To marathon or not to marathon?

I am officially paid and registered for the 6 tunnel (Hoover Dam) half marathon on March 14th. And I officially have decided to NOT run the full SLC marathon in April that I was previously planning on doing. WHY? I really started researching the effects of marathon running on the body, and there is a lot of negative physiological stress put on the body, particularly on the knees, shins, hips and back by the constant pounding down on the concrete. I think short term I would be just fine, but I'm looking down the road to when I'm 50, 60, 70 and I want my body to be in as good of shape as possible, I plan on still being very physically active then and I don't want that to be infringed upon by having bad knees, hips etc.... from marathon running when I was younger. I figure I only get one body and I don't want to jack it up. Also my parents really don't want me to do it for that reason. So I'm compromising and currently training for the half marathon, which will be much easier on my joints. I have never run a long distance race period so the half will still be plenty of a accomplishment for me :)



Here's a cute picture of my kid to make this post a little more interesting

My Boys

My Sweeties



My 3 favorite guys



Little man feeding himself with a spoon for the first time



such a cutie



I love peanut butter



I love chocolate dipped spoons



My guys again



he he, were so mean



His face says it all :) Its only because we love you beef

CHRISTMAS DAY 2008

Crew and Santa "Koz"



I love this picture of Julie and Crew, Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for the rocking horse







Crew with cousin Isaiah



Cutest cousins



With Grandma Moo

Trying something new

So, I posted a blog a couple weeks ago asking you about your skin care routines and saying that I went off benzoyl peroxide and started using aha instead, well my skin was clearing up nicely for about a week then it started breaking out again agggghhhh!!! what to do now? I'm still not using BP and I don't plan on going back to it, so here is what I have decided to do, NOTHING. Thats right I'm stopping the use of all topical facial skin care products, I have used a zillion products over the years and I always end up stopping, switching in hopes of finding something better, and ultimately being dissatisfied with EVERYTHING I have ever used, so I'm just sick of it, I'm throwing my hands up. My friend Laura doesn't use anything on her skin, except for maby giving it a quick wash every few days and her skin is gorgeous. Jared does nothing to his skin at all, as most guys don't except shave and he has great skin to, in fact all the people I can think of that have amazing skin have a very simple skin care routine if any at all. I've been reading on some skin care message boards about people just like me who have used every acne product under the sun, decided to stop everything and their skin improved a lot, and that all these products only irritate the skin and CAUSE acne. SO I'M DONE, again I'm taking a leap of faith, I'll update in couple weeks and let you know how its going.

Springville Reams Review

I was inspired by Laura D to go check out Reams for grocery shopping. So today I headed over there for my weekly Monday afternoon grocery shopping trip instead of the super wally world, which I have grocery shopped at for years. So the general consensus was that that most of their food is a little more expensive then wal-mart, and their non-food items are quite a bit more expensive, don't even think about buying diapers there, 7.99 for 20 size 6 diapers, no thanx. BUT their produce department totally makes up for it, yes I was in fruit and veggie heaven. They have great produce and its very inexpensive, much cheaper then walmart. Here are some items I bought today and the prices

Large Avocados: $.69 each

All variety of apples: $.69 per pound

Blackberry's & Blueberry's: 2 for $3 (the small cartons)

Green bell peppers: 3 for a buck

and my personal favorite

2 lb bags of carrots for $.89 (that's cheaper then the bulk carrots at costco that I get for my juicing)

So the savings in the produce department definitely made up for the bit of extra money paid for non-produce items, so it evens out. But reams won me over for the following other reasons:

-The person at the checkout stand actually asked me how I was doing and was very friendly, weird I know.

-I didn't wait in line for a zillion years at the checkout stand

-I didn't have to walk a mile to and from my car

-If I forget something I don't have to walk a mile to the other side of the store

-I am supporting a local business instead of a huge cooperation

-Their meat and produce is higher quality and tastes better

-I felt like I was in Mayberry mingling amongest the county folk

-The people that work their actually are knowledgeable about their products and can answer your questions

Side story on this: I was at wal-mart a couple months ago to buy a car seat. I had some questions about some of the car seats ie... safety ratings, benefits of this one versus that one etc... so I started asking the girl working in the baby department, she cuts me off mid sentence and blurts out "I don't know anything" that's it, who says that? ok I said is the manager available to talk to, yes she said. So the manager comes out and I proceed to ask her my questions, she couldn't answer anything for me, the baby department manager knew nothing about any of the car seats.

