Early in the year we took a family vacation to Gatlinburg, TN. Highlights of the trip included hiking in the Smoky Mountains, a trip to the aquarium and spending a day with some friends from Indy that were also visiting Gatlinburg.
March Madness found us once AGAIN cheering on the Butler Bulldogs to the final game of the NCAA championships. What an exciting time to be a Bulldog fan!
Hannah finished her year of dance class with a dance recital. She didn't neccessarily hit every dance move, but she sure did know every word to all the songs! Now she is enjoying gymnastics class once a week.
During the summer, we took a few more short trips. We visited Brown County State Park for a family reunion. Hannah enjoyed her first trip to Kings Island. She made Daddy proud by riding a couple of roller coasters. We wrapped the summer up with our annual Labor Day trip to Wisconsin with friends from church.
This year was full of lots of races for all three of us. Sarah and Jeremy participated in several half marathons and triathlons of varying distances. Hannah made her racing debut at the Indianapolis Monumental marathon kids run in November. She ran the entire 1/3 mile course and had her "game face" on the whole time. She was especially thrilled with the finisher's medal she got at the end!
Jeremy and Sarah tried out a new adventure race in Indianapolis called the Great Urban Race. Similar to television's "Amazing Race," teams of 2 compete to find 12 checkpoints and complete challenges. Combination clue solving, scavenger hunt and lots of running- we loved it! We suprised ourselves by placing 3rd and winning entry to the national championship race in New Orleans. New Orleans is one of our favorite cities to visit and the race fell right after our 9th anniversary, so it was an easy decision to go. Although we didn't win the $10,000 grand prize (far from it!), we had a great time racing and relaxing in New Orleans.
The biggest news for our family was the addition of our puppy, Kona, in July. Kona is a Vizsla- a breed known for their high activity level (good runners and hunters) and are also great family dogs. Kona certainly has lots of energy and enjoys play dates with her other puppy friends. She is also quite a cuddler and loves to have her belly rubbed. Nothing like a 50 pound lap dog! She is very patient and gentle with Hannah, and they love playing together.
Hannah is loving her final year of preschool. She has a great set of teachers and is learning so much this year. Besides school, her favorite activities include any sort of imaginary play, Disney princesses and helping Mama bake in the kitchen. She is eagerly anticipating celebrating her 5th birthday in Disney World in January.
We wish you all a merry Christmas and many blessings in 2012! Come back and visit our blog anytime...perhaps we'll start keeping it updated again! :)
