BarlowSTARS 2019

In Lieu of cards we like to email a slideshow. 

Due to changes with the service I use for the slideshow I am unable to email an attached slideshow without paying a monthly fee. I am too frugal for that. This year you can find this slideshow on our facebook pages. Sorry for the inconvenience. We will reevaluate how we do this next year. Attached is our yearly letter. 

https://www.facebook.com/stephanie.j.barlow 

https://www.facebook.com/lars.barlow.9 

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

2019 had many adventures and opportunities for growth and learning. Lars shot his first buck and learned how to butcher it. Stephanie is finding new ways to dance through life as she learns how to patiently heal from various race injuries.  Roan loves to read and is a big helper. Liv is always talking, singing, and twirling her skirt anywhere she goes.  Our favorite family trips were camping in the mountains and our Goonies Adventure (Oregon). Lars and Stephanie had a blast getaway in Washington DC. On the daily the kids love to pretend play live action versions of Oregon Trail and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Yes this is all true, it is hilarious to witness). The largest undertaking of the year has been the renovation of our kitchen. It is a ton of work and taking a long time, but we are enjoying the process (as much as we can). We will be so grateful once it is completed. We hope you see all the joy in your life as you celebrate this Christmas. Thanks for always being in our lives.
Smile & Staycool,
Lars, Stephanie, Roan, & Liv Barlow 😊

Women of Steel Triathalon

I signed up for the Women of Steel triathlon. I have done the same triathlon for years (TirathaMOM) and wanted to add a new race to my repertoire. It is at the beginning of the race season. I was excited to see how this training would differ from my mid to late season races. Training was a bit hard. It was mostly indoor. Like most training it was a roller coaster through confident and scared emotions. Once I went biking on the actually terrain I felt better. I didn't swim as much as I wanted to (only once) but I made the most of it. All in All int was a neat experience and organized race. 

I would definitely do it again. 

I made this collage to keep me focused and motivated. This is a collage of all the "Women of Steel" in my life. :)

I like to put my long hair in braids. 

Transition area set up

They accidentally put the wrong number so I had them fix it with a smiley face. Quite fitting.

Race Report:
I went to my Mom's house to spend the night, she lived closer to the race place than my house. My husband was out of town so she was also helping me with the kids which I appreciated so much. The logistics of packing for the race were a little more to handle with getting the kids packed too but it was what it was and it all worked out better than I expected in the end.
We ate pizza for dinner, I had oatmeal just before bed. I drank a lot to start getting hydrated. I slept deep and good but did wake up a few times to poop (those morning race poop nerves get me every time). I woke at 5:30 am, stole a kiss from the kids, said Good Morning and Goodbye to my Mom, grabbed my stuff and snuck out. I got to the race area WAYYY early at 6 am but I couldn't sleep anymore. I parked and sat in the truck, ate my banana and peanut butter sandwich, jammed out to pump up music, and waited for the transition area to open up.

I got my stuff set up, got my body marks, and took my time. I walked around and did some more pooping then stretching for the next hour. Eventually we all lined up in our seeded area to start our swim. I had only swam once for training so I seeded myself in the 9 minute section. It was cold waiting so I danced around and chatted with the ladies around me before jumping in the pool. I started swimming and honestly it was probably my worst race swim. I got in my own head with swimming and tried to change too many things up in the middle of the swim when I should have just done what I know, even if the technique is off. I am not mad at how this part turned out. Just learning and growing. I swam with the breast stroke, regular swim, and back stroke. I finished it with a 11:30 time. I was having fun but glad to move onto my favorite part, the biking. I ran to transition and get all done up and mounted on my bike and took off.

This race had two 6 mile loops. One side was up hill and the other side was downhill. I felt like the hills grew in between the loops. LOL. I LOVE bike riding and it was hard because of the hills but I rocked this, especially going downhill #nofear. While transitioning from the bike to the run I saw my kids and family. I hollered at them and they waved to me. It gave me more fire to run fast. I also listened to a podcast the day before that gave great advice on treating race day like race day and not a training today. I kept reminding myself that this was a race day EFFORT and I pushed myself! The run was similar to the bike, up hill one way, down hill the other but just 1 loop. The best part was the finish line at the bottom of the loop. I ran through it and was given my medal while hunched over catching my breath, then found my family to hug them. 

My Mother, sister, and kids came out to support me. I loved having their faces and voices there. My son was hilarious and pointed at his tooth that fell out that morning as I ran through the finish line. (Lars was out of town on business, thank you Mom for helping me with the kids.)

I am pleased with my time. 

Checking out the ceremonies afterwards

Roan was so sweet. He asked if he could stand with me on the podium if I won. I didn't win but we still took pics. 

The kids and I celebrated afterwards by hitting up The World's Greatest Corn Dog Food Truck. 

It was an awesome way to celebrate my Mother's Day. I am grateful for my body and the time to train and push my limits. Ya know in doing a lot of self reflection the last few weeks regarding motherhood and triathlons, I think I really started to take better care of myself when I became a Mom. I know this isn't true for every woman but for me it is. When I became a Mom I rediscovered how loved I am, not just relied on by these little kids, but they love me and from that I relearned that I deserve to give myself that same love. If I want to teach my kids to love themselves then I need to start by loving me too. Doing triathlons is one way I show myself love. I love how training and races makes me feel. I love my body and am so grateful for this journey on seeing all that my body and mind can do, especially when they work together and respect each other. It is a process and it is hard but so worth marking myself a priority and doing it. It has poured out positivity in all other aspects of my life.  :) YA for learning and growing!

Spring Season

An overview of our Spring time happenigns

With all the rain we have been watching family movies on Sundays together. Liv always cuddles up and falls asleep. 

The Mountain Blues Brothers Ukulele band played at our Relief Society Birthday party. 

Liv playing

I chaperoned at Roans school field trip to the Hogle Zoo. 

It was fun being his Mom there. 1st graders are hilarious and whine a lot. 

Lars and I had dinner at The Garden Restaurant. Food was okay but the view and company was awesome. 

Army Men vs Ponies

I went to the temple with my Mom one evening. 

Lars went on a back packing trip. We missed him. 

Liv falling asleep while playing. 

Liv falling asleep during more movie time. LOL

All 3 of us got haircuts

I love water coloring and have been making cards. 

Cuddles with Daddy

The kids and I did the Decker Lake Dash 5K. 

I did a Temple to Temple bike ride. Oquirrh Mountain to Jordan River. 

Liv is always wearing her unicorn outfit

Eater outfits

Liv got a balance bike. YAY!

I met Frankie from 97.1 zht The Morning Zoo in person. He is also from Michigan.

Lars and I won VIP tickets to see Avengers: Endgame. Thanks America First Credit Union :)

I helped throw a baby shower for my friend Brianna.

The kids and I went to the Library Summer Reading Kick Off Party. They had a fire truck there. The kids got to go inside and they also got to meet and talk to a Police Officer. 

Roans first and last day of school pics. 

These two have been playing together non stop outside. I love that they are friends (most of the time) and look out for each other. I hope they cherish that. 

Roan lost two teeth the same week. 

Liv taking care of her baby. 

Some of Roan's art work. 

Roan made handcuffs to play with. LOL

We had a fun family day one Saturday. We did a 5K together

Then we went to the Nickle Mania to play. We had a blast. 

Liv's first time in the dentist chair. She was a champ. No cavities for anyone in the family, except for me. :(

Liv always want to be wearing a dress. 

Spring time has been wet but fun. These kids are growing so fast and are hilarious. They seriously say the funniest things.  We can't wait to see how much fun we have in the summer.