This weekend we went to Lincoln, Nebraska to run the Halfsie Half Marathon. I had planned on running it when I signed up for it in May. Time would not allow me to do this yet. My daughter Megan ran it for me! Now she is a swimmer, so going for a half marathon run is kind of out of her realm. She started running more, and whether she will admit it or not, I think she really does like it! (Deep down anyway!!!) So I was a cheerleader for the weekend, and Megan and Sarah ran the half marathon, along with 7 other members of the Watertown Area Run Club (WARC). What a great weekend. I was a proud dad! If I could not run, I at least got to watch her!
A lot of people came from Watertown. It was a great weekend!
Of course, as runners, we also got to spend a lot of time going out to eat. We may all be good at running, but we are even better at eating!!!!
After supper the night before the half marathon, we were out walking, and enjoying the weather. It really was a good weekend to run. Started off in upper thirties, and then got to the upper 40’s later. No rain!
Everybody was getting lined up to go on the bus to the start line. I had these “medical” jackets to wear and help keep warm to begin with. Then when they started running, they could just peel them off and go! It makes a big difference trying to stay warm when you are standing still waiting to go.
Of course, if they were all going to dress up as a doctor, they had to act like one too! So their hands were ready to take on anything, but really, it was their legs, and their heart they needed for this event.
It was time for Megan and Sarah to get going. I was going to go out on the course later and cheer them on. I was able to get to the 9 mile section, and then get back to the finish to see them come in. It is ok to be a spectator, and as runners we all appreciate the spectators cheering us on. But as a runner, it was a lot harder for me to sit there and watch them, then to be out running with them.. A mixed emotion kind of day. I was proud of all of them, but was really proud of Megan for doing this. I would have rather been in the race with her running too, but not yet. I have worked my way up to 4 miles, but not 13.1 yet. Hopefully next year.
Here is Megan finishing the half marathon. She ran a 2:07, and the last half marathon we ran was in Disney 2 years ago, and we ran a 2:41. She improved by 34 minutes! That is a huge amount of time. Many of the ones from WARC ran a personal best! It always makes things even better when you can conquer a goal,, and get a time you have never gotten before. But, the events themselves are what is the most fun. Spending time with people who love doing the same thing…and if you can run a personal best, it is just icing on the cake!
Here we are after the finish, trying to get these 2 warmed up. Next time, we ALL with be running. I have, quite frankly, had enough of the spectator role. It may be awhile before my speed gets back, but even if it doesn’t, I just want to run more. I have had my “times” in the past, and that is ok. There comes a time in your life when certain things just don’t matter like they used, with the final finish time being one of them. Enjoy the time you had doing it! Enjoy the day! Enjoy the friendships! Enjoy the memories! Everything else is just “extra sprinkles” on your dessert. Achieving a new goal, or a personal best certainly make those events more sweet, but the finish time is not the “end all” of things. Just get out and move, and live each day as it comes. Keep making memories. Keep moving everybody!
What a great week! Nick and I kept a tradition going that we had started last year. We went to a Vikings game! This year Sarah and Megan also went with us. And, to top it off, it was just this past Thursday, which also happened to be my birthday. What a great birthday present! We had a blast! This was the first time Megan and Sarah had been to the new stadium.
If you have never been in it, it truly is an amazing place. Lots to see, and lots of activities going on. Memories continue to be made for our family.
We all got to spend some family time together, doing something we all enjoy. We had a couple days away from everything, which also made if very nice as well. Now, even though we were in Minneapolis, we still managed to get our exercise in. Each morning, we went down to the fitness center of the hotel and got our workout in for the day. That did not include all of the walking we did as well! No excuses! No matter how busy you are, you can still manage to get some time in for exercise. When we are away from home, and going out to eat, then we also do not have to feel as guilty about what we are eating!
The atmosphere at the game really gets you pumped up it! The music, the cheering, the fireworks! Never a dull moment. The best part of all of it though, was being there with family!
We just have to figure out how to get Tanner and Molly there as well. Hopefully we can keep the tradition going. We all enjoy it, and will be something to talk about for years.
Megan gave this to me for Christmas last year. Sarah and I were married in 1990. We truly have been cheering together since then. Going through all of the ups and downs that go with being a family. But, there is nobody else I would rather be cheering with! We are family! This may have been just a game, (and we actually won!), but in life we all have some things that we win, and lose in. Make memories of the good things, and learn from the bad times. We will always have each others backs, supporting and cheering each other on. Enjoy those days as they come. Just like the chant after every score: “SKOL Vikings! Let’s go!”. Lets go everybody! Keep moving!
