Mack is 4 years old.  Franklin is 4 months old.  They are about the same size.  

This is what happens your kids play with your phone.  

Macy wanders around the house all the time with her new shopping cart that she got for her birthday from Grandma Annie.  She likes to put babies in the cart.  She's so nurturing...

Macy is so my daughter.  Rubbing dirt all over her legs...her one last hoorah before our yard was dirt-less. 

Macy and Brad in matching hats...she thought she was pretty awesome. 

That's right everyone...we got grass this week!!! HALLELUJAH!  It feels great to have a yard.  We are done for the year.

Starting in the spring:

Plant shrubs, flowers, trees, etc.

Build rock wall

Hopefully next summer:

Build deck

Flagstone patio 

Macy sure loves Diet Coke.  And Diet Mt Dew...and rootbeer...and chocolate...pretty much anything she can get her hands on. 

Mack and I had to go to the hospital today.  Don't worry...not an emergency visit.  He had to get X-rays of his pelvic and hip bones.  He has complained of pain there for the last 2 years or so.  His doctor says that's not normal for a kid.  So we are just covering our bases...making sure that everything is ok there.  If everything comes back normal, then the next step is to do blood work and test for arthritis.  We are still waiting for the doctor to call back with the results of his X-rays.  I'll keep you posted.  

In the meantime...read an issue of Golf Week.  Because that's what Mack is doing.

I've been laying pretty low after last week.  As most of you know, last saturday was the day of the race.  This wasn't a race I was running...no no.  This was my baby.  I created this race.  From scratch.  I've been planning it since January.  I got my sponsors, had a website created (thanks kenny), did my advertising (which wasn't much this year), and planned every aspect of it.  And thanks to my amazing family for coming out the day before, we got everything put together and ready for the day of the race!  Here are some pictures to highlight it:

The medals I had made for the top 3 overall winners.  NO worries...they are real medal.  

Even waking up at 5 AM, my mom still looks happy and beautiful.

The finish line.  The starting line was up the canyon of the mountain behind.  it was a BEAUTIFUL canyon run.

Who in the world would give me a megaphone!??  

Even Cohen woke up at 5:30 AM to help out.  And he sure did help!

Courtney was a walking advertisement for me!  Note to self:  Next year, have people walk around with stickers on their shirt for free advertising. 

My "volunteers"

More of my "volunteers".  (my "volunteers" were all family.  So that's why I put quotations around it.  did they really have a choice?)

He's always happy.

And the early morning snuck up on Cohen.  He was out before 10AM. 

Brad got to drive on the four wheeler behind all of the runners to make sure that everything went ok. Steven rode a four wheeler in front of all of the runners to make sure that no cars were coming too fast around the canyon road.  

I'm celebrating...IT"S OVER!

Racers got race bags with nice shirts, car decals, two very night plastic water bottles from sponsors, and a few other free things in their bags.  It was a HUGE success.  I'm already starting to think about next year.  I had about 80 runners this year.  I bet I can double that for next year.  I had so much amazing, positive feedback from my runners.  Not one bad piece of feedback.  They said it was all well organized, a beautiful route, and professionally executed.  Yay!  Looking forward to another great year next year!  (Although...I'm looking forward to a few months off!)

I did pigtails on Macy for the first time.  She looked so dang cute. She has a very hard time sitting still though...So getting them in there took me like 15 minutes. 

Macy and Tregan took a bath the other day at Meema's house.  Tregan refused to look at the camera.  Macy has some crazy hair...

Macy ate dirt.  Shocking.  I guess, she is my daughter. 

I took Macy and Mack to Target to go shoe shopping the other day.  Macy LOVES shoes.  We tried on about every pair there that was in her size.

When Macy is misbehaving, this is where she goes.  Well, not really.  This is Franklin's kennel.  She thinks it's a big playpen.

Meet Goliath.  That's what I have named him.  Right before I killed him.  That's right...I killed him.  With spider spray...so I was still 10 ft away.  But I did it.  And he was a MONSTER!

Mack has become quite the soccer player. Here are pictures from his 2nd game:

While he threw the ball in...the little boys on the other team held hands in a circle...it looked like they were praying or having a moment of silence or something hahaha

Their team won...and even though they tell the kids that it doesn't matter who wins...IT DOES. 

Ok...here are the more drastic changes to the house in Lehi that we made.  

Here is the front bedroom Before:

After:

 We ripped up the teal carpet to find original hardwoods from the 50's.  I refinished them in a dark stain, painted, hung new blinds, and some added molding around the bottom.  It was a LONG process.

Here is the before pic of the front room:

(notice the awesome orange carpet...)

 After:

 We pulled up the orange carpet here to find hardwoods too.  I did them the same way with refinishing them with a dark stain, painted, and added some molding.  I had no idea how to refinish a hardwood floor.  I only read the instructions on the back of the stain...and I didn't even follow them.  I think they turned out pretty good!

And now for the grand finale...

THE BATHROOM. 

Here is is before:  Only a shower, an old vanity, and ugly mirror, and some old linoleum.

The after:

Sorry the lighting isn't so good.  But we ripped out the shower, put in a great new tub and tile surround, a brand new vanity, painted, tiled the floor, and hung a new mirror.  Basically, the only thing we left in the bathroom was the toilet. 

Brad and Scott did an AMAZING job in the bathroom.  It looks like a brand new bathroom.  

I am SO glad we are done.  I have such an amazing family who jumped in to help.  I even got Steven out there 2 days!! (he only supervised...)

For the last 3 weeks, I worked around the clock with the help of family to 

repair and remodel our rental house in Lehi that had been beat up by our tenants that just moved out.  

But because I was dumb, I didn't even think to take actual before pics before we started doing demo.  I just have the ones from when I lived there and I was listed it for rent.  So you may have to use some imagination.

Here are a few before and after pics:

Before Dining Room:

(It's hard to see in this pic, but notice the textured 70's brown carpet.  The same carpet was in the whole kitchen, except for a little piece of laminate, and all throughout the halls of the house.)

After:

We repainted the whole house, and ripped out the nasty brown carpet and replaced it with this dark laminate.  We also bought a basin for the washer and dryer to be set in so that if they leaked, it wouldn't get water damage anywhere.   

Mack's Bedroom Before:

(again, it's hard to see, but there are light green walls and dark brown SHAG carpet.)

Mack's room after:

 We repainted and recarpeted with a little bit darker, but still neutral carpet.  We also had to hang a new door because the old one disappeared when the last tenants moved out.

Unfortunately I don't have a before picture fore this back bedroom.  BUT...imagine GREEN SHAG carpet.  All we did to this room was recarpet.

I will have more exciting before and after pictures tomorrow!!!