"Girl's Trip"

First of all, sorry I haven't updated in a while. I haven't really had anything going on blog-worthy to write about.

Last Tuesday, my mom, aunt and I headed to Nashville to spend the night with my cousin, and get our "Girl's Trip" started. We left Wednesday morning and headed off to a little town outside Chattanooga, TN, called Reliance. We usually go once a summer, but this was the first time we've been in two years. We rent a cabin and go white-water rafting. By the time we got to the cabin Wednesday afternoon, and got everything set up and the decorations up, we didn't have time to do anything. So we opened a bottle of wine and played board games and drank well into the evening.

On Thursday, we went hiking and saw the most beautiful waterfall. It was quite a trip down to the bottom of the waterfall, but well worth it. Back at our cabin, my mom and aunt were setting up a fire, and we saw a fox walking around. We were told by the owners of the cabins, that only a month earlier, there had been a bear, and quite often they have deer. But we did not see any of those animals, just the fox a couple of nights.

On Friday, we went white-water rafting on the Hiwassee River. It was very relaxing, because the Hiwassee is not an intense river at all. We each had our own "fun-yak" which is basically an inflatable kayak.

Then on Saturday, we drove to Georgia and went to a winery. All in all, it was a very fun trip. After it was all said and done, we had finished off about 5 bottles of wine, and two bottles of rum. It was a great time, and hopefully we will get to do it again next year.

I will post pictures shortly!

St. Louis

Pictures Galore!

One of the crosses at Bellevue Baptist Church. I tried to make it look abstract, and liked the way it came out.

I took this at Bellevue Baptist Church. I got underneath some trees and just pointed the camera straight up into the sky.

The crosses at Bellevue Baptist Church

Railroad tracks in Bartlett

The Saint Louis Arch

Wonderful Poem

This is a poem I found from one of those forwarded emails. I usually try not to re-send those things, because if they drive me crazy, then I am sure that they drive other people crazy as well. However, being a Christian, and trying to live a good life, and trying to earn my way to heaven, I found this poem that really reflects some thoughts I have been having.

When I say...
"I am a Christian"
I'm not shouting "I'm clean livin."
I'm whispering "I was lost,"
Now I'm found and forgiven
When I say...
"I am a Christian"
I'm not claiming to be perfect,
My flaws are far too visible but,
God believes I am worth it.
When I say...
"I am a Christian"
I'm not holier than thou,
I'm just a simple sinner
who received God's good grace, somehow.
- Maya Angelou

Me - The Photographer

Not only have I been running, biking and working the flower beds, I too have found time to practice photography. I took the camera up to the lake at the front of our neighborhood this afternoon and took 100 or so pictures. Here are some of my favorites. Enjoy!!

My Husband-The Photographer

Brad did not take all of these pictures. Our friend Scott took some of them. Enjoy!!

::Random::

I have been busy doing new things, and having a blast while doing them. First, Brad talked me into going mountain biking through Shelby Farms one day. It just so happened to be a day just after a pretty hard rain. I had absolutely NO problem riding straight through the mud. It was so much fun, and also cooled me off some. You can't see in the pictures, but I was covered in mud.
I have also been doing some yardwork. Back in November, I planted some Tulip bulbs. They bloomed for about 2-3 weeks in March. Sadly, tulips don't last very long, but they sure are beautiful while in bloom. Check out the ones I planted around my mailbox:

Enduring the 5-K

This morning was my first race ever. I joined my friend Jennifer and ran the Youth Villages 5-K. I didn't register until yesterday (Friday) but had been running all week at Shelby Farms. I ran the Chickasaw Trail,a paved trail that is 2.75 miles long. I only ran on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, and it took me nearly an hour to run the trail.

I did not have high hopes for the race since I hadn't run 3 miles yet and it was taking me an hour to complete the Chickasaw Trail. My goal was not only to finish, but to not finish last. I did everything right yesterday: rested, ate carbs and went to bed early. I got up this morning ate ate a small breakfast and went to Jennifer's house. She drove us to the Ridgeway Center, which is where the race took place.

We had a good warm up, and got started at exactly 9:00. I ran for the entire first mile and a half then I had to start walking, but only for a few seconds. I did have to stop periodically throughout the race and walk, but tried not to walk for very long. Jen ended up getting well ahead of me, and I didn't want to hold her back. (She is running a half marathon next weekend).

As I rounded the last two turns, I ran pretty hard. At the last turn, which was also the three mile mark, I saw my husband walking across the street with camera in hand. I then saw Jenn on the sidelines cheering me on. I finished at the 35 minute mark. Jenn then informed me that we were about a minute behind the clock, so I really finished at about 34 minutes.

Not only did I finish with my goal of not being last, but I finished pretty well. I am very proud of myself, and will definitely continue to run. I am entering a 4 mile race next month at the Memphis Zoo. I am hoping to get my endurance up and pick up my pace a little bit by then.


Here is the picture Brad took of me just after the 3 mile mark. He didn't think I would be finishing that quickly, so he didn't see me until after I had passed, so the only shot was one of my backside. (I am the one in the white shirt and black skirt).