2011 Review and what I WANT in 2012!

(favorite photo of 2011)

What a glorious year 2011 has been!!!

In Sept 2010 I hired a running coach and started my running journey.

2011 was a great year with many ups and downs.....

Here are a few of things that I count as my accomplishments as well as goals for 2012....

Accomplishments:

Ran a 19:45 5K

Ran a 42:30 10K (5min PR after 4 mos of training)

Ran a 1:32:18 Half marathon (14min PR after 7 mos of training)

I was VERY excited about these accomplishments but I'm ready for MORE now!

I ran my first Marathon and qualified for Boston BUT ended up with a stress fracture in my fibula at mile 22:(

Was a bit of a disappointing race

June-August was a tough time. I was injured and unable to run a single step. I had to sit on the sidelines for 2.5 mos and watch my friends excel while my body went stagnant. It was HARD, but I tried to be supportive. I learned alot about patience and I learned that I wanted to chill out a bit and ENJOY running more and not take myself so seriously.

I learned that I could be truly happy for others achievements even when I couldn't run myself.

September I hired John Foland as my new coach and began base building. I have run for the last 25 wks and feel stronger than ever! I am not fast yet but I will be;)

I also decided to register for the Boston Marathon and got in!

I ran a 5K in 20:10 , a 10K in 42:54 and a half in 1:33:38 during my base building phase. I ENJOYED every one of these races and fell in Love with running and racing as if for the first time.

(at the finish of my half in October: 1:33:36)

(running my PR 10K: 42:30)

(with Soggy Runner Girl, Stephanie, at the Pumpkin Half)

I ran my first 60 mile week and a 62 mile week:) I am bummed that I am sick and not finishing out the year the way I had planned, but It is good rest to get me ready for next week!

Now I am 2 days away from Boston Training and ready to catch some of my big dreams in 2012.

I have fallen in love with running all over again the last few months. I have met some AMAZING women through this blogging world and My life feels so rich.

(with Raina, Amanda at the Best Dam Run 10k in Sept)

I have found that running really is food for my soul. I feel so blessed. My injury, though tough at the time, really was the best thing that ever happened to me this year. it taught me alot about myself and how much I love to Run.

I wil never take running for granted again. every day I am out there I am GRATEFUL.

(running my first race post injury: 10k: 42:30)

I realize now that running is more than just PR's for me. Before this year, I think I thought I only ran to chase a number. But after this year, I can say that even if I knew I would NEVER hit any of these goals I have set, i woud keep on running. I didn't think I was that person that ran just because, but I am. I run because I love it and because it makes me happy. I want to run for the rest of my life.

Goals for 2012. maybe it's the fact that it's New Years Eve and there's something *Magical* about a new year but I am putting my goals out there for all to SEE! I just got off the Phone with Amanda giving her a my football coach style pep talk about her 10k tomorrow. It's so much easier to pump someone else up than it is yourself. I know she can do GREAT things tomorrow and I really believe in her!

I think My pep talk rubbed off on myself b/c I am getting really excited for all that 2012 holds for Her and for Me...and for YOU!

I understand that Life can get in the way, but here is what I would LIKE to accomplish in ONE YEAR. I say go big or go Home...it's better to aim for the stars and miss my friends than aim for a pile of **** and hit! LOL....

RAther, I should say, I would like to WORK hard enough to EARN these goals. I don't expect them to just come to me. I know I will have to work for them and that is what will make achieving them so much more worth it.

(At a track meet my first week back post injury with my girls. what a blast!)

here we go....

5K: not exactly sure....I know I want under 19:30.....but don't have a particular number in mind yet.

10K: I would REALLY like to break 40min. I dont' know how much time I have to dedicate to 10K training this year so under 41 would also be good. but I do want that sub 40!

Half marathon: For sure I want a sub 1:30, but I think by July that will be in the bag. I would like to run below 1:28 by the end of this year.

Marathon: ...well this ones a biggy. And I think setting goals for the marathon is hard. You have one shot and ANYTHING can go wrong on that day. BUT if it's a good day, with good weather and I'm not SICK OR INJURED (lol), I would like to go under 3:15 before the end of this year. I think Boston will be a good indicator of how likely this goal is. If Boston goes well then I might be able to adjust this goal, but for now I am giving myself ALL of 2012 to hit this goal....which might mean a fall marathon in 2012:)

other randoms:

-Continue to ENJOY running...if it ever feels like a chore and becomes un-enjoyable...back off for a while

-run atleast one 75 mile week

-Break 6min in the mile. This is disappointing b/c I was supposed to complete this goal last week, but I got sick:( My goal was to do this before the end of 2011:( but it will have to wait.