Life can be so busy at times, you wonder how you can handle everything. We have all heard the slogan: “Calgon, take me away!” Well, for me, it is “Exercise, take me away!” It is my time to relax, unwind, and forget about all of life’s stresses, struggles, and hassles. Time to spend with family, friends, or both. Time to get away, and have fun!
This is definitely true for me, and for those of you who exercise on a regular basis, you know this is true also. I don’t need an antidepressant as long as I can do some activity. The exercise is better than any pill I could possibly take, and side effects that are much more tolerable as well. Nobody wants to be on pills, but everybody wants to feel good and be happy. Well, exercise can help you accomplish that. I may not be able to do as much as I was at the beginning of the year, but it is getting better. I am able to hang with my running friends further, and for a longer time period each week. It is was helps me feel better, and be a part of things again.
Exercise has helped make close friends. Our run club members are some of the best friends. We are all out doing what we like to do, and being with people who like being active. We are both motivated by them, and motivating to them in our own ways.
This is just a sampling of what Exercise can do for each of us. I am sure each one of use could add more things to it. Those benefits can be as individual and the individual involved. That is what makes it so special.
This is Megan and I after our run this AM. Megan wrote in her blog yesterday that she is running for me in a couple of weeks in a half marathon I had registered for earlier in the year, but am unable to do. I have not been able to run that far yet. I am proud of all of my kids, but when one of them does something like, it makes me feel like I have really accomplished something as a Dad. Not because she is running, but the reason she is doing this. Megan is a swimmer, so for her to do this is stepping out of her comfort zone. The last time, and only time she has run a half marathon, was in January of 2018 at Disney. We ran the whole thing together. Molly ran it with Sarah. It was a great run, but it made for even better memories.
Megan is a chip off the ol block when it comes to goofing around, and being funny! Always laughing. We all just need to learn to take things in stride. Relax. Life happens. Sometimes we need a break. Sometimes you just put your head down and go. Things always have a way of working out.
So, as you can see by our running group, we have a good time. We get out and run. We talk about life. We experience life. We are there for each other. It is our time to get away. It is our version of Calgon! So, exercise, take me away! Keep moving everybody!
What a year this has been! Many ups and downs, good things and bad things. I finally got some good news a week ago. I do not have to have a repeat surgery on my heart to close the defect I had. It has sealed after the first procedure! I got to quit 2 of my meds last week, with 2 more being done next week! I already feel better getting off of those drugs! I went away for a quiet weekend, a retreat weekend, toward the end of September. It was just what I needed. Some time to sit back and figure things out.
I got to spend some quiet time away…and just think! Think about what I have gone through this year. Think about what my life has been like. To think about where I have been so far, and where I am going forward from here!
When you have a place to go and do this, words can’t describe the benefit this can do. Quiet. Beautiful. Peaceful.
It helped me focus on some of the “individual trees” or things in my life, but also helped me see the “forest”. Life is full of obstacles, changes, or bumps in the road. It is unpredictable. This is where we need to sit back, and be patient! I tell my patients this all of the time…that is why we call you “patients”…we need to have this as well. We don’t know what road is in store for us, or what adventures, or mishaps come our way. We just have to be prepared for anything!
Amazing how this is true! It may not seem like it during the time you go through the struggles in life. Believe in yourself, and what path you are going down. Make the best of it, and see where it takes you!
You are never alone going through things. You have friends and family in your life to help support you, and push you, and just be there for you! Don’t ever forget that!
I especially want to thank Sarah for being by my side. It was not easy. I felt crappy, and I was crabby! We just celebrated our 29th Anniversary last Sunday. Our theme at our wedding was “Two hearts that beat as one”! How true! When one is having problems, the other one is too! Thank you for being there for me. Words can never be enough. I am still struggling to get a grip on all of this, as I am sure Sarah is too. It is getting better with time! We can still run together, and do things together. The strength is getting better each week!
The power of it all! This is why we need to keep moving, and keep trying, and keep pushing!
Puppy therapy also helps! There is nothing like puppy power! Dakota fell asleep on my lap Friday night. Everything is good. No worries! Just relax! So remember…when things get tough, you need to…
And after all is said and done, you too will fight on, because…
Don’t ever forget that! You can! Believe in who you are, and the hidden strength within each of you! Life goes on. Make the best of everything. It is easy at times to want to throw the towel in, and we may have to dig deep within ourselves. But that power is there. Trust in yourself…and keep moving everybody!
It has been a tough week. My good friend, and protector, and big member of this family, is with us no longer. It was hard to say goodbye already to him, as we only had him for 5 years to begin with. I still remember the day we went to go pick him up.
