The First H.O.T. (Higleys and Others Triathlon)

Brian hosted the first HOT race!  It was a shortened version of a sprint triathlon for the family and it was really fun.  We were really glad that it did not rain and drop to around 50 degrees like last time.  I finally got to show off my new skills too.  I feel like I am getting better and better on the bike.  Thanks Mom for watching Apollo and our equipment!  Thanks Courtney for the pictures, next time you should join in!  Brian says he wants to do another race in September so his brother Chris can get in on the fun, so anyone else is interested let us know!  The results were: Brian won (way to go hubby!), Nate Hughes, ME! (Carly Higley), Rachael Rose, Nick Hughes, then Kate and Ted. Here are some of the pics that Courtney snapped for us.

Having Brian cheer me in is always a plus!

Kate didn't like her bike very much and Brian had a pretty steep route planned.  Sorry Kate!

The sprinklers suddenly turning on turned out to be a nice surprise.

Nick finished the swim pretty quickly, even though we heard he paddled with one hand and pulled himself along on the side of the pool with the other!

We hope those involved had a good time, Brian and I both love these events and hope to have many more in the years to come.  Some highlights were: 

Nate sprinting out of the pool area shouting: "I'll get you Rachael!  I smell your Fear!"

The close finish between Nick and Rachael, she had the running experience to pull ahead at the end!

Apollo's First Birthday Celebration!

Let them eat cake!  We pretty much bathed in it, at least, Apollo did!  He also managed to wipe it all over Brian and I.  We are so grateful to have this little guy in our life.  His laugh makes us laugh and his smiles always make us smile.  We can't believe he is already one!  Time flies when you are so busy changing diapers and trying to survive on minimal sleep.  Thanks to everyone who has helped us along the the way, and thanks to everyone who helped make Apollo's birthday celebration fun.

Finally Posting Again

We got through the summer semester!  What a pain to take classes during the time when we want to get out and have fun.  Anyways here are some pictures of things that happened along the way.

Apollo and his dad always have fun together

Me doing some miming so that Brian would laugh hard enough to lose his hiccups.  Sure made me feel like a dork.

Still one of Apollo's favorite times, bath time!

Apollo loves being outside and loves watching everything from cars to people go by.

I look forward to being able to more posting now that I don't have any classes to worry about. I am really going to try to start taking my camera with me too!

A short video of a nature boy

Here is a short clip of our son playing on the lawn, he really loves being outside and it gives us all a break from being stuck inside.

Update of Sorts

It's been a while since we last posted anything so I thought that I would throw some pictures on the computer and write a little message.  Things have been going very well for Brian, Apollo and I.  Brian is taking some "very boring classes" over the summer and I have been taking a pretty challenging Chemistry class.  This is the my last pre requisite for nursing school so I am anxious to do well.  Brian says his classes could be much better and much more challenging but oh well.  Apollo keeps growing in leaps and bounds.  In two weeks he learned to army crawl, then crawl and sit up on his own.  He is becoming very unstoppable.  We need to start hiding our books and everything else on the bottom shelves!  We have also been watching the olympic trials and we are both very excited to see how the United States fares in Beijing.  

Apollo and Brian on the computer, Apollo wanted to write an e mail to everyone

Apollo really loves his baths and playing in the water, he always has fun until he splashes himself in the face

Apollo is finally a bit more accustomed to the camera and actually smiles at it

Apollo found his Dad's water bottle and decided to help himself

Our Short Vacation to Newport Beach

Apollo having a great time with his dad in the pool!

On their way to check out the tide pools.

Overlooking Corona del Mar, part of the stomping grounds of my Dad's youth. 

Too concentrated on holding breath to smile!  I love my hubby even when he acts like a seal in front of everyone!

Just one of the picturesque areas of the beaches in Southern California.

My Dad invited us down to spend time with him in California.  So we flew to Orange County on Friday morning and stayed in an awesome resort in Newport Beach.  Brian had a great time seeing all the expensive cars and car dealerships and I had a fun time with Apollo and chatting with my Dad.  Thanks Dad for the awesome trip.  We were sad to leave Monday morning.  Apollo did great this time on the plane and we feel we did better taking care of him too.

Our water-loving family

Me in the pool!  Brian and I took turns holding Apollo and playing in the water.  The weather was great!

