Gotta Run!

I've been running more lately because I'm training for a couple of 10k's (6.2 mile runs) this summer. I even talked Brad into running the second one with me (this is a big deal because he's not really into working out...thanks for running honey!). The races are coming right up...the first one I'm running is the Bridal Veil Falls 10k on May 30th and the one we are running together (and with my lovely sister Julie) is the Scenic River Classic 10k in Idaho Falls on June 20th. I'm a little nervous because I haven't raced a whole lot and these will be my first 10k races. I keep reminding myself that all I have to do is finish the first one and then I can try to improve my speed on the second one. No comparing allowed, except for with myself. I've found that having these races planned has helped increase my motivation to workout consistently and to kick up the intensity a couple of notches. I feel like training for and completing these races really will be an accomplishment for me because 1)racing is new for me and 2)I have couple of stumbling blocks I have to deal with. I have exercise induced asthma as well as flat feet with overpronation (ankles roll in.) So I get kind of scared to run fast because, well, I hate not being able to breathe. But my inhaler seems to help some. As for the feet/knees, they've been doing all right as long as I don't overdo it. I find that running every other day works the best for me and doing cross-training activities (yoga, strength training, elliptical) on the other days works well and keeps my knees and feet happy.

So the other day I decided that I needed running shoes because I thought my shoes were cross trainers. I talked to Brad and he gave me the go ahead (along with a price limit :). As I searched the internet for running shoes, I kept spotting the shoes I already have. I did a search for the best running shoes for flat feet and it turns out that the Brooks Ariel (the shoes I have) are great for people with flat feet and overpronation. They are running shoes, but they look different because they have extra structural support. They are a little heavier and bulkier than regular running shoes, but I can deal with that if they are helping my feet. No complaints about them, I just didn't think they were running shoes. So basically, I've realized that just what I needed all along was right under my nose, literally. And I really haven't had much foot pain since wearing them (just a little knee pain), so I figure, if it's not broken, why fix it? Plus my orthotics fit great in them. So I'll continue wearing them for training. That means I can use that money for something else...hmmm it's about time for a new swimsuit:) (I've worn the same one for about 4-5 years).

Brooks Ariel Running Shoe

(the shoe I already have)

I've mostly been training on the treadmill's at Gold's Gym, but I've been starting to run outside a little. Yesterday morning I ran with a few girls in my ward that are training for the Wasatch Relay. We did a hill run. It was intense and they probably thought I was going to passout from breathing so hard, but don't worry, I didn't. So I'm going to run with them as much as I can because I feel like it pushes me to run faster than I do on my own. But they run at a reasonable pace that I feel like I can handle. Anyway, I'm slowly being converted to outdoor group running. The time goes by way faster when you have someone to chat with.

Sorry I don't have any pictures to post. We'll take some pictures of our races. If any of you have any training or racing advice, I'd love to hear it. Gotta run!

Our Disneyland Trip

Brad and I took a fun little trip to Disneyland and got back a few days ago. It turned out to be a really fun trip. It was great to spend some quality time together and just get away for a while. We got to go on plenty of rides, some of them twice. We had to pace ourselves because Brad has a little problem with motion sickness. But we found that if we didn't do too many big rides in a row, he handled them better. Anyway, he was a trooper and went on most of the rides I wanted to go on. Thanks Brad! We spent some good time at Disneyland, but we spent a little more time at California Adventures, which is another Disney park right next to Disneyland. They had more "big kid" rides and some fun shows to watch. We had fairly decent weather. I wore my jacket about half of the time. Not bad compared to the snow in Utah! Our favorite ride was California Screamin'. It was a roller coaster that went upside down. Brad seemed to handle it alright so we went on it twice. My other top picks would be Hollywood's Tower of Terror and Space Mountain. My favorite show was the live show of Aladdin. It was really well done and we had great seats. I was very impressed and I would recommend it to any of you who will be heading to California Adventure's this summer.

Our hotel was just across the street from the park entrance which was very convenient. We were able to go home for lunch and a nap everyday. It was great! We also ate lots of good food including Cheesecake Factory! Wow, their cheesecake was superb. Brad did all of the driving to and from California. I offered but he said he was fine. It was fine by me because I got to watch a bunch of movies on my I-pod.

