Moab 2010

Every spring we go with Brett's whole family (all 30 something of us) to Moab. We stay in one big house. And let me tell you, each year, that house seems smaller and smaller!!!! But, we have so much fun. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful 'in-law' side of the family!

Ella, Kiki and McKay in Goblin Valley. I think Kiki and McKay look more like twins than Makenna and McKay do.

An awesome view on the way to "Double O" Arch. This was the first time we'd done this hike. It was a little strenuous, but well worth it!

Michael with a bloody nose after the annual dirt clod fight in Goblin Valley

View on the hike to Double O arch.

Kiki was my hiking partner. I had tons of fun chatting it up with this girl. We pretended we were spies the whole time. What a trooper.

We finally made it! Check out that double arch!!! Pretty amazing!

Basking in the sun in the lower arch at "Double O" Arch

Landscape Arch

Connor and Livvy pulling some 'tude. Rachel is just along for the ride...

I love this arch. It is my favorite.

This is an actual hand cart made by Studebaker. It was at a trinket shop.

This is the first year, of all the years we've been to Moab (we go the same weekend every year) that there has been snow in the park. That is attributed to the very long, cold winter, and a very wet spring. Mickey is 'eating' snow encrusted in the reddish/brown sand. He thought it looked like a s'more.

Mick and Ken seeing how far back they could squeeze!

Kenna (and Connor in background) at Sand Dune arch

Some of the dads exploring

Mickey found a 'cave'

Connor and Brandon conquering a hill


All the cousins in Goblin Valley

Mick's carseat must be really comfy.........He has made this sleeping face since the first day he was born! What a cutie! Love this boy!

Thank you family for the wonderful trip! We love you all!

More Race Pictures

The official photographers from the race sent these to me. I liked them a little better than that other harfy one I posted earlier. These are of me and Amy after she crossed the finish line!

THE RACE!

All right, friends. Look at this picture. I have to be totally honest with you. I almost didn't post it. I look absolutely hideous! Seriously! But, then I thought, how should I expect myself to look after running 13.1 miles? Oh well, at least I am standing and have a smile on my face, right? This is me with my sweetie, Brett and my SIL Amz. This was Amy's first 1/2 Marathon ever. Amz has a 10 month old (her 5th) and she only trained for 2 months. She hasn't ran since her Jr. Olympic days in Jr. High. So, it's been a long while for her! Anyway, she finished and I was so proud of her despite her injuries and temptations to only run the 5 mile race-- she pushed through and did the whole thing! I was so proud of her!

Anyway, this was a great race for Brett and I. I felt GREAT the first 7 miles. I was even running a sub-10 minute mile. The scenery was gorgeous and the air was crisp and I was feeling good. Brett and I were having a great old time people watching and just chatting. By the way, Brett is so good to stay with me during our races. He could go much faster, and finish sooner but always opts to stay with me because, he says, that is why he is running, to be with me. Isn't he sweet?! I'm so glad he enjoys running too, it's a great thing for both of us. Anyway, at this point in the race, I decided to take a shot of "GU". If any of you are not familiar with this substance, it is just what is sounds like: gu. It's this jelly/jam-like substance that is "specifically formulated to energize your body during exercise. Using GU during your regular workouts will keep your mind alert and active, and your muscles going strong. GU Energy Gel contains the optimal balance of carbohydrates for the body during exercise to deliver a quick rise in blood sugar and maintain that glucose level for up to 45 minutes during exercise. GU also contains essential amino acids, anti-oxidants, muscle buffers and herbs." Anyway, I don't know why, but I decided to take a few swallows of this stuff. I never train with it, and never really use it at all, so I don't know what possessed me to eat it, but at the time it seemed like a swell idea. About 10 minutes after I took this stuff I started feeling yucky. I felt like I had rock the size of my fist in my stomach. I had to slow down a little bit and for the rest of the race I felt that rock in my tummy. I don't know if it was just because I don't train with the stuff or what, but I will never take this stuff again, and I will not be taking any sponsor offers from Clif! :o)

Needless to say, we did finish in 2 hours 11 minutes! And, a whole 5 minutes faster than my time last year! So, I was happy with that.

