Who's been watching too much SpongeBob?

So Dani and her friend, Bryn, were laughing hysterically about something downstairs. Bryn finally gasps, "I can't stop laughing!" Dani replies in a slightly more serious tone: "You should stop laughing or your laugh-box will break and then you won't be able to laugh anymore."

How many of you have seen that episode of SpongeBob?

Ya gotta love the way kids think!

So haven't had a chance to post much lately, but these little gems got quite a few giggles when I sent them to the fam as quick texts. Emma's 2010 Christmas letter to Santa: Just read Emma's letter to Santa. At the end of her extensive and expensive list, she graciously included what the rest of us wanted in her letter... "Dani wants a webkins jr and a pair of sneakers. Natalie wants less homework. Mom wants peace on earth. Dad wants a gun." ROF LOL! Have a cheerful day! The Race (1/2/11): So the girls decided to race to see who could get ready for bed the fastest. Dani decided she couldn't win on speed so she comes running back into my bedroom with the toothpaste. Her rationale being her sisters can't win if they can't brush their teeth! Pretty good strategy for a 5 year old! Well it kinda backfired when her sisters found other toothpaste and finished before she started. She called them cheaters and about blew a gasket when we told her she was the cheater. She then tried to barricade Emma in the bedroom. That just got her a spanking. I believe her last words were "this is the worst day of my whole life!" ahh, the bedtime drama!

Princesses, Pumpkins and the Flintstones? Oh My!

So here's the rundown on the memorable Halloween costumes of 2010:

Emma = Black cat. She picked out/made her own costume. Mom just sewed the tail and drew on whiskers!

Natalie = Pumpkin. Once again, another made-her-own costume. Pretty good pumpkin paint job!

Dani = Princess Leia. So her's was easy enough too, since it was a recycled costume of Natalie's from a few years back. I just had to do a little (ok maybe a lot) of hemming. But what a cutie! Her hair was plenty long enough for the classic cinnamon roll hair buns. She did insist upon spraying her hair black - have to be authentic here!

Jeremy = Well who else do you know would make the best Fred Flintstone?! Of all the costumes his (and Kellie's) were probably the hardest to make. BTW Jer won the best male costume contest at our friends' Halloween party Saturday night!

Kellie = So if Jeremy is Fred, obviously Wilma isn't far behind! Had a fun time fixing my hair into the Wilma-do and spraying it very orange. No, the picture doesn't do it justice!

The weekend was busy with the ward truck-or-treat on Friday night, the grown-ups' Halloween party at the Nallira's on Saturday nigh,t and the neighborhood block party Halloween night. We all have a decent haul of candy and are trying to motivate ourselves to take down the decorations and throw away the molding pumpkins before Thanksgiving. Aghhh! Thanksgiving!? Already????!

(Check out the cute slideshow pics from the weekend's festivities.)

Halloween Fun

Last Monday the girls had the day off school, so we made the drive again to Marble Falls to Sweet Berry Farms for some Fall Fun. We went with Christy and Abby VanDerwerken and spent the afternoon on a hayride, running through the Texas-shaped cornfield maze, and finally posing with the pumpkins before picking a couple of perfect ones for our porch! See the picture slideshow on the right.
We finished the afternoon as only you can in a small, Texas town - stopping for dipped cones at Dairy Queen. It was a fun, weather perfect was to get excited for Halloween. Do you have your costumes ready?

Oh yeah, School's back in session!!

So one last quick post to end the catch-up... On August 23rd Natalie and Emma started school again. Natalie is now in 7th grade at Henry Middle School. She has some pretty intense math and language arts classes. And to just round out her busy life, she's practicing and fundraising like crazy for her band trip to Chicago in December. It sounds like it's gonna be a really fun trip! Performing pieces for the composers, seeing Wicked and Blue Man Group and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra are just some of the highlights.

Emma is now a 3rd grader - I can't believe it!! She's actually the only one I managed to take an official "first day of school" pic.

She loves her teacher, Mrs. Meeks and has started in the advanced math curriculum at Reagan Elementary. She's getting used to riding her bike to school and back again, but she can't wait for it to cool off soon. The ride home up the hill in 100 degree heat is a killer.

Here's to back-to-school and football and cooler weather! We Love the Fall!!!

This Summer's pictures are finally posted!

Okay, so I've failed miserably to keep up on the blog this summer, but I've finally got the picture slideshows loaded. So I'm hoping that if a picture is worth a thousand words, I'm almost caught up now!!
But just in case you need a little clarification on some of our fun:
One boring day in July we found out about Chick-Fil-A's Dress Like a Cow Day. If we dressed like a cow, and went to CFA we each got a free meal. We talked LaDonna and the girls into joining us. Keely did a great job on Maggie's cow makeup and my girls got creative with their cow spots!
On Aug 3 we took the whole family to San Antonio for an overnight trip that included a fun day at Six Flags Fiesta Texas. We had fun despite the ridiculous August heat and stayed cool in the afternoon at their waterpark. At the end of the day we stayed overnight in a hotel and dinnered at our favorite pizza spot - Costco food court! The next day, Jeremy and I spent some time at the S.A. Temple while the girls watched the big screen and lounged around in the hotel room. Definitely a fun overnighter!
Finally, I mentioned in my last post that I was training for a sprint distance triathlon. Well the training paid off when I finished in about two hours with my training partners, Madi and Christy, on Labor Day morning. Christy and I decided to skip the big crowds and fees of the downtown Austin Tri and do our own. When the word got out we ended up having about 10 friends from our church (youth and adults) join us. Jeremy and the girls were awesome to take pictures and track our times. The weather was perfect with a wonderfully refreshing downpour during the run. (Little did we realize that was the beginning storm of T.S. Hermine which did some serious flooding to our local creeks and rivers two days later.) We had such a fun tri that we're all agreed that more homemade tri's are on the way! Come join us for the next one!

