Family Vacation

Several weeks ago, we went to Disney World for a family vacation. We were very excited to have my niece, Ashlyn, join us.  She is a student in college and we were afraid she wouldn't be able to go, but all of her teachers were gracious and allowed her to make up work/tests. 

We did several new things this trip.  One of our favorites was Typhoon Lagoon.  It was great.  Nate did all of the water slides (he was tall enough for) several times.  I think his favorite part was the wave pool.  He and Darren had to enjoy this by themselves.  The waves were too big for me.  

We also spent a day at Sea World.  This was our first visit and we loved it.  There are lots of fun rides, but our favorite parts were the animal exhibits.

One of Nate's favorite things was feeding squid to the sharks.

We missed the Magic Kingdom fireworks show on our last family trip, but we made sure to see it this time. We also saw Illuminations at Epcot this time and enjoyed it.

Another new experience for Nate was Jedi Training at Hollywood Studios.  Nate has loved Star Wars for almost a year now. This was our last day.  We saved the best for last. :)

Nate also loved Star Tours and rode it four times in one day.  My mom gave him some spending money.  He used some of his money to build his own droid.

We had a really great trip.  The weather was great and didn't rain even though there was rain in the forecast.  It was fun having Ashlyn there so we could do "girl stuff" like watch Beauty and the Beast while Darren and Nate did other things.  It was also nice to be able to ride roller coasters with Darren while Ashlyn waited with Nate.  It was fun doing new things and enjoying some of our past favorites. 

Almighty Mud Run

In October, I participated in the Almighty Mud Run. It is a 5k run with around 20 obstacles.  It is put on by Bridges of Faith, a ministry that ministers to Ukrainian orphans.  Our good friends, the Tatums, are adopting a young man from Ukraine. They met him through Bridges of Faith. We ran in his honor. This was our team, team Dima.

This was our first obstacle. I do not like heights. There were very tiny places to put your feet to help climb. My foot kept slipping at the bottom. All I could think about was my foot slipping at the top and me falling/sliding back to the bottom. I seriously contemplated skipping the first obstacle. Then I saw Darren and Nate watching from the distance and I could not let Nate see me "cheat." So, I started climbing and quoting Joshua 1:9 - be strong and courageous, be strong and courageous. I am at the very top in this picture. I made it without falling or sliding! 

 

The wall was the hardest/scariest obstacle for me.   There was an ice water obstacle that I was really dreading, but I didn't think it was too bad.  The other girls would disagree.  After the ice water, we had to jump fire.  It sounds wild and crazy, but it really wasn't. There were plenty of places to jump that were hot, but fire was not burning.  After that was the first mud pit, which you see below. 

Forget what I said about the wall being the scariest obstacle.  This slide was the scariest.  This pictures does not show the real size of this thing.  It was so soapy and slippery.  I was not afraid of the slide, but the mud pit at the bottom.  There was not much mud or water in it and I could tell that the landing was was going to hurt and it did.  I landed so hard, I had whiplash the next day.  I also scratched up my wrist and back.  I was not happy. 

This wall followed the slide.  I stopped to help another team get one of their members over the wall.  Nothing like putting your hands on a stranger's bottom. :)

Now it's my turn.

I can only imagine what I am talking about here...probably how bad it hurt coming off the slide.  It took a while to get over that.

Another mud pit.

I love this picture of Casey, Sandi, and me.  I love these girls.  I wish the lighting was better.  I have a feeling if we weren't so muddy you would be able to see us better.

We did it!  Our time was 1:51 instead of 2:51 because started in a later heat. We did not have a time goal. Our only goals were to not get hurt and have fun.  We stopped for lots of pictures, let more serious competitors pass, helped other competitors, and laughed a whole lot.

 

There were lots of other fun obstacles.  Some I have pictures of and others not.  My favorite obstacle was swimming across a small lake.  It was so nice to dive into the water and get clean for a few minutes.  There were obstacles in the middle of the lake also.  We also had to carry concrete blocks, crawl under barbed wire, climb a tire wall, climb a rope net, and many others.  It was so much fun and an experience I will never forget.

Field Trips

We have enjoyed several field trips this fall.  The first one was to the Blue Bell ice cream factory. 

 Our favorite part:  free ice cream at the end of the tour.

We also enjoyed the Moundville Native American Festival.  Darren even took the day off to join us.

Our favorite part of the festival was watching this man hoop dance.  He has performed all over the world.  His ancestors were part of the Alabama tribe.  Now he lives in Texas and is part of the Alabama - Coushatta tribe.   

Finally, we visited Old Baker Farm.  We love this place and have been several times as a family.  We were very thankful to have Hannah and Lindsey join us.

Best Buddies

Nate and my dad truly are best buddies and I am so very thankful. :)

Tae Kwon Do Tournament

I mentioned in my previous post about Nate's first tae kwon do tournament.  I did not get to be there because I was home recovering.  I was nervous for Nate, even from home!  Nate was nervous too.  One of the themes for our family lately has been Joshua 1:9:  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be terrified, do not be discouraged; for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.  We prayed this prayer several times before the tournament. 

Darren texted me throughout the tournament to keep me updated.  We were both surprised by how many people were there.

Nate competed in forms first.  Darren texted that Nate had tied for third place and he would have to do his form again to see who would get the third place medal.  I was so nervous waiting to hear the results.  I was so excited to see Darren's text: "He got it!"  Next he competed in sparring.  He had only been sparring about three weeks at this point.  We were not expecting him to medal in this round, but he ended up with another third place medal. 

This was a great experience for Nate.  The medals were just icing on the cake.   

Life: Expect the Unexpected

A lot has happened since my previous post.  The previous weekend was Labor Day weekend.  That's when the sickness started that led to my cholecystectomy.  That's the fancy medical term for gall bladder removal.  Being sick and/or recovering from surgery for almost a month has been no fun!  It has kicked my booty physically and mentally.  I am so thankful that I had a great surgeon and a fairly easy recovery.  I also had great help from my awesome husband, parents, and friends.    

This did not happen at a convenient time.  :)  One of my biggest disappointments was not getting to participate in the R(un) for One 5K.  A friend from church organized a team, the W(un)der  Women.  I trained for weeks and worked really hard to improve my 5K time.  I also had to miss Nate's first tae kwon do tournament.  Thankfully Darren was able to text me throughout the tournament. 

I am now two weeks out from surgery and feeling great.  I am thankful to be back into a normal routine.  Most of all, I am thankful for God's healing and provision during my down time. 

Sparring Gear

This summer Nate moved up to green belt in Tae Kwon Do.  Once you receive your green belt, you get your sparring gear.  Nate was so excited...like Christmas morning excited.  He could not stop smiling. I was pretty impressed with his first-time sparring skills.  He was much more assertive and confident than I thought he would be.