tour de May

it's been silent on here this month (more on that tomorrow),

but it has been far from silent in our world.

we started off May with our first 1/2 marathon as a couple. when I first signed up for this race, my goal was to run it sub-10min/mile pace. for someone who has only run 10miles+ 3 times in her life, this was a strong goal. but by the time race day came around, I was seriously doubting myself. I was just hoping to finish, honestly. training was rough.the adoption journey has been emotionally draining at times + mother nature decided to give us extra doses of winter this year = not a lot of motivation to run on some days. I am a TERRIBLE treadmill runner. terrible. (read: whining, complaining, and quitting early). but, folks, I DID IT! Together, with my supportive/studly husband, we finished in 2 hours and 8 minutes (9:45 pace). and it felt really good. I am ready to keep trying to get faster. :)

 The next weekend we went back to Wichita to watch the STUCK documentary. Wowza. Brutiful, as they say. Watch it. The next morning, Rob headed to KC for a bachelor party, and I spent the afternoon at the park with these two cuties.

then I headed to spend the night with a dear, dear friend. We ate yummy food, drank yummy wine, and talked non-stop for 6+ hours. It was wonderful. I woke up at her house on Mother's Day. On mother's day morning, we went to pick up her precious daughter who is extremely special in my life and has been since before she was born. we share a really special bond. When she saw me (she was surprised) she said: "What are you doing here!?!!" Which was quickly followed up with, "Well it IS mother's day and you are like a second mother to me!" I can't even type the words right now without getting teary eyed all over again. a message straight from God for my aching heart. love that girl. so much.

may has been hard on the adoption front (more on that tomorrow), but we have also had some really exciting things happen, as well. on the 3rd weekend of May, we made our 3rd trip to Wichita to meet and hang out with other Ethiopian adoptive families. it was so great (no pics on here! oops! next time!). the rest of that weekend was spent at graduation parties and getting our house ready for our HOME STUDY!

 

Yes! Our Social Worker came to visit this month, which was a really good reason for us to deep clean the house--windows sparkling, floors mopped, grass mowed, fresh flowers in a vase. Some good ol' spring cleaning! And after our visit and some revisions, we are just days away (fingers crossed) from having our Home Study signed, sealed and delivered.

Our social worker visited us the day before we celebrated 5 YEARS OF MARRIAGE!

 When we got married we both would have guessed that we would have a least one baby in our home on our 5th anniversary, but instead we have two growing in our hearts. We spent our actual anniversary at home- we grilled kabobs, made chocolate fondue and watched our wedding video. very relaxed. then the next morning we road tripped north to Kansas City! we ate bbq + sushi + Ethiopian food, drank starbucks + mixed drinks + tried local coffee shops, and simply enjoyed being together. it was great to be in the city together.

I love this guy so much. We have had a really wonderful 5 years together--just us. These 5 years have been a wonderful gift. We have grown SO MUCH during this time--as individuals and as a couple. We have established a really strong foundation and had a lot of fun. We are excited to see what the next 5+50 years of marriage will bring.

after our weekend away, we made a spontaneous decision to drive back down to Wichita to spend Memorial Day poolside with my family. just can't get enough of these blonde cuties, can you?! me neither :) 

so that does it!

whew!

a quick trip back through MAY.

see why I didn't blog? I was too busy driving to Wichita :)

technology fail.

this week I ordered a new phone
because my old one randomly stopped working
(okay, it did have a cracked screen, but it worked fine for several days)
and then I dropped it again,
and it came back on!
MAGIC.
ha.

well, the new phone (with Siri!) was already on it's way,
and so I think I'm going to just keep it.

last night I was activating the phone,
and oh-so-proud of myself for figuring out all by myself.

but, you guys,
I've done something.
and I can't figure out how to fix it.

these are both screen shots from my phone. 

everytime I send Rob a text it comes to me!
and vice versa!

ahhhhhh!

what have I done?!

any techies out there?
help?
please.

Happy Friday, ya'll!
 

rollin' with it.

a few weeks ago we had a string of several really warm days.
and then the weather took a drastic turn and the temperatures once again plummeted.
on that cold morning, I remember thinking to myself:
What winter outfit would you like to wear one more time this year?
I carefully selected the sweater and boots,
thinking to myself that I would get one last good wear out of my favorite sweater before I packed it away for safe keeping.


HA. HA. HA.
Okay, joke is on me, Mother Nature.
I bet you think you're sooooo funny.


Because here I am, several weeks later,
wearing that very same outfit.
I have wool socks on today! WOOL!
and I wore my winter coat to work today.
with a cute beanie, I might add :)

why so bundled up, you ask?
because it looked like a full on BLIZZARD this morning when I was leaving for work.

am I happy about how cold it is?

nope.

can I control the weather?

not last time I checked.

so, like I used to tell one of my clients--who reeeaaaaaally struggled with accepting things that she couldn't control---

sometimes you just gotta roll with it.

and then, I'd do the "Rolling with the Homies" dance from Clueless. 

if you were not in middle school or high school during the mid 90's,

you probably have no idea what I'm talking about.

