We've set a family miles goal of 150 for this year! That's 150 miles that we have to walk, run, hike, or bike all together. It doesn't count if anyone is missing, which is getting trickier as our kids are getting older! We pounded 3.1 of those miles a couple weeks ago at our local nature center's 5K. Every single one of us made it the whole way with different combinations of walking and running and riding in the stroller. It was a perfect day and a really fun place to run! After the race, we went inside to visit the snakes and Rex the desert tortoise. Rex was having his exercise time, and the snakes were eating! Bonus! And then we got to play at the new playground.  

We have had the most mild and beautiful fall this year! We're trying to live it up and get to the mountains as often as possible to run and hike and picnic. The colors in the mountains are starting to fade now and we're getting them in the valley. It's just a delight.  

Nate and I ran our race! I was so, so nervous, as I tend to be, but it rocked. The weather was perfect - we even got a couple little rain showers. The first three miles were straight up, the next seven were so, so fun - down the mountain on a nice dirt trail. Couldn't have asked for anything better. I did faceplant once, but luckily, there were no rocks around and I just got really dusty and scraped my knee and my elbow up. Then the last four were along the reservoir. So pretty, so fun. Nate killed this race! He was so fast! Fourth in his age group and something like 20th overall. And then he ran back to me and hauled me across the finish line. Just kidding about the hauling, he was a very welcome companion, though. I walked some and ran some during this race, and I felt good about it. Lots of walking during the last four miles. Also, it's worth noting that I totally ate a pickle at an aid station around mile 10, and I liked it. I feel like I get life experience points for tha...

Life has really been coming at us quickly this summer. We've gone a lot of places, lots of people have come to us, and Emmeline has turned from a baby into a toddler. The days are full, and so are the evenings, and so are the nights. And Nate and I are so tired. One day we're hoping this baby will learn to sleep through the night. I just wanted to take a second and make a note of how much I appreciate Nate. He had the crazy idea for us to sign up for a trail half marathon several months ago. Somehow he got me to go along with it, even though I could hardly run down the block at that point. Since then, we have run and run and run. We both trained hard and consistently and gotten stronger. I've remembered that even though I have given birth to five kids and I have the body to show for it, I can still do hard things. I can get up early. I can get sweaty. I can set goals that I can keep. Nate has been so encouraging. More than anything, running has given us a chance to...

We spent St. Patrick's Day weekend in St. George. Nate's extended family had a big birthday bash for his grandparents, which was the reason for our visit. His grandpa turned 90 this year! We got together for lunch at the church and everybody gave life updates and great grandpa reflected on his life. That morning, Nate, his dad, and a few of the extended family ran a 10K. Not to brag or anything, but my hubby took first in his age group, and he works his blinding green socks that he got for a prize. His dad also placed in his age group! Grandma helped Leah follow her dream of setting up a leprechaun trap the night before St. Patty's Day. She didn't catch one, but there was definitely some evidence left behind that one had been there. We snuck in a face paint. We spent an afternoon playing at the park. We did some exploring in the skinnies. And we did a quick hike at Red Cliffs on the way ou...