GO! McKENZIE GO!

McKenzie competed in her first triathlon in Bountiful this past weekend with about 450 other athletes. It was done in reverse order and was a sprint triathlon. They ran a 5k(3.2 miles) first, then biked 10 miles and finally swam 350 yards. It was fun to watch all the athletes as they transistioned for each leg of the race.

McKenzie has been training and training for this and really didn't know what to expect but she did awesome. She finished first in her age division and 9th overall for the women.

McKenzie, in all black, starting the first leg of the race - a 5k.

McKenzie in her 1st transistion of the race getting ready for the 10 mile bike leg.

McKenzie finishing up the bike leg of the race.

McKenzie finishing up the 2nd transistion and sprinting for the pool to swim.

After the race!!!

OUR PINEVIEW DAM STAY-CATION

We spent 3 days at Pineview Dam staying at the Lakeside condos near Anderson Cove. We had a really great time - swimming, jet skiing, tubing, mountain biking at Snowbasin, lounging, playing games and of course, eating. It was fun to have Elaine and Lexie came up for a day. We also went for a drive to Liberty to check things out. My, my how the Ogden Valley has changed (except for the farm, of course)- lots of great memories of the many hours spent at the farm and on the Dam.

A picture blog of our stay-cation!

Lexie at the pool.

Oops! Strong winds for Cole & his umbrella.

Raymond mtn. biking on the Green Pong loop @ Snowbasin.

Anne on Snowbasin's Wildcat ski run. Those of you familiar with Snowbasin will recognize this familiar run. Kind of cool to see it with no snow.

Brock & McKenzie chillin' in their matching shirts. Go Jazz!

We went to the Oaks in Ogden Canyon for some of the best burgers and fries around. Remember asking dad to please, please stop at the Oaks for pink popcorn and fudge sicles??

After arriving in Frankfurt on June 5, we picked up our rental Mercedes van and drove to the charming city of Wurzburg. Lauren is standing in front of the Archbishop's Residence that was damaged by bombs in WWII but entirely restored. Those "Bishops" really knew how to live! Although suffering from jet lag, we tried hard to have a good time and had dinner at a nearby Biergarten. Most of us ordered traditional German food, but Holly and Stephanie ordered pasta for some reason. Holly slipped into her Spanish and asked for "Dos" portions. I am not making this up!

This is the famous Sound of Music Gazebo at the Hellbrunn Water Schloss outside of Salzburg. Although the famous "I am 16 going on 17" scene was shot on a Hollywood lot, this is the actual gazebo that served as the model! Ironically, Lauren is 16 in the photo and turned 17 four days later!

The Handys and Shribers make their own "Sound of Music tour" by renting and riding bicycles from Salzburg to Hellbrunn, probably about three to four miles. It was a terrific way to get out into the countryside and we really felt a little less like tourists!

Holly and Steve in Rothenburg, on June 6, 2009. This is a charming medieval city that has retained its walls, old buildings and famous towers. We stayed the night here and prowled around for most of the next day. We'd go back to Rothenburg in a heartbeat!

On June 13, we celebrated Lauren's 17th birthday with a mini Rhine Cruise. Several castles dotted the nearby hills including this unique edifice built in the form of a ship on a small island. It was very fun and gave us just a taste of the river and surrounding countryside although we were only on the river itself about three hours.

"Oh, I wonder what the poor people are doing!" Actually, not living in Paris! Way too expensive. But we enjoyed the famous Arc de Triomphe, built to commemorate Napolean's victories anyway. It was a great view from the top. The famous monument you've seen in all the newsreels stands at the head of the also famous Champs-Elysees, Paris' most fashionable boulevard. This is a time it would have been nice to be related to Warren Buffet!

On Monday, June 15 we spent the day at the Louvre. Holly's explaining to the girls this famous painting that just happens to be the cover of Cold Play's newest CD. Vive le Vida!

Here we are in the Residence palace in Munich. The royalty built their own Roman grotto and either plundered artifacts from Rome or had them reproduced. Ah, what a little money can buy for the idle rich!

The Handys on the famous bridge in Heidelberg with the castle in the background. We stayed here three nights and enjoyed the city very much. It was part of Stephanie's mission and she worked here on a trade-out with other sister missionaries. Very picturesque and charming. We'd like to go back again!

Here we are in the Darmstadt Ward where Stephanie served for nine months. They loved her and we enjoyed the members very much. This is the ward where President Uchtdorf is from and the site of his recent talk entitled, "Lift Where You Stand." Steve introduced himself and Greg auf Deutsch in priesthood meeting! That was too fun!

Here Steve mimics Crazy King Ludwig's mythical warrier at Linderhof near Garmisch. It was closed when we got there but spectacular nonetheless! That guy was totally crazy, but knew how to live.

Lauren says, "And Neuschwanstein is this big!" It's a spectacular site and unbelievable! No wonder Crazy King Ludwig almost bankrupted his country and they finally had him thrown out. It's fun when you have other people's money to play with. This was an unforgettable day with spectacular views and memories to last a lifetime.

Steve and Holly just below Neuschwanstein. We could have lived there, it would have been fun, especially if you had hundreds of servants to take care of you and you didn't have to work!

On the way from Munich to Heidelburg, we stopped in Baden-Baden. It's a tourist town way back to Roman times and very charming. We only spent a couple of hours here but a few days would have been fun. Lots of baths and water that tasted like Soda Springs, Idaho!

Flying out of JFK to and from Europe, we stopped over in Iceland as we flew Icland Air. That was fun. What a barren place from the air. We were a little worried when a couple of hamburgers rang up as 22,000 kronen! No worries, just about $20.