a life beyond running shoes.

a year. wow. even as i process being with my husband's family last week, i am still overwhelmed by how quickly it went, yet how significant of a year it has been that it seemed to have crawled by at the same time. sweet pea was only six weeks old when my father-in-law died. she is getting so big. these guys are all within four weeks of each other. (sorry locks.... didn't mean to capture you in tears) this is how i know that time is passing. i also realize that i don't feel as raw. i don't feel as if i am walking around with my nerves endings on the outside of my skin. i can still get bowled over by my grief, but it doesn't come as often. and god's comfort and grace come more quickly. it has been a long year..... but we are still resting in the arms of our savior. he has been good.... all year.

it is a strange thing to realize your life was altered significantly a year ago. my husband and i flew down to florida to be with his family on the one year anniversary of his dad's death. strange to say, but it was nice to have the occasion to reflect, remember, rejoice. in the midst of daily life, work, school, busyness, those moments can slip by. we got to gather, sing god's praises, tell stories of god's goodness in the midst of sorrow, and laugh. lots of laughing. there were tears.... but there was more laughter. i remember singing jesus, i am resting last year. it still was like a salve to my soul again this year...... jesus, i am resting, resting in the joy of what thou art. i am find out the greatness of thy loving heart. oh how great thy loving kindness, vaster, broader than the see. oh, how marvelous thy goodness lavished all on me. yes, i rest in thee, beloved, know what wealth of grace is thine, know thy certainty of promise and have made it mine. every lif...

i had a date with my new 5 year old. we went and saw our first musical (off broadway). 101 dalmatians . he loved it; i tolerated it. he did not want to go back stage to meet our friend from the show. he is 5 and was hungry: sushi. in the city. he ate half this plate. the business lunch next to us thought he was a riot. then, we got home..... the perfect day was over.... scooter was stolen off stoop. little bit wet his pants 2 feet from toilet. sweet pea had a screaming fit - 102 fever. she pooped in the bathtub three times. we went to the school potluck.... it was the wrong night. it was a poor end to a great day. i am thankful for the my little man that is getting so big.

his favorite place. (in this photo he had to get up and dance with the mouse..... not his idea of fun but he was a champ and a good sport!) games, tokens, tickets, and a mouse thrown in for fun. he was bouncing around all day. i guess he had fun..... i know i had a ball watching him enjoy the day. here is the cake i made. think it is optimus prime....but i am not totally sure. it is a good thing we don't go big for every birthday. i am exhausted!

while we did not capture a good easter picture yesterday..... we did celebrate big! we feasted for easter sunday, rejoiced over the resurrection, broke bread with friends, and sang heartily. we also had my mother-in-law to help celebrate the big 5 year old. amazing. how did that happen?! 36 cupcakes after church during the potluck...... does it get any better than that? well, maybe..... he gets to go to chuck e. cheese on friday and skip school!

2:15:20 i beat my last race time by 4 minutes. i loved my cheering section. they really helped for that last half mile. what a day. it was hard, but i finished. and the final fundraising total for team world vision was $250,000. way to go!!!

while on vacation with the kids this week, i got to do one more final run. 26 minutes. 40 degrees. country roads. hills. faster pace partner. rain. thanks a million, jessie! while it might not do anything for my race on saturday, i think it did heaps for me mentally. i have done all my training. 12 weeks..... long runs, intervals, speed work, hills.... i finished! now let's just run 13.1 miles. oh boy!