We forgot our digital camera so we bought a disposable.  The pictures didn't turn out as clear but at least it was water proof.

Apollo loved the water more than he does baths!  He laughed and smiled the whole time.

I love my happy boy!

More on The Memorial Day Family Triathlon

Here's some more pictures of yesterday's triathlon.  The picture order, starting with the closest person, Richard Rose, Brian Higley, Nate Hughes, and Rachael Rose.

AND THEY'RE OFF!!

Rachael, Richard, Brian, Nate

First Family Triathlon

This is Brian and what I have to say may frighten you... Okay it really wont.  In the middle of the night I was awakened by the lovely sound of our leaking roof!  If only our land lord would get something done about it.  Anyways, it bummed me out thinking that we were out of luck on our first ever family triathlon.  So after waking up and seeing that not only was it pretty wet outside, it was still raining, I decided I would call those who earlier told me they would come and participate.  They still wanted to go!  So, we went, we swam, we road bikes, we ran and we got wet.  But it was fun.  The swim was really cool.  We swam in an outdoor pool, the water was great, almost as warm as bath water!  The steam and water droplets made the water look cool.  The rain picked up a bit so we cut the bike ride a bit short, but the sun came out for the run and we had a great finish then had fresh fruit and gatorade to celebrate.  I think everyone involved wants to do it again, so over the summer we are planning to do a few more, including one in Utah county so let me know if you want to join us.  It's non competitive and really fun.   I will get a few more pics as I get them (this one is of Carly's sister Rachael finishing the swim).

Future Engineer!

Yes, that's our Apollo with a compass!  Brian would love it if he played with a calculator too!  Looks like the world just might have another Higley engineer in the future.

Apollo has been experiencing his first cold over the last week.  It breaks my heart to hear him cough and now Brian is getting a sore throat too.  Looks like we have a bug taking rounds in our home.

Despite being sick, Apollo is still getting into trouble and moving around better than ever.

Messy fun with Apollo

Chocolate Addict in the making!  Apollo and I (Carly) finally have something in common!  I turned my head for a moment and he got a hold of my chocolate milk and finished it off for me.

Already he wants control of the remote.  That and to drool all over it.

The kiddo's favorite food so far....Sweet potatoes.

Our First Triathlon Together!

Carly and I finally got a good picture of us finishing the triathlon in which we competed in April.  It was Carly's first, so it was a bit of an eye opener for her but we both had a lot of fun and look forward to another soon.  Unfortunately the event was pretty unorganized and they screwed up on our times, oh well.  Maybe next time.

More Boarding Pictures

Contemplating life before risking it...

My Bro. in law Nate hopping in off a cornipice

Ted, Nate and Me.  Mount Superior in the background

Me enjoying the powder

Here are some more pictures from going back country snowboarding.  It was awesome and I really wish that I went more often but school was always in the way!  I suppose it's worth it in the long run, but next year I am definitely hitting the slopes a little more.

Laughing Lil' boy

We love it when Apollo laughs! It looks like our son's favorite Disney character is Donald Duck. Whatever the sound is, we are just glad it makes our boy happy. He is so much fun to tickle and play with.  He is getting bigger everyday and we are preparing the house for when he can walk.  Nothing of value lower than three feet! Luna, the cat, is going to hate her life once Apollo can chase her around.

Here is another short clip of our beautiful son.  He always wants to play with things that are not his toys.  We get a kick out of the fact that although toy companies make things so bright, noisy and annoying, the things Apollo seems to like the most are wrappers, boxes or anything ordinary.   

Concrete Canoe Competition

This is the final product of our Canoe.  We competed against the Mountain West Conference teams, including BYU and we took 3rd place overall!  Competition involved races, aesthetics and presentation.  Incidentally, both BYU and Utah State named their canoes "True Blue", and BYU's sunk...a few times.  Our canoe weighed in at a whopping 400 lbs. and was a pain to turn.  I was in one race and we won our heat, but only took 5th overall. It was a great day to show off our engineering prowess.  Thank goodness the competition and the semester are both over!  YEAH summer!!

Parenthood

We realize that these pictures are from awhile ago but we would like to share some of Apollo's early photos for those who have not seen them and other sweet moments we've caught along this adventure with our son.