Making lemonade...

"The world needs dreamers and the world needs doers.

But above all, the world needs dreamers who DO."
~Sarah Ban BreathnachSee the girl in the yellow hat and green shirt? Yeah, that's me :o)

Well, I have been excited to share something with you for a while now, but I didn't want to say anything until it was a done deal (no, I'm not pregnant--just getting that out of the way). I've been training for a half marathon in Columbus with my dad and my sister for the last few months! The decision to do it came as a result of lots of life experiences coming to a head--and I decided that 2008 is my year. 2006 and 2007 were rough ones for me, and I've had enough! My word of the year is DO--I've allowed excuses to rule my life for too long, so 2008 is when I'm doing some of the things I've always wanted to, no matter what the challenges may be! And running has always been one of them... But after surgery on my legs in November 2006, I now have no excuse to get moving!

The race was two Saturdays ago--April 12th. I drove up to Columbus with the boys Thursday night before the race (Jer couldn't get off work). About halfway through the drive, I got a call from Jeremy's sister saying that their grandma had passed away. Over the next few hours, we went back and forth trying to figure out plans to get out to Utah for her funeral--by which time I was already almost to Ohio. There was no way I could run a 1/2 marathon and fly cross-country alone with the boys all in the same day, and it was obvious which activity took precedence. Nevertheless, it was really hard to come to that decision...

"One of the secrets of life is to make stepping stones out of stumbling blocks." ~Jack Penn

You see, I had been planning on running this thing NO MATTER WHAT GOT IN MY WAY!!! I had gotten behind with my long weekend runs because Jer is gone so many weekends, and I didn't have anyone to watch my boys. I got really sick in March and didn't run for like 2 weeks straight, which is bad if you are only training for 12 weeks to begin with. With all these things against me, I almost decided not to do the race at all, but then I remembered that 2008 is my year to DO, and so I kept going and signed up for the race. And then this--I had been so dedicated and so determined, only to have this wrench thrown in my plans. I know that sounds harsh, I'm just being honest in my thought process...

"Establishing goals is all right if you don't let them deprive you of interesting detours." ~Doug Larson

I have a dear friend who ran a marathon a couple years ago. I called her in tears as I'm driving through the flatlands of rural Ohio, sobbing my head off as I told her my predicament. She knew how much this meant to me, what I was trying to prove to myself throughout the whole process, and exactly where I was mentally when I got to this point. We both knew what the right choice was, and she just helped me think through it. The hardest part was over--I had already made the decision to run. And now that I had made that decision, I can do anything I want, whenever I want. It doesn't have to be April 12th, it can be any day of the year--because I know I can do it.

"The distance is nothing; it is only the first step that is difficult." ~Marie de Vichy-Chamrond

I know I did the right thing--things worked out great. I was able to switch from the 1/2 marathon to the 5K, so it was actually kind of easy, dare I say FUN and I enjoyed every minute! I ran my first 5K last September (you may recall that post) and it was definitely NOT a piece of cake. I beat that time on Saturday by over 10 minutes! It was fun to see how far I've come in 7 months and be proud of myself for once... Look at the smile on my face! My cute dad made the 3 of us matching yellow hats with our nicknames embroidered across the front, so we could see each other in the race if we got separated. It came in so handy, because as soon as I was done with the 5K, my brother-in-law, nieces and I went over to the 7-Mile-mark of the 1/2 marathon course. I walked until I saw 2 yellow hats bobbing up and down amid the crowd, and I waved and screamed and jumped up and down and ran out to find them. It was pure joy for me to run for a short distance with them--I told them about my race and they caught me up on how they were feeling, etc. They looked so happy and I could not have been more proud of them--they were literally beaming!!! What a fun memory for all of us...

"Arriving at one goal is the starting point to another." ~John Dewey

Now, I still have a long way to go. I have lots of goals still to meet, and I still plan on doing a 1/2 marathon in 2008. It just might not be till October--but who knows, maybe by then I'll be ready for the full thing???

So anyway, the point of this whole, long, drawn-out story which has probably put you to sleep is this: I am learning to be flexible. I am learning that things don't have to go exactly how I plan in order to be considered successful. I am the master of my own destiny--I decide how I let outside factors influence my life. I know what's most important and those things will always come first, but that doesn't mean I become a martyr or give up on my dreams. This is MY life, for heaven's sake!

Do you have anything YOU want to do in 2008??? I'd love to hear...

Real quick, I have to give a little shout-out for my friend, Katie. You have to check out her blog, SisterSkinny, to see what she's been up to this year... She is the epitome of DO-ing. Go, KATIE!!!! You are an awesome inspiration :o) I'm so proud of you!