It's a Wonderful Life

I loved running my first 10K with Laurel this morning. It was such a blast; I'm already revved up for another. To be honest, I was hesitant to even do it. Erik is gone until Friday, and I didn't want to get up before 5:00 am, wake the kids up, get the dog in the car, and everything packed up without his help. However as soon as I drove into the beautiful forest where it was held, with its cool, crisp, and clean air I was so glad I came. We met Laurel and my Dad there, and he took care of the boys/dog while we ran. He's such a good Grandpa, he even got Wyatt to take a nap! :) And I guess I should mention my birthday. It was kind of strange one. We had to scrap our plans for our date because Wyatt was sick. Erik was sweet and brought dinner home plus a cheesecake, however one of those things gave me some food poisoning . I really know how to celebrate, don't I? I do appreciate the calls/cards/birthday treats that were sent my way though. I'm a lucky gi...

Our county fair was this week, and it was so great. I don't think anything can compare with a fair for good ol ' trashy fun. On Wednesday we happened to be in Tulare (the town adjacent to us and the one that holds the county fair). Someone asked if we were going to the parade that kicked off the fair, so of course we had to go. I actually wasn't planning on going because taking two kids to a hot parade by myself wasn't my idea of a good time, but since Jackson heard all of this parade talk he was quite insistent! I'm actually really glad we went. Yes, it was hot. Yes, it was hard with Wyatt wanting to crawl on the yucky floor, but it was fun to see how much Jackson enjoyed it. It's amazing how many high schools there are in the area. It seems like there was an endless number of high school marching bands. Wyatt liked bopping his head to the beat. Such a sweetie Jackson posing with the cows at the fair last night. So ever since Jackson saw a picture in th...

This morning I woke up to *gasp* cool weather! Virtually every day we have been here, Visalia has been over 100 degrees. While that's nice if you're playing in the water, it is way too hot to just hang out outside. I was ecstatic to feel a cool breeze during our walk this morning, and it made me realize how my life revolves around the weather . Before I had kids, I didn't pay much attention to the weather reports, but now it is a religion for me. My mood naturally corresponds to the weather too. A nice beautiful day that doesn't require me to put layers and layers of clothing on the kids (Idaho winters) or set up a million different water activities (summers here) puts me in the most fantastic mood. I guess I could keep the boys inside all day, but I think that would drive me even more crazy! For now, I'll just have to enjoy this weather while it lasts, the forecaster just said it will be back in the triple digits by the weekend! :) Wyatt enjoying the sunshine and...

On Tuesday night, Molly and Nick and their cute kids came out for a visit. Nick's company is here in Visalia and often has to come here for work. Molly was so nice to bring everyone along for the ride so that we could see them! It was a lot of fun, as it always is with Molly! We went to the Children's Museum here in Visalia . I had never been before, and was pleasantly surprised . I'm sure we're going to be there often now! So, as soon as I got Wyatt out of the van, I saw Jackson milking the cow. This boy needs a farm :) I got such a kick out of seeing Max and Wyatt together. I think its so funny that Molly and I both had baby's around the same time (6 weeks apart), they both are boys, and they both have similar coloring. Max, as you can see is quite a bit bigger. Holding him was quite the workout compared to Wyatt :) Cute boys Jackson painting it up Such a good mother, reading to all of her little ones :) Jessica and Jackson playing "grocery store...

On Sunday after church, we drove to Livermore to spend the Labor Day holiday. It felt crazy to see both of our families (we stopped in Stockton for a quick hello on the way down) in such a "short" amount of time. Bailey's birthday was last weekend, so we were glad we got be there for her first birthday party :) The whole drive down, Jackson kept talking about the fun birthday party we were going to, and how excited he was to give her the present we picked out. Kelsey's cute and delicious cake! Don't worry Wyatt, it will be your turn soon. The kids loved "helping" Bailey open her presents This is pretty much my day. Put Wyatt down to get something done. Wyatt crawls over to me, climbs up, and pleads for me to pick him up. I do. Repeat. I thought it was so funny that Erik's elk was up at a sporting goods store in Livermore . We sure don't have a place to put "him" in this house, so its nice to know he's being taken care of :) On...

This morning I decided to do a little multitasking and I did my 5 mile run to the farmer's market and met Erik and the boys there. It was so much fun. I liked running toward a destination and not just a loop back to the house. I feel so lucky to be in the very valley that grows more produce than anywhere in the world! Erik thinks I'm a bit too excited about the whole thing, but I'm coming from Rexburg, where the farmer's market consisted of a little bit of produce and whole lot of crafts. Now I can't wait to bust out some good recipes to use with all of this yummy goodness. me looking like a sweaty mess and I don't even care :)

While Jackson was snapping away in the backseat (I promise I don't always let him use the camera!) he took this picture of himself: I really wish I knew what was going on behind this expression!!!