Apr 1st ~ 6th Fun week with the Blakes & my Hollywood half marathon

This was seriously the perfect week. We planned just enough to keep us entertained, but not so much that we were exhausted. Our kids got to bed at a decent hour every night which gave us adults plenty of evening time to chat. The weather could have been a bit warmer, but in comparison to Washington weather it was delightful. Garrett had school all week so we had to get creative with his days of playing hookie and our outings. He actually only missed one day of school all week so that worked out nicely. I also think the break each day from playing made the boys enjoy their time together more and kept the arguing at bay. As I'm writing this my sister and her family are headed North and I miss them already. I can't wait till we get together again. Thanks for coming to enjoy sunny southern California.

On Monday we headed to Sea World. I was hoping it wouldn't be too crowded, but it is the season on Spring Break. It was a little crowded, but not too bad. We were able to see all the shows and even ride a couple of rides. I think the kids loved it!

On Wednesday we headed South again down to the Mormon Battalion. I knew Owen would love this. He is a little obsessed with all things military so this was right down his alley. We did the tour and Owen got to be the star of the show. They dressed him up in the the same gear that the men of the Mormon Battalion used. He was in heaven. At the end there was some hands on stuff for the kiddos to do. They enjoyed panning for gold nuggets and doing laundry on a wash board. This is a great story in our LDS history and I hope that if you are ever in San Diego you take the time to check it out. We also walked around Old Town and ate a a very authentic Mexican restaurant. It was a delightful afternoon.

On Thursday we went to visit Uncle Marcus at work. He was able to come out and show us around. He also got some of his Marines to give us the full informational tour. Check out Owen's face...pure joy! He was able to get all his questions answered, he even got to sit up in the turret.

We took a little trip the the Oceanside Pier. We walked the pier and then met one of Lissy's friends for an afternoon at the park by the pier. Our boys were loving the play ground and the beach. It was nice for her to catch up with a friend and it was nice to just sit and enjoy the sunshine.

The final event of our visit was my half marathon in Hollywood. I will admit that getting there on Friday evening was a little bit of a nightmare. We got there just in time to pick up mine and Kim's race packets. Traffic was horrible getting up there and we didn't think to stop and grab something to eat before we got settled in our room. We could see several restaurants from our hotel window, but they were not within walking distance. We were starving and the men were headed up to meet us. We called them and asked them to pick up dinner before they checked in. We had time to kill to we exhausted all the snacks we had packed and took the boys to the pool. Melissa and I were so hungry we were just doing our best not to snap on our kids. My preggo sister was a trooper and I felt so bad for not having the logistics planned out better.

The morning of the race was even more of a nightmare. I didn't realize that the race was a good ways from the hotel so I had no idea how to tell me family how to get there to meet me at the finish line. I left y room at 5:00 with no idea if I was even going to see me family. There was no place open to eat and I had nothing with me (I never run on an empty stomach). One I got downstairs to the shuttle pick up we quickly realized that the shuttle service was messed up! The race started at 6:00am and I had been waiting in line for an hour for a shuttle that wasn't coming. Kim was waiting on me and I had her packet. The morning seamed like a failure. I ended up riding in some strangers trunk to get there. I met Kim and we started the race. I still had no idea if or when I would see my family. I was hungry, I had my old shoes on, and I was disappointed in the morning ~ but I put one foot in front of the other. Once I got passed the 10K turn around (I will admit when I passed that turn around, I really wished I was only running a 10K) I was fine. The I was doing really good until mile 11. My feet were really sore and there were a lot more hills than I expected. Thank goodness for the gel packs they gave out. I needed them to get through. I get on  going having to idea what my pace was. My phone tracker got messed up after mile five. I hit mile twelve and was really feeling it. My feet, my legs, and my hips were screaming. Right before I rounded the last corner, I saw Melissa, Sam and her kids. I was overjoyed and started crying. This gave me the will to keep on going. I was so happy they made it. When I got to the finish line Marcus and my boys were there cheering me on. This was the happiest sight ever. Seeing them made the whole thing worth it. I made it and I actually made it in under my goal time of 2 1/2 hours. I was broken and hungry, but I MADE it. This was a hard thing for me but it was so worth it. I was able to recover in the best way possible ~ I just sat on the couch and feasted upon the words of General Conference.