Beautiful Weather & A Run

Another beautiful day in the Pacific Northwest. While Greg headed to the lab, Shannon and I drove to Hells Gate State Park in Lewiston, ID to run another race. I was excited because this was a trail run through a state park. Everything seemed to conspire against us though. We were a little late to the race. It was farther away than what I originally thought, and - being the cheapskate that I am - we actually parked at the entrance of the park and walked a ways in to the race to keep from paying the $5 parking fee. :) We could see the runners making their way to the start line while we were walking, so we had to run before the race even started just to get there on time. As soon as we got to the start line, Shannon got called in to work, so we decided to run the 4-mile race instead of the 8-mile race we had originally planned. We barely had time to catch our breath before the race started...and we were all the way in the back of the pack. The race was mostly on narrow hiking/horseback riding trails on the side of the hill, so passing was difficult. We also were led astray at some point in the race, and had to cut through weeds and tumbleweed just to get back on track. Anyway.... we finally finished, and it was a beautiful day, and it was interesting to see a new state park. Here are some pictures....

Eeks! Shannon and I were a little late, so we actually had to run TO the starting line. We hadn't even caught our breath when they said "Go."

You can see how behind I am...we'll blame it on all the picture taking. :)

A view down the canyon.

This is the hill we had to run up to get to the starting line. We'll be on time for the next one!

Me, with Shannon, Angela & Anna

This is what I came home to. I'm sure she was just exhausted from cheering me on mentally. :)

Next weekend we're planning to do the Red Dress 5k here in town. Entrants are encouraged to wear a red dress to the race, so there should be some good pictures! Better find me a red dress...

Long time, no blog

The month and a half since Christmas have flown by! As soon as we returned from WV, Greg and I got busy with work and school, and I've neglected the blog. :( We haven't done too many special activities, and - until this weekend - I hadn't taken a single photo since Christmas!

Friday evening, we broke out the Chocolate Factory again to make our own Valentine's candy while watching the Olympic opening ceremony coverage. I didn't stay up to watch all of the opening, but the whales projected on the floor amazed me! As for the chocolate... we dipped strawberries, preztels (gluten-free and regular), peanuts, marshmallows and made some solid chocolate pieces as well. My personal favorite were the pretzels...which didn't last too long.

Anybody hungry yet?

Saturday morning, Shannon and I drove to Lewiston to run in the 4-mile Sweetheart Run while our respective sweethearts were buried under homework and research. We ended up having a sunny, spring-like day for the race along the Snake River (close to where my 1/2-marathon was). I just ran the race for fun and didn't register, but Shannon and I came in at respectable 2nd place for our age group (19th & 20th overall) and she was generous enough to let me share her ribbon! We decided red was better than blue anyway...because of Valentine's day and all. :) The rest of February and all of March are jam-packed with races nearly every weekend, so I hope to have some good pictures every week!

Post-race. Shannon finished in 32:45, my time was 33:00.

"We're number two, we're number two!" Anybody who has seen the movie Whip It should appreciate that quote. We're proud to celebrate mediocrity! :)

Sunday, I made an attempt at a special Valentine's Day breakfast. Unfortunately, I was too concerned with the special French hot chocolate that I burnt the main course. Oops! Oh well, Greg wanted oatmeal anyway. :)


We hope everyone back home is keeping their heads above the snow! You can keep it though, I'm enjoying our early spring (knock on wood).

Christmas in West Virginia

After two glorious weeks of vacation, Greg and I made it back to Pullman, and back to work and school. We drove 42 hours (stopping only for gas and restrooms every 4 hours) back to West Virginia so that we could spend Christmas with our family and friends. We had a great trip, were blessed with easy traveling conditions (special thanks to all those praying we had good weather!) and got to spend (at least a little bit of) time with our favorite people. I managed to stick to my gluten-free eating, even though passing up Mom's hot rolls and Gram's whoopie pies took some effort - but I felt much better after meals this Christmas than I ever have! Here are just a few pictures from our trip:

Visiting Greg's Family in Summersville

Doesn't get much better than this!


I considered being really mean and knocking down some of that overhanging snow....


