Picture Update...

Our latest home improvement project - We painted the front door and window boxes last week and put our address on the door in green... kind of hard to see in these pictures. The tulips are beautiful this year.

MJ's aunt and uncle live on Robie Creek Road. He stopped mid-race to say hello and have a beer.

Pre-race Alisha.

Pre-race Michael & Michelle.

I am still not feeling 100% but definitely much better than I was last week. I left work early on Friday and spent most of the day sleeping. I really appreciate all of your concerned phone calls and emails. I am so lucky to have so many great people in my life.
I thought I would share some of our recent pictures. I hope everyone is enjoying some fabulous spring weather. Wednesday night we are looking forward to watching my brother Scott's band play in Boise before they embark on their nation-wide tour... it should be a departure from his regular type gig, and we are really looking forward to seeing him. Oregon just seems too far away some times. For that matter so do Indianapolis, Norway, India and Australia...

Finished!

For whatever reason my results aren't pulling up in the computer, but I crossed the finish line at 2:59. MJ crossed it a couple of minutes before I did. I am exhausted and sick and very sore, but I feel like I accomplished my goal. It feels good to have finished and to know that my training did pay off. I know that I could have finished stronger under better circumstances, but I am happy with how I did... now I am going to go take a nap. Pictures to follow...

The Day Before...

I hesitate to post today. I am in a foul mood… I feel like my body has betrayed me. Since January I have run more than 140 miles. 140 tough miles in the hills. Sometimes I ran in the snow. Sometimes I ran in the rain. Sometimes I ran in the dark. Sometimes I ran through the mud. Sometimes I ran with stomach issues for an hour or two at a time. I spent over 16 hours trying to register for the race, finally getting in after midnight. I lifted weights, did countless lunges, sacrificed time I could have spent with my family and my fiancé. All of this I did for a goal I set last year… The Race to Robie Creek. And what do I have to show for all of this hard work?

All week long I have been battling an incredibly nasty chest cold. And all night and morning I have been coughing up all kinds of unimaginable stuff (I’ll spare you the details of said “stuff”- just know it isn’t pretty). I keep telling myself that it could be so much worse, that I should be grateful that it isn’t. But I can’t help but feel... well... betrayed. So that’s my pity party for the day. Sorry to unload on anyone that actually reads my blog. I guess the only thing I can do at this point is wait and see what happens tomorrow.

Happy Birthday Scott!

Today my brother turns 28 years young. Happy Birthday, Scott. Hopefully we can celebrate together soon. I love you. -M

Pictures From a Beautiful Sun Valley Wedding

Good Friends

MJ thinks he's pulling a fast one on us....

Our breath-taking Basque bride

I love this one!

Da Girlz.

RSVP For Our Reception On-Line

The invitations should be out next week, but for those of you that are anxious you can RSVP on our website - www.headrickandjohnston.weddings.com.

Also...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PEGGY!
Wish we could be there to help you celebrate. Hope to see you soon!

Life Back at Home

This morning it was 38 degrees and I was shivering by the time I pulled up on my bike at work. I guess I forgot how cold an Idaho spring can be while we were basking in our 80 degree days on Kauai. Crazy things are going on at work, and it looks like I am going to have to become more educated on the technical side of my job whether I like it or not. So far I have been able to stay mostly on the "front lines" helping the people at our locations get the data that they need, but they are changing the way our IT department is structured and a lot of the interaction that I have gotten to have with our location managers is going to be moved to our help desk. While I am not thrilled with this development, I welcome a change of scenery on the career front. Who knows, I may even grow to enjoy the new challenges presented. If not, it will give me the push I need to explore other avenues. I have been with this company since I was eighteen years old. I love the people that I work with, and have great affection for the company itself (and my three weeks of paid vacation and health benefits)- but it has grown so much so rapidly that I hardly recognize it anymore.
Last weekend I went to Geneva's bachelorette party on Friday night. I have missed Geneva an incredible amount since she moved to Australia with her fiancee. We had a much appreciated girl's night out on the town and it gave MJ a chance to catch up on his homework without me as a distraction. Saturday morning my good friend and neighbor Carey invited me for brunch. After working in our yard pulling weeds for a couple hours I couldn't resist joining her and her guests for mimosas out in the beautiful (if fickle) spring weather. That night MJ and I headed out to Anne and Molly's birthday party and had a great time catching up with a lot of friends that have left Boise to move to the mountains of McCall. Sunday we had to pay the piper for all of the travel and fun we have had lately. We spent the entire day doing little projects around the house, spring cleaning, and going back and forth from Home Depot. Even days like that are fun with MJ and his amazing sense of humor around.
Last night we ran from our house up to the hills behind Camel's Back and back again- 7 miles. We are pretty out of shape after our trip and are going to pay for it come race day... but all in all life is good... life is great, really.
We head for Sun Valley this weekend for Geneva's wedding. I hope everyone is living the good life, -M

Two Tickets to Paradise...

This guy is an Albatros... the cutest endangered baby bird I've ever come across. He's about the size of my cat.

MJ and Mark at Queen's Bath with Bali Hai in the back ground.

