I ran today

Today, I ran for those who couldn't finish a race that they trained hard for.

I ran for those that finished only to met with terror and tragedy.

I ran for those moms, dads, friends, co-workers, loved ones, and even children that come out to cheer us on, make signs, hold water, and act like fools to get our attention.

But also, I ran for those that train and discipline and sacrifice to push their bodies and minds past their own and others limitations.
 
I ran against the fear and anger that limit us, trap us and paralyze us. 

I ran against the voice that says I will never reach my goal or accomplish anything.

I ran against the voice that says it doesn't matter if I run or not.

I ran against the voice that calls me ugly and gross.

I ran against the laziness and exhaustion.

I ran because I watched 7th graders conquer their stage fright and sing loud.

I ran because it was a bad day/week.

I ran because I had too much chocolate and it didn't really make me feel better.

I ran because I don't own a punching bag.

I ran because I didn't want to talk about it.

I ran because God put air in my lungs and gave legs that work.

I ran because I can.

I ran today and I will run tomorrow and the next and the next.

Where to begin...

I don't even know how to update at this point. It has been a long while since I blogged.  My life is a little crazy busy right now.  I thought about updating during spring break....but I was trying to take a break and rest as much as I could.

So here are some quick updates of my life.

1. 6 weeks till summer!  We just finished state testing and there are a lot of things my students and I need to accomplish before the end of the year.  One includes reading a novel and doing lit circles. We had a super encouraging and beneficial training on lit circles last week. (You don't hear that often about professional development, but it was!)

2. Still plugging away at grad school!  It isn't so bad, but it definitely causes me to think about the future a lot which is scary and exciting at the same time.  (In fact, I am sitting in my favorite coffeeshop writing this post instead of doing homework!)

3. Running! I ran a 10K with my sister and brother-in-law over Spring Break and it was so exciting to run my fastest pace time!  I am getting faster and I can't wait till this summer to have some more concentrated time to train.

4. THE WEATHER!  After 4 snow days and lots of cold mornings, the weather is starting to look up.  It is amazing how much this changes my outlook on life. I am so much more excited about my days!

5.  Finally got to meet Henry! The newest addition to our clan is here!  And I had to wait 6 weeks to meet him! But isn't he adorable!

6.  Prayer! This last month as I began to think about what I am praying for my 27th year to look like, I decided that I am just going to continue surrender all those desires to the Lord and trust him to make things happen or change those desires!

7. Easter! My church got the whole family together and we celebrated at the Kansas City Convention Center.  I had to be there super early, but it was definitely worth it to watch the sunrise! It was awesome to see people I haven't seen in a long time and make some new friends. 

The rest of the semester is full of activities, homework, planning and getting ready for the summer and next year!  As difficult and overwhelming as some days are, I am so blessed right now.  I look forward to this summer!

Any excuse to have a party!

 What do you do when it is winter in the midwest and you have the winter blues?? 

Find any excuse to have a party!! 

My friends and I decided to celebrate a very special February holiday with costumes and great food!!

Yep....President's Day!  (That was the first holiday to pop into your mind..right?)

Love these Girls and all their brilliant ideas!

Rosie the Riveter

Secret Service

Presidential Candidate and his team!

Best Costume of the night! Abe Lincoln

Other events of the night, a debate about the controversial topic of puppies vs. kittens, voting on fav appetizers, the pat down when you came through the door, and a exciting card game 'President'. 

Lots of laughs and great conversations!

I resolve....

Resolve: to reach a firm decision about,
a resolve: Firm determination to do something.

This definition sums up my mindset about resolutions.  Making a decision and sticking to it.

Yes, this post is about a month old, considering that some have already given up on their New Year's Resolutions.  However, there are still 11 months left in the year and still time to change!

I didn't tell a lot of people (aka...internet people).  Most of my friends knew about this, but at the beginning of last year, I made a resolution that scared me.  

In 2012, I resolved to put myself out there and go on at least 1 date. (Not with my girlfriends, my roommate, family member or Jesus. But a male human that might have some romantic interest in me!)

EEK!  For a girl who has never dated, this made want to hide a closet for the whole year.  But I didn't hide.  I put myself out there and go on a few dates I did! 

