Okay, so I'm back...sort of.

I haven't even posted on my running blog in about a month, so don't feel too sad. And I'm not going to write much, mainly I'll just post some pictures and stuff.

Here's what we've been up to for the past few months:

We got a dog. His name is Marley. No, we didn't name him Marley because of the movie. We didn't even name him. We got him from a family who just couldn't give him the love and attention that a dog needs. He's 10 months old, still acts like a puppy, but is completely house-trained. No messes in the house. Hooray. I like to take him on runs with me, but he can't go farther than 3 miles without me dragging him the rest of the way. We'll have to work on his endurance!




We hang out at the beach. Not often, because the beach is WAY overrated and isn't all that fun unless you're with friends.



I went to Girls Camp. In the Florida summer. I've never been so sweaty for so long in all of my life, but it was a lot of fun being a "camp mom" to the first year girls from the Jacksonville South Stake.





We've been running. A lot. Not just here in Florida, but in Utah as well. Derrick ran a 5K with me a couple of months ago, and in a week we'll be running another 5K together. I ran the Wasatch Back Relay 2009 in June and the Top of Utah Half Marathon in August (which I totally kicked ass at...2:05:45...it was a PR). And about a month ago I did the unthinkable by signing up for a marathon. That's right. A MARATHON. Not half, like usual. A full marathon of 26.2 miles. On January 10, 2010 I'll be running the Disney World Marathon in Orlando. I'm excited and scared sh!tless at the same time. Should be good times.

Some of the team at the starting line

Our van was PACKED

Natalie, me, Derek, just before my first leg

Ahhh, beautiful Avon Pass. It really makes it worth it when you get to run through this...

Me standing at the Exchange where Runner #5 would hand off to me

Getting some rest at Snow Basin ski resort

Me and Amanda (my very favorite running friend) at Snow Basin just after she finished her first leg

Standing at my second exchange point, just before my second leg

Me, running at night, about to get passed by runners faster than myself

Me (in the back) with a few of my teammates just after my second leg

Just before I started my last leg

Sprinting to the finish

Coming into the finish of the TOU Half. Please note Really Old Guy next to me, and the EMT giving CPR to another Really Old Guy in the bottom right corner.

Butt shot.div>

FINISHED!

We've also been studying. Not just Derrick, but me too. Long story short, I'm in the process of getting my teaching certification. My test is at the end of January, and if I pass I'm eligible to apply for English teaching positions in Utah, Idaho, and Florida. It seems I've forgotten how to study, but I'm slowly getting back into the swing of it. Derrick is still studying as hard as ever and he's about half-way through his 3rd semester. He found out where he'll be going for his first internship -- good ol' Salt Lake City. So, from March through April he'll be in SLC treating real patients, and I'll be here in Florida still working/playing/studying/applying for teaching jobs, etc. We'll be away from each other for two months (which will totally suck), but I suppose that's life.

Oh, and we just had a murder mystery dinner with a group of couples from our ward. All of the husbands are in PT school with Derrick. It was a blast. Derrick's role was "Rocco Scarfazzi," and older Italian man who made a fortune in the wine business. My role was "Tara Misu" his young fiancee, who used to be a maid in his villa. I was obviously a gold digger.

Marley!

We have a new dog!

Lost in the Shuffle

Written by Derrick:
Here at last! After a long sabbatical, we decided to update family and friends on all of our happenings or at least some of them. Florida is hot and it rains almost daily. We've come to the decision that we were lied to in the brochure about being the "Sunshine State". Lesson also learned that it doesn't just rain down here, it unleashes all fury and vengeance. It is best to be inside when this occurs.

This last weekend was somewhat of a treat because we were able to go to the Sum41/Offspring concert at the St. Augustine Amphitheater. The concert was good, but the people at the concert were an even better source of entertainment.





Written by Christy:
Sorry about the lapse in blogging. I still like to blog, but I do so on my running blog. Right now, that's where my focus in life is at. I update my running blog once or twice a week, and I've been able to meet ("cyber" meet) a lot of people who share my same goals and have my same interests. It's been a lot of fun for me, and that's where I'm going to keep focusing my blog time.

Derrick says that family doesn't read my running blog(which they probably don't, and that's okay, too), so they probably have no idea what's going on in our lives. I know a lot of you probably don't care to read that blog, which is fine, but sometimes mixed in with the running stuff, I post things about what's going on in the life of the Lyons family. For instance, if you go here you'll find out we recently ran a 5K together in downtown St. Augustine. It was fun, hot, and humid.

