A few shot of Jenn's surprise Birthday Tea

Baby Kate

our Tasha girl,,,she really helped me make this party a hit !

the beautiful Laurel and new baby Tavion...hes too adorable i can barely stand it

Larae Degerland

Momma and Chubba

Larae,McKinley,Araena

My theme song this year

pics from my phone

at kimmys birthday party...her and chunky(claymore) ate the WHOLE time(:

theses are a few heather had sent me of hannah over the first few months after she brought her home...she looks way different now...

fun at the fair

for some reason whenever tori is in town we ALWAYS forget to take pictures of our fun times...
but not this time!(: yay!heres a few shots of me and my longest standing friend/sister...weve known each other for 21 years now!(: she's one of the best friends ive ever had.she's a GREAT testimony and an inspiration!i wish i had more friends like her!

Ashley joined us at the end...i cant believe how much she's grown up!she has become such a fun,sweet,and lovely young lady!(:

Running girl 909

So,here i am heading off to run my first half marathon...jenn shot this picture for me at 7:45am on saturday...she was watching the baby for me.Thanx Jenn!Check out the hideous shirts they gave us...wow.ya i know,,,not exactly my color,lime yellow...im pretty sure its not ANYBODY'S color.So ya,its not the best picture,early morning bags under my eyes,lime yellow shirt,shot from a low vantage point by a midget,but its the best i could do(:

ANYWAYS!!!i totally did it!(: i ran 13.1 miles,my time was pretty average,it took me exactly 2hrs and 34 mins,and i placed 97th out of 141 women.I definetly ran slower than usual to keep my endurance up till the end,but now i have an official goal to beat for my next race!(: Im hoping to run it again next year and beat my time by ALOT...but who know what will be going on next year.Id like to run throughout the winter and participate in ALL the races next year...maybe even a full marathon(: can you imagine running 26 miles???oooooohhhhh....i want that(:

Anyways,just thought id let yall know how it went,even though most of my readers PROBABLY already know by now(: Thanx for all the support!!!

Santa Claus half-marathon...

Is what im running on Saturday!(:

It's not the race i originally started training for,at the beginning of the summer.First i was training for the midnight sun run.By the time Jenn and i completed that goal,it was only halfway through summer,and i had the running bug.bad.

So i searched for a far enough out but end of summer goal and decided the Santa Claus north pole half marathon was the one for me...i had no idea if i could ever run 13.1 miles,but was determined to try.so i read up on marathon training,and bought some new shoes,and added a mile to my long distance runs every week.i discevered a whole new world of energy chews gels, and carbo-loading,and hydration.

The challenges that running long distance brought were nothing compared to the amazing feeling i had after completing my goal each week...for most the summer,my knees ached...but thankfully with a little care and alot of pain,they have become strong enough that when i run now,i barely notice them...there were good days and bad days in my training,,,i think the worst day i had was when i had to run 7 miles in the 90 degree heat,while i was sick,and i almost quit about 4 or 5 different times that day.but something inside of me refused to quit.i had to make my goal,no matter what.the fear of failure is much stronger than any bodily pain or discomfort i have ever had.

Ive grown to crave and love the pain and the challenge.Ive discovered an inner strength through running that i never knew i had.A self discipline that God has given me that wont let me give up.Ive gone through things in my life that have caused me to discover this same thing,and cause me to realize that what doesnt kill us only makes us stronger.My time running has been i time for me to think and pray,and thank God for the ability to do things i never imagined possible.It has given me peace with my thoughts,and that was something i was struggling with.

Its been a surprisingly emotional and personal experience,and i dont think anyone but another runner understands what im talking about.I needed a vice this summer and i found it.

I ran 10 miles this past Sunday, and today i ran my last training session until my race on Saturday.I never could have done it without the support of my best friend,my husband.

He's supported me through this the whole summer,has watched the baby,and kept telling me i could do it.I wish so bad he could be there with me when i cross the finish line on Saturday,but unfortunetly he has to work.I never couldve done it without God giving me the ability and health to do it.I know all my strength comes from Him.After recovering from a back injury that dictated my life for three years straight,i certainly do not take anything for granted when it comes to my health.There was a day i thought id nvr be able to run again.Now im looking forward to running my first half marathon and im soooooooo excited!!!Thankyou Lord!(:

Foxes have holes...

when we were leaving the bensons after berry picking the other night,we came upon this little fellow...he let us get pretty close as you can see...pretty cool huh?

My Little Lady

taking care of her baby

dont let this picture fool you...she bulldozes this stroller around like a wild maniac

i LOVE this one(:

bugging the daddy while he was trying to nap(: