~Sisters~

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Lincoln State Farm 10 Mile Run

I drove to Lincoln yesterday morning to run in the State Farm 10 Mile Run with my good friend, Michelle. Michelle and I were roommates and teammates in Wayne. I haven't seen her in almost a year, and it was fun to be able to run with her! She is training for the Lincoln Half Marathon and will hopefully run it with Jess and Sarah while I run the full. I wasn't looking to set a PR, but to simply run with and enjoy catching up on life with Michelle. Michelle, on the other hand, set a HUGE PR! She beat her last year's time by over 5 minutes! Our official time was 1:31:41 which is a 9:04 minute per mile pace. We were running the first 3 miles at an 8:30 or better pace, and I asked her if she wanted to slow down and she said, "I'm fine"...love it! We ran the first 5 in an under 9 minute per mile pace and then slowed down just a bit after that. This was run from the State Farm building in Lincoln and then over to the Mopac Trail. It was a 5 mile out and back route. I rolled my ankle 1/2 mile into the run and its a little sore today, but not too bad.

Running is so much better when you have someone to do it with!

Palm Sunday

Mark 11:1-11

New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King

11 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, ²saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. ³If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’”

⁴They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, ⁵some people standing there asked, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” ⁶They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. ⁷When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. ⁸Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. ⁹Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,

“Hosanna!^[a]”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”^[b]

¹⁰“Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”

“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

¹¹Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple courts. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.

As you know today is Palm Sunday. The above Bible verse was the scripture for today's service. The girls walked through the service today waving Palm branches as they do every year on Palm Sunday. I remember doing this as a little kid. They have been looking forward to this all week because they have been learning about Easter and Palm Sunday in their Wednesday night classes. Lily kept saying, "Do I get to wave the Palm trees today?" LOL!

The Crood's

We took the girls to see The Crood's yesterday out at Village Pointe. We hadn't been to a movie as a family in a long time and Avery had NEVER been to a movie. Jason had a gift card to the theater that he had gotten from Lily for Christmas and we had some Snack Cash to use too. With the matinee pricing and the gift card it only cost us $2 to get in! I think after snacks we paid a total of around $15 for the day...not bad for a family of 4! The movie was super cute and Avery did great! She sat on either my lap or Jason's the entire time. Her little face lit up when we walked into the theater. She loved the giant M&M's on the wall and all of the giant movie posters.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Avery on the Potty

Avery is finally asking on her own to use the potty and she is actually going!!

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Leprechaun Chase 10K

Last Saturday, March 9th, Jess, Sarah and I ran the Leprechaun Chase. It was a 10K run that started from inside The Air and Space Museum, went through Mahoney State Park and ended back inside The Air and Space Museum. It was a FUN time with GREAT friends! I have mentioned in previous posts that I am blessed to have these two gals to run with, and I mean it!

We couldn't have asked for a better day weather wise. It had rained in the early morning, but the temp was near 50 degrees. It was cloudy and windy, but overall not too bad. The course, on the other hand, was tough. It was muddy in spots and HILLY! Jess and Sarah ran together and I ran my own race. Despite the challenging course I was still able to get a PR (personal record). My previous 10K (last year's Corporate Cup was 50:03), and I ran this in 49:02 or a 7:54 pace per mile. I was pretty happy with that! I finished 18th in my division (30-34), 68th female and 237th overall. There was around 2,000 runners. Sarah set a goal for her and Jess to run a 9:30 pace and they beat it with a 9:28 overall pace...way to go ladies!

This was the featured run in February's Runner's World Magazine....pretty cool to have this be in your hometown! The fun part about the race was that the Lass's (girls) got a 5 and a half minute head start on the Lad's (guys). The winning gender got free green beer at the after party. A guy ended up winning, but we were still able to enjoy some green beer and a good time! Next month the 3 of us are traveling to Kansas City to run the Rock the Parkway Half Marathon. This will be Jess's first half marathon and we are so looking forward to a girl's weekend! We will be joined by 2 other college buddies and another gal as well.

Three friends having a good ole time!

I can't forget to mention that the daddy's were left behind with the kiddos and they did a GREAT job! Those little ones are so lucky to have daddy's like they do! Lily, Weston, Avery and Rylee. Weston and Rylee are Jessica's little ones. Sarah has 3 little ones herself!

At least we left them with some good snacks!

