My Lovely Lady Bump

I wanted to document my bump progress, but I have only recently noticed a difference (well, the scale has also noticed the difference, but lets not talk about that.) Here are a few pictures from when I first found out to just last week.

It seems I have formed the slightest bump that does not seem to go away. This is great except the baby is no where close to where the bump is forming, it is still low in my abdomen. My clothes all still fit and I think they might for a little while longer.

I had my first appointment with my actual doctor today. Everything went wonderfully. He found the heartbeat fairly quickly and it was still beating away at a strong 169 beats per minute. He also put several of my worries at ease (miscarriage, birth defects, all those wonderful things). I won't have an ultrasound until 21 weeks and that will be when we can find out the gender.

After the appointment, we went to breakfast. The hunger associated with pregnancy has finally set in. I then shoveled the sidewalk for the first time. It is still snowing, but we have about 4 inches on the ground right now. Not anything in comparison to the 3 feet in NY, but still a good amount.

Now I am off to maybe do some Prenatal Yoga.

*Edit: Please disregard the whole knees bent backwards thing. I tried to take a few pictures with them "straight" but it ended up looking like I was squatting. I think it adds to my character, Will thinks its just weird.*

Just a few of my Christmas presents...

I received some wonderful gift cards to some of my favorite places. The local Food Co-Op is one of the stores we enjoy walking to with the Aspen and picking up some over priced food. My sweet brother, who is currently living in paradise, sent me a necklace made out of Hawaii's native wood. He gave Will one also, so we can be all matchy matchy. I was given too many Glee soundtracks, I am beyond excited, but I think Will might not share the same excitement. Claire sent me this fabulous bag. I can not describe how much I love it. I have already used it several times and can not wait to use it again and again. My lovely husband gave me the corduroy Toms. He scrambled to try and find a pair since they sold out within a few days. Oh, the labors of love, ha.

Oh, and those other pictures?? Well they might have been one of my favorite presents of all. What is a better gift than exercise videos to get me through the next six months?? Well maybe a picture of the little booger that will be growing inside of me for the next six months. We should get to me the newest addition around July 14 (also my one and only brother's birthday).

Yes, this does mean I am pregnant. My dad did not appreciate the subtle clues when I announced the news to him either.

So there you have it. My big "secret." The reason I have not blogged, besides the whole camera being broken thing. (Which, my mom supplied the new camera to take all those pictures with, thanks mom!!) It is a struggle for me to not speak what is on my mind and this little "thing" has been on my mind a lot. So hopefully the blog will be up and running again.

Our Christmas was a bit different this year because we stayed in Bozeman and our families got to come up to see us. My mom left yesterday and had a horrible time getting back to TX and Will's family is still here. I really loved having everyone up here, but I will be glad for a more "normal" Christmas next year.

One of the many benefits of having our mothers here was that they got to see the ultrasound take place. The heart was pounding away at 170 beats per minute. The neatest part was seeing the little guy/it/thing/girl/whatever, put its hands up to its mouth and begin sucking. We could clearly see the throat swallowing, it was crazy. They also kept flailing around, which I found quite humorous. I know that this happens to everyone who is pregnant, but it is a fairly new thing to me and still pretty strange.

So I am glad that is out in the open. Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We sure enjoyed our first White Christmas.

Wrong Impressions

According to my mother, the last blog post gave off the impression I was depressed. It was mostly the reflection of a hard week. Some things have come up that make our future even more unknown and Will had a stressful week of school. So between those two things, I was not super cheery.

BUT, things are getting better. We have decided that there really is no sense in worrying about the future. It is ok to think about our future, to actively try and plan for our future. However, sitting here fretting over situations that we have absolutely no control over or no way to know exactly how things will fall into place, is damaging. This is a lesson I must learn. Its a lesson that continues to present itself and I can never quite put it into memory.

I remember being sick to my stomach for weeks having no idea how I was going to graduate, plan a wedding, and then move all the way to Montana. I honestly I had no answers to how my stuff would be moved so far away. I had thrown my hands up and sat in a corner and rocked because in my little mind I could not think of a solution. BUT GUESS WHAT?? I made it to Montana, even though I did not have a solution. Things work out because ultimately it is NOT me who is in charge, imagine that.

You see, I know that I lack control, but I still try and get control. Is that what defines insanity? Doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result? Well, here is my attempt to stop this cycle.

Last week I saw Will become consumed with worry. Let me tell you it is very unattractive. This is not a stab at Will, but a revelation I had about myself. I must be continually unattractive to him because I have continually been a worrier since he has known me. Being face to face with worry, is ugly.

So what am I doing about??

"Do NOT be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers, whatever is TRUE, whatever is NOBLE, whatever is RIGHT, whatever is PURE, whatever is LOVELY, whatever is ADMIRABLE- if anything is EXCELLENT or PRAISEWORTHY- think about such things. " Philippians 4: 6-8

I think that right now I am trying to focus on the second part, the one with all the capitalized words. I want to focus on those things. I am pretty sure worry and the unknowns of our future to do not fall into any of those categories.

I believe we choose our attitude and unfortunately I often choose to have a bad one. But not this week. Life is really great for us, my complaints are foolish. Not having a job, makes every day a new day, I never know exactly what is going to happen. I have also loved getting called to substitute teach.

So you catch my point. Now I am off to be a cheery housewife, ha!

My Life As A Housewife

...is pretty uneventful

I wake up around 7:15 am and lay in bed until Will leaves to teach at 8:00 am.

I make the bed.

Try and figure out what to eat because as of lately everything is repulsive, pb&J this morning nearly made me hurl.

Read the bible and journal before I open the computer.

Clean up a bit.

Look for jobs, check email, gossip websites, waste time.

Will gets home and laughs because I am most likely not dressed yet.

Get excited because someone has responded about a resume I sent them, oh shoot, just another scammer. The only people who want to hire me are scammers. I usually send them an email back telling them what lame-os they are.

Go to a coffee shop (study for GRE that is on the 19th), knit, make headbands, pet the doggie, maybe get ready for the day at this point.

Work out at the climbing gym.

(Note: not every day is identical to this. Some days I actually get called to substitute or babysit for someone or work at the Help center or go to Erin's for Monday night football. Like today I officially applied to graduate school. I need some more misc. papers sent to them, but pretty much done.)

So this should pretty much explain the lack of blog posts. And my camera is dead. And snow is officially everywhere.

Oh, I forgot to add how much of a thoughtful wife I am, and how I never complain about anything!!

T-Shirt Necklace

[found here]

Pumpkins

This was only my second year to carve a pumpkin. Will found it hard to believe I never did this as a child. But to your credit mom, I am not sure carving pumpkins is something I would have enjoyed, the whole pull out the slimy stuff really bothers me. Will did most of that for me. Going over to Erin's was fun. It was nice to have some place to be and someone to interact with. Now that I am unemployed again, the days all just run together.

I have been attempting to stay busy. Apply for jobs, knit, work out, continually search Hulu for any shows I may have missed. I really loved the volleyball job because it gave me some place to be everyday, but obviously was not the biggest time commitment. I have inquired about several other jobs. Such as, a paper deliverer (until the reality of delivering papers at 4:30 am in blizzard conditions set in), a princess for child events (I am still interested in this job, but Chryssy from Chryssy's characters has not gotten back to me. Hey, for $15-$50 an hour, I will gladly put on a ridiculous costume and let little children wipe their snot on me.), a dish washer at the Food Co-Op (still waiting for a reply. Will is more excited about this job because then we can get discounts. But a 5% discount on a $20 loaf of bread is not all that great.), a substitute teacher (I am officially on the system to be called to substitute. Unfortunately, the system only calls your phone once and I got to the phone a split second too late and missed the call. Super lame). There are some more but those are the most interesting.

I have gone through this job to no-job cycle several times since being in Bozeman. I also go through the same emotional cycle. When I have a job, all I could think about was how great it would be too not have to work there. When I do not have a job, I feel worthless and like a big, fat piece of lard. However, the past two weeks, I have had quite a lot of time to spend with Will. I know we spent tons of time together as it is, but it has been fun. Like today, we are going to go hike in the middle of the day on a Thursday. The past few days we have been able to go to a coffee shop and study (ugh, GRE!). We have been able to go every night to the climbing gym and spend several hours there. Those are all great things. Things that I do not want to take for granted. Because I know there is a time, in the not so distant future, that real life is going to hit. He will have a full time job, I will be swamped with graduate school, and life will be different.

This morning when I was reading the bible, I was looking up verses that pertain to having a purpose. I came across this one, "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails." Proverbs 19:21

I find myself making plans all the time. Plans of how I think my life should be going. Plans of what I would be doing if I was not in Montana. Plans of when we should have children. Plans of what job I should have. Plans of what I think Will should be doing instead of studying statistical analysis of wildlife patterns. You get the point. They are silly plans because I can only see so far, but the Lord has already seen it all. He knows. So I need to trust in His plans, even if I can not see them, and enjoy these moments He has given me.

That is all. Sorry for the rant. My doggie oggie is demanding to be taken out. Try ignoring a jumping, twirling, 90 pound, uncoordinated dog.

Marathon Pictures

I was in a lot of pain after I finished. I have been kicking around the idea of doing another one in the next few months. I really do not want to do the training again, but I want to try do the actual race again. It is much easier to stay in marathon shape, but I am not sure how to do that when the sidewalks are pretty much ice rinks. I went running on Friday and had major hip pain the rest of the weekend. I am anxious to start feeling active again, but my body is still healing.

This week will probably consist of job hunting and knitting. I just learned how to knit mittens. I am already on my second pair. I think that mittens might be what I give the sister in laws for Christmas. I love being able to make Christmas presents instead of spending money on silly things.

Elk Bugling

We are still slowly recovering from the marathon. We have not attempted to run yet, but I think today might be the day. We went rock climbing on Tuesday because Will said it would be good "active recovery."

Yesterday, I was feeling overwhelmed with the overflow of junk that seemed to be taking over our studio. When you live in a studio, anything out of place is magnified. After we hit up the Gap (hello, 40% off regular price items), I made a donation pile and began to organize my knitting paraphernalia.

I bought a striped shirt (as seen below) for $6.99 and a green cardigan for $26 (regular $49). I also convinced Will to buy a plaid, flannel shirt. He looks mighty fine in it. I have a rule that every new item I buy, I must get rid of something. This is a great way to give back and also to make room in my two drawer dresser for ALL my clothes.

Since the air is getting colder by the minute, I decided to bring the rest of my "summer" clothes down to the cellar. I had seen this window in the back corner of the cellar for a while, but finally decided to act. After a few screams due to the massive amounts of spiders, I brought the beauty up to the sunlight and scrubbed her off. I then hung her over the cute buckets I designated for my knitting. Since I have a goal of knitting all my Christmas gifts, I need the knitting accessories easily accessible. I think at some point, I will paint her, but right now that was all the work I had the energy to do.

We then went to Yellowstone for the evening. That's right, we are free to visit a national park any time we feel fitting. Our mission was to see the Elk Bugling. This is when the males who are all hyped up on spreading their seed, fight each other and sing songs (well, bugle). We did not see any fighting, but we did hear our first Elk bugle. I am pretty sure he only bugled because he did not appreciate Will flashing camera lights on him. The picture below where his neck is outstretched with his mouth open is an action shot of him bugling. We also saw a coyote casually stroll across the road when we were heading back. It was a fun, little date.

Family Portraits

26.2 Miles Later

Let me start by saying that the race was hard, extremely hard. But let me back up to the start of the weekend.

We arrived Friday night in Denver and then drove over an hour to visit Will's sister in Greely. We went out to eat and spent the night with her. Unfortunately, it was a rough night because a dog she was pet sitting may have peed on Will in the middle of the night and thrown up on my feet. Then it was morning and we headed to back to the airport to pick up the mothers.

