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-57846273162154969862010-01-11T13:55:00.000-08:002010-01-11T14:17:48.966-08:00Running from an Angel '10- 1st Marathon Recap<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPypq5uEnM2_qkhhg6Wel6QPUTA6O33GYpIK5ttxaNrexqGjBBq1husqP9d5GPG0T-eigbln0JzEPxq-68lMVbHdhiHYQJALOJxNfUPghJp8Sl-VLfnO1h46MfnV82k5fOj2M5/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPypq5uEnM2_qkhhg6Wel6QPUTA6O33GYpIK5ttxaNrexqGjBBq1husqP9d5GPG0T-eigbln0JzEPxq-68lMVbHdhiHYQJALOJxNfUPghJp8Sl-VLfnO1h46MfnV82k5fOj2M5/s320/1st+Marathon%21+102.JPG" /></a><br />
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The other side! For weeks, months I sat here wondering what it will feel like to be on the <i>other side </i>of all the marathon training: all the fantasies of crossing the finish line, what it might feel like in the final 6 miles, the emotions I might feel as I gutted it out, and how happy I would be to finally say I'm a marathoner. And here I am on the other side and it feels...<span style="color: blue;"><span style="color: #073763;">AMAZING!!!</span> </span> Our first marathon definitely had it's ups and downs (quite literally!) but Will and I have both come out on the other side feeling like we could take on anything.<br />
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<div style="color: #b45f06;">Here's how it all went down:<br />
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Will, Dad, the boys and I traveled from Utah down to Boulder City, NV on Friday night, checked into our hotel room and headed out to IHOP for some pre-race pancakes, my carb-loading food of choice. (Love the Harvest Grain & Nut pancakes!) We then went back to the hotel and settled in. I set out our clothes and anything and everything we would need for the next morning's run.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJq9EaerRH-Yte81SCtNvADoMbmu6_Hpo9vHZqe4vEi4JLODbJQU8k1AK5weeCy1aEU2811yYx7v158q36ztYoHq6yOd9zrWCf9LFNVa1Am7S9DkJ1xQIOnPtMu_rla9kvcN4Z/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJq9EaerRH-Yte81SCtNvADoMbmu6_Hpo9vHZqe4vEi4JLODbJQU8k1AK5weeCy1aEU2811yYx7v158q36ztYoHq6yOd9zrWCf9LFNVa1Am7S9DkJ1xQIOnPtMu_rla9kvcN4Z/s320/1st+Marathon%21+017.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I felt surprisingly calm, <span style="color: #351c75;">no pre-race jitters, no nervous tics, no defeating self-talk</span>.<i> That's weird. I always get nervous, even before short races.</i> I figured that maybe the nerves would come the next morning. Fast forward to the next morning (after a terrible night's sleep on the brick-like mattresses at the hotel)- I woke up at about 4:30 am. I tried really hard to get back sleep but just couldn't get comfortable. I finally gave up at 5:30, even though the alarm was set for 6:00, and got up and got dressed. I was still surprisingly calm and stayed that way the rest of the day. I was a mess before my first half so I'm still not quite sure why I was so calm. I was just <i>happy! </i><span style="color: #741b47;">I was excited to have the day finally here- the reward for all the hard work!</span> I knew that this day was going to be great- no matter what!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We left the hotel at about 7:10 and headed over to the race start at Lake Mead N.R.A., which was about 5 minutes away. We were there fairly early (8 am start) so we (well, my dad) took a few pictures.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">views of Lake Mead from starting area</span></i><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYLA2moYSsxRbmdPhwePd6cMOkPNBQ8MMeTJC45XQVVJ-ZIbzIT0wJgIP6SzHs-aBjsixzUVabQk_i1bc5wWysBPV_WHk1ApLLMjQRhAw0t-SN3YBW4jsXz9nRsSCN8_lJhuYt/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYLA2moYSsxRbmdPhwePd6cMOkPNBQ8MMeTJC45XQVVJ-ZIbzIT0wJgIP6SzHs-aBjsixzUVabQk_i1bc5wWysBPV_WHk1ApLLMjQRhAw0t-SN3YBW4jsXz9nRsSCN8_lJhuYt/s320/1st+Marathon%21+021.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqPw3i2obVSS8FEmq0EhVHZplGzpOFyOtArcGgDhS0tZCjW2vpdsmEkGkXkULmZ1TqWkClUIUvj5-b9y0FMNG_UZTJkzAXc-Eo4UXywvrAkam5oCRvDFASzpvVKqmbv1nM8Hu/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+024.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqPw3i2obVSS8FEmq0EhVHZplGzpOFyOtArcGgDhS0tZCjW2vpdsmEkGkXkULmZ1TqWkClUIUvj5-b9y0FMNG_UZTJkzAXc-Eo4UXywvrAkam5oCRvDFASzpvVKqmbv1nM8Hu/s320/1st+Marathon%21+024.JPG" /></a><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>my race shirt</i></span><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirE-WnFLzNGoyCUgZLi4j3-iTCfBZ7MsgV8zQF7EBLeLjaBf54XptXbyOgkAmSgc3zig8fKwVXS0XVfyIqaqWl3JOon2Cn8BRDCpG9RzFA89GriYZ5vTMXLS-FXTYn2JCfKaYi/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirE-WnFLzNGoyCUgZLi4j3-iTCfBZ7MsgV8zQF7EBLeLjaBf54XptXbyOgkAmSgc3zig8fKwVXS0XVfyIqaqWl3JOon2Cn8BRDCpG9RzFA89GriYZ5vTMXLS-FXTYn2JCfKaYi/s320/1st+Marathon%21+028.JPG" /></a><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Will and I with the boys with Lake Mead behind us.</span></i><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju5AgJxWDBiug4c1lmoWoR834TUslJuRpV14cYkF1Tg5qLY_gxeTVfp0wbVEMd9rP7V6RrgAppvuH5W-vprtLyzwrH3w5YPxLWJ2TsMsvH0olODi6V_-cNuJHwuy05TP5cZl_M/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju5AgJxWDBiug4c1lmoWoR834TUslJuRpV14cYkF1Tg5qLY_gxeTVfp0wbVEMd9rP7V6RrgAppvuH5W-vprtLyzwrH3w5YPxLWJ2TsMsvH0olODi6V_-cNuJHwuy05TP5cZl_M/s320/1st+Marathon%21+030.JPG" /></a><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The race photographer getting ready to snap our photo. </span></span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">I can't wait to see the pics that were taken out on the course!</span></span><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgisokGrJCvryzoXlUYW_HsR6RLtVlTI-bKsUzWocdhJo1Bs_YRuJYfrgJs4wgSm7Gh6YWY61WzEup41WPl77vis7cPdBjX1tr1weuRekzBNxpDjivdKyrZwpVHyNdbOJwuJ_91/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgisokGrJCvryzoXlUYW_HsR6RLtVlTI-bKsUzWocdhJo1Bs_YRuJYfrgJs4wgSm7Gh6YWY61WzEup41WPl77vis7cPdBjX1tr1weuRekzBNxpDjivdKyrZwpVHyNdbOJwuJ_91/s320/1st+Marathon%21+033.JPG" /></a><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Friends from church who were running, too. Cami (first marathon), Will, me, </i></span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Jen (5th marathon) and Lisa (1st marathon.) So great to have them there. </i></span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Made the run that much more special.</i></span> <i><span style="font-size: x-small;">They all did AWESOME!</span></i><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WOhX4VzwW29aWMabUmcL5UsOD6I8YjA7YxxOGXcnNuwBFwt88I-eWaZGGJGC6xe0k6RD6KAc8uVkipq0CKj03WwYSRBZz3uXEjZ959ZGlR4XYK0GXSOzOFOSqPj9afgvJG7-/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+040.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WOhX4VzwW29aWMabUmcL5UsOD6I8YjA7YxxOGXcnNuwBFwt88I-eWaZGGJGC6xe0k6RD6KAc8uVkipq0CKj03WwYSRBZz3uXEjZ959ZGlR4XYK0GXSOzOFOSqPj9afgvJG7-/s320/1st+Marathon%21+040.JPG" /></a><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Lisa and I. Love this girl!</span></i><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCOkwmuoKMA8RTSogcLZZOLMA8tkg8p1AoW2pFWs0HUQatLswfZVGB6iUJotJyreUneLNDccq16voT-MMraD4oDQnCIl7B08gpy1a_WSGUxSdQlviRGEpKBC7AnZydSCkXeeO/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+042.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCOkwmuoKMA8RTSogcLZZOLMA8tkg8p1AoW2pFWs0HUQatLswfZVGB6iUJotJyreUneLNDccq16voT-MMraD4oDQnCIl7B08gpy1a_WSGUxSdQlviRGEpKBC7AnZydSCkXeeO/s320/1st+Marathon%21+042.JPG" /></a><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Coleman and Cooper waiting patiently for the race to start. </i></span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFD-tWewkZgFFIiYl322pgtk8wbqtbwz4B0nw9cGDObzmm7YRrNkE2mDx-9e9mply9RX-guv2D4rMcIOjPnZEi18rENDD02plyvZj4_bY5HfcRC3MvNHyzomVUhaI0zCt2nUGy/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFD-tWewkZgFFIiYl322pgtk8wbqtbwz4B0nw9cGDObzmm7YRrNkE2mDx-9e9mply9RX-guv2D4rMcIOjPnZEi18rENDD02plyvZj4_bY5HfcRC3MvNHyzomVUhaI0zCt2nUGy/s320/1st+Marathon%21+035.JPG" /></a><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Calico Racing sign. There was a 50 mile ultra, marathon, half-marathon, 10k and 5k </span></i><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">that morning and Calico seemed to have it all running so smoothly. </span></i><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">The race director, Joyce, was amazing!</span></i><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQXVYWw2-Ez_a3rwwsE5vZBh9fcpfTWJXETicBY1iwvTnSaFRuJHsQ2EC6BfSV91QeqoDDTGNw5ixNEmbDIMdPpVOue-Ld_7p_zdlbw1QnSQ5IVfbfVaTzXOrifo99ly1Ul5OG/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQXVYWw2-Ez_a3rwwsE5vZBh9fcpfTWJXETicBY1iwvTnSaFRuJHsQ2EC6BfSV91QeqoDDTGNw5ixNEmbDIMdPpVOue-Ld_7p_zdlbw1QnSQ5IVfbfVaTzXOrifo99ly1Ul5OG/s320/1st+Marathon%21+045.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">After snapping a few photos we all headed over to the start with just a few minutes before go time. The race director, Joyce, gave us a pre-race talk (all 68 of us running the marathon that morning) and was sweet enough to mention my grandmother and the fact that we were running our first marathon in honor of what would've been her 86th birthday. There was also a guy there who was running his 200th marathon! Crazy!<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>8:00 am- Go Time!</b><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">We all lined up at the small starting line chute and we were on our way as soon as the race director yelled go!<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Starting the Garmin </i></span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOASilKjD0awFRhzVEBhMf4nZxh1hfCPUyNaQrInhi7sMcsVCn2sHMF_nhh8kUJ4y2MLKUynDE_5ldLCoZAzGlukVphBQiFhMUR1ikp-vONSVkXok496rSWLP2QMYvgufCGJHL/s1600-h/We're+off.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOASilKjD0awFRhzVEBhMf4nZxh1hfCPUyNaQrInhi7sMcsVCn2sHMF_nhh8kUJ4y2MLKUynDE_5ldLCoZAzGlukVphBQiFhMUR1ikp-vONSVkXok496rSWLP2QMYvgufCGJHL/s320/We're+off.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Bye, Dad!</i></span><br />
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</div><b>Miles 1-5</b><br />
<div style="color: #38761d;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 1- 9:30<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 2- 9:18<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 3- 9:46<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 4- 9:26<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 5- 9:32<br />
</div><br />
We started out feeling fresh and happy to be finally meeting our goal of running a marathon. I couldn't wipe the smile off of my face! We were chatting with the people around us and the miles were going by smoothly and quickly. The weather was sunny and beautiful. Our pace was a little quicker than it would have normally been on a long run but we both felt we were taking it pretty easy so we stuck with it. It was somewhere in this first 5 miles that we ended up running along with a few other marathoners and forming <span style="color: #990000;">our own "pace group."</span> There was Eric (the triathlete from AZ), Ed (the <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/">marathon maniac</a> from So. Cal.), <a href="http://www.vivarunvegas.blogspot.com/">Casey</a> (a local marathoner working on getting her 3 marathons in 3 months to gain membership to the maniacs elite club), Mitch (another maniac who ran with us off and on) and another first-timer (I forgot his name!) They were such a fantastic group! We were all super chatty which helped the miles fly by. There were rolling hills in this part but nothing too hard. Which brings us to-<br />
<br />
<b>Miles 6-10</b><br />
<br />
<div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 6- 10:10<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 7- 9:24<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 8- 9:42<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 9- 10:33<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 10- 10:54<br />
</div><br />
