Tis the season

Just a little holiday randomness......

Payton made the Honor Choir this year (yes, the same girl who said she would never ever join a choir, but had to because of a scheduling conflict and ended up loving choir more than any other class because she fell in love with Mr. Pianalto who moved her from regular choir to Honor Choir because she's that good), and they had the privilege of singing at the Fayetteville square. It was just lovely :)

Holland has some great friends. Some REALLY great friends. And, they've made it a tradition to get together every Christmas to exchange gifts, do crafts, eat, watch movies, be crazy & sleepover. They are becoming such beautiful young ladies, both inside and out. We are some pround mommas!

This one wins for most random. I took the picture because Payton was passed out a little after 8 o'clock (which really isn't all that unusual, but we keep thinking she's outgrowing the narcolepsy...), but Libby was not about to be upstaged. I was making that shirt for Payton for an ugly Christmas sweater party, and Libby fell in love with Rudolph. She can sometimes be smothering with her affection....

Marathoner....at last!!

And, what a crazy journey it's been to get here!!
So, when I was told in 2002 that I might come out of surgery walking with a limp the rest of my life, then to wake up with full control of my left leg, I made a promise to the Lord that since He gave me back the ability to walk, that I would run for Him. When I first started running, I had no intention whatsoever to ever run a marathon. Really? Who does that? Less than 1% of Americans - that's who!! But, the more I ran, the more I chased the challenge. I did a 5k, then another, did a 10k, did my first half marathon in March 2011, then another in May 2011, and another in November 2011, meeting my goal of under 2 hours that time with a finishing time of 1:53. Still, I desperately wanted to be among the ranks of true marathoners, so I set my sights on running the Austin marathon in February. I researched how to eat, how to rest, and how to train, and came up with a pretty good gameplan. All went perfectly according to plan until I hit week 16 in my 18 week training program and started having shooting pain in my right knee. I tried everything - resting it, running through the pain - but, nothing helped. I reluctantly made the decision to not run in Austin for fear of causing even more damage if something was torn or seriously injured. I met with an orthopedist who checked it out and told me I had some cartilage loss that couldn't be reversed or repaired, but that if I decided to train again, he would help me with steroid shots, meds, etc. I knew if I didn't at least try it one more time, it would be a regret that I would live with forever. So, this time I picked the Dallas Marathon. I'm a cold weather runner, so I pick the ones that are in the winter with hopes that it'll be 40 degrees, sunny, and no wind that day (yeah, right!!). This time I decided to follow my own training plan, which included fewer long runs and more days off from running during the week, and I had no knee pain, or any other injuries at all. So.... a week and a half ago, I got up at 6 on Sunday morning, laced up my running shoes, pinned on my number, and joined almost 25,000 other like-minded, determined people and ran my first marathon. Even to type that gives me goosebumps. The weather was less than perfect, and I didn't come near my goal of finishing in 4 hours, but I did it, and it's an experience I wouldn't trade for anything. "Now to Him, who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we can ask or think, according to His powers that work in us. To HIM be the glory."

Marking one off the ol' bucket list

We all know Payton, right? The cutie with the most contagious laugh ever & is all or nothing about pretty much everything in life?? Yeah, that one. Well.....she decided last year that football is one of the greatest joys in life & that the Broncos are the greatest team to ever play the game (thank you, Tim Tebow for lighting that fire). So, even though Tebow went to the Jets after last season, she couldn't betray her beloved Broncos. She has their app on her phone, her ringtone is a cheer for their team, & she can tell you when/who they play, who's on the injured list, what their stats are....the girl is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to her team. So, when it was brought up that her best buddy, Peyton, & her family were going to KC to see them play, we knew we had to tag along & make Payton's dream of seeing them play in person come true (as well as the fact that seeing an NFL game in person has been on my bucket list for some time.... 2 birds with one stone...:) According to P, it was "the greatest day of my life." Love that kid.

