Running,Pinning, and Birthday Fun

On Sunday Mg and I ran the shamrock race...well Mg ran...I am not sure what you can call what I did... I was running... just slower than I walk...like 3 minutes per mile slower(how is that even possible??)... but I "ran" the whole 3 miles and change(with out training first). At one point during the race my dentist and his 10 year old daughter passed me(that's when I knew I was going slow)so I decided to count how many kids passed me 17 little boys and 10 girls...plus 2 pregnant women and several people who were walking...I finished that's what matters... right?. Next time I will train and go a bit faster(at least faster than I can walk) I hope. Oh and I forgot to get this thing cut off my shoe...

We were with our sweet friends (Eric and Jocelyn) who run well. We spent time with them before and after the race. That was by far my favorite part. I always feel so refreshed after talking with Jocelyn(check out her blog and you will understand why) she is amazing and wise and I am so happy that we got to do something fun together with our wonderful husbands.

OK switching gears completely now. Pinterest is this crazy fun addictive site where you can virtually pin things to virtual cork boards. It works for anything you may want to save now and look at later from craft ideas to gardening help.  If you find something you like on the Internets-or on pinterest itself-you pin it and and you have a place to find all your ideas. The problem for me is that I want to try all the recipes I see(people pin a TON of recipes) and all the recipes I have tried have been huge flops. I find something online or on pinterest (some recipes go viral on there so you think they will deliver the goods) but then I make the recipe and it lacks flavor and depth. I am totally bummed. So I will be doing a new thing here on this blog...If I try something on pinterest (recipe or craft or something) I will post about the results. I will not be doing any retroactive type posting as there are way too many already tried(and failed) things and that would just be depressing. But I will keep you updated from here on out.

And last but definitely not least Mg had a birthday yesterday. This year I actually made him breakfast and dinner and a special desert. Oh and I got him a gift too. Those may sound like givens but last year I forgot to do all of them(yes all...not even a card). Henry was a new born babe and my dear sweet Gram had just died a few days earlier, So I just forgot.  He was sweet about it and never even complained. This year I did better. We even went to the Evergreen air space museum. It was lots of airplane, rocket, boy museum fun times.  Next year I hope to do an even better job as it will be his 30th so I really want to bring my A game.
Here is what I made the hubs for his birthday treat.

Peanut butter cup brownies !!

I better end here...this is the only part of the day that is even a tiny bit restful for us all so I must take advantage.

Running again

So I took up Running(if you can call the pace at which I jog running)again. It is hard...not as hard as I remembered but difficult all the same. I am actually training for a real race this time...not normally my thing but I was promised breakfast with MG and some awesome friends...plus it seemed like a good motivator. I will be running the shortest length of the race the 5k...and will probably still be coming into the finish at the same time as everyone else. so that should work out great...I run S.L.O.W. and I'm cool with it.

Today I was out there doing my thing with the kids in the double stroller and I realized how much I love and hate running at the same time... It is so hard to make my tired body move and stretch in ways it feels to old and too stiff to move. Yet it feels good...really good... to get out there and feel the fresh crisp air hitting my face and filling my lungs.

I love the feeling of wanting to stop but pushing myself forward. I love the feeling of accomplishment when I finish and I ran more than I thought I could. I love knowing that running is no longer the hardest thing(physically) that my body has done. I love to be able to say "this isn't as hard as birthing was" when it gets tough(it does at some point every run)and then laughing at myself for thinking it every time.

I love that the pleasure and pain signals are somehow bond together in this process and that even when it hurts it still somehow oddly feels great. I love that even tho I am not fast and my stride is not perfect people still always smile at me and my large stroller as we run by. I love smiling and waving back...running is a friendly sport. I mostly love the release of-whatever it is-that gives me energy and steels me for my day. I hate feeling sore but love what the soreness means. I hate competition but love pushing myself. I love that running is an individual sport and that I don't have the opportunity to let any team down while I'm doing it...its just me out there...me and my dorky music and my sweet boys in the strolly.
MG says that humans were designed to run...that it is natural for us to want to do it.
I believe it. I crave it and I am happy that I have legs that work for running.

I love to run...or jog... or whatever it is you can call what I do at the funny slow pace I do it.
Thanks for welcoming me back streets...I am happy to be here.

The Great Urban Race!!