Still hammering it out here. More rolling hills. There were really NO flat parts on this course. In fact, before we started the race, one of the other runners told Will, "You sure picked a hard one to be your first!" Yes we did!! You can see which miles had the uphills and which had the downhills by our mile splits. Anyway, I'm still all smiles at this point. I'll spare you the suspense and just let you know- I smiled through this entire marathon! (This little tidbit will seem quite impressive a little further down in this story.) I was having so much fun just living in the moment. Nothing could shake my positive attitude. Will seemed to be doing well, too, but he was uncharacteristically quiet. I chalked it up to being in the zone or just enjoying listening to everyone else. Our group was still all hanging in there together. We learned so much about each other and about running from the experienced marathoners in the group. Physically, I was feeling good. No aches or pains. My wind felt great and I was thinking, "I'm going to finish this marathon easily!"<br />
<br />
<b>Miles 11-15</b><br />
<br />
<div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 11- 9:47<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 12- 10:40<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 13- 9:38 (2:08:17 at half-marathon point)<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 14- 10:19<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 15- 10:58<br />
</div><br />
Mile 11 brought us down a fairly long hill where the road was pretty curved. My ankles were bothering me a little until we got to where the road was a little more even. We then preceded up a steep hill and back down the other side to get to the halfway turn around. We got there in just over 2 hours. <span style="color: #0b5394;">We were on our way to the sub 4:30 time that we had set as our goal!</span> And we were still feeling good! I was drinking at every station and had taken 2 gels. My energy was high as we turned to run that 13.1 miles back the other way. Mile 15 brought us to a steep hill (the same one that hurt my ankles on the way down) and this hill was brutal! One mile uphill! We managed to run up the hill with no stopping and were so relieved to get to the top!<br />
<br />
<b>Miles 16-20</b><br />
<br />
<div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 16- 11:24<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 17- 11:29<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 18- 10:37<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 19- 12:48<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 20- 13:01<br />
</div><div style="color: #444444;"><br />
</div><span style="color: #444444;">Something changed in Mile 16.</span> Will started to slow down a little. He was breaking away from the pack. I knew something was wrong but he said he was fine and continued on. He didn't seem fine, though. Our group had pretty much dispersed at this point. All except for Ed (the marathon maniac from So.Cal.) He and I were running a little ahead of Will only to look behind us to see him struggling. He had put on his headphones for a little "pump up" music and despite his best efforts, took his first walk break between miles 18 and 19. His left quad was locking up on him and had been for the past couple of miles. He was trying to hide it and continue but it was really hurting at this point. There was an aid station right ahead so we stopped for a moment to meet back up with him. I was jogging just a little to keep my legs moving but Ed stayed back with Will. Before I knew it, I was at least a quarter mile ahead of them. I turned around to see Cami and Jen passing by Will and stopping to help rub out his thigh a little. I needed to hold back and stay with Will. I stopped and waited for him even though he was telling me to continue on. WHAT?! No way!! <span style="color: #b45f06;">We were going to finish this marathon together, no matter what!</span> He started to get emotional because he felt he had let me down because he wouldn't be able to run the whole way. He felt like he had failed me. I assured him that I was more concerned that we finish the marathon together over anything else. Still, he felt a little dejected and I could tell. I hated that he was so worried about me being disappointed. One thing he didn't know was that what he would accomplish over the next few miles would make me as proud as I've ever been of him.<br />
<br />
Miles 18-20 were stop and go. We would walk a little, run a little. Ed continued to stay with us and coach us. (By the way, Ed was awesome! We seriously had our own personal coach out there! He was running his 35th marathon and was a wealth of knowledge. He talked to keep Will's mind off of the pain and continued to give him advice on how to push through. <span style="color: #38761d;">We loved Ed!</span> What a blessing it was to meet him out there on the course.)<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Here we are with Ed after the race.</i></span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSiRVK8Tsf0d2pTzUFaJkJLBkUVzoSnZQUIwk2e6snIHPEkMUZynK2O-fnt5tqQElp4vmr3miBiUuV-RKEQPvtLbQXGEW3uKiIeEli33vAB_5f-oMiWfdlnOYjd-6dOYcEkBT/s1600-h/1st+Marathon%21+049.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSiRVK8Tsf0d2pTzUFaJkJLBkUVzoSnZQUIwk2e6snIHPEkMUZynK2O-fnt5tqQElp4vmr3miBiUuV-RKEQPvtLbQXGEW3uKiIeEli33vAB_5f-oMiWfdlnOYjd-6dOYcEkBT/s320/1st+Marathon%21+049.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><b>Miles 21-26</b><br />
<br />
<div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 21- 13:58<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 22- 13:43<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 23- 13:36<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 24- 14:13<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 25- 15:17<br />
</div><div style="color: #38761d;">Mile 26- 14:33<br />
</div><br />
This was gut-check time for Will. He was not going to let this marathon (or his body) beat him. With six miles left, now both of his quads are locking up and the left quad is starting to get worse and worse. What started at the bottom of his quad is working it's way up. He kept hoping that the walk breaks would loosen him up but no such luck. Running was <span style="color: #351c75;">excruciating</span> for him but he still continued to push past his limits. I started to get emotional watching him. Every step he took inspired me. Amazing. He kept running, albeit slow, and was determined to finish. No matter how much his body screamed at him to stop.<br />
<br />
<b>The Finish</b><br />
<br />
We had ascended the last small hill and were headed down the .2 to the finish line. Ed ran on ahead of us to allow us to finish together. (And, as I learned later, to make sure that our family and friends would be ready to meet us. My dad said Ed came across the finish line saying, "Who here is with a Alicia and Will? Here they come!" Again- love Ed! Who, by the way, headed right back out to do the course again. Maniac indeed!) Anyway, when we got close, I grabbed Will's hand and we finished together! I was so emotional and so proud of my husband (and me!) for what we had just gone through together. Truly a spectacular feeling to cross that finish line and to do it side-by-side. <b>If a marathon is a great metaphor for life then it is truly fitting that I would be right by his side to the very end.</b> <span style="color: #990000;">Our official finish time-</span> <b><span style="font-size: small;">5:05:48</span></b>. <br />
<br />
Here's some video of us at the finish line.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<b>Post-race</b><br />
<br />
Will was definitely in some pain as we finished. I got this still shot from the video. A picture can speak a thousand words, don't you think?<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNCEj8KckZJbtdytwvfMjw_Je5XWGDT_ivsn6VyLW0OULF0SPe4W0rHj-Z-dhzXOqMnKFIhzt3QubMj5wOPl61uiLWMN2j9qiCyHoB5jvdxyjHF6fPU5uENn7wflRtSFSRK0D/s1600-h/Will's+finish+face.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNCEj8KckZJbtdytwvfMjw_Je5XWGDT_ivsn6VyLW0OULF0SPe4W0rHj-Z-dhzXOqMnKFIhzt3QubMj5wOPl61uiLWMN2j9qiCyHoB5jvdxyjHF6fPU5uENn7wflRtSFSRK0D/s320/Will's+finish+face.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I was just grinning from ear-to-ear and happy to be done. Will needed some time before he could be happy about it all. :) After a drink, some electrolyte tablets, and some chili (the post-race food was yummy!) he started to feel a little better and within a half an hour he was planning his comeback. Another marathon? What?! <i>I thought he said this would be his one and only.</i> He said he just can't go out like that. So, we are already planning his comeback.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As for me, my legs ached for sure but I generally, felt good throughout the race. In fact, my only real pain is in my neck. I guess I just kept my shoulders too tight. My dad joked about how you never expect someone who has just run a marathon to joke about how much their neck hurts. Ha ha! I guess that's true!<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Anyway, I'm hooked and ready to find another one to do this spring and perhaps in the fall, too. I loved the whole experience. Strike that, I <i>hate</i> that Will was hurting but I loved the marathon and everyone who was involved in it and all the ups and downs. It was exhilarating! What a great weekend we had!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thank you Running from an Angel Marathon! You may have been tough but you just showed us what we're made of!!!<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-54574626516596712122009-12-31T19:03:00.000-08:002009-12-31T19:21:06.380-08:00Wow! 2009 went by lightning fast!It's that time of year again and I'm ready to set some new goals. I decided to take a look at the <a href="http://breakfast-with-alicia.blogspot.com/2009/01/because-goal-not-written-down-is-only.html">goals I set for myself last year</a> at about this time and was surprised to see how<b> few</b> (ha!) I actually accomplished. Here are last year's goals:<br />
<ol><li>Run a 5k in less than 24 minutes. Current PR is 25:47. <i><span style="color: purple;">(FAIL! But did manage to get a new PR of 25:27! I'll be trying this one again this year.)</span></i><br />
</li>
<li>Start running longer distances (5+ miles) at least once a week.<i> <span style="color: purple;">(Check!)</span></i><br />
</li>
<li>Play in a local mixed doubles tennis tournament with Will. <i><span style="color: purple;">(FAIL! This one is the one I'm most afraid of! I'm just so scared to lose that I won't even try. I'm sure this has something to do with my terrible high school tennis team experience, or lack thereof. I'm still adding this one to this year's goals. I really need to get over it already.)</span></i><br />
</li>
<li>Learn how to swim, like really swim- backstroke, breaststroke, etc. <i style="background-color: black; color: purple;"><span style="background-color: white;">(FAIL! I thought I might want to do a triathlon but I'm not even remotely interested anymore. I'll leave the swimming to the fish...and the old people at the gym.)</span></i><br />
</li>
<li>Save at least $500/month. <i><span style="color: purple;">(FAIL! Not even close. Ha!)</span></i><br />
</li>
<li>Lose 10 lbs (or more) and keep it off! <i><span style="color: purple;">(I lost it but didn't keep it off. This one's a wash.)</span></i><br />
</li>
<li>Refinish the 2 old dressers that are collecting dust in the garage.<span style="color: purple;"> <i>(Is it possible it's been over a year since I got those old dressers?! Geesh! Well, didn't refinish them but I did clean them up and they are being used so this one's a wash, too.)</i></span><br />
</li>
<li>Reorganize and redecorate the loft upstairs. <i><span style="color: purple;">(Um, fail.)</span></i><br />
</li>
<li>Spend more time working with Coleman on reading and helping Cooper with his speech.<span style="color: purple;"> <i>(Check! At least I have my priorities in line.)</i></span><br />
</li>
<li>Read more books. Not to the boys. I read plenty of those. I mean actual grown-up best-seller list books. Then maybe I won't feel like I'm getting dumber with each passing year. <i><span style="color: purple;">(Check! In fact, I've read 3 books in the last 3 weeks!)</span></i></li>
