I shot a rifle + our country trip for Lily’s baptism + Tiffany’s moving

I’ve known this pretty woman since first grade.

We went to elementary school together in the Gifted and Talented program at Riverside, and survived junior high school together, and thrived (though we made bad fashion choices) in Songspinners together at DCE High School. We even lived in dorms next to each other in college at UW-SP, and she helped me get my job at Starbucks. She met a super cute boy while serving coffee, and in a fairytale-esque story, they fell in love and got married. They just recently got a place in Carlsbad, CA, so they are moving far from home to the sunny West coast. I love it. They had a going away party in Appleton, so Brian and I headed over. We even found my friend (and birthday twin!), Ryan.

Congratulations, Clarks! We’re excited for you 🙂
We paired that trip with the sweet baptism of our niece, Lily, and stayed at my mother-in-law’s country house. For these purposes, I define “country” as being surrounded by corn fields on three sides. 🙂
Abbie and I went for a run while Brian sighted in his new rifle.

Brian was hard at work…

I took a shower, stretched out with Abbie, and came out to check on Brian. He’d left two bullets for me. I’ve never shot a rifle before, so he showed me all the parts. I liked the lever action, I felt like I was in a cowboy movie! He gave me ear protection, I lined everything up, and sloooooowwwwwwwly squeezed the trigger. The bullet fired. I screamed. It was loud! I hit the very edge of the target.

I didn’t want to do it again, but Brian convinced me to.
I lined it up. Shot the gun. Muffled my scream.
The middle is pretty good, right?

I think I look good with a gun.

Too bad I have pretty much no interest in killing an animal, though I’m really rethinking the food that I choose and why. This article that my friend, Kyle, shared with me is a good read- The Meat Eater Revolution.
I spent the rest of the day curled up on my mother-in-law’s couch, working on photos. It was a pretty relaxing and productive afternoon, and we cooked a beautiful dinner for the boys.
Sunday morning was the baptism. Lily is too sweet, and we just love her.