I want to be the kind of friend I want to have. I want to be a beacon of light and love and support to my friends. I want to take every opportunity to build others up and encourage them to achieve their goals! especially my running friends.

I want to spend more time Playing with my children.

I want to fall in love with my husband again (and again). (side note: I fall in love with him often and it is always the best feeling in the world:)

Re-gain my habit of reading the scriptures every day. I want that closeness with the Lord that I lost this year due to some circumstances that I let drive me away and lose some faith. I have been fighting my way back and I know I need to put forth a bigger effort to reach out to Him if I want to re-gain that relationship.

I am pretty excited to be sitting 90min away from the year 2012. it is going to be an EPIC year!

(My little Mooshy sprinting at the 5K on Thanksgiving)

Tell me your TOP 3 GOALS for 2012???

Deja Vu? Man Down. Wish I understood they "why's" better.....

well well well....lets see...this seems all too familar.....last year as I started training for my First marathon, I got deathly ill.....well not deathly...but so sick tha tI had to take 10 days off of running which meant I was behind and I had only 8.5 wks to train. it really took the wind out of my sails and I had a hard time getting back in the groove.

It's sort of been a concern in the back of my mind that this would happen again and here we are.

Boston Training starts Monday and I am so sick that John (my coach) just ordered me to tak the REST of the week OFF:( ugh..thhis is SO hard to do! I know that 4 days off won't kill me.....but 4 days off gets me so out of the "habit" that is always hard for me to get back.

I dont'understand why thisa happens to me? I said to Amanda today..." you have kids, Steph has kids ....why am I the only one that gets so sick??!!!". I have a bad track record since I started running. and trust me I take a TONNE Of vitamins. everything and the good kind too..in HIGH amounts.
It is SO frustrating.

I am hoping and praying that by taking this time to rest, I will be ready to go by Monday...or atleast early in the week next week.
I wish I didn't have to work all day saturday .....and night actually....b/c then I could REST. but I will stay in bed Sunday and hopefully I will be back on my feet!!!
Atleast this time around, I have 15wks of training and not 10....so if I lose a bit, I will still be okay.
John is always so positive and he said that maybe this was a blessing in disguise. I did say that i thought i should take adown week before I started training since I had 17 straight weeks of base and I'm going into Boston straight from here. I don't think if this didn't happen I would have done that so maybe this is the Lords way of stepping in and GIVING me a break! so I am going to try to embrace the rest in a positive light:)

Pray for me please!!!!!

Reflecting on the last 6mos.....My Foundation is STRONG!

Wow...I didn't even realize that it has been 6mos since I started running again after my injury.
It has gone by VERY fast.
I have to admit, that injury was the best thing that happened to me in my running journey this year. It caused me to slow down, reflect and change my perspective.

I hired a new coach since it was a fresh start and I wanted to try something new. This has proven to be a very good decision for me. John is just the kind of coach I need. I see more clearly now that I really needed to take a step back and build a base for myself. a Solid base..and that is JUST what I've done.
I logged into my running ahead account tonight just to get an idea of what I've done the last few months.
and here it is:

basically It was 25wks ago that I did that first post-injury run. It felt wonderful to be out there again, but horrible b/c I realized that the 2.5 mos off was painfully obvious as I had a hard time running 2-3 miles. Those first few weeks were really hard. Mentally I KNEW it would come back, but sometimes I wondered...would I ever get some endurance back? I remember doing a 5 mile run one day and feeling utterly wasted. how was I ever going to run 8 miles or 10 miles again?!
Slowly but surely John encouraged me to increase my mileage...we did it SLOWLY as you can see....and bit by bit I gained back fitness. I havne't done speed or tempos..(well I think I've done 2 tempo runs in the last 4 mos)...but I raced a 5K, a 10K and a half marathon during this time. I came very close to my PR's in all distances which was very encouraging.
in the last 17 wks (18wks by the end of this year) I have ran at least 40 miles a and many of them closer to 50 and now the last few weeks closer to 60. I feel SO strong now. I feel like my foundation has been BUILT!
ANY strong house or structure has a good foundation and I feel like My foundation is STRONG. I can't thank John enough for all his help the last few months. I feel READY to train for Boston and I feel SO confident and calm inside that I will reach my goals there. When I close my eyes in bed at night, I can FEEL the wind on my face and the feeling of elation when I cross that finish line.

