summer reading

I love reading, and there's nothing better than laying by a pool with a glass of lemonade and a good book.  Something about the sunshine and the smells of summer that just make me want to read!

I've read several books lately that I've really enjoyed.

 I know, I know... I'm years late in hopping on the Karen Kingsbury train.  But I started the Baxter family series a couple of months ago and I'm over halfway through the second series about family.  Finishing this series is definitely on my "to-read" for the summer.  If you haven't read these, I highly recommend them.  You'll laugh, cry and finish the book secretly wishing you could be a Baxter!

I read this book in about a day and a half.  I had heard so much hype about this book, and sometimes I think that ruins things.  I don't know what I was expecting, but something more for sure.  It was an excellent story line, with characters who made me love them and hate them.  And as someone who isn't that much of an animal person, I found myself crying at the cruel treatment of the animals on the circus.  So, I liked the book a lot, I just wish I had read the book BEFORE everyone told me how amazing it was! 

I read another book by Kristin Hannah last year, Firefly Lane.  I loved her writing style, so when I saw this book on the sale rack at Barnes & Noble, I had to pick it up.  The story line started a little slow, but quickly picked up speed less than halfway through the book.  Much like with Firefly Lane, once this book sucked me in, I was hooked.  Hannah is an excellent writer when it comes to evoking emotion from the readers.  I cried huge tears at multiple times in this book.

So there you have it- that's what I've been reading.  What do YOU think I should put on my bookshelf for this summer?  I'll post again in a week or so with my summer book list.

Week 13

How Far Along: 13 weeks

How big is Baby? 3 inches, 1.5 ounces- about the size of a lemon

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 2 pounds

Maternity Clothes: I finally got those out of the attic... it was fun looking through everything and remembering wearing them when pregnant with John Mark.  Unfortunately, my one pair of maternity jeans were missing... I have no idea what I could have done with those.  I have my eye on these though...

Gender: We won't know for another 4 or 5 weeks... hopefully we'll schedule that ultrasound at my next appointment.  Although JM is still holding onto his little sister theory!

Movement: nothing yet

Sleep: Pretty good- I don't remember too many restless nights, so I guess that's a good sign.

What I miss: Drippy eggs!  I made breakfast for dinner this week and all I wanted was a sunny-side up egg with my breakfast potatoes...

Cravings: Wednesday afternoon I started thinking about chili cheese fries and I couldn't stop... I ate chili cheese tots from Sonic for supper that night!

Food Aversions: I'm still hating on bananas... and I find that I don't really enjoy burgers, which makes me sad because we ate at my favorite burger place this week and I had to get chicken.  Yep- all of that is still the same.

Symptoms: Again with the tears this week... probably the fact that John Mark was graduating from pre-k didn't help my emotional state!  I'm also finally able to eat a full meal without feeling like I might explode, which is nice.

Best Moment: Looking through old pictures of John Mark, and wondering what this new baby will look like and be like...

new beginnings

"We went through fire and flood, but you brought us to a place of great abundance." Psalm 66:12

It's not new information that 2011 hasn't been the best year for us.  And while I don't know that the trials of this life are in any way over, I can say that we have reached a place of rest for this moment.

After three months of looking, Micah started a new job two weeks ago.  God was so faithful and opened a door for our family at the exact moment we needed it.  If you had asked us when this search began if this was our first choice, we wouldn't have said yes.  But things changed- most importantly, our hearts- and we joyfully took the first step in this new direction.

Today we joined a new family of believers.  After prayer and seeking, we felt led to become a part of Heritage Baptist.  Micah grew up in their student ministry and his family goes there.  We spent a few weeks going to services and today went to an incredible small group.  It's strange going to a new church and making new friends, but I know the Lord is there.

I know that our journey isn't over... because there's so much more I have left to learn.  But if there's anything I've learned in all of this- it's that God is good.  He is faithful.  And His ways are SO MUCH higher than anything I could ever imagine.  So for today, I find myself on my knees, thankful for all that He has done for us.

