Awards Day

It's 8th Grade Awards Day for our last time in middle school. The Little One racked up some serious awards, too!

She received the ONLY mathcounts award in the school, a certificate for being co-president of Student Council, separate awards for the highest average in Honors English I, Honors Algebra I, Honors Science, all A's for the year, and scoring a 100 on her End of Course Exam in Algebra I. 

Here is a video of Julia receiving the awards.

She was all smiles heading back up the bleachers.

Proud dad with our little one.

A few pics with her friends...this is Katey from soccer.

This is Blakely from cross country...

This is Abigail who shares the co-president role with her in Student Council...

We signed her out of school for early dismissal and treated her to Olive Garden for lunch.

Later that evening, she had her soccer awards.

The coach said some great things about the team this year and handed them each a certificate.

Then the JV team handed the coach his award and card. Wonderful season!

Training, Part 4

My sweet family helped me do a "trial run" on my big hike. Eric and the Little One grabbed their backpacks, camping gear, and a stash of food to join me on this final outing. 

This was my longest hike yet at 15 miles, plus I needed to test all the camping gear. Here was our lunch spot.

They were troopers! I couldn't believe they hung with me step for step. I guess they didn't need to train as much as I did because they were already in shape.

The hike was beautiful! Eric picked out some great trails that included waterfalls...

Overlooks...

And neat bridges.

We slept fairly comfortably and the gear held up well. Nice job, family! 

Now to grab some coffee on the way home.

Training, Part 3

For my long 12 mile walk today, the Little One came with me!  That was really a nice treat having her to share the morning.

We decided to walk along Altamont Rd, a winding, 6-mile road up Paris Mountain and down the back side, only to turn around at the bottom and reverse direction back the same way. It didn't take long for us to shed the sweat shirt. The steep road really got our heart rate up.

Along the route, the views were amazing!

We also noticed a lot of trash along the side of the roads, so we brought along several trash bags to collect debris that had been tossed. From beer cans and whiskey bottles to chip bags and fast food cups, we collected 5 bags!

Just before the real summit, there's a house called "The Summit". Since there isn't a permanent marker at the peak, this became a nice alternative for a photo.

Eric wanted to run up the opposite side, so we met him on our downslope. It's tough just walking up this road; I couldn't imagine running it. Super proud of him! After we shared our water, he kept going to the top.

The homes here and the views continued to be beautiful! This was one of my favorites. The view is looking South with Greenville, SC in the background.

On the downside of the mountain, the views to the north were just as awe-inspiring.

We were done by noon, then off for lunch and sweet tea at McAlisters. It was a great start to the weekend! 

The AT

Eric decided to hit the AT (Appalachian Trail) for an overnight hike.  He drove to Clayton, GA and started the trail at Dick's Creek Gap.

Eric hiked up in the Georgia mountains.  His goal was to hike 4.7 miles to a shelter.

He was having fun, all smiles enjoying the fresh outdoors.

He finally reached his destination for the night.  It was Plum Orachard Gas Shelter

Eric shared the shelter with several other hikers including some from Texas, Flordia, and Massachusetts.  They had a good time talking.  When the sun set, the temperature dropped and all retreated into a warm sleeping bag.  The temperature got in to the 30's that night. 

The next morning it was time to go South bound back the Dick's Creek Gap.  The hike back seemed to be almost up hill all the way which was strange because the hike to the shelter seemed to be up hill all the way.  A few breaks were needed.

About 2 1/2 hours later, Eric was back to his vehicle.  Then it was time for breakfast and coffee at McDonalds in the nearest town.

Training, Part 2

This weekend was another 10+ mile workout, but I rallied up some of the other ladies to go with me.  We hiked Paris Mountain and all throughout this beautiful state park.  The morning was a bit chilly, but at 7:30am, we were ready to go.

When you carry a 15lb pack and climb 1700 ft, it doesn't take long to warm up. 

We kept a strong pace, only stopping once for a quick snack.

Then it was off again to complete our workout.  

#ChallengeAccepted  #NonprofitCEOhike  #May2021

Easter

This was a special Easter for so many reasons!  First, we were actually able to attend church services.  Second, all my kiddos were home.  And third, my parents came to visit!

While they were here, we wanted to show them one of our favorite pastimes...disc golf.

None of us are good, but it provides a nice opportunity to get outdoors and stretch our legs.  Grandma and Poppie did surprisingly well.

We did have one water hazard, but Eric found it plus another one!

Since our youngest still enjoys coming down Easter morning to filled baskets and hunting eggs, I made a special call to the Easter Bunny to include all three.

The weather was perfect for finding those hidden eggs. 

After a brief wait, Eric got to look for any still left.  

What could be inside those eggs that would make young adults want to participate?  Each was filled with either candy, cash, or lottery tickets. I'm guessing it wasn't the candy.

Training, Part 1

I decided to join fellow nonprofit directors on a 5-day hike at the end of May.  Once committed, training needed to start right away.  We have to be able to carry a 15lb pack and cover 15-16 miles per day.

Besides my daily 2-mile walk around the neighborhood, my regimen includes a long walk/hike on the weekends.  I began with an easy, road walk of 10 miles with a half-way destination point.

My treat for making it the first 5 miles was a Bojangles biscuit, fries, and tea.  Plus, a quick text to the family that I made it. 

I couldn't help but noticed all the trash on the side of the road.  (Littering is NOT cool, by the way.)  So on the walk home when one of the littered items was an empty trash bag, I had to take action.  This large 13-gallon bag was stuffed to the brim after only 300 yards.  I think I'll start carrying trash bags on all my walks from now on.