MARATHON #2: COMPLETED!!

So...Thanks to Kyndra Dalton, I've completed my 2nd marathon! She was the one that got me started on the whole thing, since I swore I would never run one after my first one six years ago. Absolutely NO desire. Kyndra trained with me through the hardest part and was unfortunately not able to finish training, but without her, there's no way I'd have even considered running another one. Plus, you can talk about a lot of things for a couple hours during a run, so that was the best part of it all. I fully expect to see you running in Newport 2009 Kyndra!



This one's kinda dark, but we drove up to Newport on the coast of Oregon and got all checked in for the race. I started getting a little nervous at work that day, and that night when I was coming out of the registration area, I tripped up the stairs... not sure how one does THAT. Wouldn't that have been a bummer...the night before, I break my ankle and can't run...lol...SOMEONE was watchin' out for me. :)



Okay, so the dude in the navy blue long sleeve shirt, out in front of everyone....he set the course record and ran a 2:22 time. Insanity is what that is. Running 26.2 miles is crazy as it is, but in 2 hours and 22 minutes. Whoa. What a stud!



That's a nervous smile if you couldn't tell. I was more nervous to run a marathon then I was to get married. Well I wasn't nervous to get married at all, so I guess that's not a good comparison, but I was REALLY nervous for the run. Which was weird. I surprised myself with how nervous I was, but after I started running, it all went away really quickly.



That's me! So the guy in the glasses right in front of me...he's in a later pic, so stay tuned...
The first few miles were through town and then at about mile 4 we were off onto this road that just lined the coast and it was so beautiful. There were even people running with cameras, taking pictures as they passed.

This course was a there-and-back course, which was awesome!! At mile 15 we turned around and headed back. Dallas met me at that point and had my family in CA on speaker phone to cheer me on. Then he gave me some much needed Ibuprofen, which I proceeded to drop everywhere. Still, without walking I got it all together and continued the race! :)



So here's the guy in the glasses. If any of you know me well enough, you know when I'm hurt or working out, leave me alone because I get a bit irritable. I know...I'm working on it because I shouldn't get that way, but that's how it is for now. So, throughout the run, there was only one thing that bothered me. This guy with the glasses in the picture above. For the last 7 miles or so, he would run up ahead of me really fast, then stop and walk, then I'd pass him, then he'd run up ahead of me again and do the same thing. I almost wanted to say, "Dude, if you're gonna run a marathon, RUN it, walking and then running isn't that much easier on your body." But, my parents have taught me patience and people skills, so I kept my big mouth shut. He helped me realize how important it is to just focus on "your own game" and let it go...which I did.



So here's the best part!! Finishing! Miles 17, 18, and 19 were pretty rough for me, but then a really nice guy started running with me at mile 20, so chatting with him got my mind of my hips and glutes locking up. Then the last few miles took me longer than I would've liked, but overall, I finished without walking and had a great experience and learned that it is okay to have fun while competing. Something that was NEVER something I would've EVER done before. I've been extremely competitive my whole life, so it's always a head game for me. But, I've learned there really is more to life and competition than beating other people, being the best, or being frustrated with less than ideal performance. I didn't run as fast as I would have liked, but the overall experience was awesome and I got to spend time with Dallas and the Daltons on the coast afterwards, which was great!


I would totally recommend running a marathon to anyone. Seriously. If you can run 3 miles, you can run 26.2. Just start slow and go from there. Training is obviously key, but it's not that big of a deal. Once you get out there running with 700+ people you are just like the rest of them. As I was running, I was thinking, "I don't think Heavenly Father made our bodies to do stuff like this, we are pushing the limits, don't you think?" Then at the end, this 70+ year old man crossed the finish line and the announcer said that he had just finished his 425th marathon. Are you kidding me? AMAZING is all I have to say about that. Absolutely AMAZING.



Dallas, being the wonderful husband he is, pampered me at the finish line with roses and a bottle of sparkling apple cider, (which everyone thought was wine) :). Asher is sitting next to me in this picture enjoying his goldfish crackers. (He's gonna grow up to be a hottie). Notice my sweet triangle tan on the inner part of my elbow. This is the best part of training...lol. I have the best tank top and shorts tan, and these little triangles on the inside of my elbows from keeping my arms up when I run. The ipod armband tan is pretty sweet as well.



Here are just a few pictures of the coast. They don't do it justice, but the view was amazing throughout my run.



Four and a half hours of this weather. Who could've asked for a better day to run on. I am grateful for my health and that God has blessed me with a mind and body that allows me to do great things. Without His help, I wouldn't have finished. It really is amazing to be surrounded by so many fit people with such great and positive attitudes.
So, after a couple of days rest and a nice massage, I should be good as new!

Camping with the Masse Clan!

Dallas and I went camping last weekend with the Masse clan. We had so much fun. I overpacked of course, but didn't really realize it till I saw that Brian and 4 of his kids packed about as much stuff as Dallas and I did for one night. Pretty funny. Here we have Devin on the left, me, Natalie and Camdeyn. I don't know many kids that are more well behaved than the Masses, that's for sure!



