Happy Birthday, Roy!

Happy Birthday, Roy!
Roy is officially 25 years old, which is so hard to believe. :) I know how much he loves people and loves his friends so I threw him a party in our small apartment, but we made it work :) It was a GREAT time!!! Happy Birthday, Roy Boy!


I am so grateful for new friendships!
href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMBzf6lpD-xldMlLmHZoerpyNTayzzGH-kBpDxB9Iqss6094aLpKnHffI5O9DT0ucTGPQhyphenhyphenddRqFiuPVPr5NMeEt5YoxhCr5cj8UnE3WRwBxpkfFXHWZ9yIXaeKpfhGr1kzooaVlnQpDh6/s1600-h/DSC01514.JPG">How many people can we fit in here?
These are some of Roy's classmates, which in turn have become great friends of his.
And they have pretty awesome wives (and girlfriends) that have become my good friends.
href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp2-5uiZohRa0aDkyL1M0M3bwtLZpb_OnIi7Q7Jh8yHXDds_2ubvj9_fU5GrEWhDqgnebV2XZ3wvR7PHFUYQsEAY6IX0LA3gJKPQ9dfYFF6jobzGaN5D6vEpp1IW1QpowVG0vdjkm8uKFN/s1600-h/DSC01513.JPG">We had a great time playing the Famous People game
href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Z9bjIdt1TlXO-aYDq2dEQHIYlHQQmzQxg6Rlf1uHartbV9_rhW8faqEypacBw5ZM3bAiwZcy5B7jscMS3uIb2jdfjlyeMVoJJFx6p2uFMBI3MvJNrscolrhDApAvagVfEwUp471dN9g2/s1600-h/DSC01525.JPG">While the boys talked about "seminary" the girls helped me style my hair. haha
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MY LOVE!

My Half-Marathon Journey

You may or may not know this, but for the past 4 months I have been training for a half-marathon. I actually have a blog that I have attempted to use for accountability and let everyone know how my training is going. http://www.runbeckyrun5.blogspot.com
ANYWAY, training is going awesome!! The past month has been an incredible milestone for me. Over the Christmas break I was still training with a 3 minute run 2 minute walk to recover plan. I ran/ walked 6.6 miles over the break and was stoked that I could do that. Since Christmas break I have been stepping up my running quite a bit. I have two runs throughout the week (usually 3 to 5 miles) and have a long run on Saturday mornings around Lake Baldwin with my friend Lianne. She is also training for the race and has been the BEST training partner. Well, last week I reached a 5.2 mile mark (no stopping!) and I was stoked. That was the first time I had ever run that far without stopping and I was on cloud nine. So this morning, Lianne and I went for our 8AM run and I ran 8 MILES without stopping in 1 hr. and 26 minutes. I am still in shock when I see "8 miles" because I never would have dreamed that I could become a runner, but I have. The Disney Princess Half-Marathon is in about 6 weeks and I am more thrilled than ever. Today was a huge boost of running confidence and I really think I will make it through the half-marathon. I am thrilled! I have finally gotten to the point where I love to run. Sure, it gets tough during the run and I am sore beyond belief afterwards, but each run makes me more and more excited about the next. I am doing something I never dreamed I would be able to do and that is an awesome feeling!




This is part of the 2.6 mile loop around Lake Baldwin. It is a beautiful lake and there are always tons of people running, walking, riding bikes, walking their dog, and pushing their kids in strollers. It's been an awesome spot for our long runs.



This Fuel Belt was a lifesaver during my run today. I am borrowing it from a friend. It hold 4 different 8 oz bottles of water. It definitely came in handy!


Here is the half-marathon course. I get so excited! Miles 5 and 6 will be through the Magic Kingdom. Piece of cake! I'll be so thrilled that I'm at Disney I'll forget I'm exhausted.

I'll keep you guys posted on the rest of the journey!!!

More Christmas pictures...

Ok. I realize Christmas is over and done with, but Bonnie sent me some pictures she took over the break so I decided to post them :) Enjoy!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE MCDANIEL'S!
We traveled roughly 2,000 miles over Christmas break to spend so much anticipated time with our families. We are incredibly grateful for time off of work and school to spend time with our families that we don't get to see very often. :( We began our Christmas vacation in Livingston for a week with Roy's family. It was Roy's siblings first Christmas all together as married couples. It was a fun time indeed! I was a trooper and went dove hunting with Roy and Mr. Puddin, I didn't shoot a gun, but I just went along for the fun of it. We played golf (which I'm not so good at), played the 1st Annual McDaniel Family Football Game in the front yard of Christmas day, and spent some much needed time "piling" as Mr. Puddin says, which pretty much means sitting around the fire in our PJ's eating and talking. We were sad to leave. The following Monday after Christmas we headed from Livingston, AL to Otto, NC (very close to Franklin, NC) to spend time with my parents, sister, and brother-in-law. It was SO cold!! It was so nice to have some time in the mountains with family. It was incredibly relaxing and restoring. We got snow one night too, which was so wonderful!! We played outside for about 30 minutes and had had enough. It was beautiful though. Dinner at the Dillard House was incredible as well. All in all, Christmas break was wonderful. It made me incredibly "homesick" not necessarily homesick I guess, but definitely homesick from our families. We miss them but are blessed for the time we were able to spend with them. We hope and pray everyone had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!! We are eager to see what the Lord has in store for us this year. P.S. I totally forgot my camera so these pictures were taken on my phone. I'll hopefully post some more pictures soon!


I went back to my country roots. Four wheeler riding and all.
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Roy and Mr. Puddin in their hunting gear

Enjoying the mountains of North Carolina.

We got snow!!!!! It was only about an inch, but it was beautiful!

Eating ice-cream from the local creamery. It was delicious!

Bonnie and Angel enjoying some yummy ice-cream as well!

Mom and Dad enjoying the snow

Mom and Dad with the breath-taking mountain view

Tommy, Leigh, and Roy

Enjoying the mountain view from the deck of our cabin. It is beautiful!

Mom had the mountain house decorated for Christmas and it was amazing!

Roy is such a stud.

Roy let me drive the four wheeler and I had myself a good time :)