I think it's the swim lessons!!

She's generally not this tired in the afternoon...must be all of the swimming!

Thankful Thursday: Viewing Parties & Sweat

It's thankful Thursday time! We all have so much to be thankful for and we love to take this opportunity just to write down each and everything that comes to mind. Please take this time to share with us what you're thankful for as well. If you have a blog expressing your thankfulness, please share the link! Without further ado, here's what we're thankful for:

Mandi's List:

I'm thankful for Jelly Bellies. I'm sure I've done this one before...but they're so good that it can be repeated. And really, there's no explanation needed. They're just AWESOME.

I'm thankful for big water cups. I try to drink a lot of water in a day (a gallon or so), and unless I have a BIG cup, it doesn't happen. I loathe having to refill a cup, especially over and over again (if it's small, you spend all day filling it up). So I use a 25oz and a 34oz cup, so I don't have reload very often.

I'm thankful for family viewing parties of the Bachelorette. While it's not the most edifying show on TV, it definitely is entertaining and gives us all a good laugh. Josh and Chrissy have been coming over to watch the Bachelor or Bachelorette for many seasons now, but since my parents are back, we invited them to join the action on Monday night. We all enjoyed a yummy taco dinner and watched "love" happen (and by love, I mean, "like". And by "like" I mean "feelings brought on by extreme situations that never last beyond the show"). It was a blast. Since it was in Germany, my dad spent most of the show typing things into a translator on his ipad, and having it say his thoughts in german. It was hilarious. Mom, Chrissy, and I gabbed about the potential in each man. Ronnie controlled the remote, pausing it occasionally so the peanut gallery would finish their conversations and shut up. All in all, it was eventful, fun, and a must every week!

Ronnie's List:

I'm thankful for fresh flowers. We recently replaced some dead flowers in a couple of pots in front of our house with new fresh white vincas and I'm digging the look. Granted, I don't know how long they'll live in 115+ degree weather, but I'll be sure to enjoy them while they're still around.

I'm thankful for Home Depot. I feel lost and like a complete idiot every time I'm in that store, but they often have just what I need to complete project x, y or z. If they don't have what I'm looking for, they are always so helpful in trying to locate it. I also pick up a little bit more knowledge each and every time I set foot in that store.

I'm thankful for sweat. Sweat is generally an indicator of working hard at the gym. At least for me, when I start sweating, I feel like I'm actually working. The beginning of workouts are always tough because I don't see the return right away and I'm always thinking to myself, "you better push harder to break that sweat.". When I finally do see those drops of sweat falling off of my forehead, I always tend to get more energized during my workout.

So, what are you thankful for today?

Cystic Fibrosis ALWAYS Gets Worse

Cystic Fibrosis always gets worse. It can't get better once you reach ____% lung function. Once you start going into the hospital multiple times a year, you'll probably go multiple times a year for the rest of your (short) life. When you lose lung function, you can't get it back.

Any of that sound familiar? I really hope it doesn't, but I have a feeling that some of you have heard all of those things a time or two. I know I did growing up, and the sad part is, I actually let myself believe some of it. I fell for the part of CF getting worse year after year hook, line and sinker. I was reserved to the fact that I would lose a little bit (or a lot bit) of lung function each year and there wasn't much I could do about it.

I mean, that's what my friends with CF said. That's what I read on the Internet. That's what I heard some CF docs say. It must be true then right?

Wrong. It's wrong for so many different reasons that I don't have the time to list them in this blog, but I'll tell you the biggest reason that it's wrong...

I got caught up in thinking about all of the things that CF could do and lost focus on what I was doing.

That becomes the problem. When we are so concerned with what could happen with our health that we let it distract us from actually doing something about our health now, we have an issue. I totally get it as much of society is stricken with the "it-must-be-somebody-else's-fault" bug.

If we don't feel well, it has to be because of CF. If we're having a bad day, it must be because of CF. If we're mean to our friends, it must be because of CF. If we flunk a test, it must be because of CF. If our lung function declines, it must be because of CF. And on and on and on we go, blaming anyone and in this case, anything else, before we're willing to look in the mirror and realize that we're the problem.

It took me 8 years of declining lung function and 52 days in the hospital to realize that. It took me not being selfish for the first time in my life and actually putting a special girl's needs in front of my own by actually taking care of myself the way that I should. It got cemented when I brought another special girl into this world and made a promise to her that I would always work my booty off.

What's it going to take for you to change?

And I know, I know, there are people out there who will say, "I never miss treatments and I always exercise, but my lung function continues to get worse." Yes, that can be the case (I used to exercise and do my treatments too while seeing my lung function decline - I just wasn't doing as much as I obviously needed to). It however is the case that you're lung function will decline if you don't do your treatments and you don't exercise. . It is also that case that some people wait for far too long before they finally decide to "never miss treatments and always exercise". To be honest, I was almost to that point 4 years ago, but by the grace of God was able to fight back.

So what brought this blog on? I had my 1 month post-hospital clinic visit yesterday and for the first time in 12 years, I had a FVC of 92%. My FEV1 was 75% which is still up from my "baseline" of 50% in 2009 that they said I'd probably stay at. They were wrong.

If you'd like to get healthy, do what you do in spite of CF. No matter how CF decides to act tomorrow, you just make sure to out work it. If your disease is being a little more aggressive, than you must be that much more aggressive. If things are getting better and CF is slowing down a bit, celebrate by kicking it's booty even harder.

