On My Bucket List

The year Chadwick and I got married, I started to train for a half marathon. I even made it up to running 10 consecutive miles (and was slightly concerned that at the end of that adventure my toes felt numb), which was by far the longest I've ever run at one time. We got married, which messed up my training schedule, it got back on track, then we got the announcement that a good friend from vet school was getting married and having his wedding receiption on the morning of my race. The reception was in Lava Hot Springs at his parent's ranch....and my race plans happily went out the window.

The goal of running a half marathon is still on my bucket list, and 2013 is the year.

Step 1: Decide to run 13.1 miles and cross the finish line. No time limits, on my hands and knees counts as finishing.
Step 2: Purchase a jogger stroller so my girlies can join me on this adventure.

For Christmas, my parents helped with this second step and we took her out for a spin. The stroller travels smoothly, but it's depressing how out of shape I feel while pushing the thing. Bonus for the longer runs, Chadwick can help push! He is planning on running a half in September.

Step 3: Find a race - looks like the Rush Creek Stampede at the end of October in Cambridge, ID

Now to start the real training.....wish me luck.

Happy Happy Birthday, Morgan Dear!

...happy days will come to you all year.

I can't believe that our precious little girl is THREE! The time has gone by so quickly. She amazes me daily with her smile and enthusiasm. She makes up songs to sing, loves to show off her new "moves," adores her baby sister, and has been teaching me about the kind of person and mother I would like to be when I grow up.

After a morning spent playing at a friend's house, we had a girls lunch out at Wendy's - she adores chicken nuggets - then got the chance to play at Uncle James's house. The day wasn't supposed to be so jam-packed, but that's what happens when life gets involved. Dinner was here at the house, chicken and rice casserole, and then off to the Grandparents Hunt house for cake and ice cream.

Yes, I made a Hello Kitty cake and with the help of a friend got it frosted. It turned out to be a delightful cake! Betty Crocker outdid herself on the cake mix; for some reason it was amazing.

Presents included a Cinderella accessory kit complete with tiara, shoes, earrings, necklace and handbag; a Polly Pocket doll, a green John Deere tractor and trailer, Thomas the Train set, and some much-needed clothing.

The morning after her birthday, she woke up and asked, "Mom? Am I still three?"

Valentine's Fun

Valentine's week was a busy one for us! Morgan helped me make sugar cookie dough Sunday afternoon and we made the cookies Monday for FHE - there was a ridiculous amount of flour utilized by our little helper, and when it was getting late I offered to finish rolling and cutting cookies another day. Chadwick looked at me like I was slightly crazy and replied that he'd rather not have to clean up the mess again. Good point. The cookies were amazing!

Wish I could say the same for the frosting...it didn't occur to me that cream cheese frosting would taste, well, like cream cheese. My friend Mandie asked, "Is there any other way to eat sugar cookies than with cream cheese frosting?" I sure hope so, because I don't like cream cheese! Now I'm on a quest to find a frosting recipe I like.....

Tuesday Morgan was invited to a party where there were TEN 3- and 4-year-olds at the house - they did a craft, ate a snack (heart shaped Jello), played, and exchanged Valentine's. A total success and I was exhausted watching all the energy. Kudos to Lisa for being willing to host such a party in her household!

Wednesday afternoon found us at Mandie's house for a princess tea party - all the little girls dressed up in their princess dresses, ate fancy snacks, and drank juice from plastic champagne glasses. Morgan played really well with the other girls that afternoon, for which I was grateful. She hasn't yet mastered the art of playing "with" other people; she's better at playing "around" them. The moms had a chance to chat and get out of the house so it was a win-win!

Traditionally, Chadwick and I haven't done much for each other for V-Day, and this year was no exception. A nice dinner with a candle on the table, cookies for dessert, and I made a cute card for Morgan. I'm getting ideas on things to do for the girlies for this love holdiay. Gotta love friends and Pinterest for that!! And yes, I was able to make a heart shape in Morgan's hair. Super proud of myself for that one. =)






With that out of the way, Morgan started talking more frequently about her upcoming birthday. We started practicing the number three.....

Sledding!

 

Last weekend we packed up the kitchen, most of the closet, and the dog and drove north to the Hunts' cabin in Garden Valley. Nancy, Steve, the girls and I went up Friday mid-afternoon to get the fire started and were joined that evening by Chadwick, James and family, and friends Andy, Saramarie and their little girl, Adele. As cold as it's been, we figured the road conditions would be perfect for the runner sleds. Morgan and I got some good runs in Friday afternoon....then it started raining.

Sadly, it rained most of the day Saturday and turned the roads to slush. The crew were able to hike up the hill and get some sledding done despite the drizzle. And Darwin made a great sled dog! He pulled Morgan all over the place! We drank hot chocolate, talked, played, and came home that evening. We hit snow coming home and it dropped another 3 inches last night...better luck next time!

 

 A perfect quick getaway.

Post-Christmas Posting

With the addition of a second little person to my family, I find myself playing catch-up most of the time! Catch up on reading, blogging, cleaning, emails....is there an end??

We spent a busy, wonderful Christmas in Albuquerque with my family. My brother, Sean and his wife were there for the holiday as well and we were joined by the Alaskans on the 26th. They have a four month old boy we were excited to meet, Kade. It was a riot to see him next to my little Mallorie; Kade is currently 27 inches and 20 pounds...Mallorie is 25 inches and weighs in just over 14 pounds! It was great to be able to spend time with everyone, though we were missing my third brother, Stuart, who was unable to join us from Ohio.

