65.5

These are the 5 half marathons I will be running this fall!

1. Transmountain Challenge Half Marathon

2. Rio Grande Half Marathon

3. El Maraton- Day of the Dead Half Marathon

4. New Mexico Chips and Salsa Half Marathon

5. Flying Horse Half Marathon

That is a total of 65.5 miles! 

I am pretty excited, I never thought those words would come out of my mouth when it comes to running.

Decisions, Decisions

Kyle and I have been going back and forth on what we want to do for our anniversary in June. He is not getting traditional summer block leave this year, since the unit is deactivating they are letting people take leave when they aren't busy. 

We has tossed around the idea of a cabin in the mountains, Disneyland, Dallas or San Antonio (again). I think I may have found a great place to check out. 

San Diego, California!

It is such a beautiful place but I have never spent a lot of time there. I think it would be a lot of fun to explore and enjoy a few beaches too. :)

We'll see what happens!

Weekend Snapshots

I have a feeling most of my post over the next week will consist of a lot of pictures haha. This weekend was good, pretty low key and uneventful which is always nice.

Started out Friday by walking Kylie to the bus stop, I really need her to stop growing up!

Then it was off to the park with Grayson to burn off his crazy energy. :)

 

I also watched Frozen for the first time (yes I am behind) and I LOVED it!!!!!

I finally dyed my hair and it just confirmed that I am much happier as a redhead.

Kyle sent me this hysterical text of Emma...she is yawning and he had to give it a silly caption.

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing, shopping, eating (we like food lol), hanging out with the kiddos and my sister plus packing for our Disneyland trip. We leave tomorrow and will spend 3 days there and then the beach on Friday. It will be great.

I hope you all had a great weekend!

Getting Real

To be honest I have really been struggling as to whether or not I wanted to post this, but I knew it would make me feel better.

Over the last 5 1/2 years that I have been blogging I have talked about my relationship with my family but I have barely discussed my relationship with my in-laws.

Let me start by saying that I love them, I truly do but sometimes I feel that I have to continue to prove myself to them, especially my mother in law and my brother in law. 

Kyle and I have not had an easy 6 years of marriage. Our first year was extremely difficult. We fought a lot, to the point where we almost got divorced. It was awful and I was of the mindset that our personal problems did not need to be aired to anyone in our families. However, he did not feel this way and talked in length to his Mom and brother (and eventually his brothers gf who is now his wife). I was uncomfortable with this because I felt that this tainted their perception of me and I was immediately the outcast. Thankfully he learned from this situation and does not discuss our personal issues anymore. His brother never understood why we got married as quickly as we did, he always questioned if Kyle had done the right thing.

I did my best to fit in and feel as though I belonged. Once his brother got engaged and eventually married (I didn't even get included in the family section of their wedding site) everything changed again. I think my sister-in-law is great but I have never had a close relationship with her, for me it has always been an uncomfortable feeling because she knows some of our issues from the past. My brother in law does not understand why we run or why we announce pregnancies early, he always has an opinion about something and it's frustrating.

Now that my in-laws have their first grandchild I feel that our journey to become parents is not important to them. I have stopped telling my mother-in-law what is going on with treatments because it does not seem to matter to her.

Over the last few years Kyle and I have grown so much as people and in our relationship. Our relationship is the best it has ever been, he is my rock and I don't know what I would do without him. I just wish that my relationship with my in-laws wasn't so difficult. I love them but I just don't feel that it is reciprocated.

I hope that we can fix this and get better. Fingers crossed.

Friday Favorites

I found this cute Converse swimsuit at Target for $13! It was originally $50. Thank goodness for the clearance rack and a coupon on Cartwheel.

 These two kiddos...I love spending so much time with them. They are the best.

This awesome bracelet that my Dad sent me.  I have to send it back to have one of the diamonds replaced.

We ventured out yesterday for frozen custard and OMG! The custard at Freddy's is amazing, there is a brownie buried underneath all that chocolaty deliciousness.

This hair color! I will be dying my hair tonight, it desperately needs it, my roots are pretty crazy.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!!

It's Only Thursday

It feels like this week has gone by so slowly! I thought it was Saturday when I woke up but I guess being on vacation will do that to you. It has been nice to spend time with family for sure but I always miss the comfort of my own home.

Not much has been going on around here but here are a few tidbits:

*Kyle got his date for Ranger School yesterday. He reports August 17th! He is excited and is ready to conquer this beast.

*I finished my current 4 classes, I'm just waiting for final grades to be posted. The fun starts all over on May 5th with 5 new classes.

*I may talked Kyle into having a small get together at our house for his birthday. Gives me something to look forward to and plan. 

*I registered for 5 more half marathons this year...trying to hit my goal of 30 races for the year.  Later in the year my sister and I will be registering for this!!! So beyond excited for the TinkerBell Half!

*Kyle sent me this picture of Emma and Fishy...not sure they miss me at all haha.

