Bolder Boulder

    I need to start by adding that I can't believe that I have never run the Bolder Boulder before this year!  I now see what all the fuss and hype is about.  My brother ran it for the first time last year and went on and on about what a neat race it was.  I decided that I was definitely going to do it this year.  Since it is out of town, it makes it a little harder because you have to book a hotel room, figure out babysitting, etc.  Joey wanted to come along to experience it as a spectator and I welcomed the support.  We decided not to take the kids this year because we didn't know what to expect at all. 
     We got to the Boulder area early Sunday night.  We checked into our hotel and we were very happy with it.  The hotel was newer and the rooms were nice.  After checking in, we wanted to head down Boulder to check things out.  My brother and his friends were already down there.  We made our way to Pearl Street.  I haven't really been to Boulder since my friend was going to college there years ago.  I forgot what a neat place it really is.  Pearl Street was pretty crowded, but it was a good crowded.  We were able to walk right into a restaurant for dinner.  I was very surprised by this.  I figured with 50,000 plus people running the race the next morning, everywhere would be packed.  Dinner was good and we did a little walking around afterwards.  The wind was blowing pretty hard so we decided to head back to the hotel. 
    All day my throat was feeling scratchy.  I tried not to freak out and told myself I wasn't getting sick.  (I had just spent all day Thursday with the worst case of stomach flu of my ENTIRE life.) But, as the day progressed I just started to feel worse and worse.  I was pretty upset by this.  My throat was on fire and my chest hurt so bad by the time I went to bed.  A nasty chest cold is definitely not what you want to have before running a 10k.  I had a really hard time falling asleep and did not sleep well at all Sunday night. 
    We had to be up at 5:00 a.m. to get ready to leave for the race.  I woke up feeling even worse.  It really started to psyche me out .  I already really deal with self-doubt before races.  The fact that I was feeling sick made it even worse.  I kept thinking that I was going to have a horrible race. 
     My brother knew the best place to park.  I thought we were going to have to park miles away.  Nope, we parked about a block from the start line.  We got there, warmed up a bit and got ready to go. The weather was just perfect.  The wind stopped blowing. 
      At the Bolder Boulder, you have to qualify for a wave.  You have to submit an official time from a past race to prove what time you can do.  I was able to qualify for the B wave, which is the fourth fastest wave.  My brother was two waves in front of me.  I have never ran a race before were I didn't have someone I knew with me at the start line. Before the race started, I was getting very nervous.  I was trying to think positive thoughts and tell myself I felt good.
     Each wave starts about a minute apart.  Before I knew it was time for my wave to go.  I took of quick and my goal was to run a fast pace the entire time.  Once I started running, I started to feel amazing.  I really enjoyed the course.  I have heard that the spectators are amazing at the Bolder Boulder.  I was a little disappointed in the lack of spectators when I ran.  My friend who ran a wave an hour later, said that there seemed to be more spectators.  It was a neat course that wasn't too hilly.  I knew I was doing okay because I was with some of the people I started with.  The neatest part of the race is that you end up in Folsom Field.  I had pushed myself so hard for 6.2 miles, I thought I was going to collapse by the end.  I crossed the finish line and looked for my brother.  We immediately got in line for free massages which felt amazing! We then got our food bags and looked for Joey and my brother's friends.  We sat in the stadium for a while and watched the finishers.  It is crazy because it is just a constant stream of people running in.  I got an unexpected text message with my finishing time. I was so happy to see my time of 47:13!!!! I cut off almost 6 minutes from my 10k time!!! I honestly couldn't have been more pleased with my time.  I didn't think I would do that well. 
      We waited around a bit, and then watched the elite runners.  It was pretty neat to see such fast runners.  They are incredible to watch.  We went to breakfast at a pretty good breakfast place.  We headed home after that.  What a great day! I learned that I can do great in races even if I am not feeling well.  Here are some pictures from the day:

Here I am near the starting line

Walking around before the race

As shown in this picture, I was very nervous

My brother and I warming up



Here is my brother running during the race.  My brother did amazing like usual! He ran it in in 40:42 with an average pace of 6:30!.  He came in 14th place in his age division which means he gets a medal.  I am so proud of him.  He has been a wonderful mentor and coach to me and I love seeing him do so well!



