Myrtle Beach un-Marathon 2010

The race was canceled, but the runners did not pay attention. The roads this morning were clear. USUALLY when it snows in The South, the roads are icy. The city made a mistake in stopping the race. Scott, Mom & Julie went out and ran/walked the entire course. Julie was #222, burned 2022 calories, and her time was 2:22! Our racers were not the only ones – hundreds of runners were out running the course, earning their medals, and making the best of an unfortunate situation.

   

After the race we enjoyed the pool and hot tub, went to dinner, & ate ice cream. Scott’s half-marathon time was 1:43.18. I was supposed to run or walk but have had foot issues for the last few months. I decided that since the race wasn’t officially on – my feet were not officially obligated to walk and run. Hopefully they will be back to normal soon.

Big fluffy flakes bring shock and awe to Myrtle Beach

Scott wanted to run the Myrtle Beach marathon last year, but I did not register him in time & the marathon filled up. This year he registered early. I registered for the half.  My mom and my sister decided that they wanted to do it too. Reservations were made. Training was completed. My feet got hurt along the way & running was not really possible for me. But I wanted to try!!!

We drove down to MB today and went to the Runner’s Expo. While we were there, an official announcement was made about the possibility of canceling the marathon. We did not believe that it was possible – come on! How much snow was really going to fall??? At 10:30 p.m. the city of Myrtle Beach officially decided to cancel the marathon – seriously. All the normal drive-in-the-snow people cannot believe that

Scott just came out and asked if they had canceled the cancellation. Unfortunately, they did not. But Scott & my sister Julie & my mom are going to go out & log some serious mileage tomorrow morning while wearing their bibs. Too bad it’s not just a bad dream.

Blogging

I am so far behind – if I’m behind in blogging & scrapbooking then I am just plain BEHIND! We have had a lot going on lately. Hopefully, I will be able to post soon about

• Thanksgiving
• Decorating for Christmas
• Christmas day
• Trip to Florida
• The Downtown 5K
• Snow Days
• An Eagle scout project
• Fish Tacos, Brownie Cheesecake, and Sweet & Saucy Chicken Thighs
• Wicked & Grandma & Grandpa’s visit
• Chris’ 16th birthday
• Ryan’s 12th birthday
• Three boys in suits
• The MB Marathon & special guests

OK. Phew! I feel caught up now. :)

A Tale of Three Dresses revisited

 http://sjcrj.blogspot.com/2009/11/tale-of-three-dresses.html

I wore dress #3 - the black one! Luckily I already owned it.

Guess what’s on the agenda today?

Our food storage room freezer is very icy. Time to defrost!!!

We’ve fallen off the face of the earth!

This Saturday is Chris’ Eagle scout project. He is organizing a 5k and 1-mile fun run/walk with all donations benefiting Harvest Hope Food Bank. Chris finally got approval for his Eagle project five days before the actual event. This project has been in the contemplation stage since last March or April. He talked to the Mauldin Sports Center & then realized that the planned course was too small for the numbers of runners that he wanted involved in the event. Eventually he changed the race to be on a high school cross-country course.

We are so looking forward to Saturday – meeting all the people who come to help & to run, enjoying the moment (I better write myself a note for this one!) and taking a bunch of pictures. The fall colors definitely won’t be showing in January – but there’s the lake on the route. And here are the shoes that Chris will wish he was running in – but instead he’ll be helping everyone else have a great experience!

When this event is finished, I have a lot of pictures to show you!

We wish you a Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year!!!

 

 

 

We are up before the kids!!! Not really … it’s 1:09 a.m. & we’re ready to call it a night. More tomorrow.

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Christmas piano music

I have been listening to piano music on Pandora for the last few weeks. Free & lovely. Here are a few of my favorites in no special order. But my two all-time favorites are *-ed.

 

*I Saw Three Ships – Jon Schmidt

Wassail – Windham Hill (couldn’t find this on iTunes)

Christmas Medley – Jon Schmidt (everything Jon Schmidt)

Hark the Herald Angels Sing – Christmas Break: A Relaxing Classical Mix (the album is nice)

Tim Janis – Christmas Piano Collection – the whole album

*Carol of the Bells – George Winston (December album)

Still – Michelle McLaughlin

O Holy Night – Michelle McLaughlin

Silent Night/ Come Thou Long Expected Jesus – Michael Chertok

Angels We Have Heard on High – Dana Cunningham

Winter Solstice – Michelle McLaughlin (love this)

Jennifer Haines – Christmas Magic (the album)

Whew! That was close!!!