Summertime and the blogging is overwhelming!

Yep, I did it again - or maybe a better way to phrase it is that I DIDN'T do it... again! I have totally slacked off keeping up on the happenings of our fam. So here's my effort to catch up on the highlights of the last couple months.



Tri and Tri again?

As my last post stated, I was gearing up - and wiping out - for my first triathalon. I did complete the Capitol of Texas Triathalon on May 31st in downtown Austin, TX. I loved the race! I enjoyed it so much I knew even as I was crossing the finish line, that it wouldn't be my last race. I competed in the smallest distance the CapTexTri offered. It was a 400 meter swim, a 10k bike and a 5k run. I finished in 1:30:38. The event time break-down went like this: 14:43 swim; 27:19 bike; and 38:52 run. I was pleased with my results and especially happy that despite my sore leg and the 100+ heat running in downtown that I RAN (all be it very slowly) the entire 5k.

My mom came especially for my first race and took lots of pictures. I've posted most of them on Facebook, but I'll eventually get some posted on the blog too.

As I said earlier, this tri will not be my last. In fact, I've already committed to a sprint distance tri with my friend Christy on Labor Day. This tri will be a little more low-key, and a lot less expensive! Christy and I have mapped out our own routes and just she and I will be enjoying the swimming and scenery in Avery Ranch - Christy's neighborhood just south of my house. We're hoping for cooler weather and a few family supporters to provide "more cowbell" along the routes. We aren't exclusive though - if you're feeling the urge to join us, just show up!



Ahh, the Chime of Wedding Bells...

So just five short days after the triathalon (and finishing the school year), the girls and I hopped a plane for San Diego to join in the wedding festivities of my little bro Rob. He married an awesome chick with an awesome name: Kelley! She now is the 3rd "Kelly, -ie, -ey" in the Harmon family! Yes, family reunions are getting a little trickier!

We came about a week before the wedding so we had time to play in the fun and sun of San Diego. (Okay so the sun stayed hidden in the June gloom, but the temps were heavenly compared to the Texas summer scorchers!) Between all the wedding travel back and forth from San Diego, Thousand Oaks and Santa Barbara (where Kelley is from), we were also able to sneak in some beach time, Grandma Joyce time, a trip to the San Diego Zoo, the Mormon Battalion Museum and the San Diego Temple. Natalie was able to do her first temple baptisms/confirmations with her dad and Uncle Rob performing the ordinances - way cool! We were so happy when Jeremy flew out for a couple of days before the wedding. Besides the temple, he came with us to the zoo, and, of course the wedding.

The wedding and reception were beautiful. They were married in the Los Angeles Temple on Friday, June 11th and we had a luncheon at a nearby Mexican restaurant. The next day they had a reception in Santa Barbara. It was an outdoor reception at one of the local LDS church buildings. This church house was old school, so it had a beautiful, grassy parklike area perfect for an outdoor reception. The decorations were simple and stunning: yellow lemons and navy accented tables and receiving area. Kelley and Rob kept it classy and informal with croquet and bocci ball, as well as a wedding cake shaped pinata for the nieces and nephews. The buffet dinner was delicious too. My Grandma Joyce and I collaberated on our first chocolate fondant covered wedding cake. We learned a lot in the process (Grandma definately isn't fond of chocolate fondant), but in the end, Kelley and Rob said it was just the kind of cake they wanted. Hmm, guess I'll have to post a picture of the cake too.

Oh, and of course pictures from the whole vacation will make it up on the blog too.


Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's off to Girls Camp We Go...

So after 10 fun-filled days of vacation, we rushed home to quickly unpack and then repack for my 3rd year as a church girls' camp leader. But the most exciting thing about this year was that Natalie got to come with me for her 1st year of camp!

We spent five days at a Scout camp located an hour northeast of Houston called Camp Bovay. As far as camping goes, this is a pretty nice place with lots of fun activities like archery, canoeing, a traverse wall, swimming pool with water slides and - of most importance - a large dining/activity hall with air conditioning! Texas summers are brutally hot and the girls did actually spend their days and nights at campgrounds in canvas tents. So coming inside the hall for meals, crafts, dancing, skits, etc. was heavenly. As a leader in charge of the media and technology (yes, camp does now include such craziness) I could stake a claim in one of the air conditioned cabins - well how else was I going to protect the expensive laptop and projector I was responsible for? ;-)

Natalie had a great time hanging out with her friends and trying all the activities. We did spend some time together, but we were usually heading in different directions during the days. I was glad for the time we spent getting our feet massaged together while sharing chocolate raisins and girl talk. We both agree that camp has some trying moments, but feeling the Spirit every day from study, service, testimonies and well, fun, far surpassed the unbearable heat and challenges of camping with a bunch of girls.

Well folks... that pretty much sums up our June. I think I'll stop here for now and catch up on July next week. My goal is to get the blog caught up before the kids go back to school on August 23rd. Wish me luck - I just got called to be the Stake YW secretary so I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with my new responsibilities and the realization of all the meetings I'm going to be in now. BLECK!!! Although, I keep telling Jeremy, I have to do this - we need the blessings!!!

