I feel bad when I go so long without posting. . . although I'm sure none of you really care. But if you do. . .have no fear because today I'm sharing a little sample of everything I've thought about writing about in the last few weeks. I'll try to keep it concise.
I've been feeling very proud of Racer. We went to register him for kindergarten just recently. Along with the registration they did a little assessment of each child to kind of see how much they knew and where they stood. If you don't know my children, or I haven't mentioned this already, my kids are very shy. They won't do or say anything in public (which is sometimes very nice) and rarely speak when spoken to. So sitting with some strange adult who is asking lots of questions and being expected to give answers. . . ya, I didn't expect this to go over very well for Racer. And it didn't. . .at first. We went back with this lady, Racer wouldn't look at her, wouldn't speak at all, and eventually broke into tears. We took a little break. He and I had a little talk about bravery and decided to try it again. Well. . . this time HE DID IT! This may seem like a silly little thing, but as I sat in that room and listened to my son spout out everything he's ever learned (a bit of an exaggeration) I felt like my heart would burst with pride. This was a big step for him and a huge boost to his confidence. Look out kindergarten, Racer is ready!
Secondly, I've been reflecting a lot lately on life, death, and what all this means to me. It has been my privilege to spend one night every other week taking care of my grandma who is not well and incapable of doing much for herself. These are emotional times for me. It is hard to see her in her current state. I don't want for her to live much longer for her sake, but at the same time, as I sit in her house I'm flooded with so many memories and I realize just how much I love her and I hate thinking of her being gone. My grandma has played a huge part in my life. I love her so much.
Next, I've been putting forth a greater effort to be patient with Ariel. 2 and 3 have been rough ages with her. Many days I feel like I'm after her all day long and I hate that. I've been trying to increase our positive interactions and to let little things slide a little more. We've had some sweet times. My favorite was after I managed to clean up her mess after she had wet the bed. . .without getting angry (this is big for me). . .and she hugged me and said, "mom, I just love you."
I've been enjoying Rue. She is getting one step closer to talking every day and it is so fun! Just yesterday she carried a little chair to our kitchen sink, stood on it, and said "wash." She wanted to wash her hands! . . . little cutie pie.
Lastly, I've been on a roller coaster ride of ups and downs as I train for a marathon. This is proving to be a difficult challenge! These last few weeks have been somewhat discouraging as I've experienced a couple set backs, but I'm hoping 26.2 miles is still in sight for me.

I have always loved how endurance running is so much like our journey through life. Some days are great and some are very hard. We come across unexpected bumps and set backs and somehow overcome them. In the end, it's always worth it.

Anyway. . .I'm going to stop rambling on. I hope someone has enjoyed this peek into my thoughts. Have a good day!