Papou

By the Roaring Fork River

Maroon Bells

My 7th Grade Rendition

First Tooth!

That's right, my dad, Hudson's Papou (I'm 100% greek by blood) came to visit with his wife Nancy.  We had a wonderful time.  

Day 1: we went down to the confluence of the Colorado and Roaring Fork Rivers.  We walked to a park and pushed Hudson on the swing. 

 Day 2: We headed over to Maroon Bells.  On a side note I've wanted to go to Maroon Bells for as long as I can remember.  I actually painted a picture of them in 7th grade.  I had forgotten the name of them till a friend asked if I had been up to them since I had moved here.  I'm not going to lie, I cried when I walked up and finally saw them in real life.  To make things even better, Maroon Bells wasn't due to open till next week but due to the nice weather it was open early and due to that fact it was free!!  Normally there is an entrance fee to the park.  It was so beautiful, it made me wish I was the one who had found them and had built my home right by the lake, but I guess it's a sight that needs to be shared.  While we were picnicking we heard a loud thunderous noise followed by some cracking and then we witnessed an Avalanche!!!  Seriously I think Maroon Bells loves me as much as I love them.  On the car ride home I noticed Hudson's first tooth!  I had been thinking I saw some white under the gums for days and then wallah there it was.  He's such a sweet heart, exactly on his 10 month birthday.  Since he's gotten his tooth he's wanted to mainly eat solids, so I have to cut everything up really small.  He's a cheerio and water addict!  We finished off the day with some Charcoal Burger and homemade brownies.  Oh yes and there was a stop to DQ in there, and a wonderful rain/thunderstorm when we got home, dear Colorado how I've missed your thunderstroms, it's good to be back.

Day 3:  We did a morning trip to the Hot Springs, it rained a little on us but it didn't really bother us.  

I love my dad!  Sometimes I get really upset that my parents were divorced and I wonder at what might have been, how I would have been different and how our family and our relationships would be different, but then I remember I have my dad, and I love him and he loves me and I'll always be his little girl, even if I didn't grow up the way I wished I had.  I'm grateful for the added importance it's given me on my own family and making it the best possible!  You only get one life, now is the time you have to make the most of your relationships, don't wait for tomorrow, because you just might run out of them!

Race Day

This is Joy and I just before the start of the Deseret Rats Trail Running Festival Race on the Kokopelli Trail, near Fruita, CO (note my tummy, very full of pancakes and alfredo pasta).  I can't find any pictures that do the trail justice!  It was like the Grand Canyon, but in CO, breathtaking and beautiful!!! 

I started the race super strong!  I started to slow down at the halfway point, shouldn't have stopped, but I needed to refill my camelback, after that I got slower and slower.  After the mile 19 aid station my knee (never had a knee problem in my life before, and I've run a marathon, and most days for the past 10 years) kept locking up and would only release after I walked it out.  From the medical professionals I've talked to it seems to be just a type of post-baby tendonitis, runners-knee, which would make sense because my wrists are like a crippled ladies due to similar causes!  Anyway the last 6 miles took me longer than even a normal hike of 6 miles takes me and I was trying my hardest to run them too.  So my time, like number time was terrible, and after an old lady and a plump lady passed me, I started to cry like a baby.  Then I pictured this face

Hudson during the race

and finished!!!

Life is a Gift

Lately I've been thinking about what really matters.

Like the cherry blossoms, I always think of my mission at Temple Square, where I enjoyed two Springs.  If you've never seen the Cherry Blossoms well they are gloriously beautiful but dissapear within a weeks time, usually by some snow or a gust of wind.  They really help me see the importance of this life.  Life is so temporary!  This pic really does not do it justice. 

 So I stole these form this blog, thanks Sister Beller!

I am able to choose to do whatever I want with my minutes, hours, years, my life.  My life, that was given to me by God.  I want to meet Him face to face at the end of my life with a clear conscience, I know I will fail and that's why it's so important to rely on Christ, but man we have to try our hardest to learn, to grow, to really mean it!

The biggest things I really want out of life:
my family
to know God better than I did before I left His presence to come to Earth, feeling pretty far as of late
to love and serve all mankind

I think that's it, pretty simple but not so simple at the same time.

