Who needs 'em?

Why do we have toenails?

Can anyone tell me what they are good for? I'm sure there is a good medical/logical/scientific reason since our Creator is a very smart man. I just don't know what that reason is. Right now I think it's so that I can look like a hard-core runner by having nasty looking toenails that are turning black and falling off. My second toe on each foot has taken the brunt of the trauma, the rest are holding out pretty well. The good thing is that it doesn't hurt, just looks gross. And I wore open-toe shoes to church yesterday...which is really gross.

**To clarify: I haven't done the marathon yet. My longest run thus far was last Saturday - 18 miles. So I'm sure there is more nastiness to come in the toenail/foot department**

I finally felt like blogging, you lucky people! :) So here's what we've been up to...

This little man with the cheesy, wonderful smile is so fun! I love that he's getting older and we get to hear what's going on in that head of his. Some fun things he says/has said lately that I'll share:
He started saying "Hip, Hip, Hooray!" But what comes out is "Hiccup Hooray!" - Max is fond of saying "Hey for-a-buddy" (spelled phonetically) which is his version of "Hey everybody"... last Monday our Family Home Evening lesson was on the scriptures and we got talking about prophets. I used the little object lesson from my mission about how there is a wall between us and the Lord and we can receive answers to our own prayers through that wall, but if the Lord has something that He needs to tell the whole world, then He tells a Prophet who stands on top of the wall and the Prophet tells all of us (Reader's Digest Version for you all). It was typical FHE with a two-year-old and I wasn't sure how well he was listening...but then toward the end of FHE he stood on top of one of his toys and said in a loud and serious tone, 'Hey, for-a-buddy, I...am...a prophet. (deep breath in) Let's talk(deep breath)...let's talk about Jesus. (another exaggerated breath, sticking hand in jeans pocket) Jesus lives in heaven. (deep breath). Hey, for-a-buddy....(repeat of same speech a few more times). Suffice it to say, his parents loved it and were proud of our little listening boy.

..........................................................................

This little lady with the crazy hair is super close to being a full-fledged crawler. She's been quite mobile for a while now with her army crawling and rolling skills, but she's getting up on all fours a lot more often. Her first tooth finally broke through (hallelujah!) last Monday and tooth #2 is on the way. She lights up the world - and not just ours. Oh how we love her!

........................................................................

Tyler Michael totally deserved some extra love from his little family -

so we made him King for the Day!King for the Day came complete with a "throne"

(bean bag covered with everything a king could need - a crown with flattering words written all over, two favorite kinds of candy, newspaper, a card full of loving words, a "royal remote" and a plate of grapes, strawberries and cheese *not pictured*)I just wanted Ty to know that we really appreciate him. He had a lot of lame things going on - the washing machine broke and he was trying to fix it, the computer was all jacked and he was working on that, I backed into a truck a few weeks before and dented our new van (which, by the way, he was extremely nice about "Dana, we don't buy cars to have them as trophies. It's fine, don't worry about it" No groan or frustration once through the whole thing), he goes to work everyday at a job that isn't his favorite...and he does it all willingly and makes sure the rest of the fam is doing well. I am so, so grateful to have such a wonderful man in my life and I wanted him to know it.

I taught Max to say, "I am your servant" and all day we called him "King Dad". Our instructions were to put off the projects that needed to be done and relax. We were going to do whatever he wanted to do. One kink in the plan was that he ended up going to work that morning, so we didn't have as much time to cater to his every whim as we would have liked. But we still went to the pumpkin patch (pictures below), had a nice steak dinner and a quiet, wonderful evening at home. Great day.

.......................................................................

Pumpkins! We got 'em. Oh, and we also made Max's dreams come true (see tractor pictures below).

.........................................................................

I signed up to run the Valley of Fire Marathon. 26.2 miles of straight running. Holy cow. So far my longest run is 16 miles (done yesterday). It felt good, although my left knee was giving me some serious problems. Today my friend whose degree is in exercise physiology told me that I need to do some exercises to strengthen my hamstrings and quads. She gave me a few that will be good to do so I'll get on that tomorrow. Next Saturday is 18 miles and the following will be my longest - 20 miles. Why is it that most training programs only take you up to 20-23 miles? Anyone know? I'm getting excited, but the emotion I mostly feel is fear when I'm just thinking about it. Sometimes I wish that I had a running buddy around here and then someone to run the actual race with me. But I also enjoy the solitude and thinking time. That thinking time, though, sometimes turns to, "What in the world was I thinking?", "Why I am paying money to do this?", "Maybe I can transfer that money to run a half instead". I can't let those thoughts linger long, however. This kind of running takes serious mental energy and positive thinking. I know that I'll finish, however slow I may be....