And I find myself here on my knees again
Caught up in grace like an avalanche
Nothing compares to this love
Burning in my heart
--like an avalanche, hillsong united

Week 12

I was lazy and forgot to take a picture.  In the interest of getting this post up for those of you interested, I'm skipping it this week... it's pretty much the same as last week's anyway.


How Far Along: 12 weeks

How big is Baby? 3 inches, 0.5 ounces- about the size of a peach

Total Weight Gain/Loss: we don't own a scale... so I need to remember to weigh myself at the gym next time I go or else this will stay the same between each visit!

Maternity Clothes: Still rocking the belly band- seriously best $17 spent so far!  And yes, I still need Micah to get the tub of maternity clothes out of the attic. 

Gender: We won't know for another 5 or 6 weeks... hopefully we'll schedule that ultrasound at my next appointment.  Although JM is still holding onto his little sister theory!

Movement: nothing yet

Sleep: I think I jinxed myself with saying I was sleeping good.  I was awake for long 3 hour stretches twice this week... And I can make it until about 5:30 before I have to use the bathroom- which is annoying since I get up at 6! 

What I miss: Drippy eggs!  I made breakfast for dinner this week and all I wanted was a sunny-side up egg with my breakfast potatoes...

Cravings: Baby dill pickles from Target- I bought a small jar of them on Monday and polished it off before the end of the week.  Don't worry, I went for the big jar this time.  And today during church, I found myself thinking nonstop about onion rings from Johnnie's... so Micah humored me and picked up an order for me to eat with the bbq chicken I had made for lunch.

Food Aversions: I'm still hating on bananas... and I find that I don't really enjoy burgers, which makes me sad because we ate at my favorite burger place this week and I had to get chicken.

Symptoms: I think my hips are starting their first spread.  All week when I got out of bed, they felt creaky and stiff.

Best Moment: Listening to John Mark say sweet things about the baby- I have a list going of things he has said that I need to post.  Maybe I'll get to that this week... I still owe you all the stories of telling people!

Week 11

How Far Along: 11 weeks

How big is Baby? 2.5 inches, 0.5 ounces- about the size of a large plum

Total Weight Gain/Loss: up 1 pound... only 59 more to catch me up to my weight gain with JM

Maternity Clothes: I have lost the ability to button any of my current pants, so I'm rocking the belly band... everything else is normal, for now.  I still need Micah to get the tub of maternity clothes out of the attic. 

Gender: We won't know for another 5 or 6 weeks... hopefully we'll schedule that ultrasound at my next appointment.  Although JM is still holding onto his little sister theory!

Movement: nothing yet

Sleep: I've actually been sleeping pretty good.  I wake up a couple times a night- usually from a CRAZY dream- but I fall back asleep fairly quickly. 

What I miss: Sandwiches!!  I've been to 3 different restaurants this week and all I wanted was a cold ham or turkey sandwich... also, RUNNING!  I'm just now getting energy back, and I'm itching to get back to the gym.  I don't foresee any intense running in my future, but now that I'm feeling better, I hope to be back in the gym this week.

Cravings: Don't judge me, but I've been eating pimento cheese sandwiches like nobody's business... Also, I could probably eat my weight in tacos!

Food Aversions: Bananas!!  the thought of eating a banana makes me want to puke.  I also don't want anything to do with coffee...

Symptoms: Exhaustion... and emotions... I could cry about anything these days!

Best Moment: Our appointment on Monday where we got to see our baby again and see the heartbeat... also making the big reveal.  Praise the Lord no more secrets!!

finding out...

John Mark is almost 5 years old.  I'll go ahead and throw it out there that in the span of those years, I've had a few "I think I might be pregnant" moments... The cashier at Walgreens probably knows me as the crazy pregnancy test lady.  Obviously, none of those tests came up positive.  All that to say- thinking I could be pregnant for whatever reason wasn't that new of an idea for me- or Lesley.  You'll see why she's part of this story in a minute.