Peyton, Payton & Kinlee with their "I hope these get us on TV" signs

 Taking pictures in the parking lot before the game, & this random Chiefs fan thought he'd join in

 Arrowhead Stadium - honestly, not as big & impressive as it looks on TV....

 Me & my beautiful cheering partner. We make a great team :)

 

The man himself, Peyton Manning.

 

Thanksgiving 2012

It's that time of year again....time for family, fun, and oh-so-much food!! I love summer & would never complain if it was 90 degrees everyday of the year, but I don't absolutely hate the cooler days when you can build a fire & wear sweats & be lazy either. That was pretty much our Thanksgiving holiday in El Dorado - minus the fire part. On Friday, the family loaded up, & Randall & Alaine took us all on a little tour of where they grew up, went to church, where the grandparents are buried, etc. It was fantastic to see & hear about it all, & I love that the girls got to see some of their family history!

Fall 2012

Yeah, the title says it all....I'm so far behind that I have to do a post over an entire season! Aye, aye, aye....what can I say...I am one busy WORKING girl these days! I'm just sub nursing for the school district, but boy does it keep me busy! I'm not complaining...it's exactly what I need right now, & I do love it. But, I'm making the most of this OFF day!!

Where to begin?? How about the big cross country season finale?? Yes, the season has already come & gone. A part of me is glad to have our Saturday mornings back, but I sure do love to see Payton run & love to cheer on our team. We're so happy that she fell in love with running & truly hope it's something she'll stick with for a long time. Look at this smile -

We've also been spending time with friends

Then, there was the corn maze with Payton's church group. This is the 7th grade Springdale girls. I have the privilege of being a parent leader for this group & enjoy every minute of it! I'm so excited to see these girls grow in Christ & to be able to shepherd them along the way. Makes my heart smile :)

Halloween!! Just when you think your kids have outgrown costumes & trick-or-treating, think again! Hey, I don't blame them. I'd put on silly clothes & go door to door anyday for a bag of chocolate...
Payton went with her buddy, Peyton, & her dad, Vance. These 2, along with Bridget, make an awesomely fun family! Just ask Payton. She practically lives over there these days!

And, Holland went with a group of buddies, but this is the only pic & have & I had to steal it off of her phone! Guess they had better things to do than take pictures....

So, a few weeks ago, H & E came up with a plan to have a bonfire. They set the date, invited all of their friends, & advised us parents as to what was going to take place. I'm still not sure if we're all really cool parents, or just push-overs.... Anyway, we made it happen, & it was a blast! There was Chick-fil-a, hot dogs, cookies, smores....all the good stuff! And, there was football watching, trampoline jumping, hide & seeking, marshmallow roasting, & a whole lot of gathering around the fire. It was a lot of work, but our girls are totally worth it, & we'd do just about anything for them (obviously) :)

Elkins meet

Saturday #2 of getting up early to go run...I must say, I've been very impressed with Payton's enthusiasm when it comes to these meets. She definitely gets up with her game face on! This weekend's meet was in Elkins - a little bit of a drive, but the weather could not have been more perfect, and the course was short - BONUS! Actually, not that much shorter than 2 miles, and it had sort of crazy terrain, so we were all very pumped when Payton came in with a time of 15:47!! An entire minute faster than last week!

Kind of hard to tell, but she's in front of the girl in red -

Celebratory muffin after the race :)

And, this gives you some idea of how intense these things are! So proud of the Central boys AND girls - FIRST place for both at this meet! YAY!!

Run like the wind!!

How happy am I to have another runner in the family?? Extremely!! Payton decided that she wanted to run cross country this year for Central Jr. High, so we discussed it, talked about how much time and effort she would have to commit, and let her make up her mind if it really was for her or not. She decided that it was, and gave up many summer mornings of sleeping in to train with the team and see just how strong of a runner she could be. We've been impressed with and proud of her dedication and the progress that she's making every time she gets out there! This past Saturday was the first official meet at Shiloh. This girl ran 2 miles in 16:49! Now that's awesome!!

