a plum-tickled kind of day...

...plink....plink...plink...plunk...plunk...plink...

I love to wake up to the sound of rain!  It's one of life's simple pleasures that I truly enjoy... and it usually helps make a really great day!

This rainy, cool morning was our second family 5K.  Because her foot is still droopy, Ellen didn't participate (she had a MUCH more enjoyable time spending the night at Mallory's house!).  

The other three started out of the gates much faster than I but I eventually caught up to Emme.  I didn't really train for this race but thought I was going so much faster because I didn't have Ellen... have to listen to Ellen complain... have to carry Ellen... etc... etc.  

Come to find out... not much faster.  I bettered my time by a minute but still have a ways to go before I win any races... my body is screaming at my right now but it was so worth it!  Might be a good idea to train a little ahead of time next time though....


After a quick shower at home, I got Girls' Lunch Out...

The LORD has blessed me some incredible friendships that have stood the test of time.  Because life gets in the way, I don't always have time to catch up with these dear women.  Ami and I have walked life together for a while now and I love that woman as if she were my own flesh and blood sister.   Today we were blessed with a day to catch up on each other's lives.

She picked me up for lunch and took me to her favorite "off the beaten path" hideout... Pickles.  For years, I have occasionally driven right past this place and didn't even know it existed. 

After a lunch (on the porch at Pickles) of butternut squash and apple soup that was divine and a turkey and cranberry panini with provolone, cream cheese and chives, spinach and artichoke hearts that was amazing... I am plum-tickled to not only know that Pickles exists but also to have been invited by Ami to her favorite "off the beaten path" hideout.

Pickles is the kind of place you can wander to... to escape life for a little while.  It's quiet. It's quaint. And, I'm not supposed to give away Ami's secret, so you didn't hear this from me...

if you ever want to go to Pickles...

you'll find it in Plumtickled!

celebrating with a coconana berry smoothie!

Today I completed my walking goal for the month of March... 40 miles! Not a lot by some standards but a ton by mine! It feels good. So, the new goal is 5o miles in April and to train for a 10K. I'm actually looking forward to this goal! And, looking forward to getting new sneakers... shin splints... yuck!

So, to celebrate my goal and to walk the remaining 1.5 miles for March, I walked to our local Christian bookstore to look for a gift for my soon-to-be 15 year old friend, Makayli. Makayli's birthday is tomorrow.

I found a book on Christian dating for Makayli that looked promising and so I thought I'd peruse it while I waited for my "40 mile celebratory coconana berry smoothie" in the cafe of the bookstore. As I was waiting in line, I heard someone say "Hi!". I turned around and greeted a friend that I've known from high school. We exchanged pleasantries while waiting for our respective drinks. I looked down and realized I was holding a book on dating. Hmm..... (currently, my wedding rings and my 10th anniversary ring are being cleaned and repaired and so my fingers are bare....)... awkward! Fortunately, Darrin knows me... he knows Chad... he knows we are happily married. He even promised to start no rumors other than the fact that he heard I was dating a nurse at the hospital.

The entire exchange with Darrin took about 2.5 minutes but I have chuckled a lot since. I love that God gives me unexpected joys in the middle of my days. And, I can't wait to get my rings back and be "officially" married again!

As far as the coconana berry smoothie... what a way to celebrate an accomplished goal! If you are ever in the area, I'll meet you at the Tree of Life and treat you to one! Soooo good!!!

25 miles and counting...

Today's walk marked the 25.5 mile marker for me! I can't remember what day of March I actually decided to start walking to train for a 5K but I do know that on March 19, I passed 25 miles of walking and I am registered for a 5K next Saturday. The entire family is joining me!! My girls are NOT excited about this but I am...I can't wait!!

Only a few know how huge this is for me. I used to walk and I loved it. I thought that was just a few years ago until I realized it was 15 years ago!!!! Somehow life happened...7 pregnancies, 3 babies, major surgeries, broken tailbone, etc., etc. Not only have I gotten way too far out of shape but also walking was no longer something I even aspired to. I always seemed to have far too many things to do in a day to be able to fit a walk into the schedule.

I honestly believe this desire to walk a 5K, a 10K, a mini and a marathon is God ordained. I think He had given me this desire... it's as if He has breathed it into my heart. For the first time in my almost 41 years, I have this desire but it hasn't taken over my life. Usually, when I decide to set a goal, it becomes a "god" for me. I do everything I can to accomplish it and I get angry if someone or something gets in my way. I become obsessed with the goal and it begins to take over my entire life.