One night, about 6 weeks ago, Lesley and Mallory had picked me up from the hospital to get cupcakes.  We were laughing about pregnancy tests and I was saying I needed to buy one.  Mal offered to bring one over.  I took the test and the results were a little... inconclusive.  I swore at just the right angle you could see a hint of a cross.  We all laughed about it and held it up to the light, but nothing more was really said about it.  But in my heart, I knew.  I think I knew before I even took the test that night...

A few days later, Micah was spending the night in the hospital with his mom.  Lesley was at the house keeping me company.  Somehow the inconclusive test came up and I told her she should go to walgreens and get another test- and cookie dough.  So, being the good friend that she is, she went- and ran into lots of people she knew trying to get the goods.

She came back to my house, I finished the water I was drinking and went to the bathroom.  I came back and we continued watching That 70's Show, our netflix choice of the evening.  I hopped up and went to the bathroom and saw THIS:

Immediately I yelled "LESLEY... OMG OMG OMG..."
To which she replied "what?  wait, that's not funny..."
I ran out of the bathroom and showed her the test...

At this point the test is sitting on the couch between us and we're both just staring at it.  We're alternating between staring at the test and at each other saying "OH MY WORD..."

the details

Earlier today I posted this picture to facebook-
an announcement, one you've all waited for, I'm sure!

To say he's excited would be the understatement of the century.
In fact, when we told him, he did a double fist-pump and said:
"YES!  I finally get the baby sister I've always wanted!!"
*note, we do NOT know that it's a baby sister...*

Now to answer all those questions-
I am due November 26th.
That puts me at 10 weeks and 4 days.
We've known for about 5 weeks.

I haven't really been sick (sorry!)...
I have been exhausted...
No, I did not run the marathon on Sunday.
I have been eating ridiculous amounts of food.

The Lord has given us a precious blessing in the midst of an otherwise painful, difficult time.
We are praising Him continually.
I'll fill you in on all the other stories soon!

"Let all that I am praise the Lord 
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
Let all that I am praise the Lord;
may I never forget the good things he does for me."
Psalm 103:1-2

Life Goals

Tonight while putting John Mark to bed, we were talking about growing up.  He was sad about going to a new school and not being with his friends he's been with for the past 4 years.  But then he decided that it was okay and he wanted to grow up to be 8, then 18, then 29 like daddy!

When I asked him what he wanted to do when he grows up he said- "play basketball." 
Then he laid out the specifics:

1.  Play in "The Big House" (we watched the state tournament with my parents there earlier this spring and he talks about it all the time)
2.  Play in Boomer Sooner
3.  Play in the Thunder

So there you have it...  John Mark's life goals. 

it's been a while...

I know it's been a while, since I posted.
I don't have anything of interest to say,
so I'll give you two awesome videos of John Mark.

stopped in my tracks

Do you ever read something and feel it resonate deep into the depths of your heart?  It's a strange sensation, to be reading along and have something stop you dead in your tracks- like the words on the page were written specifically to you.

I get a daily devotion in my inbox each morning- Streams in the Desert, by L.B. Cowman.  I've got this in my inbox for years, and there are times in my life I pay more attention to it than others.  Maybe it's because I'm living in the desert right now, but I've been reading it a bit more closely each morning.  Yesterday, the words at the end of the passage stopped me.  I felt them deep in the very depths of my heart.

"Beloved, do not try to get out of a dark place, except, in God's time and in God's way. The time of trouble is meant to teach you lessons that you sorely need... Premature deliverance may frustrate God's work of grace in your life." --The Still Small Voice


I've spent so much time in the past few weeks trying to figure God out... praying for things to work out in my time frame, in the ways I can see.  And as I sat there in frutstrated silence, wondering how in the world things would ever work out, the Lord spoke to me. 
 
