Tag Turns 1!!

I know- I cannot believe it! I am still a little bit in denial that my baby is a year already. This has definitely been the fastest year of my life! So eternally grateful for this little guy. He is just such a joy and blessing to our family. He loves his birthday present- his own wheels! His brothers and sister love pushing him around and he laughs the whole time! He had his first cupcake! Despite the sad face in the picture he did love it! Happy First Birthday my sweet Tag!! We just love you so much!

Stair Climber

In Tag's physical therapy we have been working on pulling himself to standig and encouraging him to climb stairs. He is always interested in standing by the bottom step but has never tried to go up. That is until today!! I was so proud of him. It is crazy that I am excited about him climbing the stairs since I avoided the stairs with all of my other kids- afraid they would fall. Now I am clapping and taking pictures!! So proud of our little Tag! He is making such progress and we could not be happier.

Lucky Strikes Again

Another St. Patricks Day and another visit from our friend Lucky the Leprechaun! Luke made a great trap but was still not able to catch our clever friend. He did leave a note complimenting Luke's efforts, made his mark in the toilet, and left some green treats in the bathroom. The kids were so excited to find the goodies! For breakfast we had green eggs and cinnamon rolls with green frosting. Nash and Gray were a little unsure about eating green eggs, but once they tried them, they liked them. All day the kids made sure they were dressed in green so that they would not get pinched! It was a fun day and I love watching the excitement!

New Tramp

After a few years the tramp mat has seen it's day. We oredered a new one this week and it came today. I could not get the new one on fast enough- the kids were so excited! After only about 20 minutes we had a new tramp. The kids will probably want to jump all night! Love that they love to be outside and enjoy playing together. Tag played out in his exersaucer. Even with a snotty nose he loved being outside. I forsee many fun days the summer enjoying our wonderful backyard. *They each wanted a picture of their tricks! Luke's flip Harlee's flip Nash's Trick Gray's Trick

Finally Doing It

I love going to get Tag up in the morning and seeing his smiling face! It is even better now because he is standing up on his own ready to greet me! He has been working so hard in physical therapy to stand up on his own. It is so rewarding and fun to see him master these tasks! I am just so grateful for this little guy! How can it not be a good day when this is how you start it!

Luke's Leprechaun Trap

Last night Luke worked on a Leprechaun Trap for his school project. He said he worked for about 3 hours to make it perfect! He measured and cut and came up with a very creative trap. He taped the rope to the floor and said that the leprechaun would of course cut the rope. This would cause the wheel to turn and drop the cup, trapping the little leprechaun. So creative!! I love how his mind works!

1st Annual Red Rock Relay

Before the Race-Team "Childs Play" Keeping warm before my second leg Pass off from Joey to me- A kiss before each run- Great motivation!! Running in at the end After the race- We did it! Around Thanksgiving last year KC committed us to running the Red Rock Relay in St.George. This is a race with a team of six- each person running two legs of the race. It was going to be KC, Ryan, Joey, Jamie, Daryk, and me. Jamie backed out so Brenna, KC's friend, took his place. It started at 7 in the morning and we were ready! I had the first leg which was 6.39 miles. It was raining pretty hard which made the leg a little more difficult. I finished though and ran the whole thing. Brenna had the next leg, then Ryan, then KC, then Daryk, and then Joey. Joey started his leg near Gunlock. The roads were old asphalt with gravel on the sides of the road. So not ideal running conditions especially with the freezing cold wind in your face. Within the first mile Joey rolled his ankle. Even through the pain, he continued to run and motivate me all along the way! He passed the bracelet to me and I took the next leg. This was on the same crappy roads with lots of hard hills and wind. It was so difficult for me to breathe but I did it with my team stopping to cheer me on. Then it was Brenna who had the leg titled "The Wall". It was full of difficult and long hills. She did such a great job. Then Ryan took off for his over seven mile leg. He is one amazing runner. He averaged a 7:15 mile. He honestly could have kept going. Then it was KC's turn through Snow Canyon. By this time the wind had stopped and he got to enjoy a beautiful run! Kind of jealous but since he was the captain he felt he got first dibs on the legs! Next was Daryk and he did such a great job. He got to run through some neighborhoods, taking us back into St. George. The next and final leg was Joey. We were all nervous since his ankle was hurting so bad, so we decided to stay close. He made it about 3 miles and then the ankle started to hurt. We decided to take turns finishing his leg. So I went first followed by Brenna, then KC, and then Daryk finished it out. What a true team! We were all so exhausted yet we pulled together to help Joey when he could not do it himself. We finished the relay in 11 hours and 3 minutes. It was such a bonding experience and I cannot wait to do it again next year. The excitement of the race encouraged Joey and I to bring back the one half marathon a year goal! We are signing up to run the Big Cottonwood Half on Sept 14th! Nervous but excited. I love to have something to work towards and I cannot think of anyone I would rather train and run with than my best friend!!

The honesty of a four year old!

When I was getting ready this morning, Nash was with me in my bathroom. He asked me when was Tag in my tummy. I explained to him that is was almost a year ago. I went on to ask him if he remembered how big mommy's tummy was. The whole time I am talking, he is looking at me with a very confused look. Then he says, "But Mom, when Reese, Kayla, and Boston were here (as in last Friday when I was babysitting them) you looked very fat!" Awesome! Gotta love the honesty of a four year old. Nothing like a fat comment to start your day off great! I think I better put those running clothes back on!

One of the reasons why I do this...

Today afterschool, I kept hearing Luke and Harlee giggling in the office. I went in to see what was so funny and they were looking through some of the old blog books. They were each taking turns showing entries to each other. I love that I have taken the time to write things down. They are appreciating it now and I just know as they get older they will appreciate them even more. I think I will keep on blogging! *Luke had to find the page with Gray's little naked bottom on it. He had to make sure it was showing in the picture. Such a boy!!

Inspired...

This morning I had to go to Grease Monkey to get the car registered for the year. I had anticipated a little alone time this morning but Gray was having a rough morning and I decided to take him with me. It must have been inspired because when the boy wearing the cars shirt and shoes arrived, they had a Cars 2 sticker/coloring book. He spent the entire hour moving stickers from one page to the other and coloring pictures of his favorite friends. He was such a good boy. It is not often with five kiddos that you get one on one time with each child. This was a special moment and I really enjoyed this time with our little funny man! Love his poses.

Seven under Six

What a fun and crazy morning! We had the two neighbor girls over as well as Boston. So we had seven kids under the age of six. It was Boston's birthday so we decorated cupcakes, had a dance party to Harlem Shake and Ganghum Style, followed by an hour (yes I said an hour) of hide and seek. The kids had so much fun. I needed it to! I loved the reminder of having fun with my kids all the time- not just when the neighbors and cousins are over. I need to take a little time each day to play a little hide and seek! The cleaning can wait!!