This is a picture of the back drop for about 11 miles of the race. This picture was not taken this year. This year it was cold and the sky was gray, but you get the idea of the red cliffs and walls that surround you as you run through the canyon.

This is not a picture of me, but you get another idea of the scenery.

This was a great race overall! I only came away with 1 injury.......I think I'm going to lose 2 of my toenails from running!!! I know, gross! Brett says not to worry, that it's pretty common for runners!! So common, that I found a toenail necklace made by a ultra-marathon runner. Click here for photo, if you dare! Anyway, I can't have missing toenails!! That just wont do! Especially since we're coming up on flip-flop weather! I am so bummed!I 'm hoping they'll stay on! I'll keep you posted. Well, not literally. I don't think I'll post a picture of my foot with 2 toenails missing. I'll just write about it.

Arches

What a fun trip this was! Our family took a little adventure trip down to Moab this past weekend, not only for the Moab 1/2 Marathon, but for some FABULOUS site-seeing. We had so much fun! Brett's whole family came with us-- all his siblings and their families, except Steve, were there. And the best cheerleader of all, Marla, (Brett's dear mom) came too. Total, we had about 30 people. It was a riot! We left later in the afternoon on Thursday, and stayed at a hotel in Green River that had a pool. That was the ONLY reason we decided to go on Thursday and the only reason we stayed in Green River, Utah-- the pool. Well, we were sorely disappointed! The pool wasn't even heated! The river would have been just as well! We spent most of the time in the hot tub and then went up to play Guitar Hero and the kids played Game Cube. They were in 7th heaven! After we met up with the rest of the fam on Friday morning, we headed into Moab and went to our first stop, Arches. This place is seriously amazing. It is just breath-taking. The pictures above and below are of us at the trail head of Double Arch and right at the Double Arch. It is incredible.







The kids had a BLAST climbing and exploring all over in this wonderland. There were little caves and lots of heights for them to conquer. Some of them made this mama a little nervous, but overall, I did ok.

Here we are at Landscape Arch. Landscape Arch is in the Devils Garden section of Arches National Park. It has the greatest span of any natural arch so far documented and is unquestionably one of the world's greatest wonders. Landscape Arch is an arc natural arch eroded in Entrada sandstone. Arc natural arches are considered old and near the end of their lifecycle. It is hard to believe that a piece of rock like this can exist. In its thinnest section the arch is only 6 feet thick, yet it supports a span of rock 290 feet long. Indeed, this arch could collapse at any time: any day, any year, any decade, or any century. On September 1, 1991, a 73-foot slab of rock fell out from underneath the thinnest section of the span. The rock that fell was probably not structurally important to the arch. In fact, by reducing the weight of suspended rock, the arch is probably now stronger. (This info taken off the naturalarches.org website).

Here are the kids with their Rushes t-shirts on (perfect for the race) infront of Delicate Arch. The famous arch that is on the Utah license plate. What sweet kids and what a sweet view!

Goblin Valley

This place is a little known gem called, Goblin Valley. Goblin Valley State Park is located in Emery County between the towns of Green River and Hanksville. Wind and water have carved fantastic and unique goblin-like sculptures out of rock, creating an outdoor playground that inspires the imagination. We probably spent 4 hours here, hiking, climbing and exploring. This is a must see if you are ever in this area.

Connor holding on for dear life!

Me, striking a pose. Just a note- this seemed a lot higher to me than it looks in this picture. I had so much fun climbing around and exploring. I couldn't help myself climbing all over just like the kids. I love this kind of stuff.

McKay and Makenna in their "secret house."

Me talking with Michael.

Connor hiking with Tanner

McKay atop a hill he was so proud to get to the top of.