run, byrds, run!

blakey completed his 2nd half marathon yesterday!!  & he kicked butt.  13.1 miles in 1 hour, 34 minutes, & 55 seconds with a pace of 7:16 her mile.  that's crazy fast!  so incredibly proud of you.

race morning was ridiculously cold!  it was 27 degrees with clouds & a breeze.  oh my goodness, it was cold.  but these crazy runners persevered through.

 {the awesome talladega speed car started the race!}

with a gigantic thermos of coffee in hand, i headed to railroad park to catch up with blake on mile 7 & cheer him on!  go byrds, go!  

& then i headed back to linn park to watch the byrds run across the finish line!  

an awesome medal with a bottle opener on back awaited him.  & a delicious alabama beer to celebrate.

a beautiful & exciting sunday morning.  so proud of you, byrds!

love love,
kjp.

charleston, the holy city.

to conclude posting about our incredible trip to south carolina, this, friends, is the holy city of charleston!  our beach house was a short drive away, so we were able to drive into the city a few times for shopping, exploring, happy houring, bar touring, history touring, delicious dinner-ing, & even a girls trip to the spa!

it truly is a beautiful city with so much history & character.  there is an open-air market with all sort of goodies, hole in the wall bars to fancy dining, very old churches & homes, & a story to each part.  & we got to enjoy all of it with these wonderful friends.
 

the fellas had an awesome afternoon at the griffon, a well-known pub with great beer on tap & dollar bills all over the walls & ceilings with names of past patrons.  luckily for all of us, it was also a stop on our bar tour later that day!

{check out our dollar bill when you're there!

it's above the corner booth catty-corner to the bar.}

{the one & only bill murray sat at our booth too.}

when you travel with the mcgowans, you find your favorite restaurant or bar in town & you go to that restaurant or bar as many times as you possibly can.  it's fantastic.  that restaurant on this trip - pearlz. this oyster bar has a great atmosphere, fabulous oysters, & delicious food.  oyster shooters, raw oysters, baked oysters, & the fish & chips.  so so good.

just up the street is a truly impressive prohibition-sytle bar called the gin joint.  they have fabulous cocktail menu filled with local & seasonal ingredients, super interesting flavor combinations, & plenty of things of you've never heard.  it's pretty darn impressive.  & fun.  & delicious.

with all of this fun & imbibing, we did find time for a history tour of charleston!  we went on a walking photo tour of the historic district with the beautiful historical homes & st michael's church where george washington attended & many more famous & important gorgeous buildings.  

{st michael's church}

{one of the many lovely gardens}

the trip of a lifetime.  absolutely incredible.

love love,
kjp.

thankful thursday - fantasy football leader.

i'm leading our fantasy football league!  for the 9th week, out of 10.  yes, that's right.  beating all 11 fellas in the league.  & i'm pretty darn thankful for it.  & peyton manning - pretty much the entire reason i'm winning.

also, i'm totally gloating because i'm probably losing my #1 position this week.  it's been fun while it's lasted.

oh!  i actually am really thankful for all of the veterans in our league.  fantastic men.  fantastic veterans. so proud of them & thankful for them.

i hope you can think of something today for which you are thankful.

even if it's as silly as fantasy football :)

love love,
kjp.

the beautiful isle of palms.

a sunrise on the beach must be one of the most beautiful sights in the world.  enjoying it with your husband, your dog, four of your best friends, & their two dogs - an absolute delight.  we watched the puppies run & play in the sand & in the ocean for the first time all together.  they frolicked & jumped for joy & made all of us smile.

we all went for a run or for a walk or for a fish on our first morning at the beach.  it was the perfect way to start our week of vacation.

{amy & ogden & lola}

{our wonderful family}

{tank & maudy having the time of their lives.}

when the sun was fully up & a little warmth took over, we all headed back to the beach for a day of fun in the sun.  the girls got some rays while the boys threw a football for hours.  joy for all.

{my beautiful friends}

{matt & elyse & baby rogers!}

{the mcgs}

for our last afternoon, we all headed back to the beach to enjoy it all one more time.  the pups ran & chased & played their hearts out.  the fellas threw the football as long as their 30-year-old shoulders would allow them {or maybe even longer, if we're being honest :)}.

