The Start of Spring...

As spring rolled around, we rolled right along with it.

I participated in my first "Student-Led Conference" with Brooklyn. It was a great experience for us both, and she did a great job updating me on how she was doing in school.


Chad's been playing on the church's men's softball team.

I think we made it to two games....and watched about 4 innings. :-)



We seriously thought winter would never end around here, and a few mornings Jake was determined to wear his hat and gloves.

Uh, OK.

But that wasn't the oddest thing he insisted on wearing...

The weather has been crazy, and NC can't decide whether it wants to be spring, summer, or just rainy and gross. We are counting the days until Pappy's Paradise opens for summer, and I can get some SUN on these legs!

Baby Claire is 1!

Well, she's been 1 since April 1...but as you and I both know, BlogPress did not care that my only niece turned ONE and had a fabulous time opening presents.






Cutie Pie.
And did I mention the girl LOVED her some cake?

Takes after her Aunt Jaclyn.

Yep.

Baby Claire, one day you will be in your college dormroom on your smarter phone and/or 3D laptop and will be reading this blog (probably after your cousins warned you about it). I want you to know that from the moment I got that text from your Mommy and Daddy one August telling me I would be an Aunt, I have loved you. I loved you even more when they called and told me that November evening that you were going to be a girl. I loved you EVEN more that March Easter evening when we got the surprise call that you were coming 4 weeks early and we didn't have to wait any longer to meet you.

And boy, did I love you sooooo much more that April 1st afternoon when I met you for the first time in that Asheville hospital and declared us birthday twins and BFF's forever.

"Baby" Claire, I love you more and more every day. Each time I see you, it's like we are given a sign that life is precious, life is beautiful, and we are truly blessed.

May you always know how much you are loved.

It's not you, it's BlogPress...

I swear I have tried no less than three dozen times to publish various posts to this blog and my app has been totes crazy and uncooperative.

So...I deleted and re-loaded the app and now trying again.

Here's my test post to see if BlogPress and I can salvage our relationship.

I got Jake a bike this weekend and we took it for a good mile spin tonight. He LOVED it and was so excited to be riding free!









Love the little moments like this with my "baby" boy.

A Weekend Away...with a 10K thrown in there.

We are settling in to a "new normal." Honestly, it seems weird posting about anything "normal" or even "happy." But while my heart is still broken and I still hurt so much for my family and myself, that's not who I am. It's not who my family is. We are strong. We are believers. We are survivors.

So, while the last three weeks have been both a blur and a time warp, and time even before that seems like another world away, I will continue blogging. I'll continue to talk about what we do on the weekends, what makes me happy, what keeps me fit, and what's cooking from Pinterest.

For scrapbooking/journaling purposes, I may have to sneak in a February/March update later on, but for now, I am looking forward (well, actually semi-backward since I am posting about this past weekend). :-)

Chad and I decided to keep our plans that we had made about 6 months ago to spend the weekend in Charleston and run in the Cooper River Bridge Run 10K. It was a nice weekend away with friends from Heart in Sol, kid-less and essentially responsibility-less (is that even a word?).

We stayed in the Home2 suites by Hilton. About 2 years old, this hotel was not only super cute but also very conveniently located to the Race Expo, Shuttle Bus Station, and Outlets.




We arrived Friday afternoon and ate dinner with friends at Edmund's Oast Brew Pub, where I ate pretty much everything on the menu and enjoyed a Peanut Butter and Jelly beer. (Though it was only 4 oz, those who know me should be impressed that I even had a beer. But come on, folks. Peanut Butter and Jelly? Why not?!)

Saturday morning, we were up bright and early at 5:15am (and wondering why on earth I would PAY someone to have to get up this early). Several of us met in the hotel lobby to catch the bus together to Mt. Pleasant where the race started.

All smiles....I think at this point we had been up about 2.5 hours and already walked about 2 miles, but excited nonethelesso get the race started.

It was a fairly easy run for us. We had trained somewhat before the race so the distance was not an issue. The addition of a 2 mile bridge was definitely different, plus the bobbing and weaving around 31,000 other people was a bit challenging, but I was pretty happy with our results.


