Thursday, September 30, 2010

Taste of Autumn

Russ and I went to Target the other day and found the new Caramel Apple Hershey's Kisses.


They're so delicious; the perfect mix of chocolate, caramel and apple. They absolutely taste like fall. YUM!

Now, I'm ready for the air to turn crisp and cool and the leaves to change colors to red and gold.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Grillin' and Chilllin' :)

Saturday, after the Redman and some recovery time, we got to hang out with our friends and families at Russ' parents' house.


There was lots of food for everyone, which was important to Russ because, after 70.3 miles, he was VERY hungry. (So was I - we'll call it sympathy hunger after mentally and spiritually supporting him for 70.3 miles. :)


It was so much fun to have our friends come over and hang out with us.



We've missed them all so much. It used to be a regular thing for us all to get together for dinner and games. :(



I have no pictures from Friday night, but it was wonderful! I went with my parents and sister to dinner and then we met up with my friend Marge for a show that was starring my friend Holly. :) It was so much fun to sit for a relaxing hour with my family and just get to chill. And then Holly's play was hilarious and enjoying it with Marge was so much fun.




We're so blessed to have friends and family that will take time out of their busy schedules and see us during our less than 48 hours in OKC. And, contrary to this picture of the boys, we had lot so fun during our relaxing Saturday night. 

Thanks, guys!

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Redman Triathlon

This last weekend, we went to OKC so that Russ could do the Redman Triathlon for the fifth year in a row. This was his fourth time to do the half ironman distance, 70.3 miles total. There was one crazy year when he did the full iron distance.... yea, he's nuts.


We got up at 4:40 to be leaving Russ' parents' house around 5:40 for Lake Hefner. That was crazy early (especially, since 4:40 OK time is 3:40 NM time, ugh) but it did give us a chance to see a beautiful Oklahoma sunrise.


Here the half iron distance triathletes are about to start the swim.


It was 1.2 miles long, again, triathletes are crazy.


Thomas hadn't slept much the night before, so he took a nap while Russ was out on the bike. And Pirate was really cold after walking through the dew covered grass and getting his legs and tummy soaking wet, so he wanted to cuddle under the blankets with Thomas.


Roxy just wanted her belly scratched. :) Both of my dogs were so good during the race. Everyone wanted to  pet them and share water with them.


Here he is heading out on the run course. I didn't get any pictures of him biking but that was the leg of the race that Russ felt the strongest. His training here in Los Alamos has gotten his lungs used to the altitude so they use oxygen more efficiently and his legs have gotten used to the intense hills that are all over. It was an awesome bike ride!


Here we all are hanging out and trying to find some respite from the super hot sun.


Russ' friend Stephen came to watch the end of the race. When Russ came into the turn-around for the run, Stephen ran with him for a few yards and even patted him on the back, which made his hand wet because Russ was super sweaty and had been pouring water on himself to stay cool. Eww.


Here he is looking good. His shoulders didn't look too sunburned yet also.


Here is Zach, one of Russ' friends from the OSU triathlon club. This was his first half iron distance triathlon and he got second in his age group! Lot of talent and skill here.


We were all so glad that Sabrina came to see the race. Hopefully, we'll get to hang out longer next time.


Doesn't Pirate look good with a faux-hawk? Sabrina did his hair after pouring some water on his head to help him cool off.


Russ got seventh in his age group.  Not his best time but it was still awesome and he had his best bike time ever! 

The Oklahoma heat was way more then we've gotten used to here in NM; it was hot!


Kaitlin, a friend from my sorority and the OSU Tri Club, finished her first half iron distance incredibly strong! She looked awesome and I love her pink sunglasses.


I'm so proud of him and, though I will never do a triathlon, I'm proud to be your triathlon groupie. :)

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Weekend Recap: Albuquerque, Cyclocross and Bodies...

This last Saturday, Russ and I went to Albuquerque for a cyclocross workshop that Russ wanted to do...


AND since he had me up at 5 am to leave by 6 am for Albuquerque, I got a chicken biscuit from McDonald's! It was a very, very important part of my morning. :)


Russ wants to do cyclocross because it's a great way to work on his handling skills on the bike.  

From my vantage point in the truck, I watched all the folks practice jumping on and off their bikes in order to get around obstacles on the path. It looked like a lot of work and I was glad to be reading my book and talking to my Daddy on the phone in the shade. :)


After the cyclocross workshop, we grabbed some lunch at Fuddruckers (delish) and went into downtown Albuquerque to go to the Bodies Exhibit.


I had super high expectations for this exhibit because my Nana had been to see it in Dallas and was really impressed but I think we got the miniature version and it didn't quite live up to my expectations.... bummer. It was still interesting to see the bodies, veins, nerves, etc. (I loved anatomy in high school.)
 
Maybe I'll see the full version someday.

Friday, September 17, 2010

Happy 7 years to my Forever Boyfriend!

This day 7 years ago, Russ took me to Fazzoli's (breadsticks, yum) and he asked me to be his girlfriend. We were "official" and have been ever since!

Scanned pics from 2003 and 2004

2005 - Sorry it's tiny, I like that we're wearing the same shirt. :)
2005
2006
2006
2007
2007
2007
2007
2007
2008
2008
2009
2009
2009
2010
2010
It has been such an amazing journey - dating, high school, college, engagement, marriage and moving to New Mexico.

I can't wait to see what the future holds!

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Furr Babies

It's amazing how often my furr babies want to cuddle. They almost always need at least some part of their body touching Russ or me, even if it is their toe touching our arm.


They like to make sure that I don't forget them while on Facebook or working on the blog.


And it is important to Roxy that she prove that she could be a small dog if she wanted. All 65 lbs of her can curl up onto one couch cushion, which is preferred because we do tell her that she has to share the couch with her parents and brother. :)

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Kitchen Randomness

I wanted to share with you all a picture of my kitchen (at its cleanest) and some other randomness because that's how I roll, haha.

The pictures leaning against the wall are from Hobby Lobby and they remind of some beautiful Italian town AND they cover some of the ick wallpaper..


Here are all of the gluten-free items that Amy and I found at the store when she was here last month.  My grocery store was super impressive in the specialty foods department!

p.s. I love rice noodles. They're absolutely fantastic!

p.p.s. I don't drink coffee, that's Amy's.

AND this is Kool-Aid Fun Fizz. Enough said!