Run Run as Fast as you Can......

Each year our city holds an annual Hershey Track meet, where all the kids from each of the schools here compete in various track and field events.  My kids really look forward to this each year and we enjoy watching them as well.

William's track meet was first this year and he decided to run the 800 meter (2 laps) and the 1600 meter (a mile).  He ran the 1600 meter race first.  I was a little nervous for him as he hasn't really been training much as Utah's weather is still cold in April, but was excited to see how well he would do.

 Coming on strong.

 Here come's the pack.

 Coming around the bend.

 The end is in site!  Eye on the prize.

 Push it, push it, push it!!!!

William came in second place with a time of 5:56.  How many of you can run the mile in under 6 minutes????

 Not too shabby.

Little Miss cheering for her favorite runner!!!  Their school is the Brookside Tigers- so she's got her tiger whiskers and orange tongue for the occasion.  

 Will had some time between races, so he spent part of that with us in the shade and the other parts hanging out with friends in the bleachers.  The 800 meter race was the last big race, so he had some time to cool down and get ready for it.

On the first corner William was towards the mid-back of the pack.

 The second lap William started making his move, passing everyone up.

 Crossing the finish line with everyone else far, far behind.  8 seconds ahead of the next person.

 1st place with a time of 2:48 seconds.  

Will- will go on to race again against the top six winners from our city to see who will compete at the district level.  Way to GO!!!

One week later.....

Golden- not to be left behind also likes the longer races.  He and Will are about the same height, but Golden always seems to be in high-waters, as his legs are definitely where the length comes in.  He puts those legs to good use as he runs.  This year he ran the 400 meter race again and ran the 800 meter for the first time.

The 800 meter race was first.  There were about 20+ boys racing in this race.  

 I love watching the kids run- they can represent their mom.  :)

 Coming up from behind.

 Clear winner!!!

 Deep breaths- you did it!

Four of the six boys were all from the same school and their school was pretty excited about it and then they announced Golden and all the kids around him jumped up and started shouting how their school was #1!  

 Next.... 

The 400 meter race- one lap.  There were A LOT of boys running the 400 meter race.  They had 4 or 5 different heats to spread them out and there were 15-20 boys in each one.

 McKay got some good positioning from the start- towards the front, but not in the very front.

 The leader of the race was clearly in the lead for all the race.  McKay put on the speed at the end and took him by surprise. 

 Photo finish.  I was trying to time the race and take pictures at the same time.  People around me were asking me who won and I couldn't tell.  My picture is half a foot too high.  

The judges ruled it a tie at 1:15. 

 Tied for third place.  Both from the same school.  Way to go boys.  

Golden will be going to race again next month to see if he will represent our city at district.  Way to GO!!!

Bella races tomorrow- so we'll see how we do.

Bass bass- who plays the Bass???

This year William has been playing in their school orchestra.  I hope he has been enjoying it- he doesn't really like to admit it to any of us.  His school participated in a "Monster" Concert this last week, which basically was a huge orchestra performance including 21 different schools in the area.  I think it was a neat experience for all the kids to perform with so many others.  

Notice the basses in the very back.  Out of the 21 schools they had 6 basses and our William was one of them.  (He's on the very end- towards center stage.  He also helped us out by wearing a suit that made it easier to recognize him.)

 William showing his Awesome plucking techniques.

 Using the bow.

 Being awesome!

 Such a stud.

William and his friend Rosey- both from the Brookside.

I tried recording parts of the performance.  Here is a little taste.   Sorry for the wobbliness- guess I was just too "moved" by the music- or I can't hold a camera steady.

We're glad that William has chosen to try something new with his talents.  Love that kid!!!

Francom Slideshow

For part of our Christmas present this year we decided to put together some pictures of our family throughout the year.  We also put in some plans for our next year too.

First Day of School!

I can't believe how fast the summer has flown by and how fast my kids have grown up.  It's exciting, but also a little sad to think that I'll never be able to go back and have these moments again.  It makes me want to treasure each day.  Savor each talk and kiss each little cheek.  

 William is looking pretty excited to be a big 5th grader.

 4th Grade here comes McKay!  He has two teachers this year:  Mrs. Andrews and her daughter Miss Andrews.  Pretty fun.

 Bella is now a big 3rd grader.  Dad's getting a little worried about sending this beauty out without him now these days.  She keeps getting more beautiful each day and smarter too!

 The Francom Trio

 They've got skills- Ninga Skills (Must be hanging out with Aunt Tommi)

 All lined up and ready to go.

 The boys giving and getting advice about how to be cool in the "upper grades."

 "10 paces behind us," they say.  

 "What are those boys talking about up there?"

 Let's do this!  (Notice Siena sneaking over)

 "Yes.  Summer has started and in about five minutes I will be going through all of their rooms and getting into all the stuff they wouldn't let me have all summer.  Oh yeah.  School is great!"