I think it's interesting how little things in our lives can become all consuming and block out what really matters.  Part of me does this on purpose because if I were to overcome this thing that I rather enjoy and isn't really bad(it's just not taking me to my goals), I'm afraid of what I might be hit with.

I want to live the "picture perfect" life, have a beautiful family, life in a beautiful home, have our kids bring their families to see us, serve more missions.   I'm afraid of what I will face, but I know if God brings you to it, He will get you through it.  I feel like our greatest trials are never what you expect though.  They usually sneak up on you until you realize what you are being tempted with or doing is not what you want to be doing!  Anyway I'm glad I've had some time to reevaluate. 


Yep that's me as a missionary!

9 months/Easter

Hudson turned the big 9 months a few weeks ago.  We took him in for his 9 month check up and he has dropped from the 95% to the 85% in everything but his head.  He has become a very proficient crawler and I blame this and his bout with a virus (it was RSV but it never got serious) to his decline in growth.  Hudson figured out his gag reflex during his battle with the virus, and we found that he indeed inherited his dad's throwing up gene.  They both make a loud yelling sound before they toss their cookies.  After that Hudson only nursed for 2 weeks. 

He now pulls himself up on EVERYTHING and even lets go sometimes.  He uses his truck as a walker and anything else he can slide along with him like hampers and chairs.  He says Dada a lot and we are pretty sure he knows who it is.  He's even said up a couple times in order to get up on the couch with us.  That's about it though.  He also loves to hold things while he crawls, he always has, however he found some cylinder blocks and tried to crawl on the hardwood floor.  Whenever he crawled with the pressure on his fingers from the blocks he would make this panicked cry and just couldn't figure out what was causing the pain but wanted me to remove it.  Finally before bedtime he figured it out and now holds them another way while he crawls.  He also was flapping some hangers yesterday and hitting himself in the face and doing the same panicked cry.  However, when I took them away he cried even harder.  They disappeared during nap time.

Hudson is back to eating with full force, he really loves eating what we are eating, so I always try to  give him a pancake or piece of bread.  Still no teeth but I think I see one barely poking through on the bottom.  We discovered Hudson LOVES dogs.  He laughs his head off whenever he sees one.  He particularly loves big dogs and will crawl right over to them and grab their ears and paws.  It is so tempting to get him one.  The above photo was his first encounter with dogs, Bella.

While on our trip out to Utah for Easter we discovered Hudson can go up and down stairs (first attempt ever), however sometimes he tries to go face first down so watch out!

This is what our roadtrip looked like

yes TJ is wearing my sunglasses shhh!

This is what Springville looks like this time of year

 Some cousin time, yes Hudson is 10 months younger than his cousin Vince an weighs about 2 pounds less.  Vince who was a good sharer did not take this well and proceeded to take away all of Hudson's toys!

 The woman of the hour Lydia Liberty was blessed in a dress that was my moms.

Next we headed up to Salt Lake to see TJ's side of the fam

 we checked out the new city creek center, (I was so looking forward to living there when that finished:-()  You  may remember me posting this video, I couldn't find my post about it, it may have been on an older blog, that's how long I've been waiting, since my single days.  It was super nice!!  I ended up with 3 new shirts so exciting!

 I missed photos of most of our fam whoops!
 The morning we were packing up I found this:

Oh yes I neglected to mention that if there weren't other children around Hudson developed separation anxiety and shyeness, it was cute but so unlike Mr Socialpants (normally I have strangers trying to hold my child as Hudson draws them in with his captivating smile and his twinkling eye contact).  When we walked into TJ's childhood home it started.  However the day we left he was chasing TJ's dad around everywhere, it was so cute!

In more recent news:
Last night I slept for 12 hours it was AMAZING well I did wake up to brush my teeth and feed Hudson, but for once in the past year my brain doesn't feel foggy.  I think I am going to bed at 7:30 everynight!

5 days ago

5 days ago

I'm also the captain of my Ragnar Colorado team and running a 12 miler Mountain to Valley race here in June!
In reading news:
I read part of this memoir at my mother-in-laws:

Finally got this one from the library:

One of my besties lened me this one:

and my sister lended me this one:

 

because I seem to like books that are made into movies, I promise I have a list of deeper stuff but it will take me a few weeks to get to it!

WTYL!

❤Liz