Long Overdue!

So, I know it was over a month ago, actually almost two, but I wanted you all to know that I did it! I trained all summer, flew to Washington D.C. and ran the Army Ten Miler. Liz and I did the whole thing...without stopping. The big reason I ran the race in the first place was for TAPS, in honor of my brother. Liz said to me "Christian would be so proud" and that was it, I was committed. I couldn't turn back. My mom and I flew out on Thursday, at the crack of dawn, actually, before the crack of dawn. We had a lovely visit with the Minneapolis airport and on we flew to Reagan National Airport. My cousin Stephanie, who's family moved to DC just weeks before, picked us up and we headed out to see the new Hattix family home. It was beautiful! And, as always, Steph, Larry, Naomi, Laurel, and Isaiah were so welcoming. I miss having them in Wisconsin!

On Thursday, my mom, Stephanie, and I went out to Arlington National Cemetery to see Christian's headstone. This, this was a very strange experience. I wasn't sure what my reaction would be and I'm still unsure of what exactly I felt, but it was eerie, and surreal. To see the stone, with Christian's name on it made his death, somehow even more real, even more final, if that's even possible. The long rows of headstones, so evenly placed, and carefully kept each represented a life. Many of them given as young men in active duty, before what seems right. It was simultaneously heartbreaking and honoring. Hard and sad, but I'm glad I went.

As for the run, we were up bright and early for the walk to the Pentagon to join with over 25,000 other runners. It was exciting and energizing to run with so many people. The Star Spangled Banner was sung and as it was ending a formation of UH-60 Blackhawks flew over the crowd. I'm not sure if anyone who wasn't there remembers, but there was a Blackhawk flyover, exactly like that, at Christian's burial service at Arlington. To see the Army salute Christian like that and then salute a crowd of 25,000 runners the same way spoke volumes of Christian's service for our country.

The run went well, it took a bit longer than I'd hoped but my feet kept going the entire time. We had cheerleaders at Miles 4, 6, and 8, complete with signs and yelling and cameras. Looking forward to seeing my family along the route was such an encouragement! Lars (in his jeans), Ethan, and Laura joined us for the final two miles. That was awesome, because I really thought that Mile 9 was out to get me and Lars was such a great encouragement:) Liz got a little ahead when Lars started running with me (or maybe I got behind), but she waited and we found a burst of energy and finished fast and strong. People talk about a "runner's high" but I think that I had a high all day long, just from finishing:)

To all of you have supported me in this adventure...THANK YOU!

Later in the day we walked around downtown in DC and I needed help from Lars in another way...

Running Recap

The Army Ten-Miler is six days away, I thought you'd like to know how I went from zero to ten in one summer! Here is a recap of how my training went for the Army Ten-Miler. For those of you who follow the blog I've made a comment here and there about running and how its been going, but I thought a retrospective of the summer of running would be appropriate.

Over Memorial Day weekend my sister-in-law went to a conference in Washington DC that was run by and organization called TAPS, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors. Their purpose is to provide support, in any number of ways, to families who have lost a loved one in the military. Liz was impressed by their programs and when presented with the opportunity to run the Army Ten-MIler on the TAPS team she said yes. Then she called me. Somehow, probably because she said the phrase "Christian would be so proud" I agreed to run with her.

My first training run came end of May/beginning of June and I've been training ever since. I thought for sure I'd be able to run 2 miles with no problem...not so. I was sucking wind and my feet felt like lead and I thought my heart was going to explode. I stopped short of the two miles. Was I going to make it?!?

Thanks to the encouragement of many friends (thank you Jadon, Meg, Jess, Jen, Laura, Liz, Amy, and Mr. MacKay) I kept going. Each time I needed to add mileage I had a friend with me cheering me on. Any time I needed to add a mile I had someone with me to keep me going. I wanted to hit Jadon when he made me run up the hill to finish three miles. I thought four would be impossible at the Fire Cracker Four on July 4th, but Mr. MacKay stuck with me for the last mile and made encouraging comments all the while. I think Jess was with me for five miles, at the crack of dawn before it got hot...such a good friend. I made six when I went to the North Country to visit Liz and the Nordberg clan; that was a great run! I knew then that I would be able to make ten. Amy made me keep going and going and going when we did seven. Two weekends ago I jumped to nine. That was a hard run, but my mom and her cousin Meghan met me a little more than half way with water... so fun to have a little cheering section as I met them by the lake.

Those, along with countless other runs in between make me feel like I'm ready! I really do feel like Christian would be proud. To all of you who have asked me about how training was going and to those encouraged me along the way, a big hearty Thank You! One special thanks to Kristin Suidak, mom of Olivia who takes violin with me. She has been a great encouragement and source of information along the way. Plus a great mom, I love teaching Olivia!

