We Did It!!

I am so happy to say that all of the training has finally paid off!

About a year ago Justin and I started running together to get into shape. I had a lot further to go than Justin did when it came to physical fitness. We decided that we would begin to "train" for races to keep ourselves motivated. We both successfully completed a 10k (6.2 miles) last fall and began to feel more comfortable and excited about attempting longer runs. The original plan was to be able to run a half marathon by spring and a full by fall. Our race schedule was moved up significantly when we realized that we had 8 months to train for the next race and my constant and usually unwise inpatients to get the end result. Justin, in his infinite wisdom, repeatedly questioned the decision to run the full by spring, but continued to patiently support me by training with me.

We registered for the race in December, which meant there would be no backing out, trust me we tried. The closer the race came and the longer the Saturday morning runs grew, the more apprehensive we became. By the time we were supposed to be running 20 miles (thanks Rachel for bailing us out) we knew we had bitten off more than we could chew. During the next month we fretted and worried about the ensuing 26.2 miles that were looming in the near and gloomy future. I called the Marathon Headquarters to find out if we could change from the full to the half with no success.

Finally, we came to terms with the fact that all we had to do was finish the race. We knew that we would not come in firs,t and didn't care if we were last to cross the finish line because at least we would accomplish our goal. So, for the rest of the month we continued to train almost as scheduled (it was a little hard to talk ourselves in to the final 20 mile run).

May 16th finally came, starting at 4:00am. We loaded a bus that took us 26.2 miles up the road and dropped us off. At 7:00am the starting cannon rang and there was definitely no turning back. After a very long and hard 5 hours and 8 minutes our training and apprehension had finally come to an end as we crossed the finish line together. We know we made no speed record, we averaged about 11.7 minutes a mile (we were not the last to cross the line). But we are both very proud to say that we can and have run a marathon!

The scenery was beautiful, as you can see behind us. Justin looks great running, I look very awkward and uncoordinated.

This is somewhere after mile 18. I had to have people at a first aid station cut the sleeves off of my shirt because I am pretty sure that I was beginning to suffer from heat stroke.

Here we are crossing the finish line together. We were so happy because we had finally finished and my parents had brought our boys to see it happen. Throughout the race Justin would say, "Just think pretty soon we will be able to see the boys, won't that be great." It really meant the world to Justin and I that they were there at the end. Thanks Mom and Dad, you are the greatest.

Sweet release! It is over!

I am not sure if we will ever attempt to run a full marathon again. It is one of the hardest things I have ever done and, aside from child birth, I have never hurt as badly as I did on Sunday after the race, but I can honestly say that I am so happy that we did it and I would not take it back. Justin, thank you for all of your support, I know that I would not have been able to do it if you had not been there every step of the way. I love you, Sweetheart.

Mother's Day

I love Mother's day. Not because of the great gifts I receive or the chance to choose what Justin makes for breakfast (usually the boys fight over who gets this privilege). I love it because it gives me the opportunity to remember how lucky I really am. I have 3 wonderful healthy boys who have made me the person I am today. I feel honored to be Trevor, Danny and Preston's mother. Without them nothing else in the world would matter. Thank you boys for letting me be your mom. I love you all so much.

My sweet and precious treasures.

Summer Garden

Nothing quite says summer like fresh veggies straight from the garden. During summers when I was growing up, I remember having dinners made entirely of treasures from Dad's plentiful garden. We have attempted to have a garden before and were unsuccessful (I think it has something to do with the entire large bag of fertilizer I put on it). This year Justin has decided to bravely take out one of our beautiful flower/rock garden and put in a vegetable garden hoping to have better luck this time. Justin is so lucky that he has boys who love to play in the dirt because the boys were more than happy to volunteer to help. Here they are moving the dirt into the wheel barrow while Justin was moving millions of rocks.

Thankfully my brother-in-law, Clay, needed extra dirt, which we were happy to give. The boys helped load the truck and Clay's kids, Porter and Eva, where more than willing to help unload.