Saturday was a jam packed day. We check into the hotel (which was pretty sweet), went to pick up our race packets at the race expo, and finally ate some food. Luckily, Will and I were able to take a nap that afternoon. But then we went out to eat to the Old Spaghetti Factory, it was an hour and a half wait. We did not get back to our hotel until around 10 pm. Um, I was pretty much hoping to be IN bed at 9pm. Well, Becca had come in to stay with us that night with her doggie. It turns out it is fairly difficult to fall asleep with three other people in the room and a dog that is bouncing off the walls. So I probably fell asleep at 1 am and was up at 5:15 am. ( I had not mentioned it yet, but I was a complete nervous wreck all weekend. So not being able to fall asleep was awful, just awful.)

Race Day!! I was very hopeful. Everyone had told me that I was more than prepared with the amount of training I had done, blah, blah, blah. However, for the past two weeks, during my tapering period (where we cut back on the miles we are running), I hurt every. single. run. I pretty much hurt non-stop. I thought that this would fade by the time race day was here, but apparently I was wrong.

I did not just want to run a marathon, I wanted to run a marathon well. I wanted to not skip out on the training, push myself, and reap the benefits of all those months of incredibly hard work to pay off. Because of those goals, I was very upset with the results. I hurt from mile 1. There was no difference in my mind between mile 10 to mile 23, they all ached terribly. I usually reach a point in my runs, where I am actually enjoying running. I can look around at my surroundings, take everything in, its almost effortless. I never reached that point in the race. Every mile, I had to mentally push through. Will says that this is what I should be proud of, that I never gave up and pushed through until the end. I guess I am prideful (well, I know I am) and wanted to finish in a time worth bragging about. A time that shows I trained a killer amount for this race and owned it.

Even though I was frustrated with how the race turned out, I am thankful for it. The race brought our an opportunity for us to see our family again. It was so awesome to have them there supporting us along the race. It was also nice to have someone else to cry to besides Will (sorry, mom). They bought all our meals and took care of us just like only moms only know how.

And, Will. He was beyond words. He stood by my side the entire months we have trained and never once left my side during the race. He encouraged me every mile (every step actually) and helped push me through to the finish. He knew how defeated I felt and had a constant word of affirmation through out the day for me. He also kept his laughing to a minimum when I was hobbling through the airport.

I am trying really hard to be proud of the fact, I RAN A MARATHON!!! I went from not being able to fathom running that far, to taking on the training, and running in the race. I should be proud.

All the pictures are on my mother's camera. When she gets them to me, I will post them.

I am off to spend some quality time with my pup who could care less if I run or not. All she cares about is that I am home and can give her all the belly rubs she desires.

Volleyball Season is Over

Today was my last practice with the girls. They actually have a tournament on Saturday, but due to a prior engagement (you know that marathon I have rambled on about) I will not be there. They were such a good group of girls and I gave them my two cents on how to navigate through life. I created awards for each one and they all brought sugary treats for this morning's practice. I finally took a picture with the girls, it is a bit blurry.

It seems that I must start the job searching again, but first I need to get through this weekend. We leave at 5 pm tonight for Denver. We will then drive to see Will's sister, Becca, and her new puppy wuppy. We will spend the night with her and head back to the airport to pick up the mommas. I have been trying to rest, eat lots, and watch motivational videos to get me pumped for the race.

Fixing My First Knitting Project

Last November I took a "Learn to Knit" class at the local knit shop. Feeling quite accomplished I purchased my first balls of yarn and knitting needles in hopes of completing a scarf. However, within the fifteen minute walk back to my house, I had forgotten nearly everything I had learned. So the beginning of the scarf more closely resembles something that got caught in a blender than anything else. This bothered me, until I had seen lots of patterns for Cowls lately, and had a brilliant idea. (I actually knitted two Cowls for our mothers for Christmas, but they look nothing like the above picture, sorry for the tangent...) Well I decided to knit the two ends together to form a circle and voila, a new knit project without actually knitting anything.

Aspen Get Pretty Day

Due to my dog's inability to stay posed in a position before I snap a picture, I have no proof of how pretty Aspen got today. We took her to the doggie groomers and had her made all fancy. She smells lovely and all her wooliness is perfectly fluffed.

We are having family portraits done on Wednesday and we needed our baby to look her best.

(I know its rather annoying to have little "pet" names for Aspen, like doggie oggie woggie, but at least I don't refer to Will as my hubby.)

Dracula. Pumpkin Patch. Hike.

I forgot to mention that Will was out of town last week for a few days. He was in Salt Lake City at a Wildlife Conference. He has been doing research for a professor at MSU and presented a poster he made that represents the paper he has been writing. He is hoping to get the paper published, which is pretty big deal for a Masters student. I think that the conference was refreshing for him because he got to meet people who enjoy and are employed doing what he wants to do (and they would want to hire him). I had some quality alone time while he was away. You know, cooked, deep cleaned the studio, exercised the doggie, all the wife stuff I should be doing while he is home. So this weekend we tried to make up for a week spent apart.

On Friday night, I decided to take us to Dracula, a play at a small theater. I was hopeful that it would indeed be as scary as they advertised, but regretfully must say it was quite awful. I applaud actors in the theater setting because it is difficult to pull off quality acting, but this was rough to watch. We had a good laugh though. I also baked salmon for us before hand (I keep telling Will I should get some award this week for being such an A+ wife, no award yet...)

Saturday, I had a volleyball game against the other defeated middle school team. We lost. Lame, I know, but my girls played the best they have all season. It really is neat to watch girls improve at a sport because of my instruction. That sounds arrogant, but I think it shows we should be giving back in some aspect the skills we have been given. We also went to the local Pumpkin Patch here. I do believe we were the ONLY ones with out children, but we rode that hay ride and had just as much fun as any toddler. We "picked pumpkins," (I say pick, but really they had dumped all the pumpkins in some random field far enough away to justify a hay ride to get there) made a caramel apple, bought two ears of corn, and squealed at the animals ride along with the children.