I know you can do it, now you just have to believe that you can and will do it!!

A Productive Weekend

Ever have one of those weekends where you just get a TON done? That was our weekend this weekend. It was a little bit of a "if you give a mouse a cookie..." scenario.

It started Saturday. My parents got new outdoor furniture, so we got their hand-me-downs...a pretty teak bistro set and a dining table and chairs. They also got rid of a rug, which we put in our study, and a little side table. All of which we gladly took (thanks, guys!) Well because we had new furniture, Ronnie wanted to get our fountain back up to par on Saturday, so he fixed it and cleaned it. Works like new. Then I, of course, wanted to make the outside patios and sidewalks look nice. So when Mckenna was up at 5 on Sunday I thought, "hey...let's capitalize on this." So me in my PJs and Mckenna in hers, with coffee and milk in hand (I had the coffee, obviously) we started hosing off the patios and sidewalks. Ronnie joined us. But because we hosed the patios, that meant the windows needed to be cleaned because they had water spots, so we cleaned the windows. When we cleaned the windows, some dirt and water leaked in, so we cleaned the indoor window sills. Mckenna decided she wanted to color, so while she did, I picked up, dusted and vacuumed. Then because things looked nice and because I was already moving stuff, I changed out some decorations and spruced things up a bit. When I did, I saw what a mess some of our storage areas were. So I cleaned out under our buffet, and our kitchen desk area. All the while, Ronnie was trying to replace the light in our microwave...which apparently is jimmy rigged with an automotive lightbulb and no manual, anywhere, says how to change it. We also went to Home Depot for a couple new plants and planted those.

Ronnie then took Mckenna with him to try to hunt down the light bulb for the microwave, while I ran to find something to fashion an activity table out of the end table my parent's handed us down (see left). I ended up buying a train set...that was WAY too big (Apparently I pictured the table was HUGE when at the store lol). So, I need to find another solution, but for now, it'll work well...it's just missing 3/4 of the train tracks. Sorry, Mckenna! Ha! It's just a piece of felt cut to fit, and then the train tracks on top of that. It'll work well enough for a little bit. Does anyone have any activity table ideas that DON'T require beans or sand or rice? I really don't feel like making, "leave the ______ in the bin," the most common phrase in my life. We play with beans and rice, but at designated times, and it's a mess, and I don't want it out all day long. But what are other ideas? I thought about legos, animals, felt pieces to stick to the bottom that make pictures. Fill me in on what you've done or what your kiddos love. I should mention it's a copper thing on top and indoors, so water should be avoided too.

Anywhoo..it was an eventful and productive weekend and has left Ronnie and I deciding we need to have days like that more often. It's tough sometimes with a toddler to feel uber productive, but she was a good sport and just "helped" all day. So I have a feeling next weekend will be a project-filled weekend as well.

Cystic Fibrosis and Relationships: How Do We Communicate?

Guest post by Katie Broekema

Hello everyone! This is Katie, I am back again to tell you what is going on in my life right now. To see some of the lessons I have learned from cystic fibrosis and running, click here.

If you read my bio, you saw that I am currently a graduate student at Central Michigan University. But what my bio does not tell you is the path that I took to get there. I have always thought that school was something to do to get you where you want to go, but when I was a senior in college I realized I had no idea where I wanted to go. I was a computer science and communication major; do not ask me why or how, because I could not tell you. I just fell into both fields thinking I would find what I wanted to do, and then suddenly it was graduation time and I still had no idea. Sometime early in the fall semester I followed my nose to a meeting. I had no idea what was going on, all I knew was that there was Pizza Hut pizza there; I slowly learned it was a graduate communication program recruitment visit from CMU. I figured there was no harm in applying for the program; I was shocked when I was accepted with a graduate assistantship. So I went into this program with the idea that this would buy me 2 more years to discover what I wanted to do. I have just finished my first year of that program, and I now have a totally different attitude. I know what I want to do with the rest of my life! It is thus amazing feeling, like a total sense of euphoria. I actually enjoy reading thousands of article pages: I am looking forward to writing my 150 page thesis. So now you may be asking yourself, what is this magical area of interest? Well I will tell you; it is Cystic Fibrosis.

It started out so innocently; I had to write a class paper so I picked something that I knew about and that I thought would be easy, how people with Cystic Fibrosis communicate. I did this all the time in science classes and when I had to give speeches, why would it not work now? I was duped in this process, but in a good way. Once I began my research, I remembered a conversation that I had several years ago with a high school girl who had Cystic Fibrosis. She asked me how I had told my boyfriend about my Cystic Fibrosis, because she also had Cystic Fibrosis and she wanted to tell this guy but she did not know how. This sparked my interest in how to share Cystic Fibrosis-related information with a significant other, and it is a topic that has become my thesis project. Right now I am in the process of collecting background information and starting the writing process, but as soon as that is done I would like to begin collecting data. This is where all you readers come in; I really want to talk to you and hear your thoughts! I am hoping that by the end of the summer I will be able to start interviewing people. If this is something that you are at all interested in being a part of, please send me an email at Broekema.ka@gmail.com

This initial topic has grown much more than I would have ever imagined. As I was doing my research I realized there is no research connecting communication and Cystic Fibrosis or any other genetic diseases. Having a genetic disease presents a unique set of variables and situations that need to be navigated, but there is lack of research on how this all is communicated. Therefore, I am in the beginning stages of many other research ideas involving Cystic Fibrosis and communication. If you would like to be involved, or if you have another area that you think really needs attention, let me know. My goal with my research is not to do research for research-sake, but for the real application into the lives of people with Cystic Fibrosis. So letting me know what you think is incredibly important and makes what I am doing matter. If you have any ideas, please send me an email. I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions.