Another of Mark and MJ at Queen's Bath.

MJ really liked watching the waves. This was at Lydgate Park.

This was taken in front the on the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific" - Waimea Canyon. The white line to the left of my shoulder is one of hundreds (maybe thousands) of waterfalls we saw on Kauai.

MJ and Isaac getting their boogie board on. The waves always look so much smaller on film.

So we're walking down the beach at Tunnels and pass a rather large older man. I look over at MJ and say, "Did you see who that was." He laughs, "Yeah, he really looks like him, huh?"
"No, I'm serious - that is totally him. I saw he and his family on the cover of Rolling Stone a few years ago and that is his daughter that he's digging a hole with."
MJ's Reply- "Huh, I guess we should take a picture, but from far away so people don't believe that we really saw him. It will be funny."
So here it is people - David Crosby... the guy standing in the water with the huge belly. Apparently Stephen Stills owns a home on Tunnels. Must be nice.

Mom and Dad bought us a sunset cruise up the NaPali Coast. It was by far the highlight of our trip. We saw a ton of dolphins and whales and even a distant turtle or two. The captain pulled the front of the boat up to a waterfall and MJ got to shower in it. He was very upset I didn't get any pictures of that.

Cheers! Salut! Skol!

Home from Kauai...

We took the red eye and are now, sadly, home from Kauai. I'll post pictures and stories of our adventures soon. I hope everyone had a fabulous sun-filled week where ever you were. -M

Pictures providing proof of prior posts...

Proof I was wearing my Colts shirt on Super Bowl Sunday.

Proof that women love my Grandfather (this was taken at his party).

Proof that I am engaged to the cutest guy... ever.

Proof that life (and Boise) is beautiful.

Aloha! Happy Spring!

In honor of our trip to Kauai on Friday I have changed my font color. Hopefully it isn't too annoying to the very few of you that actually read my blog. This weekend was absolutely fabulous and I fully expected to post pictures, but I left them at home so you will all have to wait for them.
On Friday night Michael and I had a picnic on the top of 8th Street, watched the sunset as we had a little Pinot Noir, and took in the gorgeous view of the city and it's twinkling lights. Then we headed downtown to spend sometime with Cheryl and Mark, friends of MJ's who were married the following afternoon. Saturday morning I got up at 5 am (a testament of my love for my parents as I am NOT a morning person) to take Mom and Dad to the airport for their trip to warmer climes with the Naces. I then ran my 11 miles to Aldape summit, showered, and ran over to Mom and Dad's to get their dog Tia and take her to Grandma and Granddad's. I then ran home and had about 15 minutes to get ready for the wedding. Just typing that makes me tired! Shew! I'm glad that is over with! The wedding was the perfect excuse for me to finally see the inside of the Cathedral of the Rockies. I have lived close to the church my entire life without ever setting foot through it's doors. I'm a huge fan of stained glass and this building didn't disappoint. Sunday MJ studied and I spent the day doing a much-needed spruce up in the front yard. Believe it or not I had to mow already! This weather is insane! I was hoping to get to the back yard as well, but that will have to wait until we get back. There never seems to be enough time in the day! We went to dinner Sunday night at a Thai restaurant in honor of MJ's cousin's 18th birthday.
I posted a picture here of my trip last year to Kauai to make sure you are all jealous! I hope that everyone is well and has a much needed vacation of their own planned soon! I'm so ready for nine days in paradise. For now I have to run... we have a meeting with our wedding photographer. Happy day dreaming!

Looking Good, Girl!

What an amazing week! The weather here is absolutely beautiful… it is the kind of weather that makes it criminal to be cooped up inside, and it’s only going to get better before it begins the inevitable decline back to worse about the middle of next week –that is according to the weather experts, anyway.
We had a great time at Granddad’s birthday party. It always amazes me how many friends my grandparents have. It’s such a testament to the type of people that they are. So many people felt compelled to send cards, call or stop by the Open House. Grandma and her sister Barbara had a huge spread of fabulous food and drinks. Barbara’s daughter Julie and her husband Bob surprised everyone and drove up all the way from Reno. Michael and I both had a great time visiting with everyone.
Last night I ran a six mile loop in Lower Hulls Gulch. I had planned a run up a dirt road, but the weather was so nice and the trails so dry that I decided to try a new route. Michael looked up the mileage for me in a mountain bike book. The first part of the run was pretty much all up hill on a rocky single track, but it followed a creek and with the sun glinting off of the water as I ran by I couldn’t help but have a fantastic time… huffing and puffing and all. There weren’t many people back there. After a couple of miles I came upon the main trail and started to see more people. There were a lot of pale faces behind the sunglasses, probably getting out for the first time all year. Everyone was grinning from ear to ear, the beautiful weather and scenery causing a contagious euphoria. I love this city. I can’t imagine living somewhere that didn’t have hills to play on after work. As I started coming down a hill towards the end of my run I saw a slightly overweight middle aged man struggling to ride up what I was bounding down. He looked at me and smiled, “Looking good, Girl. Keep on running.” That made the evening perfect.

I hope that everyone has beautiful early spring weather where they are. Lot of love to you all.

