Time Flies When You're Having Fun

Summer is flying by! Hard to believe Todd's been out of school for 5 weeks already! He's enjoying some downtime, and has picked up some tutoring to keep him semi-busy. We're also holding cross country practice 5 mornings a week. The turnout at these practices has been better than expected! We've had as many as 27 kids!

Chocolate Milk and Donuts awaited the team after their run on Thomas' Birthday! Thanks Odells!

We've enjoyed having more time to relax, hike, trail run, & see friends now that school and the track season are over. We spent a Sunday afternoon in Park City with friends of ours, Dave & Sherry Spence--ate brunch, checked out the Park Silly Farmer's Market, and hiked around the Park City Mountain Resort. We also hiked up to Desolation Lake with Jessie and Brian Strike.

View from hike in Park City

Beautiful Day for a hike!

Local food & music at Millcreek Venture Outside

Desolation Lake with Jessie Strike

The highlight of our summer so far was our 2 week trip back to the Midwest! We celebrated Grant and Allison's wedding on June 27th. The day was absolutely beautiful! We're so glad the weather cooperated. Welcome to the Mitchell family, Allison!

The beautiful couple

Todd gives his speech as Best Man

We were able to spend time with the extended family on Saturday after the wedding. It was nice to catch up with family we don't see very often! On Sunday, my parents met us for church & brunch. Then, we left with my parents for a road trip through northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Our first stop was Duluth. We spent the first night walking Park Point & watching ships go under the Aerial Lift Bridge. We skipped stones in the VERY cold Lake Superior and ate delicious Mexican food outside. On Monday, we hiked around Gooseberry falls and checked out Split Rock Lighthouse. On Tuesday, we made a quick stop at the Glensheen Estate before heading to Wisconsin.

Skipping Stones

Aerial Lift Bridge

Gooseberry Falls

Split Rock Lighthouse

Glensheen Estate gardens

The mansion we toured

On Tuesday, we spent some time walking around Bayfield, WI. We got ice cream and looked around in some bookstores & gift shops. We also explored the maritime museum. We took a sunset cruise around the Apostle Islands. The islands were really neat, but we were also very cold. The air temperature was in the 50s and it was quite windy! We really enjoyed Devil's Island with it's sea caves & lighthouse.

Bayfield, WI

We saw several Bald Eagles on our cruise

Devil's Island Lighthouse

Devil's Island Sea Caves

On Wednesday, we drove into Michigan. Our first destination in Michigan was the Porcupine Mountains. We hiked along the Escarpment Trail which overlooks the Lake of the Clouds. We spent the night in Houghton, MI and ate a great pizza place downtown.

Lake of the Clouds

Hiking along the Escarpment Trail

Pictured Rocks was our next destination. The water along the shoreline was so beautifully colored! We did a short hike to a lookout for Miner's Castle and then walked to Miner's Beach. The hike to Chapel Rock & Beach was much longer, but worth it! However, the bugs were bad for the 3 miles back to the car, and we hiked very quickly!

Miner's Castle

Bridal Veil Falls

Chapel Rock

Chapel Rock Beach

On Friday, we drove to Tahquamenon Falls. I was there once before when I was young, but didn't really remember it. The upper falls has the 2nd greatest volume of water (1st is Niagara Falls) east of the Mississippi River! We ate lunch and walked around on the beach at White Fish Point before driving over the bridge to the lower peninsula to stay the night in Mackinaw City. We sat on the shore of Lake Huron and watched the fireworks--we could be Mackinaw City, Mackinac Island, & St. Ignace fireworks all at once!

Upper Falls

White Fish Point

We lit Chinese Lanterns before the fireworks

Fireworks over Lake Huron

Saturday, our final day of our road trip, we took the ferry to Mackinac Island. We enjoyed walking around the Grand Hotel and past some beautiful cottages. We rented bikes and rode around the island. Todd and I were on a tandem! We also rode up the big hill by the Grand Hotel and came speeding back down :). We drove back to Grand Rapids that evening.

The Grand Hotel

Mom made a friend

Riding bikes around the island

We were able to spend 2 days in Grand Rapids before flying back to SLC. It was nice to my parents new house in the summer and see the work they've done so far. Dad has planted a lot of trees and Mom has a very large garden. We were able to see Uncle Bruce, Grandma, and Ben as well!

We're looking forward to a full week next week! We will be taking 20 athletes from the Olympus High School XC team to Park City for 3 days and 2 nights for a team camp. This is the first time doing something like this, so we're pretty excited! Then, Uncle Bruce is coming out to SLC for a long weekend! We're excited to do some hiking with him. And, on top of all that, Todd and I will likely become Aunt Anna & Uncle Todd next week!! Holly and Matt's baby will most likely be coming soon! We can't wait to meet our niece/nephew!

