Getting set for Nashville

Huh, I somehow just managed to delete the first few paragraphs I had written, so I guess I'll start over. 
This week has been a pretty good one.  On Saturday the 14th, I got my first taste of what my half marathon will be like.  The Crisis Pregnancy Center in Garden City hosted a 5K and a half marathon.  On Friday, Sarah, Roshel and I decided to run the 5K as a prep for the 28th.  It was a fun run, but it was easy to get caught up with the other people and follow their pace rather than setting my own.  I'll have to do a better job in Nashville.  It turned out ok though because Sarah and I were the first two women to cross the finish line, and we finished second and first in the women's division, respectively.

After running I came home and Taylor and I worked on our garden fence.  We've got all but one side done because the skid loader we were using to dig our post holes broke.  Some of my potatoes and spinach are starting to come up, so hopefully nothing will eat them until we get it finished.

The time Taylor and I get to spend together in the next couple weeks may be kind of limited.  He's gone part of this week on a fishing trip with one of the feedyard's pharmaceutical companies, and I'm going to go spend a little time with my family.  My mom, my sisters, and I may even get in a little shopping trip!
Next week I'll be leaving either Wednesday night or Thursday to go to Denver and fly out for Nashville.  I'm getting excited already just thinking about it!

I've got a few stories I'm working on for Certified Angus Beef, so I'm pretty sure I'll be able to stay kind of busy just trying to get caught up on them since I'll be gone part of next week.

This week I had to get a new phone because last week a pilot was crop dusting on a foggy morning and he accidentally clipped a guide wire to the AT&T phone tower that was nearest us.  He crashed and the tower had to come down.  Fortunately, he was ok, but our phone service was down for the count.  They brought in a temporary, portable tower, but it didn't help much.  Most of the time I couldn't get calls or texts.  It wasn't working for me since I needed to do interviews for my writing.  So I had to go in and switch phone companies.  It was a hassle, but it's definitely worth having phone service.  I can at least do my job now.

Yesterday, Tuesday, my Aunt Sherry came to visit me.  She was in my part of the world because my uncle had some business meetings nearby.  It was fun to show her around and get to catch up with her.  Yesterday was also my mom's birthday.  I am so blessed to have her.  She is a wonderful example for me and if I can be half the woman she is, I'll be doing well.

This week my favorite scripture was "Be imitators of God . . . and walk in love."  Ephesians 5:1-2
The lesson that went with this scripture reminded me that when we are following God's example and living as He would want us to, we can have an impact on others, even when we're not expecting it or looking for it.  So we need to always show God's love for others.  It may have profoundly affect others as well as ourselves.  


Have a great rest of the week everyone!

  This is me and my running buddy, Sarah, after the race in Garden City on Saturday.  Please know that my shirt says "Eat Beef" and has Willie the Wildcat on it.  I was representing!

Spring Projects

I've got several projects I've been working on this spring.  Lately Taylor and I have been working on our first garden.  We're both pretty excited about it.  I've always helped Mom do her garden, but it's fun to have my own.  Not long after we got our plot worked up, the belt on the tiller broke.  I waited a little while, hoping it would be fixed so I could use it to get the ground ready to plant.  By Monday I grabbed the good, old fashioned hoe and worked the plot myself.  I was afraid to wait too long to get things in the ground.  So far I've got potatoes, broccoli, spinach, lettuce, onions, and peas planted.  I also started some tomatoes, peppers and herbs inside, and they are doing well.  Now Taylor and I are working to put a fence around the garden.  Taylor's parents told us the rabbits would destroy it if we didn't. 

I also have three bucket calves I'm raising.  Their names are Ivy, Isabelle and Ivan.  So far (knock on wood), they've all been doing really well.  They're all around a month old now, and they're so cute!  We built their pens next to our dog's kennel, which may have been a mistake.  He's a born cattle dog out of working parents, and we're pretty sure it's torture for him to be so near the calves, but not be able to work them and chase them. :)  Poor Bently.

A lot of my spare time has been filled with running.  In late February a friend asked me if I'd want to run a half marathon with her.  Call me crazy, but I thought it sounded kind of fun.  We are registered to run the half marathon in Nashville, Ten. on April 28.  I've gotten through the toughest part of the training, and I'm really looking forward to the race!  It's going to be a lot of fun, especially since my sister Katie, and my mother-in-law and sister-in-law are coming.  We're making it a girls' weekend.  I think that through my running app on my phone, I'll be able to post my race on facebook, so people can kind of see where I'm at and cheer me on.

I thought it might be fun to occasionally write down some things I've learned since being out here in western Kansas.  Here's my first one:

• Fact 1:  I've learned that on really windy days, tumbleweeds will travel in herds (big ones!)

Every day I do a "Scripture of the Day," and my favorite one this week was:
 "Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son."  John 14:13

I liked this scripture because the lesson that went with it talked about how God hears our prayers, and He will answer them, too.  However we should not insist that God ONLY give us exactly what we ask for.  We are only human.  We can't see the future, and we are fallible.  But God is perfect.  He knows what plans He has for us, and what is best for us.  More so than just asking Him to grant our wishes and thereby limiting His ability to work within our lives, we should ask that His will be done.  It may be greater than anything we could imagine.

Have a fantastic, blessed week!