</ol>So, that's like 3 out of 10. Not very good. Heck, half of these goals I forgot I had even set! I'm going to have to print out a copy of this year's goals and put them where I'll see them. Will says he doesn't set goals at the beginning of the year. He just sets goals throughout the year as things come up that he wants to work on. Not a bad idea. Then you never come back to a list like this and think, "What was I thinking?!" But me being me, I like to wax introspective at least once a year and come up with some things that seem goal-worthy. So, without further adieu- <br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>My Goals for 2010</b></span><br />
<ul><li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b style="color: #38761d;">Running goals: first marathon (1/9/10!), 5k in less than 24 min, 10k in less than 50 min, and a half-marathon in less than 1hr55min.</b><span style="color: lime;"> </span> All will require some work but all are totally attainable.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b style="color: #0b5394;">Be at church <i>on time</i> at least 90% of the time.</b> This one will be difficult since church starts at 9:00am this year and I made it to church on time, oh, about 5% of the time when church started at 1:00pm. Now's a <i>great</i> time to figure out a new Sunday morning regimen that will help us to be more prompt.<span style="color: #741b47;"> <br />
</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #741b47;"> </span><b style="color: #741b47;">Read my scriptures everyday.</b> My reading has been inconsistent and I need to make sure that I read, even if just a little, everyday.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <b style="color: #351c75;">Do something nice for someone everyday. </b><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;">Make cookies, write a letter, pay a compliment- be creative and be personal. Surprise people with a nice gesture. Love this one and I'm thinking I'll get the whole family involved.</span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;"><b style="color: #134f5c;">Play in a mixed doubles tennis tournament with hubster.</b> This year, I'm not letting this one beat me. There is a local tournament every year in June and this year I'll be the first to sign up! <br />
</span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;">Lastly, I wasn't even sure that I'd add this one this year, but I do need to lose a few pounds. To be totally honest, marathon training has led me down a path of, well, over-carbing and I'd like to be back to feeling like myself by spring. So, <b style="color: #0b5394;">my last goal is to lose, hmm, let's say 10 pounds</b> and get back to weight-training and feeling light and spry again. </span></span></span></span></li>
</ul><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b> </b><span style="font-size: small;">I'm liking this year's list! </span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;">Makes me happy to have some goals written out. Funny how last year I made absolutely no mention of running a marathon. It wasn't even on my radar back then. Just goes to show that sometimes we just have to go where life seems to be pushing us.</span></span></span> I'm certainly all for adjusting my goals as I see fit throughout the year. Heck, by the time 6 months go by, I may need to adjust my goal to getting to church on time to 50%. (Nards! Giving up before I even start trying!)<br />
<br />
Really looking forward to twenty-ten! Good luck to all you goal-setting fools and Happy New Year!!!<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br />
</b></span>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-72013166979620824052009-12-16T10:36:00.000-08:002009-12-16T15:44:23.580-08:0032 ain't so bad!Yesterday was my 32nd birthday and it's fair to say that it started out a little un-birthday like with news from the hubby that it would be $800 to get the car fixed. Yikes! I was on my way to go shopping when he called and I turned right around and went home. Amazing how news like that will make you just feel like not spending money. Oh man, right at Christmastime, too. Anyway, I went home, checked the bank account and started to feel a <i>little</i> better.<br />
<br />
After a little shifting around of funds, my headache was starting to dissipate and there was a knock at the door. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC9ZenAEAju2X8v4FMWF99uIxngvFS2KPhC6XIsbo7vukBkMS0SYF8zZQ_2vMcuiWviG5n0Wx7k7ksJwGcEfCrBSw_QvbKmxuvRUCrw_52UiCdmu0bzDORuZho0KP-eclUbHX-/s1600-h/2009-12-16+Happy+32,+Mommy%21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC9ZenAEAju2X8v4FMWF99uIxngvFS2KPhC6XIsbo7vukBkMS0SYF8zZQ_2vMcuiWviG5n0Wx7k7ksJwGcEfCrBSw_QvbKmxuvRUCrw_52UiCdmu0bzDORuZho0KP-eclUbHX-/s320/2009-12-16+Happy+32,+Mommy%21.jpg" /></a>Sweet Anne Marie showed up with this little box of deliciousness. I know, I know. Taking pictures of cupcakes is lame but this one really deserved to have a picture documenting it's existence. It was packaged up so pretty that it instantly had me feeling like a birthday girl again! The cupcake itself was yellow cake with a raspberry cream filling and lemon butter cream frosting. I told Anne Marie that it wouldn't last long and she told me I could eat it for lunch because it was my birthday after all. I didn't eat it for lunch but I did share it with the boys as an after-school snack. Yum! Thanks, Anne Marie!<br />
<br />
Just after Anne Marie stopped by it was time for me to pick Cooper up from preschool. The kiddos were all waiting outside on the front porch for their parents and I was treated to the preschoolers singing me the Happy Birthday song. SO CUTE! I wish I had been prepared for it and got it on video. Their sweet little faces were just too precious for words. Thanks, Sandra, for that little surprise!<br />
<br />
My financially-induced tears of the morning were distant memories by this point and I was just ready to spend the rest of the day celebrating. I was thrilled to have the next couple knocks at my door bring me more birthday goodies. This from the Relief Society Presidency<br />
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and this from my sweet neighbors, the Bartons.<br />
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</div>Will made it home at about 4:30 pm and I was just starting to get ready for our night out when Will had the boys give me my gift. He had taken them to Color Me Mine and had them make me this cute-ified plate for me. It says "Happy Birthday, Mom!" and has their little hand prints on it. Coleman says that it's blue and red because it's their favorite colors. I think it's perfect! Love these boys!<br />
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</div>We all got spiffied up and went out to eat at the Cheesecake Factory for my birthday dinner. Even on a Tuesday night this place was packed. (Crazy!) It was well worth the wait, though. The food was amazing! We had the avocado egg rolls as an appetizer and I ordered the Chicken Bellagio as my main dish. Pretty sure I didn't even make it halfway through my huge plate of food. (Lucky for me, I get to have the rest for lunch today!) Will had this jambalaya-type pasta dish and the food was delicious all around. Sadly, I was too full to have cheesecake but I did buy a slice to take home. <a href="http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/menu/Cheesecake/stefanies_ultimate_red_velvet_cake_cheesecake">Red velvet cheesecake</a>, why do you have to be so delicious? I finished you off for breakfast and already miss you so...<br />
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</div>Thanks to the Sisouthams for going out with us! (And for the Cheesecake Factory gift card that was very quickly used!) You guys are awesome! Our birthday dinners are becoming quite the tradition! And thanks to my mom for the<a href="http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/catalog/productdetail.jsp?subCategoryId=&id=873436&catId=HOME-KITCHEN-GADGETS&pushId=HOME-KITCHEN-GADGETS&popId=HOME-KITCHEN&sortProperties=&navCount=30&navAction=middle&fromCategoryPage=true&selectedProductSize=&selectedProductSize1=&color=mul&colorName=MULTI&isProduct=true&isBigImage=&templateType="> cutest measuring spoons ever</a>!! Can't wait to get them!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL9rhQiJlmTe3kQleSsn71dKRJCkZxfKvhnkQeb7UMYXyo_ds_gcw_rwXVhn7T342NhXQD5mSvKgdl7tN7Hl8FRO_iPV_7gIZUWVhnsYGq8jK_oYYcO6o5VKYaldeGQid_MiKj/s1600-h/Happy+32,+Mommy%21+053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL9rhQiJlmTe3kQleSsn71dKRJCkZxfKvhnkQeb7UMYXyo_ds_gcw_rwXVhn7T342NhXQD5mSvKgdl7tN7Hl8FRO_iPV_7gIZUWVhnsYGq8jK_oYYcO6o5VKYaldeGQid_MiKj/s320/Happy+32,+Mommy%21+053.JPG" /></a>After I got home, there were some super sweet messages on the answering machine and some yummy cookies from <a href="http://www.smartcookiecompany.com/index.php">Smart Cookie</a> waiting on the doorstep from my neighbors, Tiffany and Sandra. The cookies are calling my name but I've told myself I need to drink at least a quart of water before I can have any more sugar. Ha ha! Don't worry they will be savored real soon! I'm sure I'll have some help from Will and the boys, too...<br />
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One last surprise from BFF, Jenn. She came by after we got home and brought me a iTunes gift card! Thanks so much, Jenn! I could really use the new tunes for the marathon training. Can't wait to go shopping for some new songs.<br />
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Thanks again to everyone who made my birthday so special! 32 ain't so bad! In fact, I think I'm gonna' like it!Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-66229068847883003982009-11-19T07:32:00.001-08:002009-11-19T07:32:21.456-08:00We elfed ourselves!There is Christmas stuff everywhere and yet I was unable to get in the holiday spirit until now! Funny that it took getting "elfed" to do it! Ha ha!<br />
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<img border="0" height="0" src="http://counters.gigya.com/wildfire/IMP/CXNID=2000002.0NXC/bT*xJmx*PTEyNTg2NDQzMzExNDUmcHQ9MTI1ODY*NDM4MzE5MiZwPTQxODgxMyZkPTIwMzUxNCZnPTImbz*5MTE2OGYwNGRkYjE*M2YxYTlmZDk3ZmIxZDJkYjBjYiZvZj*w.gif" style="height: 0px; visibility: hidden; width: 0px;" width="0" /><br />
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<object data="http://aka.zero.jibjab.com/client/zero/ClientZero_EmbedViewer.swf?external_make_id=ejUpqvtFevrPvRNP&service=elfyourself.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself" height="319" id="A284740" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" quality="high" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" wmode="transparent"><param name='wmode' value='transparent'></param><param name='movie' value='http://aka.zero.jibjab.com/client/zero/ClientZero_EmbedViewer.swf?external_make_id=ejUpqvtFevrPvRNP&service=elfyourself.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself'></param><param name='scaleMode' value='showAll'></param><param name='quality' value='high'></param><param name='allowNetworking' value='all'></param><param name='allowFullScreen' value='true' /><param name='FlashVars' value='external_make_id=ejUpqvtFevrPvRNP&service=elfyourself.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself'></param><param name='allowScriptAccess' value='always'></param></object><br />
<div style="margin-top: 6px; text-align: center; width: 435px;">Send your own <a href="http://www.elfyourself.com/">ElfYourself</a> <a href="http://sendables.jibjab.com/ecards">eCards</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.breakfast-with-alicia.blogspot.com/">www.breakfast-with-alicia.blogspot.com</a>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-24932236039851787192009-11-16T19:19:00.000-08:002009-11-16T19:20:52.311-08:00Mr. McGillicutty?So, Coleman has now decided he wants to be involved in TV production. He wrote his first script two days ago and we told him that for Family Home Evening he could assign parts and we would record it. So, without further adieu, here's "Kingdom in the Door." Apparently it's part of a series called Scary Place. :)<br />
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Cast of characters:<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty, the teacher</b>- Dad<br />
<b>Tommy</b>- Cooper<br />
<b>Eric</b>- Mom<br />
<b>New kid</b>- Coleman<br />
<b>A kid outside</b>- Coleman<br />
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<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "Today's lunch menu is meatlarf. Let's sing a song about it. Meatlarf, yummy, yummy,<br />
