Active Families With a Purpose

It was a full Saturday for our family this past weekend. Three of our kids and myself went to Boston to join in a group run called Run as One which included veteran support groups Team Red, White, and Blue, Team Rubicon, Mission Continues, and Wounded Warrior Project. My family is a part of Team Red, White, and Blue and we got to see many friends there and have a nice run. It was the kids' first run of the year and they really did great, especially Shea, my nearly 6 year old, who may be

coming into her extended endurance finally. It was only a 2 mile run, the girls were quite disappointed we couldn't do the 4.5 with some of the others! Saoirse, my 7 year old is definitely going to be my little running buddy soon. I got to run with my beloved rucksack and pushed my 19 month old toddler, Makayla (a.k.a Punky)

Scot, my significant other, was able to do another 20 miles with the Active Hero group, Carry the Fallen. The picture on the right top of this page is his group, Scot is front and center. This ruck had special significance due to the original leader's veteran brother committing suicide the weekend before the ruck against veteran suicide. It was a somber yet powerful ruck. The girls and I planned on meeting them part way, but due to weather and rode conditions, we decided to just wait at the finish and cheer and walk them in. It was great having the kids be a part of these great events that help veterans and help bring awareness to mental health awareness. 

The kids really wanted to get a ruck in due to missing out rucking with the team so on Sunday we went on a 3 mile "ruck" through our town with my mom and 3 dogs. Our little puppy did great but after 2 miles she called it quits and climbed into the stroller basket. You can see her little head peeking out in the picture below.

I love that not only I can have empowering weekends that I can be a part of great things, but I can also share these moments with my children and the rest of my family. I really have great people in my life!

What's a hobby?

Whenever asked about what my hobbies are, I tend to ramble off the various groups that I'm involved in outside of work and school. When I was asked to blog about my hobbies I decided to look up the definition of hobby just to see how my hobbies fell in to the common thought. According to Merriam-Webster.com, a hobby is "a small Old World falcon (Falco subbuteo) that is dark blue above and white below with dark streaking on the breast." That's definition one? Really? I hope I have not been answering people's questions completely off kilter and was really supposed to be favoring a certain falcon. I moved on to the more sensible definition number two, "a pursuit outside one's regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation." Ok, that's more like it, perhaps, in my mind, I have the definition correct, though the last word may be the key to why I get so many weird looks.

To me, my hobbies are relaxing. Don't get me wrong, they can be stressful and painful and completely uplifting or completely heartbreaking, but I love the things I do. My main hobby is running obstacle course races and playing a role as an ambassador to the biggest team in New England, the New England Spahtens (nepahtens.com), both of which I have been involved with since 2012. This, of course, comes with a fair amount of training, including lots of hiking with my family, and a few road races in between so those would automatically be included in my hobbies. 
Another hobby of mine is being involved with veteran support groups. I am very involved in a group called Carry the Fallen, a subgroup of Active Heros that helps bring awareness to veteran suicide and bringing the number of suicides from 22 a day to 0. With Carry the Fallen, we ruck with vets and civilians, twice I have done the Boston Marathon 26.2 mile route with a 40 pound rucksack. I also go to events with Team Red, White and Blue, which group's focus is actually what I plan on doing with my degrees, improving vet's mental wellness through physical activity. With this group we do races, family events, and other gym events.

Warriors!!
Posted by Sarah Anne Arsenault on Saturday, March 21, 2015

Maybe my hobbies are broad, but it is just what I like to do with my free time. I try not to have free time, actually! I'd rather fill every moment with lots of good things that fulfill my life, my kids, and others. We only have one life to live, I'm going to absolutely make the most of it!