Bolder Boulder

On Memorial Day Clint ran his third Bolder Boulder. We left the house around 5:20 so we could make it to the drop off point before Clint's very early 7:04 start time. (There are so many people that run this race that they have many, many waves of runners.) Whoever ever thought that we would hit bumper to bumper traffic on a highway heading into Boulder at 6:20 in the morning? It was crazy! We were able to drop Clint off, find a place to park, dress the kids, and make it to the stadium about 20 minutes before Clint ran into the stadium completing his 6.2 miles. Regan kept watching the hundreds of runners and asking where daddy was and what was taking him so long? After eating her fill of orange rolls and hot chocolate she took over the camera and was perfectly content taking pictures. Haden just wanted to climb up and down the bleachers. Clint did very well, completing the race in 44:22 which, I think, is a personal record. After collecting the free chapsticks, army cups, a flag, and Breyer's strawberry bar we headed home to watch the Memorial Service at home and then everyone crashed for the rest of the day.

Maxwell Falls

Regan wanted to go for a hike today, so she and Clint packed the car so we could leave. We love exploring the mountains around Evergreen. Clint wanted to check out Maxwell Falls again-this time in the spring. A recent review online said that this was the time to go. We went late last summer and the falls were hardly impressive. The directions were not fabulous, and we made the same wrong turns we made last time. (Even though the directions say to stay on Shadow Mountain Rd, don't. Go straight even though Shadow Mountain Rd turns right and the correct road becomes Black Mountain Rd.) After Regan gave Clint a hard time about getting lost once again we found the trail head. It is about a half mile hike down to the falls-the perfect length for Regan and her attention span! The falls were about the same as they were last year. We had a picnic at the top and Clint and Regan played hide and seek. She packed the bags, thus the pink Sleeping Beauty umbrella and the teddy bear. Clint had a hard time finding her when it was her turn to hide! Hmmm, I wonder where Regan could be? Maybe hiding behind the rock? Haden also acquired more battle wounds. He tripped and fell leaving several long scratches across his poor face. Regan decided that she wanted to whack Savannah with a stick she found, but Savannah wouldn't cooperate. Rather than intervening I figured Savannah could take care of herself. Resorting to trickery, Regan yelled to Savannah, asking her if she wanted any candy. Clever thinking on her part-Savannah would want the candy and come close enough for Regan to whack her. Savannah didn't fall for it and Regan was left chasing her yelling, "Savannah, do you want the candy or not?!" All those war movies she watches with Clint are apparently rubbing off!

Firestation field trip

This week was Regan's final preschool field trip. We went to the firestation. I think this was actually my first trip to a firestation as well. (We never went on field trips in elementary school-I vaguely remember some of the firemen coming to our school, but we never went to the firestation.) Haden absolutely loved it; Regan would have been just as happy staying home and watching PBS. She wasn't impressed by the trucks, the firemen, or the search and rescue dog, but she did mention the fireman sliding down the pole several times later that afternoon. Haden loves dogs and had to be dragged away from "Tank." Savannah taught him to say "woof, woof" and now he uses it whenever he sees a dog. He kept holding up the line of kids as they explored the inside of the fire engine. He refused to be hurried and I almost had to go in to get him. The kitchen also fascinated him. They had a monster stove and Haden did a good job of letting me know that he would rather be cooking than listening to the fireman talk about stop, drop, and roll.

The Gift of Life & Breath

Last weekend was Regan's first official 5k race! Originally, Clint, Savannah, & I were all going to run, but Clint is rather competitive and decided he didn't want to push the double stroller because he might accidentally run someone over. So, I walked with Regan and Clint pushed Haden in the single stroller. She did very well! We ran for the first 5 minutes and then the novelty wore off. Somewhere around half way she insisted that she was tired and was walking so slowly that we would have been there all day, so she rode on my back until Clint finished the race, retraced the route, found us and took over. It was also Savannah's first official race and she was pleased with her time, considering she hasn't been running much for the last couple of months. I am not nearly as competitive as either Clint or Savannah, so I was perfectly happy to walk with Regan! (Notice the huge bruise on Haden's forehead...)

Let's go fly a kite!

There were a few very windy days last week, perfect for flying a kite! Clint had the afternoon off so we went to a nearby park with no trees or powerlines and let her try it out. She did very well!

This picture was taken right before Haden let go of the kite and Clint had to take off running to catch it. Luckily, he is a fast runner! Haden thought it was great and let the kite go several times...

We then had to play at the park where Haden got his foot caught on the slide and now has a giant bruise on his forehead. The bruise from last week's adventure was just healing, too. Regan always has so much fun playing with her "sister" Savannah.

An answer to prayer

A few days ago Regan was saying the prayer before we left for preschool. She thanked Heavenly Father for giving her a bicycle. I was surprised and a little confused. I hadn't given her a bicycle, nor did she know about the bike I had bought several weeks ago on Craigslist that I was hiding in the basement until her birthday. I questioned her further, but she didn't really say much. That night we were rearranging stuff in the basement and she found her hidden bike. She wasn't even terrifically surprised, just acted like, "Oh yeah, Heavenly Father was going to give me a bike today." So, now she has a bike, and I need to come up with a different birthday present for her.

Regan's Recital

Regan had her first ballet recital last week. She was so excited! The theme was "Under the Sea with Little Mermaid & Friends" and she was a Hippity Hoppity Frog. For the finale all 100+ girls danced to "Kiss the Girl". It was a little crazy and chaotic, but awfully cute. She did such a good job and wasn't nervous at all--We are so proud of her! She absolutely cannot wait for ballet to start again. We could only record their performance during dress rehearsal--Regan is the second one from the left in the back.

BYU Graduation

My sister graduated from BYU a couple of weeks ago, so Regan, Haden, and I flew to Utah to watch the very long program. (The business school has way too many graduates!) It was my first time flying with two kids by myself. I was rather nervous, but it went okay. Haden spent most of the flight back with the flight attendants. They absolutely loved him, and he loved the attention. Regan was very nervous, especially when we hit turbulence. She insisted that she did not like the bumpy clouds! Thankfully, we arrived without any problems. While in Salt Lake City we toured the conference center and visited Temple Square; the flowers are too beautiful to pass up this time of year! Regan loved all of the flowers and posing for pictures by the temple, while Haden preferred to play in the dirt. We stayed with my brother and his family in Provo. The kids had so much fun playing with their cousins. BYU's art museum had a Walter Wick exhibit that was fascinating. It was amazing to look at the pictures and try to figure them out. The graduation speakers all did a good job, from what I could hear as I chased Haden around outside, and Savannah didn't trip as she walked across the stage! (Most of Regan's pictures involve some type of ballet pose--apparently she was getting ready for her recital...) It was fun to see everyone, but it was also fun to come home!