At Last...

After being in the works for months, my bedroom remodel is finally complete. I'd like to thank the following people/businesses who made it all possible:

Tyler, Parker, and Hayden - Heavy Lifting (I doubt I'll get them to move my bed and dresser again--ever. At least not without an industrial-sized crane.)

Carol - Painting Assistance (I ignored your advice, does that make me a bad person?)

Cameron and Jacob - Furniture Rearranging (Little boys with strong muscles!)

All my family and friends - Moral Support
R.C. Willey and Pier 1 Imports - Fabulous Furniture
Kohl's - Great Bedding

I think the final product was well worth the effort.





This is a close-up shot of the faux finish on the walls.



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Cam, Jake and I went to Hayden's Cedar Badge Scout Leadership Training graduation on Saturday at Treasure Mountain Scout Camp, near Grand Targhee. He had a great time, made new friends, and came home mostly in one piece--all in all, a successful week! He went to a movie with Parker later that afternoon, though I don't know how much he actually saw. He admitted to falling asleep part way through it. A week of camping tends to have that effect on thirteen-year-old boys.

Troop Washington - Hayden's troop



Hayden and Reiker. They were assigned to different troops, so they didn't get to spend much time together.



Getting ready to haul his gear back to the car--which was parked about a quarter of a mile away. I was a considerate mom and carried his backpack for him--I've got the bruises on my hip bones to prove it.

"Let us run with patience the race that is set before us."

Does this sign seem counter-intuitive to anyone else?

Last Saturday, Brent and I ran the Teton Dam half marathon. He's run several half and full marathons, so this was a leisurely jog for him. It was my first. My legs felt great for the entire race, but my stomach gave me fits a few times. I got light-headed around mile 9; I may have been dehydrated. I'll have to work on the nutrition/hydration equation and see if it makes a difference the next time. Yes--I'd considering running another race, now that I know what I'm capable of.

I decided to dedicate my race to Paul, so I wore his picture on my jersey, as did Brent. Quite a few people along the way asked about him. Thinking of him was great motivation to keep going--especially when I wasn't sure I could finish.



Mom and Dad Carling were waiting at mile 3,



then again at mile 10 or so.


Darla cheered me on at mile 11. As I turned the corner into a subdivision, here came two boys running up the sidewalk to meet me--Cameron and Jacob.



Tyler, Brandi, Chloe, Parker, and Hayden were also cheering me on at mile 12. All of them were at the finish line, including Brent, whose race--as expected--ended well before mine.





I know you've heard all the metaphors about life being like a race, but it really is true. There were portions of the race that were long, hard uphill climbs when I had to just put one foot in front of the other, not think about the distance, but stay focused on the end goal. Then there were parts that were flat and easy; I sailed through those. Most of the race I felt great, but when I started feeling sick I kind of wanted to quit. That's when I had to dig deep inside myself and draw upon whatever strength I could muster to keep going. And I prayed. I'm grateful that Heavenly Father heard and answered my prayers because I really wanted to reach my goal--for myself, for my boys, and for Paul.

Lately, every day feels like a race. And there have been a lot of steep, uphill climbs. But the same strategy I used during the race works equally as well in real life--keep moving forward, one step at a time, and don't give up, no matter how hard it gets. And pray--always. The finish line is worth the effort. I love you, Paul.

Annie, Get Your Gun

My apologies to the faint of heart ~DeLynn

Monday night for family home evening, we planted our garden. Since we got kind of a late start this year, we opted to take a shortcut and plant seedlings, except for the peas, corn, and carrots. Tyler, Brandi and Chloe came up to help. As I mentioned before, there are a few rabbits living in our yard. It seems they've been breeding like, well, rabbits. They were cute--until they started hanging out near the garden. One of them made an appearance at our planting party.

Thursday was Tyler and Brandi's first anniversary. Parker, Cameron, Jacob and I watched Chloe while they went to dinner and a movie. She was a very good baby.

Parker started working for the Cooks, baling hay, on Friday. They start in Blackfoot and work their way up the valley. That should keep him busy this summer.

Hayden spent the whole week out in Roberts, working for and staying with Paul's uncle, Merlin Sharp. I guess he didn't miss us because he didn't call home even once. He ran a loader, helped build a corral, drove a truck, drove a semi, rode 4 wheelers, watered cattle out on the desert, mowed lawns, hit a cow with a 4 wheeler--neither were injured, weeded gardens, played with cousin Kimberley's girls--who he says are very giggly, and had a great time. He came home Saturday night. He's excited to go back out tomorrow after his orthodontist appointment.

Cameron started his twice-weekly art class on Monday. He's having a good time and learning new techniques. He'll be going to day camp in July.

Jacob begins six weeks of summer school tomorrow. They've made some changes this year to make it more fun, so he's excited for the adventure.

I finished classes last Tuesday and finals on Wednesday. I only had one actual final exam; I got 100%. The other two finals were written papers, so I'll have to wait for my scores. I think I did okay. I'm off until September 10, when Fall semester begins. I plan to make good use of my summer break: run the Teton Dam half marathon on Saturday, dejunk and organize the sheds, paint my room, and possibly the boys' rooms; go to the Utah Shakespeare Festival and hike the Narrows in Zion National Park with Darla in July, and do some prep reading for my next big adventure--English TA in the Fall. I couldn't be a TA this semester because I had too few credits to qualify. But I will be taking 12 credits in the Fall: two English composition classes, New Testament or D&C, tennis, and English-Special Projects. I'll be the only student in that class. My special project will be to assist the professor--the one I will be a TA for--in writing a new textbook for one of the other courses I am taking. I'm excited for the challenge.

I've been working hard, trying to get my mileage up so I'll be ready to run the half marathon on Saturday with Brent. I ran 11.5 miles yesterday. I'm hoping he'll run with me for at least the first mile before he leaves me in the dust. :o) From what I understand, we'll have a pretty good cheering section, which will be fun and motivating. My goal is to finish the race in one piece.