Right now I'm trying to make a decision about which big race to run next. I just finished my first marathon and ended up qualifying for the Boston Marathon. (As a side note, I actually thought that I needed a finishing time of 3:30:59 or faster to qualify, so I was surprised that I ended up qualifying with my time!). After I finished the race, almost everyone asked if I was planning to run Boston . . . well, no! Running the Boston Marathon has never been a dream of mine. I figure I'll qualify for it again in the future, so I can run it then when we have more money.
So now I'm planning to focus on 5ks and 10ks this spring, hopefully will get my weekly mileage up to 40 miles per week, and in the summer I'll begin training for a fall marathon. I'm thinking of running the Chicago Marathon in October, but my "dream" marathon (in other words, if I could run any marathon in the continental US, this would be the one) is the NYC Marathon. Up until this week, I thought you could only register to run it if you were an elite runner (which I am definitely not!) or if you were selected through their lottery. Well, as it turns out, I am actually eligible to register for the NYC Marathon this year based on my finishing time from the 3M Half Marathon in January! So I should obviously sign up for it, right? The problem is that it will cost a ton of money for registration, airfare, hotel, and food. Not to mention childcare if we leave the kiddos at home.
The application for the NYC Marathon closes on March 15, so over the next week or so I will be spending some time in prayer trying to figure this out. God is such a good and patient teacher, and I am looking forward to learning what His will is for this next step in my life!! :-)
Friday, March 5, 2010
More Fun with Baby Sister
Lately, Oliver has been such a sweet big brother to his baby sister. He's still not quite willing to let her hug or kiss him whenever she wants to (which is approximately 50 times a day), but he's getting much better about helping her out, talking sweetly to her, bringing her toys, playing with her, etc.
On Wednesday morning, he decided he wanted to pile all of Buttercup's animals in her bed (just like his pile of animals in his bed). So he threw them all in, then he climbed in her crib and asked me to put her in, too! And they jumped and played together for about 20 minutes.
This morning, Oliver asked if he could pick out Buttercup's day time clothes. He was wearing his shark shirt (big surprise!), so he picked out her sleeveless fish dress to match his shirt (fortunately, it's not too chilly today). He also picked out her white leggings and headband. I'm so glad my kids have each other, they're the best!!
On Wednesday morning, he decided he wanted to pile all of Buttercup's animals in her bed (just like his pile of animals in his bed). So he threw them all in, then he climbed in her crib and asked me to put her in, too! And they jumped and played together for about 20 minutes.
This morning, Oliver asked if he could pick out Buttercup's day time clothes. He was wearing his shark shirt (big surprise!), so he picked out her sleeveless fish dress to match his shirt (fortunately, it's not too chilly today). He also picked out her white leggings and headband. I'm so glad my kids have each other, they're the best!!
Pictures from Oliver
Yesterday morning we went to the duck park (specifically, the "duck park with deep water and big rocks", if you ask Oliver). Aunt Anna spent the night at our house last night, so she got to come along before she headed to work. While we were there, we met a very nice fisherman who waded into the 50 degree water to rescue Oliver's "fishing line" (a long piece of yellow rope) as it floated down the creek. After Oliver and I went to thank him, Mr. James told us that he has actually caught a mako shark, several barracudas and a great white shark! And next year he's planning a trip to the Great Barrier Reef to see more great whites. (FYI, he releases the sharks and other big fish back into the water.) Oliver practically stood there with his mouth open while Mr. James told us all about the fish he has caught. It was so neat that we just happened to be in the right place at the right time to get to hear his stories about fishing!
Here are some pictures that Oliver took with my camera yesterday:
Here are some pictures that Oliver took with my camera yesterday:
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Playing at the Park
This morning we took advantage of the beautiful weather and went to the playground. I ran and pushed Buttercup in the stroller, and Oliver rode his bike. My legs are finally feeling normal after the marathon on Sunday, so I'm going to try a real run this afternoon. We just had a really good time playing! It's fun that the kiddos are getting really good at playing together nicely -- I ended up getting to swing by myself while Oliver and Buttercup shoveled rocks into their buckets. :-)
It was just a great morning! I'm so thankful that I get to hang out with these two every day, they make my days so bright!
It was just a great morning! I'm so thankful that I get to hang out with these two every day, they make my days so bright!
Funny Faces
I'm not quite sure why Buttercup kept making this face today, but she sure is cute!
And here's a funny face from Oliver, too!
And here's a funny face from Oliver, too!
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Aquarium of the Americas
This weekend was a lot of fun. Oliver got to have some one-on-one time with Dennis, my parents and me, and it was so nice to see how special he felt about getting to do "big boy" things and having the grown ups all to himself.
For Oliver, I think the highlight of our trip was making a swamp in the yard at Grammy and Granddaddy's house . . . but going to the Aquarium of the Americas was a close second!
We left for the aquarium about an hour after breakfast. Oliver and Grammy played games and watched part of a movie on the way there!
