The Thrill of Adventure

So it's finally summer! I think we will break into the 90s every day now here in North Texas and the sun has finally come out! I am so excited about all that summer brings and the adventures Jared and I have planned.

Speaking of which, some of those adventures include our newest endeavor...backpacking! Jared and I have always been interested in camping. We go all the time. But now, we are finally thinking about putting those fancy backpacks to good use and hitting the trails in the literal middle-of-nowhere.

Physically, this means I will have some different workouts going on. I still plan on running twice a week with my long run being five miles. Then I have a goal of riding my bike at least once a week. The rest of the workouts will focus more on strength in my back and arms so that I don't have to rely on my legs for all the work while hiking with my backpack on.

The biggest thing for me I think is going to be mental. As much as I say I love adventure, I get so anxious before traveling! I get nervous sweats at the airport waiting for planes. I get so anxious trying to plan for the "unknown."

So when thinking about backpacking, there is a ton of fear going on inside my head. When are we going to go? What trails are we going to take? How are we going to fit everything in our bags? What if we can't find a good campsite? What if we get lost? What if we see a bear????

I have been doing some research on fear this week for work. It's very interesting the studies that neuroscientists are conducting these days. One study is actually finding that we are wired as human beings to be optimistic by nature...assume the best about someone or something until proof of the worst. They also talk about how fear bypasses the logical part of the brain and goes straight to the emotional. But logic is how you quiet fear. No one fears a stampede of hippopotami followed by their car getting eaten by a T-rex when they drive on the highway because logic eliminates that possibility. When we see someone that's upset because of fear, we automatically try to help them calm down by using logic. And if we are having a really hard time, we can implement what scientists call "productive paranoia" where we plan for the worst case scenario while hoping for the best.

And that's kind of where I am right now. With my upcoming adventures, I am doing boatloads of research trying to arm myself with the knowledge needed in worst case scenarios (how to deal with a bear), as well as the skills to keep me from getting into worst case scenarios (buy a bear canister and use it appropriately). What's awesome is while I still get nervous about it, I am growing as a person because I am gaining new skills and learning new things about myself and what I am capable of doing.

I think God wants us to use fear, not be controlled by it. He wants us to develop courage, not limit ourselves because of anxiety. He wants us to continue to grow and learn and explore the world he created. So that's why I continue to travel, see new things and meet new people. Ultimately, I know that the best truth I can use against fear is the knowledge that God is in control and he has the ultimate power in any situation.

I recently re-watched an episode of Dr. Who where they search for the alien that might be the reason we as children fear the monster under the bed. But I love what Clara tells the child doctor at the end about fear:

"I know you’re afraid, but being afraid is alright. Because didn’t anybody ever tell you? Fear is a superpower. Fear can make you faster and cleverer and stronger. And one day you’re gonna come back to this barn and on that day you’re going to be very afraid indeed. But that’s okay, because if you’re very wise and very strong fear doesn’t have to make you cruel or cowardly. Fear can make you kind. It doesn’t matter if there’s nothing under the bed or in the dark so long as you know it’s okay to be afraid of it. So listen. If you listen to anything else, listen to this. You’re always gonna be afraid even if you learn to hide it. Fear is like a companion, a constant companion, always there. But that’s okay because fear can bring us together. Fear can bring you home. I’m gonna leave you something just so you’ll always remember. Fear makes companions of us all."

Clara explaining courage to a young boy during the "Listen" episode using a small army figure.

Home Makeover: Egli Edition - The Garden!

Jared and I have talked about redoing our garden for a long time now. We finally made it happen on Monday!

The first thing we had to do was change out our sprinkler heads. The old ones wouldn't have cleared the new bed. Plus, these are directional so we won't be watering the fence any more!

Next we built the planter box. Jared made it out of cedar and it smelled incredible! 

Then we dug our trench for the underground hose that would lead from the house to the planter box. We are putting in a subterranean soaker hose to the garden so that even if we are out of town, the plants will still get watered. Once the trench was built, we put the box in place on top of some landscaping netting to keep any future weeds out!

