Run or Rust

Recently I came across a quote that spoke to me from Runner's World Magazine.

Three Voices of Truth:
1.) "It gets better."
2.) "You don't stay hurt forever."
3.) "Bodies heal."
~ Marc Parent, March 2012 Issue

Everyday, I make a choice...to run or not. Lately I have been looking at the term of "running" to come to mean more than just physically running. Yes, I hope to run every chance I get. To keep working towards my own personal fitness goals is vital to me. To hold myself accountable for eating responsibly and keep running as part of my weekly routine. When I run outside, on my "outdoor treadmill" it is the best "me" time possible. (Well that and treating myself to my favorite Starbucks drink, a 'Grande Iced Skinny Vanilla Latte.'.yeah, it took me a while to say those words in the right order. Ha.).

However, I am also a rockin' mom of 2 young girls. Jocelyn, age 6 and Minerva "Minnie", age 5. Minnie just happens to have special needs. In my eyes, both of my girls are perfect and are growing up to be happy, healthy, joyful and talented young ladies. Motherhood has given me infinite "nuggets" of knowledge and has been the best full time, anytime day or night job I could ever ask for. With every year that passes by, I can't believe how far my girls have come. It's truly an honor to be a mom. With this great responsibility of raising children, also comes a challenging daily race. Just as when I decide if I'm going to run or not, everyday...I've got to make a choice to "run or rust" with my kids. As a parent of a special needs child, you are constantly running a marathon. Think about when you run, what is the only tool you need? You! That's it...YOU are the tool, the equipment! Nothing else. The same is true for the helping laying down the foundation for your child. If I want my child to learn to read,...I am the initial tool to help her learn. If I want my child to learn how to wash her own hair in the bathtub,....I am the initial tool to help her become more independent. With love, time and practice, I know and believe my daughter will learn all of these things and a lot more.

My daughter, Minnie loves the movie The Wizard of OZ. We rented it 1,000 times from Blockbuster. (eventually we finally bought it for her.) Ironically, this past September 2011 when we were evacuated from our home in Bastrop from the wildfires...Minnie was wearing her "red ruby slippers" that day, on September 4th, 2011. We slept in our car the first night we were evacuated. The second night, we were fortunate enough to find a hotel room in Elgin, a nearby city. I remember clearly, the first morning we woke up and I took Minnie to breakfast in the downstairs lobby. When the elevator doors opened, I pushed Minnie in her stroller...and out no where, Minnie while wearing the only shoes she had at the time, her red ruby slippers...said to me "There's no place like home!" and clicked her little shoes together. It took my breath away. It was a bittersweet moment. But that is my Minnie, always saying the most incredible things and making my Mommy heart melt and skip a beat. From this, an outpouring of love came to my little girl. An angel from our hometown in Indiana really went above and beyond for my child. A very lovely woman whom I had never met, read about this on a facebook post of mine and did the sweetest thing ever...sent my daughter a Dorothy costume, a Dorothy Doll, and a Scarecrow t-shirt in the mail to us! (I am tearing up all over again as I write this.) Again it took my breath away. I was so overcome with joy and gratefullness. Can you guess who Minnie dressed up as for Halloween?? Yep, Dorothy! She was the cutest thing. And her Dorothy doll goes everywhere with Minnie. This doll gets bandaids too when Minnie goes to the doctor's office. It's a very special and precious doll. And ultimately, Minnie is "my Dorothy" and I'm the "Tin Man". When I have days that I feel like my joints are getting rusty and stuck, Minnie comes along and brings her oil can and just makes me new again. There is something to be said about the true innocence and pure love that comes from a child's heart. It is raw, real, children have a great talent of seeing the world without all of the distorted and fractured lens of our society. I think this is why I have learned so much from my children. Everyday...they keep running their own race. Without even realizing it, they are evermore becoming stronger, building up their endurance, having the courage to be who they are and no apologizing for it.

