Merry Christmas Everyone (a Chewy post)!

During this season of giving and family, lets all take a moment to appreciate our pets. We are faithful, loving, and when the weather is bad, there is not an indoor bathroom option. We see the full spectrum of weather coming while we're going.

A few extra treats and tummy rubs go a long way. Merry Christmas!

Christmas Run

Here are a few pics from the Christmas Run on Saturday. It was superly cold. I helped my friend (and fellow counselor) Tamra train for it and we had a great time. Below we are posing with her daughter Bella, one of the coolest girls I know.

In case you were wondering, I'm not wearing a cape; it's just a poorly arranged scarf.

I love this woman for having the courage to put a troll/elf in a portable little backpack. And then run a road race. I was laughing and running and trying to capture the shot so it's a bit of a Christmas miracle that I even got it. I kept wondering if she stole it from a neighbor's yard as a tricky little joke, or if she thought she could pass it off as one of Santa's little helpers, or if it was her quirky water bottle. Doesn't matter; it was great.

The final stretch to the finish...Bella won the race against her mom, but Tamra kicked butt--this was her first road race ever and I was very very proud of her!!!

Shooting the bull

Chewy and I went for a walk this evening and discovered that it is definitely Christmas season. We saw an elk hanging out with the cows, which was pretty cool. I told Chewy that it was a reindeer--and I know that's a lie--but she thought it was superb and got really pumped up with Christmas cheer.

We also spotted a very beautiful rainbow. It was a full rainbow, and at one end was our house (you can see it to the right) and at the other end, Chewy!

Prefonduane will not be stopped

Yes, he's back! Prefonduane came out in full force last weekend and ran the Boise City of Trees Half Marathon. He had a great race...until 3 miles to go. That's when the shenanigans began...

The start!

Here's Prefonduane about halfway through the 13 mile race--the three guys in the pic stayed together for pretty much the whole race. They would later be referred to as "The Lost Boys" (okay, just by me, but that is still notable).

4.5 miles to go--he was rockin'!!

Okay, so this pic is important for a couple of reasons. First, his fans were out in full force --Jim, his boss, who as you can see came straight from the airport (but not before picking up the infamous Magic and Mugsy), and my friend Tracy. Second, right after he came down the hill, all three of the guys (from the last picture) were accidentally directed past the 1/2 marathon turn and were sent on the marathon route. Yeah, I think the volunteers must have gone for a coffee or something. Or someone was really trying to stop Prefonduane. And it kinda worked, because he didn't come in until he had ran about 16--17 miles! A cop had to chase them down and help them find the right way. It was pretty sucky, but Prefonduane has already regrouped and has a new goal and a new race to work towards. And he also has a race story! By the way, Duane doesn't refer to himself as Prefonduane all the time; I just think its funny. :)

Post-race (I'm very proud of him)

Flower Update

I realize that there was some concern surrounding my "special flowers" so I thought I would show you how they are fairing. As you can see, they have recovered quite nicely. It helped that Duane's brother Bob was out visiting for about 3 weeks and watered the plants every day. Thanks Bob!

I know what you're thinking--they are still kinda funky looking--but I think they have tried to strike a balance between funky and healthy/vibrant. Win Win!

The Gods Must Be Crazy

Duane got baptized today at Discovery Park in Boise. Normally a baptism in August is not an extreme sport, but today the weather decided to shift dramatically and the high was 68 degrees. And there was wind. Holy cow is an understatement.

Pre-dunk

I would give this a 8.5 (for the splash)

Victory for Duane, although the pastor can no longer feel anything from the waist down.

I would like you to observe that Duane wore his Tennessee shirt for his baptism (purposefully) and also my Merrill river shoes that Mo and Geri labeled "German Tourist Shoes". Quite the ensemble. I think he looks cute.

I had to dig out my fleece for today and I was still cold. Seriously, it's not even September!

Duane's parents were traveling through Canada and made their way down for the weekend. They added a bit of international flair to the event. :) Since I was baptized as a wee lass (in the Catholic church), today was a big learning experience. It was quite moving to be a part of it and to see all the people who came to support those who were getting "dunked". And someone even made a three layered cake! I was, of course, very happy about that!

