We're going to London!

Great news. Chris is going to a conference in January and it just happens to be in LONDON! So I decided to tag along and see the sights while he is hard at work inside of a conference center.

I am so excited. Chris and I haven't had a lot of vacations where it was just the two of us...wait...let me think. Yep - our last vacation as a couple was our first anniversary and we went to a little cabin in Wyoming. Wait, my brother Justin and his wife Kathryn... and their baby were there. It is time for me and the Mr. to set out and explore the world.

If you need me from January 8th - January 18th I will be touring galleries, watching guards do their changing thing and so much more.

Musical of the week: Summer Stock and Calamity Jane

Our family has begun the tradition of watching a musical every week. Most the time we watch them on Sunday after church. This week we watched Calamity Jane after church on Sunday and we watched Summer Stock on Tuesday.

Summer Stock stars Gene Kelly and Judy Garland. The story is set on Jane Farbury's (Garland) farm and her sister Abigail surprises Jane by bringing a whole cast and crew to the farm to rehearse and perform a musical right there in her barn. Gene Kelly plays the adorable director who is dating Abigail. I loved this movie! Not only did Gene Kelly and Judy Garland deliver memorable dance scenes, but the story captivated me.

Calamity Jane is a musical I have been watching since I was 6 years old. It stars Doris Day and Howard Keel and is set in the Black Hills of South Dakota in a mining town appearantly filled only with middle aged men who all congregate at the saloon to gawk at female performers. (now that I write that out it doesn't sound appropriate for a 6 year old, oh well) It is filled to the brim with great songs and a few dances. Doris Day really got into this role and carried with her the same conviction as Martha Jane Cannary-Burke who was the real life "Calamity Jane". The saloon where it took place, the Golden Garter, was designed by Harper Goff the man who designed the saloon at Disneyland - the Golden Horseshoe. This movie was a major part of my childhood musical exposure and will always hold a place in my heart, even though Chris described every scene as very Lawrence Welky.

St. George Marathon

(This picture of Chris is at mile 26 and he looks fresh as a daisy)

It is done. We are back in Michigan from our travels out west where Chris and I both did the St. George Marathon. It was a great course. Absolutely beautiful. And I went faster than I ever have before (thanks to the huge hills). The speed was scary at times. On some hills, they were so steep and long I would be riding the brake and still going 35 mph. Yikes. It helped to balance out the uphills where I could not even break 3 mph. It was an amazing experience. Finishing this race in 1 hour 59 minutes qualified me to compete in the Boston Marathon in April.

Even though Chris injured his foot a month before, he was able to run and he finished strong. He and my brother in law Brandon stayed together for the first 14 miles, and finished only about 10 minutes from each other.