Word on the Stainbrooks Street

Weekend with the Griggs!

2011-09-23T11:23:00.000-06:00

As I've mentioned before our good friends recently moved out to the good 'ole state of CO. We've been lucky enough to spend two excellent weekends hanging out with them and it's time to recap the good times :)

It all started with a trip to Red Rocks for an Alison Krauss concert and it.was.amazing!

he's just so photogenic

Jon being rebellious and touching the rocks.

If you climb on them it's like 1,ooo $ fine or 180 days in jail.

It was at this point in time that the lovely men at the entrance told us we couldn't bring in our cameras...

are you kidding me!?

So Jordan quickly sprinted the two DSLR's back to the car

but he clearly wasn't happy about it

The rest of the pics are from Amanda's point and shoot!

getting ready for the magic to happen

Our fun little group :)

The next day we hit up some more Red Rocks a little south of Denver

It was a beautiful day to meander around garden of the gods

Amanda picked our trail for the day

I am in love with this flower... i have no idea what it is, but I love it

I love that everywhere you turn there is another huge natural creation to stare at and be in awe of.

discussing something

and Jorge lost that round :)

Then they boys had some fun

he's just so strong..

(photo by Jorge Grigg)

I'm pretty sure I could walk around here for hours and never tire of it.

It's an absolutely gorgeous place to go hiking for the day

In front of the kissing camels

a little wildlife to end the trip right :)

Every weekend I feel like we get to know CO a little bit more and feel that much more invested in our surroundings.

I really do love calling this place home and experiencing everything it has to offer!

Back to School

2011-09-21T08:28:00.006-06:00

Obviously from the lack of blogging the past month we've had a bit of a shift in our daily schedule.

Welcome to our life...

Yes... school has started and our life has been consumed by books.

Ok... that's a little bit of a lie. We've had A LOT of social gatherings in the past few weeks that have also been consuming a large part of our days.

It's been hard to slow down and actually share what our life has consisted of, but fortunately I finally downloaded the 500 pictures we had waiting on our camera.

So get ready for lots of blog posts to come!

but back to life on this particular study day...

We spent the day at Hudson Gardens which is next to the school.

We studied, watched some geese and wandered around the beautiful gardens.

the pumpkin field was by far my favorite

It was a beautiful day, and so lovely to spend it outside studying and just enjoying each other's company!

and as promised... more posts and pictures to come!

Camping Trip!

2011-08-28T13:16:00.000-06:00

To continue on our week long of soaking up summer, we made our way west to do a little camping. WE successfully fit five people, a tent, pillows, sleeping bags, a tarp, food, and our bags, and a dog in the CR-V. It was a tight fit.. but we totally made it work.

I'm not sure that Toby was as happy with the arrangements as we were, but he was a trooper.

setting up the 6 person tent

getting our sleeping bags all comfy cozy

We decided to climb some rocks, while Jon pictured it up.

Peter wasn't to sure about the swing at first... apparently it was some awkward placement

but he got the hang of it eventually

There goes grandpa with his walking stick

The fire starters

Nothin better than a roaring campfire, hot dogs, and s'mores.

love our little group all smushed in

Group HUG!

Ready to make our way back to Denver!

Fun way to end our last week of vacation before school starts!

Warrior Dash

2011-08-27T10:23:00.000-06:00

This past week has been on the busy side in our household. Perhaps we're overcommitting, but I'd like to think that we're just trying to suck every drop out of summer before we start school on Monday.

Last Sunday we took a little trip up to Copper Mountain for a race. Thankfully this race was just a 5k, but with a twist. I'm sure many of you have heard of the Warrior Dash, and let me tell you... if you haven't done it, you should.

It was Jon's first race EVER!

Kimmy, Jon, and I started our race while Kimmy's hubby Dave took over the photography.

He captured some interesting people

What we had to look forward too

Look at those weirdo's group stretching

There's always got to be that one guy, unfortunately for us there were a group of them.

Since we really didn't know the course David unfortunately missed some of the obstacles and our swim through the mud

While Kimmy and I were leaping fire a security guard was yelling at Dave so he wasn't able to get our leap over the fire

But look at those faces of determination

Jon leaping his way through.

around mile 1 Jon told Kimmy and I to make our way forward, but he was a trooper and came in about 7 minutes behind us.

We had a photo shoot while we waited

so.much.mud

So... it turns out that Jon flagged us on because he had broken his toe during the first mile!

He made it through the last two miles and still finished strong!

I could NOT be more PROUD of him for sticking it out!

And apparently I think this toe is on the ground somewhere else...

Mark doesn't like to get dirty...

Jon's kind of double fistin'

Turkey legging it up

Cheers

Our warrior faces

Just love these two :)

Kimmy, thanks for running it with us. Dave thanks for the photography skills, and Mark... thanks for partaking in a turkey leg :)

Bowling Time

2011-08-21T10:16:00.000-06:00

The other evening we made our way to a bowling alley/arcade/lazer tag/ most awesome place ever with some friends.

We found out that after 8:45 we could bowl for a buck a person so we decided to try our luck in the arcade.

Heather had NO idea that Lori was pointing the gun her way

ski ball is an intense sport

Bball tourney

the boys way too obsessed with killing things

So Lori and I decided that since we basically rocked the Novice DDR we could manage the Medium level.

That resulted in both of us jumping up and down for 5 minutes laughing and seriously sucking at DDR.

Douggie successfully fitting his vibrams in the bowling shows

Why yes, Brian is bowling in a walking cast

LOVE these ladies :)

I foresee many more nights of bowling and arcading ahead of us :)

The Big Move

2011-08-20T10:07:00.001-06:00

No, No... The Stainbrooks have not moved again.

thank.the. good. Lord.

But these two good looking peeps did :)

We were able to get this baby unloaded quite quickly

looking way too good for the heat we were working through

Jordan HATES all the knick knacks

buuuuuuuuuut... turns out he had his own little box of 'em

Jordan's parents also informed me of his deep childhood love of big machinery :)

PIVOT!!!!

(my Friends ppl know what I'm talking about :) )

clearly setting up the most important part of the apartment

slowly but surely it's all getting moved in

Diane completely dominated the kitchen

While Manda and I tackled the bedroom

THANKS for the awesomely authentic mexican meal!!

We could not be more excited that these two are within 45 miles of us!

The Big Day

2011-08-14T14:11:00.000-06:00

Last Saturday we celebrated the wedding of our two fabulous friends

Emily and Levi.

I had the pleasure and honor of being a personal attendant along with my BF Ashley...

ready to go and attend :)

Getting ready!

