The Rundown of our Race

(no pun intended)

As most of you know, my friend Melissa and I had been training for a 5K. As the day got closer the excitement built. Until the day before. Melissa little boy aspirated some peanuts and was admitted to the hospital. Poor little man had to stay overnight. This didn't stop my hardcore race partner. She let her (supportive) husband stay with their son that morning and met me across the street from the hospital (at a Hardees with tacky decorations for the holidays) to carpool over. We thought we were going to be pretty good on time until we pulled up. There were cars EVERYWHERE. This was not only a 5k, but also a half marathon (we had three close friends running the half- YEAH Kim, Stacie and Marcia!!!) We finally found a parking spot a little ways from the start line and were ready to go. It was COLD. The above picture is after our finish near our car- so I'd already taken off my toboggan. We didn't win (duh) but we did meet our goals........to finish, to finish without having to walk because we couldn't run anymore and the goal to finish in less than 45 minutes. We actually finished closer to 30 minutes than 45 minutes. Not bad! I know I wouldn't have been able to train without having Melissa there every step of the way. While I used to love running, I've been out of the loop for a while and so had NO motivation. So I really needed Melissa for all those training mornings.......

So, I know you're wondering if we're going to keep it up......yes, you'll be seeing more of team Melissa and Cortney in 2009.

Morgan's 7th Birthday Party

Even though her birthday isn't until tommorow (the 11th), due to scheduling issues we needed to have her birthday party last Friday. She made the choice to have a 'SPA' bithday party and the invites we sent out were little pink sleep/relaxation masks with a bit of cardstock attached with the info. We had planned (and did) pedicures, manicures, face masks, dinner, presents and 'hanging out'. Thanks to Megan, my mom and my friend Rachael for helping with the party and my friend Kim for watching my two youngest. Morgan wanted to invite everyone she knew but I put the limit at seven. (This was our first real 'friend' birthday party.) All the girls had tons of energy. And yes, I got the pictures on here out of order. I know people keep telling me how to do it- but I always forget in the moment.

oh yeah- Morgan planned the ENTIRE thing- down to every last detail

Rae with her face mask and cucumber eyes

Raelyn, Morgan and her friend Payton

The Birthday Girl

We borrowed Klacki's chocolate fountain to use for part of our dinner!

Morgan enjoyed all her presents!!

all the little ladies soaking their fingers for the manicures

and soaking their feet (and reading magazines) for the pedicures

Morgan was so nice to Rae the whole time- I'm so proud of her

What happens when you try to age out of your morning nap at 9 months old....

Gracie girl is trying to 'outgrow' her morning nap and go down to only 1 nap a day in the afternoon. This is what happens when she doesn't morning nap- she falls asleep at lunch!

Fire Station Field Trip

We took a field trip to the fire station this past Tuesday. Megan joined us for the fun. They let the kids see the trucks/engines/tour the fire house/etc. but didn't let them get in the engines?!?! What's up with that? Every other time I've EVER been they've let them in. oh well....

Jack had a slight obsession with rubbing the tail lights on the fire trucks

Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey, and share our love with friends and family.

President Monson's talk during the Sunday morning session of the 2008 Oct. General Conference of our church was entitled Joy in the Journey (sound familiar? Look at the top of my blog) You can go here to read if you haven't already. Or if you have, read it again- it's excellent.

These are a few of my favorite things....

**Running Edition**

As very few of you know, I've recently gotten back into running. It's been years. But I signed up to do a 5K this Holiday Season so I decided I had better get back into shape. Here are a few of the things that make my running in the early morning hours possible....... (just a few of my favorite things)

1. Asics Running Shoes- specifically the GR-2130 model. These shoes ROCK! I have inserts that make them even better, but my feet are never tired or sore. Maybe that's because I'm not pushing myself hard enough, but I'll just keep telling myself it's the shoes.

2. IPod Nano- I have the Couch to 5K program downloaded on podcasts and it makes running a breeze- Robert, the 43 year old man living in Northern California who decided to start running again on his birthday, put together these podcasts to help those of us who hadn't run in years (or ever!)

3. Moving Comfort Sports bra- And not just ANY Moving Comfort sports bra, but this one. I know the guys don't care about this, but I promise you that there are some women who will thank me later. Now, don't skip over this bra because of the price. Not cheap. But worth EVERY penny. I own two- a pink and white. Never have to layer sports bras again. Ok, so go buy one. Today. GO.

4. My running parter- Knowing that she is out there waiting to go with me keeps my sorry butt getting out of bed in the early morning. Love her.

It all started with a trip to Target.....

We can't be PC on my blog....of course not....it'd be too normal........

So.............. I get home from the Target feeling all happy because I picked up this cute stick bundle I've been wanting for a small corner in my powder room for only $6!!!! (gotta love the clearance) It has a nice stand on the bottom to keep it standing straight. Decorating isn't my forte but I was thinking it looked nice in there. When Josh got home from work I showed it to him and the following conversation then followed......

Me: Don't you love this decoration I got for the powder room!!! It was only $6!!!!!!

Him: You paid 6 bucks for that?????? What is it anyways???

Me: It's a decoration. It's cute. It's kinda trendy. It's supposed to be a bundle of sticks.....

Him: WAIT.....no wait......you bought a FAGGOT?!??! I mean- you paid 6 bucks for a faggot?! (Then he starts laughing hysterically. Can't stop. Great....)

I was still trying to figure out what just happened....then it dawned on me......I'm married to a sixth grader. Gotta love a man who has never grown up. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiight........


