I love to see the Temple

Finley and I have been wanting to see the lights at Temple Square for a while now and so we decided Tuesday night we'd brave the cold and go. Of course we had to have some yummy dinner before hand so we splurged and went to Olive Garden. The girls were great through dinner and just wanted to see the lights. So we bundled up and loaded in the stroller and off we went. I was slightly jealous that the girls were bundled head to toe and under big blankets in the stroller. Eliza's eyes were so big and she just looked around saying 'Wow! Pretty!" Finley decided she wanted to walk holding hands with her dad so she could see the lights up close. We'd thought that by maybe going on a Tuesday night we'd avoid some of the huge crowds. Well as luck would have it, we chose the night that half the valley took their young men and young women groups, and that there were high school choir concerts going on. Haha what can you do? We walked around for about half an hour and watched / listened to the nativity scene then the girls decided they were cold. To state it correctly, Finley said "Mom, I can't feel my thumbs or toes. This is really pretty but can we go get warm?" Yep numb fingers are a good sign it's time to go. Don't worry they did have their warm boots, gloves, hats, winter coats and blankets. It was a wonderful night out with the girls and more then anything I love watching them experience new things. By the time we left, Eliza had learned the words Temple, Angel, Trees, Jesus, and Pretty Lights.

How could this floating nativity scene on the reflecting pond with the sweet glow of the temple behind it not make you feel the true meaning of Christmas?

Excitement in the air

Christmas is my favorite time of the year. The warm fuzzy feeling that comes from giving to others, the reminder of why we celebrate each time you look at the nativity set on the table, listening to Christmas music and decorating, yummy smells of the weekly cookies baking, daily anticipation of the the kids looking for Roxy the Elf, and driving around looking at lights listening to the kids "Oh pretty mom! How cute! OOOOHH AAAAHHH!" How could you not love Christmas?

So what's the greatest gift?

Family.

(notice anything unique to the picture?)

I'm excited to say that we will become a family of 5. Little Tolbert #3 will be arriving June 20! The girls couldn't be more excited. Eliza loves to rub my tummy and say "Baby, baby!". Finley thinks that anything we buy we need three so that the baby has one too. Between having two kids, work, a traveling husband, and the holiday's there's not much time to think about being sick. It's amazing that I've already hit my 12 week mark! We saw the heartbeat and we were reassured that everything look good at our first appointment. Stay tuned, I think in January we will find out what we are having.

Family Photos

Yes I waited until November to do family pictures thinking oh how cool it would be to have snow in the pictures. Well, it was cold and we lucked out that the day we were doing them the storm held off. The kids were good sports and my dear friend Stephanie Bletzacker took our photos. She did an amazing job and I'm so excited to have some updated family pictures. To get Eliza to stop looking at the river, the cars, the barn, the trees and look for two seconds at the camera was a bit tricky, but we got some good photos.

In between every picture we were wrapping the down coats around us to stay warm. Next year I'll schedule a little earlier in the year so no down coats are needed.

This would be the shot right before Eliza fell flat on her face and soaked the white leggings.

Brian teases that we were getting engagement pictures again, but I'm so glad to have a picture of us two (it rarely happens).

The last Luczak photo we had Finley was Eliza's age so it was time for a new one.

Trick or Treat

We had two cute little witches in our house this year. It was so nice to have weather that allowed us to go out and about. Fin wanted to go to every house in sight, and Eliza had the death grip on me at each door until the bowl of candy was brought out. Eliza even figured out how to say 'Tick or Teat'. It was so funny. She still will wonder around saying, 'Tick or Teat, Tick or Teat'. Love my girls!

Rewards of a Coach

This trip was more then just a reward of coaching, it was about support and a great time with family. My brother in law Hunter has been doing incredibly well at the Xterra Triathlons and back in April he qualified for World's in Maui, HI. We had an early morning flight on Friday to the sunshine islands and arrived with more then half the day to check in, eat some yummy cheeseburgers, and gear up for race day (on Sunday). Our hotel was one of the nicest places I've stayed and was unbelievable. The Ritz Carlton was the host of the Xterra and had all the transitions on its lawns, the swim in their bay, and the best breakfast spot / store around!

(I want to Thank my in laws for everything on the trip and for Hunter, can you keep qualifying so the 'coach' and his wife need to assist again? You're a stud and you did so well! And sorry for anything I left out on this post.)