So in an effort to make everybody happy, I'll try and post some things here. It will probably mostly be a place for me to post pictures. I won't write very much, but you'll at least get to see what's happening here in Florida with the Lyons'. I've also asked Derrick to help update since he also wants family to know what's going on. Okay, that's all. Back to the running blog.....

It has been quite some time since any updating has happened on this blog, but that doesn't mean there is any lack of pure awesomeness occuring in our lives. Derrick just finished his first trimester of school, passing all of his classes and now is enjoying a couple more days of freedom before the madness starts all over again. Christy is turning into a hardcore runner. These days she prefers to visit the Nike outlet store rather than the traditional Aeropostale. Florida has been okay, but we both have decided that we enjoy our Idaho and Utah a little bit more. We have had a whole bunch of happenings in and out of the house. We found our reptilian friend that had left suprises in our garage for the previous 3 months. This time we caught the him in our backyard. By means of the internet and the Florida snake database, we identified him as a Black Racer.

Lurking in the grass.

Getting ready to attack Derrick.

Today we visited the St. Augustine Alligator farm. Not in all our lives have we seen more alligators or species of crocodilians than today. Wow! It was quite the site as these almost stone-looking monsters sunbathed before our very eyes. Words can't really do justice for this place and what it had to offer. There were monkeys, birds, lizards, and the ever popular alligator that called this place home.

A gator and bird oasis.

Rookery Season.

An albino alligator. It isn't fake either.

We don't feed fish or ducks in Florida. We feed alligators.

Playing with the gators. We're going into the pit next time to get a picture with one of those guys.

Chomping down on frozen rat.

A tribute to Gomek the 17'9" Salt Water Crocodile.

A picture of Gomek 2 years before his death. He's huge!

Playing tourists

One of the cool things about living in a tourist town is getting discounts to some of the more popular attractions. So, just for living in St. Augustine I get deals on Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum, Fountain of Youth entrance, and the St. Augustine Lighthouse. Score!

Derrick and I had yet to particpiate in any of the above activities. Until yesterday. We decided to take a couple of hours out of our Saturday morning and head to the St. Augustine Lighthouse.

I've never been in or even seen a lighthouse before (hmmm...sheltered as a child?). I won't bore you with retold facts, so if you want to know the history behind the Lighthouse (and it's really quite interesting), go here. I'll just post pictures.

About halfway up the lighthouse.

A look down from the inside.

Making my way up, up, up.

The view from one of the few windows.

This is Anastasia Island from the observation deck of the lighthouse, beyond that is the Atlantic.

This is the view of Flagler College and downtown St. Augustine, from the observation deck

The lens/light. Kinda cool from up close.

Derrick at the top. It was windy. Really windy.

See what I mean by windy? It had to have been at least 40mph wind gusts up there.

Just another view of the lighthouse. I like the black and white spiral pattern. It stands out against the blue sky.

Since moving to the South, it seems I'm always fascinated by one thing or another. Whether it is someone's southern accent, the landscape, the people. Whatever it is, I'm never getting bored with new things. Take for instance these gigantic trees.
Aren't they the coolest trees?!?! I'm surprised they don't just fall over with the weight of the limbs. Derrick calls them "perfect treehouse trees".

Next to the lighthouse museum there was a small park full of these trees, and I couldn't help but climb on them. I felt like a kid again. I wish I would've had trees like this in Utah!





That was our adventurous Saturday. It was great to get out and check out the local sights.

Gone walkin'

Last night the weather was perfect. It must have been around 70 or so (at 7:30 pm), so Derrick and I headed outside for a walk around our little subdivision.

And, of course, I just had to take my camera. Because, who knows? There could've been an alligator in the nearby swamp. THAT kind of moment is most definitely camera-worthy.

Alas, there were no alligators. But what we did find slightly interesting was this:

A semi truck full of potatoes. In our subdivision. Just parked right there on the side of the road. The back door was left open, which was why we saw the potatoes in the first place. And there was nobody in the front seat.

I'm not going to lie and say that I wasn't tempted to jump right in and take a few (bag fulls) of those potatoes. Seriously, folks. Potatoes are $5 for a 5-lb bag out here. It's a crime against humanity, really. But I didn't take any. And I'm seriously regretting that decision right now.

Let's give the truck driver the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he was in the cabin (is that what you call it?) of the truck taking a nap. At 7:30 pm.

Anyway, we (I) also decided it would be fun to take pictures of us by some palm trees. Because we live in Florida, and we are just THAT cool.



