Little Bears

Thanks to Luke for a fun night at the Jazz game. I think the little bears were the highlight, although I may have a biased opinion due to the fact that Izzy is the tallest little bear, and Dylan is the littlest little bear. Getting up in front of over 20,000 people is a hard thing for anyone, let alone a 7 or 4-year old. I was so proud of both of them!

Halloween 2008

Halloween started last Saturday at the annual "Boo at the Zoo", and then just kept on going. I have to admit, Halloween is not my favorite holiday, and this one seemed to drag out for. ev. er. The kids were wound up so tight! It was almost like they lost their minds for a week. However, it was a lot of fun to see them get dressed up and have fun. Here are a few pictures:

Boo at the Zoo

Dylan's preschool program. All of his little friends looked so cute and did such a good job singing. Dylan had to ditch his costume to go out to the playground, though. He was melting.

Isabelle had a costume parade at her school. My favorite was the kid who dressed up as the Geico caveman in tennis clothes. Hairy legs and all. I tried to get a photo, but no luck. It was a really funny costume!

Luke and I grabbed a quick picture after we got home from the trunk or treat at the church so we could go hit a few houses on our street. As we were leaving, it started to rain just a little bit, but that didn't bother the kids. They were all about the candy.

I thought this was a cute picture of them trick or treating at Bob and Dana's. It might be the only time Dylan looks wider than Izzy in his life!

The night ended with Luke trying to pull out Izzy's loose tooth. Several attempts were made, but the tooth is still there.

It's been a fun Halloween, and we are looking forward to the holidays. Halloween seems to be the kick-off to Thanksgiving, Christmas, and all the other fun stuff that comes with the end of the year. What a fun time!

Pumpkin Patch

This is the first year we have gone to a real pumpkin patch to choose pumpkins. Dylan really had his heart set on it. We got there when the pickins were pretty slim, but Izzy and Dylan both had a great time. The people who owned the place were very sweet, and we will definately go back next year.

You can guess for yourself why the kids thought this pumpkin was funny.

For Angel

My sister was tagged by a friend who challenged her to post the fourth picture in the fourth folder on her computer. She made a very subtle hint on her blog for me to do the same, so here it is:

We went out to dinner with my parents, and I got this photo of Izzy eating squid. She is such a funny girl! It was a really fun night with lots of yummy food. Thanks again mom and dad!

Triathlon

It's over! I actually did it. The tri was one of the hardest things I've ever done, and it wouldn't have been possible without Luke cheering me on. I am very proud that I finished, and hopefully next year I will beat my time. It ended up taking me 1 hour and 5 minutes, which is better than I expected.

I think the look on my face explains how excited I was to get into the pool. I'm not going to lie--the swim sucked. It was most definately my weak point, and something I will work on. A lot.

After getting out of the pool, my legs felt like jelly. Just walking over to my bike was a challenge, and I knew the first half of the course was uphill. Not cool. There were no ipods allowed, either, so I had no music to get me pumped. It's amazing what a difference music makes to me, so I was pretty bummed. A little 'Welcome to the Jungle' would have been very helpful at this point.

Ok, so the run wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. My legs were so weak when I got off the bike, and I knew it was going to be tough. As soon as I came around the first corner, though, there were Izzy and Dylan, cheering me on. Luke was right there, too, and all the support really kept me going.

Crossing the finish line was awesome, and I was so happy to see Liz and Amy there, too. What a morning! It wouldn't have been nearly as much fun without my friends doing it with me, and I think we are pretty much rock stars for participating.

After relaxing for a bit and grabbing a bite to eat, we did a little hiking. The weather was perfect, and Isabelle and Dylan love to be outside. They found this 'mini' delicate arch and hiked to the top. Awesome.

Last time we were in St. George, we went to the same place to hike, and Izzy kept jumping over the ditch in the picture below. Dylan couldn't quite make it last time, but this time he was money. They are both getting so big!

The sun started to set, and we were off to get ice cream with Amy and Ben and the kids. Little desert creatures started coming out to enjoy the cool evening, so we turned back and headed for the car. Luke stopped to take a picture of this spider. Yuck.

It was a great weekend. It was exhausting, but well worth it. I think Luke is going to enter with me next year, as well as Izzy. There is a kid's tri the same morning, and she seemed really excited about entering. Atta girl!
Thanks to everyone who wished me luck and sent good vibes my way on Saturday morning. It really meant a lot!

5 days to go...

So it's here--the week before the triathlon. Yikes! I am really looking forward to this challenge, but I have a feeling it's going to kick my butt. OK, it is definately going to kick my butt. It's kind of nice to think that next week at this time, it will all be over. As nervous as I am, I'm really excited for a weekend away from teaching dance, getting away from the cold, and time with my awesome friend Amy and her cute husband Ben and their darling kids. We get to meet up with Liz and Anton for dinner on Friday night, and Blue Bunny is a must Saturday after the girls have napped. I hope we have enough energy to swim, hike, and do a little bit of shopping after the race.

I am wearing Izzy's bike helmet, and Dylan's goggles for good luck. I got a fortune cookie that said:

Achievement is one percent aspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.

I'll let you know how true that is next Sunday. I'm sure there may be at least one post with pictures before we take off. Wish me luck! I need it!

Gotta Love Tina

Love or hate Palin, this is funny.