Long time...no blog

So I've honestly been meaning to blog about our recent trip to California...but I am so so sooooo mad that we forgot the camera!!! I really really tried to get the pictures I took off my phone, but I couldn't get them uploaded on blogger....so if you would like to see some visuals, look on my brother Ben's blog post "Firsts" and you will see part of the weekend. For those who don't mind a post without pictures, read on....

Chad & I both had several days off work the beginning of this month, which I thought would be well spent in California. Visiting my brother's cute family and making the last 3 months of training pay off in a 1/2 marathon. Yeah, thats right. I'm running again.

***side note*** when traveling.....always book hotel rooms @ priceline/hotwire. We got a screaming deal @ a nice hotel!!!

After our 1st night of catching up and bbq-ing, the next night we were on our way to Sacramento...where the American River Parkway 1/2 was. We had a great night @ John's Pizza Co. Where they had a pizza/pasta/salad/dessert buffet, which was perfect for our carbo-load, and tons of games & rides for the kids. It was a really fun night.....Jaden claims the BEST day ever!!! He had a lot of tickets to redeem for cheap cheesy prizes, that broke before we got home.

Saturday...race day. Very nervous runners, wondering what weather we were going to wake up to.....night before was a downpour!! Luckily it was just a little more than a sprinkle. We got to the park in perfect time to pick up all our race junk, stretch & line up! I guess in the 5 years of racing vacation I've had, there have been changes. No more chips? just a tag you can cut off and throw away. Super nice running material shirts, and little bottles with as much goo as you want to take with you on the race. Pretty nice. Anyway, my brother was unsure he would be able to run the whole way, he was planning on walking a bit, but we went at a slow enough pace we didn't get too worn out. 11 min. miles was the average, and we finished just under 2 1/2 hours. Seems crazy huh? With a lot of stretching and good food after we were able to not be too sore!!! Yay!! We were pumped!

So after a fun filled weekend of playing games and eating, we headed back home. It was so fun to play with our California nieces & nephew. We even left with some going away presents from Jaden. :) Megan & I got in some much needed pedicures, and I could not stop holding/queezing/pinching/biting Lanie's cheeks!!! Cute cute kids!!!

Back to Nevada, and time to camp!! Last year we were out a month earlier, so we have been itching to sleep outdoors. Chase & Chad getting ready to 'catch fish'.

If you look close you can see what Chase is fishing for (Bud light). Redneck fishing is what popped into my mind. He'd catch all sorts of garbage with his pole and throw it back in just so he could think he was catching something.


And of course the truck has to go everywhere with us these days. Including his crib when he goes to bed. He'll have 2 or 3 of his favorite trucks/buses that have to go 'nigh night' with him. Usually the horse trailer is full of matchbox cars or other toys.

Happy Mother's Day! After a great breakfast and surprise flowers, we were ready for church & decided to take a few pictures of who made me a mommy. I wondered why Chad kept telling me to move left, right , down....perfect. (yes that's the newest addition)

Chase is never afraid to pose for a picture, but you won't always get a genuine smile!