Ragnar Del Sol 2011

Each time I step foot on the asphalt (or pavement, or river bottom, or trail) I learn something. This race was no exception. I learned that:

• If you don't let yourself think that something is impossible, it won't be, and you will achieve results greater than you would have ever imagined or even hoped to expect.
• Celebrating the triumphs of a sister, brother, or friend is even better than celebrating your own.
• Although, demolishing your own goals is pretty awesome, too.
• Ragnar Relay's are like pregnancies- you never remember how difficult and challenging and miserable it is until you are in the midst of it all over again. You also don't remember quite how amazing it is to be doing it, either.
• Geology and geography are NOT the same thing.
• Minivans were engineered for my biology.
• 4 AM is NOT a good time to wake up in the morning for 4 days in a row.
• Michael Jackson is awesome, but not when "Thriller" is stuck on repeat during your night run of the relay.
• Triumphs are even better when I can celebrate them with Dallas and my kids.
• Attitude is everything! A race like this (and life) will always be what you make of it. Your attitude can make it, or break it.
  

I was able to blow my goals out of the water while running just over 26 total miles. Here are the results:

Leg 1: 7.05 miles at a 7:32/mile pace. I ran the first 2 miles at a 6:50! This is my fastest race pace to date.

Leg 2: 6.44 miles at a 7:56/mile pace. This was my only uphill leg. Running on a river bottom at the beginning in the dark slowed me down, but it was awesome.

Leg 3: 7.92 miles at an 7:59/mile pace. This was a good downhill leg, but I swear it felt like it was uphill! After sleeping only 1.5 hours over the space of the day, I was exhausted and my body was hard to keep going. I hit my goal and was satisfied and relieved that it was over!

LEG 4: 4.63 miles at a 7:50/pace. One of our runners, my cousin Nate Henrie on Dallas' side, injured his knee and was unable to finish his last leg. I ran it for him to come into the finish line. I felt better on this leg than I did on my third. It was incredible that I could run it- I was amazed at my strong body and my ability. I was so thankful that I had been training religiously since October and that I could complete the race strong for my team.

Van 1- Mindy Kohler, Clayton Wilson, Amylee Nicoll, Shawn Hansen, LaDawn Thorbe, Debbi Hilton

Mindy, runner #1 at the start line.

What happens in the van, stays in the van. Shawn, LaDawn, and Debbi.

Warming up for Leg 1. It was awesome to run outside in shorts and a tank!

Clayton running a 6:56/mile pace. He's a gazelle.

I loved that Clay handed off to me. We decided to do this race because we wanted to run a race together.

Make like a cactus...

And the injuries begin. Coach Clay was the KT Tape master.

Sisters! The other reason I wanted to run was because of Cami! She was totally amazing and worked so hard for this. I was so proud and so happy that I got to watch her finish her last leg; I couldn't help but get emotional as she rounded her last corner towards the exchange. This picture was taken right before van 2 began their journey.

Sleep? Yeah, right. I got a total of 1.5 hours during the race.

Getting ready to head out for our second run as the sun was starting to set. Mindy, Debbi and LaDawn.

Meeting up at the major exchange. Leslee rocked her 9.2 mile first leg and was feeling awesome. Angemarie came down with the flu the night before and was just praying she would make it through. Thanks to a blessing from Clay and Nate Henrie and a lot of prayers, she did it.

The only thing better than an Arizona sunset is....

...an Arizona sunrise. This picture is unaltered and was taken by my point and shoot camera, so you can imagine how stunning it was. I watched the sunrise for my entire 3rd leg of 7.9 miles. I was in awe. It helped me keep my mind off the exhaustion.

Clayton after he was finished. His last leg would have kicked his butt even if he didn't have to do it with stomach issues and a bad knee. I was so worried about him. I don't know why because he still managed to get 9 kills up the 8.8 mile hill and was only passed by 1 person. Half of the time he was even skipping. That kid is an animal!

Austin before his last leg- which he tore through at a 7:08/mile pace. This guy is an athlete without even having to try.

So you think you're done? Or not. This is me at exchange 35 right before I ran Nate Henrie's final leg- 4.7 miles to the finish line. If I didn't get lost, it would have been shorter! Watch for those signs, people...

Finished! Nate Henrie and me. I slapped the bracelet on Nate a few yards before the finish so that he could be the one to take it in. He hobbled as fast as he could and the announcer said, "Here comes team 114, Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote, showing their battle wounds!"