May in SLC

May has been a full & exciting month for us as coaches! We finished up a successful track & field season 4 individuals & 4 relay teams making it to the State Meet at BYU. It's exciting to think where our team will be next year since many of the competitors are underclassmen, but it's also hard to say good-bye to the seniors! We really enjoy working with these athletes. However, there's little down time seeing as we've already had a parent meeting for the upcoming XC season as well as beginning XC practices after school.

Olympus Track Team at the Region Championships

At the Track Awards Banquet with some of our wonderful seniors

We celebrating Todd's birthday at the beginning of May. He wanted to spend his birthday outside--grilling & playing yard games. The Spence family invited us over to do just that, and the Moffatts joined us. It was a relaxing, sunny day. We just recently shopped for his birthday gift (Todd doesn't like surprises, and I usually don't get him exactly what he wants) and he picked out a two-burner car camping stove and the board game Carcassone. 

We spent the afternoon on Mother's Day helping the Moffatts pack up their apartment. We had a picnic in the park later in the week with all of our New Song Pres friends to say farewell to this wonderful family. We will truly miss Mark, Jenna, & Harper as they are moving back to South Dakota (luckily that's not too far from Minnesota). We are so thankful for their friendship and great times we've had!

I spent 4 days in Scottsdale, AZ for the annual CPSDA (Collegiate & Professional Sports Dietitians Asssociation) conference. I learned a lot as well as had the opportunity to meet some collegiate dietitians from around the US that I hadn't met before. A large group from our conference hiked up Camelbak Mountain on of the mornings we were there. Luckily we started really early since the weather was 90-100 degrees while we were there!

View from the top of Camelbak Mountain

Coworkers and I at the top

University of Utah Dietitians & Interns--Past & Present

Despite plans to camp at Capitol Reef National Park over Memorial Day weekend, Todd and I stayed home and tried to catch up on sleep & work instead. Todd's been swamped at work (and is very eager for this school year to come to a close). So instead of a camping trip, we had a BBQ with the Spences, spent some time at the Murray City Pool, tended to our garden box, and attended a graduation party for one of the seniors we coached. It was a great, refreshing weekend.

Todd building my garden box. It's now filled with salad greens, tomatoes, bell peppers, squash, & green beans.

Hope y'all are enjoying your weekend! 

Boston Marathon

It's hard to believe that it's already been a week since the Boston Marathon! I'm back to walking normally and have even gone on one run (probably a mistake...). My body is clearly still in recovery mode since I am falling asleep at 8pm most nights.

We really enjoyed our trip to New Jersey & Boston! We spent Friday in New Jersey at Holly & Matt's house before driving to Boston on Saturday morning. We stopped in Providence, Rhode Island for frozen yogurt on our way to Boston--a state Todd & I had never been to. 47 down, 3 to go (for me, at least)! After checking into our hotel in Boston, we took the train downtown to the expo. I got my race bib & packet, and then we looked around at the booths and sampled bars, gels, chews, etc.

We walked along Boylston street, where the marathon finishes, and saw a memorial at the site of one of the 2013 bombs. It seemed like half of the people walking around downtown were there for the marathon--so many people were wearing Boston gear. We ate dinner downtown before heading back to our hotel.

On Easter Sunday, we attended a church close to our hotel. At times, we had a hard time understanding the pastor because of his thick Boston accent! Back at the hotel, we laid out our Easter dinner spread--sandwiches, fruit, crackers & hummus, and cookies! We played some games and then took the train back into Boston to explore. We walked around Harvard Yard, saw Paul Revere's house and the Old North Church, and ate in Little Italy. We even got some cannolis at Mike's Pastry.

On Marathon Monday, I caught the hotel shuttle to Boston Commons bright and early. It was strange to say good-bye to Holly, Matt, & Todd at 6:30am and know I wouldn't see them again until mile 16.5 about 6 hours later! I made a friend on the shuttle, a woman from Indiana who was running Boston for the 4th time. Since I was new to it all, she took me under her wing. At Boston Commons, we went through security & then got on school buses that would bring us to Athlete's Village (near the start line). As I sat on a school bus for an hour, I kept thinking "I have to make it the whole way back on foot, how far are we going?!?!". Athlete's Village was a fenced in grassy area surrounded by security. Over 10,000 runners were sprawled out in the sun trying to stay warm until their start time came. At about 10am, wave 2 runners (which was me) started to walk to the start line to get in our corrals. The 3/4 mile walk to the start was lined with Hopkinton locals who were giving high fives, sips of beer, oranges, and support to all of the runners.

