Beyond flattered... Beautiful Blogger Award

I'd say I'm at a loss for words, but after a few days of working on this post, the one thing it is not lacking is words...

In getting caught up on reading a few of my favorite blogs, I found the most flattering bit of information... a fellow blogger nominated me for the Beautiful Blogger Award!  The idea behind the Beautiful Blogger Award is to recognize some of the blogs we read and recognize the bloggers for their hard work and inspiration.  Seriously?  Me?  Wow!  Talk about compliment... huge... HUGE compliment!

So here's how it works...

*Rules*

1) Copy the Beautiful Blogger Award logo and place it in your post.

2) Thank the person who nominated you and link back to their blog.

3) Tell 7 things about yourself.

4) Nominate 7 other bloggers for their own Beautiful Blogger Award, and comment on their blogs to let them know.

So I begin with a huge thank you to Tonya (Tee_2_Run) for the nomination!  You are, indeed, a beautiful blogger!  Your determination and strength continue to inspire me!  Keep up the great work and best of luck with your fall racing schedule... I can't wait to hear about all of your accomplishments!

As far as 7 things about myself... here goes nothing...

1) I'm a nerd... more so than I like to let people believe.  I love reading (I started a book club last year and it's quickly become one of my very favorite things) and math (I love any project that allows me to use an Excel spreadsheet).  If I can turn it into a checklist or spreadsheet, I'm a happy camper.  Truth be told, I'm not sure I can put into words how much of a nerd I really am... so we'll just leave it at that.

2) I'm gearing up to volunteer for Girls on the Run this fall.  It's an amazing organization focused on girls 8 to 13 years old and teaches them to be confident and healthy while incorporating training for a 5K.  I'm so excited to be a part of this wonderful program and will most definitely be posting about my experience in the coming months.

3) My husband is my hero.  He inspires me daily, whether he knows it or not.  I'm not so great at always telling him this, but I suppose he'll know it if he still reads my blog :)  He's a hard worker, incredibly smart and an amazing father to our son.  This Sunday we will celebrate 8 years of marriage... it's hard to believe how quickly it's gone by!  Through the years we've found that marriage can be a lot of work... and very much worth the effort!



My husband, my hero!

4) I have a two and a half year old son named Collin.  He's a handful!  And I love almost every minute I get to spend with him (I say almost because, let's be honest, we could all do without the tantrums of a toddler).  He is constantly entertaining us with the crazy things he says and does and, while I don't doubt that the stresses of parenthood will age me beyond my years, I wouldn't trade the experience of motherhood for anything.  Even at his very worst, he is absolutely the best!



At Disney World eariler this year

5) I'm currently obsessed with home projects and all things craft related.  I imagine many people in my life are getting tired of hearing about it.  I fully blame pinterest for this recent obsession.  My current projects include: redecorating our spare bedroom into a reading room (nerd alert), repurposing some canvas wall art, framing our bathroom mirrors, making a felt board for my son, and so many other little crafty projects that I couldn't even begin to describe.  Not only are there not enough hours in the day for all of these projects, but I also have one serious problem with all of them... I'm actually not all that crafty.  DIY is not really my thing, so it's hard to say if any of these things will ever get done.  The planning I'm great at... the execution... well, that remains to be seen.

6) Everything scares me.  When I think about facing my fears and trying something new, it doesn't have to be anything extreme.  Sure, I do want to jump out of an airplane (which is insane given my serious fear of heights), but I'm also afraid of not jumping out of an airplane.  Odd as it may sound, I truly fear reaching the end of my life and feeling like I hadn't done everything I could have.  Then again, it scares the crap out of me to tell someone I plan to do something and then not end up doing it.  There's a little bit of fear in almost everything I do (or don't do) which means I feel like I'm facing my fears all the time.  But that's a good thing, right? 

7) I've never been happier!  A lot of people say it... even me... when they don't mean it.  But this year, for the first time in my life, I'm comfortable in my own skin.  I wake up happy (well, maybe after a cup of coffee) and I go to bed appreciating just how good I have it.  I'm surrounded by people I care about, I have a good job, my family is healthy... and I wouldn't change a thing.  It's nice to sit back and give thanks for all you have from time to time... this was my excuse to do just that :)

 

My amazing family!

Nominating 7 others for the Beautiful Blogger Award... well, that's a bit more difficult.  Truth be told, I'm not a huge follower of blogs.  I have a handful that I follow on a regular basis, but this particular 'award' didn't seem to fit.  There are, however, 4 that stand out in my mind, so rather than getting carried away with the 'nominations' process, I thought I'd just pick the ones that were most inspirational to me.

...And the Beautiful Blogger Award goes to...

Kristy (Inspirunning) - you are my hero when it comes to all things running!  Without you, I don't know that I would have been able to complete the Marathon in May.  Your guidance and encouraging words during my training were invaluable and I can't thank you enough.  Keep up the amazing work!

