Aimee and I were finally able to visit the Howell's in Sugarland this weekend. We haven't been in quite a while, and their daughter, Madison, has gone from baby to little lady. She is now standing, saying a few words, and taking a few steps, but she still has that precious little smirk on her face constantly. It is impossible to be unhappy with her in the room.

The main reason for the trip was a charity bike ride in which Jonathan and I were participating on Sunday. We were intending to do the 19 mile leg since this was my first official ride. We had a major time constraint since Aimee had to be back in CS for work by noon and the race started at 8. This meant we need to be in the "Danger-Ranger" and on our way by 930 at the latest to give Aimee some time to prep for work. As usual, Murphy was also riding with us. We got a late start due to registration, water bottle filling, and tire pumping, and we were finally on our way by 810. That gives us 50 minutes to ride 19 miles. Wait, it gets better. Maybe a half mile down the road, I get up to speed and as I shift "Old-Yeller" into high gear and she decides she doesn't like her chain anymore. I pulled over, yelled at Jonathan, and then flipped her on her back and went to work. Now we have 53 minutes to ride 18.5 miles. mmmkay....

Finally we get on our way. I have to say, as much as that old bike has been through, she allowed me to put down a fairly speedy pace. We got up to speed again, I gingerly slipped it into high gear, and with a couple clicks and a thunk, Yeller kept on trucking. We were now probably pushing 15 to 18 miles an hour. Jonathan's speedometer was not cooperating so we had no idea of our speed or distance. But there was one thing we did know, and that was we were very short on time. So we put our heads down and peddled hard.

We passed spandex-butt after spandex-butt with a loud "left" followed by the sound of wind as we flew by them. We were on an Armstong-esque pace. Ready to take on the Alps and a pack of Europeans.

So, our plan was to ride for our allotted time, then flag down the SAG wagon to take us back to central. Well, this is where it gets real interesting. We get to the break point and the turn around point for the 19 mile loop, and notice that it was 837. So we knocked out about 9 miles in about 25 to 30 minutes. We had a good pace considering some heavy traffic and our mechanical troubles. We decide to go ahead and call it a ride. Hey, 9 miles is a pretty good stint. So, we wet our whistles and walk up to a race official to locate the SAG wagon. "Uh, no, um...we don't have one. Sorry man." Oh crap. I am officially a dead man. My wife will be forced to raise our child alone, because she is about to take me out!

Jonathan and I look at each other, and he gives me this "I'm sooo sorry" look that made my stomach do a second back flip. So we immediately jump on our bikes to finish the last 10 miles in, oh, about 20 minutes. I have never ridden a bike so hard in my life. We were like a couple of jet fighters with the afterburners on full, flying in formation escaping hostile airspace. Before the race had started, I had set my phone alarm to go off at 950 to let me know that my time was coming to an end. We knocked out maybe 2 miles and I hear the little sucker go off in my back pocket. It not an alarm anymore, but it was more of a shiny little heckler, laughing at my attempt to ride 8 miles in 10 minutes. All was lost, but we trudged on. Riding like our lives depended on it.

We were officially out of time. I needed to be in the truck, with Aimee and Penni in the passenger seat, on the road in 20 minutes. We now had about 7 miles in front of us. So as it happened many time on the trip, I looked over my left shoulder to check for approaching vehicles. I see this grey truck about .75 miles back. I prepare and pull to the right some. Couple minutes pass, and I hear the obligatory "car back!" from Jonathan who was about 15 feet from my flanks. I pull over a bit more. As the truck passes, I notice a sign stuck to the side that read in giant red letters,"SAG". It was like an angel truck from the heavens. We were saved. I looked over my shoulder to Jonathan, with an expression of salvation on my face, and yelled "SAG" and immediately began flailing my arms to get their attention. They finally noticed my desperation, and pulled off to the shoulder to save us.

So, it should be obvious to you how this story ended. Since I am able to sit and type this tale, I have survived. We made it home with plenty of time, and I have lived to tell my story.

Can't wait for the next ride!

-J

Just wanted to add a little something. We are still waiting on our Dr. Visit. Will be Dec 5th, only a couple weeks away. Next week is Thanksgiving, so we plan to venture south for a gorging or two...well...maybe more! Favorite meal of the year!

Harley, Jenni, Taylor and "little" Brady came up for a visit last weekend. Was great to see them. Harley, Clay and I got plenty of guy time, and the ladies seem to enjoy their time doing what they do best: Shopping! Was a great visit, and can't wait to see them again!

Have a 19 mile bike ride with Jonathan this weekend. Should be fun, but supposed to have some nasty weather. Regardless, I am in trouble. I should have started riding a few weeks ago to prepare, but with a slew of exams and life in general, my bike has only moved from the man room to the dining room to make space for my brother and his family. Needless to say, I am in for a rough morning! Last ride Jonathan says he averaged about 18 mi/hr. That's not exactly slow. My plan is to find a way to hook my bike to his and enjoy the ride. After all, this whole thing was HIS idea.

Hope everyone is well!

-J

'nuff said. A Little Fightn' Texas Aggie is on its way.

This was a birthday gift from Aimee.

-J

Birthday Breakfast

Just wanted to brag about my wonderful wife. She made me this for breakfast this morning for my birthday:

Then she went back to bed! HA! Want to also thank those that called oh so early this morning to sing that dreaded song for me. It has already been a fantastic day! Hope everyone is well. Now off to class.

-J

Some of you may have witnessed the controversial Gary-Gate photo. Sorry to inform you that it was a hoax. It was not real. We have absolutely no relation to the famed actor turned professional security guard Gary Coleman. The photo was deemed "sensitive material" and was removed to save my precious hide.

Not much has changed. We are still waiting to see a Dr, so will be a while till we have anything interesting to post. Next week I have an exam in all of my classes. Then I will have a small break and on to finals the first week of December. There may not be much to share between now and our Dr. appointment, but I will try to post as much as possible.

Please keep Aimee and ?? in your thoughts as she is a little worrisome about the road ahead. And say a prayer for her as I may turn in to a grouchy ghost the next few weeks that she will only get a fleeting, grumbling glimpse of until the semester ends.

Hope everyone is well, and can't wait to go home for some turkey and fixins'!

-J

Penni's Halloween Costume

So, our dog was the only one from our family to don a costume this year. Bah Humbug! HA!

We had a costume that Mom gave her, but unfortunately she was too loooong for it! So, Aimee rummaged through the Target dollar bin and found this gem! She wore it only long enough to snap this pic.

Update

Just wanted to add a little something for those that may be reading. We are getting excited. Dr.s are being a bit elusive, and we have an appointment in December at the Brazos Valley Women's Center. We had an appointment with another clinic but cancelled when they informed Aimee that they were going to perform a box test. Well, we have done three of those and they all agree with each other, so we have decided to wait, for now. I'm sure that the excitement will build and we will not be able to go any further without a little more information. Be nice to hear a confirmation from someone with a fancy degree and a messy signature.




Here's a belly shot from week 6. We are thinking that she is more than 4 weeks just from some things that she is experiencing and what we have been reading in our prego guides:

More to follow.....