Happy Sweet Sixteenth Birthday, Mac! Just like all parents say, I can't believe he's that old. Also, welcome Daylight Savings Time! I always look forward to having more daylight in the late hours of the day. The last couple of weeks have been filled with fun. The mixing of the CD finished, I performed at Pink Night at the Ross Country Jamboree, Ed played in a charity basketball game called Hoops for Haiti, and I was able to do lots of running. Yesterday, I ran one of my favorite races: the Shamrock Run in Indianapolis. Mom and Ed went with me, and we had a wonderful time. This race restored my running confidence, which had wavered after the Crohn's incident in the 10K two weeks ago. I was worried it would happen again. However, I was lucky. Not only did I not have a single issue with Crohn's during the race, but I felt *awesome* the whole time! I focused on having fun and keeping an even pace, and I did both. My splits were 9:29/9:22/9:22/9:22. (My first split was likely slower because of the congested start.) When I finished, I said to Ed and Mom, “That was EASY!” I probably could've turned on the heat and finished with a better time, but I think I made the best choice to just have fun. That's what running is all about for me. Bonuses for the day were getting to see old high school friends. We ran into Ed's former classmate, Joe Ingalls, who was running the race. Afterwards, we visited my former classmate, Sam Hartman, who treated us to lunch. Great day! Check out the pics at Gotta Run....

Dad and I participated in the Let's Go 10K on Saturday. I finished in 59:46, and he crossed in 1:32:42. About a third of the way through the race, I started experiencing extreme Crohn's pain. By the end of the race, it was unbearable. Within seconds of crossing the finish line, I had been scooped up and placed in Mom's car, which took me straight to the hospital. I'm much better today, but I still feel very sore. I'm a bit discouraged, because I've never had Crohn's trouble during a race. I'm proud of Dad though for his sub-15 min./mi. pace again! Check out the pics at Gotta Run....

After eight interrupting snow days, my students were finally able to finish their survey project. Go to their survey site to see the survey results and the graphs they made. I was very proud of their efforts. Their graphs cover everything from movies to books, weather to sports, dinosaurs to marsupials, and candy to cookies. In other news, check out JoAnnaKaiCobb.com to see my updated gig schedule.

We enjoyed Snow Days #6, #7, and #8 this week. Sunday night, a winter storm dumped another foot of snow onto Bedford. The resulting days of school closure mean that the last student day is now June 4, and the last teacher day is June 7. Normally, I would be disappointed that we're losing so many days of summer. However, we have had SO MUCH FUN that I'm glad we've traded the winter days for a few summer days. Here's a short list of the things we've done: snowy runs through town, snowy hikes through the woods, snow photography, snow sculpting, snow painting, snow playing with Abbi, igloo building, sledding at Otis, dozens of games of euchre with Mom and Dad, and movie watching. Summer is usually 80 days of sun, golf, and heat. Sacrificing a few of those days for winter fun has been totally worth it. I posted some of our latest pictures in a new Snow Day slideshow and put some pics on Abbi's page as well. There might be more snow this weekend!

Snow Day... again! I'm actually enjoying all of those snow days this year. Today, I started the day with a 3-mile run in the snow, and then spent the afternoon playing cards and painting the snow with Ed, Mom, Dad, and Abbi. We even made a snow volcano! Check out the photos on my slideshows page and Abbi's site.

More Winter weather! On Friday night, Bedford received another 4"-5" of heavy snow. It was beautiful for taking photos, but horrible for running, basketball games, and benefit concerts. Ed's team's tournament was canceled, as was the local high school game. Forever Gold's concert for L.I.F.E. Pantry scheduled for Saturday night was also postponed. I was surprised it was canceled, because the roads were dry by the evening. It was Saturday morning that saw treacherous conditions. I ran four miles at that time, and it was difficult. Between the 30mph winds and the ice and snow on the roads, I had my hands full with challenges. Snowy running is still my favorite though, and I may get one more opportunity to enjoy the snow. We have 5"-7" of snow forecasted for Monday night. If we miss one more day of school, I'll have to work on my birthday! I've never done that before! Time off school has allowed us to spend more time with family friends. I've especially enjoyed some get-togethers with Mom, Lisa, and Deb. We always have fun! In other news, mixing has begun on my CD, and the mix is sounding better than I ever would've imagined! I'm looking forward to having the finished product. Enjoy the Super Bowl this evening! ~ GO COLTS! ~

Happy Ballerina Day! (2-2! Get it?) We had a busy weekend. Ed helped coach a Cutters team to a win in Scottsburg, I ran to a third place female finish in a local 5K, Dad finished the same race in 46:03, I sang at the Ross Country Jamboree, and I worked on the CD in the studio! Whew! I posted pics and info about the race at my running site, Gotta Run.... Right now, Ed and I are in the thick of Spirit Week at BMS. With the nickname "Omniscient Ed," he participated in an "Old Schoolers" shootout in yesterday's pep session!

