Gratituesday: Normalcy

As the events of last Friday swirl around each of us, we are all getting a new perspective and reaching a different level of gratitude for the regular things in life. The worst nightmare of those families has come true and if I'm honest, I have a load of guilt hanging over me because my life is still normal. Sunday still cries out for me too early in the morning and she still nurses herself to sleep. What can I do at this time except stop to appreciate every waking moment I have with my baby girl and pray for those who can no longer experience these moments with their kids?

Today I am grateful for the toys on the living room floor, because they mean I have a happy baby who enjoys playing with them. I am grateful for the dirty dishes in the sink because it means I have a family to eat dinner with. I am grateful for the diaper pail of dirty diapers because it means my girl is healthy. I am grateful for loads of laundry with mixed colors because it means I have a husband who is here to help do laundry. I am grateful for the sound of Christmas carols and sparkly lights because they still carry a happy memory for me, unlike many people.

I am very blessed. I am very, very grateful. And I am praying every day for those families living their worst nightmare right now. I am praying that they know God and will lean on Him in this time. He is bigger and stronger than anything in this world and His comfort can bring peace. <3

Join us for Gratituesday at heavenly homemakers!

Hellgate 100K++

I have shared bits and pieces of Tommy's running adventures on instagram over the past year, and I've mentioned a few times in Facebook status messages, but I usually stay quiet about it. It's his thing. I've been guilty of taking his limelight before... posting his news to Facebook before he has a chance. So his running journey is something I have left to him to share.

But it's about time I share how stinking PROUD I am of him. He is truly a "beast." When he ran his first half marathon up and down a mountain (Terrapin Half), I just thought... good job! He set a goal and reached it. I had no idea that he did it in a really great time which surprised some of the other runners. So when he decided at the end of that race to run a 50k (34ish miles) one month later... I thought... "well, okay then!"

When he finished his first 50k middle-of-the-pack, my pride for him and understanding of the sport grew a bit. And watching him move to the next race: a full 50 miler just months later, that was unreal. I realized... this guy truly is a beast. He is STRONG to the core: mentally and physically. And I am so, so stinking proud of him.

He has now run 8 ultramarathons, his longest last weekend at 66.6 miles! The will and determination it takes to train for and complete these races is huge. Sometimes I think "I could do that." And then I get this giant dose of reality and realize "I would NOT make it look easy the way he does." He is just incredible...

Here is this past weekend through my eyes. I crewed Tommy during this race (as I do all races) so I had quite a bit of time to sit and wait for him at a few of the aid stations (the experienced crew teams slept during those times!). He was pretty beat up by the time he fnished (well actually, by Aid Station 4... but he plowed through) so that may explain his lack of energy in the photos at the end. :)

Sunday these days...

Oh! I just love playing the piano with Daddy! It is so fun!

Oh... but what do I see...? A mommy?!

Yes! It's a mommy! I MUST have her RIGHT NOW!

Oh gosh, mommy. You aren't picking me up fast enough! MY LIFE IS ENDING!!!

Hold up. Is that a dog?

Gosh I just love playing the piano with Daddy.

Oh, wait! MOMMY!!! I NEED YOU RIGHT NOW!!!

Ah yes. Our little drama queen... getting lots and lots of practice these days.

Gratituesday: Sleep

Whew! We had such a whirlwind weekend! Tommy's crazy town race (more on that on Thursday!) started at 12:01am on Saturday morning (Friday night) so after going to bed earlier enough and missing the start of the race, I woke up at 2:45am to crew for him. What crewing means is I drove to the aid stations to be there to support him when he came in, offering fresh shoes/socks/clothes, chicken broth (sodium!), lots of ibuprofen, and endless words of encouragement. Then he would leave the aid station to keep running and I'd gather everything, hop back in the car, and drive to the next aid station to meet him. And so on and so forth. (By the way - have I mentioned how inspiring I think he is?!)

This was following weeks (weeks!) of me getting about 4-5 hours of sleep a night. I know, it's really bad for my body. But with my busy season workload and Sunday's relapse in excellent sleeping habits, I have found myself pretty much wide awake around 4am regularly. I knew it could only go on for so much longer but truly I couldn't figure out HOW to sleep more. My body was just go-go-going!! I had stuff to do! Clearly, I am an insomnia newbie.

My mom came this weekend to stay with Sunday while Tommy ran in his most insane race yet and I crewed alongside of him. When we all got home around 7pm Saturday evening we c-r-a-s-h-e-d. My mom took over Sunday duty (okay - she actually had it since Friday night) and Tommy and I were able to sleep in. Then later in the day we both got naps! What a glorious feeling! Here I am at 5:20am writing this Gratituesday blog post about getting enough sleep while feeling completely rejuvenated and well-rested. (sigh) Turns out all I needed was a night of barely any sleep to make my body crash (finally!).

So anyway, this week? I'm super grateful for the sacrificial love of a mother (and grandmother), and the opportunity Tommy and I both had to catch up on our sleep this past weekend. So amazing it deserves it's own Gratituesday post! :)

Join us for Gratituesday at heavenly homemakers!

Gratituesday: A playful husband

A confession: It's really hard for me to "play" with kids. It always has been. It's not something I desire to do (to be frank: it bores me). So when Sunday comes up to me and wants me to sit down and play with her, I have to force myself to do it. There are times when I do, and times when I don't.

That said, this week I want to express my gratefulness that Tommy loves to interact with kids. Some people are "children" people. Some people are not. Tommy has always been great with children. While in college, he worked one-on-one with autistic children, and he learned a lot about intentional play. I am pretty sure that's the wrong way to say it... but he is a lot more creative when it comes to interacting with, teaching, and disciplining Sunday. (Plus he enjoys it!) I see things in black and white... he sees lots and lots of color. And the ideas (!!) that he comes up with to teach her! I have so much to learn... and I am learning a lot from him.

What I am trying to say... is that I am really, really glad I married someone who enjoys playtime with his daughter. Because it's something that doesn't come easy to me. (Some day I will write about playgroups and how hard it is for me to make them a priority for us!) Having a partner who balances me in the parenting arena is soooo helpful in lifting the burden of mommy guilt.

Don't get me wrong - I DO play with Sunday. We DO have intentional "teaching" times. It just doesn't come easy to me. But we hang out and spend time together all the time! (Shopping, walking, eating meals together, etc.) I'm just really, really glad that "play time" comes easy to Tommy. It's hard to think of something that brings me more joy than seeing him laying on the ground making Sunday laugh out loud.

He is such an awesome father. And I'm really, really thankful for that.