Tonight, we decided to go to the stake Christmas choir concert before the First Presidency Christmas fireside. We picked up one of the YSA’s (Scott) & started speeding down the freeway. Some cars ahead of us started hitting their brakes. There wasn’t tons of traffic (luckily) & people must have noticed that something unusual was happening. Suddenly, the car in front of us totally stopped. ZERO mph. In the middle of the three-lane freeway. Scott (my Scott) slammed on the brakes & we skidded within literal inches of the van in front of us. Next, we had to wait in fear & dread for the cars behind us to realize that there was something wrong & to stop. Amazingly, the guy behind us hit his brakes & stopped within inches of our bumper. And everyone behind him did the same thing. I don’t think that we could possibly be any closer ever to being in an accident than we were tonight. I am thankful, very thankful that we were all okay & that no one got hurt.

A Tale of Three Dresses Revisited

 

   

Scott’s company party is coming up soon! I have three choices. I am honestly not comfortable in my own skin these days – I just want something that will look nice for the evening. And maybe not cost a fortune. These are all pretty reasonable. My makeup & hair & toes will be done. Any opinions out there?

Thanks to all of the great opinions out there – I wore dress #3 & loved it. It was a whole new world to not worry about having a brand new dress. When I mentioned to my friends that I just pulled my LBD (little black dress) out of my closet & added a new necklace, they explained that they had done the same thing. If you look closely, you might see that I have bumps between my eyes – more like a mountain range! I had an allergic reaction to something when I got my eyebrows waxed. Luckily, makeup kind of covered it up.

My favorite picture of the night was of me with my husband sitting at dinner. My friend’s talented husband went around with his fancy camera & nice flash & did a great job capturing the evening.

Life is Like a Marathon

I have never run a marathon. I don’t think my body is really cut out for it – I hate pain & my feet have on-going woes. (I think it’s time to find a good foot doctor – any recommendations? I only found the bad one in our town.) Scott is a good runner. And Danielle, Lisa, Kristin, Laisa, Amy, Jessica, and a million others who frequently inspire me. If running a marathon would take off 50 pounds, I would sign up. But here’s the quote of the day, “YOU CAN'T OUT TRAIN A BAD DIET. PERIOD.” So, I will just keep doing my thing & not run a marathon.

My friend Danielle worked REALLY hard to qualify for the Boston Marathon. I got to see a few of her races & watch how insane her times were & how hard she worked. If I remember correctly, she & her friend decided to have fun & not worry about time. Her friend Jen videoed the whole race & made a DVD for her seminary kids. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.

Ryan @ the Kids’ Marathon – the winner!

Mom was so excited that she completely missed a picture of Ryan crossing the finish line in first place. We are hoping that the Greenville News’ staff photographer will make us proud and relieved.
Ryan had to run 25 miles before today (easy-peasy) & then raced for 1.2 miles to finish off the kids’ marathon. The race finished inside Fluor Field, the Greenville Drive’s baseball stadium.
Scott was outside the stadium & saw Ryan & his friend Austin running neck & neck until the last hill. Ryan’s final time for 1.2 miles? 6:05 – a 5” mile pace. The pacer on the bicycle played with the kids, “Can you catch me? You think you can catch me???”  

Ryan & his friend Michael went running in the neighborhood several times & at the middle school on Friday afternoons. Michael finished a short time after Ryan. What did these typical preteens want to do once they finished the race? “Snack table!!!!” They returned several times & it was probably the highlight of the day for them.
We spent the rest of the day watching other racers. We walked out to Augusta Road & saw the first half marathon guy racer go by. (He sold me my shoes – maybe I will get faster?!) Then we went back & saw Michael’s dad run & finish the 5k in about 20”.
Greenville is not a very big place & a lot of people that we know like to run. Scott went out on the course & ran with & cheered for my friends. My friend Danielle placed second in her age group with 1:33 for the half-marathon. (13.1 miles) Several other friends ran their first half marathons. I have signed up with my mom & my sister to run in Myrtle Beach in February. Time to lace up those sneakers.
BTW For my friend Kristin’s race report (and a picture of Scott running a bit with her) you can visit her blog.

Busy, busy, busy!

  We have been running around like crazy for the last few weeks. I am going to do a super-post & let you see some of what we’ve been doing.

Scott was in San Diego & Seattle for work. While in San Diego, he went to the Monday night football game (Denver v. San Diego) with a co-worker. When Scott cheered for Denver, some people told him to sit down. :) He had a great time, but we are glad to have him home!

