She Runs By Faith

Disclaimer: I received WIN Sports Detergent  in exchange for my review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador) and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews! The snow season makes up about six months of the year around these parts and so enters a whole different kind of running. Instead of shorts, tanks and sunscreen, it's all about Yaktrax and layers upon layers of clothing (still wear the sunscreen though). Though the change of the season is to be expected, especially as a lifetime-Minnesotan, the large increase of dirty laundry in the cold months always catches me by surprise! And it's not just my own - throw in the snow pants and many winter layers for three kids (+ my hubs) and we may just be able to sled down my laundry mountain. To conquer my laundry mountains and attack the sports-stink in our athletic wear, I received WIN Detergent as a part of being a BibRave Pro. Since the majority of detergents...

Dear 2018, It's been fun! Here's a little rundown of my "Top Nine" before this year officially closes: Grandma's Marathon in June, 3:32:17. Check that one off the race bucket list!  Completed 25 product reviews, 1 race ran with the BibRave Pro team Many, many adventures with my three wild, wonderful boys (& the dog) Year #2 with BibRave is now complete Grand Forks Half Marathon + coffee with my best friend in September Injured in August. Hip flexor strain that took 4 months to completely heal.  Met up with awesome homeschool-boymom-sub-3-marathoner, Danielle Celebrated 6 years of marriage in May with this handsome man. I thank God for him and pray that we have many more years together <3 Many frozen miles ran for that spring marathon, and then I missed the entire tail-end of summer and all of fall running and racing! What is a highlight from your 2018? My Weekly Wrap Easing back into running after a severe hip flexor strain in...

It's quite likely that I'm stuffing my face with Christmas leftovers and possibly overdosing on pie and lefse. May you have a blessed Christmas celebrating our Savior's birth with friends and family! This is a poem that the older two boys memorized that has become a favorite of mine as well: My Gift by Christina Georgina Rossetti What can I give Him, Poor as I am? If I were a shepherd I would bring a lamb, If I were a Wise Man I would do my part,-- Yet what I can I give Him,

Disclaimer: I received a Zwift RunPod  in exchange for my review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador) and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews! Let's just throw this out there right away: I have been either on the treadmill or not running at all lately. Strep throat threw me for a loop but my motivation to run outside in the dark on icy roads has been dwindling too. Now is the time to, first, get healthy again and then gradually build my running base before marathon training starts in mid-January. Good news here is all signs of my hip flexor injury are gone! That is a huge answer to prayer and I'm praying that it doesn't pop up again as mileage grows. About those treadmill runs... The treadmill (or "dreadmill") may be notoriously smack-talked by runners because it's boring but, when it comes to real life, it can be quite a "run saver". I can turn on my kids' favor...

I was planning to write about returning to the rhythm of marathon training until my early Christmas present arrived. As the kids opened their stockings for our Christmas party at home, my oldest said, "Mommy, but what are you going to get for Christmas?" I answered, "Daddy got me a new floor (finished this week!) and a new rug." "No, like a real present!", he responded. I then should have said, "Mommy got strep throat, sweetie.  Now let's go find some antibiotics to stuff my stocking with." ;) I joke. Getting sick is part of life and having three small people (one in particular that licks everything) makes it that much easier to get sick. For how healthy of a year we have had in 2018, I won't whine too much about getting strep now. It's an easy fix, thanks to my doctor visit yesterday. Day 2 and I'm already feeling much better. Let's quickly recap this year and look forward to what's in store for 2019! Urg...

For my oldest son's preschool year, we followed the God's Little Explorers Preschool Curriculum by Stacie Ann Nelson at "Motherhood on a Dime". This is a 28-week lesson plan that travels the Bible from Genesis to Revelations and explores a new letter of the alphabet per week as well. I decided to use God's Little Explorers as our preschool curriculum because, as a new homeschooling mom that wasn't homeschooled myself, I wanted a guide to follow throughout the year that would ensure my oldest was introduced to key preschool concepts. I also knew I would need something to serve as a guide for my mind when life felt otherwise chaotic ( i.e. our third baby was arriving that November! ). Click here to view more details The curriculum is a downloadable file that is available for $20. I then printed it from my home computer/printer in black and white. The resources required were mainly standard school supplies and I used our Jesus Storybook Bible and My F...

Disclaimer: I received SABRE Red® products  in exchange for my review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador) and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews! I have been a solo runner ever since moving to this town five years ago and more than once I have received comments like "Your husband lets you run out in the dark?!"  Umm... yes. He  "lets me"?  While he doesn't exactly love me running in the dark, he does know it's the only chance I have to get out and he trusts me to run smart . (Plus he married me this way, knowing well of my independent streak ;) And I'm thankful he does trust me. For a while now I have been feeling like I  should  find pepper spray or some sort of defensive product to take with me on runs. Whether running in the dark or even in broad day light on desolate country roads, being a solo runner just isn't that safe anymore. Animals are my main concern here...

How much can change in 5.5 years, really?  Turns out, a lot. APR 2013 Almost 26-year-old me started this blog as a writing outlet to jot down thoughts about my faith, brand new motherhood, running. As a journaler since my elementary years, having a blog was only natural. I was on maternity leave with my one-month-old baby boy, who had arrived 5 weeks earlier than his due date. Hubs was finishing his degree, soon to graduate and celebrate our first wedding anniversary. I worked as a corporate graphic designer. Our house was small yet cozy, approximately the size of a two-bedroom apartment. That house fit our little family perfectly as we navigated a season of much newness. Flash forward to now, NOV 2018 Thriving in the 30's, I'm 31 years young. Considered old by some but still viewed as too young to know anything by many. Still writing, just from the perspective of a not-as-new mom that still loves Jesus and a good run. I do drink more coffee than I did 5 years...

I'm an avid note taker and journaler. Think piles of old journals, sticky notes, sketchbooks, notes in the margins, lists here, lists there. Recently I was introduced to a new way of note taking in the form of a reusable notebook and, honestly, I was skeptical. Could there be anything better than a traditional ole notebook? Enter the Rocketbook Everlast . How to Use This Smart Notebook The Everlast is a reusable "smart notebook" which enables you to take notes using a specific pen, the Pilot FriXion pens or markers. Prior to using my notebook, I downloaded the Rocketbook app on my iPhone. It was quick, painless and has very positive ratings in the App Store as well. After downloading, I went straight to business with the Pilot FriXion Clicker  (3-pack for $7 on Rocketbook.com) that Rocketbook sent me. As I mentioned earlier, Pilot FriXion pens and markers are the only writing utensils to be used on the Everlast and replacements and/or different styles ...

Disclaimer: I received a complementary entry into the Scooby Doo Virtual Run Series  in exchange for my review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador) and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews! Without battling traffic while traveling for hours, paying outrageous amounts for a hotel stay or waking up at crazy early hours, we completed a race series. My dog, Saul, and I participated in the Scooby Doo Virtual Run Series from the comfort of our own small town and on our own schedule! This run series included the Doo Good 5k in September and the Scoobtober 5k/10k in October. We covered the miles at our own pace, which was perfect for our team as Saul is an elderly ole boy and I have been recovering from a hip flexor injury myself. For more on the Doo Good 5k, check out my post  here . This is a quick run down of our Scoobtober 10k experience: October in northern Minnesota started a tad...