Just look at the pride on this face :)

Payton & her buddies, Jack & Olivia

This Saturday we're headed to Elkins. So excited!! More pics to follow :)

Back to school 2012

Unbelieveable that we have a 7th & an 8th grader this year. Time just keeps marching on, and they just keep getting bigger and prettier everyday :) First day of school pics -

I was sooo anxious to pick them up and hear how their first day went, and everyone had great things to say (except for the part where Payton had to eat lunch with whoever was beside her in line-crazies, according to her- and, Holland's lunch got changed at the last minute, she couldn't find a place to sit in the cafeteria, and only had one Reese's cup for lunch. We made up for that with an after school Sonic run....)!! I've got a feeling this is going to be a GREAT year!! I'm praying for good things to happen to and through these awesome girls!

Body Overhaul: Day Whatever

I've officially thrown in the towel. Bottom line is: food makes me happy. Sweet tea & chocolate, in particular. And, I've confirmed what I already knew - I'm a creature of habit and love routines. I just want to go for a run or to spin class in the morning, go by McDonald's and get my tea for the day, come home and have yogurt, berries & granola, eat a light lunch, then enjoy carbs and bread and dessert with my family. Is that so bad??? Yes, I'm a failure, but I'm past the denial stage and into the acceptance stage where I am quite content :) Lesson learned: don't spend money on anything that takes me out of my comfort zone. Sincerely - the girl with OCD.

Body Overhaul: Day 8

Well here we are....one week into it....and, still kickin'! I won't lie and say it's been easy, but it's definitely getting better as far as the sugar/bread/pasta cravings go. We were discussing it last night, and said that if we don't get anything else out of this, we'll at least be switching to whole wheat breads and pastas. I was dreading even trying the whole wheat, brown spaghetti with the sauce made of only tomatoes, garlic, and onion, but it's a change I think we can definitely make! Yesterday I was craving a burger something terrible, so I made turkey burgers on whole wheat buns with tomato, avocado, and grilled onions. The bread is softer and just as flavorful. Who knew??!! I've really had to draw from my creative side (didn't know I had one) to come up with meals that aren't bland and boring. Saturday night we had "turkey bowls" - turkey breast, brown rice, squash, onions and mushrooms. It's been interesting to say the least, but a part of me CANNOT wait until I can have REAL italian, mexican, and bbq again. As far as the cheating goes....I've been eating bananas, which are forbidden, but sometimes you've gotta buck the system :) I also had one bite of Holland's snowcone the other night. Oh.so.good.

We ran errands with the girls on Saturday, and they wanted to stop for lunch, so we went to Marketplace knowing that they had good salads. Scott had the grilled chicken (with cheese and croutons), and I had the chicken berry (with the most heavenly bacon ever). Yes, we cheated. And, the world didn't end :)

Today is day 8, and the first of 3 days of the dreaded fiber drink :( BUT, starting on day 11, we get to add back in beef and potatoes! WOOT WOOT!! I already bought the ribeyes. It's gonna be a par-tay!!

Body Overhaul: Day 3

I'll have to say that yesterday, day 2, was not an easy one. I would've done just about anything for some CHOCOLATE!! I'll be the first to admit that I'm addicted. It can be something as small as a "fun size" candybar, but I've gotta have it! I made due with my apple and almond butter (surprisingly good, by the way) and pretended it was just as good :( Supper was tilapia from the new Fresh Market, with rice and mushrooms. Again, wishing that I had chocolate, I settled for watermelon thinking this has gotta get easier....

Today was day 3 of the (gag) fiber drink, BUT I have discovered that adding it to fruit juice instead of water makes a world of difference! So, I choked that down for breakfast. Then came lunch.....
Chick-Fil-A has made quite the stir these days as the president of the company is openly speaking out against gay marriage. This prompted Mike Huckabee to declare today CFA Appreciation Day, calling all christians to show their support by eating there. We never need a REASON to eat CFA, so you give us one, and you better believe we'll be there! Being that we live in the Bible Belt, we knew that people would come out of the woodwork for this event, and we were right!

