San Rafael Classic Triathlon

The 4 of us after our race. I love my Tri fam!

It's the middle of another triathlon season. We've done this for 6 seasons now and every season, we get to do something we haven't done before. This year, for the first time, we were able to do a triathlon where all 4 of us competed!

San Rafael Classic Triathlon is held in Huntington, UT- a tiny little town in central Utah. It just so happens to be the same tiny little town that I grew up in. I did this race once before, back in 2009. That year, I just did the sprint distance because I had an Olympic distance coming up soon after. This year, however, we chose to do the Olympic since we didn't have another tri for 3 weeks.

This race was special to me. My children have never had a chance to see where I grew up. I rarely visit. When we left in 1994, we had no family there. Most of my friends have since moved, and since we were living in Idaho until a year ago, it just didn't seem worth the trip. However, now that we are closer, I wanted a chance to show them where I grew up. It was the icing on the cake that this race also happened to have a junior triathlon that my kids could compete in.

Daniel and I registered for the Olympic distance, along with our good friend Melissa (who grew up in Ferron, a neighboring town. She and I attended the same high school). Two of our other friends, Shari and Sarah, registered for the sprint distance. My two older kids registered for the junior triathlon.

I made plans to meet up with one of my childhood best friends, Melanie (Holdaway) Bernard. While she and I were discussing plans, she reminded me that our other best friend, April, might be coming down, since her husband, Jeff, was interested in competing in the race as well. I got in touch with Jeff and April and was beyond thrilled that Jeff was indeed racing. This meant that April, Melanie and I would be able to get together for the first time since high school. We made plans to meet up after the race on Saturday. April also invited us to stay with them, at her parent's house. I think I spent more time in that house during my teenage years, than I did in my own home. Her parents were like my second parents and I was excited to be able to see them again.

We arrived in Huntington on Friday evening. After checking in for the race and getting our race packets, we spent a little time at the lake. Our kids enjoyed skipping rocks on the beautiful lake, and I was caught up in the childhood memories.

The family skipping rocks on Huntington Lake. I grew up swimming in this lake.

When Jayden saw these Great Danes, he said, "Mom, are those camels?" Love that kid!

Daniel, Jayden and Savannah looking over the lake the night before the race.

It was obvious that our swim would be a beautiful one.

 Later on, we headed over to the Nielson's to get settled for the night. On the way, we drove by my childhood home. I showed it to my kids and told them a few things I thought they might enjoy hearing about. We also drove by my old elementary school, the local grocery store and a few other places that hold fond memories for me. When we arrived at the Nielson's, I was so happy to see Boyd and Maryellen again. They were always so good to me. We spent a little while catching up with April and Jeff and then headed to bed to get some good rest for our race in the morning.

At 5:30am, we got out of bed and headed to the race. The little boys stayed at the house with April and her kids, while her husband Jeff, Daniel and I headed to the race. April brought Mason and Savannah over with her a little later so they could watch some of our race without getting up quite so early.

The race was fantastic. We thoroughly enjoyed the course and felt it was well run and enjoyable. The weather was perfect and the water was amazing. There really was nothing to complain about. Daniel's wave started first. My wave was 5 minutes behind his, and our friends who did the sprint started 10 minutes behind me. It was fun to have the waves so close together because it meant we got to see everyone at some point during the race.

When all was said and done, we couldn't have been happier. Daniel took first in the Clydesdale division. I took first in the Female 30-34 division and 5th overall. Jeff took first in the male 35-39 division. Our Saratoga Springs friends all placed in the top 3 of their divisions as well.

Daniel and I after the race.

Melissa Brown, Sarah Smith, me, and Shari Wycherly- our good friends from Saratoga Springs.

As soon as we were done, we had to rush to get the bikes and transitions set up for Mason and Savannah. They were both nervous and excited. Mason was finally tall enough to ride my road bike instead of his heavy bike. Savannah is still much too small, but she sure looked cute on her pink, shiny bike! Both kids did fantastic. They didn't have the kids divided out by age, which bummed Savannah out (since she knew she couldn't really compete with 17 year old boys), but Dan and I couldn't have been more proud of either of them. Mason ended up coming in 6th overall, which was exciting! There were so many kids this year. They really enjoyed themselves and we enjoyed sharing such a fun race with them.

Savannah coming out of the water- Can you believe that grin?

Mason coming out of the water- he swam strong!

Coming in to T2 after the bike.

Savannah on the very tail end of the run- sprinting to the finish.

After the awards ceremony, we headed back to the Nielson's for some much needed food, showers and rest. Our kids were having the time of their lives playing with the Mower's (April and Jeff's kids). After a little while, I got a message from Melanie that she was on her way over. It's hard to describe how great it felt to have the three of us together again. I moved after our sophomore year of high school and hated leaving them behind. While the move was a positive thing for me, and Idaho quickly became my home, I never replaced April and Melanie. Being together again felt like coming home. I love them both so much.

While there is more of that story to tell, I want to post that in a separate blog, complete with pics from then and now....soooo, that's all the girlfriend reunion talk for now!

