Mercedes Marathon

I keep forgetting to post about my first marathon in February. It was a great experience and I didn't die!;) Although I hit mile 18 and pretty much hit a wall.  My final time was 4:18.  Which I am happy about.  My goal was just to finish and get under 4:30.  My calves cramped a ton after mile 23 and even had some spasms in my foot that I couldn't control, but they didn't last long.  I learned alot from that race.  Since then I ran my best 5k time post kids, 22:43. I also ran my best half marathon time on a very hilly course in Homewood, Al in 1:52.13.  My goals now are to run in Tallahassee full marathon in Feb. of 2014.  The people I train with are shooting to BQ, but I know that is a very far reaching goal for me.  I would have to get under 3:40.  I would love to break four hours in that race.  I also want to break 1:50 in the half marathon and am setting my sights on Talladega in September and Florence in October.  It is great meeting with friends pretty consistently now 2-3 times a week for speed work and hills.  Getting up at 4am doesn't seem so bad knowing I have that accountability and fun running with them.  I have also been going to body pump at the Y twice a week and spin class once a week.  I just wish I could get healthier eating habits going more consistently.  Definitely going to do better at this! All in all I'm enjoying the running experience, loving the challenges and hard work it brings.  Just hope my body holds up and my feet stay healthy...still dealing with a lot of heel pain, but getting some new shoes in the next couple of days! I am looking forward to that! Soli deo Gloria!

Well, the Mercedes Marathon is 9 days away.  I am getting nervous, but also very excited! I ran two 20 milers, both at 3 hours and 18 minutes! This past Sunday Kasey and I ran the trial course of the marathon in downtown Birmingham.  We ran it in 1 hour and 57 minutes.  I felt good about this, because my PR for 13.1 is 1:54.  We kept a steady pace, speeding up the last three miles.  My plan is to stay with Kasey for as long as I can during the marathon.  She wants to try to get an 8:50 pace.  This might be too fast for me, but I'm going to try and stay with her as long as I can anyway.  I might  regret it 16 miles in but oh well. ;) We have our last long run on Saturday, 10 miles, then just going to try to take it easy next week and not eat too much!;) Not easy with it being Valentines week, and my love for chocolate!;)

I am excited to be running with my friend Sherry, and helping her to achieve her goals.  Also been spinning with my friend Misty, and Sherry too.  We all plan to run in the Rumpshaker 5k at the end of March, which I think it will be lots of fun!

My heel feels great.  I finally went to the doctor and got some good steroids, and I can't believe the difference.  I hope it continues to feel great even though I just finished with the steroids.  So thankful for that! It makes running so much more enjoyable! Ready or not 26.2 here I come!!;)

Blogging

I keep forgetting to journal my runs on here! I must admit, I am a terrible blogger. I can keep up with facebook but that's about it! I'm up to 17 miles right now.  I run 18 this weekend.  I've been concerned about my heel a lot lately.  It's been hurting so much, especially the more miles I do, and to add to it my Achilles is hurting again! I did get new shoes today (Brooks Ghost) I've heard good things about them.  I also got Orthotic inserts to help with the heel pain.  The girl at Track Shack was very helpful and said it was Plantar Fascitis.  I am going to try her hints of using a golf ball rolled on my heel.  It sounds painful, but I will do anything.  I really just want to finish this marathon.  My goal is to get under 4:30, but I know that anything could happen during a race that long.  So I am trying to focus on finishing no matter what the time! I got to run on my high schools new track over the holiday's.  It brought back a lot of memories.  Hard to believe I graduated 17 years ago...I am old, and I feel it but I'm trying to fight it!;) I wish I could run pain free right now, but it probably won't happen till after the marathon when I can fully rest it.  I've been running the three day a week schedule with spinning or body pump 1-2 times per week.  I sure am thankful for Helena endurance running group, and especially for my sweet friend Kasey who lets me run with her even though I'm slower.  I so enjoy running with her! So anyways, that's what's going on in my running world!;) Thanks for reading!

