This is Jesse! Jesse Daniel was born May 5, 1989 after a grueling pregnancy where I taught school until I went into labor. Jesse is the perfect older brother, responsible in every way. My favorite memories of Jesse are 1. Putting on my make up when he was 9 months old. 2. Being inseparable from his "Ernie" doll until Luke was born. He adopted Luke in Ernie's place. 3. Calling us "Greg" and "Hoai My" instead of Mom and Dad. (He still does that sometimes knowing how much I hate it.) 4. Learning to ride his bike without training wheels. 5. Watching him spend endless hours shooting basket outside because he wanted to be Steve Nash when he grew up. 6. Running over his foot with the van when he tried to race me wearing his roller blades. 7. Wrecking his motorcycle after owning it for less than 8 hours. 8. Wrecking his car after hitting a deer coming home from Brianhead. (What parenthood experience would be complete without those phone calls in the middle of the night?) 9. Watching him pick out his first home, the carpet, the paint, the flooring. He has really good taste. 10. Watching him around Greg. They are truly alike in almost every way.

Yea baby!

It's been 4 months since my feet surgery. Last week I was able to run a couple of 5K at pre-surgery pace. Building upon that emotional high, I attempted a 10K and completed that in 58 minutes. I can't say that I quite enjoy running yet because now, I am in re-training mode. However, having Greg by my side encouraging me, the torture almost feels like the fun it used to be.

Winder Moving Company

We moved! We are getting really good at moving since this is our 3rd move in 5 years. We now have 2 homes that we are renting as we live in our 3rd. As soon as the housing market stops tanking, we will attempt to sell all but 1. Our new house is still in Silver Stone Ranch. Guess we love it here (we do)! By far, this house is my most favorite. I feel like we are the bears that finally found a house that is just right. The first one was too big, the second one too little, and this one - perfect!

If it makes you happy....

Cheryl Crow said it best when she sang, "If it makes you happy, it can't be that bad." Lots of things make me happy; Greg and the boys, my students, my ward family, my friends, etc. Another thing that makes me happy is exercise, plenty of it. I am sure that once retired, I will be happily found at the gym for hours. Among the exercises which make me happy, running is certainly at the top of the list. Perhaps this is why it is no surprise that at the age of 46, I finally gave in to years of lingering foot pain and had both feet operated it on. The next 3 weeks will find me in a wheelchair and or walking on tippie toes to avoid putting full weight on stitches. When I told a person who randomly comes into my life why I had surgery, she asked me if I had considered not running. I asked her to tell me what she does that makes her happy. She replied with her list; sewing, cooking, family, etc, etc. I hope she understood that if I don't judge the things that make her happy, it was really pointless of her to be so judgmental about things -particularly running- that makes me happy. Perhaps she never really understood me at all. So here's to the things that makes us happy and a patient sigh to those who don't get us. My stitched feet will run again and it will be painful. I'm glad I married a man that is patiently waiting to help me get back to running. He may not be perfect but he is absolutely accomplished at the art of understanding me. After all, we are both signed up for a half marathon in November.

Not for the faint at heart

Luke's long awaited hip replacement surgery was Thursday, April 19. Dr. Tait's most important comment when finished was that everything went "miraculously perfect."

Luke came home from the hospital a day early just as he determined he would. He used his walker for one day, two crutches the next, and 4 days after the surgery, one crutch.
While eating lunch, Luke gasped, "I'm sitting up straight."

That may seem like an ordinary event for you, but the last time Luke was able to sit up straight was when he was 10 right before his hip socket gave out as a result of JRA.
I am so pleased with this darling boy. He is tougher than most people I know. Despite bouts of "feeling sorry for myselfness," he has dealt with a lifetime of pain and surgeries without much complaint.
Oh, as a side note, while recuperating in the hospital, Greg and him found a Lexus and Luke came home to his first car.

Everyone Once In Awhile

I feel entitled to rant...I really get irritated by

1. Dogs who bark in the night. Someone shoot them with a BB gun. Oh wait, Greg does that for me.

2. Bullies. End of story.

3. Bad tippers. If you can't afford a decent tip, go eat at McDonalds.

4. People who don't pay their baby sitters a fair wage. If the teenager played with and kept your little ones safe all day long, PAY them what they deserve. $20 should be the tip. Again, if you can't afford to do that, STAY HOME.

5. People who take babies to the movies. Refer to last sentence in #4.

6. Buffets. I call them Buf-fats. Perhaps I am really just irritated at how I have no self control when we go eat at the buffats.

7. Skinny weak girls. Put a little muscle on it, honey. Being skinny is useless if you can't run a mile or lift a bag sugar. A real woman has curves and muscle mass.

8. People who grow old but don't grow up. I work with a few. You irritate me. Of course this is coming from someone who wears Hollister. Darn it, I irritate me.

9. Adults who are mean to kids. I teach kindergarten twice a week. They are noisy and needy. I totally understand how annoying they can be. However, I love that about them. I laugh at how they can get under my skin one minute and fill my heart with love the next. If you are just simply annoyed then don't be around them. They won't miss you. They know you don't like them. They have great intuition.

10. People who don't have the courtesy to reply when I send them a text message or email. You are just rude and you irritate me.

I feel much better now.

Six Tunnels Half Marathon - Boulder City, Nevada

This was our first half marathon together. Usually, we do 5k and 10k. I've done about 20 halfs and this was Greg's first. We went with our friends Nancy and Ingrid Gubler. I really enjoyed this run because it was mainly on trail; dirt and sand. I know that sounds harder which it is. Additionally, there are tons of hills so you have long stretches of uphill and downhill...so my hips are sore, which they usually are not. Greg prefers to run pavement so this is not going to be among his list of favorites. There was also wind gust throughout the whole run which blew sand in my mouth, eyes, ears, and nose. Nevertheless, I love that I did it. While running the last exhausting mile I kept telling myself, "You can do hard things, you can do hard things, you can do hard things."