Rockin out prior to the Seattle Rock and Roll 2010 Marathon...

Which turned out so much faster than we both thought! Not only was it not raining, blessed be, but it was overcast and pleasantly cool, perfect for running, until the afternoon when the sun burst out and blue skies reigned for the rest of the day.

Randy ran his personal best marathon time 3:06:56 which earned him a little recognition in the Seattle Times Sunday sports edition as an "overall leader". Pretty awesome! Knowing a little about how much time and training it takes, I am so impressed. So are the kids. But definitely not overly surprised. He is a pretty amazing athlete, aside from being a pretty amazing husband. pretty amazing teacher. pretty amazing husband. pretty amazing honest guy.

pinewood derby

The almost wasn't pinewood derby finally here. Cayden turned 11. Technically no longer a cub scout. However, since there was a delay on getting the track back in April, Cayden was grandfathered in

Makenzy was very much into watching the races.

The contenders. Cayden's car is at the top of the image.

Army truck.

It kind of is and it kind of isn't about the rankings, who is fastest, and who wins. But then it is.

Randy gets more frustrated by this than me. He was the kid who entered the painted block.

No saws to make the contours and cuts that turn the block into something Motor City would "ooh" and "aah" over.

Bon (Mom) put in the wheels. No graphite. No spinning. No idea where to put the weights.

He came in last place every year.

It still is a little dark skid mark in his heart.

Goal for his boys, not to come in last.

Goal - achieved.

Last year was the best performance, 3rd overall.
Ribbon on uniform.

This year, 3rd in his division. Not great but not too shabby either.

It is for the boys, but the dad's and the mom's help a little too!

In the "at home" awards given out by me, he had best attitude and wasn't worried about his car's performance this year. He just wanted to make an army "something" even if it was aerodynamic or fast.

Randy fussed over the wheels more so because we procrastinated. I have to remember, last minute is not good!!!

He actually did a better job putting on Isaac's (another cub scout friends, who did awesome!). Cayleb even got in on the fun and made a clone trooper pinewood derby. He'll benefit from Cayden and Randy's experience.

Vroom, Vroom!

Pre-School Graduation and Last Day of School for Everyone!

Mrs. Hurley's 3 year old pre-school class.

Mrs. Hurley's 4 year old pre-school class + friend co-op pre-school.

Friend c0-op preschool.

= 3 years and 4 classes.
So ready for kindergarten.

His little class.
Owen, Cayleb, Oli, Tamsym, Nate

Tatiana made these. CUTE!
Hit of the graduation party!

Party in the red slide, wee!

Pre-school co-ops are so fun because you really get to see your kid interact.

How they hold the scissors. Listen to instructions. Play with friends.

Tatiana, MaryKai, Kirsten,Me (Vicki had to head before out Class Pic)
Thank you ladies for all you did this year. It was a great success!

Excitedly yelling kids and honking horn marked the bus' final stop for the school year!

The bus driver gave all the kids a sucker to celebrate.

At Makayla's school, the teachers all have a hearty send off. See ya!

Crayola version to pimp my ride.

Our "party vehicle."

The kids used window crayons to creatively illustrate their enthusiasm for summer.

It added a little spark of excitement and summer party fever to the last day of school when I dropped the kids off and picked them up at the bus stop.
H.A.G.S.

( Have a great summer!)

Window crayons are great. Unless it is drizzly rainy.

But still happy.

Schools out and summer is in.

cayleb's party

quaint local parades...

it's the local city parade.

oh what a beautiful, perfect day for a parade (we once biked down to the parade and got poured on). this time i was so glad i had to break out the hats and the sunblock.

after randy got home from cayden's 1st scout camp out, he met us over at the parade just in time to see the only float in the parade. this. woo-hoo!

our town's little local parade is mostly a conglomeration of local businesses promoting themselves including what seems like every little league, church group, scout, and football/cheer team, peppered with the current years political candidates, lots of tractors (i know, we are kinda a small town, but not that small), local school bands, and the hydro racing boats.

visually nothing too exciting to see. but this is truly a local people parade. a parade where the kids see their friends passing by, can call out his/her name, be heard and have them come over and give them a hug or wave hello. a parade where you can

still come late and find a front row spot.

the big draw is the candy. it can't be thrown. but it can be passed out. so my kids hold out their little bags waiting for them to be filled with smarties, lots of suckers, jawbreakers, and every once in a while some chocolate or caramel. they often don't even like what they get,

it is the getting it that is fun.

bob and boys, our next door neighbor. go thrive (the local workout gym)!

i kept nudging kenzie to stay in the shade.

the kids with their friends encouraging a toss of penny candy.