Today we took the baby Aspen hiking. It was a wonderful hike. Aspen got completely muddy and only batted around one Jack Russel Terrier. We also saw some evidence of a wild animal. Can you guess which one based on the pictures??? (Don't worry Dad, we survived.)

I finally received the jacket I was supposed to receive from the running group I signed up for. Will also made breakfast this morning. Those are homemade biscuits. We are planning on grilling pork chops and the corn tonight. My plan is to feel extra large this week and use that to keep running next weekend.

A week from today we will be on a plane back to Bozeman after (hopefully) completing our marathon. I am nervous, but Will says we are more than prepared.

Tomorrow is, "Aspen get pretty day." If you are wondering what the heck that even means, you will just have to wait.

done.

With my "Ladies Shrug."

I squeezed the last bits of my third ball of yarn to finish this sucker because I was much too stubborn to go to the knit shop and buy another ball. I was determined to finish. So here it is...

I was also determined to get a picture, which explains the still wet hair from my shower.

Finally an answer to the question...

What does one wear while coaching volleyball???

(See picture and description of picture below)

Well, I am glad you asked. I had the lovely husband snap a few photos (ok, just two) before my last game just for this inquiry.

First, one must wear the necklace an adoring player gives you. Especially since it will be nearly impossible to find another occasion suitable for such an accessory.

Second, must throw on all the brightest colors one can find. (Bright red TOMS, not pictured) Also wear the Sevens jeans that you have worn continuously since they were purchased.

Thirdly, MOST IMPORTANTLY, have a game face on. (Or in this case an uncomfortable, don't know what to do with my hands because I have no friends, oh, you are taking the picture now? face.)

Once all steps are completed, one is fully equipped to go and coach their team to victory. These steps also aid in successfully avoiding all parents whose great joy is to suck all of yours away. The end.

Oktober Fest 10K

I signed us up for a 10k this past Friday night. I mean any race that is advertised as Run, Polka, Beer, should be fun right??

There were a little over 300 people who signed up. I really get a kick out of doing things, especially active things, in the Bozeman community. I love being able to recognize people that I have seen at other races, at Farmer's markets, or running around town. Its sort of creepy, but I like guessing their "story" with out actually knowing them. For example, I will recognize a mom I saw at the library during Books and Babies and then see her running in a 10k.

So back to the actual race... It was freaking hard. Hills, hills, and more hills. 6 miles worth of hills to be exact. It is somewhat bothersome to me how I was dreading running 6 miles when less than a week ago I ran 18, how is that possible? I broke no records during the race, but I was very proud I did not stop to walk up any hills. Will later told me he kept looking behind him and was surprised to always see me there. I was not sure whether or not that was a compliment.

Once we finished, my legs were wobbly and we picked up our free beer token and neon colored shirt. At first I thought they were hideous, but Will reminded me they would be great for running at night. Which makes sense considering it was a night race.

We did not get a chance to get the free bratwurst because I had to head up to the high school to set up nets for the girl's volleyball tournament on Saturday. But we did buy some of our own, they were fantastic!!

And the bow, that was a fail. It was way too big and reminded me of something Minnie mouse would wear.

This Past Week ( I clearly struggle with creative titles)

Where, oh, where have I been? I will give you a quick run down of my week and then a follow up with some pictures.

1. Tried to squeeze in several work outs this week. A seven mile run that was supposed to be an eleven mile run. A sprint work out that should have been longer. It was one of those weeks where I had to convince myself to just get out the door and move. No drive whatsoever.

2. Worked at Baja Fresh for six hours every day Monday to Wednesday. And then gave them notice that I will not be working there for the remainder of the volleyball season. Its quite hard to bounce all over town through out the day.

3. Had a parent confrontation that I ended up gracefully exiting by crying. She was not so nice and purposely intimidating. I truly enjoy coaching. When those girls got their first bump, set, spike, I could hardly contain my excitement. However, I could do with out the parents.

4. Took Aspen on a play date last weekend. We took her to a local pond and she was loving being able to run around freely in the water. Besides a trip where she face planted in the water, she looked like a young-pup. We also took her hiking yesterday and she came nose to nose with a curious horse on a trial ride. She quickly loses all her dominance when overshadowed by a beast that size.

7. Purchased a couch at the resale shop for our quaint studio. I now have a seating area other than the bed. Aspen is clearly enjoying the purchase as well. I also bought an over-sized man's dress shirt at the thrift store.

8. Will and I completed our last long run today. It was another hilly 18 miles and might have caused me to shed a few tears. Seriously, this crying thing is annoying. It feels great to know that our weekends do not have to be devoted to running anymore. Three more weeks and we will be in Denver running 26.2 miles. The picture of me stretching is after the run today. And I am holding up a huge pickle in the other picture. After long runs, I always crave salt (probably shouldn't have 1000 mg worth).

9. This was quite boring, I am well aware. After viewing the collage, it must seem as if I no longer have a husband. Which is far from the truth. If it was not for him, I would not have made it to the weekend, let alone finish running 18 miles. It is a wonderful thing to have an ally in him when life is really getting me down.

This Disgusts Me

Will and I have pretty much formed a strong opinion against fertility treatments, but this is article is a whole new level of unbelievability. What has our world come to? Adoption seems like such a viable option for people, yet it is often their "last" resort. Why do people feel that their genes are so much better than those millions of babies that need adoption? I could keep going about why fertility treatments bother me, but what would the point be. Here is the article, it truly is sickening.

(rough summary: a woman chose to use fertility treatments, got twins surprise, surprise, and then decided to abort one of them, after choosing which gender she wanted to keep.)

http://www.elle.com/Beauty/Health-Fitness/Fertility-Treatments-Would-You-Get-Selective-Reduction

Adoption is something that Will and I both desire to do someday. We are still unsure of the timing of when we want to embark on the whole parenting thing, but the choice to conceive our own or adopt is pretty much equal at this point.

