FUN-due with Friends!

I had Monday off for MLK Day. You have to love working at a non-profit at times like this. Jeff's department had to work even though the company was closed. I have been trying really hard this time around to keep busy while Jeff is working long hours, so I don't get bumbed.

I have several girlfriends from high school that have stayed in touch through the years. We usually get together at Christmas, but this year we all had family commitments so we weren't able to get together in December. We decided to celebrate on MLK Day instead.

We went out to lunch at Pei Wei and then back to Sarah's apartment. Kristen got a chocolate fountain for Christmas, so we HAD to try that out. It was a lot of fun! We laughed, ate, and ate some more. The only problem was our chocolate fountain dried up faster than expected. Oh well, it was a lot of fun anyway!

On another note, Jeff has been working 70 hour work weeks for a couple weeks now. He works 8 hours on Saturdays and at least 13 on weekdays. I keep myself busy with two Bible Studies a week. (I even go to a couples on by myself!) I also have home visits and am spending time with friends and my parents. But, poor Jeff is getting worn out. Please, pray for endurance as he is the sole survivor of the financial reporting group. They brought in a consultant to help him out, but he expects to work long hours until the end of February.

WE DID IT....26.2 MILES!!

This morning at 3 AM we woke up to walk the Houston Marathon. Of course, you all know we have been training since July. I have to admit, the training helped a lot. I only cried two times and I didn't quit!!! That is huge for me! Jeff did awesome as well and was the best encourager that I could have asked for. I told him after the race that I couldn't have ever dreamed of doing something like this if I hadn't had him to challenge me and believe in me. We finished in 8 1/2 hours and got a huge metal, a finisher shirt, a mug, and a wonderful breakfast. The stuff you put in your mouth while doing a marathon is awful. The people who come up with it are trying to make the stuff edible and I appreciate that, but I nearly gagged several times. So, by the time we got done, I can honestly say I didn't want to eat anything else. Jeff says you need to rebuild your muscles though, so we did. The only other down side is that I have blisters covering both feet. That makes it hard to walk, though I'm not as stiff as I thought I would be. But it was all worth it!

There were a LOT of wonderful people who came out to support the marathoners and our personal support team were Lee and Ella. It meant a ton to know they were waiting for us at mile 24! They brought us crackers and peanuts and cheered us on. They ROCK! I don't have any pictures yet of us in the actual race. We had our photo taken several times by the marathon photographers, so I will post them as soon as we get them. But, until then....here are pictures of us at our house before the race. Thanks for all of your encouragement and support as we trained! We accomplished something unbelievable and the best part is we did it as a team!

GO TEAM ALBUS!!!!!!!

Catch up and Marathon Update

There are two new slide shows, but no real post to speak of from me. Sorry guys! We have been doing a lot of fun things and enjoying a wonderful holiday season, but I haven't made it to the computer to record it yet until now.

We have a slide show of our Christmas with the Hendricksons, which took place the weekend before Christmas. Sarah, Wade, and Clayton came to my parents house for the weekend and the 7 of us had a great time! We did the traditional night before PJ gift exchange and picture on "Christmas" morning. We also were able to have a delicious meal and some quality time. With everything our family has been through lately, we treasure time together more than anything else. We had a ton of fun watching Clayton open his gifts this year!! He was so cute! He would say, "I LOVE IT! THANK YOU!" as soon as he opened each gift. It didn't matter what it was, he loved it. He opened his gifts on his own and entertained himself quite well while the rest of us opened our gifts.

We went to Christmas Eve services a day early on Saturday at Second Baptist Church and then went to see Jeff's parents Monday through Wednesday. It was fun to spend time with his sister, her husband, his brother, our nephew Austin, and Jeff's parents. I forgot the camera so sorry there are no pics. His sister is going to send them to us later. Anyway, we had two great meals and a lot of fun visiting. Austin got a 4 wheeler. He is 4. He was cruising on that 4 wheeler like it was old hat. They have a lot of land so they put parental controls on it so he couldn't have full reign. That kid was out there in the cold ALL DAY! It was hard to get him to come in to go to his mom's house. He's a real cutie and SO much fun!

This was our first Christmas married and we were able to make it really special! We also enjoyed a WONDERFUL first New Years!

