It is Official

AS of 3/23 it was official. I am now signed up for the Portland to Coast Relay Walk on August 28th and 29th. I have always wanted to participate in the Hood to Coast Relay race but knew I wasn't ready for the challenge completely. So I am starting with the walk and I am VERY excited.

I am on a team with 5 of my closest friends and I am very excited to share this accomplishment with them. Jenn and I have done a few training walks together and I have done a few on my own. We keep trying to come up with new and more challenging places we can walk in the evenings and hopefully some really challenging ones on the weekends. It looks like we have a few tough legs in store for us.

I am really excited and looking forward to this experience and sharing it with Jenn, Tara, Jenny, LindsAy and Erin. PTC here we come!!!!

Just checking in....

I have been meaning to blog this last week since I have been back from Vegas. However Tuesday my laptop took a crap so I haven't been taking it home at night, therefore no blog.

While I was in Vegas it gave me a plethora of ideas for blog topics. As I would see stuff or think of stuff I would add them in to my notes on my Blackberry (which I think is an entire post of it's own). Hopefully this weekend I will get some time to blog and will attach some of the blog topics. (Since I am just posting this on Monday I didn't get a chance to write this weekend.)

On the book update I took Erin's advice and I read Girl With A Pearl Earring. I loved it! It wasn't anything I expected it to be. I have now decided to read The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks. Reading has consumed my time lately. It makes me feel like I have an entirely different set of friends that nobody knows about. It is weird I know. I do love talking to other people though about different books and giving them suggestions. I especially love it when I suggest a book and they love it as much as I did. Recently I suggested Confessions of a Shopaholic to Jenn and Water for Elephants to Erin. I was so excited that they liked the books. It was like they now know my new friends. :)

I found a new blog to read....

My friend Cori Megan has a new blog I have enjoyed reading for about a week now. I have to admit if there are links on blogs to other blogs I will check them out. On Cori's I started reading this blog she had titled matt, liz and madeline. I clicked on it just to see if I may know them. I didn't but I got sucked in. So for the last 2 days I will log in, do my regular morning checks then when I get my emails caught up I start my reading. I don't know if Cori knows them personally or if she heard about the blog from someone else regardless if you haven't heard the story or read the blog it is worth the read but be prepared for the tears.

If you haven't heard the story check out their blog. When you get there before you read ANYTHING go to the links on the right side of the page and you will see one titled, if you haven't been here before. It gives you a background of what Matt is blogging about. Once you have read that part of his blog dive in. There is seriously reading for days. I have now added the blog to my blog reader and am looking forward to updates. I look forward to updates on others blogs as well.

This blog just makes you put life into perspective. It makes you realize how EVERYTHING can change in literally a minute. It makes you realize there are far more important things in life than a new pair of jeans or who is going to do the dishes that night. Chris and I have so much going on right now which really makes me crazy but we have each other.

The Nightstand

Thursday night I got an IM from Jenn wondering if I had any girly girl books she could read. Nothing that was romantic or anything deep. Just something simple and girly pretty much. I started thinking about a few books I had. I suggested Confessions of a Shopaholic. I have bought and read the entire series. I love that they are quick, simple, smart, funny and most importantly girly.

As I was looking through my box of books I stumbled upon about 6 or 7 books I have started but haven't finished yet. Usually I will have 1 book I am reading and a few I have started reading but not finished sitting on my nightstand. Now sitting on my nightstand are 6 or 7 books I have started but not finished. I have now made it my new goal to finish them before I buy another book. Which will be hard since I love to buy new books that I think I will love.

Last night I finished Water for Elephants, loved it. (Which BTW is an entirely new blog.) Now I have to decided which of the 7 books on my nightstand I will restart and finish.

Can You Keep A Secret, Sophie Kinsella
River Cross My Heart, Breena Clarke
The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
Girl With A Pearl Earling, Tracy Chevalier
Big Stone Gap, Adriana Trigiani
Sunday At Tiffany's, James Patterson
We Were The Mulvaney's, Joyce Carol Oates

I think it might be The Alchemist since I have read most of it and just stopped because I fell asleep on the plane and lost my spot.

Love Never Fails

From my daily emails....I got this January 15 saved it as a draft but never posted it. I thought I would post it today for things to ponder........

Anybody can return evil for evil... The real victory is being kind to people who mistreat you... USUALLY people that are hurting, end up hurting others... My rule of thumb to remember is this.... Hurt people, hurt people.... God wants his mature, faith-filled people to help heal wounded hearts... It's the goodness of God that leads people to repentance...Be a light in darkness... If you will be extra kind, before long, God's goodness expressed through you will overcome any evil...LOVE NEVER FAILS.

Difficulties

"When difficulties occur, I always ask, "Is this a blip or a catastrophe? Is it a minor annoyance or a serious problem? The answer helps me to focus and find the best way to proceed"...
-Donald J. Trump