One more until the big 3-0!!

I can't even begin to thank all of you for your thoughtful, sweet comments yesterday. All of your comments seriously made my day and made me feel so special. I feel overwhelmed to have so many good, kind, considerate people in my life. Thank you for taking the time to write something and for thinking of me. It meant a lot to me. And a special thanks to my sister Katherine for making it happen, you truly are one of the most giving people I know.

So I'm the big 2-9. Truth be told, this was one of my best birthdays. I love the idea of being 29 and honestly being 30 sounds even better. I'm looking forward to being in a new decade. But before I do turn the big 3-0, I made a list of 29 things I would like to do to finish off my 20s. Let's make the most of this last decade right?

Here it goes:

1. Run St. George marathon (only a month away and I'm so ready for my training to be over with).

2. Make blog into a book(s).

3. Visit my friends in Chicago (this month baby! I can't wait!).

4. Move to Cincinnati.

5. Run the Ogden Half marathon.

6. Go on a girl's trip with my HS friends. (Possibly Santa Fe April 2012)

7. Run the Halloween or Snow Canyon half marathon, can't decide which one or both???

8. Finish reading the Book Of Mormon again.

9. Hang out with my family as much as we can before the big move.

10. Learn to love Cincinnati.

11. Read more often and watch less TV.

12. Write in my journal more consistently.

13. Finish cleaning out our backyard and put in more grass.

14. Take more time to play with Charlotte.

15. Eat healthier.

16. Write hand written cards and thank you notes to loved ones.

17. Call friends more often.

18. Paint my dining room table.

19. Learn to make homemade bread.

20. Print more pictures and put them in albums.

21. Start thinking about having another baby...thinking, not making any promises friends.

22. Take a trip ALONE with Mike somewhere.

23. Visit the temple more.

24. Make a quilt out of all my race shirts that I don't wear.

25. Clean out my house and throw things away!

26. Go on a girl's trip with my mom and sisters. (Hopefully October???)

27. Do my core workouts on a regular basis, not just 2 or 3 times a week.

28. Join a running club in Cincinnati.

29. Take more time to say SINCERE prayers, and listen for answers.

happy birthday laura, you have been hacked!

LAURA! Happy Birthday to you!!

I hope that you have the most wonderful day!

You deserve the best!!



You are a beautiful, loving, thoughtful woman.

You are a patient, dedicated, wonderful mother!

All of us are lucky to have you in our lives!

Please join me in wishing Laura a happy birthday today, share a memory or kind words!

Know you are loved, dear sister!!

Katherine

California Dreamin

Beginning of July the whole Walker clan headed to Oceanside, CA.

It was fabulous to say the least.

The beach, Sea World, Baseball games, BBQ with Mike's cousins, running along the beach, watching dolphins, eating delicious food...ahhhh it was heavenly.

Charlotte loved the water. It was almost scary how much she loved the water. She would have run as far into the ocean as I would let her. She didn't want me to hold her hand, she just wanted to run free and go wild in the water.

(One of the rare moments she would let me hold her hand)

Best family picture of the trip, and of course our lovey is too busy to look at the camera.

Charlotte was so entertained by the animals at Sea World.

But I think her favorite part of Sea World was seeing the Sesame Street characters.

Oh man, that girl loved the Sesame Street characters.

The last night of our vacation we went to a baseball game in downtown San Diego. My mother in-law Carol watched Charlotte so we were baby free for the night. Carol, such a gem and I know Charlotte loved having Grandma Carol all to herself that night.

Having Mike with us, playing with cousins nonstop, warm weather, no agenda or schedule, being with my wonderful, wonderful in-laws; we couldn't have asked for a better vacation.

The week ended all too soon. Take me back.

Thanks Walkers for a piece of heaven for a week!

America's birthday

The 4th of July is easily one of my favorite holidays. It's the ultimate summer holiday and I look forward to it every year. Even though Mike worked all night the night before the 4th, we were still able to do some fun things and celebrate America's birthday!

My mom and I started off the day with a 5k. Although it was a little humid, it was such a fun race. The course was scenic and well organized. If you're looking for a good 5k to either PR or run for the first time, you should check this one out.

My mom is such a champ. Love being able to race with her.

Once I got home from my race we packed up and headed over to Mike's parents' house to swim. Was it overcast and raining? Yup.

It didn't stop us.

Regardless of the weather, Charlotte was in heaven.

I can't tell you enough how much I love seeing Mike and Charlotte together.

Makes my heart melt.

Love this girl.

After afternoon naps, that evening Mike went to a BBQ for work, while I hung out at my parents (yeah, I'm cool, I choose to hang out with the rents). Then once it was dark, and after Mike came home and we put Charlotte to bed, we sat on our front lawn, watched fireworks and made smores on the grill with a few family members.

What could be better for a summer night?

Not much if you ask me.

Although it was low key, it was another great fourth of July!

