the storm

Sorry I have been away for so long. I have so many stories to update you on but we will start with the night that Andy, Jeff, Emily and I almost died. It was crazy.

Some of you know that Andy, Jeff and Emily ran in the Louisville Marathon and I ran the MINI Marathon (half marathon) on April 30th. (I will save the details for another post!) Well as usual the week before your race you are tapering where you are running less and less and not quite as fast. This is to let your legs rest and be ready for your big race. Well the Monday before the race we decided to meet at the Boulevard and run a slow 3 miles. We decided when we got there that we were all going to run together and thank goodness we did.

On a side note, as Andy and I were pulling into the parking lot we heard on the radio that there was a storm coming but it was in the Greenback community. We even talked about for a minute that we are pretty far away from Greenback and were not worried at all. When we got out of the car we could see dark clouds across the river, but were still not worried. I have run on the Blvd plenty of times where it was raining and storming across the river and it would not rain where I was.

So the 4 of us started our run. We were running slow and chatting the whole time. One of the really great features of the Blvd is that they have every .25 mile marked. As the run progressed we made it to the .75 mile marker and it started to sprinkle, but it was huge rain drops. We kind of laughed to each other that we were going to get wet. We did pass a ton of people at this point that were running the other direction telling us that they decided to turn around, but we continued running. As we made it to the 1 mile marker the lightning across the river was getting really bad and it started pouring, and yet we kept running.

We did not even make it to the 1.25 mile marker when we realized we were in trouble. We ran to this one place on the trail that has some trees that create a canopy. Just about that time a huge bolt of lighting struck and it sounded like it was on top of us. I yelled (because it was raining so hard) at Andy and Emily to not stop under a tree! We decided to keep running away from our cars towards the baseball fields because the fields were closer to where we were and we figured that we could stay in on of the dugouts until the storm passed.

The next .25 miles were pretty scary. As we ran as fast as we could, as the wind pushed up to run faster, with trees and branches cracking and breaking all around us. We had to run from one side of the street to the other away from as many large trees as we could because we were afraid that they would fall on top of us. At one point I looked over at some huge trees and their branches were bent so far over that the top of the tree was almost touching the ground. There were small branches falling all around us and the streets were just one big puddle. As we turned into the baseball field parking lot it started to hail. Luckily for us it was just the size of marbles and not the baseball size stuff that we would see a few days later.

All four of us made it to the dugout that was made of concrete and wood so we felt pretty safe even though the entire field was surrounded by a chain link fence. With the lightning and thunder crashing all around us and the rain coming down in sheets the four of us were at a loss for words. We stayed in the dugout for about 20 minutes or so until the rain stopped and the sun came out.

When we walked towards the parking lot of the baseball fields it was then that we first saw the destruction. Two huge trees crashed down on one of the fences that separated the parking lot and the home next door. We looked over the fence and saw a few more huge trees down in the backyard. When we made it up to the street we were all in shock. One tree had pulled down the power lines and other trees covered driveways. It seemed like none of the trees that fell were small. It seemed like they were all huge 100+ year old trees, blown down like they were toothpicks. As we started back to our cars we got to the canopy where Andy and Emily had stopped and one of those trees had fallen across the path. I was so glad we decided to go on to the dugout.

When we made it to the 1 mile marker we saw one of the largest trees I have even seen on its side blocking the road. Andy walked over to the roots and it was probably about 2 feet taller than he is. It was another massive tree just toppled over.

We made it back to our cars, soaking wet and covered in leaves, but we were safe. We all talked about how lucky we were that none of us were hit by anything. Not one little branch hit a single one of us. Even the hail was not that bad. We were so lucky and were able to get in out cars and drive home with an amazing story to tell. It was a run that I don't think that any of us will ever forget!

love always,

we will always remember

Our dear sweet Meme passed away on Monday. Our family is heartbroken but know that she is in Heaven and watching over all of us. We will forever miss our loving Meme. There are so many memories and stories that I could tell you about this amazing woman, but I don't know where to begin. Andy and I loved her more than words can ever express and we deeply miss her.

A celebration of life for Mrs. Jane Yancey will be held this Saturday, April 23rd, 2011 at Erin Presbyterian Church. The receiving of friends will be from 1pm to 3pm and the service will be held at 3:30.

Meme, we will forever love you and cherish the time we had with you.

love always,

Please Pray!