Loved the location for the first few photos!

we got bored waiting :)

LOVED her shoes!

Em and her girls!

all bibbed up and ready to eat

last minute adjustments

getting hitched!

I miss these ladies way too much!

Emily and Levi Congrats!

Your wedding was beautiful and it was such a blessing to be a part of it!

Girls Hit the Highway: DeSmet

2011-08-12T18:06:00.000-06:00

Our last and final trip of the Laura Ingalls adventure took us to DeSmet. We headed out to the original site of their homestead and it was hands down the best part of the entire 4 day trek.

Khloe insisted on sitting by herself

And I'm pretty sure you can't get much cuter than this...seriously.

The COOLEST chicken I have EVER seen.

no hesistation in grabbing water from the pump

a reconstruction of the homestead

it was absolutely gorgeous out there...

On the wagon ride

School Time!

Learning how to do Laundry

craft time!

corncob dolls!

Making Jumpropes

This trip was absolutely fantastic... seriously.

The girls traveled so well, and my mom, Jamie, and I had fun just watching the girls run around :)

So much fun! I can't wait to take my own little girls on the same trip someday!

Girls Hit the Highway: Walnut Grove

2011-08-11T15:37:00.000-06:00

Day three of our little adventure took us to some Sod houses, and to Walnut Grove, MN. Now... if you've ever seen the Little House on the Prairie series on TV (which I actually dislike.. because it is soooo far off base from the books) it "took place" in Walnut Grove.

Like I said... first stop was to see some sod houses... where we may have gotten distracted by some adorable kittens...

I don't care what anyone says... i LOVE kittens and cats... they are just so cute!

Khloe however did not enjoy the little kittens little claws...

a hard lesson I also learned at the ripe age of 2.

Just as they sound, these houses are completely out of sod.

In the prairie there were no trees but plenty of grass.

It is estimated that at one point in time there were over 1 million sod houses in the prairie.

Maddie and I working some 19 century clothing (and yes those sunglasses are straight out of the 1800's)

I picked this up thinking it'd be like a fun fact brochure about 100 years ago, what's changed...etc.

nope... it's a track.

So when you go see the sod houses you can also get a good dose of the gospel being slammed down your throat...

remember

God Loves You!

Khloe having a "moment"

Having fun in Walnut Grove!

I bit the bullet and donned the beard and hat to become Pa

We then grabbed us some *ahem interesting lunch at Nellie's

we had to keep reminding ourselves that we were there for the experience...

We set up shop for the night in Brookings, SD

and headed straight for the pool!

Khloe would only go in with Grandma (who got in only after I made the grandkids manipulate her...)

And Uncle Jon joined us too!

And then there were water slides... oh.my.goodness

these were SO much fun... we even got Grandma to take a few slides

So blurry... I kept telling the girls to stay still and not until I saw the photos did I realize that Maddie had been posing in every single shot... creating a lovely blur.

Enjoying a few last splashes before we headed to

DeSmet, SD!

Girls hit the highway: Pepin and Burr Oak

2011-08-09T06:24:00.000-06:00

Day two of the road trip was a blast! We had so much fun traveling to Pepin, WI and Burr Oak, Iowa.

During the driving we read to the girls about what the Ingalls family did in each town, and even got to tour the hotel the Ingalls lived in during their time in Iowa!

Jordyn and Maddy both taking a turn posing

Little House in the Big Woods

Next stop Iowa!

Inside the hotel/museum

(a lovely grainy picture from the point n' shoot.. i will be leaping for joy when we get the DSLR back in my hands!)

Meanwhile... when we got to our hotel room, grandma had a surprise up her sleeve!

homemade butter!

Khloe didn't feel the need to use a cracker... just putting the butter straight in :)

Grandma and her girls butter makin'!

The next day will entail Spring Valley and Walnut Grove, MN

and then we'll be making our way to SD for the last stint!

Girls hit the highway: 1

2011-08-08T18:11:00.000-06:00

To end this fantastic trip in MN I am currently road trippin' it with my mom, sis-in-law, and three young nieces.

As a girl I LOVED the Laura Ingalls Wilder books... and I mean LOOOOOOVED them. Loved as in my mother made me a white flannel nightgown for Christmas when I was a kid. Because of my ~~obsession~~ enjoyment of these books I always wanted to go to all of the homesteads that were talked about in the books.

My childish dreams were crushed, as we never took the trip... until now. 15 some years later my dreams are becoming fulfilled :) It's not quite the same, but I'm sure if I tried I could some how manage to fit in the flannel nightgown again to bring me back to a younger "me".

Our first day entailed getting to Wabesha, MN right across the river from Pepin, WI. We had beautiful weather, and we are all excited to see Pepin tomorrow morning!

view from where we ate

The crew

BEAUTIFUL night

sweet shot :)

fine dining at it's best

swimming time!

This is Khloe's "cheese"

don't let my smile fool you... it was FREEZING

Fun with the girls!

Hot Time in the City

2011-08-08T07:31:00.001-06:00

Last Sunday I had the pleasure of joining in on the Bachelorette party of a most dear friend.

eight girls in bridesmaid dresses

one bride in an old wedding dress

90 degrees

good time had by ALL.

This was Jen's response to me saying

"it's all about the little movements"

what can i say... she catches on quickly :)

Emily and I clearly have no idea what to do here.

makin our way to the trolley!

Jen's dress matched the beanie... we thought it was a good look.

With the conductor

ringing the bell!

And why wouldn't we go and rent a bunch of kayaks and canoes and row out into a lake?

Sara and Jen workin' it

trying to get a picture of the sweet trolley.

I now realize that, that man is a perfect example of what all of us were feeling in our dresses.

A classy passenger

Congrats again Emily!!!

And Levi... if I haven't said it before... you are clearly a lucky lucky man :)

oh Micke you're so fine!

2011-08-02T12:01:00.000-06:00

The last 10 days Jon and I have been back in MN and it has been glorious!

Being able to see family and friends has been relaxing and refreshing, and it was a much needed break from life in CO.

While spending time at our homes has been great, our real reason for coming back was for some weddings. While we were in Korea land we missed out on the weddings of SO many of our closest friends... so now that we are on the same continent it was time to make it happen!

First up... Sarah Micke (now Shelerud) Micke and I lived together for two years during undergrad. We spent many evenings watching Friends, making music videos, and sharing our love of all things Christmas :)

LOVED this ...

Me and my hot date :)

They are just a beautiful couple

Reunited and it feels so good!

The candy/cookie bar... we strategically placed ourselves right next to this table.

Us with the beautiful bride!

Cuttin' the cake.

