That's What Jenni Said

It was a very full weekend around our household. Friday I prepped and executed a birthday party for Literary Elly May . It was her 27th and we employed a zombie theme for the event. It was nice to have all her friends join us to celebrate. Saturday I led my walking meetup ( NoVA Walkers ) on a moderately challenging 6.8 mile hike in the Shenandoah Natl Park. We hiked Piney River Falls with a group of 8 and stopped for lunch once we reached the falls. The trail configuration is out-and-back, with a 3.4 mile decline down the valley to the falls and likewise 3.4 mile incline return. My recent running program has dramatically improved my cardio so I had no difficulties on the return section with breathing. However, despite my  muscle building (also thanks to running) it was clearly not enough to prepare me for a trail with this kind of protracted incline because although I was fine during the hike, I was very sore all day Sunday. Still, it was great to get out there and rise to the ...

Joy Another productive and fun week. So far, my early 30s, have been the best period of my entire life with more days of happiness and internal sunshine than cloudy despair. Everything seems so orderly and pleasant; the universe seems to make sense in a way that just wasn't within my grasp during my 20s. I wonder if it only gets better from here and I'll love my 40s as much or if this decade is really the peak. We shall see. Theology We enjoyed a really good fellowship discussion with our new associate pastor over dinner on Monday evening. We explored the ins and outs of Calvinism, missionary work, and the Christian approach to taking risks and decision making. Jon and I are both fond of this new guy and think he is going to be great for our congregation. Guns In the past week Jon and I had the pleasure of trying our hand at gun sport. Anna and Ron invited us as well as Danielle and Clayton out to the range in Alexandria to shoot for sport. Within the group we had a 22 rifle,...

Jonathan and I have traveled for each of the past two weekends and we're just a bit tired now. Two weeks ago we drove up to Davis, West Virginia for a romantic 12th anniversary celebration. We stayed in a cozy bed and breakfast - the Meyer House- and had a great time. The home was appointed with lovely antiques and our hosts made sure our suite was just perfect with a welcome basket of cheeses, chocolates, and sparkling beverages. Each morning a delicious breakfast awaited us downstairs. Saturday morning we were presented with eggs benedict served alongside seasoned skillet potatoes and grilled asparagus. Sunday we were served stuffed french toast with fresh fruit. Our hosts have an extensive DVD library so we took the opportunity to watch a movie during our stay. We chose Little Miss Sunshine and laughed the whole way through. It's a zany yet touching comedy about family life that we both enjoyed. I highly recommend it to you. When we weren't enjoying our suite at t...