Thursdays are for hiking and the splash pad

During the summer we do our weekly Y hike on Thursdays and then hit the splash pad afterwards. Hazel told me she loves the hike as much as she loves the splash pad.

Taking a little rest. This rarity was my favorite part of the whole day.

Ergobaby carrier plus Camelback.

And then Haze discovered the mud near the splash pad.

Hazel and Lily

Hazel and Lily are best buds. They are growing up together. Lily's mom used to babysit Hazel so they were each others' first (non-parent/grandparent/relative) friends. They went from being jealous and crying when the other was held to actually playing together.

Although it's still rare, Lily may be the only person Hazel chooses to share things with.

Just popped her water into the cup holder and hopped into Lily's car the second we arrive.

Pulling Lily's wagon at the park.

Water fountain?

Holding hands!

We were at the Nike outlet store and Hazel found the shoes that Lily has. She walked around the store saying "Lily. Lily. Lily."

Just partying during a BYU football game at NuSkin, where Andy works.

Pacific Grove Triathlon

We went to California for the Pacific Grove Tri a couple of weeks ago. I did the Olympic Tri and my dad was participating with a relay team (all three of the team did the full Olympic Tri last year). A couple of other friends were doing it as well. I was ready to do an olympic-distance triathlon after feeling sort of "blah" after my last few sprint triathlons. I had done well on my times in recent races, and then did poorly in the last one I did (with a whole bunch of other family). I needed to switch it up and the Pacific Grove Triathlon is a really pretty and fun race. I was not nervous about the race, but I was nervous about the long drive from Utah with Hazel since we have only ever flown with her.

Hazel stocked up on 57 cases of Diet Caffeine Free Mountain Dew for her grandpa. He loves his "sparkling orange juice" and can't get it in the bay unless he has it shipped for $2 per can. We hit up all of our local Macey's grocery stores and asked for all the cases they had in the back.

Partying at a gas station on our drive. It went surprisingly well, with much planning and effort. We left at 4 a.m. so Hazel would sleep some and were ready with meals in the car and new toys and coloring.

Obviously the most important type of race prep.

Hazel loves her grandma and grandpa's house and enjoyed playing with Presley there.

Granny and Hazel taking each other for a walk. Hazel recognized Granny and was happy to see her.

Wishing me good luck. I did really poorly on the swim. I decided that regardless of how I did on each leg, I was going to work hard to not let it affect the other legs, including that I did not want to stress out trying to make up the time. I think it helped. Even though I didn't do well on the Kelp Crawl, I was able to regain focus on the bike and run.

Post-race. The Pacific Grove Triathlon is fun for families and spectators because there are lots of laps, meaning we see each other many times throughout the race.

I barely missed my goal time for the run by one minute because of sore knees, but it was still fun. I always feel a little frustrated when my knees crap out before my muscles even feel sore.

Granny sent Hazel home with a crib and new baby. She loves the wheels and also getting inside.

Long runs to get ready for Pacific Grove

In the spring I increased my weekly run to seven miles to get a little ready for the Pacific Grove Tri in September. Since I run with Hazel, it means more stroller time for her. We load up the stroller with snacks, crayons and notebooks, books and the iPad as a backup. She doesn't mind the scenery and loves running by the temple, at least more than I do since it's a tough hill. I can't say that I miss going back to a five mile or shorter run since the tri. I do not love running.

We made it to the end. Hazel was not ready to give up the end of Sesame Street.

Mountains!

This day, someone walked over to us on the grass and asked if were okay. Obviously, running doesn't look good on me.

Labor Day

I had Labor Day off so we were able to spend some family time together in the morning before Chris went to work. I really appreciate these times since Chris and I work opposite schedules. We each get a lot of nice time with Hazel but not very much time with all three of us. We had fun just walking to Paul Ream Wilderness Park to look at the ducks and let Hazel play.

Loves wearing a backpack.

Anywhere she can find a river and some rocks.

Hazel and I always have a Monday night hang out since Chris works late. I'm usually working, too, so we just eat snacks and watch a movie or something late in the evening.