I read the words above and KNEW.  I've been trying to find my own path, light my own way.  And in doing so, I had become frustrated, sad and a little big angry.  As I've prayed and tried to release this anxiety into His hands, He has begun to do a work.  My prayers have changed.  Instead of praying for deliverance and escape, I'm asking for His nearness.  Instead of asking for what I can see, I'm trusting in the unseen.  I'm asking His hand of grace to be upon me, doing a work that only He can do.
 
"Who among you fears the Lord
and obeys his servant?
If you are walking in darkness,
without a ray of light,
trust in the Lord
and rely on your God."
Isaiah 50:10

Micah's Mom: an update

After yet another emotional week of doctors, tests, procedures and the roller coaster ride that is cancer, Micah's mom finally came home yesterday afternoon.  Last night was so nice to be together somewhere that wasn't the hospital.  I think we are all adjusting to this new "normal" for our family. 

Let me back up a bit to tell you where we are headed.  We switched hospitals early last week to be under a doctor who specializes in the Pancreas.  Our hope was that he would be able to do the Whipple procedure.  Unfortunately, the cancer has spread beyond the operable area, making surgery no longer an option.

After a couple smaller surgeries, they were able to relieve some of the pain in her abdomen and she is able to eat.  Yesterday morning they put a port in for her chemo, which will begin in about two weeks.

So that's where we are for right now... just sitting back and waiting.  And thanking the Lord for little blessings along the way.

"Do not fear, for I am with you,
do not anxiously look about you,
for I am your God.
I will strengthen you;
surely I will help you,
surely I will uphold you
with My righteous right hand."
Isaiah 41:10

Marathon Training: Weeks 10 & 11

Wow... I can't believe I only have 5 weeks of marathon training left.  It seems like just yesterday I was trying to decide if I REALLY wanted to do this... and now the moment is almost here.  Unbelievable!

Week 10 was during that awful week  So I only got in my Monday run and a longish run on Saturday.  I don't even have an exact time for my 9ish mile run I did that Saturday.  I had left my Garmin in my car, which was at the hospital with Micah.  And can we take a minute to talk about how weird it feels to run without my garmin after being so attached to it over the past months since I got it?  I was constantly checking my wrist to see nothing there.

Week 11 was more of the same as the week before it, but I was back to work and therefore back to my regular running routine.  At one point, I considered dropping down to the half, just because I know this is so time consuming and I want to be available to Micah and his family.  But he convinced me to go ahead and finish out my training- mainly because he wants me to get this whole "marathon" thing out of my system... ha!

Monday: We were scheduled to run a 5 mile progressive run.  Having been off for almost a whole week, I was feeling sluggish.  I did manage to push and mile 4 was 8:05.  It was a tough run, but it felt nice to be back in my routine.

Wednesday: Another 7 miles, this time with 5 miles of tempo in the middle.  I just couldn't get it in gear and my tempos were all right around 9:30.  I also had my first marathon training wipeout during this run.  I stepped off the sidewalk, and next thing I knew I was laying on the ground.  I got up and finished, it was only when I got home that I realized I had strawberries and bruises on my knees and a hole in my favorite running capris.  Oh well, it could have been worse!


Saturday: The elusive 20 miles... I went to bed Friday night super nervous about running 20 miles.  That just seems so... FAR. 

I met up with Carrie and Kala at 6:15, ran 5 miles back to the car and got some fuel.  Then we set out on 10 miles with the running buddies from church.  About mile 12, it started to get REALLY cold and drizzling.  I hadn't dressed for the temperature drop, so when we got back to the car at mile 16 I was freezing!  Honestly, at that point I would have stopped if Carried hadn't been there to push me on.

We took off on our last 4 miles.  The first mile was into the north wind and it was COLD.  After we turned, it wasn't as bad.  The sun had (somewhat) risen and the drizzle had stopped.  I was feeling really strong when we looked up and saw that a train was completely stopped on the tracks we needed to stop.  We quickly took a turn and went across the bridge under the tracks.  This made our mileage a little long, but I was so glad to be finished. 