I was so excited! I was getting another training partner! We had to say goodbye to Buddy 6 months prior to this, and I was not sure I was ready for another dog! I was really attached to Buddy, and did not know if I could care for another dog like that again. They become part of the family, and they are like another one of my kids. But it was time to decide. and Zeus was a great choice.
Zeus was changing fast, and growing big, fast! But he was always ready to go for a run or a walk.
I now had 2 great training partners, always ready to go!
When Zeus had to have a ligament in his leg surgically fixed, he could no longer run. We were able to keep walking though, and he loved that more! We always got to spend time together. Many times he would go in the morning with Sarah, and the evening with me. But no matter what, he was always ready to go! Zeus was always a great protector, and I never had to worry about Sarah out for a walk as long as he was with her. Maybe he was even a little too protective…nobody was coming near us when we went. He would have nothing to do with it. At night, he would be by our bedroom door, or the front door to sleep, and would make his rounds during the night checking the house, making sure everything was safe. He was always on the alert.
Of course, we would always have those time where we would just sit, and relax. I would talk about the day, and he would just listen. He was always there for me/us.
Zeus and I would watch the Vikings together. Of course, when they played crappy, like last week, it was a good time to take a nap. We just hung out and relaxed. Like I said, it was like hanging out with one of my kids. When the kids were gone from the house, he was one of the kids! It got tough this last week. He had been limping for 2 weeks, and it gradually kept getting worse. Earlier this week he no longer wanted to walk. Even when we would take him outside to go to the bathroom, he would just lay down in the driveway, and not move. I had come home over the noon hour on Wednesday this past week because I did not feel good. I went to go lay down, and we managed to go into the bedroom with me, so I moved his bed by the window.
He was still going to protect me, even though he felt much worse than I did. We took him to the vet Thursday morning, and got the news we did not want to get. He had spondylolysis…severe, and it was compressing on his spinal cord. It was only going to progress. There was nothing we could do anymore. Even though the decision was hard to have to put him down, it was easy knowing we were doing the right thing. For as much as we cared for him, and loved him, and wanted to have him with us yet, we could not stand watching him hurt anymore. We said our goodbyes…and that was it. He was gone. He was not coming home with us. We were not going to see him again. Gone physically, but forever in our hearts. Zeus had a unique personality like no other dog we have had. We had 5 years. 5 good years! I would not trade any of it. He was a member of this family. I found out I could care for another dog again. Each one has been different, but all important regardless. So we made another decision again, with our other kids.
Meet Dakota! This is our new family member. An 8 week old female Golden Retriever! This was much faster than when we got Zeus. We are a dog family. They are important members of our family, and always have been. It did not take long for her to capture our heart already! I have another training partner…and child at home!
There is absolutely no way Dakota is going to replace Zeus. Zeus was Zeus, just like Buddy was Buddy. But she is definitely helping to mend a broken heart, and I am ready to start a new chapter in our family. As much as it hurts when we lose one of them, the time we spend with them is too good to not have them be a part of the family. I/We are ready for the Dakota chapter in our lives. Let the good times roll! Keep moving everybody!
We are starting to get some pictures back from Molly’s wedding. Wow! The father/daughter dance pictures are some of my favorites so far…at least for what I have seen! I get reminded of how it felt that day. How it felt to walk my daughter down the aisle. How it felt to dance that special dance with my daughter. How it felt to be lucky that I got to experience those moments, and spend time with my family. Nothing can beat that! That is what life is all about!
Spot on! Don’t miss this show. It is guaranteed to have the greatest reviews possible. You don’t have to worry about any sequels being made as it is automatic. And…the story does not have an ending for a long time!
Molly and Tanner are just beginning their life together. I still can’t believe Molly is old enough to be married. It seems like just yesterday I was rocking her in the chair feeding her a bottle! 25 years…just like that! At times life seems slow, but all of the other times, it is moving at lightening speed! The father/daughter dance still gets me choked up. These pictures are truly some of my favorites!
We were both trying to hold it together. This is what being a Dad means! One of my little girls was getting ready to begin her new life.
My three kids! This is what life is all about! This is what every parent wants. To see their kids grow up, be successful, and to continue to spend time with each other after they are all out of the house. But, I will always be Dad! That is what I want to be remembered for…being a successful Dad!
The days go by fast. Hang on! Enjoy your ticket to the greatest show on earth! Your own life! Strive to make it the best you can. Don’t take anything for granted. Be thankful, and tell others you appreciate them as well. You may be the main attraction to your show, but your supporting cast is far too numerous to list everybody in it! Appreciate the help you get. After all, there is no way you are going to do everything yourself! Keep moving everybody!