We were home by around 10:30am, showered, and then headed back out to downtown Charleston where we walked down the Riverfront, ate lunch at Southend Brewery and Smokehouse, walked through the Market, and then wound up at Holy City Brewing, (see a theme here?) where the guys had more beer, and I just enjoyed sitting and relaxing in the breezy 70 degree weather.

Holy City was so neat. It was a converted garage turned tasting room/bar. In 106 degree July, it may  not be quite as pleasant, but on this April Saturday, it was perfect.

I snuck in a 20 minute power nap back at the hotel and we ended the evening at Charleston Crab House in James Island for dinner.

It truly was a great weekend. We laughed and relaxed. We ran and walked. We ate and drank. Oh, did we eat and drink...

The race itself was amazing. I can't say enough how well organized it all was and how the city of Charleston really prepares itself for the crowds.

We will definitely be going back and doing it again.

March 28, 2015 to be exact.

Here are a few pictures I snagged from the race's Facebook page. Simply amazing.

Thank you...

In my entire life I have been fortunate enough to not have to be the recipient of any true mega, massive prayers. We have been lucky. I had all 4 grandparents living until I was almost 30. Our immediate family has not had to deal directly with cancer or any long term illness or disability. We have jobs; we have our health; we have two beautiful children.

Life was perfect.

Last Tuesday, March 18, our perfect life- our perfect record- was shattered.

Chad's dad took an accidental fall on Friday the 14th and broke his back. He stayed in the hospital over the weekend and had back surgery Monday morning.

Tuesday morning, he woke up, sat up on the edge of the bed, and immediately suffered a bilateral embolism (blood clot) to the lungs and stopped breathing. We tried everything we could throughout the day, but there was nothing we, nor the doctors, could do.

We said goodbye to one of the most beloved men I have ever known in my entire life- A man who loved me unconditionally as his own from the moment I walked into his house as "Chad's girlfriend" nearly 20 years ago.

My mother-in-law lost "her person;" My husband and his brother lost their father; My children and niece lost their Pops; My parents lost one of their best friends; We all lost one of the greatest men who ever lived.

It wasn't until shortly after I posted the news of Larry's death on Facebook on behalf of the family that we started to realize just how many lives our Larry touched.

Facebook notifications started immediately posting, messages were sent and received, people came to the hospital, and the prayers started pouring over us.

The support has been tremendous. The food, the friends, the hugs, the cards...it's all been amazing, and we appreciate every single thing anyone has done for us the last 10 days.

But, above all else, the thoughts and prayers from you all are what keeps us going.

Your thoughts and prayers are what help my kids sleep at night. They are what keeps them focused on (and excited about) school each day. They helped us make hard decisions. They keep us sane when the world around is spinning out of control and we just want to get off. They allow us to carry on "normal" conversations. They allow us to genuinely celebrate life's joys that have come to our family and friends in the days after. They give me strength to answer the kids' questions. They allow us to smile and laugh and tell stories. They sustain us during this time of immense grief.

And we are truly grateful.

We've looked at every "like" on Facebook, every picture comment, every message, every post. We've read the guest book from the service and noted every name. We've read your cards. We've enjoyed your meals. And we've undoubtedly felt your prayers and thoughts.

Thank you.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Know that in this time, I am also praying for each of you as so many of you are mourning with us.

And I am thanking God for each one of you that He has placed in our lives during this time of need.

Keep praying. Keep sending good thoughts. And keep loving and laughing and serving one another.

Because that's what Larry was all about. We are all family.

And love will hold us together.

Brooklyn's Birthday Party

Catching up here...

On Friday February 21, Brooklyn had a birthday party with several friends at a local pottery place. They all had a great time and it was such a perfect party experience. I would totally use them again.


They were so great to give us a private room to paint and eat.





Goofing off with friends.


Baby Claire loved the party...and the celery.








About a week later I went back to pick up the finished pieces. As part of the party they make this plate for the birthday kid. It turned out so cute!





Thank you, Mad Platter, for a great 9 year old party!!

Don't Confuse "Active" With Fit....a guest post

I receive a weekly newsletter from my trainer at Heart in Sol every Monday. It always has great articles (where he keeps it real), helpful fitness hints (always learning something new), and even recipes (that, let's be honest, I probably won't make but they sound fabulous).

