Las Vegas 5K

First Doyle Family 5K-ers

Last Saturday we ran a 5K as a family! My friend Natalie asked me to run it a couple weeks before, and for some reason I agreed. Probably because I hadn't been running, or exercising at all, for a month or so before, and I knew I needed some motivation to get me moving! Then, two days before the race, I hit my big toe into our door-jam, and it bled and bled, and throbbed and throbbed! I felt so bad, that I was going to have to bum out on her. But luckily, the next day it was feeling better.
Neither of us had signed up yet, and the online registration was closed. I finally got ahold of the director, and he said I could still sign up at the host casino across town, between 3 and 7. Well, Ryan and I got there in the knick of time, at 6:30! He decided last minute to run it with us too. Pretty sure we were the last 3 people to get signed up.
The next morning, we picked up Natalie and her adorable daughter Gracen, and we were off! Natalie's husband was at the ward campout, so we brought her double stroller for Easton and Gracen. It's a pretty hefty stroller that is made for off-roading, and hiking type terrain...not jogging! But we thought it would be ok....until 20 feet into the run! HA! Between the heavy heavy stroller, and two big kids, it was a LOAD to push! Our arms were hurting more than our legs the whole time!
We told Ryan to take off in the front, so he could actually race, and we'd stay back with the kids. Good thing we did too. Sweet Gracey wanted to 'run' it with her momma. So cute, she had on her cute jelly sandals and jogged along us as we walked. She would get in and out of the stroller every once in awhile between our running. And Easton was a such a good little boy. He was crying and upset, until we got going, then he was out like a light the whole run!
So between my bum-toe, Natalie's tiny pregnant belly pressing on her lungs, Gracen running, and the heavy stroller....our times weren't our best! I finished in 49 minutes, and Natalie and Gracey finished in 52 minutes. Ryan on the other had had a great personal record time of 21 minutes! He was 75th place out of 1032!!! Talk about a runner! And he hadn't even been training for running (besides Insanity).
Anyway, it turned out to be a great day! We had such a fun time, and I'm so glad Natalie told me about it! It was a really easy course. It was all flat, and at the end of The Strip around the "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign. If any of you want to to do it next year, I'm up for it with you! (With no stroller maybe :)

P.S. Don't mind the logo across the pictures. I didn't want to buy the actual photos from the website, so I had to 'borrow' them through screenshots...don't tell!

my cute Ryan. He got too hot and took off his shirt, therefore his number. So this is the only picture they took of him running. But way to go #75 babe!

me and Gracey posing...Easton snoozing!

runners and our kids!

**don't mind my un-photogenic-ness while running**
Natalie looks like a pro, because she is, Miss 18-weeks pregnant and can't tell!

Ryan looking for his wife, just a half hour after he finished...still waiting!

Here we are!!! Natalie told me to just leave her at the very end, so Easton and I crossed the finish line alone :)

Just a couple minutes after, She and Gracey finished too! Is she not the cutest little girl in the world?

Mother's Day

first Mother's Day together

Happy Mother's Day!

It's amazing to think back on how many people have helped me be the person I am today. My mom especially. Happy Mother's Day to her. She is a shining example of motherhood, and is perfect in my eyes. I love her so much, and am so grateful for all the things she has taught me. From how to sew a dress...she helped me make the dress I'm wearing in the picture above, over the phone, from hundreds of miles away...to how to cook and bake...to how to be a strong member of the church...all the things I am today, I attribute to her. I love and look up to my mom more than words can explain. 

There are so many other women in my life who I think about on Mother's Day as well, whether they are still here, or passed away. My Grandma's, Ryan's Grandma's, His wonderful mom Kim, my two sisters, my four sister-in-laws. My aunts, and cousins. I have so many friends who have all become mom's recently, and look up to them as well. It's incredible to think of the things you each have gone through and accomplished, trials and triumphs. You are all amazing. I really am so lucky to be surrounded by such strong women who are, or will be mom's, who have helped raise me, and are helping raise my little boy with their words of encouragement and advice. 

Today is one of my favorite days, if you can't tell. I hope that you all had a beautiful Mother's Day, and know of my love and appreciation for all of you!

Ryan made my first Mother's Day so wonderful! I'm so lucky that he is my man! Even in the midst of finals coming up next week. He took Easton and I to dinner on Friday night at a yummy restaurant I chose called Brio. It's a delicious Tuscan Grill in an big shopping center area called Town Square. It was so delicious, and Easton was such an angel! He smiled at anyone who passed by, flirted with the waitress, and loved rubbing his little hands across the tablecloth! 

