Bethany's first triathlon!

Cameron here. I had to post about what a bad@$$ my wife is. She completed her first sprint triathlon in Casa Grande a few weeks ago. I'm so proud of her! She has worked so hard and about three weeks before the race, got really sick and had to take two weeks off. And since you don't want to work too hard the week before the race, she hardly got in any training the few weeks before. I would have drowned on the first lap in the pool if I had to take that time off! She did great and kicked my butt in the pool as usual. Our friend Kristin also did her first one with us and did a great job as well. Here are some pics from the day-

Up early, ready to roll

Just before the start

In transition-

Great job honey! I'm so proud of you!

Even Haylee got in on the fun-

SCHNEPF FARMS!!

Last Friday night we took Haylee out to Schnepf Farms. She LOVES pumpkins right now and we knew she'd be thrilled to see all the pumpkins out there! It was such a fun night with her--she really is at such a fun age right now.

They have a little area you can feed goats and she LOVED it! I honestly think she thought they were just a bunch of dogs like Buster. There was no fear whatsoever!

This was the funniest part of the evening!! Haylee and I got in line to ride the Bumble Bee ride and I could tell she was gettin' a bit nervous about what we were about to do. Before it even started she was clinging to me and wouldn't let go of my hand! As it started I decided to sing Happy Birthday to her (her current favorite song) and she sang along. Then I told her how great she was doing and I said, "Go Haylee!", so she started saying, "Go Haylee!" Even though she was very ready to get off when the ride was over, she was a trooper and was so brave!:) I just LOVE her face in this picture!

Cameron and I were talking about how big Haylee looks in this picture--she looks so much older! The best part of this picture is that posing on the pumpkin was her idea! When Cameron told her to smile, she was standing behind the pumpkins. She quickly ran around in front of them, sat down and smiled for the camera! She makes us laugh every single day.:)

SO PROUD...

I just had to take a second and brag a little about my little girl.:) Sacrament meeting can always be a challenge for parents of little children. I mean, really, who wants to sit there for over an hour trying to be quiet while being confined in between two benches that are taller than you?? Not any two year olds that I know of! Cameron is the Young Men's pres in our ward so he always has to help bless the sacrament, which means it's me and Haylee for the first part of sacrament meeting. Yesterday as soon as the opening hymn began, she opened the hymn book (to the wrong page--but hey, she's 2), sat it on her lap right next to me and tried so hard to sing along for the WHOLE song! As soon as the song ended, she closed her book, handed it to me to put away, and folded her arms and bowed her head. I had to peek during the prayer to catch this special moment that made me soooo happy to be her mom. She kept her arms folded and head bowed during the ENTIRE prayer and when it was over she said, "Amen." Does it get any better than that??? I just wanted to jump up (totally irreverent) and burst out how proud I was of Haylee!! This girl never ceases to amaze me.:) I feel so blessed...

And yes, I know that by posting this, I am gauranteeing myself a total hellion in our next child!!!

"Tick o teet!!!"

Last night was our ward Trunk-or-Treat! It was Haylee's first experience with trick-or-treating and she did awesome! She was dressed as a Punk Rock Princess and her costume was a hit! She did great while I got her all dressed up, but when she saw herself in the mirror I think it really caught her off-guard!:)

So you wouldn't think that lookin' at pics of this little misfit would make me emotional, but I gotta say, last night was a special night for me. Halloween is such a "kid" holiday, and when we couldn't have kids for those four long years, it was another sore spot that made me wonder if I'd ever have a kid to take trick-or-treating and to dress up. As I walked around the parking lot with Haylee last night, I was just on cloud nine! Finally, my own little girl to dress up and take trick-or-treating! I'm grateful for the experience the infertility has given me--especially thankful that I don't take these special times for granted...:)

Happy 29th Birthday, Cameron!!!

