Maximus and I went for another hike today. We hiked to a lake, had a picnic lunch, hiked and explored in the woods and enjoyed our afternoon. Look at the beauty that surrounds us here!

Epic Names

Me: Hey, what should we name your brother or sister?

Maximus: Um..Thor Maximus. Thor a good brubber (brother) name.

Me: Cool. What about Thor Odin? What about a sister?

Maximus: Um...Truck.

Me: I don't know about that one. What about Ingrid Gladys or Adelyn Gladys?

Maximus: No, Truck Poopface.

Cuddly Spot

Friday night. Jesse is in the basement teaching me how to build my beautiful mountain bike that I've waited for all summer. Maximus has been busy filling tires, spinning wheels, having fun. He suddenly gets tired and lays on Jesse's legs as he knelt. Sweetest thing.

Last Race of the Season

Jesse's last mountain race was today. It was a beautiful, crisp, cool fall feeling day and we spent it in Breckenridge cheering him on.

Next is the most entertaining racing of all- cross! (Cyclocross) Hopefully my doctor will give me the okay to do a couple races this fall.

Maximus and I went to a tiny cafe after Jesse started his race this morning. I was feeling sick like usual and together Maximus and I had the best breakfast ever! I found a place in Breckenridge that is little, specialized and extremely cozy. Maximus had a whole wheat blueberry scone with a blueberry flax smoothie and shared my eggs with tomatoes and spinach, homemade whole wheat toast and chicken sausage. Our entire breakfast was not only organic, but everything was made from scratch. We sat at a small table with the sun coming in and warming us up, with views of the mountains. What a great little date.

We spent the rest of the time laying in the grass waiting for Jesse to come across the finish line. It was a really enjoyable day.

Handsome New Cut

Yesterday Maximus had his hair cut...three inches! He's so handsome!

Kayaking in Lake Dillon

I must say that I'm grateful to be in a relationship with a guy who loves getting out and doing things, like me. Luckily, Maximus isn't the type of kid to stay home either. We went kayaking in our beautiful Lake Dillon on Monday. We had planned to Sunday, but all the kayaks were booked, so we went to the Vail Farmer's Market and also enjoyed the "Gourmet on Gore" in Vail that day. What a busy, perfect weekend!

I had been kayaking before with my dad in Huntington Beach and Newport back bay. Such a fun thing to do with your kids, fyi. I'll never forget those memories. We rented a kayak for myself, and a double for Maximus and Jesse.

Lake Dillon has dozens of little forest islands in it. We stopped at a few and ate lunch on one. We told Maximus it was our new home, the kayaks were our new cars and the bathrooms were bushes. He took it so...seriously.

I mean, come on...look at our view. And it's not like we have to drive anywhere for a good view, all the views from our house are this great!

See that little speck to the left of the above picture? That's Jesse and Maximus in their boat.


I love my little family.

Warrior Dash!

Last week Jesse and I ran in "Warrior Dash". It's a crazy mud run that involves lots of mud, obstacles, climbing and fire jumping. IT WAS SO FUN! Our friends Jason and Sarah from Nebraska were in town visiting, so they hung out with Maximus and Jason took the pictures. I thought I would be able to finish in the front of our group, but of course, my morning sickness kicked in and I ran the race gagging. Jesse helped me over a couple of the hurdles and even offered his hand as I climbed out of the mud pit. I wore daisy duke shorts, soccer socks and my Viking hat. Jesse wore just his cycling bibs. No top. One guy called it a "onesie". Our tight clothes helped when we were weighed down with several pounds of mud!

Jason snapped this on the sofa before we left our house for the race. This is my mean warrior face.

Right when we arrived at Copper Mountain, where the race was held. So excited!

Strolling with Maximus and Sarah in the cute little village.

This is Copper Mountain. It's always this busy. There's still snow on the ski runs!

We found some granola to eat and posed for a picture.

Maximus waiting for us to start. The start line exploded with fire as each racing wave started. It freaked him out.

I'm in the pink shirt about to jump in the mud. Jesse is the dude on his hands and knees already in the mud.

A couple of the fire lines we jumped over.

Finish! Aren't we beautiful?!

This was taken after we showered in the outdoor "Warrior Wash" they provided for everyone. We were freezing. I was numb.

Jesse in very little clothing and me freezing once again. See what quinoa does for a body?!

Look at this picture Jason got of Maximus. Look at that perfect face and hair. We just love him!

USA Pro Cycling Challenge

http://vimeo.com/28246559
Click on that for the video.