Thank you all so much in advance for your help, and thank you Ronnie for letting me share my thoughts in your blog. It was such a great honor to write this for RSBR and this blog is really making a difference in a lot of people’s lives.

BIO: Katie is 22 years old and has lived in Michigan her whole life. She graduated from Albion College with a double major in computer science and communication, and she is currently working on a Master’s degree from Central Michigan University in communication; with a focus on health communication. In her spare time, Katie enjoys finding new research topics, preparing to teach her COM 101 classes, helping coach the local high school cross country and track teams, running, cooking and convincing various family members that they should get her a Pomsky puppy. (Look them up, they are adorable!) She would love to hear back from people who have read her posts, her email is Broekema.ka@gmail.com

Note from Ronnie: I would just like to thank Katie for submitting, not one, but TWO great guest posts. I hope she was able to inspire some of you to get out and get active after reading what she has learned through running with Cystic Fibrosis. Also, anyone who is interested in contributing to her thesis, please email her to "get in on the action". I believe this is a very important topic that needs to be explored and I'm really looking forward to what her research brings forth.

Thankful Thursday: Grandparents & Eagerness

It's thankful Thursday time! We all have so much to be thankful for and we love to take this opportunity just to write down each and everything that comes to mind. Please take this time to share with us what you're thankful for as well. If you have a blog expressing your thankfulness, please share the link! Without further ado, here's what we're thankful for:

Mandi's List:

I'm thankful for my grandparents. I have the most fabulous grandparents in the world. I love chatting with both of them and always enjoy getting to see them. Unfortunately we all live in separate parts of the country, but I absolutely love that we can OovoO and talk via phone.

I'm thankful for a selfless husband. He's selfless each and every day...but yesterday, he did what no man has done before. I had to work in the morning in Tucson, so I couldn't go to our normal Intensity class at the gym, so he went without me. It was a day we did partner stuff, and he was alone, so it was WAY harder. So what did he do? When I went to the afternoon class HE WENT WITH ME...just so I'd have a partner. I nearly wanted to die after doing that workout, I have NO clue why he opted to do it again...just because he loves me! What a good man!

I'm thankful for good girlfriends. I have some great girlfriends. One of which lives here, Angie, and we get together for playdates, coffee, pedicures, you name it. Having a girlfriend to do life with is such a blessing. Angie is such a strong, fun, woman, and I am so blessed to have her to bounce things off of, especially mommy/kid issues. She's such a good mom that I respect and will always take her advice. I had the joy of watching her two little girls (One's almost 2 and one's 2 months) this week, and I can say, I love those little ladies like my own. Mckenna and I are blessed with such great playmates.

Ronnie's List:

I'm thankful for the gym childcare. It's so nice to be able to workout whenever we'd like thanks to the great childcare system at our gym. It's also heartwarming to see Mckenna making little friends at the gym. One of her favorites is actually the older daughter of a woman who works at the gym. During the summer, her daughter is there often and Mckenna loves to play with her!

I'm thankful for the opportunity to be involved with another clinical trial. This particular trial is one that many with my mutation (DDF508) have really been looking forward to based on the results of the Phase II trial. Just a few pills in the morning and a few pills at night and your done. Hope I can snag the real thing!!

I'm thankful for a daughter so eager to help. I had to fix a hose earlier this morning during my time with Mckenna, and she was super excited to take on the project. The sprayer become totally stuck on the end of the hose and I was trying to crank it loose using some grips and various wrenches. When I would take a break, Mckenna would pick up right where I left off and try to loosen the sprayer herself; It was so cute!

So, what are you thankful for today?

Growing Up Fit

Every parent knows that they are a role model for their kids - good or bad. I have quickly learned that what I do has much greater influence than what I say. A perfect example is how I treat our dog. I tell Mckenna to be gentle, and she is, usually, but when our dog or parent's dog puts their nose up to her tray while she's eating, she pushes them away swiftly...just like I do...and says, "NO"...just like I do. Monkey see, monkey do. I have quickly realized that what they say is true, Mckenna is watching my every move and modeling it in every aspect of life...including exercise.

The APA (American Psychological Association) says this:

You are role models

• Children are instinctively primed to imitate their parents and caregivers. They are incredibly sensitive to the messages that are sent about eating and exercise. You exert the most influence on your children’s behavior and can model healthy attitudes and habits toward food and physical activity that persist as they grow up.

And what's crazy, is I've already noticed this, just as 20 months of age. Mckenna is currently being influenced to exercise, and I think it may be one of the greatest gifts we can give her as her parents. She has recently done some things that makes me realize, quickly, that she is watching how we are behaving and modeling it.

