thing 1 and thing 2

Jeremiah's Three!

So my baby turned three a week ago. He hasn't allowed me to call him baby in some time but I'm sure none of you will tell him I referred to him as such.

We celebrated by taking a long-anticipated trip to Out of Africa, a wildlife park 15 minutes down the road. The kids got to feed the giraffes, take a safari ride through the "Serengeti", see a tiger show with two Bengal tigers, pet a 15 ft. reticulated python and watch as all the lions and tigers and bears were fed. It had been 3 days, and boy were they excited. By the end, the outrageous price we had paid to get in seemed well worth it. I couldn't believe that was in our backyard!

Rena, a friend of mine, came along with her two children. I watch them on a regular bases while Rena teaches Audrey about her horses and how to trail ride. Rena also makes, of her own design, stick horses. They are beautiful, meticulously made and super affordable. Check them out at http://www.etsy.com/listing/68062372/stick-horse-chocolate-paint-hobby-horse?ref=sr_gallery_1&ga_search_query=stick+horse&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

So Jeremiah was the lucky boy who got one.

You can't see it, but Jeremiah is mounted on his horse and flying around the house here

Play dough now plagues our house on a daily basis

Jeremiah has been requesting birthday cupcakes for two months. Can you feel his excitement?

On his actual birthday, we took a trip down to Mesa. While Rob and I got to do some family names at the temple, the kids had some Grandma and Grandpa time with Rob's parents. We all went out to eat later before the drive home. They gave him a pillow pet frog since... well, Jeremiah was a bullfrog.

The Dirty Dash

I'm so excited to have these awesome pictures that Ryan and Melissa took at the Dirty Dash two weeks ago. The Dirty Dash is a mud run/obstacle course - either 5k or 10k for adults and maybe 1/2 mile for the "piglets". Rob's company entered the race with a corporate discount and we couldn't resist after hearing about Aaron and Krystal's adventures last year. Ryan and Melissa are the official photographers for this series of races all over the country and we thought it would be great to see them in action... it was!

Rob decided to do the 10k without so much as a day of training. A lot of the participants dress up in funny things that look even funnier covered in mud. Rob wore the tuxedo his parents originally bought for his high school junior prom 15 years ago. He then wore it to his sister's wedding and on our wedding day too. We thought this would be a great way to retire it as it has gotten bit worn in places. He said he got comments like "hey elder!" and "your dry cleaner is going to kill you". Bennett was a ninja fighter - a costume that surprisingly survived and will reappear at Halloween.

And so, with many thanks to Ryan and Melissa for these amazing shots, here are some of the highlights of the day:

My brother Aaron and his kids, Lincoln, Ivan, and Adelia also participated in the Piglet Plunge.
Audrey stayed down in St. George with Lisa for the 2 days we were up in Provo.



Jeremiah needs more exposure to playing in the mud... he didn't love it.

The crowning moment for all muddy participants was the ice cold public shower that the Dirty Dash provides. Bennett and Jeremiah had to strip down to their undies while Rob tried to scrape off the caked on mud. I'm sure they've been traumatized for life. Will we do it again next year? I think it's going to be a tradition.