Here I am in the pink.  (I really, really hate pictures of myself while running!)

The finish line

My brother and I after the race

The runners.  My best friend Kari ran it too.  It was her first 10k and she did awesome!

Had to pose in front of the fire truck.

Here is my time and places.  I am most proud of the fact I was the 457th out of 25,075 women!!! And 2610th place out of 50,000 isn't too shabby either.  I kept a very even pace which is a really good thing too.

Here is one of the elite runners.  The runner in first place runs behind this truck with a big clock showing their time.  Pretty cool.

   I thoroughly enjoyed my first Bolder Boulder.  I was so impressed by how well run the race was.  For that many people, it was so organized and didn't feel like 50,000 people were running it.  I would have thought it was only 2,000 people.  The only negative I thought was the lack of spectators in the beginning.  I can't wait to do it again next year!

Our Weekend

     We had big plans this weekend and I feel like things got a little off.  On Friday night, Ashlyn was so excited to have a movie night at home.  We made a big bed on the floor and all watched Happy Feet, which is such a cute movie. On Saturday, we did our food shopping for the week since we wouldn't have time the rest of the weekend.  We were supposed to go the drive-in on Saturday night.  We bought all sorts of special snacks the week before.  Ashlyn talked about it for days.  Well, they didn't post the movies that would be playing until Friday.  All of the movies were rated PG-13 and none of them were kids movies.  Plus, on Saturday the wind was blowing the hardest it has blown in a very long time.  It was not a pleasant day to be outside at all.  We decided that we were going to have to forgo the drive-in.  We discussed it with Ashlyn and she took it well.  We told her that we could have another movie night and eat dinner on the blankets. Since she was being such a good girl, I even told her we could make it a double feature.  So, we ended up watching How to Train Your Dragon and The Sandlot. Ashlyn really enjoyed watching The Sandlot with me.  It wasn't the drive-in, but we still had a great night. 
    We went to a get together with my teammates from work on Sunday morning. Ashlyn had a great time.  We headed home and Ashlyn's Grandma and Papa came over for a sleep over and to watch them while Joey and I went to Boulder.  The kids had a blast with their grandparents and all in all I still think it was a great weekend.  I didn't take any pictures this weekend which is very unusual for me.  I think it was due to the fact that we didn't do much because the wind made the weather just horrible. 

16 Months

    Dawson turned 16 months old today.  Our little boy is growing up so fast!  He continues to impress us with his climbing skills.  He can climb up the slide in our backyard with no help.  It is a very steep slide and I am utterly amazed he can do this.  He is such a strong boy. 
     Dawson also makes us laugh with how much he likes to clean.  Joey and I are pretty neat people.  Ashlyn has never really shown us that she is overly neat.  Dawson on the other hand is quite the opposite.  He loves to sweep the floors with the broom and gets very mad at me if I take it away.  He also loves to pick things up.  Today he was in his room, and he walked over to his books and starting putting them back in the basket without being asked.  He likes things neat and orderly. 
     Dawson is really turning into more of a toddler.  He has started to show us if he is not happy.  If he has something he isn't supposed to and we take it away, he gets pretty upset.  Luckily, his little fits don't last long. 
     I feel like I just wrote a post for his 15 month and I am drawing a blank of what else to add.  As I think of more unique or funny things he does, I will definitely add them.  Here are some pictures of Dawson at 16 months.  Please excuse his hair.  He hasn't had it cut since March, and he is way over do for a cut.  We are going tomorrow thank goodness!

Dawson has mastered going down the stairs.  He is great at turning around and going down on his stomach. 

Still the cutest little boy in the universe!

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North Pole and Summer Break



    What a week the last week has been!!! We have just had a whirlwind of activity going on.  Ashlyn's last day of preschool was last Friday.  Joey picked her up from school and he said that all the kids were sad to see her go.  He said that they gave her a group hug and said their goodbyes.  She had such a great experience there!

    Last Saturday, Ashlyn went to a dinosaur exhibit with her Dad.  They had a great time and I will post the pictures from Joey's phone later.  On Saturday night, I hosted a baby shower for my sister.  It was a great shower and my sister had a great time.  On Sunday, we finally got around to planting some flowers and getting the yard ready for summer.  I am quite pleased with the finished product!