Then we were finally there! Oliver could barely take his eyes off of the giant shark sculptures hanging from the ceiling in the lobby.
(We got a closer look at the fake sharks when we were up on the 2nd floor.)
We walked around the aquarium for a while, and we got to see a scuba diver feeding raw broccoli to the manta rays! It was very neat to watch them eat. Manta rays are so graceful and beautiful!
After about an hour, we decided it was time for lunch. Oliver was apparently starving, because he wolfed down a PB&J and a slice of pizza in no time flat.
After we refueled, we got to see some hammerhead sharks and barracudas in one of the smaller tanks!
Grammy got to touch some manta rays in the touch pool. Oliver was interested in watching them, but didn't want to touch them.
Then we finally saw more sharks -- bigger ones! -- in the big reef tank near the exit. I could have stayed there for hours, just watching the sharks, fish, and sea turtles swim around. So peaceful!
Then it was time to go outside and see the dinosaur. "Mommy, is that a real dinosaur??"
And Oliver watched the barges and steam boats on the river.
What a cutie! I'm so glad we were able to spend time with him this weekend!
For Oliver, I think the highlight of our trip was making a swamp in the yard at Grammy and Granddaddy's house . . . but going to the Aquarium of the Americas was a close second!
We left for the aquarium about an hour after breakfast. Oliver and Grammy played games and watched part of a movie on the way there!
Then we were finally there! Oliver could barely take his eyes off of the giant shark sculptures hanging from the ceiling in the lobby.
(We got a closer look at the fake sharks when we were up on the 2nd floor.)
We walked around the aquarium for a while, and we got to see a scuba diver feeding raw broccoli to the manta rays! It was very neat to watch them eat. Manta rays are so graceful and beautiful!
After about an hour, we decided it was time for lunch. Oliver was apparently starving, because he wolfed down a PB&J and a slice of pizza in no time flat.
After we refueled, we got to see some hammerhead sharks and barracudas in one of the smaller tanks!
Grammy got to touch some manta rays in the touch pool. Oliver was interested in watching them, but didn't want to touch them.
Then we finally saw more sharks -- bigger ones! -- in the big reef tank near the exit. I could have stayed there for hours, just watching the sharks, fish, and sea turtles swim around. So peaceful!
Then it was time to go outside and see the dinosaur. "Mommy, is that a real dinosaur??"
And Oliver watched the barges and steam boats on the river.
What a cutie! I'm so glad we were able to spend time with him this weekend!
Monday, March 1, 2010
My First Marathon!
Hebrews 12:1
"Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."
Philippians 4:13
"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This weekend I ran my first marathon! And I absolutely could not have done it without God. My entire marathon training has been a lesson in God's will versus my own, and how to live my life and use my talents in a way to bring Him glory.
I started following a marathon training plan over the summer, with the (vain) hopes of blasting out a really fast race. Things appeared to be going well, but I found myself spending more of my solo running time focusing on myself and how fast I was going to run the race -- instead of spending that solo time praying and talking with God as I usually do. I also spent less of my time on Bible study and more time thinking and planning that week's runs. Tsk, tsk! But, as we Christians know, if God wants to teach you something, He'll find a way to do it. ;-)
Around the middle of December, I had finally gotten my weekly running mileage up to 48 miles per week. I ran an 8 mile pace run on Saturday, and a 17.5 mile long run the following Sunday. I was feeling pretty strong and sure of myself. Proverbs 16:18, anyone? :-) The following week, I was out for an easy 10 mile run and noticed that my left quad muscle felt weird. I didn't pay much attention to it and finished my run. The next morning, it still felt weird when I walked around, but I decided to try an 18 mile long run anyway. I only made it 6 miles before I had to limp back to the car. I took the rest of the week off and fortunately was able to get a week's worth of massages (from the best massage therapist in Red Stick!) and seemed to be on my way to recovery. But the next week I could barely make it through a 2 mile run without pain and had to take at least 1 day of rest between runs.
By this time, it was January 1 and I was signed up to run a half marathon at the end of the month. I was sure I wouldn't be able to do it! So I did what I should have been doing from the beginning -- I spent a lot of time in prayer, seeking God's forgiveness and guidance. I began slowly adding in longer runs, until I was able to get through an 8 mile run without pain. Then I tried a 14 mile run and I ended up having to walk back to the car in pain. The half marathon was in 6 days, and I couldn't even bend my leg because my knee hurt so much, and it even hurt to walk the next day! Thankfully, after stretching and rolling my leg, it felt good enough to run a little bit toward the end of that week, and I was able to run the 3M Half Marathon in 1:34:22.
