Races

This spring, I signed up for my first marathon, the Utah Valley Marathon (June 9), and in April I ran two half marathons. Last year was the first time I ran more than one half marathon in a year, so two in two weeks felt a little crazy. My girls are starting to get used to packet pick ups and looking for mom at the end of the race. 

My first half marathon was the Salt Lake City half and packet pick up was at the Gateway mall. It was a longer drive than I usually subject my girls to, so after waiting in line and verifying that the KT tape people were not there, I let them play in the fountain outside.

 Anna loved getting wet, but Evie wasn't so sure. At one point, I looked up to see her crying and I think a squirt of water had hit her in the bottom and surprised her. She was back out there running around soon after, but she did her best to avoid contact with the water.

Knowing that I was running a half the very next Saturday, I tried to run this one at a more comfortable pace. Dawn, one of my running buddies, ran it with me and I think I talked her ears off. There is something about a race that almost makes me giddy with excitement. The race took us right by J.E. Cosgriff Memorial Catholic School where I used to teach and I even saw some parents of one of my former students in the crowd. It felt like a trip down memory lane. Our husbands drove up together with the kids to meet us at the end. Part of the fun of running a race is seeing what Dan dressed the girls in. Most of the time I don't think he even combs their hair, so the hair styles are usually a bit interesting too.

 squished into our car, as we drive over to pick up Dawn's car

The day before, on our way home from packet pick up, I had promised Anna that we could stop at Beyond Glaze on our way home to get a donut. After carbo loading the day before, a donut didn't sound that great anymore, but Anna has a good memory and we used the promise of a donut to lure her away from the bounce houses and the other exciting stuff there at the end of the race.

I was in serious need of some protein after the race, but my only choice at the donut shop was a maple bacon donut. I have to say that it was amazing! I'd go back anytime for that one.

The next Saturday I ran the Thanksgiving Point half with my other running buddy, Kerstin. I hoped to run this one a bit faster and we did, but that was a much harder race due to all the ups and downs along the golf course. I wish I had run that one easy and just enjoyed the flowers and tulips for the tulip festival, but I still had a good time (even if I don't have any pictures to prove I was there).

Hair Styling

A few days after we went to the zoo, I found Anna in her room cutting up a piece of paper. The idea of her playing with scissors while I was off doing other things, seemed dangerous. So, when she set them down, I picked them up, slipped them into my pocket, and went back to cleaning up the breakfast dishes. 

Just a bit later, Anna came to me and said, "Mom, I was playing with scissors and I set them down and now their gone!" Laughing, I took them out of my pocket and told her what had really happened. Of course, she demanded them back and I let her have them.

I love it when my kids get along, but when they play too quietly, they are usually up to something. That was one of those Monday mornings when I was trying to get a lot done and so it didn't occur to me at first that they were playing quietly. Then when it did, I enjoyed it a little too much and tried to get more laundry done. Finally, I realized I had better go see what had captured their attention so completely. 

When I went into Anna's room she said, "Mom, I'm practicing for when I'm older and I cut hair for my job."As the words were coming out of her mouth, I noticed the pieces of hair piled neatly in one of her toy boxes.

So during Anna's gymnastics class, I took Evie to Cookie Cutters to get her hair fixed as much as possible. Mostly Anna gave Evie a trim, but she also chopped off a few pieces on top that are still growing back.

Evie's hair before her sister helped her out with it on April 13, 2012.

Right after Anna cut it (April 16, 2012). She's crying because I pulled her out of Anna's room and not because Anna cut her hair or because I screamed at them. Actually, I don't remember what my response was, but I know I didn't go too crazy.

Evie with her new bob.

April 4, 2012

Before Anna decided to play hair dresser, her hair was past her shoulders, so we were experimenting with all sorts of different hairstyles. This time, I gave her a few little knobs all over her head and then at the end of the day, she had lots of fun curls.

April 13, 2012

Her hair was long enough for me to French braid her hair around her head.

When she decided to cut her hair, she grabbed her little ponytail and snipped it off, so that meant that the rest of her hair had to be cut short too. Since Anna often asks me to take her to Cookie Cutters, I didn't want to take her there. That would be like a reward. So I called my friend, Melissa, and she agreed to come cut Anna's hair at my house.

Anna's new bob. 

Anna asks me every day if her hair is getting longer. I'm not sure she realizes that she's the reason why it's short, but I think she misses her longer hair.