All this to say...I have been thinking about my resolutions for this new year.  Last year, I resolved to say YES to new things and stretch myself.  Oh goodness, it was quite the year! Making resolutions that stretch you and scare you make it that much more satisfying when you meet them or accomplish them.

So the question is, how in the world am I going to top 2012?? (This is where saying YES gets you!)

Oh, I am sure that 2013 is going to be another banner year in the life of Larissa, but it's all about my mindset! So after pondering this for a month, this is what I have resolved!

My resolves for 2013!

I resolve to....love people better

(I want to be more invested in friendship and love them in ways they feel loved not just the way that is easiest for me to love them.)

I resolve to....smile more!

(Not a fake, plastered smile, but one that shows the deep abiding joy I have!)

I resolve to....enjoy food. 

(Food and I have a love/hate relationship. I love to eat, but hate when I eat too much of it or the wrong types of food!  This one might be more about finding a balance.) 

I resolve to....ask for help when I need it.

(In my pride, I so easily want to just do everything on my own, but I don't live on an island)

I resolve to....rejoice and mourn with others.

(I want to be able to be fully present in others lives.)

 

I resolve to....be more creative. 

(I miss my days of painting, making cards, and being crafty! Those are the soul filling activities I long to go back to!)

I resolve to....finish things. 

(It has been pointed out to me that finishing things might be a problem for me. I am sure all the unfinished books on my book case might agree with this.)

Did you make resolutions this year?  How are they going?  Do you need to re-resolve a month in?  

These are a few of my favorite things....

This year is the year of small wins...counting the little things that make my life pretty awesome right now.  I found myself at the beginning of this year being super negative and wallowing in despair over all the things that haven't changed since last year. 

I am done doing that!  Lets celebrate everything amazing that God has blessed us with!

Not because nothing wrong doesn't ever happen...
Not because things aren't ever hard...
Not because I am ignoring the difficulties of life....

BUT because God is still with me through all the wrong and the bad and the struggles.  I was challenged by this verse this week.

"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."(Romans 8:18 ESV)

After a hard week last week, I was so encouraged to leave school on Friday feeling that my students perhaps might have accomplished something. Besides that, there are some other things that made my week so much better!

1. Participating in a 10 day gluten free/dairy free weight-loss challenge!  This makes my meals a little complicated, but nothing I can't handle for 10 days.  As well, I have a menu to choose from and smoothies to drink.  I feel great and light.  My jeans are already fitting better and the workouts are going really well! So encouraging! (Might be a little hungry though!)

2. Had a great time with my Gospel Community on Monday night!  I love those girls and they are so encouraging!  It was a great time to pray and encourage one another!

3. Went to see Anna Karenina with a sweet friend! It was definitely a sad movie but was beautifully done and had the most amazing costumes!

4. Worked out with co-workers 2 days after school and it was so fun!  Sometimes I forget how much fun it is to workout with friends.  I get so much in my head when I workout and I forget to have fun!  And sometimes it is fun to do something with co-workers that doesn't involve work!

5. Was able to spend some quality time on my homework both Wednesday and Thursday evening.  This was great because it helped me get a paper written by Friday night and I love getting things done early!

6. Went on a field trip with my Drama Club...this was definitely the highlight of my week!  These kids are near and dear to my heart and they had a blast.  We saw a great show and they got to experience something they might have not ever experienced before!  I love helping them see the possibilities of theater!  (plus it got me out of school for a couple hours!)

7. Had an encouraging and challenging (in a good way) meeting with my assistant principal, where I was given some ideas to help with some difficult students.  Sometimes it helps just to talk about why things are hard and have someone speak into them or put them in a different light so it isn't so discouraging. 

8. HAD AN AMAZING FRIDAY! 
- The kids worked hard!
- We listened to my favorite Australian Radio station
- I got grades updated and left school feeling a sense of "finish"
- The kids seem to like the project we are working on.
- We ended the day with a mixer and I started to remember why I love middle schoolers so much. 
- Got my workout in and ended the day babysitting for a sleeping baby!

What amazing things happened to you this week? What are your small wins?

Small Wins

I frequently read the Biggest Loser Olivia and Hannah's blog and recently they talked about the Bad Days.  .....the days that we fall back into old habits
.....the days that we are discouraged
.....the days when all we want to eat is...well everything we see. 

