Weekend-ing

Happy Sunday!  I hope everyone has enjoyed their weekend!  We were VERY ready for a weekend off, after the kids’ first full week of school.  Katie and Zachary were ready to sleep in and Tyler was ready to hunt and fish.  We headed to the cabin as soon as school was out on Friday and sometime that evening I decided that my Saturday would be filled trying to be Betty Crocker:

Can’t take the credit for these, Zachary made these chocolate chip cookies!

 

Homemade peace cobbler x 2!  This is my go-to dessert because it’s one of the few that I make from scratch…dough and all!  (And it’s also the prettiest!)  

Paula Deen’s Chocolate Chip Zucchini  Bread – Oh so good!  And it’s healthy right?  It has vegetables!

 

My stove full of goodies.  I ended up making 2 more loaves of the zucchini bread without nuts and I put them in the freezer to enjoy later!

 

And what baking expedition would be complete without Katie making her special cupcakes!  Oh, she makes quite the mess but she LOVES it and has so much fun!

This morning, feeling very heavy from my multiple tastings and BBQ at the neighbors (!), I set out on my walk.  I was so excited when I walked out the door this morning and had to go back in for my jacket!!!  I L-O-V-E fall!!  Yippee for crisp, fall air!  So as I’m sure you can imagine, I didn’t walk for long.  My right leg is still sore when I start off running, but after a few minutes it feels fine…so I don’t know what’s going on there.  I won’t even tell you what kind of junk runs through my mind when discomfort/pain has no obvious cause.  You can imagine.  But anyway, I ran 10 miles and it was glorious!  I didn’t ever take my jacket off and loved every minute of it.  After my run, promptly did this:

I sat my booty on the banks of the river and soaked my legs.  I’m tellin you, this is best kind of ice bath you could ever have!  It was sooooo stinkin’ cold at first but after awhile, I think my legs just went numb.  I tried this attempting to minimize the leg soreness…we’ll see.

 

So now I’m back home relaxing in the recliner.  Probably won’t do much for what’s left of the day.  Just watched our Cardinals win again…10 games up in the NL Central!!! 

GO CARDS!!!

Had To Try

Good late-morning, blog friends! I hope that this hump day is going well so far for everybody! So far, so good here!

As you can probably guess from my title, I ran…just a little, I promise!…this morning. Kim and I went for a lovely 4 mile walk yesterday morning, and since she is in class on MWF I headed out by myself this morning for the same 4.mile.walk. Well, about 2 1/2 miles into it, I picked it up a little and jogged. Ok, not too much, just a couple of minutes, just to test my legs. It felt so good! But, I didn’t want to push it, so I made myself slow it back down to a fast walk. Walk, walk, walk. About mile 3.1, I gave in to myself and ran. My legs barked at me a little, but it felt so good that I couldn’t stop! Sometimes, there is nothing better than a little run. I ran 2 more miles, bringing my stat line to this:

TIME	1:03:29
DISTANCE	5.19 MILES
PACE	12:13 MIN/MILE

My legs are already stiff, but in a good way ;-) I am taking it easier, though, so that counts for something right?! Stubborn, stubborn Erica… Hmmmmm, seems I remember that phrase somewhere from my childhood. Oops! :-P

JAVA & JESUS

In my daily devotional this morning, the verse was this:

“He has made everything beautiful in its time.” Ecclesiastes 3:11

Part of the reading that spoke to me this morning, was this: “God will never allow any hurt to come into our lives that He can’t use for eternity.” Amen! I fully believe that my diagnosis with breast cancer is this sentence fulfilled. God has used something that could have been a dark and doom-filled time in our family’s life to draw us closer to Him. This past 11+ months have been such a spiritual journey; one that I wouldn’t trade for anything. And my prayer is that it is just a jumping-off point. How exciting!

If you are in some sort of trying time right now, and it doesn’t have to be health-related - it could be family, work, faith, school, whatever. But if this is you, don’t worry…God can and will use it for good, for eternity. It is all part of His perfect plan and rest assured, we are tightly IN HIS GRIP!

