Marathon Mel: 2010 in pictures part 2

JULY:
a very busy month...had lots of fun spending days at the pool and at zoombezi bay.

saw some pretty decent fireworks in gahanna!

took a trip to the columbus zoo with my mom, gramma, sister in law, nephew, and kayla's oldest friend jackie, who was visiting ohio from minnesota. they had a lot of fun!!

kyle and i took our first trip in 12+ years..went to vegas. i got to see the "love" by cirque du soleil. it was amazing!! i have lost 40+ pounds since this pic was taken. this month is when my "love affair" with running began. i started training for the columbus half marathon, and there was no going back.

AUGUST:

we took a trip to indianapolis to visit with my brother and sister-in-law and the family. the kids had a lot of fun!!

my cousin and her family visited from south carolina. while here, we got a family picture

and just moments after the pic above was snapped, my cousin's boyfriend proposed in front of the whole family!!! it was sooooo cool!!

SEPTEMBER:

i turned 35 this month... and i was in the middle of the most intense part of my training for the half marathon that i was getting ready to run in october. i don't have any pix from this month, but it was a good one!

OCTOBER:

had the opportunity to go to atlanta for my favorite christian conference of the year...catalyst. check it out...i look forward to it every year. and every year, it is life-changing!

we got a pic with tripp and tyler. a very funny comedic team that did a video with chris tomlin called "bowlin'" very funny...check it out!!

my catalyst buds!! love these guys!!

and i ran my first half-marathon. my goal was to finish somewhere between 2:40 and 2:10. i finished in 2:06:54...smashed it!! had an awesome time and i can't wait to do another one!! my mom and dad and mother in law and tea were there to cheer me on!! unfortunately, kayla was really sick and had to stay home, but she was with me in spirit!

here i am with 2 of my co-workers/friends after the finish! we all did great!!!

and..yep, i had a donut!!

NOVEMBER:

it's kind of weird...but i don't have an pix from this month either. however, i learned sometime in late october/early november that i have a heart condition called WPW. it is basically a heart condition that will cause my heart to race uncontrollably at times. i had a very scary episode which caused me to call 911 and be taken to the ER because it began racing and wouldn't stop for more than an hour. (heart rate was over 200 and blood pressure was half of what it should be). the treatment is pretty "easy" and non-invasive and i will be undergoing it in january. i have had these episodes since i was 19 years old, and after multiple trips to cardiologists, i was told they were panic attacks! glad to finally have some answers...and an end in sight. thankfully, it has not been a reason for me to stop running.

DECEMBER:

what a busy month! lots of parties....like the math department christmas party. it's always a good time. here's a pic with some of the girls!

we celebrated christmas with my family on the 18th, at my gramma's house on the 25th, and with kyle's family on the 26th!! they were all fun and i loved spending time with people i love!

kyle had too much sugar...

kayla got a kindle...and has not put it down since she opened it. and tea got an american girl doll...she has been asking for one for years. this was the year!!