Who will join me?!

Okay, VEGAS family and friends...Some of you have expressed interest in joining me for one of the races at the Valley of Fire. I'll be doing my first full marathon that day and it would be so fun to be there with you all! There is a 10K race (about 6.2 miles) or a half-marathon (13.1 miles) as well. The beauty of these races is that there are people of all fitness levels who participate. You can run the whole thing, you can walk/run, or you can walk the entire time. Seriously, just sign up for the 10K and come walk it with some friends or your family. We can all meet for dinner the night before and carbo-load! You'll feel so good about yourself and you'll feel better about everything you'll be eating the next week for Thanksgiving. :) Doesn't it sound fun?! If your answer is yes (and it totally should be!), then go to the website below and sign up. Try to sign up before the 11th
(this Saturday) because the cost goes up after that. The best thing I've found is to take the plunge and register! Then tell everyone you know what you are planning to do. That way you are committed and you'll find a way to be ready when the day comes. I started to talk about my first triathlon and this whole marathon business before I actually thought I could do it - it helps to have more people to be accountable to.

Okay, so go to the website and register already!

Go to this website for a 10K training schedule and don't worry that you don't have quite as much time before the race as the training plan. You can still do it. Trust me.

Or if you want to go for the half-marathon, click here for a training schedule.

Leave me a comment or send me an e-mail so I know you're going to do it. Spread the word amongst friends, get your spouse to join you...it'll be great!

*A big thanks to Bethany for helping me figure out how to do the linking thing! :) I feel so cool.*

Oh boy!

There is so much to catch up on, but I'll just mention the big ticket items:

We just had a WONDERFUL visit from my in-laws. Mickey and Margaret flew in on a Thursday and were able to stay until Tuesday evening. It was so nice to have them here. We didn't do many exciting things, but we did the most important things. We spent lots of time playing with the kids and talking and working on little projects together. We went to the park, picked blackberries (they grow wild here) and made blackberry jam, fixed the disposal, picked all of the apples off of our trees, went on a few walks, visited some old and dear friends, and laughed a lot. It really was the perfect visit. We love you, Mickey and Margaret, and can't wait for you to come again! I never seem to get enough pictures of these visits, but here are a few... *picture bottom right: Max fell asleep like that and stayed that way for the better part of an hour*

Father and Son fix the disposal much to the delight of the woman of the house...

-----------------------------------------------------------

I have a couple of really cute kids! Dang, I love being their mom.

Here are a few shots of my little lady:

And Max is always doing 'photo shoots' so I thought I should share some of his work with you all. He had me hold up that soft block just so. He's a very particular photographer.

--------------------------------------------------

We went to Leavenworth, Washington this weekend - a very quaint Bavarian town - for the purpose of me running my first half-marathon, but on Friday we got to just enjoy the town for a few hours. Gorgeous scenery on the drive and a very cool place to visit.



Saturday morning (race day) was supposed to be really rainy. It did rain, but not as much as expected and the temperatures were perfect for running. I came in 122nd out of 388 half-marathoners - not too shabby for a slow runner such as myself. I loved doing the race...I loved stopping at the end :)...I love that I did something hard...I love that I have such a supportive cheering section and a husband who kept kids occupied while his wife was on the course and while she was training. Thank you, babe, for being my #1 fan! Now I'm thinking of doing my full marathon at the end of November at the Valley of Fire near Vegas (don't judge me if I decide not to do it that soon, though, okay?!). Who's with me?! Before you write me off, they also have a half-marathon and a 10K for that race. I'm serious, folks. I would love for all of my Vegas friends to join me!

*pictured with me below is my good friend Jennifer Gibson who has run several marathons (even one on a glacier in Antarctica- for real!). She's 15 weeks pregnant and has done 3 half-marathons in that time.*

Prince Charming

Today Max was looking at a picture that his cousin Kate colored for him. It's a picture from a coloring book of Snow White. Max loves to look at the pictures Kate sends him. Today he turned the page over and saw Snow White in the arms of a handsome man we all know as Prince Charming and exclaimed, "Oh! That is my dad!" I couldn't agree more, Maxwell T.

*I have a lot to catch up on blog-wise, but I've been busy/haven't felt like it as of late...we're off to Leavenworth tomorrow and my half marathon is on Saturday! Sometime next week I'll get caught up. *