"The Bet"

For those that know me well, you know I have a propensity for opening my mouth and making "guarantees" that sometimes I can't deliver. Well, it happened again!

During the Olympics, I smarted off that I could run the 400 meters in less than 65 seconds. After Shawna stopped laughing, she somehow managed to get out that not only could I not run it under 65 seconds, I couldn't run it under 75 seconds. With my competitive nature, I immediately accepted and demanded that if I could manage to run the 400 meters in less than 75 seconds, I should be allowed to sit on the bench during a road ACU women's basketball game this year. Deal!

So, Sunday afternoon, Austin and I headed up to the ACU track. Shawna was already there meeting with her basketball team. I was so focused on the race I guess that I slammed into the back of a car at the intersection of Judge Ely and Highway 80 (I'll blog about that later). After a 1 hour delay, we managed to make it to the track. I tried to back out as I was not in the right frame of mind. My wife, being the loving and caring and supporting person she is, said absolutely not.

To make a long story short, I somehow managed to make it around the track in 71 seconds! While I did not best my personal goal of 65 seconds, I did manage to beat 75 seconds and secure my spot on the bench for the December 31 game at Incarnate Word. For those of you that don't have New Year's Eve plans, it might well be worth the trip to San Antonio to witness my debut as "Assistant Coach"!

There is an actual video of my journey around the track but I am having a difficult time uploading it. In the meantime, here are a couple of pre-race pictures. The first is one of Austin giving me some advice. In the second, you will see what Shawna thinks my actual chances are of making it in 75 seconds or less!

Dear Austin,

Happy birthday little buddy. It seems almost impossible to think that you are turning two years old today. I really think that this past year went by faster than the first! You are growing up so fast!

I have enjoyed watching you grow into a little boy these past twelve months. Just one short year ago you were barely able to walk from one end of the room to the other. Today, you are running all over the place and jumping off the furniture. You seem to have no fear!

You have also developed such an awesome personality. I guess you get that from your mommy! I love how people are drawn to you because of your smile and your laughter. It's so much fun to be in the mall or the store and watch how you smile and wave and say hello to complete strangers. You can bring a smile to even the most distant stranger.

You have also become quite the little athlete this year -- again, you get that from your mommy! You love kicking the soccer ball, hitting a baseball and swinging the golf club. You can see any sport on television and immediately call out which sport it is you are watching. You have no idea how much your daddy loves that!

I am so thankful that God entrusted your mommy and I to take care of you. You'll never know how much we love you. While you continue to grow and learn everyday, I think you teach us more than we will ever realize.

I can't wait to see what the next twelve months have in store for you. Thank you for being my little man. I love you more than you will ever know! Happy birthday kiddo!

Love,

Mommy and Daddy