Have a wonderful rest of your Wednesday, friends!

It’s A New Week

Welcome Monday! Maybe I should’ve said that with a little less gusto…w e l c o m e monday…Haha. But that’s how we all woke up this morning…ugh. I set the alarm for 6am but Jack didn’t wake me up, he “assumed I heard it…” So everybody woke up at 7. I don’t like this for three reasons:

1. I don’t get to have my sunrise java and Jesus time…will have it here shortly, but I LOVE the early morning quiet time before everybody else is up.
2. I have to try to get myself + Katie ready and fed (the boys pretty much do it themselves), and she is very s-l-o-w mover in the morning. She really needs constant, loving, prodding for the full hour. ;o)
3. If there is any pre-school things that need to be done, being time crunched certainly doesn’t help in getting the lunch menus/money ready, backpacks loaded, and usually homework found.

But the kids are at school safe and sound (and on time) and I am back home continuing on my cleaning spree. It all began yesterday with an energy spurt that led to to tackle Katie’s closet. Remember this?

Well, it is now this:

Quite dramatic, no?! YES! Clothes have been gone through to find all the ones that actually still fit her, broken toys have been weeded out and pitched, and other toys have been put back with their mates. Have I mentioned that I really don’t like Polly Pockets?! Sheesh, there are tiny pieces of plastic Polly clothes and shoes everywhere! But it was an awesome task and I feel so good that it’s done.

So, on to today… After much back and forth over the last few days, I have decided to take the week off from running. My legs muscles are absolutely screaming for it. And when I stop to think about it, I can’t remember the last time I took time off. Yeah, that’s not good. Of course, I would have to choose the most beautiful week we have had here all summer…morning temps in the 50s, daytime highs in the low 80s…grrrrrrr. But, I want to set a good example, so I am not going to run this week…oh I hope I can stand it! And my family can stand ME! Typically I get very cranky when I can’t run, so I hope I can make it through the week without driving everybody crazy! I think I’ll be fine. *crossing fingers*

I plan on using the extra hour or so in my day to restart Living Beyond Yourself by Beth Moore. LOVE HER! I started this study shortly before radiation began and then when daily trips to STL started, I put it on hold. So I may restart from the beginning to refresh my memory, I’m not sure yet though. But I’m excited to get it going again!

So I hope ya’ll have a great start to the week! Have a great day, friends ;-)

“You love Him, though you have not seen Him. And though not seeing Him now, you believe in Him.”

1 Peter 1:8

A Perfect Start

Yesterday was Herceptin treatment #15 of 17, and it couldn’t have went better!  My labs were great and treatment was quick and easy, just the way I like it.  And now I only have TWO left!!  Ahhh, it is so close I can taste it!  We are over 11 months into our breast cancer journey, and I feel like I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.  So close, so close…  Hallelujah!

The BEST NEWS of yesterday was that I had my first post-surgery, chemo, and radiation mammogram and it was PERFECT!!!  I was so nervous when we got there, and the harder I tried to breathe and calm my nerves, the more nervous I became.  My friend Michelle and I waited f.o.r.e.v.e.r in the dr’s office because one of their mammogram machines were down so things were running a little slow.  But it was worth all the waiting when my dr spotted us coming back from the mammogram waiting room and yelled, “Yay!”  Of course it took me a minute to figure out what she was talking about, but once I did I felt like a 50 lb weight had been lifted off my shoulders.  A perfect mammogram.  I’m believing it’s my first in a line of many, many, many clean scans and reports to come!  It’s funny, but somehow I felt healthier than when I left my house yesterday morning!  Amazing.  God is so good.