Our team- "Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote"- finished the race in 30:51:39 with an average pace of 9:22.8/mile. We placed 174th out of 306 teams- 70th in our division out of 141 teams.

Nate Henrie, Amylee Nicoll, Mindy Kohler, Clayton Wilson, Debbi Hilton, Leslee Wilson, LaDawn Thorpe, Cami Hansen, Shawn Hansen, Austin Nicoll, and Nate Hansen hiding in the back ground.We tried to leave AZ early the next day to avoid a snow storm, but instead we ran straight into it. We left at 4AM only to get stopped because they closed I-17. We waited at a rest stop for 5 hours before we could get on our way again. It took us a total of 18 hours to get home, we almost slid off the road one time, so did the boys in the other van, and a semi jack knifed right behind us. It was possibly the longest day ever!

Life is good.

I seem to have lost my blogging voice. We're still here and happy. Life is good, and the following quote is proof:

"Wancho is spanish for Ranch." -William Bentley Nicoll

I LUV U

Last week when I left to do primary visits, Will chose to stay home. Dallas was doing homework in the basement and Will was left with strict instructions not to bother him. After a few minutes he sat outside of the bedroom door where Dallas was working. Dallas could hear rustling at first, and then he saw the corner of the DoodlePro poking from underneath the door. Dallas opened the door to find Will, patiently working to scrawl out "I LUV U". He sounded it out to spell it and wrote it all by himself. He just wanted to leave a note underneath the door for his Daddy.

The longer I'm married, the more love changes for me. It isn't flowers and chocolates and surprises and presents and date nights- that's romance.

Love is going to school at 6:25 AM, coming home for lunch for 30 minutes and then heading straight to work; it's getting home to eat dinner with your family only to head down into the basement to do homework until 10 PM, and then going to bed to do it all over again.

Love is making peanut butter sandwiches, buttering toast, and wiping faces.

Love is buying beef bologna, expensive potato chips, and making pot roast on a Monday.

Love is ironing dress clothes and folding underwear in thirds.

Love is spending your Christmas money on diapers and size 4 shoes.

Love is watching the kids so one person can escape for a few minutes.

Love isn't perfect. Sometimes it's spelled wrong and sometimes the letters are backwards, but love is what gets us through.

Up to No Good

In January we weren't up to much.

Annie was as mischievous as ever. You can just tell that she's trouble.

Will was a good boy and smiled for the camera when I asked him to.

Annie spent a lot of time putting boots on... and off... and on... and off...
She also learned to dance like Michael Jackson- this picture is evidence.

We definitely didn't do anything naughty like eat cookie dough or unhealthy amounts of chocolate chip cookies. We aren't those kind of people.

We are, however, glad that the longest and coldest month of the year is OVER!

3 Nephi 13:30-33

About a month ago I had a dream that a major world war broke out right where we were living. I woke up with a pit in my stomach and felt the urgency that we needed to be stocking up on some of the food and things that we use the most. Every week Dallas and I have been talking about how we could use some of our budget to buy some extra food storage, but week after week we found ourselves without a penny to spare.

Friday night I read 3 Nephi 13:30-33 during my personal scripture study:

30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, even so will he clothe you, if ye are not of little faith.
31 Therefore take not though, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32 For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.

Saturday morning we were blessed by an angel, someone that must have been listening to the promptings of the spirit on our behalf, as our family witnessed what was to us, a miracle- food storage.

Over the last few years things have been tight for us financially, but we have always had the things that we need, and so many of the things that we want as well. Without the Lord's help, I know this wouldn't be possible. Our budget never works out on paper, but somehow, each month, we are able to meet our obligations and then some. I am so thankful that the Lord listens to my little pleadings and worries, no matter how small or insignificant they may seem. He knows they are important to me. I hope I always have the faith to allow Him to bless our family.

Judge Me

Tonight the only "vegetable" we had for dinner was tater tots... and I may or may not have shared a giant- and I mean GIANT- piece of chocolate cake with the kiddos as our afternoon snack.

I've worn the same shirt for two days in a row. For no reason.

I spent more time on Facebook today than I have in a week. I need a new book or something.

My idea of a healthy sandwich is peanut butter and honey on multi grain bread.

I used to think and talk about babies all the time, but now I would rather talk about running.

I want to upgrade my cable package just so I can watch Jazz games at my house.

I think Zac Efron is hot.

Even though I know my kids are running a muck and creating the largest mess in the history of the world, I still choose to wait until they are up before I get in the shower in the morning, and I stay in there until the water runs cold.