It really was an awesome sight to see, and I'm glad we were privileged to be a part of it. Now, you may be wondering...what exactly did you eat at a place known for their deep-fried goodness?? Well, here you go -

I ate the chicken, lettuce, & tomato off of a grilled chicken sandwich and a fruit cup. Have to say, it would never be my first choice, but today, it was perfect :) And, I knew I had this to look forward to for supper -

We sure do love us some sushi! This was also from the Fresh Market (LOVE this new place) and it did not dissapoint. Yes, the cream cheese was cheating, but the roll was just too pretty to mess up. And, dessert was more fruit. Now, if I can just get these sugar cravings to go away, my life will be soooo much easier!

Body Overhaul: Day 1

Scott and I are active people. We have been for years. We, by no means, think that we are overweight in any way, shape, or form. It's just that sometimes you get in a rut, hit the wall, or just feel the need to shake things up a bit. Enter Advocare!! So, since becoming jobless, I've had some extra time on my hands. With this extra time, I've come across some really interesting health & wellness blogs. And on one of these blogs, I happened upon one blogger that sounded a lot like us - just wanting to take it to the next level. She posted before & afters pics, and the results were undeniable. So, I sent the link to Scott, got him onboard, ordered the 24 day challenge for both of us, and here we are....day 1!

Yes, those are the products and the instructions. A bit overwhelming?? I thought so!! So, I opened all of the boxes, marked each packet with when it was supposed to be taken, then put them in bags marked with the day. Not only do you get to "cleanse" with these "scientifically proven" products, you also get to cut sugar, fried foods, dairy, caffeine, white flour and everything else that equates to happiness from your diet. Leaving us with fruit, vegetables, fish, chicken, nuts, oatmeal, rice cakes, and water.Woo hoo. But...we're up for a good challenge, and we're in this together, so bring it on!

The first item of the day in the goody bag was the Spark. This one you mix with a glass of water and drink on an empty stomach as soon as you get up. It's an energy-booster, so I was anxious to try it out before spin class. The fruit punch one was actually pretty good going down, and I have to say - I think my sweat puddles were a little larger under my bike this morning (may have been the lighting, but I'm going with it). Next up was the fiber drink. Has anything good ever come from putting fiber in liquid form?? I had high hopes for this, but it had me gagging. Literally. It's like drinking thick juice with pieces of hair and grass in it. Of course, Scott texts me and says, "Already done. I've had much worse." Whatever. Liar.

The fun thing about this one is, the after effects are EVEN BETTER!! I'm sitting in my car, all the way on the east side of Springdale, in a park, waiting for Payton to get out of cross country practice when it hits. I don't remember much of the drive home, but I prolly made record time. Just sayin.

Some time ago, Scott borrowed the Insanity dvd set from a guy he works with to try out. For the most part, it has sat in our office in the box, so I thought I'd give it a whirl today. I broke out the Cardio Ab workout....only 35 minutes...how hard can it be? Extremely would be the definitive answer. I did the first, oh, 10-15 minutes, then just sat and watched in awe. It has become one of my 24 day goals - to be able to finish the entire workout. May be lofty...we shall see.

Lunch was 2 boiled eggs, sugar snap peas, cherry tomatoes & cantaloupe (I know this is a big shocker since it's been on my "will not eat" list for all of my life, but it's not that bad, and it's sweet, which makes it AWESOME these days). The afternoon was brutal as I keep wondering where I had left my McDonald's cup only to be sorely disappointed again and again because I cannot have sweet tea again for almost a month. THAT will be the hardest part of this whole thing for me. Hands down. Supper was the best grilled chicken I've ever had in my life and extra crispy vegetables on a stick since I caught the grill on fire. Nothing major, rest assured, but enough to zap-fry the mushrooms, squash, onions, etc. Any other day, we might have thrown these out, but not today my friend! We ate em like nobody's business! Now it's evening, and I could reeeeeally use some chocolate, but I'm powering through with my rice cakes....:(

We're mainly doing this to (1)prove that we can, (2)try to get some tone & definition, (3)cleanse, and (4)to hopefully pick up some good habits along the way that we'll stick with long term. This may very well be an entertaining 24 days...stay tuned.....