Saturday evening, we headed back home. Everyone had a perfect weekend. We enjoyed our time together as a family, as well as catching up with old friends. I am so thankful for a healthy body, a healthy family, and the ability to do these things that we love so much. I am thankful that I can share these things with friends, old and new. It truly was a beautiful weekend.

We Spawned a Smarty!

When we first moved to Utah, I talked to Mason's teacher about getting him into the elementary gifted and talented program. Because the school year had already started, the program was full. It is run very differently down here than the equivalent program in Idaho is run. It's a much more extensive selection process, so we couldn't just ask that Mason be put in the program, just because he was in an advanced program in Idaho. Here, the program isn't run by the school. It is through the district (which is larger than several districts in Idaho combined). We were disappointed, but when Mason began to struggle at the beginning of the school year, it seemed to be a blessing in disguise. It appeared that he needed the time to adjust to the move before we added anything extra onto his plate.

As the year progressed and Mason returned to his usual self, we were thrilled when he came home and said his teacher was recommending he test for gifted and talented. He would need to register and take a 4-hour test, administered to all interested students in the district. After the test, he had to have his teacher fill out a referral and recommendation for him, and submit it to the district. Once that process was completed, the district would look over the results of students from all of the schools, select the students they feel would be most successful in the program, and send the letters of acceptance. Selected students attend a magnet school where the program is based and attend classes with the other ACAD students. Prior to him testing, I was told that it was very hard to get into. I prepared him for that, hoping he wouldn't be too disappointed if he wasn't chosen, although I knew he had the potential to do very, very well. I explained that he was competing against kids from other schools as well and there were only a limited number of openings.

About a month or so after testing, I went to get the mail. I saw a letter from the district, addressed 'To the parents of Mason Miller'. As I opened it, my heart sank. In big black letters, I saw "enrollment declined". I (as usual) got a little teary and then opened the letter to read it. Imagine my surprise when I read that he had indeed been chosen! The portion of the letter I had seen first was a different paper, that you, as a parent use, if you choose to decline the invitation to be a part of the program. Then I got REALLY teary! I don't remember ever feeling more proud of Mason. I sat there in my car, crying and beaming with pride. I drove home and presented him with the letter. The look on his face was priceless. I could see that he too, was proud of himself.

 We have always stressed the importance of academics to our children. It means so much to us as parents, that he has learned the value of hard work and dedication to something that will benefit him greatly throughout his entire life. We can't wait to see all that he is capable of as he grows into the amazing young man we know he will be.

Checkin' em out!

A couple of days ago, Jayden and Mason had their annual checkups. Both of them needed shots since Mason is due for his 7th grade booster(s) and Jayden was behind on his immunizations (bad mommy).

Mason went first. He measured above the 75th percentile in height (no surprise) and 50th percentile in weight (nope, not surprised there either). Tall and skinny. This was the exact opposite of Jaxon, who was 50th in height, but 75th in weight. He only needed one shot, his tetanus booster. Relieved that it was much less painful than a shot at the dentist, Mason said he had been picturing a giant needle that they stuck in and moved all around. A little poke was no problem :)

Now it was Jayden's turn. I was a little worried about how he would do with the shots. Jaxon is always so tough and has a really high pain tolerance, but Jayden is such a softie. He cries easily and gets scared. Typical baby of the family :) Jayden measured above the 75th percentile in height and in weight both.  He is barely 2 inches shorter than his big brother, but Jaxon has an additional 25% on him in weight! He was on track for all developmental milestones and enjoyed showing the doctor all the things he could do.

Jayden had to have 6 shots :( He started to cry as soon as they poked him but he stayed still and just got big tears in his eyes. After they were done, he threw his little arms around my neck, buried his face in my shoulder and cried. My poor little guy! The next day, he was very whiny all day and wanted me to carry him from room to room so he didn't have to walk on his sore legs. I tried to tell him that walking would help, but I think he just wanted me waiting on him hand and foot :)

All 3 boys are healthy as could be and Savannah has her checkup today. She's the only one who won't need any immunizations, so it should be a cake walk! It's anyone's guess who will be the tallest kid in the family. The only thing we know for sure is- it won't be Savannah!

"This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you"

Curled up on the foot of my bed, I buried my face into my baby blue comforter and sobbed. My heart was broken. I was all of 13 years old, in 8th grade, and I KNEW that this was the boy I wanted to marry. But he had just dumped me. We'd been "dating" all of 2 weeks. He was in high school *swoon* while I was still in junior high and he was SO cute! I'd even held his hand (a first). He dumped me for my neighbor, who was a junior in high school- with a license! How was I supposed to compete with that? And so I cried. I cried and I cried and I cried. After a while, my mother came into my room and sat on the edge of my bed. She rubbed my back and tried to comfort me. I don't remember the entire conversation, but I vividly remember this one thing: "Honey, you're heart is going to be broken a lot more times before you find the person you're going to marry." I don't remember if or how I responded, but I remember thinking she was crazy because that boy (the only one I'd ever held hands with- I'd still never been kissed) WAS the one. She knew nothing....