Mckenna has recently decided that instead of riding in the stroller to the park on our morning park trip, she'd like to walk the .25 miles there, and .25 miles back (step one). And then, the other day on our way there, she insisted on running instead of walking. Now many of you may say, "Yes, she's a toddler, they do that." But it wasn't just the fact she opted to run. It was the fact that while she was running, she pointed out that she was running like mommy and daddy. BINGO. In that moment I realized that she was my little sponge every day on our run/walks in the stroller together. She was watching me, even though she couldn't really see me pushing her. She knew mommy was running, and now that she was out of the stroller, she wanted to run too. I have to say, I was so proud. It's so silly, but I felt a new sense of purpose in my exercise.

Another example is when we were staying at my parents while Ronnie was in for a tune-up. One day, I didn't have time to get to the gym, so I was in their garage lifting weights. While I lifted, so did Mckenna, without me saying a word at first. She imitated my moves. I squatted holding weights. She squatted holding a little metal thing. I curled holding a barbell, she curled holding some random metal bar. As I counted out loud...1...2...3...there went her little tushy up and down, up and down. 

And there I was "lifting weights"with my toddler. But you know what I flashed back to? Lifting weights with my dad, in our basement, as a toddler. My brother and I used to fashion all sorts of equipment to do the same exercises as our dad. We used Fisher Price chairs to hold a weight-less barbell while we laid under it to bench press, we used little things as dumb bells. You name it. It's the same brother that I lifted with at 4:30 in the morning with before work. The same brother who, with our spouses, belong to my same gym, and we take classes together. My same brother that is an avid exerciser himself, two decades after lifting with me in our basement...just like our daddy. Both children still carrying on their parents' examples.

Exercise can be a lasting legacy you leave for your family. There are many legacies I want to leave for my family and to be fit and healthy is one of them. I pray that Mckenna can know what it means to be healthy, to set goals, to get outside and play...as a child and adult. I know that if I tell my kids to go out and play during the summer (which in AZ, is HOT), and they tell me it's too hot, that they will have no leg to stand on because I will be outside myself, exercising and playing...and will have their whole life. And better yet, I may not have to tell them at all because, hopefully, it will be through our actions as parents, and not only our (nagging) words, that they will instinctually just know they should be outside and playing.

Are you leading by example?

My Daily Bread

It's almost embarrassing to say this, but it's probably been at least a year since I've carved out time in my schedule to dive into the Word. Yeah, I read a handful of daily devotionals each day, but it's been quite a while since I've read the Word of God each day. Like many things, my alone time with God would come and go - On one day, off two; On three days; off four. One thing is for sure - I wasn't showing with my time how important the Word of God is to me and how I earnestly try to apply it to my life.

It seems I've been much better at carving out time for work, exercise, treatments, Mckenna, Mandi etc (which, please understand, those are all important), but developing my walk with Christ was more of a "hopefully I get around to it" kind of a thing.

Well, that changes now!

I finally realized that the key to my personal time with God was to treat it more of the way I treat exercise, and that is, knock it out sooner rather than later. With exercise, I'm MUCH better at getting to the gym 6 days a week, if I go to the gym sometime before noon. After noon most days, I start to feel a little more lethargic and the last thing I want to do is bust my booty in the gym. I thought, if that works for exercise, it must work for God, right?? ;)

Starting yesterday, I'll be setting my alarm for 4:45am and spending my first waking hour with God. This move mind you is WAY overdue.

As I've gotten older, I've become much better at allocating my time to the things that are truly important in my life, and this is probably the last stone that was left unturned. I can't tell you exactly why it took this long, but maybe through some Scripture reading I'll figure that out. Ha.

Anyway, please pray for me as I form this much-needed habit. Pray for strength, purpose and clarity in the morning...oh, and pray that my coffee maker doesn't break ;)

Happy (Belated) Father's Day

Happy (belated) Father's Day to the two great dads in my life: my dad and Ronnie. Mckenna and I were/are both blessed with two incredible men as our father's (respectively).

I grew up with an incredible dad. He's taught me so much over the course of my life. He has always been firm and loving in a way that is so unique to him. He has always been there for me. He has loved me unconditionally, correcting my errors and providing guidance, but loving me all the way through. I wasn't the easiest kid, so the patience and love he showed wasn't always easy. He has taught me that it is important to be moral and do what's right, in all situations. I have a few very distinct memories of my dad, the first is stopping with him to get gas and always getting some candy to share. The second is snuggling with him. In the middle of the night, if I got up and went into my parent's room, my mom was a zombie and often wasn't receptive to having me crawl into their bed. My dad on the other hand, would just lift up the covers and have my crawl into the middle, where he'd snuggle me tight. I always felt so safe sleeping like that. The next distinct memory is how he'd always "sneak" me food. When he'd come to tuck me in at night, he'd often be munching on saltines or popcorn or something of the sort. He'd often "sneak" me a bite or two, and I always thought I was getting away with something. The next is the way he would hold my hand in the car. Not always, but frequently. In high school and college and beyond, he'd grab my hand in the car. On my way to our wedding, my dad and I rode together, just the two of us, and he held my hand. He's always held my hand in life, so the metaphor was perfect. And before my dad handed me off to the future father of my children, I distinctively remember being alone with my dad. Everyone else was outside, sitting in their chairs, waiting for the ceremony to begin. The precession was going on. We were all that was left. With a few words of advice, in his typical way, my teary-eyed dad stood with me until the doors open, and I made my way to my groom.

