This has been happening...

Life. Is. Busy.

But I love it!

I have been training for a 1/2 marathon in June. For fun, I ran the 5K Color Run in Yakima. My team was the "Colorful Cuties" and we made colorful tutus to run in! I ran my fastest ever 5K and I'm not sure how that happened considering how many people were there and how windy it was. But I'll take it! 

Sam brought the kids to watch and before the race even started, Jocelyn got exposed to an accidental color bomb to the face. She was not prepared for it but took it like a champ!

Sam and Genevieve celebrated another birthday together. Jenna is now 8 and Sam hit the big 4-0!

40 years of age isn't slowing Sam down though. He is training for his annual Reach the Beach bike race which is a 100 mile bike ride from Portland, OR to Pacific City. 2 more weeks!

And Jonah is Jonah. Or as his Yia Yia likes to call him, Jekyll and Hyde. He can be quite the happy camper, or he can be a ticked off camper, depending on if his needs are being met or not. We prefer the first, but most often get the second. :)

Just kidding. The boy could not possibly complete our family any better!

White Pass with my girls

I finally got to go ski with my girls and WOW was I impressed! I had a blast playing follow the leader with them and at times had a hard time keeping up! They had a blast knowing that they were more comfortable skiing than me. Comments they made throughout the day included: "Don't worry mom, you'll get it," or "Why don't you ski in between the trees like me?" or "Seriously Mom! You almost ran me over!" As much as I prefer a warm tropical location, I did enjoy being with them on the mountain!

Daddy's Little Skiiers

I don't believe that there has been a single weekend that the girls have not gone skiing this winter. Not only do they LOVE it, but the practice has paid off. The following is a video of them (Genevieve in green, Jocelyn in purple) during the Winter Carnival at White Pass. 

 http://youtu.be/jOLNVHpVWz8

Enjoy!

Sam's dental visit

Very few of my patients request a picture with me while I'm cleaning their teeth, but this patient is pretty special to me! :)

The things that make us happy

I love my days off of work. I start my day before the sunrise with a run. I am ready before the kids. I can walk the girls to school, and then spend my day bonding with my son. While he naps, I can be totally productive with laundry, preparing meals, paperwork, etc. Or I can be totally lazy. And when school gets out, I can meet the girls and walk home with them. This schedule just makes me happy, it makes me enjoy my children, my life, my everything. (I'm sorry, is that too much corniness for one post?)

One day last week, I met the girls after school and was welcomed to great big hugs and smiles from them. The sun was shining as we walked home and I listened to them give detailed and exciting stories about their days at school. (I have never heard them say "fine" when I ask them about school!) I couldn't help but just smile as we walked, thinking about how lucky I am. And then, out of nowhere, when I am already feeling as chipper as can be, Jocelyn says, "I have the best parents in the world!" And if you could hear her tone, you would have thought that we are indeed the best. I mean, she said it with such enthusiasm. I gave her a huge hug and said "Well, I have the best children in the world." Jocelyn stopped in her tracks with the weirdest look on her face and said, "No, I said I have the best PANTS in the world."

Humph. 

First Foods

What?! Jonah is old enough to eat solids? I seriously need time to slow down! But, here it is 5 1/2 months, and he is showing all the clear signs that he is indeed ready for solid foods. So, I went for it. Not surprisingly, he took rice cereal like a champ. Opened, closed, swallowed and then smiled. :) If only blogger could upload videos. Then you would be smiling too. But instead, you'll just have to trust me that he is irresistibly adorable.

Seattle Seahawks

We aren't your typical die hard Seahawks fans, but we definitely got into the spirit this season. Honestly, it started when the girls were allowed to wear Seahawks apparel on Blue Fridays. My rule follower, Genevieve, took this as "You must wear Seahawks apparel" and was all distraught since she didn't own any. Sam also decided it would be good for him to have something since his work participates in this as well. And well, I didn't want to be left out. So each member of the family got a new piece of apparel. Including Jonah!

The girls sporting their new attire

This was our first attempt at a family picture. We later realized we had been photo-bombed by a cow!

Superbowl 2014 family picture (re-take)