After Sarah repeatedly telling Joe not to smear it on her face... he did what any clueless groom would

smeared it on her face:)

nice work joe.

Congrats my beautiful friend!

So excited for what is to come for you and Joe!!

p.s. a move to colorado should most definitely come next :)

A different kind of PR

2011-07-17T17:26:00.000-06:00

This morning sucked.

I'm just going to be honest.

But let's start with last night. My great friend Ali and our other friend Vanessa road tripped it down to Colorado Springs and spent the night at Ali's parents house.

Her stepdad made us some fabulous spaghetti and we spent the evening lounging around.
And setting up our running gear, and oohing and ahing over our sweet free stuff!

We knew we had an early morning ahead of us and so we decided to presume with some Nyquil... straight from the bottle.

I have no idea why we have sunglasses, but it made sense at the time.

But I'd absolutely love for you to try and figure out what in the world is happening here :)

Thankfully the Nyquil knocked us out. Not that it made getting up at 5:30 any easier.

But we made it to the starting line and we were ready and rarin' to go!

And while I ~~ALWAYS~~ NEVER watch The Bachelor... :)

One of the old contestants (Andy I think) was there and spoke for a bit

Sarah Micke I have a feeling you know who this is

Then began the race.

I had already mentioned that I had planned on running this race for fun. My body has been crapping out on my lately and with the development of the allergies and asthma my breathing has been mediocre at best.

But it's easy to tell yourself that you're running for fun, and then there is the issue of actually doing it. Thankfully Ali read us a little devotion about being nice to our bodies when running and how by listening to our bodies they will actually thank us in the end!

Quite frankly I got a severe stomach cramp, as in my entire stomach seized up, and it was there for the first 4 miles or so... excellent.

Miles 5-8 were great and at mile 8 I truthfully didn't believe I was even going to finish the race. My entire body was weak and I even had to stop and sit a few times. I had chills for the last couple miles as well... kind of weird considering it was in the 80's.

And I walked like nobodies business. Typically I cringe at the thought of walking during any sort of run, but today I didn't care. I was nice to myself, I listened to my body, and I didn't beat myself up over the fact that I was going ridiculously slow.

And after making friends with some other women that were walking/jogging I finally made my way to the finish... 15 minutes slower than my half marathon last year in Korea... and 29 minutes slower than my Alaska time :)

But I finished.

Honestly this race was HORRIBLE, I have never felt worse during or after a run.

And while I may not have run a great race, PR'ed or done anything amazing. I was able to listen to myself and be kind to myself. I had grace with my body's limitations, and that feels better than any time I could've gotten.

and maybe tomorrow after my legs start working again I'll be able to take the advice of the fun necklace we got in lieu of a medal.

run.celebrate.laugh.

Allergies, Asthma, Awesomeness

2011-07-15T21:40:00.000-06:00

If you've been reading this blog for any period of time you know that I've been training for half marathons quite consistently since January. I ran a race in April and quickly signed up for a race in July. And because I wanted some extra bonding time with my sis I decided to run another one in June in Alaska.

So it's been a solid 7 months, and for some odd reason I hadn't been getting any better. Which is frustrating. Sure I did great in Alaska, but going to sea level doesn't hurt.

Since May I had noticed that breathing was getting difficult at times, and my heart rate was sky-rocketing within the first 20 minutes. I didn't bother with it until I got back from Alaska and realized something was up. I figured it was Exercise induced Asthma and called a clinic to get it checked out.

My first hint that this was going to be out of the ordinary is that they didn't know how to pronounce my name when they called to confirm the appointment.

Yes, they couldn't pronounce "Sara"... needless to say I was already feeling this place might be a little sketch.

When I arrived I informed the nurse that there was NO WAY I had any allergies, it was all asthma. So I took a breathing test... four times. I apparently cannot breath in and out of a tube properly.

I'm special.

Then the doctor came in. A short, stout indian man with a comb over and a limp started to check my ears, mouth, breathing, and last... my nose. As soon as he looked up my nose he shouted loudly and asked how I'd been breathing.

The man could not see any air passage in my nose. excellent. Allergy testing time.

69 pin pricks in my back, and 17 shots in my arm later, turns out I'm allergic to most weeds, grasses, animals, etc. basically EVERYTHING. And my body doesn't like to show outward symptoms... so it all settled into my nose.

Causing me to not get enough air, causing my snoring, and my constant sniffle.

And I had no idea earlier because the altitude and the dryness have triggered the symptoms. Thanks Colorado.

As ridiculous as finding out about all of this was, I am happy to have some sort of idea as to why it's been extremely difficult to breathe lately.

I left with this...

2 nose sprays (used every day)

2 inhalers

1 set of eye drops

I *think the nose spray has been working, but it's a little hard to tell.

I head back in this next week and if its not any better then I get a cat-scan of my deviated septum and if it's bad enough possibly surgery.

don't you just love good news??

Anyway, the afore mentioned half marathon is this Sunday so we'll see how it goes. Quite frankly my body is a little on the tired side so I think this race will be purely for fun!

And if you wouldn't mind praying for my stuffed little nostrils... my terrified of surgery self would much appreciate it :)

The 14'er

2011-07-13T10:31:00.000-06:00

Last week my good friend Ali (who I ran this race with) asked me to go for a hike. This wasn't just any walk through the woods... we were going to tackle a 14'er (a mountain above 14,000 feet). It was my very first one... and it was a blast!!!

(unfortunately our nice camera is in the shop... and I have completely forgotten how to use the point n' shoot... so bear with me)

Ali figuring out the way

Both of us are training for a half marathon ( this sunday! yikes!) And we still had to stop frequently... let's just say climbing 5,000 ft in 4 miles gets tiring!

We finally made it to the top!

6 miles in 3 hours... we were pretty proud :)

Now there was another peak we could've gotten too... but the clouds rolling in made us a bit nervous. And thank goodness we weren't feeling too adventurous because half way down the mountain it started raining and the peaks were covered in fog.

Guess we'll just have to hike it another time!

Ali is just way too cute :)

Not only that, she is a fantastic friend and woman of God.

Our conversation for the entire trip was so great and encouraging for the both of us.

Have I mentioned how blessed we have been in the friends department since making our way out to CO?

It wouldn't be complete without a jumping picture :)

Overall my first 14'er was a great experience and I'm pumped to hike some more this fall!

Alaskan Adventure: Family

2011-07-05T10:26:00.000-06:00

Now that Jon and I have been back from Alaska for a week, I've been looking through the pictures and already wondering about when we'll go back.

