I don't even know what to title this post. Today I had such a great day. I got to hang out with Ross for a while and then I got to go do lunch with my 3 dearest friends in the whole world. And it's always good to pick your kids up from school and hear all about how everything went.
In other parts of the world, things are not always so great. I found out that a friend of mine lost her baby today. She was 5 1/2 months pregnant. Her water broke and she had to deliver her little girl that weighed 11 ounces and was 10 inches long. She lived for just over an hour. They named her Chloe. They have had such a hard time getting pregnant. They were so excited.
It just doesn't seem fair sometimes. It humbles me so much to think of her and then to look at the 3 amazing, healthy boys that I have. I am so grateful to be their mom. I hope that tonight I will hug them a little longer and that I will be a little slower to anger in the future.
Funny how a day, and a life, can go from being so good to not so good in just a heartbeat.

Is She Still Talking?!?

Yesterday was Sunday and even though we are not moving for another couple of months, the bishop asked Ross and I to speak. In the last 3 years, I have spoken 8 times. Yes folks, you read that right. 8 times. I can't possibly imagine that people want to hear from me that much!
It turned out to be a pretty good talk I think. At least that is what everyone told me. I am so thankful that I got to be a part of the 26th ward. I remember that I was so nervous when our ward split. I didn't think I would love a ward like I did the 18th. I have been awed and amazed by the stellar people that I have gotten to know and love this last year. I hope they realize how lucky they are to have a ward so great.
In short, life goes on. People come, people go. But the 26th ward will always hold a special place in my heart.

The Wall

So Saturday, the 19th, was the half marathon. I was so excited and nervous. My goal was to finish it in 3 hours or less. I think I have said before that I am not a runner by nature. At all. My brother in law, Ryan, was also running it with a friend of his. Ross got up at the crack of dawn with us (4:30 A.M.) to drive us (Ryan, his friend, me and Megan) to the race start. We got there about an hour before race time. It started right at 7. Ryan and his friend took off right away. Megan and I did a run/walk combo that went pretty well for the most part. The people along the route and at the aid stations were the best! They were cheering and carrying on. At about the half way point, I was pretty freaking hot and my asthma kept kicking in. I still was plugging along though. Ross and my mom met us at the bottom of the canyon, just before mile 10, to cheer us on. That was really cool. Just after 10 miles, I hit a wall. Mentally and physically. I literally could not run. I could barely walk. I do not know what was propelling me forward. I knew Megan's family was at the end waiting for her and I knew she still had it in her to run so I told her she could go. She wouldn't. She said we were in it together. She might have been one of the only reasons right then that I didn't stop and just cry. We walked for a long time. Probably a mile and a half. Anyway, we were on the final stretch and I told her I wanted to run the last little bit in. So we jogged to the end and over the finish line. The first people I saw were my mom and my sister and her kids. I ran over there and gave them high fives. They showed me where Ross and the boys were with my in-laws. I ran over and gave everyone hugs and totally started crying. I was so happy to see them, so happy to be finished. I realized that the only reason I had kept going was so Ross and my boys would think I was cool. I think they might have! Ross told me our time was 2 hours and 55 minutes! So we made our goal. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done. But I felt so great about finishing. Ryan ran it in 1 hour and 54 minutes. I was so proud of him. Later that day, he brought me ice cream for doing it. That meant a lot since him and I don't connect a lot of the time. We went to dinner that night with him and Em and our families. I threw down on a steak.

In hindsight, as hard as it was, I would do it again. Only next time, I'll be faster.

Happy Mother's Day to me!

What an amazing thing it is to be a mother. I can't even begin to describe all the ways I think I screw it up. But then sometimes, too, I think I do ok. I have the 3 most awesome boys. They are always inspiring me to be better. I truly love them.

Today I have thought about my own mom a lot. Over the past couple of years I have come to realize that she really did the best she could. Our relationship wasn't always what I wanted it to be and sometimes it continues to be that way. However, I know she loves me and she has her own way of showing it. I have really come to appreciate those moments.

It makes me appreciate my Savior and the things he does for us. I am so grateful that I am here and that I have gotten to have children of my own. I know it is because of him. I pray that my boys will come to know Him as I have and that they will feel of his love for us.

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms and all you future moms. It's a good life.

So today just happens to be one of the worst days of my life. It seems like not one thing has gone the way it is supposed to. My boys are not co-operating and I just can't seem to get in sync with Ross. One or more of the boys has woken me up every night this week so I am exhausted. Basically, I am just having a giant pity party. I just feel like crying.

You call this a sport?!?

One of my best friends in the whole world recently inspired me to enter a half marathon with her. We have been training for about 2 months now. I am not, by nature, a runner. I am wicked slow. That being said, last night I ran 6 miles in an hour and ten minutes. My average was about an 11 minute mile although I ran the first mile in 10 minutes. Comparitively, I am slow but this is a huge accomplishment for me. It has been a goal of mine for a while to run a marathon. There are moments that are discouraging but I know with every step I take, I am getting closer to my goal. The further I go, the more I realize that it's a reality for me. It is something hard that I think I can do. What a cool feeling it is to know that if you work at it, you can do anything. The sky, er the horizon in this case, is the limit!

I want to thank my husband for the pillar of strength that he is to me. I probably would have given up a long time ago if not for him.

Biggest Fears

So obviously my first and foremost fear would be if something happened to Ross and/or the boys. That is always there. But I have been thinking about it for the last couple of days and realizing a few of my other fears. I think the overall fear in my heart and mind that dominates my motivation is this: being ordinary. I don't want to be ordinary. I want to do great things and be great. I want to do things that are scary or hard for me because that is what helps me to see the strength that God has bestowed upon me.
I don't want to be just another person. I don't want to be someone that is easily replaced or forgotten. When I walk away I want to have put a pemanent mark on people's hearts. I want them to feel like they are someone and like I truly cared for them because I do. I don't want all this because I care so much about what other people think of me. I want it because I want to make a difference in the world. I want to inspire people to see the greatness in themselves.

The One, The Only

Well this is my first attempt at keeping somewhat of a journal. I am not very good at keeping records. It bores me! Well sometimes. It's always fun to go back and look at my by gone days.

I am Kelly. I am a 33 year old wife, mother and friend extraordinaire! Hopefully, anyway. My life's goals are to run a marathon, serve a mission (or 2 or 3) with my husband, make wonderful memories with my boys and experience everything that scares the heck out of me! I am an adrenaline junkie. I am scared of most things but I have the firm belief that everytime you step through your fears, there is an amazing transformation in yourself that takes place. Not that you are stronger but that you realize you had it in you the whole time.

My desire for this blog is that maybe I will learn a little about myself. Or maybe I can inspire someone else to do something great. Time will tell!