Yeah, he's probably gonna hate me for posting this picture, again.:) While lookin' for a picture to post for his birthday, I decided to go with one that sums Cameron up pretty well. No, he doesn't wear tight clothing daily. But this picture shows one of my favorite traits about Cameron--his sense of humor: one of the MAIN reasons I married him. My mom always told me to marry someone who makes me laugh. Cameron has been makin' me laugh since the night I met him. If you missed the Rocky Point triathlon post, this was the shirt they gave him by mistake--they thought Cameron was a girl's name in this case. Luckily, before he exchanged this shirt for the men's shirt, he let me take a picture! I will forever be grateful!!:)

Cameron really is the best husband out there. He'll do ANYTHING for me!! I could brag that I have done an exceptional job in training him, but honestly, he came this way. He is a giver. He is a peacemaker, which, trust me, he needs to be in order to be married to me! He is so quick to forgive my faults and annoying habits. He compliments me DAILY on everything from how I look to how hard I worked out at the gym. He is always encouraging me in my goals and cheering me on in my endeavors. Right now, he is my triathlon coach and I couldn't ask for a better one. Cameron is just one of those people that makes you feel better about yourself just by being around him. When it comes to being a father....wow. He's a pro. And he's been a pro since day one--changing the really gross first diapers while I was out cold after my c-section. Haylee adores her daddy and gets soooo excited to see him every time he comes out of his office (in our house!). She will always know how beautiful and special she is because her daddy tells her every day. He really is the best daddy. Cameron has been an awesome provider for our family, too. I remember last year when his business was almost non-existent. He IMMEDIATELY went out and got two paper routes to make sure we had SOME type of income. I know I will NEVER have to worry about our financial situation as long as Cameron is here. Basically, I just really love this guy. He's the best...and he's my best friend.:) Happy birthday, sweetie.:)

If you would, leave a memory you have of Cameron as a comment!! We would love to read them! Thank you!!!:)

Am I really gonna do this???

Well, it sure seems that way! As the little blinky thing to the right implies, I AM training for my first triathlon! Cameron has now done four, so I figured I ought to do one at least! I'm going to do the Casa Grande Triathlon on November 7th. In all fairness, it is a shorter one, so I thought it would be perfect for me to start with.

Most people would consider the swimming to be the hardest part of a triathlon, but not me. I LOVE swimming! I remember when I first began learning to REALLY swim laps (the right way!) I thought, "There is NO way I'm ever gonna be able to be a swimmer!" But now? I could swim laps all day! The part that worries me the most? The running. Yup, I said it. My knee has been crappy for a couple years now. I did physical therapy for it, lost some weight, got a sweet knee brace and it has gotten better. But I have not run a long distance for a LONG time cuz I didn't want my knee to flare up. So now I am back into building up my endurance and hoping I'm ready by November 7th. I do have a backup plan though--her name is Brittney and she is wiling to do the last leg of the triathlon for me (the run). How awesome it that??:) Thank you, Brittney! But hopefully I won't even need ya!

As far as the biking goes...our good friend Molly let me borrow her bike for this triathlon (thanks Molly!) and I'll be honest, last Saturday was my first time on a road bike! Whoa! It was waaay different from any other bike I've been on! I almost fell over trying to switch gears! But once I got the hang of it, I LOVED it!:) Now Cam is lookin' for a bike for me!:) I really wish we would have gotten into triathlons BEFORE Haylee came along! I was in way better shape and we wouldn't have had to get a sitter every time we wanted to go riding together! Oh well, at least we'll be teaching her good habits about exercise! In Show Low they have a kids version of a triathlon that one day Haylee can be a part of! How cute is that??:)

Well, wish me luck! And pray I don't pass out and die!!!:)

The Dora Birthday Party!!

Here sits the birthday girl herself! Haylee LOVES Dora (or as she says "Dooora") right now! So we decided to go with that idea for the birthday. A couple weeks ago, I found a lady on Craigslist selling her daughter's Dora stuff for super cheap, so I got it all! This chair is one of the items I got (along with another pink plastic chair) and she LOVES them! She moves them all around the house now and for some reason she has to have them side-by-side ALL THE TIME (um...OCD???)!