Another exciting development that came from yesterday…I KNOW, can I possibly handle more…my dr has been asked to speak at a luncheon conference that is being held in STL for the Longaberger basket company on September 19th.  Longaberger makes a special basket every year, with a portion of the sales donated to the American Cancer Society.  She was their physician speaker last year and was asked to return this year and speak.  When they called her, they asked if she knew of a survivor that would be willing to come and speak with her.  AND SHE ASKED ME!!  I am so honored, nervous, overwhelmed, and proud!  Please pray for me that God would give me the words to say and that He calm my nerves, because even as I type this my heart flutters and my stomach turns!  I am SO not the public speaker!  But so honored that she asked me. 

 

This is one of the baskets from the Horizon of Hope line.  Click on the picture to go to the website to check out their other products they offer for Horizon of Hope.

 

 

 

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers yesterday.  It means the world to me and I love you for it!

Productiveness

There was much less fanfare at our house about the school routine this morning.  Even Katie begged for “one, one, one, just one more minute of sleep, Mama?”  Wow.  That wore off fast!  Naw, I think everybody just had the first day hangover.  Everyone was absolutely exhausted after yesterday.  Even Katie was asleep before 9, Hallelujah!

Today has been pretty productive for me!  I met my bff Kim at the school and we headed to the park for a lovely, cool (YAY!) 4 mile walk.  After rain and storms all night, it almost felt like fall this morning…beautiful!  I love it.

After our walk I came home and started cleaning.  I headed upstairs to the kids’ floor, and OMGosh…gross.  I knew I would be there awhile.  But, now I’m finished and am quite proud of my handiwork!

  Floors vacuumed, kids’ study cleaned (you can actually see the desk!), and yes, that’s one of my boy’s toilets!  It’s sparkling so pretty now I couldn’t resist!!  I would totally wow you with before and after pics but I’m afraid the “before” would be way more than anyone else could handle.  It was pretty bad.  Let’s just say that cleanliness isn’t high on little boys lists!  Puke.

*If you are my sister, please look at the next picture with caution.  I don’t want either of you to flip out when you see your hard work “undone.”  If it makes you feel any better, it DID take awhile to get back in this condition…  Yeah, I didn’t think so.  Me either.  LOL 

Now for my next task, dun dun dun…Katie’s closet.  Um yeah, it’s that bad…and worse.  This is going to be my next project, probably next week.  Oh how I dread it!  It’ll take me a few day of saving strength to tackle this one…  I’ll let you know how it turns out. 

On another note, tomorrow is yet another trip to STL for Herceptin.  It’s #15 of 17…we’re getting closer!!!  I also have to get my first post-everything mammogram tomorrow.  I am having some slight anxiety about the mammo, so if you wouldn’t mind keeping me in your prayers tomorrow for a safe trip and good outcomes all the way around, they would be much appreciated!  I am Believing God for good labs and a perfect mammogram! 

Ya’ll have a great Thursday, hang on it’s almost the weekend!

It’s Here!

It’s here!  The first day of school!  New teachers, blank notebooks, and brand new sharpened pencils.  The possibilities for the year are endless!  Excitement was overflowing at our house this morning!  Well, not really, just from Katie.  The boys are totally over the whole fanfare of the first day of school, which I find sad because I remember getting completely psyched up for the first day of school even in high school…but maybe it’s different for a boy, I dunno.  All they are seeing right now is their sleeping in, endless playtime, and no bedtime come to an end for the next 9 months.  But Katie on the other hand is ecstatic!  See:

Um, yeah, she is THAT excited!  And I am so glad because when I saw a few weepy Kindergartners this morning I was so thankful that I had to repeatedly call mine over to me long enough to get a goodbye kiss!  I would much rather it be this way!!  I did get a smile out of Zach,

but I think it was just to humor Mama.  But that’s ok…he’s such a cutie I can hardly stand it!  Tyler on the other hand played the “too cool for this photo session” card:

But that’s ok.  He’s too cool, we all know it. *wink, wink*  He was too cool for the cup of coffee he poured himself this morning, too.  Jack and I were like, “What?!?”  But we went with the whole “caffeine will stunt your growth” line and since he is currently in search of new height for basketball (and girls) he poured out his coffee.  Good thing.  I’m not quite ready for THAT one yet.  Sheesh.  One thing at a time.  I can’t send all 3 of my kids to school on the same day that one of them starts drinking coffee!  What was he thinking?!  Course this is coming from a 31 year old that didn’t start drinking coffee until oh, about 3 years ago or so.