Of course I am curious to know what our "own" children would look like, know what pregnancy is like, etc. However, we can not ignore the need for adoption.

Our purpose in life is found in Christ. We fall incredibly short of His example and struggle daily to remember His sacrifice on the cross, but we want to continue to strive and serve Him. This life is very temporary and our hope is spending eternity with Him.

The point of the above paragraph is to set the stage for the verse that we can not easily shake from our minds.

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after ORPHANS and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."
James 1:27

I see no better way to look after orphans than adoption. I guess it is pretty clear to me, but obviously there are many differing opinions.

I apologize, well sort of, for the past two posts consisting of things that bother me. Will says that too many things bother me. Which is probably true, I will just try and keep the majority of them to myself (and Will).

Five Quick Etiquette Rules to Follow While Dining Out

[1] When the lovely waitress has a tray packed full of food and her tiny little wrists look as if they might snap in half, please make eye contact with her while she attempts to unload all your food on the table. It is really not polite to continue your merry little conversation and ignore her existence, this makes her want to smash your food in your face.

[2] Along the same lines as number one. Please remember what you ordered. It was a maximum of fifteen minutes ago and the waitress who is delivering your food does not remember what you asked for (especially since I did not take your order).

[3] Oh, and when the waitress asks you oh so nicely, "Who had the burger?" and you just stare, please do not be offended when she puts the food down in front of whoever. She feels you are capable of picking up the plates and switching it yourself since you did not respond to her when she asked.

[4] Please do not ask the waitress, "What is the best thing on the menu?" We have like over 50 things on the menu, you really think I tried them all?

[5] Hang up the cell phone.

[6] Ok, I am on a roll... Parents, I understand you do not believe in discipline this day and age, but Please, Please get your child under control. When I am bussing a table and have a tray full of nasty remains, the last thing I want to do is try and push my way through your fighting/screaming toddlers. Well, unless of course, you want me to spill that tray of germ-infested food on their heads.

[7] It is not my lot in life to clean up your child's spilled drink for the fourth time. Please do not look down at me for working in a service position. There is really no excuse for having your child spill its drink that much and demand the staff to clean it up just because, "that's what we are made for."

I have only worked at Baja Fresh for maybe two weeks, and I have encountered all these things. However, the nice customers make up for the ones who fall into the categories above. For example, the other day I was bussing tables. Because I am so incredibly diligent, I got to work on a table as soon as this man got up to leave. Well, I noticed some stuff had been eaten, but basically his entire burrito remained. I thought this was odd, but went on my way. As soon as I get back to the dining room, this man is standing with his drink refilled and says, "I think someone just threw away my entire burrito." Ha, oops! He was completely understanding and we served him a new one right away. I was incredibly thankful for his realization that we all make mistakes.

I am off to go run a bit then go serve some food. We are going to a rock-climbing film tonight with our new married friends.

Happy Monday!

My life has been a bit out of whack lately. I really thrive off of routine, and when no routine has been set for me, I am a bit of a mess. The volleyball schedule is still scattered and every week my Baja Fresh schedule changes. This has thrown a wrench into my marathon training and my life in general. So last week, I was full on anxiety and not sure how to handle it.

The end of the week was really the best part. I actually had places to go where I could wear clothing other than work out clothes or my Baja Fresh uniform. I had my first games as a coach. We also spent all day outside on Sunday rock climbing.

On Friday, we went to a math party. Every year the math department hosts a party for the faculty and graduate students. The appeal is fried chicken and two kegs. So I got to wear my Eddie Bauer sweater that I bought with the remainder of a gift card I had. As seen in the pictures, my boots made their appearance twice this weekend.

On Saturday, I woke up early again (We had 6:30 am practice on Friday) to ride the bus with 30 squealing junior high girls to a tournament. I was quite nervous about coaching. You know dealing with equal playing time, parent's complaints, etc. I ended up really enjoying myself. It comes really natural to me to coach and instruct them on how to properly play volleyball. (Mom, dad, I guess all that money you paid for me to play club volleyball is worth something) I only had one moment where I got "mad" at them. The game had started and we were on serve receive. However, for the first three points all my girls were standing straight up staring at the court next to us. Ha, really? Could you girls please look at OUR game!!

After the tournament, I crashed. We then took our friends dog (puppy) running. Dogs NEED exercise and it frustrates me when people complain about the behavior of their dogs when they aren't giving the dogs what the need. Anyway, we offered to take her dog running since we are running anyway. Then we went out to eat at Baja Fresh. The food is pretty good and I get a 50% discount. We headed to Target to just browse. We ended up being those people who take ridiculous pictures with ridiculous merchandise. We also got a good laugh out of a married couple shopping together. The man was following the wife around carrying all her pink items.

On Sunday, we went rock climbing with a couple that goes to our church. Will had advertised for a climbing buddy and this guy replied. We took Aspen with us and had a great time being outside all day. I did not climb, I just went running along the road they were climbing off of. I got a bit wigged out when every 50 feet there was a warning sign for bears. After, we had burgers, onion rings, and a shake. It was amazing!

OH! I forgot the mention that it was Aspen's Birthday! She is eight years old. We were a bit busy to really celebrate, but Will made her a birthday hat.

I am off to go work and the coach another volleyball game.

My Day in Pictures

[From Top to Bottom]

* My new knitting project. Its going to be a "Ladies Shrug." Pretty much a chunky sweater with out the sleeves.

* I made myself a peanut butter and apple sandwich. I have Will to thank for this creation. I had never heard of such a thing until we married.

* I took the Aspenite running for 35 minutes. Now that it is colder, I have started running her more often. This run it actually felt like we were running together versus me pulling a 90 pound bag of sand.

* Yay, pictures of the Adirondack chairs we worked so hard on. We got a good laugh out of trying to get Aspen to stay.

* After the run, I did some exercises with the dumbbells. This picture is posed, if you couldn't tell.

* I took a turn sitting in the chairs. Doesn't the red compliment the color of our house so well??

