Thank God for extra time!

Found myself with some extra time this morning. And, it's kind of ironic. Last night I told Jeremy it would be great if one of my meetings got canceled today so I could clean the house for our small group meeting tonight. And, it did. Now, I didn't pray for that to happen and I know it's most likely a coincidence. But, I'm feeling guilty because for the past 20 minutes...instead of getting a jump on the cleaning...I've been answering emails and posts on Facebook! So, I guess I should wrap this up and get moving on the cleaning. :) Just wanted to check in and say HI and HAPPY WEEKEND!!! Jill <><

Race Update

Wanted to let you know...we've chosen the date for my first ever 5-K run. Jeremy and I are going to take part in the Lakeview Museum Interplanetary Family Fun run on April 4. It's at Detweiller Park in Peoria and is supposed to be all in the lower part of the park...meaning NO HILLS! YEAH! So, who wants to run with us?

Free to be Me

Have you ever noticed how we can base our opinions of ourselves on how we’re performing at the moment? I'm training to run a 5-K in a couple of months and I've had lots of ups and downs. One day I'm able to run a mile and a half. Then, the next time I go to the gym, I can’t even push myself to run one mile!

I've realized that on the days I do well I feel great about myself. I feel fit and like what I see in the mirror. But, on the days I struggle and, in my mind, FAIL, I'm down on myself in almost every conceivable way. It’s all based on my performance in one small area of my life. Have you ever been there? It reminds of the song we're playing right now by Francesca Battistelli, "Free to be Me". The line that says, "perfection is my enemy". Oh, I can SO resonate with that lyric!

Aren’t you glad God loves us no matter what? No matter how well our workout goes…no matter what promotion we get or don’t get…no matter how our children behave or MISbehave...no matter how we feel about ourselves!The Bible says God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. And it says His love for us is forever! Maybe that will help us feel differently about ourselves!

Getting Healthy with the Traceys Update

Big News!! On Sunday I finally ran over 1.25 miles without stopping! I know, if you're a runner, this sounds utterly pathetic! But I'm that much closer too being able to run a 5-K in late March/early April! We just have to decide on WHICH 5-K!

Today I was a little bummed because I just couldn't push myself to go that far again. But, I'm taking it in stride and realizing there are going to be ups and downs as a I continue to train. So, I'll be back at it Friday morning! :)

Jeremy's doing a GREAT job with his Swimming Lessons. He starts week two tonight and so far only has one bump on the head as far as mishaps go. He's hoping to be able to swim those two lengths of the pool by the end of March.

Don't forget to tell us your Getting Healthy goal for 2009! You could win two free passes for a free week's membership at The Clubs at River City in Peoria. Plus you'll automatically be registered for the Grand Prize - an iPod Nano and a Running Central Family Footwear Four-Pack! Just go to the Doing Life with the Traceys page at www.wcicfm.org!

The Big I HEART YOU Day

Alyssa was so excited to attend her first Valentine's Day party today. I can't wait to ask her how it went. I'll have to let you know. Jeremy is also so excited...he's looking forward to seeing how much candy Alyssa will bring home from the party. :) On a serious note, we just wanted to remind you that whether you're married, single, divorced, engaged, whatever...there is Someone who loves you more than you will ever know. We hope that this weekend will be a reminder for you of the awesome, eternal love our Father God has for you and expressed through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ!

Happy Valentine's Day from Jeremy, Jill, and Alyssa Tracey <><

What a day!

I can't believe I was able to take Alyssa outside for a quick PBJ picnic lunch today! Who would have thought it could happen in the middle - not even quite the middle - of FEBRUARY! All I can say is we NEEDED that after the llllllooooooonnnngggg period of SUPER COLD days we've experienced in central Illinois this winter. So, what have you and your family been doing to take advantage of the nicer days lately? Post a comment and let us know!

How'd you meet your spouse?

We had so much fun listening to all the cool and unusual stories of how people met their spouses. It made us think about the day we met. It was January 10, 2000 at a radio station in Charlotte, NC. Jill was co-hosting the Morning Show and part of her responsibilities included writing and reading News headlines. Well, she had left the room to rip a feed off of the station's AP wire. When she returned to the studio, the "new guy" was sitting in her seat! He had been asked by the station manager to come in early for a "welcome to the station" interview by the Morning Show team. Jill, however, was unaware of this fact and at the moment she only had about 30 seconds to try to say "Hello" in a nice way and also get into place for her hourly newscast. Suffice it to say that, instead of an instant love connection, Jeremy got the impression that the morning girl was a little too task-oriented! :) Thankfully he got over that first impression and eventually asked Jill to marry him!

The phones were ringing off the hook yesterday with friends telling the fun story behind how they met the love of their lives. If you didn't get a chance to call and still want to share...just post a comment with your story. Maybe we can read it on Doing Life with the Traceys during "Love Week"!

Have a great weekend and God bless you! ~ Jeremy and Jill Tracey <><

Happy Ground Hog Day!

Isn't it funny how a certain date on the calendar brings back old feelings? Today is one of those days for me. Ground Hog Day always brings back the feelings of pregnancy. All the ups and downs, queasiness, cravings, excitement, and inability to sleep comfortably. Our precious girl, Alyssa, was actually due on Ground Hog day back in 2006. So, the entire time we were expecting we often referred to her as our little Ground Hog. We joked that we were wondering if she was going to pop out her head and decide to go back inside for six weeks. And, believe me, the longer I was pregnant the more I feared that something like this could actually happen. :)

But, the idea of our little Ground Hog arriving on February 2nd was bypassed quickly on the morning of January 9th when we found ourselves rushing to the ER with complications and found out we would be "delivered" that day. I remember I had to verify what the Dr. meant by that. "You mean we're going to have the baby...today?!" And, while we didn't actually have her that day, we did the next, and we were SO unprepared. We had only taken one childbirth class and I hadn't even BEGUN the nursing classes. Talk about waiting until the last minute! So, we didn't get a Ground Hog after all! Instead we very nearly found ourselves with a New Years' baby and we couldn't have been happier to have bonus time with our little Princess.

This morning I was remembering the days of waiting for Alyssa to come while I was watching her take part in her weekly gymnastics class. Wow, did three years fly by! There she was doing a forward roll all by herself and I was reminiscing of the days when she fluttered and kicked and struggled with hiccups in my tummy. What fun memories. And, what better way to get over the fact that the old Ground Hog just predicted another six weeks of winter for us?!