​The Track and Field banquet happened at the end of this month. It was quite uneventful as Coach Wasson forgot to highlight each of our girls on their season. Needless to say, we were proud of Emma but disappointed we sat there for 2 hours and didn’t hear one personal thing said about Emma or some of her other distance teammates. 

​Emma is truly an amazing and gifted runner. She had an incredible season and PRd several times for the 3200m at elevation and finally got a new PR in the 1600m during the last meet. She was told by her coaches that she was the most mature freshman distance runner they have ever had. She ran smart, ran her own race, and was consistent throughout the season. She didn’t let the paces of other girls throw her off her game. It was so fun being able to watch that fire in her eyes during this season. With an extended season into the summer, she started to feel a little burned out and struggled during meets 5 and 6. They were not her best races (although still amazing times) but she showed up to her last meet ready to run hard. She came away with a new PR in the 1600m and ran that in 5:29.37. She beat not only my 3200m time several times during the season but finally beat my 1600m time which was her goal for this season. Her PR in the 3200m at sea level was 11:45.87 (Nike Chandler Invite) and 11:47.02 at elevation (Fountain Fort Carson Invitational). I made it to every meet except for the last one and that one I was able to watch on Livestream. Running in a competitive field and at the 5A level, Emma didn’t qualify for State for any individual events, but she was asked to be an alternate for the 4x800m relay team. She loved being able to attend the state meet with some of her teammates to cheer them on. It won’t be long before she is at the state meet running in the 3200m. 
 
3200m
11:45.87 NIKE Chandler Rotary Invite (PR sea level)
12:18.76 Valor Early Qualifier
11:51.78 Broomfield Shootout
11:47.02 Fountain Fort Carson Invitational (PR elevation)
12:18.41 PPAC League Meet
​11:57.12 Liberty Bell Invitational
11:51.53 St. Vrain Invitational
 
1600m
5:31.34 NIKE Chandler Rotary Invite
5:34.75 Fountain Fort Carson Invitational
5:32.17 Petrelli and Hunt Invitational
5:37.28 PPAC League Meet
5:29.37 St. Vrain Invitational (PR elevation)

This race ended up being Emma's elevation PR for the 3200m. She made her move on lap 7 and passed most of the front pack, including her teammate, to come in 2nd overall for the race.

This is where she made her move and passed her teammates and came in 5th overall

Holding her own during a meet where she wasn't feeling great. She managed to stay up with this front pack and even PR'd from the week before. Amazing!

​With all the crazy end of year festivities and spring sports season being pushed into June, Mike and I desperately needed some alone time away. In typical Mike fashion, he booked an amazing trip to Beaver Creek and Vail. We drove up early on Friday morning and parked our car in Frisco and got on our bikes to ride up Vail pass. The trail leading to Vail was incredible with amazing views of the mountains and the river. We were pleasantly surprised at how much easier Vail pass was to bike than we had originally thought. After turning around at the top, we coasted down the path and loved every minute of it. We headed back towards Frisco and then decided to bike around Dillon Lake. On the opposite side of the lake, we found a farmers’ market. We walked our bikes through the market and found some great street tacos for lunch. Then we headed back on the trail to make the full loop back to our car. We ended up riding around 46 miles. Then we got in the car and drove to Beaver Creek where we stayed at Ritz Carlton. We normally stay at the Park Hyatt, but this was a wonderful change. Everything about the Ritz was amazing. We spent the first night ordering room service for dinner and watching the Olympic trials.

​One of the best things about summer is being able to exercise with Mike. Since his morning case got cancelled, we decided to head to Mt. Herman for a morning hike together. I love this hike even though it isn’t very long. It is a steep mile or so to the top, so you feel like you got a slight workout without having to work hard. One of the best things about hiking is the great conversations that Mike and I have as we are hiking. That is the biggest reason why I love hiking with Mike more than any other sport. Sometimes we can chat on the bike, but hiking is a little easier to hold a real conversation. This hike ends at the top with the most beautiful view of the valley. I wish I could start every day like this one. Life would truly be perfect if I could spend time like this every morning with Mike. 

