Runnin' Fools.

This past weekend was the St George Marathon which happened to be my dad's 50th full marathon & supposedly my parents' last.  They're amazing. Amazing, I tell ya!!  The feelings, emotions, excitement & pride at the finish line didn't disappoint.  There's nothing like it & someday I hope it's me on the other side of the fence soaking in the cheers & reveling in the beauty of the finish line coming into sight. Someday.  In the meantime, props to my amazing parents.

Plenty of additional fun was had as well.  Who doesn't love a dip in the old folks community pool?  

And according to mr P he's getting a fancy new golf cart from his dad this week.

Mi Familia.

Well, my brother's gone to Thailand for an extended visit & my parents will soon be on their way to Africa, so last Sunday was the last time we'd all be together (minus my sister's stepson) for a really, really super long time which warranted documentation. Dangit, I love my family.

Off to School.

Try as I may I can't seem to stop this kid from growing up.  As much as I hate it though, seeing the excitement on his face every single day he gets to go to school makes it worth it.  It was even enough to help me hold it together until after I dropped him off on his first day.  And today when he said "Yaaaah! I can't wait to go learn new things!" I knew it was all going to be worth it.  This kid is destined for greatness.

Nairobi, Kenya.

My parents have been talking for a while about the idea of going on an L.D.S. mission & suddenly it's upon us. We met last week as they (somewhat tearfully) opened their call to find that starting in a few short months they will call Nairobi, Kenya their home for 23 months. I am admittedly selfishly a little freaked out about not having them 10 minutes away but more so I am SO excited for the adventures that await them. I know they are making an awesome, selfless decision & that it will be an incredible experience in which they will learn & grow & meet people they will love intensely. I also know the people of Kenya are lucky to get them, if even for a short time.

One.

In the blink of an eye our baby turned one. I don't know if it's just how busy we were this past year building our house or what, but I can literally still remember pretty much every detail of the day that little pumpkin was born like it was yesterday. And dang, that kid makes me so happy. I was a bit jealous of him at his 1 year checkup when the dr told me is to drink whole milk, have butter on everything, no fat free or lite substitutes etc. He's a little bitty peanut & apparently doesn't have the trouble I do with keeping off excess weight. I guess it's a good thing he ate a good solid half of his birthday cake. I've never seen anything like it.

Happy birthday, little Blue. You amazing little guy, you.

A Few Reasons My Life is (randomly) Splendid.

Who can resist that?

Love these 2 shaggy boys.

Blue's 1st trip to Lagoon. Success. Look at that brotherly love.

This is my back yard. *Sigh of contentment.*

Our cute & awesome nephew opening his mission call to ZIMBABWE!!

We're so excited for him!

Don't tell anyone, but grandpa B. is a softie!

L'il trip to Texas. Loved it.

My family is amazing & awesome & fun & strong & incredible &

(as a friend just described it) cohesive.

I love them. Fiercely.

Our new abode.

Don't mind the trailer- not sure why I don't have a pic without it.

I cannot get enough of these brothers.

Dad with his girls on his 65th birthday. He's the BEST. So are my sisters.

We love Aunt Tanya.

Little Boy Blue.

I must have done something nice in the pre-life or something, I don't know, but I cannot believe how blessed I am with the addition of #2. Dang, that kid is cute. And throughout all daylight hours an exemplary baby. The nights are still another story, but the days seem to make me forget... My overactive guilt complex has been flaring up as of late at how few pictures & videos this one has compared with his older brother. I had a memory of one of the Babysitter's Club books (don't judge me, I was very young) where one of the girls (Claudia, maybe??) thinks she was secretly adopted because there are no pictures of her as a baby, & instantly my brain went wild, the camera came out & for a day I was satisfied that I was going to be able to make up for it. I am coming to terms with the fact that I have not done well thus far, but am making yet another commitment to do better. Sorry, little man. If ever a #3 comes along I guess I'll hire someone to follow us around with a camera.

Mr P.

I dont' even know where to start with this kid. He is not only living up to dang near every expectation I had of him, years before his birth, he makes me laugh (hard) every single day. I made a new commitment today to better document the funny things he says because at the rate we're going he's going to be 17 in no time. He's smart too. I don't know how I got so lucky, but I'll take it.

Uncle Lee.

My younger brother has been able to come down from Logan quite a bit lately & we've had so much fun spending time with him. Mr P is completely smitten with him & it melts my heart. Watching them interact is one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time-- I especially love that my 3 year old totally picks up on his 20-something uncle's humor. Most of the time. Other times I know it's going to come back to bite me....

Lee just graduated from USU & is now debating some options, most of which will probably take him a significant distance from home. While I'm happy for him & excited for the adventures he has yet to undertake, I will be sad to see him go. I want my kids to always know their crazy uncle Lee.

Shaving Cream.

Are we the only ones who did this when we were little?? Yes, that is shaving cream on the kitchen counter. It's a nice, fresh- smelling little art project.

I'm Alive. Technically Speaking.

Wow. It's been much too long & I now have months worth of catching up to do. Here's to hopin! I'll start off with the most recent events & see where we get. Here's the condensed rundown:

6 months. expanded dining options.

3 heart-wrenching weeks. 2 sick kids. 3+ viruses including RSV. 2 infections of the ear & throat varieties. 6 doctor/RSV clinic visits. 3 prescriptions. 2 average hours of sleep per night. 0 new houses finished. 1 mom sick. 1 dad sick. 0 pleasant reasons for leaving the house. 7,402 prayers said. 0 lbs 'baby' weight lost due to stress/ exhaustion/ emotion eating. 2,379 tears shed when baby smiled at mom for the first time in days. 1 ridiculously grateful, blessed, humbled, relieved, happy mom. I think we're on the mend. Knock on wood.