All I can say about this "race" is WOW. So its not really a race per-say but more of a-crazy long hard adult type-scavenger hunt. MG and I went with Lisa and Jacob(a couple we love dearly). The plan was guys against girls and who ever finishes first gets bragging rights... well.... as it turned out none of us do(OK MG does)

The race was in downtown Portland on Saturday the 12th of June and ranged from the pearl to the waterfront and up by PSU. It was supposed to be a 10k most people just tried to get the clues figured out in a decent time while walking it,some really hard core people actually ran it and got all the clues!(that may I add was not us).

Here we are on the MAX heading in with high hope and spirits soaring!


Good old P-town how I wish I would have taken time to learn more about you before this adventure!

Here is our clue sheet... we figured out all the clues using our brains and an i-phone... finding the places the clues led to...that was a different story.(at least for us ladies)


Here are Lisa and me ticking off some of the required items on the clue sheet...


Posting by rose bushes


Finding Hot lips Pizza and eating some...


Shaking a dogs paw...

Jumping off this bike statue...

Pretending to dive into a fountain...

(These were not even half the clues but this post is already huge so I figured you would get the gist.)

And at some point in the adventure Lisa and I realized we had probably already walked about 8 miles and we had only done half of our list and we were once again clueless as to how to get to our next clue... So we called in the men folk and had them rescue us...

It went really smoothly after that. MG knows his way around Portland like a well oiled machine. The dudes had already finished all but two of there clues so they lovingly showed us the way to the rest of ours and we finished the race what I am sure was close to dead last.

We didn't mind. The Guys took us out to dinner and we all laughed about the day and complained about sore feet.








Incandescently This brewery has an awesome GF menu! They even have really yummy GF buns for their burgers! Also the home made ginger ale is outstanding(maybe I was just super hungry and really loving food)But this place Rocked!



Tired faces.



All in all it was a good time. We have vowed to never separate ourselves from our better halves during a scavenger hunt again though.

Running Update

I realized that I haven't given and update on the running recently so I thought I would let you all know how its going.

I am still running any where from 2-4 times a week. I can run 3miles without stopping but rarely do since I always have a small person demanding one thing or another from his front row seat.



An sometimes we run with friends so that makes the stopping even more frequent. But it makes the running way more fun!



I have realized that running is a super stress relief for me. I know lots of people who run for health(which is awesome) or weight loss (which lets face it, if that were to happen I would be stoked) but for me its seriously about sanity. Maybe its something in the steady intake of breath and the rhythm of my feet hitting the ground. Or it could be the extra vitamin D. I don't know what it is but its like therapy for me.

So... that's the update. Running is a part of my life now. I may set goals to run farther distances or to speed up the pace a little but for now I am just glad that doing it brings me joy.

Running week 2

To ease the aching swelling ankle.


This week I only mad e it out 3 times. I wanted to hit the road again yesterday but an old ankle injury has flared up and I am still breaking in my new brace. I am going to have to wear the brace every time I go out form now on so I don't hurt myself any more than I already did.

I originally was using this couch to 5k method that works really well to get you into the swing of things. Then one day last week I wanted to see how far I could go if I didn't stop to walk after 90 seconds. So I just kept running. I ran for 25 minutes! So now I am running to certain distance points to see how far I can makes it with out stopping.

I have been really enjoying the outdoors and remembering the old days- before Owen- when I used to run all the time. Now I have the best of both worlds awesome kid in the bright green monster(stroller) and the great outdoors expanding in front of me as my feet once again hit the familiar pavements of Salem Or

Personal Challenge

I recently challenged myself (its on my list) to be able to run 3 miles with out stopping to walk. At first I thought this would be one of the challenges I would "get around to at some point" (meaning never). But I did get a gym membership and I did start to go on a bi-weekly basis.

As usual I lost steam again and I really felt like I would never be able to have enough self discipline to get out there and really be committed to working out. Then on top of not having the motivation to go to the gym, last week we had a little crisis which made me realize that our budget could no longer support a gym membership anymore. I just felt completely done for.

Then I read John 14:13-14 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

So... I asked for the strength to run, to run on the streets of my neighborhood (which are kinda scary). To run for my health and my sanity. I asked for the energy and the motivation to get out there rain or shine. 4 times a week for at least 30 minutes. I asked for a lot. I asked that once again He would show me the power of His promises. I knew right then I would be able to do it. And I did!


Week 1 Run #4!!!


All glory be to Him for the truth of His word, and for His love for me and my little life.