Birthday Cakes

Well it is that time of year again. Isabel and Kya celebrated another birthday. Isabel had a fun party with her friends at Boondocks. Kya and Isabel also celebrated with their family with a princess party at our house. This is going to be a short post today. Isabel and I had our tonsils out 5 days ago and we are still recovering. But I have been wanting to post the pictures of their cakes. I am not the best cake maker, but I have a ton of fun doing it. Kya's cake turned out very cute, but was also very time consuming. Isabel's was pretty easy. The tie dyed cake was a big hit. It was also my first time using fondant.I will post more pictures when I feel a bit better.

Freudian slip

I did not reread my last entry before posting it. Ben read my post and commented on my many grammatical errors. (Most of which I went back and changed.) But I left the one he really liked and laughed about. When I mentioned Ben's new TV and lack of it's use. I said "When he is not home I will not get turned on for days." HHHHHMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!! What was really on my mind? According to Freud maybe I wasn't really thinking about the TV at all.

Update

I have been such a slacker. I should be gardening or cleaning or exercising or folding the laundry, but I think I will actually post today. I keep thinking about Marquee telling me how badly I need to, so okay I will.

Ben is still running and loving it. He will be doing another 100 miler this year. He got into the Wasatch 100. I am excited because this one is in Utah. It will make crewing him much easier. But I did love our experience in Leadville last year.

Check out Isabel's blog. I posted an update there. This link is on the top right.

Kya is a little handful. I have a difficult time keeping my patience with her. She has a habit of getting into everything she is not supposed to and making enormous messes. But she is also very loving (which is what saves her from permanent time out). She tells me at least two dozens times a day she loves me.

Sophi is just fun, what can I say? The other day after she woke up, I was still tired so I brought her into my bed. I layed her down and said, "We have a blankie, a binki, and a mommy" and I gave her a big hug. Her reply was "HAPPY!"

Well I have been busy working and taking care of the kids. BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. The story of my life and everyone else's, right? So enough of the same old crap. Let's discuss something very serious. How in the world am I going to drop this last 25lbs that have been hanging onto my ass for way too long? I think what I need is someone to go walking with.

Any volunteers?

I really want to start walking up Maple canyon. I used to do this with some friends and I loved it.

I have been obsessed with books lately. I just finished reading the Hunger Games, and loved it. Has anyone read this? I am going to have a difficult time waiting for the next book to come out, but the wait will be worth it. I am thinking about joining a book club. But I worry that doing this will make reading seem like a chore instead of enjoyment. Does anyone belong to one, and if so do you like it? Ben recently splurged and bought a big screen TV. When he is not home I will not get turned on for days. I guess the TV will last forever with it's lack of use.

Does anyone have a suggestion for a good book? I need a new one.

Okay here are some random pictures?

Oh by the way I need to have my tonsils out and will probably do it in the next couple of months (both me and Isabel). Has anyone had them out as an adult? I hear it really sucks. But the doctor said most adults lose 10-15 pounds. I am not sure, but maybe it will be worth it.

St. Lucia

Ben and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary by spending a week in St. Lucia. It was a much needed vacation for us. This was the first big vacation we have taken by ourselves since our honeymoon. Isn't that sad? Well we definitely made up for the lack of vacationing in one trip. We went zip lining in the jungle, snorkeling, kyacking, explored the island and did plenty of lounging by the pool and playing on the beach. My personal favorite part of the trip would have to be the Dirty Banana's we discovered. A Dirty Banana or Dirty Monkey as I renamed it, is a blended piece of heaven (or hell when over-consumed). We met two couples from New York and had a blast partying with them. Brooke & Ryan and Peg & Steve. Here are a few pictures so you can see just how much fun we had :)

The town of Soufriere

Our resort-Sandals Regency

The main pool at our resort

The view from our room

Us on the catamaran in front of the Pitons

On the beach

PaRtYiNg!!!!!!

Sexy!!!

GNO.....

GIRLS NIGHT OUT!!!!!!!

We had a really fun girls night out a couple of weeks ago. Me, Isabel, Stacey (my sister-in-law) and Cecilia (my niece) went to the Miley Cyrus concert. We had a lot of fun. It was a much needed break from the daily grind. I got out of work early so I could pick Isabel up from school. We started out our night with dinner at Johnny Carino's. I had been completely frazzled that week. Getting out sure helped lighten my mood and made me feel 100% better. Stacey would tell you it had to do with the Italian Margaritas (notice the pleural), that SHE kept ordering for me at dinner. But I think don't think so, well okay maybe they helped a little. I was amazed at how good the concert was. Miley put on an awesome show. Just after the concert started Isabel was dieing of thirst, so I went to the concession stand to get her a drink. When I got back they were announcing Miley had to take a break and that she would be right back. Apparently she ran off stage in the middle of her second song. When she came back on stage she said she was sick, but would finish the show. She did take several breaks, but they kept us entertained. The next day I heard she actually had to run of stage to vomit. Could you imagine if she did that on stage? Ben told me that someone commented to him that there are no pictures of me on the blog. Well these are the first.

