2011

This year has been one of my best yet!

-Ran my first half marathon (the furthest I had ever run in my life and started crying mile 6 and then kept running because I hadn't even reached the half point yet)

-Ran my second half marathon, Disney Coast to Coast!

-Lived abroad

-learned to speak enough German to have a conversation

-Traveled to Rome

-Traveled Prague

-Traveled some more (Berlin, Dresden ...)

-Ran the Mud Run with my siblings at Camp Pendleton

-Starting singing again

-Got healthy

-worked out regularly for a solid year (goal: 4-5 times a week)

-shaved ten minutes off of my second Half marathon

-Ryan got a job!

-Went to Florida with my Sister and my Mom

-Swam with dolphins and string rays

-Drove across the country again.

Its been a crazy year! I have done a lot. It felt so good to sit down and realize how much I had accomplished in just 12 months. I feel really blessed and always want to acknowledge the Lords hand in all of this. My life has been such a blast these last four 1/2 years!

Heres to 2011, Bring it!!!

Lately Addie has been showing a huge interest in reading more than just a short word. So we started with a simple children's books online and she was reading full sentences!! Huge success!

Christmas Markets Heidelberg

As we have mentioned before, the Christmas Market in Heidelberg begins literally less than 100 yards from our little apartment. On one of our many walks through town we decided to stop and pick up a Bratwurst for Addie (who still refers to them as "hot dogs" much to Ryan's chagrin). She loved it! What you can't tell from the photo is that the Wurst itself is almost twice as long as the baguette it is on. She would have eaten it all if not for a tragic moment in the grocery store when it hit the floor and Mom and Dad declared it inedible.

Mom and Dad needed some dinner as well, so we went for potato soup in a bread bowl! (note Addie in the background in her Hello Kitty gloves still working on the 1/2 meter bratwurst.

We also ran into Santa along the way, and he and Addie had a very serious chat about something. He spoke perfect German and English (as one would expect from Mr. Claus)


Note: above - Dad holding the "hot dog" so that she could better focus on her conversation. below - the last picture before the tragic fall (which occurred a solid 3 inches or so later).

We are loving Heidelberg, particularly during Christmas time.

(Stay tuned for updates on this last weekend's Christmas Market tour: Frankfurt - Wuerzburg - Nuremberg)