24 Hour Fitness

I work out at 24 Hour Fitness. If you are a stay at home mom and not a member of a gym, any gym, you're crazy (or a better mom than I am). Going to the gym during the day makes me feel good, but it does more that.

Going to the gym with Henry teaches him to interact with other kids his age, because he spends time in the Kids Care, which he likes very much.

Going to the gym levels my emotions. Ever had a bad day and been kind of mean to your kids as a result? Ever felt like you really need a break? Need to get out of the house? All of those emotions are easily leveled by a good cardio workout at the gym.

Too often I hear mothers complain that they just need a break. Or, that their house is too confining in the winter months. I hear mothers who are unhappy about the little things in life, but I think, too often it's because they don't take time to take care of themselves. It's too easy to neglect yourself when you have kids who need your attention.

Going to the gym gives me the opportunity, every day if I want, to do something for myself. Give yourself a treat, go to the gym!

That said... if you don't know where to start, I love 24 Hour Fitness. There are two very close to my house. I love going to the classes, they make my workout intense, fun and motivating (can those words actually fit well together in the same sentence?). I like that I know the sitters and some of the kids in the Kids Care and that Henry actually looks forward to playing with his friends in the Jungle Jim.

Costco has a great deal right now on memberships if you're thinking about joining a gym. I bought mine from Costco last year and have been tremendously pleased. The deal disappears sometime before Christmas - you won't find a better deal out there. It's two years for $289.99 (I called the 24 Hours Fitness at Trolley and they said they would honor this package for current members as well). That adds up to a little more than $12 a month. Upfront, I know it's hard to swallow. But I'm sure your sanity is worth $12 a month. Here's the link.

Race for the Cure

Last year I ran in the Race for the Cure, an annual 5k (3.1 miles) organized to raise money for breast cancer research, with a group of girls. Of all the races I've done in the past year, this was the best organized and the most envigorating race. Since I had such a great time last year, I plan to do it again this year. Joe said he's going to run with me this year too, right Joe? Anyway, the race is on May 10 at 8:30 in the morning. It starts and ends at the Gateway. Anyone want to run?

The race and more

My race results:

Overall Rank 1186 of 2899

Class Rank 118 of 368

Pace 00:09:13

Chip Final 01:59:30

Sex Rank 474

Final 02:00:56

What does all this mean? Well it certainly means that I'm not a good candidate for competitive road running - that's for sure. I feel pretty good about it though. It took me 2 hours to run the 13.1 miles which comes out to about 9 minutes per mile. The chip time is the exact time from the start line to the finish line. The final time is the time from the gun to the finish line (and since I lined up about mid way it took me a minute to get to the starting line).

My goal was to finish and I expected it to take me 2 hours. I'm proud of myself, even if it's not a competitive finish time.

I'm glad that this was the race I chose to run because it was perfect weather, beautiful course and a relatively easy course too - lots of downhill running. I would recommend this race to anyone, especially first time racers. My favorite part of the whole run was at the 10 mile marker where a group of about 10 women were playing huge Native American drums along the river - it was invigorating. My least favorite part was downing an energy shot about half way - those things are DISGUSTING!!

Photos aren't available yet, when they are I'll try to post some so you can all see the painful look in my eyes. You can also check for yourself here I was bib number 648.

Shin Splints Suck!

I have had shin splints on my right leg since before Thanksgiving. I have never had shin splints before so at first I had no idea what it was. Joe tried to tell me it was shin splints, but I didn't listen. After chatting with a neighbor who is a runner I finally came to terms with my "injury". Wanting the pain to subside, I went out and got new running shoes, I massaged my leg with ice, I took a week off of running, I started shin exercises, and I ice for more than an hour every day. And, after all of that, what do I have to show for it? New shin splints on my left leg and a ridiculous amount of pain in my right leg.

My 1/2 marathon is still about 5 - 6 weeks away, so I guess I'll take some more time off, but, I hate it. I already feel like I've been loosing my endurance because I've been slowing down so much lately to nurse these silly shin splints. I wish there was a cure, something that would guarantee their demise, other than rest, that is. I wish I never got shin splints. I hate shins.

Long Overdue.

I've been meaning to update this blog for quite a while. For my absence the past few weeks, I apologize.

