Proud

On August 23, 2003, Bob and I made several vows to each other and to God.  We promised to love and support each other regardless.  In sickness and in health.  In poverty and in wealth.  In good and in bad.

But, as if that wasn't enough, Bob also vowed to his good friend (and ultra athlete) that he would run a marathon at some point.

He has talked about the idea for the past few years.  And I have nodded and appeared to participate in the conversations.

But this summer, he decided the time was right.  We joined a family athletic club, and Bob began training for the Richmond marathon.

He was completely dedicated to his training and our new nutritional lifestyle greatly helped him get in tip top shape.  He was even able to complete many of the long distance training runs without using his asthma inhaler (a first in more than 10 years).

I also will admit that I believe his great desire to train (which involves spending several hours most days of the week running) may have been influenced by the crazy house he was allowed to escape.  But I will give him the benefit of the doubt. 

The marathon was Saturday, and I took the older 2 kids to watch.  We made some crazy signs and were able to give him a high five at miles 13 and 20.

 

 

 

He had a lofty goal of finishing the 26.2 miles in 4 hours.  And he blew that goal out of the water by finishing in 3.55. 

The kids rushed to greet him and see the shiny medal.

Then we "celebrated" at Chick-fil-A with some grilled nuggets and fruit.

It was a long day.  I was exhausted!  :)

He is already signing up for his next one.

 

 

We love you, Daddy, and are so very proud of you!!

Trick or Sugar-free Treat?

It was a very big evening in our house last night.  

We had a couple princesses. 

 

Luigi (who later morphed into Mario because his unitard was a wee bit tight.) 

And a sad little puppy dog.

 

 

 

 

Daddy took the older two around the neighborhood.

 

And the little ones stayed with mom to help pass out candy.

 

 

 

(The orange bowl holds the loot.  Miss Ryan aint no dummy.)

The puppy dog cheered up.

And mama had a plan.

For my kids, the fun was in being allowed to run wildly through the neighborhood yelling "Trick of Treat."  I tried to use their tendency toward distraction to my benefit.

I promised them that when they returned from trick or treating, I would have some fun treats waiting for them.  They came in, took of their coats and shoes, (while I magically took their buckets and whisked them away to a brown grocery sack in the other room) and sat down at the table.  I made a couple huge pumpkin "sugar" cookies (with almond flour and honey) and had some goodie bags of fun items from the $1 bins.

The cookies were a hit.  

 

They cleaned their plates, brushed their teeth, and went to bed.

And I put the bag of candy way up high on the china cabinet -- out of their reach, and mine.

We're not nuts after all.

My family thinks I've gone nuts.  They are all supportive of our new nutritional ways.  But some of them don't want to hear the details, others don't understand the severe change, and everyone is panicking about Christmas.

My parents and grandmother were able to come visit us this past week, and we had a wonderful visit!  I think they may have been dreading the visit just a little.  Along with the 4 crazy kids, nonstop schedule, and too-early wake up calls, they were afraid I would be serving carrots and tofu all week.

I'll admit it.  Implementing a diet overhaul is very daunting and overwhelming.  It can affect everything -- playdates, picnics, weekends, travel plans, parties, guests, and definitely holidays.  

But what began as a month-long challenge has now morphed into our new way of life.  As my husband said, we would eat dirt every day if we knew it would help our kids.

And help is an understatement.

This sweet little boy is GREATLY benefiting from these changes. 

He is definitely still a little boy, but his ability to reason, focus, 
communicate, and cooperate has improved so much.

I was interested in my parents' view of our diet and our children's behavior.  I didn't want my personal reports or observations to be products of mere wishful thinking.  But they all commented on the big change in Caleb's behavior. (And they even enjoyed the food....or, at least that is what they told me. =)  

From the beginning, we felt God was leading us to implement these changes.  And now I am humbled to see how He cares so much for our sweet Caleb (and the rest of us) that He opened our eyes and hearts to these ways to help him.

So what have we been up to?

Baking.

Baking.

And more baking.

Throw in a little Clifford.

Some big messes.

 

A homemade castle.

  

Beautiful fall weather for a pumpkin patch visit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And I think our family is doing quite well.

We're still working on getting the right Christmas card picture.

But I think that's going to take a Red Sea miracle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Wish this sugar-free mama "good luck" on Halloween.