yummy!"<br />
<b>Tommy</b> (<i>raising his hand</i>)- "Mr. McGillicutty?"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "Yes? Uh, not good. Not good."<br />
<b>Tommy</b> (<i>still raising his hand</i>)- "Mr. McGillicutty?! Does 2+10=19?"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "No."<br />
<b>Tommy</b>- "Oh."<br />
<b>Mr. McGullicutty</b>- "What's this?"<br />
<b>Eric</b>- "Huh?"<br />
<b>Tommy</b>- "Hi!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "A new student? I should have known." <br />
<b>Eric</b>- "Who is he?"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "I don't know."<br />
[<i>New kid walks in to classroom.</i>] <br />
<b>New kid</b>- "Hello!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b> (<i>angrily</i>)- "You broke the door!!!"<br />
<b>New kid</b>- "Sorry."<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "Why don't you sit..."<br />
<b>Tommy and Eric</b> (<i>bamming the desk next to them</i>)- "Over here! Over here!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b> (<i>pointing</i>)- "...with those two."<br />
<b>New kid</b>- "Okay."<br />
<b>Tommy and Eric</b>- "Tee, hee, hee."<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b><i><b> </b>(angrily)</i>- "Boys!"<br />
<b>New kid</b>- "Hi guys!"<br />
<b>Tommy and Eric</b>- "Ha, hee!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b> <i>(angrily)</i>- "What are you doin'?!"<br />
<b>All 3 boys</b>- "HA!HA!HA!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "Now..."<br />
<b>Eric</b> (<i>looking at Mr. McGillicutty</i>)- "Is he dead?"<br />
<b>Tommy</b>- "No, why would he?"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "...and..."<br />
<b>All 3 boys</b>- "HA!HA!HA!HA!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b> (<i>angrily</i>)- "STOP!!!"<br />
<b>New kid</b>- "What? Hee, hee!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "...so..."<br />
<b>All 3 boys</b>- "HA!HA!HA!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "What the heck?!"<br />
<b>New kid</b>- "La-l-la!"<br />
<b>Tommy and Eric</b>- "HA!HA!HA!"<br />
[<i>School bell rings</i>.]<br />
<b>A kid outside</b>- "Come on out!"<br />
<b>All 3 boys</b>- "Hooray!"<br />
[<i>All 3 boys run over Mr. McGillicutty</i>.] <br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "Ow!"<br />
[<i>The boys are playing ball outside</i>.]<br />
<b>Eric</b>- "Downsy! Downsy!"<br />
<b>New kid</b>- "Upsy-daisy!"<br />
<b>Mr. McGillicutty</b>- "Oh come on!!! Man, man!!!"<br />
THE END<br />
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Obviously, we didn't practice it <strike>much</strike> at all before recording but I'm pretty sure it wouldn't have mattered. :) The important thing is- Coleman couldn't have been more excited to have it all acted out. I'm sharing it here not because of our magnificent acting (although, it is!) but because Coleman wants everyone to see it. Hope you enjoy!Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-71888797198101285962009-11-10T18:03:00.000-08:002009-11-10T18:05:18.169-08:00Coleman's big stage debut!Coleman has been interested in movies for a long time. He's like a walking calendar for movie premiere dates. A couple of months ago he began asking me how movies were made and what he needed to do to make his own movie. Sufficeth to say, I really had no idea what to tell him. I only got as far as telling him to write a screenplay. And he did write a couple "screenplays" and then when I told him that we could video he and his friends acting it out he asked, "Then they will play it at the movie theater?" Uh, not exactly, bub. He's <b>so</b> not interested in making movies unless it's going to play at the local Cinemark. :)<br />
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So, in order for him to learn exactly how much work goes into a real production we signed him up for his first musical theater production. We told him that he could learn things that will help him when he goes on to make movies- stuff about sets and stage direction, etc. He was all about it.<br />
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The local arts council does a couple of plays a year for 4-8 yr olds to star in. This go round they were putting on 101 Dalmatians. Coleman auditioned (every kid was awarded a role) and got the part of Chihuahua #4, perfect part for a first-timer! He continued to go to practice every Mon and Wed from 4-5pm for 7 weeks. He learned all the songs and dances and was ready for his debut performance last Thursday. He was a little nervous the first night but it played to his advantage because it helped him to be more focused. (Well, as focused as Coleman gets anyway.) Coleman did his very best that night and the two subsequent nights and we couldn't have been any more proud. Go Coleman! Our very own li'l actor.<br />
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Here's part of the song "Twilight Bark" where the Chihuahuas were center stage. He may have been a bit off-beat but we think he stole the show! I say he just added his own flare to his character. :)<br />
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Here's Coleman posing by the truck on set.<br />
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Getting our photo-op with the star.<br />
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</div>I also want to mention that Coleman had great support in the audience every night as well. June and the kids came on Thursday night. Jenn, Madi and Jackson came on Friday night and Jenny, La and Talon came to see him on Saturday night. We love and appreciate all of our supportive friends and family. You guys are the best! Coleman is so lucky to have such wonderful people in his life.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here's a bit of the final number. <br />
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By the way, Coleman says he never, ever wants to do another play. Too much practice, he says. Ha, ha! Next up for Coleman? He wants drawing and writing classes. That sounds about right.Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-14067974263109670582009-10-18T00:38:00.000-07:002009-10-18T00:38:59.905-07:00Catch-up post!Ok. Just taking a minute here (after midnight!) to catch-up a little on my blog. I've been posting about once a week on my<a href="http://www.aliciaruns.blogspot.com/"> other blog</a> and I guess that's all I've really had in me to write lately.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfTm8U9aAGiPlwfpTMjh4PfqqNNfqHFbpexcZypiA9PWycSwbqTJmTTvutNfK-mZ1wmr8-KE79xxHVsiCw2GHWH6-0nDTyBSsnHpYO5d725JgdTLCWL1bAX3DjUHcoWVfotM5V/s1600-h/IMG00104-20091010-1219.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfTm8U9aAGiPlwfpTMjh4PfqqNNfqHFbpexcZypiA9PWycSwbqTJmTTvutNfK-mZ1wmr8-KE79xxHVsiCw2GHWH6-0nDTyBSsnHpYO5d725JgdTLCWL1bAX3DjUHcoWVfotM5V/s320/IMG00104-20091010-1219.jpg" /></a>First of all let's catch up a little on Coops. I just love this redhead so much. I just want to eat him up some days! He has been so affectionate lately always giving Mom <b>and</b> Dad lots of hugs and kisses and "I love you's." Will has really been appreciating this because Cooper has typically given Mom all the love and Dad all the kicks to the head. Oh, and he just finished up his very first season of soccer. The Purple People Eaters had a great fall season. Cooper has gotten better each week and even scored a goal a couple of games back! Even so, I'm not entirely sure that soccer is his sport. While he enjoys playing, when they ask if anyone needs a break, he is always to first kid to volunteer. He really just likes sitting on Mom's lap, drinking some Gatorade and cheering for his team. We're thinking he may be more of a baseball guy, as he's been excited to watch games with Will and has begun asking lots of questions while he watches. Since t-ball won't be until next summer, we've decided to sign Cooper up for some MMA (mixed martial arts) classes until then. Starting that in a couple weeks! He's a natural fighter so I'm sure he'll do really well.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn94meWchkj3V_t5qsZNyuoqq3zOLTOs62LW_Nimbt5TfWxTUgv_SD6KcpNqQ2H6ogrGNT9eGCMT9G5LiSNmASfTXHCCvqL4F_Bh5qP6KpTKJIBJgl9huNQ9uLDvQsZItgJXLl/s1600-h/Friend+article-+page+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn94meWchkj3V_t5qsZNyuoqq3zOLTOs62LW_Nimbt5TfWxTUgv_SD6KcpNqQ2H6ogrGNT9eGCMT9G5LiSNmASfTXHCCvqL4F_Bh5qP6KpTKJIBJgl9huNQ9uLDvQsZItgJXLl/s320/Friend+article-+page+1.jpg" /></a><br />
</div>Now Coleman. My sweet Coleman. He is such a great boy! He consistently does as he's told and always without complaining. He loves to read and going to the library is the highlight of his week. Lately, he's been obsessed with writing (and illustrating) chapter books of his own. He will work on them for hours at a time, breaking only to think about what his next book will be about. Sometimes, he'll go and pace around in the back yard "acting out" what he wrote. And yes, he does look a bit crazy walking around talking to himself but at least he's being creative, right?! Coleman has also been enjoying a bit of fame this month from his appearance in the Friend. It seems like everyone and their brother has seen it. Every day he comes home and says that someone else mentioned they saw him. I think he's really enjoying his 15 minutes of fame. He plans on extending his fame by appearing in the Lehi Arts Council's performance of the Kidz Musical <b>101 Dalmatians</b> at the beginning of November. Watch out because Chihuahua #4 just might steal the show! :)<br />
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As for Will, he's been busy working. Being an asst. principal at a jr. high is no easy task! He's so blessed to have a job that allows him so much time off, though. We really love having him home on the days that school is out. Of course, work is not all he's been up to. He has been taking ukulele lessons for the past few weeks. Ukulele? Really?! Yes! He has always wanted to learn. He says he just loves how calming the music is. He's determined to do some mean strumming at the beach next summer. I've been listening to him practice and he's getting quite good. He can now play the Happy Birthday song and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Gotta' start somewhere! Will is also training for the marathon along with me. He had a brief spell with a swollen ankle but all is well now and he's training at 100%. So proud of him!<br />
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As for me, it's same ol', same ol'. I am keeping myself pretty busy lately shopping for the perfect new flooring for our downstairs. I've narrowed it down to either hardwood or laminate. Still trying to decide what will look best with our maple cabinets. I'm terrible at making these kinds of decisions. Too indecisive. And absolutely no clue what looks good. I need some help! Other than the floors, I've been running (a lot!) and doing all the busy mommy stuff that I do everyday. Gotta love it!!Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-55830208782140522782009-09-19T23:00:00.000-07:002009-09-19T23:00:30.606-07:00My Marathon Blog<a href="http://www.aliciaruns.blogspot.com/">www.aliciaruns.blogspot.com</a><br />
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I thought about calling it i-need-a-nap.blogspot.com or i-may-hurt-myself.blogspot.com but AliciaRuns seemed simple and to the point. Just training updates and random thoughts. I actually just really wanted to keep some kind of journal to remember it all but thought others might enjoy it, too. Or maybe not. But, either way, it's out there.Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-74236945726559252782009-09-09T10:14:00.000-07:002009-09-09T10:14:05.956-07:00How do you eat an elephant?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh405SuAvqJ40uyhpOBy2-2RFjH3lyGo1zjl4bxFNiFy2JgTIxCKjX7FvKmxtsKnclboOL-GrqmnmP-x78O99GNgiKXE99b9hv3Orc_SHlAh2UkEvTLLvEjZeBWVrlWdxkiEXNJ/s1600-h/starting+line.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh405SuAvqJ40uyhpOBy2-2RFjH3lyGo1zjl4bxFNiFy2JgTIxCKjX7FvKmxtsKnclboOL-GrqmnmP-x78O99GNgiKXE99b9hv3Orc_SHlAh2UkEvTLLvEjZeBWVrlWdxkiEXNJ/s320/starting+line.jpg" /></a></div><br />
