Run Forest, Run!

We have enjoyed some track and field this summer. The girls ran in the Hershey meet in Salt Lake. Yes, Reagen is wearing jeans and converse tennis shoes. We didn't know that she was old enough to compete, but when we got there they let us sign her up. She was looking quite hillbilly compared to everyone in their track shoes and little running shorts. Despite the great running gear she was in, she took 2nd place in the 50 and 3rd place in the 100.

Michaela placed in the 100 and 200. She took first in one and 2nd in the other, but I can't remember which was which.

At the end of June, we travelled to Cedar City for the Summer Games. Reagen had caught the "run as fast as you can" bug and was so excited to get to race again. This time we even let her wear shorts and regular tennis shoes.

Dallon ran the 200 and this is him at the starting line of the 400. He and some friends also ran the 4x100 relay. They got disqualified because they stepped out of the hand off area, but they would have smashed the current record. The four of them did set a new district record for our county at the Jr High track meet. I can't wait to see them run in high school.

Remember when I had legs like this? Oh yeah, I never did. Dang.

Michaela did great, also. She ran the 100, 200, and the 4x100 relay with some girls she met at the meet. That's what's fun about track, you make so many friends. No one's goal is to kick you in the head or tackle you.

It was a really great, relaxing trip.

Spring Stuff

I'm playing catch-up today trying to get some of our crazy life recorded before I forget it. Reagen is now missing two front teeth and two bottom teeth. I guess I need to take more pictures, too, because this one's now outdated.

School is now out, but we had lots of "fun" projects during the end of the year. Dallon had to draw up a house plan and then construct walls from cardboard. I was impressed with all the work he put into it. He spent hours measuring, cutting, and gluing.

Michaela had to get this solar system done when I was out of town. I thought for sure it wouldn't happen, but Mike helped her finish it up. Except for the Modge Podge incident (spilled all over the table chair, and floor), there were no problems and it turned out awesome. I guess everyone can survive when I'm not there. Who knew?

Soccer is now over, but we spent several nights a week watching this girl play hard.

And others just played. This is called see how long you can stand on the ball before someone kicks it out from under you.

When it was too cold for soccer, which has been most of the time, there's a lot of this going on. Reagen found Michaela's old Magic Tree House books and loves to read.

We have a lot of stuff planned this summer and hopefully I'll have it posted before Christmas!

mama's day & 5 x 12

What's better than sweet homemade gifts from the kids? Thank goodness for teachers at school and primary teachers that take the time to help the kids make cute mother's day gifts. They melt your heart and make all the crazy days of motherhood so worth it. The little hand-print poem always makes me tear up. A good reminder that there won't always be little hands around making messes and leaving fingerprints on everything.

I didn't get a picture of the family for the month of May, but I got this picture of us with my cute grandma Jane on Mother's Day. She's everything a grandma should be. She never forgets a birthday or anniversary, she is super nice to EVERYONE, and she always has ice cream or cookies to offer to anyone that comes to her house.

Finally Twelve

In April, Michaela finally turned twelve. She had been counting down the days for several months. She invited a few friends to go to "Jump On It" in Lindon. It's a great place for tweens and teens to get out some of that crazy energy they seem to have. Although, based on the ride home with these girls, they still had plenty left over.

Michaela is not doing the birthday dance here, she is actually trying to follow the fishing line that was wrapped around every tree in the yard to lead to her present. She got an ipod touch.

She requested a cake with cherry and chocolate frosting and she's such a

chocolate lover that we decided to add a few extra sweets to it.

Michaela has grown up so much in the last year. Here's a few highlights:

• She buys her clothes from the girls section now...well, mostly, she still loves the long basketball shorts.
• She got to graduate from Primary at church and come into Young Women's. I think she was most excited about that.
• She has so many girlfriends and loves sleep-overs, going to the movies, and playing night games with these friends. She texts like a mad woman keeping in touch with them all.
• She's a big sweetheart and almost always has a big grin on her face. (there are those moments she's a little pouty, but I guess that comes with the age)
• She inherited my chocolate gene.
• She did awesome in school this year and LOVE'S to read.

Spring Break

Spring Break was over a month ago and I felt pretty guilty because Mike and I had to work almost every day they were out of school. To try and make up for it, and to keep them from doing stuff like this, I took the kids into the Living Aquarium one day.

Is this a hillbilly sleighride or what?

They loved feeding the sting rays.

2 Down, 10 to Go

Remember how I am taking one family picture a month, for a year? Well, I am and I haven't failed yet. Here is our April picture. It was on Easter at Debbie's house. Yes, Mike has on his ugly crocs, Michaela doesn't even have shoes on, Dal needs a haircut, and no, we don't match, but we did it! (I'm not sure why I feel the need to point out everything wrong.)