It turns out, I married my father (in many ways). They are both loving in similar ways. Neither are overly sappy, and both like to show their love more than express it with words. They both let you know they care, usually by joking with you and messing with you. Their sense of humor is very similar, and I am certain God prepared me for a lifetime with Ronnie, by beginning my life with my dad. I know with my whole heart that Mckenna loves and cherishes her daddy by the way she looks at him now, but I can also predict what they will be like in 25 years from now because they will be just like me and my dad. Mckenna is so blessed to have a daddy like Ronnie. He is so loving, yet so firm. I watch him parent her, with respect and admiration. We are different as parents at times, but I watch him and think, "man, I hope I can be that good in that kind of situation." Ronnie is the man I have always prayed for, and a man Mckenna will always thank God for him in the future. We are so blessed to have him in our lives.

We celebrated, but nothing over the top (just as Ronnie prefers things). Mckenna and I got heart felt gifts. I looked for crafty gift ideas on Pinterest, and most required me to do most of the work...and that doesn't seem to make sense. So I found a gift Mckenna could "make" (shoot, I think a monkey could have made it). We went and collected rocks and put them into a mason jar, and then I made a little tag that said, "My daddy rocks." Got the job done, and was made by Mckenna for her daddy! She was pretty excited about it too. When I told her to pick out the prettiest rocks for a present for daddy, she kept repeating that they were for daddy and excitedly picked them out. Her standard for "prettiest" was pretty low, as she just took handfuls, but hey, it's a strength to see the beauty in everything, right? Ha! As for my gift for Ronnie, it was practical. I usually would spoil him with his favorite candies, but he's on a diet, so I spoiled him with what he had just mentioned he wanted/needed more of...mustard and apples (not to eat together). Yup, nothing says happy father's day like mustard and apples! As you can see, we are not overly extravagant in our celebrations, but we made sure daddy knew he was loved and appreciated, and loved and appreciated he is. I could not think of a more selfless, patient, loving and impressive daddy. If I can be half the parent he is, Mckenna is going to turn out incredibly.

Thank you, God, for blessing me with an incredible dad, and for blessing my child with an incredible dad.

Thankful Thursday: Naps & Sentences

It's thankful Thursday time! We all have so much to be thankful for and we love to take this opportunity just to write down each and everything that comes to mind. Please take this time to share with us what you're thankful for as well. If you have a blog expressing your thankfulness, please share the link! Without further ado, here's what we're thankful for:

Mandi's List:

I'm thankful for longer naps. We dropped Mckenna down to one nap. She was still only napping an hour...YIKES. That makes for a cranky kid. So after a couple days of tough love (AKA, telling her she'd have to stay in her bed until naptime was over, and that making her stay in bed 1.5 hours) She started sleeping 1.5-2 hours. The few days of transition weren't ideal, but went pretty well. She'd fuss for a few minutes off and on in the middle, but generally go back to sleep. But I'm SO happy she's sleeping a good, solid nap. She's a happier kid!!

I'm thankful for iced coffee. I've been having iced coffees in the morning and they hit the spot...BIG TIME.

I'm thankful for time off IVF meds. We decided to take a little break from IVF (since I've been on some kind of IVF med since November). We are only taking a month off, but somehow knowing I won't be on meds for a whole month feels like the weight of the world is lifted off of my shoulders. Silly to some, I know, but I have a feeling a lot of ladies can relate.

Ronnie's List:

I'm thankful for a wife who does it all. A couple things I love about Mandi: She is more than happy when I drive the ship and she's more than willing to drive the ship when I'm not. She picks up my slack without a complaint and to be perfectly honest, usually does the job I was going to do, better. I fall more in love with her every day.

I'm thankful for fresh fruit. We've been eating a lot of fresh fruit lately for breakfast and throughout the day. We've been scarfing on pineapple, mango, cantaloupe, watermelon and blueberries recently and they have been wonderful. We actually have some watermelon and cantaloupe growing in the garden that I can't wait to try!!

I'm thankful for "sentences". Mckenna has been talking in sentences lately and it is so cute...if you consider two to three understandable words a sentence or six words of gibberish. It's just so amazing to me how quickly children develop.

So, what are you thankful for today?

How Could I Choose NOT to Exercise?

One thing about exercise...it usually sucks while you're doing it.

I know I can attest to how sucky it can be. It doesn't matter if I'm running, lifting weights, biking, hiking, doing a class or an array of other activities, the "present" usually stinks. I don't know about you, but when I exercise, I experience the following:

Pain from sore muscles
Pain from stiff joints
Some type of back pain
Light headedness
Eye stings from sweat
Shortness of breath
Coughing my head off
and the list goes on...

So as you see, I don't enjoy exercise. Well, let me back up. I certainly don't enjoy exercise while I'm exercising.

I've been on the record many times about two things regarding exercise, I only do it because I love my wife and daughter and, there is NO DOUBT that it's the best thing for my health. When I'm healthier I'm a better husband and father. On the days that not a bone in my body feels like going to the gym, I figuratively, and sometimes literally, slap myself across the face and say "it's not about you!".

