Beaching It Up ... Sabbath Family Time

This Sabbath, we decided to head out to the beach. We haven't been as a family yet this year ... since the Philippines, so we packed up a Sabbath lunch, towels, sunblock, beach chairs, toys, and little Colton and set out for our favorite beach--New Smyrna. I wasn't worried about the weather being bad. It's super sunny and 91 degrees! But I was a little worried that early April would hold freezing cold ocean water rolling in wave by wave, so we wouldn't want to venture into the blue sea. When we got there, we could see many people had the same idea as we did ... I even think the people who sat in front of us were Adventist, too ... as they were eating vegelinks out of a can.

As soon as we got there, we set up and Colton surveyed the water. Luckily, the water was chilly, but it wasn't too cold. Once you were in the water, it felt really nice!

He decided that it was time to head down to the water right away. So Daddy took his hand, and I followed them down to the water.

Colton loved dancing in the water and splashing. He spent a long time playing with us in the sand. This kid loves to throw sand!





We packed a good lunch of sandwiches and oranges. Colton had some yummy snacks, too!



After lunch, we played in the water and sand for a while longer, and then Daddy and Colton took a walk. It was such a beautiful day at the beach! The weather was hot but not humid. Just how I like it!

While the boys were gone, I got some much needed relaxation in ... I layed out and rested while I listened to the ocean.




Then Daddy took a swim in the ocean for a bit while Colton and I played in the sand ... digging and throwing it all around. It was a great day! I'm so happy we decided to head out to New Smyrna. I think we'll have to do it more often ... even if we bring half the beach back with us in the car!

march-ed into spring

March was a full month! We were pretty busy around the Heinrich house. We spent a couple of weekends in Tampa with our good friends, the Adams. We had great times with them ... baseball games, the zoo, shopping, a water park, the aquarium, and the park. We also went down one weeknight to catch a hockey game with them--box seats! We have missed them so much since they left, and March felt like we still lived 10 minutes away. Luckily, they're only just about an hour and a half away, so it's still not too bad.





The boys had a lot of fun at the water park together. Mason and Colton are good buds.

They played so hard ... this is what happened on the walk home.

I was SO thrilled to have the Murrills here at the end of March. They stayed with us for nearly a week, and it was one of the happiest weeks I have had in a long time. I have really missed my dear friends. Steph is one of my closest and best friends, and it was so good to chat with her and spend time together. I absolutely LOVE Rosie! She has grown into one sweet, little toddler. I enjoyed watching her and Colton play together. They had a great time of it, and they really learned from each other. Mark and Billy stayed up and partied 'like it was 1999' every night until the wee hours of the morning. I think it was great for them to watch sports together and play games. It was like reoccurring Saturday nights even though both of them worked each day! I found that I really miss having the Murrills here in FL, but I know God has a plan for both of our families. I just hope that someday he places us back together wherever that may be. Here are some pictures from our great week:




I truly love this girl! How can you not absolutely love that face!?! She's such a doll!

I have missed our family togetherness times ... oh, Tijuana Flats ... it hasn't been that same without the Murrills, but this week, it was ... and it was fabulous ... twice!

And of course, the love between the two kiddies!

So, all in all, March was a great month! I have been feeling SO much better. The second trimester has blown in and the nausea has subsided. I still have waves of exhaustion, but nothing like the first trimester. Exercise is becoming a daily routine again and that feels great! My resolution for April: exercise is 7-8 am every day of the week. I always have a more energetic and better day when I do this. So, I just have to go to bed at a decent hour. My body seriously needs like 10 hours of sleep (or more), so I can't be seeing midnight every night anymore. I know Billy loves that I stay up that late now, but I just can't ... because I can't tear myself out of bed at 7 am like I need to.

Another sleep and exercise resolution ... will have to follow up on this one.

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Plus the DRESS!

So ... yesterday I excitedly reported that I can now fit into FIVE pairs of my old jeans. Today, I tried on a pre-pregnancy dress ... and ... it ... FITS!!!!!!!!!!! I have to say, this week has been fabulous. I am more than excited and more than happy. Ecstatic!

jeans, Jeans, JEANS!!!!!

So ... to my chagrin today, I found that my favorite pair of jeans have started to wear out. I hate it when they do that! I was SUPER bummed, because that's pretty much my only pair of jeans except for my maternity jeans that I've been able to wear in two years. I decided to break out my stack of old jeans just to see if by some miracle, I would be able to wear at least one pair. I tried to act like it wasn't any big deal ... and then the GREATEST thing happened ... not one, not two, not three ... but FIVE pairs of my old jeans FIT ME again! I was so sure that my running had been doing nothing for my body and come to find out, it has slimmed down my thighs and butt (and waist, obviously) enough to fit into my old jeans from my pre-pregnancy days. Today is a great day ... a GREAT day!

New Year ... New Me

I am happy to report that I have FINALLY lost 6 pounds!!!! I feel like I have been working so hard, and I am finally enjoying some results. Although, I still have a ways to go, it feels good to finally see something come out of all my hard work.

I have, also, achieved another goal. On Christmas Eve, I met my 8 mile goal! I ran 8 miles in about an hour and half. I felt beat up and sore when I finished, but I did it!!!! My breathing was great, and my lungs felt like I could keep going and going ... but my hips ... ah! They were so sore ... and my left knee kicked in about the last mile ... I thought I couldn't take another step. BUT I DID IT!!!!! How will I ever add 5 more miles in the next 6 weeks? I have no idea, but if you asked me a year ago if I thought I could run 8 miles, I would say 'NO WAY!' So, I have definitely come a long way, baby!

In two weeks, Billy and I are doing the Warrior Dash. I am super pumped about that! It's a 5K race off-road and through obstacles. It should be really fun!

Well, as I am recovering from jet-lag and our trip overseas, I will begin my workouts again starting on Sunday. I am anxious to get started and keep losing those pounds! Boo-yah!

10K Done and Done!

Well ... It may have been quite a while since my last post, but I have been running quite a bit. Since my summer of "no exercise" ... well at least 2 months of traveling with no consistent workout program, I started to run again when I got home. My goals were to run a 5K (3.1 miles) by October first ... and I completed that goal. :) Then I needed to run a 10K (6.2 miles) race by Thanksgiving. I did it! Yesterday, November 14, 2010, I ran my first 10K race at the Founders' Day run in Celebration, FL. I finished 1:14:58. It's a slower pace, but I was thinking about the bigger picture. In just over 3 months, I will be running the Disney Princess Half Marathon ... so I am looking to make sure I can run 13.1 miles. I'm not sure I have lost any weight yet or any inches, but I am still running as much as I can and heading toward my final goal. There's just no way I can't lose weight ... unless I am daily eating my weight in ice cream--which I am not. So, we'll see how it goes, and we'll keep on trucking. Until February ... happy running!