Rocking 13.1

In the past year, I've really started running. I've always ran, and a typical run would be about 3 miles, maybe 3.5 miles. In February, I ran my first 10K (6.2 miles). It was the longest I had ever ran and I was beyond nervous. I ran another 10K in April and decided that I would run the White Rock half marathon.

I've been training since October (since I was already running 6+ miles as my "long" run every week). Last Saturday I ran a practice 13 miler and I felt pretty good afterwards. My joints (especially my hips) hurt the most. I've had my eye on December 5th for several months and it just seemed surreal that it was finally here.

This morning, I woke up at 4:45a.m. and started getting ready. My sweet husband, who hates cold weather and getting up early, got up like a champ with zero complaining. He drove his friend, Chris (who ran the full marathon), and I to Fair Park at 5:45a.m. Surprisingly, I wasn't really that nervous. For my first 10K, I was freaking out. Looking back, it seems so silly because 6 miles is like a rest day run for me now. At 8:00a.m., we started lining up. We were in groups based on our estimated completion time and whether we were running the half or the full marathon. It took me almost an hour to get to the starting line. I was so ready to start running! It was finally my turn and when we crossed the start line, there was confetti everywhere. It was a cool experience! I started out in a slow jog because in my previous races, I'd always started out too fast. It seemed like seconds had passed when I saw mile 1. I started tearing up because I realized I was really doing it. Holy cow! George and the Sudbecks (and Ava...yay!!) were waiting on me between miles 7 and 8. I knew I could get to that point. It seemed like no time before I was there. I stopped frequently for water and had my first pack of Gu at mile 5. Looking back, I cannot believe how smoothly and quickly the first 8 miles went by. Seeing George and the Sudbecks on mile 8 was like a breath of fresh air. I cannot believe that they all got up so early to stand in the cold and watch me run. They are all so amazing! About mile 10, I started to feel tired and my right hamstring was KILLING me. I took more Gu and had some water. Before I knew it, I was at mile 11 and then 12. The last mile took forever and the last .1 miles took even longer. Then I saw the finish line!!! I really still cannot believe it! I crossed the finish line seven minutes under my goal time. YAY!!! Afterwards I met up with the hubs and Sudbecks and we visited for awhile. Miss Ava decided it was time for a nap and Chris and I were starving so we headed back towards Fort Worth. We had delicious pizza and then George and I took a two hour nap...BLISS! Now my knees are really sore but other than that, I feel great. I am looking forward to another half in March and hopefully a full next December. Crossing the finish line is an amazing experience. I am addicted to running!!

I am so thankful to my wonderful husband for being so supportive during training. A lot of times, running took priority over hanging out at home with him. He never complained but always encouraged me and told me how proud of me he was. He is a big part of how I completed the race. I love you, George!

Bring on a full marathon, I'm ready! :)


XOXO,

Linds

Chris and I before the race.

I did it!! Half marathon complete :)

Turkey Day 2010

Since we've been married (three Thanksgivings now!), we've never had to celebrate Turkey Day without both of our families. It has been so wonderful getting everyone together for the holiday. It has become a tradition and we feel so blessed to not only get to spend it with both of our families but that our families just seem like one great big family when they're together. It is such a blessing!

Last year, we hosted everyone at our house. We had not begun construction on the upstairs yet so we had my parents, George's parents and our siblings all staying in our three bedroom house, sharing one bathroom. Well a lot has changed in the past year. We still have three bedrooms but our guest house is vacant and we have two full functioning bathrooms in the house. Plus George's parents now have a house in Granbury (only 45 minutes away) so we don't have quite so many under one roof. Being able to have everyone at our house again this year made me so happy. I didn't want to seem like we had to host Thanksgiving but I really wanted to and it made me so happy when it was all finalized. My parents, little brother and his friend arrived on Tuesday night. It was so great to have some extra time with them. Since they are both still working full time and leave 5 hours away, we don't get to see them near as much as we see George's parents and it makes me sad. I love spending time with my in laws so much and just wish we got to spend more time with my parents. We enjoyed a casual dinner at Love Shack, a great burger place on the West side with a live band outside. Wednesday, my mom and I picked up the flowers from Central Market, last minute grocery items and the rental chairs. We started working on the tables and my sweet dad hung up my curtains in the living room. It was no small task but we got it done, thanks to all of his help.

