We spent this past weekend in Tazewell for the Varmint Half Marathon. As we have for the past three years, we stayed at a campground in the area. It’s fun to explore new places, but there’s also something to be said for returning to a place you’re familiar with where you already know the routine. The main reason we stay there is for the race, but the park is really nice.

Barry and I have been running the Varmint since 2012. This year I chose to just cheer Barry on instead of running the race myself. I had fun being a cheerleader.

I also got to fulfill my dream volunteer job! When we went to packet pickup Friday night the race director said she was short on volunteers, so I got to hand out finisher’s medals to every half marathon finisher! I was the sole volunteer handing out medals, so I stayed pretty busy.

I loved getting to give Barry his medal when he crossed the finish line! He ran a great race and finished in 1:46 and change. It was super humid and very hot out, and he still ran so well. Despite coming in 20th overall (men and women) he was still sixth in his age group. He’s in such a competitive age group!

Overall, I spent nearly 3 hours handing out medals and I was as tired as if I had run the race. Barry’s parents came up to cheer him on and spend the day with us. So after he was done running and I was done volunteering we grabbed some lunch at the general store in Burke’s Garden. Lunch was delicious and I came home with a strawberry pie. Yum! The store is run by an Amish family and there is a large Amish community in Burkes Garden. It’s neat to see them and talk to them.

After lunch we headed back to the camper to hang out with Barry’s parents for the afternoon. It was great to see them and spend some time with them. We had a good time playing cards for a bit before they had to head home. Barry and I continued to play cards, and spent a lot of time playing gin rummy, as we often do when camping.

The dogs were with us and did what they often (okay, always) do when camping.

Yesterday we had a lazy morning before packing up the camper and heading home. After unpacking at home, we watched the USA vs. Sweden Women’s World Cup game. The game took place Friday night and was aired on Fox. I had hoped we could pick it up at the campground, but we couldn’t. Luckily I managed not to find out the results before watching the recorded game at home yesterday, largely due to not having internet at the campground. The rest of the day was spent doing laundry and sneaking in a short trail run just before sundown.

What did you do this past weekend?
What would be your volunteer dream job?
Are you following the Women’s World Cup?