I'm sure it took me all of about 4 days to find a new "boyfriend" and forget the hurt that just a few days earlier had seemed so life altering. Looking back, that boy wouldn't even make the list of "Who's Who in Adolescent Anna's Life". Until I became a mother, I never gave a second thought to what my own mom was feeling at that moment. I know that she could clearly see how insignificant that moment would be in my life, yet it's never easy to see your child hurting.

I don't yet have teenagers. Our big hurts are still limited to "he called me a doodoo face" or "She won't sit by me". And yet, as my children get older, and I slowly see the hurts start to grow, I find myself hurting for them more than they even hurt for themselves.

A few weeks ago, my daughter was invited to a birthday party for one of her sweet friends. She was ecstatic about it. We went out and bought the perfect gift, wrapped it, and made sure everything was ready to go. The night before, we had an unexpected late night with family rolling in from out of town, and then an extremely early morning. I was exhausted and laid down for a few minutes. The next thing I knew, Savannah was shaking me awake, "Mom! My party!" I asked her what time it was and she said it was 10:45. The party had started at 10:00. It was a spa party and they were planning to leave for the salon right at 10. For some reason, my phone had been turned to silent and when I checked it, I had multiple messages from people asking if she was coming, if she needed a ride, etc... She had lost track of time and I had fallen asleep. I tried calling but couldn't reach anyone, so she missed the party entirely. She was slightly bummed. I was a basket case. I felt like a failure as a mother. I knew she wanted to go to this party and I had a hard time saying to myself, "It's just a party." And yet, by mid-afternoon, she was right as rain. Why did I let it bother me so much more than it bothered her?

Today, Mason stayed home from school, sick. He had been running a fever and not feeling well for a few days. When I woke up this morning, I took one look at him and knew he should probably stay home. He was all dressed and ready, but it was apparent that he needed to rest. I talked him in to staying home one more day. About 9:15, I got a call from his teacher. She asked how he was doing. I told her he was still sick. She said she was calling because today was the school spelling bee. Mason had won his class spelling bee and qualified for this one. He had been so excited about it, but was unsure what day it was on. I knew he wasn't going to want to miss out, so I asked her to hold on while I checked with him to see if he wanted to go to school just for the spelling bee. As adamantly as he could, he said yes, he wanted to be there. I let her know I would run him right up. We were out the door in 5 minutes flat and he was in her classroom in less than 10 minutes. However, I got a call 20 minutes or so later saying he had arrived too late. They had begun giving instructions already and would not allow him in. Holding back my own tears, I told him I would be right up to get him. My heart hurt for him. I knew how much it would have meant to him to do well. It was something he had been looking forward to. I made plans in my head as to what I would say to make it better for him. I told myself to plaster a smile on and make as light of it as I could to make it easier for him. When I pulled up to the school, he was waiting on the curb. As he hopped in the car, I asked him what happened. He told me, without the least bit of emotion, and then said he was happy to be going home so he could get some rest :) I breathed a sigh of relief. He was fine.

I don't know if all parents get so emotional over every little thing in their children's lives. My guess would be that some are far more rational than I am :) I'm a highly emotional person. That said, I would guess that most parents, particularly mothers, find themselves in these same situations, just perhaps not to the same degree, over things so insignificant. There is something about being a mother that makes you literally FEEL the hurt your child is feeling. You don't just understand it, you actually feel it- and you will do just about anything to make it better for them. Each time I face one of these moments with one of my babies, I can't help but reflect back on my own parents and wonder how they did it. How did they keep it together when we were falling apart? Heaven knows we went through a lot bigger hurts than these (some as consequences of our own choices, some as just part of life). How were they feeling when we got cut from the basketball team? When we made poor choice after poor choice and they had to sit back and watch us face the consequences we brought on ourselves? When our house burned down? When we were in an accident? When someone we loved hurt us deeply? When as much as they wanted to, they couldn't protect us?

My mom and I have talked a little about these sorts of things in the past. She has told me how hard it is to know we are going to crash and burn, but to have to sit back and watch us do it. I'm not quite sure I'll be able to do it quite as well as my own parents. I have a feeling my tendency will be to jump in when I'm not needed, to try and rescue my children when they need to learn to stand on their own two feet. I'm thankful that my parents gave me the chance to learn, to fall and to fail. Because that is how I became me- and I am strong. In these same moments, I can't help but think it must be like this for our Heavenly Father. He loves us so deeply and while He has the power to rescue us from our hurts and pains, He knows that what is best for us is to learn and grow from our own choices, and the choices of others. Sometimes He has to sit back and watch us crash. It must be so hard.

As my children-the loves of my life- grow and make their own choices, I hope I can learn a lesson or two from my own parents and my Heavenly Father. I hope I can be the shoulder to cry on, the words of wisdom, a tight hug, when it is needed. At the same time, I hope I can learn that at times you have to take a step back and let them learn to fly- even though it will mean many falls before they find their wings.

Riverton Chess Tournament

Ever since Mason was pretty little, he has loved playing chess. My dad loves chess as well and the two of them have bonded over a chess board many times.