Vacation to Hades 2012

Day 1: Let's do this!! Wouldn't it be great to spend 4th of July in a big city with spectacular fireworks?? We thought so! So, we planned and headed out on our 3 city roadtrip the first week of July. Woo hoo!!

4 hours to Kansas City....not bad at all! Shopping & Cheeseburger in Paradise rounded out the day. What a great start to our adventure!

Day 2: Great Wolf Lodge complete with indoor AND outdoor waterpark. Scott headed out to the sun, & the girls and I hit the slides indoors. Fantastic at first....extremely painful to the eyes and throat after about 15 minutes...apparently it takes enormous amounts of chlorine to keep public waters clean...ugh. So, outside we went!

Come on, Pete......
We ended the night with delicious steak & seafood at Outback. YUM!!

Day 3: Off to Chicago! This is one city that I've always wanted to visit, so I was SUPER pumped!! The drive was loooong, but made easier with our arsenal of iphones, ipad, laptop computers, movies, books... And, we made it!!

 It was love at first sight for me. I truly am a city girl at heart. There's just something about the interesting people, restaurants on every corner, great shopping, a lake less than a mile away and so much to do that appeals to me. Granted you have to walk everywhere, but that was ok. Sun was going down...it was tolerable....time to find a great place to eat! (Always the priority)

So, we went to this little gem...also know as Grand Lux. Think Cheesecake Factory, but you get to sit on velvet thrones and you order dessert first because they're baked on the spot and take 30 minutes. Each meal feeds about 4 people, but of course we all order our own and finish every bite. Yep. We decided that night that that couldn't happen every night for the next 5 nights of vacation since none of us packed our "fat clothes". Moderation became the theme.

Day 4: One of my favorite things to do is plan and organize since it feeds my OCD tendencies, so I worked for weeks mapping out all of the best touristy places to visit and bought our tickets in advance. Turned out to be a pretty smart move :) This day started out tough for Holland because she had a stomachache which turned into a shaking episode. She was a trooper and got ready, went along, and powered through. So proud of her for that. We took a taxi and went to the Shedd Aquarium first.

It was as exciting as jellyfish and beluga whales gets. Next stop: Field Museum

What can you say...it's a museum. Time to eat! So, we took a taxi to the Rainforest Cafe.

And, Payton found a hat.

Day 5: 4th of July!! A national holiday! So, instead of there being thousands of people out and about in the city, there were TENS of THOUSANDS! But, I like that right? So, it was all good. On the agenda for the day was walking to Lincoln Park, strolling through the zoo, find a place for lunch on the way back, then head towards Navy Pier for dinner, a circus, fireworks, and a boat tour through the city. Sounds like a most awesome day, huh?? Except that it was 105 degrees with 1,000% humidity. And, people EVERYWHERE!! So, we all soon realized that yes, our clothes would be sweat-soaked all day long, yes, we would stop walking for any and every bit of shade we happened upon, yes, the people watching would be top notch, and no, we would not talk about the heat because it made everyone get loud and use their angry voices.
*I would insert pictures from the zoo here, but unfortunately (fortunately) I have none.
We knew there was a Chick-fil-a somewhere on our trek back to our hotel, and that's what kept us going. It was like an oasis in the city. Sweet tea, oh how I love thee. Then it was back to the hotel for the first round of showers for the day and to sit and savor the fact that we were not sweating for the first time all day. Up next - Navy Pier - and the sun will be setting...YES!!