And because I decided to be 12 years old again and started climbing on fences on stuff:

And because I think the back of my husband's head is cool:

And just to prove that our height difference is just no good for self-portraits:

A good day for a run

Let me just start out by saying that I only got 4 hours of sleep last night (I was sooo nervous!), but amazingly enough, I woke up not feeling the least bit groggy. In fact, I felt quite refreshed. Thanks, adrenaline!

I woke up at 6 a.m., ate a piece of bread, drank 16 oz. of water (a pre-race ritual), got dressed, then headed out the door with my husband in tow. We then went and picked up my friend Heather who was also running the race, and her husband and little girl. We made it to Jacksonville by 7:30, but didn't actually make it to the starting line until 8 a.m. We were in bumper to bumper traffic for two miles...eeek! I guess that's what happens when over 15,000 people come out to run a race in the early morning hours.

I'll just get down to business by saying that I LOVED this race. Loads of entertainment at every mile (including the UNF drumline...seriously awesome), very scenic, not too hot or cold (thank goodness for misty fog, we didn't see the sun ONCE during the entire race),and tremendously challenging.

My goal was to finish the race in 1:35:00. I'll get to my final time in bit.

Mile 1: This mile was flat and straight throgh the heart of downtown Jacksonville. The smell of coffee was strong as we passed the Maxwell House factory. It's a perfect morning smell, actually. I felt great during this mile. Outstanding, in fact.

Mile 2: This part of the race took us over the St. Johns River via the Main Street Bridge. The top of the bridge, for about ten yards or so, is made out of metal grating. It was pretty sweet to look down through the grating and see the river below. The climb to the top of the bridge was okay, not to steep, and I've climbed worse. Again, I was feeling great during this mile.

Miles 3 and 4: This was one of my favorite parts of the race. We were running adjacent to the river for awhile, and it was just so beautiful! I love having things like that to take your mind off of running. These miles flew by, and I didn't start feeling too fatigued until just before the 4 mile mark. I pushed through it, and then took a short 30 second walking break at Mile 4.

Miles 5 and 6: Not too much to report, I felt tired, but not tired enough to take a walk break. Plus, this section of the race went through a very beautiful neighborhood in Jacksonville. Theses houses were amazing, and the I loved seeing the spectators on their camp chairs in front of their houses. People were even giving out orange slices and strawberries. But I didn't partake, even though the scent of oranges was STRONG and it smelled delicious! My stomach has serious issues with any type of food consumption right before or during running. Once I passed the 10K timing mats, I stopped and took a 1 minute walk break. I had forgotten to take it slow at the water stops and ended up feeling water logged at this point. Too much water also makes my stomch hurt. Yuck.

Mile 7: This was by far the hardest mile for me (mentally, at least). I hit the dreaded WALL. I tried my best to push through it, but because I knew I had the climb up Hart Bridge during Mile 8, I slowed it down and took two quick 20 second walk breaks during this mile.

Mile 8: Physically this was the most grueling part of the race. The climb up Hart Bridge was intense! 186 feet in half a mile. Now, I've climbed steeper routes before, but never after having run over 7 miles already. It was tough. I cranked up my iPod, listened to Disturbia by Rihanna at full blast and slowly made my way up. Even though the climb was tough, the view was amazing. No wonder people from the East call the rivers in the West creeks. The St. Johns river is HUGE. I made it about half way up the bridge, took a quick 15 second walk, then made my push up the rest of the hill and for the finish. I made up a lot of time on the downhill.

Mile 9: I can't even tell you how amazing it felt to see the 9 mile mark and knowing that I only 3/10 of a mile left. I stepped up my speed, and couldn't slow down even if I wanted to, because now the spectators were lining the streets, and I'd probably just feel like a fool if I had to walk during the last 3/10 of a mile. The finish line was in sight, and I pushed myself even harder to reach it. It's a tradition. I always sprint to the finish. It probably annoys other runners, but I certainly don't care.

So, how fast did I finish the 9.3 miles? Here are my splits:

5K: 31:26:00
10K: 1:04:31
Final: 1:38:44

My pace? 10:35.

Overall, I was quite pleased. I fell short of my goal, but not by much. And seriously, I only trained for 3 weeks. It was an AWESOME race!

Me and Heather after the race. Yep, I was chowing down on the free food

My cute husband, who is always so supportive of me, and always makes it out to my races. Oh, and that's the Jacksonville Jaguars Alltel Stadium in the background

Yeah, we're pretty tough. 9.3 miles? No sweat!