Sarah Borst Jarvis

I am (hopefully) (maybe) (possibly) going to make Granola tonight. Jen wishes she could, too. But she is waiting for my recipe. Grandma Janelle's recipe , that is. So I thought I would share it with all of you. Because I know you are going to love it once you put the time into making it. Here it is: 18 c. oats 2 c. wheat germ nuts (I use almonds) 1 1/2 c. oil 1 3/4 c. honey 2 T. vanilla Heat the oil and honey together. Add the vanilla. Pour over oats. Mix thoroughly. Spread a 1/2 inch layer on a cookie sheet. Bake at 300 for about 30 minutes. Or until lightly browned. Stir once during the 30 minutes. Have fun! It is a delicious basic recipe to which you can add all kinds of other yummy stuff. There is only one problem with having this granola in my pantry: I will eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and my midnight snack. And that is a BIG problem.

Nope, I am not going back to school to get a Masters . I would like to but it is not very high on my priority list at the moment. Neither is Karl. He already has one and is currently looking into PhD programs for next fall. I did, however, join the Orem Masters Swim Team. I am now a Masters Swimmer. Sounds like I am old . I am old. But guess what? In swimming, age does not matter so much. Everyone on the team that is faster than me is also older than me. By at least 10 years. That still leaves me some time to improve. Maybe. I had been swimming at BYU for 8 years, when they decided to be mean and not let me into their pool anymore. Swimming is the most difficult logistically. And I am hard to please. Provo does not have any good options. Unless I want to get up at 4:30 am and elbow my way through a crowded pool. Finally I decided it might be worth two weekly trips to Orem plus $35 a month to swim in a 50 meter pool and to have a coach. And it sure is! I love, love, love having a coa...

So far, this season has been really good . I have done 4 races and have been able to stand on top of the podium 4 times. Yeah! I am still far from where I could be and would like to be but, I guess, I'll take it. But I really need to get my act together... Having nice gear always helps, though. And, thanks to Salt Lake Running Company , I have plenty of it. Unfortunately, in January when they ordered our stuff, I had big plans and was hoping to be back in shape by May. Well, I am not. So most of the beautiful stuff they sent is just sitting in the closet waiting to be worn for the first time. My fault. Should have ordered a bigger size . Maybe next season. Luckily, the backpack fits! Noah loves the pink. So do I. These are the fanciest running shoes I have ever owned. I love them. They are so comfortable , really light , and super fast to put on. Sadly, I only get to wear them on race day. If they were not so expensive, I would get myself a pair just to wear around. Okay, not...

Thanks to Karl for the last post. I feel bad he had to miss the first highlight of his season - the Buffalo Run . He had been excited and training for it for months. I, on the other hand, happened to see a sign for the Splash&Dash on Wednesday morning at the pool. I thought it would be a fun little "warm up" for the upcoming races and so I signed up (after I had found a babysitter). I have been lucky so far - no flu symptoms yet. The truth: I was not ready for it . I did not really care. I just wanted to see where I am at in my training. But it was true. I am out of shape . I know, maybe not compared to some other people. But remember, being out of shape is relative. But it is hard and boring to train by yourself every day. I need training partners... Max (and Noah) in the Chariot don't count. I am 10 lbs. over race weight . At least. I am not saying that I am fat. But all these extra pounds are not making me any faster. I am using nursing as an excuse but that won...

So the Mama of the family decided her first race of the season would be the BYU Splash & Dash. It's a nice little race that's held every year and she's done it many times before. She of course was saying all kinds of things about how she wasn't really ready for it, how she is slow at everything these days, and it's been a year and a half since she's raced. Well, true to form she not only won the Standard distance for the women, she also beat the fastest guy! It's just proof that the Mama of this family has been getting herself to the pool early early and has been running daily while pushing 1-2 children in a chariot also laden with an extra 20+ lbs of toys and diapers. Meanwhile, the Papa of the family missed the Buffalo Run 25K trail run, which he will humbly admit he was totally ready to rip up but had to miss due to flu. Not that he's jealous of the Mama or anything. A huge thanks to the amazing former roommate/Cherry Chub Emily for watching the k...

This post is dedicated to the Cherry Chubs. I missed you, girls, so much. Remember this view from our 'backyard' in Provo? It is still just as gorgeous. A few weeks ago, we were finally able to embark on this winter's snowshoe adventure. About 5 years ago, we would do this every weekend, and now we do it once a year. But, it was (almost) like old times! We met at Karl's parents house (not quite as early) in the morning. We met there not because Karl still lives with his parents, but because that is where we dropped off the kids. As usual, April was on time, and Spencer late. We did not have a big group going, but definitely great company. Due to lack of snow in the valley, we decided last minute to drive up Southfork Canyon and hike over Lightening Ridge and down into Rock Canyon. The untouched snow and the view was absolutely beautiful. I was a little disappointed that April did not bring canned peaches like last time. I guess she is tired of us (still) making fun o...

Karl gave me a great Birthday present . A coupon . But not just any old coupon. A coupon for 4 Saturdays off . That means I get to do anything I want to do for however long I want to do it. Karl knows me well. It is the best present ever. So a few Saturdays ago, I decided to go cross-country skiing by myself. I had planned on going to Soldier Hollow because I love that place but they were actually hosting the Junior Winter Olympics and I did not quite fit in. So I went to Sundance instead and it was gorgeous as well. I ended up skiing for 2.5 hours and I loved every minute of it. I really enjoy skate skiing and wish I was better at it. One of those sports you should pick up as a child if you want to get really good at it. But back then I preferred downhill and thought cross-country was boring. I wish I would have known better. Actually, if we had the money, I would probably still be skiing downhill quite a bit. But we don't. That same morning, Karl was getting a little ...