Behind Danny and Preston you can see Justin's hard work. He made a 2 tiered garden in the great hill of our back yard.

Thanks for all of the hard work guys! I can hardly wait until we can have our first dinner made entirely of fresh veggies.

Easter Sunday

Every year when Easter comes it feels like spring has finally sprung. Easter has always been one of my favorite holidays because it is usually so quiet, laid back, and spent with a lot of family (the best part). Saturday we hosted the Simpers for the annual Egg Hunt and dinner. It was a blast! The kids played together very well and the adults were able to visit and laugh a lot, we always have such a great time.
On Sunday the boys were able to search for their Eater Basket lute the the kind Easter Bunny has left for them and then we put on our Easter best and were off to church with the Meyers. After church we had our annual brunch that is always filled with a lot of great food, good visiting, and hundreds of friendly games of Gin.

It seems like spring is the perfect time for Easter. We have a chance to celebrate the wonderful meaning of the season and it feels like spring finally has a chance to shine in all of it's glory. Now bring on the flowers and the 70 degree weather, please!

Here we are conducting a little science experiment. Thanks Josh for the dry ice and Miriam for the root beer. By-the-way, dry ice does not make soda more fizzy, it actually takes the fizz away. Disgusting but funny.

All of the cousins at the starting line of the Egg Hunt.

Preston is diligently looking for eggs.

Trevor is supposed to leave the easy ones for the little kids and look for the hard ones.

Danny and a lot of cousins investigating their treasures.

The boys waiting patiently before beginning the hunt for their baskets in the morning.

Checking out all of the goodies.

Oh, aren't they handsome! There is nothing better than boys wearing ties.

I have 3 inch heels on and still look short and stubby next to Justin. I just can't win. At least Justin looks good.

Happy Birthday Justin!

Justin had his 34th birthday on Saturday. We had a wonderful day, pretty low key. We just did regular Saturday things during the day, he worked in the garage and helped Trevor finish paint some shelves for Trev's room. For dinner, I made him his favorite meal which is Fettuccine Alfredo with grilled chicken, Asparagus, and french bread. We had some cake and ice cream then put the boys to bed, and finished out the night with a nice quiet movie. It was a nice day. I hope he had a great birthday.

I know that I do not tell Justin how thankful I am for him often enough, but I do know that I could not live without him. He is so supportive of everything that I do and will do anything possible to help me accomplish my goals. If it were not for him I would not have been able to complete my education. He is so understanding when I am constantly gone because of my school obligations and he is willing to take on the extra housework and cooking without any complaints. Justin has even decided to support me and train right along with me for a marathon in May. I am sure that he hates every second of it. While he doctors his poor blistered feet after the last 16 mile run he patiently listens to me plan the route for the upcoming 18 mile run. I am certain that I would not be as committed to the running thing if he weren't there every step of the way. Justin is an amazing father who has never called his role as a parent "babysitting." He is and has always been an involved parent who is so incredibly proud of his boys. The boys could not have asked for a better father. I love you sweetheart, thank you for everything you have always been willing to do.

Sweet Cousins

During spring break we had the opportunity to watch Addie and Ethan for Rachel while she worked. I think that little Addie was so excited about having more children around because her 2 brothers and sister were in Arizona with their dad. She followed Preston around everywhere. If Preston was in the garage helping Justin, Addie was in the garage helping Justin. If Preston was sitting back, relaxing, Addie was sitting back relaxing. Here are some cute pictures of them watching a movie. It looks like they are an old married couple, Addie is talking on the phone while Preston is sitting quietly by.

Justin's Workshop

Today I opened the garage door and found Justin supervising the boys working on a project. They were sanding some bookshelves to pain and put in Trevor's room. They were all so happy to be able to help and they all did a great job. What a great spring break activity, the boys have something to keep them busy and Trevor gets some much needed storage in his room. Here are some pictures of what I found when I opened the garage door.