So far, it seems as if this goal of walking is different. For instance, I have missed several days of walking this month because of either my own sickness or my kid's sickness. The weather has kept me in as well. However, I walk when I can and I enjoy it immensely. When I can't walk, I'm okay with it.

I want my attitude to stay this way. I don't want this to take over my life and become a "god" or an idol. I don't want it to become about weight loss. I don't want it to become about how far or fast I walk. Instead, I want to enjoy it simply because God has given me the health to be able to walk and He gives me beautiful creation to enjoy while I am walking and He allows me to pray and praise Him for a few minutes by myself while walking down the road.

25 miles and counting of spending some quality time enjoying His creation praying and praising Him!

a few more things in my full day...

Here are a few more things in my full day today...

1~after my last post about today being dreary and rainy, it turned out to be the most beautiful afternoon! God blessed us with sun and 63 degrees. After the library, I came home ready to walk and my man opted to join me. I love the blessing of having not-so-little-anymore kids. We left them here and away we went! Ahhh! Two miles later, I felt refreshed and blessed to have a few moments of time with my man.

2~as of today, I have walked a total of 18 miles in 8 days. Not too bad. Still plugging away at my goal! Hopefully, I will get faster after this cough goes away. I told some friends at the library today that I was hoping to sweat the germs right out of me today. Don't think it worked but I am glad I got the walk in!

3~we collected over 20 gallons of sap and boiled it down to just over 1/2 gal. We finished them Monday evening. Here are some pics of my finished jars of syrup. Of course, we've eaten some already and tonight is French Toast so that we can enjoy some more. I'm thinking I may have to buy some at the Amish grocery store this season to get us through the year, since we seem to be gobbling up ours!

I'm not sure if we'll get any more sap. I don't have covered buckets and our forecast for this week is rain, rain and more rain, so I took the buckets down for now. It's also not getting below freezing at night and so the sap isn't running very fast. If we have another cold snap, I may hang the buckets back up and try for a little more syrup. But, right now, it's nice to not have sap constantly boiling in my kitchen. Although, the smell was very yummy!!

a beautiful morning out...

Yet another Sunday morning has come and I am home with sickness. Not mine, this time...the girls. Last week it was just one girl and this week both. Two different times this week I opened my front door for a few minutes to air out my house. Can't wait to open up the entire house for a good breeze to blow these germs right out!!

I knew last night that we would be home today and so after a few minutes of planning ahead, I was able to really thank God for the rest. It's been a busy week of putting together a new Children's Church curriculum and working on yesterday's ladies' day retreat. After an incredible day with the ladies, we went to a surprise birthday party for our pastor last night. While we were there, I was able to ask my sweet friend, Mary, to take Children's Church for me today. I'm so thankful God gave me a "heads up" yesterday that I would be home today and that He gave me the opportunity to go to bed knowing that all my responsibilities for today were covered.

After sleeping in a little this morning, I was able to leave both girls home (having older kids has opened a whole new world to me...and, I must say, "I love this new world!") and go out for a walk. Here in my neck of the woods, it is another beautiful day! I just have to tell you, this morning was gorgeous! What an incredible blessing from my Creator God!!

For some reason (known only to God, I'm sure), I have this driving desire to walk a marathon. Actually, I want to walk a 5k, a 10k, a mini and a marathon. I told Chad I added this to my "bucket list" and he laughed at me! I think he's realizing that I'm a little more serious than he thought and I think I have him talked into a 5k as a family. Both my sis, Susy, and my bro, Darren, are runners. I have ZERO desire to run. In fact, I equate running with Chinese torture!! However, I have always been impressed that Susy is a marathoner. I'm not sure how many marathon's she's run but I've always been impressed that she has completed more than one. Darren is currently training for the Flying Pig in Cincinnati (not sure who first named that race....). I will so be thinking of him and praying for him when he runs it in May. And, who knows, maybe next year, I'll join him.

I only want to do these races just to be able to say that I've completed these various races. "Slow and steady wins the race" may have worked for the tortoise...I'm not expecting it to work for me. I won't be the fastest. I won't win. In fact, I very well may be the last one in but I will find great pleasure in just completing the race. I don't know if I will ever get to a completed marathon, either. But, for now, it's fun to dream.

So, on this beautiful morning out, I completed 3 miles. Only 10 more to complete a mini-marathon! The shorter goal, though, is to complete a trek around our 4.7 mile block and to finish a 5 k race. I'll let you know when I get there!