Normally we have our Thanksgiving meal around 2:00p.m. so we are ready for the Cowboys at 3:15p.m. Well Matt (George's brother) called the week before and said he unexpectedly had to work on Thanksgiving in San Antonio until noon. We moved our dinner to 5:00 and let me please say, it was the best decision we ever made! We got up Thanksgiving morning, my dad cooked a leisurely breakfast and my in laws and sister in law and soon to-be brother in law (I hope!) came over. We had such a laid back day visiting and cooking. No one was rushed or stressed out. It was perfect! Matt got off work a little early and was here by 3:30p.m. One of my sweet friends, Lindsey, came over for dinner. Her family is in Missouri and she didn't go home for Thanksgiving this year. I love Lindsey to death and am so thankful to have her in my life. She is a wonderful friend and we have gotten so much closer over the past year. One of George's friends from high school, Chris, also came over for dinner. His parents live in Michigan and he stayed in town for Turkey Day this year. Chris has always been such a great friend to George and I am glad he joined us for Thanksgiving. We devoured our yummy dinner and soon everyone was snoozing. We had Cajun fried turkey (Dad), ham (me), dressing (Mom), mac and cheese (Rachel), green bean casserole (Mom), carrotts and pecans (Laura), twice baked potato casserole (me), creamed corn (me), rice (George), peas (George) and rolls (me). It was fabulous!! For dessert we had pecan pie and pumpkin/cream cheese pie....delish! Laura also brought some yummy dessert squares that we snacked on all day. That evening we watched the A&M/Texas game and I am happy to say that my Ags ended the season with a 6 game winning streak. We are headed to the Cotton Bowl and I love it!!!

Friday, we relaxed around the house and then ventured to Granbury for a late lunch at the Buckmasters. My parents, Laura and I ventured to the Square and did some shopping. My parents loved Granbury. Just maybe I can convince them to head this way in a few years :) We watched lots of football (heaven for me) and had such a great time visiting. The Buckmasters prepared BBQ and lots of delicious snacks (as if we needed to eat more)! Then we came back to Fort Worth and looked at Christmas lights. It was a great evening. Saturday morning, my parents left around noon and I did my trail run for my half marathon. I ran 13 miles in 2:25 hours. Although I was sore, I wasn't dead which made me happy. We enjoyed Mexican food with my in laws, Matt and Rachel and then went and bought a Christmas tree. I spent the day Sunday taking down fall decor and putting up Christmas. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend!

I have so much to be thankful for and I am going to work on focusing on that when I get down. Sometimes I don't think we realize how truly blessed we are.

Happy Thanksgiving!


Love,

Lindsey

My sweet Abby.

Rachel and Laura.

Lovebirds!

My mom and Abby cuddling.

Table #1.

Place settings.

Table #2.

Happy Thanksgiving from the Buckmasters!

More table shots!

My hardworking Dad.

I love Linds!

Mom and I.

My sweet father in law.

Cheering on the Aggies!

My parents, little brother and sweet husband!

Gig 'em Baby Shower!

The weekend of November 20th was a crazy, busy one....but I wouldn't have it any other way.

One of my sweetest friends, Stacy, is pregnant with twins. JoAnna and I had planned on throwing her a shower the weekend before Thanksgiving. Well of course, the Aggies just HAD to be on a 4-game winning streak with Nebraska coming into town. Of course, it had to be the biggest game in College Station in a long time. Since the shower was in the early afternoon and the game was at 7, George and I decided that we definitely could do both. I'd host the shower, then we'd drive down, scalp tickets and we'd be at the game. Well George didn't feel comfortable getting there right before the game to scalp tickets because he was worried about being crunched for time. We were so back and forth about going because we didn't want two cars, we weren't sure if we could find tickets, etc. Basically there were just so many "ifs." It's Friday night before the game and we are in the movies (still undecided) and a good friend of ours, Van, texts George that he's driving down Saturday morning and George can go too. PERFECT, we think. George can go down early and then I'll meet him there. Well then on the way home from the movies, another good friend of ours (who actually played football for the Ags) texted us that one of his daughters was sick and he had two extra tickets if we wanted them. Holy cow! How can our luck be this good? It's obviously meant to be! George texts back (and I quote), "Awesome! Yes, we want them! And sorry about Emma."

