Savannah and Tybee Island, Dec 2024

Dipping my toes back into writing on this blog after an almost decade long hiatus. Looking back through some old posts makes me mad that I haven't kept up with this little digital diary! My little family has been keeping busy for all these years so I don't quite no where to start or where this will go. I have nearly 10 years of trips and memories to make up for here and that feels pretty overwhelming. For this post, I think we'll just skip back to Christmas 2024, mostly because it was somewhat recent and because I already downloaded the photos ha! 

After a short visit to my parents' house in northern GA for the holiday, we traveled to Tybee Island, a pretty little barrier island just beyond Savannah for a little sightseeing in a new place. The weather wasn't great, cloudy and cool, with intermittent rain, but also not terrible given it was the end of December. Our first day was spent in Savannah, where we basically parked at the visitor's center, grabbed a tourist map, and walked around for the entire day exploring the sights, sounds, and smells of the city! Savannah is a pretty cool town with lots of history and old architecture, very easy to walk around, and definitely a place I'd like to visit again. We toured a couple museums and churches, walked through a historic cemetery, and ate seafood at The Pirate's House.

The next day we explored Fort Pulaski National Monument, on Cockspur Island (between Savannah and Tybee Island). Its claim to fame is the the Union was able to breach the brick walls with rifled cannons and forced the Confederates to surrender.

Then we spent some time exploring Tybee Island itself. We climbed to the top of the Tybee Island Light Station, ate dinner amongst the alligators at The Crab Shack, and walked along the beach. We packed a lot in a little time and it refreshed the soul!

into developmental

AJ tried out for the developmental gymnastics team and was accepted! She was a full year younger and full head shorter than the other girls. They typically start girls at 4 (or close to) so we are very stoked that they are ready to take her on already!

My pull-up journey

The last time I set a personal goal was in the winter 2011/12. It was to run 13.1 miles. I made it to 10 mi when I found out I was pregnant. I have yet to check off that goal 4 years later. I continued to plug away at exercise through pregnancy, and AJ's infancy and toddler years, but it was aimless and not enjoyable. I realized this past summer it was because I wasn't working towards anything. So in Aug I tiptoed my way back into strength training, something I love and am good at, but had gotten away from over the past several years. At some point in Sept, I realized I was still drifting and needed a goal.

The pull-up - something that represents excellent upper body strength, that few women can do, and that even fewer can do several of - something that badass women can do. I had set my sights on it a few times but ultimately never put in the work and failed. I finally achieved that goal last week and can already do several pull-ups with short breaks in-between and 3 chin-ups in a row.

My pull-up passion has lit a fire in me that has been smoldering a long time. I have now set my sights on my 2016 goals: a pistol squat and a free-standing handstand. I've already started working on both but I expect they will take several months, possibly all year to achieve.

I hope each of you sets a goal for yourself in 2016 (fitness or otherwise) and that you work towards achieving it. I am so looking forward to this new year!

(This video isn't very good but it was my last pull-up today and I was tired.)

Happy New Year 2016

So life has gotten in the way of posting for a LONG time! AJ turned 3 a month and a half ago. She is awesome - smart, strong, sassy, sweet. She is a budding superstar gymnast. She started writing her full name and riding a 2-wheeled bike this fall (~2-3 months before her birthday!). She is a gifted artist and loves doodling people and spending time with her best friends (mom and dad).

summer time fun

AJ is 21 months tomorrow. And we just can't keep up!!! Every day she amazes us with her burgeoning vocabulary and physical prowess. She talks non-stop and is starting to put 2- and 3-words "sentences" together. She is calling herself "Ashee June". She loves to dance and jump and climb and hug. She is deliciously sweet and so affectionate. She is getting her colors down really now - she knows yellow, pink, green, blue, purple, and just today started pointing out black.  Occasionally she gets red and orange too. She hums along to the alphabet and 1-2-3's and sometimes even predicts the next number.  She loves to pick out her own clothes and shoes (and thanks to our neighbors, she has lots of shoes!) - she is our little fashionista!

Black Hills baby

After the Badlands, we ventured farther west to the Black Hills. We visited Wind Cave, home to the 6th longest cave in the world, but other than that, was not super interesting. AJ did really great considering I had to front-carry her in the ergo. By the end, she was actually asleep. The coolest thing about the cave was the air flow dynamics at the natural opening.

We did the 3 scenic drives around the Custer State Park area - all very beautiful, but not very birdy. We stayed at a campground near Custer and visited the 2 playgrounds in town at least once a day. AJ sure did love the new playground equipment she encountered.

Our last full day, we visited Mt Rushmore. It was July 3rd and there were lots of holiday activities, but we got there early to avoid the crowds and missed the activities.  AJ loves the stadium seating and kept walking across the benches. Trying to get pictures did not go well! It was really neat to experience as an adult.

The BADlands

During the week of the 4th of July, we headed to South Dakota for our second family camping trip. We drove to the Badlands on Sat and spent all day Sunday hiking and driving around. It was surreal! AJ did great on the all day drive there on Sat.