Spring has Sprung!

Spring has finally arrived in Saratoga Springs! Its been a while since we have posted and we are blaming it on the weather. The weather has been wonderful, the flowers and trees are in bloom and we have been out and about alot.

Torrie took this picture from our balcony. The evenings are beautiful. As the sun goes down we open up our windows and get a nice breeze blowing through. It makes it a perfect temperature in our apartment, it almost makes the miserable winter weather worth it ;)

Torrie made another delicous cake to celebrate

Emma's 3rd birthday. It was so yummy it was

almost gone before we could get a picture.

For Family Night we went to Congress Park with the Petersons to taste the spring water, but it smelled like sulfur so we chased the ducks instead.

There were lots of different colors of tulips,

and of course Emma wanted to smell them all.

Before we went left we went across the street to Coldstone for ice cream. Emma and I shared our uber chocolate ice cream in a sprinkle cone. Who would have thought Emma would have more energy... we should have stopped by here first.

The most exciting news from our family has to be that Charlotte has begun to crawl! For a few weeks now she has been really frustrated when laying on her tummy. Now she is able to scoot herself along and everyone is much happier!

And last, but not least I had to post a picture (actually 2 pics) of what Torrie has dubbed "my mistress"... While she and girls were back west she kept me company. For this bike season I have dressed her in new threads (a much needed drivetrain upgrade). Torrie's only request (so far) has been that I keep her in the garage rather than in the bedroom (where she stayed while I rode the trainer for a few weeks). I have happily complied since spring has sprung!

Obsessed

Well the STP has come and gone. In the weeks prior to the race, I always hoped but wasn't quite sure if Levi would be able to put in the time and effort to be able to finish it. We had a good time seeing his family and being there as the boys and their dad got ready for the debut of Haupt Cycling. Levi was quickly swept up in the momentum of his dad and brothers as they all spent time prior to the race fine tuning and cleaning each bicycle. The race went well and I was super proud of his efforts. However I didn't know it would turn him into a seriously obsessed cyclist!

Case in point: When we went house hunting in upstate New York he was trying to find the best cycle route from home to work. The most direct route is filled with exhausting rolling hills which made him wonder if he had taken the right job, just because of the 30 minute commute! I mean please what's worse, hills or a California commute of 3 hours daily. Why I oughta....

The obsession continued and increased as we came home. He has done some renovations on his bicycle since the race such as a fresh paint job and a new computer that he found for really cheap. He loves to tinker with it and its a good stress reliever so I am being supportive. He has a few friends that he has been able to ride with which has been good, obviously the exercise for anyone is a plus and its good to see him do something for himself. Now his birthday and Christmas wish lists include a selection of bike gadgets. I really could handle all of this, the early morning rides where we are both up at 5 am, washing his bike shorts and 3 bike socks, (for some reason I can only find three at a time, he had two full pairs at one time)

I thought his momentum would die down with our return to real life and his thesis, boy, was I wrong. He struck out on his own this past weekend and rode the Snowbird ( ski- resort) Hill Climb without any of his cycling buddies.

I've gotta hand it to him though, he has done a pretty good job at picking an obsession, I guess things could be worse. I also think its kinda funny that he has morphed into his dad, I had always thought he looked like his mom's side, I guess its the cycling.

The one thing about all this that I can't handle is the fact that he has turned my sweet little Emma into a performance food junkie. All that I can get this kid to eat is Clif bars, and she loves to drink his Vitamin water or Powerade. The Powerade is just wrong since that's what I tried to stay hydrated with when pregnant with her and threw it up so many times that its now on the "Cannot Consume" ListAll I have to say is, "Watch out Levi, your time will come..." I am dead set on finding an obsession in New York that will land him at home with two kids, especially since it will be winter and a little chilly to go cycling...... ::cackling evilly::

The STP

I can offically report that I survived the STP! Emma was more interested in my gloves afterwards than seeing me, maybe because I smelled.
It was alot of fun riding with my family. My dad was especially excited. It took us a little over 16 hours to ride the 202 miles, and are now off to the Oregon beach to recover. Its a good thing too, cuz I really need it.

STP Update

A while back Torrie posted that I would be riding the STP. Since the big race is just under two weeks away now I thought I would post an update on how I am doing. Yesterday Ben Parker got a kick out of dragging me up to the summit of Timpanogos .

Ben is a pretty serious rider, and this was a typical ride for him (by the way this is a pretty sinister look Ben), for me is was a little more wearing.

To give you some perspective the summit of the Alpine Loop is at 7900 feet and is only 11 miles from the mouth of the American Fork Canyon. When Ben suggested it last week I thought he was crazy. When we did it yesterday I realized how brutal the climb is. It never ends!

When we started the day (at 4pm) the temperature of the asphalt was 107 F. Luckily it cooled off on the way up, and turned out to be as Ben called it "epic". I completely agreed.

I never thought we would ever see the summit, but sure enough we finally made it. It was worth a quick picture before we headed down the Provo Canyon side.

The ride down was awesome, my only complaint is that it went too fast. This was a really great training ride for the STP. I don't plan on having a climb like this so close to the ocean, and hopefully the air wont be as thin as it is on the side of Timp. With this ride under my belt I am feeling a little more prepared for the STP.

STP or Bust

Emma's grandpa Haupt is very into Cycling, for a while now he's been doing the Seattle to Portland Bicycle Race aka, the STP. This is actually a two-day, over the weekend race but grandpa Haupt does it in 1-day, that's 200+ miles folks! I was pretty impressed. Its also impressive how his enthusiasm for this sport has spread like wildfire, all of his sons are training for this summer's edition and in a few years I think even Emma will be ready to brave the grueling 200+ miles and cross the finish line. Here's to you Grandpa, for inspiring us all.
Emma is a little gun-ho for all of this outdoorsy stuff, although I can't tell whether she is going for a bike ride or preparing to be NASA's youngest astronaut in this get-up.