Easter 2010

The Hunt!

And they're off and running.

Monster eggs.

The annual "kids on the porch" picture.

Nana and the cute little girls.

The Baird Fam.

The Durfee fam.

20 mph club

I'm proud of this kid, er... I mean young man. In April, he joined the 20 mph club at TOSH. He can definitely out run me now. He had to maintain 20 mph on the treadmill for six seconds. When he was done, I think I was sweating more than he was. I was just imagining him getting flung off the treadmill and his skinny little body flying through the air. He was also chosen as athlete of the month for April for his hard work ethic.

This is the awesome group that worked with him each week.

They made Dallon pose like this. It's sooo not like him.

This Week

This past week has been full of adventure.

I was a witness to a very rare occurrence in the Didericksen household. Two kids, one 6 one 14 sitting quietly together playing the x-box. No one told the other that she was annoying or loud and no one complained that he was mean or stinky. It didn’t last for more than a half hour, but it was sure nice while it lasted.

Reagen sparred for the first time on Saturday. She was so cute and we were so proud of her. She made it through a two-hour workout and didn’t complain once. She was like the energizer bunny; she just kept going and going. I thought for sure she’d sleep all the way home, but she came home, ate, showered and then went and played at a friends house.

Dallon decided he won’t become a burglar because the mask is way too hard to remove. He is such a dork and no, he didn’t ask for permission to use my nylons.

She also decided she wanted bangs. My girls have never had bangs (except that one time nana decided to give Michaela bangs when she was two and that did not turn out good).

One of my photography heroes, Tara Whitney, is doing something fun and if she’s doing it I guess I have to do it, right? She is taking one photo of her family per month. Since our last family photo was taken when Reagen was one, I decided that I am totally going to try this. Even if it’s just a shot on the bed in terrible lighting with three sweaty kids and a hairy cat. Even if one of them is sticking her tongue out at the other.

Lately

Life has been good. I have been busy with Young Women activities, meetings, meetings, and even more meetings. I had no idea there were so many meetings going on at church until this calling. Holy cow! I'm grateful for all the help I have in this calling and I found out that it won't actually kill me like I thought. Life goes on.

Mike had a birthday and we celebrated with family at Applebee's. He's been working quite a bit at the post office, which has been a blessing. He really likes it and gets to hear all the town gossip first hand from the little ladies that work there.

I had my first experience (that I remember) with laughing gas. Because I didn't want to get numbed, the dentist must have thought I needed to be really relaxed because he jacked up the gas to extra high. I had no idea if my mouth was even open. At one point I could not open my eyes although I was awake, I think. I kept telling myself I was still in control because I could tap my finger, but I think I was past knowing what the crap I was doing. That was some weird stuff.

Michaela has 6th grade maturation this week. She doesn't want me to go because I didn't make it "fun" last year. I asked her how I could have made it fun and she told me that I could have told her that maturation was all a lie. She gets asked every once in a while to be a body guard to someone that's been picked on. You'd never know looking at her sweet little face that she can kick the crap out of the bully on the bus.

We meet with Dallon's school counselor Friday to plan his high school classes. I'm so not ready to have a kid in high school. He's already moody, onery, and annoying. That's my job.

Reagen started taking TKD a couple weeks ago and she loves it. (I know, all I need is another kid in TKD) She's doing great in school and gets 100% on her spelling every week despite us forgetting to practice the words. She's very social and thinks she has to call a friend over to play every day. She informed me tonight that she is getting bangs. She's always has been the rebel. I have no idea why this is underlined, but I don't care enough to try and change it. :)

Vegas

Wednesday, February 10th, we headed for Vegas. Dal and Kayla were competing in the US Open in tkd. Here are a few highlights from the week.

Reagen was sick the whole week before with stomach flu. I was sure she just psyched herself out because someone at school threw up right by her and she gets super freaked out about anyone throwing up. She was sure to tell me "I told you so!" when she started throwing up herself.

Our washing machine went kaput the day before we were to leave. And doesn't everyone wait until the last day to do laundry and pack? I do.

The ride to Vegas went surprisingly well until we got to Vegas and then the van quit at every red light. Vegas traffic is so fun anyway. The kids didn't fight and I didn't yell. (Of course we all made up for it on the way home.)

The hotel we stayed in had half naked ladies dancing on the tables. Who said the Luxor isn't family friendly? Mike turned it into a learning experience and told Michaela she better get an education or she would end up doing the same. Good advise, hon.

My dad came from Arizona and watched the kids compete for the first time ever. Michaela came home with a silver medal. Dal fought well, but got hit with a headshot in the last round and couldn't make up the points in time. He has only been training for a month so we were super proud of him.

Here's a few pics of the trip.