The Lewis Family

Last month Aaron and I ran our first marathon...26.2 miles!  It was such a great experience to train together over the last several months and to accomplish this amazing goal that we set together.  I have never considered myself a runner until about a year ago when I started to get into it.  I found that I really enjoyed the satisfaction of beating my own distances and times (not to mention I finally found a sport in which Aaron and I were on equal playing fields!)  We trained for and ran a half marathon in May and decided that if we were ever going to go "all the way" and run a full marathon, this would be the time in our lives for it (we're only getting older, right?!) 

So, for months our neighbor from across the street would come over at 5:45 a.m. four days a week to babysit our sleeping kids while Aaron and I would go running together.  It is amazing what the human body is capable of with determination, dedication and consistency.  I am still pretty surprised that in just over a years time I went from thinking I couldn't run 3 miles, to completing a 26.2 mile race.  The best part was that I got to do this with my husband...we were like a little running team: encouraging one another, challenging each other, and secretly trying to outdo the other! There is no way I would have had the discipline to follow through with the training schedule if not for him.

I'm not sure if I will ever run a full marathon again.  I haven't decided if I want to go through all of that again, but I am so glad that I had this opportunity.  Whenever I feel like I need a confidence boost, I can put on my SBI marathon t-shirt and tell myself, "If I can run a marathon, I can do anything!"

We had a fun Halloween...especially since we got to celebrate it twice!  On Friday night (28th) we attended a Halloween party at our church where we enjoyed dinner, carnival games, trick-o-treating, and a costume parade.  I even won first prize in the lasagna contest!  Then three nights later on Halloween we went trick-o-treating with some of our neighbors, finishing up with dessert at my friend Julie's house.  The kids and adults all had a great time!

Grace the Hula Dancer

Eve the Fairy

Daphne the Monkey

The neighborhood troop of trick-o-treaters

I love that Eve is so easy to please.   In order to fufill her request for a strawberry birhtday party I made a strawberry flavored cake and decorated it to look like a strawberry, put up a few strawberies made out of construction paper and voila...the party of her dreams!  She really was so impressed and grateful for what seemed to be a pretty simple party.  It was fun to have Grandma and Grandpa Lewis along with Aunt Sarah over for dinner and a celebration of Eve's big day.  Grandma even brought a salad that had strawberries in it...how perfect!

Eve's birthday request was to have a baby doll "of her very own."  (By this she meant one that Daphne hadn't taken over.  Somehow every baby doll in the house has been claimed as territory of Daphne.)  As part of this request Eve was very specific to the importance of a baby-back-carrier to put the doll in. (Now that I think about it I'm sure this was her strategy to assure that the baby could stay with her at all times thus avoiding being claimed by Daphne!)  Daphne did not react well to Eve having a baby doll that was off limits.  In the end, sweet Eve couldn't resist sharing with her little sister.

Eve with her new baby doll

Daphne's reaction when we told her that it was Eve's baby

Sarah, Grace, Grandma L, Grandpa L

Sarah demonstrating to Daphne and Eve how to properly diaper a baby

I love going to the pumpkin patch.  It's the quintessential autumn experience. The crisp air and the warm colors make me happy!  The girls sure had fun picking out their pumpkins and even cooperated for some photos (a certain individual had to be bribed with a lolly to sit still, but I won't name any names.)  Looking at these pictures of pumpkins makes me hungry...I am on a real pumpkin baking kick lately.  I have made pumpkin cookies, a pumpkin roll, even pumpkin pancakes.  Still on the agenda: pumpkin bars and a pumpkin pie!  And while we are on the delicious topic, you have to try Pumpkin Spice Hershey Kisses...they are amazing!

We got to have my nephew Hayes come stay with us for a couple of days while his mom and dad ran in a relay race.  It was so fun to have him...he was a delight!  The older girls doted on him, and Daphne loved having a buddy around that was just her size.  Hayes was like the boy version of Daphne, only he was a lot more easy going.  When we would go places they would run around with each other laughing at their own inside jokes.  People would smile and often mistake them for twins!  There is something special about a cousin...an instant friend for life!

  Last month we got the whole family up early one Saturday morning to go watch several hot air balloons launched before our eyes.  It was part of an event for the area's children's hospital.  Although its never fun to pull a two-year-old out of bed before 6, it was well worth the lack of sleep and potential fussiness for all of the oooos and aahhs, and fun that was had by all.  Aaron vividly remembers going to a similar event as a young child and being amazed by the whole process. So he really loved this experience of witnessing his own children wowed by the very thing that he so fondly remembers.