What Not to do 4 days before your race...

So I was out for one last bike training session yesterday morning and, umm, it didn't go so well.
I thought I was being safer sticking to the sidewalks since I was riding during high traffic school drop-off time. While this theory DID help me to avoid all the cars, I wasn't so lucky avoiding the school kids! I was cycling passed a couple of boys who had started to move over for me. Unfortunately, I didn't slow down enough and the gap wasn't wide enough, sooo, my bike took a little detour onto the grassy edge of the sidewalk and then when I tried to correct myself and get back on the sidewalk, my tire got caught in the gap between the grass and the edge of the sidewalk. I had enough momentum going to jump the gap, but the control was gone and I took a beautiful spill on the sidewalk in front of the two boys. I completely landed on my right side. My leg took most of it, but I've got a nice raspberry on my shoulder too. I'm so glad I had on my bike gloves and my helmet because my hands would have been hamburger and my head would have had a bump to match the one on my knee. I was able to ride the couple miles back home, all while watching my knee swell up to make the biggest goose egg I've ever seen! Jeremy hadn't left for work yet when I got home and he helped clean me up. I am so glad he was there, because he did a much better job than I ever could have - still, that alcohol cleanse just about did me in!
Luckily, the bike took the crash much better than I did - no dents or major broken parts - just a few cosmetic scratches and bumps. Unfortunately, it's not my bike, ughh.
Twenty-two hours later I'm still hurtin' (well duh!) enough that I've given up trying to sleep any longer. You can only lay on one side for so long, and the Advil PM has totally worn off. So I thought I'd come sit mindlessly in front of my computer until it's time for the troops to get up for school.
My big concern right now is how do I race in my triathalon with a banged up leg? The wetsuit is gonna be a killer to get on and wear, but I'm not swimming in Town Lake without it! I think I'll have to slather on the vaseline for the bike and run to keep the scab from crusting over, but I'm taking suggestions on how to protect it overall.
Sue from our office saw me yesterday and has been following my training and preparation for this race over these past monthes. She's watched me suffer from spring allergies, sprang my toe, mess up my back and now cycle myself into the sidewalk - literally! She asked me yesterday if I ever considered that maybe someone or something was trying to tell me not to do this race. I considered it for 1/2 a second and said no. I set this goal for myself months ago and put in a lot of work training, learning to really swim and borrowing lots of gear to give this a go. I'm too close to let a scratched and bruised leg stop me now! Maybe it's determination, maybe it's insanity, but it's gonna get me to that finish line!!! Wish me luck... and pray hard!

Bryson Bluebonnets 2010

This year had the best crop of Bluebonnets I have ever seen. We couldn't pass up the chance to take some photos of the family. Enjoy the beauty of Spring in Texas! (Special thanks to Natalie and Noel for taking and editing the pictures.)

My Race Stats from Zooma

So I just got this email link that gave my race results and finish line pics. I clipped it out and pasted it here:

The clipping is kinda fuzzy, hopefully you can still read it!

Easter 2010

So another Easter has come and gone. That happens so fast!!! Ours was a pleasant one beginning with the FHE we had the Monday before. We watched the DVD "Finding Faith in Christ" with the girls and discussed the true meaning of Easter.
(Sidenote: Emma and Dani had been making lists of things they wanted from the Easter Bunny for about two months. I was just a little worried that the Easter Bunny was becoming a second Santa Claus to them and that they didn't even know why we actually celebrate Easter.)
The movie and discussion really helped the girls to better understand Easter. I didn't realize how much so until a few days later when Dani and I had a very grown-up discussion about Jesus being resurrected and what that meant. She soaks everything up like a sponge! And she can now explain what resurrected means! That's so cool!
Also, to add to our "true meaning of Easter" Easter week, we took the girls to see the "Reflections of Christ" traveling photography exhibit that was at our stake center. I love these pictures and the stories behind their creation. If you ever get a chance to see this exhibit, don't pass it up!
I was personally excited for Easter this year, because we were able to stay home and enjoy General Conference with our extended family. The talks were great, the company was great and the food, well, food is always great!!!
As for the visit from the Easter Bunny... he made his annual deposit of "bunny poop" from the girls' bedrooms to their Easter baskets downstairs in the kitchen. Dani was so excited to scoop up the poop (not to worry, it's just Whoppers candies) as she was following it down to the baskets. They all got more candy than is good for them (okay, so mom's eaten more than is good for her!) and hunted up more candy in the plastic eggs that the Easter Bunny left all around the living room. Dani and Emma both got kites and Natalie got a boomerang frisbee, which they immediately assembled and tried out after the candy feeding frenzy had subsided. Unfortunately, Dani's kite flying ended abruptly when her little tummy which has been hurting for a week decided it was time to puke in the street out in front of the house. She recovered quickly though and felt okay for the rest of the day.
After conference ended and family went home, we spent the evening video chatting with my parents in San Diego and my brother Rob and his fiancee', Kelley, in Hawaii. Isn't technology AWESOME!!!
It was a great weekend for my family. I'm so happy that I get to be a mother and to share my testimony of Christ with my children.
And on a completely non-spiritual note, I'll end with the Dani"ism" of Easter 2010: "Remember my first Easter when we put a Peep in the microwave and it got bigger. And then it got run over by the Peep bus!?"