Monday, March 4, 2013

Running Buddies

I'm so thankful to have these girls to run with! Sarah and Jessica are two good friends of mine and old college roommates/teammates from Wayne. Sarah has run a full marathon in the past and some halfs. We started running together just this past December when she was training for another half marathon. Jessica is currently training for her very first half marathon and I have enjoyed running with her and helping her with this new journey. We all live so close which makes is really nice! It helps so much to have someone to join you in a long run...we have lots of old college stories to share and make us laugh during a long run! I'm thankful for these two ladies/running mommies/friends and everything else that they are!

We are traveling to Kansas City together in April to run a half marathon together...Jessica's very first! We are running a 10K together this coming weekend here in Omaha. It is the Leprechaun Chase 10K which was the featured race of the month in February's Runner's World Magazine. The picture above is from a pre Leprechaun Chase night at Red Dirt Running Company, which is a local running store. We were able to do a test run in a pair of Mizuno Evo Cursoris shoes and there was raffle drawing for prizes. In May, Jess and Sarah will run the Lincoln Half Marathon with another college friend of ours (Michelle) and I will run the full marathon. I hope our running time together continues and that we are able to run many more races TOGETHER!

Valentine's Day 2013

The girls waiting ever so patiently to see what is underneath the blanket...daddy worked so hard putting it together! :)

They got a Barbie Volkswagon powerwheels! Thanks to my good friend and co worker, Lindsay, who found a killer deal on this and asked if we wanted it!! On any other Valentine's Day I would NOT give this kind of gift to the girls, but we didn't have anywhere to store it for months and months before another birthday would have rolled around!

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Dear Jason,

Today you turn 33 years old, and since the girls get a birthday letter I suppose you should too. I'm thankful to be able to spend another birthday with you! We have been blessed to share the last 11 together. I remember when we first met because it was right after my 22nd birthday and right before yours!

In all seriousness, I am so blessed to have you by my side. I know that I don't always tell you how much I appreciate everything you do, but trust me...I do...very much! I have now professed it to all of our Blog readers too! I couldn't raise these girls without you. They are so lucky and blessed to have you as a daddy. You are the "lighter" and more playful side of our relationship and the girls love sharing their laughter and silliness with you! They need you and they love you so very much.

Today has been a little bit of a bum day with Avery getting sick again....little booger got sick on my birthday too! I think she just wants to keep her mommy and daddy close by. :) I hope she feels well enough to let Pa Pa watch her so we can enjoy a nice dinner together, but if not we will make most of it as a family. Lily was so proud to be able to pick out your cake today. She said, "Daddy will love it!"

Happy 33rd Birthday!

Love,

All of us

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

My 33rd Birthday

I turned 33 years old on January 21st...thank you to my family for making it a great day! I hung out all day with my girls and then my mom came over later that night and watched the girls so Jason and I could go to dinner. We ate at Firebirds...YUMMMMMMM! I had the best salmon that I have ever eaten! We went to DQ to get a cake afterwards...more for the girls...who am I kidding...it was all for me! I love my ICE CREAM! We decided that we didn't need an entire cake for 4 people so we settled for a box of Dilly Bars. The girls and Jason snuck a candle into one of them for me and they sang Happy Birthday...it was pretty cool!

My mom walking on the treadmill...I bet she wishes she was eating that Dilly Bar instead!

The FINAL Christmas!

Every year sometime after Christmas we get together with Jason's mom's side of the family. This year it was held at a cabin in Seward, NE. It was a beautiful day and we were able to enjoy some time outside by a large fire pit. The kids were able to run around and be kids...it was nice! We enjoyed LOTS of yummy food...too much to even choose from! The boys played cards and the girls/kids played Bingo.

We ended the day with a sort of White Elephant gift exchange as we always do. The guys each bring a "guy" gift and the girls each bring a "girl" gift. All gifts go in the center of the room and cards from a regular playing deck of cards are dealt. You pick a gift from the appropriate pile when your card is called. You can either pick a new gift or you can "steal" a gift you like from somebody else. The "most wanted" gift this year was a handmade craft that one of Jason's twin Aunts made...they attend many, many craft fairs throughout the state and region. I LOVE their work! They can turn any old piece of "junk" into something amazing! This gift was stolen many times...by the ladies...and by the husbands who were put up to it by their wives. :) I really wanted this particular item and I knew we would end up with it because Jason was the last to pick! YAY...we got it and it is now hanging beautifully in our home.