I've been sucked in by wal-mart in the past due to its low prices and the fact that they have almost everything, but now that I know I can get out of Reams for the same price and have a much better experience, I will be going there from now on.

This weeks events

So this week was kind of busy and crazy, and also a lot of fun. Here's some of the hap's that took place

TUESDAY: It was my dads 68th birthday, yes you read it right my dad was 42 when I was born. My whole family got together at my dad's favorite resturant the pizza factory to celebrate.



This is my whole family (minus by biggest brother Mark and my sis in law Maggie)



Heres me and my daddy-o ( yes this is the best pic I got of him & I) you wanna see the other one?......................




My dad is so special to me, he is such a good person. He is the most selfless, kind, genuine person I've ever met. He would give a perfect stranger the shirt off his back if it was the last shirt he had. Really he would do anything for anyone. I love you dad.

WEDNESDAY: I went snowboarding at Brighton with my sister Robin, bro in law Thom and their friend Darron, it was such a great day, great company, perfect weather, nice and warm (ski resort warm of course) and sunny. Oh and the icing on the cake, it was FREE. Thom is a RN and works at the medical clinic up there occasionally, he was working that day and got us all passes, thanx again Thom I had a blast.

here are some pics


Me and my sis


Beautiful Brighton


Robin and Darron


another of me and rob

I had Robin video me going down the mountain so I could critique myself and see what I'm doing wrong, I'm still a beginner so I'm a little awkward still but I get better each time I go, I'm hoping to improve a lot this season



The video is 2 1/2 minutes long and the quality is kinda crappy, I guess the longer the video the worse the quality




THUSDAY: I went to see Twilight ( for the 3rd time) with some girls from my ward. I have to say I enjoy it less and less every time I see it. This time I went more for the socializing, ya know get to know the ward girls better then I did for the movie, so I'm glad I went but I won't be going to see it anytime soon.



Hottie hot hottie boy was just as nice to look at though :)

SATURDAY: I got up at 6:15 am to go do my first "big" run, 8 miles. Oh, I don't think I have mentioned on here I am marathon training, I am going to be running the SLC marathon on April 18th and possibly the canyonlands (moab) half marathon in March, if we get in, its a lottery. This was way tough for me, I've only been training about a week and I jumped in with these girl who have been training for 7 weeks, so I was dragging behind them most of the time. I ran the first 7 1/2 miles and then my quads, hip flexers and knees just gave out on me. Literally by body physically would not let me run anymore so I walked the last 1/2 mile. Oh and then I walked a extra mile or so due to getting lost. We started from this girls house that I had never been to before and winded all through this neighborhood when we left ( in the dark ) and on the way back I was so far behind the other girls I was all by myself and couldn't remember how to get back. Eventually they realized I was taking way to long and they drove around looking for me and found me wondering. Yes I felt retarded and slightly embarressed. Anyway my body was trashed yesterday, I think I over did it for sure. But I learned my lesson and will only be upping my miles in very small increments from now on. Also Saturday night was our ward Christmas party, which we attended for the first time since we have been in the ward for 3 years, and I made some yummy scalloped potatoes for it.



SUNDAY: That's today, this morning I took beef to the park to get him some exercise. here's some pics and a video





Here's a awesome pic I got of beef shaking the snow off his face

Britney+Pussycat Dolls..... um YES!!!

K who else to amped B Spears is coming to SLC april 14th? and if that weren't enough the Pussycat Dolls are opening, WHAT? let me say it again PUSSYCAT DOLLS, yes their act is kind of skanky but I love them, not quite sure who I'm excited to see more. Concert of the year for sure

Whats your skin care routine?

Everyone comment, I want to know what each of you do for your facial skin care routine and how its working out for you. Over the last oh 10 years or so I've used a gentle cleanser to wash my face, then put on benzoyl peroxide to keep acne away and then some sort of moisturizer. That's been my main routine but I've also used many other products ie... masks, oils, scrubs, creams in my search for perfect skin. The main problem I have had is DRY SKIN due to the benzoyl peroxide, which I absolutely loath, having dry skin is like the worst feeling on the planet to me and it makes me irritable and awnry (spell?). Even though I use moisturizer (and trust me I have tried almost everyone one out there) my skin will still be dry. In the past every time I have used less benzoyl peroxide or stopped all together in a effort to rid myself of the dryness, yes my skin will supple up quite nicely but it also breaks out. So I've basically had to choose 1- clear skin that is dry OR 2- supple skin that is broken out, it had been very frustrating. Well I think a new day may have come for me, I've been reading up on the Internet on trying to find a alternative product to benzoyl peroxide that will keep acne away but not dry out the skin. The overwhelming response I kept coming across was AHA (alpha hydroxy acid, the same stuff that has been used for years to reduce wrinkles and signs of aging) . I ordered some up from acne.org it looks like this