Adventure Is Out There...! Part 3: Kellie Ran 13.1 miles?!

Okay, so I finally have the pics and the time to write up the final installment of my adventure weekend! It's true folks, I ran a half marathon last Saturday, March 27. It was the Zooma Women's Half Marathon at Lost Pines Resort in Bastrop, TX. (That's just south of Austin a few miles.)

Anyway, on Friday night after leaving the tennis ranch in New Braunfels, I drove to the hotel that my friends and I booked to be closer to the race since it started at 7:30am the next day! My lovely running mates were Christy VanDerwerken, Leilani Rogers, Esther Perrill and Tannie Smith. We got a deluxe sized room near the airport where we had to park the next morning to be shuttled in to the resort. (Lost Pines didn't have enough parking to accomodate all the runners.) I arrive at the hotel first and got a quick shower and rest (kinda tired from a day in the sun, swinging 50 feet in the air!) The rest of the crew arrived later bringing dinner from Tannie's bro-in-law's italian restaurant. MMMM, pizza, pasta and salad - and so the carbo-loading feast began.

After feasting and getting our gear ready for a 6am departure, we sat around snapping silly pics and laughing. We did get to be before midnight and for the most part we slept pretty soundly. But that 5am alarm still came early. We were ready though. The anticipation was high and we dressed and ate quickly. We all had matching tie-dyed purple t-shirts. We got quite a few compliments during the run about our purple shirts - yeah, we're cool!

Once we had parked in the airport shuttle parking we boarded school buses for the 1/2 hour drive to Lost Pines. It wasn't a very interesting ride, but we were pumped and took some more silly pics.

At the resort we began our pre-race preparations: bathroom break, check-in bags, more pictures, bathroom break, stretching, oh yeah, and one more bathroom break. (Hate to have to stop to pee during the race!)

The race began right on time. There were lots and lots and lots of racers! We positioned ourselves towards the back of the pack, with the theory that it would be better pyschologically to run so we were passing other racers most of the race, rather than being passed. We also committed to staying together for most of the race. Both ideas worked out well. We were able to help pace and encourage each other through the tough hills while we consistently passed other racers.

The weather was perfect! It was overcast for the entire race, but the temperature wasn't bad. In the 50's and 60's with little wind. Perfect for staying cool.

The first half of the race was pretty hilly, but I was glad for the hill training I had done, because the hills didn't make me as nervous as I expected. I ran up most of them and if I stopped to walk, it was only to catch my breath and then I was off again! That felt so good - to know I had trained enough to tackle the course and enjoy it at the same time!

We all kept chatting with one another to make the time pass - we came up with our group name: The PurPeeps (purple shirts, hanging with our peeps). There were plenty of water stations and we passed the half-way mark moving strong. Plus, the hills were pretty much over - yeah!

About mile nine, Leilani was accosted by a bad calf cramp. I ran and walked with her for a while, but unfortunately, the cramp stayed until the end of the race and Leilani fell behind the rest of us trying to walk it out. The last few miles of the race were on the Lost Pines golf course cart trail. We zig-zagged back and forth along the course and were able to keep an eye on each other as we began to space out depending on how much juice we had to make it to the finish line. Tannie and Christy both pulled ahead and made a FAST sprint to the finish line. I came in about a minute after them and then Esther and Leilani. We all received star shaped necklaces instead of finisher medals as we crossed the finish line. My official time was 2:29:34. How awesome is that for my first 1/2 marathon!?

After some time cooling down, we wandered through the sponsors area and grabbed our lunches. We picnicked on a hillside and listened to a live band. Of course there were more silly pictures. After lunch we realized how stiff we were getting (tired muscles and sweaty, salt-crusted bodies). So after one last picture in front of the awesome spring bluebonnets, we boarded the bus back to our car and then onto the hotel room for a quick clean-up.

We checked out and headed home that afternoon. When I got home I realized how stiff and swollen my knees were feeling. Jeremy suggested we grab a spicy bite to eat (apparently the spice helps decrease swelling) and then we returned home and I went straight to bed. It was only 4pm, but I think I deserved to turn in early - don't you?

I'm very happy and impressed with myself to have done this race. Six months ago, I would have said - Never, Never, Never could I do that! Just goes to prove, Never tell yourself Never!

Adventure Is Out There...! Part 2: Our Adventures A-Top the "High Ropes"

On March 25 Natalie and I left for an overnight school field trip to the Newcombe Ranch in New Braunfels, TX. The ranch is a resort mainly for tennis players (Google John Newcombe for background) but they also have programs for teambuilding training, which is why Natalie and her Quest classmates came. I came as a chaperone.

We arrived Thursday night, had dinner and then they divided everyone into several groups for a nighttime compass orienteering activity in the nearby forest. While Thursday had been a bright, sunny and warm day, the night before reminded us that it was springtime in Texas - major gullywasher thunderstorm. So our escapades in the forest were rather dark, wet and muddy. There was a beautiful moon out though, and it had the most amazing ring around it! So after about an hour figuring out how to read a compass and follow its bearings with flashlights, our group made it to the campfire to meet the other groups for s'mores. Then a muddy walk/ride back to our "summer camp" -like dorms for a quiet, cozy night's sleep with 50 chatty and hyper 12-year-old girls! Thank you to Apple for the creation of the iPod!! It kept me quite calm in the midst of the chaos until lights out at midnight.

