A very happy day, at a very happy place.

I talked Mike into letting us go to Disneyland this year, and we planned the trip for September.  It was perfect timing: Adelyn will have to pay more when she turns ten in January, we'll have to pay for the twins once they turn 3 in January, and there's always that chance I could be pregnant next year, and that wouldn't be as fun...  So, it was nearly perfect timing for the trip.  Everything except that pregnant belly you can see if that picture down there.  Luckily, I had an excellent time, and was so happy that the kids were enjoying it so much, didn't even mind missing some of the "bigger" rides.

I believe this was our very first ride.  The plan was to hit Peter Pans Flight first, but it was already busy, so it ended up being last.  Teacups was a great choice for a first ride though, except Mike doesn't like it.  He took these lovely pictures instead.

 This was the "slow" tea-cup, with mom, grandma, and the twins.

 This was the wild-people tea cup.  When I went on the teacups later in the day with Joey, he commented how strong Uncle Jeffrey is, because he got it to spin A LOT faster than I did.

 Having Jeffrey and my Mom and Dad come with, made it so that we had an adult for every child (I consider Jeffrey an adult in this scenario).  It was so nice to have so many helping hands.  I had a great time, and didn't stress so much about counting the kids over and over.

 Adelyn was old enough, and tall enough for everything this year, including driving her very own Autopia car!!  A pretty great milestone!

 And I got to hang out with these two little guys most of the day, especially while the other kids enjoyed the big rides.  I thoroughly enjoyed being with them, and watching them take it all in.  They loved it all, and did so good!  They took about an hour nap each, and I guess that's all they needed, because they were angels!  I felt so lucky, all day long, just being with my family.

Nelson (L) and Braden (R)

California is a perfect family vacation for us.  We got to party with cousins, go to church with Grandma Hamilton, and see Brett and Katrina at their new apartment, right next to the Newport Temple.  We got to hit the beach, which my kids love; just add sand and water and you've got a whole day planned!  We got to stay in hotels along the way, and eat Belgium waffles nearly every day for breakfast!  It was perfect!

Zion Red Rock Relay

Several months ago, I signed up to run with a group of ladies in the Zion Red Rock Relay.

"Teams of 12 run relay style through 187 miles of southern Utah's most stunning landscapes in a journey that starts on a Friday morning at Brian Head ski resort and ends sometime the following day at the base of Zion National Park."

I like to have something to work toward in the summer, so it was a perfect idea.  I didn't run when my schedule said I needed to, but I ran when I could, and felt pretty good about being in the race, until a couple weeks before when I found out I was pregnant, then I worried a little more.  I push myself WAY less when I know I'm pregnant.  And I was afraid of how much I'd need to push myself to even finish.  It ended up being perfect, because my van of 6 girls was the best support group ever, and didn't care how long it took us to finish!  One of them even traded me her leg on the middle-of-the-night run so I could do a shorter uphill, instead of more downhill (I had just finished over 6 miles of steep downhill, and my legs were Jell-O) On my last run, which was over 6 miles in the middle of the day, and a huge elevation climb, they stopped every mile.  All 5 of them came out of the RV with something to offer me, water, ice, power bar, an icy cold towel, or some Gatorade.  And believe me, I know how hard it was for all of them to get out, because our legs ached, our knees ached, and we were tired and sore.  I made some good friends that day!

Me, Michelle W., Dona M., Diane P., Larissa T., Daisy S.

Our whole team at the finish line.  Hard to see everyone, but the other van had LeAnn A., Alice H., Dusty B., Tawnya M., Meagan G., and Carrie J.

My total mileage ended up being 16.57 miles and here I am at the finish!  Yay!  I was ready to go to Disneyland!  Mike and I met in Cedar, as we were traveling home from the race, and I hopped in the car, not showered and all.  I don't remember much from Cedar City to Barstow where we stopped for the night because I was able to sleep in the car, which was VERY nice.  The race made it so that I had stayed up for 24 hours, then got a 1.5 hour nap before we were up again for the next leg of the race.  I can't believe I did so well without hardly any sleep, and then again, there were a lot of prayers in place, and I'm sure that's what got me through it! And, as much as I complain, I did love it... and probably wouldn't ever do it again :)