Back to school (like a month ago or so)

So seeing my running post is getting me mad. I have a hurt leg. I have been waiting to post "Why I run : Part Duex " but since that is not happening soon, I better just post something that is not all about me.

Emma started second grade and loves it.



Anna started Kindergarten

Anna and her BFF's.

We carpool with Miss Ava to school and the girls are so funny. I don't think they take a breathe the entire ride to school. They just talk, talk, talk only to stop to uncontrollably giggle. Marianne said one day they didn't say a word just giggled the whole way to school. Anna told me the other day she likes doing homework better than playing with friends (what??).


How did I get so lucky to have such great girls.

Why I run.

"Most people run a race to see who is fastest. I run a race to see who has the most guts."

~Steve Prefontaine

I run to escape;

Escape my kids,

escape my depression,

escape my messy house.

I run to find clarity.

I run to find peace.

I run to de-stress.

I run to race only against myself.

I run so that I can one day see my grandkids graduate for high school.

I joke that because I am such a slow runner that I don't know if you can actually call it running, but I run nonetheless.

I have one running partner and that is my husband because I know he will never let me fail.

On Saturday, June 12, 2010 I ran my first half marathon, 13.1 miles. It was cold, it was wet and the course lead straight into the heart of Provo ( the third being the hardest obstacle to overcome, GO UTES!). I had to stop twice once to stand in line at the port-a-potty and once to have Mark bandage my blistered feet. My finishing time was about what I expected, nothing great, nothing terrible but, I finished. My three ( four in spirit, thanks Crystal), dear, dear friends drove down to cheer me to the finish. I saw them and tears filled my eyes, I got choked up and could barely breath during the last 100 yards to the finish line. My husband trailed off to let the finish be about me, he ran with me the whole time, much slower than his usual pace. He cheered me on, made me laugh, and literally pushed me up the last hill a mile before the finish. My sweet brother Byran, waited around an hour after he finished and met me at the finish line with a couple cups of water.

Running to me is more of an emotional/spiritual journey than a physical one.

Until about a month ago I thought,
"I run, but I am not a runner."
Today I know that
I am a runner!

Emma's trip to Moab

Or atleast the car ride down there. Aren't kids great?

When I grow up...

I would love to be this cool.

Yiddy-Up's Adventures in Moab

Mark gave Addie a little purse that has a little stuffed animal horse; It went everywhere with us in Moab. Addie calls horses Yiddy-ups (translation: Giddy-ups).

Yiddy-up had quite the adventure.

Rarely, Addie carried it, Yiddy-Up Jumping over a

boulder in Arches.

Sometimes Mommy carried it.

Yiddy-Up hiking the trail in Arches near Sand Dune Arch.

Sometime Daddy carried it, Yiddy-up hiking through the sand.

And again Mommy carrying Yiddy-Up by Double Arch.

I am glad I could spend so much quality time with Yiddy-Up, oh yeah and the rest of the fam. More pictures to come.

A seriously WICKED good time in San Fransisco.

I would have to rank last weekend as seriously, the best of my life.

Time with my sweetheart, a great musical, great food and chocolate.

I am like the best wife ever, Mark tells me that all the time and I believe him. For my Marky's 30 something birthday I took him to San Fransisco to see Wicked.

Mark and I feel in love with Wicked after we watched Glee do a rendition of Defying Gravity. So I looked up where it was playing, well it worked that one of Mark's oldest friends lives just outside San Fran, so off we went.

Okay, so the secret lasted like 2 days after I bought the tickets. Anna often whispers to me "but mommy, I am not very good at keeping secrets" I now know where she gets it from. I borrowed a credit card from my mom and made arrangements with Mark's friend Kenny booked the tickets and then caved to my own excitement.

So we left friday afternoon and flew into Oakland. Oakland? you say, well yes and I am so glad we did. Have you ever seen the Oakland temple? It is about a half hour drive from the airport, sat upon a hill as if an Ensign to the Bay Area. Mark and I where so taken back by its sheer beauty.

After our little temple adventure we headed south to meet up with Kenny, some people call him Dr. Hunt, others call him Professor and he prefers Ken, but we have known him way before he was anybody so we still call him Kenny. Kenny is an Orthopedic Surgeon and Professor at Stanford, I know you are impressed someone like that would be friends with the Vaders but somehow he is the lucky one, to know us.

So anyway, he lives on campus at Stanford in the same house that Chelsea Clinton rented when she attended Stanford. I totally fell in love with Stanford. We took a walking tour with Kenny and his latest girlfriend Bre. I've decided that Emma is going to go to Stanford ( no pressure, she is certainly smart enough). I also am now trying to persuade Mark to go back and get his Phd so he can be a professor there or I might just need to get my Phd.

Saturday, morning Mark and I took a run through campus, it was wonderful.

After our short run we took a little trip to One Infinite Loop.

Where ? you say.

If you know Mark at all you cannot stop him from taking a trip to Apple's corporate headquarters. This was probably the least impressive part of the trip but,atleast now we can say we've been there and seen that.

Next, we where off to the play. WOW! Seriously wonderful. I kept thinking, I need to download this song when I get home. I think I said that about every song. I got a little teary at the end, just because that is how I am I cry over the stupidest things Mark thought I was totally losing it. It was just so amazing.

Anyway, after that we headed for a walking tour around San Fran and ended up at Ghiradelli's square for dinner and ice cream. Did you know that Ghiradelli's has its own ice cream parlor. YUMO.

It was so nice to spend so much time with my sweetheart. He told me he still likes me. Yay me! How sweet. How fun.

What to do when you are 5.

Well, go rock climbing of course. On Anna's birthday we went rock climbing at the gym with her cousins. What a blast. Here are some great pictures.