So long...farewell...

Yesterday was our last day in Primary. Sniff. Sniff. Here is our little class, minus one girl who wasn't there. The two little girls on the right are so stinkin' adorable. I am really going to miss them. In fact, one of them came up and gave us this cute little thank-you note and a big hug after church and I about started crying. Although she was trying to steal Matt away from me by snuggling up to him during Primary. Hee hee! And the other one is so sweet and fun. I just love those two little girls so much!

The little boy on the left is pretty good too. It's the boy in the middle that has given us the biggest grief. I swear he has ADHD. Times ten. Holy cow that kid is really something else! And the little girl who wasn't there Sunday is pretty bad too. But the rest are cute!

Anyway, we both have just really have learned a lot from this calling. I know it will come in handy when we have kids. I know I complained about it a lot, but I think in the end it was a really good experience for us.

95 and still going strong

My great-granny Alta turned 95 this weekend! We all headed down to Fairview to celebrate with her. She is amazing. At 95 years old, she still lives alone and takes care of herself. She remembers all of us and even sends us cards or homemade gifts on our birthdays. She is such a good example of quiet service and love.

The best part of the celebration was that my dad was playing this peppy song on the piano and Granny started dancing! It was great. She also said that when she goes on walks she brings a golf club with her to keep the dogs away. Ha! I love it! And now I know where I get my dislike for dogs from. Happy Birthday Granny! I love you!

We also had to do 20 miles for our marathon training before going to Fairview. So since we didn't have time after the run to stretch and ice and stuff, we attempted to do it in the car on the way. So here we are with our garbage bags of ice covering our legs. (We are still sore though.) It was definately a tough one! It's the longest we run we have to do before the actual marathon. For the next three weeks, we are supposed to taper off until the big race! I hope we'll make it! But seriously, we deserve a prize for making it 20 miles....who wouldda thought?

Winner winner chicken dinner

Last Saturday was a very busy day. (As usual.) We got up at the crack of dawn to do the SLC Bike Tour. They open up the marathon course early to bikers, so it's pretty fun to ride the 26 mile course on your bike. Matt was in seventh heaven! He loved riding with so many people, and he was especially proud of the fact that he beat Roy. (It had nothing to do with the fact that Roy got a flat tire.) And he loved riding the course on his new bike and being around so much spandex!

I liked it fine, but sometimes I get really nervous riding around that many people. There were like 1500 bikers! It's scary to me when people ride so close to me and weave in and out. I also don't have much experience riding my road bike outside since I got it at the end of last fall. So I wasn't quite as confident with my biking skills and ended up going pretty slow. Oh well! I guess I just need to practice riding my bike with Matt riding 2 inches from me so I can get used to riding in groups.

After the bike race, we still had to do our marathon training, so we got dropped off at the top of Millcreek Canyon and ran down to the bottom. We decided we needed to practice our downhill training. It was a very pretty run.

Then Matt went to the Utah spring scrimmage game. He won a football jersey signed by Coach Wittingham. He was super excited. Apparently they only had three winners in the whole stadium and he was one of them! Way cool!

This makes me happy!

Bittersweet release

Yesterday the bishop informed us that we are getting released from Primary next week. I won't lie...this has been the hardest calling I think I've ever had. I've come home from church crying, I've spent some quality time with my punching bag, I've even prayed to get released.

But I have to admit that when the bishop broke the news, I was sad.

I will really miss some of those kids. We have two little girls that are so sweet. There is one little curly-haired girl that likes to snuggle up next to Matt. She is so cute. And the other one is adorable too. Whenever we bring treats, she saves one to share with her brother.

I will also miss some of the funny and strange comments that are made in Primary. Some of my favorites were..."I'm gonna marry Bennett in the big white temple," "I'm so angry!," "Please help me not to be afraid to go to school " (that one was in a prayer), "I'd certainly love another one," and "Deee-licious!."

I most definately have learned a lot from this calling. I've learned that you really have to be creative and mix things up A LOT with 5-year-olds. I've learned that they need a lot of repetition, they love to have their turn, and they like to sit on the floor. I've learned the difference between kids who are disciplined in their home and those who aren't. I've learned that the parents really need to be involved in their kids' behavior in Primary and not just come and dump them off. I've learned that Primary teachers need to be shown appreciation, and I have vowed that I am going to teach my kids to say thank you to their teachers each week and bring them thank-you notes and treats once in awhile. I will also ask their teachers how they acted each week and follow up with my kid every week. I've also learned that they may not remember so much what you teach them, but they will remember how they felt in Primary. I also learned that even though you may not be the best at your calling, if you give your best effort, Heavenly Father will help you to be good enough.