I have consistently pounded the pavement the last 6mos like never before and I am PUMPED to get to work!
aaaahhh....such a great feeling! I thought base would get boring but it really has been the best 6mos. I've found new running friends, new running routes and a new desire to go for my goals!  I feel like I've grown so much as a runner and know myself and my body better than ever.

here's to 2012!!!!

a little scare...and got my schedule!!!!

I might have started off my week a bit too fast......I ran 15 miles on Monday at an 8:00 pace. then 10 miles with a 2mile steady hill at 7:46 pace...by Wednesday I felt a sore muscle in my leg. by thursday it was a bit more intense....and by TODAY....I had to turn around at mile 3.5  and call it a day!(DANG IT!)


I was a bit freaked out....PRAYING it was not anything serious. I got in to see John today and he assured me it was just an overworked muscle. FEW! I could not imagine dealing with another injury a week before starting my training for Boston. He did some Graston and some electrical stim. I will try a few miles tomorrow and see how it feels! He is so good to remind me that a few missed miles here will not effect my race...it's what I do as a whole in the next 3 mos:) so I may or may not hit that 65 miles this week, but I refuse to become a slave to a number. I'm just letting it go and leaving the next 2 days in God's hands:)




On a happier not, today, John gave me my FIRST MONTHS TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR BOSTON!!! I'm so excited! it looks good....VERY managible! I'm excited......this is phase 1...then February we'll move into phase 2:)




I never thought I would do a giveaway BUT I will be doing my FIRST GIVEAWAY soon! so excited. You have to wait to see what the product is, but it's my FAVORITE and you'll want one!!! (for those who know me well, NO SPOILERS!!)

MERRY CHRISTMAS !!!!

Christmas spirit....Miracles and other stuff....

I LOVE Christmas! It is by FAR, my favoritest (not a word, I know) time of year!!!

I LOVE the buzz in the malls...I love the lights, I love the ribbon, I love the MUSIC!

But MOSTLY, I love the Christmas SPIRIT. The feeling of Love that intensifies, even between random strangers.

One of my friends posted on her FB today that she went to the Starbucks drive through and the person in front her bought her drink...so then she bought the persons behind her!:)

THIS is what Christmas is about. Reaching out to others, those you know, and those you don't. Showing others the Love of Christ. He who LIVED his life for us...as we celebrate His birth, what a perfect time to try Harder to live as He lived.

This year, I feel VERY blessed.

I went to my bishop to ask if there was anyone in need this year...he gave me some information about a family with some children. I was very excited that we would have the opportunity to help. I have always wanted to do this. The girls and I went and bought a whole bunch of stuff for this family and when we were done shopping, I was overwhelmed with a feeling of sheer joy!

My whole life, I have prayed to the Lord that I would be blessed financially so that I could use it to bless OTHERS.

I am a gift giver. Funny, it's not necessarily how I receive love but it is often how I show love. I LOVE to buy things for people who have needs or just wants but can't get them for themselves. Not b/c I want recognition for doing so but just b/c I love to bring happiness to others and make them feel loved. It has always brought me so much joy to be generous in this manner.

So when we had the means to do this this year....I was BEYOND THANKFUL. I want to do this every year!!!

(and this was done ANONYMOUSLY by the way...I didn't want this family to know who it came from.....actually they don't know us, but still).

When we went to our first place to shop, the girls and I talked in the car about WHO we were shopping for (not them!lol) and then we prayed. It was such a wonderful experience and the girls felt so happy to know they were bringing joy and love to some other childrens' lives who might not have had Christmas otherwise.

When we got home, they both helped wrap the presents:)

Megan wrote all the names on the gifts and

Erika cut all the pieces of tape for me! lol...notice all the strips stuck to her feet? ha!

I feel like Christmas is already complete for me. I think it is the best gift I will recieve this year:)

onto other blessings:

I feel so grateful lately to have Stephanie and Amanda to run with! we had a wonderful 13.5 miler last weekend together and another 12 miler together this morning. what wonderful women. Women I have been praying to find for a while. I will NOT take them for granted:)

On Tuesday I came home to These:

I was very surprised to learn they were from my friend Becky! she was thinking of me b/c she knew how heart broken I was over Lacey leaving. how very sweet.

