Goodbye 20's, HELLLLOOOOO 30's!!!

As soon as I found out the Ogden Marathon was going to be on my 30th Birthday, I just KNEW I had to run it! Ogden was my favorite race--great volunteers, well organized, beautiful course, perfect time of year! So I signed up a good 6 months in advance. Good thing too, since it filled up so quickly this year.

I started training in the winter with a pretty good running base. But it was about mid-January, when I started running further AND trying to increase my speed all at once, that I began feeling pain in my left knee. It quickly turned from a nagging ache to a sharp, stabbing pain that forced me to stop completely. It got to the point that I couldn't run more than 2 miles without stopping. It was SO extremely frustrating. I knew my weeks were limited and that I couldn't just wait it out for several months while waiting for my knee to heal. The hardest part for me was that I felt so confused. Everyone seemed to have an opinion on what would help, or who to see. Rest it. Don't rest it. Ice it. Heat it. Stretch it. I was afraid to try anything because I just wasn't sure what would help and what would hurt it more.

But I'm so blessed to have a good, loving husband who gave me some wise counsel. After complaining through tears, he gently suggested that I just do all the things I know I should be doing (staying hydrated, warming up and cooling down, stretching, icing it consistently, etc.) and, with a little rest, see if that would help.

During this time, I'd also been struggling emotionally. I felt overwhelmed with my life in general. I felt that there was just way more to get done than I had the time to do. I felt so stretched, that I was doing so many things, but not doing any of them well. Not being able to run (which is such a stress-reliever for me) didn't help. It was around this same time that I was reading an article in the Ensign magazine about being Spiritually prepared. As I read, Vince's words came back to me: "Are you staying hydrated, warming up, stretching consistently? Are you doing those things you know will keep your knee healthy?" And I thought about how I'd been doing spiritually. The words came clear into my mind: "Are you reading your scriptures, praying, attending the Temple consistently? Are you doing those things you know will keep your Spirit healthy?" It was a huge moment for me. I know there is a strong connection between my physical and spiritual well-being. And I know that even though my problems with my knee didn't matter to my eternal well-being, because it mattered so much to ME now, I knew it mattered to my Heavenly Father. I knew it was important to Him because it was important to me.

So I began stretching and drinking more water. I also began praying more fervently and consistently. I originally thought it would be ONE key event, and my knee would be "fixed." But I began to see this as a process. I realized that it probably wouldn't click and be healed, that I'd probably have to baby it and work on it all along the way, and that I would still feel it, but that it would be manageable enough that I could run.

I had lots of thoughts of giving up. Maybe this was a sign that my body wasn't ready for a marathon right now. Maybe it was too much too soon. But I wanted this SO much! After all, this was MY marathon! This was my birthday gift to myself.

I've spent most of my life looking ahead to being a young, married mom. I'd always longed for the days that I'd have babies and start to raise them. I never really looked beyond that. (Who knows, maybe no one does.) I think turning 30, even though it's just a number, forced me to see beyond that. Once I get comfortable in a situation, I'm usually content to stay there. Why change if things are good? It's hard for me to step out into the unknown. Getting old seems so unknown to me!! And I know 30 isn't old. But it's made me realize that changes are ahead. And I hate change. So I wanted so much to run this as a celebration of my 30 years! Rather than mourn the loss of my youth, I wanted to celebrate what I've done, where I've been, and how I've lived!

These were the thoughts I took with me to the starting line.

The day started bright and early. (Well, actually DARK and early. Way too early.) I met my good friend, Heidi (pictured at the end in yellow) at 4:30am and we were able to load on the buses and take the long ride up to the start together. It's so fun to be in her company. She's upbeat and has a wonderful perspective on life. I love chatting with her. We huddled as close to the fires as we dared, trying to keep our muscles semi-warm. I was lucky enough to run with her for the first couple of miles, until she bolted ahead for her big finish.

Those first miles flew by so quickly! I was trying to suck in all the beauty of every mile. It's fun to see all those runners; I wondered what each of their stories were. I wondered at the lady who had pictures of a woman and the words, "Running for Robin" on her back. I wondered at the woman who was running for Huntsman Cancer research, whose note on her back said that one year ago today she was diagnosed with cancer, and here, today, was running for her own cause. I wondered at the couple who ran (and walked) hand-in-hand for much of the race. I wondered at the couple who carried the flags all 26.2 miles. Actually, I wondered enough to ask them. This was their 10th year running with the flags! How cool is that? I loved listening to the stories of the first-timers, and I tried to give them encouragement and told of my first experience, and how much I love marathons! All these helped me remember why I do this.

