Ring in the New Year...by running into it??

I was looking on active.com (a neat website) because I am looking for 5ks, 10ks, even half marathons that I could tackle in the near future!
I came across the SLCTC Beat the New Year 5K.
This is such a fun idea - ring in the New Year, while running. The race starts at 11:30 PM on January 31, 2008.

What better way to kick off your New Year's health resolutions, eh?

Heck, give this run a shot and try to run the 3.2 miles in less than a half hour (hence the title, "Beat the New Year")!

It sounds like fun, maybe I will incorporate this into my New Years Eve festivities. :)

6 Quirks

Six Quirks...

#1 - At work I am the total germaphobe! I've become a joke around the office. Everyday before I go home, I have to use Cavi wipes (these bad boys kill just about EVERY germ/disease you could imagine...strep/hiv/tuberculosis/etc) I LOVE them! And I also have to go around and Lysol everything - all the door handles in the office, my chair, the light switches, the lobby door, kids table, the children's reading books, chairs, etc. The gals I work with have grown accustom to my habitual cleaning rituals that sometimes occur more than once daily...

#2 - Whenever I take a shower, I have to make sure the door to the bathroom is locked. I cannot shower without the door being locked. Even when I am in the shower, I will peek out of the curtain to ensure that the door is tightly locked. I guess I watch too many scary movies - I have a fear of being stabbed in the shower (like in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho).

#3 - When I workout or go running, I ALWAYS have to be chewing gum. It drives me crazy and I freak out and will not workout unless I am chewing gum. It drives my friends nuts too - Brooke and I went to the gym the other night and I had to run outside to my car and get a stick of gum. She rolled her eyes at me and laughed! :)

#4 - When I get into bed at night, I have to wrap my feet up in my blanket - almost cocoon like, then pull my covers up to my face to make sure I am snuggled up. But not too tightly or else I feel a wee bit claustrophobic. I also have to fall asleep on my left side with my left arm up...I am weird, OK? No need to tell me!

#5 - I have have have to make sure my closet door is shut all the way. I cannot go to bed with it slightly cracked open. It has to be shut all the way!

#6 - Without fail, every single night I have to wash my feet. Not just a quick wash in the tub, I mean literally scald my feet with hot hot water - to the point where my feet turn bright red. It helps calm me down and helps me get to sleep quicker. It's always something I look forward to! he he

Alrighty, there you go, now you know more about me - are you sure you want to still be my friend???

TAG: Jan Balls, Teresa Warner, Dani Talbot, Denisha Oldroyd, Amanda Brown, Caitlyn Andrus, Makenzie Carter, Missy Lires, Shayla Egan, Amelia Gray, Carissa Rasmussen. Get to it ladies!

Joseph B. Wirthlin

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin passed away on Dec. 1, 2008.
He was such an influential man and such a great example. I love him! :) He will be missed, but he is in a much better place with loved ones and Heavenly Father.

This is an excerpt from his last talk in the October 2008 General Conference "Come What May, and Love It"

"The first thing we can do is learn to laugh. Have you ever seen an angry driver who, when someone else makes a mistake, reacts as though that person has insulted his honor, his family, his dog, and his ancestors all the way back to Adam? Or have you had an encounter with an overhanging cupboard door left open at the wrong place and the wrong time which has been cursed, condemned, and avenged by a sore-headed victim?

There is an antidote for times such as these: learn to laugh....

...I remember when one of our daughters went on a blind date. She was all dressed up and waiting for her date to arrive when the doorbell rang. In walked a man who seemed a little old, but she tried to be polite. She introduced him to me and my wife and the other children; then she put on her coat and went out the door. We watched as she got into the car, but the car didn’t move. Eventually our daughter got out of the car and, red faced, ran back into the house. The man that she thought was her blind date had actually come to pick up another of our daughters who had agreed to be a babysitter for him and his wife.

We all had a good laugh over that. In fact, we couldn’t stop laughing. Later, when our daughter’s real blind date showed up, I couldn’t come out to meet him because I was still in the kitchen laughing. Now, I realize that our daughter could have felt humiliated and embarrassed. But she laughed with us, and as a result, we still laugh about it today.

The next time you’re tempted to groan, you might try to laugh instead. It will extend your life and make the lives of all those around you more enjoyable."