One bite at a time! This past Saturday our elephant came in the form of a half-marathon that Will and I signed up for on a whim back in July. I hadn't really considered running that far before. In fact, I had only ever run 6 miles at one time but Will's sister, June, and her husband, Steve, convinced me that we could do it so I signed up for it quickly before I could change my mind. (It's funny how sometimes we don't believe in ourselves until someone else does.) Anyway, there was no backing out. We paid our money and had no choice but to go for it. As soon as we were home from vacation I found a training plan and we got started.<br />
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The training was challenging but never more than we could handle. We did all of our long runs on the Jordan River Trail which made those runs really pretty nice. It's so quiet out there and you can feel secluded but without being too far from civilization. I actually look forward to my long runs because of that trail. Even though I saw at least one snake cross my path every time I ran out there. <b>Creepy</b> but it usually put a little extra pep in my step!<br />
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The only snag in training came for me 3 weeks before the race when I wore some new shoes out for a 9 mile run. By the time I made it back, I had strained a ligament in my foot and was out of training for a little over a week. Not smart! Injuries are certainly a part of training, though. And I'm learning to work through them and not get too down when it happens. After all, it always gets better, right?!<br />
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Race Time: I was really anxious/excited the day before the race. I spent the whole day doing the two things I do when I'm nervous- cleaning and baking. I really get a lot done when I'm anxious about something.<br />
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That night I made pancakes for dinner (a little carbo-loading) but I really had to force myself to eat it. I just didn't feel like eating but knew I had to so that I would have fuel to burn on the run. So, I ate a pancake but wasn't able to eat anything else the rest of the night. Will's sister picked the boys up at about 8:00 pm and took them to her house to stay the night (yay for awesome sister-in-laws!) and Will and I got to bed early to get some much needed rest. Well, I should say we both got to bed early only I wasn't able to fall asleep until past 11:00. Pesky anxiety.<br />
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So, finally we made it to race day. The day that I would become a bonafide long-distance runner. I was so excited that I jumped right out of bed when my alarm went off at 5:00 am. I ran downstairs to eat half a waffle with peanut butter and 1/2 a banana. Again, I didn't want to eat but knew I had to. Will and I were out the door by 5:45 and on our way to Spanish Fork.<br />
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It was dark and rainy when we arrived but once we got our race packets, put our race chips on our shoes and pinned our numbers on our shirts, the sun was starting to come out and the rain stopped. It looked as if it would be perfect weather for a run. I made a pre-run trip to the loo and met a bunch of friendly ladies while waiting in line. People are <b>super</b> friendly at long-distance races. I even met and talked with a few people while running! It's like some kind of "we're all in this together" attitude and it's infectious. I love that.<br />
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Will and I made our way over to the starting line. We were both feeling confident and ready to go. The race started and we were on our way. Knowing we didn't want to go out too fast, we stuck to our race plan and ran at about a 9:25 min/mile pace for the first 6 miles. Our plan was to run a negative split (basically run the 2nd half faster if we felt like we had the juice to.) Around mile 6, we hit the big, mile-long hill. No kidding, we ran uphill that entire mile! The Garmin beeped when we hit mile 7 and I realized that we had run our fastest mile yet! That's when I knew we could pick it up a little. Miles 7-13 we averaged a little under a 9:00 min/mile and finished the race in 2:00:45, a 9:13 min/mile average pace. Wahoo!! It's great when things work out the way you plan them to! Of course, I would have loved to have finished in under 2 hours but I was just happy to have finished. Under 2 hours can be my next goal. :)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqK-w5qa8WVCz__MQHU_XQFq7kBfARzBCyetblvYkV9Hchsesw8w7j_YnCBNjDrWqKzYMe9mU2k611h-GQ_Hsx2I3UmCiNgenUKnCbQFwuCjYzOTNJSbya-n7mHnExGrPRfc0r/s1600-h/Will-+Half.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqK-w5qa8WVCz__MQHU_XQFq7kBfARzBCyetblvYkV9Hchsesw8w7j_YnCBNjDrWqKzYMe9mU2k611h-GQ_Hsx2I3UmCiNgenUKnCbQFwuCjYzOTNJSbya-n7mHnExGrPRfc0r/s320/Will-+Half.jpg" /></a></div><br />
As soon as we crossed the finish line, my legs locked up. I felt it right away. I had to run around for a couple minutes just to keep loose as I cooled down. Will seemed fine. He was just happy to be done I think. Let me take a minute here to talk about my husband. I basically forced him into running this with me and I think it was the best training decision I could have made. What a huge support he was for me. He was right by my side the whole time, giving me gels when it was time and gentle encouragement when my IT band was acting up. I loved sharing this with him. I just love him.<br />
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Anyway, we congratulated ourselves, had some water and fruit, and walked around until they handed out medals. We finished 108 and 109 out of about 270 runners. No awards for us although we were hoping maybe Will would finish in the top 3 of the Clydesdale division. That's for guys that are 200+. But alas, he didn't. We sat through the billion different raffles hoping to win an iPod or a camera or even a chicken dinner but it wasn't in the cards for us. It's okay, though, because we had already gotten our award- the feeling of knowing that we had finished the race was enough for us. And finishing easily, without a single thought about stopping, was our reward for all the hard training.<br />
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All in all, a great experience and way easier than I expected. I'm feeling completely confidant about training for the full marathon. Training starts next week!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8r8kPqT_yTH0OObD4iCGu6p9N3_czGxGWtzPo3BDr0Bu-sYRuGG-C28JlOLl_0ZWzuitxzO6UADI0rAatkZqBkTvT34860od8rWqKKQ0WKk5u3e31JxUOmJr2vG8gRK1VgVzb/s1600-h/Finish-+Alicia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8r8kPqT_yTH0OObD4iCGu6p9N3_czGxGWtzPo3BDr0Bu-sYRuGG-C28JlOLl_0ZWzuitxzO6UADI0rAatkZqBkTvT34860od8rWqKKQ0WKk5u3e31JxUOmJr2vG8gRK1VgVzb/s320/Finish-+Alicia.jpg" /></a></div>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-27872614871901180752009-08-24T14:09:00.000-07:002009-08-24T14:09:10.198-07:00Super Cooper is 4!It's been particularly hard for me to let this baby boy grow up. I have been seriously sad that he isn't 3 anymore. Three was such a good year for him! He has been such a Mama's boy. I've gotten lots of love and hugs and kisses from him. I think I am just afraid that as he gets bigger I'll get less and less of that cuddly time. Kinda makes me wanna wrap him up in a blankie and start moving in reverse. Alas, I know that my efforts will be futile and I have to embrace the 4-yr-old Cooper which has so far proved not to be so bad. He's had plenty of love for Mommy today, even though he's 4. So, little boy, I'll let you grow up. I have no choice...<br />
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That being said- let's celebrate my little Cooper. Here's a little about this special boy.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim3AHl7r6D3CC2_Fzc88-GgebVA5kBpxNk1w16HSxpcrTQNgJCrulIM4DRCUFq1YeCn8hQv3nzRnr-0myjMdhq4Jnt6tzN-NBxAfM-H-UT-H_NWuENOYhZcUawPH769ZK_ZNWm/s1600-h/2008-08-13+Bees+Game.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim3AHl7r6D3CC2_Fzc88-GgebVA5kBpxNk1w16HSxpcrTQNgJCrulIM4DRCUFq1YeCn8hQv3nzRnr-0myjMdhq4Jnt6tzN-NBxAfM-H-UT-H_NWuENOYhZcUawPH769ZK_ZNWm/s320/2008-08-13+Bees+Game.jpg" /></a></div><ol><li>He is incredibly goofy. A total ham who just eats up the attention he gets from anybody. This is pretty much proved by every photograph that I ever take of him. He loves to pose and be silly.</li>
<li>Many, many times Will and I have retired for the night only to find this little fella' (and his older brother) in our bed. We've successfully been able to lock our door to keep them out for a long while. However, just last week we went to bed only to find them in there again! The next morning I asked Cooper how he got in my room and he said, "I used the key!" Ha ha! I have to admit I kind of love it that they want to sleep with us. It's comforting to have us all together at night.<br />
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<li>This one is obvious to anyone who knows Cooper. He <strike>loves</strike> is <b>totally obsessed</b> with superheroes! In fact, he can name a couple dozen superheroes and villains off of the top of his head. He has also learned the real names of his favorites- Peter Parker, Tony Stark, Johnny Storm, Dr. Bruce Banner, Ben Grimm. He can go on and on.</li>
<li>He's been boxing since he was 1. For some reason, he has always just taken to it. He's got a natural ability that's a bit uncanny. I, for one, am not thrilled about this but he does seem to love it. He doesn't hit when he gets angry. So it hasn't made him aggressive. He just seems to love sparring for fun. Here's a pic of him in one of his first sparring matched with his cousin Amy back in 2007. In fact, he moved through all of his cousins that day!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6x3YriS5su77zAXG4DlRz6DTS9sykANmt-9DCUggTGtIuQeWUJiUmurf9Uv-phg0NiFi_GIp5e3iwXOdEAb94objTb_juQxQrUMoCuOTy0WptX3IVQ-vZ3ivf0AxRsehOgUK4/s1600-h/0706230007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6x3YriS5su77zAXG4DlRz6DTS9sykANmt-9DCUggTGtIuQeWUJiUmurf9Uv-phg0NiFi_GIp5e3iwXOdEAb94objTb_juQxQrUMoCuOTy0WptX3IVQ-vZ3ivf0AxRsehOgUK4/s320/0706230007.JPG" /></a></div></li>
<li> To counterbalance his tough boy image I have to mention this- Cooper helps me make cookies every single Sunday night. He puts on his little turtle apron and promptly pulls everything out of the pantry that we need. Mom measures and then he adds everything to the bowl. He even knows how to gently tap the bowl until all the flour has been added to the Kitchenaid. Once the dough is made he always gets to lick the beater and has seconds and thirds of the cookie dough. Usually, he's full of cookie dough before the cookies are even done. I love having him as my cookie-makin' bud. Love this little tradition of ours.</li>
</ol>Just a few of the things that we love so much about him. Happy birthday, bud! We love you! Here's a few pics from his first 4 years.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Zalc-w9BG5TNiiExVC2ZEPRaBzwqfWEWoAbIQX6_CHsAto2q-ZF4InVoeqcjY12v5dQniVaI1qAc7fdmK1uJrD6j_bMMerlMOnpSO6BkV3g11bZuVxao0w1NlvRCc5gz4sCY/s1600-h/Cooper'sHospitalPic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Zalc-w9BG5TNiiExVC2ZEPRaBzwqfWEWoAbIQX6_CHsAto2q-ZF4InVoeqcjY12v5dQniVaI1qAc7fdmK1uJrD6j_bMMerlMOnpSO6BkV3g11bZuVxao0w1NlvRCc5gz4sCY/s200/Cooper'sHospitalPic.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqMdftIqj3XTmquKZqcbfQCVH3Ipg3zZI4QHlDkGxWQhw6bLXnVzWmLhlRFYqNTiVUlUzlaK6tQTxIqOY4-KyfoLz9bQXALgT3S0wTA917A1U70MykJIlAoqwNMkaaX6R5ZxR/s1600-h/2006_1031halloween20060085.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqMdftIqj3XTmquKZqcbfQCVH3Ipg3zZI4QHlDkGxWQhw6bLXnVzWmLhlRFYqNTiVUlUzlaK6tQTxIqOY4-KyfoLz9bQXALgT3S0wTA917A1U70MykJIlAoqwNMkaaX6R5ZxR/s320/2006_1031halloween20060085.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3OiI5mt6-9NqQX6nLQzPiOLtM12UZ1igUVuW3XdXDoK5SycoV9gALKhlTVfjI1sAHOvRp2EsTcerx9-_dnIIxDO7s2PRU_R0tdFa_ydJT9j_2DwmaTrPTW1-OmGbIg1xONv7h/s1600-h/Thanksgiving+2007+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3OiI5mt6-9NqQX6nLQzPiOLtM12UZ1igUVuW3XdXDoK5SycoV9gALKhlTVfjI1sAHOvRp2EsTcerx9-_dnIIxDO7s2PRU_R0tdFa_ydJT9j_2DwmaTrPTW1-OmGbIg1xONv7h/s320/Thanksgiving+2007+007.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEKCZvHo6K_oT_HYPN4XKv4zYjNIofLe2T25raaNga-ENlA8siOr7F1Cxstvb0u487su5cImkEQtlinolFzoeU7eWTJSNLVkpeM3ymcDVonqLFKPn14wVGCHen_Qyt2SXpjMju/s1600-h/Friend,+1st+Grade-First+Day+040.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEKCZvHo6K_oT_HYPN4XKv4zYjNIofLe2T25raaNga-ENlA8siOr7F1Cxstvb0u487su5cImkEQtlinolFzoeU7eWTJSNLVkpeM3ymcDVonqLFKPn14wVGCHen_Qyt2SXpjMju/s320/Friend,+1st+Grade-First+Day+040.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixlMKlNKpf9lR5W8039PR3sD6fnaFndArX7AKyMSvtiBfuMiXk588CgxMgAmvZWlHZwozHvYiHmfmZrhaI1ikQ-P8pmHeBOkYmVVfW5FZvvTAhlVViEyqLn8Jx6X-U5hZ3znER/s1600-h/Happy+4th+Birthday,+Cooper%21+059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixlMKlNKpf9lR5W8039PR3sD6fnaFndArX7AKyMSvtiBfuMiXk588CgxMgAmvZWlHZwozHvYiHmfmZrhaI1ikQ-P8pmHeBOkYmVVfW5FZvvTAhlVViEyqLn8Jx6X-U5hZ3znER/s320/Happy+4th+Birthday,+Cooper%21+059.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">We love you little guy!</span></div>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-24684205810762690552009-08-21T00:16:00.000-07:002009-08-21T00:29:30.235-07:00Back-to-school!How can it be time for school already?! I never even got a chance to post all the fun summer stuff we did this year! Oh well. I'll have to come back to that later. Just wanted to jump on here and mention that Coleman says that, "2nd grade is awesome!" and Cooper is thoroughly enjoying his time in preschool. And I am thoroughly enjoying time to myself two mornings a week. (Yay!)<br />