The house has been VERY quiet today.  I have done fine though.  As soon as I got home I promptly changed into my running clothes and left again.  I went to the park and ran 5 miles before coming home and getting cleaned up and having b-fast.  I headed to Lacey’s after that and we put blond highlights in my hair, which was totally fun but now I want them darker.  I paid some bills, had lunch, and vacuumed (since Jack said “the vacuum makes noise” when I was complaining about the house being too quiet).  A hint?  Hmmmm……. ;-)

I’m getting ready to head back into town though and hit the grocery store and check the mail BEFORE I pick up the kids at 3.  I hope they all had a fabulous day and Katie is worn out so she will go to sleep before 10pm tonight! 

I hope everyone had a great Wednesday, it’s halfway til the weekend!  And only 2 more days of school this week!  Yippee!! 

You know what’s funny?!  I played on this same merry-go-round when I was in elementary school!  Geez, yeah, it’s that old!  LOL

*Please forgive the overly-Katie pictured post.  My boys forbid me to take my camera into the middle school or to take pictures of them after we left the house!  But our little princess, on the other hand, was all about it!

Empty Nest?

As the first day of school approaches, I am trying to come to grips with the fact that ALL THREE of my children will be in school this year. I knew I wasn't quite ready for this, but as the day draws closer (Wednesday), I am feeling a little lost already. How will my house sound without at least ONE kid in it during the day?? What will I do?? I am already not liking the "empty" feeling! This is a kind of "empty nest" that no one ever told me about! So, as we are preparing to have our first day of school, I have been thinking of the things that will be different around here. Here's what I came up with:

Things I will miss (some surprisingly!):

SOUNDS

• Tyler playing his guitar in his room
• Zachary downstairs jamming out on RockBand on the Wii
• Katie yelling, "MOM!" at the top of her lungs only to make sure that I'm still close enough to hear her. Then "NOTHING!" when I answer her with "What?"
• Kids digging in the snack cabinet for goodies at all hours of the day
• Impromptu concerts in the living room
• Zachary and Katie constantly fighting with each other over e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g.

SIGHTS

• Tyler outside mowing grass at 7am to beat the heat
• Zachary and Katie still in pjs at 11am
• Kids vegging on the couch texting friends
• Walking into my bedroom to find Katie propped up on my bed watching iCarly or Hannah Montana
• The forts built in the middle of the living room from all the pillows and blankets the kids could find
• The messy lunch dishes left on the table; open loaf of bread, jar of PB, and chips left out on the counters.

SAYING

• "Get away from each other!"
• "Stop touching him/her!"
• "Go clean your room!"
• "Who made this mess?!"
• "It's noon, do you think you should get dressed?"
• "Who wants to go check the mail with me?"
• "Is anybody ready for lunch?"
• "Are you or anybody else bleeding or on fire? Then it can wait. Mama's on the phone."
• "You're going to play outside? OK, watch your sister. I love you."

Now I know there will still be plenty of these moments, they don't happen only between the hours of 8am - 3pm ya know! But I will still miss all the hustle and bustle of having kids in the house all day and all the activity that goes with it. I have never NOT had a little one at home with me. Even when Zachary went to Kindergarten, I was big and pregnant with Katie (she was born in Nov.) AND I was taking 14 hours in college that semester so that doesn't count!

I told my mom that the only thing I can think of that I will look forward to is an almost-certain outside run daily, and uninterrupted grocery shopping! But you can only exercise and buy groceries for so long... But I read a great post by Keri who suggested that maybe we all need to just Be Still for a minute. And I think that's a great idea. God tells us in the Bible in Psalm 46:10 to "Be still and know that I am God." I keep searching and thinking about what I'm going to do all day, when maybe God is wanting me to take the time to Be Still. Be Still and talk to Him. Be Still and be open to His agenda, not my own. Be Still and know that He is God.