My dad is a history teacher. One year, my mom made him a beautiful, hand made chess board with the pieces in the shape of civil war soldiers. This set is glass and fragile.  My dad keeps it packed away safely and only brings it out to play when Mason is there. Mason is the only one allowed to play with it. It's a special thing between the two of them. Whenever Mason goes to see my parents, the first thing he wants to do is play chess with Grandpa Scott. They've created many memories this way.

Last year, Mason played in the chess club at Jefferson Elementary in Idaho. They held one tournament and Mason took 1st place. This year, he joined the chess club at Saratoga Shores, but things are a little different here. This chess club has many more players and competes in many tournaments throughout the area, against a lot of other schools. Mason was excited to be able to do this. Unfortunately, the chess tournaments are on the same days as his basketball games, so he wasn't able to attend most of them. His coach wanted each player to attend at least one, and recommended the Riverton Tournament as the one she would most like them to attend. We let him miss one basketball game in order to do this.

Saturday was the big day. Mason was up and ready in plenty of time for us to leave at 8am. We arrived about 8:40, with the tournament scheduled to start at 9. After locating his coach and school, we found his first pairing and he went into round 1. I stayed outside and visited with the other moms. He came out of round 1 with an unreadable expression on his face. He made his way to me and told me he had won his first round! He was so excited! This put him in the winner's bracket though, so the next rounds would be more difficult.

Mason went into round 2 around 10:30 or so. Unfortunately he lost this round. I think this surprised him, since he wasn't used to playing with this much competition. He was pretty disappointed.

One of the boys brought a 4-player chess board. Between the rounds, Mason and 3 other boys would play it. He thought it was incredibly fun, so it took his mind of his loss a little bit.

Round 3 began around noon or so. Mason came out with a sad look on his face and told me he had lost again. He had set a goal for himself to place and get a trophy, so he was feeling like this was now out of his reach. However, his coach pulled him aside and told that since he had been paired up with some high ranking players, if he won the next 2 rounds, he would likely still place. This gave him some hope.

Going into round 4, I was nervous for him. I knew he really wanted to win these last 2 rounds. The competition was stiff though. There were 29 schools and 240 players competing! He came out of round 4 with a smile and a victory. Now he knew he still had a chance to place, if he could come away with a victory in the final round. Mason went into round 5 around 3pm. A few of the other kids came out first and I was so nervous for him. He finally emerged and I could tell by the look on his face that he had won! Now we just had to wait. He had 3 points. But there were a lot of players with 3 points. It would all come down to who had competed against players with higher rankings.


After they did the awards for the younger kids, it was Mason's turn. First they awarded the medals for those who didn't place. We were happy when he was still standing after that. Then they gave out smaller trophies for those who had done very well but not placed. Once again, his name wasn't called. At that point we knew he was in the top 10, but we didn't know where. When the results were in, Mason placed 6th. He got a nice trophy. There aren't many times I can remember him being so excited and proud of himself. It was so fun to be able to watch him. We are so proud of him, and Grandpa Scott made sure Mason knew just how proud he was as well.

Mason's team took 10th place out of 29 schools. Mason's points were a big contributing factor to that. They were very happy to be able to get a team trophy as well. Here's a little pic of the team with their trophies and medals (and yes, we forgot to have Mason wear his team shirt- oops).

Great job Mason! You're awesome!

Parent Teacher Conference

When I wrote the previous post about Mason and his teacher, I knew I was going to be attending parent teacher conference within the next couple of days. I was really hoping that there wouldn't be any surprises.

Last night was the big night. I met with Mason's teacher first. I was most anxious to meet with her because I was hoping that she had seen the same sort of progress that I had, and that our conference this time around would be much less worrisome than the last (it's not that things were SO bad last time, just concerning).

Mason's teacher said that he is doing fantastic! She said he is now the student that both she and I knew he was last trimester. His grades are all As. He is taking initiative to put processes into place for his own success. She was very impressed with his writing skills and said his last 2 papers were excellent. One of the papers he wrote was on goals. He had to identify one of his goals for this year and discuss it in detail. The goal that he chose was getting straight As :) She also invited him to test for the gifted and talented program for 7th and 8th grade. He will be doing that a week from this Saturday. It was all good news!

Next I met with Savannah's teacher. I knew exactly what to expect from this one. Savannah was nervous because she is a perfectionist, so she was terrified that her teacher would have even the smallest criticism of her. She need not have worried. Her teacher raved about her, both academically and socially. She said she is a model student who treats all the other kids kindly. Making friends has not been a challenge for her and her teacher adores her (as do we).

All in all, it couldn't have gone better. I am so proud of my children and their hard work. Nothing makes me more proud than when their teachers tell me how well they treat others. It seems my kids are following my simple motto for success in life:

Work hard

and

Be nice to people

Keep it up kids!

A Teacher's Love

When it came time for us to move, one of my biggest worries was how Mason would adjust. Not only was I worried because he is older, and the older you are, the harder it is to start over- but I was also worried because he is so shy. Mason does not adjust to change well at all. He puts himself to bed, right on time, every night. He gets himself up in the morning and does his chores at the same time every day. He thrives on a constant routine. If you need to change things up for some reason, it's best with Mason if you give him as much of a heads up as possible and prepare him for what the change will entail. He's not big on surprises :) So taking all these things in to account, I was worried for him.

