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Legacy

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Anna Maggie Shollenberger Riehm-Hill Sitting on a hilltop overlooking the Sandusky River, my grandparent's home is very fitting for their last name, Gerry and Anna Hill.  Most visitors would agree, the room with the most nostalgia is the den.  A multi-purpose room with a giant picture window that looks down the hill and towards the river below.  I can see it in my mind's eye, being there as a young boy.  As soon as you enter the room, a comfortable Lazy-boy is positioned perfectly to soak up a lot of time, and a lot of memories.  Sitting there, you can easily grab one of the many books on the shelf that lined the entire wall beside it. You can see trophies and other The den bookshelf  achievements displayed.  Artwork, especially wood carvings and paintings, decorate the room.  A pastime of both my grandparents was finely detailed, elegant wood carvings that were started and finished by their hands.  My grandfather being the master woodcarver, and often the careful final paintin
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#21 Our Champion, Noah "Rocky Balboa" Riehm!

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"Round 3, FIGHT!"  It sounds like the arcade game, Mortal Kombat . (A nod to those of us who were teenagers in the 90's).  I was never allowed to have a video game as a kid (thanks, Mom) but I did occasionally sneak away to the arcade tent at the county fair.  There was the game, Mortal Kombat, where you could joystick fight your opponent with your special character.  The match always started with the round number and then "FIGHT".  The ending would always be the "Finishing Move".   Noah, preparing for Round 2 I've been thinking a lot about Noah's 3rd and final "round", in the trio of staged surgeries that are now the standard of care for HLHS.  After a brutal first time in the ring (I guess operating table, rather), I'm remember being out on a run somewhere and my mind got to thinking about Noah's nicknames.  Maybe it's a dad-thing to rhyme their kid's names, but somehow Noah "Rocky Balboa" stuck in my head
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#20 Riehm, family of 5

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I've had another long pause between blog posts.  A lot has happened since the last time.  I would like to get back to writing more posts that people can connect with and be inspired.  My hope is I can encourage others to run boldly towards the Cross.   This is what I felt called to do when I first started www.CrossRunnersHeart.com .  I've realized all of this has helped me in my path forward as well, and writing has been cathartically rewarding.  This post is mostly going to be a family update.    Trip to Niagara Falls We have a new addition to the family and now are a proud family of five!  Last month, we brought our son, Mateo, home.  It was a long wait but well worth it.  Jana and I started a long process of international adoption two years ago.  I have to give Jana a ton of credit.  She was the paperwork wizard, completing piles of paper that needed notarized and mailed.  With Jana's Colombian heritage, we chose to work with the Colombian government.  There were two tri
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#19 My Drug Of Choice

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It's been awhile since my last post and recently, have been thinking of new topics during my runs.   I have two toddlers running around--making time in short supply.  Noah turns two years old on June 9th!  We also have a new addition to the family, Coach-- our little puppy.  He is 10 weeks old and just returned from a stay at Ohio State University Veterinary Hospital.  Unfortunately, he contracted Parvovirus and developed a severe infection within a day of arriving to his new home.  After some fairly aggressive medical care, which included two fecal transplants (yes, crazy as that sounds), he seems better.  Coach had a nasogastric tube like Noah did just after birth.  Thankfully, they were able to remove it and he is now eating independently. Jana and the kids are elated.  I'm warming up to the furry little thing.  Toddlers and a puppy, now I really feel like an adult!  Many people wonder, myself included, how does one juggle all the family activities, a full-time job, investme
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#18 Miracles & Mother's Day

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Happy Mother's Day!  Thanks for believing!  Growing up on the farm meant lots of barnyard time and playing any type of game my brothers and I could come up with.  My older brother, Phil, was a relentless competitor.  I don't exactly remember if it was soccer or kickball that led to my front tooth being knocked out but I think the story goes like this: I  pitched a ball to Phil and he was ready to knock it out of the park.  Instead, that ball came back to me.  Straight at my face.  I remember feeling something fly out of my mouth.  My ever so caring brother came over to investigate.  "Dude, you chipped your tooth".  Me: "I didn't chip my tooth, you did!"  Anyways, this is the type of shenanigans that my parents enjoyed growing up with three boys.   After my tooth incident, my mother was truly caring.  We went to the dentist, and since I already had two big buck teeth, and one was chipped, I guess it made sense just to shave both of them bad boys down.  It
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