Once that was done we filled in our trench and added dirt! We found a local place that had massive piles of dirt you can buy in bulk instead of the 1 cubic foot bags at Lowes. We got half and half for filler and organic garden dirt for the top. I had some sweet peppers going already along with some jalapeños, green bell peppers, strawberries and three kinds of tomatoes. Then, my blueberry came back after dying last year! So I was super excited to put it back in the garden, this time with some more shade. 

One of the most frustrating things last year was that I got one tomato and a bird took a big chunk out of it. So this year, we are adding a cage around the garden to protect it from birds and any other animals that might want to help themselves.

Test fitting the cage

All done!

I'm super excited about my garden and can't wait to see what it can produce this year! I'm getting more and more knowledge about how to grow things and I want it to pay off so bad! I guess we will have to wait a few more months to know!

It's starting to feel like Fall!

One of the joys if home ownership is I get to finally put all those Pinterest ideas to use in decorating it! I've always admired how Disney managed to make a whimsical yet slightly spooky haunted mansion and I took inspiration from that and mixed it with fall to make this fun fireplace decoration-scape (is that what we call it these days?).

All finished!

A couple of frames from the Dollar Store and some points at Walgreens provided a way for me to share my favorite fall photos for cheap!

Inspired by the haunted mansion, we used some black lace to wrap mason jars that will hold our little tea lights.

Walmart had these adorable pumpkins for cheap!

We found this candelabra that matched the haunted mansion theme perfectly. This raven was made to go on a wreath but we thought he could look out over a mason jar too! And our little decor set up wouldn't be complete without one of our homemade signs from our shop!

I finally have a spot to show off some of my favorite shots from our Disney trips! Costumes + Tower of Terror goes great with the whimsical Halloween theme!

My favorite? Hard to pick but these little burlap ghosts are high on the list!

Best part of the set up? It looks awesome at night!

So happy for the fall season. While I will miss the warm sun, it sure is fun to decorate for the season! Now excuse me while I go make me some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies!

New Stuff in the LLDC Store!

We have been working hard in the shop to develop some great stuff! Here's what's new!

Inspired by our love for adventure and the movie UP! we designed this fantastic sign to add happiness and whimsy to your home! No matter your age or where you come from, there is always a new adventure waiting for you!

It's football season! We are celebrating by making school pride Texas'! We started with our home roots, the Coppell Cowboys! Be sure to stay tuned for all the other fantastic schools we have in the works!

Geocaching Road Trip to Kansas!

One of the reasons this summer was crazy was because Jared and I attended one graduation and four weddings in the span of three months. And most of them were across the country. So cue on of the biggest items on the list...a road trip to Colby, Kansas.

Now this wouldn't have been a big deal except for the fact that the longest road trip I had ever been on was from Dallas to San Antonio. So the twelve hour trek for us was certainly going to put my patience to the test.

Are we there yet?

Of course, we made the trip fun and geocached the whole way up and the whole way down, visiting some of the places we have wanted to visit for a while now. First stop, OKC!

This was a virtual geocache at the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial.

It was so beautiful and quiet in the middle of the city.
Finally checked this off the bucket list.

The next logical stop for us was in Wichita, KS. We stopped for food and checked out some of the downtown area. It was very quiet and deserted for some reason. Almost felt like a ghost town except for the random statues of people and animals all around the plazas. We found some awesome and unique historical landmarks while finding our caches.

Travel pooch was not excited about meeting another "dog."
She said he was such a poser!

 Finally, we were able to get to our destination...Colby, KS! It was a cool morning as we did our long run and we checked out downtown Colby and it's unique buildings and monuments.

I guest that means there's liberty here right?

One of the "Oh My Goodness!" moments that happened while we were planning this trip was the fact that I had been listening to Podcacher right before this trip and they mentioned MINGO, the oldest surviving cache in the world. As I was planning our trip, lo and behold I found out MINGO was just outside the city we were visiting!

Cue fanfare!

So cool to be able to check this one off the geocaching list and add it to our favorites!

On the way back, we visited a few other notable caches.

Found this one at an old F14 off the highway.

Earthcache at a rest stop.

Final Earthcache in Oklahoma.

Somewhere over that hill is Texas!

