Running
I have officially completed my first 5K run, which was actually 4.2 miles in honor/memory of the late Pat Tillman (42 was his ASU football number). Here I am crossing over the finish line!
My status were: Overall 6028/19,684; Gender 1767/9881; Division (Age) 561/2988; and I ran a 9:34 pace. Not bad for my first run! :-)I am planning on completing a 10K by November and a half-marathon by January...maybe marathon if I feel I can do it. I am very excited that this is something that I have found that not only mentally gets me in shape but physically. I will say that I have never been this physically fit ever; not even when I was in high school. It is a good feeling! I also enjoy that Matt has joined me. It is nice that we have another activity that we can share together.
Hiking
Wow! Has this Spring been filled with AMAZING hikes!! We have done no less than 8 miles on any given day and the most we have done thus far is 13. We have seen great flowers, lots of water, a little bit of animal life, and learned a lot of interesting history. Matt sure has become a little Indiana Jones! If we don't have a trip that includes going and seeing some old mining camp (that only has some rusty old nails and tin cans left) or some other link to history, he isn't excited. However, he has taken me to some really cool places thus far. Here are two really cool pics. I will provide captions, so that you know what they are:
These are grinding holes in Garden Valley (Superstition Mountains) that are at the ruins that date back to prehistoric times. They were first reported in the Arizona Daily Gazette in 1893.
The Spanish Hieroglyphics are thought to be the key to one of the 18 Peralta gold mines in the Superstition Mountains. The Sunburst indicates it was a very rich mine, the word “ORO” tells us what it is all about—GOLD (you can only see the O in this picture - straight down from my left elbow). Then there is the map sketched on the rocks below. Could it be the Lost Dutchman’s Gold Mine?
If you can believe it or not, these are the mountains right by our house. The early Spring showers brought the mountains alive with greens, yellows, and purples. It was absolutely breathtaking! Most of the hills around us have now started to dry up and turn brown, but the high elevation areas are still very much green.
The Brittlebush is still very much vibrant around Miner's Needle.
And the trees are still very much green around Weaver's Needle. By the way, this was where we at lunch yesterday...pretty nice view, huh? :-)Family
Well, we are all doing well. I guess that somewhat sums it up. We spoke to the kids on Skype last night, and we are ready to head to Michigan in a few weeks to see them. we miss them A LOT!!
Tyler is done with basketball now, and has started baseball (player pitch). It looks as though he may be the pick for the team's pitcher. We couldn't really tell if that excited him or not...but that is Tyler! Melissa is still playing soccer and enjoying her time on the field.
We had a little surprise for them, and we can now share with everyone :-) We have decided to add an additional member to the Whipple family! It is a little black fur baby, and we have decided to name her Lily. Now, we just need to work on middle names! Here is a picture of her.
Seems that she is a pup from a litter-mate of Baxter, so that makes her his niece. Isn't that crazy?! Last Thursday I was just playing around online and googled "Nubbybutts" which is the name of Baxter's breeder. I came across Jen's blog which mentioned that she had babies that she needed to find homes for. Well, we have a home! Lily comes home with us the weekend that we visit in May. Melissa is all excited that she gets to pick up her new little sister...and also by the way, Melissa was the one that gave the deciding vote that it was Lily!
Well, I think that is all for now.
