Track Team Fun

Since I haven't posted anything since December, here's a recap of all that's happened this spring.

Small Group Baby Shower for Gwen & Winter ("Bubba Sherbet")

Team Picture at Westmont

Last night of Spring Fling

Ultimate Ninja

Conference Runners Up

First Day of Willamette Heptathlon

May Term Hanging Out

Nationals - Beth and John winning the West Region Awards

Orlando in December

Before Christmas, John, Doug and I flew down to Orlando to attend the USATFCCCA annual conference. It was the first time I had been, and was a great experience. Most of the many lectures and panels I listened to were really applicable and well done. Some of them were less helpful than others, but the majority were great.

The conference was held at the JW Marriot, a huge convention center complex with at least eight rooms that my house could have fit inside; a large courtyard with sand volleyball, a lazy river swimming pool, and a ton of lounge chairs; a manmade river across from a golf course; and elegant guest rooms with by far the most comfortable hotel bed I've ever slept in.
The conference went from Monday at noon through Wednesday night; if we wanted we could have spent that whole time in conferences. However, being the rebels that we are, John and I wanted to take off and go to Disney World on Tuesday afternoon after most of the conference stuff was over. We finally convinced a reluctant Doug to go with us, and headed out to the wide world of Disney.

Our first stop was the Animal Kingdom - John's favorite from when he came with his family. It wasn't that crowded, so we managed to hit the Dinosaur ride, the safari, the waterfall one, and the Yeti rollercoaster all within a couple of hours. (I actually rode the rollercoaster twice since we had a pass, but the guys were both a little sick and declined).


Next we headed to Hollywood Studios to catch two rides: the Tower of Terror and the Rockin' Rollercoaster (which is much like Space Mountain because it is all dark inside, but I thought it was better). John was not feeling well after the Tower, but was better than I expected. Total time at Hollywood Studios: 1 hour.

Last but not least we went to Epcot, my choice and Dawn's favorite from their trip. The rides were not as good - we only went on a few since some of the lines were long, and then headed out on the two-mile walk around the countries of the world. It was really cool, but I think I expected more after all I had heard. Maybe if I had been with guys a little more into exploring, or maybe just if there had been more to explore...oh well, it was fun to be there as the sun was setting. What I really wanted to see, we got to see - the Candlelight Processional in front of the US area: it was a full-blown Christmas service with a large choir and orchestra, and narrated by Abigail Breslin. She read basically straight from the gospel of Luke, and they sang all of these beautiful Christmas carols.

It was awesome! I think John was impressed, but he and Doug both fell asleep soon after it started. So I ended up asking if they wanted to take off - I would have been ok leaving then and there - I had seen all I wanted. John seemed like he wanted to stay though, so we ate dinner and walked around the rest of the park. Eventually we decided to try one last ride - Mission:Space.

Mission:Space is a ride where you sit inside a four-person capsule and get to feel the effects of space travel because the capsule is spinning incredibly fast. I loved it! John and Doug did not. John gets really motion sick, and Doug does a little too. John was already not feeling well from the other rides we had been earlier. Before you get on the ride, they warn you at least eight times over the loudspeaker, and again with signs everywhere, that if you get sick you should either not go, or go on the less intense side. We were on the really intense side, but the guys would not switch! John kept saying that it was a bad idea, yet he went anyway. As soon as it started they both grabbed for the barf bags and I worried about what would happen to them the entire ride. John was basically green as we left. So we ended up staying in the park for another half hour while they tried to feel normal again. I was able to catch the first part of the water/lights show, which was cool, and would love to see it all again sometime.


Wednesday night was an awesome night as well - the USATFCCCA started a new tradition, of honoring the best athletes in the sport with the Bowerman (named after the former UO coach and Nike founder). It went to Galen Rupp and Jenny Barringer, two very deserving runners. A really nice dinner followed, along with another coaches' social (they had one every night - basically a lot of beer and wine running around). But it was fun to get dressed up a little and hang out with the NW Conference coaches.

A Full House

Christmas was an awesome time for our family - getting to be together as a big group doesn't happen as often as we'd like since are so scattered. Last year it was just Mom, Ryan and I on Christmas morning; this year we added Erik, Colleen, Elisa, and Sadie; Forrest, Amy, and Ephraim; Grandpa Jack; and Charles, Peggy, Christina, and Kimi. We had a blast together making tamales for Christmas Eve, going to Rock Harbor's candlelight service, opening presents (especially watching the kids open presents) and eating poteka (since our family alone can eat a whole one, we made three), playing some new games, catching up, and eating a really great dinner.


Christina had all of the kiddos enthralled, and Ephraim especially bonded with her in a way he rarely does


Kimi opened a box of Pedi-paws from her dad, and wasn't convinced it was the best of presents :)


Ephraim knew exactly what to do with his new T-ball set


Sadie enjoying the tutu Alie made for her


Grandpa Jack

On Saturday my cousin Dennis and his family (Mindy, Jacob, and Joelle) came to visit too. That made a total of nineteen in the house that night. We had so much fun! We jumped in the river for the 2nd Annual Polar Bear Plunge (myself, Kimi, Dennis, Forrest, and Erik - Ryan was told he had to by the guys but then faked jumping in and high-tailed it back to the house and hid from us for the next half hour). We played Twister for over an hour, which was hilarious. We talked and laughed all day - it is so good to be with family.


Jumping into the Willamette - notice Ryan's fake-out


Brothers-in-law


Dennis and Mindy duking it out



On Sunday our extended family had to get back to their homes, so my grandpa took us all to McCormick & Schmidts for brunch before heading out. The Wachobs, Arnolds and I then went to Pacific City for some fun on the dune and Erik's first trip to the Oregon Coast (and Mo's).

