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::it's looking like fall in our backyard.

166:36

::went to the zoo today with my friend jenny and her kids. meg fell in love with one of her boys. they held hands most of the day, and told us they were going to get married and live in a golden house.

to celebrate the first day of fall, i made this. if you haven't tried the recipe, you really should. it makes 3 loaves, so we're going to share some with neighbors, even though i think we could eat all 3 in one day.
i'm making this tonight. a new recipe. the house smells so good today. ahh, i love fall!

update

remember my friend sherri? i wrote about her here and here.
she has been training all spring and summer, and is running her first marathon in less than 4 weeks!! she has  lost 90lbs. and is doing great.
i am so proud of her! i'll be running the 1/2, and then sticking around to cheer her on to the finish for the full. what an amazing moment that will be in her life! not just because she will have finished a marathon, but because of what that represents in her life. she has overcome so many things. most of all, i love that all her running has been chasing after the Lord and seeking to live a life that glorifies Him.

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::her favorite thing to wear for school!

well, here it is wednesday and i've been able to run 2 days this week already. woo hoo! it has been so nice. yesterday i ran 6 miles, which is amazing for me to get time to run that long on a weeknight. tonight, i ran 4.5 with a friend. we both agreed that it's harder to bounce back now that we're 35!

i don't think i've mentioned it, but school is going really well! this time last year i was already feeling burnout.

this year the kids are complaining less, and they have been motivated to get things done so they have time for other things in the afternoon. they also seem more excited about learning in general. i know God has been teaching me too. i have more patience, and i've figured out some of the things that work and don't work for us. i still have a lot to learn, of course, but i really love the changes we've made. some of the changes have been simple little things. for example, i started giving each child a checklist of what needs to be done for the day (their chores and their school work is on the list). i have been amazed at how motivating it has been for them to get everything checked off for the day! hopefully that will continue...

we're looking forward to a trip to the apple orchard this week.

163:365

weekends go so fast!
i got in a good 6 miles on saturday. i even conquered the big hill.
bryce got a touchdown and interception during his football game saturday morning!
saturday night we sat by our fire pit and made smores. it was such a good night.

it's going to be a challenge to get much running in this week. i'm hoping for 3-4 days this week.
i should probably think about running around 5:30 a.m. to get it done, but that's not likely. i wish i had a running
partner.