Marshall turned three! Can you believe it?!

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Marshall! Happy Birthday to you!

I am sure that every mother feels her child is special. Every mother should. I want you to know, I know that Marshall is special. As far back as I can remember I have always wanted to be a wife and mother. I wanted to marry a wonderful man who I loved like crazy. I wanted to spend my life making big healthy babies and raising them in a home filled with love and security. The day I found out I was pregnant was on December 5, 2005 in Laie, HI -on my twenty-third birthday! I felt sick...not like you think. I had an agonizing sore throat and my eyes were disgustingly pink and gooey - yes, gooey. I woke up that morning and as a birthday present to myself I skipped class, called in sick to work and made myself an appointment at BYU-Hawaii's Health Clinic to see a doctor. At the doctor's office I was asked when the date of my last period was...calculating the math I realized I was about a week late for my period. They administered three test to me. All three came back positive. I had pink eye, strep throat and I was pregnant. A birthday that should have been tainted with misery and illness became the greatest day in my entire life! I received the best present that day. I got exactly what I wanted - to be a mother. I came home that afternoon on such a natural high. I paced around our studio apartment waiting for the second Mitch would walk through the door. I couldn't wait to share the news. When the moment finally arrived I handed him a white paper bag; in it were my prescriptions. As he took them out I said this one is for my ugly pink eye, this is for my sore throat, and without explanation he examined the bottle of prenatal pills. He read the label and said,"What are these for?" I told him I was pregnant! His reaction made the moment that much more special. His eyes lit up and a smile spread across his face! His energy encompassed the entire room. We then hugged each other and life finally felt like it started.
Now, to explain where we were exactly when our life began. We were poor, busy students, still trying to figure out what we wanted for our future. Mitch and I were both juniors in college getting ready to finish our last year at BYU-Hawaii. Mitch and I both had to pay for our own education. We worked our way through school, received pell grants and took out students loans to cover all of our bases. It was incredibly tough for us. At times it was frightening to not know if we had enough to cover all of our living expenses for the school year. We worked hard in school too. I think we were like most students. Most every student hopes that the burden of time and the obligations of financial debt they are pouring into their education will easily provide them with the keys to open all the doors of opportunities for their future. At moments you believe enough in yourself to commit to another semester and another student loan. All in hopes that it was eventually - somewhere down the road brighten your future. Realistically for us, this unplanned pregnancy added an additional stress. Even though we were so excited to welcome this baby into our family. The thought of inviting him into our still undecided future was daunting. I don't know why am telling you this in so much detail. l think I am saying all this because this is why I know that Marshall is special. Throughout my pregnancy, in quiet moments I would feel this overwhelming assurance speak to me. I can't describe it. It would bring tears to my eyes and a warmth that spread throughout my entire body. I was assured over and over again that this pregnancy happened exactly when it was suppose to happen and that the baby I was carrying was indeed special.
To this day I still feel the assurance that all things happen for a reason and that Marshall is so special. I believe he could change the world!
Marshall surprises me on a daily basis. I can't believe that he turned three! We celebrated his birthday by going bowling at Fort Belvoir with Nana & Pap Hepner, Gram and Pap, Aunt Trisha and Jenna. We then came back home to our apartment for pizza, cupcake & ice cream, games and presents! It was such a fun day! We love Marshall - He is the Life of our party!

Sometimes I Surprise Myself...

Sometimes I surprise myself. The best experiences in my life were the experiences I never planned for. These experiences made my heart jump, my mind twirl and gave my face a perma grin! Once in a while they were the experiences I fought hard to avoid. The ultimate experiences usually have been the - spur of the moment, sure- why not, let's make a memory, hope we don't die, you can't get arrested for this plans. Yesterday I made a, "I think I can...hope I don't pass out....I'm pretty sure I can't die from this" plan. I ran in my very first 5k run! Now, to some of you this is probably not a big deal. For a chubby chick like myself this was big deal. A friend of mine called this past Monday and invited me to run with her Tuesday evening in a 5k run at Bluemont Park in Arlington, VA. Hesitantly, I said I would. I know myself well enough to know that I like trying new things and I am all for challenging myself. Challenges make you a stronger, more useful person...if you live through them.

(Here is our BEFORE picture, L to R Melanie, Cheata, and Anna.)

Can see the look of fear in my eyes? Despite my anxiety of public humiliation, I really was looking forward to trying something I never thought I would ever seriously consider. Sometimes I need to do things that make me feel like I can believe in myself. Sometimes I need to surprise myself. It's fun to say, "Ta dah!"

Ta dah!!! I did it! I ran in at 35 minutes 15 seconds. Ten minutes faster then I thought I would. As you can see from our AFTER picture, I'm red in the face, and sweating like a very obese man. It was a challenge! After the first 10 minutes I thought to myself, "This is not fun, runners are crazy! I'll check this off my bucket list and never do it again." However, when I saw the half way mark I was cheering so loudly for myself that I almost wanted to shed tears out of excitement. The same way I do whenever I watch the, "Move That bus!" moment on Extreme Home Makeover. I couldn't believe myself. I was actually doing it, and I wasn't left in puff of smoke from the other runners like I had previously envisioned. Yes, I walked a couple of times until I got my second wind, then my third and fourth wind.

(Here's a shot of our shoes with our microchip tags. )

Let me tell you, running over that finish line was awesome! I love it when I surprise myself. Runners aren't crazy. Finishing something that you started is the greatest feeling. I know why they do it. It simply feels amazing.