Oh, to be a kid!

We love that school has started up and the weather is cooling off a bit. The weather is perfect for the kids to play outside and ride their bikes. Carson rode his bike to school last Friday with the Potter Boys, in our ward. He loved it and wanted to do it again soon! After school, and after homework and piano practice, Carson will beg to go ride bikes with his friends. They would ride non stop all day if it wasn't for dinner time and soccer games! I took a picture of the bikes that ended up on our front lawn one afternoon last week. It reminded me of when I was a kid and the care free fun we had growing up! I love that we live in a fun neighborhood that allows Carson to play with his friends and ride his bike and just be a kid!

I love this stage of our life....it can be overwhelming at times having three young kids, but I am loving every minute of it. Really! It is sad to see summer end, but I really enjoy fall....the cooler weather, homemade soup, and early bedtime are just a few of the perks of fall!

Puzzled

I downloaded pictures from my computer the other day, and pictures of this Dora puzzle were on there, and I didn't remember taking them myself. So upon further investigation I realized who took them....see the green toenails in the picture....they belong to a little girl named KAYLEE!! I remember taking pictures of her putting it together, so she must have taken more pictures after she finished the puzzle!

She is so funny and pretty good at putting puzzles together! She likes to do puzzles like this and also play a puzzle game on PBS Kids online. It is fun to see her learn so much! Including learning to use the camera!

Double Birthday Fun!!!

Last Friday, September 2nd, my good friends both had a Birthday. Jana turned 30, and Katie turned 31. Ike, Jana's hubby, threw a surprise party for Jana, but unfortunately she was sick so we had to cancel it. But no worries, because we were able to still celebrate with a fun girls night last night! (Which was the plan all along anyway!) I was glad Jana was feeling a bit better so we could still party on her behalf! We started the night out with a few of us going out to dinner at Macaroni Grill in SLC. Yum!!!!

Tina, Lindsey, and Tiffany.
Katie (Plus Baby Boy!), Stephanie, and Rachel.
Me and Jana! After we stuffed ourselves full, we then headed back to Jana's house, where we met up with some more friends and had a movie night. (Not pictured are Chrystal, Deb, and Melissa who also showed up later!).
We watched "Life as we know it". It was fun to have a break from the kids and normal responsibilities and just hang out with some friends. We always have such a good time and it makes me feel so blessed to live in my neighborhood. We are all in the same ward and we are all really good friends! I think we have the best neighborhood/ward ever!!! I love every one of these girls and I learn so much from them! We have done this girls movie night for at least the past 3 years, if not longer. I love this tradition and can't wait to do it again next year! But hopefully sooner!

Dance Pictures

Last MAY....yes 4 months ago....Kaylee had her dance pictures taken at The Groove Dance Studios. She was so cute that day and loved posing for the camera and there was not one moment of tears or frowns from Kaylee. I was a proud mommy that day! I finally got notified 3 months later that the pictures were ready to pick up from the studio...but then it took me another month to remember to go get them. But better late than never, right? So here they are...Kaylee's first official dance pictures.

There were really like 6 girls in Kaylee's class, but only 3 showed up for pictures, so I guess that is all we get! But they are cute and we will always have this memory of her first year of dance!

Where were you?

