Yes! Yes! Yes!

It's been over 3 weeks since I messed up my legs and have been unable to run. My body has been begging me do some aerobic exercise for days. Well, as I listened to Glee: The Music, Volume 1 I became inspired by these words from Taking Changes:

I just wanna start again
And maybe you could show me how to try
And maybe this is goin' too fast
And maybe it's not meant to last

But what do you say to takin' chances?
What do you say to jumpin' off the edge?
Never knowing if there's solid ground below
Or a hand to hold or hell to pay
What do you say?

Well, I said - let's go! So, off I went this morning. It was definitely a slow run. A technique I learned awhile back is that when you want to go for a longer run or are running for the first time in awhile - slow down. The suggestion is that you run approximately 1 to 1&1/2 miles per hour slower than your normal running rate. Since it's been awhile I took that advice and started to assess how my body was feeling.

After about half my 8 mile run my body was starting to feel the affects of so much time off. However, Glee saved the day. I just plugged in Glee: The Music, Volume 1 - Keep Holding On to inspire me. Rachel and Fynn gave me the strength to keep going.

You're not alone
Together we stand
I'll be by your side
You know I'll take your hand
When it gets cold
And it feels like the end
There's no place to go you know I won't give in
No I won't give in.

Keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through
Just stay strong
Cause you know I'm here for you
There's nothing you can say, nothing you can do
There's no other way when it comes to the truth
So keep holding on
Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through.

I just got back and my legs are tightening up a bit. But, it felt soooo good to finally get some exercise! Yay! Thank you Glee for getting me through this difficult time!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to family and friends from Team Henderson!

We enjoyed a meaningful and worshipful Christmas Eve service at Highway followed by a wonderful time enjoying gift giving and fellowship at home and with our good friends and neighbors Team Logan and Team Logan 2.

One of Hannah's favorite Christmas traditions is Cinnamon rolls in the morning. Julie did a great job with these homemade delights! They were so yummy.















Gift giving was next. And Hannah truly got excited about a special gift that Julie made her.















The gift was a 2010 Calendar featuring none other than Indy! Here's Hannah showing off the camera to her dog!















Joel and Carissa celebrated Christmas in Oregon this year. We missed them but know they had a great time. Here's Julie opening her gift from the kids. As you can see.. Indy was quite interested in it too.















Here's Hannah enjoying her bender ball gift and getting in a few crunches before the big meal.















After opening gifts at home it was on to the Logans for more gift giving and then pictures! Here's the kids. Note the matching PJs that are a regular at Christmastime.















Here's more of the kids outside. I did a mediocre job at best with the outdoor photography this year. The shoot was at a difficult time for lighting and I just didn't set the camera up to well. Bums.















Jumping pictures are an essential element of Christmas :) Loved Hannah's hair in this one!















Here's Hannah and I shooting Julie ;)















Here's more of the kids having fun.














A more subdued picture of Team Logan.















Girls rule!





























Finally, here's the awesome gift that Rachel made for me! Cheese bread hot out of the oven! What an unbelievable treat.















We hope all of you enjoyed Christmas and are looking forward to a joyous New Year!

Skipper

We're sad to tell you that due to rapidly declining health we decided to put Skipper to sleep this morning. It was a difficult decision for Julie to make - but was eased by the reality of the situation. Skipper's body was simply giving out.
















We inherited Skipper when Julie's friend Dorothy passed away last year. Skipper came into our home late in life and we ended up having just a short time with him. However, he was dearly loved and we will miss him greatly.

We are just happy to think that he might be visiting with Dorothy today.

Pre-Christmas Tweets

What do you have to say before Christmas? Would love to hear your thoughts!

Tod: thankful that my body is recovering. still a little worried about my right knee... but hopefully that will clear up soon.

Tod: Merry Christmas to you if this is the last time you check out the blog before Christmas. I encourage you to reflect on Christ as you experience this week.

Tod: in sadder news.. Skipper is in declining health and that is making Julie very sad indeed. Your prayers are solicited during this time of transition for the family.

TH2: Salem, Oregon

To say that December has been a stressful month for Team Henderson II would be a dramatic understatement. Thankfully, God is totally awesome. Here’s the story:

I started my new job on Tuesday, December 1st, amid a flurry of comments from my new co-workers regarding how excited they were to “give back” all the work they had been covering while I was in the process of being hired. The adjective my new manager liked using the most when talking about my orientation schedule was “aggressive.” It’s much more engaging work then I had been doing, and don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind being a little busy (it is work after all). But it is stressful too, trying to learn a lot of new things in a short amount of time.