On the 27th, we were fortunate to celebrate my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary!! My mom planned for months to get us all together for a family picture (the last one we got was at their 50th anniversary...) and threw a lovely family party in their honor.

They have been through many happy and sad times in those sixty years and it's inspiring to celebrate milestones such as these, especially when I hear of so many marriages not lasting more than a few years. Poor Morgan had the biggest meltdown I've ever seen that afternoon, after the pictures, resulting from having several crazy busy days prior to the party. Chadwick had to head back to Boise that afternoon, and when I returned from the airport I found Mallorie having a similar episode! She's really starting being wary of people she doesn't know, and didn't like seeing my Mom's face when she woke up from her nap. Needless to say, everyone treaded lightly around her when she was waking from naps. =) The girls and I were able to stay with my parents for a total of two weeks which was wonderful. We ate, laughed, played, read stories, ate some more, saw a Broadway musical, and enjoyed the time together as a family. It was hard to leave.

My brother, David and his son Kade

It was a Hello Kitty Christmas this year, note the slippers

Kade, Morgan, Mallorie

My mom used to sit in this chair as a child

Four generations!

Since our return to Boise, we have been trying to stay warm! I don't think it's been above 25 degrees in like 2 weeks! However, the snow hasn't melted yet which is fun. Chadwick hooked Darwin up to the sled last weekend and he pulled Morgan all over the neighborhood. Might as well harness that energy for good use!! Steve gave us an old horse halter that might work as a harness...we're going to test it out this weekend sledding at the cabin.

Morgan continues to make me laugh and keep me on my toes. Mallorie refuses to get on a sleeping schedule at night but is a happy little person and loves her big sister. She laughs easily which melts my heart. I'm still trying to get used to having two kiddos at home full time. And Cleo is mad at the world for making it too cold to play outside.

Blessings

I love this time of year - people remembering their blessings, eating too much food, baking and sharing treats with friends, getting together with family, snowmen, Christmas and all the fun that season brings.....today is house cleaning, tomorrow is decorating!!

My dad flew in from Albuquerque for a week to meet Mallorie and spend time with Morgan and the rest of us. He was gracious enough to sleep on the couch and claimed he slept well each night! I have been wanting to get Morgan a little play kitchen, and since my dad does best with a project and he's good with woodworking, he agreed to build her one for a Christmas present. We snagged the well-laid plans from Becky Graf's website and went to work! The final product turned out super cute; I just have to paint burners on the stove a throw a coat on the back. We got creative with the faucet, knobs, and handles. I'm really pleased with how it looks. Santa and family are helping with the accessories - food, dishes, and aprons. Whee!!

Abuelo, the carpenter

The faucet handles turn!

Morgan getting water to drink from the sink

It was cloudy and rainy all week so we didn't go out much, but there was dancing, book reading, and cuddling with the baby. A good visit overall. For Thanksgiving, we went to my in-law's house for a FEAST! And of course there was chaos with lots of little people running around. After the meal the adults headed out for the corral to have a shooting contest with bows - I'm sad to report that Chadwick and I came in last. James and Jolynn, who own the bows, beat the socks off everyone except Steve. Jolynn promised Nathan that his arm wouldn't get drilled by the arrow, but he still came out of the activity with a huge bruise on his forearm! We lost one arrow in the wood but otherwise it was a success.

Uh, where'd it go??

And here are a few random photos...

Grandpa Steve and MJ

Sleeping with Abuelo

My sweet little M's!

Catching Up on Cuteness

You know you've been texting too much when you wait for the mis-spelled or incomplete words to fix themselves when you hit the space bar.....and a good friend admitted to being on Facebook too long when he found himself looking for the "like" button on an email I'd sent him. Ha!

Halloween was a blur - I opted to nap rather than get us ready for the Trunk or Treat and we missed the social hour. The treating itself was a whirlwind of kids running through the parking lot and then everyone was gone! Morgan, Mallorie, and I were cats. Chadwick was a cowboy. One year soon the girls are going to care about costumes and candy.....

Mallorie is growing up so quickly! Last night I found her staring intently at her hands, slowly moving them around in front of her face with the cutest expression playing at her lips. She smiles readily at Morgan, will coo for me when she's hungry, and enjoys being propped up on the couch or chair to watch the action. And she's been sleeping like a champ at night! Morgan adores her.

And here are a few other random pictures. Morgan with her drawing of herself (the big one) and Mallorie (the smaller picture in the lower right corner). And she helped me make brownies one evening and had a ball licking the spoon. I joined the fun!

So Morgan likes to watch a PBS show entitled "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood." I find it annoying but she seems to get a kick out of it. And the moral of the stories are usually good. One of the episodes has Daniel and his friend upset about something in life not going well and they were mad. Daniel's mom sings this little song about taking a deep breath and counting to four to help calm yourself. Morgan likes this song and will have me sing it to her when she's upset with her blocks. Well, the other day I was upset about something. She asked if I was mad, and when I replied "yes" she sweetly informed me that I should take a deep breath and count to four. "Sing that song, Mom!" When I told Chadwick about the incident, he about fell off the couch laughing! I guess someone is going to help me with my temper....good deal!!