My Boy is 11 Today

I've loved this boy from the moment I met him. He taught me how to be a Mom. 

Is still teaching me how to be a mom and a better person. How is it he is 11? Where do the days and the years go? I waited a long time for this sweet pea to get here he is such a blessing to our family. I wondered if I would ever have children and then he arrived! He is so much like me it's crazy. I am so proud of him and the good choices he makes. He is so helpful and aware of everyone around him. Those eyes...I love them they hold the secrets to his heart. He is such a sweet and kind boy. 

Aydan is...

so smart

straight A's

confident

funny

always a protector of his mom and sister

lego master

skateboard lover

broken arm this year

A brave chicken...He'll dive into the ocean all day long but jump at any noise that catches him off guard

music lover

a friend

a helper, he helps without complaint

loves everything I make to eat

Thankful for everything

texts me sweet notes like today I got one....I love you Mom.

Heart melter

He is my number one champion and cheerleader

He is his sisters champion

He loves friends

He is a love

infectious smile and laugh

loves to make us laugh

Pinewood Derby Champion

His Mom and Sisters Champion

This next series of pictures describes those two perfectly........ 

Brave, Smart, and True

Fun and Sweet

2015 Pinewood Derby Champ

I love you my boy keep being the smart, strong, brave and true boy you are. You make Momma proud. XOXO- The Sunny D

The Philosopher

Now. 

There's a philosophy I can really get behind. My brain always stops working in those EXACT situations. 

One more day until spring break. My class is like the crazy monkeys in the movie Jumanjii. You think I am kidding. I am not. It takes great skill and patience to teach anything this week. We are all a bit squirrly. I have been running more frequently and I have noticed some issues in my hips and IT band as I run. These are not new problems just problems that happen because I don't stretch. Anyway, after my race a few weeks ago I decided to get into my sports massage therapist to help loosen my hip/IT bands. The appointment was for today at four and I anxiously awaited it all week. 

It was like a carrot dangling over the THURSDAY to get me through this hard week and finally it had arrived! 

Then I received a call stating my massage therapist had the flu. I felt the wind let out of my sails. BUT, the lady said we can give you a massage today for free and a sugar foot scrub. 

FREE? 

FREE.

Now you are speaking my language. Okay, I agreed. 

She informed me that this would not be the same as the sports therapy which I understood. I was just happy to still get a massage. It was a massage therapist I had never met and I didn't have a reference for. I am kind of leery about massage therapists however, beggars can't be choosers. I headed over to Massage Envy for my appointment. 

The therapist who greeted me looked oddly familiar. Yes, in fact, I quite knew who he was. Except his name wasn't Shaggy but he sure looked like him.

Let's just say as far as massages go my eight year old daughter could have rubbed my shoulders better. Not only that.... I got a lesson in Eastern Philosophy. Yay. 

As I lay there hoping the massage would end Shaggy began to tell me about his horrible high school experience and then began to expound on his beliefs. I asked if he was Buddhist? He said no, I study all eastern philosophy. This teacher was about to get schooled and I could tell that Shaggy really felt like he was teaching me something. He said, "For instance, what makes a room a room?" (Was I supposed to answer this question? ) He then said, the windows and doors make a room otherwise everything is just space. I was so confused. Then I asked him if he had ever travelled to any Asian countries to learn more about them. To which he replied, "I do not have to travel to learn about other countries I only leave my doormat and travel around town and then end on my doormat." HUH? I thought. I could tell he really felt he was on to something. To which I replied, well I just like to travel because it is fun. I also wondered if Shaggy had a side gig writing fortunes for fortune cookies. I also learned that people have feet that smell like corn chips but my feet smelled good. WHEW. I was worried. And then my delightful free massage was over. 

Never take a free massage. XOXO The Sunny D

Full Speed Ahead......

I headed to my beloved Usury Pass for a run after school. 

I took a picture of myself without makeup on and sent it to my friends. My skin was totally broken out. I couldn't even believe it. I mean the worst. I had a huge canker sore in my mouth and was absolutely exhausted. I was cranky and unhappy and my tank was on zero. When the familiar quote my Grandma said to me once ran through my brain...No one will take care of you but you. I realized I had not been taking care of myself. Everything from diet, exercise, cleaning...everything had sat on the back burner as I zoomed children here or there. I planned lessons for school and church or went to work for the day. Things needed to change and so slowly they have been. 

We cleaned out the closets and had a garage sale Saturday! Wow! What a big job, but the kids helped SO much. Ellie had garage sale on the brain all last week as we spent every evening tackling another room or closet to clean out. She sat straight up in bed Thursday morning when she woke up and said, "Mom, on Friday after school we need to set the tables up in the garage for the sale. We need to have them all ready and put out the signs." Oh man, I would have thrown in the towel on this hair brained garage sale idea if it wasn't for her enthusiasm. My children driven to work and help by the hope of making some pocket money! We had a great turn out and the best part is our garage is CLEAN! 

The missionaries showed up around ten am on Saturday with a great friend of mine and picked ALL the weeds in my side yard. What a job! They did it in 15 minutes. I was amazed it would have taken me hours. What a blessing! I am so thankful. I was feeling so much stress lifted by my house being cleaned out, organized, garage clean and yard weeded. I felt that built up pressure start to lift as these things were accomplished. Several months of running all over on Saturdays to games, trying to grab groceries, run errands in between games had left our home a mess. Now, it was starting to shape up and be the way I liked it to be. In ONE Saturday! YAY. 