I wish I could say it was all easy and enjoyable. It wasn't. Inevitably my legs got tired, then sore, then fatigued, then painful! But I love that when it got really tough, I'd see a gorgeous bird, or a sparkling lake, or get a downhill section to help kick me past the hard spots. And if there wasn't something to distract me, that's when my thoughts would turn to my parents, siblings, friends, in-laws, Vince & my kids to help me through. I knew they were cheering me on and had faith in me to see this through. It helped so much to have Vince & Rachel jog along with me at the halfway mark. It was so good to see them and help me transition to OVER halfway there!

I found it interesting that the hard sections came at different points for me this time than the last time I ran Ogden. It was the hardest from about miles 10-12. And then again from 14-17. But once I got to the dam, I felt great! I started to pick up speed again. The last 4 miles, though, were really rough, whereas last time I finished strong. But this time I was tired and ready to be done. I first thought that I'd at the very least, be able to break 5 hours. I missed it by 3 minutes. :( But I was okay with that, all things considered. Plus it gives me another goal to shoot for next time!

But this race was a real emotional one for me. I spent a lot of those hours and hours reflecting on how blessed my life is. I was so grateful that my prayers were answered, that my knee healed so well that I could run! I thought a lot about these last 30 years. I thought about my childhood, and how simple and fun life was then. I thought about my adolescence, and my childhood friends. I thought about getting married and how blessed I am to have found Vince. I thought about my kids and how wonderful they are and how much I need my family. And it hit me over and over again how incredibly lucky I am! I have been given so much! It has been a wonderful 30 years. And yet I still have so much more to look forward to.

When I finally reached that last long stretch to the finish line, feeling so grateful, I couldn't help but spill out all those emotions when I saw Vince, & my sister, & sisters-in-law & their husbands, & my dear friend, Vanasa there cheering for me! And I thought of how far I'd really come getting to this point. Not just getting to this point in the race (which was a huge relief), but in getting to this point in my life. Things aren't perfect, and never will be in this life, but they are so, so good. And I am happy.

LONG overdue

Is anyone still out there? Blogging has now sadly sunk to the bottom of my priority list. But I at least wanted to let you know I'm still alive! Here's my quick update:

After serious issues with my knee, I was considering dropping out of my race. But with lots of rest, hydrating, stretching, physical therapy, and LOTS of praying, it's healed enough that I'm going to be running the Ogden Marathon in 2 more days! It's been a long journey, but I'm happy to be able to make it. Now let's see if I can finish it!

Strange Things Are Happening...

We've had quite a few exciting adventures around here lately! We had a lovely Halloween, complete with a fun party at the cousins' house, pumpkin carving, and a run through the cemetary at night for a Halloween 5k! It was very fun! I ran my fastest 5k since Rachel was born. (I've dubbed it my 5k PPPR, or Post-Partum Personal Record!) 30:13 is certainly not where I WANT to be, but getting there. Slowly! (Hardy-har-har!) Vince did great though. He came in at 22:20, and earned a 4th place (pink) ribbon!!

I'll have to get more costume pictures soon, but here's the one from the 5k at least!

Carving pumpkins:
I thought this was an interesting view of our activity!
Pumpkin Brains!
Evan was so grossed out when he first stuck his hand in!
Brooke took this picture; I love it!
Our pumpkin family! We all (well, except for Rachel) designed our own faces. I thought they all turned out so fun! And I love the creativity of my kids!

From Left to Right--Rachel, Evan, Brooke, Me, & Vince!

And just for fun, I wanted to show you the spooky thing my broom can do! I took pictures from different angles just so you can see--no strings attached, and I didn't alter the photo at all! (Now if I can just get it to sweep up Vince's hair...)

And lastly, Evan. Poor kid. We went up to Vince's sister's house in ID last weekend to see their brand new (and ADORABLE) little baby. The kids were outside playing. Just before lunch Evan started bawling. He came in saying he'd been running outside, tripped (on his growing feet, apparently), and fell on the grass and hit his shoulder. I looked at it--no scratches or scrapes. Just a bump and maybe a bruise--so I THOUGHT! He cried for a while and I told him to not think about it, it'd stop hurting soon, etc. Well, about halfway through lunch I looked over at his poor, sad face and the giant alligator tears welling up in his eyes, and I realized, he's really hurting! After church the next day, I took a closer look again, and saw that the swelling was getting worse, and he still couldn't even raise his arm up. That's when I realized this was serious! So we took him to the doctor on Monday, who sent us to the hospital for x-rays. Turns out he BROKE HIS COLLAR BONE!! I felt so bad! I hate those "bad mommy" moments! But he's well and dandy now with his sling. So Evan wins the prize for the first broken bone in the family! (And hopefully it'll be the last!)

12 weeks. 13.1 miles.

