649

I RAN 649 MILES IN 2010!!!!!!

I spent 123 hours, 35 minutes and 21 seconds in motion while running this year!

I don't want to mean this like I am bragging.....but for a girl like me who is a music loving, band nerd, show choir queen (who always fought against the feeling she was too big to sing and dance like the other girls,) this has brought about a change in me. Many people ask me why I do this and I'm sure even more make comments about the time it takes, etc with young children. But to all of those with questions I say this.

I have NEVER felt better about myself! I am physically in the best shape of my life and emotionally, I have finally found that "something" I talk with my students about all the time that helps me handle stress in positive manner. Running helps put me in a better place mentally so I am able to tackle the stress of work and also refocus to be a better wife and mother at home. While it can be hard to fit it all in at times.....I know that taking some time for myself to do something active and healthy helps me to help my family! :)

Since January 2010, I have been logging my runs religiously on runningahead.com. It's been a great way to track my progress and keep me accountable. Thanks for all who have visited my blog in 2010! I hope to have many posts in 2011 about our boys, our family and my continued journey towards my next 1/2 marathon.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!!!

Getting ready to take off into 2011

Just a few photos to share from Christmas day! It was a great day....until the stomach flu hit Collin, Chad and I in the evening. I guess it isn't the holidays unless 3/4 of the family is sick? On the positive side but we had made it through Santa, all the presents and fun with Chad's family at least!

Collin is still wondering where all the presents are. So now we have been playing a game where I am the present and he wraps me in blankets! He calls me his "mommy toy" and every time he rips the blankets off while saying "I wonder what it is?"

It was a Christmas full of Star Wars for Mitchell! He stated he really "NEEDED" this particular clone trooper.

The flu bug kept us from creating our gingerbread house until yesterday. But with the help of Grandma and Grandpa Ammeter, it was completed....and now half of the roof has already been eaten. :)

Mitchell asked me to act like I was flying while he was taking pictures with the new camera he got for Christmas. So I guess we are ready to take off into 2011!

Before the illness hit full force on Christmas Day, Chad and I were able to run 6 miles together. My training schedule has officially started for my 3rd half marathon and my next post should include the total number of miles I have ran this year. Until then, I am going to continue enjoying my holiday break at home. Tomorrow night the boys are staying with my folks and Chad has made dinner reservations but won't tell me where we are going......we will end our night at a 40th birthday party for Angie Messer with friends and co-workers, it is setting up to be a fun evening!

Great Grandma Rose Ammeter's Sugar Cookies...Finished Product!

The last step of our sugar cookie making process was completed on Christmas Eve....just in time for Santa!

Mitchell decorating a special wreath sugar cookie for Santa. He really took his time and even made multi colored balls out of frosting for this cookie.

He may have been frosting the wrong side of the cookie....but Collin was sure to get in on the action! :)

The final touches...sprinkles! The best was Mitchell taking the chocolate sprinkles and making one of the reindeer "all brown" with sprinkles. The cookies taste as good as they look!!!

Aunt Christa reading The Polar Express to Mitchell on Christmas Eve. This picture is also the last picture of Mitchell before loosing a top front! Both top front teeth have been very loose and for some reason, Mitchell was determined to have one more hole in his head before going to bed tonight. And sure enough, he proudly ran out shortly after going to bed with the front tooth he had pulled himself! I guess the thought of having both the Tooth Fairy and Santa at your house in the same night will give a person a higher pain tolerance?

The Bunger Boys leaving cookies, strawberry milk and their notes to Santa for 2010. Not sure about Mitchell's pouty face.....but I'm sure there will be a different expression tomorrow morning!!

Great Grandma Rose Ammeter's Sugar Cookies...Part 2

Day 2 of my sugar cookie making process from scratch! I'm sure my Great Grandmother had a nice laugh at me yesterday when I forgot a key ingredient.....guess there is a reason most of the things I make are from a box when it comes to baking? :)

After getting everything else on my to-do list accomplished today (even taking the boys to visit Santa at the mall solo!) Mitchell and I finally tackled rolling out the cookie dough and cutting out shapes. He had so much fun and would have eaten half of the cookie dough if left to his own devices!

For some reason....Mitchell wanted me to act like these cookies were a secret? When I questioned him more later about this....I think he was meaning Great Grandma's secret ingredient in the cookie dough (and for you comedians out there....the baking soda I left out yesterday is NOT it!!!)

Mess.....I am not a fan of having a mess! And boy did we make one!! But it was all worth it when Mitchell told me the cookie dough was the best ever.

