Earth Day Tulip Trip

Every year we go to Temple Square during Tulip season. We thought it fitting to go today on Earth Day.

Normally it is so cold we get our pictures and go. The weather this time however was so pleasant that we stayed a long time and lingered around.


We got some really cute pics of the girls and the family.

In times past, it was all we could do to keep Alyssa out of all the reflecting ponds and fountains. She never understood why we were always trying to cut into her fun and not let her go swimming. This year she out grew that desire, understanding the consequences a little more.


Her new passion is smelling and picking flowers. There is no signage saying “No Flower Picking” but I’m pretty sure it is understood that it’s not allowed. My darling Alyssa just couldn’t help it. She picked herself a full bouquet in the hour we were there, and she didn’t mind showing them to all the Temple Square workers we passed. Fortunately, they didn’t seem to mind. I think they really enjoyed seeing a little girl whose flower dreams were coming true.


Sunny also had a passion. It, however, was the same passion she has at home, eating stuff off the ground. We put her on the ground a few times to take some pretty pictures of her with the flowers. Immediately, she started puling the tops of the flowers and popping them in her mouth.


She also really enjoyed all the black potting soil around the flowers, and she got a mouthful of it while we were snapping pictures. I had to use a baby wipe to clean her mouth out when we were done with the pictures.



There are so many varieties and colors and smells, you’d never even know we were there because there are just so many flowers. We didn’t even make a dent with all the ones we destroyed.

So happy Earth Day, I hope it was as good for you as it was for us.


























Thanks for coming with us Bonnie. You took some great pictures!

Steve and Kristin do a Marathon

Last weekend Steve and I did the Salt Lake Marathon, but we did it on bikes because we’re not crazy. We want our knees to keep on functioning for a long-long time. We were participants in the 6am bike tour marathon.

We decided to do it months ago and did some heavy recruiting amongst friends and family. We ended up with a group consisting of Me, Steve, Missy, Randy, Ryan, Scott, Hayley, and Charlie.

Race day started out at 4am with showers and full hair and make-up. No reason not to be gorgeous. We got out the door at 4:45am. I felt surprisingly peppy. Normally I feel like throwing up when I have to get up so early.

After leaving the house, we met up with Missy and my bro’s and caravanned to the Start-line. Thanks to the miracle cell phones we found Randy and the Charlie and Hay once we got there.


We waited for just a few minutes at the start line. It was just enough time to find each other take a few pictures. If you don't take pictures, it's like it never happened.

Getting past the start line was a little nerve racking with 1500 bikers all tightly packed together beginning at the same time. There for a few minutes it seemed like major bike wreck was imminent. What we really wanted to avoid a massive 6 am amateur biker pile up. Amazingly after about ten minutes of breaking and swerving we all stayed up on two tires.

The only problem we had was Scott’s bike chain fell off first thing. Somehow he got out of the river of bikers, fixed his chain and caught up with us before any of us even knew he was having a problem. You go Scotty.

It was very dark at 6am when the race started. I had no idea it would be so dark still. I assumed the sun would at least be peering over the mountain tops, but no, it was dark like midnight, which made it even scarier as we made our way out of the pack.

I should mention that it was very very cold. I think they said it was like 38 when we started and 40 when we finished. But guess what….38 feels a lot colder when you are cruising on your bike.

I brought a hat to wear until the race started, but it was so cold I kept it on when it started and put my helmet over the top and just rode. I attempted to take it off once during the tour, but I quickly pulled over and put it back on. It never did get warm.

I was really glad that we decided the night before to take cold weather precautions. We bought me some Under Armor long pants and long sleeved shirt. Steve wore some thermals under his shorts. We weren’t going to do either of those things until just the night before. I am really glad we did because we would have been totally miserable otherwise.

The sun started to show after about twenty minutes and then it really started to get fun. We really made this event what it was intended to be, a bike tour. It was so cool to see all the detail normally missed when driving 50 miles an hour past all these places.