For the past about 4 days I've been using this in place of my BP (it was way scary for me to stop the BP altogether since I obviously don't want my skin to break out, but I decided to take a leap of faith). So my routine has been morning and night I wash my face wait about 5 minutes or so to let my face dry completely and then put this stuff on....that's it. I haven't even been using my moisturizer because it has kept my skin supple. My skin has stayed clear and even cleared up more and my skin has not been this supple and smooth in a LONG time and my skin tone is evening out also. I know its only been 4 days and I may be jumping the gun on writing a review but so far this is working great for me and my skin routine is WAY faster, and cheaper since I'm using way less products. I'm really happy with my skin right now, its a great feeling and I really hope this continues to work out for me. So go ahead and leave your comment and tell me what you do.

Park/Marathon

Yesterday I took beef to the park, threw the ball and ran around with him. I was in a short sleeved shirt and jeans and I was totally comfortable, it was awesome, December what? I was loving yesterday

Also I am seriously entertaining the idea of running the SLC marathon in April

Obsessed

So I saw Twilight tonight, or this morning rather. I LOVED IT, best movie I have seen in a long time. I almost didn't go because I thought I would fall asleep in the theatre, but thanx to my good friend Mr. Pibb I did just fine. Only one crappy thing about it, it ended way too soon. Usually in movies I'm thinking to myself, "when is this freaking thing going to end" so its kind of a big deal when a movie has this effect on me, really I can't wait to go see it about 5 more times. I read the first 150 pages in Twilight, I got bored because it was going to slow, I kept waiting and waiting for it to get better so I finally got to frustrated and gave up. Well I may have to go back and finish what I started.

Photo Tag

I got tagged by Ashley Siruno to post the 4th photo in my 4th picture album, so here she is, or he rather. This is beef stew in the pool at the house we rented this summer in Chandler, Arizona. I miss this pool so bad, I'm sure Beef misses it more. You've never seen a happier dog in your life. Every afternoon at 3:30 when Jared was home taking his 2-4 lunch break, him and Beef would go swimming together. So like clockwork every afternoon at 3:30 Beef would sit in front of Jared and whine to go out to the pool. I have no idea how he knew exactly what time it was, but he knew. Here is a video of him in action



I tag everyone who reads this post

NYOTB

So saturday night I went to the New Kids On The Block concert with some girlfriends, Jen scored free tickets for all of us, thanx again Jen.

They actually were pretty good and their dancers were even better

Natasha Beddingfield was one of the opening acts, her voice in INSANE, she was awesome

The NYOTB crew

This is Lady Ga Ga, she was the other opening act, k this girl is SICK, no seriously, in a good way, I love her. I very first saw her perform on So You Think You Can Dance this year, she is the best performer I've seen in a long time. She can BLOW and she is a AWESOME dancer, it's rare when you get that combination, most great singers really can't dance that well, her show was super high energy and fun, she was the highlight of the night for me.

Outside the E center

Here is a bonus pic of Crew doing one his favorite activity

Christmas: love it and hate it

Lisa'a latest blog got me thinking more about Christmas, I've been itching to break my decorations out of the closet and gleefully display all my trinkets and treasures while listening to "silver bells" and "Grandma got run over by a reindeer", I love Christmas. I have one Christmas qualm though, THE DAMN PRESENTS. This does not include giving presents to little kids, no, little kids definitely should get presents on Christmas. But adults needing to exchange gifts with each other, come on. No seriously I really hate this part of the season. WHY? because I feel like its a big ginormous waste of money that's why. Every year I get stress out and overwhelmed, thinking of all the people I have to buy for. Stressing about what to get them, How much to spend, wondering if I spent to much, or to little, will they even like it, and all the while feeling a bit depressed about all the money being drained from my bank account. Here's another thing, I really don't like to shop. Once in a while I like to go get myself a new pair of big star jeans from the buckle or come cool new T's from wet seal, but 1 hour tops and I'm spent. So having to go shop for other people out of total obligation kinda blows I think. Its one thing to see something at a store and think "that looks just like so and so, I think I'll snatch it up for them." Then excitedly give to them and see the happiness on their face when they receive it. This kind of gift giving is fun, I was excited to buy it, they were excited to receive it, and it was something they really wanted or needed, YEAH! everybody wins. It's quite another to drag yourself to a crowded mall and buy some random thing for Aunt Susie out of like I just said, total obligation that will most likely sit in a closet and collect dust for the next year or two until she does some spring cleaning and gives it to D.I. Lets not forget about the mass amounts of credit card debt Americans go into every year just to keep up with the yule tide tradition. I just get tired of the Christmas morning scene where everyone tears into presents and puts on a big fake "I'm so excited, this is exactly what I wanted" face, when half the time you probably counted care less about it, come on you know you have put on the B.S. I love it face for Grandma. Every year when Jared and I head home from Christmas day we pack our car full of "stuff" and wonder what the heck were going to do with all of it. I would much rather take the money everyone was going to spend and do a sub for Santa for some needy families, or take the whole family snowmobiling. So call me Scrooge if you want, I just wanted to get that out, PHEWWWW I feel much better now. I'd like to know your thought too on the subject

