God's Plans

Today marks 6 years since we lost Josh in the tornado in Gallatin. As I think back to that day, I remember that it was one day after we celebrated our daughters' birthdays-Gracie's 5th and Caroline's 3rd.  Caroline's actual birthday is April 8th. In the moment, when I thought about the timing, it made me so sad! Now that some time has passed, I can see how God's plans are so perfect - I have been busied today with party preparation and even though I have thought of Josh several times and shed a tear to two, it has given us something to do so we don't feel the hurt quite as badly today.

Caroline is like her Dad in so many ways. She loves to entertain us like he did - especially her Grangran and Grandad.  Most Sunday's we eat lunch with them and she and Gracie end up spending the rest of the day with them. There's always a story or two about the afternoon when we pick them up. I think it tickles them how she acts like her Daddy. I count this as another blessing from our great God.

We are so thankful for the friends and family who have not forgotten Josh! There are always so many who find a nice way to let us know they remember, and it means so much to all of us.

Anna Kate - 10 months

Somehow, the 10 month mark passed us by and I didn't notice!  I think it had something to do with birthday parties and 11 year olds...

Anna Kate has established a favorite things list that I thought I would share this time.

First, she loves this blanket - I'd say it will go everywhere we go for the next several years. This blanket was the first baby gift Anna Kate received - pretty early in my pregnancy actually. We didn't use it all the time when she was younger trying to get her to like it or anything like that. She very obviously chose it though...

Next, give her your iPhone or iPad with Mickey Mouse playing (along with the blanket) and she's a happy girl.

The last thing on her list is books. Specifically, this BooBah book. She lets me read this one over and over to her and thinks it's funny. I, on the other hand, do not understand BooBah at all. I think this is why it is no longer on television...

Here's a video of Anna Kate seeing herself in the video camera. She never gets tired of seeing the baby in the mirror or camera.

Finally, here's the moment we've all been waiting for - Anna Kate says "Ma-Ma"!

From Training to Trainer...

I use the term "Trainer" very loosely here... I have logged around 100 miles running so far in my training. (the tracker to the right has not been in use for the whole training process.) I am by no means anywhere remotely close to expert on this, but I will be helping some girls (including my daughter Gracie) train for a 5K for the next several weeks.

We started Tuesday. Our plan said to run 1 mile. That sounded so good to me! I thought about how short the distance seemed compared to the long runs I have been doing, and I was thrilled to think I would be finished in 10-15 mins depending on the girls' speed.

I realized on Tuesday that there are many little secrets of the running trade - lots of things I've picked up over the past few years when I've tried to consistently run for exercise (having a baby sorta threw that plan for a while).

The biggest thing is BREATHING! Why doesn't it come naturally to our bodies to breathe while we run??? At one point, I remember telling Gracie to breathe during her running because I could tell she had been holding her breathe by the way she was gasping when we walked part of our mile. I know she was focusing so much on getting to the finish line that she didn't think about breathing.

Some other important things are GOOD POSTURE - hold your body up with your back! It makes you feel lighter. DON'T STOMP - think about running on eggshells - light feet make running easier. PACE YOURSELF - We are not sprinting! This is a long run, so top speed is not top priority.

I am looking forward to running with the girls again tomorrow. I hope there will be a little less whining from one girl I know very well. I know they will learn so much from this and I hope to see some benefit next year when they're playing basketball again!

Couch Potato

Anna Kate loves to watch TV. She has recently started laying on the couch in the mornings while watching her favorite shows - Mickey Mouse, Little Einsteins, and Word World. She even laughs at them!