While I definitely had the patience of a two year old on this trip while traveling in the car, it was so interesting to travel across the country like this. I pretty much always fly anywhere (hello...pilot's wife) and so getting to see the places I fly over from the ground was eye opening. Our country is BIG and filled with so many cool people.

Also, the cool thing I got to learn how to use was the geocaching road trip planner. It's a part of the premium membership, but this one tool alone was worth the cost of the yearly membership. We were able to search along the route we were going to take and sort based on location and favorite points. We found so many cool caches and were able to visit some amazing places we would never have known about otherwise. And that, is why we love caching so much in the first place.

We had a great trip, but I am so glad to be back in the best state in the Union...Texas!

Group vs. Solo Running

Group photo from Social Running's Facebook Page!

Hi everyone!

So I have been upping my mileage the last couple weeks and this last week was my first week of running five days out of the week! I was thinking running the same course in my local park might be monotonous. And now that I'm officially a member of my local running club, I figured I would take advantage of the social runs that they host and recommend!

So Tuesday, I joined three fellow runners downtown for some hill repeats. The hill we ran up and down had a serious incline...much higher than my treadmill! I had a really great workout with them. Hill repeats are much easier when you have someone to chase! We all got along well for sure and met a fellow Disney fan. It was fun listening to everyone talk about their past race experience, upcoming races planned, what they did for a living...all that good stuff! I loved the break from my normal running routine and appreciated the company for sure!

Wednesday, Jared got to come with me to our first large social run. Also downtown, there were about 100 people that met up at the local food truck park and took off on a four mile out and back course down the riverside and back. While my introvert seriously came out and I didn't get to meet many new people, it was really fun to see the diversity of runners. There were moms with strollers, people with dogs (us included!), fast runners, slow runners, runners that sit on rocks (haha). There was a camaraderie that made the finish feel like the finish line at a race with people cheering you on as you came to the food truck park! We all gathered for a group photo at the end. Many people stayed for a beer and food. We opted out for our pocketbook's sake. I see this Wednesday routine being a really great way for me to meet new friends locally!

So the question is, which is better...group running or solo running? While I think there is something to be said for solo running and the need to be able to find it within yourself to keep going when things get hard, group running definitely helps breaks the monotony of training. While you still get your miles in, you can get your mind off the training on easy runs and meet new people. So I say both...I'm an "and" kind of person! If you get a chance to try group training in your local area, I highly suggest it!

New Adventures!

Jared and I have some exciting news to announce. No, it is not a baby (Courtney! Haha.) but we are embarking on a journey of faith to minister to those enslaved in human trafficking! We have been called by God to work with Redeemed Ministries full time.

Redeemed started in 2005 just simply reaching out to women who were trapped in sex trafficking and showing them the unconditional love Jesus shows us. Many times, these women come from very broken homes. 90% of girls trapped in sex trafficking have been abused sexually as children. They never learn that behavior is not normal. Pimps then exploit that past to take advantage of these girls and the cycle is brutal and often fatal. While these women are forced to serve up to 30 men in a day, they often turn to drugs to cope and/or also get beat by their pimps to make sure they obey whatever the pimp tells them to do. 

While many ministries go out to the brothels with the intent on “extracting” girls from their situation, we simply go in to offer the love of Jesus to them. Many times these girls are in denial that they are in a dangerous place and until they realize that, even if we “extracted” them from their situation, no change would take place. When they would leave our care, they would go right back to what they were doing. We believe by going in and just ministering and sharing love with them allows God seeds to be planted in their life to realize they are loved, but not by their pimps. This process of change allows them to be an active participant in their life change. Then, if they want to leave the life, we can help provide them a safe place, in the form of a safe house, to get away from their pimp AND increase their chance of not going back. Jesus is the one working on the inside to heal and change their hearts. We are simply servants to help provide the environment for that change and the voice of reasoning when the tough times come. 

That brings me to one of the most exciting parts of Redeemed, our aftercare program! We have a safe house out in the country where we can house girls for a year long program. We have partnered with Rutgers University to develop a program that specifically helps heal trauma associated with trafficking and we have seen God use that tremendously! Just in the last year we have seen two women baptized and graduated. One is even entering the missionary field and ministering to others. It’s the most amazing thing to watch God completely transform the lives of these women who were so broken and now they flourish in the love God has for us! We are working to build a new, larger safe house so that we can minister to even more women. 

