One of the ways our loved ones chose to bless us in our grieving was to give us money to take a family holiday. We were already planning to take a quick weekend trip so that Jason and the boys could run in the Spartan Race in Westlock this past Saturday. Normally, we would combine that with a weekend stay at relative's, since they are only another two hours away.

But, in light of recent events, we decided to take advantage of our "time away" option and stayed at West Edmonton Mall for three nights in the Fantasyland Hotel following the race.

When Jason started talking about entering the Edmonton Spartan Race back in January, I may have had misgivings, but I kept them to myself. I even managed to do so after he entered the kids into their own version of the race.

Well, I'm glad I did.