Today marks my return to soccer. After two months of limited physical exercise, physical therapy, rehabilitation and rest, I am back in the game.

I played the last game of the season for my women’s indoor team. I played about 3-5 minutes, followed by a 5+ minute break, so needless to say, I took it easy. With my eagerness to get back into soccer, I knew that I needed to play smart and not over do it, and I was successful. I played decently for my first game back and I had no pain in my foot or ankle. It was so wonderful to get back into playing and I realized how much I really missed playing soccer. Oh soccer, how I love thee!

No…I’m not pregnant, nor do I want to be for several more years.

Out of my close group of friends from high school, my friend Heather just found out that she is having a baby girl. It seems like just yesterday we were still in high school where our greatest concern was getting to class on time. Now, we have a few more things to be concerned about.

Congratulations to Heather and Bodey! You will be great parents. Can’t wait to see you little bundle of joy!

So it has always been my goal to post 3-4 times a week to keep everyone up to date. However, I have come to realize my life is not that exciting. I basically do the same things. So as a reader, just assume that no news means good news…probably because I am too busy to post anything.

Life continues to be busy with the school year coming to an end, getting back into running and soccer next month, spending time with Ginger, taking time to relax and a new relationship. Life is good…

This weekend was a treat for us in Eugene, and many others around Oregon. The weather was warm/hot and the sun was shining throughout the weekend with blue skies for miles. This weekend reminded me how much I love Eugene in the summer time…there’s nothing like it. And it gets me excited for summer time…which is just around the corner. (Only 18 1/2 days until school is out, but who’s counting?)

This weekend I enjoyed several outdoor activities; dinner and beers with the ‘llamas’ sitting on my deck, trips to the dog park, walking the dogs in the cool evening, yard work (yuck!) going for a run by the river, and reading a book with a glass of wine in hand. It was a really nice weekend, and I have a mild sunburn from my outdoor excursions.

So far, my plans for summer are not that exciting. Currently, my only plan is to teach summer school for five weeks and to run the Butte to Butte on July 4th. Other than that, I hope to spend time with old and new friends, camp, hike, bike, run, play soccer, vacation a little bit, work on the house/year and learn a new skill/hobby (TBD…not sure yet what this will be). A trip to Puerto Rico may be in order in the near future as my sister is headed to college next year in San Juan.

As for running, I am slowly easing back into running. Today I ran one mile, walked a half mile then ran another half mile without any pain, which I was very thankful for. It’s hard for me to hold back from running multiple miles, but I know it’s what is best for my recovery. So far I am on track to get back to playing soccer in about a month, which keeps me motivated to keep taking it slow.

Today I got the go ahead to resume a ‘progressive running program’. Equipped a little yellow sheet that outlines my running program for the next few weeks and a spankin’ new ankle brace, I left Slocum feeling energized. And most importantly, I will be able to play soccer this summer season…depending on my ankle feels.

Needless to say I am extremely excited to not have to ride the stupid stationary bike at the gym, and I can enjoy time outside working out with this nice weather. I still have another week of physical therapy and I will see how I feel about continuing more sessions. My ankle is healing well, but is not totally pain free. I continue to do my ankle exercises to increase my range of motion and strengthen both my ankles, which will hopefully prevent future injuries. And with me…there will always be injuries.

Even though I have the okay to start resuming my normal exercising, I know that I need to not push too much. So my test of patience continues…

This morning, I found a bag of items sitting on my desk at work. As I opened the bag, I realized that each item had a note attached hand written by my students. Here is what was in the bag:

A highlighter…for being a big highlight in my life
A sponge…to soak up the overflow when your brain is too full
A candle…to light a small mind
A cup…when yours is overflowing
A pack of crayons…to color your day
A jar of bubbles…to keep a bubbly personality
A jar of Play-Doh…for being a great role model
A roll of Smarties…to help stay smart
A bottle of glue…for holding everything together
A marble…to replace those lost from time to time

Typical me, I teared up and started crying. This was exactly what I needed after the worst day ever at work yesterday. Being a teacher has it’s ups and downs, but its the little accomplishments that make my job meaningful and keep me passionate about my job.

To all of those teachers out there…Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

It was one month ago today that I injured my foot. Although the bruises, pain and swelling have dramatically decreased, I am no where near back to normal.

I started physical therapy two weeks ago, and will continue for another few weeks. My ankle is not completely healed so there is only limited things they can do to help my ankle. I am still icing my ankle 2-3 times per day and taking the occasional Ibuprofen.

For being an active person, it is becoming increasingly hard for me to not play soccer, run or work out. The Eugene Marathon is this weekend, and I am bummed that I will not be able to run it. I still plan on picking up my packet and shirt…I will just put an ‘I tried’ sticker on the shirt! Even though I am bummed about the injury, I am focusing on recovering properly. I know it’s whats best for me, but it is really trying my patience. I want nothing to be out on the soccer field or going for multiple mile runs…but right now my focus is to get better. Hopefully my patience will pay off.