The next morning after breakfast the kids were divided into groups again and tried their hands at several teambuilding exercises. Here are a few pics:

The challenges were trickier than they appeared and as an on-looker for most of the time, it was hard for me not to jump in and tell them the easiest way to finish the tasks. Guess that's just another lesson in patience for me!

After lunch came the fun - most anticipated - part of the trip. The high-ropes courses.

I'm sure the pictures do a better job than I can explain it, but basically it's climbing up 30-50 foot towers to either jump, swing, zip-line or tight-rope walk between towers. It's all "relatively" safe. We were harnessed in and hooked up to ropes to prevent us from falling if we slipped. Still, no matter how many times I told myself "I won't fall, the ropes will hold me" my hands shook and my knees knocked at the top of the towers. I climbed the 36 foot tower to stand on the top of the 12 inch diameter, swaying "telephone pole" and then jump off it while grabbing a brass ring suspended about six feet away. It was a serious adrenaline rush, that is after I was down on the ground! While I was up there I was just concentrating on what I needed to do to get down. I knew if I thought about it for too long, I'd FREAK OUT!!

Natalie was awesome too. She climbed up all the different towers with confidence and a healthy amount of fear. (My level-headed daughter!) She jumped for the brass ring, walked across the 50 foot high tight-rope to zip-line down and also team-tight-rope-walked with her friend Hannah (and me another time) across diverging wires to ring a bell at the other end. I also did the tight-rope and zip line. I love the zip line - brought back memories of the Costa Rican rainforest!

After we finished up on the ropes course, it was time for me to head back towards Austin, while Natalie had some free time and dinner while they waited for the buses to take them home. I however wasn't going home. I was off for the next part of my Adventure Weekend - the Zooma Women's Half Marathon in Bastrop, TX! Stay tuned for tomorrow's final installment of Adventure Is Out There...! Part 3: Kellie ran 13.1 miles?!

Adventure is out there...! Part One: The Phantom

So the past couple of weeks have been filled with new adventures for Natalie and me.
On March 18, Natalie and I went to a matinee showing of Phantom of the Opera. It was wonderful. I had already seen the musical about 15 years ago, but this time was so cool mainly because I got to bring along one of my favorite "besties" (Miss Nat) and because we had third row center seats!!!!! Talk about being "in" the action! No kidding, in the beginning, when the monterous chandelier explosively lights up and rises up and out into the audience, we were straight in its horizontal pathway! Then it stopped right above us about 15 feet up and rose to the top of the theater DIRECTLY ABOVE US!! Now if any of you have seen Phantom, you know what this means... what goes up, will come crashing down at the end of Act One! I kind of whispered to Natalie what was going to happen, but she still jumped out of her seat when she looked up and saw the chandelier free falling down on top of us. It did make an abrupt slide to the stage before it actually crashed, but it took some of the intermission for our hearts to stop beating in our throats. (Okay, that was probably a little overly-dramatic, but I am talking about Phantom here!)
The entire performance was awesome! To be so close to the stage to actually see the faces and expressions of the actors was way cool. And the costumes and special effects (besides the chandelier) were really spectacular! There was one point when flashes of fire explode from the stage and we felt the heat almost before we saw the flashes.
We went with several of my friends and their husbands and were able to snap a few pics after the show in the theater before the ushers reprimanded for taking pictures. Even with the curtains closed, we still weren't supposed to take pictures - huh? Like they're afraid we're going to recreate a red-velvet curtain? Anyway, when I get the pics from Christy, I'll post them.
Part Two (coming after I download the pictures): Our Adventures A-Top the "High Ropes"...

IT'S SNOWING IN CEDAR PARK!!! So here's what it looked like an hour ago...

Emma has already left for school (hopefully the teachers let them out on the playground for a quick romp in the, um,"powder"), but Natalie and Dani were totally excited about these HUGE flakes! These flakes definitely rivaled some of the best I've seen growing up in Utah!! But, to be fair I heard that this storm came from Utah - Greatest snow on earth!!!

It was fun to see the snow since it's so rare in these parts, but I still don't miss it. I guess 20 years in the stuff does that to you. But seeing the happy, red faces of the girls made me realize how different my childhood was from theirs. I grew up with snow every winter in a rural mountain valley, skiing every weekend. They're growing up in the typically warm Texas suburbs of Austin, where the A/C doesn't usually get turned off until Thanksgiving! And we can go camping in March without freezing!

It's all good!! Hope everyone is staying warm, though!!

Ironmaiden Jen

So on November 20, the girls, my mom and I pointed our car westward and headed to Tempe, AZ for my sister Jen's second Ironman triathalon. Fortunately, Jen's triathalon was scheduled during the week break the girls had off for Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, it was still a workweek for Jeremy, so he couldn't come with us. I'm so grateful, though, that my mom flew to San Antonio to meet up with us and be our second driver for the 2-day drive.

It was a very rainy start to our drive, but by the middle of the day, the clouds had cleared and so had most signs of life. There really isn't much between Austin and El Paso, just lots and lots of road! After driving all day and stopping only for gas and lunch we stopped for the night in Las Cruces, NM. For dinner we bought some yummy tamales from a family selling them at a rest stop.

After a good rest, we got breakfast and a chilly start (it was around freezing when we woke up) for the rest of the drive to Tempe/Phoenix. Keeping entertained during the drive, we listened to books on tape and watched DVDs. Still there was plenty of time for the girls to get bored and annoy each other. We were more than happy to get out of the car for lunch in Tucson at our favorite cheap lunch spot - Costco!!

