Trail Marathon #2

She did it! Marathon #4. This past weekend we had a great time traveling, camping, and running/cheering for Dani's trail marathon in the Upper Peninsula. We stopped every few hours both there and back to play at beaches, see waterfalls, chase seagulls, eat local food and enjoy being on vacation.


Race day was beautiful. We loved being by the water and it reminded us of being in Alaska. Dani got off to a great start and Liam and I took a bus up the island to wait for her on the beach at mile 16. On the way we saw two black bears and later a bald eagle. Luckily Dani bypassed the bears. While we waited on the beach Liam got excited about the runners coming through, and would cheer for each one by saying "Yeah Runner Guy! Run run run!" After a while he started running on his own up and down the beach- below is a clip of his warm-up laps. It was fun to watch Dani come through, and she looked like she had just barely started- not like someone who had run 16 miles through bear-infested wilderness. We got back to the finish line on the bus just as she was coming through the finish line. She finished in 4:07 ... 8 minutes faster than last year; 15th overall women's place, and 4th in her age category. The competition was stiffer this year, and she was only 40 seconds behind the 3rd place. Her response: "Shoulda used the porta-potty before hand rather than on the trail". We're really proud of her and I'm impressed with how she did. She must have run hard, because this is the first time I've ever heard her admit that she was even a little tired afterwards.

The rest of the trip was spent being entertained by Liam's antics. He had fun camping, and was a trooper in the 16+ hours in the car. Also, Liam debuted his newly acquired beatboxing skills in a few bare-all freestyle exhibitions.

Brady's 100 mile Bike Race

Brady just got done riding in an organized century ride(100 miles). The race was called "One Helluva Ride" because it went through the town known as Hell, Michigan. He only had minimal training but did great. We are so proud of him!

Liam loves dogs

Since has always really loved dogs- playing pretend dogs, sleeping with his puppies, and watching for real dogs being walked. Here he is just kinda lounging around playing with his pups.

Happy Birthday Brady

Brady's birthday was this past week. Brady is such an amazing individual and incredibly thoughtful and talented. He was very busy with work but we had time eat some cake and Liam was very excited the entire day that it was Brady's, papas and his (self declared) birthday all on the same day.

Liam dressed himself at his friend "Big Abby"'s house.

Education for “education’s” sake. What is a bachelors degree worth?

Recently Brady and I were talking about our college degrees- their value, their abilities to get us a job, the work we put into them, the people they shape us into, the way they enrich our family and increase our potential to serve.
College is expensive and time consuming. I wonder if most people are reaping from their college experience what they intended. Tell me what you think.

As far as the job market goes Brady and I have somewhat “useless” undergrad degrees (Psychology and Exercise Sciences.) Both of us selected our undergrad majors as a means to get into grad school. When I tell people my major l generally roll my eyes to suggest “Yes, I do realize that I didn’t select the most useful, lucrative bachelor’s degree.” But should it matter?

What makes a college education worthwhile?

Needless to say, now my days are not filled with anything scientific but spent counting to 20 and singing the ABCs. I finished my undergrad 4 years ago and those days at BYU seem so long ago, so distant.
I really cannot remember a thing I learned my first few semesters while taking general education classes. At the same time I will never forget many of the friends I made, the fun I had, my host family during my study abroad, and the way these changed my view of myself and the world. Were those 2 semesters of mediocre grades "time wasted?"

Many people have different reasons for going/ finishing college. Some of them are laudable, some I think are bogus.

Sometimes women in college feel they have no incentive. They want a family and will never use their degree. Is it okay to pick an easy major, do easy classes until one gets a ring on their finger or a positive pregnancy test? Is it okay to go to college just until something better comes along?

If women just want to be mothers should they have to challenge themselves academically? How much weight do you give to the “just in case my husband dies” attitude towards women’s education?

Often people don't finish college because their career doesn’t require it – artists, sales reps, military. . . is it okay that they completely missed out on this social rite of passage? Are they skipping out on life’s lessons?

Is it alright to spend time and money on a degree that you are only half–heartedly interested in but that is easy and quick?

Should we be pushing our kids towards getting graduate degrees now that the job market is flooded with 4 year degrees?

Are some degrees truly “better” than others? (Of course the world needs philosophers, anthropologists, art historians, but enough to warrant getting a degree?)

Should people only study majors that can land jobs?

If we are truly looking to develop personal attributes why don’t more people spend 4 years volunteering, traveling, and soul searching?

After saying all that, basically I think the ideal cases for going through school are a) if you are pursuing something you are passionate about and or b)if you'll make money because of it.

My parents always assumed and expected us to get at least a 4 year degree. As much as I think that people should pursue their lives as they see fit, I would flip if one of my own kids told me they were opting out/dropping out of formal education. There is something commendable about taking on any challenging, lengthy task and furthermore finishing something that you started.

Summer

Nude gardening, Liam's favorite summer activity. Well I guess tied with nude sandboxing. (A second after a snapped this photo I got squirted in the face.) We have been doing tons of swimming in lakes, going to parks, splash pads, museums, gardens, and ice cream stores. We love summer.

Liam loves to build forts and towers out of pillows. They are generally dangerous but he would have it no other way.

Pretty sweet music, an awesome blend of both songs (regardless if you like Taylor Swift)