Happy 3rd Birthday Judah Owen!

It's been over a week since our little baby turned three and maybe I've been in denial or just so overwhelmed with this reality that it's taken me this long to tell you all about his big day. (Or, I've just been lazy... the other choices seem more impressive, so I'll stick with them.)
His big third year anniversary fell on a Saturday and we had an enjoyable day planned out at the pumpkin patch. The days previous had been beautiful and warm, however this day the clouds rolled in, the wind roared, and the freezing rain pored down. We moved the party indoors and rolled with the punches.
We served out the huge peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and the "Nemo Water" (Judah's choice, yummm....water!) Judah devoured his cupcake and quickly moved on to his presents.
Nothing better for the little boy who already has everything,than more toys! Judah had a blast opening all the awesome gifts.... the TON of awesome gifts.




Because of the weather the kids got to rustle through an indoor patch to search for their pumpkins. The pumpkins were fine and dandy, but the hay and stacked hay bales seemed to be the best attraction of all.
After some chilly fun, we headed for the warmth of home and for some serious playing!

We spent the rest of the week playing, playing, and playing! After building a million lego towers, coloring lots of pictures, being shot by Boba Fett an uncounted number, and dodging "spinner guy" more than enough, the sun broke through and we were able to redeem our busted trip to the pumpkin patch.

It was a beautiful day and the pumpkins were a' plenty! It was great to tromp around the field and ride the hay rack ride. The farmer took our picture in front of the pumpkin that Judah and Kenton thought looked like bums. :)

Our baby boy has grown so fast. I can't believe a third year has past. Everyone told me that "they grow so fast" and I believed them, but I never really understood until now. I can still feel the soft warm cheek of the minute old baby that lay across my chest, I can still hear the whimper of a tiny person from across the house, I still can picture the bulging eyes he made whenever Daddy came home, I can still hear the utterance of the word "mom-ma" when it first past his mouth, and sometimes I can even still feel that precious child move inside of me. How did he get so big? How did he get so smart? How did he get so adorable? How did he do it all so fast? What did miserable people like us ever do to deserve such a wonderful gift? Thank you Lord for continuing to be so unfair.

14,110 Feet and Back

So, this past weekend Kenton and I ..... you thought I was going to say "ran in a 5K" didn't you? Well, we definitely covered some kilometers, but the majority were in a blue Toyota Corolla rental car. Despite every stinkin' obstacle, even a last minute car breakdown (hence the rented Toyota) we finally made it out to Colorado Springs to visit the Ross family. With the best laid plans we intended to get an early start and "make good time." If you've spent a minute with us you know we have the best laid plans.... but poor execution skills! So we were officially off and rolling by 8AM (that's still kinda early). Since this was our only vacation of the year we decided to enjoy all that western Kansas had to offer. We enjoyed the Spangles in Salina, the bathrooms in the Hays Wal-Mart, and the best part was Prairie Dog Town in Oakley Kansas! If you've ever driven west on I-70 you've seen the sad signs advertising "World's Largest Prairie Dog," "Roscoe the Miniature Donkey," "Six Legged Steer", and all the other oddities they display. After seeing the signs my whole life, this time I was determined to see these crazy things. So we did!
Awe..... Nothing better than stuffed two-headed calves, a fiberglass prairie dog, and multi legged steers. The black cow has an extra leg near his shoulder and the brown cow has two extra legs coming out of his bum area. It was smelly and fun, but we kept pressing on and decided not to stop until we reached Colorado. I guess we stopped just shy of Colorado, for the infamous picture opt.
We pressed on and made it to the Ross' by five (their time). We were greeted by the exuberation of Judah remembering his friends, Taite and Trinity, and by the warm smile of Jennette. Little Jaden was inside with his big blue eyes and Travis was soon home from work. I was so excited to see them all that if I hadn't been exhausted by the hours in the car, I would have cried. We nestled in and watched Survivor (a Ross family tradition) and just enjoyed the evening.
Friday morning I got up like normal and prepared to go running. I bundled up a little more and realized I must be dedicated because I sported some "awesome" running tights (I know Travis had his eye on them.... Christmas is coming!) Feeling a little dumb and slightly more winded (lack of oxygen) we took off down their 1/4 mile drive and turned the corner to see this........
That sight makes it a little easier to keep breathing deep and push on. We cleaned up and headed off to let Taite do his school work. We explored the Garden of the Gods as a family and had a blast.
We climbed Siamese Twins trail and took some shots of the matching rocks. Judah loved that all rocks were "okay" for throwing!

