Moab 1/2 Marathon

Som and I SPRINTING in!

The final stretch with the four "commies" **Anne...that one was for YOU**


My BIGGEST Fans....you may not be able to see one of them (Jackie) ...he was on my right side or was it my left?? encouraging me every single step of the way! Wish I could have seen him cheering me on at the finish line with my favorite boys in the whole world! I know he was there. I like to imagine that he had that BIG cheezy grin on his face and that his hair was a little crazy (think of kid from "Meet the Robinsons") He was there...I know it!

Whit did AWESOME! She finished in just over 2 hours! Not too shabby! Way to go Whit!

Anne ROCKED it too! Her IT bands gave her a little trouble, but look at that smile! She DID it!

There's my baby! Ya, he has crusty snot stuck to his face...but he's happy! :)

Here's cute little family picture...minus me!

The "infamous" bike ride!

Corbin was bummed that he didn't get to go on the "ride". Maybe next time...next time as in 12 years from now!!

Back in January Anne Hansen talked me into running the Moab 1/2 marathon. I am NO marathoner...that's for certain, but I needed somthing to train for...so finally after alot of convincing...I agreed. I've been training for months now. It hasn't been easy...but I've learned that my body can handle a lot more than I gave it credit for. My cute sister Sommer immediately stepped up to my request (demands) of entering the race. She didn't give even a second of hesitation. She has stood...well ran by my side for the last 3 months. Never once complaining...even when she couldn't walk. She sucked it up and continued to encourage me for every single LONG mile through out training and especially during the race. She listened to "Wicked" the entire time and had a few cliff shots and was literally LEAPING with energy as she motivated me to keep going. She would remind me that Jack was with us. She would help set mini goals of passing people. She even had words of kindness as she'd tell me how much I have improved along the way. She even put up with my endless supply of excuses as to why I HAD to stop. I wanted to quit...believe me. Getting a stomach bug the morning of the race MAY have had something to do with that! It's a little known fact that running 13.1 miles and stomach bugs...don't mix very well! So, I took a few more potty breaks than I had intended...but hey I finished! I may have finished about 1/2 hour longer than I had originally anticipated...but I crossed that finish line. I did it! I don't know that I'll EVER do it again...but I feel good. I have learned that my body can handle the run as long as my mind says it's possible. I've learned that I don't want to be a long distance runner! 6 miles sounds just about right! :)

I've learned that when I pray to my Heavenly Father for help...He sends it! It may not always be in the way that I want...but He never leaves me alone. Even in our darkest hours we're NEVER alone. I wonder what it would look like if we could really see all the help He actually sends. If we could see just how often His hands are constantly part of our daily lives. I bet we'd re-think how we handle some situations. I met a woman a few months back that at the time was dealing with a situation in which her child was at Primary Children's. It wasn't a life-theatening situation and her child was going to recover. She asked me if losing Jack brought us closer to the Lord. I told her that it not only brought us closer as a family, but that our relationshiop to the Lord was stronger than I think we could have ever imagined. She went on and on about Primary Children's and how "awful" it was. Then she asked me how long we were there with Jack. When I told her only a few hours, she replied with "LUCKY...we've been here for over a month." LUCKY???!!!...did she really say that I kept asking my self as she rattled on and on and on!!! She told me that her ordeal really shook their family up and that they really struggled with even going to church. Their faith was obviously shaken. But what I couldn't understand was that her child would eventually come home. Her child never went into a irreversable coma. After she left, of course I had a break down. But after it was over I thought about it...and realized that I WAS LUCKY! Lucky because the Lord gave us a trial...a trial that I hope no one we know has to yet endure, and we held on. We clung to the Lord and relied on him. We finally we able to truly understand just how important the Atonement is. And just how much we need Him. He's been there every single step of the way. But especially when it's been hard...harder than we thought even humanly possible. He NEVER left. I feel for this mother, because the Lord gave her the opportunity to come closer unto Him and she decided to go another direction. I often think of her when things get tough. When I miss Jack so much I can hardly breathe. I think that while we lost something that can only be compared to losing a limb, we chose and continually choose to gain something amazing from a loving and kind Heavenly Father.