Family Date Day in Spirit Lake (July 28)

With the weather cooling down finally, we decided to head down to Spirit Lake for lunch and to enjoy the day.

We didn't end up getting on the road until around 12:30 and headed straight for Mrs. Lady's to enjoy some lunch.

I had the chicken chimichanga.

Mark had the beef enchilada.

The food was really good, albeit very filling, and we both had leftovers for the road. We were a little disappointed at how slow the service was.

We had initially planned to head down near the beach and plop down with a blanket, but unfortunately, it ended up raining on us, so we had to cut the day short. I can't complain about the rain though - we certainly needed it!

We ended up picking up about 5 dozen ear of corn on the way back home from a place along the way, which gave us our next big task: freezing it all! Of course, we forgot about it on Sunday, when we had the time, and ended up not getting to it until Tuesday - ooops! It didn't end up being the best ever, but it was alright.

10K Training

Mark and I are once again tackling training for the Turkey Day 10K in Worthington in mid-September. If you recall, this is my 3rd time running this particular race (see my first and second times in 2007 and 2009).

This year we're mixing it up a bit with different routes, a different type of playlist (for me anyway - Mark doesn't do the headphones/music thing while running), and doing our training entirely outside (at least for now). I've been tracking our routes using the mytracks app on my phone, so now I'm not limited only to routes I'm familiar with.

We've enjoyed tackling views like this while in Humboldt:

Our times are extremely sluggish overall, but we're trying not to let that deter us from doing our best.

We both picked up new shoes this past weekend in Des Moines, and they seem to be helping significantly.

We've been using the Hal Higdon novice training schedule. Next weekend we will have finished the 5K schedule, and we will then jump right into the 10K schedule. We're looking forward to a short break from the quarter mile jumps each week, as the 10K schedule keeps us hovering at around the 2.5/3 mile mark for a couple weeks.

It's a challenge trying to make time for our runs, not only because we now have a baby to shower with hugs and kisses, but also because of how extremely hot this summer has been. We've found ourselves sucking it up and going on our runs at 5am in 80+ degree humid temps in an effort to save ourselves from the 100+ degree humid temps later in the day. Those days are awful, but fortunately this training schedule only has us running 3 days a week so far, so at least we get more rest days than previous schedules have allowed us. (Hmmm...could that be why my knees were shot so early on with the last race?)

Anywho, that's what we've been up to every Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoon since Memorial Day. I can't say I've seen even a pound drop, but I feel better overall, and am hoping that as the days go by, we'll find our runs more enjoyable.

I know you're all just dying to cheer us on at the big race in Worthington on September 15 at 10:30am! (Ugh, I know, that's such a late race time - we complain every year!)

Until then, please don't stop and laugh when you see the jiggly pudgy woman running up and down 6th Avenue :)

Des Moines Weekend (July 5-7)

After the excitement of Wild Water West and the 4th of July, we had a lazy morning around the house before loading up the Tahoe and heading down to Des Moines. We had two days off work due to our daycare provider being on vacation, so we spent the long weekend down in Des Moines visiting two of my brothers and my friend Steff.

Thursday: Traveling and Supper at Outback

We hit the road around 2pm and made it to Humboldt shortly after 4pm to pick up my Mom. After checking our Josh and Tiff's new (to them) home, and visiting for a little while, we packed up and hit the road again.

We made it to Des Moines around 7pm and headed straight to Jason's apartment to drop off a bed we had brought down for him. We then picked up my friend Steff on our way to Outback Steakhouse for supper.

After supper, we headed back over to the hotel to visit for a while, before I took Steff back to her car and went to bed!

Friday: Shopping, Resting, Supper at Machine Shed

After breakfast in the lounge, Mom and I took off to check out a Christian bookstore nearby while Mark and Cashel lounged back at the hotel. It was fun to have a little mother/daughter bonding time while listening to some tunes and helping Mom build a CD.

We got back to the hotel and lounged around for a little while waiting for Jason to get off work.

After Jason got off work, we met up with him and found some lunch at Wendy's. Afterwards, we headed back to Jason's new apartment to get him settled in a little bit and rest. It was really hot out, so doing anything outside didn't sound too appealing.

We met up with Dave, Elicia, Ben and Catherine at the Iowa Machine Shed Restaurant for supper around 5pm, which was a nice time :)

After dinner, we made our way back to the hotel to visit for a while.

Cousins Cashel, Ben and Catherine - too cute! :)


They were obviously thrilled to have their picture taken haha

This little peanut gets more and more adorable every time we see her! She's so, so sweet :)

Saturday: Shopping, Lunch at HuHot, Visiting at Dave & Elicia's, Home

Our final day in Des Moines, we slept in a bit after a long night with Cashel, then found some breakfast and headed out for a little shopping before meeting Dave and family again for lunch at HuHot.

We hit the road around 4pm and made it to Humboldt around 6pm to relax for a bit.

We had a great time in Des Moines for the long weekend, and are so glad to see Jason settled into his place, as well as Dave and his family thriving with little Ben and Catherine :)

Independence Day (July 4)

We were thrilled to spend the 4th of July this year in Worthington with Mark's Dad's side of the family. This year, it fell on a Wednesday, and we gathered at Uncle Dean and Aunt Barb's home with 17 others. Mark's younger sister, Sarah and her husband were even able to make it up from Omaha for the day.

The decor

Once again, Barb outdid herself with the patriotic decor - how fun :)

The food

We certainly couldn't have a Johnson family get-together without a TON of food! Grill-masters Kent and Dean grilled up some burgers and brats while the rest of us prepped salads and other sides in the house.

Time to Eat!

The Company

It's hard to believe how much these two have grown in the past 7 years since I've known them.

Del and Karen finally got to meet Mr. Cashel

Daddy and Mr. Cashel :)



We finally got to meet Kirsten's boyfriend, Luke!

Grandma and Uncle David

The "Newlyweds", Sarah and Johannes, having just celebrated their first anniversary in early June!

Mark's Dad and Pam :)

Our hosts for the day - THANK YOU, Dean and Barb!

Del and Karen made it from Oklahoma for the week!

Our little family :)

Dan and Kathi

Kirsten's little Lucy is such a sweet pup!

Great Aunt Karen getting some snuggles in :)

After a very exciting, very big day, Grandma Pam FINALLY got the little guy down for a nap, even if it was short-lived.

Aunt Sarah enjoyed playtime with Cashel :)

My sweet baby boy :)

Grandpa and Grandson :)

We had a wonderful day! Another big thanks to Dean and Barb for opening up their home for the fun day :) We appreciate the openness and hospitality and had a great time!