​JUNE 3
On Thursday night, the boys and I hoped on a plane to go check out Peter’s (and possibly Andrew’s) new school, the University of Utah and get the boy’s their new Utah licenses as they transition to being Utahns. As a BYU alumnus, some part of me still hurts that they picked the U, but it turns out this trip would sway my opinion. We arrived in Salt Lake City, and it was HOT. In fact, the whole west is hot these days, and dry, but it seemed brutally hot as we got in our pick-up truck and headed to the Marriott on the University of Utah campus. One nice thing about Salt Lake is that the airport isn’t 700 miles away from the city like it is in Denver, its actually quite accessible. The new airport in Salt Lake is also quite nice. It was fun to see the changes and we had some food before grabbing our car and heading to the hotel.
 
JUNE 4
Getting things done! Today was all about getting Peter and Andrew through the DMV process.  I have never been so prepared for anything in my life. Forms were printed out, double checked, triple checked. All the necessary paperwork from the VA, utilities, banks, etc was filled out and neatly bundled. We arrived at the DMV by the fairgrounds and got in line, got our number, and Andrew went first. Flawless. Everything went well and he took his test, passed, and got his photo taken. Peter came next. Paperwork was flawless. Forms filled to the line. Then came the vision test.  Peter didn’t have his glasses. He couldn’t pass the vision screen. Not at all. The guy behind the counter was dismayed at how bad he did. Failure! No license for you! What are we supposed to do now at eight o’clock in the morning at the Utah fairgrounds? Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, and we went to a glasses shop in downtown Salt Lake. Right as it opened at nine o’clock the incredibly nice lady heard our situation and graciously gave Peter some sample contact lenses that were his prescription. Rushing back to the DMV, getting stuck behind a train, navigating the mystery back streets by the freeway, we were able to get back and Peter was able to pass the eye exam. He then took 6 months on the written portion because he was so scared to fail, but in the end, he passed. Mission accomplished.  
 
From there, we went back to the University of Utah and toured around. Wow!  What a cool campus. Lots of great buildings, resources, things to do! All close to downtown Salt Lake and nestled against the mountains. It was cool to see and experience. I had never been on the campus before, and it was a lot cooler than I thought. A lot of money and resources have been poured into that school over the last five years and it really shows.  
 
After that, we had to partake of some of the indulgences of Utah. We went to a soda shop, where we imbibed enough sugar for a year. Sugared up, we headed to the gun range and shot handguns, Ar-15s, and the boys even got to shoot a fully automatic rifle. We then went ax throwing, which was a lot of fun. I was the master of the one-handed throw and Peter the two-handed master.  After ax throwing, we had dinner at a cool little restaurant in the city where Andrew remarked that the salad was amazing. First time I have ever heard that!
 
Worn out from a day of fun and food and touring, we headed back to the hotel. Peter and I went running (well I ran, he hiked) up the Living Room to watch the sun set. The trail is right next to his dorm, and it was a great little hike. The view over the city was amazing and the breeze welcomed.  It was a great way to end the day.  
 
JUNE 5
On Saturday, we got up and headed for breakfast at a little breakfast shop in town. We then did one more quick tour of the University campus and got some stuff at the store. From there, we went to the zoo and enjoyed the sites of the zoo, the unusual people at the zoo, and even enjoyed a little train ride. Not the biggest zoo in the world, but still pretty cool. The highlight for Peter was getting to pet and feed a Rhino. It was staggering to see him next to such a large animal.  After the zoo, we grabbed some lunch and then headed up the canyon for a drive. It was a beautiful drive up the canyon and nice just to be out in the mountains. It’s amazing how close everything is in Utah. In Colorado, it would take 2 hours to get up somewhere in the mountains, but everything is more accessible here. From the canyon, we drove to the airport and headed home. A quick flight to Denver and then a long slog back to Colorado Springs.  A great trip.  Peter even got new contacts.  
​

​While the boys are away, the girls play! We grabbed some friends and headed over to Flying Horse to swim and eat dinner by the pool. The older girls took turns playing with Madeline in the water while I read my book in the shade. It’s nice to have good kids who are willing to help with the younger one. After an hour of uninterrupted time, I took my turn with Madeline and played in the water with her. She loved the kiddie pool with all the spouts and other kids running around. We loved relaxing at the pool and eating yummy food. It was a great way to spend the day together.