Firsts

Tonight I ran one mile without stopping for the first time in all of my twenty-seven years!

It feels good.

I think I'm going to vomit.

Training ...

I am so happy to hear such a great response to the 5K I'm running! Just so you know ... I'm almost to one mile without stopping -- just about beating a lifetime record -- and that was when I was in the 10th grade and playing basketball!

It sounds like a lot of you are interested in running it too. Because of this, I'm thinking about organizing a group run/walk to get us ready for the big day. Here's what I need ...

1) Who you are ... and if you are registered or not, (If not ... are you planning to?)
2) Any suggestions on where we could do this run. We've got people interested from Orem to Ogden ... so somewhere in between. There's a nice trail in Draper -- or we can do Sugarhouse park.

Once I hear back from you ... I'll post again and let everyone know the details. Oh ... and this is everyone who has mentioned interest: Sarah, Marissa, Cody, Mandee, and Kim.

Not as Much Stohel as One May Have Thought

Everyone -- including myself -- has always commented on how much Jace looks like me.

"He looks like a Stohel" they would say. Well I was looking at Jace's 4 month pictures ... and I don't know! He looks a heck of a lot like his daddy. Now, both Joe and I are older than Jace in these pictures, (It's Joe's first birthday and I am probably 6-8 months or so) ... but I see BOUCHER. Sorry for the poor picture quality!!

KKKKK

Yes. That's five of them. I'm running my first ever 5K. My goal is to be able to run the whole thing. I don't really care how long it takes me, but I want to run it all. If you are interested in running and training with me, (and I AM a beginner!!) let me know. You can register at www.wasatchwoman.com . It's for women only -- so I would love a support and companion since Joe can't be there!

I also started a new diet this week. I'm pretty pumped about it ... and all I'm going to say is that I hope that I will be carrying 15 pounds less by the big run.

Third Birthday

One-Third that is

okay Jace ... what is one-third of 12 months?
4 months! That's right! Good boy Jace :)

I can't believe how fast Jace is growing! He is such a central part of my life ... I don' know what I would do without him. Everyday he gets bigger and bigger and every day I love and cherish him more and more. There were a lot of trials that stood in our way to get him here -- but the overwhelming JOY that he brings to our lives dissolves the heartache from the past. He had his 4 month well-visit appointment today and his stats are: 16 lbs even (76 percentile) 26 inches long (84 percentile) and a whopping 18 inches head (100th percentile). Big head to hold all of the genius brains he has going on in there I guess. Even though he is big ... he is proportional. If he was in the 80th percentile for weight and 30th for height ... I may worry about him. But nope -- just a big healthy kid!!

At 4 months I can ...

Jace has discovered two things in the last 30 days. His hands and his saliva. Often these two have more to do with each other than not ... escalating the saliva "issue". No he's not teething ... just drooling. He loves to play with his hands. He loves to put them in his mouth. He also will hold his hands together and play with his fingers -- pretty adorable. He enjoys singing and has started cooing while I sing to him. Some favorite songs are: I am like a Star, I love to see the temple, I am a Child of God, Child's Prayer, and that's about it. Pretty much the children's hymns I can think of. Jace also LOVES to be outside. We are starting to get into a better routine of exercising and he will stay awake for hours just enjoying the great outdoors. It is our secret to getting him to sleep throughout the night. Right now he is eating four times a day -- 7 oz each time. He is starting to stop eating when he is full so I anticipate solids will come in the next month. He generally sleeps while we are eating so I am not sure how into "people" food he is yet. As he gets older and older his face is getting longer and he is starting to look more like his dad. I love them both so much!! Happy third birthday son.

Here's what we've been up to this month:


Supporting dad on his long run!
4th of July / GG's 80th birthday party

Hiking up Bell CanyonThe ZOO again

Playing with Millard, the moose

Hanging out at Lagoon's Merry-Go-Round

Hiking to Twin Lake with my spidy hat

Oquirrh Temple Open House

4 months old

Twins mean two ... right?

We got a text from Joe's little brother on Sunday night asking if we want to get together on Monday. OF COURSE! We run on Monday nights so I was trying to think of something that we could do that was physically active. We decided to hike up to Twin Lake Reservoir. The description of it said EASY ... I beg to differ. It wasn't long, but it was 100% uphill (at least until we turned around and went back -- the rest was downhill. So technically it was 50% uphill.) I was huffing and puffing the whole way up. I am out of shape -- but it was tough.

When we got to the top of the hill we didn't think that we went up the right path. First of all it WASN'T easy. Second -- the hike was to a place called Twin Lake. We got to the top and there was this huge dam. We were expecting two of something so we figured that we had taken the wrong path. The sight was gorgeous and totally fun to get to the top. The only downfall was that it was pretty cold.

The more we go and exercise outside -- the more Jace expects it and enjoys it. There were a couple of nights last week that we didn't go out ... and Jace was cranky the whole night. He stayed up late and was pretty fussy. He loves to be outside and he loves to look around. Something about the air, the smells, the outdoors. We are training him well.

Oh and don't forget to check out his hat. It is way too big -- but kept the mosquitoes off! Besides Spiderman is our favorite ... and his.

Water Baby?

We have wanted to take Jace swimming for a long time. Well we were going to Lagoon -- and thought that we could take him to lagoon-a-beach when we were done with the rides and when it was starting to get hot. The night before we bought him his swim diapers and a little life jacket. We strapped him up and started out to the water.