A week later, on Tuesday, December 8th, Carissa noticed a small red bump on her chin starting to develop. Turns out it was a MRSA infection. Lame. It got to be so big and so painful she had to go in on that Saturday to get it drained (padre, I will spare you any explicit details). To make matters even more stressful, the only antibiotics able to fend off this infection posed some significant risks to little Tater gestating within her womb. Super lame.

Oh, and it’s Oregon, so it’s also raining. Everyday.

So there we were, maxed out on stress, pain meds and adverse weather conditions. And yet, in the midst of the storm, I kept remembering the stories we’d been reading about in our Mark Study, accounts of people being healed by Jesus because they choose to have faith that Jesus is the Messiah. So I started to pray. In my prayers I acknowledged God’s presence in our lives and His ability to redeem the situation, and I asked Him to heal Carissa and keep Tater safe. That was the easy part.

The more difficult part is then demonstrating faith. Many of the people in Mark had to walk away from Jesus before they could know for sure their prayers had been answered. They came in faith, and they left in faith. I’ll admit that historically I’ve had trouble walking away from Jesus. I want him there to hold my hand, to reassure me every step of the way. But Jesus isn’t married to my needs; I am married to his. So we stepped on in faith: Carissa started taking the antibiotics and I bought a homeless man a muffin from Great Harvest.

Then Thursday, December 17th rolled around. By then the antibiotics had started to work and Carissa was on the mend. She had her second ultrasound scheduled for that morning, and I gladly took some time off work to be there. Over the next hour we stared at the monitor as our beautiful little Tater rolled around and posed for the photo shoot. We saw the heart beat. We saw the arms and legs move. And we saw his man parts. Yes, little Tater is officially and unequivocally a boy (see below), and a healthy and handsome dude at that, just the right size for his age. The tech said, “Your baby looks great;” and immediately the winds ceased and the storm was calm.

God be praised! Let us bless the Lord; thanks be to God! Little Ryan Daniel (that will be his name) hasn’t yet been born, but he can be well assured that God is with him. He is certainly with his parents, loving us all over the place. And so, without further ado, here he is: Ryan Daniel Henderson!

Finals Tweets

Would love to hear what's up in your life.. as well as provide Hannah a place to tweet about finals ;) Go for it.

Tod: broke down and actually sought medical attention - yes, I got my knee and leg checked out. so far i've had x-rays taken - and the doctor will get them late today and tell me more tomorrow. i expect to be referred to an orthopedist. we'll see.

Tod: praying for Hannah and finals week. always a stressful, long week. but, then you get to come home!

Tod: shockingly - Team Henderson is pretty close to being finished with Christmas prep! the house is decorated (there's a baby Jesus area.. and a snow man area.. and a ...). Christmas music fills the air. it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Tod: t-minus 4 and counting!

It's My Birthday

Just to show you just how out of control the Team Henderson schedule can be some days - we planned a family dinner for my birthday last Sunday night. Yep, the same night that Hannah and Maggie were on their quest, a few hours after we picked our Christmas tree and 2 hours after I tried to kill myself ;)















I got to pick the restaurant! Yay! So, we went to Maggiano's which is a wonderful Italian restaurant located at Santana Row. I love their food (their Medallions of Beef are amazing!) and it's a very festive place to eat and enjoy a celebration. Thank you Auntie for documenting the event and sharing your pictures with us. You did great.





























We selected a family style menu - which provided for a variety of delightful dishes in massive quantities. You definitely are unable to starve if you eat at Maggiano's.

Here's us as we just got started. I think that's a pretty good smile for someone that is having difficulty sitting upright ;)















Auntie and Karen raised a glass!















Here's Julie and Tim enjoying the appetizers.















The whole meal was sensational - but their cheese cake is to die for! We took on piece out and passed it around. However, we had them bag up our desserts because Rachel had already taken care of that!! Dessert was awaiting us as we returned home.















When we got there - here's what we found. Maggie and Hannah (and Indy) were in recovery mode from their walk. Don't they look comfy!















Here's my beloved "adopted daughter" :) Rachel. Hey, you make me a cake like Rachel did and you'll be beloved too ;) That is one spectacular cake that you can read about on her blog.