Last Monday, I read this article that I absolutely loved, so with Patrick's permission, I am re-posting it here for you. (Note: If you want to receive these weekly newsletters or get more information about programs at Heart in Sol, email info@heartinsol.com.)

Don't confuse "Active" with Fit

When it comes to excuses for not exercising, I’ve heard them all.

Sometimes the excuse is self-inflicted: I don’t have the time.

Other times the excuse is pure procrastination: I’m going to start as soon as tax season ends.

And then there are excuses that are downright funny: I don’t like to sweat.

As delicately as possible, I point out to these well meaning excuse-makers that, even though they don’t want to do it, exercise is an important part of cultivating a strong, healthy and attractive body.

I tell them that if they would just exercise 2 to 4 times each week they would feel a dramatic improvement in their daily life, starting with renewed energy and strength.

Then I bring up the health benefits and explain how many of their health problems would improve or even disappear. I talk about how great they will feel, and look, dropping those extra pounds and rediscovering a slender figure.

Even with all this experience in excuse squashing, there used to be an excuse that would leave me stumped.

The sneaky excuse of ‘I’m active’: Oh, I don’t need to exercise with a personal trainer—I’m very active. I play golf and tennis and Wii.

Well, that is a good excuse, right? Golf, tennis and Wii are all active sports that burn calories. Maybe you can be fit without doing any other exercise…

And then I started noticing a trend.

The ‘golf’ people couldn’t touch their toes in a simple flexibility test. The ‘tennis players’ couldn’t jump rope for 60 seconds. The ‘Wii players’ needed a week to recover from a one mile jog. The so-called ‘active’ people encountered injury after injury.

And then it hit me.

You can’t become fit simply by being active.

Only by being fit can you become more active.

To be lean and to maintain a level of fitness there is no substitute for a consistent, challenging exercise program. It’s the only way, folks.

To truly be fit is when your body is able to do whatever you ask of it. This comes from a combination of flexibility, strength and endurance.

So, do you exercise?

Or are you fooling yourself with the idea of ‘being active’?

How do you feel about your current level of fitness? Are you able to do each and everything you want? Or do you end up opting out of activities that you know would be too challenging?

If you’ve used the excuse of ‘being active’ in the past, take a minute to reconsider your position.

Don’t bank on your ‘active’ lifestyle with the hope of true results.

Call or email me today to get started on an exercise program that will make you truly fit.

And if you’re furthest from active but simply want to lose those extra inches and pounds, make the decision to contact me today.

As they say…there’s no trial run in the game of life

Brooklyn is 9!

Brooklyn is 9.
And has an iPod touch thanks to Santa.

I do review her iPod regularly to make sure all is well, I know all her contacts, and her text conversations are staying Girl Scout- and Christian-like. (3rd grade girls can be mean, y'all.)

In my latest review, I found these awesome selfies, so I thought I would share as Brooklyn and I write this post together.

For our commeration purposes, here is Brooklyn at 9 years old.

Favorite Food: pasta
Favorite Drink: orange crush

Favorite TV show: the suite life on deck
Favorite Movie: frozen

Favorite vacation: beach
Favorite sport: well i dont have really have a favorite sport

What annoys her: my brother
What excites her: going on vaca

Favorite restaurant: golden corral
Favorite activity: coloring

Best Friends: avery,sophie,leah,ashley,zoe,allie k,allie h,callie
Favorite school subject: math

Favorite color: blue
Favorite clothes: dress

Favorite song: love is an open door from frozen
Favorite holiday: christmas
So, there's your snapshot of B at 9.
More birthday posts coming soon....this no power thing kinda puts a crimp on the weekend.

Way Back When-esday!

Happy Wednesday, everyone! Today's Way Back picture is in honor of the fact that the teeniest one in the picture below just celebrated her Confirmation at church Sunday AND turns SIXTEEN on Monday. Whoa!


Love these two girls so much. They were mine and Chad's first "kids." Their parents entrusted them to us often, and we had quite a few fun dinners out with them when they were small.

So proud of them both and the young women they have become.