A Birthday And A Butt Kicking

For my birthday this year I got to do something I have been wanting to do for over 15 years. It is something I often wondered if I was even capable of doing. I had to get past many hurdles, both physically and mentally, to get to this point.

Yesterday, I became one step closer to fulfilling my life long dream of running a marathon by running my first ever 1/2 marathon.

By looking at the following pictures you will notice that I do not have the most perfect body for being a runner. In fact the first lesson I learned during my training is that you don't necessarily lose weight if you run a lot. I have not lost one pound since I have been running regularly. But that is a post for a later time. So it is by sheer will and determination that I have gotten to this point. This is why I am so proud of running this race.

It seemed as if the stars had all aligned for me to do it. My bum hip was suddenly feeling great, I found this race on my birthday of all days, and my dad who is my hero committed to running it with me. How could I not run it? This is what kept me going.

I had many emotional "moments" throughout the day yesterday.

Moment #1 was seeing this sign in front of our house as we left for the race in the morning...

A and K, I love you. You both totally rock!

They were thinking of me and took the time to make sure I had a good send off. That really meant a lot!

Moment #2 was waiting with my dad for the race to begin. Was I actually going to do this? It was a very surreal moment for me thinking how far I had come to get to this point...

And we were off...

I really wanted my dad to just go for it and not go slow just for me. And that is just what he did. He quickly disappeared into the crowd in front of me and I didn't see him again for a long time.

I had the best support group out of all the runners. I am calling all the times I saw them along the way my moment #3. They made sure I saw them cheering me on I think at just about every mile. I don't know that I could have done it without my husband and kids and also my mom rooting for me every step of the way...

Moment #4 hit me at about mile 6. This wasn't just another long run. This was THE long run I had been working my toosh off (literally) for. I was still feeling great...

Moment #5 - Not feeling so great anymore, I think it was about mile 10ish, and then I saw my sweet Emma running to me and joined me for a little while. How did she know that this is exactly what I needed to keep me going...

I will call all the times when I actually passed some people my moment #6. Who knew that would happen?
This little man, who was so in need of the sunshine that was so abundant that morning, became my little friend...

...I would pass him. Then he would pass me. And so on and so on. It wasn't until about the 12th mile when the little devil on my shoulder convinced me to walk for a second that this little man got a second wind and bolted to the finish and I was left breathing in his pale dust. He is no longer my friend.




This is my 71 year old dad finishing more than 20 minutes before me...

...which led to my moment #7 when, even though he was so exhausted, he ran back to meet me with about a quarter mile left to go so he could be there when I finished...

Moment #8 - Crossing the finish line.

I did it, I REALLY did it!

Moment # 9 came that night as I was laying down to go to bed. I was replaying the day - the amazing night-before-carb-load-dinner my mom made for us, all the emotions of the race, the fun time we had at my brothers and fabulous birthday meal and plethora of desserts my sister-in-law and nieces made for everyone after the race. I have to say this was the best dang birthday I have had in quite a while.

For those of you wondering what my time was for the Half Marathon...

My goal was to not be last (I wasn't) and to be able to just finish the race. I even remember saying I would be lucky if I could do it in under 2:30.

I came in at 2:29.

I am already thinking about which race to run next. I want so badly to improve that time. Do I enjoy a few more half marathons before I really go nuts and fulfill my lifelong dream of a full marathon? Or do I just go for the gusto? Whichever one I decide to do, I will be running and that is all that matters.

You may have noticed that in the video of me crossing the finish line Ben asks Lee if I won. To answer my cute sons question, yes I won.

I won big time!

Down And Dirty

It seems lately that every spare moment this family has, has been spent getting dirty.

I think Ella has enjoyed it the most.

We have weeded, tilled, weeded, planted, weeded, moved, weeded, built up, weeded, mulched, and weeded our dirt.

And we are not even close to being done...

...this makes Ella very happy!!

