Spending time with the ladies in Utah

Another part of my job while I was in Utah was making sure my sister was ok.  She had been working on a new bedroom for Emma and Graham but hadn't had a chance to finish it.  So Cambrie, my mom and I got to work painting like crazy.  Cambrie touched up the mural, my mom painted all of the doors, and I worked on all of the shelves in the closets.  I received a little help from Audrey towards the end.  

One afternoon Emma set up a picnic lunch for all of the working ladies.  It was the perfect temperature for a picnic.  

We also went down to the Layton temple open house.  It's a good thing we weren't in a hurry because it was definitely a "stop and feel the spirit," kind of tour for us. 

The temple was beautiful, but I loved being back in Layton and reliving some memories of my kindergarten years.  We stopped by the old house and my school.  So many memories there, holy cow.  

I was also there over Mother's Day.  Basically my mom and I went on a nice walk around the neighborhood.  So while the reason I was visiting wasn't super great, it was still nice hanging out with the ladies of the fam. 

Bubble Party

Part of my job while in Utah was helping the Thurston kids process everything by letting them still have fun moments.  My mom's neighbor set up a huge bubble machine and invited all of us over to play too.  I have never seen bubbles like this before and it was so cool.  The kids would literally disappear in the mound of bubbles, and it was so funny watching for their little heads to occasionally pop up.  The wind would blow the bubbles away and the kids could carry chunks of them around.  I was hypnotized watching these bubbles grow, blow, and exist in a way I've never seen.  It was a perfect way to keep the kids entertained!

 

Baby Alex

Camille and Jake have just gone through something absolutely heartbreaking, they lost baby Alex.  Camille was full term with her pregnancy and was due on May 4.  On May 3 she knew that something was wrong when she hadn't felt Alex move that day.  After a trip to the doctor they learned that Alex's heart had stopped.  She went into labor to deliver her stillborn, perfect little baby boy.  Instead of planning a trip out to visit my newest nephew, I was instead planning a trip out for his funeral and to support my sister.  There was so much love surrounding this baby and I know that their family will be ok, but it was hard to watch them hurt like this.  The funeral was simple, small and beautiful, but it doesn't make it any easier to see pictures like this.

 

 

Dr. Rogers and Mr. Creator

The end of the school year means we have a lot of end of school year projects.  Second grade means second grade marketplace.  Daxton chose to make lava lamps.  They weren't technically difficult, but they took time.  And we are just really, really hoping that the tape and glue hold everything together!  The end result was so, so cool.  They really work like bubblers.  Unsurprisingly he sold out of all of his product very quickly.

Fourth grade has spent the last few months learning about the systems in the body.  At the end of the unit each kid became a specialist for their chosen system, and they hosted an open clinic to help any patients with their problems.  The kids sounded so knowledgeable and looked so professional up there in their lab coats.  Kelton's specialty was the circulatory system.  Daxton was selected as one of the patients and Kelton did a great job of treating him and referring him to other specialists.  

Dr. Rogers looks good doesn't he?!

 

Sheep heart

Chaperoning field trips is awesome because I get to see my kids in their world.  I was able to go with Kelton's class to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science where, in addition to seeing all of the exhibits, we were also able to bisect a sheep's heart!  The kids are wrapping up their health unit so this is a cool way to see their knowledge in action.  At first the kids were super squirmy about seeing the heart, but then were absolutely fascinated by it.  

After watching the demonstration they were able to cut open their own.  Who knew safety scissors were so effective at cutting through heart tissue?  The found the two chambers, the ventricles, and the heart strings.  My group's favorite thing was sticking their fingers through the valves and into the chambers.  It was awesome.

St. George 70.3

St George 70.3 has always been an interesting race for me, I never really know how it's going to go.  I've had good swims, bad swims, good bikes, painful bikes, but only ever awful runs.  This year I really wanted to put together a full day that I could be proud of.  Jeremy and I traveled down with Chuck and his friend, Josh.  I arrived late Thursday night which meant it was a busy Friday getting ready for the race.  To be honest, my brain was not in race mode even as I was going to be Friday night.  But then I reminded myself that I was there to win, and that was that.  