We arrived at our hotel in Tempe mid-afternoon. We, of course, got turned around a bit, but after taking a driving tour of the Sky Harbor Airport, we somehow managed to pull up behind Jen's car on some random street and follow her to the hotel. We all laughed when we realized she was in front of us and gave her a surprise "look who's behind you" call. Jen had just picked up Rob from the airport.

After hugs and getting settled into our rooms. Jen surprised the girls with backpacks filled with fun stuff to keep them entertained and not hungry during the race the next day. It was super cute that Jen was so thoughtful of them while she was training so hard for her race. The kids even made posters with their new markers to cheer her on. So with all of us in our yellow "Ironmaiden Jen" t-shirts and our posters and cow bells we were hard to miss the next day!

Ryanne, Kristin (my cousin and Rye's right hand woman) and the boys arrived later that evening from St. George, UT, just shortly after my Dad drove in from San Diego. We all had pizza for dinner and just hung out at the hotel, letting the kids swim in the pool.

The next day was an early start for everyone, especially Jen! The 2.4 miles swim started at 7am, but Jen was there around 6am to get ready. Around 7:30 we got the kids out the door and up the block from our hotel to the bridge that the swimmers went under in Tempe Town Lake. The lake was crowded with black wetsuits and white swimcaps. It was impossible for us to find Jen in the "sea" of swimmers, but SHOCKER, Jen saw US on the bridge and stopped swimming long enough to shout out to us! It was awesome to be able to cheer her on her swim when we didn't think we'd even get a glimpse of her. She completed her swim in 1:25:33 (hh:mm:ss).

After we saw Jen swim by, the long day of waiting to see her pass by on her bike and run began. We found a good place to stake our claim while we waiting for Jen to pass by us a total of six times on her bike route of 112 miles. It was just on the other side of the bridge we'd been standing on to see her swim. The day was beautiful and a perfect temperature. Plus, this race course worked great for all of us to watch for her. And it was within 10 minutes walking distance of the hotel, so we could take the kids back for food, naps, pool etc. Jen biking was pretty uneventful - no bike or health problems. We were able to snap a few pics of her coming and going and she looked great! She completed her bike portion in 6:53:21.

Just as evening was coming on, Jen began the 26.2 mile run. To say she was spent from the swim and the run would be an understatement. The run course was 3 loops on a dirt run/walk path near Town Lake. Once again we could cheer Jen on multiple times as she passed us on both sides of the bridge. Unfortunately, the dust kicked up from the trail set off Jen's asthma. She had her inhaler, but combined with some pretty intense stomach problems, Jen was having a tough time walking let alone running. Her morale was pretty low on several of her earlier passes by us all. We all did our best to encourage her, but it still brought tears to my eyes to watch her struggle and know there wasn't much I could do to help. Jen's no quitter though, and with strong encouragement and a few friends and family taking time to walk/run with her, she finally managed to pull the last bit of strength she had from somewhere and run for the finish. Overall her run took her 6:20:07. It was pretty late when she was rounding the corner for the finish. I volunteered to stay at the hotel with the little ones who were sacked out. Everyone else, including Natalie, rushed to the finish from their watching spot to be there in time to see Jen cross the finish line. It was a close race to know who got there first - family or Jen, but Jen crossed the finish line and everyone was there to congratulate her. Her total time was 14:56:14 - about 9 minutes faster than her first Ironman finish!

Jen did spend some time at the medical tent, just making sure she was going to be okay after such a grueling day. She was exhausted and pretty sore the next day, but our Jen Jen's an Ironman - Maiden, two times around! We're so happy that she acheived such an incredible goal, not just once, but TWICE!!!

Tomorrow: the adventure continues as we head out for Thanksgiving in Cali!

Baptism, Birthdays and Christmas, Oh My!!!

...and Thanksgiving, and an Ironman, and an anniversary, and New Years. Well I think that's everything I'm supposed to blog about. Seems kinda daunting (no wonder I've been putting it off), so maybe I'll take it in chunks. An event a day until I'm caught up.

Let's start with Emma's Baptism:

Wow, that was over two months ago, already! She was baptized on November 7, 2009. She wore the same baptism dress that I made for Natalie. And her Nana Linda gave her a beautiful white dress to wear afterward. She was baptized and confirmed by her dad, Jeremy, at our Stake Center in Round Rock. There were quite a few baptisms that day, but part of what made it extra special was that she was baptized the same day as one of her best friends, Brayden Watson.

Other people who came for the baptism were: Natalie, Dani, Mom and Dad, Nana Linda, the Checketts, Paul and Elizabeth, Lane, LaDonna, and Maggie and Grandpa Doran and Grandma Susan. Two of Emma's Primary teachers, Sis. North and Sis. Weston also came.

President Oldroyd presided over the baptisms and encouraged all the kids to write down their feelings and memories of this day. Of course, Emma and I got so swept up in everything that we didn't write anything down until now. Here is what Emma remembers:

"The water was warm. I was a little nervous and when I got out it was freezing. I remember Sis. Weston and the Primary President and the Bishop were there."

Natalie played a Primary song (Popcorn Popping) on the piano while we were waiting to begin the confirmation. Nana Linda told Emma that she noticed when Emma came out of the water, that she squirted some water out of her mouth, just like a fishy. Nana thought it was cute, but I think Emma was a little embarassed.