St. Jude Country Music Marathon Hosts Holiday Show

St. Jude Country Music Marathon Hosts Holiday Show

 

 

Grammy's Butterflies

So much has happened since my last post this summer. We're closing in on the end of the year, and I have so much to say! After my 1/2 marathon race in Nashville, I was blessed to travel up north to Indiana to see my Grammy St. John. I remember calling my mom as I was traveling to Nashville for the race, and she didn't have the heart to tell me that Grammy had just suffered a stroke and now Hospice was coming in to help. I drove the short 4 hour trip from Nashville, Tennesee to Columbus, Indiana and was so happy to see my Grammy. It had been over a year and a 1/2 since I last saw my family; and I had been praying all that time for God to please let me see my Grammy before she passed away. Minnie and I pulled in my Grammy's driveway, and I was still wearing my MAGIC race shirt and finisher's medal from the race.

My mom was there at her house, and explained that Grammy was in poor health. Still hopeful, I had Minnie on my hip, and a camera in one hand as I walked down the hall to greet my Grammy..hoping I'd get a photo of Minnie with Grammy. As soon as I walked in Grammy's room, I knew this was it. Minnie was immediately upset and I took her out of the room and had my brother watch her as I visited with Grammy. I returned to Grammy's room,.. heartbroken to see her on oxygen, laying in her bed. She couldn't speak full sentences, but she knew what was going on around her.

I remember just kneeling at her bedside, holding her sweet hand in mine, and prayed the Lord's prayer. I kissed her hands, and forehead, smelled her hair again, saw her beautiful blue eyes, it was home. I kept telling her that I loved her and that God was here. I asked her if she wanted me to sing a song, and she nodded her head "yes". So I sang "Alright for Now", a song by Tom Petty. (I always used to sing it to my girls when they were really young at bedtime). She smiled as I sang the song to her, I remember that. I remember her telling me clearly "I love you" and "Thank you". I cried so much, like the night I was losing my dad back in 2004. This all happened the night of April 30th, 2011. I left Indiana on the following Monday, May 2nd, got back to Texas on the 3rd. And on May 4th, my Grammy had passed away. She lead an amazing life, had 3 wonderful children, 5 grand children, and 4 great-grandchildren, and a great husband. I hope and pray I can live as long as she did and have a full life like she did. I'll miss Grammy's sweet tea she made, and stories from the past she told me as we drank our tea. I'll miss her beautiful smile and laugh. That woman was happy every single day of her life, always positive and loving. Grammy also always loved butterflies. I remember when I was training for the 1/2 marathon in Texas, as I ran on my road...in the spring I always noticed these pretty butterflies on purple flowers in my neighbor's yards. So, I had a big smile on my face when I ran last week for the first time in months....I ran 3 1/2 miles on November 28th  (was quite sore afterwards, but well worth it!)..and when I came home...as I was walking up to my front door, I glanced to the side of me...and I saw one beautiful butterfly. I stopped, smiled, and said "Thanks Grammy". In spirit, she is still with me, helping me run my race. I'm so grateful to look back, and realize that God sure did answer my prayer to see my Grammy, I got a chance to say goodbye and tell her I love her. April 30th, 2011 will always hold a special meaning to me, Nashville will always hold a special memory for me. Which is why I'm doing it all over again in 2012! As long as my body allows me to run, I'll be in Nashville every spring, running with family and friends...for God, MAGIC, for Minnie, and Jocelyn. Thank you Almighty God for answering my prayers and letting this beautiful journey unfold and continue with "wings for the journey".

GO TEAM MAGIC! We Did It!!

On Saturday, April 30th, 2011. I ran a half-marathon in Nasvhille, Tennessee with Minnie's Aunt Minerva! It was a perfect morning, lots of sunshine and beautiful city to run through. It was so fun to run with a friend and be surrounded by so many other runner's as well. Being around so many other people helped a lot. I ended up shaving about 2 minutes off my usual time (per mile). I was thrilled! I think because I trained on a hilly terrain at home in Texas, it helped that Nashville's course was so flat in comparison. While running in Nashville, you just felt a sense of community and love for the runners. There were a lot of great local bands playing throughout the course, and many families and/or volunteers handing out all the water, energy drinks, gels, and fruit. I had to laugh when I noticed one volunteer handing out glazed yeast donuts to the runners passing by! I felt the love and support of The MAGIC Foundation when I saw other MAGIC supporters cheering us on, holding up signs. You did feel like a rock star when people kept cheering you on throughout the course. Also, there was a lot of genuine concern for others. Minerva and I both kept encouraging other runner's telling them "You can do it!". That sense of sportsmanship was great. It was a great feeling to cross the finish line, and to enjoy all the months of hard work leading up to this day was incredible.

