Virtual Bible Study + Foam Rolling

Hey, everyone!  It's time for the weekend!  The school year is winding down, and I plan on doing some work on the blog during the summer.  Look for some changes in the next month or two.

For now, let's get to some of the usual stuff:

I wanted to share with you about an online summer Bible study opportunity for women!  Living Proof Ministries, headed up by Beth Moore through Lifeway Christian Stores, has a blog that various woman publish to each week.  The blog is a great community of Christian women, and each summer they host a virtual Bible study!  This year, the study focuses on Gideon and uses the curriculum called Gideon: Your weaknesses, God's strength, published by Priscilla Shirer.

Image Source

Each week, participants are to complete the daily "homework" (Bible reading, commentary to read, and questions to answer in the workbook).  There will be weekly video segments from Priscilla, as well as bi-weekly video discussion with Beth Moore every other week.

I purchased my book already, and I wanted to invite y'all to join me!  I will be doing the study and posting about what I've learned each week.  Unfortunately, this is a women-only study (sorry, boys!), but I'm sure the men in your life would love to hear about what you are learning in the Word of God. 

Head on over the Living Proof Ministries blog for the study announcement and more information about how the virtual study will work.  It begins June 11th, so hurry on over there so that you can order your workbook (less than $15!).

As I mentioned yesterday when I posted my half marathon training plan, one of my goals during training is to focus on stretching and foam rolling after my runs.  The benefits of stretching are endless, but the main one I'm hoping to reap is injury prevention.

After my first official training run on Wednesday, I stuck to my plan and completed this 10 minute post-workout stretching video.  I found it on YouTube after quick search, and I could really tell a difference in my muscles a few hours later.  I also wasn't tight the next day, either!

I also foam rolled after the stretching video.  I bought my foam roller about a month ago after my chiropractor appointment, but it didn't get used until Wednesday night.

I rolled my ankles, calves, IT bands, and hamstrings.  Those areas were feeling a bit tight (and I've had hamstring problems that caused my knee pain), but the foam roller loosened them up for me.

Good investment!  I hope to keep up these good habits throughout my training.

Question for you: Have you ever participated in a virtual Bible study?  Do you stretch/foam roll after your workouts?

Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon Training Plan

As you may know, I signed up for my second half marathon: the Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach!

The race takes place on Labor Day weekend, and I'm really excited about it!  They have rock bands along the course, and there's a post-race concert headlined by a popular band (not announced yet).  I'll also get to see some friends in the Virginia Beach area and watch the first Virginia Tech football game with them as well.  It's going to be a great weekend!

I've got about 14 weeks until the race.  I created this 16-week plan for my training based on a few other plans I found through various resources:

Sorry this goes off the page.   If I make it smaller, you can't read it!!

**Disclaimer: I am not a certified running coach or personal trainer.  I created this plan based on how my training went last time and my goals for this race.  Please consult a physician, personal trainer, or running coach for a running plan that is best for you.**

My plan officially started two weeks ago, but I gave myself a little bit of flexibility when it comes to starting the plan.  This week is my first official week of following the plan, as my long runs are now longer than my "usual" runs.

My goal for this race: PR in the half marathon by running it in 2:30 (or less).  Because of that, I am going to make speed work a priority in my training.  I'm also going to focus on my per-mile splits during the other runs.  On my Thursday runs, I'd like my splits to be sub-10:00 pace.  On my long runs, I'd like my splits to be sub-11:00 pace.  If I can do that, I should certainly reach my goal pace.

Another training goal of mine is to focus on stretching and foam rolling after every run.  I know the importance of stretching, so I need to actually reap the benefits of it during my training.  I'd also like to avoid the two injuries (heel and knee) I got last time, mainly due to lack of stretching.

I will, of course, keep y'all updated on how my training is going.  So far, I've gotten one 3-mile run in and stretched/foam rolled after returning home.  Doing well so far!

Question for you: Any races you are currently training for?  How do you decided how to train for a race?  If you aren't a runner, what current fitness goals do you have and what plan are you following to meet that goal?

I should be back later today with a post with the usual content!  Have a great Thursday until then :)

WIAW #6: Memorial Day Edition

It's time once again for What I Ate Wednesday!  Jen over at Peas and Crayons came up with WIAW, and if you're new to it, read this post to see what it's all about.  Thank you, Jen, for hosting the link-up!