I first heard about human trafficking in my car (go figure!). I was working at a winery as a part of my research project in college and the drive was an hour one way. I listened to podcasts by Christine Caine while I drove. She runs a global anti-human trafficking organization called A21 and hearing about it tugged at my heartstrings like nothing had ever done before. The thing I most identified with was the fact that the fear these women have for their pimps paralyzes them from trying to find any other alternative to their situation. This fear allows them to be abused over and over again. I have battled with similar fear in my life and sitting there in the car, I wanted to reach through my stereo to the women and tell them they didn’t have to be governed by fear anymore. However, I was in College Station, TX…not Athens, Greece. Nor did I ever see God sending me to where A21 was going. 

Fast forward to me getting married and moving to Houston. My husband and I were looking for a church. We visited one down the road one Sunday and the topic was human trafficking in Houston with the featured ministry being Redeemed. I found out that between Dallas, Austin and Houston, 25% of girls trafficked found themselves in Texas at some point. I instantly knew I was supposed to be involved. I have since volunteered with them over the last three years and have never looked back!

I’ve had the opportunity to mentor girls, work on the social media team, help market the ministry and teach others about trafficking. Honestly, it has been the biggest and most fulfilling thing in my life. I learned so much about myself and about trafficking and I was given the opportunity to bring it with me when my husband and I moved to Dallas. As I look at 2015 and really start to build the ground work for what we are doing, I am so excited for what I believe God will do in Dallas. 

One thing that has been a bittersweet point in this transition is that my position has been a volunteer position for so long. But the ministry is growing to the point where I cannot hold my current position as a Children’s Pastor and do Redeemed at the level of excellence both ministries deserve. I’m truly sad to leave the amazing community God has allowed me to be a part of. Yet, God has already been faithful by providing not only a new community, but financial funding through monthly donations.

This is where you can get involved! While I will receive a small stipend from Redeemed it is not enough to cover expenses Jared and I have, even with his job. If you heard my story and my heart for this ministry and would be willing to support me monthly, please take a few minutes to sign up and pledge to fund this ministry Jared and I will be building. This is a direct way you can help...by giving me the financial funding for me to work towards helping these women full time! It will have a huge impact for us, and for allowing us to advance the kingdom of God!

Ultimately, we see ourselves as an extension of the church; where we are bringing the gospel to some of the deepest and darkest of places and hopefully, seeing God transform the lives of those we meet. Jesus said he didn’t come for the well, but for the sick. From the women that are enslaved, to the pimps that do the enslaving and the men who buy, the people are plenty for God to reach and the gospel is so desperately needed on all fronts of this situation.

Thank you all for supporting us, whether that be through prayer or by financially supporting us. We are so grateful for all of our community. Here's to what God has in store!

The New Restaurant Intimidation Factor

Jared and I were just traveling through our new neighborhood and I cannot tell you how happy I was to drive through and feel like it was home. The people are so nice. I love watching people at the park and driving by the kids playing basketball in their driveway. Even in the dead of winter it's beautiful. I can't wait to see what it looks like in spring!

However, one thing that I don't like is that Jared and I have to find new restaurants! This would normally not be a big deal for me. Yet, ever since going gluten free I have had a major intimidation factor on trying new places. Going to buffets and not knowing what the ingredients are is really frustrating. I would rather not eat than risk having gluten. Some restaurants look at me like I have four eyes when I ask if they have a gluten free menu. I've had many sour experiences. Not knowing where they cook it, what they put in it and how careful they are makes me super anxious. If I had to be extremely strict, I probably would never eat out. 

Yet, there are some places that do cater extensively to gluten free eaters! After our half marathon in Washington DC, we found a Legal Sea Food and they had gluten free fish and chips that they cooked in a separate part of their kitchen and brought it out separate from the rest of the meals. I was elated! Then, recently Jared and I tried a new Mexican restaurant. Not only did they have a separate menu with a different color to alert the waiter, but they brought out special chips that are fried separate! So exciting!

