Elevate Triathlon Series

ammie and me after the race

So, I am FULLY aware that this is about the least flattering picture of myself in the history of the universe, but it's all I've got!

So, I signed up to do this indoor triathlon series at the Elevate training center in Orem. I thought it would be perfect because you swim in an endless pool, (not my favorite by the way) they put your bike on a trainer, and then you do the run on the treadmill. Perfect for a pregnant woman who doesn't want to fall off her bike! (although I DID fall off a stationary bike in spin class HARD CORE the other day. It was pretty much the most embarrassing thing ever, and I have MONSTER bruises to prove it!)

The first race was in November which would have been perfect because I wasn't pukey anymore, and I wasn't enormous yet. Unfortunately, I got a really nasty cold that week and didn't do it. Bummer.

The next race was at the end of January, and I did it with my great friend, Heather. We had SUCH a great time, and I believe I came in 4th from the bottom. I was pretty excited about this for being six months pregnant!

The final race was on Saturday, and Heather couldn't make it to this one, so I was ALL business! (and all belly too! I sure got some funny looks!) Anyway, I actually swam faster and biked faster this time, and my run was only a little slower. I ended up getting 4th place out of 12 women! I was so excited! I was fully prepared to come in dead last, but I actually beat two guys as well! I also got to do this race alongside Ammie, (pictured above) who I have met and chatted with at a few triathlons. We are typically fairly similar speed-wise, but she's not going to have a baby this spring, so I have a feeling she is going to pass me up pretty hard core.

For anyone interested here's how the course went:

-10 min. swim in an endless pool which means that you swim in a hot-tub like thing that shoots water at you so you feel like you're swimming upstream in a river. Your time is based on how high you set the water pressure. This series was the first time I had ever swam in one, and I did not love it. I would much rather swim outside thank you very much.

-13 mile bike ride on a trainer that simulates a hilly course. I actually kind of liked this because I wasn't worried about falling, and the fact that I don't have as nice of a bike as some of the other racers didn't really matter. I still like riding outside a little better though.

-3.1 miles on the treadmill. Running on a treadmill is kind of a pain, but running has been by far the hardest thing for me to do this pregnancy, and I like the treadmill better these days because I can pick a speed and just zone out. This was definitely my slowest leg too by the way.

Overall, I probably wouldn't do this race if I wasn't pregnant, but it was really a prefect way for me to motivate myself to stay in good shape and remind myself how much I love doing these!

Luck O' The Irish

This St. Patty's day My friend, Jess suggested that we do a little scavenger hunt for the boys-perfect! It was freezing cold on the 17th, but my boys had a killer time looking for clues that would lead them to the pot of gold!

Link mostly wanted to jump in the water and catch the ducks. I spent most of the afternoon trying to keep him out of it!

Adam and Linkers exploring the pond!

Enjoying all the loot at the end! It was a great time, but I have to say it felt really weird doing a scavenger hunt without the Jarvis boys!

Happy Birthday, Self!

So, the 15th was my 27th birthday, and boy did I have a good time! Nate and I went to see "A Tale of Two Cities" at the Hale theater in Salt Lake, and I have to say that it is the BEST production I have ever seen! It was so incredible, and I have been to Broadway shows before! This is one of my favorite books, so I was pretty sure the play wouldn't live up to my expectations, but it exceeded them. I also was pretty worried that I would cry at the end because I cry every time I read the book, but I managed to suck it up. Seriously, if you get a chance to see this show you should!

I had never been to this theater before, so I was surprised to see that they have a round stage, (like the globe theater) so you get a 3 dimensional show. There are literally NO bad seats in this place.

The choreography was amazing, the singing was beautiful, and I found myself LOVING every aspect of this production. Very well done!

Nate also gave me the green light to order one of these babies; a waterproof ipod for my swimming pleasure. I have never had an ipod before because I don't really like to run with music in my ears, and biking with it is kind of dangerous, but swimming can get a little boring, so I am excited to have one. AND Nate didn't have to try and pick something out for me, so it's win-win, right?

On the 14th we took Reid to see "No Dogs Allowed" at the local Scera theater, (apparently I have really been into plays lately. I DO like them better than movies for sure...) and it was really cute.

We went with our great friends the Wilsons...and the other Wilsons ha ha! Anyway, the kids were so excited I had a hard time getting them to smile for the camera!


They said there was no photography allowed during the show, but I had to get a picture of their faces-they were so entranced!