After the baptism and confirmation, everyone came back to our house for lunch. We had Chinese Chicken Salad and rolls and cheesecake (Emma's pick - yummy!)

We're happy that Emma decided to be baptized. She looked so pretty in both of her white dresses. It makes me so happy to have children following in the footsteps of Christ. I am so grateful for my Savior. I know that He loves us so much and has blessed us beyond our understanding. I'm especially grateful for the family He's given me and I'm glad to know that we will be together forever.

Tomorrow: Ironmaiden Jen...

Time's a flyin'!!!!

So I just realized my last blog was the end of August, and considering we've had Emma's birthday and Halloween since then I am definitely behind!

So let's jump right in and see how much I can remember of the last couple months. Well first of all, Dani has still been entertaining us with her "isms"!
Luckily, Jeremy has been noting them down on his phone so we could remember! Here's what he had:
What's a motor mouth?
When I swallow food side to side it hurts my throat.
Baby-throw is my favorite game.
Your exercise ball smells like balls.
That noise scared me and made my mouth waddle like a penguin.
When you get a new shirt at the store that means you can't tuck it in.
Do I need to buy a Monster Energy drink?
I'm getting taller except for my pinky finger.
That shirt has skidmarks all over it.
I like Stu. That's a pretty name.
Let's play chewy cheese checkers.
I love getting pumpkins - my mom calls me a punk.
That noise is making me get blisters in my ears.
Dad you're not a person, you're a boy.
Let's play that board game where you hit really hard. You hold the board and I chop it. You can't use paper. That's not hard enough. I need a board.
Boys always have eyelashes to blink.
Don't flick water at my face. It frightens my eyes out.
A slice is when the golf ball curves right. It's like curry. That's not my favorite.

Okay... pause here for those of you that may be about to pee your pants because you were laughing so hard!

Now on to the Birthday! So Emma turned the BIG 8 on October 8th! We partied hard around these parts. For the day of her birthday, Jeremy spent the morning at her school as a WatchDog (Dads/Males who volunteer to spend some or all of the day at the school being an extra set of hands and eyes.) It's pretty fun for the kids' when their dads come and Jeremy loves all the attention the kids give him when he volunteers. Then after lunch I brought cupcakes to Emma's class to celebrate her birthday. THEN after school Emma got an extra surprise from Grandma Linda who had just flown in from San Diego. I picked her up at the airport and we hurried home to make it before school got out. Our timing ended up being perfect for us to pull up next to Emma as she was walking home and then Grandma jumped out of the car to give her a HUGE hug!! I took a "mental picture" (The Office, anyone...?) of that moment! Emma had been a little down before we pulled up, but after the shock and surprise of see Grandma jump from the car and tackle her, Emma had this look of pure joy!! Don't you love family who can do that!!!? Anyway, we had a great birthday afternoon and finished the evening off at our favorite barbeque joint, Rudy's! They have the best Texas barbeque hands down!!
The next day, Friday, Grandma and I spent the day preparing for Emma's SpongeBob birthday party on Saturday. We most of the day shopping, baking cookies and frosting the SpongeBob cake.
Saturday morning was a bit chilly and overcast, but we braved the weather for family pictures with our favorite photographer. Grandma got some great shots of us and the Checketts family. They're included in the slideshow on the right with the pics from the birthday and Halloween.
Then we hurried back to get ready for the party. Emma's friends: Braeden, Brooke, Berkeley, Lennon, Camilla, Julia and Bailey all came. We had fun doing Mr. Krabs' treasure hunt (put on by Natalie), decorating Patrick Star sugar cookies, Jellyfishing (a modified version of pin-the-tail) and a SpongeBob pinata. We all had Krabby Patties for dinner and of course SpongeBob cake for dessert. Emma's friends were very generous with their gifts. She got clothes, gift cards and craft kits. Her Grandma Susan also gave her a sterling silver charm bracelet which she'll get new charms for on her birthdays.
Sunday was birthday dinner at Grandma Susan's. Yummy stew, more cake and more gifts!! Grandma Linda was able to stay until Monday and we spent the day off of school spending Emma's gift cards at Target and Old Navy.
I'd say Emma knows how to party when it comes to birthdays! I hope this one lives long in her memory.

For Halloween Natalie suggested that we all go as M&M's. It turned out to be a great idea because it was easy, cheap and cute! We bought colored t-shirts at Hobby Lobby and then put big white M's on our chests made out of contact paper. Natalie was yellow, Emma blue, Dani purple, Jeremy red and me Green (yes, I do know what they say about the green ones!) The shirts worked awesome for the multiple parties and activities we had. Natalie and Emma wore theirs to Activity Days, two ward parties (yeah we crashed Walsh Ranch's), our block party and of course, trick-or-treating. Jer and I looked "cute" when we went to a couples Halloween party. And Dani, well we got her to wear her shirt to most of the activities, but she'd had enough of being the purple M&M by Halloween and at the last minute decide to go as a witch. She just dug the witch costume from the dress-ups and headed out to trick-or-treat. She's already informed that she'll be an M&M next year - sigh, whatever!

Hopefully, I'm pretty much caught up on the big events now. But more are a comin'! Emma's baptism is this Saturday and we're heading to Phoenix on the 20th to cheer Aunt Jen on in her 2nd Ironman race! Hopefully, I'll get those blogged before Christmas!!!

