Up to date

So I realize it has been a while since I posted. Maybe this faulty blogging pattern on my behalf answers the question of why my "links" list is so stinkin' short. For those who care, here is an update on the recent happenings of my life...

Challenge Games

This is our biggest field trip of the year. Challenge Games is the equivalent of Special Olympics, and my kids LOVE it! Last year we didn't have as many kids attend because the plague (a.k.a. the common cold) swept through the class the week before. This year, I had twice the amount of kids attend. It was crazy but fun! This multi-district event makes this day so special for the kids... they get prizes, treats, recognition, preferential treatment, a gold metal... each student competes in two events with crowds of people cheering them on, it's amazing. This picture is a student of mine whose mother I know well, so I don't think she minds if I post it.

Spring Break

Amazingly enough, Isaiah and I got to visit my Grandma and Grandpa in Arizona for a few days. It felt sooo good to get away! Plus, I hadn't seen my Grandparents for a while... It was short but fun. Isaiah and I were able to warm ourselves back up (only to return to the sub zero-rain-wind-hail weather back home, but whatever), eat the best pizza and Mexican in the US, hike desert trials, smell orange blossoms, and share slow mornings on the patio. I wish we had more pictures. We will definitely treasure the meals and conversations shared with two wonderful Grandparents. They have the best stories!

Day Trip

It's humorous to me that the shortest trip Isaiah and I embark on is the one with the most pictures! We met up with my parents on the Oregon Coast and took part in a day of their mini-holiday. It was so fun being silly, enjoying the long awaited sunshine, and playing on the beach. After an award winning breakfast the Hawk Creek Cafe, we skim-boarded.... okay, okay, Isaiah skim boarded and I posed for the camera. Then we went back to their condo and soaked in the hot tub and whale watched. Oh my goodness, how perfect is that? Thanks Mom and Dad for the good memories!

Other tidbits

Isaiah and I were walking to the Saturday Market one morning and saw a huge group of runners with Vancouver Fit go by, his brother Casey was among them. We felt good cheering them on, and with those good feelings came the idea of... Why aren't we running with them? We could train for a marathon together! So it came to be. Although we haven't signed up we are training for our first marathon set for September. About three years ago I remember finishing my half marathon thinking, who the hell would run another one of these?? Oh the irony of it all.

On a mournful note, last weekend my family piled into the van to go to the funeral of my Grandpa Loren Miller. It was a bittersweet affair for sure, and I will always remember practicing singing Red River Valley with my brother in the car on the way there. I still tear up thinking of that song and what it meant in the life of my grandpa. In fact tears still come to my eyes reflecting on the moments when my Uncles and Aunts would cry, laugh and then cry again while sharing memories. I know Grandpa Loren is in heaven with Grandma Mary, happily walking the heavenly ocean shores.

Thanks friends and family for your patience with my lack of updates. Hope this makes it up. Love you all!