Camdeyn is absolutely hilarious. This kid was cracking us up the whole trip. He's in my Sunday School class and is this quiet, reverent child, and then you get him in the wilderness with a few sticks and he's a complete chatter box, which we loved!!



This is Dallas.



Our tent is on the right. Lol. Devin sacrificed for the rest of us and slept like a real man out on the ground with a tarp covering him. I absolutely LOVE camping, but I absolutely HATE having to get up in the middle of the night to get out of my warm mummy bag to go outside and go to the bathroom in the cold middle of nowhere. If there was a better way to handle that slight detail, camping would be that much cooler.



Here we have the Pyro section. Devin and Brian like to make fires.



Trying to be a chipper morning person...sort of. Guess I need to start practicing for Girl's Camp, eh?



Some complete LAMOs left their nasty trash out for the beasts in the wilderness to devour. C'mon did they really think a tied garbage bag out there wasn't going to attract anything?



So, being the good kids they are, the Masses led the pack in cleaning up the trash.



TA DA!!



Devin, with the new Do I gave him on the left. Us trying to fit everyone in the picture (through a foggy lens) on the right.



Cam Man was tired on the way home, if you look closely, you can see his little pop belly. He was all warm in his tight UnderArmor.



This was the first waterfall we hiked to. I love this kind of stuff. I actually hiked down underneath it, which was very cool. I've always thought it'd be fun to live out in a place like this under a waterfall for a SHORT time. :)



This was the second waterfall we hiked to. A pretty steep hike down, but it was totally worth it. The boys were hoping to catch some fish...



Unfortunately, they didn't have much luck. But, it was a great time out there anyway.

My sexy feet

I know, probably more than you care to see, but I just thought it was cool. My 2nd toenails on both feet started to die right around my 15 mile runs. The one on the right had a sweet blister behind the toenail that pushed the nail out and I guess that's what killed it. So, I've not polished my toes for the last few weeks, which does bother me, but I guess that's the price you pay for running. I think it was Erica Graves in high school that told me I have turtle toes....it really is fitting, don't you think? I've got some nice scars, callouses, blisters, and sausage looking toes from being broken. Soccer and running aren't that conducive to feminine feet I suppose.



This is a tribute to the best pair of shoes ever. If any of you think it's not worth it to spend $55.00 on a pair of flip flops, I will fight you to the death. (Well, at the time, my mom broke a pair of mine, so we split the cost, and I guess I only paid $22.50). But still. These Reef sandles are the best pair of shoes ever. I've had them for about 6 years and not only did they meet my shoe height requirement of at least 3 inches, :), they were so comfortable, never gave me blisters, and despite all the times I tripped over myself, they never broke or stretched. However, they now look completely gross and need to retire. I found the pair on the right at Ross for $12 bucks and although they aren't quite as tall or comfortable, I'm hoping they will replace my old ones rather well. However, I will miss the originals. I still can't throw them away yet.



Now to the more important things in life. Kyndra and Drew are the best. We hang out with them all the time and this was just a random Sunday with the Dalton family. Asher and Ruth are super cute and oh so smart!!! They make us laugh all the time and we are grateful to have such great friends!



I love this picture. Dallas is a total natural with kids, it's really fun to watch.



This is Ruthie trying to wear Dallas' Longhorn's hat. I think she's the cutest little girl ever.


No wonder their kids are so cute!!!!

Quick Trip To Seattle!!

I just realized while posting this, that we didn't get very good pictures here. We stayed with Doug and Elisa Tehero and didn't even get a picture with them....lol. Sorry guys. :) We'll just have to come back up to hang out you guys and sweet Kayla. We headed up to Seattle for Fernando Mladineo's wedding and decided to have the Tehero's show us around a bit Saturday afternoon.



We totally had front row seats for this one! Dallas and I were standing right in front of where they throw the fish at Pike's Place in Seattle. When someone orders something, they throw fish to each other to package it. This dude threw a huge fish over some ladies head, and then the guy that caught it through a stuffed fish out into the crowd which freaked us all out. It was pretty awesome.


Fernando and Diane got married in April, but had their Seattle reception a few weeks later. Sorry we didn't get better pictures of them, but we got some nice pictures of their decorations. :) It was so great to see them and how happy they are together. We had a really good time at the reception even though we accidentally showed up an hour early...



What a hottie!



I love their cake! I decided that the only bummer about being the first of most of my friends to tie the knot is that I didn't have as many people to copy good ideas from. Don't get me wrong, our wedding was by far the best I've ever been to, but in the last 4 years, I've seen some great ideas that I would've loved to have used at my own reception. Hence, the picture of the cake. The brown and blueish teal was a great combination as well!



This look says, "I'm not amuzed...don't talk to me till I've eaten." :) Brie, you can relate to me on this one right??? :)



This is Dallas taking the first bite of our TEXAS style donut we bought in Seattle. It tasted gross, but we'd never seen a donut that big, so decided to fork out the 4 bucks for a picture.



Even Toby wasn't impressed.


Girls Weekend...with Dallas!