We decided to mix the joy of cake and ice cream and went with the Baskin Robbins ice cream cake! Once again, Dora themed!I'm sure Halyee was wonderin', "What kind of toy is that??" when she saw the cake! She loved it!
Haylee did so good opening her presents! She would open it, study it for a second, then put it aside to open another gift. We're not sure what was up with the tongue hangin' out of her mouth...probably too much quality time spent with Buster...

My parents got her this birthday card that plays "Itsy Bitsy Spider" when you open it. Yeah, they really could have saved the money they spent on her gifts and she'd have been just as happy with that card!
One gift Haylee got was a lifesize Dora doll! We've decided we don't need to have any more kids cuz now Haylee has a friend! She spends all day putting Dora in the chair next to her and talking to her! Today I caught her putting her toy phone up to Dora's ear (which, by the way, Dora doesn't even have!) and telling Dora to say something into the phone! Hilarious!

This is happiness.:) Haylee did wonderfully during her party! There were no tears, no meltdowns, no tantrums! It was a success! She made sure to thank all her guests before they left and I'm pretty sure each of them got a "big hug".:) Man, I love this girl so much!:)

Haylee's Two Years Old!!!

It's true, two years ago yesterday, Haylee finally made me what I had always dreamed of being: a mom.:) It's hard to put into words how complete I feel finally having her. I finally feel like I am doing what I was born to do. It was a long, hard road we went down until we had Haylee, but every single step, every heartache, every let-down was soooo worth it. She is an AMAZING little girl.:) If it's not in the cards for us to have anymore children, I will forever feel blessed by being given such a perfect little daughter. I love having this blog so I can record all these little things about Haylee.

At this point in her life, Haylee is VERY independent. I have already accepted the fact that she and I will butt heads A LOT while she is growing up. But I love that sense of confidence she has. I love that when we leave her ANYWHERE (gym daycare, nursery, with a babysitter, etc.) she waves to us and says, "See ya later guys!" I love that we can communicate with her now and have little conversations. The other night she was eating dinner in her high chair and she was telling Cameron that she wanted down so she could play with her new toys. He told her that she had to eat her food first and then she could get down. She said, "Okay" and finished eating. Easy as that.:) I feel very blessed that I can take her to run any errand I may have and know that there will be no tantrums or crying. Haylee just really isn't into that. She knows what she wants, and will express that, but if we say no, she may try to cry, but she just seems to know it's not worth her time or energy (probably cuz it never changes the outcome anyway!). I love that Haylee talks so much. She really is my little "parrot", repeating whatever I say. I know everyone thinks their kid is brilliant and I'm not claiming that Haylee is advanced, but she just seems to grasp things so quickly and so well. She counts to 15 now and has for about 4 months. She says her ABC's, she says prayers every night, and she has lots of songs memorized already. I am just so entertained by her every day. She is hilarious and loves to make people laugh. She invented her own little "goofy walk" a while ago that I need to add to the blog. It is so funny!! I am so blessed to have this special little person in my life.:) I love you, Haylee Brynn.:)

4TH OF JULY WEEKEND!

Okay, these pics are backward...again and I don't really feel like rearranging them, so just go with me on this one! For the 4th of July weekend we went up to Snowflake/Show Low. Small towns are the best for the 4th! My mom set up a little play pool in her backyard that Haylee LOVED!!! But she kinda looks like Thing 1 or Thing 2 in this pic...scary!
On Monday Cameron went golfing with my nephews Austin (in red) and Weston (in blue). They're both way talented when it comes to sports--it was so fun to have them here for a couple weeks--they're hilarious!! I'm sad they don't live closer...:(

"Ms. Independent"--goofiest pic ever!:) Haylee had like four 4th of July outfits! So we had to wear them the whole weekend--this was her Sunday dress.:)

Chillin' at the parade in Show Low!

Daddy and Haylee at the parade. Lots of things made loud noise during the parade, so Haylee chose to stay close to Daddy to be safe. Smart girl!

RANDOM CUTENESS...

We've been takin' Haylee to the Tempe Town Lake splash park this summer and it was fun the first time. Notice in this pic that you can't see the splash park...that's because Haylee loves running up and down the hill NEXT to the splash park instead of playing in the water...but she is one hot chic in that suit!!!:)

Isn't this what we all do while waiting for the doctor to come in? Haylee had a little bout of the flu for a couple days and it took me back to her newborn phase with all the projectile vomiting. Sure don't miss those days!

