The eve of thirty-two....

We're at the point where we can look back at a pretty full life full of incredible highs and incredible lows. We can see monumental errors and a combination of good timing and a lotta' luck. We can look back and through all the peaks and valleys we can say that God was the constant one and I was not. Yet His love has never wavered, His grace always present, His love has always encompassed me no matter what.
That is why I can look forward to the next thirty-two and ponder the wonderful highs and prepare my-self for the unexpected lows. Whatever that is and however that is done we will do our best and rely on Him for the rest. I know that without Him in my life my past thirty-two would not have such a hopeful shine to it.
It is interesting that out of the past thirty-two it is the past five to seven that have really been key. I know that all of life little path's lead you to where you are now, yet I look back and see the last seven as monumental.
In two thousand I married the woman of my dreams.
In that same month we bought a house in Dayton.
We meet a wonderful family of believers led by Dan and Tammy Roelofs.
Adam bought a house four doors down.
We tore down our old house and rebuilt over the next fifteen months.
We watched our dear friend and pastor Dan Roelofs die of cancer at the age of thirty-two.
We saw Adam fall in love and get married to a wonderful girl.
We had Brad and Amy Bone join us as neighbors four houses the other way.
We had it all.
We worked hard.
We played harder.
We had it all.
We waited for good news when Adam's health was in question.
It never came.
We lost Adam last November.
We became pregnant during Adams fight with cancer.
We became parents New Years day.

That is the past seven of thirty-two. I can not imagine higher highs nor lower lows. I don't know how I could have done that without my saviour in my life. I will not imagine the next thirty-two without Him.
Each and every event has given me a choice. To rest and do nothing, and at times I have. To not care and fall away, and at times I have. To accept the situation and know that I am not in control and allow Him to lead the way, in good times and bad.
I need him more now than ever.

I joined a group called the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society last May. I have volunteered to raise four thousand dollars before September twenty-third of this year. On that day I will Race in an International distance Triathlon on the grounds of Walt Disney World. I will do this to honor Adam and many others. I will do this because I know that I now have a choice, now that I have lost Adam. I can become better or I can become bitter. Bitter seems easy. Better is right. I will do what is right. That is what Adam would have done. That is what my God expects of me out of love.
I cannot imagine a better place for me to be than "Team in Training" (TNT) for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS).
TNT has given me a goal both in raising the funds for cancer research and for helping families directly dealing with cancer, and in training for something that will challenge me physically. Long gone are the younger days where we could pick up anywhere and do most anything. This race demands my attention. And if you knew what kind of shape I was in this past Jan.-Feb. I have had a lot of work to do.
I have found so much support in my latest endeavor. More than ever, I know that God has blessed me with a support group that is beyond my comprehension. More that ever I want to excel in this Triathlon to show how much I appreciate all the support that has been so graciously extended my way. I have been inspired with letters of encouragement and money to help me reach my goal.
It is so special and important to me. This blog is hopefully one way that I can give back and keep more people connected to the amazing things that are happening in little Dayton Minnesota.
Following should be entries of my daily training and what is bouncing through my head while I am swimming, biking, and running.
And of course when I figure it out, lots of pictures!

Thank you and God Bless....