Katie Gets Married!

I've been in Greenville, SC for the past 4 days for Katie's wedding.

I could still cry as I type this b/c it was such an amazing experience - lovely weather, adorable town, wonderful events, beautiful bride, great friends - need I say more?

Katie moved to England over a year and a half ago and shortly thereafter met and fell in love with Rob, her now husband. This may have been the first time I was in a wedding and hadn't me the groom first. But I've known Katie for most of my life and completely trust her and had no doubt Rob was the one for her. Turns out, she was right. He clearly loves and adores her and she deserves nothing less.

I've been to a lot of weddings and been in a lot of weddings but there was something extra special about this one for me. I don't know if I just got caught up in the amazing weather and days of festivities but when a childhood friend gets married you can't help but reflect on how long you've known each other and all the things you've been through.

I'm so lucky that I'm so close with so many friends from high school. Jenn, Steph, Katie and I may go months or years without seeing each other but it's so easy and comfortable to be around them. It had been years since we'd all been together but it felt like yesterday. I guess that's the beauty of people knowing you maybe better than you know yourself sometimes.

I could go on and on about all the mushy details but suffice it to say it was a wonderful weekend. I laughed, cried, ate and drank my way through Greenville. Katie's parents and sister and her family were fantastic hosts.

Here are a few shots from the weekend:

Katie, me, Jenn and Steph out for 'ladies night'

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Dunn - just moments after their 'I dos'

The four of us, again, on the last night eating east coast bbq (which still wins my vote any day over Texas bbq)

I can't thank Katie enough for including me in such a wonderful event and my oldest and dearest friends for making me laugh so much this weekend. I already miss you!

Like Riding a Bike?

They say that you never forget how to ride a bike. That it comes right back to you as soon as you get on one again. I've actually found this to be true. I got a bike as an adult and quickly felt comfortable on it, remembering fond times on my purple Schwinn 10 speed I had a kid.

So why doesn't running feel this way? I mean I know I don't forget how to run but after only a few short weeks not running, it does feel like you have to start from square one (or at least two or three) again. But maybe that's just me?

I ran 3 miles today for the first time since the half marathon from three weeks ago. I've purposely been taking time off from running b/c I'll start training for the next half marathon in a few weeks. But boy did 3 miles feel tough. Admittedly it was hilly and we did walk some but geez.

But the most important thing about the run was why I was there. It was LIVESTRONG's annual Austin Challenge. What started as annual bike event in Austin to raise money for LIVESTRONG, turned into an entire weekend affair, 5k and all, several years ago.

I've participated in this event for the past few years - as staff, volunteer and runner - and am always so impressed with it. I'm also reminded of what a great job I have and how lucky I am to work for an organization that has such a powerful mission and dedicated employees.

And boy did I need that reminder. Lately, work has felt tough. To be honest, it's felt tough for about 6 months but I've had a bit of a bad attitude lately and I needed this. I needed to be reminded why I do the work I do and while little things may still annoy me that they are nothing compared to the amazing feeling I get truly impacting people's lives.

So thank you to the LIVESTRONG Challenge for that reminder and to my running and volunteering buddy, Devon, for making me laugh so much this weekend and trying to redirect me from walking in vomit.

Tia Mellie x2

Baby Sileo #2 was born bright and early on Saturday morning. She's adorable and healthy and, compared to tiny Lucie, she's enormous! Okay so she's 6lbs, 12 oz, 19 inches but that seems huge compared to 5lb Baby Lucie.

It all started with a phone call at midnight on Friday night/Saturday morning from Missy. I had just gone to bed and saw her number on my phone and knew it was go-time. I packed up some things for Buster and me and got over to their house around 12:30. Once Missy was pretty certain she was in labor, she and Chris headed to the hospital (around 2am). They continued to provide me text updates as I tried to get some sleep and await Lucie's morning routine.

While Lucie was eating her breakfast, her little sister was born! The name hasn't been decided on yet although they promise she'll have one before they leave the hospital.

My main job during all this was to take care of Lucie. We had such a fun day together - going to the park with Jen, Larkin and Layne, playing in the backyard with Bailey and Buster, coloring and playing with play-doh and reading 'I'm a Big Sister' that Jen gave us. I'm not sure she quite understood it but she did ask me to read it to her twice and sat in my lap while I read it, which she doesn't do that much anymore.

All in all, it was a great day with her. Despite how tired I was and how anxious I was to meet my new niece, it was so special to me that I got to spend this time with her - before there are two all the time. Lucie and I have always had a special bond (at least I think so). It's hard to know if that's b/c she's the first or because of the circumstances she was born under or if it's just simply her personality. But I look forward to creating a unique bond with her little sister, too!

So far, so good:

Half Full Tri

I know it's been a long time since I've posted. I wish I had a good excuse but life's just been busy. I've been traveling almost every week for work and when I have been home I've had a million things to do, including waiting for my new niece to be born! While I still can't imagine how I'll love her as much as I love Lucie, I know I will and I'm very excited to meet her - two weeks or less and counting!

In the meantime, this past weekend, I participated in my last triathlon (relay) this season and my second half marathon this year. I'll be honest, it was a doozie.

As you may recall, I trained pretty hard for the Austin half marathon in February. Kelsey and I ran 5 days a week and followed our training plan almost exactly. This time, I trained by myself. I missed a number of long runs, mostly ran on a treadmill b/c it was too hot outside and the furthest I ran was 9 miles and that was almost 3 weeks ago. This course was tough. While the weather was ideal (cloudy and 60s) there were more hills than I expected.

All this to say that I didn't perform quite as well as I did in February but I'm still very proud of myself - crossing the finish line at 2 and a half hours - granted the first 7 miles I felt like a rock star and the last 6 I thought I wanted to die. But it was for a good cause I'm so happy to have participated in this event.

Devon and Colleen were the other legs of our team and did a great job. Considering the cold water (and outdoor) temps, Devon was a champ - wetsuit and all. Colleen had the hilliest riding course ever but still managed to remain true to why we were there - to support the thousands of young adults diagnosed with cancer each year - and helped a cancer survivor on the side of the road who had a flat.

Not only did I enjoy the event, my parents got to see me finish a race for the first time! It was so great to see them at the finish line and know how proud they were of me.

All in all, a great day, a great team and a great performance. I'm a bit sore but will recover soon and plan to run, what may be my last half marathon, next February for the Austin (LIVESTRONG) marathon. Until Thanksgiving, though, I can take some time off from running and spend that extra time with my niece(s).

Here we are. The big winners in the category for 'All Female Relay Team Who Traveled the Farthest':