My running week!

This is my training for this week October 28-November 3rd:
Sunday - Rest after UCP half marathon
Monday - 45 minute spinning class with Kasey
Tuesday - Run 3 miles in 28 minutes near my house.
Wednesday - Ran 5 miles with Kasey in her hilly neighborhood.
Thursday - Speed work on the Treadmill at the Y:
                   1 mile warm up 8:57 pace
                   6x400 at 7:24 pace
                    6x400 at 8:57 pace
Friday - Rest
Saturday - Vulcan 10k run in hilly downtown Birmingham.  Felt very tired, started way too fast, my first mile was 7:30! My heel hurt the entire race especially the last 100 yards when I sped up a little.  I have been limping all day.  I think it might be plantar fascitis, but I'm not sure.  I don't want to go to the doctor, but think I might have to.  I might just do spinning classes all this week.  I plan to do 13 miles this Saturday with Kasey for her 20 mile long run.  I know I need to rest it, especially since I have the last of the three half marathons on November 18th(Magic City half).

Running history

So I started running again in 2011 after having five kids.  For almost 7 years I was either pregnant or nursing. Taking care of five kids five and under, homeschooling and just living life didn't leave much time for exercising.  So in 2011 after seeing my sis in law run in a half marathon I decided I wanted to run one to...just once! I ran my first one in April of 2011 in the Country Music half marathon in Nashville, TN.  I ran it in 2:27.  I pretty much hit a wall on mile 9, and I can't remember the last part of that race!;) I was not prepared or ready for it at all.  So I decided after that to do Insanity.  I did it for four weeks and hurt my knee pretty bad. So I took the next six months off and didn't do anything. I gained weight and felt horrible! So on January 1st, 2012. I got up at 6am and ran 6 miles.  It was the start of my training for the Mercedes half that was only a little over a month away.  I was able to run with a friend and ran it in 18 degree weather, and ran it in 2 hours and 16 minutes.  Much improved, but I still felt I could do better.  I kept up with my running, running by myself about 3-4 times a week whenver I could fit it in.  Mostly at night after the kids were in bed, which is never a good time to run or a safe time.  I ran the Nashville half again in April and came in at 2:13 despite the hills and heat.  After this, I heard about the Helena Endurance Running Group (HERG) that met together on Saturday mornings to run.  I started runnng with them, and it helped me so much to run with a group, and stay accountable and motivated.  Through this group I met Kasey, and we started running together during the week as well.  She gave me speed workouts to do and we met at the Y to do them on the treadmill once a week in the morning.  We then started meeting in the morning one day a week and running hills in her neighborhood. 
This fall I signed up for the Triple Crown Challenge which is running in three different half marathons, and after completing all three you get a special medal and t-shirt.  I was up for this challenge, so I signed up for it.  The first race was at the Talladega Superspeedway, which was awesome.  I beat my PR by 12 minutes and came in at 2:01.23.  I was very happy with this, but now had that itch to break that 2 hour mark! The second half marathon was the United Cerebal Palsey race in Florence, AL! I came in at 1:54.50.  I was shocked at the time.  I didn't feel really bad until the last mile, and kept up an 8:45 pace.  I have had a few nagging injuries.  One being my Achilles that has hurt me since the Nashville race in April.  It is getting better, but after this last race my heel has been bothering me feeling like a deep bruise in it.  I am going to start spinning with Kasey once a week as well and running four days a week! I have started the Hal Higdon Novice 1 marathon training for the Mercedes marathon in February! I am very excited for this journey, and am even thinking about trying out a small Triathalon next year.  Guess I need to buy a bike and learn how to swim better!;) Thanks for joining me in this journey and I hope some part of this inspires you as well! To God be the glory!

Giving it all for HIM!