Kinda sad we won't be in SL next Fourth of July....

but I hear Cincinnati has lots of fun options to celebrate.

Happy birthday America!

Love this

Wow. I really need to do a serious update on this blog. Since the beginning of July it's been go, go go between girl's camp, holidays, heading to California, having family in town and then leaving again to Glacier National Park with my entire extended family. I'm still wiped out from the month. But I'm determined to get updated on this blog. Soon enough. Until then I had to share this quote with you.

"God does not give us overcoming life, he gives us life as we overcome. The strain is the strength. If there is no strain, there is no strength. Are you asking God to give you liberty and joy? He cannot, unless you accept the strain. Immediately you face the strain, you will get the strength."

Oswald Chambers

Don't you love it? So perfect. So true.

I read this on my girl's Kristin Armstrong's blog. You know how I feel about her writing. I simply love her, her perspective, her honesty, her humor, her way of saying exactly how I feel at times. If you would like to read her whole blog post, go HERE. Go ahead, read it. It's so worth your time.

I'll be back with a real update soon!

PAR-TAY

The end of June Mike officially completed his Internal Medicine Residency! Three years of residency flew. I'm so proud of Mike. He did so well during those years, so we had to celebrate his success. I threw a small party for Mike celebrating his end of residency, beginning of his chief year, and matching in Cincinnati for a GI fellowship.

The party was red themed since the University of Utah's (where Mike did his residency) and University of Cincinnati's (where Mike will do his GI fellowship) colors are red.

Treats were given, cake was pounded, pizzas were devoured, and tables were covered with red tablecloths and candy. Good times for sure.

Charlotte as you can tell in the picture below, was ready to party.

Ok so maybe she doesn't look like it in this picture. But she did have a blast running around, and playing with her cousins.

Poor girl, fell and scrapped up her nose. She's still darling if you ask me.

Mike with his sister Stephanie and brother Brad, not quite complete without Jamie!

We had perfect weather ideal for playing in the hammock.

Our little family of three. Such a struggle to get a decent picture. Out of maybe 6-7 pictures taken, this was the best shot of all of us.

Thanks family for coming and celebrating with us! We of course missed the Ericksons and Lythgoes. No party is ever the same without you.

Way to go Mike! Charlotte and I couldn't be more proud of all you have accomplished. You found a way to balance being a thoughtful husband, involved, fun father, excellent clinician, faithful church member, perfectly all while lookin soooooo good! We are so excited for your Chief year and then three more years of fellowship in Cincinnati!

Ragnar Relay

Three years ago I ran the Wasatch Back Ragnar Relay with a bunch of my friends. And although I said in my blog post I would run it again in a heart beat, I remember thinking after it was all said and done I would never run it again. NEVER. So many of our team members were injured (poor girls, they were such troopers) so a few of us had to run extra legs to make up for our hurt team members. The half of our team in my car had no idea what we were doing, no idea what we were in for. We ate poorly, didn't get much sleep, and although I laughed a lot and had fun with my friends, I remember NEVER wanting to do this race again. Ask Mike or my sister Emily they'll tell you.

So when my extended family wanted a put together a team for this year, I was slightly hesitant. I finally came around to the idea of running the race with my family, signed up and was committed. I'm so glad I did. This year running the Wasatch Back was unforgettable and so much fun. Honestly.

Our team, THE WYNNERS, was made up of family members and friends of family members, pretty much full of fantastic runners. We had a girls car for VAN 1 and a boys car for VAN 2. In the first car was my mom, my cousin Annie, my cousin Danielle, two of Danielle's amazing friends. Lindsay who runs for SUU and Cassie who is a natural athlete, my amazing aunt Patti (Danielle's mom) who was our driver and myself. We managed to only 3 three hours of sleep in the 31 hours of our race, but man it was such an incredible experience. Our car was so supportive of one another. We were there to cheer on each of our runners as they came to the exchange. We met each of our runners every couple of miles to cheer them on, even on the second day when we were all so exhausted. No one was injured. Everyone was able to run their legs. We actually had food packed in the car to eat, instead of going to a local grocery store and buying chicken nuggets. (Seriously, what were we thinking three years ago?) It was a completely different experience than 3 years ago. I never once had the thought this time around that I was NEVER going to run this again. I honestly enjoyed every minute this year. We had perfect weather and the scenery was absolutely gorgeous.

I was runner 6 again and seriously loved each of my legs. It was nice to be slightly familiar with what I was running. I felt much better prepared this time around and ran each of my legs with more energy than I thought I would have. And nothing beat being with my mom. I was so proud of her. She did so well on each of her legs. What an inspiration.

Unfortunately we'll probably be moving or have already moved next year when the Wasatch Back is being held, but someday I plan on doing this again. Put it on your bucket list, it's a great experience.

Please friends who ran it before and may not have had the ideal experience, run it again. I had no idea it could be so great.