Long Run #11: 20 Miles
Average Pace: 9:49
Total Time: 3:14:58

Mile #1:  10:04
Mile #2:  10:13
Mile #3:    9:48
Mile #4:    9:55
Mile #5:  10:02
Mile #6:    9:35
Mile #7:    9:40
Mile #8:    9:37
Mile #9:    9:40
Mile #10:10:08
Mile #11:  9:45
Mile #12:  9:33
Mile #13:  9:31
Mile #14:  9:49
Mile #15:  9:37
Mile #16: 10:23
Mile #17:  9:52
Mile #18:  9:35
Mile #19:  9:38
Mile #20: 10:24

I can't believe we're almost to the race taper point.  We've got 2 more weeks of hard training, then it's taper time.  Speaking of, I've got 7 miles EARLY tomorrow, so I should go to bed.

blessings

A sweet friend told me about this song last week.
It's been on repeat since then.
Every time I listen to it, a new part speaks to me.
I hope it speaks to you.

 

What if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know you’re near
What if trials of this life
Are Your mercies in disguise?

what a week, round 2

"I would have despaired unless I had believed
that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD;
Be strong and let your heart take courage:
Yes, wait for the LORD."
Psalm 27:13-14

This verse sums up 2011 so far.  Because without the belief that God's goodness is surrounding me in the wait, I would most DEFINITELY despaired.

Saturday evening I got a call from Micah's sister letting me know they had taken her mom to the ER.  She was having serious abdominal pain and her skin was turning yellow.  A CAT scan revealed something in her pancreas blocking her liver.  They thought it could be a tumor, so she was admitted about 3AM Sunday morning.

Fast forward to Wednesday- the oncologist met with the family to tell them what he found in the tests that had been done so far.  Basically they were met with a couple different scenarios- the cancer could have NOT spread and be contained in the tumor.  This would lead to a very intense and invasive Whipple procedure.   If the cancer HAD spread to other areas, we would talk about different treatment options depending on the extent of the spreading. Only 2% of patients fall into the first scenario...

A series of tests were ordered for Friday morning, a PET scan and a laparoscopic, centrifuge test.  These would reveal a clearer picture of where exactly the cancer was in her body.  We left the hospital Wednesday and Thursday nervous and asking the Lord for the cancer to be contained in the area capable of being removed.

Today was a day filled with waiting.  John Mark went with my parents to hang out and play for the day so I was able to be with Micah.  A little over 2 hours after she went back for the test, she was back and immediately taken back to be prepped for the next series of tests.  They let us know the first test had revealed only 2 small spots on her liver, so she was cleared to go on with the next test.

After 8 hours of waiting, the surgeon came out to let us know the cancer appeared to be contained to the tumor.  They removed part of the spots on her liver to be biopsied.  If the results of the biopsy and the other test come back clean, they will move forward with the Whipple procedure sometime next week.

To say it's been an intense week would be an understatement.  Through it all I have seen the peace that transcends all understanding in Micah and his family.  I have felt the support of the body of Christ- through prayers, messages, coffee, sitting with me in the waiting room, staying the night with me... we are blessed.

There's still a long road ahead of us, and I would ask you to please pray.  We know that the Lord is Sovereign and in control of every circumstance of our lives.

"there is a light
that burns brighter than the sun
He steals the night and casts no shadows
there is HOPE
should oceans rise and mountains fall
He never fails"
--take heart, hillsong
(aka my life theme song)

the only one

I've always been a people pleaser... I lived the majority of my life believing no one would ever REALLY like me.  I always thought I could never be pretty enough or funny enough or smart enough- so I took the backseat to life and followed behind whoever was willing to lead me.  I went to college and hid behind a back-home boyfriend.  When I did (finally) branch out and make one friend, I held onto her until I allowed her negativity to permeate my very core and drive everyone else out of my life.  I got married and spent time trying to give off the constant appearance of having everything together.