Our trip was short and sweet, but it was much needed and much enjoyed. So now we're back into the swing of things and Brad has started the spring term for school. You know, I think when you get back from a vacation, you need a day to get organized and prepared for diving back into real life. Unfortunately we didn't have that luxury, but we survived just the same. I finally got myself to go grocery shopping last night and the laundry is all caught up. Life is good.

Here are some of the pictures from our vacation for your viewing pleasure :) Enjoy!

Just entering Disneyland!

Brad on the Mark Twain ferry ride

Still on the ferry

The captain invited the two of us to ride up at the top of the ferry, right next to him. The captain of the ferry actually took this picture for us. It was fun. Brad got to pull the horn a few times and we even got to sign in a guest book and he gave us a certificate. It was a really great view of the park.

Waiting for the rides to open at California Adventures. We were all set for the Tower of Terror and it proved to be a great ride. Not as intense as the one in Florida (if I remember correctly) but we still really liked it. We got fast passes for it and went on it again.

We like Monster's Inc. so this was a fun ride.

A High School Musical show. Some fun singing and dancing. Brad let me watch for about 5 minutes. He was hungry :)

A parade featuring all the Pixar/Disney movies. It was cute and creative.

Just outside our hotel, the Tropicana Inn. It was a great place to stay. It had a nice pool and hot tub, it was clean, and there was a fridge and microwave in our room. Oh and kind of a continental breakfast. We would stay there again. So close to the park we couldn't believe it.

Our favorite ride, California Screamin'. Oh and Brad did scream. Loud.

Just leaving California Adventures. We chose the 'R' since our last name is Roper. Cool, huh!?

Are we there yet??

So this is my debut blog. Shanna has been eagerly inviting me to join the blog fun, so here goes. It has been a long semester as they usually are. I have 1 more final tomorrow and then we are off to celebrate in the warm California sun. We are going to be in Anaheim from Thursday through Monday living it up at Disneyland. I am really excited just to travel south and get away. Not in particular to anyone or anything but to just get away. This will be Shanna and I's first trip somewhere just the two of us since our honeymoon to Jackson Hole 2 years ago. I want to take a few lines and thank Shanna for supporting me through this semester. I find it interesting that as I have talked with friends at school about the struggle it is to find the right balance between school and our wives, my friends mention that their wives want them to be home more and to spend more time together on the weekends. But not Shanna she would like it if I would spend more time at school :). Not to say we don't enjoy being together but Shanna sees the benefits of doing school as out weighting the benefits of watching TV or whatever together. I don't know how much sense I just made but I know Shanna understands. Thanks Babe! So as my shout out goes to all you bloggers, I say, Are we there yet??

It's been a great two years!

Today is our 2nd Wedding Anniversary. The time has flown by! And what a great two years it has been. I feel that we have both learned and experienced a lot in our time together. It's been great to have a constant companion at my side to lean on for strength and support. I just want to say Happy Anniversary to my Bradley! Thanks for all you do for me. You take such good care of me. My love for you grows stronger each year! I love you! In celebration of this event I have posted some of my favorite pictures from our wedding day. It's so fun to look back and reminisce on the events of the day! We had such nice weather that I actually got a sunburn. What a great day to get married! And what do you know...it's great weather again today. Lucky us! I only posted one pic from our reception because in most of them there's a big blue bow behind my head and it looks like it's in my hair. Just what I wanted :). Anyway, I liked these pictures, so here you go! I just can't believe it's been two years...my how time flies!

And they lived happily everafter :)

That grooms cake was delish!

