What a busy year...

The Journey:

The first seven months of 2015 were somewhat turbulent, but we were blessed with a roof over our heads, the chance for buddy-boy and grandma to bond, time to discover which part of town was best suited for our family, tons of house-hunting opportunities, with daddy living in Fresno, and mommy and boy living in Prunedale.

June: Discovering The Home

Daddy and I had scrounged up a long list of homes we wanted to see, and dwindled that list to 10.  We visited most of these homes, not quite happy with what we saw.  When little boy and I made it home, I found a house that I was very interested in.  It sat within the triangle of high schools I was interested in. It was in a gated community.  The backyard was beautifully landscaped.

 Settling In:

With help from daddy's shop group, we were able to unpack the moving truck in a matter of hours.  It would take about a week to have the house set up the way we liked it.  There are still rooms that are needing boxes unpacked.  Due to the drought, water restrictions, and triple digit temperatures, the poor grass became brown, and little boy was not too thrilled to play on it.  Our new Ward gave us callings right away, and soon became our new extended family.  We love teaching our 13-year old Sunday School class.  I've gotten back into running, and completed my 10K goal before the end of 2015.  I had set a goal to run 10-miles by Valentines Day, but due to illness, have had to extend the deadline.  Little boy will be turning 2 in 12 days.  We are very excited for that. 

Running... A Metaphor For Life

"Running is a metaphor for life:  There is always someone faster than you, always someone slower.  All you can do is hang in there and put your heart into it."

What a powerful statement that is.  Since March, I have been attempting to train for a 5k (3.1 miles).  There were many hinderances, many excuses that were made.  I made it to the fourth and most progressive week, and found I couldn't physically handle it.  Mistah ran with me.  Ashley Ran with me.  But, for some reason, my body wouldn't let me push beyond a certain limit.  It was at that point I discovered I was pregnant.  A few weeks later, after having experienced abdominal pain and bleeding, our joy became short-lived, and we were rushed to the Operating Room for a D&C: We had miscarried. 


It took me months to heal, both mentally and physically.  Mistah continued to train hard, I had fallen into a depressive-state.  I didn't want to climb out of bed, didn't want to ride the bike, didn't want to run.  In September, I put my running shoes on, and began the RunningMateMedia 5k-101 Training all over.  It was painful, but not as painful as when I first started: breathing hurt, my lower back always seemed to hurt, and blisters covered my feet. 


I'm in my fifth week now, with three weeks to go, running for longer periods with shorter breaks, and have scheduled to run alongside my husband in my first 5k just before Halloween!  The last time I've felt like this would have been my freshman year, training for the first Swim Meet, and having to dive off of the block, and swimming the hardest stroke: Butterfly.  Within a week, I had dropped my time from 1:41 to 1:29, and it continued to drop throughout three years of competing.

"In running, it doesn't matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last.  You can say, 'I have finished.' There is a lot of satisfaction in that."
Fred Lebow, New York City Marathon Co-Founder