Not only did we get to do and see so many things that people only dream of, we were able to spend some quality (albeit) busy time with family. The last time my siblings were all together was during Jon's and my wedding... 3 years ago. With all of us spread all over the world (Alaska, Finland, South Korea/Colorado) it has made our time together few and far between, but that much more cherished when we do get the chance to be together.

So to finish our trip off we took some family photos. Nothing fancy, but it's all of us together, and that's what matters.

Joel & Miia

Nate & Jess

Nate, Jess, Sammy & Ben (Jack was already sleeping)

The boys with Auntie Miia and Uncle Joel

We actually got them to sit nicely with us... miracle.

Sophia, Mari, and Grace

Attempting a picture with Henry... not happenin'.

Rebecca and Eric with their munchkins...

hopefully their Christmas card this year... because it's awesome.

And one more with our Aunt Kathy and Uncle Scott (who just happened to be in Alaska at the same time!)

Thank you so much Eric, Rebecca, Nate & Jess for hosting all of us and for making this one fantastic family reunion :)

Alaskan Adventure: Denali Round 2

2011-07-02T10:14:00.000-06:00

As the skies were beginning to clear we made our way to a rest stop/tourist stop I wasn't that interested in the books or post cards, but the animal antlers were calling my name...

That thing was HEAVY... and it was only one. I couldn't imagine having two and then having the neck strength to actually move.

Moose impress me.

turning into a dall sheep.

no. big. deal

The to Jon's dismay I made him get involved.

he wasn't as excited as i was.

shocking, i know.

but my niece grace was MORE than happy to oblige her crazy aunt!

Ok, see at the very top of the clouds this white peaks?

Yeah, that's Mt.McKinley.

Apparently, we were extremely lucky to see even this much of the mountain.

Like 90% of people that go, rarely ever even see the mountain.

John (the wheezing bus driver) explained this would be our last shot of it most likely, so we took pictures like crazy.

Oh hello mr. grizzly!

The half way stop at Wonder Lake

The siblings

Becca and two of her girls. Sophia and Grace

Moose!

Later in the afternoon the sun relay started to break out and it was gorgeous view after gorgeous view.

So as I was taking pictures out the bus window, I snagged a glimpse of a larger snow capped mountain behind us.

I, being the nice sister I am, abruptly woke up my brother Nate asking "Nate! Is that Mt. McKinley?? Is it??"

Why yes, yes it was :)

(this is without the zoom. that mountain is still HUMONGOUS)

So despite a dismal morning and a little bit of disappointment at not seeing the mountain clearly.

I'd say we got our money shots in, and the 11 hours on the bus were MORE than worth it to see that massive, snow capped mountain!

Alaskan Adventure: Denali

2011-07-01T10:56:00.000-06:00

After our quick day in Anchorage we headed out again to Denali (Mt. Mckinley) National Park. We were off for two nights of camping and a day long tour of the park.

To be honest, Jon and I were a little on the fence about going in the first place. It was a LOT of driving/sitting in a short amount of days. We're talking 5 hours there, 11 hours on a bus on Sunday, 5 hour drive back monday, and then getting on a plane monday night for 5 more hours. Yes, 26 hours sitting in a 2.5 day period... not so much fun.

But in the end we were convinced, and I'm so glad we were! The drive there was gorgeous and the park was fantastic as well!

This was probably around 8 or 9 at night.

Note to self: Camping in Alaska in the summer without an eye mask... not advised.

Jon's and my tent had a yellow rain fly which made it "sunny" the whole night through :)

Jon was most definitely regretting my offer to buy him and eye mask before we left.

Our day in Denali started out extremely overcast.. but the clouds actually added a cool atmosphere. That and we were tired so we may have all passed out for a while.

We saw Caribou!

Denali is filled with animals and they are not tampered with in any way.

Just allowed to roam free and let random loads of bus riders snap pictures of them.

I truthfully thought that 11 hours on the bus was going to be bad, but we stopped every 1 1/2 hours or so which helped.

Alright story time.. so you see the man in the vest? That's bus driver John... who was great.

He did have this little microphone thing though to give commentary, but when he wasn't commenting we could just here him wheezing.

I'm talking Darth Vader wheezing, as in we were all staring at each other wondering if we were going to careen off of a cliff at any moment because our bus driver might die, wheezing.

When driving a bus is making you winded... it may be time to rethink a few things in life.

But other than that, perfectly lovely gentleman :)

Ok, so see all the nails protruding from the bottom of the sign?

Yeah, that's to keep away the bears.

They apparently put up a sign and it was destroyed over night, so they made another one... same thing. And now they made a third with nails.

Dall Sheep!

We saw herds of these guys all over the mountain sides.

A wolf, just running down the road... right next to the bus.

Ok, another story.

So whenever you see wildlife from the bus you are supposed to yell "STOP" so that the driver can stop and everyone can freak out and take pictures.

Well, some people couldn't tell the difference between hikers and wildlife so there were A LOT of random stops going on.

We also had an old guy who was "that guy" on the bus.

"So is that wolf/caribou/moose/grizzly bear/ (any animal we saw) a loner? Do they usually travel in packs? etc."

This guy was extremely focused on the whole loner/herd mentality of every single animal

we were laughing pretty hard because you always knew the question would come after every animal we encountered.

Thankfully the sun started to peek through a little bit (although it didn't last long)

Next up grizzlies, moose, and the battle to see Mt. McKinley!

Alaskan Adventure: Thunderbird Falls

2011-06-30T11:58:00.000-06:00

It's been 7 years since I graduated high school (which seems ridiculous) and although I am not so great at keeping up with friends from those days, there are still those great friends that you just pick up with where you left off.

Thankfully...Katie is one of those friends :) Kates and I were always close throughout high school and while we definitely took separate paths in life, we've always been able to get together, chat and encourage each other wherever we are in life. I will always love and appreciate the kind of friendship we have.

What makes us even more bonded is our love for travel and through Katie's job at St. Jude's she gets that opportunity quite frequently... which entails travel to Alaska!

What are the chances we'd be in Alaska, at the same time?? I'm not sure but I'm glad it was in our favor :)

We picked Katie up for a hike at Thunderbird falls and she stayed on for dinner with the family. It was a beautiful day and the company made it that much better!

little nervous about the cliffs...

reunited and it feels so good!

Love this shot of my brother and his wife :)

The falls

Two old friends, catching up on life!

Thanks again for joining in on the family madness for a day Kates!!! Can't wait to see you in MN!

Alaskan Adventure: S'mores and Ice Cream

2011-06-29T20:34:00.000-06:00

Basically there is nothing better than dessert after dinner. Especially when you're a little kid. Or when you're me and there are s'mores and ice cream involved.

