0646- I did it!

This morning I ran my first 5k! I am pretty pumped. I have been running for awhile now consistently, but for a long time I never ran past a mile and a half.

This year I decided to kick it up a notch. My dad and I talked about running a 5k together. We were supposed to do it last spring, but that never happened. We looked at the dates, but then never found one that worked for both of us.

We kept running all summer and said we would do one in the fall. We looked again, and found this one- Running with Convoy. I was so excited, because it was at a location I've always wanted to run at (Raccoon River Park), and it was supporting a cause I really liked- feeding impoverished children all over the world. 

Unfortunately, my dad was at my sister's volleyball tournament, but I decided to do it myself. I am so glad I did it. Even as an adult, you still get a little twinge sometimes about doing something new with people you don't know, but it turned out awesome.

Here is my tracker so they can keep my time. I had never seen this before! (Also, check out my new sweet running shoes.)

The shirts they gave us and number 0646!

Unfortunately, I can't get Kley to run with me. But, I did get him to come cheer me on.

Heading up to start (these next pictures all taken by Kley).

Right before they shot the starting gun.

Kley first spotted me coming- I'm so far back you can't even see in the picture. Ha.

Finish line.

You can't really tell what's happening in this picture, but I had just passed this girl in a Cyclone tutu (there was the big Iowa/Iowa State game today). I couldn't let a girl in a tutu beat me. I really wanted to pass this little girl that was running in the left corner with the green shorts, but I couldn't catch her. How can kids be so fast?

Almost done!

Crossing the finish line.

It went better than I thought it would! I'm really glad I did it. It actually felt great, and it was BEAUTIFUL weather outside. The past two weeks here have been about 100 everyday, so it was much harder to run. I had only ran three miles once, last weekend, but had been running about 2 or 2.5 consistently. I ran 3 miles in 34:57 last time, so my dream goal was to finish in under 30, but my realistic goal was to finish under 35. I finished today at 31:32, so I was pretty happy with that!

I was a sprinter in high school and hated running long distances, but I guess that's changed in my adult life. I never thought I'd say this, but I can't wait to run another one! I am proud of myself for working towards a goal and accomplishing it.

Kindle the fire.

I Didn't Love My Wife When We Got Married

I read this article yesterday, after seeing several people post it on FB. I encourage you to read it. It's very thought-provoking.

Ironically, after reading that, while I was on my run, two country songs came on my pandora "Keith Urban" playlist: Do I by Luke Bryan and The Hard Way by Keith Urban.

All of these things are talking about people looking for the passion they once had at the beginning of their relationship, or some variation of that. The article talks about how he didn't love his wife when he got married. He just thought he did.

I agree with the premise of the article. The way that I feel about Kley is very different than when we first started dating. When you first start dating, it's extremely exciting, nerve-wracking, and thrilling. But, unfortunately, that initial passion doesn't last forever. The honeymoon phase ends.

That doesn't mean your relationship gets worse, by any means, and this is where many people go wrong. This is why so many affairs happen, because people get "bored" with their spouse and think that there's no way to get the passion back, so they look for a substitute somewhere else. In actuality, after the so called "honeymoon phase" ends, this is when the opportunity for your relationship to flourish is at its peak.

I do not believe in cohabitation before marriage. I believe that living together, and entrusting all of ourselves- emotionally, physically, spiritually- is something that God intended for marriage. Not that you can't share yourselves in those ways, to an extent, before you are married, but it takes on a whole new realm once you are married.

I would never trade marriage back for dating. Ever. I am so thankful for all the wonderful and crazy little details I have learned about Kley since marrying him and living together. Yes, I loved Kley when we were dating, but it was a more of a feeling than it is now. Like the article said, love is a verb. When we were dating, I didn't have to work so hard at loving Kley. Sure, most days it's easy to love him. But what about when he does something annoying? Something gross? Something wrong? Some days you really have to work at it. Some days marriage isn't always exciting like dating usually is, but that's what makes it rewarding and worth it- putting in the hard time and effort makes your marriage great.

God led us together, and we chose to trust Him and follow His path for us in marriage. I choose Kley. I would marry him all over again any day. If you don't kindle a fire, it will burn out. The same goes for marriage- you have to keep kindling it to keep the fire ablaze.

Kindle the fire. It's worth it.

Motherhood as a career.

This was taken from our devotional that Kley and I read together everyday- Moments Together for Couples by Dennis and Barbara Rainey (president/cofounder of FamilyLife, a division of Campus Crusade for Christ.) I thought it was very interesting and something I have thought about blogging before. Sometimes it's scary to blog about your personal convictions, especially when you know that many people will not agree with you.

Motherhood as a Career

Titus 2:4-5- That they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be dishonored.

     Our society often sends the wrong signals to mothers. It tells moms they are dispensable. It tells us that all mothers need to do is provide maid service, shuttle service and offer purchasing advice; that real mothering can be done by trained caretakers.
     I believe Christian mothers need to think critically about these cultural messages and challenge them. More moms need to make a career of busying themselves at home, and investing in their husbands and the next generation.
     I realize there are many reasons for mothers to have full-time or part-time jobs, but I also know some couples need to look critically at whether this is for survival, for personal fulfillment or simply to maintain a higher standard of living. If a couple feels it's necessary for Mom to work outside the home, some crucial questions should be addressed.
     A Christian mother should ask whether her husband is in total agreement with this decision. The two-career marriage may solve financial difficulties, but it creates others because many needs of the family will not receive full attention.
     Another good questions is: If extra income is essential, can it be earned in a flexible time frame, or by working at home? A woman in my church was able to develop a part-time photography business out of her home. She was always sure that whenever she had appointments she could leave her little boy with her husband or a friend.
     A career speaks of total commitment and full-time focus. No commitment or focus is more worthy of being a career than mothering the children you bring into the world.