Jackie (jackie's joy) - a dear friend, fellow mom, amazing photographer (jreissphotography) and all around wonderful person - your blog inspires me daily to do more.  It's a beautiful reminder of the simple joys in raising children and trying new things and is 100% responsible for me starting my own blog.  I've rediscovered my love of writing and have you to thank for that.

Becky (Deep Thoughts by Beck) - I know it has been some time since your last blog post... but I check back from time to time just in case you've decided to update the world on your life :)  I recently read your book "Me and the Ugly C"  and found myself both laughing and crying at the same time.  Your strength through such a difficult time inspired me in ways I never imagined.  And I keep my fingers crossed that, one day soon, you'll get back to your blog and enlighten the world on where you've been and what you've been up to... and I'll look forward to reading all about it.

Lydia (Lydia Netzer) - I stumbled upon your blog a few months ago when a friend shared one of your posts on facebook.  After reading it, I immediately shared it again with my friends.  It's a must read for any married couple (15 Ways to Stay Married for 15 Years).  Your advice was both entertaining and insightful and I found myself suddenly inspired to be a better wife and mother.  In reading further, I discovered that you were a writer and that your book "Shine, Shine, Shine" would soon be released (it was released on July 17th and I can't wait to read it!).  I've always loved reading and secretly (well, maybe not so secretly anymore) always wanted to write a book.  Your success has inspired me and I hope to one day turn the book writing itself in my head into one I can put on a shelf.  Furthermore, seeing your picture in a recent People magazine made me suddenly feel like I knew someone famous... let's not focus on the fact that we don't actually know one another at all.  Just know that you've inspired me to pursue one of my dreams :)

Thanks again Tonya for the wonderful compliment and, had you not already posted this to your blog, you most definitely would have made this list!

Happy blogging everyone!

Climbing mountains

... well, attempting to run them anyway...  Of course, looking back on it now, maybe this wasn't such a good idea... but I'll get back to that later.

Our family recently took a trip to Deep Creek Lake in Maryland.  My husband and I had been there for a few long weekend trips in the past, but this visit was for 9 days and, with a toddler in tow, it made for an entirely different kind of vacation.  Deep Creek is wonderfully relaxing... a great place to spend a day out on a boat, soaking up some sun and having a few adult beverages.  With a toddler, the game plan changes and it becomes decidedly less 'relaxing'.  Nevertheless, we had an amazing time with both family and friends, managed to work on our barbaric tans and still squeezed in a few adult beverages... of course, I use the term 'a few' loosely :)

Anyway, I was determined to get in a couple of runs during this vacation, even though I still haven't completely bounced back from this hip injury I'm battling.  My brother-in-law also happens to be getting back on track with running, so we thought it would be a good idea to get out there together.  The house where we stayed is located on a mountain and had a great 1.3 mile loop.  Of course, driving it was a heck of a lot easier than actually running it.  Below is a snapshot from Google Earth.  I don't believe this picture does it any justice, but it's the best I could do... the green square is where we started, then followed the yellow lines.  The red dots mark the half mile uphill climb...


Mountainview Drive, Deep Creek Lake, MD

Early in the week, Michael and I headed out to tackle the route.  Try as we might, we just couldn't make it up the hill without stopping to walk.  So, midweek we tried it again.  This time I had the bright idea to run it the opposite direction thinking that breaking the uphill climb into 2 parts would make it easier with a nice downhill jog in the middle.  This was just plain silly... starting the run with the steep climb with no real warm up was just insane and, as it turns out, impossible for us.  We just couldn't get to the top without walking.

Fortunately for me, I had one more opportunity to tackle it... Michael had to leave a few days before I did, so I set out at the end of the week to give it one more shot.  I opted for the original route of downhill first, uphill in the middle and ending on the last downhill section.  I'm not going to lie, it was nearly impossible.  My lungs were burning (possibly because the temps were already in the 80s) and every body part ached.  But I knew if I didn't make it this time, I wouldn't have the opportunity to try again.  So I somehow managed to stick it out and make it all the way around without stopping.  Yay me... check it off the list... and probably never do it again... :)

All of that being said, a conversation a few days later with a couple of avid runners (one of which I believe has more than 8 marathons under her belt) led me to believe that this might not have been the best idea.  Sure, they were impressed I'd made it without stopping (they'd actually been to this location before and knew the route I was talking about), but the ensuing conversation has led me to believe that it's quite possible that what I'm dealing with isn't a muscle or joint issue at all, but a stress fracture instead.  Not sure why I hadn't considered this option earlier, but everything I'm now reading leads me to believe that this is the case.  Not yay me...

So, now, of course, I should get myself an appointment with a doctor, get some x-rays and see what I'm dealing with.  Yeah... that's what I'll do... well, at least that's what I'll tell everyone I'm going to do... then I'll put it off for as long as humanly possible while I tell myself that, with a little more time, it should go away on its own...  because that's what WebMD tells me... 6 to 8 weeks off and it should correct itself.  And since everything you read online is accurate, I'll just go ahead and pretend I know what the hell I'm talking about.  (Don't worry, I'm actually rolling my own eyes at my asinine way of thinking... you're not the only one that thinks I'm a little crazy).