Happy Mother's Day

I have heard this once before, but it really hit home hearing it again today in RS. I just had to share it. Happy Mother's Day to all!
“It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I’m on the phone and ask to be taken to the store.
Inside I’m thinking, ‘Can’t you see I’m on the phone?’ Obviously not; no one can see if I’m on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I’m invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?
Some days I’m not a pair of hands; I’m not even a human being. I’m a clock to ask, ‘What time is it?’ I’m a TV guide to answer, ‘What number is the Disney Channel?’ I’m a car to order, ‘Right around 5:30, please.’
I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She’s going, she’s going, she’s gone!
One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well.
It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, ‘I brought you this.’ It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn’t exactly sure why she’d given it to me until I read her inscription: ‘To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.’
In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work:
1. No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.
2. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished.
3. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit.
4. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.
A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, ‘Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.’ And the workman replied, ‘Because God sees.’
I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, ‘I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you’ve done, no sequin you’ve sewn on, no cupcake you’ve baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can’t see right now what it will become.’
At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.
When I really think about it, I don’t want my son to tell the friend he’s bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, ‘My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.’ That would mean I’d built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, ‘You’re gonna love it there.’
As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we’re doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.” –This excerpt is from Nicole Johnson's novel The Invisible Woman (W Publishing Group, 2005) is reprinted with permission.

I Just Had To Laugh

Soon after I took my little hiatus from the computer I was trying to get caught up with blogs and new happenings. There was a lot to catch up on so I was on the computer for far too long. Ella was trying to get my attention by making up songs and dances. She doesn't actually come out and say "Get off the computer", but she makes it perfectly clear when it is time to pay attention to her. She started humming rather loudly and making odd sounds. I was so glued to what I was doing I just told her to be a little more quiet.

The wierd humming and odd sounds continued. I turned around to tell her I had had enough. This is what I saw...

Is this Ella's way of telling me she has no voice when I am on the computer?

So I stopped what I was doing and played and laughed with her. Sometimes my priorities get mixed up. Computer stuff can always be put off, but I most certainly do not want to be putting off my kids. I need to remember how short this time with my children is and take full advantage of every moment with them.

I am thankful to Ella for helping me remember this.

A Whole Lot Of Tootin' Going On

A few days ago I was reading a friends blog (AN) and she was tooting her son's horn in a very tastful manner. I loved it. It was a very well deserved toot at that. I have been known to toot some horns in my day as well but is there a rule that it is bad manners to toot your own horn?

If so, to heck with rules. I am going to toot away.

On Saturday I ran my farthest ever run of 8 miles!!!!!

Some of you know I have been wanting to do this for quite a while but some hurdles have been getting in the way. I now feel a renewed sense of determination, that I can do anything I set my heart to do. Before this I wasn't so sure. When I finished my run I started crying, not because I was tired but because I was so happy I couldn't hold it in. This is definately not the end of my running adventures. This Saturday I plan on going 9.

I will not give up on my dreams.

One added bonus is that on my Garmin it said I ran off over a thousand calories and then on Myfitnesspal it said I burned over two thousand. Which is it?

However many calories I burned it's a good thing I did because that morning I ate four donuts.

Woops!!

And I wonder why I am not losing weight.

She's Baaaaaaaaaaack

Those of you who have been reading my blog for a while may remember Ella's imaginary friends Kylee and Kaypree and the many others that frequented our home. Click here if you have no idea what I am talking about. Well, shortly after I posted all about them they seemed to disappear. Maybe they moved to Tennessee to be near Abby. All I know is that Ella just stopped talking about them one day. Well, guess what?! They're back! Actually let me clarify. Kaisha (pronounced K-eye-shuh) is back. Kaisha is Kylee and Kaypree's friend who didn't get much attention before but Ella is REALLY making up for that now. Every other sentence has Kaisha in it. Kaisha this. Kaisha that.

There are some good reasons why I love having Kaisha around. She is always available to play, her and Ella get along magically and she invites Ella to lots of really fun parties.

There are also some reasons why I do not enjoy having Kaisha around. Here are some examples of what I hear on a daily basis:

"Mom, see that car in front of us, going faster than us? That's Kaisha's moms car."

or

"Wow, Kaisha has that same umbrella only it's not just black. It's pink and sparkly."

or

"Well, Kaisha is allowed to ride her bike without her helmet."

or

"Kaisha is older than you, Ben. She's seven."

or

"Kaisha's mom lets her have fruit loops for dinner every night."

and on

and on

and on

and on...

Notice how Kaisha always seems to one up us with everything. And quite frankly, I am getting a little annoyed with Kaisha.

Back to reality: Is Ella too young to have an inferiority complex? How else do you describe her Kaisha-isms?

Or maybe it's just that Ella feels like she never gets to do what all of her older siblings get to do?

Whatever it is, I hope Kaisha moves to Tennessee real soon.