So how do I suggest you navigate the colossal amount of choices to eat and trying new places? Here's what I suggest:

1. Call the restaurant. If they don't understand what you are asking or don't know what gluten is, BAD SIGN. Jared and I have also learned to ask what kind of options they have. Some people say they have gluten free options and their only option is salad. LAME when you are expecting gluten free pizza. Others have a full gluten free menu. It helps to know which is which as to not set expectations to get disappointed. 

2. There's an app for that! What many people don't realize is once you go gluten free, it doesn't just affect you, but it affects your entire family! My mom has been so supportive of me having to go gluten free and even found an app called "Find Me Gluten Free." Not only does it bring up locations by distance, but it allows for user reviews so that you can weed out which restaurants just say they have gluten free (and offer salad) or if they have a full gluten free menu and allergen list. It also offers star ratings so you can see the most liked restaurants around you!

3. When in doubt, don't eat and try again. There have been so many times where I have gone to a restaurant and it doesn't really have anything I can eat. I then beat myself up over the choice because I'm hungry and I want to make it work. But many times, I just have to be in a hungry, grumpy mood until we can leave the restaurant and find something that I can actually eat. It can create hassle and frustration (especially when you are hungry!) but your health is more important than trying to make it work. Make sure to always bring snacks with you, just in case you have to snack while you wait for something more substantial!

I hope these tips help! Good luck and hopefully your inner foodie doesn't have to be restricted by new restaurant intimidation! 

Do you know any other restaurants that are great for eating gluten free or any apps to help find those restaurants? I'd love to know!

We Get Permission to Fail!

I had the most interesting experience yesterday. We had a run scheduled (Tempo Intervals: 2000m with a 400m recovery three times in case anyone was really wondering). I laced up my kicks and grabbed my dog and my husband and I hit the pavement. But as we made it to the park, we found it incredibly crowded! Families of all sizes were out with their shiny new bikes and scooters. Puppies were being walked. Kids were playing in the trails. Soccer games were being played. It was beautiful. I didn't mind that I had to run on the grass often. I was just glad to see everyone out enjoying a beautiful day instead of watching TV on their couches.

We even saw one of my best friends Ashely! You may have heard how awesome she is in an earlier blog post. She was out running too and I was so glad to give her a big sweaty hug! We briefly talked (we're on our runs right?) and as we left, she announced, "Professional runners! Coming through!"

We laughed and I assured her, she's a professional too. But I started looking around and realizing many people out here are starting their "New Years Fitness Plan." They are going to ride their bike, run or walk x amount of days in a week and lose x amount of pounds. My beat up kicks were looking pretty worn out compared to some of the white new sneakers some people were wearing. What started whirring in my head is the question.

"If this is what people's new year resolutions are, how long will it last?"

I have felt different come this new years. I am not starting a new fitness plan, but cumulating a year and a half of training for a marathon. I'm on my third pair of sneakers and the new ones are already not new. And I didn't start this goal at the new year of 2012. I started it in August. Which makes no sense if you know about the heat in Texas in August.

But I stuck with it. So what was it that kept me working a year and a half later to get me to this point? As I mulled it over, I felt like it might help someone out there.

1. I felt that this journey was a calling from Jesus. You may think I'm crazy for saying that. But if you have read my past blog posts, you will realize that I've held this belief from the beginning. I believe that after thinking so negatively for so long, God challenged me to try. He gave me all the equipment I need...I just needed to trust him and go do it.

For once in my life I had goals. It gave me purpose and direction. That purpose and direction in my physical life overflowed into every other aspect of my life. It's a strange, supernatural phenomena. But because I listened to God in my fitness, I was able to hear him more clearly in the rest of my life. What I found is that Jesus gave us a purpose to live, no matter what area of life we are talking about. Jesus said trust Him and and love people. As I ran and wondered what I was doing, I decided to trust God and pray for people that I passed. I found that to be key to keeping me running and key to me making progress in every other goal I've made in day to day life.

2. It's ok not to be perfect. In the past I've made new years resolutions and when I fail on doing it perfectly, I give up all together. When people create art, do you think they do it perfectly from beginning to end? Of course not. That's why we have erasers for pencils and the ability to paint over things! But if an artist gave up the moment they made a mistake on their art pieces, they would never finish some of the beautiful artwork that inspires us today. In fact, some of the mistakes become inspirations to take the art to a totally higher level than they were expecting.

