Nanna was Here

Welcome Home

Leave the country for 18 mos, doing good works, and this could be your great reward! Every grandchild, wife and child was present to meet Darin's parents home from their mission. It was sooo fun seeing the expressions on so many faces of strangers just passing by. This would actually be fun to do, just to make people smile. So many people kept asking where they have been and how long they had been gone. Some even waited just to see the grandparents be so warmly welcomed home. Welcome home Meeems and Peeps!!

26.2.

I DID it!  A major life goal checked off the list!  I am so happy I did it and I am sooo happy it's over.  I had IT Band SYNDROME, which might not sound like much, but when I started feeling pain and the first mile, I didn't know if I would finish.  There are some many parallels to LIFE, training and running a marathon.  For example: my husband couldn't fix my knee (even though this is his SPECIALTY) he could give me a cortisone shot, stretch me, pray for me, encourage me, and even run with me, but no one could take away my PAIN.  I have to say I would definitely consider doing another, because I was sooo slow!  It was also pouring rain the entire time, and one point it was even hailing.  

This girl (pictured above) deserves a medal just for running with me.  She had a baby 8 weeks ago, and could do an Ironman without training.  Sheri Dew says you can tell a true desciple of Christ by how a person treats others.  The same could be said of someone who would run 26.2 miles with me.  Erin you ROCK!

My number

After I crossed the finished line...

I couldn't wait to get to mile 22, because I knew my kids would be there to greet me.  Here it looks as though I was running fast, I wasn't, but boy was I excited to see them, and boy was I even more excited to find out it was really 23.5.  It's worth it to run a marathon just to see your kids cheer so hard for you.  Although it's a bummer to find out how disappointed they were that so many people were BEATING you:)  Look at the look on Erin's face, priceless, it's how I felt too!

How cute are the snuggled up in their towels waiting and waiting for me!

Seriously, how cool is he.  He knew I was in sooo much pain, he wanted to run with me.  He met me at mile 16 and ran the rest of the run!  It was sooo sweet.  He has had a bum knee and hasn't been running at all lately.  Thank goodness he is a fit cyclist, and had no problem running 10 miles with me.  I finished it part for him!  He babysat sooo many saturdays, sat out on some many bike rides for my training.  I didn't want to let him down.

My family cheering me on!

My family had to do some pretty good running, just to get to the finish line in time.  They were so awesome, it's amazing how much it helps to have people cheering for you!