{Jingle Bell Pop}

Happy holidays, all! I hope you're having a season filled with festivity, tradition, family,

and memory makers. I wanted to take a minute to thank all the people in our lives

for their friendship and love in the last year. You make our world a better place by being

in it! All of us over here at Link Adventure wish you a very Merry Christmas ...

It's been a weird holiday season for us this year. The cherry on top came yesterday when I

finally had to concede and admit I am really sick. I was in bed all day yesterday, getting up

only occasionally for fluids, medicine or snacks. I managed to have some face time with my

brother (thanks to Apple) and drag my sick soul into the shower and get ready by 11AM

today. Not breaking any records!

But in keeping with the holiday streak I'm on this year of blogging myself in or with silly

seasonal accessories -- I snapped a photo with my $1 reindeer headband today. :)

Merry Christmas!

I'm determined to get well, and I have a stock pile of medicine to help me do it.

And, of course, the best medicine of all -- puppy love!

So, please have a safe and happy holiday! Enjoy each other and the season in good health

and boundless joy. Cheers!

{If I was a Turkey, I'd run on Thanksgiving too!}

David and I ran in our first ever Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day.

This was (proud moment) my second official 5k! I jogged the whole thing, doing just

under an eleven minute mile. I wasn't breaking any records, but I felt great and could

have easily kept going. David -- the marathon man who usually runs about an eight

minute mile -- humored my pace. We did the whole thing together.

There was a Turkey Trot in Chandler the weekend before Thanksgiving, but we wanted to

do it on Thanksgiving Day. So, we headed out to Anthem (an hour from our house). The

trip was worthwhile -- beautiful views and a fun event. It was a perfectly crisp morning

that made for a really nice memory. I'm glad we did it.

It might be crazy talk, but I wonder if I can get my act together enough to do a 10k.

Stay tuned. :)

{A Spooktacular Halloween}

Boo!

I thought I'd pop in with a mini update from Halloween weekend. It was a busy and fun

one, for me. I had to work in one form or another Friday through Monday, but I also

made sure it was loaded with candy and friends, as God intended. Mwah-ha-ha!

I went to a third -- "Little Man" themed -- birthday party for Sawyer. :)

Then, Christa and Keith had a Halloween party at their place on Sunday afternoon.

They did it UP! They made so many awesome, festive treats and I think everyone

dressed up for the party -- little kids and "big kids" alike. I was an iron chef.

To round out the festivities, I put on as much lipstick, glitter and eye liner as possible.

Then, D & I hopped in the car and went to Jen and Anthony's to pass out -- and eat! --

a bunch of candy. I loved seeing all the trick-or-treaters in costume. They were pretty

darn cute.

Time to take down all our Halloween decorations now. Ugh.

{I am a Warrior}

I'm back!

This has been my longest break from blogging since I began Link Adventures in 2005. Thank you for all your thoughts about missing my online updates. It's been very appreciated and nice to hear. Every note, comment or phone call felt like a hug, and I used them all to help refill my emotional bank account.♥♥♥♥♥

I took some time off from blogging to deal with life. It snuck up on me and kicked me in the ass a few times, but I chose to look at it as a wakeup call and deal with it. I feel like I finally got out in front of it this time around. The last two months, I've spent reprioritizing and creating balance where it previously lacked. Today, I feel stronger then ever. I'm doing a lot of things I'm really excited about. I feel grateful, inspired, happy, energetic, motivated, and satisfied.

With that, let's get back to blogging, shall we?

I couldn't think of a more appropriate post to return with than one about the Warrior Dash we ran in last month. Have you heard of this race? It's -- hold on, I don't want to over state this too much -- the coolest thing EVER.

The Warrior Dash is a 5k loaded up with obstacles like cold water, mud, fire, climbing, sliding, leaping, jumping, and dodging. It's AWESOME. People dress up in crazy costumes. Afterwards, there's live music, beer, food, and general camaraderie.



David and I flew to the midwest so we could do the race with Aaron (my brother) and Pam (his wife). We all really needed this. Pam and Aaron spent the year kicking cancer out of her body. David and I had a crazy, life-changing summer. And Edgar -- the one who got us turned onto the idea of doing the race -- gave a stern talking to his fear of heights.

We all left a few demons on the course and connected with our inner warriors that day!

Best event ever. So, so fun. Totally worth all the dirt in inappropriate places.

Special thanks goes out to:

* Edgar for giving us the idea

* Aaron for pushing us to sign up

* The guys at mile two who literally threw drinking water into our faces

* The fire department for volunteering to hose us off afterwards

* David for going with

* Pam for being my running partner

* The nice group of people in the parking lot (field) who were standing next to us but

didn't stare when we stripped down to our birthday suits afterwards and got clean.

Be warned, I am taking my new warrior status very seriously going forward. :)

{Being Present in the Moment}

I'm going to spend some time with this guy today ...

... and I think that will be nice. ♥

Photo taken by Barb at Patti's surprise 60th birthday party, June 2011.

{A Few Minutes Together at the Golden Hour}

You have to savor the good moments, you know? Appreciate time together. Foster

passions. Observe nature. Create opportunities. Change your scenery.

David noticed a wheat field on one of his runs back in May. He thought the evening sun

made it glow beautifully and that it might make a good photo op for me. We ended up

going down there together with our cameras to play with the light.

This was six weeks ago, but I was looking at the photos recently and felt inspired to

share them. They remind me of where we were in that moment -- it was a monumentally strange day for us, but this was a nice and needed pause in it.

Here are my captures ...

And these are his ...

One of my intentions for the rest of this month is to focus my energy on doing this very

sort of thing -- taking time to do little things like this that leave me feeling grounded,

connected, creative, strong, calm, accomplished, and happy. It doesn't matter if they're spontaneous or planned, as I take advantage of the opportunities to do them.

Life is what you make of it!

{Happy Birthday to my Sweet Baby Boy}

Killian would be perfect if he would just stop getting older. I want him to live as long

as I do and be as healthy and energetic as he is right now. Is that too much to ask?




My angel is six years old today. I'll tell you one things for sure, my world has been a

brighter place since he entered it. I love this boy so much!

Happy birthday, Kills. And many more!