You be the judge

Okay, here's what I think happened: Some lady (hopefully not a guy) came into this Hairmasters haircut place and requested a wax, but not of the facial variety. I think the employees probably freaked out and explained the limitations to their waxing, and then immediately (after the disappointed customer left) grabbed a Sharpie and fixed the sign to prevent any future mental trauma. I've noticed the sign for a couple of years now, and it always makes me chuckle. I could just be a weirdo, but I really think something like that happened. Ha! P.S. : I do not get my hair cut here...

Retro Insanity!

Two summers ago I visited Mo and Geri and I found some pictures that show exactly what Geri has to put up with when I come out to visit. He is a patient man, but it is very apparent that even the strongest of men have their limits (see exhibit A). I think we were making him pose for pictures and making him take pictures. As you will see, we were a little off task...

Exhibit A

Crazy 1

Crazy 2

Crazy Squared

????????

Penner Time

That's right~it's that time of year! The Penner family invaded Idaho for about a week--we had lots of fun and ate a lot of food! Here are just a couple of pictures (b/c that's all I usually take).

Melita (sis in law) and Chewy were the best of friends during her visit.

I tried to get a picture of Jim riding away into the sunset via bike. He liked to do this--we called it his contemplative bike time. I thought about downloading some Yanni onto my Ipod for him, but common sense and common taste stopped me--he would have probably rather listened to Johnny Cash anyway...

Duane took Matt and Melita down the Boise River. There were no crazy incidents and no one fell out of the boat. Unheard of!!!

Here are my beautiful flowers. Some people choose to make fun of them, but I grew them from seeds and they have mad character. Duane calls them my "special flowers". Whatever.

The Great White North

We went up to Canada this weekend for a retirement party and a baby shower. I actually brought the camera (miracle), and I had batteries with power(another miracle), so I got a few pics.

Chewy got to ride on the plane--she would give a little yelp during takeoff every time--we think her ears were popping, but that's just a guess. Maybe Duane was pinching her.

Aww, Audrey was so darn cute! My sis-in-law Jen has been doing a great job and for some weird reason is a bit tired...

Duane crashed the baby shower party and demanded to hold the baby.

Canadians like to reduce/reuse!

Everywhere I go, people seem to know that I am a big freak for sweets! My mother-in-law put a sign on the Nanaimo bars; she knows what's up! :)

I didn't get any pics of the retirement party-woops! Picture a backyard party with a great view of the mountains, loads of cold drinks, lots of family and gallons of mosquito spray. Jim has been a teacher in Agassiz, B.C. for 33 years and has probably taught most of the town. He's a stud!

The other Portland

Duane was Lucky McSpoiled last week and traveled to Portland, Maine to help out the station out there. I sent him with the camera, and this is what he captured...

Duane's very to-the-point--he ate a lot of lobster and worked his butt off. No need for fluff, right?? (I think the second picture is of the Detroit Airport, where he was working one day, but this was a view from his hotel room--kinda weird!)

While he was gone, I was hanging in Boise and NOT riding my new bike that I got for my B-day b/c it was super cold. Here she is:

Sweet!

Thurdy!

Today I say hello to my 30's, and to help me forge ahead I have a new pair of socks matched with a new pair of flip flops! That's okay, right? Sure, it feels a bit unnatural, like meatloaf and strawberries, but I think I can get used to it. Thanks Mo and Geri for making this flattering ensemble possible --you two are rebels!

Yea, Mon!

We're back in Idaho, but I think my brain is still in Jamaica! Here are some pics from our trip--we thought we lost ALL of them, but thanks to some rockin' software, we were able to recover most of them!

Easter Sunday in Jamaica. By the way, every time Duane wore his Tennessee football shirt, about 5 to 10 people would come up to us and say something like "Go Vols" or "Did you go there?" or "Nice shirt, man!". Pretty cool. If you are every lonely and need a friend, just put on your Tennessee shirt and they will come...

Mmmm, Jamaican martini

Duane, smokin' a Cuban on the dock

It's a Red Stripe in a plastic cup! The way Jamaicans intended...

Duane's first pedicure

I just really like this pic. The room service fellas rode around delivering stuff with these cool bikes.

Someone we know asked us to take a picture of a topless European woman--here ya go, pervert.

Duane, on the rocks.

Duane, neat.

This looks kinda weird, but it was a jellyfish (or some similar creature) that came on shore. After we finished oogling at it, the lifeguards picked it up and then put the red flag out to prohibit swimming--eek!

A flower and a fruit.

We had a great time!