A couple of VERY tough lessons came within my first year of marriage.  I was forced to lay down my pride and arrogance, to ask myself a very difficult question, one pulled straight from the heart of scripture: "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ."  Galatians 1:10.

So I spent a solid year in the Word and with some women I trusted greatly.  I began to recognize the lies I had believed about myself for years.  I started to finally see myself as the masterpiece God had created me to be.  It was a beautiful, freeing experience.  I got out of my comfort zone... I made new friends... I started teaching a small group of MS students... I began to believe that He who began this good work in me would be faithful to complete it.

That was a little over 6 years ago and since then my life has changed drastically.  I wish I could say from that point on I never had anymore struggles with insecurity and my need to please people, but of course that would be a lie.  A couple of weeks ago, after some things had been said to me by a couple of different people, I began to doubt everything about my life.  I found myself in that place of doubt, wondering if I could ever be good enough.  Then I read this quote and it stopped me dead in my tracks:

The ONLY ONE who has a right to shape our lives is Jesus Christ. --Francis Frangipane

I read that quote, closed the book I read it in and immediately fell to my knees in my living room.  I had been allowing the people around me to shape my life.  So I examined my heart against the only opinion that matters.  And I found Him there with open arms, waiting for me to ask forgiveness and start again on this journey of freedom.

What has He taught you today?

Marathon Training: Week 9

We are officially past the halfway point in our training.  I can't believe I've made it to this point.  After this weeks 18 miles, I only have one more distance I haven't conquered yet- besides the marathon, obviously!  It's also a reason to celebrate- nice, spring weather is finally on it's way!  For the first time, our early morning runs were in capris and long-sleeve T's!

Monday: The schedule called for a 7 mile, "hill" training run... however, our early morning coordinator- Rosemarie- was unable to run early that morning.  And considering the hill workout Carrie put us through on Saturday, neither one of us felt up to running up and down a hill.  So we set out on 7 relatively easy miles.  My legs felt like lead, and I just couldn't get going.


Wednesday: I woke up feeling good, surprisingly ready for the 7 mile tempo run we had scheduled.  Can I just tell you how bizarre it is that 7 miles is now our weekday run?  I ran my tempo miles all under 9:00, which was exciting to me.  I think I felt the need to redeem my 10k from the weekend before.  I ended that run feeling better than I had on a weekday run in a while.

Friday: Instead of doing our long run on Saturday, it was easier to put those miles in on Friday.  Kala had to go out of town early Saturday morning, and I was anxious to get these 18 miles out of the way.  We were looking for a change of scenery, so we met at a park on the other side of town. 

We did a 5.5 mile loop through the park, back to our cars for fuel and water.  After some tummy and blood sugar issues on the past couple of long runs, I decided to try a different gel.  Accel gel has protein mixed into the formula, so I thought it was worth a shot.  I'm happy to say this is my new go-to fuel for long runs.  My stomach didn't hurt once and I didn't feel lightheaded or woozy.  Plus, I felt strong until the very end of this run.  In fact, this might have been my favorite long run to date!

We stopped once during the second loop of our run to potty.  I had some sport beans, and the caffeine in those really gave me a boost!  I really think the combination of a gel with protein and taking in more fuel during the run was KEY!

It wasn't until the last two miles of the run that I started to even feel tired.  And I was so angry, because I knew at that point, I wasn't even feeling tired physically.  It was all mental!  I started singing an old Rebecca St. James song- "You make the road rise up to meet me, You make the sun shine warm upon my face... God I lift You high, You are my Abba."  That helped, and before I knew it, 18 miles were done!  Another personal distance record for this girl is in the books.

Unfortunately, I once again messed up my garmin during the run, so my times are a little off.  I only show 17.25 miles, but Kala assured me I ran the full 18.