We could have wandered for hours looking at these marvels of creation, but my small bladder forced us down to the Trading Post as fast as we could go.

Judah liked shooting the wildlife up on the walls. :)

We checked out Old Colorado City on the way back. It's like Old Town, but cooler (as everything is in Colorado). I got a cool new pair of shoes and Kenton got to eat lunch at a Bagel Bakery.

We made it back "home" and headed out to play with the Ross' at a near by park, tucked away in the Black Forest.

We played until we nearly froze and took off for a yummy dinner at Wahoo Fish Tacos!

We finished the night by putting the kids to bed and we watched "End of the Spear." It was a great movie, but being tucked away in a heavily treed area, I was a little spooked going to bed, afraid of bushmen jumping out with their spears.

We rose with eagerness on Saturday because my dad bought us tickets to take the cog rail way up Pikes Peak. We were rushing to make our train and were denied punctuality by a friendly police officer who wanted to remind us of the 20 MPH speed limit in Manitou Springs. He gave us grace by simply reminding us and we were satisfied with taking the 10:40 train instead.

We climbed the mountain in a Swiss train and with every mile our breath was taken a little more (literally and figurally). About half way Judah was done in by the altitude and the lack of sleep. We climbed to the top, an elevation of 14,110 feet, to be greeted by a temperature of 21 degrees and windchills below zero! It was an amazing view, you could see all the way to Kansas. I couldn't stand the cold and then it started snowing, so we took it inside to taste the Pikes Peak donuts. They have some special recipe to get the dough to rise in that altitude... tasty!

The five minute warning was given and we braved the cold to re-board the train. As we descended we chatted with out seat mates. They were from the east coast and were intrigued about two young kids from Kansas. (Do you get lots of tornados like Dorothy?) In between explaining that I really never have been on a farm, despite the rumors of Kansas, I was overwhelmed by what I was seeing out my window. I felt so small on top of this famous mountain. I was without words to describe the scene. I felt so amazed by the enormity of creation and even more so by the God that made it all. But as we climbed off the train and looked up once more, I couldn't believe that the God who made these gigantic peaks, that seem to make me feel like an ant, has a passionate love for me, a purpose and a plan for tiny little me, and a guarding hand over me to protect me from all who try to hurt me. I don't believe that I had believed as deeply as I did that day, it's good to have nothing say sometimes.

We rolled out of the train depot with no idea what to do next. Judah had heard that there was a "Nick House" on the mountain and said, "can we go see Nick?" We decided to see what we could do for him. We decided that 13 dollars a head was too much for two hours of theme park fun. So he was settled with a picture outside.

Next time we will have to visit the North Pole and all the Christmas cheer it has to offer!

As we headed down the mountain we were so overwhelmed by how much fun we were having we called the Ross' and asked if we could stay another day, with no hesitation they said yes and we offered to repay their hospitality by offering to watch their kids for the evening so they could go out on a date, once again they agreed with no hesitation. I think they really needed it. We played legos until the cows came home and put the kiddos to bed, only to be greeted by our own exhaustion and to be woken up by a laughing Travis and Jennette when they found us crashed on the couch.

