Tima's Wedding Invitations

Here's my second attempt at wedding invitations- for my bestie- TimaSue! :)

Her colors are navy, silver, and white- the outside



Inside- yay for petal enclosures!
(don't worry Tima, all details have been blotted out :) )

Pumpkin goodness

One of the "bests" of fall...pumpkin yumminess:



Pumpkin muffins

Pumpkin gingerbread trifle

More family time

I spent the last few days out in Boise with John, my sister, and the cutest nephew ever. We had such a good time. My second nephew-to-be is looking mighty big in Monica's belly...I think he (Carter) might be coming a bit earlier than expected. Then I will have the TWO cutest nephews ever. :)

Are you sure you got the picture Sissa?



Monica and me

Venom/Spiderman


Can we please go trick or treating now?


I got him a "bouncealine" (his words) for birthday/Christmas



Look at her cute belly :)


I did my long run this weekend along this BEAUTIFUL greenbelt.



Dumping leaves on John Michael.

Mis padres

My parental units came to visit me last week. We had a blast! As I mentioned before, I woke them up at 5am (3am their time...after they came in on a 10pm flight the night before- bad daughter! :) ), dragged them to my race (the first athletic event they have EVER watched me participate in since I was very much the anti-sport child). Then we went to church and had the Smythes and Millers over for hospitality afterwards. Monday started out with a much needed stop at Antigua coffee shop for my dad and I and then we headed to Austin. Strolled South Congress, visited the capital building, and thanks to Lindsey's fantabulous recommendation, ate dinner at The Salt Lick, where I had the privilege of encountering the BEST RIBS EVER. Remember, I live in Texas now...many places have very very good ribs. These are hands down the best I have ever eaten. I, of course, forgot to take my camera everywhere. We finished up their trip hanging out in the Montrose area and then visting MFAH (the fine art museum). The Moon exhibit is pretty cool, by the way,- geeky me was drooling over the original Galileo book 'Sidereus Nuncius' (Sidereal Messenger). I read about him writing it in 'Galileo's Daughter', by Dava Sobel (great read, slow, but extremely interesting). Here are some of the pictures my mom sent me- because as I mentioned, I am a slacker and I didn't take any.

My dad and I (there was a really neat statue behind us...good job Mom ;-) )



Mom does a wicked good Charlie's Angels pose, doesn't she?



Aww, my Mommy



Best ribs ever. E...V...E...R.

USA 10 Miler Race

This race fell in a good place for our half-marathon training. Even better, my parents were in town and I dragged them down there to cheer us on :). We averaged a 10:16 mile.

me and Lisa, post race

Random Bacon

This was Bacon today as I was trying to type...apparently he is attention starved...

Megan's Baby Shower

I really have become quite horrible at taking pictures to document my goings-on...here are the few I took from Megan's shower this weekend at our house...

baby shower food :)

Super cute cupcakes made by Claire

Little feet cookies, compliments of Carolyn Y.

Okay, I know both of their eyes are closed, but I love this picture- two gals (Adrienne and Lindsey, the hostess), enjoying a laugh together...

The momma-to-be, Megan, Sonya, Sue (w/Kerith) and Heather

Baby shower invites

Here's the latest in my invitation making endeavors- baby shower invitations for my friend Megan:

The info for the shower is under each of the letter flaps...modern baby blocks if you will :)

Unique and yummy recipes

I stumbled across these recipes on Runner's World...they sound weird, but they are very very tasty and healthy to boot (confirmed by my meat-eating roommate; I didn't tell her there was tofu in the lasagna...she thought it was ricotta cheese :) ). And both are very easy to make.

Lentil Tacos-

My changes: used whole wheat tortillas and varied the seasoning amounts. I ended up have to pretty much quadruple the broth/water- lentils take awhile to cook, so keep an eye on them so the water doesn't run out!

1 cup onions, diced

1/4 cup celery, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup brown lentils, dry

1 tablespoon chili powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 cup water or vegetable broth

3 tablespoons dried black currants or raisins, minced

1 cup salsa, plus additional for topping

8 6-inch corn tortillas

shredded lettuce ,chopped tomatoes, shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

In a large frying pan over medium heat, sauted onions, celery, and garlic in the olive oil for five minutes or until vegetables are soft. Stir in the lentils, chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Cook for one minute. Add the broth and raisins. Cover and cook for 20 minutes, or until the lentils are tender (add more water or broth as needed). Remove the lid and cook an additional 10 minutes (until lentils are thick), stirring often. Fold in the salsa. Wrap the tortillas in a damp white cotton towel and microwave on high for one minute. Spoon the lentil mixture among the tortillas. Top with lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. Serves four.