Views from our rooms.

After a day and half of pre-ride, pre-run, and gearing up it was time for the big event. The swim started down on the beach and out into the open waters of the ocean. It was truly amazing to see 700 races start at once.

Hunter coming through for his second lap of the swim. It was interesting because they had to run up on the beach, down a short straight away, back into the water for their second lap.

We didn't get to see any of the bike race and barely caught a glimpse of Hunter coming by back to the transition area.

Out to the run he goes. Looking strong.

Finally at the end of this grueling race we spot Brian running along side Hunter (I'm sure Hunter was cussing Brian at this point and just wanting to be done).

The world’s premier off-road triathlon, combining a 1.5-kilometer (1-mile) rough water swim, a 29.5-kilometer (18.3-miles) mountain bike and a 9.8-kilometer (6.1-miles) trail run best described as a tropical roller-coaster ride through pineapple fields and forests. 7th place & 2nd American in his category his dad and 'coach' couldn't be more proud. Word's can't really describe what these athletes go through. The top male and female racer's both DNF from an asthma attack and complete dehydration. It's amazing what these guys train for and put themselves through.

Oh and Lance Armstrong may have been there again.

When there's hard work, there's play. After the race we found our way down to the beach to enjoy the sun, sand, and waves.

The boys trying out their boogie boards.

Can you tell we are cyclists? Gotta love the tan lines.

So the first part of our trip was for the race. The second half was spent on Oahu for Brian's work. We got to drive around the island a few times visiting Boat Dealership's and may have found a beach along the way. It's amazing how you can drive the whole island in just a few hours. We ventured down to "The North Shore" where all the big surf competitions take place. Well, we found out that unless you're there in December when the waves come in the water was as flat as could be. The beach was great and the sun felt nice. I have to mention that with a hectic week the week before we left a few things may have got left at home, like our camera. What?! I know right, good thing our cell phones have camera's so we had some kind of proof we were there. (We did have Hunter's camera for pictures of the race)

Before we left the island we made a stop by Pearl Harbor. It was a solemn and interesting experience.

Cousin's

Finley and her cousin Stella are becoming like pea's in a pod. They get so excited to see each other and will go play on their own for hours. The two together can be quite amusing and can't wait to see the mischief they get their younger sisters into.

Four girl's, a mule and their grandpa. What a great photo!

Xterra

Brian has been a 'coach' this year to his younger brother Hunter. I have to state that this kid is an amazing all around athlete. Brian's been coaching him in mountain biking for a few years now but seeing that Hunter is a crazy good swimmer they decided to go for the Triathlons. And not just any, the Xterra series. This means you swim in open water, ride mountain bikes, and trail run. Hunter has done amazing this year and qualified for World's his first race out! A couple weekends ago we got to go up to Snowbasin for the National championships. It was pretty cool to watch. There was always a helicopter flying over head filming and taking pictures, the support and course set up was real deal, and maybe there was a star there that everyone came to see.

We started the day off at Pineview Reservoir. It was cold and there were a ton of people.

Fin is a fan of races, period, doesn't matter what type, she loves going.

Eliza just wants to be in the mix no matter what's going on.

Back to the race, this was the swim. Yep Hunter's out there somewhere.

Smooth transition to the bike and off to the mountains he went.

Look at the kid go! Coming across the finish line. Poor kid took a helmet to the shin the night before in the varsity football game and toughed out this long hard race.

I told you he's an all around athlete.

Coach / Athlete

Oh yeah, this was the star that everyone came to see. The Lance Armstrong.

All smiles because Melanie Mcquaid (pro women Xterra athlete) gave her her podium lei. Fin didn't even know who she was but felt so cool.

At the end of a long day the girls finally crashed.

Being the coach and coach's wife has its benefit. Check back in a few weeks to see why.

Days with Grandma

The girls get to spend their Wednesday's with their Grandma LeAnn (my mom) and enjoy every minute of it. Their latest ventures have been walking / riding bikes around Silver Lake up by Brighton.

Playing in the water.

Going to Sugarhouse park and feeding / chasing the ducks. Fin has gotten pretty brave about getting right up next to the ducks.

Can you tell it was slightly windy? Of course Eliza doesn't want to miss out on the action either.

Playing at the park. If it involves being outside they love it!

At the end of the day they are usually tired, dirty, and happy. What more could you expect from little kids?