Stuck in the MUD!!!!

Ok so this was truly the funnest race I've run yet!

I think this is what happened to me!

I ran the Dirty Dash on the 25th.

It is a 10k obstacle course through mud and muck. When a friend and I decided to get a team together we thought this would be different and a lot of fun. As it crept closer I began to think that this would also be a tough race. It was both!

Here is team SWINE SISTERS before the race.
nice and squeaky clean

this is us just a 100 yards from the finish, we obviously didn't stay clean but that was the whole point right?

last obstacle before the finish

we did it!

a little hesitant, I don't blame him. hmmm what is that smell? well I am realizing that it may not have been only mud ....

you can literally see the awesomeness pouring off of us!
you might mistake it for dirt and water but I assure you it is awesomeness.

Ok to sum it up. It was so fun and great to run with a team, my first team race in a way mentally relaxing actually. I got to know 3 girls I didn't know before and they were all fun! And of course my friend and neighbor Amy (right behind me arms up) is always a blast to be around. The rule was to cross the finish line with your team!! (I did hear that several teams were seen carrying injured teammates across the line, yikes!)

The race itself ? Tough terrain. It was either up or down and sometimes often quite steep. It was flat in some places but those were usually where the obstacles were. It was challenging. The last mile was a killer for me. The obstacles were fun and we were often laughing at each other or ourselves. I am secretly counting more obstacles than are on that map ;)

Afterward I took the coldest shower I have ever had in my life! Clothes on of course. I mean skin burning cold. I am pretty sure I didn't need a wake-up call but it's the mountains and hoses, what can you do, right? At this moment I was very glad that mud was not caked in my hair.
I seriously was so sore after the race! I felt just as sore if not more than when I ran the 1/2 marathon. But it was worth it! I definitely want to run this again. And proceeds went to charity so it was good for all!

This day also marked that 18 years ago my dad died. Bitter sweet that I was able to do something fun on this day, but I dedicate my dirty preformace to him and am pretty sure he would've gotten a kick out of it!

EMBRIE

My little 1 1/2 year old....
Sugar and spice and everything nice.
Look at the innocence in that face! I know that she is still so close to the veil.
At this age and pretty much from 5mo. on she has been a very mellow tempered baby.
But she is growing up so fast that she won't be a baby for long.

She is very independent. She wants to do everything she sees her big brother do. I've heard that girls are very emotional, but so far she doesn't seem phased by much. She is pretty tough. She rarely cries from being hurt. She is able to take the roughness that comes with playing with a big brother. But just in the past few weeks she has started to defend herself more. I think her days of putting up with anything are coming to an end.

She likes to play with cars and makes a great engine sound by the way, which I think is due to watching her brother. But she likes girl things too and I think she is starting to find her own likes. She is very good to keep a bow in her hair, she lets you know if it comes out and lets you put it back in. The words "pretty" and "cute" are part of her vocabulary.

She loves a good laugh and has a a sweet giggle. We call her 'Embrie-do-ba' or just "do-ba" (a name that Garrett started calling her long ago and it stuck) and 'principessa' (princess in Italian). She is not as energetic as Garrett, but she can run around with the best of them. She is a pretty good soccer player already! She is brave not afraid of anything. She is almost always willing to give a kiss and a hug, she does the whole run full speed with her arms open but behind her until she reaches you. It's an art, the running hug.


Things Embrie loves at 1 1/2 :

Toys: anything really- balls, cars, babies, blocks, phones but most especially Buckles! (buckle, unbuckle, buckle, unbuckle) She likes the sort of stuff that you have to figure out, like open and close.

Brother - she loves him! if he will play nicely with her she adores it! You can tell that she is just so excited to be included as something other than the target.

Books: she likes to be read to most of the time but she does go through phases where she wants to be the sole person in control of the book. She will get all of her books out and just flip through them.

Favorite Food: pancakes & cheese

Blanky and Binky nuff' said right?

Favorite color: If she has one, right? She has been able to say the names of the colors for awhile but is barely starting to apply them to the right colors. She is really into this right now.

Quirky things: Her trade mark is to see how many times you can say the word "hello" with different inflections. This is suuuppperr cute! Hellooo , Hello?, Hello!! Hello (said with a sweet little expression and cock of the head to one side) And she knows everyone loves it so she'll just keep it up. I'll be down stairs and she'll call a few hello's to me from up stairs. Or peak her head around a corner with a quick peek-a-boo-ish hello. I will be sad if this ends.

She too is a little shy and takes a little time to warm up unless she see ya often.

She has only been taking one nap since she was about 9mo. old which was odd to me, but she is very rarely cranky. She is usually happy all the time, unless she is hungry ;)

Other Facts:

She weighs in at 26.7 lbs and is 32.7 in. tall. This makes her a good size little girl! But it is sooo cute! She is not far in size behind her brother of 4 1/2.