Potato Lasagna

My changes- I used 3 potatoes and 1 lb tofu to fill an 8 X 8 pan, but left the rest of the ingredients the same, so if you make the full portion, you may want to increase the seasonings/oil/lemon juice/honey. I added a layer of sliced mushrooms and did not use light sauce or part-skim cheese.

6 medium potatoes
2 lbs firm tofu
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 tbsp honey
1 Tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
4 tsp dried basil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 qt light spaghetti sauce
1 cup shredded, part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions: Boil, steam or microwave potatoes until tender. Chill for at least 30 minutes. In a large bowl, mash tofu with a fork or potato masher. Add lemon juice, honey, salt, oil, basil and garlic powder. Combine thoroughly and set aside.When you're ready to assemble the lasagna, peel and slice potatoes. In a 9x13-inch pan, spread a thin layer of sauce. Layer half the sliced potatoes on top, then spread half of the tofu mixture over the potatoes, then half the remaining spaghetti sauce onto the tofu. Repeat this layering process with the remaining potatoes, tofu and sauce, then sprinkle mozzarella on top.Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Serves 12.

Motivation Board

So I decided to create a triathlon motivation board for myself...what do you think?

Top half close-up



Bottom-half close up

Heroes

One of my very dear friends, Kaylene, and her husband Ajay, serve in the Air Force, flying in the B1-Bomber (a ridiculously wicked cool aircraft). Last year they were stationed in the Middle East. I recently found out about an award that Kaylene and her fellow crew members will be receiving in November for aid that they provided to our troops. Glad we have people like Kaylene and Ajay over there serving our country. Regardless of how you feel about why we are over there and whether or not we should be, we need to thank the men and women who are willing to lay down their lives to serve our country. I'm proud of you girl, and thank you.

From the article:
"Kaylene Giri and three crewmates aboard Bone 23 answered the call for immediate air support from U.S. ground forces under attack from more than 200 Taliban troops.

The B-1 Bomber crew suggested using a 500-pound bomb. The crew accomplished three bomb runs within 30 minutes that slowed the enemy attack and allowed coalition forces to regroup, according to the National Aeronautic Association in Washington, D.C.

"The distinctive accomplishments of the Bone 23 crew reflect great credit upon themselves and the United States Air Force," the association stated in a press release.

The association announced it will present the 2008 Mackay Trophy to the Bone 23 crew during the NAA Fall Awards Banquet Nov. 2 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Va. The association describes the trophy as one of the most important awards in the Air Force.

"We were just doing the exact same job that we do every day," said Giri, a weapons service officer based at Ellsworth AFB, S.D.

Giri, 28, stressed crewmembers work as a unit.

"You cannot break a link in that chain," she said. "Not one person can do everything that is required. You've got to have everybody work together."

Also serving with her in the unit were Major Norman Shelton, 1st Lt. Boyd Smith and Capt. Louis Heidema. "

Completely Done

Awesome song that we sung at church today. I love the phrase "What you complete is completely done". God doesn't do anything half-heartedly. What overwhelming reassurance.

I am so thankful for our worship leaders who spend so much time and effort to put together song lists that allow us to focus on God and meditate on what He has done for us, giving Him the glory.

Completely Done
Words by Jonathon Baird, Ryan Baird, and Rich Gunderlock

What reason have I to doubt
Why would I dwell in fear
When all I have known is grace
My future in Christ is clear
My sins have been paid in full
There’s no condemnation here
I live in the good of this
My Father has brought me near
I’m leaving my fears behind me now

The old is gone, the new has come
What You complete is completely done
We’re heirs with Christ, the victory won
What You complete is completely done

I don’t know what lies ahead
What if I fail again
You are my confidence
You’ll keep me to the end

I’m leaving my fears behind me now

Nephewisms

Phone call from John Michael:

JM: "Hi Sissa! Sissa, are you an astronaut!?