I walked in the water and, to my surprise, it was pretty cold! SO we took him to a very shallow part of the pool -- thinking it would be warmer since it was ... shallow. Unfortunately the temperature was about the same. Joe and I sat down and put Jace's toes in the water. It wasn't surprising at all that he didn't like it. He cried and cried. I guess we don't have a COLD water baby. Now we need to find a pool that is warmer so that we can try again. Oh well! We got some cute pictures. That's all that matters really.

Bell Canyon Reservoir

As part of our quest to get healthy ... we have been spending a lot of time outside. Last night we decided it would be fun to take our little family up the canyon. I started researching which trail we should go up ... I wanted something that could be done in a couple of hours but not so easy that we weren't getting a workout. The decision: Bell Canyon Reservoir.

There are two different trails that can take you to the reservoir. Stephanie had taken both and we went up the "better" of the two. You walk around this ridge and you can see the entire valley. It's about 0.75 miles up to the reservoir. We stopped there to have our little dinner and enjoy the view. Because of all of the unusual rain fall in the valley recently ... the water level was really high and we couldn't even get down to it. (We didn't try though ... we wanted to keep walking!)

I'll stop right now to say that Jace did wonderful! By the time we got there he should have started to fuss and get ready for bed (7 p.m.) But we weren't home ... so we couldn't go to sleep yet. He just was happy as a bug! Watching everything around him and ... sucking in the backpack. (On the way down the mountain there was a lady behind me. She was like: "IS that a DOLL? I laughed. "NOPE! It's my boy!" :) She was concerned that a full grown woman was carrying a doll up the mountain! hahaha)

After we ate dinner we continued on our way. The path was gorgeous! We climbed a long way, passed over a bridge and then kept going. We saw several rivers, but didn't think that they were the waterfall we were expecting -- SO we kept going. The terrain started to get a bit bumpier and we had to step over and climb up several rocks. At this point, dear Stephanie had to go to the bathroom. Not easy to do when you are a girl. She refused, but the longer she waited ... the grouchier she got! "THAT'S FALLING WATER!" "THERE" "THERE" "AND THERE". We laughed at her, pointing to all of the trees she could borrow for the moment. Stubborn Steph. Finally she turns around and yells: "THIS PATH ISN'T TAKING US ANYWHERE! CAN WE GO BACK ALREADY?" We decided to go back -- we had seen a small waterfall and I guess we won't know if that was the waterfall in question until we take the hike again. We turned around to go back and I swear that Steph was halfway down the mountain! We took our time going back, taking pictures and enjoying ourselves. Jace was doing great still -- started to blabber a bit and by the time we got to the bottom he was asleep. About half way down the hill here comes Steph. She couldn't make it down the mountain so had to find a cozy spot off in the brush. She is much more enjoyable when not being manipulated by her bladder.

We were able to finish our little hike in the sunset. I am so grateful to live so close to places that we can just escape. We had a great time as a family -- and I am exploring which mountain we are going to conquer next!!

A Healthier You

Every time I see someone running on the side of the road I wish I could be like them. I wish that I had the motivation (and stamina) to do what they do. It finally dawned on me ... why can't I do it? Joe and I bought Jace his "jeep" and are ready to get rolling. I'm sure that Joe isn't challenged much anymore running with me ... but more importantly we are getting healthier together and teaching Jace good habits.

We go running every other day and on the "off" days we strap Jace in his back pack and take the dogs for a walk. It is a great way to spend time as a family ... and to keep Jace awake so that he sleeps through the night. BRILLIANT!

Happy Independence Day

For the fourth of July, we spent it celebrating my Grandma's 80th birthday! I had many cousins and friends come from my dad's side of the family that we haven't seen in a long time. It was great to catch up. We enjoyed a great meal ... and a lot of catching up! I ate more brownies than you can count and enjoyed my grandma's potato salad like only she can make it.

All American Cutie ... I think so!

Going gangsta with his sideways "visor"

Hanging out with his daddy
(Look at how he's holding his hands. He does that all of the time now!)

After everyone left we played a couple of games and celebrated our Nation's birthday with some fireworks. My parent's neighbors really get into the fireworks--it's their favorite holiday. We had a great time!

Growing Up

When I started working for the public school system, I was given a nice little bonus. This is a special bonus that they would give to math, science, and special ed teachers. I didn't have to repay that amount if I finished two years of teaching. I was also told that I would receive the same amount at the end of my fourth year teaching. All year I have waited for this bonus. I KNEW it was coming. I planned. I waited. I anticipated. I received the check about two weeks ago and I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it: Kitchen.

When we were first married, Joe and I received a cute little dinet set from his parents. It served us well -- lasting us eight good years and five moves. The chairs died out a couple of years ago, but our little table survived. We decided it was time for an upgrade. We went to John Paris Furniture on 33rd and Redwood. They were great! They asked if we needed help and when we said we were just looking they left us alone. He came back about 15 minutes later to see if we were still okay. TOTALLY no-pressure to buy. Well ... we ended up choosing this beauty:

We love it. When the leaf is put away we can easily fit 6 adults. With the leaf ... probably 8 - 10. It should last us many many years.

With the rest of my bonus we got a new fridge, dishwasher, and ... stamps. For new appliances we chose black -- and I don't know what I was thinking. It actually is growing on me a little, but I believe that our kitchen would look better if we had white, so we are going to exchange them soon. As soon as we do, I'll post new pictures!