Door County!

It was the 3rd weekend in July and for the last few years, that means: 1/2 Ironman weekend!

In 2011 Patrick and I traveled to Racine for his first 1/2 and stayed in one of the sketchiest motels I have EVER seen! I don't think either of us slept much that night - Patrick with anticipation and me watching the deadbolt on the door!

Last year we made our way with the Hebels and Scheidts to lovely Door County and stayed in an adorable "Cozy Cabin" outside of Fish Creek.

  Less nerves, a great rental and a tired preggo belly provided better rest and a lovely weekend. 

This year - we again traveled to Door County with the Hebels and Scheidts and added two more couples to the mix. Our group was now 5 couples ---- 10 adults - 1 preggo, 1 baby and 2 dogs.

Good thing Derek found the ultimate vacation rental.

It was a terrific weekend!

Check out this fantastic place!

This was the Ellestad room - plenty of beds for Patrick, Jeff, Jenny, James and I to spread out.

Plus two ceiling fans and windows on 3 sides - we slept great!

Patrick, Jeff and Dusty before the swim.

This was the first time we did not watch the guys go into the water. 

About 5 minutes before their wave, the rain started. 

We quickly seated ourselves under a portion of the stage and waited out the drizzle.

Happily, the rain stopped before the came out of the water and the weather was overcast and cool -

perfect for the race!

Derek and Scout cheering on the guys. 

Derek recently got a new job and life got in the way of training. So he was "Coach Derek" this weekend. 

 I am sure it was weird to be a spectator this year - but we enjoyed having him on the sidelines with us!

Patrick waving at Jimmy James at mile 4.

Jenny and James cheering on the runners. 

Jen and I had a system for the day - directions, traffic patterns, getting James in and out of the car, popping open the stroller, entertaining James...we did it all together. 

 She was fantastic and I couldn't have done it without her!

Thanks Jen!

Jeff on the bike --- you can tell he was having fun!

Post race - celebrating with James!

Cooling off his toes after the race.

This is one of my favorite pictures from the weekend - what a great smile!

And here is our whole group!

Congrats to Tyler and Jeff on completing their first 1/2 Ironman!

Everyone did a fantastic job and we had a fabulous weekend.