I just got 3 kids down for nap so thought I would take advantage of the few minutes of calm :)

What have we been up to.......well, the NYC Marathon is only 16 days away?!?!?!? I'm so full of emotion as these last few weeks of training wind down. I'm nervous for the race, I'm afraid I won't be able to keep my pace, worried I won't finish, etc, etc. I am confident in my months of training, so I know it's mostly just pre-race jitters. But I'm also filled with emotion because of WHY I'm running this race in the first place. For Brenden. And for soooo many other amazing kids, teens, adults, and families affected by Spina Bifida.

There is something I have only shared with one other person so far, but would like to share with you. Many weeks ago I felt led to share with an amazing woman, Colleen, Nate's mom. About 6 weeks ago Nate underwent his first surgery since BEFORE he was born. Nate received the prenatal surgery to close his lesion, so this was a scary time for his family. Colleen has been a huge support for me and so many other families so I'm glad I was able to offer that same support to her during this time. Anyways, at the beginning of my training, I had an idea.....one that at the time, I didn't realize how much it would affect me. I wanted to remember why I was training, so for each week of training, I had a "kid of the week." I follow blogs of many families affected with SB and have developed some great friendships with other moms, so I chose a different family for each week of training. During each run for that week, I spent every minute of every run praying specifically for that child and their family. That's what got me through each and every run. If ever I felt like quitting, I prayed harder and remembered why I was running. I knew if I gave up on a run, I was letting someone down. So to you amazing SB mamas, you, your families, your children, pushed me. YOU gave me strength and inspiration, YOUR child gave me motivation. And I hope you felt my prayers.

And if I survive NYC, I will be running for the SBA in Hawaii next September!! The SBA is trying to expand their marathon program, as it is a great way to raise money for the organization. They are officially a charity for the Kauai Marathon. I'm still deciding between running the half or full....I am a much stronger cold weather runner, so the change in climate is my only hang up. Part of me thinks I'd be crazy to go all that way and only run the half, but hopefully I'll make up my mind in the next few days.

The next few weeks will fly by, as I have a craft show this weekend and a 2-day show next weekend, so I'll be busy between hairbows and running. I am almost done Christmas shopping, so hopefully once December arrives I will be able to slow down a bit. I'm tempted to start wrapping, but since I really don't have time, guess that will have to wait :)

Brenden will soon be done with horseback riding until Spring, so hopefully we can get Madelynn back in to gymnastics for this winter since we will have a free evening. I should also mention that we have a new addition to the family.....one that I swore I would NEVER have....a minivan!!!! We bought a 2011 Chrysler Town & Country (much thanks to a friend from high school who gave us a GREAT deal!). I really did not want a van, but we really did need something bigger as well as something that Brenden could climb into himself, so this was about the only option. The kids LOVE it....there are two DVD players which will avoid fights over who gets to pick the movie. Madelynn thinks its great because she can walk around in it and now has room to climb in and out of her carseat by herself. I will admit that it's pretty great and has made some things much, much easier.