Irving Half Marathon

 Here we are before the Irving Half Marathon.  It was a bit nerve wracking on the way there because there was a lot of construction and we made a few wrong turns and did a few circles before finally making it! But we ended up being just fine. 

 I ran just fine, but Tyler ran fast! Well, fast for not training as much as he should have. This was his first Half Marathon and his time was 1 Hour 33 min.  He's running another Half in July so maybe this will teach him a lesson and he'll train more.  :)

 We're done!!! I ran in my new running shoes and they gave me blisters.  I was soooo happy to take them off!  Spencer(the guy in orange) got 3RD! in his age group and Tyler got 4TH! Way to go boys! This was Spencer's second half marathon AND it was his birthday. What a fun way to spend your Birthday right?!

My First Garden!

 Last week we test drove this truck that was a great price and had everything we wanted in a truck...EXCEPT...The lift kit was too high so it won't fit under our carport.  We knew that going in, but we still wanted to test drive it to see what it was like.  It took the corners really well and went from 0-60 mph in 2 seconds. haha. Just kidding.

 We had some friends visit from Oklahoma and they stayed two nights.  They brought their dogs with them.  At first I was nervous about having dogs in the house because I didn't want dog hair everywhere, but we got used to them real quick.  Even Blake was ok with both dogs after a few hours! He's pretty hesitant around dogs that are bigger than him or have a lot of energy.

 My first HARVEST! hehe.  This is from my Swiss Chard plants from my garden.  They were the only thing I planted that was already a good size plant.  But it was fun to see the leaves grow big enough to eat.  They were yummy! We're hoping it helps with our seasonal allergies.

Austin went to two birthday parties last Saturday.  He loved these glasses in one of the party bags.

 Swiss Chard plants!

 My carrots are barely popping up.  This is my garden at almost 2 weeks old.  In the rest of these pictures, all the plants are planted from a seed.

 The ones on the left I have no idea what I planted!  The ones on the right are cantaloupe.  Or the ones on the left are cantaloupe and the ones on the right I have no idea.  Hopefully they produce so I know what I planted!

This is my Spinach.  Perfect snack to go with my Swiss Chard

 Beets! I'm excited to eat these fresh. I really hope I get some.

 Summer Squash/Zucchini.  We eat this stuff like candy around here so I really hope I get some.  Hopefully they just grow slow.

 Cucumbers. These guys get more shade then the rest of the garden but we'll see how they turn out anyways.

And finally....Broccoli! This part also gets a lot of shade so we'll see how it turns out.

It'll be a good experiment.  See how much of green thumb I have.  And now that I have plants in it, the boys don't walk around in the dirt as much anymore. Good thing!

Last Pictures of Trip Home

I think my dad should start a car washing business after he retires. Don't you think?

 I really can't go home without washing a car. This is the car I drove in high school. All of my other sisters drove it as well.  My dad has finally put a For Sale sign in the windshield. It will be sad to see it go, but my parents don't have anyone else to drive it.

 While we were washing the kids were playing. And yes I don't think Austin or Blake got dressed that day

 My mom pulled out some old toys my dad played with. My grandma saved EVERYTHING

 Time for a haircut!!! Doesn't this hair look horrible!

 He did so well since we bribed him with a cookie!

 Blake got his haircut too.  All my mom did was cut the mullet off the back.  Here they are checking out there new Hair Do's.

 Austin tackling grandpa.

 Grandma and Grandpa trying to get a picture in before we left the next day

 We went to the single branch FHE since my parents are serving there.  They were so nice and let Austin play soccer with them. In his cowboy hat. He sure looked Texan

Austin showing off his mad skills!

 Austin begged grandpa to get the remote control helicopter out to fly.  Good thing since I'm not sure when the last time grandpa flew it

Austin finally brings grandpa down.  We had a really fun visit!  My mom had spring break the week we were there so we got lots of time together.  She was so nice to let me go running every morning and it was fun to run and see some old sights.  I think College Place and Walla Walla are getting prettier and prettier every time I go.  Either that or it was soooo nice to see green grass and farm fields!

Also, while I was at home in Washington we took advantage of the great weather! We went to the park for some baseball fun! After that we played some disc golf. Tyler got to show off his talent for throwing a frisbee.

 We were using my dad's old wooden bat and real softballs so I was happy Blake just waned to sit in my lap

 Austin fielding a ball.

 I love this picture of Austin throwing the ball, Daylen running, and Tyler ready to catch!

 Grandpa showing them how it's done

 A & B loved playing outside the entire week. The trampoline was a HUGE hit! They loved it.  They were good enough on it that I didn't even have to watch them. 

 Jana's kids were there for an extra few days and Austin and Daylen loved to tackle each other.  Well, Daylen was a really good sport to let Austin tackle him.  I'm sure he got tired of it, but he was always willing to play.

 So much fun!

Kate and I.  Having a girl really would be so much fun

 Another big hit was my old rocking horse.  I wish I could have taken it with me.  If the boys weren't on the trampoline, they were on the rocking horse.

 Look mom! I'm a natural

 He looks so well behaved here.  He definitely doesn't have the attention span to learn yet. But maybe someday

We went to a friend's Open House and their theme was John Deere. It was ADORABLE! Tractors, burlap and crates everywhere. It was so cute. And we got to wear jeans.  There were two toy tractors at the entrance and the boys played with them just about the entire time.  We felt like the welcoming crew!

Easter Egg Hunt

 Gearing up for the Easter Egg hunt at Grandma and Grandpa's house.  Here's Austin and his cousin Kate. 

 Lily and Kate. Lily was crazy and wanted to wear her swimsuit all weekend. It was cute though.

 Everyone minus Blake and the two babies.  He was out roaming. On your mark, get set, GO!

 It was fun to see Austin excited to get Easter Eggs.  Last year he only wanted rocks.  He now loves candy and understands that the eggs have candy in them.

 Austin and Benson!

 Tyler tried to get my dad's Styrofoam model airplane to fly.  We got this plane 10 YEARS AGO for my dad and he's never used it...it didn't work very well. But I think it may have worked 10 years ago.

Blake admiring my mom's beautiful flowers.

 My dad had a Chinese Lantern so we decided to light it off.  It was pretty awesome! I wanted to start singing...."And At Last I See the Light. and it's like the fog has lifted...!" You know the rest

 And it's off!

As it was flying over our house we all started wondering what happens to it...and praying that it wouldn't be a fire hazard!