My First Triathlon

My sister Cherie convinced me to do my first triathlon yesterday, the Super Sprint at Rancho Seco. I'm so grateful that she did! I totally loved it and plan to do it again in the future. Above are Cherie and I before the first leg which was a 400 meter swim.


At the end of the 8 mile bike ride. Thanks Becky for letting me borrow the sweet bike!

Almost to the finish line after a 2 mile run. It felt great crossing that finish line. I did better than I expected by getting a 1:08 finish.

Bryan was a great sport bringing the kids so they could cheer me on even though it was just plain hot by the time it ended. It was supposed to get to 100 degrees that day. I think it was about 82 degrees at this point. Hopefully my next one will be in more comfortable conditions. But I can now say I am a triathlete!

Rachel's First Day of Kindergarten

I can't believe the day came already, but it's time for Rachel to start school. She was so excited to go shopping for her outfit to wear on her first day. I'm not surprised that she chose a dress. She was so excited to go.

Yes, she does have hair.
This is her coming out of her classroom at the end of the day. Her teacher gave her a little bag of treats and they made hats that said: "I'm A Kindergarten Star Student!" She had a great day and made "sooo many friends." The next day she was very upset that she couldn't wear the same dress. The third day she didn't want me to walk her up to her classroom. Where did the time go?

Six Flags

We got season tickets this summer to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo. On this, our seventh visit, I actually remembered to bring my camera. We were there with my siblings Todd, Cherie and Joel along with their families. The kids all had a great time with so many cousins. We have definitely enjoyed our visits.

Ben and Kate on the Looney Tunes Submarine ride.

Cameron, Nick, Natalie and Rachel, also on the submarine ride.

Ben decided for his souvenir to get a white tiger, so we thought we should get a picture with him too. Rachel's choice was a Tweety Bird doll. They have had fun playing with them.

Cousin Sam's Birthday

The day we went to Six Flags was Sam's birthday so after our day in the park we celebrated with a cake. We tried to go to a neighborhood park, but it was dark and therefore closed by the time we got there, so we improvised and pulled out our chairs in an empty parking lot. Yummy cake and good company.


I love how Natalie and Rachel are making the same pose. They are both such girly girls. So cute!

A Happy 4th of July!

We attended our ward's annual 4th of July pancake breakfast. The kids got their faces painted, then showed off their decorated bikes in the kid's parade.


I took the kids swimming with my friend Suzette in the afternoon. For dinner we had a BBQ with Bryan's sisters and Mom. For fireworks we staked out a good (free) spot to see the Elk Grove Park display. Rachel and cousin Taylor loved it along with the adults. Ben was a little nervous about the loud booms and decided he would rather watch Finding Nemo in the car.