Allred Reunion

Last month all of the Allred clan (my mom's family) gathered in Zion for the biannual Allred Reunion. We stayed at an awesome place called Clear Creek Ranch in a beautiful lodge that was actually big enough to house all of us and provide ample entertainment for everyone. We had so much fun for 4 straight days that I don't really know where to begin. I guess a thanks to my Grandma and Grandpa, aka Pooky and Papa, would be appropriate since it was all thanks to them.I love this picture of my Grandpa, because it wouldn't be an Allred Reunion without a horseshoe tournament.

Here are my Grandparents with all the great-grandkids who were there...and this isn't even all of them. The amazing thing is Pooky and Papa have a personal relationship with each and every one of them. They never miss a birthday, blessing, baptism, or anything else important that goes on in any one's lives. They are amazingly supportive.

Our days were spent canoeing, swimming in the pond, slip n' sliding, hiking in Zion, playing minute to win it and other games, talking, doing crafts, exploring, and most importantly spending time with all our cousins and friends. The most amazing thing was even with the kids outnumbering the adults, it still felt like a vacation for all of us. The kids were so entertained and had so much fun playing with one another that in 4 days I never heard anyone say they were bored or ask for something to do. There was also not a single minute of TV, movies, or video games the entire time. I didn't know that was possible anymore, and I absolutely LOVED it. Someone mentioned that one sign of a good extended family reunion is when you can't tell which family the kids are from because tehy are all running around together and will run up to any adult when they need something. That was definitely the case there.

Mason and his second cousin, Braden, who are just a couple month apart in age had fun together and thought it was pretty cool they had the same jammies.

I stole this collage from Whitney's blog because it generally sums up the reunion. Click on it to enlarge.

The the hundreds of pictures taken (thanks, Dad, for being the group photographer) there is not a single one of our family together. I'm not sure whose lap Brynn was sitting on for the wagon ride, but here are the rest of us.

We spent a lot of time rowing around in the "dingy" as Mason called it. It was definitely his favorite part of the trip. We could hardly get him of the pond long enough to eat.

Brynn did not share his love of the canoe.

But she did love the bouncy house Grandma Nancy brought. We hardly ever worried about where Brynn was because if the bouncy house was up, she was in it. And there was no shortage of friends for her to play with.

Mason gave the oversized slip n' slide a try and decided it was pretty fun.

Brynn was happy to give it a try but was quite upset when her swimming suit got wet. Apparently she didn't know that was part of the deal.

I mentioned how the adults had as much fun as the kids did. This was especially true for the big boys. Scott, Chris, Brandon, Anthony, and Jordan channeled their inner child and entertained us all with their stunts down the slip n' slide and canoe swamping.

Another collage of Whitney's that shows some of the boys' shenanigans.

It was a great reunion. Can't wait for the next one.

Siblings

I know I haven't been the best at documenting what we've been up to this summer, but trust me, we've been having a lot of fun. The highlight of my summer has definitely been watching these two kids become best friends. Brynn is Mason's little side kick and is always following his lead. I find myself turning to Mason for help when Brynn won't obey me because she'll do whatever he asks her to do. When she is hurt or sad she will often times turn first to Mason for comfort. A hug and kiss from Mason can fix anything.

Mason has become Brynn's protector. He is always looking out for her and trying to make her happy. If anything makes Brynn upset Mason instantly tries to remedy the situation. This can be helpful, like when Brynn is having a hard time going to sleep and Mason will go lay by her to help her settle down. It is not so helpful when he sneaks chips under the table to Brynn when we've told her she can't have any more until she eats the rest of her lunch, or when Brynn is crying for her binky and so Mason goes and gets it for her. It makes me so happy watching these two love each other and it makes me so excited to see them both love ANOTHER SIBLING just as much.

That's right, Mason and Brynn are going to have another sibling the beginning of next year. I am currently 16 weeks and this little one is due to arrive sometime around January 10th. We told Mason and Brynn a few weeks ago and Mason really wanted to keep it a secret. So we've been keeping it our little family secret that we whisper about when no one is around. My body is no longer keeping the secret very well, so we decided it was time to tell family and friends. My pregnancy has been just like Mason's in that it's been pretty easy and completely opposite of Brynn's when I was sick sick sick. Because of this I am 90% sure this little one is a boy. My biggest complaint has been my allergies which have been worse than ever this year and I was unable to take anything for them for the first 12 weeks. Now that I can pop a Zyrtec when I need one, I am much happier.