Long Run #9: 18 Miles
Average Pace: 9:35 (according to Kala)
Total Time: 2:56

Mile #1:   9:40
Mile #2:   9:20
Mile #3:   9:34
Mile #4:   9:12
Mile #5:   9:46
Mile #6: 10:04
Mile #7: 10:08
Mile #8: 10:04
Mile #9:   9:51
Mile #10: 9:33
Mile #11: 9:42
Mile #12: 9:20
Mile #13: 9:31
Mile #14: 9:39
Mile #15: 9:33
Mile #16: 9:44
Mile #17: 10:00

Marathon Training: Week 8

I know this is over a week late, but I am just getting around to posting.
I'll post week 9 later today.
Also, I promise this isn't turning into a running blog.
It's just all that's on my brain lately.

Monday: We met at our usual place and set off on a 6 mile progressive run.  1 mile warm-up, followed by a faster pace for each mile that follows.  Our last mile was right at 8 minutes.  It was hard, but not totally awful.  I can tell I'm getting stronger.

Wednesday: I woke up with an awful allergy headache, and just generally felt yucky.  I was in the bathroom getting dressed when I decided I just couldn't do it.  It was partially that I didn't feel great physically, but mentally I was wiped too.  So I texted the girls and went back to bed.

Saturday: The schedule called for 14 miles, but the Creek Classic 10K was that morning.  Carrie and I decided to meet early, run 6, then do the 10K.  This could also be called the time Carrie tried to kill me.  We woke up that morning to temps in the 30s with wind from the north at 30mph.  Just FYI, those are not ideal running conditions.

We drove out to deer creek and set off from the school parking lot.  The first 4 miles weren't too bad, just cold.  Then we turned and headed north... for 2 miles... straight UPHILL.  Seriously.  We turned around at the end and looked back to a complete incline.  It was literally the most awful 20 minutes of my life.  BUT... we did it.  And I know that runs like that are what make us stronger and better.

After our 6 miles, we went into the school and warmed up.  I changed my shirt into one that wasn't sweaty and ate my fuel.  I started feeling much better and was ready for the 10K.  I've only ran one other race that distance and that was several years ago.  I ended up with a 10K PR- 54:43.  I wanted so badly to come in under 54:00, but at mile 4 I had burned through all of my fuel and ended up bent over, praying I didn't pass out.  I still finished with great times, but it just wasn't what I was hoping for.

I messed up my garmin during the first half of the run, but I have the splits for the 10K.


Long Run #8: Creek Classic 10K, 6.2 Miles
Average Pace: 8:47
Total Time: 54:43:26

Mile #1:   9:02
Mile #2:   8:36
Mile #3:   8:26
Mile #4:   8:37
Mile #5:   8:49
Mile #6:   9:07

Marathon Training: Week 7

I feel like these are getting monotonous...
I ran.
It was cold.
I was tired.
I was sore.
The End.

Just kidding.  I am writing these for my own memories of this time of training.  It was a relatively normal week.  I've got to get back in my Tuesday evening BodyPump groove though.  It's been too long since I've been to a class.  I bet I've lost all the strength I had gained.

Back to running.  This was a step-down week after our first longer than half-marathon run.  It was a welcome break.

Monday- The schedule only called for 4 miles!  1 mile warm-up followed by 2 miles of fartleks and 1 mile cool down.  It was a welcome break from hour long weekday runs.  I also figured out how to set up a workout and import it to my garmin.  I'm sure that makes me a nerd, but it was nice not to have to look down every few seconds to see where we were in the sprints.

Wednesday- I definitely slept through my alarm.  I woke up at 5:37 to Carrie calling me.  We normally meet at 5:30, and I knew I had no chance of getting there in time.  I was so sad.  They told me that everyone gets one "sleep-in" so I have used mine up.  Ha!

Friday- Micah and I had a disciple now over the weekend and Carrie was going to be out of town, so we decided to do the long run on Friday morning.  It was SUPER cold when we woke up.  I bundled up and headed out to our meeting place.

We made a 6 mile loop back to the car, got our water and honey stingers.  As soon as we took off for our next 7 mile loop, I knew I should have eaten more stingers.