I evaluated my life and realized there were some major things missing. The first thing I decided was it was high time to cook dinner every night. I had been running full speed from work to take kids to practices that we had gotten in to the habit of grabbing meals on the go. It was time for me to buckle down and cook real meals. I started that last week and I think everyone is happier. The kids help and we get to talk and enjoy each others company. 

I realized that I needed my regular workouts. They help relieve my stress. I also decided that I would have the kids come with me for half my run. They could run with me, or ride a bike, scooter or long board. We all needed the sunshine and time away from the TV. We are all happier. Today the kids are at their Dad's. I came home took off for a run and what joy I felt as my ponytail whipped back and forth on the back of my head. I couldn't help smiling as I went along. 

I love running on the white line that separates the bike lane and car lane. I do it all the time. I even run on it during races. If there aren't any cars of course. 

There's a spot on my way home that has dandelions. I always pick one and make a wish. It's a good way to end my run. I have been going to bed early, drinking more water, and just being more kind to myself in general. Guess what, my skin is clearing up and I feel happy. 

What I need to feel less stress:

1. Clean house

2. Home Cooked Meals

3. Exercise

4. Down time with my kids

5. Early Bed Time

6. Noting the things I am grateful for along my day

7. Time to meditate and read or listen to uplifting books, magazines, talks etc.

XOXO- Sometimes happiness is a conscious choice we make every day. -The Sunny D

When Grandpa Ran With Me

Grandpa, a horse, and me

I love this picture. Do you see how I am holding onto Grandpa? That little hand says a lot. She knows she can hold on to Grandpa and he will steady her. 

My Grandpa died several years ago. We all miss him. Luckily though I believe in a higher plan. Part of that plan is I lived in Heaven before coming to this Earth. I was born into a family that loves and protects me and I am able to have my own family and do the same. I also believe that life does not end when we die. I believe that we die but our spirits go on. There is more to that plan and if you want to know, just ask. 

I also believe in angels. I have to be careful when I type that. Sometimes I type angle. 

I don't mean that, I mean angel. Just so we're clear. Spell check won't catch that one. 

My Grandpa was a horseman. I grew up going with him to feed the horses in Lehi, Arizona. That is where we are in the picture. I wrote about running the Ragnar Relay in my last blog post. This is an experience I had while running. 

It was my last leg of the race only 5.5 miles to go. I was happy about that and ready to get the show on the road. We had left 36 hours before around 1AM Friday morning. It was now noon on Saturday. The weather was beautiful and the temperature began to climb getting warmer and warmer. I hadn't had a real meal since noon the day before and sleep?? Sporadic. The scenery was beautiful. 

I headed out feeling good about this run until I realized it was the last run through the McDowell mountains up into Fountain Hills. My race climbed several large hills. Each hill I kept telling myself it's ok..there is always a down hill after an uphill and then you can cruise. That was not so on this leg of the race.  Up and up and up I ran and hotter and hotter and hotter it became. There was no down hill a short straight away before being lobbed into another hill.  I began to doubt my ability to run this race, to finish this race. After all, I didn't train on any hills. Not only that, the most I actually ran was a base run of three miles, two or three times a week. I kept telling myself it would get better, easier. I could do this. Until I came upon the mother of all hills. It was 2 miles of an uphill climb that made me want to sink into the asphalt and pretend I never signed up for this dumb race. This hill had no end in sight it just kept turning and going up and up. I thought to myself why does this last leg feel so much like my life. Really. It's all UPHILL.........

 That is ok! The cheering section of my brain would say..you have run a marathon! What is this? 2 miles??? Big deal, you got this girl. Just turn up the music! Step after step my hamstrings were SCREAMING! A fourth of the way into the hill my energy just gave out.  Holy cow! I had already run two giant hills and now was on the MOTHER of all hills. 

I had done it all on my own and I knew at this point I needed more than my own strength to go any further. I began to plead with Heavenly Father for strength. I told him there was NO WAY that I could do this. I was all alone in the desert and I was hot...and tired. I was spent. I needed him to strengthen me, please, I begged. 

It was here that I felt like Grandpa was running beside me. I could feel him there. I knew he was there. I even said in my head, "Grandpa, you aren't a runner!" I heard in return, "I am a farmer, this is nothing!" I started to doubt for a second AND it was here at this exact second that I began to doubt my Grandpa running with me that a HUGE trailer of Thoroughbred horses passed right next to me on the road. It was in that exact moment that not only could I FEEL Grandpa but as the doubt passed through my brain I could SMELL Grandpa. Just so I would know for sure, for SURE that he was there because I don't believe in coincidences like that. I breathed in the alfalfa horsey smell and trudged up that hill with Grandpa running beside me. 

And. I was so thankful. Thankful that there is a Father in Heaven who hears my plea during some DUMB race that I submitted myself to willingly and in my moment of weakness he shows up. Every time. Every Single Time. In ways that are personal to me so that I KNOW he is there. 

I love my Grandpa. Boy do I miss him. I know he watches out for me, and all of his children and grandchildren because that is who he is. He is a Grandpa that will run with you, that you can hold on to, who will steady you, so you can feel safe and finish the race. 

Right after my last leg. Everything burns. 

XOXO- Heavenly Father is real, He knows you, He LOVES you, and so do Grandpa's. -The Sunny D