Last time I raced St. George was the World Championship and it was such a full race, it felt a lot less crowded this year which was kind of nice in some aspects.  Race morning was early, so early, as always.  I was so happy that Heather found me in transition!  She was doing the run as a relay with her dad and brother.  This was her first time being surrounded by the Ironman scene and she immediately could feel the energy in the air.  I hung out with Meghan and Kara at the race start, feeling no butterflies whatsoever.  The boys started farther back in the swim corrals and I was just wondering how long it would take Jeremy to catch me on the bike. 

 

The swim did not go well for me.  I panicked, I stopped, my goggles were knocked loose...  The worst part was I know exactly how to prevent what happened, I just didn't.  Out onto the bike I started moving.  I took the time to look up occasionally and simply appreciate the beauty that is southern Utah.  The longer I'm away from the red rocks the more I am impressed by them when I see them again. I felt pretty good on my bike, not crazy fast but nice and steady.  The climb up Snow Canyon was gorgeous as always and I was grateful that there was no wind on the screaming descent. Jeremy never caught me on the bike so I must have been doing pretty well.  

The run has always been my sticking point at this race, but they changed the course and I was really excited for the change.  My legs started spinning and I just let them go, trying hard not to think about how long they were going to have to put out speed like that.  For the first time in St. George history the weather was amazing.  It was warm, but I wasn't dying because of the heat.  Hilary was on course and gave me a position update as I cruised past her, comfortably second. I was pretty sure I was the first or second age group gal to cross the finish line, but that didn't mean the girls behind me didn't have a faster time.  I passed four pro women and was feeling pretty good about myself, my legs were holding it together.  I saw Jeremy on each lap and knew he was having a great day too.  I really wanted to beat him on this course, but he was so close behind me I didn't think it was going to happen.  I also saw all of my friends on the out and back sections; Meghan, Kara, Kirsten, Ashley, Heather, and Chuck.  It was a very social run!  Ultimately I ended up second place in my age group (missed her by 28 sec), fifth age group female, and 28th female including the pros.  Finally, a day I could feel proud of with a PR 70.3 run. 

 Jeremy took 15th in his age group which is one of his best placements ever.  He had a great day!

I waited for Jeremy at the finish line then we went to soak in the stream as we waited for the rest of our crew.  Wow, I've made a lot of friends at these races over the years.  I am so lucky.  

Unfortunately Josh did not make the bike cut off so he had to call his day early.  That was hard to witness, but he was remarkably cheerful about it all. At the awards ceremony Jeremy was able to visit with Sam Long which he thought was awesome. 

 I also got to stand up on that podium for the first time in St. George which felt so nice.  We finished off our night with Italian Ice and hamburgers and totally crashed in bed.

  

The next morning we stopped to visit with Pres. and Sis. Clifford, Jeremy's mission president.  They were at one of the bike aid stations, and when Jeremy approached them he just started calling out, "President Clifford!  President Clifford!"  He jumped off his bike, gave his mission president a hug before starting the climb up the canyon.  They moved to St. George a few years ago and help with the race every year, we didn't know until now, but will make it a point to say hi when we can in the future.  They shared stories and caught up on each other's lives before we had to hit the road.  

I love racing with this guy!

Annette: Swim 28:41, T1 3:12, Bike 2:46:30, T2 1:28, Run 1:35:37, Final 4:55:18

Jeremy: Swim 36:27, T1 3:24, Bike 2:29:29, T2 1:28, Run 1:40:10, Final 4:51:17

Young Mustang Voices and Meridian Beat

'Tis the end of the school year which means there are A LOT of end of year concerts.  This spring Kelton decided to join Meridian Beat, the percussion group at Meridian.  And Daxton signed up for Young Mustang Voices.  While they didn't rehears together, they did perform at the same concert which was a lot of fun.  Both boys have worked hard all semester, even rehearsing their songs at home.  It was so great seeing the whole production and seeing their smiles.