In Idaho, Mason had a huge bedroom, all to himself. We lived on 2 acres and there was plenty of room for him to be alone when he wanted, and to play when he wanted. And his life was predictable, just like he likes it. Then we took him out of that life, threw him into a condo where he had to share a tiny little room with his brothers and no longer had a yard he could go out and play on. He had no space of him own- nowhere he could go to unwind. This is something that Mason spends a lot of time doing.

Mason has always been a very good student. He is in 6th grade now and I've never had to worry about how he was doing in school. As this new year started, I hoped that would continue and I prayed he would get a good teacher. My worries seemed to be justified when I found out that just a few weeks into the school year, Mason's grades were already dropping. He was not turning in many assignments. Sometimes he would even complete them and then just leave them sitting on or in his desk while the rest of his classmates turned them in. He seemed lost. At his first parent teacher conference, his teacher expressed her concern as well. Together, his teacher, Dan and I, and Mason came up with some steps that we hoped would help him. His teacher had clued in to the fact that he was not adjusting well to the move. Instead of labeling him as a mediocre student (easy to do in a class of almost 40), she wanted to do everything in her power to help him adjust and succeed. As a parent, when you see a child's behavior change, and not for the better, it's scary. You can't help but wonder if it's the beginning of a long and painful road for your child. You know that you'll do whatever it takes to get them back on a successful path and to save them from any sort of a spiral downward. It doesn't matter if it's just 6th grade grades- you still worry- and you still do whatever you can to help as fast as you possibly can.

To make a long story short, we moved into our house in November and at that same time, we implemented the habits and routines in Mason's day that we felt would help him to better succeed. By the end of the trimester, his grades were once again up to As.

We are now halfway into the second trimester, and he has maintained his good grades. I have seen the efforts that his teacher is putting in, for him individually, to make sure he is successful. She has truly gone above and beyond her job description and has never treated him like "just another student".

Over the last 2 months, not only did his grades raise, but he won his school Reflection's contest in literature for a poem he wrote, he won his class spelling bee and is now going to be competing against the rest of the grade and school, and he also directed a Greek play for his class and did a tremendous job on that. He is a member of the chess club and one of their strongest players. He has started basketball season and is loving that as well. He is truly a different boy than he was just a few months ago.

Today, when I went to get the mail, I saw a note from his teacher. I didn't even read the envelope to see that it was addressed to him. I assumed it was to me since I am also his class mom. I opened the letter and inside was a Thank you Card.

Here is what it says: "Dear Mason,
                                          Thank you for the delicious chocolates- which were quickly consumed by me and my family- and the misteltoe soap- whose fragrance reminds me daily of you and Christmas! I am so happy you moved to Utah AND to my classroom. I know it has been difficult for you, but I am so proud of the way you handled it and of your successes. You have gained the respect and friendships of your classmates. You did a fabulous job as the director of your team's Greek play, and with your Reflection's poem, and the spelling bee and I could go on and on. You are awesome!

Love,

Mrs. Cook "

This note will mean the world to Mason. He is so sensitive to the opinions of his parents, teachers and coaches. As my children have grown, I have seen that there is such a disparity between teachers. Teachers who truly love and care for each individual child are few and far between- and teachers who do so in the midst of budget cuts and overcrowding are even fewer. I know it's not an accident that Mason ended up in the class that he did. This was one of the many tender mercies we received when we took the leap of faith and made this move. I am forever grateful for those, and for this sweet teacher who has changed my son's life for the better.

2010 in Review...

One of my many New Years Resolutions for 2011 is to keep up on my blog :) I didnt send out Christmas cards this year, which is very unlike me, but I thought I would post here what I would have put in a Christmas letter.

2010 was another wonderful year for our family. We continue to feel so blessed to have each other, our extended families, our friends, and the gospel in our lives. We cannot overlook all the blessings we are given each and every day.




Mason: Mason turned 11 in October. He is in 5th grade and still smart as ever. He played baseball this year, enjoyed a bit of golf this summer, and can't wait to start snowboarding now that the resorts are open. He gets to do ski club for the first time this season and he can't wait. He is also starting basketball in a couple of weeks. He has continued playing the piano (although I dont teach he and Savannah anymore, I now send them to someone else) and has progressed so well. I am so proud of him. Mason is such a graet help with the younger children. He is such a loving, caring boy and his siblings think he's amazing (as do we). He loves to help Jaxon build elaborate train tracks on his Thomas train table. Mason can build them so much better than anyone else. I have a feeling he'll be good at geometry!



Savannah: Savannah (7) is still our busy little bee. On Mondays, she gets home from school and heads straight to piano lessons. She is doing fantastic in piano as well. As soon as the kids are done with piano, we head into Idaho Falls for ballroom. She made the Pee- Wee gold team this year and has loved being a part of that. She recently took 2nd in the Cha-Cha and 3rd in the American Swing, at the Christmas Classic ballroom competition she competed in. She was very excited that she did so well. On Tuesdays, it's off to gymnastics. In typical Savannah fashion, she has excelled here as well. She started off the year at the top of her beginnner's class, and quickly moved into the intermediate class. Within a couple of months, she was moved into the advanced class. She can now do her backhandsprings, her roundoff backhandsprings, and almost has has aerials down as well. She is working on her back tucks, double back handsprings etc. She loves gymnastics more than just about anything. On Fridays, she has cheerleading. This is her first year in cheer and she is loving the heck out of it.