I love grabbing shots of the kids as they cram their mouths full of sweet stuff :)

Can you tell they are father and son?

Not a bad view to enjoy while chowing down on s'mores

The next evening entailed ice cream

I love how the simplest of treats can make kids so happy

So much fun and so delicious:)

Alaskan Adventure: The Fish

2011-06-29T08:44:00.000-06:00

One of the many activities people could take part in was fishing. They took a charter fishing boat out to get Halibut (where everyone got quite sea sick) and then on a different day they did some Salmon fishing.

The Halibut fishing was extremely successful and there was a TON of fish and it all needed to be vacuum packed and frozen for everyone to bring home with them.

This later became an excellent meal.

There was a bbq sugar or cracker crumb salmon to choose from or we had a spice rubbed halibut and my personal favorite was the buttered herb halibut

i.die.

It literally melted in your mouth. and coming from someone who usually doesn't enjoy fish, it was a nice surprise :)

Alaskan Adventure: Top of the Mountain

2011-06-28T20:25:00.000-06:00

Clearly the busyness of Alaska got to me and blogging took a break :) But that doesn't mean there was a lack of picture taking... on the contrary.

When all was said and done we took over 950 pictures... in 10 days.

And with that said, I'm sad to say that we are officially back in Denver :( Quite frankly I think we'd both rather be in Alaska still... I guess the pictures will have to do!

Last Wednesday a group of people went salmon fishing while the rest of us watched the kids and then took a gondola up the mountain side!

getting ready to ride the tram

The cabin we are staying in is in the middle of that little circle of cabins

And because we felt the need rebecca and I hiked up the little mountain behind the chalet

sisters, sisters... there were never such devoted sisters...

Making our way down again!

Gorgeous views and so much fun!

Have I mentioned how much I love Alaska?

Alaskan Adventure: Day of the Kids

2011-06-21T07:30:00.002-06:00

Today most of the adults headed out to go fishing for halibut while the rest of us were up to the task of watching all the kiddos.

It was a bit on the exhausting side, but any time I get with all the nieces and nephews is definitely time well spent.

We spent our day biking, wrestling, and playing at the park!

Sophia and Maddy Mae

Henry Man

Jack and Benny Boo

The girls swinging with Uncle Jon

Sammies playing in the sand

Henry Man going "down" the slide

It's slightly embarrassing when your 3 1/2 yr old nephew successfully makes it across the balance beam better than you do...

Uncle Jon was the robber and the kids were chasing him down

Mari making her way across the bars and Mason enjoying our bike ride.

I so enjoy being able to spend all of this time with the kids. It makes me a little sad that the time we get to spend together is so far and few between. But we're making it up for it with lot's and lot's of time together this vacation :)

I'm wondering what my odds would be of convincing all of my sibling to move to Colorado so this isn't such a rare occurrence...

Tomorrow... white water rafting!!

Alaskan Adventure: Rainy Day Hike

2011-06-20T12:37:00.000-06:00

Sunday began with a bit of rain, but that didn't deter the group from a great hike through the woods!

It began with puddle jumping... needless to say Mason got drenched from his puddle jumping

Jack was one happy boy!

part of our massive group!

The Hand Tram to get across the river

Miss Mari came across with Auntie Sara and Uncle Jon

The boys trying to figure out the mystery of Hot Tamales

They were not impressed

We ended the day with some wrestling around the house.

Sam is my "peanut butter" and he calls me his "jelly"

He has also taken it upon himself to start biting me... which apparently is his way of showing affection. He must love his auntie lots considering the lovely bruise and broken skin I have on my arm :)

Today we are just hanging around the house and watching all the kiddos while most of the adults go on a fishing trip!

Alaskan Adventure: Day 2

2011-06-19T10:25:00.001-06:00

About 45 minutes after the race we headed up to blueberry hill/ flat top mountain for a 3 hour hike... no better way to break up the lactic acid build up than a grueling hike!

Helping the girls up the mountain side

At this point in time Sophia had fallen a few times and had just about had it with the whole concept of hiking..

"I NEVER want to go hiking again!"

too bad we had half the mountain left to climb up.

but she was a trooper and she made it :)

Grace making a pit stop to rest

Attempting to gather 29 people to take a group photo

Success!

And then began the descent... every adult grabbed a kid

and off we went!

surely but slowly...

Nothing like sandwiches, chips, and water at the end of a LONG day!

And what better way to end the day than with a moose literally 10 feet away

Needless to say after the race, the hike, and the active evening afterwards I was ready to CRASH. Exhaustion doesn't even begin to explain what I'm feeling.

But it's exhaustion in the greatest sense of the word. Racing, Hiking, family, food, and loads of activity... it doesn't get much better!

Alaskan Adventure: The Race

2011-06-18T21:51:00.000-06:00

I was a little iffy about how the race this morning would go. A lack of sleep from the evenings before and the time difference weren't in my favor, but we got our stuff ready to go and we were up early hoping for the best!

See my lovingly placed Garmin watch? The watch that I check constantly to see my pace?

Yeah, charged it last night and this morning at the start line it decided it wasn't turning on.

Put a bit of a damper on my mood.

But I realized that it wasn't the end of the world and I would run my kind of race anyway!

Leaving bright and early!

Around mile 3 feeling good!

We had ourselves a little cheering section

Complete with gummy bears

And water :)

Throughout the race there were quite a few hills (which I was in no terms prepared for), some wide open roads, and an awesome wooded trail.

Rebecca and I were doing great!

I felt great and we were really picking up our pace and picking off people in the last couple of miles.

For the last 5 miles or so we were between an 8- 8:30 pace... unheard of in my racing world

Right before mile 10 and we were feeling AWESOME!

It was right around mile 11 that I hit my wall, and Rebecca pulled ahead and the mental games started... right about the time we had a half mile, ridiculously steep and winding hill... right at around mile 12.

I was less than impressed.

I was able to finish with a 2:00:15 time, knocking 12 minutes off of my last time and PRing in a big way.

However I was a little ticked off at not getting a sub 2 hour.

I know, I know, I should be proud of my PR... but when you're that close to under 2 hours, ugh... just feels like a slap in the face!

But I finished well, I PR'ed, and I got to run an awesome race with my sister

It doesn't get much better than that.

Oh and did I mention we later hiked a mountain??

Yeah...more on that tomorrow!

Alaskan Adventure: Day 1

2011-06-17T23:21:00.000-06:00

We made it to Alaska at 2 a.m. or 4 a.m. Denver time. The flight entailed 2 screaming children, turbulence, and 2 very excited nephews.

It was Carson and Beau's first time on a plane.

It was fun to see how excited Carson was and hear his millions of questions.