Saturday, we ran a 5K together as a family, and with my friend Natalie and her cute daughter. More info on that later. He had to study all day and into the night. But he came home early enough to put his baby boy to bed, and bring me some gorgeous flowers and a cute picture he had blown up and framed of him and my cute babe. Such a sweet and thoughtful gift!

And this morning, we slept in (on accident) and he still made me a yummy strawberry banana smoothie for breakfast, and took care of Easton while I got ready for church. Once we made it to church, we had some great speakers, the kids in our primary class were hilarious. During Sunday School, the Priesthood took over Primary so all the women could enjoy a yummy brunch of delicious fruits and a chocolate fountain! It was so much fun to just relax and talk with such fun amazing women. Easton was so cute, him and his friend Owen who is 2 months older, crawl-chased each other between tables! 

After church, we came home, Easton took a long nap, and so did his mama. Poor Ryan had to study again. Can't wait until next week when finals are over and we can just spend every minute together as a family! 

He did take a break for dinner, and grilled some yummy steaks for dinner. Then, (even though I know it's Sunday...) He topped it off with taking me up to Sonic for a delicious Diet Coke and carmel sundae! Easton even fell asleep in my arms while I put him to bed. 

My first Mother's Day was really perfect. I am beyond blessed to be able to be a part of these two boys lives. I love them so much and don't know what or where I'd be without them.

Dinner at Brio

Sweet Sweet baby boy with Toby, his best friend

a very messy Mother's Day dinner on a very cute face!

I just love this commercial, and had to share it for Mother's Day. It gets me every time and I cry before it even starts. Such a sweet message!

10 months!

Happy ten month birthday today little bubby!!! I officially have a toddler I think. He is into double digit months, and I got a sample of toddler formula in the mail today. What happened to my babe?! He is still changing every day, I shouldn't be surprised because it's going to keep happening. But it truly is amazing to watch him grow up!

• His weight, is a mystery, our scale broke because he thought it was a toy....it is not.
• His height, also a mystery, I'll have to check tomorrow morning.
• He is starting to love his tables foods a lot more, he likes:
• cheese
• ritz crackers
• saltines
• graham crackers (a lot!)
• Veggie Straws
• greek yogurt
• cranberry raspberry juice (with water)
• white grape juice (with water)
• pineapple
• manderain oranges
• peaches
• He doesn't like
• berries
• BANANAS (weird kid right?)
• straight juices, they are too much sweetness or something for him, and make him cough.
• spaghetti noodles
• He is still crawling everywhere, and FAST, we literally have to run across the room to close the gate before he escapes if it is left open.
• He got into the cupboard of pans for the first time and loves it!
• He likes to stand up next to anything he can get his hands on
• After he stands up, he cruises around everything, and is a quick little walker (with help of holding on)
• He is getting bored with his toys and wants anything we have, especially the remotes and phones still.
• He has stood on his own 3 or 4 times, but falls to his bum after a couple seconds.
• He is starting to hate shopping in his stroller. Sad day for the mom who loves to shop and browse.
• Luckily he still likes the grocery cart. Sidenote: The other day at Costco I got a sample of frozen go-gurt for him, and he LOVED it! Ate it so fast, and as soon as it was gone, he screamed for more.
• He is still a mama/papa's boy anytime we are around. But once we leave him with a babysitter, they say he calms right down and is fine the rest of the time.
• His two little bottom teeth have left their mark on the crib! It's a giant chew toy to him.
• We've had to start tying Toby's tail (his tiger stuffed animal/sleeping helper) to the crib slats so Easton won't throw him over and then cry. He thinks it's a pretty fun game to toss him, but then he wants him right back....hence the tying (which he doesn't love so much either, but it's better than no Toby)
• He still is sleeping great through the night. Goes down around 8:30, and waits for us to get him out of bed around 7:30. We still don't know exactly when he wakes up, because he never cries for us to come get him, he just waits patiently for us to grab him.
• Usually takes two naps per day, around 9:30 and 2:30. Sometimes it's just one nap around 12.

