North Face Endurance Challenge

So...mid-November I ran in The North Face Endurance Challenge...and I really can't believe it!  About 3 hours after I posted my blog about running, I was sitting on the couch, got up and rammed my foot into this heavy chest we use as a coffee table.  My foot instantly swelled up and I was sure that I broke two of my toes...I don't know if I really did, but my foot was  bruised for weeks.  Needless to say, I couldn't run, and I sure did not train for this event like I wanted to.. but our good friend Zach was doing the half-marathon, and he encouraged me to try it anyway... so I did.  I tried to "oversleep" even though I was awake in my bed in plenty of time going back and forth about racing that day.  James would not have it though and because of his encouragement and his logical thinking that this race was just a stepping stone I decided to give it a whirl.  I actually almost missed the race...and I would have been pretty frustrated had I not made it after deciding to get up on that cold November morning and run.   I decided to do the 5k because i had only ran one time during my training period.  Literally at the fork in the road between turning right to finish the 5k or go left to continue on and do the 10k, I went left!  I finished, slowly but surely! Thanks James for ALWAYS encouraging me in life right where I need it! You always fill my gaps!

Zach and me after the race.  Not my best picture ever...

family fun

Our three boys...wearing some adorable shirts that my amazing friend made!  I love them (the boys and the shirts!)

 Today Joseph had his preschool Christmas program!  We had won front row seats at the auction last year and it was awesome to be able to show up 5 minutes before and have an entire row for the our family to see Joseph up close!  It was pretty cute!  I hope we win again when it is Eli's turn. After his program we went to Chick-Fil-A and then headed down to Union Station!  Here are some pictures of our day!

I think this picture is so sweet!  Joseph looks so old in this picture!

We went to Union Station to see the trains and Santa was there!   Here is Eli and his cousin Henry with Grandpa Larry...

and here is Gus (a little blurry because I'm not a very good photographer.) Joseph was not interested in seeing Santa and I wasn't surprised by that at all!

Gus...that beautiful baby boy!

The whole crew!  We missed Uncle Adam though!

What a fun day with the family! Thanks for coming and sharing Joseph's special Day!

Running!

Well, there are 31 days until the north face endurance challenge which I have registered for and am planning on running the 10K race.  This is will be a very big challenge for me, especially because I have just started training for it.  I had signed up for this race very close to when Gus was born, mainly because it was half-off and I thought the timeline was doable.  My plan was to run the 5K this weekend at the Kansas City marathon with my brother, but due to other things, I didn't get my behind in gear and I'm not.  But...I ran this morning with some helpful encouragement and excitement from James and it felt good.  I think the second day is always harder than the first, but still...it got me excited.  I looked at the course, and it got me more excited.  I am not naturally built for  running, but once I get started, I really enjoy it.  I almost always have a race to help get me motivated and I love the road race atmosphere.  It is so invigorating for me.  I love watching people cross the finish line, I love cheering people on when we are all struggling to get up a hill, I love the anticipation of seeing James and the boys at the finish line.  6 miles seems like a lot today, but as long as I keep going, I think I will be ready in 31 days!  My goal is to never stop running/jogging.  I have no time goal for this first race...i just want to keep going!  Hopefully this will get me going to get into a few half-marathons this year, and get back in shape.  Thanks James for always setting me up for success in my endeavors.  I am excited!

Victory!

Today I want to share a small (but big to me) victory in my world...cooking and VEGETABLES! 

Not only do I have a very small pallet for veggies; I am also not a very avid cook.  Give me a cake recipe and I'm good to go, but cooking does not come naturally to me.  So this post celebrates both!   I want to be healthy, and I want my family to be healthy.  Thankfully James sat down with me and figured out ways to help me be successful in having more veggies in our day.  With some help, I have risen to the challenge.  Spinach has now become an ally... and the kids (and I) have done a great job in eating our veggies! 
My proudest achievement in the Beecher "let's eat more veggies" campaign was the butternut squash risotto and breaded zucchini I made the other night.  We had this risotto at my friend Katie's house over a year ago, and I was more scared away by the time factor than the vegetable...but it wasn't as bad as I thought.  Here is a picture! To many more healthy, veggie-filled recipes!

                         And the aftermath..another reason I don't like cooking...i dislike doing dishes more!

                  And the reason that a few dishes (which James actually does a lot) and veggies are worth it!

Catch Up

So...one year, one baby later, I have felt the urge to update my sad excuse for a blog. Maybe this time around I will write more of what goes on in my head and heart. Maybe I will post more pictures. Maybe I will share more recipes. It is quite possible that maybe this will be the only post for the next year...but let's hope that isn't the case.

 While I am here...let me share with you some exciting things going on in my world that make my heart smile.