This is our sponsored child from Compassion International.  He is from Brazil.  His name is Henrique.  Lately the Lord has put in my heart and in my path the tremendous need for orphans, for the poor and needy! It breaks my heart every time I read a post or a blog about the orphans (there are over 149 million of them) I want to do so many BIG things to help! But today I was reminded of the two sponsored children we help.  Most of the time all I see them as is a bill we pay each month that goes to Compassion or towards World Vision.  Today I was challenged by Ann Voskamp, she said, "I’m wildly angry that I want to forget the struggle of the poor so I can pin the next pretty idea on Pinterest."
I could say the same after reading this post.  I am angry at myself for caring more about my comfort, of having a nice home, going out to eat more often than I care to admit, having healthy kids and just taking for granted all the blessings I have! I need to do more.  I need to care more! I want my heart to break at the things that break the heart of God! So I was challenged today to do what I can now, do the small things.  Write to my sponsored children more often.  Talk about them with my kids more, pray for them more!

How am I loving? Am I loving God and loving others with all that I am and giving God all the glory for it? Am I stepping out of my comfort zone and giving all, am I willing to suffer for the cause of Christ? Just some things that have been in my heart lately...JESUS He is worth it ALL!

Summer 2012

Here is our family beach picture that we had taken this summer from our wonderful friend Sherry of Synergy Photography.  We had such a great time at this session, and I thought it was amazing that she got everyone to look and smile for this picture! We also had a great time playing on the beach with her family.  I am treasuring the moments and memories with my family this summer. 

We are now preparing for the new School year that is fast approaching.  I am so thankful for the Lords great blessings! To God be the glory!

What's on my heart.

James 1:27 says that "pure and undefiled religion is this, to visit widows and orphans in their distress".  -The Lord sure has put this on my heart lately! It doesn't get any clearer than that! The bible commands us to take care of widows, to take care of orphans.  My heart breaks for the orphans I see in pictures, that I read about in blogs.  I want to DO something! I don't want to just sit here and feel sorry for them! I keep asking the Lord how can I help, what can I do? I tell Him I am willing, I am ready.  Do I wait, or do I try to make things happen on my own.  I really want to get involved with foster care.  I am praying that the Lord would put this on Stan's heart too! I want to make a difference, I want to take care of the children who don't have parents, or parents who just can't take care of them right now.  So I wait, I pray and I hope that God would make it clear how I can be involved! I am willing, it is scary but I refuse to let fear stand in my way!
Psalm 86:11, "Teach me Your way, O Lord, that I may walk in Your Truth; unite my heart to fear your Name."

The kids in Florida!Caleb

Kimmy

Morgan

Joshy

Nathan

It's Christmas time.  Two weeks of no school work.  I have so many things I want to get done during that time.  Since homeschooling takes up so much of my time and energy I want to accomplish some things.  Some of those things are...
Making a scrapbook for my parents for Christmas.
Catching up on the laundry.
Cleaning this house from top to bottom.
Making Christmas shirts with the kids.
Baking with the kids, and
of course blogging!
I am terrible at blogging.  Mostly because I don't have time, but also because I think who really cares what I have to say.  I've never been good at journaling, but it is fun to read others blogs and they are always so inspirational to me. 
I do want to put up some new pictures of the kids that were taken this past August on a very HOT day! They were taken by my wonderful friend, Sherry of Synergy Photography!

