Easter Eggs!

One of my favorite things about spring time is Easter, and I think the south celebrates it more than most regions. It is an all day event for us southerners! So, last year I had to work on Easter and this year I will be again:( As sad as it is, it is really great to spend that day in nature and think of what Jesus was going through and how it all happened in nature. So, when I stop feeling sorry for myself, I realize I am probably getting more out of the day than most will.

Still, i am a fan of tradition and dying eggs is one of my favorite things to do! So, I found this kit that said it was super easy, so I bought it planning on doing it with JP, big surprise. So today she and I and her oldest son Taegyn boiled up some eggs and had a egg dying party! Jp and I probably had more fun than Tae did, but he was having fun too! Here are some pictures from our fun!

Hope everyone has a great Easter!!

Spring in the Desert

I have to say that spring time is my favorite season in the desert. Everything is in bloom and the heat is just right...not like the oven it can feel like in the summer time. I am so thankful that I get to spend another spring here before I leave Utah, maybe it wasn't the best timing that I leave during my favorite time...hmm. I got to work in our lower field area this week and it is about 10 degrees warmer than the upper field area where I have been ALL winter long. So, it was a welcomed break from the cold and snow. I actually got a little sun burned and I love it!! I took a nap one day and the sun felt so warm and comforting on my back, like a big blanket! Here are some pictures from the week.

The Lizards enjoy the warm rocks just as much as I do

Chaco weather! You can still see the snowy peaks in the distance

Happy to be at work!

First Duathlon in the books!

So, a few weeks ago I was in the middle of a great workout streak and decided that I was going to do a race. I proceeded to look up any races in the St. George area and found a Duathlon and for some reason felt compelled to sign up...so i DID!

It was a sprint distance; which means it was 1.5 mile run, 12 mile bike, then another 1.5 run. It was in a gorgeous area of town and part of our bike ride was in Snow Canyon State park...pictured below.

Today was race day and I have to say that I wasn't AS prepared as I could have been, but I had been running a lot in my off shifts and had biked a couple of times at the gym. My boss graciously let me borrow his wife's road bike so that I didn't have to ride my mountain bike..which are not fun to ride on roads for long distances!

I got there early this morning and got nervous right away when I saw a lot of serious looking competators and me strollin up without a helmet (oops) wearing my KVB jersey! So, I called dad and told him I needed a pep-talk and he sure did deliver (just like every other time!) So, I got off the phone remembering I'm a Washburn for heaven's sake!!! And that is something special.

My first run started off fine and I did my best to not let my competitive spirit get in the way of me having fun. I am usually hard on myself when I do races and don't let myself enjoy the journey, that theme was starting until I jumped on my bike, it was so much fun to ride that smooth bike through the beautiful red rock scenery and I had great music playing and found myself smiling the whole bike ride.

I had gone into the race wanting to finish under 2 hours, but didn't get my hopes up so I didn't get disapointed at the end. Well near the end of my bike section I realized I had a great chance at beating 2 hours and then some, so I kicked it up into high gear even though my legs were killing me and I knew I had to run another 1.5 miles. I got off my bike and had to walk a bit to regain my walking legs and then was able to find some kind of a grove for the last bit.

My final time was 1:40:00 flat!! When I crossed the finish line I almost started crying I was so proud of myself! I am pretty hard on myself most of the time and don't let myself enjoy a lot of stuff. So the fact that I crushed the time I had set for myself was enough to let me celebrate!

My only sad point was that there wasn't anyone waiting at the finish line, but hopefully I can keep doing these races when I move back home and I know that there will always be a clan of Washburn's cheering me on to the end!

Snow Canyon

This was the image that was on my finisher medal!

Senior Time

So, today marks a great day for me...I have become a Senior level staff at Second Nature Entrada! You start as you may know as an intern, then progress to level 1, then eventually level 2, which is where you spend most of your time. After you go through Senior Development so that you can try it out as a senior with a "real" senior there with you. After they feel like you have done enough to get through that, you take a test and are officially a Senior! That just means you are the head staff in a staff team that works with a group, so basically you are in charge and legally where the buck stops, so a lot of responsibility is placed on you at that point. So, after starting as an intern that was not gauranteed a position, I have made it a year and a half later to become a Senior! It is hard to explain how excited I am to be able to be a senior with this company that I love and respect. And another cool thing is that there are only 3 female seniors right now and the other two happen to be my best friends Jess and Jp! So, I'm excited for my first week as a senior even though it is only going to be a half week because I am taking some vacation time for the Super Bowl and headed to Detroit!!! I am excited for a break from hard work and the snow, and we are supposed to get dumped on the day I leave the field!! Here's hopping I make it out!!

Bring on the SNOW!

So, this last week in the field, I saw more collective snow than I have ever seen in my life, and I'm sure that goes for most southerners I know too! I went into the field on Tuesday and there was maybe a foot of snow on the ground (still alot!) and that night it started snowing and didn't stop until saturday morning!!! That's right, no sun for 5 days! It is amazing the mental toll that takes on a person, and it was doing numbers on me. Thank goodness I was working with amazing people so we were able to laugh and keep our sanity as much as possible. Here are some pictures from the week, the biggest bonus is that the snow in Utah is very dry so it isn't the sticky wet snow that comes to us in the South, it is perfect for snowballs and snow sculptures, and doesn't get nasty very quickly....

what to put here...

I tried to find a bible verse that talked about how God puts wonderful people in our lives for a reason, the extent of my search was google, so maybe i didn't try hard enough...

I have made it official that I am leaving Utah in May, the 8th to be exact. And it has amazed me how much support i have gotten with my decision and i don't know why, but I am surprised at how much of a life I have built here in Utah. I guess because I am almost always on the go, it surprised me that when i slowed down that there are all these people who care so much about me. And if i wasn't so attatched to being close to my family then i could see myself staying here for a while in this world I have created for myself. But alas, family is who I want to be close to, and even though they are the driving force behind me leaving, it is already becoming hard for me to imagine myself leaving. Knowing it is the right choice doesn't make it the easy choice by any means. Keeping in touch through email and phone doesn't touch the bonds I have created in person and a part of me is fearful that those relationships are going to waver because of distance and that is something I have seen happen a lot in my life and I guess I am hopefull and fearful that they will hold up and know that there is a good chance that they won't, hard to admit to myself. It is hard to prepare myself to let go of certain friendships while i still try and get the last few drops of fun out of them. Soudns self defeating right? Just whats in my head at the moment, it helps for me to write it down sometimes and not feel so alone in my sad thoughts.

Ok, enough sadness for tonight. I'm going to try to go enjoy some time with a dear friend before heading out to the snowy snowy snowy desert (said snowy 3 times for how many feet we are supposed to get)

Thanks for reading!

Sleepy Ship

So, The sleepy ship is a couch, a very very comfortable couch that belongs to my friends Shad and Jp. Jp happens to be one of my closest friends here in Utah an older sister figure to me out here away from family. I spend a lot of time at her house on this couch and we usually end up chatting and then falling asleep...hence the sleepy ship.

I have decided to make some changes in my life coming up this summer and they will be taking me away from Utah and sad and happy thing. And something I will miss the most about living here is my friendship with Jp that has grown over the past year. Most recently we took a trip to Seattle to see the Titans and Seahawks play, it was an amazing trip! Jp has worked at Second Nature for 10, yes 10 years! So she has been a great resource for me and helped me develop into a better staff than i could be without her.

Anyway, I just wanted to post a little about JP so people back home could know a little more about her!