Yesterday brought another Snow Day. We have now used all our built-in days, and any more days missed will be added to the end of the year. I may have to work on my birthday for the first time in my life! The snowfall brought another opportunity for a beautiful, chilly hike, this time with Dad. Afterwards, Ed, Mom, and I played cards. All the family fun made Abbi sleepy! In other news, I'm still working on the CD. Last weekend, Brad and Tammy Sue added their talent to the mix. They brought daughters Lesli and Josie, and we all had a ball. This weekend brings fun with friends, a 5K, a gig in Scottsburg, and more recording. Good times!

We've been experiencing some pretty dreary weather lately, but I've been trying to make the most of it with my training. I've been increasing my mileage, and my body is responding appropriately. I get so nervous about overdoing it because of my weak bones, but all is going well! In other news, Ed's basketball team earned a big win this week. They beat Shawswick, a local school with an intimidating team. We're also having fun with Forever Gold, as you can see from the pic of Lisa and Deb. "Enlightening," huh? :o) Also, I took some pics of Abbi playing with her ratty little toy. She's been so cheerful lately—my little ray of sunshine!

The snow has melted, and warmer 40° temperatures have arrived. I certainly hope that we have one more blast of winter before the end of the season. More and more, winter is becoming my favorite time of year. I love a snowy run! Winter is also the time that Ed is in full swing coaching BMS basketball. In other news, studio work for the CD is going well. I'm enjoying myself and learning a lot. Right now, I'm trying to ignore the Colts game. It makes me too nervous to watch! Go Colts!

Happy Snow Days! As predicted, school was closed on Thursday and Friday. Thursday began with the recovery of Big Red, all healed after his collision on Dec. 19. It's good to have him back! We've also watched movies and played cards to pass the time. However, my favorite activity was a hike in the woods behind my parents' house. In the lightly falling snow, I saw some of the most gorgeous winter scenes I've ever seen. Ed captured a lot of the beautiful nature with the camera, and I made a slideshow of those photos. Even Abbi managed to venture into the snow, and I added some of those pics to her site. Stay warm! I'm going for a run...

My first recording session at Airtime Studios was more fun (and less frightening) than I could've imagined. Before I arrived at the studio, I spent most of the morning feeling inadequate about recording with professionals, but I eased into the process smoothly and felt right at home all day. I get to have another session this Sunday. However, what's making news today is Thursday. Reportedly, Bedford will receive 4"-7" of snow starting tomorrow at 4:00 A.M. and lasting most of the day. I'm predicting no school on Thursday or Friday. I'd rather have two-hour delays though. A 2HD doesn't have to be made up on a warm, sunny spring day.

Christmas Break has been eventful, relaxing, productive, and fun. At the beginning of Break, we bought a ping-pong table. We've had lots of fun challenging each other to some table tennis tension. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day found us visiting with family in both Bedford and Greenwood. We had fun sharing time and gifts with one another. Ed gave me a Snuggie, and I LOVE it. The inventor of the Snuggie is a genius. The boys had fun with Nerf gun warfare. Check out the fun in the Christmas Break slideshow I made. The days since Christmas have been very productive. We did some "spring cleaning" in the winter, and Ed has been having basketball practice with his team. This morning, Dad and I started training for the Mini with an 8:00 A.M., 10° run with Let's Go. We have a weekend remaining before we go back to work. I'm very excited to share that this Sunday, I will start recording my first studio quality CD. I've wanted to record since I was a little kid in pajamas singin' into a hairbrush!

Merry Day-After-Christmas! We had a fun Christmas, and I'm working on a slideshow to share the fun. For now, enjoy some new pics of precious Abbi at her site. In web site news, I archived the Fall 2009 What's Up posts, and there is a link to them at the bottom of this page. Also, I've revived the JoKai.net beach theme!

Happy Winter! On Saturday night, Ed and I endured our most frightening moment since we've been married. I sang in the Christmas show at the Corydon Jamboree that night. After telling everyone goodbye, we headed back to Bedford in the spitting snow. Just 10 minutes outside Corydon, a large deer was suddenly in our direct path. There wasn't even time for Ed to hit the brakes. We smashed into the deer at 50-55 mph. The deer flipped over us and flipped the hood of my truck onto the windshield, blinding us. We were careening across the icy highway in danger of entering the oncoming lane on the left or rolling over the embankment on the right. Luckily, as I screamed, Ed managed to get us safely to the shoulder. Neither of us had an injury of any kind. Big Red, however, is in bad shape. We'll find out how bad in a few days. Thank God we are OK. This could have been a very different story. Click here to see Big Red in all his glory and the post I made on the day I purchased him. Hope he can be restored! Thanks to Mom, Dad, Gordon, and the Kirkmans for stopping on Hwy 135 to help us; thanks to Mom and Dad for the ride back to Bedford; and thanks to Aunt Kathy for the massages on Sunday. What a weekend. Thank goodness it's Christmas Break, and we can RELAX!