Savannah is the little mother of our house. I'm always amazed at what a little nurturer she is. She helps me with the little boys every day, and they follow her around the house. She is such a happy, lively little thing. She is still our itsy-bitsy girl and hasn't gotten much bigger. We like her that way :)



Jaxon: is still Jaxon :) He had his 4th birthday yesterday. Jaxon is still a big bundle of energy! He keeps me on my toes every day. He is old enough to crack jokes and say funny things and enjoy getting a reaction. Jaxon loves trains. He got a Thomas the train table this year with the wooden rail sets, and he has lived in the playroom since then. He spent half the year playing with the trains, and the other half dumping ketchup, yogurt, frosting, toothpaste and other various sticky things, over them, and running the trains through it all. He collects the Thomas train cars and that's pretty much all he asks for. He sleeps with them, takes them to church etc. He still hasn't outgrown the terrible Twos but I havent given up hope yet :) He is the life of the house and we love that kid! He makes us all laugh every day.




He is so smart and knows all his letters and their sounds. He loves to count, to spell and to learn new things. He also started preschool this year (he gets to be taught by Aunt Dana) and he looks forward to it every day.



Jayden: Jayden (2 1/2) is the little angel of our house. What a joy he is! Jayden walks around with a big grin on his face, always says please, and wants to hug and snuggle everyone, all the time.



He truly is the baby of the family in every way. With his big dimples, blonde locks, and adorable grin, he has all of us wrapped around his finger!




The little boys love playing and fighting with each other. They get pretty rough and beat the heck out of each other regularly. This is a new concept for me as my other kids never tended to do that :) But each of them holds their own, so hey, I guess that's what brothers do, much to their mother's chagrin ;)

Daniel: Dan continues to work for Docutech as the Vice President of Product Engineering. He has been there for almost 7 years now. He loves his job and the people he works for and with. We feel so blessed that he gets to provide for us by doing something he loves every day and working with such great people. We were able to enjoy a few fun vacations this year thanks to his job. In September, as a thank you to their management team, Docutech flew us to San Diego for a few days of fun. We stayed in a beautiful hotel, ate some delicious food and enjoyed touring the USS Midway, taking a Harbor cruise and relaxing and enjoying time with coworkers, away from work. It was so nice of them to do that for us. We recently returned from a 3 day trip to San Francisco. Dan was invited to the year end party for a client of his, so we decided to use a few frequent flyer miles to fly me out as well and enjoy a little getaway. We flew in on Friday, and then got up early on Saturday morning to do a 10-mile run over the Golden Gate bridge and around the Crissy Field area and marina. The run was gorgeous and we both enjoyed the sea level elevation benefit ;) We attended the party that evening and then spent time just not being in a hurry! Daniel also got back to the gym this year after taking a few...err...a few few...months off. He has loved becoming active again and lost 20 lbs. You can find him at work or at the gym pretty much any time of day. He didn't race with us much this year but I think that will be different next year. He has recently found his own love for running and now understands what all my raving was about. It's been nice for us to be able to take long runs together.

AnnaMarie: I've had another busy year as well. I continued to build my photography business and found myself busier than ever. Senior season was a blast and kept me running like crazy, August-October. Seniors are my favorite sessions though so I enjoyed every second of it. And then we went straight into families, so things never really did slow down. I am so thankful for the chance I get to meet and get to know a little about so many awesome people. I also returned to school for the fall semester. I took spanish, college algebra and consumer health. Grades have yet to be posted but going into finals, it looked like straight As. But it would be typical me to work hard all semester and then bomb a final and blow what would have been a 4.0 for the semester. Either way, I enjoyed putting my brain to work.



I continue to do triathlons and running races. I think I did 4 tris this year and maybe 6 running races. It really is a passion of mine and Im so thankful for a healthy, strong body that is capable of doing these things. In the off season, I've been enjoying some time in the gym. I am working with a trainer and focusing on strength training and body composition changes. I'm hoping it'll make me a faster triathlete. I am hoping that 2011 will be the year I complete my first half-ironman. The majority of my time, however, is spent with my amazing kids. I am so thankful to Daniel for providing for us so I can stay home with them and enjoy raising them. I can't imagine my life without that. They are each such a huge blessing to us.




As a family, we are headed to Disneyworld on the 31st. We though it would be a great way to finish off this year and start the new one. It will be the first time we have taken the whole family on a big vacation. The last 2 times, when we went to Disneyland in CA, we left the boys and took only the older 2 kids. This time, we are heading to FL and taking all of them. We can't wait.

Looking back on the year, it's just amazing how blessed we have been. We are thankful for all of you and the part you play in our lives.

Love, The Miller Family
Daniel, AnnaMarie, Mason, Savannah, Jaxon and Jayden.

Well hello strange Blogging world!