I have a lot of blogging to catch up on. Vince and I concluded that we packed a month's worth of stuff in about 1 1/2 weeks! And we're still trying to catch up on everything! But now that the kids are in school ALL DAY I'm hoping I'll have a little more time I can sneak on and post about our exciting month.

But for now, I wanted to give you my race report. Mostly because I'm so excited that I accomplished something that for a while I was afraid might not happen!

I had really planned on running throughout my pregnancy. I ran a few times at the beginning, and immediately noticed how tired (and slow) I was! Then the morning sickness hit, and I couldn't do much of anything, let alone run 15 miles a week! So I gave it up for a while. When I hit my 2nd trimester I started feeling much better. But I also got my appetite back and gained a lot of weight in a short amount of time! I knew I needed to get back into a better exercise routine. From then till about 35 weeks I ran as much as I could, but was still really cautious. I only got up to about 2 miles at a time. There were just so many unpleasant factors that kept me from running the way I wanted to! And the last month, I just walked for exercise, and decided to pick up running again as quickly as I could post-partum.

So when May came around, I had the opportunity to sign up for the Hobble Creek Half Marathon. A bunch of my running friends were doing it. It wasn't until August. I was convinced my Baby would be born early like her siblings, and told myself that recovering from a baby really isn't that hard or take that long. I thought it over for about a week. At that point I was missing running so much, and I had such fond memories of running this race last year. What really convinced me was that I actually talked Vince into running it, and then I knew I couldn't let him do it on his own! So I signed up! (I had to sign up quickly because registrations are limited, and it usually fills up within about 24-48 hours!)

And then, of course Baby was stubborn and only came 5 days early. And the woman's mind has a way of forgetting the unpleasantries of post-partum recovery! It took me longer to get back to running then I thought. And we found out my little brother was getting married the week before the race in San Diego! And with reunions and vacations and midnight feedings, I started to worry about how in the world I was going to have time and energy to train for this thing! And what the heck was I thinking? (Vince said the same thing too, by the way: "What the heck were you thinking?")

But we'd paid the money, and I really wanted to get back into my old clothes. So I took it slow (very slow) and walked a lot of my long runs, but kept plugging away at the miles. I became familiar again with how my body works, and how wonderful it is to feel the sweat and the breeze on my flushed cheeks. I certainly wasn't as fully prepared as I could or should have been, but I at least knew I could finish the race.

My goal time was under 2 hours 45 minutes (which sounds so long!) and for sure under 3 hours. I was able to meet up with my running friends in the looonnnggg potty line before the start. It was so fun to chat with them and get excited to run the next 13.1 miles. I waved them all (and kissed my Hubby) good luck at the start and headed towards the back of the pack, knowing I'd be one of the last to cross the finish line.

The first half was wonderful! It's all down Hobble Creek Canyon, and the miles really flew by! I was feeling good and confident. My friend, Leslie, got a few pictures of me from her bike as I shuffled along. (She signed up for the race, but couldn't particpate because of a nasty foot injury from a triathlon a couple of months ago. It was so good to have her as a cheerleader, though!)

Around mile 9 or so, I was feeling sore, and then we started seeing the hills. I'd forgotten how hilly the last few miles were! This was the point that was the most difficult. I stopped a lot and walked many of the hills. But at the last water station at 11.5 miles, I decided I would run to the finish--no more walking. And I'm proud to say that I finished 5 minutes under my goal time at 2:40!! It was still 36 minutes slower than last year (yikes!) but I was so proud of myself for being able to go 13.1 miles just 12 weeks after having my Baby!

Vince did an amazing job, too! I only wish I could've been there when he crossed the finish line! But he was way too speedy--1:42 in fact! Wow, is all I can say! This was his first 1/2 Marathon; he ran a full before his mission. But certainly the most distance he's done in a very long time. I asked him on the way home if he'd want to do it again next year. But we concluded that asking him just after the race is like asking a woman just after giving birth if she's ready for the next baby! We'll give him a few more weeks to let him decide! ;0)

Here are some fun pictures taken with Heidi's amazing camera! (So amazing, in fact, that you'll have to excuse the sweaty, salty face of mine! Vince looks great, since he'd already had an hour to cool down waiting for me to finish!)
Aren't we a great-looking couple? :D

And my running pals! Vince, me, Heidi, Jamie, and Leslie

What a month!

I can't believe it's already been a whole month since little Rachel was born! And what a month it's been, too! I noticed the other day that the memory card on my camera was full. That seriously never happens. As I started scrolling through the pictures, I was amazed at how much we've done this past month! I'll post a few pictures to recap the past month, and then I'll just put the rest (well, my favs anyway) in a slideshow if you'd like to see more of what we've done.