Tuesday was supposed to be warm and sunny, so I wanted to go for a family adventure, (of course!) so we packed up the car and headed to Antelope Island for some exploring. It's funny because I always see tons of Bison (NOT buffalo, apparently) but never any antelopes...and this guy looks like he wants to kill me. Let's get out of here!


We first explored the visitor's center, and got some ideas on where we should hike. Some of you might remember that I did a race here last year, and although that would be a beautiful hike it would be too much for my little guys...

So, we went to Buffalo Point and hiked around on all of the big rocks. Definitely a winner with this family!



Reid is my little mountain goat. He can scale just about anything. Although he tends to give his momma a heart attack about every six seconds. I love the way his little tongue is hanging out here. I do the SAME thing when I am concentrating!

This is my new favorite picture of my handsome guys! They are all looking at the camera AND smiling. A small miracle!

Here is a belly shot for anyone interested. I am about 33 weeks here. Yikes!

There he goes again...

They have these great telescopes so Reid and I could watch the bison herds (herds, packs, groups?? Any zoologists out there?) from a safe distance.

Lunch time!

Aha! There's an antelope! I knew they had to be around here somewhere!

And you know you've had a successful family outing when this little guy falls asleep in the car. I always take a picture when he does because it almost never happens. The perfect day!

Happy Birthday Katrina!

Today is our lovely niece, Katrina's 22nd birthday! We had her over for a birthday dinner last night, and because I am awesome I forgot to bake a cake...whoops. So, instead we made scones and cut them out with our holiday cookie cutters. Now, don't you all wish that I was your auntie!?

That's a ghost, a moon, and a snowman for those of you keeping track at home. Also, I busted out the blue sprinkles and candles to add a little flair. Martha Stewart's got nothin' on me! Happy Birthday indeed.

The Zoo!

The weather forecast said that yesterday was supposed to be nice, so I decided that we should all head over to the St. Patrick's Day parade in Salt Lake. Then I remembered how well my busy little boys do in huge crowds...not well. As much as I wanted to go, I knew there was a descent chance I would lose one of them, and strapping them to the stroller didn't sound like much fun either. So, the zoo it is!

We all love the zoo, and we had so much fun that I only took one lousy picture of my boys on the train. That's their favorite part anyway, I guess!

This trip was great because there weren't too many people, and with the exception of the elephants and the rhinos all of the animals were out and active (unlike in the summertime when they are hot and sleeping most of the time!).

There was even this cute little monkey who came right up to the glass and ate a carrot nose to nose with Link. He loved it!

Thanks for a good time, Hogle Zoo. We will be back, and next time I promise to take more pictures...

5K Fundraiser

So, Nate and I just got an e-mail from some friends (Matt and Bonnie Hargreaves for any Bellinghammers who might know them) who are putting on a 5k in Payson. Her sister has been fighting cancer for several years. She is married and has two lovely kiddos, so if there are any 5k runners out there (or anyone who would like to do their very first 5K!) this would be a great race to participate in. I feel so much better knowing 100% of my entrance fee is going towards a family in need rather than a race director! It's on Saturday, April 30th which is literally the day before I have this baby, but I am going to sign up anyway and try to be there. I may find myself a little stressed out that day, but what better way to celebrate the birth of my little one by running (more like shuffling these days) a race AND helping others? What a great way to kick off the racing season! If this sounds like something you're interested in here is the link to register:

http://eventsv2.regtix.com/app/regtix/reg/hope4sarah2011.htm

And if you're interested in learning more about Sarah here is her blog:

http://hopeforsarah.blogspot.com/

I KNOW I have some awesome readers who are also runners, so get in on this one! You won't regret it!

Easy As...

One (Reid)

Two (Link)

Three! (Baby boy #3!)

As most of you know we found out waaaay back in December that we are having our third boy! Yay for me. Boys are my thing, and I am so excited to have another one in our home. Also, this ultrasound is (obviously) NOT my baby, but my scanner is broken and I don't have any real pictures of him, so stock photo it is (is this a weird thing to do?).

This pregnancy has been really great. I have been exercising a ton and feeling much better than I did with Link. I am scheduled to have a c-section on May 1st, so I am starting to count down the days!

Reid seems to be pretty excited, and has even pitched in a few name ideas. The third boy is HARD to name! Any suggestions?

Also, if anyone is interested I got all caught up on my posts from November until now, (below) and I cross my heart that I will be a better blogger because catching up on three months is kind of a huge pain...