Becky, by the way, just ran 3hrs flat at CIM...and that was with a potty break and stopping to attend a blister!!! what a speedy girl she is!!!

and of course I'm thankful for this little monkey who lost her 2 front teeth! she has been singing the infamous, "all I want for Christmas....." all week lol

Running-

I feel STRONGER than I have ever felt right now. I am realizing the value of BASE building!

I have been running consistenly since last september and I realize now that I never did a base building phase. I jumped right into training after about 3wks and kinda skipped having any real base building/mileage building phase. so NOW I have been running over 40 miles a week for the last 3.5 mos and it feels AMAZING! this week I am planning to finish with 65 miles! 65 MILES!!!! that is HUGE for me!!! small for MANY of you, I know.....but big for me:). I feel strong and ready to start training with John on January 2nd. we met up yesterday and drove around to find a hill he approved of to do 2min hill repeats on and it just started to get very REAL. I am going to be doing this and very SOON!

Miracles-

as I contemplate this season and my savior more, I am reminded of all the miracles I have experienced in my life. One very special one came to mind today when my friend texted me to let me know she miscarried on her 2nd pregnancy. It was very early, but still, sad to say the least.

I told her that I too had miscarried on my 2nd pregnancy and she asked me what I did for comfort?

well, after I miscarried, I went to the Temple. For those of you who don't know, I am Mormon or as we prefer to say I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

I joined the church when I was 18yrs old. It has been a life changing decision and has meant the world to me. I love my Savior more than anything. The following experience is very very sacred to me and I don't often share sacred things, but I share this today to hopefully remind everyone of the miracles God brings into our lives and the Love He has for each one of us.

So, I went to the temple alone a few days after my miscarriage.

When I was at a certain place in the temple, one where I was not expecting to receive any type of revelation, I heard a clear audible voice say to me:

"There is another little girl waiting to come to your family... and everything is going to be okay".

I immediately felt a calm and peace come over me and all my sorrow was gone. Not only did I know everything was okay, I once again was reminded that God knew ME. He knows Nicole Wagner and has a plan for her life. This knowledge changes everything. Everything.

I also knew it was just not her time to come yet.

the thing was...as Steve and I had prayed about getting pregnant again, I kept getting the feeling it wasn't time. I even told him that 2 or 3 times, but I ignored it in the end and thought I was just being silly. OF COURSE God wants me to get pregnant again I told myself.

I came home and calmly told my husband that the Lord had told me we were going to have another little girl and carried on with our night. He didn't really take me that seriously but it didn't matter to me. I knew. I heard what I heard and I felt what I felt. I knew.

6 mo's later, with one try, after praying and receiveing confirmation the time was right, we conceived Erika.

It has always been so special to me to know that He knew she was coming to OUR family, before we even conceived her.

In my faith, we believe that we lived before we came to earth as spirits. That we knew each other and I certainly believe that I knew her long ago before I came to earth. it was a very special experience.

Again, I LOVE my Father in Heaven and I love His son, Jesus Christ. when I was 18, they literally pulled me out of the depths of darkness, alcohol abuse and depression and brought me into a world of light and life. For this, I am eternally thankful.

Here is one of my favorite Nativity paintings. The man and women who sat as models for the painter in this picture were the sister and brother in law of one of the Elders I served with on my full-time mission when I was 21. They are from England. Pretty cool:)

I want to know...what are You thankful for or excited about this Christmas?

Iphone blogger-Boston goals

Steve got mad at Comcast yesterday and as a result we had to switch to dish network and now have no Internet til thurs so I will keep this short as I am using the limited data on my phone. Doesn't he know this is a great inconvenience?;)

Oh before I forget! I have been meaning to post on here for a while about my FB page. Come "like" my " I dream of running" page. I can't actually copy the link from FB on my phone but come find me:):)

So I completed my 2nd 60 mile week this week. It is very comfortable for me to run 60, I actually feel like I could easily run 70 since it is all easy paced miles IF and only if time was more readily available. As it was I met Stephanie down town on Friday morning at 5:45am to fit in 14 miles. It was the most beautiful run watching the sun rise over mount hood and the pink orange and blue sky reflect off the high rises. Seriously felt so blessed. Blessed to be up and experiencing gods beauty along with a very good friend!

