The story of a young, married couple leaving behind the excitement of national politics for life in a small town...
Monday, October 29, 2012
I haven't blogged in years. And I do mean years as in the plural form. I could name off a bazillion excuses as to why I don't document my life the way I should, but I am too tired to do that, and really...who cares. What I can tell you (for anyone who actually reads this) is that over the past few years our lives have changed dramatically.
Jason is in his third year of law school. I would be lying if I said it was easy, but I'd also be whining about this great opportunity my husband has been given.I can't complain even though we moved out of our roomy home with lots of closetsto Waco so he could be closer to the law school. And I really can't complain now that we live in a tiny tiny little apartment with our 2 kids (yes...2), our pup, Lizzy, and Jason's cat, Jake.
My life is full of work, a lot of driving, bottles, baths, tea parties and lots of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
And its awesome.
Because everyday I get to see these 2 adorable faces.
And kiss these sweet cheeks.
And snuggle with this little gal.
I get to hear Ella Jane talk about how Jesus loves her and I get to hear Hays giggle at me because I tripped over the baby gate and said a few choice words which I am sure he will repeat in the not so distant future. Life is so good, and I want to remember that. So I am attempting to blog again...but we'll see if it sticks. I am crossing my fingers.
So far in 2010, we have completed a kitchen remodel, applied to law schools, was accepted to law schools, decided to sale our first home with our perfect kitchen to pursue law school, bought a new puppy, found out we were pregnant, bought a new BIGGER fixer-upper foreclosure, moved all of our stuff, quit one of our jobs, and started law school.
Needless to say a lot has happened in the last six months. We've been blessed I know, but I can't help but feel a little stressed out.
Did I mention we are having a BABY?! Things are changing in big ways for the Fentons, but I do believe God has an amazing plan for our little family, and while...right now I am feeling a little overwhelmed looking at my growing stomach and all the empty rooms and bare walls of our new home, I know that there are great things to come. Really great things. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD. "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
It is so close to summer that I can hardly stand it! I know that the Fentons have been MIA for a couple of months, but believe me, we have good excuses as to why we have been so preoccupied. More to come on that in two weeks. Anyways, for anyone out there who still reads, I am working on putting together my summer reading list.
It's no lie, I am very sad to leave our little community, our church and our first home. I like North Austin...I really do, I just really like how South Austin is still small. But I know God has bigger plans for our family and I am excited to see those plans unfold.
And I am really proud of my husband for going after his dream in a big way. And I am really really excited about all the oportunity Baylor will offer him. And I am really really really excited that he is going to a Big 12 school with a football team...even if its not a very good football team. This will double our college sports enjoyment.
because I never can seem to follow through with them. Instead I am going to have seasonal themes. 4 things I want to do (excluding losing weight and working out...because that is an ongoing battle) by the the end of the year. It's going to go something like this...
Spring Theme-Get organized Summer Theme-Get to know your city Fall Theme-Become a better baker Winter Theme-still undecided
For some reason this kind of excites me. This could be a challenge I might be able to complete. And I am going to blog about them...in detail...with pictures. So stay tuned. It's bound to be an exciting year.
Carmen's EDIT: This is the husband's entry. I do not believe in torture. (haha...for those politcos who got my joke)
So, it's been a while since I posted about anything at all. However, this weekend was an auspicious occasion in my training cycle for the marathon, so I figured what better time to get back into the swing of things.
To begin with, perhaps it's time to start coming to grips with the fact that I might just be deranged...or an idiot. Both are probably accurate. On Saturday I ventured off on a 3 hour tour of Hays county as I embarked on the first of three 20-mile runs included in my marathon training. The opening line of this video pretty much sums up how I felt after the run.
How does running 20 miles feel? I don't know that I can truly put that in words. Pain is one of the words that definitely belongs in the description, though. Honestly, other than the temperature hovering in the low to mid thirties for the first 2 hours of the run (yes I just used the phrase "first 2 hours" to describe a run), the first 15 miles wasn't all that bad. My feet and ears were a little numb to start, but my oh-so-sexy tights (yes, men do wear tights) and a couple new Christmas gifts kept me nice and toasty as I started my journey...alone. Apparently everyone else was smart enough to stay inside in such cold weather. While I typically see around a dozen or so runners and bikers on my weekend long runs, I was the lone soul on the roads Saturday morning. I think this is where the "idiot" part comes into the equation.
Like I said, the first 15 miles or so of my 10 mile, out-and-back course were relatively uneventful. Aside from heading downhill at swift pace, that is. Miles 6-9 saw me lose 230 feet in elevation. While this did wonders for my pace early on, the only thing I could think about at the time was every foot of climbing I'd have to do to get back to that point. Fortunately for me, I survived the climb in spite of the pain that I felt. Along the way I saw a bald eagle fly off to the Blanco River where I assume its nest is. That was actually really cool. I had no idea there were eagles in the area, but there it was in full flight as I ran by.
Mile 16-20 proved to be every bit as difficult as the first 15 seemed reasonable. Perhaps it was al the climbing, perhaps it was the cold catching up to me, perhaps it was just running that distance in the first place, but those last 5 miles were pretty tough. My legs and hips stiffened up, I could feel a blister forming on one of my toes, and intentionally depriving my body of fuel took a toll on my ability to keep going, but keep going I did. Just like I will on race day, I kept putting one foot in front of the other and pushed through until I was back at the house.
All in all, the run was a success. I covered the course in 3:06:39 which comes out to a 9:19/mile pace. To meet my race goals I need to shave quite a bit off of that, but I wasn't pushing the pace yesterday as I will on race day. I also climbed more yesterday than I will in the full 26.2 mile race in February which encourages me. The Cowtown course climbs 469 feet total. Saturday's run saw exactly 100 more feet of elevation gain in 6.2 fewer miles. It wasn't the greatest run I've ever had, but I consider it to have been a good measuring stick early enough in the process that I have time to work and meet my goals. At least I have two more opportunities to run 20 miles and push my body even more.
Things haven't been crazy (well except for Christmas) and we've had plenty to blog about, but for some reason we have both been so uninspired. Ugh. I guess you could say we are in a Blump or a blog slump (and yes I invented that word). Christmas was great...we had so much fun. New Year's Eve engagement party for Emilie and Collin was awesome too...and then the Alamo Bowl (minus Mike Leach) was very entertaining. Jason has applied to law school, and we should here from at least one of the schools any day now. He is also training for his first marathon at the end of Feb.
So things are progressing in our life...we are doing fun things, taking fun pics, and traveling to fun places.
We just haven't talked much about it. I've been meaning to make some resolutions...so I guess I can start with our blog. I've tried this before and I failed miserably, but I will give it another shot. Afterall, I know you are just dying to read more about our exciting lives. In the meantime, here are a few pics I managed to post from a few of our exciting adventures. Sorry...no Christmas ones just yet.
Poppy and Wes' wedding
Emilie and Collin's NYE Engagement Party, and the rest are from the Alamo Bowl.