Greg pulling me behing the 4-wheeler on a dry-rotted tube.




Greg spent more time playing with Anthony's gift than with his own gifts.


A present made for me by John.


Visiting my Family in Glenville




Is that Moses??? ha, ha

The whole gang in Ripley





Dixie and Chloe.


The Heather Ross "Weekend Away" bags that I made as Christmas presents.

Thanks so much to everyone who housed, fed, and took care of us during our trip. We had a great time and can't wait to come back this summer!

Christmas Party at Guilbeau Apartments

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Snow has been falling all day here in Moscow. Although I love the snow...I kinda wish it would go away. Greg and I are leaving Saturday for West Virginia and are praying for clear, easy driving conditions so that we can make good time!! We're so excited to head back home and see everybody that we've missed these last six months.

This weekend was pretty relaxed...the snow started Friday night and has slowly continued. Saturday evening, we had a little Christmas get-together for friends. It was small, we just enjoyed some food, had a White Elephant gift exchange (aka a Yankee Swap) and watched Christmas movies.

Strange that you can buy such tasty strawberries for so cheap in the dead of winter!

Shannon and I sporting our fashion glasses! We were recently talking about girls wearing glasses purely for looks, so Shannon presented me with an early Christmas present. Ha, ha. On a side note...I had my first eye appointment in many moons today. I fear that - at the ripe old age of 27 - my vision is already on the downhill slope. :) No glasses yet, but I no longer have 20/20 vision. Booooo!

Don't expect to see this reindeer pulling a big heavy sled around this Christmas Eve. She would prefer to lay by the fire and sip hot cocoa.

Travis drew Greg's gift in the White Elephant... a box full of gummy snacks. The limit for the exchange was $5 and creativity earned extra points.

Shannon drew my gift, which was an electric pizza cutter I found at the thrift store for $2.99. I'm not sure who came up with this invention, but I was NOT surprised to see that it had been donated to the thrift store! :) It seemed more dangerous than helpful.

Greg was the very lucky winner of the night's most popular gift (thank you Shannon) of a Snuggie!! In leopard print, no less. He, of course, had to try it out Sunday afternoon!

"Does this make me look fat?"

Less than one week until we leave for West Virginia!! We'll be taking off from Pullman very early Saturday morning. We are very excited to leave a day or two earlier than planned. We can't wait to see everyone.

PS. - As a side note, I just wanted to mention ahead of time that I will be sticking to my gluten-free diet during our trip. I veered off course the last time we came home, and paid the price for it later. This means that I will not be able to eat anything made with regular wheat or white flour (plus some other things that I won't really get into). I'll be bringing my own bread, crackers, and pasta so that I don't have to miss out on Kathy's cheese dip and Mom & Dad's spaghetti! Nobody needs to fix anything special, but please do not be offended if I don't eat your wonderful breads, cookies, and desserts. Maybe Greg can eat my share! See you all soon!

Hurry Christmas, Hurry Fast

Well first off... my resolve to have long hair didn't last. Big surprise I know! One whole year of growth, gone in just a few minutes. Here's how long my hair had gotten (granted it's not fixed here, but you get the point)...

And here's how short it is now. I'm beginning to like it a little better, but it definitely is taking some time!

This past weekend, Greg and I attended WSU's Graduate/Professional Student Association holiday party that featured some good food (including WSU Cougar Cheese) and a live swing band. It was a good time, and one of the only excuses we've had to get fancied-up in quite awhile. Greg even broke down and shaved for the occasion!!

The party got me excited for Christmas and our trip back to WV. Our Christmas shopping is complete...if our car was red, we'd look like a couple of Santas zipping across the country in a few weeks due to all the loot. Now I've just got to get around to finishing (ok starting) those Christmas cards!

We have been experiencing some frigid weather here on the Palouse lately. Highs of about 20 have been the hallmark of the past week. This morning when I started the car, it read 4 degrees. By the time I had made it across campus, that had dropped to 1 degree. Brrr...much too cold for my liking! The perfect excuse for hot chocolate every day of the week though. :)

Dixie Loves The Beach

These pictures seemed to deserve their own post!