Short and Sweet

Each night we take turns saying the family prayer. Trey, who is 22 months old- holy cow I didn't realize he was that old, decided tonight that he would like a turn. We knelt down in anticipation of Trey's first prayer.

Trey: " Heavenly Father, Amen".
He ended by clapping his hands and saying Yeah! He was excited about that prayer. It was a tender moment for our family to witness. When I take the time to absorb these tiny milestones my heart is truly softened and my love, for my children, grows in leaps and bounds.

What's in your backyard

In our backyard we discovered a plethora of baby frogs. I have no idea where they came from and quite frankly I am amazed at the number of them. Hunting frogs kept Quincy and Bella occupied for about an hour this afternoon. I just hope these tiny green creatures are dining on all the spiders and other bugs that also inhabit my backyard.


This frog manages to almost escape.

We let each girl keep one frog for a pet.

After all the fun I placed them back where we found them. There was just so many of them.

Reece turned 9

Reece, Alex and Koda

Amongst all the other activities in August, Reece turned 9. In honor of his 9th birthday I wanted to share 9 facts about Reece.
1. His favorite activities- flag football, x-box 360
2. Favorite food- pizza
3. Favorite song- mamma mia - both Quincy and Reece know all the words.
4. He loves to make people laugh
5. He loves to give Trey, his younger brother, piggy back rides
6. He loves to camp
7. He enjoys riding his motorcycle
8. He is a great reader
9. When he grows up he wants to be an army man

The last two weeks

The last two weeks have been a crazy world wind. My dad, mom, darcy, torrie and all the children belonging to those adults came to Boise for a visit. They came to visit my family, each other and also attend the big Dance family reunion in Idaho Falls. It's the first time the "Dance's" have gotten together as a family since my grandmother passed away 8 years ago. My dad is 1 of 11 children. 9 out of 11 children were in attendance. 1 brother (Galerd) could not make it because his grandson was getting married and one sister (Celia) passed away about 12 years ago. It was amazing to see these siblings interact. The legacy left by my grandparents, Theron and Martha Dance is truly amazing.
Theron and Martha's posterity- 381 peopls in all
Children- 11
Grandchildren-75
Great Grandchildren 194
Great-great Grandchildren-15
Including spouses-86
77 missions have been served througout the world from the Dance family.
It was a humbling experience to attend this reunion and recognize the impact two people can leave on the world.

Some other activities my immediate family shared are:
1. Twin Fall temple open house
2. Roaring Springs waterpark
3. Mamma Mia
4. Late night chats
5. Settler's park
6. laundry, dishes and other domestic duties required in a house of 10 children

Mom, Darcy and Torrie have all the pics (hint, hint) so I can post more as soon as I get copies.

The day after

Bishop Moorhouse was at the triathlon yesterday because his wife, Stephanie competed in the event. Here's what I said to him.....

Me: " Hey you know how all the youth wear their prom dresses and tuxes the Sunday after their big event"?

Bishop: " Yes"

Me: " So do you think it would be a problem if I wore my spandex outfit to church the day after my big event"?

Bishop: " You can wear whatever you want".

I wonder if he's worried.........

Needless to say I didn't wear the tri outfit to church. I settled for a skirt and shirt that showed off my number. Each participant had their number written in huge black ink down both arms and one leg. I will happily explain the markings to any one who asks or to anyone.

I inadvertently left out a few pics from the original tri blog so I need to post them now. Selina and Cyrina came up to support me and that meant so much. I am very blessed to have such good friends in my life. Thanks girls- I love you both!

Emmett's most excellent triathlon

In April a friend asked me to participate in a sprint distance tri (500 meter swim, 12 mile bike ride and 3.1 mile run) that would take place August 9th. Well in April- August 9th seemed like it would never materialize so I said YES! In turn I asked some of my gym buddies to participate as well. August 9th finally appeared and the event was awesome. I can't wait until next year.
Two miracles occurred for me during this event.
#1- I don't know how to swim and I still did it- I side stroked and back stroked the whole distance. I never put my face in the water once! Next year I will know how to swim.
#2- I never thought I would run around in spandex but I did it!
Quinn and the kids were so awesome they pulled right into the sports complex where the running took place. They were the only ones there and it was so great to see them. The only issue was they were stuck there until all the runners came in. They never made it over to all the festivities- Next year we'll know better.



Me running- not an easy task after swimming and biking.

Holly and Me. Holly was Stephanie's trainer but she gave us all helpful tidbits.

Me, Stephanie and Sherri

Me and Sherri

Kristie and me. Krisitie is the aerobics instructor at the Y and we have all gotten to be friends.

Here I am putting my swim cap on.