Happy 90th Birthday, Granddad!

Today is my grandfather's birthday and we are going to celebrate with an Open House at Grandma's house. Happy Birthday, Granddad! We love you!

I finished!

I did the Les Bois 10k this weekend. So far, my longest race. I finished in 1 hour and 10 minutes which is way faster than I thought I could do it in. Woohooo! Now we just need to get through Robie Creek! Thanks to everyone that called and emailed your support... I really appreciate you all.

Sometimes it takes a friend to pull you up the hill

MJ, Alisha and I this summer

Susan, Me, Wendy (doing her best impersonation of a couture model), Cori, and Dawn

This weekend Alisha and I are running the Les Bois 10K to see how we stack up for Robie Creek. I am pretty nervous. I ran the race course (alone) last weekend and it was brutal. It's on dirt which is good because running on streets isn't my favorite thing to do. But it is up 8th Street which is steeper than Rock Canyon Road. I was so humbled - I had to walk most of the way up, and running down hill was painful everywhere... quads, calves, knees, hips. Since I decided to sign up in the first place I am determined to do it, and thankfully Alisha decided to do it with me last minute. I think that she will be a good motivator for me to keep going. Truth be told I was not in the best of shape last weekend, anyway. I was dehydrated and tired. I am trying to keep in mind, as a good friend told me the other night, even if I come in dead last I am still doing more than the people that are able-bodied and sleeping in that morning.

Lists & Goals

Last year before I turned thirty I came up with a list of thirty things I wanted to accomplish before the big day. Some really tough things were on that list. I quit smoking, learned to surf and white water kayak, got a tattoo, went on vacation by myself. Some things were a little easier – I posted things I had written on a blog for a year (not this one), I planted a tree, rode a mechanical bull, I asked a boy out on a date (yes, it was Michael). Some things that were on the list haven’t been crossed off yet. I spent a bit of time beating myself up for not finishing by August, but then someone told me that the fact that I had made the list at all was what was important. So… I decided to keep on trucking. Maybe add a few things… maybe take a few off that are no longer important to me (get a pedicure, waste and entire day watching movies). I am determined that one thing stay on the list until I can finally cross it off…
The Race to Robie Creek, for those of you not living in Boise, is legendary. I can remember thinking when I was younger, “why would anyone ever want to do that?” As a native of this city I have begun to feel like I have to finish it at some point – like it is a rite of passage that I need go through. Monday I spent 14 hours trying to get in thanks to a computer glitch. At 12:06 am with MJ’s help I, Michelle Headrick, officially signed up for the hardest half marathon in the Northwest. Straight up, and straight down. Torture on the quads for longer than I have ever run. I can’t wait. My goal time? To finish before the race organizers start packing up for the night.
Peggy is in town this week. Her brother Mike turned 60 this a week and we celebrated at his house. All the kids from Christmas were there, and total chaos abounded. It was a great time, and we look forward to being able to spend time with Peggy for the rest of the week.
I hope that everyone out there in cyber land is doing well and reaching for their goals… love to you all… -M

Where did I put that old Colts T-shirt?

I can't seem to find my one lone, poor, beat up old Colts T-shirt... but rest assured (this post is mostly for you, Kat) I will be cheering for 'em come Sunday...
GO INDIANAPOLIS!

Not. Fair.

My mom used to hear that a lot when we were little... raising three kids that are all more or less a year apart you have to expect that they are going to be constantly hunting for ways in which one child is being favored over the other. In today's case, however, I am referring to the fact that I am not only sick again (so sick I actually missed work - AGAIN) for what feels like the one millionth time this year... but the last Harry Potter is coming out on the DAY of our wedding reception. I'm going to have to do some scheming to figure out how to get that book up to Garden Valley the day it is released and get it read before people start asking me questions like "where should we put the flower arrangements?" and "do you really think we need two full kegs of beer?" I was afraid this was going to happen. If mom hadn't already put money down at Terrace I might be tempted to change our dates around. As it is, it looks like I'm going to be doing a lot of reading on our honeymoon. Not. Fair.

Rabbit Food

Lately I have been having so much fun learning what I can about cooking. Maybe once people get to the point where they are amenable to marriage some sort of nesting instinct kicks in. Or maybe I'm just competitive and fully realize that it's going to take a lot of practice time for me to get to the epicurean level that MJ is at. Anyway, I am pretty much starting out with zero previous experience. It was in no way my mom's fault that I never learned - I was just never interested before now. At the rate I'm going I will probably end up (dare I say it?) begging her to teach me to sew next year.
If anyone has some recipes they would like to share I would be very interested in trying them. I just found one on-line for turnips. I’ve never even considered cooking them before, I've always thought of them as a vegetable that showed up in Beatrix Potters’ books – sought after by wayward rabbits looking for a free meal.

This weekend:

yurt -
noun

a circular domed dwelling that is portable and self-supporting; originally used by nomadic Mongol and Turkic people of central Asia but now used as inexpensive alternative or temporary housing .

Also - a great place to ski to with friends in Idaho for those that are in need of a sunny break from cold, grey, wet, polluted Boise.