We left for San Antonio after church on Sunday, Dec. 30th. I took off work on Monday, so we stayed there until Tuesday afternoon. I think San Antonio is a beautiful city and really romantic too, especially this time of year. The River walk has all kinds of Christmas lights and they have a fun festival with live entertainment and great fireworks. When we got in town on Sunday we went to Holiday in the Park at Fiesta Texas. It was their first year to have one. It was fun. They had a really pretty Tree and they claim it is the largest one in Texas. They also had great shows and hardly any crowd. We got to ride every ride that was open! Jeff was determined to do that since the lines were pretty short.

We stayed at the Emily Morgan Hotel. It is a historic hotel next to the Alamo that has Gothic architecture. We had an amazing 4 course meal at the Hotel's restaurant, Oro, on New Years Eve with wine pairings for each course. It was yummy and very special! They gave us a printed menu with New Year's Eve 2007 on it and complimentary hats and noise makers too. Then we went to the street festival. They have a huge fireworks display and fun music. It is the only place that Jeff and I would dance in the streets, but we do there. It was really windy this year. Several times our hats nearly blew off our heads!

Jeff has a way of planning the most wonderful trips for us and he even plans fun road stops. It's silly, but it is one of the things I love most about Jeff because it reveals how sweet and thoughtful he is. If you ever go on a trip with Jeff, you don't have to worry about questionable restrooms. It is nothing but the best when he plans the trip. We go to this great place called, Buc-ee's . I LOVE BUC-CEE'S! http://www.bucees.com/photos.htm They have everything from beef jerky and sandwiches to gifts and T-Shirts. They also have the most stalls and cleanest restrooms I've ever seen. That is a must when you drink as much caffiene as we do! You should definitely stop by there on your next trip to San Antonio. All in all, we are excited about a new year and a new opportunity to grow as a couple and develop deeper relationships with you, our friends and family!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

So, I know ya'll have been anticipating the Houston Marathon with us for the last 6 months that we have been training. Well, it is almost here! We will be walking 26.3 miles on Sunday, January 13th beginning at 4:30 Am. We are hoping to make it to the finish line by 1 PM when the race ends. We would welcome anyone who wants to come support us. You can find a place to watch at http://www.chevronhoustonmarathon.com/Left_Column/Spectators.htm. Sorry, we can't be tracked on the Athlete tracker because we won't be timed. We are excited and I am very nervous. We have walked up to 21 miles in training, but are now in a train down mode. This Saturday is our last training day and we will be walking only 6 miles. This has been a great time of learning how to encourage one another and a fun source of growth for our marriage. However, we will enjoy sleeping in past 4 AM on Saturday after the marathon is over. This is the first of many large goals that we will accomplish in our marriage. Let us know if you want to come!

Holiday in the Park and New Years in San Antonio!

Hendrickson's Christmas and Texas Bowl

Check out my Slide Show!

Thanksgiving and Update

The first picture is from Veterans Day. It is a picture of our house with the U.S flag in front of it. My favorite Eagle Scout, Jeff, decided to make a donation to the local boy scout troop in exchange for the service of having a flag placed in front of our house on patriotic holidays. We were so excited when we saw it outside on Veterans Day. I love the way the picture turned out too. God bless America and the Boy Scouts!

The rest of the pictures in the slide show are from Thanksgiving. My sister, brother in law, and our beloved Clayton came to Houston the weekend before Thanksgiving. We were able to spend a lot of time together and have a great pre-Thanksgiving meal at Black Eyed Pea. For Thanksgiving Day we went to visit my mom and then took my dad with us to Jeff's sister, Lisa's house in Spring. Jeff's mom and dad, brother, Lisa, her husband Jaime, and Jaime's mom all celebrated with us. They made a TON of yummy food, we watched football and enjoyed visiting. It was a lot of fun! My favorite part of holiday meals with Jeff's family is dessert! They always make several different kinds of dessert and they are all always amazing! I definitely have a long way to go before I catch up with the Albus ladies in the kitchen, but I am trying.

Friday we went to visit my mom again and this time my Aunt Ann was there. She came in from Florida, so we were able to visit with her as well. Beyond that, Jeff and I enjoyed putting up our Christmas decorations and tree, as well as going to the movies. We also got to catch up on some much needed rest. We felt really blessed.