In this video, Olivia mentions something that was something I never though to do.  Make a list of all the things you did right.  If you are like me and get to the end of the day and can only think about all the ways that you didn't meet your own expectations or others for you, this could change your life.

So instead of making a list of all the ways I have failed....I am going to make a list of the things I did right...the small wins!

Here are 3 ways that this idea has begun to change my year: 

1. My job: As a teacher of 12-13 year olds, I constantly feel like I am losing the battle to win their attention, their focus, and any ounce of academic success for them.  I feel like I have been losing the battle for the past couple of months.  

Thursday as I drove away from school, I wept because I felt that I had let down my students by harboring frustrations from hour to hour.  My impatience grew when they didn't understand something I thought I had explained clearly and the apathy they showed to this assignment I was excited about, drove me crazy!!

Today, could have been about the same, but I am choosing to celebrate the small wins.  The little things that went right today.
- I didn't have to write a detention or referrals today.
- The student who didn't do anything yesterday in class, completed his assignment today with little prompting.
- We had library day, which meant that they worked on a fun activity.
- I got all my grades updated.
- I make Certificates of Awesome for the kids who did great first semester!
- Created a rubric for in class debates on Monday.
- Our newest ELL student who doesn't speak any English seemed to make some friends.
- I found out that I would look really cute in hipster glasses. (All the girls at least thought so!)
- My 7th hour were very concerned with whether I was having a good day today.
- I had fun!!

2. Mental/Physically: Over the past 3 months, I have gained about 10 lbs back from where I was.  Big picture, this is not that big of a deal.  However, I was so close to my goal weight and I got off track after I ran my 3rd Half marathon this fall.  As I try to get back on track with eating well, (Let's be honest, that is the hardest part of losing weight and I am a stress eater!)  thinking about the small wins of the day helps me be more positive about my progress. 

So this week instead of thinking about the gummy worms that I ate on Monday night, I want to think about my small wins!
- I worked out 5 days this week.
- I ran outside on Wednesday!
- Resisted the 2 offers of doughtnuts on Thursday (This was the stressful day!)
- Instead of getting Chipotle with friends on Friday night, I made an omelet! (Saved me money too!)
- Had salads 2 days for lunch this week!
- I didn't eat anything after dinner 4 times this week.
- Resisted buying snacky foods that keep me munching!
- No cookies or chips for me during a meeting today at church! (It wouldn't have been worth it.)
- Got up early this morning and ran with a friend. (Big win since I usually like to run by myself!)

3. 2012 Reflections: Don't get me wrong 2012 was a great year and ended with a fantastic trip Down Under, but I started thinking about all the things that didn't happen instead of all the things that did. 

So here are some good things that happened in 2012!

- Made a lot of new friends!
- Ran 2 Half Marathons
- Traveled to Denver to visit one of my favorite people in the world.
- Took 7 hours of Grad classes
- Survived year 3 of teaching.
- Made it very close to my goal weight!
- Put myself out there and went on a few dates! (Didn't turn out too well, but it was a good first step!)
- Stepped into a different role at church
- Said yes to a lot of things! (Color Run, going to Concerts, going to Australia!)
- Traveled halfway around the world to AUSTRALIA!
- Took on a lot of new things for my job and personally.

See I would say that 2012 was a great year.  I easily discredit it because not everything I wanted to happen happened....but whose to say that God doesn't want to spread out the good things.

Ultimately, making a list like this brings to light the fact that as much as a fail, God is so abundantly gracious to me and does not leave me alone in that failure.

    For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
(Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV)

In what areas would it be helpful to make a list of your small wins?  What are some ways that you can practice grace to yourself or others around you?

Happy 2013 from the Future!

On Monday, I am going to ask my students what they did over the break....and if I was in my class and I had to answer this question I would get to answer like this!

I spent my Christmas Break....in AUSTRALIA!!!

I would love to share all my pictures and share all my stories, but for now, here are a couple from our New Year's Eve celebration (a whole 17 hours before everyone in the states) atop a hill overlooking the Sydney Harbor!  There is a little video at the end that gives you a taste of the festivities!



(If it makes you feel better, it was chilly and we had to be there for 6 hours sitting on the ground.  And I was sunburnt from spending the day at the beach!)