just keep running

On September 27, 2014 I ran/walked this route in honor of Alyn. A lot of the Beck family was in Las Vegas, NV running in the Saints and Sinners half marathon. Joe and I wanted to do something in Sahuarita, so we ran our own 5k, which I found out later was actually a lot further than the initial 3.11 miles. I hadn't ran for very long before this date and was sorely unprepared. I ended up walking a lot of it mainly because I couldn't and because it was dark dark dark outside. There was a thunderstorm brewing in the distance, bugs were attracted to my head lamp, and bats were buzzing me trying to eat the bugs around me.

On December 6, 2014 I ran this route again. I have been running pretty consistently since September and was better prepared for this run. I got sick and had to take a minor break. My goal is still to run in a half marathon with my family next year in Las Vegas.

I miss Alyn and hurt for the pain and loss of so many of my loved ones. I usually end up crying, but it is good to remember and talk about Alyn.

public servants appreciation day

With all the hate toward police right now, Joe and I wanted to show our support for our local law enforcement agencies. We donned our Alyn and Igor t-shirts and went to the fair.

The Tucson Trafic Police gave Corban and Jovi a bear that they played with for hours! They even named them: Willy Wonder Flufter (Jovi) and Zombie Slayer (Corban) or something similar.

Corban happend to wear his Minecraft TNT bomb squad shirt and got to get his picture with an actual bomb squad suit!

 Joe bought tickets for everyone to ride the horses. Jovi was so excited about the brown horse and would have ridden the horses all day if we would have let her. Corban was a little hesitant, but wanted to go again once the ride was over.

 Jovi's sucker fell apart (the stick fell out) so she naturally picked the sucker off the grass, picked off the yucky parts, occasionally wiping them on my leg, and proceeded to lick the sucker from her hand.

We met the organizer of the fair, who happens to run a foundation in honor of her fallen LEO husband, Nohemy Hite. You can read more about her and her foundation here. When Joe and I are alone we can freely and openly talk about Alyn without getting overly emotional, but we kind of lose it when others join in on the conversation. Joe can still tell you the exact number of days since Alyn was murdered (which is 183 in case you were wondering). We shared a moment with Nohemy where we all cried and hugged at the loss we all shared and understood. My heart still breaks for the pain and loss of so many of my loved ones.

A HUGE thank you to all the public servants who fight tirelessly to serve and protect the public population!

book review: The Patmos Deception

PG

Meh. The story read fast, but it had a choppy flow. The book is a fictional travel book; the characters were involved in a fictional story but there were a lot of historical facts and regional language, which I found boring in parts. The ending just sort of stopped. I didn't feel any kind of closure and it didn't answer a couple questions I had. Specifically, who did Carey choose?!

** I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

book review: Playing By Heart

G

Personal things had been happening while reading this book that I could completely relate to Lula Bowman. This story was sad, fun, humorous, and tragic. I loved it! It reads fast and the story smoothly flows. I would definitely recommend this book.

**I received a copy of this book by the publishers.

a hero remembered TB65TWG

I made this card and ordered a geocaching trackable to surprise Joe for Alyn's birthday. And we had the PERFECT spot to drop it off!

Fall in Southern Arizona is hard to come by. But, on top of Mt. Lemmon there are seasons! I kind of begged Joe to take me there since I absolutely heart fall and have not seen nor felt fall for almost three years. We researched geocaches on top of the mountain, packed up the kiddos, and went for a road trip. 

We saw and felt fall.

I thought we could literally drive right to the geocache so I didn't bother packing a stroller or baby sling. What a mistake! Mackenzie was such a trooper but she started to get REALLY heavy after about an hour of carrying her around in our arms. We walked through the gates to the observatory and was instantly met by some kind of security and asked to leave. Wowza! As we searched a way to the cache we saw glimpses of this security guard following us around.