This week's eats are from Memorial Day and include a recipe!  I always long for grilled food on Memorial Day and Fourth of July.  I told Joe about this, but we were going to be driving home after our weekend at the springs.  We decided on pizza, so I got my grilled food for lunch instead.

We went bowling with Joe's mom around lunchtime and I ordered a burger and fries.  Let me tell you, these fries were AWESOME!  The burger was pretty good, too, but I was really loving the french fries.  If you're ever in Gainesville, FL and need a fun place to bowl with good food, you have to check out Splitz!

We made side trip to Tangled Oaks Vineyard on our way home from Gainesville.  It's located in Grandin, FL and has a tasting room right on site.  Joe and I tasted all of their wines and purchased a few of our favorites.

We even let Wewii get out of the car and run around the vineyard, which he thoroughly enjoyed.

On our drive, Joe starting wanting to grill when we got home for dinner.  We decided we'd make kabobs, so I looked up a recipe and made a grocery list.  After a store run, I put together these Italian-flavored chicken and veggie kabobs.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of chicken breasts, cut in to 1-inch pieces
• 2 red bell peppers, cut in to 1-inch pieces
• 2 medium onions, cut in to wedges
• 2 small-to-medium zucchini, sliced
• 2 small-to-medium yellow squash, sliced
• 1 cup marinade (I used a lemon pepper marinade, but Italian dressing would be good!)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
• Skewers, soaked in water

Directions

1. Slice up the chicken breasts into 1-inch pieces.  Combine chicken pieces with 1 cup marinade in a gallon-sized zipper bag.  Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
2. Slice up vegetables.  
3. Combine olive oil, garlic salt, and rosemary in another gallon-sized zipper bag.  Put all vegetables in the bag and toss to combine.
4. Assemble kabobs on skewers.  Grill for about 15 minutes, turning skewers every 2-3 minutes, basting with leftover marinade if desired.

These skewers hit the spot!  They had that grilled taste I wanted while still being very healthy.  Joe also raved about the meal and was glad he changed his mind about the pizza.  I highly recommend this recipe!

Question for you: What are your go-to Memorial Day meals?  Any other grillers out there?

BBB5 Final Recap

Happy Memorial Day!  I hope y'all are having an awesome holiday weekend.  I wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to all of the men and women who have sacrificed their lives for our country.  We are all thankful for your service!

Now, it's time to recap the final week of Best Body Bootcamp!  This is my second round of the program, and I truly love it!  The workouts are great, the support is awesome, and it really helps promote an all-around healthy lifestyle.

Sign-up now for Round 6 of the program!  Not only will you get the usual workouts, but Tina is offering an e-book of 50 workouts.  She's also going to be doing video demonstrations of all workouts, which will be incredibly helpful and convenient.  Join me in Round 6 by signing up now.

Activity

I did pretty well with activity this last week!  

Monday: 5-minute warm-up and Workout A while watching DWTS

Tuesday: 3-mile treadmill run

Wednesday: 2-mile run and Workout B

Thursday: rest day

Friday: travel/rest day

Saturday: Hiking/swimming all day at the springs

Sunday: Hiking/swimming all day at the springs

Traditional workouts at the beginning were followed up with some unconventional workouts this weekend.  Joe and I went camping this weekend on his friend's land.  There's a lot of hiking involved to get to the camp sites and swimming areas, and we spent almost all day on Saturday and Sunday swimming in the springs and river.  Lots of fun!

Goals

I did well with my goals this week, too!  I had 72+ oz. of water 5/7 days this week, which was much better than last week.  I still need to up that, since I've been getting dehydration headaches more frequently lately.

I met my goal of taking care of myself at night (flossing, getting to bed on time, etc.) 5/7 nights this week.  I really need to work on this, because I get lazy as the night goes on.  

Highlight of the Week

On Wednesday, I started running as just a quick warm-up before the tabata workout.  I was really feeling the run, though, and I just kept going until I reached 2 miles!  I had a great pace on the run and really enjoyed the motivation that my MapMyRun app on my phone kept giving me.