{run pups run!}

{the fellas}

{the men & their pups}

{best photo ever.}

{& the ladies}

{#mcportgers}

truly a trip we will never forget.  

love love,
kjp.

mr & mrs captain america!

blakey LOVES halloween.  it might not be my favorite holiday, but i'm happy to participate in his fun.  this year, he said, "you can pick what we will be for halloween, but i really want to be a super hero.  & probably a marvel super hero."  ok.  superhero it is!

after much research of marvel {vs dc comics.  it's a big distinction.  apparently.} superheroes, i learned captain america wears red boots.  i, as it just so happened to be, really wanted some shiny red hunter rainboots.  now that sounds like a great compromise to me!

blakey looked ridiculous awesome in his captain america costume.  big squishy muscles & all.  i went the more abstract route with a big red tutu, blue tights, & a red, white, & blue bracelet.  works well with the rainboots, huh??

the chappells threw an awesome halloween party, at which we got to show off our superhero side!  lots of resident friends, delicious cajun food, & tons of impressive halloween costumes.  a super fun halloween evening :)

 {obgyn chief residents!}

happy halloween!

love love,

kjp.

a weekend of celebrations.

blakey had two days full of celebrations this weekend!  first up on friday night, we joined the mcgowans in a evening to celebrate their signed contract for ogden's anesthesia job next year!  after multiple great offers & much discussion, amy & ogden have decided to move to their home town of san angelo, texas next year.  & we are so incredibly proud of & happy for them & their exciting future.

as the mcgowans & porters do, we enjoyed a fantastic meal with delicious food, tasty beverages, & fabulous friends.  we began at dave's pub for a cozy pre-dinner brew.  & then went to chez fonfon for incredible burgers, mussels, & fries.  a wonderful birmy evening.

on saturday, we had an afternoon of fun at the rogers' for matt's 30th birthday!  a bonfire, football on tv, the pups playing for hours, & more wonderful friends.  matt smoked some incredible chicken & ribs.  elyse made a very tasty boudin dip & pecan pie.  & then we went old school for campfire s'mores.  a very good 30th birthday celebration indeed.

so many good friends & so many good things to celebrate.  congratulations, mcgs!  happy birthday, matt!  & we will certainly continue to celebrate elyse & baby rogers!

love love,

kjp.

thankful thursday - beautiful art.

my dear friend, marygrace, who baked at urban with me is not only a very good bread baker but also an incredible artist.  truly incredible.  & for my she-was-going-away gift, she created most beautiful piece of art for me.  it has abstract shapes representing states & our upcoming move from alabama to kansas city.  the top has a bright sun with glitter on it!  marygrace used glitter.  i'm so proud of her.  & in mg's breathtaking handwriting, it quotes:

i will never leave nor forsake you. 

i hung it up as soon as i got home.  it's absolutely beautiful.  & i am so grateful for the treasure & the gesture.  

miss working with you, mg.

i hope you can think of something today for which you are thankful.

love love,

kjp.

mcportgers beach vacay 2013!

great friends, a beautiful beach, a historic town, delicious food, & the pups - this was truly a trip of a lifetime!  we had an incredible week of fun & relaxing, a little bit of learning & a little bit of partying, & an all around amazing week of memories.

{bff lola & tanky enjoying the drive together}

{the mcgowans & porters!}

we stayed at an adorable beach home in the isle of palms, just outside of charleston.  we spent time getting rays on the beach, exploring charleston, watching the dogs play & play & play, eating our weight in oysters, discovering all sorts of brews & cocktails, & finding out that blakey & i are moving to kansas city.  

{our adorable beach home}

{the mcportgers!}

{signing day!}

we celebrated match day & our last day of this incredible vacation with whole cookout afternoon!  brats & hot dogs & wings & shrimp & veggies.  all while the pups partied right along with us.  a fabulous day indeed.

{sleepy bubba}

{& sleepy lola & maudy}

{ogden super pumped about grill day}

{our ridiculously amazing meal}

{& my sweet husband with whom i got to enjoy the entire week}

love love,

kjp.