The start of the race was amazing! The adrenaline was so high that I had to be careful to not go out to fast. The weather was ideal at the start--50 degrees & sunny. There were big crowds of spectators holding signs saying "We are Boston Strong" & "Today, YOU are our heros". It was really neat to know that the continuation of the Boston Marathon meant so much to the people of Boston. Helicopters flew overheard as a part of the security system.

At mile 2.5, the course took us past a bar in Ashland. Since Marathon Monday is Patriot's Day in New England, no one has to work. It seemed as though everyone was drunk & rowdy already at 10:45 in the morning! While the entire Boston course is rolling hills, the first half of the race is more downhill that uphill. I enjoyed that, but knew my quads were taking a beating and it would come back to haunt me on the uphills later on.

At the 10K mark

At half way, we ran past Wellesley College, which is an all-girls school. As a description of the race stated, "The women of Wellesley are loud and proud...but here, they are mostly loud. Impossible to ignore." At about 15.5 miles, the road plunged. I knew that meant one thing...when I got to the bottom of the hill, the next 5 miles would be brutal. But, on the positive side of things, I was looking forward to seeing Todd, Matt, & Holly on the sidelines in the next mile or so! I spotted them before they spotted me, and waved! It was nice to see some familiar faces--it gave me a burst of energy. The uphills were rough on my  already-battered quads, and my pace slowed. However, the crowd support on the famed "heartbreak hill" was amazing, and when I reached the top I knew I could finish.

The rest of the race was lined with spectators. Holly, Matt, & Todd saw me again at mile 22.5, but it was so loud & crowded that I didn't see or hear them. The last couple miles are through the heart of the city. As I turned on Boylston street, I was very emotional. I was SO happy that I was within 1/2 mile of the finish, but I was also imagining what this street looked like last year--and what it would have been like to be there. I crossed the line in 3:25:36--an 8 minute PR! I finished 1502 out of 16092 women. 

Crossing the finish line. Todd thinks this picture is funny--my body language says joyful, but my face says painful. I guess that makes sense...I was feeling both :)

Finished!

As I remember from the Chicago Marathon, the walk to find family feels harder than the marathon does. After re-hydrating, eating some food, & sitting for a bit, we headed to the train. We had a drive back to New Jersey to get started on! We arrived back in New Jersey a little before midnight, and then flew back to SLC bright and early the next morning.

It's a big accomplishment to run a marathon, and it is something I did not do on my own. I'm thankful for the coaching I received from Todd--my training went better than ever before. He encouraged me to push myself in order to reach my goals. I'm thankful for the Olympus High School runners who I coach--I received so much support from them. The boys team also helped push me on my long tempo runs. I'm thankful that Holly & Matt joined us in Boston and cheered me on--and also picked us up and dropped us off at the airport at times no one should be awake. I'm thankful for all of the family & friends who sent me encouraging and congratulatory notes--it was so sweet to know I had people cheering me on all over the US. 

Company, California, & Competition

Hello Friends & Family!

We are enjoying warmer weather in Salt Lake City, although the beginning of this week is going to be a bit colder. Tulips are blooming outside our front window & I planted an herb garden on our patio last week. After 2 1/2 years in Utah, I know to thoroughly enjoy this time of year before we are consistently experiencing temperatures over 95 starting in June.

Todd raced in the Leprechaun Lope 5K on March 15th. He placed 3rd overall. Lots of the high school athletes that we coached came out to cheer him on despite chilly weather. Following Calvin tradition, Todd sported a mustache for the race.

Some of the Olympus High School track team

Todd and I embraced the last bit of winter by tubing at Soldier Hollow. I'm not sure you could have even called it "winter"--the snow was man-made and the temperatures were above 60. Despite having to work pretty hard to get from the top of the hill to the bottom without stopping on the slushy snow, we had a great time.

Jeff & Lindsey Lombardo and Ben & Alivia Plankis came out to Salt Lake City for a long weekend. The Lombardos ran a 50K race on Antelope Island on Saturday morning (what an accomplishment!!). We were unable to watch their race since we were coaching an a track meet that morning, but we enjoyed hanging out the remainder of the weekend. We went on a hike, played some yard games, went out for Thai food, and enjoyed catching up!

High School friends reunited

We've enjoyed watching our good friends Mark & Jenna Moffatt's beautiful baby girl grow up! When we babysat her most recently, she was moving around and pulling herself up on everything. She's a happy, curious little girl!

Harper & Todd

We spent Todd's Spring Break in California. We filled the week with lots of sunshine, sleep, running, and relaxing. We spent a night at Death Valley National Park on our way to Newport Beach. 

The weather was warm!