I haven't seen you for so long-again. And unfortunately I dont have time to do all the pics etc that I would love to, so here is just a brief update.

Mason and Savannah are finishing up school tomorrow. Mason is in the middle of baseball season. It's his first year of Cal Ripkin and it's been fun! Dan is his coach and they have a great team. They are 6-1 so far and only lost that game by 1 point. Mason got all advanced on his ISATS this year which he was thrilled about. He is growing like a weed and wears the same size shoes as I do!

Savannah is also doing great! She had ballroom tryouts a few weeks ago and made the GOLD team! She was so excited to make the highest team for her age! She can't wait for next year. She is also loving gymnastics and has her back walkovers down and almost has her back handsprings as well. She just had her 1st grade play, in which she was a penguin named Neatly and she did a wonderful job!

Jaxon is busy as ever! He is in primary and gets along well with the other kids. He and Jayden fight and play all day long, sometimes both at the same time. He loves to have one on one time with mom and snuggle a lot. He still loves his blankey and wants to be outside all the time (in Idaho, that's not really practical!).

Jayden will be 2 in a couple of weeks. He is the snuggliest, sweetest boy around! He really is the darling of the family. He love me to sing songs to him and he loves being held and loved. He loves kisses and is all smiles, unless he's fighting with his brother. I am so thankful that we have our baby boy!

I just did my first triathlon of the season on May 15th. It was Irongirl Vegas. I will do a separate blog for that to give you the details but it went well and I had a great time. Our next one is in 10 days in Utah. We (Daniel and I) are both excited for that as well.

Dan is staying crazy busy at work. He is still at Docutech, where he has been for 6 years now. He is always moving up and is lucky to have his head above water right now with all his responsibilities, but he loves his job and we are thankful that in times like these, he has such a secure job.

That's all for now!

First pic with my new lights

My new home studio setup arrived today. It's going to take some time to get used to how to use the lights and stuff, but here is the first shot I've taken and edited with my new setup. It's Mason (who doesnt really enjoy me taking his pictures, so Im glad I finally got a few of him). I'm sure there will be lots more pictures to come in the near future of all of my kids!

Halloween 2009

I do realize it's January. Better late than never right? Halloween, oh Halloween. As always, there is the neverending "What will I be.." debate. This is how it stacked up. As you can see above, Savannah chose a beautiful "ballroom princess" costume. She fell in love with it when she first saw it and I thought she looked splendid. We had a blast doing her hair and makeup and she pranced around each time she got to wear it- at school, at her ballroom party, on halloween. Mason wanted to be a soldier, but I could not find a costume his size ANYWHERE. So we settled on this Army ranger costume. It came with a hat too, but he didnt want to wear it. Nor did he want to pose for any photos, so that's why they are all of Savannah. So as for how we spent our Halloween time...

Let's start with Daniel and I, who had a crazy fun time at Hidee's halloween party. I kid you not, this was the most fun I've had in years! Hidee and Torrie put together and AMAZING, Amazing Race party. I dont know how they did it all.

We all arrived at Hidee's house, in costume. See the evidence below:











Daniel and I got some good laughs. He was (obviously) a Cheerleader, while I went as Octomom, with 8 babies strapped to my belly. Awesome ;)

After we all arrived, we were split into teams of 3 couples. Each team was given an envelope with a code on it that had to be deciphered. While we were deciphering it, one teammate was taken away. As soon as we deciphered our code, we were given a clue and headed out to our cars. The clue told us to go somwhere in Rigby with a beach (Rigby Lake). When we got there, we ran down to the beach where we found mounds of sand with glow sticks sticking out of them. We dug and dug (all the while racing the other teams) until we found a locked box. Then we noticed some twine leading into the water. We pulled the twine to find a key tied to the end. We used to key to unlock the lock box to get our next clue. We got our box and key and heard people hollaring. We headed toward the hollaring to find our missing team member, chained to the playground. We had to use the code we had deciphered to unlock our team member. Then we headed to "the mat". After all the teams were there, we headed off. We had several different challenges, clues. We got a phone number at the cemetary. When we called it, it was a local gas station, so we headed there and had to purchase something that was exactly a dollar to get our next clue. We had to tie ourselves together at the playground and go through an obstacle course. We had to find different addresses before the other teams to get a clue....so many things. At one point, we were all departing one place at the same time, racing, and Tracy backed up, right into a basketball hoop at the elementary, knocking it to about a 45 degree angle. That was funny right there. Because it wasn't me! Anyhoo...long story short, it was insanely fun! We came in 2nd place. After we got back to Hidee's, we had some food and enjoyed being kid free for a while. It was just the fun my boring self needed!

When Halloween night arrived, our kids wanted to spend it with their cousins. Mason and Savannah went trick or treating around Grandma Miller's neighborhood. Afterwards, they went roller skating with their cousins and aunts. I stayed home with the Js, who wouldn't have been much fun at that time of night. Unfortunately, Michelle, Dan's sister, blew her knee out rollerskating and had to have surgery on it! But the kids had fun ;) I wish I could have been there. I felt sad all night that I was missing it but the little boys were not in any shape to be in public that night!

