Tirck or Treat

Emersyn wore her full costume for a total of probably five minutes. I'm not sure she knew what to think about it. But she sure looked cute.

Fall Family Photos.

The scenery was amazing. I love Snowbasin this time of year. Emersyn was wonderful and survived through pretty much everything. Thanks Rachel for the great pictures.

Kona and the Ironman

No, neither Chris or I did the Ironman.

We went for 'work'.

There is a Sports Medicine conference that goes on the week before the Ironman that Chris wanted to attend, as well as help out in the medical tent during the race. One of the main medical directors is one of the Kaiser Fontana Sports Medicine staff where Chris did his fellowship this last year. We persuaded my mom and dad to come and help with Emersyn. Jan and Sara decided they didn't want to miss out.

Vacationing with a baby is a different story than going as a couple, or just adults. There are nap times to consider, major diaper bag preparations because you never know what is going to happen, and bedtime should be as regular as possible. Crossing time zones adds to the difficulty of caring for a little one. It was a tremendous help having my parents and Jan and Sara there. Emersyn loved having some regular playmates as well.

The Ironman swim buoys are set up for the week before so racers can practice their swim. My dad, Jan, Chris and I all went out to test the waters. I had so much fun swimming I could have sworn I was meant to be a dolphin. It was amazing how the salt water makes it so much easier to swim - one day I figure I swam close to 2 miles, just over a 1/2 mile short of the actual Ironman swim distance, and with the salt water I would have had no problem swimming longer.

During the week the swell had gotten rather big so we had to be careful to stay close to the buoys to prevent getting swept away. While swimming I would look around to check on my dad to make sure he was close. One time he had gotten caught a little bit by the waves and probably doubled his swim distance after covering the length it took to get back on course. By race day the surge had died down quite a bit.

This boat was about a 1/2 mile out from the shore and was there during the week serving coffee, gatorade and water. Every now and then they threw out a swim cap or goggles. There were a lucky few that earned some free gear by being able to swim to the ocean floor and grab a rock. I'm not sure how deep it was, but I think there were only one or two who could actually do it.

The Kona Hawaii Temple. Closed for cleaning.

For those who have been to the Kona side of the Big Island they know that Kona is not the lush tropical Hawaii most people picture. It is made up of large black lava fields with rocky lava beaches. That is part of what makes the Ironman so tough. We took a day and travelled to Volcano National Park where a flow 10 or so years ago covered the road

The start of the Ironman.

The pros have already gone and the age groupers are lined up for the swim.

Craig Alexander - the men's Ironman World Champion winner

Chrissie Wellington - women's winner

My dad, Chris and I had a great time volunteering in the medical tent. We were star struck by tall the professionals and enjoyed helping them. We were amazed by what the body and mind can accomplish. Finishing the Ironman is truly an amazing feat. Maybe one day...

Xterra

In this years Xterra I filled in for my dad who was signed up to be the swimmer on a relay team. The last time I did the Xterra the swim was my least favorite part since it was such mayhem once the gun went off. There were so many people massed together that each limb found another person when I kicked or raised my arms to stroke. It was tough to get a rhythm going. The course was changed just enough that there was a little bit more room and it always helps when you can get out ahead of the crowd. I cut two minutes off my swim and finished in 16.30 minutes. With the new baby, moving, and lots of vacations Chris and I didn't feel prepared to do many races this year, but we are already making our lists for next year.

Chris is always my number one supporter and was great to carry around my second number one fan (Emersyn). It was a chilly morning where I could see my breath so we made sure Emi was plenty bundled up.

A lot of people showed up to see Lance Armstrong. It was funny to see how quickly everyone dispersed once Lance had come through the finish line. Rumor is he can't stand to lose and will be back next year.

A fuzzy picture, but the leaves were already changing back in September.

How do kids survive their parents?

While giving Emersyn a bath the bottle of baby wash slipped off the tub rim and hit her in the face, cutting her on the right side of her nose and giving her a bloody lip. It's a good thing kids rebound and love you anyway.

Bear Lake

How I missed Bear Lake while we were in California. It is a major gathering place for our family and one where I have many memories and am glad to have the opportunity to make many more. (Thanks to my parents for making it possible for everyone to be in one place). One month I went three out of four weekends....it's good to be back.