Cam took these two pics at our gym daycare--so funny! They have this big thing for kids to climb in and she was lovin' it! My favorite is the smashed nose!!!

Haylee and her shades...she loves wearing them!

BITTERSWEET...

Well, for those of you who don't do Facebook (and maybe those who don't keep up on it very often), the past few days have been rough. My oldest sister, Shannan, was put on life support and then passed away Thursday night. She struggled for many years with bipolar disorder and depression, along with a drug addiction that eventually proved fatal. The title of this post is "Bittersweet" because although death is always hard, it was a sweet relief and end to a real struggle that Shannan dealt with. We are headed to Utah next week for the funeral.

Instead of dwelling on the negative, I wanted to use this post to remember the good times with my sister. She was way older than me and sort of became my second mom. I remember her taking me to swimming lessons, working at the preschool I went to, teaching me how to shave and other "woman stuff", etc. She was an amazingly giving person. Very sensitive to people's needs. She taught me to love Raisinets, the movie What About Bob?, and Louie Anderson (the comedian). I remember lots of trips to get frozen yogurt and staying in her apartment in the summers in Utah. Whatever car she had became my new favorite. I loved Honda CRX's for a long time because she had one! When she would come home to visit I remember her leaving little surprises for my brother Russ and I when she had to leave before we woke up. Froot Loops cereal will always remind me of Shannan--she loved them and taught me the right way to eat them (who knew there was a system??)! One time she took me to lunch at a restaurant that shall remain nameless and she stole a menu for me so that I would always remember that lunch.:) She was a nanny for a few different families who adored her and she was so good to those kids--I was there to witness it firsthand a few times.:) She had twin boys and was a wonderful mother to them for the first couple years (before her struggles began). A lot of the tactics I use with Haylee are tricks I learned from Shannan. One especially memorable moment I have is being in St. George with her. We drove up to the hill with the airport on it and parked at night (probably right along with a bunch of teenage couples!). She pointed out how the St. George temple was breathtaking from that view and looked like it had been "dropped from heaven" (her exact words).

I can't express how excited I am to see Shannan after this life. I know she will finally be the Shannan I remember from my childhood.:) I am sad that she is gone, but I know she is in a much better place and free from the pain she endured here on earth. I can't imagine how I would get through this without the knowledge of the gospel. I feel so blessed to know why we are here on earth and where we go after we die. I love you, Shannan.:)

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND!!

For Memorial Day weekend, we drove to Temecula, California to visit these awesome people--Jared and Bethanie and their little boy, Mason! Jared and Cameron were mission companions and we are all great friends! The first night we were there they took us out to dinner at a WONDERFUL restaurant that had a duck pond right behind it! So we took the kiddos down to feed the ducks.

I'm gonna hafta say that Haylee wasn't showing any signs of becoming a star pitcher anytime soon--her bread BARELY made it to the water! But look at those adorable pigtails! Finally! No more mullet!:)

The next day we went to the beach!!! My favorite part! It was Haylee's first time to the beach and she LOVED the sand! She did not love the water though! I think it kinda freaked her out how it came and went and didn't stay still! She was one hot little mama in her suit!:)

And look at these two studs! Jared took Cameron out to try and teach him how to surf. What a great friend!

Told ya she loved the sand! She was in heaven being a mess!

On Sunday we of course went to church. We tried real hard to get a good pic of the group before church, but obviously Haylee didn't wanna cooperate! We thought it was funny that Cameron and I were matching with our orange and Jared and Bethanie had the green thing goin' on--we decided it was so people could keep the right Bethany (ie) with the right hubby! I am so happy to have the daughter we have! She had no problem goin' to nursery in a new ward! The nursery worker said they loved her and that they wanted to keep her.:) Love that girl!:)


On Monday, Memorial Day, we went back to the beach! Here are Bethanie and Mason in their matching orange! That kid is sooo funny!:)

Here's Jared and Mason! It is so fun to watch Jared as a daddy--he is so great with his little boy!
Okay, for some reason, Haylee was really clingy with me that day. She actually spent a lot of that day in this position--on me. She is not a clingy kid at all, so I kinda took advantage of it and enjoyed the moment.:)

I just love this girl. She did so awesome on the whole trip! She was well-behaved, she slept well, etc. We are hoping next year she will be ready for Sea World! Pretty sure it would have freaked her out to see a giant whale jumping out of the water this year!

