Heart Breaking News...

Since I recently hurt my knee while running my 5 miles (2 weeks ago), I need to stay off my knee. So, I can't run my half marathon this Saturday. I am completely and utterly disappointed. I have been training for this race since September 08.

My sister, Lindsey, is still flying up here to run even though I can't. I guess I just have to cheer her on and ride my bike to do it.

Right now, I need to get my knee better so I can run in another race in the near future. I am also starting to think about training for those sprint triathlons. I have a lot of work to do if I want to compete in those. I need to swim better and ride a bike better. I'm pretty good at the running part.

Lindsey also told me about a relay race that she did last year. She ran with 11 other girls from San Antonio to Austin and they all had a blast! I think I would like to do that with her. My other sister, Anne, wants to do that too. That would be fun to run with my sisters in a relay.

Please pray for my knee. I'm pretty upset with that part of my body right now...

Ensign

I just came across a good article in the March 2009 Ensign. It is called "Becoming Self-Reliant Spiritually and Physically." There is a quote in there that I thought was pretty good...

President Ezra Taft Benson (1899-1994) said: "The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of people, and then take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature."

When I read this quote, I immediately thought about Oprah and all the good acts of service she does... like giving people new cars, new houses, or new makeovers. I'm not saying that Oprah is wrong for doing these things but I realized that Christ takes it a step further and gives people a different and new lesson. If they work really hard and figure out a way to make themselves more self-reliant, they will enjoy their new environment but also gain the experience and learned their own lessons that Christ wanted them to learn. I think in the long run, I would rather go Christ's way then have someone give me something for free and not realize the work I would have put into getting it.

Is there something else I'm missing from this quote from President Benson? What are your insights?

Good news first or bad news?

Ok… good news first….

Troy got a job! Yay for Troy!! We are so blessed that he got this job. It’s with a company called backcountry.com and he is in charge of their computer system. He just has to keep it up and running. This week is his first week so he’s trying to see where he fits in the whole picture. It’s going to take some adjusting but I’m sure he’s going to be great at this job. He’s struggling a little with the fact that he has to go back to a computer job but he’s grateful that we have some income.

Here is some more good news…

I have CUTE boys! Yay for more pictures!

Alright… now for the bad news.

I hurt my knee this week. All I did was run my 5 miles on Monday and it started hurting around 2 ½ miles into my run. I had to stop running for a little bit to take the edge off but then I just ran home so I could rest it. It’s been hurting ever since. My physical therapist told me to take this week off and I’m struggling with that. I’m just hoping that my knee gets better soon because my ½ marathon is getting closer!!!

More bad news…

My poor, poor uncle Kevin is in the hospital. He is in the ICU with a bad infection. This infection spread to his brain and caused about 27 strokes. He’s in a coma and on a ventilator. We have been fasting and praying for him and I think so far, our prayers have been answered. His MRI showed that his brain is clearing up and he’s starting to move around. We are praying now that he will be able to breathe on his own and we can take the tubes out. I’ve been driving for hours back and forth to see him. I’ve been at his bedside singing to him.

HIGHS AND LOWS

This is one of those things that is so hard for me in life. I really hate going back and forth between good days and bad days... happy and sad... being on Cloud 9 to wanting to rip someone's head off.

These last couple of days have been great. Saturday, I participated in my very first TRIATHLON! I was talking to my physical therapist on Friday and he convinced me to do it. I am really glad that I did. I didn't do all that great though... but I finished! I really could care less right now on my time to beat. I wanted to try it and I did. Now, I know what I can do to improve... like swimming for more than 2 minutes at a time!

Yesterday at church, I got to go all by myself because Ryan has the dreaded croup! It was too hard for me to take Benjamin with me because I had to teach my Sunbeam class. For sacrament meeting, I decided to bear my testimony. That was a good decision. I was in a good mood all day. That's big for me! For a recap, here are some of the things I said:

I am so very grateful that my sister, Anne, convinced me to start running and to set a goal for an event. Most of the time when Anne wants to convince you to do something, she likes to talk and talk and talk until you give in. Not this time. All she had to do was run her full marathon. After she crossed the finish line, that did it for me. She was so tired and wiped out after the run but I could see the accomplishment and excitement in her face. That far outweighs the pain!