      On Tuesday, we went to the North Pole.  We go every year, and wanted to beat the crowds that will start this summer.  We went before any schools were out for the year.  It was great because it was not crowded at all. We usually time it this way and it's great.  There are never lines for anything, and the kids can ride the over and over without getting off if they want.  Ashlyn's friend Joshua came with his grandparents. Those two just have such a great time together. I think Ashlyn has more fun with a friend there too.  Dawson and Ella were too young last time to ride anything.  They were still a little too young to ride most of the rides.  There were a few they got to go on.  There favorites were the carousel and the big slide.  We had a great day and both Dawson and Ella were asleep before we even left the parking lot! We definitely made some great memories that day.

      Today, I had my last teacher work day for the year.  I am now officially on summer break!!! I am so happy!  I am really looking forward to heading to the gym most mornings.  I have been running at night which is so incredibly hard when I am exhausted from the day and want nothing more than to relax.  Now I get to go in the mornings and the kids get to go to the childcare which they really seem to like.  I am also looking forward to more time spent with my children.  I know we are going to have a blast this summer.

     Our weekends this summer are jam packed.  I don't think we have a single weekend all summer that something isn't planned.  I like staying busy and active.  Plus, it gives me something to blog about.  This weekend should be a great one.  Ashlyn is going in for her swimming test so she can start lessons.  We are also making our first trip for the year down to the drive-in.  Ashlyn is so excited and has been talking about it for days.  On Sunday, I have a BBQ with some coworkers, and then Joey and I are heading up to Boulder so I can run the Bolder Boulder on Monday.  This race will be by far the biggest race I have ever done . They are expecting about 56,000 runners.  Its going to be chaos and mayhem, but I can't wait to experience my first Bolder Boulder. 

Here is Ashlyn on her last day of school.  I took a picture on her first day, so I figured I should also take one on her last day.

Ashlyn's teacher, Ms. Jen braided her hair.  It was so cute! I wish I wasn't so challenged at hair and do something like that!

Here is my pretty girl before the dinosaur exhibit. 

Ashlyn LOVED helping me in the garden.

Such a good helper!

Dawson and I on the ladybugs

Ella and I on the ladybugs.

Poor Dawson, watching and wanting to ride so badly.

They loved these motorcycles.

On the carousel

Sweet little Ella

On the train.  He liked the train a lot.

Ashlyn with Santa.  She was actually brave enough to sit on his lap this time.

Ashlyn and Joshua

Ashlyn in her yearly picture spot.



I Want to See the Cobras!

    We went to the zoo again today.  We met Ashlyn's friend Joshua and his grandparents there.  Joshua kept very enthusiastically exclaiming, "I want to see the cobras!"  I had to title the post after that because it was just too funny.  He was on a mission to see a cobra.  I didn't want to break it to him that our zoo contains no cobras.  He did see some small snakes that made him happy.  The zoo was very crowded today with school groups.  I don't think I have ever seen it that crowded.  We made do and still had a great time.  Our zoo pass has been just a great investment for us.  I definitely think we will renew it when it expires this month.

       Even though our zoo is somewhat small, we actually went to two areas today that we have never been to.  One was called Budgie Buddies.  It is a large open atrium where all sorts of birds fly around.  You can buy Popsicle sticks with birdseed to feed the birds.  When Ashlyn was about Dawson's age, we went to an area like this at the Tyler Zoo in Texas.  I had forgotten how cool it was.  The kids had a blast in there!  Poor Dawson wanted to have a bird eat off his stick so badly.  He had a hard time getting them to come to stick though.  He did have some success with Gram's help.  We will definitely be hitting that area every visit from now on.

     This is my last week of work!  I am so excited it's not even funny.  Like always its bitter sweet.  My class has just been phenomenal this year.  I am going to miss those kids dearly.  This will also be Ashlyn's last week of preschool.  If everything goes according to plan, she will be continuing back in her same class in August.  We are so ready to bring on summer break and all that it entails.  Because my sister is due July 2nd, we won't be taking any big vacations.  We have planned a couple of vacations in nearby areas that we are really excited for.  We are also planning on going to New York in September which I know we are all very excited for!