See, my present (both from God and in time) is what inspires me to exercise, but it's my past and future that I often think about when I'm in the trenches. When my energy is zapped and I feel like I can't push anymore and when the pain feels like it has blown past my threshold, I often think about how good I'll feel when I'm done and how terrible I feel when I'm not committed to a life of exercise. The great thing about an exercise "high" is that it often lasts all day. Sure, you're maybe a bit tired. A slight worn out feeling. But I assure you the benefits of exercise are working even when you're not. I don't know about you, but when I exercise, I experience the following:

More energy throughout the day
Better sleep at night
More mucus production through out the day
Less viscous mucus
Ability to take deeper, fuller breaths
A sense of accomplishment
Increased appetite
Better "overall" feeling
Pride in myself
Honor (keeping a promise to my wife and daughter)
Better body image
More focus on other tasks throughout the day
and the list goes on...

Now, looking at the two lists, how could I choose not to exercise?

Sometimes You Can't Do It Alone (as well)

As many of you know Mandi and I started torturing ourselves exercising again as soon as I got out of the Hole a few weeks ago. We decided not to go it alone in our exercise routine and rejoin the GPT (group personal training) option at our gym. GPT opens up a wide range of other classes that mainly consist of booty kicking, high energy group classes meant for those that want a little more of a challenge at the gym, have high fitness goals and/or need a little extra attention from one of the many great trainers.

Our general class of choice is called Intensity and is 45 minutes of a variety of exercises at a frantic non-stop pace. For example, yesterday, in 45 minutes we had 3 minutes of break time TOTAL. The other 42 minutes we were doing exercises ranging from kettlebell swings to plank jacks to sumo squats to bar bell curls to decline pushups to straddle jumps. Needless to say, at the end of a 45 minute class, I'm sweating like I just ran across the entire Gobi desert with no water profusely and on a normal day, seeing some sort of star pattern in my line of vision.

This class in one that I love to hate. Every time we commit I'm hesitant (because I'm lazy and don't enjoy pain), but every time we do it, I ask myself why I ever stopped doing the class. Not only am I getting pushed in 45 minutes way more than I would ever push myself, but the benefits do not just stop there - I just simply feel better. I feel better throughout the day, week and hopefully, month and year. When I'm involved in the GPT classes, I'm a better husband, father, friend and human being in general (there's no actual proof of that last one, but I went with it anyway).

Simply put, there are some things in this life that we do better when surrounded by others. We need their accountability. We need their motivation. We need their energy. We need their encouragement. We need their strength. We need their help.

If you're the kind of person who struggles getting to the gym by yourself, stop going it alone. Join some classes. Meet some people. Ask for help. Get a trainer. Commit to two weeks of exercise instead of a lifetime. Go to the gym and sit instead of sitting on your couch (it's more expensive, but at least your at the gym). Stop thinking about how bad it will feel at the time and start thinking about how great it will feel in due time. Side note: I started walking normally again after my first intense workout after about 6 days. It happens.

I promise you're worth it and the person at the gym you haven't met yet that will hold you accountable thinks so too.

"There's a NOW in the pain"

Have you ever heard a sermon at church that really strikes you? That really speaks to you? That is presented in a way you've never heard before? Or maybe it's just the Holy Spirit allowing you to hear it differently?

I heard a sermon yesterday at church that really spoke to me. It applied to our whole IVF situation (still an ongoing saga since November). It really got my wheels spinning. It was about pain and worry. It was about God using our pain NOW, not one day from now, for our good. And that we needed to not be anxious, but pray, and we will receive His peace.

Cool side note: I sat listening and really wanted to write a blog about it. I woke up this morning, sat to write my blog. And couldn't for the life of me remember the scriptures the pastor used, so I thought, "oh well, I can just write about something else." Before I got started I opened my email to do my devotion for the day. The subject line? "Result of Worry" It was a perfect follow-up to yesterday's sermon. The related readings suggested? Philippians 4:6-7: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Which is actually one of the exact verses the pastor used yesterday. Sometimes God is so cool in the way He works…Needless to say, I am able to write this blog.

So the thing that really stayed with me from the sermon, however, was the pastor’s commentary on Romans 8:28: And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Many of us have heard this one…and use it often in our circumstances. I often read it when something isn’t going right. I always thought, “it’s ok, God will use this situation.” But what I failed to acknowledge and rejoice in what the pastor said this verse is actually saying. He said it’s not just saying that He will work all things together for our good in the future, but NOW. That when we are in a hard spot, in pain, in the midst of less than ideal circumstances, you name it, God is using that time. He is working in that time. He isn’t just giving you that situation to one day use it. He is working in that moment, that month, those years.

For some reason that brought me a lot of peace. I’m sure it’s in part because I’m an instant gratification kind of gal. I couldn’t help but think of our current struggles to get pregnant. I found myself feeling grateful for the last 7 months of struggle. I feel blessed to know that God is currently working during the last 7 months. I may not know how He’s currently working for our good, but that’s ok. It brought me a new level of patience in the process…which by new level, really means some patience at all, as I haven’t been very patient through the process at all. It made me thankful that I serve a God who is Good, and who loves me, and who is doing what’s best for me, even when I don’t know it.

I love sermons that cut right to your soul. And I know that many people struggle with their current circumstance, like I was with our IVF. So I thought I’d share this little tidbit that really spoke to me. It sure feels good to know that in pain and bad circumstances, God is currently working for my good! So I say, bring it on God!

She Loves Garden Tomatoes!