I have eaten a chocolate covered marshmallow Santa every day for 10 days because I got them for .08 cents at Smith's out of the Christmas clearance cart. I only have one more left and I'm in mourning.

I watch The Bachelor every week. And Grey's Anatomy.

The Script's self-titled album has been playing on my iPod non stop for over a week.

I'm pretty sure I can sing better than half the people on American Idol. They just don't want me because they have enough brunettes right now.

Even though it's poorly written, I still like the Twilight series.

I think brand spankin' new newborn babies are the cutest things in the entire world.

I wish I had a steaming bowl of jalapeno artichoke dip with a side of tortilla chips with me right now. Oh wait. I do.

And scene.

One Year

One year ago, today, I started running. I ran 9/10 of a mile in 15 minutes and thought I was going to pass out. I almost did. It took me a good hour to recover enough to stand up and make dinner for my family. No kidding.

Today I got up at 6AM and ran 5.65 miles in about 4 inches of snow; I was dodging snowplows, slipping down the hills, wishing I had windshield wipers for my face, and enjoying my morning at a leisurely pace. I got home, cleared off Dallas' car and switched the car seats around so he could take my jeep down to school. I made a scrambled egg and toast breakfast for my babies, ate, and then hopped in the shower to start my day.

I'm not even the same person anymore, and in so many more ways than just being able to run without fainting. I'm stronger mentally, more driven and ambitious. I set goals, and I accomplish them. I enjoy quiet moments by myself and I don't need anyone else by my side encouraging me because I've learned how to be my own cheerleader. I can do hard things.

Running has made me a better person. I'm so grateful.

Thank you, Katie Nelson, for suckering me into running the Wasatch Back Ragnar one year ago.

There's a snake in my boot!!!

Poop.

Stop reading now or forever hold your peace.

Incident #1- This was the least offending of all incidents (because it didn't involve me directly). I will spare the details and let you know that this involved a little 6 year old relative, a Chick-Fil-A bathroom, and the dreaded diarrhea. He missed. I was so grateful that I was not his mother.

Incident #2- This was the second least offensive incident of the weekend. (Did I mention that all of these things happened in one weekend? This last weekend to be exact.) Annie is attracted to toilets like a moth to a flame. She played in my Aunt's (this was directly following "Incident #1). Bad news. Another dear child had just used the toilet and didn't flush. I counted my lucky stars that it was only pee pee.

Incident #3- Saturday afternoon I'm visiting with the grandparents and some great uncles and aunt. I hear a tiny little voice that says, "Mommy, I need help..." I go to the bathroom and find my son, poor soul, naked from the waist down except for some socks smeared with something.... unmentionable... He had had an accident and tried to clean it up by himself. William. Love him dearly. We went home with Will wrapped up snug in an old green towel.

Incident #4- My headstone almost read, "May she rest in peace." Remember how much Annie loves toilets? Well she loved them again. A clogged one. In our basement. And Dallas thought it was chocolate on her shirt. Oh dear. Help me Rhonda!!!

Incident #5- (I know what you're thinking! How could there possibly be any more?!) We are at the grandparents again, saying our goodbyes to Grandpa in the back room when I hear my sweet son, voice gentle as a lark, "Mom, there's a little bit of poop in my boot." Certainly this can't be true?! Poop? In a boot? Oh, it's true!!!! It rolled, stealthily, out of the unders, down the pant leg, and into his brand new cowboy boot.

Let us never speak of this again.

Reflect

I've been thinking about 2010 a lot over the last month and have been drawing a blank about what to say. This doesn't happen to me often; I can usually find something to say about almost anything. Maybe that's not right- I can find things to say, but it isn't what I want to come out. That is more accurate. My thoughts are scattered and trying to reign them in and pick the right words to describe what I am thinking is escaping me. I was looking over a few years of blog posts when I looked to the side of my blog and noticed this quote again:

"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat."
- Theodore Roosevelt

Dallas and I have lived this quote this past year. Whether it has been through tough classes, or tough races, we have both taken risks and won some glorious triumphs of our own. We have been able to watch some people that are living in that gray twilight that T.R. is speaking about, and I know that I would rather fail, and fail hard, than live in that place where there is no growth.

2010 was a good, hard, emotionally trying, physically rewarding, laughing, loving year.
How grateful we are to be together as we face 2011- ready for any challenges and triumphs that await us.

Have you ever wondered what I would look like with a mustache?

Well, now you know.

You might have one too if you ran a 5K in -18 degrees at midnight!

Did I mention that I bought some hair wax at the store today?