After our long flight and a short night of sleep in Anchorage, we made our way down to Girdwood.

Our first moose spotting :)

The view from one of our cabins... not too shabby.

Glacier time!

Mari- my sweet walking buddy

The Glacier!

Then the snow fights began... Grandpa getting Jordyn

I got doused 3 different times...

Jamie seeking retaliation on Beau

Almost...

With a little help from Travis...

Success

Me and the Mari enjoying the snow!

Other than the hike there has been lot's of bike riding, eating, and chaos!

Tomorrow the half-marathon ensues! wish me luck!

The Haps

2011-06-16T21:26:00.000-06:00

So I feel that while I've been posting the exciting events that have taken place in the last week or so I've left out some important information...

As of right now we are sitting in an airport waiting to head to....

ALASKA!!!!!

16 adults, 13 nieces and nephews, for 10 days in 2 houses.

It's going to be chaotic, awesome, and refreshing to just be with family and get out of our CO setting for a bit!

Also, Saturday morning I will be embarking on my third half marathon!

I'm hoping the whole sea level thing will help my time and make me (in my niece grace's words) speedy quick!!!

I'm sure I'll be updating with pictures and stories throughout the next ten days!!!

Go Carts and Drag Racing

2011-06-14T14:31:00.000-06:00

Yesterday Dan, Peter and I had the opportunity to hang out with some of our professors and some of the financial donors of Denver Seminary. Unfortunately Jon was bogged down with homework, but thankfully he let me go with the boys so I didn't miss out on the fun!

The agenda for the day... go carts and drag racing.

Honestly, we figured it might be lame, so we decided we'd stay for a bit and then roll out. Needless to say we stayed until 10 p.m. and had a BLAST. seriously... so much fun.

Peter lookin fly in his go-cart

Dan (#27) prepping himself

Both of the boys were in the first wave of racers while I was in the third

So proud of these two! Their times qualified them for the final go around

Then it was time to begin the drag racing.

Quite frankly I was terrified.

Going that quickly, by myself, no protective gear :)

My first practice round wasn't great but once I got the feel I had no issue putting the pedal to the medal.

Then the competition started

And I made it to the second round!!!

Seriously, did not see that coming.

Of course I had to go up against Peter so my chances were quite slim but I was pumped that at least I beat Scott R. :)

Before our race :)

Of course Peter beat me.. but my overall time was faster, it was my dang reaction time that cost me the race.

I just played it off by telling everyone I was helping Peter protect his pride... yeah... that was it.

Now in the beginning of the competition I predicted that Peter and Dan would be duking it out in the end.

Apparently I've have the gift of seeing the future.

Because it came down to my boys.

They were both pumped they had made it to the end

And Peter won it all!!!

It was a close one:)

And what is competition without awards?

Yes, I got the turtle award for having the slowest reaction time.

because i'm awesome.

and apparently really slow.

Peter is not only fast

but reckless as well :)

1st and 2nd place :)

Such a great and much needed day of fun!

Wordless (almost) Weekend in Estes!

2011-06-12T18:05:00.000-06:00

Saturday afternoon we decided to take a little adventure with Peter and Dan to Estes Park

The Boys

Wait for it... (by the way peter's face.is. priceless.)

Not our best work...

Toe Touch!

The hotel from two very important movies

The Shining, and a personal favorite... Dumb and Dumber

And of course we had to perform some tricks.

Ta Da!

And because boys will be boys we had to do a little climbing

This is what they climbed up

And then I had to join them... in my rugged hiking gear.

which turned into this.

Of course then Peter and Dan just HAD to climb to the top of the mountain.

There they be... they didn't quite make it to the top

Overall it was a BEAUTIFUL day and and a fun trip with some excellent friends :)

Going Bald

2011-06-08T12:07:00.001-06:00

Disclaimer: No, neither Jon and I shaved our heads (although a little piece of me is curious as to what I'd look like).

The great part is we have friends who are more than willing to take risks with their hair.

And when I say risk, I mean they are letting me doing the cutting.

Me, with an electric trimmer... blades.. close to someone else's scalp... risky.

Thank goodness Dan had a lot more faith in me than I did!!

the before shot

armed and dangerous

Don't let my confidence in the first picture mislead you... this is how I was really feeling.

Totally. freaked. out

I kept picturing blood and gashes everywhere

Getting there, slowly but surely

Identifying the lumps in his head so that there would be no gashes or bloodshed

Let the shaving begin

Yay I get to help!

although not with this part... because then there would have been bleeding...

Ta-da!

Thanks for trusting me with your scalp Dan:)

Pretty sure after this I'm totally certified to cut anyone's hair... so drop me a line and let your bald dreams come true.

chalk art!

2011-06-07T11:50:00.000-06:00

This past Saturday we took a little trip to downtown Denver to check out an chalk-art festival!

It was an absolutely gorgeous day outside, and I had to yet to walk around the 16th street outdoor shopping area, so it was a win win situation all around.

my company for the day :)

There were random pianos throughout the area that you were free to just sit down and play on... there was a lot of talent and a lot of...well... attempts

Others artistic ability never ceases to amaze me and make me envious.

This was by far one of the coolest pieces of art. if you look closely in the reflective tube you can see a face

Now do you see it?? The whole way around was similar and just so creative!

A little man gettin' in on the action

also one of my favorites

Dan's favorite :)

Part of me wishes we'd gone back on Sunday to see all the finished products, but seeing them part way through was awesome. It's incredible to see what pieces of art can come from chalk and someone's raw talent!

A sign of the times

2011-05-23T23:43:00.000-06:00

Life has been on the busy side... which is quite obvious from the lack of blogging

and during the craziness we've been blessed with Spring!

Thank goodness finals are officially over and we can actually get outside and start enjoying the gorgeous weather!

Hopefully I'll be back soon with more updates on life in Denver!

Red Rocks Easter

2011-05-23T18:57:00.000-06:00

I feel a little pathetic posting an Easter blog a month after the fact, but I just found the pictures and it was a pretty sweet Easter... so I thought I'd share anyway.

And let's be honest it's never to late to relive resurrection Sunday.

This year we decided to live it up CO style and enjoy a sunrise service at Red Rocks.

As a child I abhorred the sunrise service, I'm not sure what my mother was thinking but somehow we always were up bright and early and now it's just a part of life. Although I'm pretty sure as a child it didn't entail waking up at 3:30 driving 30 minutes and sitting in the mist for 1.5 hours.

So thanks for not taking it to that level mom...

It was awesome to see how many people showed up despite the cold and mist.

A red rock... yes there is a method to the madness behind the name.

