RUNNING......

As some of you may already know, I am now a Runner.  It may come as a surprise to some, but a few months ago I started to realize that there is a big difference between the perception of who I am and the reality of who I am.  I think everyone does this to some extent in their lives, so I'm sure you can understand my point.  You see, I perceive of myself as athletic, sporty(spice), average-size, Meg Ryan-ish.  In a way, it's good because I don't have many fears about things I can and cannot do.  However, the reality of who I am started to become undeniable.  As I near the age that shall not be mentioned, my body jiggles and sloshes and aches more like a fat old lady and less like the person in my mind.  Therefore, I decided that I needed to close the gap between reality and perception.   

How do I do that, you ask?  That is an excellent question - I asked myself the same.  Luckily, I have some good friends who are runners themselves and knew that finishing a marathon is on my life to-do list (my 'bucket' list).  They convinced me that I can run a marathon in a year with training.  These girls aren't generally liars, so I decided to trust them.  I bought a good pair of shoes and started training for my first 5K run: Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning!  

I also wanted to say how much I love and am grateful for the friends I have in Indiana - the deKock family.  I love, love, love visiting them because Jessica and Daniel make me laugh so hard, because Jaden crawls in bed with me in the morning for at least 1/2 hour (and makes me laugh I almost pee), because Carly is so fun and interesting to hang with (and a great singer), because Carson and Soren are so sweet and funny and amazing.  I also love the look and smell of Autumn, which I don't get in Indio anymore.  Mostly I love being part of their lives - the ups and the downs, the craziness and the quiet moments, and the friends.  I adore all my new Indiana friends and am grateful they treat me like their own now.  Here are my two favorite pictures from my trip.  Love to all in Valpo.  Miss you! 

Oak Glen

It is fall!  Yeah!  When you live in the desert, that means it is finally time to drive over an hour to pick apples, pumpkins, and berries at Riley's Farm in Oak Glen.  People greet you in authentic revolutionary war outfits and point you to the privies when you need to go pee.  The fresh apple pie and dumplings are delicious, but they sell out quickly and you do not want to get the day old stuff.  So disappointing.  You can press your own cider if the cider press isn't broken.  Mostly, it's a place for great fall looking pictures in a non-fall looking part of California.  So we bundled everyone up and drove to Oak Glen last Saturday.  It was raining.  Bummer.  But that didn't stop J from getting apples, a pumpkin, and plenty of pictures.  Here are a few of my favorites.  Despite the cold, it was a fun trip.  Made me miss Connecticut a little.  Makes me a little envious of you lucky few who are seeing the fall leaves turn and picking your own apples and pumpkins.