What a great example he is and was. :) Come what may, and LOVE IT!! Terrific advice to live by.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

It's CHRISTMAS TIME!! I love this time of year!!
There are so many favorite things for me this time of year:
when the snow starts to fall outside, when I get a chance to snuggle up by the fire, drink hot chocolate and read a good book, decorate my house up and down with Christmas garlands and lights, shopping for the perfect gift for friends and family members, making gingerbread houses, christmas kiss cookies, sledding, making snow angels, staring at the christmas tree, temple square trips to see the lights, acting out the nativity scene on Christmas eve with cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents, egg nog, Williams-Sonoma peppermint bark, apple cider, Christmas music, watching my favorite Christmas movies, cinnamon pinecones, listening to 'Last Christmas' by Wham over and over again, christmas light cookies, driving around town to look at everyone's lights, and spending time with loved ones.

I love this time of year - everyone seems to be so happy and in good spirits. It's also a reminder to all the world of a special birth - the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

"Born in a stable, cradled in a manger, He came forth from heaven to live on earth as mortal man and to establish the kingdom of God. During His earthly ministry, He taught men the higher law. His glorious gospel reshaped the thinking of the world. He blessed the sick. He caused the lame to walk, the blind to see, the deaf to hear. He even raised the dead to life. To us He has said, 'Come, follow me.'

As we seek Christ, as we find Him, as we follow Him, we shall have the Christmas spirit, not for one fleeting day each year, but as a companion always. We shall learn to forget ourselves. We shall turn our thoughts to the greater benefit of others" (Thomas S. Monson, "In Search of the Christmas Spirit," Ensign, Dec 1987, 3).

I really do love this time of year - and hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas!!

So close...

"Missing someone gets easier every day because even though it's one day further from the last time you saw each other, it's one day closer to the next time you will..."

This quote made me really happy as I read it tonight - I thought I would just share it with all my fellow blogging pals! :) Have a great evening!

Happy Thanksgiving

This year Thanksgiving was at OUR house! It was so much fun! We had lots of good food! And the tables looked gorgeous (way to go mom!) and it was fun to be together as a family!!

Pretty table #1

The Kids Table

Gram zonked out after eatin all the turkey and pie!

Mom, Shiela, and I being silly with our sassy Turkey Aprons! :)

metro.station.concert.

sooooo Shippen, Allen and I headed up to SLC for the Metro Station concert!

They had some pretty awesome bands play before them: The White Tie Affair, Cash Cash, and Tyga. It was an interesting experience and we had fun taking photos and seeing all the interesting concert goers....hmmm :)


I felt bad for Allen cause he got sick during the concert...poor guy!
All in all we had fun jamming out to music on the way up, eating at Costa Vida, walking by some crazy dudes on the street, seeing Mason/Trace from Metro on the street, dressing up indie/emo, and singin and dancin!

"the greatest thing you will ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return..."

"Be deliriously happy. Or at least leave yourself open to be. Love is passion, obsession, someone you can't live without. I say fall head over heels. Find someone you can love like crazy and who'll love you the same way back. Run the risk, if you get hurt, you'll come back. Because, the truth is there is no sense living your life without this. To make the journey and not fall deeply in love -- well, you haven't lived a life at all. You have to try. Because if you haven't tried, you haven't lived." -Anthony Hopkins in Meet Joe Black




I love this quote! It is so true - what meaning does life have if we have not shared it with someone? What joy can we truly experience on our own? If we do not have anyone to share our life with why even live at all? I don't care if you're single, dating someone, married, divorced, a widower (well I actually do care about you...but)...whatever circumstance your life takes on, don't you want people or a person whom you love to share it with? Regardless if it is a special someone, a spouse, a friend, a brother, your parents - whomever it may be, it is a comfort to know that there are people in life who love you and want the best for you!!

Life is so wonderful and I wanted to share this quote with my bloggin buddies!
Be happy! Be grateful for this day you have to live! Live life to the fullest and look for opportunities to make the world a better place! I love you all - thank you for being my friend. I hope that I have been a good friend to you - if I haven't, I hope that going forward I can redeem myself and make it up to you. I love you!

Fit for LIFE

OK, I need to get into better shape! So I am going to be blogging weekly about my progress with my new exercise routine.

Day 1: I am going to the gym tonight with Shiela! I plan to run 3 miles tonight...

And in addition to a more rigorous workout routine, I am also going back on my "hyperinsulimic" diet once again... So this should be an interesting week. Wish me LUCK! :) I will keep my progress logged online - to give me more motivation since the world wide web is going to be able to see this... yikes!! :)

Congrats Allan Family

Allie and Jeff Allan were sealed for time and all eternity in the Mt. Timpanogos LDS temple on November 6, 2008! It was so fun to share their special day with them. It was kind of an emotional day too - I started to get a little teary in the waiting room in the temple, but it's a joy to know that we are blessed as memebers of the LDS church to have the priviledge of being together with loved ones forever. :)











CONGRATS ALLIE AND JEFF!!! I am so excited for you!