Chasing the When

Has it really been that long

Admin — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 11:52:41 +0000

In March of 2012 my wife and I attended a conference in Nashville called the Killer Tribes conference. We attended because we wanted to get more information about blogging, writing, following our dreams, and many other things that I will refrain from getting into at this moment. What we found while we were at this conference was more information than I personally knew what to do with. I took a whole lot of notes and became even more motivated to make a go at this. Well… that brings us to today.

It has been many months since I wrote a post or even looked at our site. I came back from that conference overwhelmed but inspired. The thing that made the most sense to me was to take a month off, refocus, and then jump into it full force. As everyone can see, that really didn’t work out to well for me. There are hundreds of excuses that I could come up with but the truth remains that I just wasn’t committed at the time. There were too many other things in my life that took the priority and this website just couldn’t fit into the list.

I think that this is what happens to most of us at some point in our lives. We become so wrapped up in the day to day activities that we delay and put off our dreams. I don’t want to look back in time and think to myself…why didn’t I try harder? So I am!

My commitment starting this week is to refocus and follow God’s calling within my life. There will be much more to say about this in the near future, but for right now we will just end this with a big…

WE ARE BACK!!!

Standing is the hardest part

Admin — Sat, 18 Aug 2012 03:47:17 +0000

Today marks Day 3 and I have continued on with my goal. On Day 1 I did six laps. I sprinted (which eventually turned into jogged) half a lap and speed-walked the other half of each. On Day 2 my legs were sore when I woke up, but as the day went on that gradually disappeared. Later in the afternoon with Danielle we did this for twelve laps! Unbelievable. Of course I was not able to even jog all of the half laps towards the end, but she definitely pushed me beyond my limit and I was grateful for that. Afterwards we walked around the high school once. Today I was sore all day long. It was very hard to walk when I first woke up but eventually, that got easier. Mostly though, I only noticed it after I had been sitting down. Even for just a short period of time, sitting requires you to eventually stand back up, and that was torture. This evening I walked for half an hour and plan on running again tomorrow. I am very excited that I have kept this up, even for just three days in a row. Tonight I had the evening to myself and was able to spend a good portion of it tweaking our budget. Now on to organizing some photos from about six months ago. If you can’t slow down time before summer ends, why not reminisce in all the fun that you have had along the way!

So I went running…gasp

Admin — Thu, 16 Aug 2012 19:04:28 +0000

Maybe you’re gasping at the reality that I actually motivated myself enough to get out on the track, or maybe you’re envisioning the sound of me gasping for air. Either but would be correct reactions to the title of this blog. The fact of the matter is, my husband and I (as well as some awesome friends from MCC) are running together under the team name “Poor Unfortunate Soles” in the 5K Color Me Rad race on Saturday August 25. Even though I have had all summer to prepare for this race, my training will occur in the just under a week and a half that we have left until race day. Yesterday I started out on my own and was thoroughly disappointed in my current athletic ability. While driving home I contemplated how I would answer Josh when he asked me how I felt. Possible answers consisted of, “Pathetic!” ”Out of shape.” ”Like a bum.” These transitioned into more positive thinking like “Tomorrow will be better.” I could use that line for a while until I do actually start to improve, but we are not promised tomorrow, are we? I don’t just want tomorrow to be better. Sure today was not anything spectacular, but I started. So that was my answer, “I’m glad I started.” I would like to say that not a day will go by from here on out where I am not running, jogging, or at least walking for half an hour. That is my new goal, which continues into today as I muster up the endurance to go running again with my dear friend Danielle. When I tried to text her this morning and say that I am ridiculously out of shape, Swype autocorrected it to “fabulously” out of shape, and then “ferociously” out of shape. So here starts my journey to be fabulous and ferocious, yet able to run this upcoming 5K.

The break is almost over.

Admin — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 18:29:22 +0000

It was never publicly announced but time off was taken from writing to focus on a lot of person parts of our lives. Focus has been found and we look forward to starting back up very soon. We hope that in the future we can write of a scheduled and more frequent timeline. Hope to talk to everyone soon. God Bless

New Fitness Coaching Coming Soon

Admin — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 19:39:42 +0000

Recently I have taken on a role as a fitness coach. I will be posting more about this soon. For the time being I ask that you be patient as I prepare more content for this page. Thank you.

New Site Design! What Do You Think?

Admin — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:21:23 +0000

We have been working on this site since we decided to start blogging. We want your opinion though. Do you like the site design? Are the colors complimenting or distracting from the material? Dig into the nooks and crannies of this site and give us your feedback. We would also like if that if along with your comments about the site that you would recommend this site to at least 3 people this weekend. Again we thank you for your support and look forward to hearing everyone’s opinions.