We are so grateful and excited for another addition to our family.

Two Wheeler

Mason has conquered his two wheeler bike. Thanks to some wonderful advice and generosity we received from our friends, the Sommerfeldts, it was really easy. You see, Mason has been anxious to take his training wheels off all summer to be like his friends in the neighborhood, but he wasn't quite confident enough on his bike, yet. That is, until his little friend Benson learned how to ride a two wheeler and his mom let me in on their secret. They bought a little bike from DI and removed the pedal system, creating a balance bike. After riding around on it for a short time, it was a smooth transition to a bike with pedals. They were kind enough to leave their balance bike behind when they moved to Maryland for Mason to use. The day we picked up the bike Mason spent about 20-30 minutes riding it down the driveway over and over. It didn't take long before he was able to lift up his legs and balance really well. He then confidently declared he was ready to ride his bike without training wheels. I knew that his confidence would be the key to success so I took off his training wheels and the rest is history. He took of riding down the street and has never looked back. Now if only Brynn could reach the ground on the balance bike like she wishes she could. A huge Thank You to the Sommerfeldts. We miss you guys already.

Fun Runnin'

It was a warm and humid 4th of July morning. I tip toed downstairs and gently woke up my sleeping boy. His eyes popped open without delay. He excitedly climbed out of bed and put on his new race shirt he had already been wearing for two days straight in anticipation for this moment. He found his sweat bands and put them on so he wouldn't get sweaty and tied up his running shoes so he could run fast. He was too excited and nervous to eat breakfast, but tried to force down a few bites of toast to give him energy. On the drive down to the race he reminded Dad that he would run, walk, run, walk, but no holding hands or being carried or he wouldn't get a medal. When the gun went off Mason took off running and ran his little heart out for an entire mile before he crossed the finish line and received the medal he had worked so hard for. He was one very tired, but very proud little boy. With all the races Scott and I have done lately, Mason caught the running bug and really wanted to run in a race and get a medal of his own (the medal was actually the priority). So we signed him up for the 1 mile Freedom Run on the 4th of July with his cousin Rachel Faye and their daddies. I was a little skeptical of Mason's ability to stay focused and determined for an entire mile, after all this is my child who hardly makes it through a parking lot without asking to be carried, but he was insistent he wanted to do it. With Scott by his side and all his other fans along the route cheering him on he did it! He finished in 17:10 which I thought was pretty good for those little legs. Rachel finished right with him and got extra style points for running the entire race with her wand. I was so proud of these two. I definitely feel a tradition coming on.

The Kiddos

While my sister-in-law was in town over the fourth, I hit her up to snap some 2 year and 4 year pictures of my kiddos. I couldn't have asked for more. These pictures totally capture Brynn and Mason and their true faces and smiles. I sure love them (both the kids and the pictures). Thanks Whit!

Wasatch Back

A year ago Scott and I decided to put together a team of family and friends to run in the Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back, and man are we glad we did. Ragnar Relay is 192 mile relay race from Logan to Park City. Each team consists of 12 people divided into 2 vans. One runner is constantly running and then passes off the baton (a slap braclet) to the the next runner. The race spans over 2 days with very little chance for any real sleep, just cat napping here and there. The coarse is pretty brutal basically running up and down mountain after mountain, but it was absolutely beautiful! Our team might not have been the most "trained" or "in shape" but our only goal was to have fun and look good while doing it. At least we had fun. Team Purple Stuff (name is an inside joke referring to a commercial the boys made back in high school) finished in 32 hours. Our team included (back to front L to R) Kevin Flanagan, Kyle Flanagan (practically part of the Hale/Camp family), Scott, Beetle, Tyson Camp, Chris, Whitney, Rachel, Cami Redd, Jennica Redd (both Camp family friends), Kacie, and Karlie Christianson (Kacie's sister) who's not in the picture because she got really sick and had to go home during the night.

Van #1, the better of the two vans.

Why is there no picture of me running the first 7 miles of the race? Oh, because my van decided to run to Walmart and pick up a few things rather than supporting me with water and cheering me on during the run. I then reached the first exchange and had to wait 10 minutes for them to arrive. Oops! Did I mention none of us had done this before and it took us a while to figure out the best way to do things? Once I had a drink, there were no hard feelings. My 3 legs combined for a total of 20 miles, and I loved every second of them.

