Cross One Off My Bucket List!!

I finally did it. Something I've wanted to do for several years. Last Saturday I ran my first 10k. Be warned, the following pictures are scary! But I did it and I felt great when I finished. I downloaded the pics backwards. The first one is right after I crossed the finish line, and the second is coming in to the finish. I found a training schedule online and have been diligently following it for the last eight weeks. And now I'm hooked. I can honestly say I enjoy running. And even more, I love how it makes me feel. Can't wait to do another!

Maybe a half marathon next year? Hmmmm..............

Oh, and that trophy? I bet you are all really impressed that I got 3rd place in my age group, aren't' you?!! I hate to disappoint, but there were only three runners!! haha!! But hey, I'll take the trophy anyway!

Romantic Getaway

Brent and I were able to get away the past few days. He had a conference up at Crystal Mountain Resort, and I tagged along. It was SO relaxing. Our anniversary was last week, so we decided to take advantage of this conference and call it an anniversary celebration, too. 19 years! I don't know where the time has gone. Marriage is a strange ride. For the most part it's a fun excursion with minor bumps along the way. Once in awhile there are major derailings, but with lots of hard work, perseverance, and more love than anyone knew exited, we somehow find our way back on track. I'm glad we've stuck to it, and stuck to each other. There isn't anyone else that I would rather share my ride.

Here are a few pictures of where we stayed. This first one is the club house.




This is our suite.

I fell in love with this tile table.

This was a really fun pool. It was loaded with kids, so we just layed in the chaise chairs and read for a couple hours. Bliss.
Now it's back to reality. But I love my reality. Great kids, great house, and 19 years with my best friend. Love really does win.

Perfection DOES Exist

"They" say that it doesn't, but I have proof that it does. And it grows in my very own backyard.



"God has sewn His name on the Heavens in glittering stars; but on earth He planteth His name by tender flowers." -Jean Paul Ritcher

Have you ever...

...met someone and immediately thought, "Wow! That's a person I'd really like to get to know better." Honestly, it rarely happens to me, but it happened last year. I met this amazing and beautiful woman, and just had this "feeling" that if given the chance we could become great friends. And after meeting her husband it was almost too good to be true. Could it be we had found a couple that both Brent and I could be friends with? Last night we were able to have them and their daughters over for dinner. They are truly an amazing family. On Saturday they will be leaving for Ethiopia to bring home their newly adopted sons. We're still in the "getting to know you" stage of friendship, but each time I'm around her I have a very safe feeling. So here is a picture of our friends, Tony and Anne.



And their smart and beautiful daughters, Hannah and Abby.
Thanks for a great night!

things that make me go, "ahhhh"

Fresh nutmeg. I've been putting it in everything from coffee to pancake batter. Yum!





This picture speaks for itself. If you haven't tried this, you MUST!

This last one may seem really gross, but to me it doesn't get much better than a sweaty shirt after a run. I feel like Rocky Balboa running up those steps in Philidelphia when I come inside after running and look in the mirror. The sweatier the better!

Wanted: MoJo

So I haven't posted in over a month. I was just starting to feel the groove of this thing called blogging, when......poof! I don't know how or why, it was just gone. So I decided I just need to sit and do it anyway.

Last night was a fun night for our family. Well, really it was just a fun night for me. The girls had been dreading it for months. Piano recital night! Recitals are so much more fun as a mom than they were as a kid. Just one of the perks of being a grownup, I guess. ha! I don't know if it's possible to convert my video recorder to digital, but if it is I will post little snippets. Here is a picture of the girls with their amazing teacher, Mrs. Heydenburg.




Oh, and did I mention that since my last post, my middle girl became a teenager! I have two of them now! I don't know how it has happened so fast. She also passed Chloe and me in height. I'm still getting used to the idea that my kids are growing up. Some days it's really fun, and other days I wish I could put them in footie pajamas and cuddle again. But I'm thankful every day for the amazing young women they are becoming.

Being a Better Mom

I recently heard a story about Dr. Jane Goodall's mother when Jane was a little girl. I can't stop thinking about it. It's haunting me; like when I saw that bumper sticker that simply said, "Love wins." Am I this kind of mom? Honestly? No. I want to be. I need to be. My girls need me to be.

When Dr. Goodall was five years old her mother came into her room to tuck her into bed for the night. She saw that Jane had also tucked some worms into bed with her. Her mother's response is amazing. What would I have done? Flipped. "What are you thinking?! Get these things out of your bed and out of my house!" But Mrs. Goodall had no knee-jerk reaction. She calmly explained to her tender-hearted daughter that if the worms stayed with her they would die. They needed to be in their own environment to live. That had a profound impact on that little girl that she never forgot.

So today I'm vowing to be more conscious of my girls intentions and motivations. No more knee-jerk reactions. Well, fewer anyway.

(Okay, I just realized that the title and the picture are pretty funny together. ha! I didn't intend it that way!)