Dinner at Harry Caray's. And Payton looks fabulous, as usual. So, I got tickets to the Shanghai Circus knowing it would be something the girls would really enjoy. Without knowing that it was OUTSIDE! Are you kidding me?? BUT, our seats were on the front row. No one to block our view, but neck-breaking trying to watch some of the stunts, and I actually started getting motion sickness watching one of the acts go round and round and round....still all in all, a good show. And, this is where the evening took a turn for the worse.... So, we leave the circus, head out to find quite the crowd gathered to watch the fireworks, but still get a decent spot where we can see all of the action over the water. The announcer gets on the loudspeaker, does the 5-4-3-2-1 countdown, we hear the big booms, and the entire crowd turns left and starts running because we're all facing the wrong direction!! By the time we follow them all, we're behind a tree able to see absolutely nothing. But, we can't leave because our awesome boat cruise around the city is after the fireworks are done. So, we start making our way through the sweaty, smelly sea of spectators -

making a human chain holding hands, darting in and out, breaking apart, and at this point Holland gets lost, drops her phone, gets kicked in the head, which sets off another panic attack...you'd think we'd just throw in the towel and head back to the hotel like any group of sane people would do, but we still have to take our awesome boat cruise around the city, so we again make our human chain and
traverse the tens of thousands of sweaty people going in the opposite direction, all the while getting yelled at, cussed at...I'd love to say that it was SO worth it, but we made it across to where the boats dock, waited until 9:45 which was when we were supposed to board, saw a boat coming in that had 4 decks, strobe lights, party people...got excited thinking this was well worth our time and money, noticed that it wasn't docking, asked a guy if it was ours, found out our little dinghy had just taken off without us, asked for a refund, got told "no" since it was part of our package deal, then made our way back to our hotel. Happy Flippin Fourth of July. Next year I'm sitting in a lawn chair holding a sparkler.

Day 6: We slept in. Laid around. Took showers. Watched TV. Finally mustered the energy and courage to head out into the inferno again and go shopping. It was actually overcast and somewhat pleasant. We found the BEST pizza place for lunch - Giordanos!

And, the coolest place to take pictures of the city - The John Hancock Observatory

We wandered around the city for the rest of the afternoon, highlight being the Ghiradelli store, then decided at 8 o'clock that it was time for supper, and this is what we had -

Grand Lux, we're so glad you don't reside in AR :) The girl in the striped dress and her friend (not pictured) were from Bentonville. It's true - such a small world!

Day 7: Our last stop on the Hades tour - St. Louis! Scott found the coolest hotel inside of Union Station. This is the view out our window -

And, this was inside the lobby -

So, we unloaded our stuff and crashed. Our fun-filled, go go go week was starting to get the best of us, so we pulled the curtains and watched Hunger Games. It was glorious. And, when the munchies struck again, we walked over to Landry's for fried onions and seafood. By this point, our stomachs expected nothing less. Why disappoint?

Day 8: It wasn't the easiest task getting everyone up and ready to face another 100+ degree day, but we knew it was our last, and we needed to make the most of it. We found a cool little cafe and had breakfast downtown, then drove over to the home of the Budweiser. There's a sign (warning) by the entrance that it is an "outside tour". Perfect. This vacation wouldn't be complete if we hadn't all sweated through our clothes every single day, so SIGN US UP!! There was A LOT of outdoor walking, but there actually was some air-conditioned relief every once in a while. The high point: the 50 degree room where the fermenting happens. I was hoping the explanation of this process would take hours, but it only took about 10 minutes :( The low point: when they explained that we'd be taking the elevators up to where the crushing/mixing happens, and it would be the absolute hottest part of the tour. I seriously expected the flames of hell when those doors opened. We jogged our way through catching what we could out of our peripheral vision and high-tailed it back down. No thanks.
I'm just glad we were able to get a family picture with a horse....

After that most enlightening experience, we went back to the hotel where Holland and I stayed for the afternoon watching Friends while Scott and Payton braved the heat once more for a Cardinals game. Such troopers -

Then we all met up at Hannegans for our final vacation dinner. And, it was excellent!!

There it is. Our unforgettable, sweatiest vacation ever. It's a good thing we love each other as much as we do and can always have a great time together no matter the circumstances. Next year we're going to Colorado. Or Alaska.