Scott did awesome in his first ever race and ran a total of 18.1 miles. I'm pretty sure he had the fastest pace on the team and never slowed down at all. Whitney, the birthday girl, was an absolute rock star running 7.5 miles up Avon Pass on a rocky, dirt road with constant dust clouds from all the support vehicles. Not to mention the altitude change she had coming from Arizona. This was, in my opinion, the hardest leg of the entire race, and Whitney made it look easy. Chris ran a literal total of ZERO miles to train for this race. Not only that, but he chose to run one of longest legs that totaled 18.2 miles and included running up a mountain by Jordanelle Reservoir. Call him crazy, but he did it without a hitch. Kacie not only completed her 3 legs, but also picked up Karlie's 2 remaining legs after she got sick, running a total of 5 seperate legs and a total of 21.3 miles. Amazing! This might be the only picture we got of Tyson, Kyle, and Beetle smiling. It was before their first leg. After this pretty much all we heard from van #2 was "This is AWEFUL!", "Who's idea was this?", and "We are NOT having fun". Oh and plenty of inappropriate Congressman Weiner jokes. Despite the bad attitudes, we know they had fun. Thanks guys!

Brandon joined our team just a month before the race when someone else had to drop out. With almost no training he ran one of the most difficult legs that totalled 18.8 miles. Not only that, but he did it all in a singlet. He even had enough left in him to throw in some kartwheels throughout the race. Tyson wasn't about to let nipple chaffing slow him down.

So would I do it again? ABSOLUTELY. This race was like a dream weekend for me. It included everything that I love most. Running, my family and friends, and a great race environment. How cool is it that all 3 of us Hale kids and our spouses were able to do this together? This was the first race I've done with Scott and it was so fun to share this experience with him. I am so proud of him! I think the hardest part for most people is the fatigue from no sleep. We were able to get 3 1/2 hours of sleep on some cheer mats in a high school gym, which was actually better than I had hoped for. For everyone else 3 1/2 hours of sleep was hardly any, but that's more than full night's sleep for me after I work so I was completely rested and ready to go. So, until next time....

Party for Two

Our little Brynnie bug is two! We had a massive celebration to celebrate her birthday, along with Rachel Faye and Whitney's birthdays, and Father's Day (all planned and executed by my mom, thanks mom!). Mason started asking Brynn the day after his birthday party was over what kind of party she wanted and without hesitation she always replied, "Minnie Mouse!". So we had us some Minnie Mouse fun at the party with a perfect mixture of Toy Story for Rachel Faye's "Jessie" party.

Of course she had a Minnie cake. We had a fishing pond with our Mickey Mouse "Handy Fishing Rods". Unfortunately the party we planned for outside had to be moved inside due to rain so you'll notice everything is a little bit cramped, but that didn't stop us from having fun.
One of Brynn's favorite things in her Little Gym class was doing the parachute. So we got a parachute for all the kids to play with. It was a hit.

Here is the only shot we got of the birthday girls together. It was set up to be a perfect picture until Brynn's little toes accidentally ended up under Rachie's dress up shoes and so this is what we ended up with. I think it's perfect. Brynn the typical 2 year old throwing a fit and Rachel, the cutest 3-year-old ever, looking innocent and sweet in the back. Brynn absolutely adored all the girly presents she got including a new doll stroller, doll high chair, princess dress up shoes, and a princess scooter.

(She always keeps her baby dolls naked. I think in her mind she's just being a good mama since if she had things her way she would be naked all of the time.)

Brynn wasn't the only one who liked all the girly toys. Mason spent the next few days wearing princess high heels while he rode around on a princess scooter. At first I was amused, then a little concerned, but I'm pretty sure it was just the novelty of all this girl stuff we've never had before because by the end of the week he was back to being a boy instead of a princess.

Now for my journal entry about 2-year-old Brynn.

Brynn has turned into the silliest little girl. She keeps us all smiling and laughing.

Her vocabulary seems to triple every day, but her favorite words are Mine and No Thanks.

She thinks she is 4-years-old and loves to try and keep up with Mason and his friends.

She does not, however, like kids her own age and becomes very possessive and selfish around them.

She finally had a change of heart and went from a complete Mama's girl to being Daddy's girl and she has him completely wrapped around her finger.

She is still a die hard binky and blankie girl.

She loves playing soccer, t-ball, and basketball with her Daddy.

Brynn is a Troublemaker with a capital T!

I think it's called curiosity, but it sure is a handful.

She is very strong willed and absolutely will not do anything she doesn't want to do without kicking and screaming the whole way.

