Happy New Year! :-D

    It's amazing how fast 2013 seems to have gone by!  And what a year it was!  I was diagnosed and finally treated for asthma, chronic sinusitis and some severe allergies. By finally getting the treatment I needed, I was able to set a couple new PRs (for 5k and sprint triathlon) and started living better in general.  I took my running to the next level by finishing my first ultramarathon, a 50k. I had the most amazing summer ever, going to really awesome places and going on a couple new adventures at camp. The most memorable was caving in Southern Kentucky: I crawled, rolled, climbed, and even swam through some spectacular underground passages with amazing people. 
    There were a couple downs, too of course.  One was my mom getting diagnosed with osteoporosis. She was in a lot of pain from some broken vertebrae and the medication side effects made her really sick. Once my mom got better and the worry over her started to lessen, I began also worrying about my own health. Every single woman down the line in my family has been diagnosed with osteoporosis (and at a younger age with each generation). I came to the realization that I'll have a lot of work to do to reduce my own risk of developing this terrible, crippling illness.  As an endurance athlete, anything that interferes with mobility is my worst nightmare. 

with my mom on Christmas
 

    I am very excited to begin 2014!  It's the year I'll be getting married, the year for more adventures at camp, the year that I'll hopefully be starting graduate school, the year that I'll be doing that crazy American Triple T for the second time, and who knows what else this year will bring! 

   As some people may already know, I stopped making New Year's resolutions in 2011 (I think that's the right year).  I always had a hard time picking just one thing to work on, so instead, I've been making a New Year's To Do List every year.

with my almost mother-in-law on New Year's Eve

2014 To Do List:

  1) Reduce my risk of osteoporosis: Do strength training at least once a week, remember to take my Calcium supplement every day, and reduce caffeine intake.

  2) Have an amazing, memorable, and spectacular wedding!

  3) Do a better job keeping up on the blog.  Make a new entry at least once a week. 

  4) Set at least one new PR.  This could be beating my previous time in the American Triple T, a marathon PR, or an olympic distance triathlon PR...or all of thee above.. ;-)

  5) Do more pleasure reading.  Finish at least one book per month.

  6) Get back into Taekwondo and get mostly caught back up. I got my black belt in 2006 and haven't been going regularly since early 2009.

Ray and me on New Year's Eve. We're finally getting married this year!! :-D