Chilly Minnesota

It's crazy how I spend my time thinking about trivial things -- like what to bring for my lunch today, or which of my 32 tops I should wear today, when there are much bigger things happening in the world. If you are the praying type, keep these people in mind.

Indonesia: Hundreds of houses, offices, schools and other buildings collapsed in the city of Padang after a 7.6 magnitude quake struck West Sumatra.

Phillippines: Typhoon Ketsana and Typhoon Parma swept through the Philippine Islands, affecting nearly 3.9 million people.

Samoan Islands: The tsunami, which brought waves of up to six meters high, was triggered after a powerful earthquake.

Vietnam: Typhoon Ketsana is estimated to have affected around 300,000 people in Vietnam.

India: Over a million people have been forced to flee their homes and nearly 300 have died in devastating floods triggered by torrential rains in India.

If you're interested in helping by giving to the World Vision Emergency Relief fund, click here.

So, a lot has happened over the summer months. Sorry I'm not better at keeping this up to date. To make this short and sweet, I'm going to write about a few things in this post.

BRITTANY'S FUNDRAISER
Brittany is at 96% of her fundraiser to go to Ukraine. So exciting! She was probably only at around 60% before her fundraiser event in Wisconsin last month. God is so very good. Here are a few photos from her luncheon. We helped blow up balloons for a visual of how many monthly supporters Brittany still needed. Each balloon represented a different dollar amount. And the dollar amounts were categorized by color. The $5 balloons on bottom and then the dollar amounts increasing as you get to the top with 1 balloon at the top worth $100. All that is left (as of today) is $100 a month. If you want to watch a cool video Brittany put together, check it out here. Or check out her blog.

PETER & DANI'S WEDDING
The same day as Brittany's fundraiser in Wisconsin, we had to truck it home in time for Peter & Dani's wedding reception. It was a small, cute, backyard wedding in which we were so happy to take part in. I wish I would have taken more photos because it was such a lovely little party.

Dena, The Bride (Dani), Me

RAGNAR RELAY
I don't quite know what to write about the great river run. "It was quite the experience" is what I've been telling people. Truthfully...it was a lot more difficult than I thought it would be.

We drove down to Winona Thursday night and got about 5 hours of sleep. Friday morning the race started at 7am. Cynthia was our #1 runner and she was pumped! Our first van of runners 1-6 then leap frogged back and forth, dropping it's runners off and cheering them on. Our van of runners (me) 7-12 drove on ahead to the 7th exchange where our group of runners started. We actually had about 6 hours of just waiting around in our van until the other van of runners got there and our #6 guy came running in. Thinking back on it -- we should have taken that opportunity to sleep. Little did we know we wouldn't be sleeping for the next day and a half.

My van ended up running our first legs starting at 2pm(ish) and our last runner probably ended around 6:30pm. Then we had about 5 hours to drive to our next major exchange (while the other van of runners did their thing), get a good meal in, and try to sleep. There was a $5 spaghetti dinner and $2 indoor sleeping (which was really just laying on wrestling mats in the basement of a highschool). At this point, I was already exhausted from not eating enough and not sleeping enough. I had no appetite for food, but, I forced myself to eat a little and I tried to sleep, but my brain just wouldn't shut off.

Our next run started at about midnight (I think? It's hard to remember), so I ran about 3 am in the morning. We had cool head lamps, reflective vests and flashing tail lights. I was physically exhausted, but, powered up on sugar and energy boosts. The night time run was actually the most invigorating part of the experience. I don't know why -- but it felt good. The fresh air was crisp, and the fact that you could only see a few steps in front of you -- was somehow very encouraging and challenging at the same time.

As soon as we were done cheering on our last runner, we took off for the last major exchange. We had about 4 hours to drive, eat, sleep and get ready for our last leg. We were all super exhausted by now (having all ran at least 10 - 15 miles) and running low on fuel. We found our exchange and then ventured out (with Jenna's iphone navigating) to find the nearest restaurant that was open at 5:30am. Perkins it was and we finally found it after driving for an hour. We tried to eat as much as we could. But, honestly, it wasn't appealing this time around. We all left a little disappointed and/or grossed out. Back at the exchange, we got about an hour of shut eye before our next van of runners appeared. Laurel got her hand off for the last leg of the race and our van was off!

At this point, my body was physically drained. I felt nauseated and weak. Even though I was drinking a lot of water and snacking on things throughout the morning, my body just couldn't fight it. Laurel found a running buddy and she kicked butt! Laurel handed off to Amy and she pushed it all the way until her hand off to Dena. When Dena was mid way through her last leg, my body started giving me signals. My leg muscles started pulsating in tiny spasms. BUT, I couldn't let that stop me. Dena used every ounce left of her energy and handed off to Amber. Even with her foot injury, Amber dominated over the pain in her foot. It was my turn and I was gonna give it a go despite the signals my body was giving me. I got some sugar in me and when Amber reached me, I was off in a mild jog. Here is where humility sets in. I ran about a mile and my body couldn't keep going that pace so I slowed to a walk. I'm not talking about just being tired during a run. I can handle that. This was different. And then there was a hill. Not just a gradual incline, but, a steep hill. I was freaking out in my head because my body did not want to even move at this point. Even walking up this hill, I had to stop twice to make it to the top. I felt like I was moving in slow motion (sort of like in a dream when you just can't get away from that bad guy chasing you?). Thankfully, praise the Lord, my other team members were waiting to cheer me on about 1/4 of a mile from that hill. I kept walking by as they cheered me on, but, I got this little voice in my head that told me to stop. I knew my body would not make it walking another 3.5 miles. I had to admit to my team that I couldn't go on. My body would not allow me, no matter how strong my mind was.

Steve was so great -- he volunteered to finish my leg (this was legal in the rule book). After running 3 legs of his own, he was still willing to finish mine for me! I am so very thankful for that. So I handed off the baton (bracelet) and he was off. In the meantime, my other team members were so great at making sure I had enough fluids and food to refuel my body. I just laid there on a blanket in the grass hoping and praying I wouldn't pass out. Steve handed off to Jenna, our last runner, so we got in the van and headed to the finish line. I just tried to rest in the van while everyone else went out to watch for Jenna to finish. Darin surprised me by being there. But at this point I felt so crappy that he actually drove me to urgent care to calm my worried mind. I was afraid that if I went home and slept, I wouldn't wake up again. My heart was beating so slow and my breathing felt labored. ANYWAY, the doctor couldn't really find anything wrong with me. I was only a 15 in terms of dehydration (dehydrated is 20 and above). She gave me the option of getting an IV or going home and drinking lots of fluids (which meant I couldn't just go home and crash for the next 12 hours). I chose to get the IV so I could go home and sleep.

So, that's the story folks. Despite my physical exhaustion, it really was a great experience. I could not have asked for a greater bunch of people to have for a team. Thank you Laurel, Amy, Dena, Amber and Jenna for putting up with all my complaining and whining. You girls were so great! Thanks for the encouragement and positive attitudes. And thank you Cynthia, Emily A, Emily S, Mike, Nick and Steve for being real team players and for taking care of me! I think I might do this again next year. I will be better prepared, and hopefully in better shape so I can redeem myself :)