Grateful for November

The month is coming to an end. This is our month of gratitude. November seems to bring with it that mindset to that allows us to stop and reflect on all the awesome gifts that God, Spirit the universe has given us. I am crazy grateful for my kids because they are my biggest teachers. They teach me to be patient and to be present. That is probably the hardest but the lesson that feel I really need. That means no phone just be there in the moment with them. I am also so grateful for the Running group I belong too. I feel so lucky to be one A Trail Crasher. No shit ultra - runners are the nicest people. They have got your back its crazy what a wonderful life changing community it is.

This little guy has discovered this month he loves hiking. This makes me crazy happy as you can imagine. We have on a could hikes and the going up hill is way better than the down but its all good.

I just finished this book and it was lovely. I had no idea Joe Biden was such a bad ass. This man has endured life lost that very few of us can imagine with such dignity and poise. He has given up so much of his family life to serve. I am glad I read it and I have so much respect for this man and his heart.

Our first picture with the Christmas Tree. My husband loves Christmas and we have had our lights up for weeks and our tree but the full on decorating just got finished. We are in the mood for some Santa now.. 

Have a confidant 2015

I chose my word for 2015 or it chose me I am not sure yet. I think this is a word that I have felt has always buzzed around me. It is never far from me.
CONFIDENCE
that's it. I want to 2015 to be a confident year for me. Confidence is something I lack but now that I am older I have started to get it a little bit more. I feel this is a great time in my life to incorporate Confidence. I want to have more confidence in my relationships. This is my big sister I want to spend more time with her in the past I have lacked the confidence to just say that to her. I am going to make it happen next year. I am going to spend more time with her and just be. I do not want to pretend with anyone I know anymore. I am going to dress with confidence and wear what I want. I want to lead a more confidant life. 

As a parent I want to be confident in the decisions I make when it comes to my kids. I want to stand my ground because I know I am making the correct choice . I want to teach my children to be confidant by raising them in a positive environment . 

I would love to not have a million little gremlins before every race telling all the crappy I thoughts  so I am still working on how to   have more confidence in this department. I feel truly blessed to have found a group of people to run with that are so kind and real. I am also loving that I  am really slow compared to them because it makes me want to work harder. A-lot harder. I can't be in the back forever. 

So with that I will say Have a Confident New Year and may all of Gods blessings be bestowed upon you. Do not ever give up on yourself there is only one you and that makes you one of a kind. Thank You for reading my blog and thank you for coming with me on my journey of just trying every day to be the best me I can be and getting as many miles as I can in .

24 miles from the back

I ran 24 miles today way behind my friends today from the back.
This morning it was hard getting out of bed at 5 am because it was cold and early and I was being a baby. I finally just thought about race day and how its only 3 weeks away and that was enough to get my warm body out of bed dressed and out the door by 6am. It was 34 degrees outside and my car does not get warm quickly. I was freezing. Luckily I was only cold for about an hour before the sun came out and made everything better. 

Lately running with this group has been humbling. I am always the last one and they all kindly wait for me every couple miles. I felt kinda bad showing up today because these long mile weeks make my weekend runs harder. My legs are tired but somehow I know or tell myself that hey I must be getting stronger. All I want to do on race day is my best. That's why I show up. This guy Robert usually always comes back to run with me . We talk and it helps the last long miles go by faster.

Today we ran 24 miles of the 50 mile course we are running in 3 weeks. The Hodges 50 miler. Everyone will be running the same race. That makes it so much more exciting.

This is part of course. I have grown to love this course. I used to cringe at the thought of running here because its was so hard for me but slowly it getting easier and my heart has grown fond of Lake Hodges. I have good time here. 

So about my run today. I got my butt kicked a bit , I spent a lot of time way behind my group but I loved every minute of it and the cool guys I ran with. It was a good run day. I also feel thinner after all the food I ate the last three days...

Dec 24th

I hope you have a wonderful Christmas full of magic and good food. You also need hugs and tiny elves running around.

Tonight we had dinner with the whole family and I was reminded of whats really important . Having people who care about you and good health.  Merry Christmas , G

Dec 21st

It is the weekend before Christmas and the biggest present I could of given myself was to go outside and run. I am really grateful that I have group to run with that is pushing me. I am really grateful I have my amazing dad to run with. I am grateful Mike has no problem watching Jack early morning so that I can go run. I feel like a lucky girl.
 Yesterday's run started at 6:30 a.m. and we ran 24 miles. The weather was a little cold and that was nice. I felt slow but then I just convinced myself that it was a really hard run. The best part for me is watching the sun come out and slowly drape itself over the mountains. Then slowly make its way through the clouds . I love cloudy days because as I run I feel like the clouds and sun are playing tag. I caught you and then a no you did not. Its a nice way to pass the time and miles. I have less than a month until my next 50 miler. I am getting nervous and excited. For new years I am going to start cross training. That is all for now I am of to wrap presents.

Dec 16 th

Tonight we went for a long walk in our neighborhood after a failed attempt at a Christmas picture :(   I felt better after we just headed out the door and went outside. Our neighborhood is so festive. So many people went crazy with lights . I love it !! I hope your getting some outside time with many lights along your path. 

Dec15th

Happy Monday. This is my favorite picture from this weekend. Thank God for I-phones how did we take pictures before them. I have been thinking about my word on my runs. If you don't know what I am taking about go here.  Ali Edwards is a Rock star in the world of memory keeping her take on writing down your own story and scrapbooking is simple but beautiful. For the last 4 years I have picked a word that I felt I wanted to live by and tried to incorporate into my life. I really believe that it has made my life juicer. I think I have my word for 2015. I am not 100 perfect so my last couple of runs I have just thought about the word and let it sit with me. If its the right one I will know very soon.
Holy Cow Mike got a Go Pro so if I can figure it out I will try to use it very soon. I have a 70 mile week ahead of me and I am eating well drinking lots of water so all that is left is me putting in 100 percent and by Sunday I am sure that will mean just showing up and putting one foot in front of the other. I have lots of thoughts of what races I want to do next year ?? So many fun events to work and train for. I honestly have to say I love running and how good it feels to be able to go outside and run around for hours at a time. Life is good.

Dec 12th

Hello and can you believe its almost here again Christmas ! I have been on mommy duty. That includes a lot of driving , homework and hugs. Little man is my full time companion while his daddy works and this week we went to the park and walked a-lot. I can honestly say he is the most active baby I have had. Maybe he gets that from me.He is a great napper so I cannot complain.  I am also caught up on my December Daily and that's so exciting. Regarding Christmas presents I still have shopping to do.

I also got to spend time today with  my Bella . I knew she needed mommy time. Sometimes when your growing up there are mommy things that we just need. Today  she had a bad cold we watched a movie and held hands. That was what she needed from me to hold her hand. Easy and special. Time they say is the gift that means the most. I can see time going by. I can see that right before me they are growing up and I really need for my sake  to be with them and be a huge part of there life. I wish today could last forever. Have a wonderful night and now time to get all my stuff ready for my long runs.