Me: "No, I'm not, but I work with the astronauts. They are my friends"

JM: " Are you an astronaut? I am going to fly to Saturn. Okay, bye, I love you!"

Phone call from John Michael to my mom (who had surgery yesterday):

JM: "Hi Nana. I'm comin' to Arizona to take care of you 'cause you're gonna have a big owie on your belly".

Awww....what a cutie. And those sentences are pretty much verbatim, he talks SO well!

Clear Lake International Triathlon

The lack of posts has been due to the fact that life has been extremely busy- work, sleep, and training. Training for...the Clear Lake International Triathlon, Olympic Distance! (0.93 mile swim, 24.8 mile bike, 6.2 mile run).

Yesterday Lisa and I, along with some of our friends/co-workers, participated in this event. Big thanks to my roomies and my friend Jana, who is visiting (and took the pictures), for coming out to cheer us on.

Barry, me, Lisa, Scott, Sunni pre-race

I did better than I planned on the swim and bike (I had set "worst-case time goals" that I would be happy with and beat those).

That's me in the white cap at the end of the swim


Coming in from the bike

The run was brutal, it was really hot (in the 90s and humid) and I just do not run well in those conditions, so it wasn't the 10k time I was hoping for, but 1hr 11 minutes wasn't bad for the amount of walking I did...the first mile I ran was in 9min! Getting off of a bike going 17mph and starting to run completely screws up your sense of speed, so I definitely went much faster at first than I normally would have.

Starting the run

Still, my goal was to complete the tri in 3hrs 30 min and I did it in 3 hrs 28 min, so I am happy with the overall results. It was my first time transitioning with bike shoes too, so I know I can improve in that area. I am also excited to start some speed work training in my swim and I know I can improve in the bike (I think some weights and spin classes are in order :) ).

Chatting afterwards...I ran most of the time with that towel on my head and dumped ice water on it at every water station. Best idea ever :)

So I ended my tri season on a good note. While there are several available tris left in the season, I am refocusing my training efforts to prepare for my first half-marathon, the San Antonio Rock and Roll half-marathon in November. I am also registered for the Houston half-marathon in January. I plan to do several Olympic distance tris next year and am currently waiting to see how the Nov half-marathon goes to see where I should plan my first Half-Iron distance! Yep, you read right, Lisa and I are going to step up to the Half-Iron distance at some point (a Half-Iron is 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and 13.1 mile run)...its just determining first if I can handle that much running at once and then picking the best time to do one...

Best training/running/tri buddy ever, Lisa!

I was thinking while on the bike yesterday, how amazing it is that I can do these races. Some people with my disease are in constant pain and battling health instability all the time. I have been very blessed that the medicines I am on work well for me and that I have an awesome doctor (who still thinks I am crazy for doing this and is still amazed that I am ABLE to do these races). It is God who is sustaining my health through the rigors and stress of training, work, and life in general. I know it may not always be this way, so that makes me extra thankful for this very healthy period, where I can experience being an athlete. The training wasn't problem free, but I am being very careful to rest and pull back when any issues arise (so all you worryers, STOP WORRYING! :) ). So, I'll praise Him now for the privilege to participate in triathlons and half-marathons, and by His grace, I will praise Him still, if that privilege ever goes away.

Tris rock!!!!!

Hospitality #4

A much belated post...a couple of weeks ago we had our Mexican food-themed hospitality #4 event

The Shys, Hurds, Pam's parents, and Claire's sister and brother

Musings on Jeremiah

I'm currently in the middle of studying Jeremiah. I read chapter 27 the other day and was particularly blown away, old lesson, different angle...here are a few of my thoughts on it...

Jeremiah 27- Quick summary- Judah is strategizing to overthrow the rule of Babylon, which they have recently come under. God speaks through Jeremiah and tells the people that it is His WILL that they are under the rule of King Nebudchadnezzar and Babylon and they will be for some time. It won't last forever, but they must not fight back or they will be punished.