Needless to say, we were ready for bed and to get ready for church in the morning. We loved hearing Travis lead worship again and were very excited to listen to their new pastor deliver the message, but Judah wasn't adjusting so well to his class and we had to listen in the cry room, which used to be a projector room, since their church is in an old movie theater. We went out to eat after to an awesome restaurant called Elephant Bar and enjoyed chatting about what we thought of their new church and new life. (We love it all, just wish that it weren't so far away sometimes. The friendly people at the church kept telling us what a blessing it was to have the Ross' at their church and we could only agree and understand just what they meant.)

We spent the remainder of the day listening to Travis scream at the Chiefs from the other room, deliberating over the real definition of Notorious in a loud game of Scattergories, watching the kids play with everything they could get their hands on outside, and enjoying a Sunday night meal with each other at the end of the day. The kids all wanted to spend the night in one room and we thought we'd try it to see how it go.

Here they are listening to the rules.

We started the movie "Click" and at about ten minutes in Kenton went to check on the noisy room and found Judah saying, "Daddy, it's cold in here and they're too loud." Kenton laughed and knew from that moment Judah truly was my son and moved him to a quieter room. We finished the movie and crashed for our last night in Colorado.

Knowing that we had to leave, but not wanting to, really caused us to drag our feet. It was late enough that the kids went ahead and ate lunch before we drug ourselves away.

We eventually made our way down their driveway and headed for home. As the mountains shrunk in the rear view window, so did our joy. It took us all by surprise how much we missed Travis and Jennette. Even Judah wanted to go back and play with his friends. It's clear that the Ross' are exactly where God has called them to be, however it's became overly clear just how much God had called them to be a part of our lives too. Now, this part of God's story doesn't require them so closely and we're learning that we will still be okay without them so near. It has felt as though our family had to leave us and force us to grow up a bit more in the last six months and I think we've done well, but man there's no place like "home" to make you appreciate just how great your family of God is. I miss you guys a lot. You're eight hours away by car, two hours by a small plane, and a hour by jet, but you'll forever be right next to us in our hearts. Thanks for everything and We LOVE you!

Ain't No Stoppin' Us

Recently our friend Duane sent an E-Mail and his words gave me a nice look in to the picture we paint for the rest of the world.

"I am starting to think you guys are some of the the most dedicated or addicted (you pick :)) people I have ever met."

Granted the "addicted" part is owed at times, but otherwise I was proud to be seen as a couple who won't stop until the goal is reached. Especially when it's painfully clear to me that we must put on a good show, because I sure feel defeated most days. Sure, I'll get up and run at 6 in the morning, but will I let yet another day go before I return that phone call?.... I guess we all pick our battles.

I suppose the fact that one fights at all is all that counts, the seasons will change and we'll pick up the next struggle when the snow of this winter storm has been cleared.

This running thing has seemed to grab ahold of us as of late and it's really nothing more than the current arena God has lead us to. The boxing ring for this round of life.

I've been told time and time again that God can't use you if you're too comfortable and when you request to be in his service you better get ready for some stretching and challenges. There's nothing more stretching or challenging to a lazy TiVo addict like me, than running. Being pushed to keep going when you believe you've got nothing left, running on even though it hurts, going a little further next time because you can't stay at this point forever, and getting back up if you fall are all a part of the journey to a runner. This journey has shown me so much more about the God who made me and the journey that is following him. His enduring faithfulness, his comfort in our defeats, his pride at our attempts, and his joy at our finishes.

I'm happy to be running this leg. To be literally chasing after God, his will, and his heart. To be filled with his spirit when my breath seems tapped and to get a beautiful visual of the day when I will let nothing stop me from running straight into his arms. No matter the distance, the aches, the heat, the cold, the path, or the obstacles in my way.

So, call me dedicated or addicted (really, you pick!) but what a blessing to be in the battlefield of God's heart, to be like Peter and want to try even if you don't totally believe you can walk on the water, at least you're getting out of the boat right?

We've had a determined week. At times the determination became trying, but we all saw it through, regardless of the blockades in our paths.