When I started running miles at a time, I could tell that I had a long way to go and that it was not going to be easy. One Saturday when I was running 8 miles, I was about to die! Around mile 5 or 6, I remember praying and telling Heavenly Father, "I am not going to stop running! I am going to finish this 8 mile run without stopping! I need Your help!!" I knew that He was going to help me finish that run. And He did. It was really rewarding.

I have compared this experience to these last couple of months. Troy and I have been having hard times with our financial situation, with frustrating times with the boys, with trying to teach Ryan, with comforting Benjamin while watching him get stitches. Benjamin has also entered the terrible 2's with a bang! It's been really hard and I'm tired. I'm really tired. But all of these frustrating times and the tears, these feelings are the same as when I'm running and I really want to stop. All I need to say is, "I'm not going to stop Heavenly Father. I need Your help to get me to the end of the race."

Sure, I'm not perfect with my training. I was suppose to run 4 1/2 miles today and did I do it? Nope. I didn't. I got too caught up with anger with the boys and I am going to take the evening off and watch my TV shows. It's just the same with what we're suppose to be doing here on earth. How many times have I skipped my scripture reading because I was too upset? Plenty of times. I'm not perfect but I am sure trying.

From my experience with my first triathlon, I am still very sore. My arms still hurt and so do my legs. I know that the pain and soreness will go away. This is just like the pain and sorrow that we feel through our trails. Sure, our trials really hurt and it's tough going through it, but all the pain and sorrow will go away. We just have to keep pushing through until the end.

Alright... now that I finished gushing my heart out, let's move on.

This week, Troy and I are really nervous. Troy has a potential job that sounds pretty promising and we are crossing our fingers! We have been waiting and waiting for something to happen. Troy had an interview already but I think they want to schedule another one. This company is working through a recruiter so that's why I'm saying, "I think..." Hopefully something more will happen this week.

My Poor Baby Benjamin!

Last night we went over to visit Grandma & Grandpa Anderson. I took off for about an hour so I could run. When I got back, I was about to leave and go home so I could shower. Then, it happened.

Benjamin and Ryan were standing on a toddler table watching Grandma make some yummy popcorn. Then, all of a sudden, Benjamin fell! I saw him fall and I was already running towards him while he was falling. I picked him up to comfort him and then I saw his horrible gash! I remember within a couple of seconds, Troy and Marianne stood there with panic looks and I was calm and told them to get a wet washcloth.

Troy and I drove Ben to the ER in Orem and the bleeding stopped. We then had to wait for 2 hours to get him sewed up.

Here is a picture of Ben when we just got there...

Poor little boy!

He was really upset because I held him in the car and he didn't want to be restrained. After we got there, they needed to sedate him because he needed to be calm enough for them to stitch him up. Here's Ben after the calming medicine...

He was a little happy after that. Troy and I wished we had a video of him. He was clicking his tongue and laughing. After waiting for the doctor, he finally came and we had to hold Ben down. He didn't like that at all and he just cried. That was pretty heartbreaking. Benjamin ended up with 2 stitches inside the wound and on the outside, he came up with 13 stitches!

Today, Ben is just fine. We have to take him into his doctor next week to get his stitches out. Troy and I are just really happy that it wasn't worse. I'm really glad that Ben didn't throw up. Then we would have had to get a CT scan. I guess we need to count our blessings.

One of the things Troy and I are really worried about though is the bill from the hospital. As of right now, Troy is unemployed. His company that he's been working for is not working out and the company is just got getting the business and money to survive. We need to pay the bills and mortgage so Troy has decided to move on and get a job. We're hoping that something comes along soon!

Here are some pictures that Troy just took of the boys.


Look at these pictures from when Troy was doing one of Jon Schmidt's shows at BYU. Pretty cool huh?!

Wow! My ticker says that I have 2 months and 2 days until my 1/2 marathon! Geez! I remember when it said 6 months to go. Time is going by too fast for me!

