In Like a Lion

The end of February has come and another month has begun. And boy, has March BLOWN in! What is the old saying, "In like a lion, out like a lamb?" This is the 4th day of March and the winds have certainly been blowing! Today, as I did my long distance run in preparation for my 2nd half marathon (which is in 2 weeks!!), I was FIGHTING the WIND!! Whew!

Anyhow, I need to include some things from February that I haven't had time to post about yet. Let's see...where should I start?

Oh, we had so much fun going to watch our favorite girls, Madison and Mary Leslie in their school play, Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat. The cast did an awesome job! And Mary Claire loved ELVIS aka Pharoah! She kept asking when he was going to come back out on stage, so I had to get her picture with him afterwards. This is Madison holding Mary Claire with Elvis standing beside them. :) Mary Claire got ALL SHOOK UP when he came over to see her...she turned on the shyness and wouldn't talk to him at all!

We love you, Madison!

John Owen did an excellent job in his Presidents' Day program at school. The 2nd graders performed a Presidents Day Rap Song in white tshirts and blue jeans. It was GREAT!

Jan, my mom, and I completed our Winter Cross Country Series last Sunday afternoon with a 10K trail run in Shelby Farms. Jan did great!! He ran faster than me on all of the trail runs. I am definitely slower in the woods! And the mud...oh my goodness!

(My mom placed 1st overall in her age group for the whole series! Go, Mom!!)

With the slippery mud, I was so afraid of falling and hurting myself. I kept thinking, I can't get hurt. I have to work and I have 3 kids to take care of and a mountain of obligations and responsiblities!!!I can't get hurt!! Praise be to God, none of us got hurt. A little sore, yes, but that comes with the territory. Jan and I both finished 15th in our age groups, and we are in very competitive MRTC age groups. Jan will run his first half marathon in 2 weeks with me as we compete in the Germantown Half. I am super excited for us to do this together! And my kids have been super supportive through it all. They went with us to 3 out of the 4 trail races! It was a family event.:) My dad was gracious enough to sit in the van with them or play with them at the park while we ran as quickly as we could. hehe They would wish us luck, and then we were off to the start! Thanks, Daddy Nick!!

My parents celebrated their 42nd wedding anniversary on February 27th, and we treated them to dinner at a local restaurant since it was a school night.:) 42 years of marriage is an accomplishment, and I know that with God's help and guidance, they have weathered the storms of life. Mom and Dad, thank you for being a Christian example of marriage. I have learned what love is and what marriage takes through your example.

Now, March has begun and we are starting the month off with sickness! That's right, I said SICKNESS!! Mary Claire came down with some sort of virus Wed. night and has already missed two days of school. It looks as if she will miss tomorrow as well since she is still running a fever. I am praying she will be much better tomorrow or I fear we will be calling the doctor. John Owen missed school Friday due to a fever, but he has been fever free today, so it's back to school for him tomorrow. Jan's not feeling well now, and I am praying Jonah and I can HOLD OUT and not get whatever these other guys are dealing with.

With John Owen and Mary Claire at home sick Friday, Jonah and I had a special day at school celebrating Dr. Seuss's birthday! I was the Cat in the Hat, and he was Thing 1. Our friends, Lane and Bo, also had fun dressing up for Dr. Seuss's birthday, and they joined us for a quick picture Friday morning at school.

The kids at school got a kick out of seeing me dressed like this all day.

March things we are looking forward to include daylight savings time, half marathon race, St. Patrick's Day wedding with Mary Claire as the flower girl, and SPRING BREAK! Woo-hoo!!

But right now, as I hear the wind kicking up outside the window I sit next to, I think I'll go turn on the weather channel and check out the forecast. :)

Or maybe I should google some good kites to order for the kids...