Siena started preschool a week after the kids and insisted that she wear her Lady Bug outfit the first day. I can't believe how big she is already.  She loves learning and is loving preschool so far.

The Fourth- 4 Kevin

SOooooo My Brother Kevin has been on my case about posting pictures, so here are some pictures from the 4th of July.  My family came out from California and we had a fun day up the canyon, relaxing, eating good food and practicing the right to bare arms.

 Bella and Mia just chilling in the shade.

 My baby sister Nat got really into the holiday spirit.  She was Miss Lady Liberty!!!

 Dad decided to join her as "Captain America" or ........something else.  Ha ha.

 The styling ladies- Michelle and Miss Lana.  Super cute.

 Bella looks like she's ready to surf off that log.  We had a picnic on the banks of a stream.  The kids LOVED getting into it and exploring it.

 Grandpa joined in and helped Siena explore the water.

 "Well, hello there! Happy 4th of July!!!!"

 Enjoying the company!!!

William and his aunt.  Pretty close to the same size ehh? 

 Uncle Chris got really REALLY excited to go and catch a fish with his bare hands.  McKay takes a moment to pause for the camera as he begins his quest to help Christ fulfill his destiny.

Grandma and Max just chillin' in the shade.  All in all a fun day!!!

I guess I didn't take pictures of us with the riffles we shot later that day.  You'll have to bug Michelle for those ones.... although I think she may have lost them.  Guess you'll all have to come shoot some more then.  

Washington D.C.

Our flight to Rome left the next day at 6pm, so we had almost a whole day to spend in Washington D.C., so we tried to take advantage of that. We had to take a shuttle to the airport and then catch one down to downtown D.C.

We started out in Arlington Cemetery. This statue is very well known, but I had no idea how HUGE it is. It was quite impressive. I'm told that as you drive past it it has the illusion of them the soldiers raising the flag. I don't walk that fast, so I can't tell you if that is accurate.

We walked through the cemetery and it is a truly hollowed ground, especially when you think of the many men and women who spent their lives defending our freedoms. Freedom is not Free.
This is a beautiful monument in honor of the women who served our country.
We walked up and observed the changing of the guard. This is the most prestigious honor for a soldier to be able to do. A soldier walks back and forth 24/7 in front of the tomb of the unknown soldier. Every step is perfectly executed. They spend 3 hours preparing their uniform for the one hour that they will be guarding the tomb. It was very impressive.
We then continued our walk across the Potomac River. (We did a lot of walking- with all of our luggage- just a taste for what was to come.)

Ron and the Lincoln Memorial.

Wendy inside the Lincoln Memorial- a very popular place to be.
Ron in front of the Washington Monument.
Wendy inside an atrium in the Smithsonian National Art Gallery. We didn't have much time to see inside this amazing building, but it did get us really excited to taste more amazing Art in Italy.
We booked it back to a bus stop and just barely made it on the bus heading back to the airport. We're talking Ron running at full sprint with his big backpack on to get to the bus stop and me pulling my luggage behind me at a run. (It was Columbus day, so they were running on different hours then usual. Luckily we were talking to another bus driver and found out and were able to catch the bus that had just left by cutting down a side street.) Just a little more excitement for our adventure.

We were able to make our flight and even sit together. It was a long flight and we tried to sleep, but sleeping on a plane was pretty hard for me. It is a kind of scary thought when you can see that you are flying over the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and know that even if you wanted out of the plane there was literally no where to get out. I guess my claustrophobia was trying to creep out on me. Luckily we made it safe and sound into Rome around 8 am.

The Journey Begins

I'll attempt to share some pics from our AMAZING trip to Italy. It's a little overwhelming for many reasons. First of all I took a TON of pictures. Second, it's hard for me to find the time to sit and publish them on my blog (with 5 kids, I know that's strange :) ) and mainly it's hard to really describe how incredible everything was, but I'll do my best.

A couple days before we left Mia fell off a chair in the kitchen and needed to get stitches. The problem was that they needed to be taken out while we were in California, so that's what we did right before we left for the airport, the day after we arrived. She was pretty squirmy, but I got them out eventually. Good job Dr. Mom I say.

One last family hug before we left for two weeks. I'm not going to lie, I was getting homesick for the kids, before we even left them, but I knew they would be fine. McKay would come up and grab us around the waste and hang on and tell us he was giving us a really long hug because we were going to be gone for a long time.
My brothers Sean and Chris drove us to the SF airport and dropped us off. Our journey had begun.
The flight was relatively uneventful. We arrived in Washington D.C. after midnight and had to catch a cab to our hotel. He was a really nice guy and very talkative. We told him we had been married for ten years and he insisted on seeing the ring, asking, "You're sure." He was really shocked when we told him we had five kids. He wanted to see a picture then and there- as he was driving. We assured him we'd show him one when we were stopped. He asked if we were Mormons and we had a nice chat about the gospel.