I agree with her. Kley and I were both extremely blessed to be raised by stay-at-home moms. Many people comment, "Oh, you're JUST a stay-at-home mom?" like you're missing out on other things in the world. I think that's far from true. Being a stay-at-home mom is an extremely honorable, noble, difficult, rewarding, and worthy calling. I am very blessed that Kley is working hard in law school so that, God willing, I can stay home. That is my desire.

I understand that sometimes you need two incomes, or different things happen that require both parents to work. But, I like the questions she raised. Do you NEED the money? Is there a more flexible way you can make money? I know there are extenuating circumstances, but I believe that the majority of families can make it work on a one income budget. You will probably have to sacrifice, but it can be done.

I am a teacher for children of working parents. I know full well that many people don't agree with me on the value of staying home. I am not trying to judge anyone. If you are a mother and you choose to work, that is your decision to be made within your family. I believe that staying at home is the best path, but I don't think less of my friends with children who work. That's up to them. For me, I feel called to stay at home with my children, and am very excited to do so someday.

Mom, having you stay home with me was invaluable. Thank you.

Teaching is hard work.

Teaching is a tough profession. I know everyone thinks their profession is hard, and I fully grant that each profession has it's difficult qualities. I am by no means trying to say that I work harder than other people or demean other professions.

But, I do feel that it's easier for others to have the perception that teaching is easier than it really is. Especially preschool teachers. Oh, you just color pictures all day, right? You just get to have recess and build legos, right? The hardest part of your job is creating colorful bulletin boards, right? You get your summers off and only work school hours, right? You only have a couple kids and they all get along and play nicely, right?

Wrong. I do not get summers off, and I do not just work the school day hours. You have to teach children how to treat others nicely and get along. Yes, you are right that we color pictures and do those other things, but did you know that by coloring a picture, I assess the child's pencil grip, which colors they know, what type of drawing stage they are using, whether they can identify what they draw, how that drawing connects to their past/present life experiences, etc.?

Probably not. I have had plenty of people who are not teachers make comments to me that I must have a really easy, stress free job and that I don't work very hard. How can it be that hard to have summers off and just color all day?

CBS did a special on Friday about some exceptional teachers. You can read an article about it here. I didn't actually watch the special, but I want to. I read the article, though, and it makes me so happy when great teachers get recognized and honored. They deserve it! Of course it's true that there are teachers who don't really care and don't work hard, but that's thankfully the minority. Almost every single teacher I have ever met is passionate about their students and teaching. Almost every single teacher I have ever had or worked with deserves recognition and praise for their high efforts.

I work hard. You think we play all day? Yes, but each center is specifically designed, set up, and changed daily/weekly for optimal learning. I plan what to put in each center, each story that is read, each craft that is made, every song that is sung. Every activity is carefully planned. (Well, most of them. Of course you have those few extra minutes where you have to come up with something on the fly.) And along with all of that, I answer parent emails, check out library books for the next week, take a ton of anecdotal notes each day, write those notes into their conference books, write lesson plans/newsletters/calendars, and be on my game to be encouraging and energetic to each child all day.

I'm not complaining. I am proud to be a teacher and I do not regret God guiding me down this path. I could never be a good teacher without His strength and joy.

I'm just speaking on behalf of all teachers out there- you work hard and you deserve praise. Any encouraging comment from a parent or coworker is so appreciated.

I don't just want to teach. I want to be good at it.

Flowers.

Kley brought me flowers yesterday, just because.

He's the best. :)

Swimming with Steph.

My lifelong friend, Stephanie, lives in Washington DC currently. She came home for Labor Day weekend, which was so awesome! She surprised her family, and we got to be a part of it. Her sister, Erica, also came home from college as a surprise, and both of her parents cried. We picked Stephanie up from the airport Friday after work and took her home and had dinner with her family. It was so great- her family has been good friends of my family since before I was born. I hadn't seen Steph in a few months, so it was great to catch up again!

Saturday we hung out in the pool, and it was so awesome. Takes you back to the glory days when you were young and had nothing else to do except hang out in her pool together. It was so nice to relax and talk with a good friend. (I also swam some laps in the pool, so got some exercise in too!)

So glad you were home, Steph! I love you!

Hitting up the ladybugs at Adventureland many years ago. :)

Visiting DC back in April!

Timing.

I'm thankful for God's perfect timing. Even though at times it doesn't seem perfect, His ways are perfect, and it's neat to be able to look back and see how God was using a time to work something in you.

Thursday was not the best day at work- it was like my kids had a sugar drip running into their bodies. Wild and crazy.

Friday, though, was much better. There were good moments of laughter and obedience. We had a teacher meeting- always good to have time to connect with other teachers. Someone gave me a nice compliment. And it was great knowing that a long weekend is here!

His ways are perfect and He knows what we can handle- when we need to be stretched, and when we need to be encouraged.