Here's the crew - except Auntie who was taking the photo - thanks Auntie!















And - we even had a guest appearance during the present opening of the card that Joel and Carissa sent me along with their gift! Apparently, they're reminding me of a little navigation 'issue' that occurred while we were up there visiting! We missed them not being there... but many thanks to everyone who came and made this a really wonderful celebration. I love you all!

Oh, Christmas Tree

Between visiting Hannah and Maggie for lunch during 'the walk' and trying to kill myself in the garage - Julie and I picked up this year's Christmas tree.

Our friends, the Logans, go out each year and cut down a tree. The Buckners do the same thing - as well as other of our friends. Here's Julie out in the forest looking for our tree.



















Oops. Okay - truth time. We got our tree at Costco.



















Joel, at least you'd be pleased to hear that the trees come from the great state of Oregon. Over the years we've taken the kids with us and there is inevitably a 'discussion' about who gets to pick the tree and just what tree we are going to get. When you get a tree at Costco you don't have to worry about those petty concerns.

It turns out you go to the back of a truck where the trees are all tied up. Then, you tell the guy how tall of a tree you want (8') and he grabs one for you.















You do have the option to open the tree up and take a look; but this isn't like a tree lot where you go and wander through the aisles.

As it turns out - the tree was full and looks great in the house. And, Hannah - it's REAL!

As I type this Julie is 'putzing' as she decorates the tree. It's going to be beautiful!

Kids Say the Darndest Things

Too funny. An article from US News caught my eye this morning. The subject was the 'America's Best High Schools'. A current student at one of the top 100 schools offered this succinct self appraisal to rebut the report:

I am currrently a junior at Animo. And i must agree with Alexis, we have pendejos*. We shud be ranked for most skanks. because we have the most in the country. we dont even have a real school, we are located next to LAX in a motel because everyone comes out pregnant.We have more STD's than Africa.

* for those of you that don't subscribe to Urban Dictionary; pendejos: a group of stupid, idiots, ignorant, useless people.

Thursday Tweets

Please feel free to tweet away - excite me!

Tod: is wondering if I dare get back up on a ladder to put up the Christmas lights this weekend? ;)

Tod: enjoyed all the fabulous birthday wishes, cards and gifts this week! thanks to all!

Tod: has continued to reflect on Prov 3:5-6.. and trusting God. I remember when I was leading Christian Service Brigade and did a talk on trusting God. I asked the kids 'why is it important that we trust God and believe He speaks the truth?' my answer was: because your salvation depends completely on His trustworthiness. Jesus claimed "if you acknowledge me you will be saved". Your salvation depends on you doing something and then God keeping His promise. If you can't trust God to keep His promise.. what's the point?

Instant Old

If you’re still young and want to know what it will be like when you are old – fall off a ladder. I’m not talking about, say, 50 or 60. I’m talking OLD. Here’s what you all have to look forward to one day!

The first thing you do when you wake up (either in the morning or after one of your many 'mini-naps') is take a physical inventory. How is the back feeling? How are the legs today? Can I turn my neck? Do we feel like getting up? Do we feel up to taking a shower?

Daily personal hygiene becomes optional.

You spend more time than you would think strategizing about bathroom runs. Should I really drink that soda? Do I want to have to go all the way to the bathroom? Did I leave early enough to make it all the way to the bathroom before using the bathroom? Or.. if I do go to the bathroom will anything productive happen? And if I get myself all the way down onto the seat… will I be able to get myself up without assistance?

Speaking of productive bathroom runs – when you are older you get to experience the glorious side effects of medications. For instance, it turns out that Vicodin can cause… let’s just say ‘blockage’.

You can’t get comfortable. No matter how you sit, stand or lay something hurts. The problem is that it also hurts to shift around to try to find a comfortable spot; an awful catch-22.

All of a sudden the way the house looks doesn’t mean much. So there are water spots on the shower walls. Who cares? I can’t bend over far enough to squeegee – so I guess ‘water spot’ is the new ‘clear’. Excellent.

Speaking of bending over.. you start thinking to yourself about all sorts of useful inventions that someone should create to make your life easier. Like shouldn’t they put long strings on your pants so that you can lower them by string all the way to the ground to put your feet in them and then pull them back up? Where is that invention? And where are the slip-on tennis shoes for men? Also.. couldn’t they make underwear that you wrap around and through and then Velcro on? Really.. do I have to pull them over my feet way down there and all the way up my legs?