At mile 11, my stomach started to cramp SO BAD.  I knew it was just that I needed more calories.  I made it to mile 13 and the car and got some more stingers.  As we stood there drinking our water, Carrie said- "so, have you noticed that those are SNOW FLURRIES falling from the sky?"

We took off for our last 3 miles.  Those miles hurt really bad.  At one point, we were almost to 1.5 miles and we were coming on a hill.  I knew if I went down that hill, I'd never make it back up.  Carrie agreed and we turned around.  It required a little extra loop in the street, but we made it back to the car right at 16 miles.

Long Run #7: 16 Miles
Average Pace: 9:20
Total Time: 2:29:02

Mile #1:   9:40
Mile #2:   9:19
Mile #3:   9:22
Mile #4:   9:28
Mile #5:   9:16
Mile #6:   9:24
Mile #7:   9:32
Mile #8:   9:07
Mile #9:   9:22
Mile #10: 9:19
Mile #11: 9:14
Mile #12: 9:19
Mile #13: 8:54
Mile #14: 9:10
Mile #15: 9:20
Mile #16: 9:01

Funny random story- after I was finished, I ran into 7-11 to get some muscle milk (my favorite post long run recovery drink).  As I was checking out, the girl asked me "what is that big ol' thing on your wrist?"  I looked down and realized me she was talking about my garmin.  I tried explaining that to her, but she just couldn't get it.  I gave up after a minute and headed home.

I spent the weekend running all over the city and didn't really feel to bad.  It was a great start to an amazing weekend.

Marathon Training: Week 6

I know I skipped weeks 4 and 5... but basically- it snowed.  I did a few runs on the treadmill.  That's about it.  Nothing exciting to report.

Let's move on to week 6- a personal distance record!
That's right- I ran 15 miles today.
But let's back up to the week of training leading up to the long run.

Monday- You know you've been training in dang cold weather when you wake up, see 39 degrees is the temp and get excited about how warm it is!  We did 6 miles, a 1 mile warm-up, 4 miles of fartleks (speed intervals that are crazy hard!) and 1 mile cool down.  My goal was to run as hard as I possibly could for those 1/4 mile intervals.  I averaged in the 7's for them.  Crazy.

Wednesday- Carrie was back!  I hadn't got to run with her in a couple of weeks and had seriously missed my running buddy!  We had a 6 mile tempo run on the schedule.  The 3 miles we did in tempo were 8:20, 8:10 and 8:03.  It was a great run, and I left feeling stronger and more confident about the 15 miler on the schedule for this weekend.

Saturday- Today marked a new personal distance record for me!  I woke up to 60 degrees and 90% humidity.  After running in freezing temps, I was a sweaty mess by the end of the first few miles.  Carrie and I met early and did 5 miles before meeting up with the rest of the group for 10.  This was a hilly course, and a few times, I kind of wanted to cry.  But we pushed through and ended up with a great time.

Long Run #6: 15 Miles
Average Pace: 9:13
Total Time: 2:18:29

Mile #1:   9:50 (SUPER dark out)
Mile #2:   9:03
Mile #3:   9:25
Mile #4:   9:28
Mile #5:   9:18
Mile #6:   9:13
Mile #7:   9:12
Mile #8:   9:13
Mile #9:   9:24
Mile #10: 8:52
Mile #11: 8:57
Mile #12: 9:06
Mile #13: 9:05 (smashed half marathon PR)
Mile #14: 9:10
Mile #15: 8:53

Overall, it was an amazing week.  Our mileage continues to move on up and I'm going to be setting new distance records every week.  Hopefully we're through with snowstorms and negative degree temps.  Today, although it was humid, was great weather!  Now I need to go take a nap and recover...

a dream come true

Yesterday, one of my lifelong dreams came true.
I heard Sandi Patty live.
And not only that... I met her.
And got a hug.
AND a picture.
I can die happy now.