However, I will not miss preparing a lesson every week and trying to come up with different things to do all the time. I will not miss having Primary songs stuck in my head all week long. And I will not miss certain kids in our class.

But I'm still sad. I know it's weird to be sad after all the complaining I have done about this calling. But I am. I just really hope I get a good new calling. We are most likely moving out of the ward in 2 months anyway, so it seems weird to get a new calling for that short of a time.

My Vow

I, Christy Lee Shepherd Lively, do hereby solemnly swear on this, the 10th day of April in the year 2009, that I will never decide to run a marathon again in my lifetime after May 16, 2009. If I ever get this crazy whim again in the future, I promise to refer to this post and remember that training for a marathon CONSUMES YOUR LIFE. I will remember that I love to have my Saturdays free, I love to have feeling in my legs and knees that is not pain, and I love not buying Gatorade by the keg and Clif bars by the ton. Although I might love running, I will remember that I also love other forms of exercise and I cannot participate in those things while training for a marathon. Should I have a relapse in judgement, I acknowledge that my loving friends and family members will remind me of these things and TALK ME OUT OF IT.

Wedding Playlist

I just wanted to have a record of the songs we played at our wedding reception. It's kinda a random list, but we like 'em.

Love is on the Way by Saigon Kick
Wahine 'Ilikea by Ka'au Crater Boys
That's How You Know from Enchanted Soundtrack
My Girl by The Temptations
When I See You Smile by Bad English
All Shook Up by Elvis Presley
Red Sweater by The Aquabats
Amazed by You
Happy Ending by Sugarland
Ever Ever After by Carrie Underwood
Spontenaity by Peter Breinholt
Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton
Marry Me by Dolly Parton
Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
Who Wouldn't Wanna Be Me by Keith Urban
When I Look Into Your Eyes by Firehouse
The Time of My Life by David Cook
When You Say Nothing at All by Alison Krauss
Boot Scootin' Boogie by Brooks & Dunn
Would You Go With Me
The Way You Look Tonight by Steve Tyrell
I Remember You by Skid Row
I Like It, I Love It by Tim McGraw
Electric Slide
Best Years of Our Lives by Baha Men
Blessed by Martina McBride
Hawaiian Wedding Song by Elvis Presley
Cowboy Take Me Away by Dixie Chicks
Take Me the Way I Am
Always by Bon Jovi
Celebration by Kool & The Gang
Lady In Red by Chris de Burgh
Can't Help Falling In Love by Elvis Presley
Zoot Suit Riot
Lost in the Moment by Big N Rich
We Like To Party by Venga Boys
Someone Like You by Keith Urban
Love of a Lifetime by Firehouse
Kiss the Girl from The Little Mermaid

And our song: At The Beginning by Donna Lewis & Richard Marx from the Anastasia Soundtrack.

Stuff

So our neighbors upstairs have these dogs. They drive me NUTS! All day long all we hear is barking, running, and jumping coming from our ceiling. It especially annoys me when it's at like 5:30 in the morning. Yesterday I got fed up with it and wrote them a little (very nice) note. But this morning what did I wake up to? Barking and playing fetch. I don't know what else to do. I've already complained once to the management. I realize that apartment living isn't the epitamy of peace and quiet, but this is ridiculous! Plus, I think it should be against the law to have two large dogs in a small apartment anyway.

Speaking of dogs, I've noticed that most people who have dogs that live in our complex have not just one dog, but two!!??? I don't get it. And a lot of people have big dogs. In an apartment. I know I am not the fondest of dogs in the first place, but I don't get why anyone would do that. I understand why people would have a small dog in an apartment, but I just don't get the reason to have two large animals cooped up in such a small space.

General Conference was great. I just love it. Even though by the end of it I have a big list of things I need to work on and improve, I feel like it gives me a little boost and the strength to actually make those improvements and changes. I feel so blessed to have a prophet on the earth, and to hear through him what Heavenly Father wants us to hear.

I loved Elder Hales' talk about provident living. I know I need to be better about that. I loved Elder Scott's talk on the temple. I loved Elder Eyring's (I think) on covenants. I just loved being reminded that if we are doing our part, God will ALWAYS do His part. I also loved all the talks about gratitude and not focusing on the negative things in life. I know I do that far too often and I need to repent and be more positive and selfless.

Since it was snowing Saturday morning I had to do my long run on the treadmill at the gym. I got up at 6 to make sure I finished before Conference started. Good thing they were playing The Bucket List in the cardio cinema. I watched the whole thing while I ran my 9 miles. Plus the first 15 minutes of Stepmom. It actually wasn't too bad. And it was so nice not to be in pain after my long run. Who would have thought I could run 9 miles pain-free? This marathon is in 6 weeks and I can't wait for it to be over so I can have my weekends back.