Brie and Brooke came up the last weekend in March for the tail end of their spring break and we had a total blast hanging out with them. (This makes two visits in three months--woohoo!)



This is me being excited.



Unfortunately we don't have as many pictures as we should of our fun times, but this one will go down in history. All of us went to get pedicures, (yes, even Dallas) and at the end, Brooke and Dallas decided that he should get HOT PINK polish instead of clear. And then, of course, he had to get some green palm trees to match the nail art that the rest of us got. It was hysterical. All of the women in the salon were laughing and wishing their husbands were as cool as mine! Yeah baby!



After pedicures, we went to Home Town Buffet for old time's sake. The pineapple here was phenomenal!



Dallas and Brooke were cracking us up the entire time. I love this picture, you can tell Dallas is chuckling and Brooke is about to take a deep breath from laughing so hard.



Ahh...this reminds me of when Dallas came home with me for Thanksgiving about 2 months after we started dating and Brooke was only about 8 and said, "Dallas, will you be my brother in law???" Way to go Brookie!

We had a fun filled weekend playing the Wii, going to movies and just goofing around. We always love it when the girls come to visit!

Taiwan Rocks!!

I just wanted to link to an article about the 100th congregation in Taiwan.  Having been a missionary in Taiwan, it delights me to see the gospel continuing to go forth and grow so quickly.  I sure do miss being a missionary, but I'm comforted knowing that there are great, capable people still doing the Lord's work in the country that I love.  Here's the article below:

MINGCHIEN, Taiwan /21 May 2008/

The Pacific island of Taiwan now has 100 congregations of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Last month Mormon officials organized the new Mingchien Branch (small congregation) by dividing the larger Nantou Ward (large congregation).

Mingchien is a small central Taiwan town that sits in a scenic agricultural valley. From Taipei in the north to Kaohsiung in the south, the 100 congregations of the Church serve a total Latter-day Saint membership approaching 50,000.

The first handful of Mormon missionaries arrived in Taiwan in the late 1950s and began establishing the Church from scratch. One of the early Mormon missionaries to serve in Taiwan was Gerald Walker, who arrived on the island in January 1959. He is now back in Taiwan and, with his wife, Christie, directs the operation of the Church’s Taipei Taiwan Temple.

Members of the Church’s 100th congregation in Taiwan gather following organization of the Mingchien Branch. 

“When I was here as a young missionary, I don’t believe there was one member of the Church in the area where Nantou and Mingchien are located,” he says.  Walker notes that he and 40 other missionaries were thinly dispersed throughout the 36,000-square-mile island (about the size of Indiana).  There were just five scattered congregations organized then and about 600 Latter-day Saints. The young missionaries were often assigned to lead the congregations.

Today all lay ecclesiastical leaders of the Church in Taiwan come from the ranks of the local members.

The town of Mingchien is a 40-minute ride on public transportation from where the Nantou Ward meets, so the formation of the new congregation is welcomed by Church members who live in and around Mingchien.

“Having a large enough core of faithful Church members to begin a branch in Mingchien makes it much easier for the members to attend our services,” says Chen, Chu-huang, the newly assigned branch president. Adds his wife, Chen, Mei-shia, “We will do our best to make the congregation a warm and friendly place so that new members will join us and we will grow.”

Grow is what the Church has been doing in Taiwan for over 50 years now.  The establishment of the 100th congregation in Mingchien is proof of that. 

Now That's a Fish!!

I've been meaning to post these pictures since January, but haven't gotten around to it. This is Ashley's Grandfather Simmons. He caught this fish back in the 80's and I believe it was a lake record, maybe a state record? I'll have to double check. But catching a fish this size would be a dream come true! Just look at the size of that thing!!

Tribute to Sam Richardson

I think everyone has an acquaintance that seems wise beyond their years. So in posting this, I want to pay tribute to an old roommate of mine by the name of Sam Richardson. I was going through some old pictures the other day, and nearly died laughing when I saw this. Fernando (maybe it was Chris) put this educational piece on evolution together, so we could partake in Sam's wisdom. Sam (as well as Morgan) always had advice for us young 21 year olds that overtook their apartment in the fall of 2002. I have no idea where Sam is these days, or what he's up to. But I wish him the best. I'm sure I speak for all our roommates when I say it was good times all around when Sam was around.

The First Snow of... Spring?

I thought that after Spring started, we were supposed to have gorgeous sunny weather!  Since last Thursday up through this past Monday, ever morning I woke up to snow on the ground.   Oregon has some beautiful weather and some very unpredictable and odd weather as well.  Today for example, is completely clear and sunny.  I wouldn't be surprised at all if it was snowing again by the 12:00 noon.  Anyway, I don't even remember Utah ever having snow after Spring started.  But here's something I didn't tell you...  I love the snow :)   I was born with Wyoming blood and the colder it is, the better I sleep at night.  But I also love Spring, Fall, and Summer weather.  But there's still something about a nice chilly night that doesn't compare to any other weather during the year.  Ashley on the other hand, is from California.  Here blood is definitely "Cali Girl" blood.