Better late than never!

Dear Grandma,

Hello! I was so glad to get your letter! Sorry it took me so long to write you back. Let's see if I can get you up to date on me.

You asked if I'd been running. Unfortunately, not much. When you know who got in that horrible car wreck on April 13th - I took about a month off from running while "running" back and forth to KC to help care for her. By the time I got back to "normal life" the weather had gotten hot, and I had lost quite a bit of my aerobic conditioning. I found I could not run as fast or as long as before, which was discouraging. I kinda gave up, I guess.

I've never been good at running when it's hot outside, so now that we are in the heat of the summer, it's even tougher for me to get out there. (Excuses, excuses, I know!)
Anyway - to make a long story short, I've gone from running 30 miles per week to running about 10 miles per week. I plan to increase my mileage and possibly to train for another half marathon this fall when the weather cools off.

Speaking of you know who - she is back in Kansas City with Earl! After I spit and cursed and stomped and got myself disowned by certain family members, they decided to allow Grandma to move back to KC as long as Earl vowed to take care of her. She could not be happier and every time I talk to her she seems to be doing better, thankfully. I saw no reason for her to be in Colorado when she had so many friends, family and of course Earl, back in KC. Her spirits have improved so much since she's been back. I am glad I put up the fight - it was worth every second just to see her happy.

What else? I am taking an accelerated Math this summer which happens to be the last class I need for my Bachelor's degree. Yipee! The summer class is condensed from 16 weeks to 8 weeks, so has kept me really busy. I will be glad when it's over in a few weeks. I am ready to take a break from school for a while!

Next week, another military family (good friends of ours) are moving in with us for a few weeks. They've sold their house and have orders to move to Colorado - but it's not quite time for them to leave yet - and they need a place to stay. They have a dog and two young'uns - so it should be exciting around our house for a while, and busy as usual.

There is not too much else that's new. Adam and have both been super busy with work. We both have upcoming business trips in August - and he has a pleasure trip scheduled to visit his family in New York. I'd love to go, but don't get as many vacation days as he does, so he will be on his own for that one.

I am at work in the city as I write this, waiting for Adam to pick me up. We are headed to KC this weekend for a quick turnaround. We have Royals tickets for tomorrow's game, and Earl turns 82 on Sunday - so we will take them out for a bite to celebrate before heading back to Saint Louis.

Seems like we're always running and the calendar is booked up months in advance. One of these days I hope to have a few days with absolutely nothing scheduled. It would be nice to slow down a little!

Speaking of slowing down - I need to run. Adam will be here momentarily. I hope you and Grandpa are happy and well. I think about you all the time - even when I seem to have disappeared from the planet. I love you both! Be good to yourselves!

love, me