Valentine Run & Still training

On Sat Feb 6th I ran a 5K (which is 3.1 miles) in a Valentine Race down in Green Bay WI. It was about 18 F but with all the wind it put it down around 1 F. We had to wait around for the race to start which was a bit strange to me since when Allison & I run at 5:30 am we just hit the road right away. So waiting around for the race to start was cold & slightly annoying to me. There were over 1,400 people in the race which also threw me for a loop. I don't like being around that many strangers & it actually makes me a little nervous so I was really happy that I was with friends. When the race finally started it was crazy. There were many people that blew by us but Allison & I still had to weave back & forth through people until we found a spot that we could sort of maintain our space. It seemed that we still had our fair share of weaving though. There were more hills than we were used to but we did really great & out of the 900+ people that were running the 5K we placed somewhere in the 400's. I thought that was really cool & we also dropped our time from about 45 mins to something like 38mins. As you can tell I am NOT a number person (I leave that for Adam LOL). Near the end I could see 2 little kids & an adult from far away & was pretty sure it was my sister, nephew, & niece waiting to cheer me on. As I got closer I could tell for sure it was them & it gave me the goosebumps & the energy I needed to keep going to finish the race. I could hear the kids yelling, "Go Auntie Jet, Go!" It was a great feeling to have them cheering me on & put a HUGE smile on my face as I crossed the finish line with my friend. We received a waxed cheese mold & a candy bar as well as a long sleeve t-shirt for running the race. It was awesome to finish my first 5K with such improvements since I started this new journey just 6 weeks prior to the race. When I started I can honestly say that I had only run a 1 mile in high school & I barely was able to do that & that was when I was a lot thinner & in better shape than I am now. BUT with the encouragement of my family & friends, I was able to learn to breathe correctly & run almost the entire 3.1 miles. My friends have been trying to get me to commit to a half marathon but that isn't going to happen any time soon. I will run another 5K or even the 5 mile race in July so that's what I'm aiming for now. If I can make it 3.1 miles I figure I can make it 5 miles. And now my kids want to train with me when the weather gets nice so they can run too. Adam used to run cross-country in high school so I don't imagine getting him to run along with us would be hard. I think it would be neat to have that be one of our accomplishments as a family...to run a 5 mile race together. Such a great way to teach our children the importance of being healthy & making healthy choices in the things we eat & the activities we do. What a blessing this has been & continues to be.

Valentine Run 2

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My wonderful Mom

For my DYL assignment I was supposed to compare 2 people. I thought long & hard about who I should compare & felt that it should be my mom & me. Though I couldn't fit everything I had actually come up with on these 2 pages I feel that I compared enough & could always make another LO expressing the things I've learned from my mom & how we are so similar & yet so very different.

Mom, I love you with so much of my heart. Thank you for helping me grow into the person I am today. I know you aren't perfect & that you never claimed you were but you are a special woman in my eyes & I am proud to call you my mom. Heal quickly & know that God is taking you on the journey He wants you on right now. Allow Him to guide you along the way & your reward will be great! I love you!

A Great Example of a Man

My assignment was to do a LO (layout) about someone I wanted to honor. I was going to do one about Adam but had a hard time finding the photos I wanted to use. I decided the next person I needed to honor was my Grandpa Kenny. He has always been the hardest working man I have ever known. He built his house when he was in his 70s and has always had a beautiful garden & orchard that has grown such wonderful & tasty produce. This man has a distinguished laugh, a smile that I'm sure I'll never forget, and more determination than I thought possible for any one man. Gramps has had several strokes, a few heart attacks and yet he's still here & able to do more than most people that have had even 1 stroke. I've struggled with my weight for a few years now & when I think about how hard my grandpa worked to come back as much as he could from each stroke, I know that if I work hard & put my stubbornness to work for something good, I'll be able to achieve my goal. After all, when I was young, and small, he once told me that "dynamite comes in small packages!" That has stuck with me ever since & now it is my turn to achieve something I have longed to achieve for years. This year is the year I will get in shape, I will be healthy, have lots of energy & will NOT quit, even after I achieve my goal. In Feb I will be running a 5K, something I've never done nor desired to do. And today I cross-country skiied for the first time in my life. Though I fell several times going down the hills, I was pleased with myself that I completed 2.2 miles and had fun. Grandpa has always said, "You're no worse than the best and no better than the rest." In my book that means I CAN and WILL succeed at my challenge and I will be a better person for it. Thank you Grandpa for being such a fantastic Head of our Family, for leading my example and having such drive and determination. Your reward in Heaven will be grand. I love you!!!

100th Post

Horray it's my 100th post. It was actually by chance that I noticed the # but what a fun way to celebrate and add another page I've completed. This one shares a little more personal thoughts about mothering my wonderful Gabriella. Funny thing is that after I did this page, I noticed her attitude change quite a bit. She's not been so grumpy, whiney, & such. She's my Sweet Muffin!

New Layouts from my scrapbooking class

My favorite LO so far is this one of Braly. I have another one of Gabby to complete soon too.

Picture these two side by side to each other.

And this one is like my title page for the class that is called Design Your Life.

Since I love scrapbooking & can always learn more about what I'm doing....I decided to take a scrapbooking class about design and I am loving it. I started it last year & didn't get very far. This year I am determined to finish it through to the end. And I am really enjoying it & we are in the 2nd week. Enjoy the LOs as I post them.

Celebrating 3 years of Morgan

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