She adores her brother, Mason. She will follow him anywhere and do anything he asks her to.

It's always fun to see what we will find when we check on Brynn before bed. We find everything from her being naked to having a bed full of shoes with multiple on each foot to finding her asleep under her bed or in the closet. It's no wonder she has never come out of her room. She is just fine entertaining herself in there.

She has no fear.... except of people.

We were worried she was color blind, but she finally proved us wrong by learning her colors.

She knows her ABCs and after months of only hearing her sing them when she thought she was all alone, she will actually sing them in front of people now.

She is very OCD about her routines and everything being the same every time she does something.

Her favorite colors are Pink and Orange.

She points out the letter B everywhere we go.

She loves to take care of her baby, but as mentioned before, she always keeps it naked.

She is a little fishy and loves to swim with absolutely zero hesitation in the water.

Brynn is crazy about animals, especially dogs. I don't know how much longer we will be able to hold off getting a real pet.

Brynn loves to count things and can count to 20.

Looking back I don't mind all the hard work we had to put into her as a baby to get the adorable and darling little girl we have now. We love you Brynn and our family wouldn't be complete without you.

We Tried

Last year I set the goal to do a triathlon every year, but when my tri partner, Stacie, decided to go and get pregnant I wasn't sure who I was going to do it with this year. So when Karli called me up about a month ago and told me she had been training for her first tri and asked if I wanted to join her in the Provo Tri I jumped at the opportunity. I was a little overly confident that my Ragnar training would be sufficient to get me through without any swim or bike training. When race day came I did it, but let's be honest, it was far from a personal best. Karli on the other hand was a superstar and blew me away with how great she did.

So here's the race story.

The swim was 800 meters in Utah Lake. The water was a chilly 55 degrees so wetsuits were a must. Because they weren't using timing chips they started all 300 swimmers at once which was totally insane. Usually swimmers are started in heats of 20-30 people at a time, so it made for a very interesting open water swim. From the start I felt really uncomfortable and was battling with some serious claustrophobia due to my wetsuit, the opaque water of Utah Lake, and hoards of people around me. I've had a handful of experiences in my life when I got horribly claustrophobic to the point of sending me into a panic attack. This was one of the worst and at a most inconvenient time. I was able to struggle through it by keeping my head up while I swam for about 1/3 of the swim but hit a point where I felt like I was on the verge of freaking out if something didn't change so I did the only thing I felt like I could do and unzipped my wetsuit and pealed some it off creating some really nice drag for the rest of the race. I then just flipped on my back and swam backstroke the rest of the way which really helped. Needless to say this was by far my worst swim ever. I'm not at all disappointed that they did not provide a split time for the swim.

I transitioned smoothly onto the bike and felt great the entire 12.4 mile ride, although I did feel like everyone was flying by me. It wasn't until that night when I returned my mom's road bike to her that she informed me I hadn't pumped up the tires and the tire pressure was at 40 when it's supposed to be at 100-110. Once again, not too heart broken about not getting a split time for that.

I haven't mentioned that until this point Karli and I had been about even and were even able to ride some of the bike together, which was fun. She transitioned to the run faster than me and so I was about 100 yards behind her. She took off flying and I was never able to close the gap during the 3.2 miles. The run was the one leg that went smoothly and I felt good about. We both crossed the finish line at 1:34. Overall I had fun and am way proud of Karli and how awesome of did. Hopefully this won't be the last race we do together.

Me, Karli, and her mom who also competed after the race.

This is a pretty scary picture s we'll leave it at that.

Preschool Graduate

It's hard to believe his first year of preschool is over, but it's true, Mason is a preschool graduate.We got to go to his preschool graduation where we were able to watch him and his classmates show us some of the fun things they learned this year. It was one of the cutest things I've ever seen and I'm pretty sure I had the biggest smile on my face the entire time. Mason was concerned when I told him we weren't going to be going to preschool all summer long until I reassured him he would be going back to Mrs. Young's preschool in the fall. Mason and Mrs. Young.

She has been so patient and kind with Mason this year as he continues to learn and grow.

I am so grateful for all she has done for him. Mason and his cousin Kennedy. Nice grin, dude. This is Mason and his "best buddy" Benson. I have loved watching their friendship grow this year. Benson is such a good friend to Mason and we are heartbroken he is moving this summer.

We are proud of how far Mason has come this year and can't wait to watch him continue to learn and grow.