Tomorrow we will finish this process by frosting the cookies for Santa. And yes, I will continue to defy all logic by making the frosting from scratch as well! :)

Mitchell and Collin visiting Santa this afternoon. They were so good waiting in line and Collin wasn't frightened of Santa at all. Although Mommy thought Santa maybe had visited the fountain of youth one too many times???

After Chad got home from work, we both got ready to attend the KSU Men's Game. Thanks to our good friend and co-worker Angie Messer and her son Keegan for braving the dicey weather to watch the boys for us! As you can see......they were camped out at the top of the steps with books waiting for them to arrive!

Watching the KSU Men's Basketball game was a great way to end a busy day full of preparations for fun and family tomorrow.

Great Grandma Rose Ammeter's Life Like Sugar Cookies

Christmas break has officially begun! Collin's fever and ear infection kept me from getting most things done today that were on my list, however I did begin the process of making sugar cookies from scratch!

Most of you will realize what a big undertaking this is for me as I am NOT one to bake.....especially making things from scratch! But last weekend I decided to copy down my Great Grandma Rose Ammeter's recipe for "Life Like Sugar Cookies." My mom has always made these during the holidays and they are so good! This year, I decided I would do the entire process....and the picture above is the first step!

I decided to make a double batch....and it was a good thing I did! I realized while making an additional batch (when the first did not produce much dough) that I had forgotten the baking soda in the first batch!!! Again, I make no claims of being a master baker by any means! After consulting with my mom on the importance of baking soda, I was able to get the first batch of dough out of the fridge, get it back in the mixing bowl and successfully add the last ingredient.

Step one is finished! The dough must now chill (I choose to say it needs to sit overnight....I'm too exhausted to roll out cookie dough, cut out figures and bake them tonight!)

I will include more pictures as the the boys help me with steps 2 and 3 as we finish this project before Christmas eve. I plan to use my Grandma LaVonne Ammeter's recipe for frosting in step 3! This could max me out for cooking and baking by the time this project is complete. Now I know why mom thought making these was always such a process.......

I have also included a few pictures from Mitchell's Christmas party on his last day of school Tuesday. The game was breaking into teams and transforming one Kindergartner into a snowman. Of course, Mitchell was more than willing to be wrapped in toilet paper and made into Frosty the Snowman!

Mommy thought he made one cute snowman when the game was complete! :)

Faces of 2010 Part Two

Most of you know about our good friends the Ingram's who now live in Chapman, KS. While Shelly and I still work together at JCMS in the counseling center.....Mitchell and Ally are now both in Kindergarten of course in different towns. Even though the Bunger Boys and Ingram Ladies do not get to see each other every day anymore, they still are special friends and we always have a great time together!


Last weekend we went over to Tony and Shelly's house so the kids could all play before we attended a Chapman Boys Basketball game that evening.

Even Collin and Avery got into the action playing Twister!

This is such a sweet picture of Mitchell and Ally! They have had fun together since they 2 years old.

After supper and some playtime at the Ingram's.....we went to cheer on Tony as he coached the Chapman Irish. Collin snagged some Hello Kitty sunglasses early on.....and true to form began to charm anyone around him!

Watching these two grow up has been so much fun. I continue to believe that perhaps arranged marriages will make a come back in the future......if so, I believe we have the perfect match for both of our boy's in Ally and Avery Ingram! :)

Faces of 2010

Almost one week before Christmas and it is a crazy time of year! While the presents are bought, wrapped and under the tree.....there is much to be done before the holiday break arrives! Christmas parties to attend for work, the many tasks that need to be accomplished at school before the semester ends, 2 dozen cookies to make before Friday, Mitchell's classroom party, cooking, cleaning, baking.....and we still need to have our official visit with Santa!

With all of the crazy but fun moments of the holiday season swirling in my head, I wanted to sit down and start included some great moments from 2010 that didn't make the blog until now. How could I leave out Mitchell's first school picture???

This is just one of the many personality pictures we have of Collin.....he is such a charmer!

And what about pictures from the end of a tradition? The last ever Croghan/Bunger get together for the KSU vs Nebraska game in October 2010. We had a great time tailgating together and even involved all our kids for this last purple vs red event.


Krista and John met our wedding almost 10 years ago. It is truly such a great mix of my high school realm of friends (Shana being Krista's sister) and college coming together as John and I were great friends all through our undergrad at UNK in the music department. With or without our young children and no matter what the venue......these are very special friends that we wish we could see more and always have a great time with.

Stay tuned for more faces of 2010!!