First gifts...

Soo... I forgot to include some very important details in my last blog. Little baby Collins is very blessed to already have many people who adore him or her & has already started receiving presents!!

This is baby's first official gift from Aunt Lizzie, she wanted to be sure she/ he had their own bunny.

This is from Robin to be sure our little one stays warm, sine we are expecting in December! :)
We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends & family! Thanks guys!!
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15 weeks

Well for those of you who don't know, surprise I'm pregnant!! My mom told me recently that you always remember your pregnancy, so I want to be sure I remember it accurately & keep all you up to date :).
Pregnancy stats...
How far along... 15 wks
Size of baby.. 4 inches about the size of a plum
Gender.. Not sure, will find out in a few weeks ( Sean says girl, I say boy)
Movement.. None yet, but I am sure it's coming, my last ultrasound he/ she was doing the Irish gig :)
What I miss: occasional glass of wine, and feeling in control of my body
Cravings...none
Symptoms.. Morning symptoms improving, some residual dyspepsia & persistent hunger
Best moments... I am starting to realize there really is a little baby in there!! It is still hard to believe. Clothes & my growing belly have been a challenge for me, but my husband has been very supportive taking me shopping & my mom even bought me cute maternity clothes!! Many of my friends have also donated clothes which has made things much easier!! I am so lucky to have such a wonderful support system!
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Princess half marathon!,

Sooo I am officially a princess after running my first 1/2marathon with my sister. We ran 13.1 miles (the longest I have ever run) and had princesses cheering us on!

We stayed at the Disney All Star Movie hotel, with 101 Dalmations theme :) My sister's favorite ever Disney movie (I think).











Shortly after out arrival we were welcome with two beautiful bouquets, sent by our parents :) They even matched our tutus!!


We started our morning at 3 am, donned in running gear and our homemade tutus!! (Mine is Hokie colors of course)


Then headed to the venue and prepared to run through Epcot & the magic kingdom with 26,000 other princes & princesses :)










They shot fireworks off for us & the fairy godmother started us with her magic words...















After a nap we hit downtown Disney & were sprinkled with fairy dust, ate like royalty & enjoyed wonderful music.



This is made out of Leggos!!!


Champagne toast for completing 13.1 miles!! :) followed by a delicious dinner at Fultons Crab House



Sprinkled with fairy dust.."bipodee bopodee doooo, may all your dreams come true"


Princess for a day :)


Socializing with the princesses :)







We were very proud to wear our princess 1/2 marathon shirts & metals on our way home. We also both bought 13.1 magnets to remind us of our great accomplishment!! What a fun trip! I see more 1/2 marathons in our future (my sister has already registered for her next one!)

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Location:Disney world

10 mile run

Sooo... I am training for the Princess 1/2 marathon with my sister, which I am soo excited about!!  However, I have not been sooo.. excited about all my runs, especially when I got plantar fascitis.  Then I found this quote on Pintrest that encouraged me that even though I have had some not so good runs to keep pushing through. 

This weekend was my 10 mile run!
I was pretty nervous about it, then it started snowing, and I got started late, so it was dark when I finished, but it was a great run.
Mile 1, oh no what did I get myself into... 

Mile 5, wow this isn't too bad! And I am 1/2 done!

 

Scenery along the way :)

 

 Ahhh... 10 miles complete!  Frozen eyebrows & eyelashes, but I made it!!  And even mustered up a smile at the end :)

This short blog is really for me to remind myself, how incredible our bodies are and to never underestimate their abilities.  I am on track for my training with only a few weeks left, I will definitely post pics post run :)

photography fun

Sooo.. my wonderful husband bought me a beautiful new camera with a fish eye lens and macro lens.  I have dones of reading to do so I can use it to it's full potential. So far my reading has mostly been on pintrest and a little in the books he bought me.  Here's a few pics just for fun... I have a long way to go, but it was fun to start experimenting :)

Fun with Fisheye :D

 The family at Christmas!!  What a treat to have my parents, sister and Sean's mom.  We had a wonderful time, great family time, delicious food (prepared by my husband), great gifts, and Catan of course :)

 My Christmas deco at our beloved house with a view

 Playing with exposure, iso, f stop...  I think I am starting to get the hang of it..

 My dear sweet Ella girl (don't worry pictures of Monk to come), this is the only picture I have of her with her beautiful brown eyes (not green from flash).  Such a sweet girl.

My handsome husband that made this all possible :)

Pacific Coast hwy Day 3

Some people drive it....




Some people (crazy) ride it....



But regardless it is breathtaking!!















Julia Pfeiffer State Park



McKay Falls (below)




Bixby Creek Bridge - In 1932 when bridge was finished it was the longest concrete arch.














The picture below is where I was when I took the above picture. You can see a man in a dark shirt on the cliff portion, who was fishing.





Point Lobos








OTTERS, OTTERS, I'm sure there are otters....or maybe that's just kelp....





Across the water on the island there were hundreds of sea lions you could hear barking during our leisure hike around the park.







Dinner at Carmel by the Sea



On my last day in Cali I woke up to the most beautiful sunrise in Santa Cruz just out our window. It was an incredible trip! One I hope to do again.










I must give credit, where credit is due....the pictures in my post of the coastal hwy were a combination of mine, my mom's & my aunt Shirley's. Thank you for sharing your pics & thanks for a great vacation!

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Location:Big Sur