We couldn't find a path to the geocache at first and almost threw in the towel. We ate some lunch and found an easier geocache and tried again. This time Joe ran to the spot and me and the kids stayed in the car and watched "My Little Ponies".

The view from the geocache.

We sure do miss Alyn and think and talk about him almost every day. We hope this trackable makes its way every where, so Alyn's name will always be remembered.

**NOTE: The title of this post is the name of the trackable. If you go to www.geocaching.com, you can enter the trackable ID (the letters and numbers at the end of the name) and see where the trackable travels. 

potty dance

I hate potty training. I love the end result, but I hate all the accidents and mess and everything else! I told Jovi that when she ran out of diapers THAT. WAS. IT! So, as she used a diaper I would tell her how many were left and then she would excitedly tell me that she was going to wear underpants! Well, at least she got the idea of it all. As luck (or punishment, either way you want to look at it) would have it, she ran out of diapers the day before Halloween. 

And so it began. 

Her first sticker!

I printed out a really basic potty chart and stocked up on stickers. Every six spaces I gave her some kind of reward. In the beginning I gave her a treat i.e. something from her Halloween bucket for staying dry and clean and another treat if she went pee or poo inside the potty.

I failed horribly when I potty trained Corban. There were a lot of accidents, threats, and tears. Not my best mommy moment and not a lot of fun. Potty training Jovi was a COMPLETELY different story. She would have accidents, but we're talking she would pee a drip and then stop, go to the bathroom, and pee the rest in the potty.

Six days after we started, Jovi has filled her ENTIRE chart and earned all of her prizes! She even stopped asking for treats.

Never give up! Never give in!

When "Million Dollar Baby" came out I was 22 years old. I loved the story about an underdog making it big in a tough sport, but I HATED. HATED. HATED. how the story ended! My BIL and I got into a pretty heated argument about the pros and cons of an athlete killing themselves because they got hurt. In my book, killing yourself is NEVER an option. Even if you think your life is hard and you think you're not going to experience a good quality of life, suicide should never be an option.

All this hullabaloo about physician assisted suicide makes my blood boil and makes me sad. One of my aunts shared this article on Facebook that summed up pretty much how I feel about the whole situation.

My mom is one tough cookie. She has the type of arthritis that can't be cured, just maintained among several other health issues. She is in constant pain and you can tell when she moves that her body hurts. But she is a mover! She has more energy that I do! She gardens, she goes for walks, she cleans her house, she parties, she does genealogy, and she is there for all 8 of her kids, our spouses, and their 33 grandkids

My mom reading a story to Jovi. She flew down to help me out when I had Makenzie.

My brother, Jeff, was paralyzed from the waist down when he was in his 20s. His outlook on life in the beginning wasn't one of rainbows and unicorns. Instead of giving up, he gave it his all! He got married, had four kids, played basketball for the Wheelin' Utah Jazz, played basketball in the Athens' Paralympics, won tennis tournaments, raced in half marathons, served handicap people around the world and inspired young adults.

My sister was diagnosed with breast cancer five years ago. She went through EVERYTHING and she is still with us today. I know she doesn't want to go through that again. But I also know that she is one of the most happy, sincere, fun people I know.

Celebrating the news that Vickie was cancer free! 

If these family members would have opted for physicians assisted suicide when they were dealt their crappy hands, they would have missed out on all of life's little and big triumphs! The whole reason we are here on this Earth is to gain experience and to PROVE to our Heavenly Father that we can take the muck with the miracles. We can learn. We can grow. We can overcome. We can love. We can forgive.

All this hullabaloo about physician assisted suicide makes me sad. It makes me sad for all those brave people who are fighting their own battles with sicknesses and have to hear the world glorify someone choosing to kill themselves. It makes me sad that someone would kill themselves when there are so many who are murdered everyday who would LOVE one more day with their loved ones; to hold them, to kiss them, to talk to them, to laugh with them.

Never give up! Never give in! Prove it everyday.