Saturday is here and George is off about 9:00a.m. Jo and I hosted a pretty cute shower (if I do say so myself). We had a nest theme and the cake had a bird's nest on top with a blue bird and pink bird peeking out. All of the decor looked so cute and I think Stacy had a great time. We had the shower at an Italian restaurant in Grapevine. They had the most perfect little party room for us and we feasted on pizzas, cheese, crackers and of course, cake! I have never met one of Stacy's friends that I don't like and the shower was not an exception. It was a great afternoon! Stacy is just the cutest pregnant lady ever! She is one of those people that you can just tell is the most awesome wife and mother. I admire her so much. I hope I am half as good of a mom as she is one day. They already have a little boy, Ely, that is 4 and is going to be the best big brother. I just cannot wait to hold Molly and Luke in my arms and watch them grow up. The Amersons are another blessing we have from JCI. I am so glad to have the Sudbecks and the Amersons in our lives :)

After the shower, I raced home to Fort Worth and changed quickly and then I was on the road. I got into College Station about 7 and when I got out of the car, which was on the top of the parking garage at Northgate (on the opposite side of campus as Kyle Field), I could already hear the crowd. It was pretty amazing. I walked through campus, met up with George for my ticket and yelled my heart out. I was so proud of the Aggies that night. It was an awesome game. Seeing the unsportsmanlike conduct of Nebraska's coach also made me so proud to have Mike Sherman. He has gotten a lot of criticism over the last couple of years but he is rebuilding our program the right way. He is such a respectable man. I would trust my kiddo to be under his care for four years in a heartbeat. After the game, we celebrated a little too hard with some of our Aggie friends. It was such a sweet, sweet feeling and one that had not been felt in Aggieland for such a long time. I am so glad we were there for it. Seriously, one of the top 10 moments of my life! Gig em!!

Thankfully, I was off the entire week of Thanksgiving to prepare for the 12 people we were hosting at our house. Turkey Day post coming soon!


Love,

Linds

George's Birthday

Well, here's the birthday post I promised oh about 3 weeks ago.... Better late than never I guess :)

When George was in college, he had Buckfest for his birthday every year. He threw a huge party at his house and had nearly 100 people there, some he didn't even know! When he interviewed for Johnson, one of the questions that was ask was had he ever had to get all of the different groups of his friends together. Well, the example he gave was good ole Buckfest! My initial thought was, "Really?!?!" He was offered the job (obviously) and his then-boss admitted that they had ask every other interviewee at aTm if they had heard of Buckfest, and they all had. That was one of the reasons George was offered the job. Needless to say, we don't quite have Buckfest-caliber parties anymore but we do manage to have a great time and I think George has a great birthday each year.

His actual birthday was on Friday. I think birthdays are a big deal and balloons are non-negotiable. Friday morning, I tied the two dozen balloons at the bottom of the stairs and got George breakfast (I leave way to early to make him breakfast!). Friday night, we went to dinner at Trulucks in Southlake. It was nice to share a bottle of wine and have a leisurely dinner. We had a wonderful time. We came home and watched a movie and were asleep before midnight. It was probably just what we both needed after a long week! As far as birthday gifts go, I got George a new pair of Cowboy boots. His were getting a little worn! He parents gave him money (which he bought an elliptical with) and his siblings gave him a really nice shoulder bag for his laptop. What a fabulous birthday!

Saturday, we hung around the house all day and I cleaned like a crazy woman while watching college football. Cortney and Matt (George's brother and my bf who have been dating for two years now!!) drove down from Austin and got to our house a little after 5. We went to Pour House, a bar by our house, and met George's sister, the Sudbecks, Chris, Lindsey and a friend of Lindsey's to watch the Aggies and Baylor. Jarrod and Aleece came also. I think I was the loudest, most excited person in the whole bar :) I could barely even talk to anyone during the game (especially in the first half) because it was intense. It was so much fun to have our little group of friends together. Afterwards, we tried out a new bar on the West side before crashing at home. Sunday morning, George's parents came up and we all went to brunch at Delaney's, an Irish pub/restaurant on the West side. Fun fun fun!

I hope that George had a wonderful birthday. I was a little worried because several of our friends were out of town or had prior commitments and it was a much smaller group that usual. We had so much fun, though! It was so nice to finally hang out with the Sudbecks. We have both been so busy that we hadn't all been able to get together in a while. I miss them so much since moving to Fort Worth and even though we see each other frequently, it's just not the same as when we lived a couple of miles away from each other. I love it when we get to go out and have fun like we used to before we all got old :) It doesn't happen often (and we couldn't handle it if it did) but when it does, it's great. They blessed by bringing their precious daughter, Ava, into our lives two years ago and we love her to death. They are such wonderful friends and we are so thankful to have them in our lives!

Happy Birthday, George! Enjoy the last year of your 20's. I love you honey!!


xoxo,

Linds

Super cute of Matt and Cortney.

Lindsey, JoAnna and Rachel.

Gig 'em Aggies! Celebratory shot!

Happy Birthday to my hubs!

George, Lindsey, Jarrod and Aleece.

Jo and I having fun as usual!