Splenda, a better alternative to sugar???

Have you seen products like these at the grocery store?




These no sugar added products are popping up all over grocery store shelves, in yogurt, ice cream, chewing gum, jam and jelly, pudding, frosting, baking mixes and many more. "No Sugar Added" Sounds like a healthy option right? ......... WRONG. Is it true they do not add sugar? Yes BUT they have to sweeten it somehow. These products are sweetened with Sucralose, a artificial sweetener. Splenda is sucralose. Its made up of chlorine and other chemicals. Research done by Splenda's manufacturer showed that consumption of sucralose caused shrucken thymus glands and enlarged livers and kidneys in laboratory animals. Other research in animals who consumed sucralose also showed increased appetite, diarrhea, decreased red blood cell count, reduced growth rate, hyperplasia of the pelvis, aborted pregnancy, decreased fetal body weights and placental weights as well as other negative side effects. Also in some observational studies in humans it appears to cause weight gain, sleep disturbances, sexual dis function, increases risk of cancer, MS, sclerosis, lupus, diabetes and more. What I'm saying is this stuff is bad news. Most of us would like to think that the FDA only approves sugar substitutes, chemicals, prescription drugs, food ingredients etc... that are safe for human consumption. But think about all the drugs, chemicals that the FDA has approved that were later pulled from the market because they ended up causing all kinds of health problems in people and even death in some cases, ie... ephedra, phen phen, olestra or olean, just to name a few and aspartame (used to sweeten diet soda) is now being recognized for having many harmful side effects. Really I don't trust the FDA as far as I can throw them. The reason they approved Sucralose even after finding out about the rats that experienced the enlarged livers/kidneys from an experiment DONE BY THE MANUFACTURER OF SPLENDA was because of the fact is was done on animals and not humans, and there have been no long term studies done on humans. So basically WE and our children are the test subjects for splenda/sucralose. It just makes me mad when the FDA approves crap like this with having plenty of good reason to believe the product is harmful ie... the laboratory rat testing and observational studies in humans, but get away with approving it on a technicality like there being no scientific long term studies done. Then on top of that the food companies use misleading phrases and slogans to makes you believe it is healthy for you. Like writing NO ADDED SUGAR in large letters, and Splenda's sologan "made from sugar so it tastes like sugar" in all technicality splenda starts from sugar but then they add unhealthy chemicals to make it "calorie free" which it isn't by the way. Trust me this stuff is no where near natural. Anyway just wanted to let you all know your better off eating real sugar and products with real sugar in them then this poo :)

Halloween 2008

I give you WHEATIES - BOX - BOY





Pretty sure I was to concerned with posing myself for this pic to notice you can't see my kids face

My awesome blood thirsty scary tree


KRISTY & RICKY BARLOWS HALLOWEEN PARTY

Dancin fools, I have no clue what I'm doing here

Who are those two freaks by the wall?

BPE fo life

oh ya

I love Darise in this pic

Go Go dancer, Cheerleader & Princess laya (spell?)

My lil dragon, this costume was so cute... and totally impractical, poor thing

My lil fam right before heading out to take Crew trick or treating, he loved it and held on to his little basket the whole time




We had a ball on Halloween, special thanx to Laura D for supplying the cheerleader and dragon costumes and Ricky & Kristy for throwing a totally awesome party

OH! I almost forgot the best part THESE VIDEOS.......ENJOY!!!!

p.s. thats ricky in the wheaties box with jared on the left, the clip is really short because my memory card filled up dang it