My Romance: Falling Behind While Getting Ahead

I have created so many new and good habits lately; blogging regularly just isn't one of them! I realize I only posted 3 times in April even though so much has happened in our family life and my life personally. Where to start?
I have been blessed with what seems like the perfect job. Low stress, independence, casual & laid back, fun, fairly straightforward and easy, wonderful hours and the list could go on and on. Monday through Friday I work from 6:45 am to 1:30 pm and then I have each afternoon off to spend with my family. It works so well because the kids are still asleep when I leave so there is no separation anxiety, the kids will each nap while I'm at work so it gives Mike a little break and then Harrison is still napping when I get home and ready to go out for the afternoon! It is such a wonderful schedule for our family. It certainly doesn't hurt either that my boss is also a triathlete at the Ironman level and is full of race experience and general training wisdom (not to mention used gear galore!) We continue to be so blessed!

You may be wondering how we spend our afternoons in this wonderful little mountain town... parks, walking trails, swimming pool, library and gymnastics are just a few activities that keep us and our kids busy. We have made Friday our family date afternoon and evening Mommy/Daddy date night. Our regular activity is to take the kids swimming at 3:30pm and then enjoy a simple meal out. By the time we get home they are worn out from swimming that they have a very peaceful night sleep, and we can either have a babysitter come over and go out or curl up on the couch and watch a movie and snuggle.

We are still waiting for Mike's permanent residency paperwork to be approved. I am so proud of the way he has stepped up into the role of being Mr. Mom. He keeps the kids on their schedules and they are equally content and happy with him as they are with Mommy and that says a lot! Gratefully the weather is improving daily so they will be able to get out of the house more often and get some fresh air and exercise. Sadly I heard on the radio that Canada receives an F for children’s fitness and health. Kids need 90 minutes a day of physical activity and on average Canadian children are not meeting the minimum requirements. Mike and I both have a passionate desire to make sure our children learn healthy living habits from us, so they never have to struggle with weight issues, so we are determined to make sure Harrison and Heidi both get the amount of exercise they need. No fat camp for this family!! We are creating a NEW legacy in the name of Jesus!

My triathlon training is going really great for me. I have achieved some mini-milestones for myself lately that I am so proud to have accomplished. Since starting training I have lost 17.4 lbs and 51lbs from my highest pregnancy weight. That is a lot of extra weight to carry around! I still have a LONG way to go but to see such steady progress is really encouraging!

Today I set two new personal best times on the bike (15.5km in 37:30 and a 5km run in 37:45). This is very exciting for me too; I am seeing drastic improvements in my strength and endurance. The top female finisher in my age category for the Lake Chaparral tri completed the course in 1:07:52 (swim 11:46, bike 31:40, run 24:28). Not that I am aiming for first place my very first time out, but I am competitive by nature and want to do my very best, each and every time. Currently I am 11+ minutes more on the swim, only 7+ minutes more on the bike, but 14+ minutes more on the run. Thankfully I still have 3 months of training left and a lot more weight to shed! It gives me an awesome goal to shoot towards and I find it very motivating. My new road bike still hasn’t come in yet but can’t wait for it to arrive so I can get out and enjoy the beautiful spring weather.

May is literally birthday month for our family. Harrison, Mike and I celebrate our birthdays on the 5th, 8th and 12th, plus Mike’s dad and brother, and my cousin Kali. We are going down to Lethbridge to celebrate Harrison’s 2nd birthday with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Blair, Aunty Danielle, and possibly Jim, Paula, Josh and Cole. We are having a farm/cowboy birthday party; riding horses, tractors, the golf cart. It should be a great party!

This past weekend we went to about 5 garage sales where I bought some random trinkets that I really didn’t need, but isn’t that the point of browsing garage sales?!? I actually bought a large mirror for $5, and an old fashioned beater, framed picture of some grain elevators, and a metal scoop for $8. We also found a tent trailer that hasn’t officially hit the market yet because the family wants to use it one last time for the May long-weekend. It is a pop-up tent trailer with 3 beds, a sink, fridge, stove and electric power. I am so excited to go camping with my family this summer! Alberta has such great weather in the summer; it would be such a shame to waste any beautiful weekends.
Since all of our earthly possessions are in Texas we are planning a trip down to have a quick visit and to pick it all up, likely in June. We’d like to meet with all our family while we’re there but it is proving to be a little difficult to get 4 siblings and their families together for a visit and/or a family picture. Mike’s middle sister, Kimbra and her husband Zach are expecting their first child at the end of June and we’d like to be able to pass some baby items along to them that they might be able to use before the baby arrives. This will be the third baby girl born into our extended family this year, Jayden, Heidi and baby Tharp. We have only seen Jayden once so to visit again will be wonderful! It would be nice to see Kimbra and Zach’s baby too, but the timeline just isn’t in our favour. I pray it all comes together since I don’t think we’ll be able to afford another trip down for a couple years.

Last but certainly not least, I am anxiously awaiting the return of one of my best friends, Jill Callitz. Jill, if you remember, has been seeking alternative treatment for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma with a doctor in Mexico. Sadly the treatments are not working and the cancer is not going into remission and so Jill has been faced with the decision to proceed with chemotherapy and radiation treatments at home in Alberta. She is currently spending some much needed time with her husband in the Caribbean islands before she starts her new treatments mid-May. Jill is absolutely my hero and an inspiration to me! She is so brave and positive. She has started stock piling different wigs to off-set her hair loss and is actually going to shave her head and donate her hair before she loses it. I think that takes an enormous amount of courage! I can’t wait to see her sporting purple hair and Afro hair. I think it will really suit her!

Please pray for Jill and Jaco as they are having to make some very difficult decisions because of the possible side effects of the chemo. Jill may become infertile and unable to bare children and so they are considering whether to harvest eggs, how many, etc. I can’t imagine having to make these types of decisions, let alone within such a short timeline. I firmly believe that my God is so much bigger than cancer and can completely spare Jill from any and all negative side effects, but I also understand that they want to feel prepared in case that is not what God has in store. Please lift them up in your prayers, I love Jill so much and can’t wait for her to live out her life in full freedom and victory!!

Wow! This is a lengthy update. I really, really need to be more consistent about writing so my posts are more manageable to read. Thank you for reading, see you back again soon!