Shark Attack!

Maximus ran in the laundry room and notified me that "Sharkimus Poop Face" was eating my latest crochet project.

Here we go...

My friend Sarah (who is also pregnant) taught me a trick for an expanding waist. Ah ha! A rubber band! When my jeans are freshly washed, they fit more snug in the waist and this makes them comfortable. I'm not gaining anywhere else, so this trick will get me by for a while! Thanks Sah!

Relax Stacey, Relax

I don't know if it's this pregnancy or what, but I have been stressed out of my mind lately. I can't cope with things like I used to, Maximus is in a tough and trying phase in his life, I am sick, I am exhausted and this stay-at-home mom who has a near perfect life needs a break. With all the visitors we've had over the summer, they've enjoyed their vacations spent here, but we need one for ourselves. Our last visitors just left this morning and their stay was great. Don't get me wrong- all of our family and friends who visited had a great time and we did too.

My life is wonderful and we're fortunate I don't have to work so I can stay home to raise our children. I am able to devote my days to giving Maximus the best possible childhood we can provide. We don't have to worry financially, we have a strong relationship, we are an independent family who is happy and we do whatever we want as long as it's fun, healthy and benefits us individually and as a whole.

Judge me as a bad mom, but I can't wait until Maximus goes back to school. Two more days.

I don't typically use my blog as a venting ground, but hopefully other moms who read this can relate. Maximus is at an age where he wants to be independent and challenges us. He talks back and tells me "no", so he gets in trouble. I feel like the last four days all I have been doing is disciplining him because that battle is constant and I'm NOT a mom who will be walked on by her toddler.

He needs to know he can't get away with certain things:

• He screams in a restaurant and disturbs others- he gets taken from the restaurant and receives a good hearty threat from Jesse.
  
• He kicks me- he gets put in his room until he's ready to apologize.
  
• He calls us a bad name- he gets a time out until he says sorry.
  
• He has drama over dinner- it sits there until he's hungry enough to eat, since I'm not a short order cook.
• He doesn't clean up his toys when I ask him to (before leaving the house, before dinner, before bedtime)- he doesn't get a treat.
  

Now, don't think that I'm a Nazi who whips him into shape, because I'm not and I DO know how to choose my battles, but this age is frustrating. He's such a loving and perfect child 98% of the time, but that small 2% is very difficult. Maybe it's because I'm so sick? Maybe it's because I'm tired? Maybe it's because I'm depressed about not being able to run? Maybe it's all of it?

I don't know why I'm writing this for everyone to read and certain people to judge me, but I've been down lately. I'm human. Anyone who can't recognize their own faults is kidding themselves. I'm thrilled about our little baby on the way, but the day to day is sometimes difficult. Hopefully my next blog entry is all roses and happiness filled with puppies and meadows of daisys.

So Much

I'm sorry I haven't had the time to blog much lately. We are expecting our second child, due March 19th. We are so excited! This was completely unexpected, as I was in the middle of marathon training, but we are thrilled with this surprise.

This pregnancy has been difficult. Thankfully, it's nothing serious and I don't have to be on bed rest (I admire my sister for that one), I've been really sick. I haven't had more than two days pass without morning/all day sickness. Dear Maximus sits in the bathroom and reads to me when I'm sick. I love him. I have low grade cervical dysplasia and we are thankful it's not high grade which can lead to more cancer. My doctor is wonderful! I couldn't have found a better match for us. At the beginning, she encouraged my marathon training and said I could run it at 4 months pregnant.

I went in yesterday because of the sickness and I lost quite a bit of weight in 5 days. Her words to me were, "now, don't hit me when I tell you this, but I strongly advise you to stop running..." STOP RUNNING?! That's like telling a smoker they can't have anymore. Or like telling Jesse he can't ride his bike. The impact and my dehydration are doing more harm than good. I can't tell you how depressed I am after hearing that. Yeah, I sound like an ungrateful snob for saying that and do understand that I am grateful it's not worse (like bed rest), but running is my life. I need it to be a better person, partner and mother. It's hard to understand what I mean unless you're an avid runner yourself or have a healthy vice that you depend on. I will do that marathon though. I will walk most of it if I have to.

My doctor wants me to keep active and fit, just with lower impact activities: cross country skiing, snow shoeing, walking, swimming, water running, bike riding, etc. No snowboarding, running (I still can at a much slower pace, no more than one hour), skiing, mountain bike riding after week 16 or ice skating. I can still visit the gym daily and lift weights.

