SURPRISE! It took longer than we expected, but...

We are finally done with these!!! Yahoo!!!
I think it's safe to say that Katie is officially potty trained!!! It took a heck of a lot longer than the other two... maybe longer than any child. It literally took her 8 months. I know there are moms out there thinking, "You're insane!" They're probably right. At times I was so tempted to give up and put her back in those awful diapers, but then I remembered how expensive they are. Katie knew how to do it the whole time but she would have at least one accident nearly every day. I don't know if she would just get distracted or if she was lazy and didn't care. She went a whole week without accidents, including nights, so I took her to do this... Waiting so patiently, and maybe a bit nervous...


She only cried for a minute....

She picked out the pretty pink ones...
That's right! We got her ears pierced. Andy was the one who said she could do it when she was all potty trained. And when Katie met the agreement Andy was the one who got her all ready to go. After the lady gave her a sucker and a "Certificate of Bravery" she calmed down and was ready to show anyone and call everyone to tell them all about it!

I know it seems silly to say this but I am so proud of her for finally getting it down. She does it all by herself and it makes me so happy!

Oh, and if you are wondering about the headband... it's her favorite and she wears it even though St. Patrick's Day is long gone!

I've been busy

Life has been so busy around here that I haven't had a chance to post anything new. I've been doing shows like crazy for work... but it's my own fault. About a month or so back I went to a booking class and participated in a competition with my manager and her down line. She said whoever got the most shows booked before noon the following day got $100 in free jewelry credit. There is a part of me that said, "I am going to win, dang it!" I started making phone calls like crazy and by noon I had 12 shows booked (10 of which were in the next 2 months). My competitive side pulled through and I got a few new items that I "had to have"... Now I'm in the process of doing all the shows. In addition to those ones I've had about 5 or 6 other girls book parties, all of which before July. I quite literally only have 2 days even available to do any more shows. Thanks to all you wonderful hostesses that keep me busy with my business.

I'm down to my last few sessions of physical therapy and I've been given the okay to test run on Saturday. We'll see how that goes and then I'll add training for a marathon in the mix of my busy schedule. I'm thinking I might have to start doing morning runs just so I don't have to skip days of running. But before I do that I have an appointment on Tuesday to see what the orthopedic doctor says.

Now I have to tell you as quick as possible about a few crazy days of last week. After returning from physical therapy and lunch with some girlfriends, I picked up my girls and Brandon dropped off Porter and Mikayla. (Brigetta and Brandon went on a motorcycle ride that ended up being a bit longer than I expected.) Not long after we got home Sammy and Sophia, the neighbor friend, got off the bus. I immediately noticed Sophia's arm was very swollen. When I asked her what happened she basically told me she hyper extended it the night before, but assured me it was fine. I was not about to believe her with the size of her arm and being pretty warm to the touch. I called her mom she came to pick her up. She left her other two kids with me and then around 8:15 she returned with Sophia's arm in a splint... it was broken! (If you're trying to count that's 7 kids ages 6 and under.)

The next day I had already committed to watching a friend's baby. Brayli was dropped off around 7:30 in the morning (I know Emily is gasping somewhere that I was even conscience that early). Well, a little later Ginger needed to take Sophia to the doctor to get her arm casted. She dropped off her two kids and the two kids she watches every day. Life was a bit hectic, but relatively calm considering how many kids were here. (If you're doing the math again that's 8 kids ages 6 and under and then when Sam left for school it was 7 kids ages 4 and under.) It turned out that Brayli's grandma picked her up early and then Ginger returned shortly after. It allowed me just enough time to clean up and get ready for work. It was all worth it when I was lucky enough to be the first person to sign Sophia's bright pink cast!

Oh, and did I mention young women's? Between lessons, girls camp stuff, and Wednesday night activities, I've been just a tad busy. I'm hoping life will start to settle down... but who am I kidding? I've been thinking that for about 6 years!!! Maybe in my next life I'll get to rest.

Jumping for joy!!!

A few months ago I posted about a full marathon idea that Emily planted in my brain. So Emily, Amy, and I registered for the St. George marathon as a team. It's a lottery and the deadline to register was May 1st. We found out yesterday that WE GOT IN!!! I know there are lots of people out there that think I am totally insane... or as I've been told, "Off the record, but what the hell are you thinking?" I don't care because right now I am jumping for joy! I still can't believe we got in. There were 11,000 applicants this year that they said was a record high. Go team runningrocks262!!!

2:22:12

I was quite nervous about my knee before I left for Utah with only days before my race. I felt I had done everything I could and that it was time for the Lord's help. I asked Andy to give me a blessing Wednesday morning before he left for work and put my faith in Him. I know that Heavenly Father was watching over me without a doubt in my mind. I was able to run the whole race with Cindy and stay side by side. My knee did not cause me any pain during the race and we finished in 2 hours, 22 minutes, and 12 seconds! I am so proud of Cindy for this huge accomplishment! She did such a great job and has amazing determination. The girl is so focused during her race she hardly talks or even smiles. ;)

We bought matching shirts the day before and I had to show it off! (Yes, I realize I look like I'm flashing my brother.) After coming home from Kohl's we noticed the security tag was still attached and we had to pry it off with pliers. The green had to show in at least one of the pictures. Great security they have there, right?

Last year I ran this race in 30 degree weather while it was snowing... This year wasn't any better even though it was a month later. It was slightly warmer, but it snowed... rained... and hailed! That's right, it hailed!!! We were absolutely drenched by the time we were done. Cindy didn't have any gloves so I let her borrow mine every now and then. They were wet, but at least they added some warmth. We didn't even stick around for any of the after party (and they were serving HOT breakfast) because we wanted to get out of our wet clothes. Adam was worried we were going to get hypothermia if we stayed in them much longer. By the time we got back home and started shedding clothes we realized how wet we were. All three of my layers were soaked except a tiny part of my shirt where my arms covered it. Wow it was cold!

I'm so proud of Cindy and it was so fun to run this race with her despite the yucky weather! I love you tons, Cindy! I can't wait till I can run another race with you... whenever that will be.

A side note: I thought my knee was back to normal since I felt great and I even wore heels to church today. Later this evening it hurt so bad Andy was carrying me around. We all laughed, but really I'm looking at my stairs now wondering how I'm going to get up them without Andy's help. Yikes!!!

This is how I know that the Lord was watching over me during my race.