10 years ago today....where were you? We were living in Magna, and I was getting ready for work listening to the radio and I heard something about a plane flying into the World Trade Center so I turned on the TV. Nick was still asleep so I woke him up and we both watched as the 2nd plane hit the tower live. I had a sinus infection and wasn't feeling well that day, so I had called in sick (I worked at Family First Credit Union in Orem) and I was home all day to watch the news. Nick took me to the insta care and I remember looking up in the sky for airplanes. It was scary! I felt like we were under attack. I remember as I watched the towers burn, that they were going to fall. I knew they were....why didn't they realize that? It was a such a dark terrible day and I remember the feeling in the pit of my stomach. I couldn't understand how someone could do that....especially if it was for religious reasons. What religion would think that was okay? I still struggle to understand how and why it happened. How could our Heavenly Father allow such a thing to happen? Watching the specials on tv this week and watching youtube videos made me almost depressed from reliving those moments on September 11th. It was all so sad....but today was different. Most of the specials were about rising above the tragedy. Everyone on FaceBook showed great respect, memories, and feelings of that day. I especially liked the Music and Spoken Word broadcast today. It had Tom Brokaw and some great stories and feelings share of those affected by 9/11. So many people were blessed and kept safe that day. Stories of amazing survival. Heroic actions taken by every day Americans, and the spirit of Freedom and Patriotism that surge in America the following weeks and months. It was almost like we were all reborn into what America was all about. It was a great feeling. Over the years it has faded a bit. I think people have forgotten why we are fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq. But this past week has stirred up those emotions again. And even though it is sad....it brings hope. At least it does for me. It makes me appreciate what I have right now. I am so blessed to be alive, to live in America, and to have an amazing husband and beautiful children. It could all be gone tomorrow. But if so, let it be. I have the understanding of the true gospel and the knowledge of a greater plan. I will enjoy my time I have now, but I don't fear what lies ahead. Some days it is overwhelming, but I must have faith in what I was taught and what I believe. Heavenly Father gives us all challenges, whether it is personal or a national tragedy. We all grow and learn from them. That is how we progress. It wasn't meant to be easy, but I know it will be worth it. I won't forget how I felt 10 years ago. Some days it feels like it was yesterday! But so much has happened in those 10 years, and that is what matters the most. How far have we come from our adversities? How have we faced and handled our trials? Even if we have conquered them, there is still more to come....but through our Savior, Jesus Christ, and our loving Heavenly Father, we will have comfort and peace and will be able to endure to the end. I pray that each of us can find peace this anniversary day of 9/11. Let's honor those who have served and remember those who have fallen that day and since in the war on terror. Be better family, be better friends, and be better citizens. Let us never forget....and let us rise above!

Kaylee's back to school!

Today, Kaylee had her first day of Preschool for the 2011-12 school year! She is attending Learning Lodge Preschool again like she did last year. She just loves Miss Trish and was super excited to see her and all of her friends again at school today. I took a few pictures of her before she left for school. She was so cute to pose for the camera!

She was so excited to go to school she ran to the door and I don't even remember if she told me goodbye. I barely had time to take a picture of her going into the house!
She goes to school twice a week in the mornings. She does so good in a teacher/school setting so it makes it really easy for her want to go. She will also start dance again this Friday. So that will be fun for her too! With both kids in school, it makes it nice to have some quiet time with just Aliva, but it also brings a very busy schedule of carpooling, piano, dance, and other activities. But it is so fun and I am so happy with this stage of our lives. I wouldn't change a thing!

Labor Day Fun!

After we got home from the Triathlon and had lunch yesterday, we took the kids to the Hill AFB Aerospace Museum. We have been telling them for years that we would take them there, so we figured it was a great day to take them since Nick wasn't working. We had a blast looking at all the planes and walking around the museum. I couldn't believe how many people were there. I guess it is quite a popular place to visit, especially on Holidays. Here are some pictures of our day at the museum.

Livy enjoyed the museum from the comfort of her car seat....she loved it!

After we got done at the Museum, we headed to Castle Park in Fruit Heights to have a snack and play. Then we ate dinner at Panda Express in Bountiful. My kids LOVE Panda...and so do Nick and I so we all enjoyed it very much! The kids and Nick were in bed by 8 PM. It had been quite a long day for all of us! But it was so much fun!