Goals Between Now and the Next Round

My biggest goal for the next month is to stick to my half marathon training plan!  I haven't been 100% sticking to it yet, so I need to really focus on getting in to that.

Question for you: Are you signing up for BBB Round 6?  What are your beginning-of-the-summer workout goals?

Traveling with Healthy Food

Good afternoon!  I'm blogging from a new piece of furniture in our living room.  It's an incredibly comfortable lounger that our neighbor was getting rid of!

She set it on the curb, and Joe and I each saw it separately as we got home on Tuesday afternoon.  We brought it up to each other at the same time and decided we did want it.  We asked our neighbor if we could take it, and she told us it was ours!  As you can see, Wewii is a little disappointed that he can't get up on it.

"But Momma...pleeeeease let me up on the lounger?"

He is trying so hard to get up on it, but we keep telling him no.  Look at those super sad eyes!  They make it so hard to say no to him.

While perusing some WIAW posts on Jen's link-up, I came across Brittany's post about traveling with her own food.  Y'all know that I'm not very good at keeping up healthy habits while out of town, but her post inspired me as I prepare for a trip this weekend.

Joe and I are heading to "the springs" for some sun and water fun.  His friend's family owns land on a spring, and every Memorial Day, a large group of their friends and family head out there to camp, boat, and hang out.

Joe and me on the boat

Tubing behind a boat

Two downsides to being out at the springs: healthy food and drinkable water are very hard to come by and it's tough to keep perishable foods good.  We went to the store yesterday, and here are the things I got to keep up the healthy eating:

• A large pack of bottled water-we'll have plenty to keep us hydrated
• A box of protein bars-my go-to bar could easily melt, so I opted for the Nature Valley Trail Mix bars to eat for breakfast/snacks.
• Oranges-they're tasty, hydrating, don't create any trash, and they'll keep even if they sit in the car.
• Baby Carrots-also something that will keep
• Chicken Sausage-grilling food is a necessity, and chicken sausage has to be better than regular brats, right?

I always have good intentions before traveling, so I'll be sure to keep you posted on how my attempt to still have some healthy foods actually goes.

A quick thought to ponder: I saw this quote posted today on Twitter:

It made me think, as well as reminded me of a Bible verse.

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.  Anyone who listens ot the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it--not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it--they will be blessed in what they do."

James 1:22-25

It's all well and good to have strong beliefs, but we also need to act on them.  Keep that in mind as you go about your day/week/month/life.

Question for you: What are some things you do to make sure you eat healthy while traveling?

Have a fun and safe Memorial Day weekend!  See y'all back here on Sunday :)

WIAW #5: Back to Normal

With going out of town for a few days, missing school, and preparing my students for the end-of-year state tests and finals, I've been a bit off schedule for the last two weeks.  Everything is winding down now, so I've been able to get back on schedule this week. 

Today's What I Ate Wednesday post features my food from Tuesday!  I was able to take pictures of EVERYTHING I ate for the first time.  Check out Jen's blog for a description of WIAW if you haven't already.

Thanks to Jen for hosting the link-up!

Breakfast

I started the day with some Honey Bunches of Oats Greek Yogurt cereal with milk.  I can't really taste the Greek yogurt in it, but it is tasty and pretty filling.

Morning Snack

I snacked on some apple slices in between classes to tie me over until lunch.  I always have my snack between the same two classes, so my 3rd period is always commenting on my snack of the day.  It's usually the same thing (either an apple or almonds), but I find it funny that they take note of things like that.

Lunch

I'm back to my usual lunch of a salad!  This one had mixed leaf lettuce, tomatoes, onions, orange peppers, and cucumbers.  I put some canned tuna on top for a kick of protein.  I also had some pineapple and a mix of salt and vinegar chips and veggie straws.  Tasty lunch!

Afternoon Snacks

Between school and the gym, I had my usual Nature Valley Protein Bar snack.  This time, though, I tried the new Salted Caramel and Nut bar.  I picked these up on a whim for something different, and I'm so glad I did!  These bars are the perfect mix of sweet and salty and are incredibly satisfying at the end of the day.

After my run on the treadmill, I had 16 oz. of Fitmixer amino supplement!  This is a flavorful way to recover from the workout.  I'll talk more about this product a little later, but I really enjoy recovering from a workout with this drink.