Last month Grace was recognized during an assembly at her school for receiving a perfect score (600) on the math portion of the STAR test (the standardized test given to California public-school students every year.)  She was the only student at her school to earn a perfect score, so when they called her up on stage to present her with a "600" t-shirt she felt pretty incredible!  She was amazed that the whole school was cheering for her.  Afterwards she said, "It was like I was famous or something!"  and wanted me to call her "Miss 600."  I had to have a little talk with her on the way home about humility, because after the assembly she was going up to people and asking if they would like to shake her hand because she was now famous!  Luckily the fame has worn off and she's back to being just Grace.

Saturday was a very special day.  Our Grace was baptized.  Eager, as always, she chose the day after her eighth birthday for this big and important occasion (In our church children have the opportunity to be baptized after they turn 8.)  Months ago, when she found out that her birthday was going to be on a Friday, she was filled with excitement as she told me her wishes to be baptized the very next day (She had noted that most baptisms she had been to were on Saturdays!)  She has been so sweet about her decision to be baptized.  Her anticipation had been building up this past year as she had realized what this special birthday meant. I love that she realized the significance of this decision to be baptized, and that it was important to her to prepare herself for it. She increased her desire to study her scriptures on her own,  say her own prayers, and asked a lot of questions.  It has been a wonderful experience for me as her mother to witness just how capable this bright little child is of recognizing truth and wanting to do what is right.  I love her so much, and it makes me so happy that she can share in the joy I experience in having a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The baptism was beautiful and we are so grateful to those who were able to come share the evening with us.  The biggest surprise was that my parents drove twelve hours to be there for Grace.  We had thought that they wouldn't be able to make it, but surprised us with the news the day before they arrived!  Grace was thrilled when they showed up at our house on her birthday (she had no idea they were on their way!)  She also had her other Grandma and Grandpa, Uncle Brian, Aunt Sarah, Uncle Jason, cousins: Olivia, Chandler, Davis and Hayes, and a few friends from church there for the event.

The moment that stands out to me most is when she came up out of the water and walked out of the font where I met her with a clean, white towel.  As I wrapped her up in that towel and looked at my beautiful, smiling daughter who had just made a sacred covenant with her Heavenly Father, I was overcome with emotion.  I knew that Grace knew exactly what she had just promised and that she felt peace and happiness with her decision.  It was a feeling and a moment I will never forget.

Grandpa and Grandma P, Davis, Chandler, Grace, Grandpa and Grandma L, Daphne, Olivia, Eve, Maren, Aaron, Brian, Sarah, Hayes, Jason

Today was the first day of school for these two.  Where did the summer go?  I really wasn't ready for this, even though they seemed to be.  Is this just a taste of what is to come?  A lifetime of them ready to move on and me trying to hold on?  I know that it's just the first and third grades we are talking about here, but then again it was only just kindergarten and second grade...and before that it was just preschool and first grade.  These sweet children are growing up before my eyes (now I sound like an old lady.)

Don't get me wrong, I am excited for them.  I love to see them grow and develop into the amazing little people that they are (its one of the perks.)  But even as I pump them up for life and encourage them to keep on progressing, I can't help but secretly well-up with tears on a day that it is so evident that they are doing just that.

The girls and I got to travel down to San Diego this past week with Aaron who had a real estate conference down there.  While he attended his conference we stayed with his sister Angela and her family who live in the area.  The kids had a blast playing with their cousins, swimming, going to the beach, and spending a day at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.  I am so grateful to Angela and Jared who let us come visit even though they had just moved into their fabulous new home days before we arrived...what amazing hosts!  Here are a few of my favorite shots that captured some of the fun we had:

The girls did great on the long car ride.

Daphne with cousin Christian

The kids swimming in the pool and Angela's house

Grace sliding down the rock slide

Cousins

Roasting Marshmallows in Jared and Angela's backyard

Julia and Grace getting ready to go boogie boarding

At a crowded, but beautiful San Diego Beach

Eve, Grace, Julia, Ryan, and Dallin playing in the water

Daphne (notice her wet hair...she got knocked over by a big wave because she refused to hold my hand while we were wading in the water!  She didn't even cry after being flipped backwards in the water (classic Daphne.)

Eve on the tram ride at the Safari Park

We love the elephants!

Daphne in front of the African acrobats show we watched at the Safari Park.

When the girls and I went to pick Aaron up from his conference downtown we stopped to watch sailboats in the harbor near the hotel.