150 or Bust

Chad did it!!! Chad rode in the MS150 this weekend and finished strong. I am SOOO proud of him. He did an amazing job. The one thing he said he didn't want was wind...what did it do Saturday morning early..start blowing crazy wind. He stuck with it tho. Saturday he rode 86 miles then came home collapsed at 7pm and then got up Sunday morning and rode another 74. He said today there was some MAJOR hills on the day 2 route. What are those people thinking when they plan a 150mile course to put hills on the second day. Crazy huh! He has been training for this for the last 6 months when my coworker Jeff talked him into it. He has really enjoyed it and said it was the hardest thing he has ever done.

Chad did this in honor of Tina, my sweet sweet friend at work. I have been blessed to have a friendship with Tina over the past 5 years. She is one of the most amazing people I know. You love her within 5 seconds of meeting her. She is full of life and her joy is contagious. Tina was diagnosed with MS about 9 years ago and has carried a spirit of strength that amazes me daily.
To know Tina is to love her!

Chad's Words:
I was telling everyone in our small group to pray for no wind but it did still end up being crazy windy on Saturday most of the day but I told God at one point - some little kids kite party needed that wind. Then I gave Him the stink eye. When we stopped at lunch Saturday all the guys that did the ride the year or two before kept saying they've never been that worn out on the first day due to the wind. When I got to the last rest stop with 14 miles to go it took everything I had to make it. I got home and layed in the bathtub for 45 min then went to bed at 7:30.

The next day was fantastic for the first 30 miles with NO wind. We made it to lunch in record time. After lunch the wind picked up a little and there were 4 hills that nearly killed me but getting to the tops of those hills were the best feelings in the world.

Here are some fun pics...




Day 1-Before the race










Ellie & Jackson with Tina









5 miles out from the finish line









Chad crossing the finish line - he is in the blue long sleeve pullover

Ellie Dances

Ellie had her first dance recital this past weekend. Well..actually 4 of them this weekend. She did so good. We enrolled her in a new dance studio this past fall and she almost quit. She stuck with it and really has enjoyed it. Ellie is quite shy but once she hits the stage you would never know it (sounds like her dad). She took ballet and tap. Next year we are going to add Jazz. I think that might be her nitch since she enjoys making up her own dances. She is quite the performer. The girls that she took dance with are Anna and Annalisa. Annalisa is 7 and Anna is 6 so there is a bit of an age difference but even with that she kept up pretty well. We are so proud of her. I even teared up watching her Friday night do her ballet. So big!!!! At her last performance we took her tulips and she was so excited. She kept saying 'thank you mommy for my flowers'. My mom and I were staring at her today and were discussing how much she is changing and how beautiful she is becoming.