GARRETT

My 4 year old little boy. . . .
Isn't he a cutie!
That big cheeser grin, and if you look close a mischievous glint in his eyes.
He is my little angel and my little devil all at the same time. And I wouldn't change him.


The first thing he does when I see him each morning is run to give me a hug! I love that. He is becoming more independent all the time and I am learning to give him that little extra bit of freedom he craves. It is funny the things that he picks and chooses to be independent about. For instance he wants to make his own oatmeal in the morning, but he wants me to put his shoes on for him (although he is capable of doing it himself if he is willing to try.) He is also learning more responsibility around the house. His new chores lately are making his bed and setting the table. Some days he loves to help other days we have to give him a little nudge, but isn't that how we all are?


I would not call him sensitive but, he cares about others and loves to please. He likes to be a helper. Especially when it comes to helping his dad with 'dad stuff'. I am not sure what he loves more: his sister or pestering her. However, he is always the first to run to her if she is hurt (that is providing that he didn't do the damage himself in which case he will be hiding). He has a bit of a temper sometimes, but then again who doesn't? (excepting maybe Brad)

He is the embodiment of energy. He doesn't get tired he just gets more wound up. He rarely stops moving at all. I love these pictures of him running because this is him! This is him all the time! He is very smart. He remembers like an elephant. He absorbs a lot. He loves to learn, but he sometimes has the independent streak of not wanting to do it the way he's been taught, but his own way. His individual personality is showing through more and more.

A few things that Garrett loves at age 4 :

Toys: as always cars, trucks, trains, diggers any thing with wheels - he likes his other toys too but these have always been his fav's

pretend playing, his favorites: Pirates- mostly with his friends- and selling things -he'll often be heard calling through the house " Who wants to buy a dog?" (balloon, cookie, truck etc.) And he will keep saying it until you buy one ;)

Riding his bike - especially if dad rides with him

School and his teacher

Friends!

Books -Being read too

favorite foods: spaghetti, and sweets -cookies, candy etc.- a trait I think he gets from mom

favorite color: green -although some days it changes this is the most common answer

favorite animal: dog - we don't have a dog and he is actually a little nervous around dogs but they are his favorite none the less.

What does he want to be when he grows up? It changes often but right now he wants to be a farmer and own a 2 tractors one green and one red (hmm where does that sound familiar? grandpa Blaine?)- these are very important details! And he also wants to have a farmer's truck so that he can take his fruits and vegetables to the market. And what farm doesn't have animals and a big red barn!

quirky things: sometimes he likes to make up words for example he'll be playing and say something like this: -g-"This guy needs to go and get his makrak" -me- "His makrak?" -g- "yeah that is another word for tractor". Sometimes he even goes as far as to say that is means something else in Spanish. This makes me laugh.

He doesn't enjoy the phone. He will rarely talk to anyone on the phone including his parents. But will do just about anything for bribe of a treat. That's a guy for ya.

Usually a little bit shy around strangers or takes a little time to warm up to people he knows.

Other facts:
He weighs in at 32 lbs. and is 38 in. tall. He may be a little small right now but he has big personality and big energy! And is as sharp as a tac!

Next Set of Family Pictures

This one is definitely a favorite of mine!

I put this one in because it's funny - she spit in my face- not on purpose- it was a windy day
I think she was actually trying to give kisses

These last two actually captured them liking each other! yay!

New Family Pictures

...taken by a very good friend of mine, Nickie. (Whose link is on my side bar Nickie Graybill Photography) She has a great talent! This is the first set I will post of just our whole family together and then I will move on to the other shots. I love getting new pictures taken :)

Lets Ride!

ok Utah ... How well do you know your Lagoon history?

While at Lagoon this year we came across an area where they had old pictures of the theme park and snippets of historical facts. It was pretty interesting actually. There were pictures of 'Lagoon Park' before it became an amusement park and let me tell ya I had no idea it was so old! (1800's) The carousel is over 100 years old being built in 1893! There were also pictures of the old white roller coaster (below) during and after the fire from 1953. (couldn't find any net pictures of the fire) So I tried to look up some more facts and from what I could find out this is tied for the 2nd oldest roller coaster still in operation! Almost 100 years old, built in 1912!

Ok so this post isn't totally about Lagoon history and I am not advertising for them! This is Embrie on Bulgy the Whale. This also has to be one of the oldest rides in the park!

It is so fun to have cousins to ride with! Not to mention cousins the same age!

How many ways can you drive a car?
Embrie & Molly

Garrett & Anlsey

Garrett & Embrie

The answer depends on how many times you want to ride!