I took Emi swimming for the first time. We hung out in the kiddie pool - which I'm sure is so warm because it is 50 percent urine. I'm not sure if she liked it or not. She mostly just watched everyone else splashing around and wanted to chew on my watch. I gave her a good dunking which didn't produce any effect either, but at least she didn't hate it.

Jan and her boyfriend, Matt (keep your fingers crossed)

My parents recently bought a cottage close to the condo they already own. There is now room for everyone and their kids to stay. It was so much fun having such a comfortable place to get all the cousins to hang out together.

Who do you not want to share a room with?

Listen closely and you can hear that our little angel snores.

Fly

Emi is getting so heavy it took all the muscles Chris had to get her in the air.

No Peas, please!

We have been giving Emersyn baby food and she loves it, all except for the peas. We heard they were the worst so that's what we started with and Emi sure didn't like them.

Donut Falls

To celebrate my brother, Alex's birthday we did a fun and easy hike to Donut Falls up Big Cottonwood Canyon. It gave us a chance to use our baby backpack and see how Emersyn liked it. She hiked like a champ and blabbered pretty much the whole way. I'll take it as a good sign that she is going to like the outdoors.

Mom, Dad and Tyler came along. My mom kept commenting on how beautiful it is up in the Cottonwoods since it had been such a long time since she had been up that way. My dad mentioned that it had been 35 years since he had done this hike and things looked a little different.
Alex and Marty out on their first hike with baby Isaac. Happy Birthday Alex!

Emi Updates

One of my favorite baby stages is when they play with their feet and suck in their toes. Emersyn is really enjoying munching her cute baby toes.

We started her on rice cereal and she eats it like a champ. Even though it's a different way of filling the belly I don't think it's much of a step up from breast feeding or bottles. I think actual baby food that has flavor might get her more excited.
Tummy time is still rough...
She still isn't rolling over, though we're pretty sure she's capable. As much as she dislikes tummy time you think she'd have figured it out by now.

Cape Cod

Chris, Emersyn and I travelled back east to visit the Bell family in Cape Cod. It was everyone's first time meeting Emersyn and she loved all the new faces. Emi was a stellar traveller. She was amazing on the plane and hung in there when nap times weren't quite right. Many people have said it, and I believe it, that around five months is the ideal time for traveling with a baby. Time seemed to pass far too quickly, though. Having a baby adds a bunch of things to the list of what it takes just to get ready to hang at the beach so it was more like we were packing for a short trip when we were only spending a few hours at the beach.

The waves and water were wonderful. The older cousins spent most of the days catching waves

With the nice ocean breeze Emersyn would easily fall asleep in our arms. We would either hold her while she slept or lay her on a blanket in the shade. The sound of the ocean was her live noise-maker that dulled out a lot of the noise from the other beach-goers and she seemed to be able to nap soundly.

Our ride to and from the airport: an 80's style stretch limo. It was the only car that could take four adults, two kids in car seats and a whole load of luggage and a stroller. The ride was pretty comfortable, but I felt more like I should be standing out a sunroof driving around a city like a scene out of the movie 'Big'.

Quck post move update.

Since moving back to Utah we have been super busy. We painted and painted and painted our house - it took a long time and our house isn't even that big. Painting the garage is what took the most time. Every thing goes slower when you have a little one that needs attention every now and then. Emersyn has been a super star with the whole process of moving. We were sad to have our renters go as they are such good people. They took great care of the house - a few more dents and knicks, but what else can you expect with three kids.

Thanks so much to family and friends who helped out. We got welcome back treats and meals just when we needed it. Extra hands to help paint, take care of Emersyn, and move furniture. One of the many wonderful parts of living where we do is the abundance of people we know and who are willing to help out.

As much as we enjoyed California, Chris and I realized we are not meant to live in the city. We enjoy wide open spaces with green fields, mountains, livestock, three-legged dogs, and where we can see a tractor driving down the road every now and then. We hope to stay where we are for quite a while.

While we aren't hoping to move any time soon, Emersyn seems to do something new every day. It has been great for her to have so many family members around to give her new songs to sing and games to play. She has started to try communicating, but it's in a language that I think only she and Chris understand.