When I train, I don't do all my workouts! I miss some because life happens. I have found it key to forgive myself for missing a workout and getting right back on the workout wagon whenever I can to making sure I stick with my training plan and complete my goals.

What's even better, is that the Bible tells us that we have hope that God will forgive our sins. If you truly trust in Jesus, we can have full confidence that when we fail fighting sin and bad patterns in our lives (that we try to correct with new years resolutions), it will be forgiven and we can start again! The freedom to fail gives us the hope to fight against the sinful parts of our lives!

3. Christ will help us in our fight...if we ask him. I remember some of the early runs and I'm dying at the end. My legs are spent and I can't breathe. I used to repeat over and over in my head "I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me."And you know, I made it through the run. Ironically, I do the same thing whether it's a three mile run or a twenty mile run. I hold the same conviction that Jesus is the source of my hope and my faith and He supernaturally helps in one way or another.

When we come across times where we can't seem to break cycles or the running gets tough or a relationship seems eternally broken, we can ask for help. If we trust God and love people and truly believe that as sons and daughters of Christ that our sins are forgiven, the supernatural will occur in our lives and we will see Christ come through in the fight.

So as you make your resolutions (and I think you should) I hope that you think about the fact that you are launching into something that hopefully, you can sustain longer than just a year. Hopefully, you can trust God to guide you and to build upon your faithfulness.

And remember, 2 Timothy says that even if we are unfaithful, God remains faithful because he cannot deny himself!

Happy New Year everyone.

Authentic Contentment

Hello everyone! It's been an amazing week and weekend so far!

Last weekend I got to run another race with my parents..the Rhar and Sons Oktoberfest 5K! While I couldn't drink the beer due to my food allergy, I still had tons of fun with my parents and set a PR for my 5K!

Mom and I before the race!

Right before the start!

Post Race Festivities!

I finally (officially!) PR'ed my 5K at 29:54.6!

Now, one thing I want to make sure gets across, is that it's easy to look at someone who's achieved a ton of their goals (especially all at once) and say, "Wow. It's great you can do that. You are superwomen! I can't do what you do."

And if that's what you have to say, then I have failed as the goal of my blog. This blog isn't to show off to the world about my running. I'm not that good in the first place! But what I hope you see is someone who was challenged, set goals, and worked step by step to meet them. I had two major milestones this past week that had me on cloud nine. But they have been milestones months in the making. A year and a month if you want to be exact! I am a normal, messed up human being with sin and trials and, thankfully, a Savior. I couldn't run 30 seconds at the beginning of this journey. I hope you see my writing as an authentic representation of what God is teaching me, and I hope He is using it to encourage and challenge you to be in His presence, in His love. Without him none of this is possible.

Something along the same lines that I have learned from it all, is that while I set goals and strive to achieve them, I have actually learned how to live in the moment. I have learned to enjoy the journey. I don't run and pine or worry over the ability to run a marathon. I simply say, "This is what I can do today, and it's the next step to get me where I need to be tomorrow." I've been able to spend some quality time with God on my long runs. I've learned to worship him even if my legs are screaming and some of my most treasured moments with him have been while I'm alone running through his creation. I've learned that God has me right where I need to be no matter what the circumstances and I am content in that!

So with that said, here's to another round of training. This one leads to my BIG goal, the one I've been working toward for 13 months. The Walt Disney World Marathon!

Here we go!

Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon

Hello everyone! Yesterday I had the most amazing time racing with my parents at the Plano Balloon Festival! You can relive my race with me in the video below!



Plano Half Marathon from Madelyn on Vimeo.

It was a great race. Several things factored into making it my best race ever:

1) We had our first cold front move in through Texas! The morning was just cold enough without too much rise in the heat at the end of the race. My hard training this summer in the heat really helped me be able to push hard in the ladder miles so that I was hitting negative splits. My last mile was my fastest!

2) I was racing with my family! Dad and I passed each other a ton and ran the middle of the race together. He was staying steady while I was having my middle-of-the-race slump and he kept pushing me to keep my pace up!