"Thanks for the message, Father...I read ya, loud and clear. You shouldn't have to talk too loudly now, my house is gonna be pretty quiet! Well, Monday - Friday during the hours of 8-3 anyway!"

I’m A Big Girl Now!

Today had the potential to be a rough one.  Thankfully, that turned out NOT to be the case!  For those of you who know anything about school-age children, you know that you have to be up to date on all immunizations before starting Kindergarten.  So today was the day for Miss Katie!

Thankfully we had some wonderful Lidocaine cream that I use to put on my port before labs and treatment so when I called to make the appointment this morning I asked the nurse if I could use the same thing on Katie.  She said, “Absolutely!”  I considered dipping her whole legs in a bucket of the stuff, just to be sure to get the spot that the needle(s) would go, but she assured me that I didn’t need to go quite that far.  So I compromised and put it on about a palm-sized (MY palm, ha!) place on both thighs, covered them with Press ‘n Seal (like Mommy does) so it soaks in, and off we went!

She said she was a little nervous when we pulled into the clinic; she said her tummy was “sinking down.”  Poor girl.  But she was so brave as she was getting her physical and then the nurse came in with the s-h-o-t-s.  Katie did GREAT!  I was trying to distract her with my phone, but was insistent on watching.  It didn’t even phase her!  She got 4 shots and she didn’t shed a tear until the last one, which stung a little bit…nothing the nurse could do about that though.  4 shots and ONE tear…WOW!  I LOVE this cream!!  Lol     

 

BEFORE

 

 

 

But she was a very big girl and I am so proud of her!  In celebration she got to pick the ice cream place so we headed to Marble Slab Creamery and everyone got treats!  Cookies ‘n cream for the Katie the Kindergartener, Mint Chocolate Chip for Zach the Middle Schooler, and Butter Pecan with Nestle Crunch pieces for Tyler the 8th Grader.  It was icky hot here today so the ice cream tasted extra good!  I can’t believe school starts in 2 days!

 

AFTER

 

 

 

Yay for ALL MY BIG KIDS!

“I Saw God Today”

Here in the Midwest, July and August are typically the hottest and most humid and that does not equal happiness for this very picky runner.  However, I got up at 530am so I could have my java and Jesus time, and around 630am I hit the road for my run, trying to beat the heat.  I had no pre-set plan of how far I would go, because I knew if I put a long run in my head and it was just too hot then I would be disappointed. 

But, to my delight, I put in 10.3 miles!  I was steady for the first 8.3 miles then I ran upon my hubby who was walking again!!  Yay, honey!  He did another 4 miles this morning!  I AM SO PROUD OF HIM!  After I met him, I decided to keep him company for the 2 miles back to the cabin.  So my total time was still 2 hrs…not too bad considering the heat and the fact that I walked the last 2 miles.  I was very pleased with my morning!

As soon as we got back around 830am, we all threw on our suits and hit the river for an early morning cool-down.  I promise there is nothing better than being hot, sweaty, and gross (I mean, I had a dirt line on the back of my legs where my socks were!) and then bailing into the crisp, cold, and perfectly clear river.  It was so peaceful, too.  The boys were fishing, Katie was “busy,” and we all enjoyed the perfect God-given morning.  

Every time I hear the George Strait song called, “I Saw God Today”  I think of all the natural beauty around us.  It reminds me that we don’t have to look very hard to see God’s presence each and every moment of the day.  He is here, always…and in everything.  His fingerprints are everywhere.  All we have to do is look.  And THANK HIM for it!

Have a blessed Sunday, friends!  Make it your mission to find something to thank God for today~

Simply Saturday

What a lovely Saturday morning!  We are at the river for the weekend, enjoying the last few days before the craziness begins…yes, school starts on Wednesday here. 