After the race, we met up with family and friends in downtown Nashville at Paradise Park! We celebrated with The MAGIC Foundation there. It felt wonderful to relax, talk to all the other MAGIC runner's and family members. We were blessed to have George Chmiel with us in Nashville. He has been such an incredible inspiration to many, many people. His story is incredible and so inspiring. George has tremendously helped The MAGIC Foundation and raise awareness and donations. You can read about his incredibly journey on www.LuciAndGeorge.com. I had the honor of meeting George and the Horvath family. I felt honored and blessed to meet many other people from The MAGIC Foundation and to just be apart of this wonderful event. At the celebration dinner, MAGIC announced that over $41, 000 had been raised! Which later, MAGIC discovered that more donations had come in while we were in Nashville, and the total was pushed up to over $45, 000! It was a great success on so many levels, and I am excited to continue running for MAGIC next year! I hope to train to run a full marathon for next year, and raise a lot more awareness and donations for MAGIC.

Mom Runs for MAGIC, Minnie, April 27th, 2011

Here is the article my local newspaper wrote about Minnie and running in the Nashville marathon! Enjoy! I think they did a really good job with the story.


http://bastropadvertiser.com/2011/04/27/mom-runs-for-magic-minnie/

Before and After...March 2010 to April 2011

This photo was taken in March 2010. I was on my way to Austin to try out for a weight loss program. ("Subway Get Fit Challenge"). So I had to submit a full length body shot. After Juan took the photo of me, I couldn't believe what I saw. How did I...when did I...why did I let myself go so far? I was pushing 245 pounds and in complete denial about my weight problem. I was hiding behind large 32 oz Cokes from McDonald's and frequent fast food eating habits. I had no daily activity as far as working out. Even though I wasn't chosen for that weight loss program....God gave me another, even better weight loss program....Running!!

This photo was just taken today, April 26th, 2011. I am currently at 182 pounds...and counting! My goal is to lose another 30-40 pounds by the end of the summer. In July 2010 I was just cheking The Magic Foundation's website (www.magicfoundation.org), and stumbled accross "Run For MAGIC". It was a marathon for parents, caregivers, or anyone who wanted to run a marathon for MAGIC to help raise awareness and funds. I didn't hesitate for one second and I said outloud "I'm going to do this!". So I started working out a lot at first and lost my first 30 pounds, and in January 2011 I started officially running and training for the marathon. I decided to do the 1/2 marathon. It has been a great process for me. I don't listen to music when I run, instead it's my "quite time" and time to pray. I always point to the big, blue Texas sky and say "This if for you God, all for you.". It has become very rewarding and theraputic for me. I won't lie, as running was pretty darn hard at first. It took a long time to build up my endurance. So my big race day is this Saturday, April 30th, 2011. It's in Nashville, TN and I'm really looking forward to it! I never thought in a million years I'd be running, but I love it! It's very challenging and I only want to get better at it. I am running for countless reasons. I have been obese my entire life. I mean, I weighed 150 pounds in the 3rd grade. I know what it's like to be overweight. So here's my chance to "show up in my life" and change my body so that I can change everything else I need to. I have my 3 big reasons or motivators of why I'm running: 1.) God 2.) Minnie (my daughter) and 3.) MAGIC!! I will post my story about my 4 year old daughter Minnie and her journey so far with "ONH"-Optic Nerve Hypoplasia...the #1 leading cause of blindness in children. Can't wait for this Saturday! Please say a small prayer for me, so I can cross that finish line and celebrate! My daughter's Aunt Mini is also racing with me! Talk about support!! And I have other close family and long time friends coming to Nashville to help show their support!  I'm so lucky and blessed. Thank you God for giving me the chance to run and do this. I hope to keep running for MAGIC!! God Bless :)

My thoughts on running-in 2nd month of training-Feb 22nd, 2011

I can touch my toes again!...with BOTH hands.

Takes no prisoners

Is not easy, no short cuts, you are it.

Your body is a temple, take care of it and it will take care of you.

You are shedding off the layers of doubt, disbelief & uncertainty.

You are building your armor of courage, strength, and endurance.