Wild Goose Chase

Spring weather has turned us into explorers. Last week, we went to Wheeler Historic Farm and Persy had a grand time chasing the geese, picking up pebbles and sticks and trying to eat rabbit poop. This girl is very busy!

Making a Run for It

Just a couple of pictures from my recent Half Marathon in red rock country Moab, Utah. I ran the race with my cousin, friend and former roommate Melia. The red rock and bright blue, cloudless sky were just stunning!
Stretching with my fan club. I was so happy to have such a supportive husband and daughter to greet me at the finish line.

I finished the race a full 25 minutes faster than my previous half marathon in Vegas. Go me!

Making Goop, Teasing Your Parents, and Other Toddler Adventures

Here's a little bit of what we've been doing . . .
Lots of teasing games of hide-and-go seek . . .

Playing in the Snow

Making "Goop"

Feeding the Ducks

Class with the Cool Kids

Persy got to start nursery this week! We're going to take turns attending with her because of the peanut allergy concerns. She loved playing with the other kids and singing songs. It was definitely a lot more fun than going to Sunday School with us.

Awww, Nuts!

It's been several months since we found out that Persephone has a life-threatening peanut and cashew allergy and I'm still dealing with the diagnosis. I'm arming myself with all the information I can find. It's life changing for our family, but I'm trying to stay optimistic and up-beat. Here are some of the things we have to think about now:

* Reading every single label. She can't eat anything with nuts, that may contain nuts, or may have been processed in the same place as nuts.

* Restaurants have become scary places and this is a real bummer for a family that enjoys eating out. Asian food, ice cream parlors and bakeries are out of the question since they pose too much risk for cross-contamination.

* Carrying an epi-pen everywhere I go and always looking for possible signs of an allergic reaction. Staying up to date with my CPR and carrying a cell phone in case I need to call 911 has become a priority.

* Making cookies, cakes, and any other baked goods from scratch since most candies and chocolates are off limits for Persy

* Worrying about what we'll do for holidays like Easter, Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day. We've found a few sites where we can order peanut-free chocolate, but I've been working on coming up with creative candy alternatives.

* Concerns that she will pick up something with nuts and eat it or some other child or adult will unknowingly give her something with nuts.

On a positive note, Persy has been very cooperative about her asthma breathing treatments that we do each day. We call it "Bear Lungs" because it makes her strong like a bear and we do a big, ferocious growl each time. She also has a fun dinosaur mask that she uses with a nebulizer when she has an attack. I sometimes catch her putting her mask on her stuffed animals or "practicing" on her own.

St. George

Last week, Persy and I spent a few days in St. George with my folks, grandma, and one of Persy's cousins. My favorite part of the trip was an amazing 11 mile run on a trail near the Virgin River. Persy loved swimming every day, playing outside, and receiving constant help and attention from her 8 year old cousin and grandparents.