3) I worked on my speed. This training cycle, I spent one run a week working specifically on speed. I worked on pushing my lactate threshold back as well as learning to run on tired legs. I think working on my fast finish training runs really gave me the "umph" I needed at the end!

4) I learned from my last race to not drink as much water! All the sloshing around in my stomach was causing me cramps. Also, I remembered to fuel early and often. I didn't hit the wall in this race because I found Cliff Shot Blocks (which I love so much) to fuel my race!

5) I have the best family and friends! The constant cheering from my Nike +, the love I knew I had during training and the promise of getting to Skype with Jared at the end really contributed to the race day magic. Thank you so much for your support and love for me as I have gone through this journey!

6) The last, yet probably most important, was the special time with God I have gotten during my training. I have had moments where I have just been able to worship him during my runs and unplug long enough to spend quality time with him. You might think I'm weird, but it's true. God has shown me through running I am more capable than I thought and can do more than I could have ever imagined. He doesn't put limits on how he can use me, I do.

Put this all together and I was able to run the entire 13.1 miles without walking, a feat I have never accomplished before. Even on my previous long runs, I take numerous walk breaks to drink Gatorade or eat. Not this time! I ran and ate and everything! I felt so good, so prepped, that when I slowed to drink a tiny sip of water at mile 12, my legs were like, "What's this walking thing you speak of? We don't like it!" I hit my pace goal of being in the vicinity of two and a half hours with a final time of 2:33. I think I could have gotten a  faster time if I would have really been serious about running the tangents.

But you know, that's learning for the next race. :)

Next stop: Disney!

The Marriage Gift

 

I had the privilege to attend one of the most beautiful weddings last night.

For obvious reasons, my favorite wedding was my own. I was able to marry the most amazing man on Earth and so other weddings simply do not compare. So for fairness' sake, I'll just take my wedding out of the competition.

But last night's wedding was definitely a top pick, if not the top pick, of weddings I have had the privilege of attending. I love weddings. I think there should be more of them. I think they are super important and special to God's heart. Marriage is a reflection of the love God has for us. Just as a man loves a women and the women loves the man back, Jesus loves the church just as the church loves Jesus back. In a culture where increasingly more and more people co-habitate and don't get married, I treasure the times I get to witness two people committing their lives to one other with no take backs in front of their communities.

What struck me the most about this wedding is the back story of Uncle Ray and his new wife, Patty. I remember sitting in the hospital, close to Thanksgiving right before Jared and I got married. Jared's Aunt Linda was in her hospital bed, breathing slowly. She didn't talk and while the family had to leave the room to discuss things with a nurse, I had the honor of holding her hand and just getting to talk to her. I told her how beautiful her family was. How privileged I was to get to marry into it. I told her how wonderful her kids were and how I was so lucky to get to be with them and get to know them. In her pain, she managed a smile. It was the most beautiful smile I ever saw.

I watched Uncle Ray at the funeral and the days after. I saw how much he loved Linda. From a distance and through the grapevine I watched the family grow together. And then last Easter, I got to meet Patty. She was so gracious. So kind. I learned that she also had lost a spouse and in talking with her, I saw how much love she had for people.

Watching them say their vows yesterday was breathtaking. Here were two people who had loved fiercely and lost those loved ones. They both had been tested with their vows. They had lived  through sickness and health, for richer and poorer, and until death parted them. And here they were. They believed in the power of marriage and commitment to each other so strongly with their first marriages, they were willing to walk through it again with each other. Despite how heartbreaking it was to go through what they have gone through, God has gifted them a new love to walk through the rest of life together with.

And that's when it struck me. Words to explain what I have felt in the first 18 months of marriage with Jared. Marriage is a gift. When I was single I never felt I had the capacity to love someone the way I felt I should in marriage. But thankfully, God has given me the love I need to inexplicably walk through life with Jared unconditionally. We support each other in the hard times and giggle like kids with each other in the great times.

So Patty and Ray, you are probably going to get a thank you letter in the mail from me...fair warning! Thank you so much for inviting me to this wedding. Thank you for the love you have for another, the example you have set for me and for the amazing party and celebration last night! Jared and I love you both and pray for your marriage to grow in love abundantly in the future!