SO, for you viewing pleasure....

did it make you smile? 

it used to make D smile too. 

she be all worked up about how someone did something that she didn't like

and how she was gonna show that someone what she really thought about that something and on and on and on...

and then I'd start dancing.

and she'd start smiling.

and we'd talk about how to just roll with it.

 

so, today I'm rolling with it, homies :)

I'm rollin' with this crazy weather.

with my sweater, wool socks, boots, and a nice cup-o-tea.

 

 

life lately

 

it's all cloudy and chilly out today.
so, in honor of today's weather, I'm inviting you to coffee...

won't you pull up a chair and stay awhile? :) 

if we were going to sit down for a cup of coffee this afternoon,

I would probably ask you if you were coming from out of town,
if the answer was yes, then I might subtly drop a hint for you to swing by Starbucks or your local coffee shop for an extra hot caramel macchiato.
(tell them to make it as hot as possible before they scald the milk...that's the way I like it..k, thanks.)

I'm a bit cut off out here, ya'll. :)


Once you sat down and got cozy,
and I took a quick sip of my scalding hot drink,
I'd ask you something like "What have you been up to lately?" 

and because you are polite, you'd ask me the same thing. :)


to which I would respond.....

Lately I've been reading a lot....mostly about adoption (but I'd save that for another post conversation)....
I'd tell you that this weekend I took break from all the adoption blogs and books, and read The Atonement Child by Francine Rivers.

I'd admit to you that I stayed up waaaaaay too late one night reading this book on my oh-so-awesome Kindle. and then I'd tell you that it made my heart ache deeply for all the women I know who have faced decisions about abortion. I'd mention to you that I value those who come alongside these women and love them well before, during or after they have made this decision.

I'd tell you that the part of the book that got my blood boiling was how so many of the "Christians" responded...boiling...because I see it every day...all around me...and I recognize the tendency in myself, if I'm not careful to remain humble and focused on Jesus. 

I'd tell you that theologically, there are things in the book that make me raise an eyebrow, but hey, it wasn't mean to be a study of theology, but a STORY-a beautiful story about forgivness that spans years and generations, about hope, redemption, healing, and an unconditional love that does not judge.

I'd also probably bring up this blog written by Donald Miller last week, where he challenged the current Pro-Life strategy, and I'd tell you that I whole-heartedly AGREE with what dear Mr. Miller asserts.

I'd tell you that lately I have not been doing as much running as I would have like, but that I did complete 10 miles before work yesterday!
Which made me feel strong and gave me a confidence boost going into this weekend.
I'd tell you that I ran the whole 10 miles without music because my phone was completely broken, but that I really enjoyed running without music.

I'd share with you that it was beautiful to watch the sun come up in silence, and then I'd tell you that I'm hoping I will keep up the motivation even after the half marathon is over. :)

While we were on the topic of music, 

I'd tell you that I've been listening to a lot of bluegrass, indie-pop, and country music lately.

especially country.

Hey. Don't judge.

You can take the girl out of the country, 

but you can't take the country out of the girl.

Country music makes me all nostalgic,

& it gets me REALLY excited for summer.

I'd tell you that country music

is like a soundtrack of my childhood summers.

I'd share memories with you.

Memories of long days on the farm,

riding horses,

getting animals ready to show,

running through sprinklers,

water skiing on the lake with friends, 

sitting around campfires, 

crashing the local wedding dances at the VFW & 4-H building,

cruising around town with the windows down. 

ah, sweet summertime. 

If you were lucky, and the caffeine had kicked in, I might even break into song:

it's a smile,

it's a kiss,

it's a sip of wine,

it's summertime.

I'd tell you that I actually really love to ride in the car with my feet on the dashboard,

and that it drives my husband a little crazy.

he let's me do it anyway. cuz he love mes. 

I'd tell you that we are planning a 3 week road trip to CA and CO for weddings.

and that we're planning to "rough it" as much as possible. 

I'd tell you how thankful I am for my husband,

and that I get to do life with him. 

I'd tell you that lately I have been reminded that 

God really, really blessed me when he brought Rob into my life.
 

I'd tell you that I'm reminded daily that being connected to people is important,

to family,

to friends, 

to strangers.

I'd tell you that this is why we LOVE to have people stay with us,

and why we continue to operate our house a bit like you would a Bed & Breakfast.
that even though it takes work,
we love to have people stay with us
(I'd tell you about how we had a total of 7 visitors this weekend in a mere 48 hours).

I'd tell you that I'm extremely thankful for friendships,

like yours,

and then I'd tell you one last time how THANKFUL I was you came by for coffee.

:)