I am so sorry that it has been such a long time. Thing have been all over the place these last few weeks. I am asking a HUGE favor from all of you who read this blog. I am asking you to pray for our sweet Meme. As I mentioned here that our sweet Meme (Jane) fell last August and broke her hip (and arm). The above picture was taken while she was recovering from that hip surgery. Well in early January she was not feeling well and became dizzy and fell again. This time breaking her other hip. This time things did not go as smoothly for her. There were some complications with blood work and they just left her not feeling well. She was able to have the surgery and transfer to a rehab facility and began to regain her strength. Last Monday she was released from the rehab facility to come home. This is where things seemed to fall apart. Without getting to into what is currently going on with her I will say that by Friday she was readmitted to the hospital. The doctors are uncertain about what is going on with her, but we are all in a state of shock and would really appreciate your prayers. Meme celebrated her 83rd birthday last Tuesday (the day after she came home.)
So, if you could, please pray for Meme to regain her strength and for her doctors to figure out what exactly is going on with her. We would love to have our Meme back at home soon.

Thank you all so much and Meme, we love you more than you will ever know.

love always,

Famous Mom!

That's right, my mom is famous!


She is in the West Side Shopper-News today talking about what a GREAT job she has done over the years as the Greenway Coordinator for the City of Knoxville! I am so proud of my mom. She is so passionate about her work and has really done some amazing projects that have benefited the city. The city is going to lose a wonderful person when she retires later this fall. I love you mom and could not be more proud! You are amazing!!!

To read the article please go here.

love always,

a concert

So back in December Jeff, Andy, Emily and myself took off on a Tuesday afternoon and headed on over to Nashville for a concert. Andy and I were both pretty exhausted and the long drive over for the concert and the long drive home did not sound like a great time. We were totally wrong. We had a great time on both the drive there and on the way home, but the concert was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G!!!
This is where we were headed to the Bridgestone Arena. Please note Emily is on the phone WORKING!!!!! and please ignore that I look like a giant. Not really fair that Emily is a shorty!

Andy and I waiting for his sister outside the arena.

The whole crew in the arena. We did not have the best seats but really it did not matter because...

when this guy came out the whole thing changed. GARTH BROOKS!!! He was unbelievable. He did about a million concerts in like 9 days or something and we were going to one of the last ones and it was the first of two he was performing that day. We all agreed that we were not expecting much, but we were blown away. Garth knows how to put on a show and how to make everyone in the arena feel important. He sang a ton of his old songs and Emily, Jeff and I sang our little hearts out right along with him. (Andy does not sing.)

Here he is again. Sweating up a storm.

Then this little lady came on out to sing with Mr. Brooks aka her husband.

She was equally impressive and while Garth was playing the guitar for one of her songs she walked passed him and gave him a little love pat on the tush. It was so sweet. These two were so great!

I really cannot explain how awesome this concert was. I am so glad that I was able to witness it. I hope that once his children are older that he goes back on the road because everyone needs to see him live. There is just nothing like it. He was also able to raise a ton of money for the Nashville flood victims.

All in all it was a great trip and I am so glad I did not pass it up!

love always

Hippy

This lovely little lady fell a couple of months ago and broke her hip and her arm. The following pictures were taken while she was recovering at a local rehab facility (that we L.O.V.E.D) when the whole family went to visit her for a family dinner. The good news is that she made a great recovery and was able to be home for both Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Shortly after the entire family was in town for Christmas she got pneumonia and then fell again. When she fell she broke her other hip and has been in the hospital since the fall. She has had some complecations but we hope that they have things figured out and she is on the mend. We would really appreciate prayers for her. She is one tough lady but this will be a long recovery.

We love you so much Meme and are so happy that you are doing better. We can't wait to see you back on your feet!!

love always,

Wedding Pictures

So, my dear sweet bother-in-law and his super cute wife were married a million years ago! Well, not really a million, more like 4, but forever is forever, right! Ha!

Anyway, they got married 4 years ago and let's just say they were not totally happy with their wedding pictures. They looked so adorable on their wedding day and we were all so sad that they did not have all the sweetness, love, and bliss captured forever in pictures. Danielle was a great sport about the whole thing and has never really acted like it bothered her too much. Recently though, she had the chance to apply herself and Jeff to be models for a photography workshop and she WON! They got to get all dressed up, Danielle in a wedding dress (I kind of wish that she could have worn hers, but you can't have everything!) and Jeff in a tux. They got to go through the all of the traditional wedding pictures including feeding each other cake! The pictures turned out A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. and I am so happy that they finally get to have some pictures that they love!

So, hop on over to this website and check out Jeff and Danielle! They are so cute, adorable and such good models. If their current careers don't work out... they can always model!!! ;) Love you guys!

http://www.julierobertsphoto.com/jeff&danielle/

love always,