Our All-Stars

Today is a proud day. It is a day that I knew was coming, but I pictured it to be many years down the road still. Today Benjamin totally smoked me (and everyone else) in his two-mile Fun Run! Brigham (pushing Ty in the stroller) and I ran with him, and when he started out fast we warned him to slow it down or he would probably burn out. He assured us that he was running as fast as he normally did, and kept it up. Actually, not long after that he turned it up. I know because it soon became a challenge to keep up with him! After awhile I stopped trying, thinking that he would burn out soon and that I'd catch up easily. But my theory was shot to pieces as I watched his back getting farther and farther away from me. After awhile I thought that even if he didn't burn out, he must be tired, and if I could only catch up, I could run with him the rest of the race. So I picked up my pace, but still-- he kept getting further and further away. So I eventually gave up and felt silly running in an elementary school race without a student with me. Brigham did manage to keep up, though he said he had to work to do it. He estimates that Benjamin was running about 7:45 miles! He was so fast that his Dastrup grandparents at the finish line didn't even have their cameras out and ready since they weren't expecting him to be done yet. They ran the race in waves, starting with the 6th graders, and then every minute or so letting the next grade start. His grandma Dastrup said that only about 3 fifth-graders had finished when Benjamin came blazing in and took first place in the whole second grade! The second and third place finishers weren't even close behind-- it was a couple more minutes before they came in. Brigham and I were completely blown away! We had no idea he was so fast! I could see the running-coach light gleaming in Brigham's eyes as he gazed in awe at Benjamin after the race...

After watching Benjamin's awesome win at the Fun Run, we raced over to Alta High School to watch Jacob's Sports Day. Kids with different disabilites from all over the district came to participate, and it was neat. It started with an Olympics-like opening ceremony in which all the kids marched around the track with banners announcing the schools they came from. Brigham, Grandma Dastrup, and I all got choked up as we walked with Jacob (who was very excited) and saw all the high school kids cheering their loudest for these sweet kids. It was a very neat moment.

Jacob participated in a sprinting race, a game of tag, and an obstacle course before he decided that he was done with the whole thing, so we left.

What a great day! Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Dastrup for coming and being the best cheerleading squad ever! You guys are great!

Missin' Dentition

Jacob lost tooth #5 today, and like his last several teeth, it has vanished completely. Swallowed? Vacuumed up at school? Camouflaged in the carpet? The Tooth Fairy is a little unsure of what to do in these situations.

Benjamin is happily sporting a new wiggly tooth himself. This is only his third (much to his chagrin), but with some imagination one can see a little movement in a fourth tooth as well.

Celebrating 10 Years of Marital Bliss

Last Thursday was our 10th anniversary, and we celebrated by spending the week in Oahu. What a great trip! Snorkeling, hiking through rainforests, along the coast, and up a volcano, Pearl Harbor, boogie boarding, strolls along the beach and romantic dinners at sunset, sacred Hawaiin sites, the Bishop Museum, and an aquaruim. Our trip had it all. And the whole time I couldn't get over how lucky I am: Ten years of marriage to the most wonderful man on the planet! And Hawaii to boot. How could it get any better?

A MILLION thanks go out to Mom and Dad Dastrup and Mom and Dad Groneman for watching our crazy kids so we could get away. You guys are heroes! Thank you for making such a wonderful trip possible! We love you!