* The outfit I decided to wear today. Those are my new Sevens. I bought them on Ebay for $20 and they are like new, I was thrilled. That is also the replacement sweater Will bought me for shrinking my other one that was almost identical. And of course, my Toms that I have nearly worn out. I will only have a few more times I can even wear them this year. Water proof boots that keep feet warm to -20 degrees will be all this girl has on.

I have a parent's meeting tonight for volleyball. We finally get to announce the teams. This means that we actually get to practice as a team for two days before the tournament on Saturday. I also have to go into work for a few hours after the meeting. I have closing duty and will be there until 11 pm. Yuck! At least I got the whole day to do what I please.

Polaroids

I really like the color tone change in Polaroids, so this program is pretty neat if you ask me.

(this idea was also found off of this blog, http://yellowsongbird.blogspot.com/)

Sixish Things on Saturday almost Sunday

1. On our walk last night with Aspen, we had quite the scare. We were heading around the block when a van pulled up next to us. They just wanted to let us know that there was a bear down the street and they had followed the bear while it hopped through yards. Needless to say, our walk was cut short.

2. My day mostly consisted of work and sleeping to recover from work. I am confident my body will get used to the exhaustion that occurs from constant movement for six hours, but right now its rough. The only uh-oh I had at work today was taking the manager out with the door to the kitchen. I was zoning out, shoved it open, and immediately heard drinks spilling everywhere. She was not too happy.

3. Speaking of work, here is my uniform. The tips really roll in when I look this good.

4. Apparently my hands have turned into sissy hands. After hitting a few balls to the seventh graders last week, I had a massive bruise on the palm of my hand. It does not really show up in the picture, but just imagine the discoloration. (look closely under the thumb) Oh well, I can run for a really long time, that has to count for something.

5. I have started getting a subscription to US Weekly. Its somewhat exciting, but also causes a bit of worry. How did they know I have a weakness for celebrity gossip?

6. It is late and we have twelve miles to run tomorrow.

College Degree = $8.00/Hr

Try-outs for volleyball started this week. Lets just say, I am very thankful I am coaching seventh graders. Something must have overtaken those little girls during the summer between seventh and eighth grade. The eighth graders have attitudes, woo they have attitudes. (and short, shorts) After correcting one girl in particular about her cheetah print booty shorts, I got a quick glimpse into what my parenting might look like for our potential teenage daughter. (its not pretty...) Between her fake yawn while I was talking and the eye rolling, I had to fight to keep from pulling her bouncy pony tail straight out of the gym. Baby girl lived, if you were wondering.

Well, the volleyball skills are seriously lacking. I have already started to combat my competitive nature and re-think goals for these girls. I really want to give them confidence, in volleyball and in life. I want to teach them the basics of the sport and hopefully get them to value physical activity. There are more, but honestly, the season is seven weeks and only so much life change can occur during that time period.

Once I receive my t-shirt for Baja Fresh, I will include a picture of my work outfit. Should be super cute.

Running Wish List

1. Garmin 405. I never thought I would get to a point where I would want such a complicated gadget to wear. However, now that I have been running such far distances, I am curious to know the actual results of my run. For example, I sometimes run just based on time (45 minutes) and would like to know how far I actually went. The Garmin also calculates calories burned (Will is afraid I would become too obsessed with this function), changes in elevation (for all those dang hills or for hiking), distance, and pace (to see if I am actually going as fast I think I am).

That is about it. Well, besides wishing to finish the marathon.

(If you do not think this is much of a list, take a minute to look up how hefty the price tag is, it ain't pretty.)

20 Miles

Well, it turns out that 40 degrees and rainy is the perfect forecast for running 20 miles. Other than stopping a few times for bathroom breaks/stretching, I ran the whole way. The dramatic, crying, anti-runner, did not make her appearance either. I felt really encouraged that I might actually be able to finish this marathon. I am even able to walk down our front porch steps without gripping the hand rail for dear life.

We made some taquitos, guacamole, and queso for our after run meal. So I am pretty much not worried whether I replenished my salt levels.

We are headed off to our bible study we are in with two other married couples. We are currently reading the book Love and Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs. It focuses on the woman's desire to be loved unconditionally and the man's desire to be respected unconditionally. When these two desires are not met, then arguments often ensue. I have only read the first three chapters, but I feel most of our arguments stem from this concept.

Oh, and Will just sent me this article. Browse through the pictures if you get a chance.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/08/27/china.dyeing.dogs.pandas/index.html?hpt=C2

Ha, Seriously?? Those poor dogs. Little do the Chinese know that our dog came pre-painted just like a panda.

Things I Produced...

1. I bought another package of size 7 knitting needles. I somehow managed to lose one from my other set. I guess buying needles does not count as me producing anything, but it aides me in my ability to produce something. My summer scarf has now turned into my fall scarf.

2. I baked a pie. A blueberry, blackberry, strawberry pie, to be exact. I pretty much used all ingredients I already had in the kitchen. Except for corn starch, but who really has corn starch. We invited Erin, Will's sister, over to eat some with us. Now we only have half a pie left.

3. I created a collage of sorts on our wall. I used nails, beading wire (for necklaces and such), and itty bitty clothes pins. I have already re-arranged the pictures three times since the picture was taken, but you get the idea.

4. I made this headband. I cut a bow-like shape out of a piece of fabric, tied it in a knot, and sewed the ends of the bow to the headband.*

We are off to bed now. It is going to be 40 and raining during our run tomorrow. There might be a vote in the morning as to whether or not this run actually occurs.

*(Edit: This was not my actual idea, I was inspired to make the headband from this blog here,
http://yellowsongbird.blogspot.com/) *

Six Things on Saturday

1. Aspen has been quite the early riser since we got back from D.C. She has been waking us up between 6:30 and 7:00 every morning. And by "waking us up," I mean, whining and staring at me until I open my eyes. Once my eyes open, its all over. So I get up, feed her, and crawl back into bed. I am usually unable to go back to sleep at this point because her eating/slurping noises keep me up. Today, Will counted that she took 158 drinks of water. Seriously Aspen, 158 slurps?