Mckenna loves working out in the garden with Daddy. She also loves the fruits of our labor :)

Thankful Thursday: Sore Muscles & "Otta"

It's thankful Thursday time! We all have so much to be thankful for and we love to take this opportunity just to write down each and everything that comes to mind. Please take this time to share with us what you're thankful for as well. If you have a blog expressing your thankfulness, please share the link! Without further ado, here's what we're thankful for:

Mandi's List:

I'm thankful for sore muscles. If you read the post yesterday, you know we started back up with our group personal training class, Intensity. Today, I am maybe the most sore I've ever been. In fact, I woke up a couple times in the night because when I moved in my sleep I felt my sore muscles. HA! I love the feeling of sore muscles because it's an indication that my body is actually getting worked and changing. WAHOO!

I'm thankful for yummy salads. I've been making a salad for Ronnie and I for lunch, and they are SO yummy, if I do say so myself. We do spring mix lettuce, grilled chicken, baked veggies, tomato from the garden, and a little dressing. It is delish.

I'm thankful for summertime. Something about "summertime" is just awesome. Even though I no longer have summer vacation like when I was in school, summer still has a feeling of relaxation and being carefree.

Ronnie's List:

I'm thankful for getting out of the Hole and feeling good! It was a longer stay than we had expected, but it was just what I needed to get back on top of my game. It's always tough being away from my family for extended periods of time, but we're all thankful when I'm able to get tuned up back to my old self.

I'm thankful for the annual Mexico trip. Every year my entire family takes a trip down to Mexico to spend some time together and relax. We rent a house (or two) on the beach and soak in as much sun as we can. This year was a little light as we "only" had 26 people there. It's truly an enjoyable time and what made it even more awesome was Mckenna's love for the "otta" (water), which of course means ocean :)

I'm thankful for big hats. Now that the summer is upon us, I find myself wearing big hats more often. I'm not a big "sun guy" but I especially don't like having a burnt face. In Mexico, I rocked my big gardening hat almost the entire time and when that wouldn't work, I threw on my old "big" Syracuse hat. I'm proud to report that I didn't get burned!

So, what are you thankful for today?

Workout Wednesday: Back At It

Ronnie is out of the hospital, and we are back from our vacation, so it's time to get back into the gym together. Ronnie's goal is to get his lung function up even more and lose some of the extra pounds he gained in the hospital, while my goal is to lose some of the extra fluff I've gained from back-to-back-to-back IVF cycles (many people who have been on IVF meds can maybe relate).

We decided a great way to do this was to start back up with the group personal training (GPT) classes we did last fall/winter when we were in the best shape we had ever been in. I run and lift 4-6 days a week, but I don't come anywhere near the same shape I was in when we were doing the GPT...so we decided it was time to torture ourselves again. This class is AWESOME. The kind of awesome that hurts so bad...I mean good. The class we usually do is called Intensity, and it utilizes high intensity interval training (HIIT), which is all the rage these days in the workout world. I will say, a 45-minute class is just about all you can take. It's actually so hard that I get a bit anxious before every class because I know how much it will stink...sad, but true. But that's how we know it's exactly what our bodies need.

Sometimes in the gym it's easy to get comfortable. I find I often allow myself to take it a little easy. I figure, eh, I'm here every day, I don't have to go that hard today. This class does not allow you to be comfortable. In fact, it downright hurts. You are panting like a dog the whole time, not a single person in the room doesn't take a break...relatively frequently. By the end of class, if you look around, most people are only able to do a few of the exercises back to back, and then just stand, trying to catch their breath. Now that I describe it, it sounds pretty horrible.

Today was our first day back. It was just about as terrible as we suspected it would be. We both pushed through and neither of us puked, so I'd say it was a win. The trainer did ask Ronnie a handful of times if he was ok, which just tells me that he was really pushing himself...which I totally dig. Guys who work hard are hot, right? Who's with me on that? Ha! I officially felt like I may die about 35 minutes into the class and was thrilled to know I was almost done. At the end, we both had mild headaches, so I'm pretty sure we worked our butts off (or hopefully at least part of them).

We signed up for this for 3 months, so this won't be the last time we talk about it. We will keep you posted on our progress!

The Support of a (CF) Wife

Many of you already know this, but I have the best and most supportive wife in the world. I can't even begin to explain how much of a relief it is to have the support from my wife during times leading up to the hospital. Our family puts my health first, and obviously, we couldn't do that without her. I just wanted to show (mostly to give my wife the public recognition she deserves) what that support looks like in our family. This support happened to come through text messages as I was waiting at an urgent care for x-ray results requested by my pulmonary team.

I love you honey and your support means the world to me.

The 4 Lessons of Cystic Fibrosis

Guest Post by Katie Broekema

Hello everyone! My name is Katie Broekema, I am a 22 year-old from Michigan who has Cystic Fibrosis. I am going to share a little bit of my Cystic Fibrosis story with you over a two-part guest blog, so after this post stay tuned to see the role Cystic Fibrosis plays in my life currently.

I was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis as a young child, but I never really knew what that meant until I was in high school. I was very healthy as a child; I did not even have a nebulizer until I was 16. My parents have always made a special effort to let me live a normal life, including forcing me to run cross country and track for my high school. I did not realize it at the time, but this was the best thing they have ever done for me. It has shaped the rest of my life, and the teams I have been on are the largest influences in my life. It is because of these sports that I have met my best friends, and it was with their help that I am the person I am today. The life lessons and friendships I have gained through this are unparalleled. I ran cross country and track in high school and in college, and this experience has been life-changing. I have had the most amazing support team, and they helped me become the athlete that I am today, with a 5k PR of 19:47 and 10k PR of 42:36. During this time, I have learned a couple lessons that I want to share with you because of their direct application to life with Cystic Fibrosis.