Yes, I AM the wife that makes her husband get out of the warm blanket to take pictures of everyone...

These kids in front of us were AWESOME whenever there was some upbeat worship music our group and theirs were the ONLY one's standing up and dancing up a storm. It was great!

And to keep all of our spirits up we brought Easter candy, and Mr. Butterfinger was my first indulgence... and it was a good one.

Honestly we weren't sure what to expect for the service. We'd heard it could be a pretty "universal" message and after seeing the pastor on TV the night before we figured we were in for a pretty watered down message. Fortunately, we were pleasantly surprised! The pastor did a phenomenal job and really brought the message of Easter and the response was great :)

For as long as we're living it up in CO I can see this becoming a great Easter tradition, and the huge potluck with all of our friends afterwards didn't hurt either!

P.S. Posts should be coming a bit more regularly now that we are out of school... none of this month later stuff anymore!

Community Service

2011-05-19T19:29:00.000-06:00

Wow, from the title of that post it seems as though I'm paying my debt to society. And maybe in a way, I am.

Since we've been at Denver Seminary we've been beyond blessed with an amazing group of friends. We share laughter, food, fellowship, and most importantly we share life.

We've become more like a surrogate family for each other and I really love that.

Throughout all of this life sharing I've come to realize how much I really enjoying having people over and a houseful of friends. I've also come to realize this is a direct result of growing up with my siblings friends flocking to our home to feed on my mothers amazing food. In essence, I've become my mother. Never letting anyone help, just needing their presence to feed my cooking frenzy.

I love it.

I love serving others with good food and a comfortable atmosphere.

I've also learned that I enjoy serving others that I don't know as well. On the first day of my summer class we had bread and grapes and were asked to serve others.

Everyday since then someone in the class has stepped up and brought a breakfast of some sort and it has been awesome to see people giving of their resources. We've been blessed with yogurt and fruit, breakfast burritos, and donuts. I have so enjoyed letting others serve me and in turn...

And I felt that call to bake.

80 muffins.

My sweet friend Rebekah helped out and is providing the coffee and milk for tomorrow's breakfast :)

While I lack my mother's raw cooking and baking talent, I think I'm beginning to understand why she enjoys ministering to others in this way.

There is NOTHING better than sharing a meal with others and I'm so grateful that life in Denver has shown that to me!

Compliments

2011-05-18T19:02:00.000-06:00

Because I apparently enjoy the feeling of productivity I made the choice to take two summer classes. They are both two week intensives and one started on Monday.

Yes, that's right. After the stressful week of finals, I decided to start up with class again two days later. I also apparently don't enjoy giving myself a break.

However, this class has been absolutely phenomenal.

Seriously.

The instructor is fantastic, my classmates are great, and it is probably the most laid back atmosphere you could ask for.

The class is Groups in Counseling and our instructor, Reggie Moore, does a fantastic job of modeling and facilitating the type of leader one would hope to be. There is structure, yet at the same time it is flexible to allow for movement and a change of pace. In three days I already feel that I've gained a lot of insight.

One of my favorite parts is Reggie's way of confronting others, yet in a way that encourages and empowers others to rise to the occasion.

Today was no different.

He was conversing with one of the men in my class and ended paying him a compliment.

The man said "thank you"

And Reggie came back with " Now you hold on to that. I know in five hours you're going to want to do something that will negate or muddy that compliment, but that still won't take the truth of it away."

ummm. wow.

This hit me. hard. I began to analyze why we tend to mess up or continue to disbelieve when others compliment us. Even if we take the compliment at first, we later find justification for it to not be true.

Is it because we are so afraid of not fully living up to that compliment? We feel the need to prove others wrong?

Do we really see ourselves in such a poor light?

I think for me personally I feel that deep down I don't truly possess the quality that I'm being complimented on and I'm terrified someone might find out how untrue their words are. I think I'm also scared that while their words may be true in the moment what if something happens later that might make them regret giving me those words?

Compliments are a tricky business, but I truly want to get better at accepting them and learn to believe them.

A pretty lofty goal, but one that needs to be accomplished.

How are you at taking compliments? Do you find it easy to accept or do you negate them?

The Big Guns

2011-04-21T12:48:00.000-06:00

This past weekend we made our way out to the shooting range.

We found a place a solid hour away in the middle of some fields, it was awesome.

Driving down the dirt road transported me to back to Pillager and I felt I should have been pulling up to the farm any minute.

Unfortunately we were a couple hundred miles away from that possibility. But we still had a an awesome, albeit windy time.

Our Professor, Dr. Payne provided our weaponry

Jon takin' 'em down one by one :)

Our shooting view.

Our friend Kat who was ROCKING it.

She had all the boys beat.

Is it sad that we knew we were at the right place because we saw the huge American Flag?

Enforcer.

of what? I'm not sure.

minor detail.

Our friend Brad who is a little bit more believable as an enforcer.

Dan may have given Kat a run for her money, but I'm pretty sure she still took him down.

holding my own...

The aftermath.

At just a few dollars a pop this was cheap entertainment that I envision becoming tradition.

Strawberry Shortcake

2011-04-19T10:44:00.000-06:00

Yes, you read that right.

While I may have given up sweets for Lent, I found a way to make up for it during breakfast.

Last Friday after yoga-madness we had everyone over for our weekly dinner, and this week pancakes won out. And there were a lot left over.

Not wanting to go the traditional route of pancakes in the morning I decided to spruce it up.

Greek honey yogurt, a smidge of honey, and strawberries.

What I ended up with was a delicious recreation of a (hopefully healthier) version of strawberry shortcake.

And the fact that it satisfies my sweet tooth is just an added benefit :)

All I can say is that in 5 days I will be in a very happy sugar-high state :)

Dance the night away

2011-04-17T18:51:00.000-06:00

This Saturday we got our early decade groove on.

neon colors: check

ridiculous teal eyeshadow: check

out of control blush: check

curled hairsprayed bangs: check

Our good friend Mary Ellen threw the shin dig and it was so much fun!

No party is complete without some pigs in a blanket

so much amazing food, so little time.

Some DenSem girls gettin' their groove thang on.

Kelly and Dave showing off their cuteness

The lovely ladies taking a break for the seizure inducing strobe light :)

I think a little break from the ins and outs of seminary life was much needed for all of us!

Hopefully this means many more to come!

Refreshing

2011-04-14T11:26:00.000-06:00

Denver is known for it's amazing sunshine.

I mean, 300 day out the year are dedicated to the glorious warmth and cheeriness the sun has to offer.

While it has drastically improved my mood, and my ability to wake up in the morning there are days when it can feel a bit forced.

