I Made It!

Well, as you know I went down to Moab last weekend for the Canyonlands Half Marathon. Don't worry, I didn't run a half marathon. They also have a 5 Mile Run. Yep, that's what I did. I was pretty nervous about running because I didn't do as much training as I should have. Not to mention I was sick the entire week before and was struggling to even breath! So, needless to say I wasn't sure how the race would go.

Saturday morning came, very early. We woke up around 6:30 to be at the shuttle spots by 7:30. Then we had a long, freezing wait at the start until race time, which was 9:30. Luckily we were able to wear our sweats and jackets until the Sweat Truck took off at 9:00. That half hour about killed me. It was SO cold.

Alisa and I ran the 5 mile race together, mostly. I was feeling good, but had to take a break around 3.5 miles. I told Alisa to keep going. I tried to catch her, but my shoes started hurting my feet. {Unfortunately I wore my old ones instead of my new ones. But, I didn't get blisters like I was worried about.} So because of my feet I had to walk a little here and there. I finished in 00:56:51, which put me at a 00:11:25 mile. To me, that is fine! I was just happy to finish under an hour. And for my first race, I didn't want to set any expectations that I wouldn't be able to meet and then get all discouraged about it. So, I set the goal to finish. And doing it in under an hour was in the back of my mind, but mainly, I just wanted to finish. :)

After all the running was said and done we went back to our cabin to relax. Brooke met up with a friend she went to school with and they invited us to go Jeeping with them. Alisa and I wanted to take a nap because we both had headaches. So Brooke went and we laid down. Our friends Skyler and Kevin came down with us. While we were running they were riding. A dirt bike and 4-wheeler. They got back and the four of us went to eat at Zax. It's a fun Pizza, Pasta, Sandwich place. Since this was my first trip to Moab I wanted to make the best of it, and go hiking, somewhere! So, we talked the guys into going to Arches National Park. We were pressed for daylight, so we didn't do the full Delicate Arch hike. Instead we just went to the 'Viewpoint' and a few other cool places.

Moab is beautiful! I definitely want to go back and take more time to enjoy everything there is to do there! We were there for only a short weekend, so time was very limited. But, it was a good time nonetheless.

Here are some pictures of our fun weekend!!

GaNgSTa'S

Alisa and me waiting before our race.

Still waiting, final minutes before the race began.

We all made it! Alisa and I ran the 5 mile and Brooke ran the half marathon!

Balanced Rock {that you can't see} with Skyler & Kevin

i promise it'll come

i do plan on posting about my cruise. there is just so much to tell that when i think about actually doing it, i get overwhelmed and decide to do something else instead. but, it will come, eventually. i will say this, though. i had an absolute amazing time and can't wait to go on another cruise again!! hopefully i don't have to wait too long before my next one. the Caribbean is fantastic. the water is beautiful and i love it. love, love, love it. in the mean time, here are a few pictures until i get to adding more. :)

Break dancers on the ship. "Fresh Bananas"

Scooter gang in Cozumel, Mexico

My souvenir from Cozumel. :)

Mardi Gras night on the ship, with Chuck, Brett, & Devin!

Ready for the zip line in Isla Roatan, Honduras!!

hope you enjoyed the preview! the pictures uploaded faster than i was anticipating, so maybe i'll post it sooner than i thought. lucky for you two people who look at my blog. thanks, mom. :)

Disneyland & California Adventures

Thursday we went to Disneyland and California Adventures. It has been over ten years since the last time I've been to Disneyland, and I'd never been to C.A. because it wasn't built back then... So, it was really fun for me to be able to go back and see the rides. It was fun thinking back to the things I remember from when I was younger, and also fun to see the new changes. We also saw some people we know! First, A.K. {initials will have to do since I have no clue how to spell his name} from the Utah Jazz. Second, Superman/Host of Ripley's Believe it or Not, Dean Cain w/his family. And third, the Hansen family from right here in Nibley, Utah!! That's right, out of thousands of people, we ran into Brett, Michelle, Carter, and Adisyn! What are the odds? But, not only did we see them, but we ran into them THREE times!! Seriously it was crazy, but so fun to see them! Adisyn was acting shy the first time we ran into them, silly girl. It was fun to see them outside of my house, especially in a place where I'm sure they just loved!

It was Kaleb's first time to Disneyland too. We took him on some rides, and I'm not quite sure what he thought about them. His face is pretty funny in a few of the pictures we caught. By the end of the day though, Kaleb was just happy to be running around and going down the slide in the little park in Toon Towne.

