My Little Stars

Yesterday, Dylan performed an African dance with his school class. They have been working with someone from the Tanner Creative Dance Program (University of Utah) for 8 weeks. Their dance focused on space, energy, and movement. It was awesome! And I have to say that Dylan's interpretation of the Nile River was amazing...Luke and I were busting our buttons! I was most impressed by his confidence and strength.


Back in December, Isabelle was able to perform at the Rose Wagner Theatre as the lead in The Little Match Girl. She took my breath away. She did four shows, and I don't think there were many dry eyes in the house at the end of any of them. She danced so many extra hours and did so much extra barre work...she's a rock star!


I couldn't be more proud :)

New Blogger...Luke!

Luke and Mark are going to take us along on their journey to the finish line at the Wasatch 100. Here is the welcome to their blog, written by Mark (there is a link on my "good places to visit" list):

Welcome.
We have many friends and family that have flooded us with support after learning our fates as entrants into the Wasatch 100. We have been amazed and excited to receive such support. One of the main things that is said is "keep us posted." We know of no better way to do this than through a blog format.

The title of this blog is two fold. Revelation speaks to the apostolic theme of Mark and Luke, our two favorites. More importantly the revelation that we have both had while on the trail. We both feel that this was "made for us." Cheesy to be sure but it is what it is. The second part of the name speaks to elevation. We will be climbing and descending close to 27,000 feet both ways. Up and Down! Plus I love the word elevation. I think it speaks to rising up.

Erik Weihenmayer was the first blind person to summit Everest. He is an incredible inspiration to me and once said, “A lot of people say that they summit the mountain for the view. The beautiful view but I just think, and I may be biased, but I think
it is hogwash. I think it’s a complete lie! You don’t suffer for twenty days or
a month to see a view. A lot of times you are just looking into a sea of clouds
anyway. I think a summit is not a place on a mountain at all. A summit to
me is a symbol. It’s a symbol that with the force of our minds, our
bodies, our souls and with the power of these two small hands that we can transform
our lives into something miraculous!”

It is our hope to do something miraculous!

This blog will include training plans, re-caps of training runs, product reviews, race reviews and much much more. I imagine that it will be cheesy at points and serve somewhat therapeutic.

Enjoy!

And He's Off!

Luke got in to the Wasatch 100!

I've done a fair bit of research since he put his name in the lottery, and this section of race information stuck out to me:

"Be Prepared: This event is extremely demanding, and should only be undertaken by athletes in excellent physical condition. All entrants should be familiar with basic first-aid, and know the symptoms and treatment for heat exhaustion, hypothermia, frostbite, and altitude sickness. Some course sections between aid stations exceed nine miles. Runners should be well-equipped to care for themselves and effect self-rescue if necessary. Only runners who can demonstrate successful ultrarunning experience or its equivalent will be considered for entry."

Really? Effect self-rescue?

Not bad for $16.50

Today in my Bountiful Basket I got...

1 bunch of spinach
1 head of romaine lettuce
1 head of cabbage
1 bunch of asparagus
1 lb. green beans
5 yellow onions
2 (3 lb.) bags of baby red potatoes
4 bell peppers
6 tomatoes
blueberries
9 Braeburn apples
2 grapefruits
6 oranges

I love having a fridge full of fresh fruits and veggies for the week!

National Peanut Butter Day

We'd never heard of national peanut butter day, but it seemed like a good excuse to make cookies! Izzy and Dylan had a lot of fun rolling the cookie dough into balls and covering them with sugar. Even more than that, they loved squishing the mini peanut butter cups into the hot, fluffy dough. I found the recipe on delish.com, but it's actually from Martha Stewart Living. For any of you out there that can't have peanuts, I'm sure you could substitute SunButter in this recipe. It might even taste better. Happy Peanut Butter day!

Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies

1/2 cup(s) creamy peanut butter
4 tablespoon(s) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup(s) packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon(s) pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup(s) all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1 teaspoon(s) baking powder
1/4 teaspoon(s) salt
1/3 cup(s) granulated sugar, for rolling dough
36 mini peanut butter cups, chilled and unwrapped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using an electric mixer, cream peanut butter and butter in a mixing bowl until smooth. Add brown sugar; beat until combined, scraping down bowl as needed. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until incorporated.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. With mixer on low speed, gradually beat in flour mixture in two batches.
Scoop off dough by the tablespoon; roll into balls. Place granulated sugar on a plate; roll balls in sugar, coating completely. Place 2 inches apart on a nonstick insulated baking sheet.
Bake until cookies begin to puff up slightly, about 7 minutes. Remove from oven. Press one peanut butter cup in center of each cookie. Return to oven; continue baking until cookies are golden brown and chocolate has begun to melt, about 6 minutes more. Let cool at least 10 minutes on baking sheet before transferring cookies to rack to cool completely.

Dylan's Big Day

Dylan was baptized on Sunday. It was a wonderful day filled with family, friends, and lots and lots of sugar! Thank you to everyone who came and supported Dylan on his special day!

Christmas 2011

As busy as our December was, Christmas day was just the opposite. It was peaceful and lovely and simple. We opened gifts, sat by the fire, and ate all day long.



Isabelle got the dollhouse she wanted



and Dylan got a Red Rider BB gun. I'll let you guess how many times he's heard "you'll shoot your eye out kid"!



Here's hoping you had a wonderful Christmas, and wishing you the best for 2012!