 1. Au"gus"tine James Beecher was born June 6...I am quite smitten with all of my Beecher Boys...including of course my hubby! I feel very content and very blessed with all of my guys...and I must admit that I do like being the only "queen" in our castle. Gus is almost four months old, and it has gone way too fast. I was just looking at his newborn pics and I can't believe he is almost ready to roll over. I mean seriously... where did the last 4 months go? It has helped me really take in all the everyday moments with him. I love holding the little dude and feeling his new fuzzy hair  on my face when I snuggle with him, and see his sweet little drooly smile, and watch him try so hard to lift his little head off of the ground. Joseph and Eli are growing up so fast too. I can't keep up with Joseph half of the time. He is such a thoughtful little boy...his mind always seems to be going a mile a minute...he is trying out pee-wee soccer, going to preschool 3 times a week, and I am constantly amazed at the things he thinks about and shares with us. Eli is the social butterfly of the family. A charmer, with an ornery smile and a sensitive heart.

2. PINTEREST! I. Love. It. Period.

3. Oh my goodness.................we are finally getting an IKEA! I still can't believe it. And it will only be miles...like 2.8 miles from our house! I am convinced that I have a small part to play in this wonderful addition to our city...I mean, I did fill out countless surveys saying that Kansas City would be a great place to open their store...Do you want me to list the many reasons why? Probably not eh?

 I really do hope to keep up with the blog more... Here's hoping!

Eli's Birthday

I can't believe Eli is already 1!!! Time just keeps moving faster and faster and I don't like it one bit. I keep thinking how wonderful it would be if we could just pause our lives for a little while and stay just where we are and then push play when we are ready. Of course, that is not the way life works, so I am trying to stop and be thankful for the moments and days as they come, and look forward to the ones ahead, and I am sure they will come and go much too quickly. So, here is a snapshot of Eli's first birthday party, and some pictures we had taken in his Korean outfit and some with his big brother Joseph. We love our little guys!

The Beecher Boys

Here are a few recent pictures of our little men...We can't get enough of our sweet boys!

This is Joseph's Dinosaur/Lion face.

What a looker...heartbreaker!

It's hard to get a regular smile from Joseph. He is a character for sure. This is his "silly" face.

Baby Shower for Baby Golubski

I had the privilege in co-hosting a shower for my sister (in-law) Lauren with her two sisters and dear friend Meghan this past Sunday. The theme was "Feather the Nest" and it was so much fun! It was great spending time with them setting up and taking down...getting excited for this new addition to our families. I am so glad we got to do it together! Thank you for all of the help, and delicious food that you brought! Thank you also to my wonderful husband for watching the boys for 3 days straight, my dad for doing whatever else we needed help with, my mom who helped with much of the decorating and all of the wonderful ladies who helped tear down and wrap all of those dishes! It was a beautiful celebration and we CANNOT wait for our nephew to arrive!

Before

After

This burlap banner was one of my personal favorites, but I couldn't get a great shot of it all together.
"Sweet Baby Boy"

Cake...it was blue inside to match!

Sketches of nests and eggs

Awesome feather wreath my mom made...wish I would have gotten a closer pic!

Pic taken from the second story:
A huge reprint of the artwork we used for the invites and placemats we made.
Notice the pool behind...which is why we made burlap curtains for the first floor!

We used a lot of ribbon...and it ended up on Lauren's niece by the end of the shower. She loved dancing around in them.

Grabbed a quick pic with the mommy to be and my mom at the very end...


It was all worth it when my sister came in and saw everything. She was such a gracious guest of honor who deserved the very best shower! Love you Lauren!

The Entertainer

We were going through our videos and came across this one. I think he gets it from his mom.

Cupcakes

I've been wanting to make some sort of filled cupcake for awhile now, and today I did it.

I managed to only have one bite, but I thought they tasted pretty good...kind of like a hostess cupcake. Here are a few of pictures of the process...

Cutting out the middles...

Saving the tops...

Filling the cupcakes with vanilla cream...

Topping the cupcakes with chocolate buttercream frosting!
Joseph, giving me the thumbs up.

I took them to James' office so that we wouldn't eat them all. I hope they enjoyed them as much as Joseph enjoyed eating the middles of the cupcakes!

POLSKA

Last weekend we went to Polski Day. If you are wondering what Polski Day is...it is a day where one should wear red, eat lots of Polish food, wish that they were Polish, and act Polish even if they aren't. For years my cousins Lonnie and Nancy have opened their home to "the family" after the parade to eat, drink and be Polish (okay enough of that). Then there is a Polish mass, more Polish food and Polka dancing up the hill at the Catholic Church. I have so many memories of Polski Day...from decorating the Golubski family float, followed by one year taking cover under the float during a tornado, dressing up with my cousin Ali in authentic Polish attire, dancing the Polka with my Uncle Joe, and staying up late running around with all of my cousins. The times have changed a bit, and the golden years of Polski Day may be behind us, but as long as they keep celebrating it, I will try to be there with my red Golubski t-shirt...hubby and kids in tow.

The Beechers all decked out in red...(James even had a red polo on...but got too hot.)

Some of my dad's cousins and my grandma.

Joseph...celebrating the Polish and the American in him.

Eli...obviously very content at Polski Day!