6.3 Miles Later

Aren't these images flattering? NOT AT ALL...but at least I have a good excuse. Last Saturday Adam and I ran in the 8th Annual Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K in Richmond. This is a 6.3 mile run along the historic Monument Avenue in Richmond. Monument Avenue is flanked by gorgeous old homes and you guessed it...monuments! This is the largest participatory sporting event in Virginia and the second largest 10K in the country. People and bands line the streets and while I didn't know if I could run the whole thing, everyone cheering and the great music made for an adrenaline rush that took me the whole way. It is amazing to say that I ran with 25,000 other people. So fun! The pictures are hilarious - I look like I am in great amounts of pain, but in reality I felt great the whole way through. For my first race ever I didn't do too bad and clocked in at 1:11:07. The winner ran it in 28:29 (WOW!). I am officially addicted to these races and hope to get in at least one more this year. Next year I hope to run this particular race in 55-57 minutes. Hopefully we will get Adam's pictures soon and I will post those as well (I beat him by 5 minutes, but who's counting?).

Emily Elizabeth

In November I mentioned that I had hosted a baby shower for our friend Chrissy. Well, we are happy to announce that Emily Elizabeth was born on December 28th and thought y'all might like to see a few pics of her. She is precious and we are extremely blessed to be her godparents.

Pictures: Emily gives Chrissy a Valentine's Day kiss, Adam and I with Emily at her baptism, Emily in her faux suede boots...too cute!, and Emily dressed for her first Valentine's day.

Man vs. Beast...meet Matty

Meet Matty...our friend Caitlin's 7-month-old, 65 lb., chocolate lab. Caitlin dropped Matty off on Saturday morning at 7:00 and by 7:30 we were second-guessing our decision to watch Matty for a week while Caitlin is on a cruise. The first 36 hours were a little rough, but I think we are getting the hanging of things and have managed to get this big "little" guy under control. We have certainly had some humorous moments with him. Adam has been bugging me for years about getting a dog. He grew up with a yellow lab and I grew up with a 7 lb. miniautre dachshund (I should know how to spell that, but oh well), so the size/type of our future dog has always been a source of tension. But, no more! On Saturday afternoon I asked Adam if he still wanted a dog and he said emphatically, "No!" On Sunday morning after Matty had torn a hole in Adam's nice winter coat, Adam turned to me and uttered words I never thought I would hear, "You know, Rachel, we just might be cat people." Today I ran some errands and received a call from Adam. He told me there was good news and bad news...the bad: Matty ate Adam's Crocs (rubber shoes he wears while doing yardwork)...the good: Adam found a nearby fenced-in baseball diamond for Matty to run wild in. He really is a sweet dog, we are just not used to having our house commandeered by such a large puppy full of energy.

No other big news. We have both been busy with work and church activities. I know it can't compare to the midwest, but the weather here has been unusually cold. We are looking forward to warmer temps soon. We are also both planning on running in Richmond's Monument Avenue 10k on March 31st and still have a lot of training to do. Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying 2007. It is already going so fast.

Finally, a big Happy Birthday shout-out to our nephew Jed. He turns 3 on Wednesday! I can't believe how time flies. We can't wait to see Jed and family in June. Love you Jed!