2. Following up with number one, we were up pretty early this morning. So we rewarded our alarm clock and took her to breakfast.

3. I ran 10 sets of 800 meters yesterday. That is two times around the track at a 7:30 mile pace, ten times. This marathon training is getting pretty old. I would seriously consider backing out, but our moms just decided to fly into Denver and watch us run. I am really excited about this, but also nervous that our moms might witness one of my hysterical crying fits when I do not want to run anymore.

4. I spent over an hour yesterday watching these amazing wedding videos. I can not even begin to imagine how much a video like this would cost, but they are beautiful. This one is by far my favorite, http://vimeo.com/12991473.

5. After watching all of these people I will never know exchange wedding vows, I decided to find ours. When we first got married, I had wanted to frame them. (I think I might do that today...) As I sat and watched these strangers exchange their vows, I wondered if they truly realized how precious those words are. Unfortunately, I am all too familiar with how easily it is to completely ignore the promises I made on January 9, 2009. I am thankful to have found the vows again and hopefully be more aware of the significance of this whole marriage thing.

I, Stephanie, take you, William, to be my wedded husband to have

and to hold from this day forward for better or for worse in
sickness and in health for richer or for poorer to love and to
cherish till death does us part or until the Lord comes according
to God’s holy ordinance and thus I pledge to you my faithfulness
and love.

6. I really wish I had a detailed fall wardrobe. We keep receiving these clothing magazines that have adorable fall clothes with not so adorable price tags. For example, Robert Redford has now started a women clothing company. Well, I just want to tell Robert, "stop sending me your stinkin' magazine because no matter how much I might want that super cute outfit the middle aged model is wearing on your cover, I will never be able to pay $600 for the getup."


Another twenty miles tomorrow, woohoo!

That is all.

Visiting the Sergeant

We had an absolutely fabulous time visiting with my brother in Washington D.C. This was our first time to visit him and we really liked spending so much time together. It was hard to leave knowing that might be the last time we see each other for a year or so. Why is it that by the time I am finally able to get along with my family we have to live thousands of miles apart? Hopefully, some day we will all be in the same state at least.

Here is a brief recap of our time in the capital.

We went to see the cute soldier ride in his last funeral service.

We (mostly me) played with some horses.

Toured the tourist attractions and rode on the subway.

We went swimming, ate watermelon, played tennis, wore matching clothes, and witnessed my brother cooking.

We then went bowling. Apparently, my bowling form is quite humorous, it kept the boys laughing for far too long.

I miss him already! It is frustrating that the fun times always go by so fast. I am so proud of you little brother and thankful we can have such a wonderful time together.

Our summer is pretty much over. We have been running around a lot and now we must sit and wait for that dreaded season. I was just offered a volleyball coaching job for junior high today. I am really excited about it because I get to do something I care about. It is only for about seven weeks, so the job hunt is not officially over. I hoping to substitute teach also.

Twenty Miles In The Lone Star State

I flew into Houston this weekend to "take care" of my dad after he had he is heart surgery. I am not sure bringing him two Cokes to drink counts as taking care of someone. Even though I sat through three days of a never-ending golf tournament, I really enjoyed being there. It was nice to be able to just sit there with my dad and not have any place I had to go (well, except for the 20 miles I had to run).

I decided I would break the run up between the morning and night. My lovely Aunt offered to pick me up at 6:45 am on Sunday and drop me off at Meyer Park for two hours. I was hoping to run 13 in the morning, but the humidity over took me. I was literally wringing out my clothes at the thirty minute mark. It was a lot harder to breath at sea level than at the 5,000 feet I am at now. I then ran 8.5 miles on the treadmill at my grandmother's house. Thank you Kardashian sisters (there were back to back episodes on E!) for distracting me while I was pouring sweat and chafing on my thighs. I am still not positive if it is beneficial to split up the long runs, but I lived through running in the August heat in Texas. Will and I are going to have some adjustments to do when we move back.

You can not really see the sweat, but my shirt is soaked entirely.

I also had lunch with Claire while I was in Houston. We ate at El Gallo, a place where we ate many meals in high school. We ended up sitting and talking for three hours, it was wonderful. It is such a relief to be able to sit and have a free-flowing conversation with someone who knows me and we can just pick up where we left off. Friendships are really important. Meeting with Claire, made me long for the day that we can be back in a place where we have friends who truly know us.

We are off to D.C. in the morning to see my little bro bro. I am super excited to see him. We are going to play tennis, go swimming, do all the touristy stuff, and see him ride one last time at Arlington Cemetery.

that time our mother's met their grand-dog

My mom sent me the copy of all the pictures she took while she was here in Beautiful Bozeman. I made a quick collage of our memories. And, yes, our mother's did decide to wear matching outfits one day.

Adirondack Chairs

Will has a dream of building our own furniture. Unfortunately, due to our lack of garage and tools and time he has not made much progress. So when we saw kits to build Adirondack chairs in our local Ace Hardware, we knew this was his chance to display his manliness and build us some furniture. We spent yesterday picking out a color (pomegranate red) and painting our first coat. We thought that the red would be a good contrast to the snow that is looming in the near future. Hopefully, I will have a picture to show of the completed chairs when I get back from Texas this weekend.

As you can see, Aspen was quite the helper.

I mentioned we shop at our local Ace Hardware. The more I go in, the more reasons I find to like the store. It is within walking distance of our house, they are incredibly helpful, dogs are allowed (and offered treats), and they carry teal kitchen paraphernalia.

Well, I have some sprints to do because I chose not to wake up at 6 this morning and some more painting. I am headed to Houston in the morning.

A Reason to Run

Margherita Pizza from The Co-Op (Bozeman's version of whole-foods) and hand me down beer from a friend that just moved across the country.

Banana Vanilla Milkshake and Munchies

A Hilly 18 Miles = A Not So Happy Stephanie

I really do not enjoy blogging with out having pictures to show, but I figured an update is an update.