Really, don't think I'm a snob. I realize it could be worse and more restrictive. Jesse and I are both down in the dumps about the running thing. He saw how it made me feel and loved it.

I will keep active because it benefits the baby, the pregnancy and me. When I was pregnant with Maximus, I gained 80 pounds because I craved junky fast food and sat on my butt the entire time. After he was born, I had a bunch of excess weight and felt like crap. I didn't feel like the person I knew I could be.

We want this child to of course, be healthy and happy. I was just told this news yesterday, so it needs a bit to sink in. Of course I will do what's best for this kiddo, no matter what. I can't wait to meet this one and have Maximus hold him/her.

I so need a calm weekend. Our friends from Lincoln will be here this weekend and I am looking forward to time spent with them. Jesse and I are running Warrior Dash Sunday. Don't fret, it's a 5k and my doctor knows it isn't a serious race and encourages me to do it. Pictures will follow...

Pure Awesomeness

http://vimeo.com/27552523
Here's the link to the video of Maximus and 9 of his cousins having a blast!

Barch Family Week Reunion!!!

Last Tuesday my ENTIRE family came to visit. It was a big deal to us because I haven't seen them all in a long time. Maximus hadn't met my sister and her family, so I was excited beyond words. It was the best week of my life! Oh how I've missed my family!

They all got in Tuesday afternoon/evening and we met at my house. We just hung out and caught up. Maximus was thrilled to be with 9 cousins! Here's a picture of me with Simon, Bryn and Maximus.

My health nut sister showed up with a bag of goodies from Trader Joe's! She knows the way to my heart!

Maximus and Jared in the woods.

This is Emma. She's the oldest. I loved that she wanted to learn about quinoa and went for a run early every morning.

My brother with his son Simon. They are twins.

A few of the cousins on a log bridge during our hike. The girl in the white shirt is Addie, and she is only 14. She's the size of a junior in high school, just like I was. She's taking after her Aunt Stace!

Maximus and my sister's oldest, Eliza.

Grandpa Barch with most of his grand kids.

I love this picture! Cousins Maximus and Simon in the woods. These two played all the time.

Maximus and cousin Bryn.

Most of us during our hike one morning. Jesse was at work, my sister's husband Jason had work to catch up on in the hotel room and dad was taking the picture.

Emma, Addie, Eliza and Jared.

Jason, my brother's wife Holly, me, Maximus and Emma before boarding the roller coaster in Breckenridge.

My brother and his family: Addie, my bro, Holly, Simon, Emma, Bryn and Eli.

My sister and her family: Mary, Nathan, my sis, Jason, Jared and Eliza.

Maximus and his buddy Eli.

All the cousins! I love this!

Our little family.

We had a catered dinner one evening at the beautiful Silverthorne Pavilion. We had a private room and patio. It was the perfect evening!

Chimayo did the catering. Us Barch's LOVE our Mexican food!

Chimayo supplied us with barbacoa, grilled chicken, beans, guac, lettuce, cilantro, rice, 3 salsas, sour cream, tortillas, cheese, lime, and TONS of leftovers! It was delicious!


I watched my sister's youngest Jared one morning as his family went white water rafting. He and Maximus cuddled in bed watching a show about sharks!

Most of my family is Mormon, so they went to church as my brother went to his Catholic church Sunday morning. I wanted to make them all lunch after services, so I made sandwiches and a late of quinoa with roasted vegetables.

This is what was left after my brother's kids attacked the quinoa. I love that they loved it! Success!

It was such a fun week. The memories were wonderful and we even got to celebrate my parent's 44th wedding anniversary! We did so much when they were here. The four oldest girls stayed in our basement- Emma, Eliza, Addie and Mary. I have never had such wonderful house guests before and these were teenagers! Each day they made their beds, they never left stuff laying around and they even watched Maximus as I ran one morning. They were polite, they did their breakfast dishes and they were up early and ready to go! Jesse and I were both impressed with those young women. We agreed that it's obvious they and their siblings are raised well and will be delightful women. They even left me 'thank you' notes!

All my family has left and now I miss them. It's sad. But what a wonderful week. This summer has been great with all of our family visiting from both sides.

Before I Blog About My Family's Visit...

I just had to type in a quote by Jesse that melted my heart. We had a big family dinner at the Dillon Dam Brewery (one of our favorite places to eat) and as we left, Jesse smiled and said, "your family is so pleasant."

It's true!

I will blog about the visit in a few days. Jesse speaks the truth!

Have I mentioned I'm 7 weeks pregnant?