How amazing that God reveals a piece of His plan to Judah here. How needed it was as well...His plan was completely OPPOSITE of the people's natural instinct: Big Bad Babylon (Triple B) takes over=people fight back to reclaim their freedom, God says "Nope, stop, it's my will that you are under Triple B's thumb for now. Obey and submit". Whoosh- the sound of every person in Judah gaping at the Lord, "You want us to do WHAT!? How in the world does that accomplish anything!?"...Oh yes, God's grace all over this one- the people NEVER would have thought- "Ooh Triple B has conquered us, let us smile sweetly and offer our services to Triple B." God needed to show His plan to keep His people from getting into trouble (ie the promised punishment if they did not submit to Babylon's rule). He knows just what information we need to know, even though sometimes we can't see the reason or purpose for it. His mercy stretches even further when He tells them it will not be forever...he doesn't give a timeframe, just not forever. Think how we are in the same situation. Let's start big:

1) Big picture- Christ's return- we know its coming, but we don't know when. We are told to wait patiently and trust
2) Smaller picture- Our continual santification and eventual reward of heaven. We don't know when we will die, but we know it's coming, what's coming afterward, and are told to press on and trust
3) Smallest picture- the season of life that we are in. We don't know when the next will begin, we are told to press on and trust.

Nice to see that our God is consistent eh? He revealed a bit of his plan to Judah and told them to press on and trust. He reveals a bit of His plan to us and tells us to press on and trust. And, if read on, God is faithful to Judah, so guess what that means to us? Yep, you guessed it, God will be faithful to us. Love it.

Coldplay!!!!

So my birthday present to myself this year was to buy Coldplay tickets. My roomie Claire is a Coldplay fanatic and she decided to help me celebrate my birthday too ;-). Tickets went on sale on my birthday, so I had been patiently waiting for July 22nd to arrive for five whole months. Whew. It was tough. And then, the BIG NIGHT. Nothing like going to an outdoor concert in Houston at the end of July. Ha. We ran into our friends Adrienne and Allyson. They let you bring in cameras! I had left mine in the car 'cause I figured they wouldn't let me bring it in...so all the pictures are compliments of Allyson. The show was great! I couldn't get over how professional the video was for the big screens they had up, and the energy that Chris Martin (lead singer) has! Holy cow, he must eat like 47 GUs with rocktane or something like that before the show. They started the set with with my favorite song, Violet Hill, so I was pretty excited...very very good show. Great effects and lights. I highly recommend you see them next time they are in town.

Claire, Allyson, and me- prepared with ice cold water and frozen lemonade :)


Ahhh, Coldplay!!!!


Lead singer Chris Martin


"Yellow"

Amanda's wedding doings...

I am finally catching up on my blog.

So one of my roommates, Amanda, got married last weekend. Her now-husband, Dave, goes to my church and mentioned she needed a place to live for a couple of months, so we threw some curtains up across the entrance to the den, unfolded the fold out couch, and voila! another bedroom. It was fun having her here for those months, although we joke that we will all probably see her more now that she is married than when she was living with us (opposite schedules, etc) :). I've been a bit bad about taking pictures of things- I think my schedule is already so full that I don't think of blogging or scrapbooking, so I forget to take pictures. Here are a few from the shower and the wedding:

Amanda opening gifts at the shower


The four roomies


The Charlie's Angels pose


Awww, Amanda and Dave :)


The roomies at the wedding

A break :)

I just needed a break. So I took one. After the weekend in Arizona, I headed out to Los Angeles. My friend Angie and her husband Andrew recently moved to Canyon Country, CA (they used to live in College Station and housed me for two hurricane evacuations :) ). Angie picked me up at the airport, looked over at me and asked "so what's the plan?". I replied "beach, Disneyland"..."Good plan". We spent the afternoon roasting (literally, unfortunately, so much for SPF 70) in the California sunshine and ate dinner outside of Knott's Berry Farm.

Huntington Beach

The next morning we were up bright and early to go to the BESTEST PLACE EVER- Disneyland!

We ended up spending 14.5 hours at the park and had such a fun time.

Ice cream and Disneyland- ::sigh of happiness::


Sporting our uber cool Minnie ears (Angie and I and two of our friends took a road trip back in college here- she got a princess hat with ears and I got a Mickey santa hat..yeah we do the ear thing).


No, we didn't actually ride the teacups- my stomach and things that go around and around don't agree


On Wednesday morning, Angie took me to this breakfast place that has 101 omelets. She got a peanut butter and jelly omelet. It was really tasty. Really. Egg is very neutral tasting so if you can just get past the mental image of eggs and peanut butter, I promise your tummy will be happy.

Ah, good times, good times.