The Ellen DeGeneres Show

Yesterday I scratched a big one off of my bucket list! I went and saw the Ellen DeGeneres Show! It was such and amazing day, and I got to share with two amazing girls!
Haley, me and Sheena left Las Vegas around 2:00 on Sunday afternoon and headed to LA. We got stuck in some terrible weekend traffic, and our trip went an hour longer than planned, but it was well worth it! We checked into Sheena's time share that night, then went and got some delicious dinner at PF Chang's. We were pretty exhausted from the trip, so we headed back and went to bed...we had a BIG day ahead!
Monday, we woke up early and got all ready for Ellen and our big TV debut! The studio had called earlier that week and said to show up at 9:00 instead of 11:00, and we didn't know why. Once we got there, and showed our ID's a million times to security officers, we got our tickets, and then loaded into a really big 'golf cart' that held about 15 people at once. The drove us between all the Universal Studio's. We saw the studio for Big Bang Theory, and the old Friends studio, and drove through a bunch of 'sets' that were built to look like real outdoor streets of New York.
The cart pulled up to a big theatre studio in the 'streets of New York' and we all went inside. Once inside, they had us all seated and told us we were about to watch the new movie "Dark Shadows" starring Johnny Depp and Michelle Phiffer, then afterwards, we would see them on Ellen's show! Everyone cheered, and they started up the movie! It was awesome because there weren't any previews...just straight to the good stuff!
After the movie, we loaded back up into the carts, drove through Universal again, and finally got to Studio 1, the Ellen Show!!! We went inside and lined up in the Riff Raff room, and waited to be seated. We looked around the Ellen Shop, and I got a cute t-shirt, some sunglasses, and a fun magnet. Then the line started moving and we knew we were close! It was awesome to walk up the stairs, and come out at the top of the stadium and look down and see her whole set! We took a million pictures, and they moved the three of us down to the 4th row! Her pre-show producer was really fun, and got us all pumped up, and told us how everything would go. We saw Tony the DJ come out and everybody cheered for him, he was so humble and didn't want a lot of attention. He put on some music and we all danced and danced! About 15 minutes later they said it was showtime and her music started playing, then there she was! It was so fun to see her walk out and talk to everyone! She talked about shampoos, then came up and danced with us! She danced down the row right across from ours, and then went back to the stage.
Johnny Depp was her first guest, and when he came out the crowd went crazy! It was so fun to see him in real life! Apparently he doesn't do a lot of interviews, and it was his first time ever on Ellen, so it was  a big deal that he was there. He talked about how he bases his characters off of random things. Like Willy Wonka was his version of a "stoned George Bush" and Edward Scissorhands was "a newborn mixed with a dog" He was fun to listen to! Michelle Phiffer came out, and was beautiful! As well as another co-star...Chloe something who plays Michelle Phiffer's daughter in the movie.
After they all left, they filmed a segment with Alison Sweeney, host from the Biggest Loser and she's on Days of our Lives. She played life-size Jenga with Ellen, and it went for about a half hour, even though the show only showed a couple minutes of it.
The last segment of the show was Flo-Rida and Sia's new song "Wild One's" It was SUCH a fun party/concert/loud/crazy fun song! Flo-Rida even came up the aisle and held Haley's hand while he sang and they danced! AMAZING right???
After the show was done taping, Ellen came out and talked to the audience, she told us how great of a crowd we had been, and that we had a "fantastic energy"...so much so, that she wanted us all to come back for one of her 12 Days of Giveaways show in December! We all could. not. believe. it! It was so loud with screaming and cheering that it almost just sounded like quiet muffley sound!
It was SUCH an amazing experience! As we all left the studio and walked back across the street to the parking lot, we saw Ellen drive out the studio area in her little silver Porsche, she honked and waved as she drove by. It was amazing.
I can't believe that it was even a real day in my life! It was so surreal the whole time, and I feel like it was too good to be true, so it must have been a dream!
After the show, we drove up and got out of most of the traffic, and found a delicious little Mexican restaurant, filled up on yummy food. Then we hit the road! We got home around 9:00 that night, and were all happy to see our hubby's and kids!
It was such a great girls weekend trip, and I'm SO excited we get to do it again in December!!!

me, Haley and Sheena, in the parking lot, waiting area

walking across the street from the parking lot, I had to take a picture of my favorite...the Vampire Diaries! (This one is for you Danielle!)

 In the riff raff room, waiting to go into the studio.

 at the top of the seating area

 cute Haley and cute Sheena

 some of my favorite girls in LV! We had a blast!

posing with the set, about ten minutes after the last segment. They were already all cleaned up and ready to go.

me and the "orange pants" dancer. For any of you who watched the show and watched her dance on stage, Ellen also referenced to her orange pants in her opening segment. She had parked right across from us, so I had to take a picture with her...she came clear from Toronto!

I had to take a picture of the TV because there aren't any videos online of this part of the show, but here is mine and Sheena's big TV debut...I'll sign autographs for you all later!

You can see us cheering in the top left corner at about 3:10, it's quick, but there we are!!!


Flo-Rida dancing with Haley at around 2:15, you can also see me and Sheena next to her as he walks down the other aisle!