Thanksgiving Weekend

Thanksgiving this year was much quieter than most - only 5 of us gathered around the table, which is a departure from the usual for my family. But it was a wonderful, relaxing, thankful time together. Ryan worked the whole weekend but had each evening off to come home, which was nice. Ryan's friend Steven, whose family is on Kauai, came over, and Paige drove down from Tacoma to spend the weekend with us. I love having her around! She is a breath of fresh air and so much fun to be around.


Sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner with Paige & Steven

After eating (at 7:00 because Ryan didn't get off work until then), everyone was too full for pie. Instead we watched Miracle on 34th St. - a tradition Colleen and I started back in high school and have kept fairly well. No one else will usually watch it with us, though, so I was surprised when Ryan, Steven and my mom joined in and stayed awake better than I did! :)


Kayaking on the river with Paige - gorgeous and warm day






We invited the Smith's and Adam over for an afternoon of games and hanging out. Dawn loves games, as do I, but John is not a fan. He spent most of the time ridiculing whatever we were playing. The rest of us had fun though: we played Whoonu and Imaginif, ate Thanksgiving leftovers and my mom's caramel popcorn, and we laughed a ton. Ephraim completely attached himself to Blake, and spent several hours chasing him around house and doing whatever he did. Blake seemed to enjoy it too.


Blake and Ephraim playing the piano :)


Look at Paige and Forrest at the end of the table! They cheated through several rounds before we picked up on it.



Sliding contest!


Paige's friend Nicole came over Saturday and Sunday before they drove back to PLU. It was fun meeting and hanging out with her! She is a literature genius and it was so great to stay up late and talk about books. :0)


Complete! It took us three days, probably 10 collective hours, and help from Amy, Steven, my mom, and Nicole, but we finally finished this 1000-piece puzzle on Saturday night.

Track Retreat to Twin Rocks

This past weekend the track team went on our annual fall retreat - this time to Rockaway Beach. We left early Saturday morning, drove through a tumult of rain and a lightning storm before arriving at the Cheese Factory in Tillamook. You'd be surprised how many people are willing to eat ice cream before noon. (Including Dawn and the kids!)



The house we rented from Twin Rocks Friends Camp was perfect - just enough beds for 20+ people, plus a large living space with ocean views that allowed everyone to hang out together inside when it was storming outside. We knew the surf was going to be huge (29 ft swells), and it did not disappoint. The waves were crazy! I wish my camera could have captured just how big they were. For an idea of how crazy it was, understand that the Twin Rocks rise 80 ft above the water, and the waves that hit them were sometimes spraying over them. WOW!




David and Davis

The weather didn't seem to bother the team at all. This was perhaps the most game-happy group I've been with since my growing up days and trips to Lake Powell. I loved it! We sat cozy inside playing Scategories, Settlers, Yahtzee, cribbage, Alhambra, spoons, 4-on-a-couch, charades, and cards. Everyone had a great time! We even ate relatively healthy food (since I was doing the shopping and cooking).


Scategories with the whole group right after lunch


Charades - Dak being a mermaid


Doug sleeping through charades :)


Alyssa and Jared stacking a tower of dominoes while trying to earn a blizzard from John

When the rain let up, we explored outside but found the ocean kept us from venturing out too far. I had never seen the waves so wild or the surf so high. The sea also kicked up a ton of foam, and the tide was in for most of the afternoon - meaning no walking on the beach. The water was coming all the way up to the bluff and in some places pushing past it.





Right after dinner we had some excitement: Adam was helping Blake 'fly' and unfortunately he flew right into the chandelier. Pieces of glass came raining down, and most of them seemed to land on Jaci. Blake was absolutely fine, but Jaci went to the emergency room and came back with stitches in her head and foot. She's such a trooper! She didn't cry once. Anja and Adam ended up with cuts too but were fine - Adam was more shaken that he had endangered two Smith kids than anything else. Davis and Blake spent the evening (staying up until 11!) with us while John and Dawn were at the hospital, and they seemed to really enjoy being members of the boys' club (especially when they were winning 4-on-a-couch).





Sunday morning we did group devotions: John spoke a little about how desperately we need to be in God's word and know the truth for ourselves, without letting people lead us astray by twisting or ignoring what the word says; he lead a few old-school worship songs; I talked about how as a team, we have a huge opportunity to grow and build each other up but we can't do that if people aren't in the word and growing up into Christ individually as well. We need each other, and we need each other to be seeking Christ wholeheartedly; we are a body and family that can encourage and uplift one another, but we need the help of the Spirit to fully serve each other and pull each other up. It was pretty cool that without planning it, what John and I had to say complemented each other perfectly.

All in all it was an awesome weekend and I'm so glad I have gotten to know the track team members a little better. At least I know all the freshmen's names now! Plus my volleyball girls won their last playoff game and are headed to the state tournament later today - icing on the cake.

Top Five Highlights of Halloween weekend

1. Our volleyball team came in second at districts and qualified to host a state playoff game.
2. Seeing Tori and Victor back together after a rough few months.
3. Dressing up and hanging out with family and friends at Bushwacker's: dancing, laughing, reliving old times.
4. Our six-person Wizard of Oz crew came in third in the applause-based costume contest, earning free food that night and what amounted to about $3 each after subtracting the cover charge we paid to get in.
5. I accomplished possibly my silliest life goal that night, but if you want to know what it is you must ask me in person. :)

Pictures coming!