Turkey Trot Dallas 2012

So today was our Turkey Trot 5K!

We began the morning at 7:00 am with breakfast then headed out for downtown around 7:40. It wasn't hard to find where to go. Not because there were tons of signs, but because there were tons of people! It was like a 45 minute wait for the bathroom alone. Thankfully, I found a small bank of porta-potties that was tucked away and no one could see! I was a little worried about missing the start of the race. However, it proved to be unnecessary to worry about because we didn't even get to the start line until 30 minutes after the gun went off. Thank goodness for RFID chips to time our run! Here's our results!

I was super proud of this race. First, there were TONS of people like I already said! Then, we also had Duchess. I was so surprised! She did so well! I was giving her verbal commands like "left" and "right." Even "up" and "down" for the curb we were running on. She was so focused on running it was amazing! I think she's a sled dog at heart.

Then, we were actually passing people running instead of being passed! It was such a good feeling! I didn't stop throughout the race...every time I wanted to I just kept on going! We beat our last time by three minutes!

What was also really cool is that they had bands along the race course for a mid course jump start. The track also went through Deep Ellum. While I would not normally go through there at night, it's still fun to look at all the store fronts. There was even a puppy day care with all the dogs barking at the runners going past the windows!

Again, I am just super proud of myself in this race. I cannot shout enough for joy!









So now it's onto the 10K! Jared and I just signed up for the Biggest Loser 10K in Austin on January 26th. We are going to make it a part of our 1st anniversary celebration! I am so excited to get better at running and to really see what my body can do!

You can check it out here:
http://www.biggestloserrunwalk.com/Austin_TX_5k_10K

One race I have also longed to do is the Disney Princess Half Marathon! The next one is in February but I seriously doubt I will be able to run it that fast...much less have the money to go! But let's say you are a girl, and lets say that you want to join me for a fun Disney weekend in 2014. Message me on Facebook and let's do it!

You can check out that race here: http://www.rundisney.com/princess-half-marathon/

Still running across America!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Practice Makes Perfect

Today I went on a 5K run just to practice it for the big day next week! Even with the cold and no asthma meds before I made it in 35 minutes and 45 seconds!

I've also been practicing my public speaking skills. I had some things I want to share on studying Acts so I've been trying to practice my speaking skills on a small level. Please pardon the over use of colloquialisms in the same sentence. I've got to practice that. :)


IMG 0563 from Madelyn on Vimeo.


I've also been running across America still!

No Excuses

Hello everyone! I hope you had a great Sunday! We need to be extra thankful today as we remember all of those who are fighting and have fought for us in history so that we enjoy the ability to post whatever we want on Facebook without worry of getting killed...just kidding. But seriously, there have been so many ugly comments. Just chill everyone. 

Plus, everyone knows that we need to just "Stay calm and pass to Swope!" How about those Aggies??? I had to watch the game with all four dogs wondering why I was dancing around the apartment. I love being thoroughly surprised at my team's ability to win a game. It never gets old! I found some cool photos while paroosing Facebook that I'd like to share (but not take credit for!).

Hahahahaha. This week is giving me and Jared not only the normal challenge of our crazy schedules, but we are also taking care of my parent's dogs while they go on a Disney cruise to celebrate their 50th birthdays! Happy birthday Mom and Dad!

So we have Cooper, the stoic statue on the outside, manic on the inside. Here he is watching the Aggie game with Jared...

Then we have Kezi who is constantly on the search for food like it's going out of style...

Then we have Pheobe, who in this picture has actually taken up guard duty with Duchess!

Let's just say that between the three of them, they make my Duchess (the husky/lab mix) look calm!

Having the three of them here is fun but at the same time, they pose a challenge for me and Jared when we go running. Pheobe and Kezi are definitely not capable of running long distances and Cooper tries, but gets tired very early. But that was no excuse for me and Jared to not go running. We could have said, "Oh, we will just go next week." But our race is next week. We can't train the day of the race! With a little creativity and team work, we went on our interval run and the dogs got their walks in. Everyone had a good time!

Just like in working out, we can't make excuses in life for things we should be doing but don't. We see that person with a ton of bags but think, "I'm too busy to stop. I'll help someone the next time I see that situation." We see someone in class or at work having a bad day and we think, "Oh, they would never open up to me. Maybe the next person will help them out." The truth is, if we never allow ourselves to be interrupted by the Holy Spirit to show those around us the love of God, we will never actually be used by God for the purpose of building his kingdom. We will just sit in the same rut we always do and wonder why we are never growing or getting to know God deeper.

So stop making excuses for not being the hands and feet of Jesus! Truth is, it's never inconvenient and if Jesus is behind it, it's never a waste of time!

"Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been fathered by God and knows God. The person who does not love does not know God, because God is love. By this the love of God is revealed in us: that God has sent his one and only Son into the world so that we may live through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, if God so loved us, then we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God resides in us, and his love is perfected in us. By this we know that we reside in God and he in us: in that he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world." ~ 1 John 4:7-14 

Still running across America and I crossed the 100 mile mark!

A New Era

Hello everyone! It's good to be back! Jared and I took a week off of running so that our bodies could recover. We also celebrated Jared's birthday and got massages and we got him a new RC airplane!

It's funny how absence makes the heart grow fonder! I needed to rest to let an injury in my hip flexor heal but man was I actually sick of laying around the house and not exercising!

Now that we are not newbie runners and we have maybe graduated to novices, we are going to start to go faster and stronger now. We have our Turkey Trot 5K in Houston on Thanksgiving morning. My goal is to get under 30 minutes. To do that we are interval training and running faster. Like running...not jogging! Then every Thursday we will run a 5K straight and see how fast we can go!

Today we went 2.48 miles in 30 minutes and boy was it tough! I was having a hard time keeping up with Jared but I know I will be better off for it! Pray for us!

Love always,
Maddie