A Time of Thanksgiving

With November comes the colors of Fall. I loved driving around the small, narrow roads near my house seeing the arrays or orange, red, and yellow.

On November 11th, HBO sponsored the Concert for Valor on the Washington Mall. I met up with a friend after work and we were so far back that we had to watch on one of these screens. Not a big deal because the concert was fantastic! I later showed my 14-year-old niece the picture of Carrie Underwood and asked my niece if she knew who was in the picture. She responded she didn't know but that the woman looked familiar. I then showed her the picture of the guy in the second picture. My niece replied simply "That's Metallica." You can see how my brother has influenced his kids' taste in music.

After the concert, we walked around the monuments. The lighting was perfect!

The warm weather quickly cooled right in time for the half marathon. Start time was 25 degrees and it was only 30 degrees at the finish. I've never run a more frigid race, but I finished in 2:01. I had mixed feelings because I really wanted to see 1:59. Oh well. I'm going to keep pushing myself and try again next year.

Thanksgiving involved a 4K turkey trot with friends. We ran from Gravelly point to the Jefferson Monument. Though we are bundled up, the weather cooperated with minimal wind and tepid temperatures.

The day after Thanksgiving I met up with friends at the botanical gardens to see the train and monument displays that were created all in natural materials (bark, leaves, stems, plants, etc.) I wish my nieces and nephews were around because they would love the displays. And if I'm honest, my dad would have loved the trains too.

Running, Running, Running

October was mostly spent training for the Richmond Half-Marathon. The weeks were filled with five to six mile runs with the weekends being double that. Unfortunately I put my weekend adventures on hold until I finished training for this race. I felt good about my time and how strong I was getting. For my 12-mile run, my visiting teacher drove me to Herndon and I ran back to my car in Falls Church. Great motivation for not stopping!

The beginning of a 12-mile run

One weekend was a mid-singles conference and one event was held at the French Embassy. I'd been there before and didn't the venue was worth the hype being placed on it. Oh well. Still had fun with friends.

Friends at the French Embassy

Friend at the French Embassy

Facetime for the twins' birthday

The last week of October my good friend Mel came to visit. Mel, Cheryl (good friend who lives close-by), and I were able to enjoy some time together and endure the ritual we call Halloween. I love when my friends are in town!

Trunk-or-treat? Kids have it too easy

Avengers

Roommates together again

Happy Halloween!

Plowing Forward

I'm so close to getting caught up on life I can't stop now. September can be summed up in one word: adventure. I'd get bored sitting at home and would be afraid to call others to see if something was going on, so I'd pick a place to visit each weekend. I didn't want to feel that my life revolved around sitting: sitting at work, sitting at home, sitting at church, sitting. So off I went.

Weekend One: Fort Necessity Battlefield.
When Kath and I drove into the Maryland we kept seeing all these historical signs but it was dark and had no clue what we were seeing. I knew that I'd want to travel that same road in the daylight and I finally got my chance. Fort Necessity was my destination but...wow! So many unexpected landmarks and historical sites: Cumberland, the first National Road, Fort Necessity (Washington's only surrender), Braddock's road, first shots of the French and Indian War, and the most beautiful scenery I could imagine.

Mind the Gap

Cumberland

Cumberland

Fort Necessity

General Braddock grave (French and Indian War)

Remains of old 1700 roads

First shots of French and Indian War fired here

I loved this lake!

Capping it all off with a visit to the temple

Weekend Two: Antietam
The following week was the anniversary of the Battle of Antietam. I didn't want to be there during the anniversary because I hate crowds. This way I had the place mostly to myself. I also discovered the Appalachian Trail and did a bit of hiking as I found the first Washington Monument.

Cornfields of Antietam

Found the spot this where this picture was taken

Sunken Road

Appalachian Trail

Iwo Jima at sunset

Weekend Three and September 11th: Mount Vernon and Pentagon Memorial

Pentagon 9/11 Memorial

Pentagon 9/11 Memorial 

Mount Vernon

Mount Vernon

Mount Vernon

What's September without a little baseball?

Weekend Four: Utah!
I had meetings in San Francisco and spent a few days in Utah after that.

Meeting Jack

My mountains

First selfie

I asked him to smile :)

Creating mischief

Weekend Five: Fort McHenry
The week before was the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Fort McHenry and the Star-Spangled Banner lyrics but once again, I didn't want to battle the crowds and the rain was pretty bad in Baltimore. I'm glad I went this weekend as the sun was bright and the skies were clear. I loved being here and need to come back and explore the surrounding areas.

Fort McHenry

Fort McHenry

Fort McHenry looking towards Baltimore Harbor