Saturday I had to get up and run at 6am again bc I literally worked for another 10 hourt
day straight doing makeup. My biggest strugggle in Boston training is not going to be completing workouts, but managing my time so I can fit it all in. And sometimes even when I have done all that I can do, the time slot needed to get in a run just doesn't exist. Between kids and work.... It can all get very overwhelming. My goal for this marathon training is keeping a balance and keeping a healthy perspective. It is not ging to go perfectly and sometimes my family will need me more than the pavement does and that's okay. I am not a professional. Yes I am chasing a dream but the dream can wait. My children will only be this age once. Thy will only experience what they will experience this year once. I have years ahead of me to compete and to get that sub 3 hr marathon. I don't want to turn into an obsessive maniac. I want my children to see that I work hard, that I am committed to a goal but I'd they need me, they come first. That can be hard when you are staring at the door and your shoes are on and something tells you from within... The run can wait.
So that is my first goal.
My second goal is to listen to my coach. To hold back from my Over eager nature to run a Few more miles than planned this week it do those intervals at 15 seconds faster pace than us called for. I am always trying to beat myself. To show myself I can do better than what is called for and that is not so healthy. I really would rather show up to Boston 10% undertrained than 10% overtrained. I imagine showing up on race morning with that same buzz in my legs that I felt after my 5k recently:) in a perfect world of course! Ha

So plan is:
Base of 60-65 miles (I think) the next 2weeks and then role right intoararhon training on jan2:). John uses a 3 phase 15wk cycle and I'm meeting wih him Wednesday to learn more about what is in store!! I feel really good about my choice to have John coach me and am really confident that he will get me ready for a fantastic race!!

Well it's bedtime for me. Meeting Stephanie again at 5:45am for a 15 miler:)

randoms...a post to process some thoughts...and some fun party pics....

I find myself always waiting for some enlightening subject to speak on or some deep thoughts to share....but honestly that just isn't happening lately. SO I need to use this blog more to keep a journal for myself.

I wanted to write down a few thoughts and feelings I'm having right now so I can look back and remember.

I went to see John yesterday ( my coach and sports chiropractor for those who dont' know). We started talking about training coming up for Boston and it was a very enlightening chat. we are meeting on Wed to talk more and I look forward to getting more answers to my questions but a few things he shared with me have really been on my mind.
He wants me doing another 60 miles this week and 65 next week..he'd like me to keep up this mileage with JUST easy miles as we role right into training. I asked him how I would keep up the mileage with speedwork added in and he told me I wouldn't even be starting speedwork til week 6 or 7. At first I was shocked but now I'm actually quite excited.

he said he will have me doing hill repeats and fartleks and tempos but no track workouts til about week 6 or 7. He elaborated by saying that I only really need 6-7 wks of track workouts or else it can be overkill. I'm actually EXCITED to not have to do 15wks of track workouts. I'm excited to not get burned out.

I trust john COMPLETELY.

He has run over 35 marathons (extremely fast ones) and really knows his stuff.

we talked briefly about marathon expectations....about what HE projected I would run and it was very exciting to me. I don't want to share what he said b/c I don't want to put expectations on myself but if he is correct, I will be one happy girl. ....just got to put in the work now and see what happens.

On a personal level of my life...My best friend Lacey moves saturday morning. Back to Canada.

Her sons are like my own and are my daughters BEST friends! for 3yrs we have lived a few doors apart. Our children have an open door policy at both our houses and they come and go all day long. they have grown up together. to say the least, it is heart breaking. This is my 2nd time to lose my best friend.

Where we live, is by the Chiropractic school, where my husband went. So...our friends are all chiropractic students. they move here for 3yrs, graduate and move back home. That was our plan too, except we never moved back. We bought a clinic, went to hell and back to get visa's so we could stay...and here we are. (we moved here 6yrs ago)

3yrs ago, my best friend, Katie, graduated and moved away. we also lived next door to eachother, had babies 2 days apart, worked together etc.

I never wanted to go through taht again. It is HARD for me to get really close to other women b/c I have been burned so badly. I love EVERYONE and appear on the outside to have lots of friends, but the truth is I only let myself get close to a select few. The ones I am drawn to are the ones who open themselves to me, are verbally and emotionally loving in return...I am always drawn to them b/c i am also emotional and love with my whole heart.

So first Katie

and now Lacey


. I know we will be friends forever, but here moving 12hrs away just sucks.

I find myself withdrawing and shutting down. I dont' want to feel the pain. I don't want to feel the loss.

It's a good thing I have a wedding all day saturday to distract me.

