are addictive. So, if you don't want to feel the desire to run long distances for the rest of your life...I would suggest not getting started. But, even still, I love them! I ran the first annual Utah Valley Marathon this morning. Good times good times. Actually, to be completely honest, the first 21 miles were good times. The last 5...not so much. Let's just say I didn't only hit the wall, I smashed the wall, killed the wall, destroyed the wall...and it destroyed me! At 21 miles I was at 3 hours and 11 minutes...only 2 minutes over my goal pace time. I wanted to finish under 4 hours. From there it took me and hour and 15 minutes to run 5 stinking miles! I had ZERO energy and man! I was so mad! I had no more GU, and nothing to get energy in me....gripes. Frustrating, frustrating. But, I finished and now I can't wait to run the next one so I can redeem myself...why is that? Maybe I am just too prideful or stubborn. I feel great now and I'm not too sore. My knees just hurt a little and I think a light jog tonight with some stretching will help that wonderfully. Hooorah.
Just have to say, while on the subject, or not, that I have such awesome parents! All 3 sets of them! I am so grateful for them. They love me and support me, cheer me on and are always there. What a great invention the family is. Seems like Someone knew what He was doing on that one.
Today I got to spend some time with old roommates, whom I love and adore! It was so fun to just talk, laugh, be crazy, yet be serious...and just enjoy each other. I have been blessed with wonderful friendships and I don't think I give thanks for them enough!
On thanking...I was a bit bummed about running the marathon this morning by my lonesome and desired a running compadre. I said a little prayer, not really uttered, more like thought, that I would find someone to run with. Well, as it turns out, once a again, the Lord loves me! I met a great friend on the bus and then at mile 2 met another friend who joined in our happiness. I ended up running with her until mile 22. I feel like we are great friends now and had so much fun talking with her and encouraging each other. Thanks Jenna for the fun and the run!
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Monday, April 7, 2008
Van D!
Hey Marquessa...I can't get to your blog you goober! I think you will have to tell me the address. I want to partake of the goodness! All my love to you and yours! Especially Eliza and her cheeks!
Hungry Hungry Hippos and the Simple Joys that Follow
So, I am starving! I seem to have a strange insatiable hunger lately. Not sure if that is just because I have been eating too much and now my body needs more (bad news bears) or that my stomach actually is expanding, or what! But, kinda weird....so I just keep eating! ...
T.J. and I finally used up the last of our gift cards to Bed Bath and Beyond from our wedding and bought ourselves an ice cream maker! Needless to say, tonight's FHE activity will include the making - and eating - of delicious homemade and very healthy ice cream! Can't WAIT! P.S. Whoever invented the "gift card" should seriously be given gold stars in heaven. What an excellent idea! We were reaping (is that how you spell that?) the benefits of those gift cards for ages, and we still have some to Target! You can get whatever you want or need with a swipe of plastic that takes nothing from your bank account. How fabulous! Thanks to all those kind people who, instead of buying us another set of casserole dishes, opted for the easy way out and got us a gift card!
Although I am pleased with my efforts at posting within a weeks time (thank you! thank you!) of my last post...I am still learning the ropes. You see, I still have some unanswered questions...For example, if Meghan writes me a comment and I want to respond to that comment, where do I write that? Do I write it on her last post...that seems weird? Do I reply within my own blog's comments? Or do I write it on here? Or should I email her? Phone her? What on earth is a girl to do? Anyone with insight, please impart. :) haha I am such a nerd.
Well the most wonderful thing about Conference is that Conference is a wonderful thing! It was such a great great great Conference! After every talk I turned to T.J., "That was a GREAT talk!" and it was. I loved every second and I can't wait for the Ensign to come out! We are so blessed to have a living prophet (what an incredible MAN of God! It is so fun to see that he is a man, with such a sense of humor and a life of goodness. He is just living the commandments of God and blessing lives every day of his life...it is such an inspiration!) and the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives! T.J. and I have been talking a lot about this lately. How truly we have so much. We are so blessed. We know that this life is short, it's temporary...and there is just no reason for us to be unhappy! Of course we will have trials and disapppointments and heartache. That is part of what makes us be able to feel true joy. But each day, in the simple things, each moment, we can decide to be happy - truly happy! - because we know who we are and we know where we are going. Isn't that just the awesomest thing ever?! So, with that being said, I am re-resolve to live life to it's fullest!
