Happy St. Patty's Day!!!

Quick sidebar: If you've been directed here from Facebook, see previous post. :)

I have always LOVED St. Patrick's Day! But I never really new why. It's not that exciting to wear green all day for fear of being pinched or be treated with normal, run-of-the-mill food that has received a treatment of green dye. But for me, it is! Growing up, I never really had a reason to love March 17. I simply did. And I still do. But, the difference between now and then, is that I now have excellent reasons to love and celebrate Irish culture and tradition.

I know many have not had the opportunity to experience the magic of Ireland first hand (a blessing I would wish upon any living being on this beautiful earth!), but trust me when I say that going there first hand really gives you a boost of enthusiasm for this magical, underrated holiday.

It could have something to do with...

...experiencing the colorful landscapes and the smell of salty Irish air...

...walking on sacred Irish burial grounds...

...feeling the Irish grass between my toes (which for some also meant hosting those hearty and tenacious Irish ticks...)

...seeing actual Irish Leprechauns of the streets of Dublin...

...enjoying a hearty bowl of Irish stew in an actual Irish pub...

...visiting the stunning cathedral built in honor of Saint Patrick himself...

...bicycling through Irish sea towns...

...or sailing over the Irish sea...

...this place gets in your bones! This beautiful nation is beautiful enough to make even the staunchest neigh-sayers of St. Patty's day feel a little Irish pride.

Not only that, but my momma and I recently discovered that I actually have Irish in my blood! I am descended from James O'Carroll (through my great-grandma Urna Barbara Carroll) of the clan O'Carroll of the village of Providence of Sisters in the County of Armagh in the country of Ireland. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it...

Kiss Me, I'm Irish!!!

The Disney Princess Half

Let's face it: I'm not even close to being a very fit person. It's been that way for most of my life. Well, recently in my life I decided that I'm finally going to take matters into my own hands and change that. That's why, on February 24, 2013, my sister, Taralyn, and I (and anyone who wants to join us *hint hint*) are running the Disney Princess Half Marathon. If you don't understand this already, you need to take a minute and absorb what a massively huge deal this is for me. I was always one of the last kids to finish the mile during those good ole Presidential Fitness days. If I'm going to work out, I would rather do anything but run--I have always hated it. 

I've known about runDisney events for a long time now, ever since my first week working at Disney World just barely three years ago. It never tempted me. I didn't even give it a second thought after that day when I helped cheer on the runners going through Epcot on one of my first days at work. A few weeks ago, I was having dinner with Taralyn and my cousin, Melissa, and they started discussing their desires to run a marathon. It reminded me of runDisney, and that night I started doing some research for them.

Then came the big shocker. I started getting really excited and happy while reading the info about the Disney Princess Half. But, the surprise came when I realized that I wasn't feeling excitement and happiness on their behalf. I was feeling it for myself! I received a very strong prompting that night that over the next year, I need to be training, with the end goal of running the Princess Half in February. No one is more surprised than me. What makes it even more so is the fact that it was my idea to begin with.

This is going to be an incredibly long and difficult journey for me. I already know that there will be times when I want to give up. I will probably even try to from time to time. That's why I want people to know. The more people there are rooting for me and counting on me to do this for myself, the more motivation I will have to actually do it. I need help from people who love me, care for me, or even just know about me. 

I can't give up, and I need people to help me remember that. This journey that I will be embarking on over the next 10 1/2 months is going to change my life. I know that if I can just pull it off, my life will never be the same again. I know I will have love and encouragement from my family and from my Heavenly Father, but now I need it from everyone else!