It's difficult for me to allow myself to feel reflective, sad, or even relaxed on sunny days. There is this innate Minnesotan need to be outside in the sun, doing something! Otherwise it would be a waste.

I'm sure that as time goes by I'll become more accustomed to the sun, and won't feel the need to be soaking up every ray or feel the regret if I don't.

Today is a rainy Denver day.

normally this would upset me. It's gloomy, it's dark, I have no motivation, I can't be productive... etc.

but today?

Today
I. am. loving. it.

I have the peace of mind to just relax and stay inside.

There's no pressure to go out and make something out of the day for fear of wasting it.

Because in reality, no day is lost.

Everyday, regardless of how busy, peaceful, stressed, relaxed, or productive is a good day.

And just one more day that I've been blessed to experience and share with others that are around me.

So, bring on the rain.

South Platte River Half Marathon!

2011-04-10T17:22:00.000-06:00

Today was the day ladies and gents!

I have to say the 1/2 totally took me by surprise, it didn't really hit me until I was actually at like mile 5 that I was really running the half marathon!

The forecast had been calling for rain, wind, and general nastiness for days.

To say I was dreading it would be an understatement.

However, this morning a clear blue sky greeted me!

There was still a lot of wind, but nothing to absolutely horrible.

Dan came to cheer me on, and to keep Jon company while he was spectating.

And I can't forget my favorite fan :)

Thankfully I wasn't running it alone!

Alison (on the left... or I guess my right in the picture) is an awesome women who I have the pleasure of sharing my counseling classes with :)

Vanessa is one of Ali's friends and is HILARIOUS seriously loved meeting her!

representin' DenSem!

The show offs... just runnin' out of control

Moseying along.

I was so proud of myself for starting at my own pace and running my race.

However, it was at this point (mile 1.5) that my bladder was SCREAMING... I thought I could make it, but 12 more miles with an extremely full bladder?

Not

Happenin'

So I found a random porta on the side of the trail, unfortunately another guy had the same idea and he took his own sweet time. Another girl and I timed him... he made me miss a solid 2 minutes of my race...

I on the other hand was in and out in 15 second... yes, I really am that fast.

Honestly, the race went by in blur, before I knew it i was at mile 10 and I was feeling GOOD!

If you'll recall my Korea half it was mile 10 that my knee blew out and made running slightly more difficult.

Not this time.

I was truckin' along and feeling great!

I will say there was a killer hill at mile 12.25 for the next .5 miles, but I was able to catch Ali (who I hadn't seen since the first 5 minutes of the race) and we pumped each other up!

No walking here.

Before I knew it I could see the finish line and away I went!

Please ignore my heel striking the ground, but notice the smile on my face.

I was feeling AWESOME!!!

(and yes, I totally beat the girl in the blue... I have a bit of a competitive spirit)

After the race waiting for some food!

burgers and fondue

I was doing really well with the no dessert thing for lent.

but melting pot fondue?? I just ran 13.1 miles people!!! That and I've heard that some people don't even recognize sunday's for the lent sacrifice...

so there.

Overall, I finished 13.22 miles in 2:12:24 (according to my Garmin)

which puts me at 10:00 per mile!!! Right. on. target.

I also had negatives splits for the last 6 miles.

And I knocked about 2.5 minutes off of my previous half marathon time.

Although because of porta potty man something makes me think I could've finished at around 2:10.

I have NEVER felt this good after a long run, and I'm loving that.

Now it's time to get ready for the next one :)

I'm hoping for a sub 2:10!

Lent: Fasting and Feasting

2011-04-05T08:40:00.000-06:00

This morning I was reading my good friend Laura's blog.

She had an AMAZING post about Lent that I had to repost.

and because I haven't taken any new pictures lately, and I'm totally lusting after Italy right now, I figured a few views of Cinque Tierre would be welcome.

Lent-

is a time for fasting

is a time for feasting

it is a time to fast from certain things

and feast on others.

Fast from judging others; feast on Christ indwelling in the them

Fast from emphasis on differences; feast on the unity of all life

Fast from apparent darkness; feast on the reality of light

Fast from thoughts of illness; feast on the healing power of God

Fast from words that pollute; feast on phrases that purify

Fast from discontent; feast on gratitude

Fast from anger; feast on patience

Fast from pessimism; feast on divine order

Fast from complaining; feast on appreciation

Fast from negatives; feast on affirmatives

Fast from unrelenting pressures; feast on increasing prayer

Fast from hostility; feast on nonresistance

Fast from bitterness; feast on forgiveness

Fast from self-concern; feast on compassion for others

Fast from personal anxiety; feast on eternal Truth

Fast from discouragement; feast on hope

Fast from facts that depress; feast on truths that uplift

Fast from lethargy; feast on enthusiasm

Fast from suspicion; feast on truth

Fast from thoughts that weaken; feast on promises that inspire

Fast from shadows of sorrow; feast on sunlight of serenity

Fast from idle gossip; feast on purposeful silence.

Lent is coming to a close in a few weeks, and while I've given up desserts and that has definitely been a sacrifice I love the thought of fasting in non- physical or behavioral ways.

I hope I can take these next few weeks and truly transform the way my mind is thinking and processing.

I want to fast what is not of God and feast on the truths that He has given me.

Be Blessed!

Myth Busters

2011-03-27T20:31:00.000-06:00

In regards to my running I've been forcing this half marathon.

Don't get me wrong, I'm really pumped that I signed up for the half.

I've realized though that I've been putting waaaaaaay to much pressure on myself.

I've been believing some myths and not looking to the truth of the situation.

Myth: I should be able to run this half marathon as quickly as the last one.

Truth: I haven't ran regularly since last April/May. I truthfully can't expect to run this race as well when I haven't been running regularly for the last 9 months. The past 12 weeks have been great for training, but to not have any pre-training... well it's pretty foolish to think it's the same circumstance.

Myth: My lungs should be able to handle the elevation.

Truth: I went from running at sea level (literally the yellow sea was right next to me) to running at over a mile high. That's a serious shift and I need to give my lungs a bit of grace as they try to figure out how to get air.

Myth: I should be as fast as the other girls I've met

Truth: Most of the girls I know that are out here have been here... either their entire lives or for quite a few more months than I have. And most of them have been training and running regularly for a few years or more. Yes, I know. Ridiculous to even by comparing myself against them.

So, as I've been reviewing these truths in my mind as I run, I'm releasing myself from any expectations that I've been putting on the half marathon.

I won't be running for time.
I'm not putting pressure on myself to run the entire time.
It WILL be fun! (as racing should be )

Two more weeks to go!