Wednesday, January 9, 2008

I miss it...

...running, that is. I was reading back through old blogs tonight and I got really, really sad that I'm not training for the marathon anymore. I know I had to make a choice, and I'm 100% positive that I made the right choice by choosing photography over running. But it doesn't make me any less sad that I've essentially backed out on one of my huge goals in life. I will run a marathon someday...it just won't be this year.

I'm sad that I gave up when I'd come SO far. I went from running 3-4 miles at a time to running 11-13. 13 miles...that is SO far. And now I'd be lucky if I could run 5 miles.

I miss the feel of it...and more than all, I miss the feel after it ;) The feel during it is not reliable. Sometimes it's great and other times it's awful. But the feeling after a long run is always exhilarating. It always provides a sense of accomplishment and a feeling of pride.

I miss the unforgiving black asphalt, the cool of the morning, the sound of feet pounding on the pavement. I miss the sweat, the rush, the gatorade, the iPod. I miss the empty downtown streets. I miss the sporadic conversation with other runners. I miss watching the street lights turn from green to yellow to red (and I miss running through those red lights). I miss Will's encouraging words before a long run and I even miss getting lost in downtown Austin (kind of!) I miss the commitment that I felt to all those other people in the group. I even miss my alarm going off at 5:00 in the morning on Saturdays (kind of)...because that meant that my run would be completely finished by the time most people got out of bed.

I think what I miss most is the calming, relaxing effect that running has on me. It's cheap therapy. It's time alone with God where no one can interrupt me. It is my quiet place and my sanctuary.

I miss it. A lot.

Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Sick

I think I've got/am getting the flu. But I hope not :( I've been trying to take things slowly and get better, but I'm really not.

My mom thought I was pregnant and it made me laugh really hard. (I'm not by the way - and I'm 100% sure about that!)

I'll put more Christmas pictures up later, but I wanted to let you guys know why I haven't been posting over the past few days! Keep me in your prayers.

Friday, January 4, 2008

My girls

I couldn't resist posting these pictures of Riley and Sammy :) Enjoy!


I don't think she has enough blankets...do you?



And finally, a preview of the Christmas photos to come!

Thursday, January 3, 2008

Christmas, Part One

I really want to post all my Christmas photos, but there are too many to put in at once! Here are all of the decorations at our apartment (plus a few of Riley thrown in for cuteness sake). I'll post ones from Kansas sometime this weekend. I really wish I had a great photo editing software (like Lightroom), but since I don't, I'll make do with what I have :)

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I made tons of sugar cookies (and gingerbread men too...but I got lazy and didn't take pictures of them, even though they were SO cute!)


I loved these little toy soldiers!


Of course you have to have snowmen!


This is Riley's "perch." She sat here for ALL the baking staring out the window at the non-winter weather.


Big yawn.


I love this silhouette...so neat! I really like how you can see her little brown eyebrows.


Probably one of my all time favorite pictures.


Our first Christmas tree! Unfortunately, I never got a picture of Greg and I in front of OUR tree...but that's another story entirely ;)


Favorite ornament.


And this one too.


Tons of pretty presents!




Grandma gave us this gorgeous Willowtree nativity scene for our wedding present. I love it SO much. This shot (though not very good artistically!) shows everything pretty well although I love...


...this one much better. Dark and moody ;)


Mary with baby Jesus...Joseph looking on in the background.


Shepherd with a lamb.


One of the three wisemen.

I think that's enough pictures for one post. Have a great evening!

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

This is why I love photography...

...because you can capture priceless moments like this! I love my family. So. So. Much.


Happy New Years!

Happy New Years, everyone! I can't believe it's 2008...so exciting :) Greg and I have almost been married a year...how insane is that?! We rang in the new year last night by watching all of the Bourne movies - Bourne Identity, Bourne Supremacy, and Bourne Ultimatum. I hadn't seen any of them and I really enjoyed them (even though I fell asleep during the last one - 3 movies is a lot for me to watch in one night!) I usually don't do resolutions because I never actually keep them...but this year I decided to do New Years "Goals" that are much more attainable than the resolutions that I usually set.

1. Consistently work out 3 times a week.
I'm so bad about working out (lifting weights, not running) sporadically. I think it's partly because I hate it and would much rather be running...but I need to do it for my health. So my goal this year is to lift weights three times EVERY week. And then run on top of that when I can.

2. Write a letter to my grandparents every month.
I hate living far away from my family and I wish I could see them more, so I've decided to write my grandparents a letter monthly. They love getting mail (and so do I!) and I think getting letters from me every month would make them feel special. I really don't know how much longer my dad's mom is going to be around...and I'm definitely going to miss her a lot when she's gone. So I need to cherish the time I have left with her and not put my busy life above what means most in the world to me - my family.

3. Train the dogs.
Riley knows how to sit, but that's about it. I want them to sit, stay, come on command (this would be SO nice) and generally learn how to be well-behaved dogs. I think this might be the toughest goal so far...

4. Spend quality time with God.
I've gotten bad about slacking off on my quiet times...I will pray for a few minutes before I fall asleep and then call that "quality" time...and then I wonder why I'm not growing and getting closer to him. Makes a lot of sense, huh? So my goal is to spend time praying and reading and growing at least three times per week. I would love to do it every day, but I know that if that were my goal, I would probably fail within the first month. However, I will be reading my Bible every night before bed.

I'd love to hear all of y'alls resolutions (or goals!) Hooray for 2008!