Everyone had such a fun time this year. I am so thankful that we live near family. My kids get to enjoy their cousins on a daily basis. I didnt really have many cousins my age, and the ones I did have lived far out of state. So I am glad my children don't have to miss out on the joy of cousins!

Mason's 10th Birthday- October 30th 2009

10 years ago, my life became so much fuller and greater than ever before. After a long road, a few doctors, some pills, some shots, 1 miracle and a positive pregnancy test (not to mention 9 months of puking 10-15 times every single day), Mason Wade Miller made his debut, 3 weeks early. He weighed 6 lbs 15 oz and was 20 1/2 inches long. He was healthy as could be and insanely beautiful!

Mason was a light in my life from the very beginning. Our lives were pretty crazy and difficult at that time and he was the thing that made each day worth whatever struggles life brought. He was a very fussy baby, but since he was my first, I could afford to sit and hold him, cuddle him and love on him for hours on end. By the time he hit about 8 or 10 months, he had outgrown that and he bacame the most good natured child you've ever seen. To this day, he still is :)

He was smart from the start- at 2 years old, he would identify, "trapezoid, hexagon, pentagon..." One day when he was 2, I went out in the dining room in our apartment and he had a stray cat. He had gone outside, caught it, brought it inside, gotten the milk out of the fridge and a bowl out of the cupboard and poured a bowl of milk for the cat without spilling a drop. I still dont know how he knew cats liked milk (we hadnt ever had a cat since he was born) or how he poured the milk by himself. I took pictures since I thought it was so cute.

Mason was painfully shy when he was little. He preferred spending time with Grandma Miller (who he called Grandma Digger at the time since she had "diggers" out in front of her house) to just about anything else. Grandma watched him while I worked and Daddy went to college. They got lots of quality time together and he loved it.

I still remember "sha-show-yos" (marshmallows), one of my favorite words he used. He loved his little blankey, his kitty kitty and his ducky and watching Barney. He will kill me someday for posting that.

In school, he has always done very well. He loves science and math. He enjoys history now too. He gets great grades and all his teachers enjoy him.

At home, Mason is such a light in our house. He loves helping with the littler kids. He thinks Jaxon is hilarious and loves to play with him. Often when I go to put Jayden down for a nap, he will say, "No! I want to see him! I havent had enough time with him!" Mason and Savannah are best friends and closer than I ever would have expected. They are pretty inseparable and do almost everything together.

Mason is a huge help to me. He is sensitive and sweet. He is funny. I love his laugh and his jokes.

He love playing chess, especially with Grandpa Scott (my dad). He loves baseball, basketball and golf and is excited to start basketball again in January.

Mason had his 10th birthday this year. It's hard for me to realize he is over halfway grown! He is amazing. I am so grateful that he was sent to our family. I couldnt ask for a better son. Here are a few pictures from his birthday party at Leo's place.

Mason, I love you with all my heart and consider you such an incredible blessing to me and this family!

Love, Mom

Carving Pumpkins- October 2009

Another October post. Our family has a busy last week of October, with Mason's birthday the day before Halloween! We squeezed in time for some pumpkin carving. Mason decided he wanted to do a contest- Him and me against Daddy and Savannah. While we both did great, I have to give the prize to Dan and Savannah, who got creative and used a Pillsbury grands biscuit to paint a face on and stick in the mouth of their pumpkin (red paint added no less) to make it look like it ate someone's head. It was pretty funny. Until the next day when Jaxon went out on the porch and ate it, red paint and all :)

Times like these are priceless. We love our family time!

Sickies

It's been a fun week or two!

It started a couple of weeks ago when Savannah started complaining about not feeling well and started coughing. She is so healthy so she didnt say much and it wasn't bad the first few days. On Friday (10 days ago), Mason started complaining of the same symptoms. By Sunday, Mason and Savannah were both running high fevers and coughing like crazy! Monday it was Jaxon's turn. By Thursday it was Jayden, and as of yesterday, Daniel. It's obviously some strain of influenza (swine flu is rampant around here it seems!) so we all stayed quarantined for most of the week. Daniel left for a business trip yesterday and he's feeling terrible. As of today, Mason and Savannah are back to school and doing well, with the exception of that nasty cough. Jaxon is no longer running a fever but he still doesn't seem 100%. And poor little Jayden is just miserable! It seems to be taking each person about a week or so to kick this. I am praying I dont get sick because I need to be able to take care of everyone else.

Savannah also broke out in a terrible rash today. I am watching it overnight to decide if it needs looked at. It's all over her entire body, even her face. She is itching but not running a fever. Im guessing it's some sort of hives, but figure I'll watch it and see.

So here's to health-wherever it may be ;)

First day of School!!!

Today was the first day of school for Mason and Savannah, and a few things have changed since last year. Mason has added a set of spectacles and a tin grin, while Savannah has much less hair :) Mason began fourth grade. I can't believe he only has 2 years left of elementary school! Savannah got her first school lunch today since it was her first day of first grade. She hasn't even turned 6 yet, and she is so small that it's hard to believe she's a big first grader!

They both had a great day and are excited about this new year. Here are a few pictures of the kids on their first day!