I absolutely love roller coasters and theme parks! At C.A. I went on Tower of Terror and the Screamin' ride. LOVED them both. I had to go alone though, because of party poopers that get sick! Ha ha. At Disneyland I went on Pirates, Splash Mountain, Indiana Jones {twice :)...}, Madder Horn, Thunder Mountain, and Winnie the Pooh! It was pretty busy and the lines were pretty long, so we didn't get to every ride, but, it was still awesome! I am ready to go back already! :)

Karen and Kaleb on Winnie the Pooh, Kaleb's first ride.

Karen & me on Main St.

Greg, Karen, & Kaleb

Karen, me, & Kaleb on A Bug's Life ride

Kaleb's cheeser!! Cute.

Newport Beach & Angel's Game

Our last day in California we decided to hit the beach, no matter what the weather was like. We went to Newport again since we knew exactly how to get there. It worked out quite nicely. We spent a few hours playing in the water and the sand. I loved it. I think the beach is one of my favorite places to go. I love being out in the water and playing in the waves. This time we took Uncle Burke's old boogie boards he has. It's been quite a while since I have been on a boogie board, and I didn't catch that many waves. But I did manage to catch a few and it was a lot of fun! Greg and Karen both gave the boogie boards a shot and had a blast too. While I was in the water, Karen and Greg would switch off watching Kaleb and swimming. Kaleb enjoyed playing in the sand and just running around. He did like the water, although it was a little cold for him. His teeth were chattering, so we didn't keep him in the water too long. The water was really cold though! That first time the waves hit your feet, ahh, freezing! And making your way in deeper is bad too! Karen and I were going to run and just dive in to get it over with, but I chickened out. The waves hit me enough though, so after being in for a while I finally took a dive under a wave. After that it was warmer under the water than out! We didn't get a whole lot of sun on Friday, but we still had a great time.

Kaleb and I enjoying the sand. Kaleb decided to kiss it. Silly boy.

Kaleb hanging out on the beach. Greg and me waiting to catch some waves with the boogie boards!

After spending the day at the beach we went back to Uncle Burke's to get ready for the Angel's game and tailgate party. My cousin's husband, David, got us tickets for the Angel's vs. Padres game Friday night. It was great! The Angel's beat the Padres 11-6 {if I remember right}. Before the game David's co-workers threw a tailgate party with yummy hot dogs and salads and nachos and other snacky foods. It was fun to eat and visit with family before the game. We were able to see David & Lauriann with Kylie and Chad, and also Michelle and Ryan. It's been a long time since I've seen them, so it was really fun.

Aunt Mary, me, Karen, Kaleb, Greg, & Nathan at the tailgate party.

The Gunnell Fam

Watchin' (kind of) the baseball game. Karen, Kaleb, Brittany, & me.

[post] grad stuff

well it's been a month now since graduation, and since the last time i updated! i feel like this month has flown by, but at the same time, lasted so long? weird.

i am still in search of a job. a few weeks ago i went to salt lake and stayed with my sister, jill. while i was there i called some places to see if they were hiring. i was able to get an interview and even a job offer out of it. however, the job did not pay near what i should get paid... especially for having a college degree. so i turned the offer down after thinking about it for a few days. i feel good about the decision. now i am back to square one, with pretty much nothing. that is the downside of things. after a month of living at home and not having a job, i am feeling so ready to start working and move into my own apartment. i love my parents and they make living at home easier, however, my social life is not what i would like it to be, and i am just ready to have my OWN place. i am facing the dilemma of when to move and where to move. since i don't have a job yet i'm not sure where to move because of location. i am just feeling ready to start my life and having a hard time with patience right now. big test for me, that's for sure.

when i haven't been looking for a job i've been trying to stay busy with other things. last weekend i spontaneously decided to go to rexburg to visit. my weekend trip ended up lasting until wednesday. i loved being back! just being around my friends again, in such a social, comfortable setting. that's what i've known for four years, so i like it. but, by wednesday i was ready to come home. as much as i loved being there i need to move on from rexburg. the time spent there was so great and i love thinking about all the memories! but now it is time to make new memories in a new place! just gotta find out where that place is going to be... haha.

{some pictures from my rexburg visit}

{i even got to see lauren and dayna! love them!}

and finally...

on my way home the car hit

66,666 miles!!

eeek!