It's Officially Summer

The Summer Solstice: Becky invited me along to do "Yoga At The Circle" this year during the summer solstice. Each year, a ton of the yoga studios in Indy get together and close down the circle and do a yoga class for thousands of people. It was a super cool experience. So glad that Becky invited me to do something I wouldn't normally do on my own. 

Morse Summer Tri: I had my first tri of the season. It was the most beautiful day of the year, a cool morning and almost no humidity. My time was almost identical to last year, which at first was a big letdown. But...as the day went on and I was able to process things a little more and realize that I'm not doing this to make money or win medals. And just so I remember in the future, this tri felt SO MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE. The only leg that I shaved significant time off of was my transitions, and I need to remember that this is a great victory. I'm more uncomfortable with being uncomfortable, and those quicker transitions show that. 

 Happy Birthday, Drew: The evening of the Morse Tri, we went by Drew and Bryn's to celebrate Drew's 27th birthday. They fixed us a great dinner, we played yard games and phase 10, and ended up spending the night. It was a blast, a total and complete blast. So thankful to have these crazy friends close.

Visiting the Mastey's: It's no surprise that Jordan's grandparent's health is not great. We've known for a while that their health is declining and that we should visit. We found a free weekend and made the trip to Sherreville with Danny and Emily. It was great to get to visit, if only for an hour or so. Jean's memory is almost completely gone, but she is still so pleasant and so so funny. She kept telling me, "Wow, you're really pretty." It was so genuine...and then two seconds later, "You're grandpa always liked black women." Her quips, you can't help but laugh. While Stan's physical health isn't good at all, he still remembers all of us and can carry on a pleasant conversation with all of us. I'm so so so glad that we made the trip. It made me miss my grandparents so much. So many of the smells, sounds, and memories were the same. When Stan asked for "raisin bread," I almost started to cry-I hadn't thought about that bread in years and made my heart hurt. Thankful for these good memories. 

 Poor Shadow: Long story short...our family cat, Shadow, died a few weeks ago. My mom wanted us to all be home to bury her, but I had to Facetime-in...it was a lot...it was awkward...

Happy 4th of July: We spent the 4th of July this year relaxing. I met Dani super early for a long swim at Lake Max, which was great. Swimming in a lake early in the morning with no worries of being hit by anything...a dream. 

Brittany came over later in the afternoon, and we spent a few hours by the pool. So great to catch up and not worry about the time. Love that woman. 

In the evening, we went to the Kimes for dinner with most of the small group. Corey smoked an amazing brisket. After dinner, we headed to the park down the street for the fireworks. It was...interesting. As someone said, it was a "4-D experience." Literally...fireworks from far away....right behind you...a 5 year old with a bottle rocket 2 feet from your face. It was a totally new experience, but it was spent with great people, and that's all that matters. 

Dani WOOOOONNNNNNNN Muncie 70.3: YYYYAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSS! It wasn't like I didn't know that Dani was an amazing triathlete, but to see her come across that finish line and grab the tape was A-mmmaaaaazzzzziiinnggg. SO proud of her!

That scream. The best!

Happy 60th Birthday, Dad: Happy 60th birthday to both of my parents this year! My parents are generous, loving, and two of the hardest working people I know. I'm so lucky to have been raised by them and still have them around to learn from! Cheers to many more years of adventures!

My mom planned a surprise party for my dad in Sullivan this past weekend. It was a great time to catch up with family that we don't see very often and celebrate my dad! We had a ton of fun playing yard games and hanging out together.