We brought little Rachel home on the 1st of June. She wasn't too keen on her new carseat. (And still isn't, come to think of it.) That week was full of firsts--first ride home, first (sleepless) night home, first bath, first time to meet Grandmas and Grandpas, Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins!

Brooke had her Birthday on Friday the 5th. Her special 8th Birthday! (I still can't believe she's 8 already!) It was pretty low-key, unfortunately. I would have loved to have a grand party, but under the circumstances, it just didn't happen this year. But she got presents and a special cake, and she was happy, and very sweet about it.

I wavered back and forth, but finally decided we'd go ahead and do Brooke's Baptism on Saturday, June 6th. She was so excited, and I hated to have her wait. Looking back, I'm still not sure it was the best thing, but I'm still glad we did it. What an amazing experience to see your child making such important, righteous decisions! It was a very sweet moment. I remember one of my Mom's favorite scriptures is "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth." I see now why it's such a wonderful thing to see your children making wise choices! I'm so blessed!

We also decided to bless Rachel that weekend as well, since family came all that way, it made more sense. But we opted to do it at the Stake Center just after Brooke's Confirmation. It was nice having it in a more private setting. Although, I'm still sad I didn't get the full chance to "show her off" to my ward friends. Selfish reason, though, I know. I have to say, both girls looked so beautiful all dressed in white!

We had a big family "party" at our house after the Baptism. I have a wonderful Mother and Mother-in-law who took over and put it all together for me since I was busy with a new baby. I'm so grateful for them and all my family that helped that day. It's always fun to be with family.

The next week was a bit quiter. My sister, Mary, was here visiting from CO so my kids spent a lot of time at Grammy's playing with cousins, which gave me a chance to rest a lot. Then Grandma Marjorie came down from Montana. Vince ran a 5k race in our city early on Saturday morning. Then the kids had their final soccer games and got their medals. Then it was off to recitals! Whew! Another crazy-filled, tiring day.

Grandma Marjorie stayed that next week to help me out. As it turned out, her helping out mostly came in the form of painting! We've been trying to scramble to finish our basement for months now, getting ready for Baby's arrival. And I was silly enough to schedule the carpet to be installed that Thursday. So we spent the next week doing all the painting for the basement! There were a few moments we all wondered if we'd reach our deadline, but we did! But only with lots of help from family! Couldn't have done it without them. And now it looks WONDERFUL!

Grandma left on Friday morning, and decided to take Brooke and Evan back to Montana for the week. I have to say, the house was SO quiet! It gave me the chance to organize the kids' room, and move their stuff downstairs to their new rooms in the new basement. It was a nice week being able to spend with just Vince and Rachel, but I was so ready for them to come home again.

Our last big adventure was last Saturday. Vince and I decided to do a fun 5k on an easy course. And I even got my Dad to do it with me! (Remember, he was in the hospital just 5 months ago recovering from open heart surgery! What an accomplishment!) Speedy Vince ran out and back in 20 minutes. I ran/walked with my Daddy and was able to cross the finish line with him in under 40. Not my best time, but one of the best 5ks I've ever done! Vince got 3rd place for the men 18-55, and my Dad got 1st place in his age division! Way to go, Dad! So proud of you!

So there's out month in a very loooong nutshell. Now I need another month to recover! Guess the only thing left for us to do is to take a very looooong nap!

BYU Homecoming 5k

I love racing. Especially when I can race with my family. BYU had their Homecoming 5k and Kids Races this last Saturday. So we drove out (in the snow, of course--sheesh!) and met up with Vince's brother and his family, and his sister and her fiance, and we had a big, cold running day! Brooke raced the 1/2 mile with her cousin. She ended up being the last one in her group to finish, but she plugged along the entire race. I was so proud! She's wearing the pink sweater under her racing shirt.

Poor Evan. As we pulled into the parking lot before the races started, he said his tummy hurt. And then he said he thought he was going to throw up. I jokingly told him just not to do it in the car. I parked the car, he jumped out and ran over to the curb, and up came his breakfast. Poor little guy. So he decided he didn't want to run in the snow. I didn't blame him. I certainly knew how he felt. :( So here we are keeping warm:

After the kids races, Vince had to take Brooke to her last soccer game. But I stayed and ran the 5k with my sister-in-law, Shalon. It was very cold, and I was feeling kinda sluggish, so I didn't do my best run. But it was still a good run of 28:29. I was happy. Here are some pictures of my goofy running faces. (I'd seen so many photos of me looking tortured at the end of races, so I decided to pose for these. I can't decide if I look better scowling or grinning for running photos. Either way, it just doesn't look right!)

And here Shalon and I are enjoying the oranges at the end of the race. Sure was fun!