    Here are some pictures from today:

Dawson trying to catch a bird.

He quickly picked up on how to feed them.  He was trying to lure one to his stick.

This bird kept eating off Ashlyn's stick. 

Animals love her

Ella with some birds

Finally some luck for Dawson

He loved it!

Some sibling teamwork

Joshua and Ashlyn standing next to the bear statue

This animal pavilion was the other area we had never been into.  It was really neat.  They had reptiles, turtles, lizards.  We were there when it was empty, so Ashlyn and Joshua got to help feed some animals.  What a cool experience that was!

Scooping the food onto the bowl.

Getting ready to bring it to the hungry bearded dragon.

The zoo keeper was excellent with them and did a great job explaining everything. 

15 Month Checkup

Yesterday, was Dawson's 15 month checkup.  It was a little late because he was in Buena Vista when the original appointment was made.  It went really well.  The doctor said he looks great as usual.   She said that he is way ahead of most kids in some areas.  He always seems to impress her.  He weighed 22.3 lbs and is in the 16% for weight.  He was 30.2 inches and in the 18% in height.  Joey and I continue to be baffled why he is so short.  There are no short men in our family.  I am sure hoping he starts shooting up in height.  We finished the appointment with some shots which I hate so much.  He was a trooper though. 

Mother's Day 2012

    Joey and the kids always do an amazing job for Mother's Day, and this year did not disappoint!  We started celebrating a few days early at Ashly's school.  They did a Muffins for Mom at her school.  Ashlyn came home a week prior with the cutest handmade invitation.  She explained to me that is was important that all moms were there.  Of course I wasn't going to miss it for the world!  They did an adorable presentation after they first said the Pledge of Allegiance.  Ashlyn is a pro at reciting it.  They then recited a poem about hands.  After that, they presented the moms with a card and a towel that they painted.  It was really, really special and cute.  Ashlyn's teacher always does such a wonderful job having the kids put on little programs.  After the program, we got to eat muffins together.  It was really nice. 



      Like every other holiday, Ashyln got really, really excited for Mother's Day.  Joey and her had read a Bearenstein Bears book about Mother's Day.  In the story, the kids and Papa bear make Mama bear breakfast in bed on a tray.  Once she heard that story, she was so excited to do the same for me.  She kept telling me over and over that she had something really special planned for me.  On Saturday, Joey and the kids went out to "buy diapers".  She came home and couldn't stop smiling because she was so excited. 

     On Sunday morning, I woke up to breakfast in bed on a tray.  They made me french toast and hot chocolate.  It was delicious!  I also got some chocolate, running socks, and a gift card to my favorite store in the whole world, Lululemon to buy some more running clothes.  I am one spoiled Mom!!!  I think my favorite part was the card that Ashlyn made me.  She wrote out Happy Mother's Day and signed both her and Dawson's names.  She even traced their hands.  I am now keeping it on my nightstand so I can enjoy every time I see it.  Ashlyn hopped into bed with me and ate breakfast with me.  She kept telling me how much she loved me.  She also said, "Mom today you don't have to do anything, I will do everything for you." I tell you, I have the world's greatest daughter.  She is so sweet.  She melted my heart!

        Later on, Ashlyn and I went to brunch with my sister and mom.  The food was only okay, but the experience was nice.  It was nice to get a nice, meal without any work.  The rest of the afternoon I spent relaxing and spending with the kids.  In the evening, we went over to my brother's house for a little potluck dinner.  The food was great and we had a really nice time. 

     I went to bed that night thinking of how blessed I truly am.  I have two wonderful children and I am so proud to be their mother. 



Here is Ashyln with her good friends Teagan and Isabella

Her teacher reading a story

Getting ready for the presentation

Reciting their poem

Ashlyn holding up her gift for me

A closeup of the card

My favorite girl and I



Here is my awesome card that Ashlyn made





Ashlyn's inspiration, so funny.

Ashlyn and I enjoying breakfast in bed together

My favorite boy in the whole world!

A picture of the two of us

My sister is the best, and got me roses.  So nice!