Hope you all have a great Thursday!

I'm A Real Military Spouse

I am linking up today for a fun military spouse linkup hosted by Samantha and Mal!

Hi Everyone! My name is Jen and I am a 28 year old Army wife of almost 6 years, a volunteer, runner and full-time psychology student living the dream in the desert of Fort Bliss, Texas! My husband, Kyle, has been in the Army for almost 7 years and is currently a military intelligence company commander and grad student.

Kyle and I met when we were in the 6th grade in Las Vegas. He was goofy kid that sat next to me in our history class and we were always just friends. We re-connected with each other in March 2008 and things moved quickly. We were married in June 2008 and we embarked on this crazy military life together. We are struggling with infertility but we have two precious furbabies, Emma and Fishy.

We spent the first 4 years of our marriage stationed at Fort Bragg, NC. We went through two deployments, countless field trainings, and a whole lot of Airborne operations that kept Kyle gone quite a lot. After our time there it was off to Fort Huachuca, AZ for a short 7 months and now we are at Fort Bliss. My husband is a lifer and to be honest I'm thrilled!

I have always tried to tell people that the military lifestyle is not bad and that the dramatics they see or hear are not true when it comes to everyone. I have embraced this life for the last 6 years, yes there are things that frustrate me but that can happen in any life situation. I would not change the experiences or the friendships that we have made.

I am thankful for all that this life has given me, I embrace every aspect of it because it is what my husband loves and I love it too. We support each other and make the best out of every situation that gets handed to us.

I am proud to be a military spouse and I am proud of my husband!

There is certainly never a dull moment!

NIAW

This week is National Infertility Awareness Week. 1 in 8 couples are on this long journey to become parents. To all those out there going through this, you are not alone and there are so many people who love and support you! 

I never thought that we would be one of those couples but this journey has made us stronger than I ever thought possible. This journey will have a happy ending for us and so many others! I just know it.

If you know someone going through this please support them and let them know that they are loved.

 

Happy Tuesday Everyone!

Long Weekend

We got to my sisters house late Thursday night and have been having a great time since. 

Friday we lounged around and ran a few errands but mostly relaxed so we could be ready for our half on Saturday.

We got up bright and early for the Going The Distance Half Marathon. It was a really tough course but so worth it. It was a beautiful area and we ended up not running together which was okay with me. We had a blast!!

Afterwards we came back to the house and celebrated Kyle's birthday early! He got some great gifts including an adopted sloth. Haha he has an obsession with sloths so my sister and her family did great.

Sunday morning we got up early with the kids to hunt for Easter eggs. They loved their baskets and had so much fun!  

Kyle heads home today with Emma but I'm here until the 3rd. :) 

I hope you all had a great Easter!!

Semi-Wordless Wednesday

Kyle and I were reminiscing about his career so far in the military...we both realized how much we miss being in an Airborne community. 

Maybe one day he will go back to an Airborne unit (preferably the 82nd) and earn his Master wings.

He sure does miss jumping. Yes, he is in this picture somewhere lol.

Happy Wednesday!

Oh Vacation....You Are Almost Here!

Oh how I am ready for vacation! Starting Thursday I will be in Arizona with my sister and her family for two weeks. I am bummed that Kyle can't stay longer but such is life.

Speaking of vacation, I pulled out my shirts for Disneyland and I'm set. Yes I'm that girl that will have a shirt for each day. :)

However, before I leave I have to get my military ID renewed...there is nothing I would rather do than spend my time at DEERS (I'm sure you can sense my sarcasm lol). Thank goodness for being to make an appointment, maybe it won't take up my whole morning.

I am also in week 7 of my classes...only a week left and I am finally free. Well for a week but that is better than nothing. I am doing my best to be done with school as soon as possible.

I had my post-op appointment yesterday and my doctor is happy with how my healing is going. She was thrilled to hear that I am already back running. We also came up with a game plan and that will be to do 3 rounds of clomid. Yay for the hormonal and crazy side effects that come along with it. I have taken clomid before and it didn't work but we figured we might as well try again.

The next few days will be spent doing laundry, packing, cleaning, getting the oil changed in my car, and writing papers. I need a nap already. 

Hope you all have a great Tuesday!

Run-derful Weekend!

First of all I do not like that weekends are going by so fast!




Friday was a mostly quiet day, I was chained to the house all day waiting for pest control so I felt the need to bake. I made my Mom's famous Whipped Cream Chocolate Pudding cake...oh it is heaven in cake form haha. The rest of the day was spent doing school work.

recipe

Saturday we participated in the Jailbreak 5k Mud Run! This was the first race I ever did and it was just as much fun as last year. They changed up the course which was nice and the finisher medal doubles as a bottle opener lol.

After the run we headed over to a friends house for a barbecue. It was a great way to spend a Saturday.

Sunday we participated in the Wounded Warrior 5k, it was an absolute wonderful cause to support and be a part of.