Trip to Idaho

I took a little trip to Idaho last weekend. I had an appointment in Idaho Thursday afternoon, so I decided to stay for a couple of days and play with my family. I had fun watching my parents in a play that was put on by their stake. It was called Esther. It was similar to Joseph's Technicolored Dream Coat in that it was musical, funny, and very entertaining. I was impressed with the scenery and costumes. They did a very nice job. I had fun hanging out with my mom and dad, as well as my sister Julie and her family. I had a nice visit with my old roommate Sonia. It was so good to see her again and meet her baby boy. We could have talked for hours on end! Then I got to babysit my neices while my sister went to the David Archuleta concert with her husband. They are such sweet girls. Ashlie even started warming up to me. She's my little buddy! It makes you feel so good when a two year old wants to be your friend. There's just something about it that makes you feel good. That night, I went with my sister and some of her friends to the midnight release of the Twilight movie. We attempted to make ourselves look like vampires and headed to Walmart. We had a fun time being silly. Jules knows how to have a good time. Saturday morning was spent eating waffles, chasing my neices around some more, and finishing up projects with my mom's assistance. I may be biased, but I think I have the best family! Here's some pictures that I stole from Julie's blog, because I had forgotten to charge my camera. We did a fun sister photo shoot at Julie's house.

Julie and me

A more dramatic shot
Mom, Jules, and me

Sista, Sista!
Outside of Walmart, entering into the Twilight zone! Do I look like a vampire? Nah, more like a zombie. We're not die hard fans, but it was fun just to hang out and have a good time. I bought a copy for my mom, but sadly I didn't even have time to watch it before I left Idaho. I did see it in the theater and I thought it was awesome!

Jules with her very own copy of Twilight! Thanks for talking me into coming with you Jules. It was fun!

Chef Bradley

Brad decided he was in the mood to cook this weekend. Fine with me, because I had plenty of other stuff to do. He cooked a gourmet pasta dish on Saturday and then he decided to make some bread. It was a longer process than he was expecting, I think. But he said it was well worth the effort. I agree, that bread turned out great! We've enjoyed that with our meals for the last couple of days. Good job, Brad! I'll have to make homemade wheat bread some time and show him that wheat bread can taste good, too! But I let him make it the way he wants when he's cooking, so of course he chose white. Then on Sunday, I was about to whip up some honey curry chicken (my fav) and he begged me not to. He said he would come up with a different meal using the same produce and cook it. I wanted a nap so he didn't have to twist my arm. I love having someone else cook for me. He cooked a really yummy chicken dish that was topped with red and green bell peppers, onions, tomatoes along with our homemade bread. What good smells to wake up to. Well, all I have to say is that Chef Brad can come cook in our kitchen any time. As long as he's not too messy! Thanks for cooking, honey! With a little Slap Ya Mama those dishes were a hit!

We also had dinner made for us tonight by our neighbor. I bid on having her cook us dinner at the Relief Society service auction. She cooked us ham fried rice, cashew chicken, and beef with broccoli stir-fry. It tasted great and the best part is, no dishes! All I had to do was put the tupperware in the dishwasher. So, basically I have been spoiled the last few days. And we have left-overs! Ah, life is good when I have time to do other things besides cook and clean.

Weekend and BYU Game

We had the pleasure of having Brad's younger brothers, Alan and Colin, stay with us for the weekend. They came to spend time with some friends they had made at EFY and also for Alan to have his turn going to a BYU basketball game with Brad. They are such great young men. It was fun to have them around and get to know them better. Brad had a great time because he had guys to watch sports with. They even played a little basketball.

Brad and Alan had a fun time watching BYU beat Utah. They said it was a good game.

Brad said there were tons of students!

The Cougarettes....Brad said it was a cool routine....I'm sad I missed it


Having fun with our new camera...it's great! We got it on sale at Circuit City, thanks to them going out of business. It's a Sony Cyber-Shot. It's just what we needed and at the right price! I'm determined to figure it out and start taking more pictures.

Alan

Colin

So we had a nice relaxing and fun weekend. We watched Iron Man and I thought it was a good movie. Brad was hesitant to watch it, but he ended up liking it.

Then last night we watched the Finale for the Bachelor. I know we're silly but we got hooked during the DeAnna season. Can you believe what happened? I was in shock. First of all, I thought he should have kept Jillian. But after she was gone, I really thought he was going to choose Melissa, which he did. But then he goes and changes his mind before he's given it a chance? I think this show messed Jason up. I don't think I'll watch the next season for several reasons. Unless they choose Jillian as the Bachelorette! Anyway, maybe it will work out between him and Molly. I guess we'll see. Did any of you follow this season only to be astonished by this twisted ending?