Parking Garage Burn-outs

Admin — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 13:32:20 +0000

We have a base model Pontiac Grand Am. This car has about as much get up and go as an Amish carriage pulled by two miniature ponies. This is the reason that I like parking garages. It doesn’t matter what you drive while in a parking garage because they make your car sound much faster and way cooler than it really is. While turning in a parking garage at 5 miles an hour it sounds like I am running in the Daytona 500. Leaving rubber on the asphalt and other cars in my rear view mirror.

The way we as Christians handle ourselves around those that do not share in our faith is much similar to driving our beat up car through a parking garage. From a distance and out of clear view it seems to others that we have everything just right. Nothing can get in our way or slow us down. Unfortunately this is not the case.

As Christians it is our job to show others that we are no different then they are. We struggle in our daily walks, we have problems within our family, and our life is not flawless and perfect. The one thing that we do have though is a relationship with Christ that allows us to get through the hard times and enjoy the world around us. It is ok to show others that we have flaws. It is because of these flaws that we are able to communicate with others who are struggling and seeking to find the peace that comes from knowing God. Our problems and struggles make us human and being human is what God intended for us to be until the day we go home.

Question: When is the last time that you where able to help someone through a hard time because of an experience in your own life?

When Did Thrift Store Shopping Become Cool?

Admin — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 11:30:35 +0000

The other day while shopping at the Salvation Army store (on half-off Wednesday, might I add), I noticed 3 younger girls shopping together. They were all very cute and trendy and judging by the bits and pieces of the conversation I picked up on, they were probably in high school. Showing each other different outfit options and asking for one another’s opinions, it seemed like a typical shopping day.

I love shopping with girl friends and especially in middle school and high school, girls value the opinion of their friends and even make a sport out of shopping. Until it dawned on me…we are at the Salvation Army store! Which, at this point of my life is completely acceptable by my peer circle. I have a two-year old daughter. My options are to spend $50 on two outfits from the mall that will likely not fit her 3 months from now, or spend $50 on 4 pairs of pj’s, 3 outfits, 2 dresses, and 4 pairs of shoes that may or may not have the original tags on them but are still in great shape. So the real question is, why wasn’t this cool when I was in high school?! More importantly why did it have to be cool for me to do it? But such is the mindset of a teenager.

Being a Facebook Bragger

Admin — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 13:20:19 +0000

Sometimes I wonder if by posting photos and updates about our almost 2-year old daughter to “share with family and friends,” if it is really coming off as me bragging. The more I thought about it, I have decided that yes, sometimes it is to brag or show off her accomplishments. My purpose is not to ‘one up’ other children. I chalk it up to the fact that my love language is Words of Affirmation. When I mess up as a mom hundreds of times each day, it is awesome to come to a community of friends online who are giving me that pat on the back and encouraging me that I am still a good mom. My daughter is learning and growing each day and she is adorable. Just like all the other moms (and dads!) and their kids who are also being showcased each and everyday. So post away. Share each stepping stone and each challenge and don’t stop to worry about what someone else might think. New ideas and inspirations often come from posts like this.

This too shall pass

Admin — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 15:48:40 +0000

Our toddler is in a stage in which having her photo taken is not her favorite thing to do. During her first year, she would laugh and smile and cheese it up for the camera and we got so many beautiful portraits. Even when she started talking and saw me pull out the camera, she would say, “Look at mommy, cheese!” Now when I try to even sneak my camera into a photo op she quickly notices and turns the other way or smiles while hiding her face. This is especially difficult when my camera is not handy and I try to use my phone which has what feels like a 10 minute delay between the time I push the button and the time it actually snaps the picture. I have had to come to a realization that this is just a phase we are in and there is not a whole lot I can do about it. Sometimes I can sing a silly song or try to play hide and seek behind something to capture a quick smile, but for the most part it can end up being more stressful than necessary. Though I find it very amusing that the other day she picked up her play camera, set her baby doll on the couch, and instructed it to, “Say cheese!” Her baby doll of course cooperated in sitting still and ‘smiling.’

In a way this is similar to our current process of looking for a house. My husband and I recently found a house that we fell in love with. It was within our price range, had a nice yard, and was in a community that we were hoping to relocate to. Many obstacles came up along the way that we tried to compromise with, all the while asking for God to ‘give us a sign’ if we were not supposed to buy this house. The last ‘sign’ we received was one that was completely out of our hands and we had to let the house go. Two weeks prior to this realization, I would have been completely devastated. We had picked out paint colors, fencing, and even had hopes of having our daughter’s 2nd birthday party at our new home by June. By the time the news came, though, I was at peace with it. God has a greater plan for where we are supposed to live and I am so grateful that He has give us the patience and endurance to go through these disappointments while still trusting that His was is best.

It is so hard to not be in control sometimes and to not lash out when things do not go our way. If we can just try to trust in God, though, and grit our teeth and bear it for the short time, and remember that “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)