Kyle and I have decided that since he is training to Ranger school he is going to start running out ahead of me. I started out pretty fast and was feeling great, I ran my fastest 5k in 31 minutes. I am only 3 weeks removed from surgery and it felt great. I am not a fast runner, never have been and I have no desire to break any records. I was so proud of Kyle because he finished 2nd in his age group (only 48 seconds behind the guy that took first). He got a pretty silver medal in addition to the dog tag finisher medal.

It was an amazing weekend and proved to me that I am getting back into my groove with running. Bring on the half marathon this weekend!

I hope you all had a great weekend.

Artist I am Not

Last night was our coffee and we went to one of those wine/paint places. We had the best time painting our guitars and hanging out. I love this group of ladies and will be so sad when we all go our separate ways. They also loved their coffee mugs I gave them, made me happy.

I am definitely no artist but I had fun haha.

I try to find things to do that don't just involve going to someones house and socializing that way. Being creative is way more fun and the ladies all said how much fun they had. Our next coffee will be at a paint your own pottery place.

Have you ever been to a place like this? 

Birthday Thoughts

The one good thing about Kyle not reading my blog is that I can talk about things such as his birthday, without him ever finding out. 

Since his birthday is a few days after I get back from Arizona I want to do something to surprise him. His birthday is on Cinco de Mayo which is a pretty fun birthday if you ask me.

I have coordinated with his 1SG and XO for them to get me into his office the day before his birthday. Thankfully it's a Sunday and I go grocery shopping so he would never question me leaving the house. I already have some decorations bought, here is what I have so far:

We already have a sombrero so I'm sure that will get worn at some point during his day lol:

I'm going to bring in a cake for his birthday, he has no idea about that either. I had the idea to throw him a party at the house but he quickly said no haha. He isn't a huge fan of birthdays but I still wanted to do something special.

The one thing I am stumped on is a gift. I am thinking possibly a day of golf or golf lessons. Fingers crossed that I can pull off this surprise without him finding out.

Have you ever tried to surprise your significant other?

Random Things

A few weeks ago I decided to make gifts for the ladies in my coffee group. Since I only have 5 ladies I wanted to make it something special that they could take with them on their military journey.

I had these class coffee mugs etched with their initials and BSTB Coffee Group on the other side. (Thanks to Walmart for the awesome mugs and Things Remembered for their military discount lol)

I found this cute printable gift tag and knew it would be perfect for the bags. We are going to one of those wine/paint places on Thursday so I can't wait to give them out!

Since we will be in Arizona for Easter with my family we figured it couldn't hurt to see if there was a race nearby. Luck would have it that there is a half marathon happening about 45 minutes from my sisters house. I am looking forward to beautiful scenery and a fun 13.1! This will be half #5 for me and #4 for Kyle. Excited!

My sister and I decided to move our Disneyland trip up by a month! Only 21 days until we are enjoying the happiest place on Earth! Yay!

Happy Tuesday Everyone!

Weekend Stuff

It's Monday again and another weekend has come and gone. We had a great one!

Friday we curled up on the couch for a movie night but we did venture out for some Orange Leaf. Yes in that picture I promise there is brownie batter yogurt underneath all the sprinkles/brownies.

I was also finally able to run! Oh my it felt amazing!

 

Saturday was a really fun day! We headed off to the Women's UTEP Basketball game. Since they did not get selected for the NCAA Tournament they were playing for the WNIT Championship against Rutgers. They lost by 2 points but it was an awesome game.

Afterwards we went to dinner at the Edge of Texas Restaurant. It is right down the road from our house and they have probably the best bacon wrapped filet I have ever had. I forgot to take a picture of my dessert but it was a 3 layer chocolate mousse. Yum!

Sunday was more laid back as you can see by the pictures of Emma and Fishy. I worked on a paper for school and Kyle started his training for Ranger school. Once August rolls around he will be more than ready.

I hope you all had a great weekend!

Let's Run!

Today is the day I have been waiting for for the last two weeks! I finally get to lace up my shoes and go for a run. I never thought I would be the person that would actually miss it. 

 I know it is exactly what I need to get back into the flow of things, it is truly my therapy.

Next weekend we will be running 2 races and it also marks the 1 year anniversary of my first race.

I ran the Jailbreak Mud Run 5k as my first race and we will be doing it again. We had a blast the first time and I know it will be even better the 2nd time around.

 

The next day we will be running the Spartyka Wounded Warrior 5k. As soon as I saw the flyer for it I knew we had to participate.

Can't wait to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather.

Happy Friday and I hope you all have a great weekend.

Throwback Thursday: 6 Years

6 years ago I began a relationship that would change my life forever! A new relationship can be scary but adding the military into it added a whole new aspect of craziness. While things haven't always been perfect, it has been worth it.

Happy 6 years, Kyle! I love you more than you know.

(2008-2009)

(2010-2012)

(2013-2014)

Have a great day everyone. :)