The evening of Memorial Day, we had a barbecue with Bethanie's family! It was so much fun! This was Haylee's first attempt at a trampoline--she loved it! We had great food, wonderful dessert and an intense game of volleyball!

We had such a great time last weekend! Thank you Jared and Bethanie for having us and making it such an awesome trip! It's your turn now!:)

SURPRISE!!!

Well, Cameron did it! He actually surprised me with a party for my 30th birthday this past Friday! All along, he told me we were having a party on Saturday night. Nope. The party was held at our friend's house--the Binghams--who also set me up by saying we should go to dinner Friday night. We went and picked them up and got around the corner and they said we needed to turn around cuz Jay had forgotten to fax something that needed to be faxed by 7pm. I can honestly say I had NO IDEA this was a lie. I wish I had a picture of my face when I walked in cuz it had to be a classic! Total shock!

Sad to say I didn't blow all the candles out on the first try--I guess I am getting old...:(

Cameron did so good planning this! On Friday, he told me he was heading out to do inspections--nope, just headin' over to the Bingham's house to make crepes HIMSELF and set up! I was so oblivious! My parents and Cameron's parents came down for the party and we had so many great friends there--some who we haven't seen in a loooong time!
Here's Kamarah (due in June with a little boy!) and Frank and Heather Monk chillin' outside. Frank is Cameron's best friend from when they were like 5 years old! And Heather is also a friend from Show Low--and one of Cameron's prom dates!
Here's Cammie Bjarnson (due in September with a boy!) and the Horrocks---both good friends from our ward.

Brad and Jess Olsen--also from the ward--have become such good friends of ours! I'm so glad they moved into the ward! They had to leave early to get get their new Beagle puppy so I convinced them to bring the puppy back to the party so we could meet him! I am so glad they did--oh, he is ADORABLE! Only 6 weeks old!

Here's Rick and Becky Lewis--I used to work with Becky at Gilbert Family Eyecare and we have been good friends for years now. And for all you with backgrounds from Cutest Blog on the Block--she's one of the creators!


I love these people! This is Cameron's cousin Brennon and his wife Danica! Brennon's brother Evan has already moved to Seattle, but his wife and my great friend Cara (holding Diesel, the dog) is still here for another week! She is pregnant with twins!!!

Here's Heather again with her hubby, Matt. They made a trip from Show Low to the valley--I am so happy they were able to be there!


I'm thinkin' Cameron shouldn't look so happy in this shot...but I'm just prayin' it's cuz he had no idea what Matt was doin'!

And I hafta say, what made the party absolutely PERFECT was that our friends Eric and Kami Luthy came from Las Vegas!!!! I can't even express how much I miss them! It's really just not right that they had to move away.:( Kami helped Cameron with some of the party planning and was apparently in charge of the music trivia game we played. If you know me, you know I LOVE music and music trivia. Well, so does my dad. And he was there. And our teams were tied at the end, until our team won! Woo hoo! The funniest part was Christy--on my team--who kept answering with "the Pips" when we didn't know the answer! Love that girl (who, by the way, is also moving!!) What the crap???

Brad may not know it, but one of his greatest contributions to the party was his dance to the song "The Devil Went Down To Georgia"! Funniest thing I've seen in a long time! Thank you, Brad!

And the final shot of the evening, with the pink leopard birthday hat! Thank you everyone, especially you, Honey, for planning this wonderful party for me! It was PERFECT and made me feel so loved.:) I feel so blessed to have the best husband, parents, in-laws and friends a girl could ask for! You all are the best!:) Hey, let's do it again next year!!!