P.S. For those who DON'T know, a faggot is a bundle of sticks......(in addition to a rather derogatory term for a homosexual man)

Taken from Jess' and Joni's blogs....

Bold the things you've done: (mine are all in purple)
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland (does Disneyworld count?!)
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo (I pity the people who heard that!)
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee.

Copy, paste and join the fun!

A few pictures from Halloween night....

Here are a few pics from Halloween night. (courtesy of our friend Tammy!)

Morgan and four of her neighborhood friends

Morgan and a few friends at a little neighborhood chili/soup dinner before trick-or-treating

My boys


Raelyn the bride

Church Trunk or Treat Party

Pumpkin Carving

The girls had painted pumpkins at Josh's aunt's house a week or so ago and those are the pumpkins they wanted to carve. So we let 'em...... They drew faces on with permanent marker and Josh cut the faces. The girls did all the work of scooping the ick out.

And one of the little gal who kept trying to play with the pumpkin mush.

(JACK was inside during this time)

Climbing up on my soapbox.....

Most everyone who reads my blog knows how I feel about the US and their crappy Infant Mortality rating, and if you don't then you can probably guess. Our country thinks that we are so wonderful and above all the other industrialized countries. We are not!!! We are below many many countries in our infant mortality ranking- most of the countries we are behind use mainly midwives. Coincidence- I think not........

Here is an excerpt from an editorial in the New York Times:

"The infant mortality rate in this country declined sharply in the 20th century but then plateaued from 2000 to 2005. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last week that in 2006 the rate of infant deaths in the United States fell to 6.71 per 1,000 live births, down from 6.86 the previous year. That is still 50 percent higher than the official national goal of 4.5 deaths per thousand.
What is particularly shameful is how poorly this country compares with other industrialized countries."

Full text can be found here: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/opinion/19sun3.html?_r=2&th&emc=th&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

Fair

Ok, so I can't figure out how to get pictures in the order I want. You get them out of order.

Here are Morgan, Raelyn and my sister Megan on the little caterpiller roller coaster. I was VERY shocked that Raelyn even wanted to go on it (and to be honest, I was nervous for anyone to- it was my kids first time doing anything like that and I, myself, hate the things)

They went for it- holding their hands up!
And Meggie will kill me for posting this- but isn't she the cutest?! She is getting married in Dec and moving away (although we love her fiance- I think Raelyn has a crush on him!)
What's better at the fair than a big bunch of cotton candy?????
Why, it's a blue caramel apple. (Ick! Actually I prefer a funnel cake myself- yum!!)
And on the right you see Megan in the gray, Raelyn next to her and Morgan right behind them.
Jack (plus Klacki behind him) and Morgan on the upper level of the merry-go-round
Feeding the animals at the petting zoo
So as we were leaving Morgan comments "Man, you didn't let us do all that fun stuff last year." Gee thanks Morgan........

An apple a day.....

This morning we packed up (rather early) and headed about an hour away to an Apple Orchard. When we got there the owner (wife) showed up the apple house and where they store the apples. We also got to see the huge fridge. They had a little store at the front where they sold already picked apples and other apple goodies (we bought yummy FRESH homemade cider!!!!) Then we went up the mountain to the orchard part. There were over 80 acres of apples!!! The other owner (husband) took us on a little hayride. (we had apples to eat while riding and while he talked to us!) Here are the three Musketeers on the 'hayride'.

Then everyone picked a little bag of apples (we paid a tour fee and the fee included a 1/4 peck per person- you could buy more)
Jack LOVES apples (he takes after his mommy!) and ate more apples than one can count on one hand
A friend tried to take a picture but this was the only one where everyone is looking (kinda looks like I really have to pee here- I was just trying to squat next to the kiddos)

Why we shouldn't be allowed in public (with a side of redneck)

These pictures are a little blurry but too good to miss out on. (The first two are ESP. for Taylor.) Josh got these new waders for his upcoming fishing trip at the coast. Yes, we are a little W.T.

and here he is doing a jig just to show me how comfy they are (I'm sure our neighbors had choice words about these actions in the front yard)
And then Jack wanted to do a jumping picture too.
"Take picture Jack-cheeeeeeeeeez!!!" (he repeated it about 100 times)
And the shaky face game.
And only because I've never taken a jumping picture. So here goes.....

Mummies and Pyramids (a post by Morgan)

People from long ago,in ancient Egypt,thout that there was an underworld,or another world.and they started making mummies.T his is how they did it: they took some cloth,wine,spices,andsalt.They wraped the dead people up in the cloth,they cleaned the mummies body,and they made 3 cofins to protect the mummie.The people from long ago made something to protect the mummie.it was called an pyramid.They took limestone and built BIG rafts[Thats what I call it]and used ropes to pull the stone up the rafts.They built them into triangle shapes.they used something to protect the greatpyramid.they made something called a sphinx to protect the greatpyramid.A sphinx had a mans head and a lions body.it did not work to protect the greatpyramid.B ecuse tomb robbers took every last piece of gold-and the mummie.wrote by:morgana.long. (age 6)

This is how we roll

A few pictures as of recent for all our readers (but esp. Aunt Taylor)

One of the few toy guns in our house (a couple water guns and this bubble gun)

She's a jack of all trades- goes from being a cowgirl to a princess

Jack blowing bubbles (these bubble things are SWEET- you just squeeze it a touch and the wand pops out already covered in bubble liquid)

Big girls working with some math manipulatives

Aaaaah......the joys of homeschooling- reading about Ancient Egypt outside
Gracie Girl playing with the life-sized baby doll
And a sweet smile
And to show Aunt Tay how big she's getting- she's starting to pull herself up!