You also start to appreciate things that HAVE been invented. I now have a far greater appreciation for the Toto Washlet (it washes and drys after using the toilet by remote control). Those Toto people are geniuses!

You understand why old people drive really slow and keep way back from other traffic. It's because they know it takes heroic effort to lift their leg off the gas and onto the brake pedal in order to stop. So, they have to leave themselves all sorts of time and space to get stopped without running into somebody.

Speaking of moving.. when you can only walk 1 mile per hour you find yourself getting more frustrated at all those able-bodied people 'darting around you and making you feel bad for being in the way'. You find yourself secretly hoping they all live long enough to feel the burn themselves!

Finally, you find that you spend a tremendous amount of time telling anyone who will listen stories they don’t want to hear about your body parts!

Oops!

We had a little bit of drama / a scare this afternoon. While the girls were out walking - Julie and I decided to get the Christmas stuff down from shelf near the ceiling in the garage. I positioned our ladder with the top of the ladder very near the edge (just at the height) of the shelf instead of raising the ladder a foot or so above the level of the shelf. Julie warned me that this was not a safe situation - but I pressed on because I didn't want the ladder in the way of my reach.

Bad idea. Very, very bad idea.

All of a sudden the base of the ladder slipped out a bit (away from me) - and the front of the ladder was no longer leaning against the shelf. Instead it was plummeting to the ground. I, on the other hand was propelled backwards - my feet and legs caught in the ladder rungs. Big problem. As my legs were being pulled to the ground in one direction I fell hard on my tailbone and back in the opposite direction - right onto our concrete floor. It happened in an instant and it was a lot of force.

God was so good to me in that moment. Julie watched it and said she that she was certain I broke both legs in the fall. Fortunately - I wrenched my knees and ankles something fierce. However, nothing broke. As I lay on the ground I slowly made an assessment of the situation. I could breath without pain. My back was really sore - but I could move my weight a little. My legs and feet (the tops of my feet were scraped against the rung) were really sore - but I could wiggle my toes and ankles. Nothing broken there. Then I figure out my legs were probably not broken. Very good news.

Next my vision was all blurry - but I figured out I didn't have my glasses on. They had flown to the other side of the garage during the fall. Once Julie retrieved them my vision cleared right up :)

I shouldn't joke. This was a very serious fall and I could have done serious damage. Julie kept asking me "do I need to call 911? do I need to call 911?".

Nope - I won't say I am 'fine' - but all the parts work. My tailbone is in a lot of pain. And my legs and ankles are barking. But, I can walk - slowly. Whew!!

I did get my licks in on the ladder, however. I don't know how much force is required to bend the rungs on a ladder... but check this out. Whoa!





























BTW.. I have to tell you - I am getting instant 'feedback' lately when I do things that Julie 'suggests' I don't do. This is the most severe example - but there have been several situations in the last couple months where my lack of listening to Julie has resulted in almost immediate consequences. At this point I'm gonna do whatever she says because today was no fun at all.

Awesome Twosome

Hannah and Maggie did an amazing job today. They completed a full marathon plus another 10 miles for a total distance of 36 miles in one day! What a performance!

After church we caught up with the girls as the walked down historic El Camino Real through the town of Redwood city. We had a chance to get them some lunch at Subway. It was a good time for them to get off their (aching) feet and tell us a little about the walk so far. They we cracking us up.

Check out Hannah as she spotted us in the Jeep coming to visit. (Charla moment?)
















Here they are scarfing some food down at Subway. Delish.















Here's mom and daughter. So sweet!















Then, it was back to the road. Here's a picture of them in action during their adventure. BTW.. this is one of the rare parts of El Camino Real that don't have proper side walks. This is not what the entire roadway looked like during the walk.













As they got to Mountain View - about 35 miles into their adventure - Hannah had a Monk moment. She realized that she would be most happy if they ended with a mileage divisible by 5. So! They were finished! Sweet.

We are all so proud of the two of them. This was an amazing mental as well as physical challenge. They are both nursing very sore legs and feet but have been in great spirits all evening. What an accomplishment!

PS.. I was thinking about publishing a picture of Hannah's blistered foot.. but I am trying to be a good example to Joanne ;)

Bring It On!!!!

THE WALK is on!

