Sister's sister's sister...

This morning has been one of those slightly grumpy feel-sorry-for-myself mornings. I thought it would do me some good to count my blessings and look to those who inspire me.

One of the first to come to mind is my sister's sister's sister Stephanie Nielsen (Nie Nie) You should REALLY check out this blog!). She is Becki's sis-in-law's (Courtney) sister. She and her husband were in a terrible plane crash about two months ago. They are both in the hospital and Stephanie was burned over 80% of her body and is fighting for her life. They have four small children who are living with Courtney and Chris.

I have been a long time reader of Courtney's (cJane) blog so I have been following this experience for their family. For some reason I feel like this experience is for me. Not literally, but the outpouring of peace and encouragement I feel through reading Courtney's accounts are my own personal life raft. It makes me want to be a little better prepared and to make sure I am really sucking the life out of every single moment. It's made me a little better person. I continue to pray for them all.

***A little side note here--if any of you have read cJane's blog you will know that Nie Nie's family found her house perfectly organized and prepared down to the fresh fruits and veggies in the fridge. Juli and I both signed a pact with each other saying that if anything every happens to either one of us, we will clean each others house spotless and tell everyone that our sister had perfectly prepared her family.***




The second inspiration I'm going to think of this morning is my sister. All of my sisters really do great things that are inspiring but today I'm thinking of Juli. A couple of weeks ago she ran a marathon. This came after months and months of preparation. She beat medical odds to get her body healthy and she accomplished a really hard task by working on it a little at a time.

She ran with last few miles with her husband Shon by her side which I think is terribly sweet. After listening to the accounts I don't think there is such a thing as a half marathon. The reason a marathon is such an accomplishment is because of the last human-limitation-defying miles. From about 22 miles on I hear is really past what a normal body can endure. Juli did it and I am really inspired by her accomplishments. One of the most inspiring posts for me from Juli is HERE.

So, in summary I am going to spend my day enjoying the things I can do. I will sit and rock my sore-throat-ed four year old and enjoy the moment. I will not allow myself to get overwhelmed with the vast number of unpleasant tasks awaiting me today. Much thanks to my sisters.