Ten Months

Ten months already!  Where has the time gone?  We've been in and out so much I feel like the last month has literally flown by.  Faye took her first steps a few weeks ago but still prefers crawling.  She successfully gives high-fives, blows kisses, waves, and blows raspberries.  So much fun!

I'm so proud of this picture!  That's my girl.

 

As we were taking pictures Faye found this stick and began wielding it like a sword. I have 20 great pictures of Faye playing with her stick, but this is my favorite:

 For Narnia!

Mission Conqured

Remember this post? After months of moderate exercising while I was pregnant, my soul desired the blood, sweat, and tears that come with a great work out. Well, what you may not know is I had to wait much longer than the few months I had anticipated before I could really exercise again.  I had a few complications after delivering Faye that caused me to be in intense, lasting pain if I participated in anything more than a mild walk.  This delayed my exercise plans an additional 7 months.  After several trips to the doctor I was able to run again!  I picked a Half Marathon to train for and was excited to have my Mom's support- she planned to run it with me even though the Ogden Marathon was only a week prior to this race.  

Training went well for a month or so before we hit another hurdle: Allergy Season.  For me that translates into regular asthma attacks, even during everyday life.  After more doctor visits I was able to get the medication I needed to get my breathing in control, but I still was using my rescue inhaler multiple times a day in addition to my preventive medication.  

Keeping all this in mind, Race day came whether I was ready for it or not.  The weather was beautiful, the company excellent, and the experience was great!  It was a hard race for me, especially since the course wound about several fields and along a river trail (AKA 80% of the plants I'm allergic to).  But Mom was there smiling the whole way.  We met some great people: a son running the race in honor of his mother who is fighting breast cancer, an expectant mother who is 3 months pregnant, and young couple who were racing with their kids in the jogging stroller. 

I'm focused on making it to the finish and mom is just enjoying her day. We came in at a lengthy 2:32, but I'm pleased with my time for now.

I was so happy to see our cheering squad at the finish line.  Alan walked with  me while I tried to get my breathing in control again.  I'll admit it, I was crying a bit-  I seem to do that when I can't breathe.

Five minutes and a glass of water later I was feeling much better!  

Faye was enjoying the watermelon pieces at the end of the race.  She would nearly dive off of Alan to continue sucking on the rinds. 

 

It feels good to be on this side of my first Half Marathon.  I plan to keep at this even though I'm not planning to win anything.  But hey, there are better things than winning, right? 

Fun at Grandma and Grandpa's House

After/during the solar eclipse we had fun introducing Faye to a slide that's her size.  She LOVED it.  

After every run down the slide she would try to climb back up.

Yay for slide static!

We had some music playing in the background that Faye would dance to between her climbs and slides.  She's becoming more versatile in her dancing abilities: bouncing, waving her arms, and now mimicking how others are dancing.  It's my favorite!

Solar Eclipse

Time to invade the fire nation!

We were so excited to get to experience this solar eclipse!  Luckily Sharon and Kelly had Solar Eclipse appropriate Glasses for us to use. 

 

The Seventeenth Marathon

Congrats to my mom who ran her 17th marathon today! Joined here with her friends Julie and Cheris after running the Ogden Marathon. Reed, Greg, Faye and I came to cheer Mom at the end. We had quite a good time cheering for strangers as we watched for Mom. Even Faye clapped and cheered.

Well done on another one, Mom! You continue to be my hero.

 

 

Faye was pretty worn out after all the festivities.  What better place to take a nap than in the backpack?

Fun with Greg

Greg has enrolled in the summer semester up here at USU.  His classes started on Monday May 7th but his apartment won't be ready for him to move in until May 14th.  So, the obvious solution is for him to stay with us for a week!  It's been so much fun to have Greg around.

 

 Faye has really grown attached to this uncle. She seems to light up whenever he walks in the room now.  Greg and I have been working on teaching Faye a few new tricks this week: walking, knuckle bumps, and blowing kisses.

 Faye's to the point where she can make a kiss on demand now, but we're still working on getting the hand motion in there, too.

 

And, of course, we've had fun playing with grown-up toys, too.  Between all the fun Greg has been going to class and studying hard. Props for starting off the semester right!

Another Shooting Tale

 Alan has been itching all week to take Greg shooting. Luckily things worked out so I could join this "Man Morning" with Kelly and the boys.  Alan and Greg pulled out a few of Kelly's rifles and hand guns to shoot today.

 

Greg's our little lefty shooter.

Thanks for sharing, Kelly!  We had a great time.

Southern Cooking

 

Do you recognize this scene?  One of our favorite shows as of late is Disney's "Princess and the Frog." It's a fun story with some excellent jazz music in it!  There's also a lot of talk of southern dishes, including these "Man-Catching Beignets" that always make us drool.  So, we made some!

We found a Paula Dean recipe that made us some delicious, old-fashioned beignets!

Everybody enjoyed these tasty treats, including Faye and the neighbors!  The recipe made a TON of these little beauties.

Here's Paula Dean's recipe should you care to indulge in some tasty goodness:

French Quarter Beignets

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 7 cups bread flour
• 1/4 cup shortening
• Nonstick spray
• Oil, for deep-frying
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions

Mix water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.

In another bowl, beat the eggs, salt and evaporated milk together. Mix egg mixture to the yeast mixture. In a separate bowl, measure out the bread flour. Add 3 cups of the flour to the yeast mixture and stir to combine. Add the shortening and continue to stir while adding the remaining flour. Remove dough from the bowl, place onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Spray a large bowl with nonstick spray. Put dough into the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a towel. Let rise in a warm place for at least 2 hours.
Preheat oil in a deep-fryer to 350 degrees F.
Add the confectioners' sugar to a paper or plastic bag and set aside.
Roll the dough out to about 1/4-inch thickness and cut into 1-inch squares. Deep-fry, flipping constantly, until they become a golden color. After beignets are fried, drain them for a few seconds on paper towels, and then toss them into the bag of confectioners' sugar. Hold bag closed and shake to coat evenly.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/french-quarter-beignets-recipe/index.html

Lawn Maintenance

So the past three summers we've lived in our apartment the land lords have neglected any and all yard work.  Out of desperation one night I took some pictures of Faye in the foot long grass to send as proof of their neglect:

 

Imagine my surprise when we came home the next day and the lawn was cut!  Such a nice change. 

 

Now, 2 weeks later, the grass is again 6  inches long again.  Keep your fingers crossed that they'll be able to cut the lawn regularly this year.

Graduation, Take 2

Heidi is one of the most brilliant people alive.  She graduated this Saturday from USU with a degree in Horticulture, her second Bachelors Degree.  She is the only person I know who has earned two bachelors degrees by the age of 25, one of which is a chemistry degree.  We had a fun filled day at the commencement ceremonies on campus:

 

Mom picked out this cute graduate bear for Heidi.

 

Alan brought Greg, Reed, and Faye to the Agricultural College's commencement.  This was when each graduate was handed their "diploma."  Faye surprised me by thoroughly enjoying the occasion!  She clapped and cheered (actual cheers, mind you) for each graduate until she was worn out (sometime after the first 150 graduates).

 Congrats, Heidi!  We're so proud of you.