Hannah and Maggie officially began walking from San Francisco to Santa Clara at approximately 5:10 am this morning! The weather was a brisk 42 degrees. So, you can be in prayer for them a) that they are safe and enjoy the walk and b) that they don't freeze to death!

I picked them up at their dorm around 4:40 am. Hannah's ready to get to the Jeep and get over to San Francisco to start the walk. Check out Maggie's enthusiastic look :)

















The original plan was for me to drive them to Jon and Rachel's house as their starting point. As we were driving over the Bay Bridge from Oakland to San Francisco I asked Hannah if she had a map to get from Jon and Rachel's house to El Camino Real. Yikes! No map! What were they thinking?? :)

So - quick change of plans. I knew that Mission Street turns into El Camino Real - which is a straight shot to Santa Clara. So, I took them to Mission Street and let them off at a 7-11 store.

They did however make matching shirts. Check them out. Too funny.















When I left them I drove down El Camino a bit and stopped at a coffee shop to get some Java for the ride home. As I was heading back out to the Jeep to get the camera and take a candid shot of them along the way - I could hear them talking from a hundred yards away. They saw the Jeep (bums).. so I missed my big shot.. but here's Hannah outside the door of the coffee shop. Umm.. did you see what she (and Maggie) are wearing? Yeah, that's right. No map AND they are wearing shorts in 40 degree weather! Please pray!

















Well, they pressed on from there... into the early morning. Good luck girls! Bring it on!!!

Card Night

Last Saturday was card night at Team Henderson's. Joining us for the festivities were Auntie, Team Logan, Team Logan2 and some additional friends. Julie L friend Brandy from school came home with her for the Thanksgiving weekend so she joined us. Also, Tim's nephew Mark is in seminary down in Pasadena (LA area) so he was in town for the weekend as well. Maggie and Corbett joined us as well to round out a stellar roster of players.

Corbana (Corbett + Hannah) rocked in Spades. I hate to admit it - because I was on the receiving end - but those two are formidable. Unstoppable. I don't know whether to be proud that we raised such a good card player or upset that she couldn't show her parent a little respect. Hmmm...???

The 'small table' hosted the spades and euchre games. Take a special look at Karen who I believe won the award for most hideous sweater ;)















The dinner table was devoted to group games. We played Golf as well as prediction. Brandy, Julie's friend, is a quiet force in the card realm. We started out wondering if she was a cardtard. We ended the weekend realizing she was a shark as she won two consecutive games of prediction. Pretty sweet. That's Brandy in the green sweatshirt.















Here's Mark mugging it for the camera.















Oh - did I mention that Indy played too? She rocks!















Julie planned the event and the theme was ugly Christmas sweaters! Here's Corbana in matching sweaters. Apparently they shopped in the twins department at Goodwill to find these beauties. Corbett's fit especially tight ;) Maybe matching sweaters is their key to spades victory.















I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Julie scheduled this event at the same time as the Stanford v Notre Dame game. All I'm going to say is that the night was bitter sweet. I hear the people that I had to give our tickets too had the time of their life at that amazing game!

Thursday Tweets

Please feel free to tweet away - excite me!

Tod: did online traffic school in 3 1/2 hours the other day. one of the benefits of being a fast reader :)

Tod: actually went out with Julie shopping on Friday morning. did you go?

Tod: studied Trust in our One Another Group (Bible Study) last night. i know that i am very slow to trust. how about you? do you trust people easily?

Thanksgiving Day Desserts Gone Wild!

I'm sort of jumping around to catch up on topics from the extended weekend.

Thanksgiving day we participated in our annual "orphan's dinner" at the Scott's House. Julie was out of control this year. She is normally a key contributor to the dessert menu and this year she outdid herself. As you can see from the packed back of our Jeep - she made 6 different dessert type and 9 total (including duplicates) desserts! I have no idea how many calories the 'jeepload' of desserts represents - but it's a lot.















After receiving her baking training earlier this year - she decided to do all her own pie crusts. They were crisp and yummy! In addition to all the pumpkin pies (her specialty!) there was also a delicious cake, a wonderful cheese cake, a multi-berry pie and a rice pudding.



















What a stud!















She even made a little baby pumpkin pie - gluten free (meaning no crust) for Emily and Allison this year. She is so thoughtful.



















We are so thankful that we were able to celebrate with our friends another year of God's unceasing love for us all. He is truly Jehovah-Jireh!