A few of the things we did in November:

The first ten days of November Joe, Henry & I watched our Bishop's two children, Isaac (6) and Eve (3). They were well behaved children and for the most part, fun to be around, however, the challenges of caring for three children for a mere 10 days were enough to deter me from including plans for an addition to our family for a long time. Between trips to school, feedings, naps and entertaining the three kids (Isaac, Eve & Henry) I had zero time for myself until after the sun went down. We do plan to have more kids, just not any time soon.

For Thanksgiving we traveled to Clifton, Idaho, where Joe's parents live. Joe was excited to spend his first ever Thanksgiving with his Mom's parents, Grandma & Grandpa Price, who moved from Paradise, California, to Clifton, Idaho, presumably to be close to the Atkin clan. He was soon corrected, apparantely he has had at least two Thanksgivings with his Grandma & Grandpa Price, but we're grateful to have spent the weekend with them anyway.

Most recently we ventured to Moab, so that I could run the Winter Sun 10k. I decided that I want to run the Canyonlands 1/2 Marathon in March, so, since late October I have been training to get myself to place where running 13.1 miles isn't torture. I do most of my training on a treadmill, because I'm a coward and I don't enjoy running in cold weather much, but I know there are huge differences in machine running vs. road running. So, I also participate in as many group outdoor runs as possible, the group aspect is incentive enough to get me running outside. Plus, running in a race is fun, and good motivation to keep training (I also ran a Cold Turkey 6k on Thanksgiving morning with my Sister Callie & my Cousin Kristin.) The bad news is that the Canyonlands 1/2 Marathon is a popular race, so you have to enter a lottery, I may or may not get a spot. I'm just hoping I do.

I think Joe has become jealous with my newfound obsession. He now wants to go to the gym with me everynight. Honestly, I've never felt better. It's such a good way to decompress after a long day.

Back to Moab... after running the 10k we spent the day just being lazy. We went to a fun light parade on Main Street in Moab and on our way home we stopped at Dead Horse Point, where Joe & I enjoyed the amazing scenerey while Henry slept in the car. I was a little relieved that Henry stayed in the car because I had a ridiculous picture in my head of Henry running off the edge and falling the 2,000 feet to the Colorado Rivier. Do Mom's ever stop worrying?

What a month!

This past month has been interesting, to say the least.



At some point in the last couple months, we discovered Henry's love for animals. Our friends Kevin & Tori have a pet ferret, Jezebel, that, for Henry, is extremely captivating. Dogs are also a source of enjoyment for Henry. Whenever a dog walks by Henry excitedly kicks his legs and follows the animal's every move. It is no secret that this kid loves animals! It is no secret that his mom doesn't. So, he'll have to settle for playing with everyone else's pets... In the meantime, he's been to the zoo at least four times in his short life and now he's even played with baby animals at This is the Place Heritage Park. Super fun!!



A few weeks ago was my first official mothers day. Nothing in this life has brought me more happiness than my family. It is a tremendous blessing to be a mother, to have a child who so obviously loves you and needs you. The rewards of Motherhood are neverending, as are the challenges. We are so grateful for our mothers for all that they have brought into our lives and I am excited that I now have the opportunity to share what I can with my guy - Henry!


In an attempt to make Mother's day a special day for me, Joe purchased a bike trailer so that he, Henry and I can go on bike rides. Joe's bike is broken and I don't have one so we rounded up bikes from our parents and Joe spent hours cleaning them up so we could ride them. Let me just say, riding bikes is great fun for everyone in this family except for Henry. He HATES the helmet and he hates the bike trailer. We got not more than 50 feet before we knew that it was never going to work. I have never heard Henry cry so hard.

Earlier this month I ran in the Race for the Cure. Just a 5k, but my first organized race. It was really fun. If I could do an organized race like that once a week, I think I would. The environment is enticing. It's almost fair-like with all the vendors and booths and free stuff. There are tons of runners, which helped motivate me to keep running, and the fanfare at the end was really exciting. Spectators lined the streets, cheering us on and music was blaring in the background... as if the approximate 3.5 miles was the accomplishment of a lifetime.

And, to top everything off, this has been perhaps the worst week ever! Good news is, everything is looking up from here. Last Monday, I set my kitchen on fire. The following day my car broke down, then the cleaning lady ate my food and made me feel violated, my car broke again, and the neighbors threatened me. What a treat!