Happy Mornings

So thankful that I get to spend my mornings with this girl. She woke up at 7:45 today so I had to start my coffee pot early. She was smiling and sitting up in her crib waiting for me. She took a 7 ounce bottle and is ready to start the day. I took 2 cups of black coffee and will read my Bible when she goes down for her morning nap around 10. Then I'll be ready to start the day. I haven't been the best at having a daily bible/prayer time lately and I've just gotta get back with it.

What is your morning routine like?

Paper Plates

There's a family tradition on the Ratliff side where if any of the kids or grands are missing from a family event a paper plate is held up in their honor. (We don't remember when this started & we used to draw faces on the plates) Yesterday we celebrated my paternal granddaddy's 80th birthday. It was a celebration enjoyed by all who attended and those of you who could not make it were missed. If you see people holding up paper plates in Facebook pictures they just might belong to our family.

Do you have any interesting traditions?

Surge

A "surge" is a word I use to describe a running workout I do at least once a week. *note: others might call this speed work but since I'm not up to speed yet I call them surges.
I run one mile slow and then the second mile I sprint two mailbox lengths, jog two mailbox lengths. Bursts of increased intensity when running improve cardiac strength as well as overall muscular strength and allow for your body to prepare for longer endurance runs much more quickly. Start by "surging" for 10 seconds, jogging for 50 seconds, and repeat 5 times. These 5 minutes will make a huge difference in your pace for your next running workout. You'll be able to tell a positive difference for sure.

Happy running.

7 Months

On August 26th Kennedy Kate turned 7 months old:

Dear Kennedy,

You are so much fun and learning to crawl all around your room. You love all of your stuffed animals and like to pull them off the shelf and make a mess of your room. Here are some other highlights:

You still wear size 3 diapers but we finally moved to the cruisers
You love sweet potatoes
Bath time is still a favorite part of your day
Your newest interest is in books
You talk and squeal all the time
You like cheerios but can't figure out how to put them in your mouth after you pick them up
You sleep from about 10pm-9am
You began the teething process

You are the light of our life!

Almost Playing Catch Up

Wow...life has completely sped by the last few weeks. Anyone else feel that way? The last day that I marked off in my day planner was August 15th proving that the last half of the month was a whirlwind. It ended with:

• Kennedy Turns 7 months old. how?
• a wedding rehearsal
• a wedding #bestweddingsincemine
• Lindsey (sister), Landon (nephew), and my mom came to visit
• The month ended strong GO TEAM
• Clemma Childress died at the age of 88 (Kyle's paternal grandmother)
• A funeral was attended

And all of the events deserve a blog post separately. I'll attempt to write about those things in the coming days but today I must do what I do best and inspire, motivate, and publicly speak. Oh and out of the events listed above, the funeral is the one that touched my spirit the most. It's hard to find time to blog after you've been reminded how precious life is. I made a pact with God that I would live out my days deliberately from here on out. Always in the moment. Always making the time I'm given count.

John 14:2
My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?

Until then. I'm His for the taking

Fortune Effect

Man's Best Friend

Belle is our *chocolate dog. She is a Labrador retriever and too smart for her own good. I always said I would NEVER have an inside dog but please remember that I also said I would NEVER live in Austin, date or marry a Marine, be in a network marketing company, or *weigh over 200 pounds. It seems to me that all things that I nevered have worked out pretty well for me.

Belle's full name is Jingle Belle because she was born on Christmas day. She will be 2 this Christmas.
She takes wonderful care of her sister KK and runs up and down the stairs if I don't go "fetch" our crying baby fast enough for her.
She's always smiling
and gentle if I get sad and need a friend
She's always ready for a run.

and I know she will be loyal to the end:

*chocolate dog- our nephew Landon calls her a chocolate dog and thinks it is so funny

*200- I weighed in at 212 the day that I was checked into the hospital to have Kennedy Kate :)