The Budget Wedding of the Year

We just returned home from the wedding weekend in Liberty Hill. Kate is finally married! It was a beautiful wedding. Jan, Bridgette, Rachel, Mike, and many others really outdid themselves. Unfortunately, we have no ceremony or wedding party photos at this time. But we do have a few from the reception.

Babies Love Pumpkins

I bought the babies their own pumpkins a few days ago. Morgan saw some in a neighbor's lawn and asked me for a "big pumpkin". So I got him a big one, and a slightly smaller one for Emma. They both love it. Emma is especially infatuated with her pumpkin, and starts screaming "pumpkin!" (or her version of that) as soon as we pull up to the house. They both have to rush over and pat them any chance they get. Apparently my mom isn't alone in her unbridled enthusiasm for a good pumpkin!

OTS Graduation

We just want to take a moment to congratulate Nathan on his recent graduation from Air Force OTS. Way to go, 2nd Lieutenant!
Nathan had a short week of leave and is now at his station in Shreveport, LA. During my visit to Abilene last week, he announced his "engagement" to Jennifer. I put engagement in quotes because he doesn't want to call it that until the ring is on her finger. But, they are already planning a May wedding, so I think the cat is well out of the bag, don't you? Congratulations Nathan and Jennifer!

My First Half Marathon (13.1 miles)

Today I made it to another major goal for the year: my first half marathon. I had feared that some recent foot pain might sideline me, so I'm just so thankful I was able to race today. I also really appreciate my parents driving out for the event.
I didn't know exactly what to expect today, this being my first distance race. So I set a three-tiered time goal for myself: good-1:59:59, better-1:55:00, best- under 1:50:00. To achieve that, I planned to start conservatively and chip away 3-5 seconds from each mile. I was successful in this strategy, finishing the race with a time of 1:51:32. Overall, I felt great. There were some lonely miles, but at about 8 miles I sort of partnered with one guy for awhile. I decided I wouldn't let him pass me, so we just sort of used each other to keep pace. With about 2 miles to go, he suddenly patted me on the back and said "go for it". Then I lost him. After that I had a bit of a bout with "jell-o legs" and a very tough effort for the final mile. I was reluctant to post unflattering photos of my finish, but since our readers are pretty much exclusively family, I guess I'll let you see it (you'll know which one I mean- it's pretty grisly)...