Last night when we arrived, Jack had already been here most of the day and had dinner already on the grill.  He had shredded BBQ pork and elk (the elk from last year’s hunt out west) that had been slow cooking all day…omgosh delicious!  And since we didn’t have an actual birthday dinner/cake/presents for his mom when we were in Tunica, we had his sister come over and we did it last night.  So we had a big family BBQ with all the fixins and topped it off with ice cream cake…when will it end??!  The indulgent food just keeps flowing around here!  Geez!  I’m gonna have to do something different, pronto!  I can run everyday but some dietary changes are definitely necessary…must.start.now.

I have also made it my “mission” to help my hubby get into better shape and he has agreed to follow my lead…right to the ice cream cake…no, kidding!  But seriously, though he wants to start doing some cardio and eating better.  Yay honey!  After all, in the last year I’ve gotten who-knows-what pumped through my body to ensure that I’m around for a long, long time so the least he can do is to make sure he’s here with me, right?!  Yes, so starting this morning we went for a walk for an hour.  We went 4 miles and I took it easy on him!  No running, just a walk…and it was wonderful.  We left Tyler here to babysit and we had such a nice walk…I think a date night needs to be planned pronto!  But with this morning’s walk, it put my weekly mileage total to 48, WOW!  I think it’s been a year since I had that kind of mileage total!  Yay! 

I’m watching all my blog-girls LIVE on the feed from the Healthy Living Summit in Boston right now!!  I wish I could be there and am so proud of the work they are doing.  You go girls!!!  Have a great weekend! 

And ya’ll have a great weekend, too!  Make the most of what’s left of summertime!

Put A Little South In Your Mouth

Hey ya’ll!  Yeah that is something I would normally say, but today it’s in honor of my girl, Miss Paula Deen!  The fam and I just returned home from a couple of days celebrating my mother-in-law’s birthday in Tunica, MS.  At Harrah’s, Paula Deen has a restaurant, casino-style of course…A BUFFET!  Can you imagine anything more dangerous that an all-you-can-eat buffet Paula Deen-style?!  Uh, no…me either!  ;-)  And let me tell you, I WAY overdid it.  I was eatin’ away just the happiest girl ever, picturing my Paula just a cookin’ away back in the kitchen!  Yeah, I know, I know…but it made it more fun for ME!  I had several of her signature dishes, ones that I have watched her make over and over on Food Network, and I saw a couple that I make myself!  Cool!  Some of my faves were baked spaghetti, oven baked potato wedges, cheesy biscuits, cheeseburger meatloaf, fried shrimp, strawberry shortcake, and cream puffs.  And yes, I tried it all.  Some a bit more than others, but just know it was all FABULOUS!       

The decor was perfect.  I felt like I was having  breakfast and, ahem, dinner, at Paula’s house.  There were several flat screen TVs scattered around showing different episodes of her shows, Paula’s Best Dishes, Paula’s Home Cookin’, and Paula’s Party.  And out front, where you would imagine a foyer and living room to be, there was a HUGE gift shop!  Uh-oh.  This could have potentially been a big problem except for the fact that my hubby was with me and he reigned me in rather quickly.  Gah.  Oh well, I still made off with a coffee mug, a cookie sampler, and the cutest apron for Katie!  She loved it!  She helped me cook dinner tonight just so she could wear it!  We made a southwest chicken salad, in case you were wondering.  Delish!  And yes, it was definitely a SALAD night after our 2 days of indulging!

Thankfully I could make use of the nice hotel fitness room while  we were there.  I LOVE a GOOD hotel fitness room!  The treadmills were practically new and looked like they had barely been used.  Jack says it’s because the average age of someone at the casino was probably 75.  Whatever…they were good and I liked it!  But I ran 6.25 miles on Wednesday morning and 6.75 this morning.  We also took the kids swimming 4 times while we were there so I probably didn’t come out too bad.  It was a great short-and-sweet trip and we had a good time.  It was nice to get away for just a couple of days.  And my mom-in-law had a good birthday, too!