One more shameless plug... If you are interested in supporting me in this run I have a page on the TAPS website where I am raising funds that will go directly to families who have lost a loved one in the military. Every donation is greatly appreciated! Hopefully the link below will work, otherwise you can just paste it into your address line. Thanks to all!

https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=273178&supid=223384751

Once Again... ARMY TEN-MILER

Just a reminder... its quickly approaching!

Dear Family and Friends,

On October 5, 2008 (less than three weeks) I will be running in support of our nation’s surviving military families by participating with the TAPS “2008 Run and Remember Team" in the Army Ten-Miler race.

The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) is a non-profit organization that reaches out to families and loved ones who have suffered the loss of a loved one in the Armed Forces.

TAPS provides on-going emotional help, hope, and healing to all Military surivors. They provide peer support services 24-hours a day, hold Survivor Seminars and Good Grief Camps for both adults and children to help them work through their grief. My sister-in-law was very impressed by what they had to offer and how they helped in the face of great loss. She asked me to run with her, so here I am.

This year, I will be running in memory of my brother, Captain Christian Philip Skoglund. Many of you knew Christian and to know him was to love him! He is missed every day. If you are able, please help me to honor his memory by supporting me in this race. Funds raised by this event flow directly into TAPS' programs which support the families of our brave men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice for this great nation.

For more information on TAPS' programs, visit www.taps.org.

"Remember the Love, Celebrate the Life, Share the Journey."

Sincerely,

Maja Kay Skoglund

Here is the link to my TAPS page:



https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=273178&lis=1&kntae273178=AC358C0FCBB74BF1A2A94152E380F032&supId=223384751

Training Day

7 miles. All running. Booya.

Washington D.C. Here I come!

Christian would have been 32 today. I wish that I could sing Happy Birthday to him and then follow up with Underwater, Opera, Southern, and Football renditions of Happy Birthday for him. I'm not exactly sure what to do on a day like today, but (at the risk of sounding like a broken record) I miss him a whole lot and I wish he was here.

Mini Update

Its been a while, I know. I've been a little disconnected from the blogging world. So much has happened since I last wrote. I'm still running, I still don't love running, but gradually I'm adding miles and I think, that by October 5 I'll be able to run the Ten Miler. We'll see...I think both Liz and Rachael are ahead of me in their training. Even though the actual running isn't fantastic yet, it's getting better, and I really love how I'm feeling after my runs are done. I've found a few people who will do some running with me, so I stay relatively motivated. I should go six and a half miles this week...we'll see.

I ran the Firecracker Four on July 4 and then promptly headed home and got in a fender bender. Apparently being hit from behind is not always the other person's fault. The man who hit me talked the police officer into citing me for the accident that happened from behind me. Frustrating, but it probably was my fault. That is why we have insurance, right? All will be settled except I need to find a replacement for dear Hans, the Jetta that has faithfully gotten me to and fro for the past few years. He's drive-able for the time being, but I need a new car. If anyone has a lead on an economical little car, let me know!

What else? I bought a plane ticket to go and visit Elizabeth, the Nordberg's, and the North Country for a week in August. It will be great! I'm excited to see her new house and help with whatever 'projects' that need doing. Hopefully the weather will be nice and we'll get to do some water sports, that should be good. She just got all of her household goods from storage, where they have been since being packaged up in Italy. It will be nice to see some of the things that Christian and Liz shared, but tough at the same time, I'm sure. I really miss him, a lot.

More to come soon...I think. Stay posted!

ME?!?! RUNNING!?!?

My sister-in-law, Liz called me last Sunday and left me a message asking me to run the Army Ten-Miler in October. TEN MILES!! I've never even ran half of that, but somehow, I said yes. So, after registering for the run, buying new shoes, and going for a weeks worth of training runs (four of them, one every other day so far) I'm on my way to the big 1-0!

Everybody I've talked to says I'll be fine, and that I've got plenty of time to train...plenty! Still, I'm feeling the pressure of a deadline and I'm actually serious about doing this. I'm starting small, but every run is feeling easier for a longer time!

I'm running in memory of my brother on a team for an organization called TAPS. Liz went to a seminar they had in D.C. over Memorial Day and said that they are an excellent organization that help families who have lost loved ones in the military. If you're interested in knowing more about it just take a look at this link:

https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=273178&lis=1&kntae273178=D07D8D1349C942199E417032DB3C4F50&supId=223384751


When I finally agreed to do this Liz said "Christian would be so proud of us," and you know what? That made me smile! It really would, he would have been running right along side of us!