Life is hard sometimes.I know it will be fine and other doors will open. There are lots of really nice girls here who I will probably now have more of an opportunity to get to know and I have to think about that as it is a very positive thing.

Just wanted to get my thoughts out.........

Just for fun, here are some fun pictures of Steve and I at the photobooth from the wedding professionals gala we went to 2wks ago:)

Me with Chrystal and Bri who work for me....

I offered a giveaway for the event and we did these 8 ladies makeup for free. it was fun!

Incase anyone is still reading this thing: an update on why I have been MIA...

Hi!
I am still alive.

Recently, I have just found myself so busy with Life: KIDS, WORK , RUNNING and other stuff that blogging and even reading blogs has got put to the back burner...and as it has, I feel the stress creeping in that I am so far behind I can't catch up...that no one is around to read my blog anymore anyway b/c I havne't been commenting on theirs..why would they comment on mine? this thus leads to me not blogging in the few spare moments I might find. Feeling sort of hopeless to be honest. Feeling guilty that  I haven't kept on blogs of those I care about and just all around discouraged. I try to tell myself that it's okay b/c I have all these very important things like children and work but I still feel horrible.

THEN I came to Canada this week to see my family before Christmas and there is a WHOLE bunch of isssues with Steve's mom. She is only 65 but has a bunch of physical disabilities so she really isn't even capable of taking care of herself anymore and needs to be in an assisted living facility but doesn't want to. we are the only family she has left and we are 7hrs away and can't get away from our businesses often enough.

she can't dress or bath herself etc...she has hoarding issues etc. I spent the entire day moving boxes from her 2nd floor condo to the basement storage b/c the spare room was floor to ceiling JUNK. to say I felt a bit overwhelmed and frustrated that my husband wasn't there to take care of HIS mother is an understatement....well I'm sort of over that part now but whatever.

So now it's on OURs or more likely MY shoulders to start searching out facilities for her to go to....the thought of all the isues that this will bring up is overwhelming. ...

I am trying to manage 2 employees and get 3 more on board for next year. that means booking weddings constantly for next year, holding weekly makeup lessons, answering a MILLION emails from brides, doing up contracts ..OH and I decided to take part in my first bridal show on Jan 19th:( This means I need to get decorations for our "area" ..a HUGE business sign designed and orderd and I really don't have the Money for all this right now.
(thanks for listening to my rambling vent)..I go on.

Children, homework, RUNNING...gosh we havne't even gotten to running YET! lol...
I DID complete my FIRST EVER WEEK of 60 miles last week!! This was a HUGE achievement for me...not b/c I ran 60 miles but b/c I FIT IN 60 miles!~ HA!
It at least gave me hope that SOME HOW I will hopefully be able to fit in my mileage for boston training.

I didnt' get to run today b/c I am in Canada and I was busy helping steve's mom..funny thing is, that was so stressful I could have used the run today more than any other! tomorrow I drive home all day then get home at about 3pm, try to fit in 10 miles , then do a group makeup lesson downtown from 6-10pm.
come home, wake up at 6am to fit in 6 miles, work from 9-3pm with brides, fit in another 6 miles, then do boudoir hair/makeup at a downtown hotel from 6-10pm again. SO...unpacking or cleaning my house probably won't happen til Sunday but by that time, I'm sure all I will want to do is take A GIANT nap! lol

Is this normal? do many of you live like this? LOL...THIS Is my life. Constantly. some times I wish more than anything I could just clone myself...and my best friend moves out of the country in 1 week:(...geesh I sound like a crazy person don't I? it's b/c as I write all this down, the million things I am thinking about, worried about or trying to sort through are running through my head...this is like a BRAIN DUMP right now! ha ha ha

My life is really not bad at all...I am SO blessed, I have all this..BUT it is BUSY. I have spent all year trying to UN-BUSY my life, but I guess this month and next it is going to be a bit nuts and there's just nothing  I can do but pray that I can keep my head about me to get it all done:)

So...THIS Is why I'm not blogging. I'm sorry...and there is probably only a handful of you reading this anyway...but I appreciate those of you who do take time to read my blog. I really do.

OH...and I wanted to say CONGRATS to Raina, Jenn and Amanda for their Brooks Dealios!!! I still don't have all the details but i know it is a sweet deal and I KNOW that they are 3 of the most amazing deserving women I know!! so blessed to know each of them! Love you ladies!!


So, this is my apology. If you haven't heard from me for a while on your blog, I'm so so so so so sorry. I will try to catch up!!