Dinner

I made my Simple Savory Pot Roast for dinner last night.  I put everything together in the morning, Joe turned it on before he left for class, and it was ready when we got home!  I didn't need anything on the side because of the red potatoes and carrots cooked with the roast.  Yummy!

Evening Snack
Joe and I wanted something sweet, so I decided to whip up the brownie mix I had in the cupboard.

Part 1 of my snack was the leftover batter.  I can't make brownies/cake/cookies without liking the bowl or spoon!

Part 2 of my snack was a brownie!  I had orange creamsicle frosting and pink lemonade frosting in the fridge, and I decided to see how they taste on the brownie.  The winner: Pink Lemonade frosting!  The orange creamsicle had a bit of a strange taste with the chocolate.

There you have it!  The typical meals for me.

Question for you: What's a usual meal for you (either breakfast, lunch, or dinner)?
I'm such a creature of habit that my breakfast and lunch are usually the same every day.  I try to switch it up for dinner, though :)

5-minute Warm-up

Happy Tuesday, y'all!  There are only 9 days of school left, so each passing day is more and more exciting.  Yes, teachers love summer, too.  After looking at my planner today, though, I've got a busy summer full of workshops, summer school, and weddings that is sure to fly by.

Before I get started with my post, I wanted to let y'all know about a sweet deal that Danielle @ Truffles 'n Treadmills has going on!  She's making these super cute non-slip headbands and is selling them for $8.

Image Source--some of the headbands that Danielle makes

But, for the month of May, they're on sale for $6 using the promo code!  Check out her post here about the sale and her Facebook page for all of the headbands she makes!

Ok, now it's back to the usual format today, with some Fitness and Faith!

Yesterday, I decided to complete Workout A from BBB from home.  It was a bit stormy and humid outside, so a warm-up run was out of the question.  I knew I needed to do some cardio before starting the tabata workout, so I completed this 5-minute circuit as a warm-up:

It really got my heart going and blood flowing before starting the strength exercises!  It's so easy to do that you can use this any time you need five minutes of cardio to get you going.

 At my grandparent's house this weekend, my aunt was looking through an old Bible that belonged to her grandmother (my great-grandmother).  It had everyone in the family's names and birthdays listed.  My grandmother was telling her that the list was used as a prayer list and that my great-grandmother prayed for everyone on that list every day.  My aunt then said, "That's so special to know that she was praying for all of us all the time."

That comment stuck with me throughout the day.  It is really special to know that someone is always praying for you.  In my opinion, it lets you know that someone cares deeply about your well-being.  My aunt's comment was also a reminder for me of the importance of praying for those we love, both prayers of thanksgiving for what they are in our lives as well as intercessory prayers for their needs. 

The next day, the "positive thought" for the day on the Christian radio station I listen to was this:

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." --Philippians 4:6

I was reminded that God wants to hear from us.  He wants to hear about what we're thankful for, what we need, and what others need.  This verse also address my worry-wart tendencies, but that's another post altogether :)

Since this weekend, I've been making a point to say prayers for specific people each day.  I've got the "regulars" on my prayer list, but I've also been throwing in some different people each day.  It's been really fun to pray for these people, and I hope that they'll know that they are deeply cared for because of it!

Question for you: How do you usually warm up before a strength workout?  Or, do you have a prayer list for people that you pray for every day?

I posted long ago about making prayer cards for all the people in your life.  This is a great way to pray for different people each day, and I highly recommend it!

Eric's Graduation Weekend: Part 2

I did so much this weekend, that I needed to take TWO posts to tell y'all about it!  Check out Part 1 of my weekend recap, then continue reading for the rest of the weekend.

Friday afternoon was spent eating cake and watching Eric open his gifts.  My grandmother makes delicious from-scratch cakes.  She made her pumpkin cake for Eric with delicious cream cheese frosting.  She also made a Sock-It-To-Me Cake (cinnamon swirl cake), which is my favorite.  Great afternoon of sweets and gifts!

Image Source

After that, we grab a quick dinner and spent the evening relaxing around the house.

On Saturday, we ate breakfast with everyone before heading on home.  Once we got back to Richmond, Mom and I had to head to a baby shower!