The first lesson is that you need to be willing to put in the work. Just like with running, handling your Cystic Fibrosis takes a lot of time and effort. There are definitely days in college that I did not want to get up and go to 6:00 a.m. practice, but I needed to. Doing the extra work is what made me be a better runner and a real competitor. Similarly, taking that extra time to do ALL your medication and treatments is necessary in order to be at your peak of healthiness. Just like with running, when you put in the extra effort you give yourself the opportunity to succeed. When you do not put in the effort, you rob yourself of the chance to see what can happen. I am not trying to sound pious, preaching this from the point of view that I always do my medicine, because that is not true. In fact, I didn’t do my medicine all the time during my freshman year of college and I got what I deserved; a 2-week hospital stay over Christmas. I have made it my goal to never be in there again because of something that I can control. I know that I will most likely need to go into the hospital again, but I also know that it will NOT be because I was not doing what I needed to in order to stay healthy. Unfortunately there is not a magical formula you can follow to run giant PR’s or to keep yourself super healthy, but doing what you are supposed to at least gives you a fighting chance.  

Along with the lesson about work follows the idea of trusting those who are in charge of you. For running, this is the coaches. Too often I have seen athletes who think that the coach is full of crap, and that they know better so they will do their own thing or not do all of what the coach asks of them. NO! If you are in a position where you do not trust your coach and believe in the running strategies, you need to seriously consider your position on that team; it may not be the right place for you. Similarly, in the healthcare setting doctors and the medical staff are your “coaches”. If you do not agree with the treatments and medications that are being prescribed, then you need to consider finding another place to go. It is not good for anyone if you do not do your treatments, for you or your medical staff. When you say you are doing a specific treatment, but really you are not, you are hurting yourself and the Cystic Fibrosis community as a whole. Medical professionals rely on us to tell them what does and does not help. When they see no change in you and the doctors think that you are doing a treatment but really you are not, it can cause them to doubt the treatment.  That treatment can make a difference is someone else’s life, or even yours, but you were unwilling to give it a chance.

This leads me to the next lesson that I have learned, which is to always believe in yourself. This is YOU we are talking about, who knows you better than yourself? Therefore you should ALWAYS make the final decision about your medical treatment or coaching regimen. This was a running lesson that I needed to learn the hard way. I struggled during my college career running because I did not listen to my body. I spent so much time trying to keep up with the rest of my team that I was not able to compete well during the races. An injury finally forced this rest time upon me, and it paid off when I ran my best time in both the 5k and the 10k during my senior track season. With running, this was something that was my fault. I was in a situation where my coach did not know what was going on with my body. How could he? He does not have Cystic Fibrosis; all he knows is what I tell him. Now apply this to your health in the doctor’s office. The doctors do have an idea about Cystic Fibrosis in general, but they do not know what is going on with you; what would work best for your lifestyle and for you personally. They can only learn this through a discussion with you. As an example, my doctors wanted me to be on Tobi every other month while I was in college to help keep my lungs clear. That is what the medication is supposed to do, in theory it seemed like that would be a good idea but it just did not work with my schedule. I was too busy to commit to that much treatment; and making the commitment actually made me sicker rather than healthier because I needed to sacrifice sleep to do the medication. After having a conversation with my doctor, we decided together that the best plan would be for me not to do the treatment. Without them knowing my schedule and how it made me feel, my incompliance would have seemed like an act of defiance when in reality it was a recognition on my part of what I was able to do at the time.

This leads to my final lesson, find a group of people who believe in you and are willing to be your support group. For me, my running support group and my Cystic Fibrosis support group are one and the same. This is actually very emotional for me to write this now, because they are some people who have been so significant in my life that I know I will never able to thank them enough for what they do for me. I challenge you all to find a group of people like this in your life. Find those people who push you, and make you better than you are now. They are the ones who will help make you strong and able to push past the difficult parts of this disease. This group wants you to succeed, and you want to succeed for them. Because I know once you find a group of people like this, you will be able to grow to your full potential in whatever you do.

These lessons have been instrumental in my life. Although some lessons may have taken me longer than others to learn, I know I am where I am today because I learned how to put in the extra work, I began to trust in my doctors and my coaches, I believed in myself and my abilities to discern what is best for me and I had an amazing support team. I firmly believe having these four things can also help you succeed in whatever you choose to do, like it helped me with my running and taking care of my Cystic Fibrosis. These lessons have also been helping me out with my schooling, which is something I am going to talk about in my next guest blog. Are these lessons something that you feel you have a firm grip on, or do you struggle with some of them?

BIO: Katie is 22 years old and has lived in Michigan her whole life. She graduated from Albion College with a double major in computer science and communication, and she is currently working on a Master’s degree from Central Michigan University in communication; with a focus on health communication. In her spare time, Katie enjoys finding new research topics, preparing to teach her COM 101 classes, helping coach the local high school cross country and track teams, running, cooking and convincing various family members that they should get her a Pomsky puppy. (Look them up, they are adorable!) She would love to hear back from people who have read her posts, her email is Broekema.ka@gmail.com