Labor Day Triathlon 2011

Today was the South Davis Rec Center Labor Day Triathlon. I did this same triathlon two years ago. (Last year I was pregnant and TIRED so I had to skip it). So I was excited to get to do it again this year! I was feeling more prepared for the bike portion, since I have a better bike this time and have been training really hard in that area. But the past 3 weeks has been tough since I have been sick, then I hurt my knee last Friday, and so I haven't trained as much as I would have liked to, but I still felt like I could at least finish and push myself super hard! I got there really early to get a good spot on the bike rack, about 6:30 AM. Nick dropped me off and helped me get set up and checked in. Then he headed back home to grab the kids and my mom.

I got lined up for the start of the Tri, the swim. You line up according to your time, so I estimated my time to be about 7 1/2 min. I ended up passing about 4 people and my swim time was 6:44, 350 yards, so I felt really good about it! Then it was off to the transition area to get ready for the bike portion.
I had a great bike portion. There were two girls that I passed and then they passed me and each other for almost the whole bike portion. It was great to have someone to race with and push me to go hard and fast. I even caught up to my friend and neighbor Stephanie Keeler who was also competing in the Tri. She is super fast, especially on her run! I forgot to put on my watch for the bike, but I could tell I was averaging a good speed and pace. My bike time was 40:20, for 12.8 miles. My fastest time on a bike for sure! On a side note, the missionaries had come to volunteer for the race. I saw them in the morning checking in and my Mom got the biggest kick out of seeing them while they were waiting to watch me. She told me I had to email a picture of them to Elder Brower. And I will.
My biggest fear of the race was seeing how my knee would hold up on the run. Luckily, my knee did great and I had no pain at all. But, I had the worst side aches on both sides. I haven't really ever had problems with side aches in the past, so I wasn't sure what to do, so I just kept running. I tried my hardest to keep a 9 min mile pace, and I did for the most part. About mile 2, I slowed to a 10 min mile until Mile 3, then I was able to pick it up again to a 9:30 min mile pace. I finished my run in 33:26, for 3.57 miles. Overall, I was really happy with my time.
My final time, with transitions, was 1:22.59. I placed 8th, out of 24 in my age division. My swim time was 2nd in my division. Overall, I was very pleased with my race. I am glad I finished strong and that I improved from the last Triathlon. It was fun to have Stephanie there competing with me and my family there cheering me on.
Stephanie has a little girl that is only 4 days older than Alivia, fun, huh!?!

Thanks to my family, Nick especially for being so supportive of my goals. I have great friends who have helped me out, and I am so thankful! What's next for my race agenda?? The Wonder Woman Ride in Payson in a few weeks. A 30 mile bike ride with the Masherz Ladiez Riding Group. Can't wait! :)

Family Time! Part 2

My sister Marisa and her family were on their way home from Disneyland Yesterday so they stopped by on their way and had dinner with us. My mom had also joined us after Church and planned to stay the night to come and watch my Triathlon on Monday. We grilled some pork chops and chicken, enjoyed salads, corn on the cob, and brownies for dessert. It was great to spend just a few hours with them before they headed home to Idaho.

Carson and Kaylee love the Pugmire cousins and they had a blast playing with them. It was also fun to have Alivia and Cooper together. They are a week apart and are at a very fun age. I think they were tired because we just couldn't get them both to smile at the same time, or at all for that matter!
It was a fun day, and we even got to see Grandma Karen again yesterday, when she took Aunt Tamra back to the airport. We always feel so lucky when we get to spend time with our family!

Family Time! Part 1

On Thursday, we were lucky enough to have some family come and visit. Aunt Tamra flew in from CA to attend a funeral in Holden. So Gma Karen came up to pick her up. We also had Uncle Larry come and stay for the night on his way home to Boise. Then Uncle Ryan also joined us for the fun after he got off of work. It was a fun surprise, since we really didn't plan on having a get together that night!

It was an enjoyable evening visiting with family and having dinner. Sunday we went to church and before we left a took a few pictures of our cute kids. It is almost impossible to get Livy to look at the camera, but we gave it a good try!
The handsome Bennett Boys.
And of course the Bennett Princesses.
It was a fun way to start a Sunday that ended up being a super fun day! (See Family Time! Part 2).