FINALLY!

Thanks to my sis Katie, I was FINALLY able to publish that last post I originally did in April, when Mitt really was closer to 6 months old. I haven't been able to figure out why I couldn't get it to post! Anyway, thanks to my genius sister, I am now only a few months behind on news about our fam:) So far the summer is going great! Mariah is Love, love, loving swim lessons! This little girl is a fish. Don't quote my on this, but I think she will be an olympic swimmer some day! And Mitt, weighing in probably somewhere in the 23 pound range as his 8 month old self, now sits on his own and can roll over, but he is nowhere near being able to crawl, stand alone, or move that big belly of his in any way! But I sure love him:) So a month ago or so we were told (by Mariah's new preschool teacher) that Mitt's head was not just flat, that in fact his suture on the back of his head was fused. Which would mean surgery on his head including cutting his skull open and soddering the bones so they wouldn't grow back together prematurely. LUCKILY, the preschool teacher is just that, a teacher, not a surgeon, and we just found out really Mitt's head is just flat like Mariah's was! This time I really am not taking the blame though. I have been SO concerned about the shape of this kid's skull from the second he was born. I always made sure to turn his head both ways, lay him differently every time he was down, etc. so we wouldn't have to deal with yet another helmet. Unfortunately, this only enabled Mitt's head to be symmetrically flat instead of lopsided. So what's the deal with my kids? I asked the Dr. He told me some kids just have softer skulls, and that is hereditary. UGH! So ironically, hard-headed Ben and I produce soft-headed kids. Oh well! At least it is just cosmetic, and otherwise they are healthy! Ben is working hard, same as always, and taking extra daddy time as he watched the kids while I went to Girls Camp for a couple of days and did the Ragnar Relay with a group of girls. Thanks Ben! I really appreciate his willingness to support me as I do my Saturday race stuff. So far this Spring and Summer I have done 2 half marathons, 1 triathlon, the Wahsatch Steeplechase, 15 mile Draper Trail race, and the Ragnar. So Ben has definitely gone the extra mile for me without ever complaining, just being at the finish line to support me to the end! This Saturday Katie and I are gearing up for our 30 mile run for my 30th birthday (and hers as well, for 3 days this year we will both be 30, so this commemorates that milestone birthday for us both), and after that I don't have any more Saturday plans as of yet. So hang in there Ben things are slowing down! All in all, we are loving life, LOVING being a Mom to these 2 crazy awesome kids, and looking forward to a summer full of unproductivity and play!

Family Pics

My wonderful sis-in-law Kim agreed to take Mitt's 6 month pics for us. Much to Ben's dismay, I decided to have her take some more updated ones of our whole family as well. They turned out beautifully, and here are some of my favs. By way of a quick update, we are doing GREAT! Mariah is finishing up year 2 of preschool and loving Itty Bitty Baseball; Mitt is sliding into his 7th month weighing (at 6 months) 20 lbs 11 oz and measuring 27 inches (he is in the 22 pound range by now), wearing 2T shirts and ALMOST sitting up and rolling over just front to back (it would be hard pulling all that weight around!); I am LOVING my kids and running, one triathlon, 2 half marathons and a 21 mile training run with Kim this spring under my belt, gearing up for my 30th birthday present to myself this summer: a 30 mile run which anyone is welcome to join! (so far I have ropped my sisters Beth, Katie, and Kim into it); and Ben is working hard like the great provider he is, joining me for runs, and getting caught up on some much needed sleep now that Mitt Man has finally got the hang of his new little body! Between Sassy Mariah and Edible Mitt, Life is good:)

Mitt's 4 month stats

I don't have a new picture to post yet, but seeing as how Mitt is getting closer to the 5 month mark, I figured I better update now. Mitt's 4 month checkup was another success! He weighed in at a whopping 17 pounds 10 ounces and was 25 1/2 inches tall (roughly 90th and 85th percentile respectively). He already has 2 teeth, too. This kid is an overachiever!

Making Up For Lost Time

Seeing as how our boy was only 10 days old, I never posted Halloween. Here it is. Mariah was a witch for most Halloween activities we did, but for the big night she was a lion. She and I went out after the rain had stopped and trick-or-treated for a couple of hours, just the girls! It was the BEST Halloween I can remember, running from house to house and loading up on candy, even outlasting the older kids. Love you Girl! Thanks for being so fun and full of energy! The boys stayed home and answered the door. Gotta love them for that!


Next came Mariah's 4th birthday, November 18th. She got her "salon" with lots of my old makeup and hair and beauty supplies. She loves it and loves doing her makeup whenever she wants! Since her birthday was on a preschool day, Ben and I surprised Mariah at school with balloons and cookies for the whole class. She was so happy to see us there! Then she chose to go bowling for her birthday night. On Mariah's turn, Ben would help her bowl. They made a great team, but just like on our 2nd date, I beat Ben! After that we went to Chick Fil A for dinner and play time. Mariah's little "boyfriend" Cash just happened to be there too, so she couldn't have had a better day!




