Baby Jorgensen, 19 weeks, 3 days–”Perfect”
I have been filled with gratitude this past week. I was thankful for several beautiful sunny fall days, two little girls that I get to spend my days with, thoughtful and supportive friends, and getting a peek at our sweet little baby on Friday.
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He lived it up–and so should you!
Please join me at 9 AM Thanksgiving morning, for a trot around Point Defiance Park in celebration of Payton’s life! For the past 2 years my family has participated in a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning in Payton’s honor, as Thanksgiving falls right around his November 25 birthday. Payton lived so fully for 4.5 years and both his life and death remind us to continue living with joy, love, and gratitude!
This is an unofficial event—meaning there will be no aid stations, no official numbers, no marshals telling you crazy turkeys which way to turn, and no race shirts/bags. I am told by park authorities that a number of the restrooms will be open…and for goodness sakes, we’ll be in the woods (ain’t no shame in squatting ladies). No swag at this trot but its FREE FREE FREE!
There will be several options for routes—the longest being the entirety of 5-mile drive and the others being portions of it. I will post maps with the various “short” cuts that you are welcome to print and use as a guide. Please keep in mind that all the routes have some hills to climb.
Coffee (BRING YOUR OWN CUP!) will be provided afterwards and please do feel free to bring a special breakfast type goodie to share (bagels, muffins, fruit). Small donations will be accepted for the coffee bar.
Kids, Strollers, and dogs are welcome. Just remember to bundle your little turkeys up! Don’t want any cold feathers and sad faces at this trot!
Quick Facts:
When: November 22, 2012 @ 9AM
Where: Point Defiance Park—Start and finish at main picnic area (by playground)
Cost: FREE!
Costumes: Payton loved ORANGE. Please do your best to rock the orange OR give us your best Thanksgiving costume (there may be a prize for best dressed).
Register: by commenting below, emailing me at peaceloverun84@gmail.com, or shooting me a message on Facebook. Please let me know if you plan on coming, how many people you will be bringing, your e-mail, and if you plan to bring a treat to share.
Directions: Click Here!
Looking forward to celebrating with all of you!
Whose belly is that??????
My body was telling me I was pregnant moments after conception–well, maybe not moments but within days I was feeling a little morning nausea on my runs. That I might be pregnant crossed my mind but I tried to not obsess over it and dismiss the nausea as a little bug…
When my menstruation date came and went I took a pregnancy test that read negative. I waited a few more days and Auntie Flow still had no arrived so I took another test. It was positive–as were the next 3. Over the next few weeks I felt my body changing from the inside out. Of course there was the nausea and the extreme exhaustion…and then my bra started to feel a little snug, the thought of eating spinach salad (a staple in our house) made me gag, then my pants started feeling uncomfortable, and I was craving childhood foods like my mom’s Mexican Pie and Nachos (neither or which are vegan).
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My friends are always teaching me so much about joy!
woman having tea ceremony at Buddhist temple near our home in Korea
Today marks the two year anniversary of Payton’s accident. It marks the day that ushered in 5 days of hell for my family as we desperately prayed for a miracle and waited as doctors ran tests and tried to reduce the swelling in his brain. Today I’m remembering the feelings–emotional and physical–I experienced from the moment I woke up in Cape Town to an in box full of “CALL HOME NOW!” e-mails to the time I made it home and was met at the hospital entrance by my parents and told Payton would be taken off life support in the morning.
Today I’m remembering the tragedy and grief my family has experienced but also remembering the joy that Payton brought. His life, although so short, was vibrant and full. Below I have reposted something I wrote last September. Please do remember my family this week–hold us in your prayers and send us peace, love, and joyful memories of our little man.
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Today is National Running Day. I love running! As a matter of fact, it is probably my most favorite activity. I celebrated today with a beautiful trail run with my friend Julie. I wish I could have ran with all of you today, but that just wasn’t the case, so instead I’ll tell you a story. A story about running.
My last weekend in South Africa, I went to the Cederberg Mountains with some friends. We stayed in a lovely cottage with rope swings in the yard, orange groves all around, and a delightful waterfall about a kilometer down the trail. We did a lot of eating, reading, and lazyiness. However, I did manage to squeeze in a few runs.
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Saturday, I was supposed to do a 21 mile training run. It began with me trying to find some dry running clothes–its been a wet week and all my warm running clothes were WET. Sigh, I slipped on some cropped running tights, layered up a few lightweight long sleeve tops and set off in the wet muckiness. Within 2 miles, snow began to mix with the rain. By mile 5, my hands HURT like CRAZY.
In 2004, I climbed Mt. Rainier with a group of people from my university. We had to stop for longer than intended to switch up the rope teams as some people decided to turn back down to camp. We sat there for a good 40 minutes and by the time we were ready to move out, I was sick to my stomach because my hands were so cold. As I tackled the first hill at Point Defiance Park, I felt that same sick feeling coming over me. I felt a lump growing in my throat–I was fighting back tears. I thought, “Surely I am going to die!” For the next 4 miles I went back and forth, “Come on, be tough and finish the 21 miles.” and then, “Melissa, you don’t have to prove anything! 16 is sufficient!” and then, “You can work out inside this afternoon!” and then “What the hell is wrong with you! 16 miles! You don’t need to work out again this afternoon!” Sigh, and so it went over and over again.
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This week I’ve been thinking a lot about injustice, human rights, and peace. The Kony2012 campaign sparked it toward the beginning of the week. Here’s a really brief overview of the ordeal if you aren’t aware– there’s guy named Joseph Kony in Central Africa that has been leading the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) for the past 2.5 decades. The LRA is responsible for kidnapping children and forcing them to be child soldiers and sex slaves. They drug these children and have them do incredibly horrendous things–mutilate, rape, and kill their own families. It is difficult to imagine the horror.
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Photo by Steve Bisig--SteveBisig.com
It was a strange week. After I got hit with that cold, I thought I would have to reschedule my 4:20 long run for the next weekend and keep it real with an easy 15 miler this weekend. But the tables turned, I was feeling better and really wanted to get my last super long run done so I can start a nice little taper for 2Oceans.
I made the descision yesterday afternoon. It usually takes me a little longer than 15 hours to prepare myself mentally for a run of that length but I think having less time to think about it might have actually been a good thing. Here’s how I prepared and executed, both physically and mentally:
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