I Survived...a Story of No Training, the Flu, and a Marathon | Monday Musings

I Survived...a Story of No Training, the Flu, and a Marathon | Monday Musings

If you haven’t noticed over the last 6 (!!!) years of my blogs, I love talking about what I’m doing and what’s coming up, especially when there’s a big event on the horizon. When I was training for my last half marathon, I chronicled a lot of the training runs over on my Instagram stories. So it shocked more than a few people when I posted last week that I had just finished my first ever marathon. Here’s the story behind the surprise!

All the way back in May 2017, some friends in our Bible study group decided to sign up for the 2018 One City Marathon and spur each other on during the long training runs. Always up for a challenge, and one of the few in the group who already enjoyed long runs, I enthusiastically signed up and began to chart out my training plan. I signed up for a half marathon in the fall and trained so well I crushed it, placing first in my age category and third among women.

In the meantime, though, one big piece of life changed…

Williamsburg Anniversary Winter Session | Williamsburg Photographer | Rob + Lauren

Williamsburg Anniversary Winter Session | Williamsburg Photographer | Rob + Lauren

I’ve known Rob and Lauren now for coming up on two years. I first photographed their engagement session just a few weeks after Willow came home (I couldn’t even tell them yet!), then their wedding took place last January on a beautiful day at Kiln Creek Golf Club. Now, over a year into marriage, they wanted to celebrate again with pictures and it felt like everything came full circle once again.

Rob and Lauren were so sweet during their engagement session when I first met them, but seeing them as husband and wife just made me realize how much more comfortable they are around each other (and in front of the camera!) than even just a couple years ago. They shared more looks between the two of them. They snuggled a little closer. They still didn’t shy away from kissing, and it’s obvious that their relationship has already grown stronger. When I asked the biggest lesson they have learned from the first year, they couldn’t tell me - mostly because it’s just been full of joy to finally live side by side every single day…

Vintage Winter Wedding at Historic Post Office | Hampton Wedding Photographer | Ben + Kat

Vintage Winter Wedding at Historic Post Office | Hampton Wedding Photographer | Ben + Kat

At the end of December, I had the pleasure of photographing two weddings in one weekend at the Historic Post Office - I couldn’t have dreamed up a better way to end 2018! I knew that the couples in each wedding were very different from each other, so the challenge was to make sure their days were completely unique, yet still beautiful. What a joy it was to be pushed creatively - and in so many ways, the day belong to each couple separately, while maintaining the elegant feel of the venue.

Ben and Kat’s wedding was all about the vintage details…