The detail was pretty spectacular. Blossoming trees, hidden driveways and the smell of growing trees and flowers were some of the highlights. Seriously we would ride under these blossoming trees and it smelled exactly like bubble gum. I don’t know what kind of trees they were, but I want some in my yard.

Our group quickly dissembled after the race started. It was very hard to keep a group that size with varying biking ability and equipment together. For the most part though Steve and I (surprising I know) and Missy all stuck together.

Our race bibs were 78 (me) and 79 Steve that’s how we referred to each other during the race.


Most of our group tried for their best times and finished way ahead of us. They waited for us at the finish line and we had a few photo ops.

All in all we had a great time. We thought for all the bad publicity the race organizers got in the few weeks before the race that there would be some visible problems, but other than the seriously ugly race shirts they gave us, it turned out to be pretty well organized after all.

We'll do it again next year for sure. In June we are planning to do 75 miles on the MS-150 benifiting Multiple Sclorosis research. 75 miles…YES we can! Who is with us??? If you won't ride....will you donate money so we can? Each rider has to raise like $200 bucks to participate.

Here we are with our bikes strapped to the back of the car after hauling our bikes back to the start line via the public transportation system. I've never felt so green.

Here are some other picture highlights:

Elevators

You don’t realize how much kids depend on listening skills to understand their world.

As parents I think we assume that our kids know exactly what is what. Until we have cute little moments where we actually find out what is going on in those sweet little brains.

We’ve allowed Alyssa to call Elevators “Up-and-Down’s” since she could talk. I guess I just figured that one day she’s learn that they were called elevators and then she would be “in the know”.

Well today while watching Curious George on PBS Kids, she learned the correct word for an “Up-and-Down.”

Here’s how the conversation went down.

Alyssa: Mommy, guess what an “Up-and-Down” is called…

Me: What??

Alyssa: An Alligator!

Me: Do you mean Elevator?

Alyssa: Nope. Alligator.

Me: Okay then.

Make an effort instead of an excuse

Do things that make you nervous.

It’s a lie that you can’t do it, or that you can’t do it right now. It’s a lie that later in a few hours, days, weeks, months it will be easier. NEWS FLASH---It will NEVER be any easier.

You are able-bodied, a lot of people are not. You are already a leg-up on a lot of people (no pun intended). They would trade you in a second.

You want something? Make it begin to happen now! There is always a way. Always you ask? Yes. Always.

In the olden days when people had a problem, they sat down and figured something out. They planned and attacked. They put into motion a new plan, a new strategy.

You CAN do it, and it IS worth the effort. You don’t have to wait for anything or anyone to make a move first. Just DO what you know you should do. Force yourself if you have to. Strike while the iron is hot.

Lives are meant to be enjoyed. If you are not enjoying your life…that’s a problem worth solving. You need to change the circumstances so that you CAN enjoy your life. That may mean total upheaval or a tiny change. If it means you’ll be satisfied with yourself when you’re done, do it. You have an obligation to be your BEST self for those who love and depend on you.

Let me tell you something I have learned from my personal experience. If you wait for every circumstance to be just right before you make your move, you won’t get to do much.

Behave in a positive constructive way despite how you feel. We can’t just let our feelings call the shots. Control yourself. So what if it’s hard. Turns out, doing hard things is not actually that hard. If you don’t believe me, just ask me.

There must be fifty ways to leave your old life. Just get a new plan Stan. Hop on a bus Gus. Drop of the key Lee and get yourself free. 

Show yourself that you are capable. Take a step into the darkness; someone will be there to turn on the light.

Here are my final parting words. Have a real good time with your husband all the time. Ride your bike farther than you think you can. Stay home with your kids or make peace that you are not. Get your paralegal. Get comfortable in your own skin--whatever that may mean to you. Get some professional help to get over it. Travel.

Make you proud of you, by doing.

When you take action, even if that doesn’t make everything right immediately, at least you know that today, you are doing all you can to change it for your future