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<h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">A little about Cooper's 1st day in his new preschool: I dropped Cooper off at his preschool looking like the top pic and picked him up 3 hours later in his Flash costume. </span></h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qsag0-WYMInqAkDkW7RLGWYc-7tffaPUpFo468nEBh_oeUQbj2xCUgrDbBPE4xC55f4w83EKIrnNwwFdXq1q3J5CzG8Nq53jeluOR9-LOJSbCHwqRvBWfuKr4YCqrQWlA8wo/s1600-h/2009-08-18+Flash+and+1st+Day+of+PreK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qsag0-WYMInqAkDkW7RLGWYc-7tffaPUpFo468nEBh_oeUQbj2xCUgrDbBPE4xC55f4w83EKIrnNwwFdXq1q3J5CzG8Nq53jeluOR9-LOJSbCHwqRvBWfuKr4YCqrQWlA8wo/s320/2009-08-18+Flash+and+1st+Day+of+PreK.jpg" /></a></div><h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">What happened, you ask? Dang kid ran home and got his costume when he saw a toy that reminded him of it! You see, Cooper's preschool is right next door taught by my sweet neighbor, Sandra. The whole group of preschoolers were outside playing when he took off towards home (30 ft. away.) The door was unlocked. (I was not at home.) By the time they went to get him (pretty much immediately) he had already grabbed his costume and was on his way back. Sandra, bless her heart, allowed him to wear it and even helped him to put it on. I couldn't help but laugh when I saw him but had a very stern "talking-to" with him soon after I picked him up. He won't be doing it again. Goofy kid. He is obsessed with superheroes.</span></h3><h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Coleman's a 2nd grader! He was so nervous last night about going into a new class. In fact, it made me nervous to see him nervous. By this morning, though, he said that he was just excited and by the time he got home he said he had a great day "other than the ride home." Ugh! The bus ride home. He didn't get home until 4:45 today! School lets out at 3:30 so that is a dang long time to be on the bus. Granted he does go to school in another town but it should never take more than 1/2 an hour. The bus driver got lost when he tried to backtrack his morning route and ended up restarting his route from the furthest point. Huh?! What kind of idiot do you have to be to drive a school bus?! Sorry. That was uncalled for but I was just livid that he was on the bus that long. Thankfully Will is friends with the head administrator over transportation (perks of having a school administrator as a husband) so tomorrow this guy better get it right. Oh, that sounded threatening, huh? I can be a beast when it comes to my kids.</span></h3><h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Anyway, here's a couple pics of Coleman before school this morning. He was stoked to wear his new Star Wars tee.</span></h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie2Ap6-FF4UIvqJb7pc8mw_Cd37lpyFIJrbbiz-uJZGHYQU-QMKYv9unxzhKV9CEbT5ZJV2RCOI5lObb1fZYjw9-o1vxWQPLwkqBV_7SdW_0hbY6ZSVJDYx5_w0lNhqY9xffwh/s1600-h/IMG00037-20090820-0837.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie2Ap6-FF4UIvqJb7pc8mw_Cd37lpyFIJrbbiz-uJZGHYQU-QMKYv9unxzhKV9CEbT5ZJV2RCOI5lObb1fZYjw9-o1vxWQPLwkqBV_7SdW_0hbY6ZSVJDYx5_w0lNhqY9xffwh/s320/IMG00037-20090820-0837.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk2T_0LYyB8CJKeWOtztx8Y2qm5_bdldWA1Smckej1Z6iuqZEPbisgEP06S4TVqUMHVa-d5pl3wnci_Z5YdTETQXHcN4bcSvC1BGHuCJqZoUAEjJNfRoaxzXToehuCldGtY1LC/s1600-h/IMG00038-20090820-0837.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk2T_0LYyB8CJKeWOtztx8Y2qm5_bdldWA1Smckej1Z6iuqZEPbisgEP06S4TVqUMHVa-d5pl3wnci_Z5YdTETQXHcN4bcSvC1BGHuCJqZoUAEjJNfRoaxzXToehuCldGtY1LC/s200/IMG00038-20090820-0837.jpg" /></a></div><h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">He's not really one to pose for pics. Ha ha! Love this kid!</span></h3><h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></h3><h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Worth mentioning, too, I hosted a back-to-school donut party yesterday morning. You can read more about it on Jenn's blog. (<a href="http://garyjenn.blogspot.com/2009/08/rise-shine.html">Click here to see.</a>) I really need to get to bed!<br />
</span></h3>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-65548077814140095122009-06-14T08:32:00.000-07:002009-06-14T08:42:20.487-07:00A couple videos from Park City trip.We got back from Park City on Friday after spending 3 nights at the Westgate Resort. Nice to get away for a few days. Will says this was our "appetizer" vacation since we are leaving this Saturday to go back East for nearly a month. That must be the main course. Ha ha! Anyway, I spent my time in Park City keeping the boys entertained while Will went to his meetings, etc. Just wanted to post a couple videos of the boys that I captured while we were there.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/kNxwP6WrZss&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/kNxwP6WrZss&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/67PyHroB6p4&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/67PyHroB6p4&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/aMTql6u3IVk&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/aMTql6u3IVk&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-41099551002349287502009-05-25T09:17:00.001-07:002009-05-25T10:29:31.286-07:00A Life Like Mary's<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBd6mHzq68ehGjHsAj8UhjJIBdGEQVZFDa-bbgCyqurIW6KNRdL93JaO3q1LSoTNtzqU7VGffQ4dGPayRnlc8TCyJfluwM6QYn6iGhPmBheGoBm4w44mkFn_Dh22hJN3UeCck9/s1600-h/2006_07222006SummerVacation0126.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBd6mHzq68ehGjHsAj8UhjJIBdGEQVZFDa-bbgCyqurIW6KNRdL93JaO3q1LSoTNtzqU7VGffQ4dGPayRnlc8TCyJfluwM6QYn6iGhPmBheGoBm4w44mkFn_Dh22hJN3UeCck9/s320/2006_07222006SummerVacation0126.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5339798347178854274" border="0" /></a><br />This past Monday, my dear grandmother (my Maw Maw) passed from this life and went to be with her Father in Heaven once again. I thought that I was prepared for her to pass. I knew that she hadn't been herself for a long while and that her health had been deteriorating quickly. I told myself to be prepared but <span style="font-weight: bold;"><span><span>nothing</span></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></span></span>prepares you to say goodbye to someone who has meant so much to you. <br /><br />Maw Maw was everything that I want to be in my life- a loving mother and grandmother, a tireless hostess, and just a completely selfless human being. Her life was centered around her family and making sure that those around her were comfortable and happy. It was difficult to be anything but happy around Maw Maw. She was one of the funniest women I've ever known (whether she meant to be or not) and we spent a good part of our time together as family laughing about funny things she would say. She always really enjoyed the attention.<br /><br />Maw Maw was also a fabulous cook and I called her often to ask for recipes and cooking tips. About 5 years ago she sent me all of her most used recipes in their original forms- 40 yr old newspaper clippings, splattered note cards and yellowed pages right out of old cookbooks. These are the most treasured items I received from her. She told me that she knew I would use them and it means so much to me to know that I'm able to carry on her legacy by cooking all the things that she so lovingly prepared herself.<br /><br />She was something special.<br /><br />I love you, Maw Maw! You will be missed.Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-52920860398509564812009-05-16T20:42:00.000-07:002009-05-16T21:29:03.706-07:00Living Traditions '09It's that time of year again! Today we went to the Living Traditions festival in downtown Salt Lake. It's a festival that showcases dozens of cultures- the food, the crafts, the performing arts. We love it and have gone every year for the past five years. There is just something about it that marks the permanence of warm weather. No more snow. No more back and forth weather. Just sunshine and warm weather for the next few months. Gotta love that.<br /><br />Anyway, this year was great as always. As soon as we got there we made a beeline for the food stands. We bought the boys some fried spring rolls from the Thai stand to hold them over while we looked around. When it was all said and done we hit the Thai stand, the Tahitian stand, the Vietnamese stand, the Swiss stand, the Bolivian stand, the Pakistani stand and the Hawaiian stand. We took our food and sat under a tree by the south stage to watch the Hawaiian dancing. Great performance although the drunk guy that hung out in front of the stage facing the crowd and dancing was a bit distracting. Was pretty funny, though.<br /><br />After that we went over to the kids area and found that they were doing a demonstration of Brazilian Copeira, which is like a type of dance that incorporates gymnastics and some fighting moves. It's really cool. The kids were all invited to learn a couple moves. Here's Coleman trying out what he learned.<br /><br /><object width="445" height="364"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-cY0xmOgF14&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-cY0xmOgF14&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="445" height="364"></embed></object><br /><br />I don't have pictures of Cooper but he loved it even more than Coleman! We are even thinking about finding lessons for him. <br /><br />After the festival, we went to Lollicup and had some bubble smoothies and then to the Asian store before heading home. Great day and lots of fun family togetherness!Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-42731472712324269872009-03-15T15:48:00.000-07:002009-03-18T21:56:02.551-07:00Happy Birthday, Coleman!Coleman is 7 and I don't know where the years have gone! He has grown into a terrific kid. Such a sweet boy, always looking to make a new friend, a terrific big brother and can often be found trying to comfort Cooper when he's upset and just an all-around sweetheart. I don't think this kid has a bad bone in his body! (Of course, I say this as his mother but others will agree with me!) Today, he asked me if I'm going to miss him when he's grown up and I told him, "So much my heart will hurt, bud." He seemed satisfied with that answer. I tell you, there's not a day that goes by that he doesn't remind me why I love him so much! Happy Birthday, Coleman!<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWLmQH508NDK8Hub_5cyktXCWvECRLD9BLOtTkbg_xo3-Zz-W4zg1G2zZJbtgsJManZ0geTKaP4a5ebvVpTKXGvX8S3xCrKLm2o_dQos5ZmdZoM94wyBQfhoh6XFRQuY2sKovM/s1600-h/ColemanInBlue.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 215px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWLmQH508NDK8Hub_5cyktXCWvECRLD9BLOtTkbg_xo3-Zz-W4zg1G2zZJbtgsJManZ0geTKaP4a5ebvVpTKXGvX8S3xCrKLm2o_dQos5ZmdZoM94wyBQfhoh6XFRQuY2sKovM/s320/ColemanInBlue.