Post Script...I promise that I will bring my camera with me to campus so I can add some photos! We don't have internet at our house. :)
T.J. and I finally used up the last of our gift cards to Bed Bath and Beyond from our wedding and bought ourselves an ice cream maker! Needless to say, tonight's FHE activity will include the making - and eating - of delicious homemade and very healthy ice cream! Can't WAIT! P.S. Whoever invented the "gift card" should seriously be given gold stars in heaven. What an excellent idea! We were reaping (is that how you spell that?) the benefits of those gift cards for ages, and we still have some to Target! You can get whatever you want or need with a swipe of plastic that takes nothing from your bank account. How fabulous! Thanks to all those kind people who, instead of buying us another set of casserole dishes, opted for the easy way out and got us a gift card!
Although I am pleased with my efforts at posting within a weeks time (thank you! thank you!) of my last post...I am still learning the ropes. You see, I still have some unanswered questions...For example, if Meghan writes me a comment and I want to respond to that comment, where do I write that? Do I write it on her last post...that seems weird? Do I reply within my own blog's comments? Or do I write it on here? Or should I email her? Phone her? What on earth is a girl to do? Anyone with insight, please impart. :) haha I am such a nerd.
Well the most wonderful thing about Conference is that Conference is a wonderful thing! It was such a great great great Conference! After every talk I turned to T.J., "That was a GREAT talk!" and it was. I loved every second and I can't wait for the Ensign to come out! We are so blessed to have a living prophet (what an incredible MAN of God! It is so fun to see that he is a man, with such a sense of humor and a life of goodness. He is just living the commandments of God and blessing lives every day of his life...it is such an inspiration!) and the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives! T.J. and I have been talking a lot about this lately. How truly we have so much. We are so blessed. We know that this life is short, it's temporary...and there is just no reason for us to be unhappy! Of course we will have trials and disapppointments and heartache. That is part of what makes us be able to feel true joy. But each day, in the simple things, each moment, we can decide to be happy - truly happy! - because we know who we are and we know where we are going. Isn't that just the awesomest thing ever?! So, with that being said, I am re-resolve to live life to it's fullest!
Post Script...I promise that I will bring my camera with me to campus so I can add some photos! We don't have internet at our house. :)
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
okay okay!
Well, it seems everyone is sick of me being smelly, so I guess it's time to update you all on our awesome lives!
Firstly, anyone know how to add links to all of your blog sites on my blog? Cause I want to be able to see yours easily...and apparently I am a little bit blog-site-challenged. :) THANKS!
So...life is good! T.J. is working his little bum (no really, it is little...I think its a guy thing...they just have little bums) off with school. He studies so hard and then aces his tests. What a stud. :) He is trying to figure out what he wants to do with his med school career. We have found some interesting (and potentially exciting) scholarship opportunities with the U.S. armed forces. But, the more we think about it and the more we learn, we find that there are so many more things to think about and learn about! It's fun though, and luckily we are sticking around the BYU scene for a good number of years still and have time to figure it all out!
T.J. is also coaching soccer! It is SO CUTE! Even though the boys are in grades 5-6, I just think it is the cutest thing ever to watch them play...and watch T.J. coach. I love it and so does T.J.!
I am currently LOVING my job and trying not to cry every time I go to work because I know we are leaving for the summer. I have grown to love these girls and I'm going to miss them! For those of you who don't know, I work at New Haven. It's a residential treatment center for adolescent girls. They come from all over the country, and even different countries, with all sorts of problems (depression, substance abuse, trauma, suicide attempts, anxiety, etc.). They go to school, have therapy sessions, and live away from their families. It's hard, but they make such amazing changes. The coolest thing about New Haven is that it is family and values based. The families of the girls are required to have 1 1/2 hours of therapy on the phone with the girls and therapist once a week, and come out for therapy over family weekend once every 2 months. This way the family AND the girl are making changes and her potential for lasting change is much greater. It's so awesome. The girls and families work on values assignments and we focus on building relationships, which most of them have no idea how to do. I wish I could explain it better...it is just the coolest thing ever and I love it!
This summer we are going to be living in San Jose, CA! WAHOO! We are really excited (you know, after I get over leaving my job) to be in the sunshine and close to San Francisco. T.J. is almost excited about selling again! SO, if anyone needs a fun summer vacation, COME VISIT US!