Artist's Palette. All of the coloring on the rock is from mineral deposits caused by volcanoes.

At the Devil's Golf Course. Todd was tasted the crystalline salt formations to see if they tasted salty!

Badwater Basin--lowest point in the Western Hemisphere

We arrived at our resort at Newport Beach just in time to catch the end of the Michigan vs. Kentucky game. We watched the sad ending of the game while we waited for our room to be ready. Based on a recommendation from one of our high school athletes, we ate at Mama D's for dinner. The restaurant has won an award for "best spoil you service", and we found that to be true.

We spent Monday at Corona del Mar, a beach near our resort. It was a quiet, beautiful beach. I braved the water for a while, but it was cold!

Inspiration Point

Little Corona del Mar

We grilled for dinner and ate on our deck

We spent Tuesday walking around Balboa island. We houses were beautiful! We ended the day on the Newport Peninsula with a delicious seafood dinner.

Balboa Island

Trying a Frozen Banana - a local special

The highlight of the trip for Todd - taking the car ferry from Balboa Island to the Newport Peninsula for only $3

Dinner at Newport Landing

We started Wednesday morning with a nice walk down to Crystal Cove State Park for breakfast at the Beachcomber Cafe. The Crystal Cove area was originally a vacation location for a group of families in the 1920's. The land has become a state park, but the cottages original to the 1920's remain. It was a neat place to explore. Since Wednesday was a cooler day, we stayed at the resort and enjoyed the pool and hot tub.

Crystal Cove State Park

Breakfast at the Beachcomber Cafe

Thursday was spent in Laguna Beach. We got lunch at a place I had been with my mom and Uncle Bruce 11 or so years ago, and then we relaxed on the beach for the rest of the day.

Lunch at Wahoo's Fish Tacos

Laguna Beach

I did my last long run for the Boston Marathon on Friday. It was nice to run in a new location! Todd joined me for the first 4 miles, then took the ferry to my half-way point (the end of the Newport peninsula--10 miles) and then took the ferry back to run the last 4 miles with me. What a great guy! We drove up to Huntington Beach for the rest of the day. We ended the day with shakes from Ruby's Shake Shack and watched the sunset from Ruby's deck.

Street performer at Huntington Beach

Huntington Beach

We were able meet Uncle Mike, Aunt Elaine, & kids for breakfast yesterday. They were in Salt Lake City for the morning before driving down to Southern Utah for Spring Break. It was nice to catch up with them!

We've been staying busy (in a good way) with coaching. Many of our athletes competing well at an invitation yesterday. It is so rewarding to see their hard work pay off!

Now we are looking forward to the Boston Marathon. I can't believe it is only 8 days away! After 5 months of training, I'm more than ready to race! My training has gone better than I could have hoped for, so I'm ready to see what I can do. We're really excited to see Holly and Matt! We'll be flying in to Philadelphia and staying with them in New Jersey for a couple days before driving up to Boston together on Saturday. I'm so thankful that I'll have family to support me!

Stay-cation

University of Utah has Spring Break this week, so I'm enjoying a stay-cation for the most part this week. Besides an appointment with an athlete, some hydration tests, and planning for football nutrition education, I've been able to be home getting more things done around the house.

Olympus Track is officially underway! We started "mandatory" practices last week Monday and held our time trial yesterday. We are hosting the first meet of the season next week Tuesday. We've had beautiful running weather--50's and sunny most days. Todd is running a 5K this weekend and many of the athletes we coach are coming to watch. Since he's been training hard to keep up with the fasted boy on the team, he's running pretty fast right now. Should be a great race! My Boston Marathon training is really picking up, and is going really well! It's pretty intense though and I've seemed to need 9+ hours of sleep--crazy! Less than 6 weeks to go!

We've continued to go to Utah sporting events. Men's tennis vs. BYU was exciting! We've never watched a match except on TV, so this was a first. Todd was convinced to go based on the free pizza that would be at the meet--but he ended up liking more than just the pizza. We also went to the Washington vs. Utah Gymnastics meet. Utah has an excellent team--ranked 5th in the nation. We're following Utah in the PAC12 Championship. Won in the first round!

We're back to consistently going to our church small group on Wednesday nights. We love the community we've found in this group of young couples!

We are looking forward to next weekend when the Ben & Alivia and Jeff & Lindsey come to Utah. The Lombardos are running a 50K trail race on Antelope Island. We also have plans for Todd's Spring Break! We're going to spend the week at Newport Coast in California. We'll also stop at Death Valley National Park on our way there--one of the few National Parks in California that we didn't stop at last summer.

That's all for now. Hopefully next time I'll have some pictures to share--but I haven't taken any lately!