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314676181926998402" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Newborn</span></span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKsYvPcNyqmeZkkWQdeRwc1nJibmYxfaWH5EmxLuva-x8-t7TreiuQq70yMiSaG37jwHVI2omDF7vTvbMPDPHmNu-O8YgpH-flSet4taBba-j1OnroVlOoNLaCfKlQCsaC2jXz/s1600-h/Coleman2-2-03.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 216px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKsYvPcNyqmeZkkWQdeRwc1nJibmYxfaWH5EmxLuva-x8-t7TreiuQq70yMiSaG37jwHVI2omDF7vTvbMPDPHmNu-O8YgpH-flSet4taBba-j1OnroVlOoNLaCfKlQCsaC2jXz/s320/Coleman2-2-03.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314676176604999394" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">One year old</span></span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinbecky3rp07BJ51ojqCndUvz23mqqa4hVyJtR48iBvZggBebljdLJC22nt58-IiR5bajpWQQbpc6KRDQiO-Vg65Nj9hWjQrF4j0cv_skmzXbNLB65lhZbekbjnkYw1fLusJ5j/s1600-h/Picture+002.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinbecky3rp07BJ51ojqCndUvz23mqqa4hVyJtR48iBvZggBebljdLJC22nt58-IiR5bajpWQQbpc6KRDQiO-Vg65Nj9hWjQrF4j0cv_skmzXbNLB65lhZbekbjnkYw1fLusJ5j/s320/Picture+002.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314676183761994994" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:78%;">Two years old</span><br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinw2zTZi_Io2r06td5BozOh5B-0wR4PMQPOsTzA981m59_3mts9SuZu1Nhmlb5ww4LYVJQEJuEfWgHIfwQOr_3fccznmS0MLpu2EKjChNFQzx1-Eho80S4R_gmz-t-TNca7WNQ/s1600-h/Coleman,+1st+school+picture%21.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 233px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinw2zTZi_Io2r06td5BozOh5B-0wR4PMQPOsTzA981m59_3mts9SuZu1Nhmlb5ww4LYVJQEJuEfWgHIfwQOr_3fccznmS0MLpu2EKjChNFQzx1-Eho80S4R_gmz-t-TNca7WNQ/s320/Coleman,+1st+school+picture%21.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314676186580350354" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:78%;">Three years old</span><br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxfh-tGOHwzUMOX0sZbcWOYqsogxCQI2YlIxkr7FV0nUjcK64kLmxn6K4DwL7IE26tmkTuczHv2NVFXPuctD0GynL42r7Z5CRLMcCzOOw464qqSmOx_LTgC2ygQHP3OIItMJOe/s1600-h/2006_1210ColemanAndCooper0035.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxfh-tGOHwzUMOX0sZbcWOYqsogxCQI2YlIxkr7FV0nUjcK64kLmxn6K4DwL7IE26tmkTuczHv2NVFXPuctD0GynL42r7Z5CRLMcCzOOw464qqSmOx_LTgC2ygQHP3OIItMJOe/s320/2006_1210ColemanAndCooper0035.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314676188120912786" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Four years old</span></span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI3kiOsgi6Chhd8Zc81xIUPvTkPAF89xvBCpavsM4w_FAHhhs3q3cNZeXk3E2cFO61vNxXhWcRpfu49Ege1baqvTacjjC1c8kHNwxxttpxP1L4fsOrMhwS1WIP7aSq0I07qOlp/s1600-h/0706120026.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI3kiOsgi6Chhd8Zc81xIUPvTkPAF89xvBCpavsM4w_FAHhhs3q3cNZeXk3E2cFO61vNxXhWcRpfu49Ege1baqvTacjjC1c8kHNwxxttpxP1L4fsOrMhwS1WIP7aSq0I07qOlp/s320/0706120026.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314682599785188498" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Five years old</span></span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjegfnjPAId6nT8YMzwBOrVW4s2-WE2mIGEqiuVPByANfx8bUzykH613OPgQNZZJfZ7qgzc4fz0kMpO6Vu1cPtW0uBTIKFT72EEApRCoQoF0V2FGCxf6O4IsdaKGqCAnN2UNRwf/s1600-h/natural.bmp"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjegfnjPAId6nT8YMzwBOrVW4s2-WE2mIGEqiuVPByANfx8bUzykH613OPgQNZZJfZ7qgzc4fz0kMpO6Vu1cPtW0uBTIKFT72EEApRCoQoF0V2FGCxf6O4IsdaKGqCAnN2UNRwf/s320/natural.bmp" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314682598809430402" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:78%;">Six years old</span><br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9zF4FZ9XF6qcmNWaNs7dlR7g8N7aPJhktwxHMKpOSO7upxLhR5X9eKanAPpTOh6whmGV6BgztGg_gxO9NEKr6OBY_AGlEnv2LRkAUojZ4sumND3Q83Ngq0FXjL9hYgIpOTGR7/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+061.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9zF4FZ9XF6qcmNWaNs7dlR7g8N7aPJhktwxHMKpOSO7upxLhR5X9eKanAPpTOh6whmGV6BgztGg_gxO9NEKr6OBY_AGlEnv2LRkAUojZ4sumND3Q83Ngq0FXjL9hYgIpOTGR7/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+061.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314682610030730018" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:78%;">And now he's seven!!!</span><br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:100%;">Coleman celebrated his 7th birthday at Build-a-Bear</span> this year and he had such a blast with his cousins and friends. I thought I'd post some pics of all the fun.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA22MKT9lQTgsjtyrkBzf0cmuC5c9nuWzVzFFFbQz9nA_kXP7onKDCh1prw_5r8lF8Abh0A6gV22e4PRiSqyoj5JOYxz9CRA6ucEB-JQXVBSqOzkodBCDchVD6bZNvntuItM7a/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+035.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA22MKT9lQTgsjtyrkBzf0cmuC5c9nuWzVzFFFbQz9nA_kXP7onKDCh1prw_5r8lF8Abh0A6gV22e4PRiSqyoj5JOYxz9CRA6ucEB-JQXVBSqOzkodBCDchVD6bZNvntuItM7a/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+035.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314752322737550162" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The party leader, Kylee, was cute as a button and really fun.<br /></span></span></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq9uvsz8R1DrtA9QGh2iaDMOIOoiVpqY5EIzbE9RQuxrj1QGiDmKJj8dSYVwpCU1eTGFt5_TW06pBRyshZFOyMA5FHHbD88R1Sq8onm3BEg5nswz9y0uityNv5z2J6Zui27NdS/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+038.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq9uvsz8R1DrtA9QGh2iaDMOIOoiVpqY5EIzbE9RQuxrj1QGiDmKJj8dSYVwpCU1eTGFt5_TW06pBRyshZFOyMA5FHHbD88R1Sq8onm3BEg5nswz9y0uityNv5z2J6Zui27NdS/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+038.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314753867087370642" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:78%;">Got their bears all picked out!<br /></span></span></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-0AKpceMC3PgCfz9oBl5DvK7Zk2XrHdjXtuGX6BZCFqE70cFIblCkCjopRiJ_WOd0ET5HF1HNC5E0iwoPupbIwXCQI-Aq0hZsYPvU2HuK_0uAkgS4llNQr0IZs54ZZwT8EzV/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+042.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-0AKpceMC3PgCfz9oBl5DvK7Zk2XrHdjXtuGX6BZCFqE70cFIblCkCjopRiJ_WOd0ET5HF1HNC5E0iwoPupbIwXCQI-Aq0hZsYPvU2HuK_0uAkgS4llNQr0IZs54ZZwT8EzV/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+042.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314752333167147698" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Everybody hold your hearts up high!<br /></span></span></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-0AKpceMC3PgCfz9oBl5DvK7Zk2XrHdjXtuGX6BZCFqE70cFIblCkCjopRiJ_WOd0ET5HF1HNC5E0iwoPupbIwXCQI-Aq0hZsYPvU2HuK_0uAkgS4llNQr0IZs54ZZwT8EzV/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+042.JPG"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoBgpr6NX59hxGdFWklupgFxpOvM7CyfwLFinvEk9YYYt2dXgB1O_nL1DOSxxO_e_nQ5FhDRPhOYx0ss1XmUziJHdD1pqU2nqNMrcw8CeLSjWAvFyuGgRwY2OmqRDfrWqs6E3c/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+050.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoBgpr6NX59hxGdFWklupgFxpOvM7CyfwLFinvEk9YYYt2dXgB1O_nL1DOSxxO_e_nQ5FhDRPhOYx0ss1XmUziJHdD1pqU2nqNMrcw8CeLSjWAvFyuGgRwY2OmqRDfrWqs6E3c/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+050.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314752338568799730" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:78%;">A pic of everybody there.<br /></span></span></div></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxgRrmtkwLgslc56ewgj-WUTSLueiUT4Ck2F4ZlpDlGqR4EkIWh4jJniMO-iBRq4BGOM7NdneTUqgyAvE_KVvmAju8Mv09_XBvxlFyKdOLBZzGCS_mFK1I56uKHAHR0X3oBRBr/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+051.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxgRrmtkwLgslc56ewgj-WUTSLueiUT4Ck2F4ZlpDlGqR4EkIWh4jJniMO-iBRq4BGOM7NdneTUqgyAvE_KVvmAju8Mv09_XBvxlFyKdOLBZzGCS_mFK1I56uKHAHR0X3oBRBr/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+051.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314752347693139058" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Almost everybody, had to get Jenny, La, and Talon in another picture.<br /><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-7t8F7Ba7y448nnmYn-7BnuryDaLE0poJQ7F7e2hBxYkEZwTIlcSfaP3lMQ-ssbQls8iooRX4veWLhx6IKGdt6unAAmWmUtJCSMJ2YQf4yCbU-EW7O1UOkpZEeLj1NWjybwz7/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+074.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-7t8F7Ba7y448nnmYn-7BnuryDaLE0poJQ7F7e2hBxYkEZwTIlcSfaP3lMQ-ssbQls8iooRX4veWLhx6IKGdt6unAAmWmUtJCSMJ2YQf4yCbU-EW7O1UOkpZEeLj1NWjybwz7/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+074.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314752964907612498" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">All done! A picture with their new friends! Check out Cooper's face.<br /><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSlNH_hlsDUJzT8ijRuRhSVPAFrElIc0GfV5bO4wOmwuaGw4pKvopDyRg6kQ2rLoX2wNT0wHTFE181Jpux907ENeo3YNWTV9UcwKhkVcJE5dP6dgjopWDZtX0AmlFHAMma5RRa/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+076.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSlNH_hlsDUJzT8ijRuRhSVPAFrElIc0GfV5bO4wOmwuaGw4pKvopDyRg6kQ2rLoX2wNT0wHTFE181Jpux907ENeo3YNWTV9UcwKhkVcJE5dP6dgjopWDZtX0AmlFHAMma5RRa/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+076.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314752970328985490" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">A close-up.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> He was sad because he just got in trouble for biting Coleman. Guess Cooper was a little jealous of all the attention the birthday boy was getting.</span></span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix0CBgsJuj-EDb8AYd6PQJ1WDHaXGUphyyGQmpWZJKOqLWbmOB79FsUCJLokjbMPWTmTHeux8D4DcciE9FlUpHESke2zAzyAu_uaVwLBrdrxvqyByjUFRBAz5yp581gj7BdaOV/s1600-h/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+079.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix0CBgsJuj-EDb8AYd6PQJ1WDHaXGUphyyGQmpWZJKOqLWbmOB79FsUCJLokjbMPWTmTHeux8D4DcciE9FlUpHESke2zAzyAu_uaVwLBrdrxvqyByjUFRBAz5yp581gj7BdaOV/s320/Happy+7th+Birthday,+Coleman%21+079.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314752972828295138" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The birthday cake. He was so excited that he got to eat the bear.<br /><br /></span></span><div style="text-align: left;">Every night since the party Coleman has thanked Heavenly Father for it in his prayers. And he says he wants to have his party there again next year. I'm so glad he had fun. He really deserved a special day just for him. I love you, Coleman!<br /></div></div>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-62006985389445093682009-03-10T08:05:00.000-07:002009-03-10T16:00:49.453-07:0010 Memorable Things About our Trip to So.Cal.1. I realized after a day at Newport Beach that I am not always tuned in to my mommy radar. My instincts can be downright off! How did I realize this you ask? Because Cooper looked like this for the next 3 days.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311581067902667810" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn9Swtt_1T0tjhnqMaX2Of5iUAr_jWt-0UhMtXxD2CE2MLWINl0xDnCCRBy57MrDVWn7R2z2Y1BaE-2r9B6kk_60-RKjj1PUyts9q7klDwBj95Xn2NWHVEAfmYjsmQ5opydEgL/s320/Dinseyland+%2709+058.JPG" border="0" />I was sure that everyone at Disneyland must have thought he was there because of the Make-a-Wish Foundation. "Look at that little boy with the nasty skin disorder." I now know to apply sunscreen over his whole face not just his nose and cheeks like most of us with normal skin tones. Good news is that it never seemed to bother him. He was a bit annoyed that I applied sunscreen every 2 hours the rest of the trip, though.<br /><br />2. Coleman is all talk when it comes to roller coasters. He talked for weeks about how excited he was for all the roller coasters but when I asked him to ride with me, he mostly refused. Even on the ones he did ride, he was scared to death the whole ride and only after the ride was over would he talk about how awesome it was. Funny kid.