[half] Marathon Monday - New Year's Edition

Remember last year when I said I don't do New Year's resolutions? I might have suggested it's "the time to set a lofty goal that will never be realized." The truth is, that's exactly what I said.

So, about setting ridiculous expectations for myself in the new year - I decided to take it up. Well, technically Sadie decided, so you can send your comment cards to her if I lose my mind in 2013. You remember her, the one that convinced me to run a half marathon at a point in my life when I could barely handle a mile. As much as I hate to admit it, I think we all need Sadies in our lives to set us up for things we never would have done on our own free will.

I know you're just bursting with excitement to hear what craziness we're up to this year so I'll just come out with it: 13 miles 13 times in 2013. That's right, we're going to run a half marathon each month of 2013 and figure out how to squeeze one more in on top of it. However, don't expect to see pictures of us with 13 medals and official race results. That would be awesome, but it would also be a crazy financial commitment. But you can expect to hear all about it, so stay tuned!

Here's a re-cap of last year's half marathons:

LIVESTRONG Austin Half Marathon, Angie's Half Crazy, AthHalf

if it looks like a fox and sounds like a whale

It must be a Shiba Inu?

If we could have had the dynamic duo Bear and Kitsune for a while before naming them, I probably would have lobbied for Radar and Sonar. Don't get me wrong, they have great names. I mean, what's better than calling one animal by another's name? (For the record: Kitsune means fox in Japanese.) Even though I don't actually intend to re-name them, sometimes I like to think about what their personalities suggest they should be called.

It doesn't taking knowing bear and his super-awesome, super-huge ears for very long before you're tempted to call him radar.

Kitsune has a unique way of communicating when she wants something, which is usually one of three things - food, space on the couch, or outside time. This morning when she was complaining at chatting with me, I thought, "she's the sonar to his radar!" This seems to be a Shiba Inu thing, so I found a video (not of Kitsune) to give you the general idea. She's not quite this vocal, but it's pretty darn close!

 

Solemn Sunday

Today is a grey, rainy day that matches the mood.

This week has been extremely difficult for a lot of people. Between a mall shooting and a school shooting, most of us are dazed, unfocused, and just plain devastated. I've been reading a lot about friends that cry at the sight of children (both their own and others), absentmindedly leave their homes without stopping to check if they're properly dressed, and are made to address extremely difficult topics with their families.

I have found myself thinking about the victims' families first thing when I wake up in the morning - hoping their loved ones were able to sleep and feel rested when they first open their eyes. My heart breaks knowing they will have to remind themselves that it was not a dream, especially in the beginning. She's not in her bed down the hall, he's not going in to work on Monday, we're a family of 4 and not 5. I pray they have as many of those peaceful moments as possible and that crashing back to the ground one day turns into a controlled landing.

Unanswered Prayers

A wise man once said:

Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers

Ok, so maybe it was Garth Brooks.

Just because he doesn't answer, doesn't mean he don't caaaaare! 

Precicely.

Every once in a while you learn that your master plan isn't working out as you plotted it, and you have to come to terms with the fact that you might not have the whole picture. Casey and I were just talking about the valuable experience of learning to look back on frustrating moments and closed doors as blessings that made way for something better. That doesn't mean that you stop looking or stop trying, only that you accept what happens and use it to keep moving forward.

Swimming in cream, churning it into butter.
(if that didn't make any sense to you, take a peek at this)