Babies & Marathons

On Friday, we all gathered at Baby View to watch Layne & Brett have their ultrasound!  Be careful when you tell our family to “come watch!’ because we will ALL show up!  Heehee  So while we were all watching very closely and excitedly the tech reveals to us that Ethan is going to have…A BABY BROTHER!!!  We watched as she pointed out all the perfect features the little guy…his little nose, mouth-which was opening and closing!, feet, and toes that he kept curling and uncurling.  So precious!  Babies are such miracles.

 

Here is Mama and her Birthday Boy, finding out that he’s getting another baby boy cousin!  What a great present!

At Zachary’s birthday party, my brother Matt and his girlfriend, Charli brought their little one, Mason to visit.  I haven’t seen him since he was born so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on him!  He is so sweet.  I could just cuddle with him all day!   

Aunt Erica and Mason

We had the most wonderful day on the river yesterday.  I spent the whole day outside, which I hadn’t done all summer.  Sometimes the heat can make my arm start to ache and, thanks to hot flashes, my personal heat index is like 125* anyway, so I don’t particularly like the heat!  But we took the jet skis out before the day got too busy then came back and layed out and watched the kids swim.  I even got involved in a rather rough game of water football…I thought I may have a black eye today but thankfully, no.  After that we took the boat out and had a great boat ride, during which, I think we all could have fallen asleep!  Everyone was so tired by that point! 

To end the day, we had a “neighborhood” BBQ next door with friends and family and had a wonderful time.  Geez, between the ice cream cake and the spread of food from last night, I am feeling like it was a VERY indulgent weekend!  Um, yeah, you know ice cream cake is my fave!! 

Today Katie and I came home early so that we could start getting back into our routine.  It was waaayyy too hot to run outside this morning, so when I got home I hopped on the treadmill for a half-marathon!  Yep, I did 13.1 miles on the treadmill.  Did it totally drag out??  Oh yeah.  I went through 2 episodes of The View online, some silence, and countless songs.  I walked the last mile, and was so bored and jelly-legged by the time I was done.  It took me 2 hrs and 10 minutes.  But I was proud to do the full distance!  Long runs on Sunday always start my week off on the right foot!

So here’s to a great week for everybody!  We are taking a little trip for a couple of days to celebrate my mother-in-law’s birthday.  We are also soaking up all the time we can because this is the last full week before school starts on the 19th.  Oh, and I’ll try to get some birthday pics up after I borrow my sister’s camera to upload them!

Have a great rest of your Sunday!! 

Happy 12th Birthday, Zachary!

Twelve years ago today our precious Zachary came into the world! He was born at 11:16pm weighing in at 7 lbs 5 oz and was 19" long. So perfect and precious, most certainly a gift from God.

Zachary has always been the most loving and caring of our children. He has a soft heart, although sometimes overshadowed by his care-free and "loose" attitude, he loves snuggling and is always ready for a hug. He would probably have a cow if I also didn't put on here that he is a fantastic dancer, he has more rhythm in his little finger than I do in my entire body! He is also very funny and is quite the ladies' man! Whoa Mama! But I knew from the second I looked in his beautiful brown eyes that he was already a charmer...I was hooked on him from minute one.

Whenever Jack and I did the 5 Languages of Love Bible Study a year and a half ago, it has you take a quiz that shows you what your primary love language is. There are 5: receiving gifts, quality time, physical touch, words of affirmation, and acts of service. They said it works with anybody, even with your children. We were able to identify immediately that Zachary is physical touch followed closely by quality time! Funny, how kids can come from the same parents yet be so completely unique and different from each other. And praise God, because if we were all the same, life would be so boring!

Tyler checking out his new baby brother. How sweet!

Our newly expanded family!

So Happy Birthday to our baby boy! I can't believe that next year you will be a teenager. Time goes by so quickly. I wish I could keep you right here at this age and time forever. But I know God has big plans for you and for your life...and I wouldn't want to stifle that for a moment!

I love you all the way up to the moon and back...