small little surprises...

it is them capturing their childhood. from their perspective. doing it as sisters.

i often find pictures of impromptu "photo shoots" the girls have taken when loading

pictures from the camera.

a small little surprise. a digital treat for mom.

school lunch...

spending time eating lunch with the kids is a special treat we do a few times a year at the school bbq. normally held outside, this year the rain forced an indoor bbq. the kid's principal cooks up the hamburgers. she also hand signs birthday cards for over 900 students. dedication. eating with cade.

in year's past, we have had 3 lunches, with time in between. with toddlers in tow, even with food on hand, the waiting game gets old after awhile. luckily, this year, cayden's and madalyn's lunch overlap.

madalyn, sydney

first 11 year old scout camp out...

Ryson, Brian, Cayden

in the boys tent.

bro. greenwood (nic went to high school with him - always a small world in the church), bro. jergensen, and the boys.

cayden and randy love to camp.

something about getting away. being in nature.

using your gear.

this time it was new sleeping bags, with built in pillows. fancy stuff!

When Randy was in scouts, his dad worked out of state a lot. Though his mom filled in for just about everything she could, there were still some limitations.
Accompanying your son scouting is one of them.
As such, Randy has promised he will try to make every camp outing his
sons and daughters have.
This first one came already took some rearranging of his schedule, skipping Trek around the Trail and a work assignment.

in my opinion, this camp out was an absolute tease for a first scout camp out.

the overnighter camp out just happened to be on one of the nicest weekends we have had in...just about what seems like the unending sputter of winter.

no mist. no rain. sunny. just sun, sun, sun. in the mid 70's. seems mild, but it was hot!

oh yeah. i've acclimated.

not a typical camping experience. especially for scouts. that live here.

the months and years ahead promise cayden some camping woe stories.

Institute Graduation

It has been some time since I graduated from the U of U Institute program. Much of why I originally enrolled was for my free parking, though I still had to hoof it across

campus and when I had late classes, I was

always a little freaked out to come back to a dark, nearly empty parking lot.

But the more classes I took, my spiritual darkness was lit up by amazing teachings, which was not freaky at all. I had great teachers like Bro. Wilcox and Bro. Jack Marshall, whom I took most of my classes from. I also took a married couples class with Randy taught by Bro. Thomas and his wife. Little did I know that years later, Randy and I would teach the same class at the University of Washington Institute.

Randy and I served as the LDSSA married couples representatives back in 1996-1997. It was a position created after I asked if there was any representation on LDSSA for the married couples. Whala, a position was created and Randy and I were asked to be on the council. Our main responsibilty was using the council debit cared each Friday to head to Smith's and find something cheap and easy to serve as after class snacks. It was usually donuts and ice cream.

Fast forward almost 15 years later. Institute graduation in Washington. All of the speakers did very well. Many talked about how fitting institute in is sometimes hard but necessary and rewarding.

Post graduation refreshments. Pairing platters of fresh fruit and the chocolate fountain are always a success. At least in my book. Always.

The vibe of the university infuses its' vitality into me each time I go.

planning. working. going somewhere. big decisions awaiting.

learning. stretching. searching. cultivating you.
it is exciting!

Crossing 520. Typical overcast day. Typical drive.

Rainier to Ruston and Green River Marathon

Ringing the bell sending off the next runner in my first relay race.

Suzanne, Tracy, Makay, Michele, Moi, Bianca.

All of them great runners.

I was asked by these ladies to join in on a 50 mile relay race from Mt. Rainier to Ruston Parkway (on the Puget Sound). I think people think I can run because Randy is such an awesome running machine, and a great compliment, though I am only slow and steady.

I am just getting back into running and have socially been a little quiet lately. So I decided having some girl time and a new experience would be good as long as they weren't counting on me for a fast time.

As it happened, Randy also had a marthon the same morning. The Green River Marathon, which he took nice and easy since he is battling a pulled hamstring and is trying to be careful before his next upcoming marathon in 3 weeks.

50 miles later, the finish!


In between here and there.

More in between here and there.

Ruston Parkway. Beautiful. Sunny. Paved :).

This was my part of the trail. But pic, not me! Only glimpse the ladies would have had of me during my 1st leg of 2.

I was back slugging through some mud, leaping side to side of the trail over rocks, tree roots, and water rivulets that engulfed the trail, grabbing clumps of leaves and stinging nettle to keep from slipping and falling for 5.7 miles. I've never been on such a muddy or challenging course.

Sounds yucka. My shoes definitely were. But it was probably the prettiest part of the course, too. On the mountain. In the mountain. Rough. Muddy. Isolated.

I made it. Got to ring the bell!