Our "Rockin'" Spring Break

After years of being held hostage at home by Jacob's passionate hatred of camping, we finally got to sleep in a tent again-- thanks to Grandma Dastrup. Jacob stayed home with Grandma and had a fun time going to the children's museum, Wheeler Farm, the library and just enjoying some one-on-one time. We took the other monkeys camping at Goblin Valley. It was awesome! Talk about a little boy's paradise: tons of dirt to play in, rocks to climb, and hills to run up and down. Ty and Benjmain were in heaven. We had a great time playing hide-and-seek games in Goblin Valley, making tinfoil dinners, roasting marshmallows and eating s'mores, telling "ghost stories" around the campfire, and hiking at Capitol Reef. I was worried that maybe our family just wasn't a camping family, but to my relief I learned that the only non-camper is Jacob. It was glorious to be out in nature again! But I must admit the trip was a little bitter-sweet. (Those who are only here for light reading should stop reading at this point because I'm about to bare a part of my soul which can get a little awkward.) It was so incredibly liberating to not have to worry about keeping Jacob from trying to vomit in the car every 10 minutes. We didn't even take our portable DVD player on our trip! And it was EASY and FUN without it! It was great to be able to particpate in whatever was going on instead of trying to keep Jacob happy. But whenever I found myself feeling free and like we were enjoying ourselves as a "normal" family, I'd quickly be struck down by feelings of guilt. I mean, what kind of parents take a family vacation and leave one of their children behind? I know he would have HATED every moment and that we couldn't have done it with him, but still... What kind of mother enjoys the absence of one of her children? I fervently wish that Jacob loved camping as much as the rest of us, but he just doesn't. It's sad to know that we may never enjoy camping as a whole family in this life, and that any time we want to let our other kids experience the joy of camping that we must impose on someone else to care for Jacob for us. But I guess that it is just all part of the package that comes with Jacob. I guess we have to pay for that unconditional love and those endless hugs somehow. We wouldn't trade our Jacob for any number of camping trips!

Viva Hogwarts!

This gave me a good laugh. I hope it can do the same for you. http://youtu.be/ySN8Q4U6wys

J-A-C-O-B

For all those of you who may not be abreast of the latest Facebook headlines (and those who have simply blocked me), the big news to come out of this week is that Jacob is writing his name independently! Yes, it is true! His teacher called me early in the week and said that while one of her assistants was working with him on a whiteboard he just wrote his name. She wasn't expecting him to do it, so when she recognized what he had done, she called to Mrs. Wally to come see quickly. Mrs. Wally picked up the child she was working with and carried him with her to try to see, but Jacob dutifully erased the whiteboard like he has been taught to do when he is done using it. They gave him the marker, and he wrote his name again! Mrs. Wally screamed with excitement, which made Jacob cry. She quickly gave him some gummy worms to assure him that it was a good thing, and he was pacified. Of course I immediately got Jacob and gave him a marker and a whiteboard, and he did it! J-a-c-o-b! The 'J' was pretty good, but none of the other letters lined up with it, and the rest were a little shaky, so the untrained eye might have a bit of a hard time recognizing it for what it was, but it was definitely his name. I am thrilled! For some time now I could tell that when I helped him write his name that a lot of the motion came from him, but when I'd let go he'd just start scribbling. But this time he truly did it all by himself! I tried to get him to do it for Brigham and for my parents, but he wouldn't do it either time. Perhaps he's realized the marketability of his new skill and is holding out for more gummy worms. But I've seen it with my own eyes, and I'm so proud of my Jacob. It makes me wonder what other things he will surprise us with in the future!

The Buffalo Run

Yesterday morning was a nerve-wracking one for me. Brigham ran the Buffalo Run 25k (that's about 15.5 miles for those of us who are not super mathematical) on Antelope Island, and the shocking truth of it is that he really hadn't trained properly. Blame his work schedule and different illnesses, but when it all came down to it, he was not ready to race a 25k. Especially a 25k trail run. Up and down steep mountains. In the mud from the rain the day before. With wild buffalo roaming about ready and willing to gore passing runners. So I was nervous. But like always, Brigham rose to the challenge and slew the Buffalo Run, soundly beating all of his colleagues from work that he was so worried about being humiliated in front of. True, he can barely walk today, but he can drink proudly from his new Buffalo Run coffee mug.

(Brigham didn't really want me to post this picture because he says that it looks like he's walking to the finish line, which is not entirely accurate. It really looks more like power walking. But the truth is that he absolutely was running. I can swear to it.)

After Brigham's victorious run and Benjamin's first soccer game of the spring season (which was not as victorious but fun nevertheless), we went with Grandma and Grandpa Dastrup to the Discovery Gateway museum. Any place that can make all of my kids this happy is one of my favorite places! What a good time!