FEAR

A while back while sitting at the hair dresser, and completely out of the blue, I had a seizure, well what the "experts" say was a seizure.  I think it was probably fainting! They never found anything wrong with me! So last Sunday I was standing in the choir and we were singing There is Power in the Blood and all of a sudden I got really dizzy and light headed.  I really thought I was going to pass out.  So quickly I made a choice to leave the choir in the middle of the song.  I would rather be embarrassed by leaving the choir rather than falling out in the choir loft, which I would die if that ever happened!!! So this morning before church I was a little nervous about singing again.  I tried hard not to think about it.  But half way through being up there I started to feel light headed and dizzy again.  My heart started beating a mile a minute, my legs were shaking and I could not make them stop! So I started praying! I did not want to leave two weeks in a row, so I told myself nothing happened last week, it wouldn't happen this week.  We started to sing the choir special and in part of the song it talked about how Jesus takes away our fear.  I knew then that God was going to get me through, but I was still shaking and my heart still felt like it was going to beat out of my chest! I kept looking at Lisa (our choir director) and smiling and trying to focus on the words of the song! I have never felt fear like that! Not fear of being up there but fear that I was going to pass out or have a seizure up there! I have never had a panic attack before but that is what it felt like.  My dad and my sister both have panic attacks.  My dads fear is talking in front of people, my sister's is elevator's.  She cannot ride on one! I always thought they could get passed their fear if they just tried and put their mind to it! But after this morning I believe it is real! I am not one to give into my fear, and I will fight this and not give into it, but for the first time I believe fears can effect you in a very real way! But I do know that "God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of love sound mind and power..."
I am so thankful for His peace that got me through that whole episode this morning! I so want to worship Him this Ressurection Sunday without any fear! Since being in choir I found such freedom in worship! I love to worship my Savior! He is so worthy!

Spring Fun!

Kimmy and Joshy Kissin!

I am helping to coach Caleb and Morgan's T-ball team.  We are having fun together! They make me so proud!

Why Facebook (and Your Church) Might Be Making You Sad

Why Facebook (and Your Church) Might Be Making You Sad
A great article, take time to read!

Nature hike

Today we went on a nature hike. 

Facebook break

So I have decided to take a facebook break! I have been feeling convicted for a while about the time that I spend on it.  I don't know how long this break will be, I just know that I needed it.  I also took the PS3 away from the kids.  I usually only let them play it about an hour a day.  But since my 3 year asks me about every five minutes if he can play it I know that he was addicted and also like me needed a break.  He is way too young to be playing it at all anyways! So instead during that time we will focus on reading, playing outside together, playing UNO or just being together without any of these other distractions!

I do believe there is a deeper reason for taking this break, I really want to stop hiding behind this computer screen and truly spend time with people face to face.  I am naturally a quieter person than most so it is easier for me to hide behind my quiet nature instead of putting myself out there and be real and open with others, instead of living in fear of rejection! It is also easy to hide behind it when we live the military life, which includes moving every few years and having to start all over with new friends, new church family.  I hate goodbyes and I hate change, so instead of closing myself off to others I want to give my all, serving others, loving others and be an encouragement whenever I can with the time I have left before we have to move again! I'm so thankful for the people the Lord has put into my life, I don't deserve any of them! I desire to be a faithful, encouraging  and loving friend and I desire this with all my heart!

Snow day!

So we got about an inch of snow today.  It started snowing last night while we were at church, and the kids loved running to the van in it.  It was really coming down hard.  This morning I really didn't want to get out in it, but the kids were begging! Joshy and Nathan have had pink eye the past two days, so I didn't know if I should let them out in it.  I gave in and I think they didn't stay out for more than 20 minutes in it.  I captured a few pictures with my broken camera, I sure do miss it! At least it still takes them, with me holding the lens firmily in place!;) We sure are thankful for all of God's blessings, even fun snow days! I sure am looking forward to spring though!;)

"Where is another God like you, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of His special people? You will not stay angry with Your people forever,because You delight in showing unfailing love. Once again You will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under Your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!" ~ Micah 7:18-19

I saw this verse on another friends post! I love being reminded of God's grace and mercy, how He throws our sins into the depths of the ocean.  My sin that held Him to the cross, the sins He knew I would commit even before I was born.  He still went to the cross and He still died for me, and He doesn't hold it against me.  Then I think of all the times I have held others sins against them.  Instead of giving them grace and forgiveness like the Lord gave me! Lord, Help me to see other's as YOU see them! To love with your Holy Spirit! Thankyou for your amazing grace!