How do we survive when Scott’s gone? We eat out  - a lot!!!  Not every single meal, but almost.

 

 

 

 

 

This picture was taken on the morning of our busiest Saturday ever – each of us is dressed for the activities of the day. Scott? High council @ the YSA conference @ Clemson. Chris? Cross-country meet @ Furman University. Mom? Spectator @ everything. Ryan? Baseball scrimmage game & pizza & bowling party. Jared? Soccer player & end-of-the-season party.

 

Christopher’s cross-country season is winding down. Tomorrow is the regional meet on his home course. Last week he had a very difficult race – throwing up, hip pain, etc. Hopefully his time will be better & he’ll be happier with the results this time. He has two college classes this semester – Spanish 101 & Computers 101 – and is doing well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ryan has been playing lots of baseball – one practice and two games per week. (Can you see the ball in the air?)What does he do in the morning to prepare himself for the day? He wakes up & watches ESPN Sports Center, of course. He has adjusted to middle school – he turns in assignments & keeps track of everything.

 

 

Jared loves to play with Cody – video games, Pokemon cards, & Legos are the current favorites. He also loves music & has some pretty sweet dance moves.  His reading level has jumped almost two years since last fall. :)

 

And…

Guess who learned to ride his bike on the first try?

 

 

 

 

We have been very busy with our Young Single Adult calling. Jordan Garrett left on his mission for Brazil. We had everyone over for General Conference breakfast – waffles, strawberries, whipped cream, bacon, &  juice. Matt Carter came home from Iraq & got to meet his baby Benjamin for the first time. We spent a fun weekend with the YSA’s at Clemson for the annual conference.

Brain Freeze!

Usually I can think of something clever or witty or at least palatable for my blog posts. Today? This week? This month? Not so much. I will be back soon, well rested, healthy, and full of too much to say. I think that I am behind a 12-on-the-12th entry and several about the kids’ sports. Time to let the fingers fly on the keyboard – with special emphasis on the Backspace <---  key for all of my typos. We have done a little bit of work in the yard and on the house. Soccer has wrapped up & baseball & cross-country are winding down. Pictures will  definitely going to be coming up soon. Thanks for reading.

… can I have a moment of peace?

Today, I remember when the kids were little & the demands were constant. There was never really a break. The rewards were frequent – little kids are just plain cute – but the demands were intense too. I have had a rough couple of weeks or months – bronchitis, the flu, the death of a good friend, a cold, a traveling husband, lots of sports & activities – and I am just ready for a few minutes of quiet, calm, guilt-free peace.
Saturday was CRAAAAAAZY~ YSA conference at Clemson, soccer & last-day party, baseball & team party, cross-country meet @ Furman, dinner for 120, a Sunday school lesson. The kids have three days off of school this week – #1 is off Monday, #2 & #3 off Thursday, and #1, #2, & #3 off Friday. Too many days on top of busy, running-faster-than-I’m-able days.
I love my kids & I don’t want them to be gone. I understand when people say that they really miss the time with their kids. I love what one of my friends has on her blog, “The things that drive a young mother to exhaustion are the very same things that feed her soul.” I will miss the busy-ness & the dirty laundry & the carpool line & the non-stop activity. However, I hope that I can remember how hard it is to make it through the day sometimes.
My kids are good & cute & wonderful & talented. I could not ask for better children. They say things that make me laugh & smile all the time. But for right now, I just want a good night’s sleep and a chocolate croissant.

She did that for me?!

My good friend Liz left this life quite suddenly on Tuesday evening. I just kept screaming in my head – Wait?! We need to go on girls’ night out. We need to talk about your trip to Minnesota. I need to tell you thank you for all that you did for my boys in Boy Scouts. I need to tell you thank you  for a million little things that were really all big things.  She kept Chris, helped him with lunch & homework & getting to & from school for eight days so Scott & I could celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. She brought the family to Chris’ soccer game and cheered for him (in cold, wet, drizzling rain). She drove Chris from seminary to high school every single solitary day. She checked in and let me complain every day when I was so sick that I thought I wouldn’t make it. I feel like their is such a hole in my heart – I can only imagine the heartaches of her husband and children and grandchildren who are left to go forward from here. She was a great mom who was a tireless advocate for her children’s success in school and in life. She was an amazing person and I am so very,very sad to have her gone.

    
I loved this video link that Liz introduced me to. It sums up what type of a person she was. It is LONG but the good long that you don’t want to end.