Joe's cousin, Lucy, lives in Richmond, and she and her husband Knight are expecting a baby boy in June!  Lucy and Knight are attending the same church as my parents, and they go to lunch with Mom and Dad every week.  It's so nice to have our two families getting along so well!

We got to the shower a few minutes late, but everyone was just mingling.  It was great to catch up with Lucy, her sister Betsy, and her mom Pearl.  They are such sweet people, and it was so nice to be able to attend the shower!

I didn't get pictures of the set-up, but there were lots of adorable decorations and delicious food!  We ate, Lucy opened her gifts, and we talked with some of the other guests.  Before leaving, I got a picture of all of my family there.

Myself, Mom, Lucy, Aunt Pearl, Betsy

That was my first baby shower, and I'm glad I could share that experience with my mom.

Afterward, Mom and I went shopping for a new purse for me!  My old one was getting a little worn out, and it's taken a while to find a replacement.  I guess Mom is the good luck charm, because I found this one at the first store!

Simply Vera purse from Kohl's

Different than my usual style, but it fits all my stuff, is small enough to not get in the way, and is fashionable.  On our way home, we picked up dinner at one of my favorite places: Cookout!

Cookout is a chain of restaurants that started exclusively in North Carolina, but they've since expanded into Virginia and South Carolina.  It's a drive-thru/walk-up place with no seating, but their burgers and milkshakes are FANTASTIC!  This is a must-stop for me when in North Carolina or Virginia, so I thoroughly enjoyed my food.

Saturday night was a lazy night of watching TV/falling asleep on the couch.  My family and I have named one of our couches "the sofa of death" because whoever lays down on it will fall asleep.

I woke up early Sunday morning to catch my flight home.  My connection was through the ATL airport again, but this time I had to run to get to my flight in time.  Word to travelers: have at least an hour layover in Atlanta.  That'll give you time to get to another terminal if needed without have to run like a crazy person.

It was nice to get home and see Joe!  We spent the afternoon hanging out and working on our respective school things.  That evening, we headed to Winghouse for another WWE pay-per-view.  It's always fun to eat some wings and people watch during those shows (especially Joe when he gets all in to the fights).

Whew!  As you can see, I had one packed weekend!  It was great to see everyone and get to do all the things I love doing in Virginia.

Question for you: Does your grandmother/mom make anything from scratch that you absolutely love?
My grandmother's cakes are awesome, as well as the creamed potatoes she makes.  My other grandmother makes great creamed corn!

BBB5 Week 7

It's that time again!  Time to talk about my week as it pertains to Best Body Bootcamp!

Before I begin my recap, signups are now open for the summer round of Best Body Bootcamp!  Join me this summer is this awesome workout program.  As you can probably tell, I love these workouts and really do enjoy the accountability built in to this workout plan.  The price has increased, BUT Tina is offering a lot of awesome perks with the round, including 50 additional workouts to use at other times.  Check out Tina's post for more information and to sign up now!

Activity
This week, just like last week, was not a good one as far as workouts go.  The week started strong, but between surprise visitors and traveling for the second half of the week, I just kind of fell off.  Here's how it went:
Monday: 20-minute elliptical workout + Workout A (tabata rounds)
Tuesday: 2-mile run outside, focusing on speedwork

Wednesday: Our surprise visitors kept me from getting in my evening workout
Thursday: Traveling wore me out, so no run
Friday: planned rest day
Saturday: Traveling wore me out again
Sunday: 2.5-mile run outside

Here's the deal, though.  I got in three workouts for the week.  At least it's something!

Goals
My first goal is to focus on water intake.  As my second half marathon training gears up, I know I need to be constantly hydrated.  Florida is crazy humid in the summer (or all the time, really), which means I'm going to be needing lots and lots of water before/during/after runs.  I met my goal for drinking at least 72 ozs. of water each day 3/7 days this week.  I definitely need to up that to be able to run outside!

My second goal is to focus on taking care of myself at night.  I actually did well with this, meeting my goal 5/7 days.  Pretty good, considering being out of my routine for the second half of the week!

Highlight of the Week
Monday's workout!  I love the tabata-style workouts Tina has for us these last two weeks.  They are great moves done at a quick pace.  It keeps me moving and keeps me involved!  Plus, I used my iPhone to help time my workout, and I really loved the apps I used to make my workout happen (more about this later).

