THE PRICE IS RIGHT!!!!!

I am a runner.  

It makes me HAPPY.  (seriously, not kidding)

It keeps me healthy.

I spend anywhere between 15-20 hours running each month.  

However,

Time is precious.

No one really knows when their time on earth will be up.  As much as I love running, I do not want to go to my grave regretting all the hours, hours, and hours I spent running.  Wishing I had instead spent those hours with my children.  

So in order to prevent any possibilities of regret in this department, I choose to run while my children sleep.

At 5 am.  

3/4 of the calendar year, it's dark outside at this time of day.

And because I live where I do, 3/4 of the year, it's also varying degrees of "damp" outside.  

DARK + RAIN + my fear of free-range wild critters = 15-20 hours on a treadmill each month

My first treadmill cost me $200 - may it Rest In Peace

I decided to invest a bit more when I picked out it's replacement 6 years ago.  

$400 - GOLD'S GYM 450

It's been a really good treadmill and I'm very grateful for it.  It's got 4,887 miles on it and it's still going strong.  (yes, treadmills keep track of miles just like a car)

BUT . . . . . just like cars, everyone's got a dream right?

If money were no object, and I could go out and buy ANY treadmill I wanted, no matter the cost, I do have a dream treadmill.  

In my opinion, it's kind of like the Lamborghini of treadmills.  It has a color screen on it.  You can choose to "run the Boston Marathon" (or lots of other exotic running locations from around the world).  On the screen, you will see the scenery of your chosen course.  But it gets cooler!  The incline of the treadmill will go up and down corresponding with the hills and terrain of the course you picked.  Its amazing!  But a treadmill of this level of coolness costs $2,000.  

So . . . . .(maybe a drum-roll would be good here) . . . . . the other night we were dropping off some things at Goodwill.  My love and I are suckers for a good bargain and often browse Goodwill just for the fun of it.  We were absolutely flabbergasted at what we found.  MY DREAM TREADMILL.  Labeled as "LIKE NEW"!!!!!  I'm still dumbfounded as to why it was there!!!!!  Priced at $400.  (My jaw still hits the floor just thinking about it!)  

BUT IT GETS BETTER (or crazier, whichever you want to label it)

There was a "Manager's Special" that day.  50% off all furniture

So my "Lamborghini" rang in at $200.

I am overwhelmed at this amazing "gift."  

I feel so lucky.  So unfairly blessed.

I feel like I just won a prize on a game-show.

I still can't believe it's mine.

I love it.

And I love my husband.  Getting it home was no easy task.  We came back the first night to pick it up just before closing, but didn't have an allen wrench the right size.  So we had to go home empty handed.  (bummer!)
The next day we did finally get the necessary tools.  But this thing is a BEAST.  Holy Hanna it's heavy!  I was trying to do my part to help load it, I could barely lift it an inch off the ground.  Then try to lift AND move!  Some how we did get it into the van.

Once we got home, my BEAST (I think that will be it's new name!) made us exercise our brains too.  We had to figure out how to just get the thing in the door!  Not to mention the game of tetris we had to play with the furniture.  Not a word of complaint from my Love.  He was so good about it.  It was me who was whining and mumbling under my breath because we had to empty a bookshelf in order to make it light enough to scoot.

But it's in, and it's beautiful!  :)   :)   :)

By the way, remember how treadmills keep track of miles like cars . . . . .
Not a mile on it.
Brand spanking new.  A little dirty from being in the back of somebody's truck, but new.

And yes, I SOOO enjoyed my 12 mile run in Norway this morning.  :)  :)  :)
I really enjoyed having the incline change automatically.

Each of my girls enjoyed a short stroll in Norway this morning too.  :)

APRIL's little things

April was a month of little things.  No huge major events.  Just life.

A friend of mine recently had surgery to remove melanoma.  After the surgery when people asked what they could do to help, she said, "get yourself checked."  So I did.  Doc removed a mole.  Came back clear.
A "little" thing.  But cancer screenings can make a "big" difference.

The girls studied Shakespeare this year.  The Seattle Public Library had a special super old Shakespeare book on display.  So we took a little family adventure to check out the Seattle library.

I didn't know what to expect when I planned this outing.  If I had it to do over again, I think I would have just planned a date night trip with my love.  This 400 year old book was NOT that interesting for two ten-year-olds and a five-year-old.  But in the end, I feel it was not a lost day.  A"little" trip to the Seattle Library was "NEW."  "NEW," is big, scary, and challenging in our family.  So it ended  up being a really great chance to exercise things we work on, like bravery, trust, and calming down.  "Big" important life lessons that I would argue are even more important than rhymes, historical dates, and math equations.
It was definitely an interesting building.  Fitting really.  Seattle is an interesting city.

The next day we took a "little" day trip to central Washington for a wedding.  (By the time we got home that night, it didn't feel as "little")  My love's cousin got married.  If I had been more on top of things I would have gotten a picture with the bride and groom.  But instead I got a picture of the girls relaxing with their Great-Aunts after the wedding excitement had calmed down.

I spent a big chunk of this month sorting out school plans for next year.  We have been with the same Virtual Academy for 6 years.  But next year we are entering the middle school scene.  That changes things.  The Virtual Academy is no longer going to be the best fit for what I would like to do.  Which has meant lots of research.  Lots of e-mails.  Lots of phones calls.  LOTS of paper work (that all had to be scanned in).  A visit to meet the middle school counselor and several visits to the district office.  I'm happy to say that all my effort has paid off and we are set up in the program we are going to use next year.  A "little" thing in this grand universe, but a "BIG" impact on the everyday life of our little family.

The twins got invited to a Harry Potter themed birthday party this month.  So in preparation for attending that, we got to introduce our girls to the first Harry Potter movie.  Definitely a "little" thing.  But really fun.

The twins finished off the month with 3 days of their yearly standardized state testing.  I'm proud of how they copped with the stress of that less than fun activity.  Just a tiny "little" piece of their educational journey.  But a "big" difference in how they were able to cope, when compared to last years testing.  Progress and growth that my tender mother heart is grateful for.