The Crafts

While celebrating Christmas at my parents' house I found one of my old dance costumes. Kate was more than willing to try it on...and then never take it off. We said she looked like a butterfly and she was happy to assume the role. In other news, Matt and I are making a good effort to get into shape. We are both planning to run some races this summer so we want to be prepared to start a serious training program come spring. Today we pushed out a 5 miler and finished it in 42 minutes 48 seconds. Our first three miles we ran 8:30 each, the fourth mile was a bit slower at 8:50 and then we kicked it in gear and ran the final mile in 8:28. We are both going to run the Sturgis Falls half marathon at the end of June. My PR (personal record) for a half marathon is 1 hour 48 minutes. My goal for this summer is 1 hour 45 minutes. To achieve that time I will have to pull out an average of 8 minute miles. I have some work to do before I can get to that pace but I think I'm on track. Any...

For Christmas this year the Craft family and my mom gave Packers tickets to my dad, my sister Lindsay, Ryan and his girlfriend, Lindsay. My dad was the only one who did NOT know about the tickets. The video includes my dad reading "Gary's Christmas Story." It is a silly book I made that leads him to the surprise ending...the tickets!! Also, I want to add that this video is courtesy of Flip Video; a gift I received from Matt. I am now able to upload directly to YouTube and the blog in a much, much, MUCH shorter time than I was with the old system. Enjoy!

I want to wish a very Merry Christmas to all of my readers. I pray that you will remember the true meaning of today and that you are blessed to spend time with your loved ones. I cannot wait to visit all of my family over the holidays. Earlier in the week I joked that all I want for Christmas is to sleep. Unfortunately CJ couldn't deliver. The two of us have been up since 4:45 after going to bed at 11 and waking at 1 a.m. I told her she forgot my Christmas present this year. She just cooed at me. Despite my sleeplessness I remember my blessings this morning; two beautiful, healthy daughters, a loving husband and a terrific family. Merry Christmas to you and your families. -Sarah

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pt3B3UcJ5hs

For those of you who don't brave the winter weather for a daily run you may not know what 'Yak Trax' are. They are spiral like spikes that wrap around your running shoes and keep you from falling on your face in the snow and ice. And this weekend I acquired a pair for myself. Years ago I would hop outside for a wintry run without thinking twice about slipping on my rear. But as I age I have found myself more afraid of broken bones and a bruised ego so instead of running I would shuffle. Now that I have my Yak Trax I no longer have to worry about it. These things are awesome! I can jump and turn and run without worry. I see a long winter of running in my future which is great because without strenuous exercise in my life I really become a crab. I guess years of rigorous swimming has made my body need exercise. Additionally, running has helped me shed some of the CJ baby weight. For the longest time I was stuck at 10 extra pounds but thanks to some additional jogs I...

Kate's new thing is to put her head under the water and listen to herself talk. It is really entertaining for the rest of us. Kate found some VCR tape stickers and decorated herself...and CJ. I think Kate had more fun with this project than innocent, little CJ.

I feel as if I've been very absent from my blog as of late. So, here is a brief wrap-up on what has been going on with us. The blizzard hit us on Tuesday and Wednesday and we were trapped in the house for about three full days. I attempted to take Kate out for a bit during CJ's morning nap but Kate was cold and didn't last long. Despite this we did enjoy ourselves outside. We made snow angels and ran 'races' on the sidewalk. This morning I ran the Snow Shuffle; a 5K race in the chill of winter. My dad came up and the two of us, along with my friend Heather, ran 3 miles on snowy, icy roads. The race was scheduled to take place on the trails around Cedar Falls but after 10+ inches of snow the run was moved to the roads. I was very pleased with my time especially considering the occasional slip on the snow. I finished in 28:20 and somehow managed to stay warm the entire run. Lots of runners dressed up and some even sang Christmas carols while running. When I ...

Few people can pull off horizontal stripes but I must say CJ is rocking the look. Note: the dirty socks lying next to her belong to Kate. Walk through any room in the house and you will probably find a pair of Kate's socks on the floor.

I have completely put off blogging about a recent and important event: our 5 year anniversary. November 27th Matt and I celebrated five years together as a married couple. It is hard to believe 5 years have gone by so fast and yet I feel like I have known him for so many more years than that. Our marriage has brought many blessings into my life. The most obvious and always present blessing is our children. God gave us two amazing little girls and I love them more each day. I've noticed traits of both Matt and me, and often times traits of extended family. I couldn't be more proud of their talents and hope for nothing but the most wonderful dreams for them. Another blessing which can sometimes be hidden by the monotony of day to day life is having a tremendous spouse. Matt brings out nothing but the best in me. He has taught me patience in dealing with stressful situations. I need Matt whenever I cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel. He almost always looks at s...

La Porte City saw its first snowfall Thursday morning. And while CJ napped, I took Kate out for her first taste of snow this winter. We were only outside for a few minutes since I didn't want to leave CJ alone for long and it was mighty frigid. But as Matt continually points out, it is only going to get colder. Ugh!

I made several attempts over the last two days to take CJ's 3 month picture. Here are some of the outtakes followed by the winner. Kate really wanted to be in on the picture but was having a hard time sitting still. But that is pretty normal. I kept trying to get a good one but both kiddos were fed up. Day two of trying: Now it was CJ's turn to not sit still. Finally a pretty good photo. She doesn't look the happiest but still awfully cute! Although I'm just now noticing she is only wearing one shoe. :)