Saturday, Jenn, Katie, and I ran 6 miles. I thought I was going to die! Around mile 4.5, I started praying really hard! Heavenly Father really helped me finish successfully! I don't think I've ever done anything so hard before... well wait. I've had 2 c-sections. Those are harder to deal with. This Saturday is suppose to be harder... 7 miles! I'm already dreading it and it's only Monday. Heaven help me!

Let's see... what else can I talk about other than my running?!

Yesterday, Troy and I went to church with just Ryan. Ben came down with a cold and so my MIL took him to her house to rest. I was enjoying church up until Primary started. Ryan had a melt down in sharing time and then a HUGE melt down in class. You could hear him throughout the whole church! Not pleasant! So many people were peaking in my room to see who was screaming their head off. I sure hope that Ryan gets use to his new Sunbeam class. I'm not sure what to do to make my lessons more entertaining for him. The other boys don't seem to mind how boring I am!

After we got home from church, Troy let me take a LONG nap! It was wonderful!! I enjoyed it immensely!!

Well, I guess I'm just rambling here so I better just end this.

A small update...

Alright so, I'm off and running with my training! I am in my 2nd week. ( Wow! It feels like only 8 thousand more weeks to go! )

Have I noticed anything different with my training and how I feel? Yes! I'm SORE! I think what's getting me this way is all the cross training I'm having to do. I have DIRECTV and my sister, Anne, told me of channel 261... FITV. There are tons of workout shows that kick my booooo-tie!!

There is something that is great though! I have a running partner!!! I am so ecstatic! Her name is Jenalee... here's a picture of her!

She is SO cool! We have only ran together a couple of times and I feel that we are already great friends! She has already given me great ideas to improve my training and she pushes me during my running. I couldn't ask for anything better!!

Happy 6th Anniversary Troy! I love you!!

Closing my eyes and... JUMP!!

I read on one of my friend's blogs that her new year's resolution is to blog more frequently. *clear throat* I guess I need to do that also. I don't know why I should... I blog everyday!!! Right... I guess the last update was Thanksgiving. That's when I finished my first race ever! My 4-miler. I have kept up with my running but December was a little bit of a disappointment for me. I didn't progress as I would have hoped but I should say that I've slowed down a little. I don't know if it's my lack of motivation or if the holidays distracted me, but getting up in the mornings to run has been hard. I'm happy to report that I didn't gain any weight from the holidays but, I didn't lose anything either. I think I'll take that.

Our Christmas 2008 was on the small scale this year. We didn't buy many presents but I'm glad that we all still had a great day. I was really glad to have Troy home because he was really busy all month and I barely got to see him. It wasn't fun at all being a single mom. We were able to enjoy a family Christmas party, family reunions, and much needed rest! I must say though that I am grateful for my parents and Troy's parents. Because of them, we were able to enjoy Christmas much more and the boys sure did get some fun things!

Here are some pictures from the holidays...




(Ryan got a hold of my camera and took some self portraits!)



So, for the new year, I thought I'd start it off with a bang. I'm proud to announce that Ryan is about 95% potty trained!! Wow! Potty training isn't much fun! Ryan has learned very well though and he's an underwear boy now (with the exception of night time.) Our turning point was last Sunday. I was pretty unsure about going to church with him in his underwear but he surprised me and didn't go unless we took him to the potty. I guess being a new Sunbeam really distracts you enough to forget about "down there." He surprised me again when he went to school this week and came home dry for the most part. We did have an accident one day but I'm not sure if he was taken care of. Who knows what happens at school right? I'm really proud of Ryan though. He's so smart and he has come a long way with the potty training! Yay for underwear!!!

So, my title of this update is really about my big event this year. Next Monday, I am going to start my training for my 1/2 marathon in April. Since my running wasn't so impressive last month, I literally feel like I need to close my eyes and jump in with my training. I need to make some changes in my mentality and just push myself out of bed and push myself with my running and strengthening. I know this isn't going to be easy but I know it will be worth it in the end.