Big 5

The only picture from the whole weekend (at Cheesecake Factory).

Happy 5th Anniversary to us! We had such an amazing time celebrating last weekend. Grandma and Grandpa Bell were kind and generous enough to watch our kids ALL weekend long. After we dropped Oliver and Amelia off at their house, we went to dinner at my favorite restaurant, Cheesecake Factory in SLC. The next day, we spent the whole afternoon at Seven Peaks water park. I'm not a huge fan of amusement parks, but I'm a major sucker for water parks- I love 'em. That night, we drove up to the most beautiful little park I've ever been to. It's South Fork park, up the Provo Canyon and it is GORGEOUS. After my husband, Bear Grylls, I mean Christian, gathered a tree from the forest, chopped it up, and started a fire (with nothing but a lighter and some newspaper) we roasted hot dogs and s'mores and attempted to tell each other some ghost stories. I say attempted to tell ghost stories because I only got about one sentence out before Christian asked, "Is this the hook in the car story?" Yeah, well. Anyway, it was SUCH a fun weekend and it was so nice to be together- just us- for a couple days. I'm so grateful for Christian- for what a hard worker he is and for what a sensitive, interesting, sweet, thoughtful husband he is. Since it was also Father's Day this weekend, I'd just like to mention what an incredible father he is as well. Our kids really couldn't have a more dedicated, devoted, active, fun Dad. I am so grateful for for him.

Utah Valley Marathon 2010

It's over! I ran the Utah Valley Marathon this weekend! It was an absolutely gorgeous course, one that would be difficult to match in beauty. I had really been praying that I wouldn't have the anxiety that literally cripples me before races and, good news- I was hardly nervous at all once I got to the start line at 5:30 am (yes, you read that right). It started to rain just before the race began which made for kind of a cold, miserable first half, but there are advantages to the rain too (mostly a decreased chance of dehydration). Anyway, it stopped around mile 11 or so, so I was pretty much dry by the finish. So, the race started in Wallsburg, a quaint little town up the Provo Canyon. At about mile 4, I suddenly felt this intense pain on the outside of my left knee as I was running down a hill. I've never had knee pain before, so I chalked it up to the cold, steep hills, and the fact that I hadn't yet stretched. So, I took a moment to stretch out and then kept on going. Every time I reached a hill (which was 90% of the first 20 miles) the pain would just shoot through my kneecap and keep throbbing until I was on flat ground again. I plugged through, though, determined to keep the 3:40 pacer in sight (that was my goal time and Boston qualifying time). There were a few times that my knee would totally buckle and I would have to stop and stretch (and there might have been some- no, a LOT of crying). But, I would kick it back in to gear and catch up with the pacer again when I thought of all the training I had put in to this for the past year. I did this for the first 23 miles and was right on target to qualify when my knee just completely gave out. Every step I took my knee would buckle and pain would shoot through my leg. I was determined, though to finish this race and did finally cross that finish line at the end of 26.2 miles with a clock time of 3:46. Overall, I was pleased with that time considering the pain I had to push through and the race conditions. Most of all, it was a huge confidence boost for me because I KNOW that I could have finished in 3:40 if it weren't for my knee. So, St. George- here I come!

Trust me, you didn't want to see the frontal picture. It wasn't pretty.

Post-ice-bath and shower. I know this is a little posed, but you know how some people still look good after a work out? I'm not one of them. (For proof, see past blog posts... I'm not going to put the links up because I really don't want you to go see them again.)

Make a note of it

Before you read Reba's spectacular and new post below, I have some exciting news...

I have a new cell phone number. Rather than tracking down all your email addresses, I'll just post it here.

801-404-8994.

Has it only been 2 weeks?

I literally cannot believe what a whirlwind these past 2 weeks have been. Let me just give you a quick play-by-play to give you an idea of our first week or so here in Utah. We packed the moving van on Saturday (2 weeks ago) and waved goodbye to Albuquerque. We made it all the way to Helper, UT (about 2 hours from our final destination) before our moving van broke down on the side of the highway. We waited there for over 4 hours until Penske finally decided to buck up and just tow us out of there. We got to Christian's parents' house in Fruit Heights around 2am. It was quite the trip, to say the least.
Sunday- day of rest. Literally.
Monday- drove to Provo to find a place to live, signed a lease, and then back to Fruit Heights.
Tuesday- move-in day, drove to Provo, arranged for my family to meet us at our new place to help move us in. Went to a pre-wedding dinner with my brother, Beau's wife's family in Provo. Drove back to Fruit Heights.
Wednesday- Beau and Amy got married in the Salt Lake City temple. Reception at Soldier Hollow in Midway. Back to Fruit Heights.
Thursday- I drove to Provo to clean our house and unpack. Then, met up with my sister, Julie's husband's family in Midway for a pre-wedding BBQ. Back to Fruit Heights.
Friday- Julie and Seth got married in the Manti, UT temple (very long, beautiful drive). Drove back to Provo for their reception. Back to Fruit Heights.
Saturday- Drove to Provo to unpack the house. Spent the night at my parent's cabin in Sundance.
Sunday- Church. Back to Fruit Heights to spend the night.
Monday- Memorial Day with the Bells in Morgan, UT. Drove to Park city afterwards to get Christian some new work attire. Went and bought a car in Murray. Back to Provo to spend the first night in our new place!
Tuesday- Cleaned my parent's cabin in Sundance= nightmare because Amelia screamed the whole time (she's got ANOTHER cold). Jason and Claire (my sis) were our first guests that night in our new home.
Wednesday- drove Claire and Jason to the SLC airport.
Thursday- unpack, unpack, unpack.
Friday- the same.
Saturday- I think I've finally got my head above water. YEAH!

Whew! I know it sounds like a whirlwind, but it was totally worth all the stress and driving because we got to witness the coming together of two amazing, beautiful couples in the temple and also got to spend lots of time with family.

Pre-move: Amelia playing in the rapidly emptying cupboards.

Double Trouble

Amy and Beau after the sealing. Her dress was seriously one of the most stunning dresses I've ever seen. And, she practically made it. This girl is not only fun, sweet, and beautiful, but seriously talented.

It was a dream come true for all the little girls around.

I don't know what's up with the funny face Christian is making here. He might make me take this down once he sees it, so enjoy it while it lasts.:)

With the kiddos at Soldier Hollow Golf Course in Midway.

We tried our best, but conditions were a little windy.

Beau and Amy's reception at Soldier Hollow.

Amelia and Poppy. She was being pretty picky about who had the privilege of holding her but I guess Poppy made the cut.

Julie and Seth after their sealing at the Manti temple. Let me just tell you, it was the prettiest temple I have ever been in. I was seriously regretting not getting married there myself. G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S. Not to mention, their sealing was beautiful and so touching.

Julie looked amazing. Not too hard when you look like Julie, but still.

See what I mean about the Manti temple? It sits atop a little hill and is so picturesque.

The reception at a friend's house in Provo. The florist/decorator/planner was so talented- the reception was so beautiful. Note: this is before the table arrangements and hanging lanterns were in place.

Sisters- Jenn, Amanda, Julie, me, Emily, Jessica, and Rachel.

The spread- all very color-coordinated by the talented chef (Seth's cousin).

I would also like to give a little shout-out to all the wonderful people in our ward in ABQ that helped us with the move. The Young Women showed up and cleaned almost my entire house, so many of my friends watched my kids, and then the Elders Quorum moved us all out. Thank you, thank you, thank you. It truly was an act of charity. We miss you all and hope to see you soon- please call when you come to UT!