The Week Without TV, Computer & Video Games

I know that most of you have had many sleepless nights wondering how our TV turnoff week has been. (ha ha) Although it did not last the full 7 days I am happy to say it was a success.

I am so impressed with my children. I had an idea to keep a journal to write down all the negative feelings/issues that came up as a result of not watching TV, not going on the computer, and not playing video games. I thought that maybe this would help me address them properly.

Well, I did not write down one word. There never was an issue. My kids were so on board with this idea they were actually being examples to me. I never heard one complaint the whole 5 days we participated.

We played more together as a family which was great. We talked more too. And most importantly all of their Webkinz were still happy and thriving.

Some may think that we quit two days early. I see it as having five days of total success. The week went so well that when the weekend came I decided to let the kids decide if they wanted to continue the challenge for the last two days. They decided they wanted to watch TV, so I let them.

I think I had a slightly harder time than my kids. I learned that I am definitely a Blogger over a Facebooker. I did not miss FB but I really missed checking every one's blogs and posting on my own. My blog is truly my journal and to have that taken away was tough.

Even not being able to watch TV was tougher than I thought it was going to be for me. That is my way of winding down at the end of a long day. I will usually watch one show about four nights a week before bed and not being able to even do that was hard. I am so thankful for my DVR that so graciously recorded my shows for me to catch up on this week. What would I have done without it?

These are some things I learned/remembered this week:

Silence is peaceful.
TV controls me more than I thought.
I am a competitive game player even with my kids.
Spending quality time with my children is vitally important.
I LOVE to read.
Cutting out less important things makes time for more important things.
The term "Everything In Moderation" doesn't only apply to food.

With the success of this past week I have decided to implement this challenge more often, maybe every quarter? I encourage everyone to try it. The results may surprise you.

It's That Time Of Year Again...

Well folks, TV Turnoff Week starts in just a few hours. How do you feel about that? We usually participate about four out of the seven days...we meaning the kids. (I never took it upon myself to be included in this.) Honestly I think if it were just the TV we were foregoing for a week we would be OK. But taking out video games AND computer stuff as well as the TV has me a little worried.

Nevertheless, we have all committed to going one whole week without any of it.

This includes me too for the first time. I am excited. I want to show the kids there is more to life than their electronic delights.

I also want to show myself that I can do it. Now, for me this will mean no blogging, no Facebook, No Biggest Loser, and what will definately be the hardest part of the week...not being able to see Adam Lamberts performance on American Idol.

Hard, yes.

But not impossible.

Wish me luck. I will be keeping a journal so that come a week from now, I can blog all about it.

Trouser Debacle

Take a good look at this picture. Do you see a pattern?

That's right, holes in the same leg of every pair of pants. I am lucky if Ben has a pair of pants longer than a week before they get a hole in them. In fact I should just add a new pair of pants to my ongoing weekly grocery list. What to do. I could tell him to stop playing so hard. But isn't that pretty much the same thing as telling him to stop having fun? Does anyone out there feel my frustration?

Easter Oh Nine

Elder Holland's conference talk on the Atonement has been on my mind this Easter season. I am so thankful for his words and for him helping us get into the proper spirit for Easter.

There are some traditions that aren't quite as meaningful as remembering why we celebrate Easter, but they are fun nonetheless. I love to get new outfits for the kids. On Easter morning, after checking the loot the Easter Bunny left, I got them all dolled up for church and off we went, pausing for a quick photo opp on the way out.

One funny side note: It takes a while to curl three girls' heads of hair and I think Ben was getting a little bored. So to pass the time he decided to take on the alter ego, Underwear Man. He launched his underwear at us as we were trying to get ready.

After a great morning of remembering what the true meaning of Easter is all about, Lee had to finish up a few things at church so I decided to quickly take the kids over to the park for a few pictures...

As soon as Lee finished his bishopric duties we changed and were off to Grammies and Papa Rex's for their famous Easter egg hunt and feast. Every year the amount of eggs being hidden increases. I think this year we surpassed 300 eggs! Thank goodness Ryan and Cheryl and the kids were there to help find them all. And as always I took a million pictures. These are some of my faves...

Beau

Livia

Tess

Tess

Beau and Ben

This picture is definately telling a story. Ella is so happy with her finds that she is oblivious that Livia is being attacked by a wasp in the background. Thankfully no stings.

Tayli and Emma

I thought Ryan looked super macho holding this Easter basket. I just had to snap a photo.

We had such a nice time this Easter! We had great food, family and fun. What more could we have asked for?