Welcome Home

 It is official.  We have a new home...By new, of course, I mean almost 100 years old but we love our home.  Not to say it didn't take some work...Every room in the house was plastered with wall paper, not the cute "Oh how nice" wall paper, but the wall paper that makes you go, "Wow...that's........nice?"  Take a look at the "Before" pictures to get a feel for it.  Please note that if the pictures give you a head ache just look away for a few minutes and it will subside.

This first picture is of a bedroom.  This was the only room that did not have the 70's pea green color in it.  As you can see it was toned down with a deep reddish-purple. 

Bedroom Before

The main color we chose was a conservative tan color.  We think it gives the house a very relaxing and comfortable feel.  The white trim accents the woodwork that you find only in older homes and adds character to the house.  (We will be replacing the curtains soon)

Bedroom After

This next picture is another bedroom.  The large windows allow plenty of natural light in.  We splashed some paint on the walls and....

Bedroom Before

 I like the change...


Bedroom After

  Cailyn spent the day taking pictures and painting.  She was a big help.  We are so blessed to have such wonderful children.

 This picture is the office area.  This was the one area that we left wall paper on...partly out of exhaustion, but partly because it keeps with the time and style of the home.  We may end up painting it later...what do you think, should it stay or should it go?


Office Before

We did paint the lower portion of the wall...I just don't get along well with pea green. 

Office After

For the evening entertainment we had some ballet dancers come to the house and put on a show.  Here they are dancing in the hallway.

I still haven't figured out why folks on the lower side of five foot have to buy a house with 10 foot ceilings but we love the openness and spacious feeling of the house.  We are pretty proud of our paint job and look forward to showing it off. 

Living Room Before

Living Room After

Overview

Marathon.  26.2 miles if I'm not mistaken. Ouch.  Pain, like toe nails falling off pain.  Why do we do it?  Who knows.  This summer my brothers and I ran a 5K (about 3.1 miles). It was fun...in a weird, twisted sort of way.  Well, thats over now and its on to bigger and better and more painful things.  So here is the plan:
October: Half Marathon
January: Marathon
May: 50 mile Ultra
Next: ?

I hope to learn some stuff along the way, and thats what this blog is all about.  Whatever you read here (if anyone reads it at all) is not intended to be scientific information on running.  Its just me, my ideas and experiences.

In the Beginning

The Basics:
I'm not really a runner.  I like to run but I'm not very fast.  I've never won a race or been anything special on a race course.  I started doing laps around a high school track a few years ago, partly to keep in shape but mostly because for some crazy reason that I don't really understand, life makes a little more sense when you're feet are pounding out the miles.  Maybe its because running brings out natural instincts.  Maybe its because all the physical work burns away the emotional stress.  Maybe there is not real reason or truth at all to it and I'm just crazy (a fact that will probably become increasingly evident).  Anyway... whatever the reason I feel better about life and about myself when I run and that has to be good

So what next?
Well, obviously, for someone who runs on the weekends and wants to get into the better shape the next logical step is a 100 mile race, right?  Ok.  So maybe logic isn't my strong point but what the heck. 

So this is a story about a guy who set a goal and story of how he achieved it...or completely failed.  Either way, whoever wants to is welcome along for the ride.  So lace up your Nike's (or kick them off) and off we go.