Brain Juice and Other Tidbits from the Brysons

Here are more "wacky-saurus" words from our favorite three-year-old comedian:
Jer's collection:
Mom is an adult. We don't talk about her age.
My brain doesn't want me to talk normal.
Pickles taste like fruit.
Do you know what color brain juice is?
How do you suck the juice out of a meatball?
When I was chomping my food I bit my tongue and it really really, really, really, hurt! - a little.
Dad your head is as big as the sky.

Kellie's collection:
As we are casually sitting around waiting for something, Dani conversationally turns to me and says: "I'm a little impressed that it's not true."
"What's not true?" I ask.
"Just everything."

Find these names in a baby name book...
One night Dani had her small stuffed bear collection out and was busy telling me and her sisters all about them.
"This one," she says pointing to one that looks like it's holding a piece of candy, "is named Afervent. And this one that is dressed for the beach is named Afergo Princess. The one in the pajamas is Afervoe Texas. The ballet girl is called Sparkle. And the one dressed like a rock star is called Rock Star, but he is not very good at teaching the children to sing!"

Last week we watched the second Harry Potter movie "The Chamber of Secrets." Dani wasn't scared at all of the big basilik and enjoyed telling Emma (who refuses to watch them because they are too scary for her) all about how the bird clawed out the snake's eyes. Anyway, after the movie ended, Dani turned to me and asked, "So what happens in Harry Potter 19?" Guess we have another Harry Potter fan at our house.

Family Happenings:
Natalie and Emma both started school this week. Emma is in second grade in her brand new elementary school a couple blocks away. She got a new bike as an early birthday present and has been riding to and from school with me (Kellie) every day. It's still 100 degrees every afternoon so even going a couple blocks on the bikes works up a sweat, but it's exciting to see her becoming a good bicyclist. She really likes her new teachers Mrs. Azios and Mrs. Thomason and is anxious to make some more friends since many of hers moved or stayed at the old elementary school.

Natalie is now in 6th grade at Henry Middle School. She has a full schedule with advanced language arts, advanced math, science, social studies, dance class and of course band. She got her French Horn a few days ago and has already been banished to her bedroom for practice time. Horns are very LOUD!! The case is big and bulky and she has banged up her ankles walking home with it. I just ordered her a luggage cart to transport it so hopefully that will help. She is very happy to have it to play, so we're happy too! Middle school seems to be suiting Natalie great. We just wonder how long it will be though until she has nightmares about not being able to remember her locker combination or find the right classroom - you had those too, huh?!

Dani, Kellie and Jeremy miss having the girls all home during the day and, of course, miss the sleeping in. But we're glad to be back into a routine and doing great!!

I kept notes this time!

So when Dani spurted out these few words of wisdoms I actually noted them down before I could forget the details... (or the whole conversation, which I realize happens most of the time.)

"Mom, I don't want to get a splinter. "
Since there are no splinter-causing items around, I ask confused: "How would you get a splinter?"
"I would fall down on a sword and land on the ground."

A few days ago, I enlisted Dani to carry a dirty container downstairs. She didn't want to do it, but knew that she didn't have much choice since Mom "enlisted" her.
So grudgingly she points out: "Mom, this smells bad."
I tritely answer: "Well, just don't smell it."
"I can't, my nose won't turn off."

Conversations in the car can be quite entertaining. So how would you answer this whopper: "Mom, How do you blow in Chinese?"

A few weeks ago, Dani got a tattoo sticker that applies with water. This happened a few days before Uncle Paul's and Aunt Elizabeth's wedding. When she immediately asked Jeremy to put it on, Jeremy said she had to wait until "Saturday" (basically after the wedding festivities and pictures) before we'd let her put it on. She eventually did get the tattoo applied and was quite happy with the "cheerful pirate" picture on her forearm.
I hadn't realized how much of an impact having to "wait until Saturday" to get her tattoo had made until she asked me today: "Mom, what day is it?" "Saturday," I tell her. To which she happily claims, "On Saturday, we can put on tattoos!"

P.S. I know that most of the posts lately have just been Dani-isms with very little updates on what our family is doing this summer. That's because we're in the doldrums of summer trying to stay cool in the 100+ heat and the Dani-isms are about the most entertaining part of our lives. But here's a quick rundown of the past few weeks:
Kellie has been helping Hilary pack up her house to put it on the market. (Boo hoo, they're really moving)!
Natalie has begun to count down the days until she officially starts middle school and gets her hands on her french horn for band. (It's 22 days as of this post. Guess she's not the only one counting.)
Emma had a meltdown last week because her new elementary school: Ronald Reagan Elementary chose as its mascot a Ray (as in stingray). Apparently, being a "Reagan Ray" is not what she voted for and it affected her quite strongly for an entire afternoon. The sobs could be heard all over the house. (Hope this isn't a sign of the teenage years to come.)
Dani is keeping us in stitches when she's not being a stubborn grouch - I blame her father's genes for that streak. We Harmon's are never stubborn or grouchy!
And speaking of her father, Jeremy is working hard at the practice and spending fun time at the new rec center with the girls. He likes having the girls out on summer break. I agree with him, summer is a lot nicer without the demands of school. That is until the girls mope around the house quoting the all-too-popular summer phrase: "I'm bored!!"
And I'll just finish this post up with one of my all-time-favorite "hot" summer phrases:
"If you haven't noticed, the white people are melting out here!!!" Ahh, Texas even the heat waves are BIG!