I have been working with the non-profit organization, Families Up, and it is finally looking promising! I am so excited about it. There is still so much work to be done, but we have the vision that we can really help families, and I believe it will succeed!
So a few weeks ago I decided to run the 1st Annual Utah Valley Marathon! I have been going through an obviously inadequate and rushed training program, and I am hoping to finish under 4 hours. haha I know that isn't very fast, but hey, I have to start somewhere! My last marathon was 4:07, and I didn't train much (okay I haven't really trained for ANY of my marathons...this one is probably the most prepared I have ever been), so I am hoping to do well! Feel free to come cheer me on! It's on April 12th!
Last week we had the opportunity to go up to Bountiful for my Grandpa Nielsen's funeral. It was great to hear of his faith and his wonderful life. He was truly an incredible man and such an example of a disciple of Christ. I am so grateful for him! It was not a sad thing to see him go. He is now with his sweetheart and able to work again without a falling apart body getting in his way. I have no doubt he is happier than ever and he has every right to be!
Well, I hope all of you enjoyed that hodge-podge of random updates! I promise I will try a little harder and be a little better at the bloging. :)
Our love to all of you!
Firstly, anyone know how to add links to all of your blog sites on my blog? Cause I want to be able to see yours easily...and apparently I am a little bit blog-site-challenged. :) THANKS!
So...life is good! T.J. is working his little bum (no really, it is little...I think its a guy thing...they just have little bums) off with school. He studies so hard and then aces his tests. What a stud. :) He is trying to figure out what he wants to do with his med school career. We have found some interesting (and potentially exciting) scholarship opportunities with the U.S. armed forces. But, the more we think about it and the more we learn, we find that there are so many more things to think about and learn about! It's fun though, and luckily we are sticking around the BYU scene for a good number of years still and have time to figure it all out!
T.J. is also coaching soccer! It is SO CUTE! Even though the boys are in grades 5-6, I just think it is the cutest thing ever to watch them play...and watch T.J. coach. I love it and so does T.J.!
I am currently LOVING my job and trying not to cry every time I go to work because I know we are leaving for the summer. I have grown to love these girls and I'm going to miss them! For those of you who don't know, I work at New Haven. It's a residential treatment center for adolescent girls. They come from all over the country, and even different countries, with all sorts of problems (depression, substance abuse, trauma, suicide attempts, anxiety, etc.). They go to school, have therapy sessions, and live away from their families. It's hard, but they make such amazing changes. The coolest thing about New Haven is that it is family and values based. The families of the girls are required to have 1 1/2 hours of therapy on the phone with the girls and therapist once a week, and come out for therapy over family weekend once every 2 months. This way the family AND the girl are making changes and her potential for lasting change is much greater. It's so awesome. The girls and families work on values assignments and we focus on building relationships, which most of them have no idea how to do. I wish I could explain it better...it is just the coolest thing ever and I love it!
This summer we are going to be living in San Jose, CA! WAHOO! We are really excited (you know, after I get over leaving my job) to be in the sunshine and close to San Francisco. T.J. is almost excited about selling again! SO, if anyone needs a fun summer vacation, COME VISIT US!
I have been working with the non-profit organization, Families Up, and it is finally looking promising! I am so excited about it. There is still so much work to be done, but we have the vision that we can really help families, and I believe it will succeed!
So a few weeks ago I decided to run the 1st Annual Utah Valley Marathon! I have been going through an obviously inadequate and rushed training program, and I am hoping to finish under 4 hours. haha I know that isn't very fast, but hey, I have to start somewhere! My last marathon was 4:07, and I didn't train much (okay I haven't really trained for ANY of my marathons...this one is probably the most prepared I have ever been), so I am hoping to do well! Feel free to come cheer me on! It's on April 12th!
Last week we had the opportunity to go up to Bountiful for my Grandpa Nielsen's funeral. It was great to hear of his faith and his wonderful life. He was truly an incredible man and such an example of a disciple of Christ. I am so grateful for him! It was not a sad thing to see him go. He is now with his sweetheart and able to work again without a falling apart body getting in his way. I have no doubt he is happier than ever and he has every right to be!
Well, I hope all of you enjoyed that hodge-podge of random updates! I promise I will try a little harder and be a little better at the bloging. :)
Our love to all of you!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