Next came the annual Harris Family Christmas Tree-Chopping Trip. This usually takes place the day after Thanksgiving and involves taking 4-wheelers/snow mobiles on a day-trip to Idaho to find and cut down each family's Christmas tree. I stayed home with Mitt this year while Ben took Mariah and met up with the cousins in Idaho. Mariah and Adri are sitting on the 4-wheeler having so much fun! Ben said M was the only cousin who stayed toasty warm the whole day:) Usually we get tall, slender, beautiful trees that don't really look Christmassy to me. This year Ben surprised me with a smaller, perhaps frumpier tree that more closely resembled the Christmas trees of my childhood. Mariah is in front of it. I loved our tree! First year it felt like a real Christmas tree!


The next day, all the Harris men road-tripped to Arizona to go see the Cardinals play the 49rs. They had fun, but I think Ben MUCH prefers college ball.



Mariah took dance lessons for the first time this fall at the Legacy Center. Her teacher was Miss Shanda, and her first recital was on December 2. She LOVED every minute of the classes! And boy is this girl a performer. She pranced out on that stage full of confidence and danced her little tutu off! At the end of her routine to "I'm Gettin' Nothin' for Christmas", it was heart-warming to see her proudly wave to her family while all the other girls were exiting stage left. Girl is anything but shy! Stage fright? What's that?





Now for Temple Square. I am ashamed to say that this is the first year we have taken Mariah to see the lights at Temple Square. It was one of the best nights of the whole Christmas season! We first walked all around Temple Square before heading over to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. That is one of our favorite spots to walk around in, and the only disappointing thing of the whole night was that I realized the huge Christmas tree at the entrance to the JSMB is fake! We then wandered around and happened upon the Nauvoo Cafe. We decided to have soups and sandwiches for dinner, which were delicious. It was the most magical night, and I am so glad we decided to make it our yearly tradition.








To finish out the year, Ben and I celebrated our 8 year anniversary with dinner and a movie at Thanksgiving Point (neither of us can remember the movie right now, oops!,

two trips to see two different Santa Claus's, first at our ward Christmas party,

then at Thanksgiving Point,

and before we knew it, it was Christmas morning!


We are SO thankful for 2010 and all the blessings we received, especially our beautiful and long-awaited baby boy!

Arizona Road Trip

A couple of weeks ago we were LUCKY enough to head to Arizona for a week-long road trip with Ben's Mom and Dad to stay at Ben's sister's house in Phoenix. It was SO fun and relaxing! You have to know when you are caravaning with my father-in-law Steve that you are not going to be taking a direct route to get to your final destination. Steve LOVES to drive and see the country, and we were happy to travel along with him and have him show us some neat places he has discovered between Lehi and Phoenix. The first night we drove to Green River. On the way there, Mitt was AMAZING and Mariah was in heaven riding with Grandma and Grandpa in their new SUV (with DVD player.) She watched Snow White and Pippy Longstocking over and over. Mitt FINALLY napped, which meant I got a bit of shut eye myself. The next morning, Green River was a FREEZING 5 degrees when I headed out for a run. BUURRRR! (They didn't have an indoor exercise facility, so I had no other option.) Luckily I brought warm running clothes. After leaving the hotel, Steve took us to an old Indian town, I can't think of the name right now, but it was a stop for the pioneers long ago. Ben and I walked around with Steve while Grandma stayed with the sleeping kids in the car.
Steve then took us to a lookout spot where we could see where Butch Cassidy used to hide out. Too steep for terrified-of-heights-Marilyn, she actually got out of the car and walked about 1 mile AWAY from the cliff.

We kept driving toward the Grand Canyon and went to a hotel/tourist store and spent some time browsing before we ate some yummy soup and salad for dinner.
We then continued on to the Grand Canyon. The next morning the Grand Canyon was a balmy 18 degrees for my morning run. MUCH better than the day before, but still not what I had in mind for my Arizona trip running weather! Running into the Grand Canyon was beautiful, but not what I expected at all. The road was lined with pine trees the whole way! After my run, we all packed into Steve and Marilyn's car to head into the Grand Canyon. OH MY GOSH. I can't believe how AMAZING it is there. Marilyn was too nervous to get out of the car and walk to the viewing areas, so she stayed with Mitt Man while he slept. Mariah was tired and didn't want to smile for the camera.

Steve is definitely one of my very favorite men in the whole world. To answer my sister's question, Yes Katie he really is that nice!


We then made our way into Phoenix. We stayed with Ben's sis Camille and her husband Rich (before they headed off for a cruise the next morning) and kids Allie, Johnathan, and Grace. I went on amazing trail runs, we relaxed with Ben's family, played basketball, tag, tennis, swing sets etc. outside in sunny and warm weather, went on walks, shopped, watched the Superbowl, and just had a wonderful time. (Course I didn't take any pics of this...Kim we needed you there!) The last picture we took was just as we were leaving to make our way all the way home to Lehi in 1 day.
Mitt and Mariah did even better for that 10 hour block in the car! Thanks Rich and Camille for letting us stay at your house and Steve and Marilyn for letting us tag along! THANKS THANKS THANKS Kim, Elle, Hannie, and Maddie for letting our Max dog come stay with you! We know he is safe and in good hands at your house:) We love you all so much, and I am so thankful to have you Harris' as my in-laws!