After the half marathon, I had more knee pain, but it was gone 2 days after the race. The marathon was 4 weeks away! I was able to run 8 miles without pain, but still hadn't run further than a half marathon without pain in almost 2 months. I was afraid to try a longer run, but I had to do it if I wanted to try to run the full marathon. I was praying about it but still wasn't sure if it was God's will for me to run the half or full race. Then I realized that His will was done -- I was focusing on HIM and not the silly race! That was a great moment for me, and I feel like a fool for it taking so long to sink in. But that's what happens sometimes! I'm just thankful for such a merciful, loving God who cares so much to teach me these little lessons. :-)
Well, finally 3 weeks before the marathon, I did a fantastic 16 mile run on the trail near our house with absolutely no pain. Things were looking up! I was planning on a 19 mile run the following Sunday, but then . . . we all came down with a stomach virus and I couldn't even run 2.5 miles that weekend. I decided to defer to the half marathon instead because I was sure I wouldn't be able to run a marathon in 2 weeks with a recent long run of 16 miles and total weekly mileage of 20 miles per week!
But God kept speaking to me, and almost everyone I know kept telling me to just go for the marathon. So I decided to do it, and what do you know, I actually finished it!! I couldn't believe it. After mile 16, I was literally astonished at every mile that I was able to run. I had never run that far before, and I had a huge smile on my face! I was -- and still am! -- so thankful for a God who cares so much about me.
So my first marathon is done! A huge lesson learned, and 26.2 miles run. That is a really, really, really long way to run. I think I'll stick to 5ks and 10ks for a while. :-)
"Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."
Philippians 4:13
"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This weekend I ran my first marathon! And I absolutely could not have done it without God. My entire marathon training has been a lesson in God's will versus my own, and how to live my life and use my talents in a way to bring Him glory.
I started following a marathon training plan over the summer, with the (vain) hopes of blasting out a really fast race. Things appeared to be going well, but I found myself spending more of my solo running time focusing on myself and how fast I was going to run the race -- instead of spending that solo time praying and talking with God as I usually do. I also spent less of my time on Bible study and more time thinking and planning that week's runs. Tsk, tsk! But, as we Christians know, if God wants to teach you something, He'll find a way to do it. ;-)
Around the middle of December, I had finally gotten my weekly running mileage up to 48 miles per week. I ran an 8 mile pace run on Saturday, and a 17.5 mile long run the following Sunday. I was feeling pretty strong and sure of myself. Proverbs 16:18, anyone? :-) The following week, I was out for an easy 10 mile run and noticed that my left quad muscle felt weird. I didn't pay much attention to it and finished my run. The next morning, it still felt weird when I walked around, but I decided to try an 18 mile long run anyway. I only made it 6 miles before I had to limp back to the car. I took the rest of the week off and fortunately was able to get a week's worth of massages (from the best massage therapist in Red Stick!) and seemed to be on my way to recovery. But the next week I could barely make it through a 2 mile run without pain and had to take at least 1 day of rest between runs.
By this time, it was January 1 and I was signed up to run a half marathon at the end of the month. I was sure I wouldn't be able to do it! So I did what I should have been doing from the beginning -- I spent a lot of time in prayer, seeking God's forgiveness and guidance. I began slowly adding in longer runs, until I was able to get through an 8 mile run without pain. Then I tried a 14 mile run and I ended up having to walk back to the car in pain. The half marathon was in 6 days, and I couldn't even bend my leg because my knee hurt so much, and it even hurt to walk the next day! Thankfully, after stretching and rolling my leg, it felt good enough to run a little bit toward the end of that week, and I was able to run the 3M Half Marathon in 1:34:22.
After the half marathon, I had more knee pain, but it was gone 2 days after the race. The marathon was 4 weeks away! I was able to run 8 miles without pain, but still hadn't run further than a half marathon without pain in almost 2 months. I was afraid to try a longer run, but I had to do it if I wanted to try to run the full marathon. I was praying about it but still wasn't sure if it was God's will for me to run the half or full race. Then I realized that His will was done -- I was focusing on HIM and not the silly race! That was a great moment for me, and I feel like a fool for it taking so long to sink in. But that's what happens sometimes! I'm just thankful for such a merciful, loving God who cares so much to teach me these little lessons. :-)
Well, finally 3 weeks before the marathon, I did a fantastic 16 mile run on the trail near our house with absolutely no pain. Things were looking up! I was planning on a 19 mile run the following Sunday, but then . . . we all came down with a stomach virus and I couldn't even run 2.5 miles that weekend. I decided to defer to the half marathon instead because I was sure I wouldn't be able to run a marathon in 2 weeks with a recent long run of 16 miles and total weekly mileage of 20 miles per week!
But God kept speaking to me, and almost everyone I know kept telling me to just go for the marathon. So I decided to do it, and what do you know, I actually finished it!! I couldn't believe it. After mile 16, I was literally astonished at every mile that I was able to run. I had never run that far before, and I had a huge smile on my face! I was -- and still am! -- so thankful for a God who cares so much about me.
So my first marathon is done! A huge lesson learned, and 26.2 miles run. That is a really, really, really long way to run. I think I'll stick to 5ks and 10ks for a while. :-)
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