My camera does not take good distance pictures in the dark, oh well.

Me and Izzy at the concert.

Cecilia and Stacey

Isabel loves to pose!

Like I said, it's all about the pose.
(Did you notice the empty salt rimmed glass in the picture, OOPS!)

WHATEVER?!?!?!

THIS IS WHERE KYA DECIDED SHE WOULD SLEEP TONIGHT. I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU BUT I HAVE OFTEN THOUGHT HOW COMFY IT WOULD BE TO SLEEP ON A HARD PLASTIC TOTE AT THE END OF MY BED. IT IS MOMENTS LIKE THIS WHEN I KNOW HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO PICK YOUR BATTLES WISELY. THIS WAS ONE BATTLE I WAS NOT GOING TO WORRY ABOUT.

Leadville 100 mile trail run

Ben ran and finished the Leadville 100 mile trail run, also known as the Race Across the Sky. He finished in 27 hours, 38 minutes and 16 seconds. There were nearly 600 people that started the race, around 270 finished and Ben finished 121st overall.
The race started at 4am in the town of Leadville, Colorado. Leadville has an elevation of 10,200 ft. At the pre-race physical Ben's oxygen saturation level was 90 (fyi-in the hospital when your sats drop below 90 and you are hooked to a monitor the alarm will sound). Just so that you get an idea of the low oxygen levels at such high elevation. I was there as Ben's crew, along with his good friend Shane Martin. Shane helped me crew Ben the first 50 miles of the race, and paced him the last 50. We had a lot of fun together. Shane has ran several 100 mile races so his wisdom was very, very, helpful. The race is an out and back, meaning that they run out 50 miles and then back over the same trail for the second 50. Which made crewing the second half (in the dark and half asleep) that much easier.
He ran the entire race without sleeping. We were up for a total of 38 hours before we went to sleep. Well I did take a 2 hour nap. Between one of the aid stations I knew I had 3 hours until he would arrive. So I set my cell phone alarm clock and took a little snooze in the back of my Yukon on the side of the road in the middle of the mountains. I was a little bit freaked out, but really too tired to care. It sucks when you are still tired after 2 No-Doz, a red bull, monster java, starbucks espresso shots, and a dr. pepper. There just comes a point when the only way around being tired is getting some sleep. In a 100 mile race there are aid station set up the give the runners the things they need to keep going water, food, etc. I met Ben at all the aid station to give him the things he needed. Once he changed his shoes, because he had to cross a river twice. At one aid station I use a little back pack stove and had some hot potatoes cooked with loads of butter and salt. (I know what you are thinking and yes I am the best wife in the world!!!!! And believe me he knows!)
Let me tell you a little bit about the course. At almost the halfway point he had to ran over Hope Pass. The top of Hope Pass is at approximately 12,600 ft. That is a 1400 ft elevation gain in one pass (it is only a few miles, maybe 7?) HOLY HELL!!! Can you imagine going over that only to know you have to turn around and do it again after you just finished running 50 miles. I find it simply amazing.
Ben rocked the first 50 miles of the race. He was one of the first 50 (I think, maybe it was 70?) to come into the 50 mile aid station. After about 70 miles one of his knees starting hurting. So on top of a sore knee, sleep deprivation, and the fatigue of having already running 70 miles he was completely exhausted. But he had Shane pacing him, to keep him going. (A pacer is someone you can have run with you to keep you going. Also compliments to Shane for the photographic documentation of the race) Needless to say he over came all of the above and finished!!! I heard the race director say "You are better than you think you are and you can do more than you think you can." I like that statement. I guess we never know what we are capable of until we try.
At the award ceremony after the race there were some people that could not stand or sit without assistance. Ben was limping pretty good, but he could at least walk unassisted. Although he did use me as a crutch from time to time.
Here are some of Shane's awesome picture. Thanks Shane!
Oh, and I should mention that there was a 70 year old man that finished the race (before Ben)

CONGRATULATION ON SUCH AN AWESOME ACCOMPLISHMENT BEN!!!

this is Ben on top of Hope Pass

Just to give you an idea of what the run is like up to Hope Pass

And no he is not drinking the water, just washing off his face.
(I almost shit my pants when I saw this picture, no pun intended, LOL)

this is the fatigue and sleep deprivation I was talking about

this is the last road to the finish line

This is Ben and Shane at the finish line