Casey Runs the Pikes Peak Ascent!

Some of you may think Casey is crazy for running 13 miles up the side of Pikes Peak to begin with. However, what about a summer day in Colorado that is 40 degrees and SNOWING!!! Check out the picture, why is he wearing SHORTS and no hat?! He is insane. Lots of people got turned around because the conditions were so bad on the top of the mountain. However, speedy Casey got up in time, 3 hours and 27 minutes. He is amazing, I tell you. Look out Phoenix, we will be coming for another marathon in January! (Sorry the pic is not so clear, there was limited visibility and fog during the race.)

WAY TO GO, CASE!

Summer Fun!

Casey and I went on date night to this awesome new restaurant in Old Colorado City called Pizzaria Rustica. It was like a little Italian pizza place. I for real felt like I was eating at a little cafe in Rome! You need to go...its yummy!

Camping trip to the Wein's Ranch

The boys peeing off a cliff...

Casey and baby Blair,...too cute! He will be such a great dad...one day!

our trip Young Life's amazing LOST CANYON

The Beautiful Lost Canyon, AZ

Christmas night!

Reuniting with Ahna...

and Katie!!! SO FUN!

Playing at the Play Ground!

The girls gettin all gussied up for Dress up Night!

Kim - ready to jump...

Team Games - Hottie Construction Workers


Kim and Kami at the Crud War

Will, Brian, Blaire and I - Leader pic at the Carnival

Me and Kami at Lost Canyon before the Obstacle Course.

Computer Problems!

Hey Friends! Sorry that it has been so long since we've posted. Its been a crazy summer. I have been trying to post pictures for the past few hours, but for some reason it wont work. Computers... gotta love em. Soon you will see summer camping trip, young life camp, julie's wedding weekend/charleston, and fun in C Springs from the Summer.

For those of you who don't know yet, I have started managing at Pottery Barn, which I love. After working there for 3 years part time, I was offered a management position. I am responsible for all of the upholstered and occasional furniture. Its so fun! I'm still volunteering with Young Life, which is great. We just took kids to Lost Canyon, and a girl I've been walking with all year, met Jesus! It was incredible. It makes all of those hours of contact work totally worth it.

Casey starts back teaching in a few weeks. He's excited for a new class, but not ready for the summer to end... you know how that goes. Can you believe its august? Yeah, august in CO with no AC, pretty steamy. Global warming is for real! :)

I promise we will be better at posting. Please keep checking our blog.

Mandy, will you put us back on your blog?! :)

Love,
laura

Memorial Day Weekend

Baby Holland Taplin got baptized on Sunday. The CU gang

all came up from Boulder and we celebrated at the Taplin's.

It was like old times!

Matt and Casey pretended as if they were already fathers.

Both were very excited to go home without children!

Jackie, Anne and Me

Angelee came to town with her new fiance' John. He is so great.

We can't wait to go to Kansas in October to celebrate!

Winter to Summer, Death to Life

I was beginning to lose faith that Colorado was ever going to warm up. And with my tanorexia problem, that was not such a good thing. But as the Lord began to turn winter into spring, well it was more like turning winter to summer, since we don't really have a spring, He began to reveal so much of who He is. The old is becoming new!



As most of you know, I've been team leading Young Life out here at the school I was on staff at. So many times I have been like, "why am i still a young life leader?" And lately the Lord has been showing me WHY in InCrEdIbLe ways. As prom and graduation have quickly approach, I have begun to see how BIG our God is. I have seen a girl who's been arrested for shoplifting begin an amazing journey with her Savior. I've seen another of my high school friends fight drugs and an alcoholic step father and begin to overcome the anger that is so deeply inbedded in who she is. I've seen another girl, who I walked with as she began her journey with the Lord, get to pray with her best friend as she accepted the Lord as her Father. Both girls are going to be Wyld Life leaders next year.



How great is our God and his Providence that he would use little me and get involved in the lives of so many of His children and say, " you are mine. I have bought you at a price." I love to get to sit back and watch our God's hand at work. He is the one that crosses us from death to LIFE. He is the creator of our amazing world and the lover of our souls. Look around and see how incredible He really is.



So, just when we think its hard, we should give up, our God says,:

"Take HEART, for I have OVERCOME the WORLD"

Music City Marathon - Nashville, TN

So, I am currently on running probation, according to my physical therapist. So when Casey decided to train for his 1st Marathon, I thought it was gonna be a bummer "sitting on the sidelines." However, with the cold, snowy winter that we had, he had to run at the gym a lot. So me and the Eliptical got really close, while he and the treadmill were BFF. I mean there is nothing worse than running 14 miles in the basement of the YMCA on a treadmill.

However, all of the training paid off!! The last weekend in April we flew out to Nashville for Casey's big race. He ended up being in the 2nd corral, which is at the front of the race. His target time was 3:30. I wasn't sure that he should be that close to the front, but he wanted to push himself. So, saturday morning (5 AM), Casey, Dad and I went downtown Nashville for the start of the race. It was raining... a lot. Right before the race began, the rain subsided and Casey started his first marathon. Dad and I were at mile 3, 7, 12. We were driving all over town trying to catch Casey. He's fast!!! Then Mom, Emily, Matthew, Kristen and my 2 nieces Blythe and Madeline met Casey at mile 21 and 25. We had all kinds of fun signs for him and were screaming like crazy. This was the hardest part of the race, the Wall! He came through mile 25 at 3:16. Ahead of Schedule!!!

So my Aunt Tracy, a fellow marathoner, was tracking Casey online. So, at 3:30, she went to check and see where he was. He had already crossed the finish line!!! He finished his 1st Marathon in 3 hours and 23 minutes. I was so proud of him!!! So, now he's offically a RUNNER. He is now training for the Pikes Peak Ascent, a half marathon race up the side of Pikes Peak. He's a CRAZY person! But, he's only 12 minutes away from qualifying for the Boston Marathon. So, I think he is going to do a "fast" marathon in a flat place so he can qualify. I just wanted to brag on him a bit and say how amazing I think he is.

I'm including some pictures from the race and what a good excuse to show off my cute little nieces too!

1st Anniversary

I can't believe that its been almost a year since we got married in Charleston! Its been so unbelievable! The Lord continues to challenge us and bless us as we move through this journey. Marriage has been incredible and all that I hoped it would be. I can't wait to continue to grow and learn over the years. Its been a challenging year with career decisions and trying to decide what the Lord wants for our lives, but as always He holds us fast and fills us with His indescribable LoVe!

So for our anniversary, I decided to surprise Casey and we went to see the Cardinals (Casey's favorite baseball team) play the Rockies at Coors Field in Denver. Our friend Ben knows Rick Ankiel, who plays for the Cardinals, so we got AMAZING seats right behind home plate. Then on the way home, I surprised Casey again with tickets to see WILCO, one of our favorite bands, at this amazing venue, the Pikes Peak Center in Colorado Springs. Our seats were on the 6th row!!! It was one of the best shows either of us had ever seen. check them out: wilcoworld.net
It will be the best decision you have ever made!