san francisco half marathon 2007
For you, mom...
"My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to.
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold.
And while you're out there gettin' where you're gettin' to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish."
So, I ran in the San Francisco half marathon this weekend with some friends. The race was a lot of fun, and I felt pretty good about it - i improved my time by about 19 minutes from my last half marathon and this course was waaaaay harder. The course gave us a great view of different parts of the city: we started near Pier 1 and ran up and around the embarcadero, through Chrissy Field, up the hill to the golden gate bridge, across the bridge and back (by the way, not flat...), through some pretty posh neighborhoods and then ended up in Golden Gate Park. The last 3 miles were the hardest - not because i had just run 10+ miles, but because it was pretty hilly through these neighborhood streets...and not the kind of hills where you think they should legitimately tire you out, but the kind that just make this annoying incline and they waste you! i had to stop for one block...and then got going again. yay for julia to hang in there with me. the fog was in full bloom, but the mist actually felt good to run through...just didn't get a very good view of the bridge. i'll post some pictures when i get them uploaded and get some from others' cameras...and i think ryan even got a video of us crossing the finish line. I'd like to give a shout out to our support crew: Ryan, Leah and Jonathan (Julia's husband). Although i was jealous of their donut and hot chocolate break in between the spots where they cheered us on...it was great to have someone there to keep you going and cheer you in - especially when you know they woke up in the wee hours of the morning to do it! Marathon is in just over two months...we're half way there!
In response to my friend Julia's blog posting today (http://jonajulia.blogspot.com/2007/07/bs-hollywood-bs.html), I remembered this video someone sent me awhile ago. I LOVE it. And I hope you feel better about yourself after watching it.
until then, i think i'll eat them instead...
Well, okay, she doesn't have teeth yet, but her gums are sure clean since she loves sucking on her wet washcloths!
We went to watch planes at our favorite spot on Saturday...Ryan is trying to get Leah used to it so he'll have a buddy to go with since i don't oblige him very often. 
We didn't see many planes at first, so we decided to fly Leah instead. She looks like our blind little baby, but it was just really windy, so she kept closing her eyes and gasping for air. She wasn't quite sure what was going on. We put her in jeans for the first time...they finally fit!! And...we did see a 777 and two 747's just before we left. Phew!
I decided to take a picture of something else that was exciting (drum roll please...) Leah fits her newborn shoes!!! That's right folks, she's almost 5 months and she's just now really fitting into those shoes we bought for her baby blessing. And, although she doesn't look much like me, after looking at this picture, I dare say she has her mother's "cankles". I couldn't be prouder. 
We sat on the Google campus grounds and watched the local fireworks show. It was pretty good! And Leah loved it. She just sat there and stared at all of the colors flashing in the sky. I think I watched her more than I did the fireworks. 
We are so grateful to live in a country where we have the freedoms we do and we are so grateful for those men and women who have fought so hard for us to keep those freedoms and to help others have the same. We are also very grateful to live in a country that was founded by individuals who were guided by such a loving heavenly father...and hope those who lead our country today know that He is still there to guide us all if we will just ask. 
when we got home, we (meaning i) decided to do a quick photo shoot in her cute dress. and then since she was so cute, i decided to do some naked pictures too. hahaha. And in two of the pictures she looks like she's smiling, but she's really not...she was just trying really hard to eat the blanket and her feet. 
So on Saturday, we went to "LDS Night" at AT&T Park to watch the SF Giants game. It was fun - not the most exciting game i've ever been to. And I have to be honest - i felt a little guilty - as if i was betraying the shaw family by cheering on a team other than the beloved mariners. I will repent. But, it was fun to get out and do something new! Leah was pretty good...she had had enough by the 8th inning, but I can't complain because it helped us get out of the city much fast since we beat all the traffic. Yay for Leah! 
Here were are at the top of the stadium. In the background is the very back wall. Our seats were actually on the last row, but we moved up a few so the canvas sheet wasn't whipping us in the face. The other picture is the marquis they have of the home run record holders...Barry Bonds is only 6 away from breaking the all-time record currently held by Hank Aaron.