<br /><div><br /><div><div><div><div><div>3. It pays to talk to the locals. Will stopped a guy on the beach to ask him where some good seafood places were and it led us to food like this-<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311579525769986546" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqNtBW6sXyTK7oAbiZ4WYkX9ACRuCQoirNmYbgbIXODCGgwSPUSt6zKpOvsaCu5mqCCTVAn4dbXQHRV45fvn_lqKTXxVYZNet2Zin3b9GC0p8YBJ4qh1lATllo_gDVQX0ByrbF/s200/Dinseyland+%2709+026.JPG" border="0" /></div><div>and this-<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311580605975715362" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnwFkWoTmB5ofRzoVgAz0qNWWhUVRfgJx7Lr0J7Z34Gl_7MyyVurrzY65wwulLK6D9tuzFkwVsAtvBB02ZNXaJh8QgQ2RerFEupXpb2-TnFnfbrYJid3DJLjig2xrg3ZH3VRT1/s200/Dinseyland+%2709+025.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div>at The Crab Cooker in Newport Beach. (We ordered pretty much everything on the menu- salmon, scallops, shrimp, crab, raw oysters and clams. We were determined to eat all the seafood we could find since it's hard to find fresh seafood in Utah.) Jay (that's our new friend's name) also led us to our new favorite sushi place called Tommy's in Tustin, CA. I had the poke bowl and it was awesome. I would go back to CA just to get one of those. And Jay gave us his phone # and told us we could call him for recommendations any time we're in town. Nice guy!</div><br /><div></div><div>4. Seth and Charya! Old friends of ours were visiting So. California (they now live in D.C.) at the same time we were. What a nice coincidence! We were able to get together with them for a couple of meals while we were there. It's always fun to see them. They are that couple that when we all get together, there is tons of laughter. And I mean like the kind of laughing that makes your belly hurt. So much fun!</div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311595963096037026" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBWVEp5O6MnjQwXla9I51DgTxMC1x4UZl4NQOxtX5YLieiK1Opzt5pJL3faC7tWtJFl7g6_uSPxHb0XI6Yrf-RCLZvkysFPOkkgqwoCTfI6eTS6lFP0itL4zeAzvLxKS37IGnq/s320/Dinseyland+%2709+035.JPG" border="0" />5. Overall, we had great weather while at Disneyland but the 3rd day it just wouldn't stop raining! It rained pretty much all day long and even poured in spells. We were not letting anything get in our way of having fun, though. And that day turned out being the day we had the most fun. Soggy shoes and all! We kept telling the boys that it was an adventure to be out in the rain. And, believe me, it was!</div><br /><div>6. The only time we weren't having fun was when Coleman would get one of his roaring headaches. Twice we ended up at the First Aid building in Disneyland so Coleman could get some Tylenol and lay down. That's gotta be a bad headache if you want to lay down while at Disneyland. He was such a trooper, though. And once his medicine would kick in, he was back to having fun. Here's a snapshot I took while he was resting. Poor guy!</div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311599789983636290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFTaEqGkoBZvu9Iq2D_IJyVfjTNXdpfXIOO8t0YCWGtcoaggK8GAGQ4f4ZasN_iBf9yGfQeQIWEkhKt9wx4rWQLjaOZ_KjAjmJ4QYis0inYRxVPUtVML6aEnOoCOd5q3zJSxuS/s320/Dinseyland+%2709+068.JPG" border="0" />I have to say that the nurses there were really fantastic. It was so great that he could find a quiet spot to rest there. They were really accommodating and sweet to him.<br /><br /><div>7. The very first ride that we went on was Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. To our surprise, Cooper was big enough to ride so we all went on. That was probably a huge mistake on our part because Cooper refused to ride pretty much everything else after that. Note to self: next time start with It's a Small World.</div><br /><div>8. Perks! Before we left, I found out that since we have a Disney Rewards Visa card we would have some perks while at the park. Free stroller rental, cardholders only character meet 'n' greets, discounts and Disney dollars to spend. May not sound like much but after paying $6 for a corn dog, you really start to appreciate the freebies. Oh, and another perk- the guest assistance pass. We told guest services that Coleman can get a bit over-stimulated and may need a quiet place to wait for rides. They handed over a pass that allowed us to go in through the exits on many rides and get right on! Sweet! Although, I have to say we didn't really need to use it that often. The lines were short already so we didn't want to use it unless we really needed to. But it was nice to have and we did use it a few times in Fantasyland. The lines are always long for Peter Pan.</div><br /><div>9. I got to run twice in the early mornings while we were there. It was so fun. Maybe the most fun I had on the trip. There is just something invigorating about running in new towns. It's such a fun way to explore. </div><br /><p>10. Coleman and Cooper crack me up in pictures. Coleman always does some sort of weird forced smile, if you even want to call it that. And Cooper always makes faces and overposes. Let's see how many pics I can find from our trip to support this. </p><br /><div><embed style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 320px" name="flashticker" align="middle" src="http://widget-b8.slide.com/widgets/slideticker.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" flashvars="cy=bb&il=1&channel=3386706919793825464&site=widget-b8.slide.com" wmode="transparent" salign="l" scale="noscale" quality="high"></embed> <div style="WIDTH: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: left"><a href="http://www.slide.com/pivot?cy=bb&at=un&id=3386706919793825464&map=1" target="_blank"><img src="http://widget-b8.slide.com/p1/3386706919793825464/bb_t016_v000_s0un_f00/images/xslide1.gif" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://www.slide.com/pivot?cy=bb&at=un&id=3386706919793825464&map=2" target="_blank"><img src="http://widget-b8.slide.com/p2/3386706919793825464/bb_t016_v000_s0un_f00/images/xslide2.gif" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://www.slide.com/pivot?cy=bb&at=un&id=3386706919793825464&map=F" target="_blank"><img src="http://widget-b8.slide.com/p4/3386706919793825464/bb_t016_v000_s0un_f00/images/xslide42.gif" border="0" /></a></div></div><br /><p>I wonder where they get it from...<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311617122707764114" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsjnpXj6wIvOXA15fqoq2smalhnmLof9GfNL8xDZY7p6Xhcoluf8ue5WHytGOJWcuUnNgAhkBJ1Dg7-XC2uxJdpGnokJaaE3HzkMygdDb5CFkl8gR2jKRR0n9cZ5Um2y7JDk7I/s200/Dinseyland+%2709+141.JPG" border="0" />I saw children everywhere that knew just how to pose for pictures. Their mom would say "Smile!" and they would smile and the camera would flash, their sweet little faces saved digitally perfect and scrapbook worthy. Not so much when I take a picture. But I have to say I love the things about our family that makes us unique, bad pictures and all. And who likes to scrapbook, anyway?!<br /></p><p>So, that's our vacation in a nutshell. Can't wait to go back!<br /></p></div>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-70950780129934039792009-02-23T19:01:00.000-08:002009-02-26T08:01:21.304-08:00Ready to go!Life has a way of stressing us out, doesn't it? Just when things start running smoothly, a wrench gets thrown in, right?! I guess you've got to know the bad in order to appreciate the good sometimes and I am thrilled that it's my turn to appreciate the good! Yes, I'm leaving all my cares behind and headed to Disneyland, the happiest place on earth! I've spent hours upon hours scouting hotels, reading up on the best time to visit, scouring through hundreds of pictures of the park food and I even found a run route for early mornings around the park (see below)! I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself. There's just something about Disney. Call me a nerd but I'd say that I'm as excited (or more excited) than the kiddos. Although I have to admit that a large part of the excitement now is because it's so fun to see the boys enjoy themselves. So, anyway, here we go!<br /><iframe src="http://js.mapmyfitness.com/embed/blogview.html?r=48a8882e9a4d02c7f99e3543e7a0e880&u=m&t=run" frameborder="0" width="350" height="500">&amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/ca/anaheim/525190721667"&amp;amp;amp;gt;Disneyland Loop&amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;br/&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.mapmyrun.com/find-run/united-states/ca/anaheim"&amp;amp;amp;gt;Find more Runs in Anaheim, California&amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;gt;</iframe>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24142844.post-59128746723027091492009-02-02T22:33:00.000-08:002009-02-03T00:08:32.043-08:0025 Random Things About MeNot sure if I can think of more after doing <a href="http://breakfast-with-alicia.blogspot.com/2008/02/my-100.html">100 things</a> about this time last year but I'll give it a shot. I'm feeling pretty random tonight.<br /><br /><ol><li>My big "diamond" in my ring is actually a CZ. Will always said we'd change it someday but I wouldn't change a thing. Reminds me of where we came from... We just really wanted to be married, money or not. I still feel like the luckiest woman alive.</li><li>I'm super competitive. Even went as far as mooning Will once after he beat me in tennis. Not really proud of that one.<br /></li><li>I still have the ponytail that I cut off recently. Not really sure why. Just having a hard time letting go.</li><li>I love going to the dentist because they've always said such nice things about my teeth.</li><li>My oldest is constantly having to translate what my youngest is saying to me. "Coleman, what did Cooper say?" "He said he wants watch Spiderman." "Ohhhh. Ok."</li><li>I've got something called <a href="http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/Falls/8173/nmh.html">Neurally Mediated Hypotension</a>. In a nutshell, low blood pressure that just wears me out sometimes. This last month has been...ugh, exhausting!</li><li>I drink 8 glasses of water everyday without fail.</li><li>I deal with stress 3 ways: run, eat or shop. And lately shopping's been my only option. Sorry, honey!</li><li>I love the fact that Cooper is in preK now and I get 2 1/2 hours of uninterrupted "me" time every Tues. and Thurs. morning.</li><li>I really want to do foster care someday.</li><li>I cry or well-up at pretty much every live performance I see- the choir on Sunday (thank you Cami!), the Lion King show at Disney World, Coleman's singing time at school. Doesn't matter what it is. I'm just a mess. And I'm not even musically inclined. Live music just touches me for whatever reason.</li><li>I want to publish a cookbook someday or own a candy shop. Either of those would allow me to wear a cute apron around all day, right?<br /></li><li>I am a low-maintenance gal. In fact, I hardly remember to cut my nails, much less paint them.</li><li>My hands are always cold. In the winter, I drive with one hand on the wheel and the other under my leg. When that one gets cold, I switch. And so it goes until I get to where I'm going.</li><li>I thought Yes Man was a really funny movie. I never like the movies that win all the awards... Call me simple.</li><li>I really need to do some sit-ups.</li><li>I honestly tried doing the Roger Rabbit the other day in front of the mirror and I can't remember how to do it.<br /></li><li>I'm doing a Biggest Loser challenge. Was in 1st place last week. 4th place this week. Goes 'til the end of March.<br /></li><li>I make the exact same things to eat every Sunday. Turkey sausage, scrambled eggs, grits and toast for breakfast and blackened salmon, rice pilaf and a green salad for dinner. Then chocolate chip cookies while watching the latest America's Funniest Home Videos. Every Sunday. It's tradition.<br /></li><li>I hardly ever answer the phone when it rings.</li><li>I can't wait for spring! Darn you, Punxsutawney Phil!<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span>I've had enough of the cold.</li><li>I love tax returns. This year, we are using part of it to buy Will some decent eyesight. He's really stoked about it.</li><li>I found a gray hair in my eyebrow the other day (of all places.) First one. Gettin' old, gettin' old.</li><li>This is my 172nd blog post.</li><li>I'm a total night owl that needs to get up early so that usually means I don't get nearly enough sleep. Speaking of sleep... Nitey-nite!<br /></li></ol>Aliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08729515746802967607noreply@blogger.com3