When you're dearest of friends up and move to Colorado Springs, and your trip's been canceled more than once, desperate times call for desperate measures. Nothing says love like running a parking lot at a Rolling Stones concert to earn gas money. Well, if that's true than we were lovin' the Ross' up last Sunday night as our Great Aunt Faye let us sell her yard as overflow concert parking. We made some decent coin thanks to the generous help of Kenton's Great Aunt Faye, Aunt Nancy, Reid, and many others. We had our minds fixed on getting to Colorado and as my favorite Rolling Stones song says "Wild Horses couldn't drag me away." We're buckling in this Thursday morning and heading west, CO Springs here we come!

Lord bless the heart you are growing in Kenton! He met his personal roadblock quite literally this week. As he took off for a morning run, the massive construction project on Hillside tried to get the better of him. He darted out through a break in traffic and did not notice the wire strung across the street to mark out the new curb. This "trip wire" (as we refer to it now) caused Kenton to land face down in gravel. As if that weren't bad enough, he did this in front of loads of cars and constructions workers! So how did he handle this terrible situation? He hopped right back up and kept going, mostly to get away from all who saw it but, come on! that took some determination! So he returned to me all dirty and bloody. As he recalled the story I felt horrible for him, but that emotion couldn't seem to manifest itself in any other form than laughter. (Yeah I'm heartless, but you got to admit, it's pretty funny!) Here's the aftermath of his run in.

He's pretty sore, but he pushed on and managed a 5k and a one mile run this weekend. We're starting to feel like a humbled Forrest Gump as of late. Each weekend a new friend joins us and pushes themselves on to the finish line. James and Stephanie Weishaar accompanied us to the Just About Kids run event on Saturday. Kenton and I ran the 5k while James and Steph graciously strolled Judah around. James served as an excellent photographer as we passed the crowd.

Granted, He's a great photographer but I really was not showing my good side (uhhh, scary!). Kenton's injuries caused him to fall a little behind and he actually ended up running with my OB, Dr. Fueille. (What did they talk about?) We were greeted at the finish line by the cheers of the Weishaar's and boy scouts with Poweraid.

I finished in 25:03 (a personal best) and Kenton inched right by Dr. Fueille (see him right behind Kenton) to clock a PR around 26:15, road rash and all. He did get a piercing look from Dr. Feuille this morning at church, guess he expected more respect since he did deliver our baby and all!

We cooled off and then jumped right back in line for a one mile run. Stephanie has caught the bug and she was geared to go. Knowing the competitive heart that dwells in Stephanie, I was certain she'd do well.

(Once again, not my good side!) I was too busy yaking to notice that we were getting ready to start. At the sound I was surprised to see all these four footers charging forward. Well, when in Rome.... we were right after them! I watched as Stephanie grew further and further away from me and I assumed I was right about her, I just knew she was going to kick my butt! The half mile mark appeared and I was running harder than I had ever ran before and finally I rounded the marker and caught her. I thought to myself, "now, many great influencers in my life have "ran" with me for encouragement and I could do that with Steph, but would she wait on me if winning were involved? hummmm?? uh, NO!" So I gave her a smile and ran right past her! (I get so little moments to be prideful, please forgive me and let me take this one!) I landed back at the finish line just under 7:30, the fastest I've ever gone. I turned around to see Steph right behind me, coming in under 8 minutes, and soon following her was Kenton.

It was fun! I'm always so proud to be in company of those who know exactly what I mean when I talk about the joys of being pushed and challenged. Congratulations Stephanie! Now, had we known that only children would be receiving awards in the one mile, maybe we wouldn't have hit it quite so hard! Now we know!

I was very happy to hear my name called for a second place award in the 5K though, and even happier when Kenton put it on display in the house.

It is bitter sweet to walk away with an award or some sign of a job well done. Just one more peek in to the lesson God is teaching. "Keep going, your prize is coming."

Matthew 24:13 (The Message)

13-14"Staying with it—that's what God requires. Stay with it to the end. You won't be sorry, and you'll be saved.