I didn't plan the matching outfit, but it added to my enjoyment of the workout :)

Goal for Next Week
The biggest thing I need to do this week: follow my half marathon training plan!  Last week was supposed to be week 1 of my training plan, but I gave myself some wiggle room when I wrote the plan.  I'm going to make this week the new first week and get in 3 runs (potentially 4), including a "long run" of 3.5 miles on Sunday.

Question for You: Do you ever purposely match your outfits to different accessories?
I don't usually do it on purpose, but I get excited when I do!

Eric's Graduation Weekend: Part 1

My goodness, y'all!  Sorry for the long break!  I really intended on blogging while up in Virginia, but as you can see, that didn't happen.  I took plenty of pictures, though, to document my weekend, and it's time to share those with you!

There was a lot that happened this weekend, so this is going to be a two-part post.  Let's start from Wednesday after school, when my weekend began:

I arrived home from school on Wednesday completely relieved.  I knew I had the next two days off, so I was ready to relax some and get ready for my trip to Virginia.  Just as I was settling in to the couch with my computer to catch up on blog reading, our friends Jacqui and Andrew knocked on our door!  They were driving down to Port Canaveral for a cruise and wanted to see us for a little bit.  What a pleasant surprise!

Joe and I decided to take them to Our Deck Down Under, a cute little restaurant right on the bay in Port Orange.  Joe had to do something for school, so we headed on over there to catch the sunset and order food.  As Andrew waited in line for food, Jacqui and I went to the dock to catch the sunset.

Much to our surprise, we also go to see some playful dolphins feeding on fish nearby!

See the two fins?

It was so awesome to get to see the dolphins, and they continued to feed as we ate our dinner on the deck.

Jacqui and me

Andrew and Jacqui

Joe met us there eventually, and after finishing our food, we went back to the house to do some catching up.  We hadn't seen them since September, so it was so nice to see them and the perfect way to start my long weekend.

Andrew, Joe, and Jacqui

Early Thursday morning, I took off to travel to my grandparents' house.  I was flying up to Richmond, and it was a long day of travel.  My layover was in the Atlanta airport, and I was tempted when I saw one of the local breweries at the terminal.

I went with some Starbucks instead--it seemed more more appropriate for the morning!  After smooth flights in to Richmond, my parents were there to pick me up for the second part of the journey: the car trip to rural Stuart, VA.  Before we got on the road, we stopped for some lunch at McAlister's.  I don't know if you have a McAlister's near you or not, but if you do, you need to eat there.  Great sandwiches, salads, and soups, as well as some of the best sweet tea you can find.

Best. Tea. Ever.

We left straight from the restaurant and drove the 3.5 hours to my grandparents' house.  Fun fact: both sides of my family live in the same small town.  It's really great because I get to see everyone for every holiday!

Once in Stuart, we ate dinner, caught up with family, and went to sleep.  Our alarm was set nice and early to travel up to Virginia Tech in the morning to see my brother, Eric, graduate!

Graduation stage

Friday morning was another early one, but we were all excited to celebrate Eric's graduation.  We made it on time, got great seats, and settled in for a long ceremony.  

Processing in

Eric was receiving his Masters in Accounting, which meant we also had to sit through the doctorate hooding ceremonies.  It took a while, but Eric finally got called up to receive his degree.

Receiving his diploma

We continued the celebration at one of my top ten favorite restaurants in Virginia: Bull and Bones.  It opened at VT my senior year, so I only got to enjoy it for part of that year and my graduate school year.  It's an awesome barbeque and steak place that also brews their own beer.  I ordered my favorite dish, the pulled pork platter with their delicious macaroni and cheese.

Their BBQ sauce is awesome!  They had a special root beer-based sauce that was insanely good.  We were completely full and satisfied as we walked out the door.  Next up was some graduation pictures.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Eric in front of Burruss (main building on campus)

Eric and Me

Whole family (that came to graduation)

Eric posing in front of Torgersen Bridge

Eric is not a fan of long photo shoots, but he was a good sport and took all the pictures that we requested.  Afterward, we drove back down the mountain to my grandparents' house.  Eric and his girlfriend, Sara, met us there for even more celebrating.

Eric and Sara

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this post in a little bit!