We've Registered!

Alex and I have officially registered for our second half marathon! It is on June 1st in Port Angeles, Washington. We will be heading west with my parents to see my sister Sarah and her family. I'm really excited about this race because it is right on the coast and it should be beautiful! The course is along the Olympic Discovery Trail. We will begin training in March. We will also spend some time in Seattle exploring.  I love to travel and run, so what's better than putting the two together?! 

Wish us luck!

Escape Artist

Tonight Alex and I went to meet friends at Annie's for some frozen custard. Before we left, we put Moose in the second bedroom with the gate securely in the doorway. We had a great time with our friends and enjoyed our concrete.

When we got home we were greeted by a sweet little puppy....

He chewed a hole through the gate (that we are borrowing from my aunt Linda...sorry!). Last week he gnawed on the wood, but this a completely different story. He had little splinters in his teeth that I had to floss and tweeze out, which he did not appreciate. I think we will be searching for a steel gate....Squibb Tank may have a new customer. 

What will we do with this dog?!

Vita-meata-vega-min

This month has been unexpectedly busy- in a good way. The office is up, running and well decorated. We have gotten to spend time with friends and family and we have also been eating a vegetarian diet. Yes, you read that correctly, the couple who thinks that pepperoni is a food group has given up all meat for the month.

We did it for a variety of reasons, mainly health reasons. We ate a lot of processed foods, specifically meat. This diet has challenged us to eat healthier and to be more resourceful with our food choices. We are typical Americans who have a fridge full of food, but continue to eat out and to buy more before we have eaten what we have. We have learned to eat what we have and how to get creative with our food choices (I'm a pretty picky eater when it comes to food combinations, individual foods are ok. But when they touch or are combined, I get a little finicky) so it has pushed me to cook more and think about what we are eating.

We have learned a lot and are looking forward to February's arrival. But, we will add meat back into our diet slowly and in moderation. I like that I feel better, healthier and that we're being more resourceful. I challenge you to give up meat, not necessarily for a month, but for a period of time to see how it affects you.

Now we're off to eat a veggie pizza with some friends!


(For those of you who are unfamiliar with this posts title, you should probably remove your head from the sand and watch an episode of I Love Lucy.)

Uninvited Guests

A few weeks ago we received some mail at the office addressed to a previous tenant or to the "current resident." Of course, I couldn't resist opening it to see what was inside. Low and behold it was an invitation, to a free movie event! I didn't really read the invitation in detail, but got the basic information and called and made our reservation for four.

(Side note- the movie was being played at the Wildey Theater in Edwardsville. It's an old, historic theater that has been wonderfully maintained and frequently hosts events and showings.)

Alex, Kraig, Stephanie and I headed downtown to see The Artist. All I knew about the movie is that it was silent and that it won a lot of awards last year. When we got there we realized that we were slightly younger than the rest of the audience and before the movie started a gentleman welcomed us with a nice speech. His speech was along the lines of, thank you for supporting the Wildey and helping us to maintain the building and continue the preservation of the theater, etc.

Apparently, if I were to have read the rest of the invitation, I would have realized that it was an appreciation showing for the Friends of the Wildey, not for the current residents of a building that some one once rented...oops. But, we were warmly welcomed and the movie was great as well as the company. I think that we will soon become friends of the Wildey, if only for free movie showings!

Words

We all talk a lot, therefore we use a lot of words. We have all heard (and know from experience) that it takes 100 good, positive words to cancel out one negative word. What we say has a lot of meaning and most of the time I just say whatever comes to mind, my filter isn't what it should be. But, it has been on my heart lately that I need to be more intentional about what I say and how it represents what I believe and how it's impacting the recipient.

James 3: 4-5 comes to mind,
4 Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire!

We have a great opportunity to build one another up with our words, I hope that I can seize my opportunities and not take my gift of gab for granted.

Thoughts about snow...

As a child there is nothing more exciting than snow. It's fantastic, you get to play outside, throw snowballs, make forts, snowmen and snow angels and after you've been dragged inside, you get hot chocolate! Whenever it was in the forecast, I would wake up and race downstairs to look out the front door, on a lucky day there would be a few inches of pure, white goodness! I love snow, always have, always will!

However, as an adult, I have become a little more practical. For instance, if we get the predicted foot of snow, how will we get to church- we're scheduled to teach Sunday school, how will we get to work, how will Moose go to the bathroom (he's a bit prissy and doesn't like being cold)? I suppose we will just have to find out...but for now, I'm going to be excited to play in the snow! Maybe Moose will learn to love it as much as I do. 

When I look at Facebook, it seems like everyone is racing to the store to buy milk, bread and eggs. I'm not too sure why everyone thinks that milk, bread and eggs will save them, but to each their own. If I were going to the store, I'd be picking up marshmallows and hot chocolate, wouldn't you?! 

Be kind to yourself

Happy New Year! Whether we're ready or not, 2014 is here. With a new year comes new resolutions and goals. We always start out with good intention's to become more organized, lose weight, learn something new, get out of debt, etc.

The goal most people struggle with (and fail) is losing weight or getting into shape. I'm not a nutritionist or fitness guru, but I do know that we can be too hard on ourselves. Yes, eating well is important and yes, exercise is vital for a healthy lifestyle. But, be realistic. You're probably not going to look like Gisele Bundchen or Brad Pitt within 2 weeks or even 2 months. I know that I am my own harshest critic and while I may see only one flaw, some one else will see something totally different. So, this new year be kind to yourself. God has blessed us with bodies that are designed to worship Him, not beat up on ourselves.

I'm sure that you know that Dove has a Real Beauty campaign, this video is very telling of our harsh nature. 

Enjoy and Happy New Year!!