Our moms were here for the weekend and it was fabulous. We did a lot of "mom" things (ha, poor William...) The Sweet Pea Festival was this past weekend and they had lots of various, artsy forms of entertainment. We went to the arts and crafts show, viewed the flower arrangement contest, ate some chocolate covered frozen bananas, saw a dance team (from Houston) perform, and of course had lots of mom-bought meals. It was really wonderful to have our moms together. I am pretty sure they stayed up all night talking (they stayed in a hotel together three blocks from our house). I never knew that I would have wanted my two moms to get along before I got married, but I am really thankful that they do. So because of the fun we were having with them in town, the long run got pushed back to Monday.

I have off work for the next two weeks while the family I nanny for is out of town, pretty awesome. Which is why I had all day to run, and run all day is exactly what I did.

I am pretty much discouraged right now because of how badly our long runs have gone. The pattern seems to be every other week our long runs are just awful.

12 Miles = terrible, first three miles up hill, second three miles downhill (then reverse because we turned around at six miles)

13 Miles = pretty good, mostly flat or downhill

16 Miles = not my favorite, lots more hills than expected

17 Miles = stayed pretty strong through out the run, mostly flat

18 Miles = hills, lots and lots of hills

So I am thinking the pattern has more to do with the amount of hills than the week. Today, we ran nine miles and then turned around, but the last three miles of the first nine were ALL uphill. I had not realized it at the time, but we had quite a lot of hills going back also. After running up for so very long, I just wanted to throw my hands up in the air and say "I quit, I hate you stinkin' hills." I am pretty sure I did just that. We had five miles left. Two and half up hill and two and half down hill. I could not get my body to move up those hills. We ended up walking way too much the last nine miles. Its embarrassing and I feel defeated.

I get discouraged fairly easily, especially when it feels like I am not getting better. Will is an amazing encourager and is constantly telling me I am doing great. He feels he always has to be the strong one since I cry so easily during the runs (not my best trait). He struggled through our run today also because he has been sick for a week.

I know that running this far is hard for others to really understand, I am not sure I understand either. I want this training for the marathon to be more than just running. Setting a goal to run a marathon is definitely about more than just running. If I just wanted to run, I would run five miles. During each long run, I get to feel my mind reach a place that refuses everything; running, walking, talking, thinking, feeling. It is strange and indescribably. I would like to be able to push past that point, but right now I let it overtake me. I think that is the point of me running a marathon, to be stronger in every sense.

Sorry for the ramblings about running. It is pretty much the only think I have to work towards right now in my life. Well, that, and being a better wife.

On a brighter note, I just scheduled a $35 massage for tomorrow morning. A little reward for my failure of a run.

Seventeen

Well, it turns out that running seventeen miles is equally un-fun as running sixteen is. I only started crying the last fifteen minutes this time versus the last forty-five. I should probably work on that, since they say marathon running is about being mentally strong. It would be just lovely if I started throwing my crying-tantrum during the actual race.

Here is a brief collage of how I recover after my self-induced torture sessions.

From Top Left:

1. This is how I feel about running for three-ish hours.

2. This is the beginning of my "summer" scarf. I am hoping I can finish it before summer is over which is, oh, in a month. :(

3. An action shot of me knitting. It turns out training for a marathon takes over your life. Meaning, I better not do anything too active on Friday night or Saturday because I have a long run on Sunday. So knitting seems to be the only productive, un-strenuous activity I could come up with. Plus, I have not knitted in ions.

4. I gave myself my first official pedicure. I soaked my feet in bubbles, clipped those toe nails, tried to scrub off the aftermath of running for three hours, buffed, and painted. I used this super cool polish kit my dad bought me for Christmas (the one that is sold at the kiosks at the mall, the one where the sellers grab your hand and say, "let me see, I shine for you." Turns out it works).

5. There is no fifth picture. If I had thought about it, I would have taken a picture of the cajun, catfish poboy I inhaled earlier this afternoon.

Oops, Six Things on Saturday

Sorry for the lack of posts this week. Those 16 miles all around wore me out. I think I have been focusing all week on mentally preparing myself to run 17 tomorrow. I am crazy, I know.

1. We often offer to pet sit for our friends. Even though Aspen is rather mean to other dogs, with careful introductions she can get to the point of tolerating them. It turns out our friends love labs. The labs never exactly behave for us. Between the incessant search for food, the whining at 1am, 3am, and 6am, and the constant pacing, we have concluded we will never be lab owners. The lab we so kindly offered to take care of this weekend, has an additional annoyance to the above list, humping (I wish I could think of a more creative term, but it is what it is). He has attacked Aspen to the point she no longer fights back and is also quite fond of me. I was sitting next to Aspen when my attack occurred. I have never felt so violated or helpless as when that dog wrapped his legs around my shoulders and went to town. Here is a picture of the aftermath...

Looks can be deceiving....

2. I purchased my first pair of knee high boots. On sale and with a gift card, good deal all around. I am not sure I love them because my height causes the boots to hit me a little higher than knee level.

3. My mom is coming in less than a week! My mom is coming in less than a week! Actually both of our moms are coming in less than a week!

4. On a not so happy note, my dad just had major surgery. Of course he is making it seem as if its no big deal, but hello, getting a tumor removed from your heart is a big deal. I am worried about his recovery, and possibly planning a trip to go take care of him... ( I know you are reading this dad, so here is my shout out at how much I think about you!)

5. Will and I decided that we were spending too much "nothing" time in front of a computer screen so we went to the public library. I checked out two books on adoption. My desire right now is to some how "acquire" a child. Adoption could take forever and pregnancy, um not now, please.

6. The job market here is awful. The jobs listed consist of manual labor, child care, or nurses. It is frustrating because the manual labor jobs usually require some associates degree, a degree that costs less and took less time to complete than mine. I have made fliers for house cleaning and dog walking, both of which require no high school or college education. I have to keep telling myself that our time here is short and I will be back in school soon.