Wordless Wednesday

Happy New Years Eve!

This pic best sums up the highest of highs in 2014. 

Hoping for all the best in 2015!

Furry Friday

Happy day after Christmas!  On this day after, I will be spending the day with my fantastic Mom, as we brave the shopping mall to try and find some day after deals!

I hope yesterday brought you lots of happiness with your loved ones.  I am so happy to have spent the day with mine, and am just happy to be on the East Coast enjoying this whole week with them.

Today, I'm sharing a Puppy Cam link!  My boss has been fostering a Mama (whom she became a foster fail as she's already adopted her) and her 3 puppies from a great rescue group here in Colorado, Rocky Mountain Puppy Rescue.

Last week she stumbled upon this gem on their website and shared it with the office - from playing pups to sleeping pups, I cannot stop watching!

RMPR Puppy Cam!

The countdown is now on to 2015...which also means my Disney Half is just around the corner as well!  I cannot wait!

Are you ready for the New Year?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all!  I hope St. Nick was good to you last night, and you a wonderful day with your family and friends!  I know I will be cherishing my day!

 

Wordless Wednesday

Merry Christmas Eve!  Hopefully you have all of your gift purchasing complete and wrapped so you can enjoy this evening relaxing before the craziness of Christmas day tomorrow.

...I wonder what Mickey is doing... ;)

Furry Friday (12.19.14)

...for some reason this didn't post on the 19th so here it is a few days late!

Today I'm traveling back to Philly for Christmas!

I am SO excited to see my family - especially my Mom - mainly now that I can't just hop in a car and see them whenever I want to.

For today's Friday Furry, I'm sharing a lovely post from Bark Post regarding people being gifted a PUPPY.  The hubs currently has an IOU for me in regards to us adding a 2nd furry member to our family (finally!) so I'm hopeful that one will be joining us in 2015.

You've been PUPPIED!

...I would love to be filled receiving a surprise puppy - the joy I would exuding would be cray cray.  haha

As a note though, a puppy should never be frivolously gifted, as it is a big responsibility and life change.  More importantly, please remember to not shop, but adopt for your new 4 legged friend as there are many, many, many well deserving animals in our local shelters and rescues that would love a new home for the holidays.  No matter what size, color or breed - just check out Petfinder.com to find your new friend. =)

I also want to give a shout out to my Dad - it's his Birthday today, and I lost him this past summer very suddenly.  It honestly still doesn't feel real, and given my distance from "home" I feel like I've been able to not have to truly face his death.  This is going to make the holidays harder this year, but I know that he's still with me, and watching over me always.  I got my love of animals from him, and I couldn't thank him more for it!

Love you Dad. <3

http://makeagif.com/i/OXzRKG

Holiday Card Swap!

While I am newer to blogging, part of the reason I decided to doing was from reading other people's blogs. In preparing for my RunDisney half, I found a lot (and I know there are many more!) of people logging their training and runs all around the country. 

One of those blogs is Fairytales & Fitness.  I enjoyed their site as they share my love for Disney runs and always have a great and thoughtful blog posts that I've really enjoyed reading over the past few months.

When they posted they were doing a Holiday Card Swap, I thought that sounded like a fun holiday activity. A few weeks after signing up, I got the name of a fellow blogger, and another fellow blogger got mine. 

Coming home from Disney, I checked the mail and found a card address to me from Virginia. 

I received a very sweet card from Stacey over at Running Muffin. She wished me well in my first half next month and included my first piece of racing swag, the infamous 13.1 sticker!

Thank you so much, Stacey for the thoughtful card and inspiration for next month...I look forward to checking out your blog moving forward and wish you well in 2015!

Have you ever participated in a card swap?  

Wordless Wednesday

A sneak peak of my Epcot trip this past weekend. This was the shot after out France drinks were consumed. ;)

Furry Friday

Today I'm jetting off for a quickie trip to Disney, where I will be drinking around the world in Epcot tomorrow with friends and flying back home Sunday morning. 

I.Can't.Wait!

In the meantime, please enjoy Toby's annual picture with Santa!

Every year since I've had him (7 crazy years!) we have visited at least one Santa during the Christmas season. It was originally a local pet store chain, Cutter's Mill, that did it with Polaroids - but then became Petsmart. One year I even took him to King of Prussia Mall and he got to meet a REAL Santa in a fancy mall. That is probably the best photo I have...but the tradition of going to Petsmart and getting some random guy (and one year it was a woman) dressed up like St. Nick has a certain charm to it. 

In addition, Toby always gets some new Christmas accessory to wear for the photo. This year, The hubs picked out a cute Santa harness for him. :)

Fun times in the car!

This year we went to our neighborhood Petmart here in the Denver area and they DIDN'T have a Santa!  Even though they advertised it, they only had options with a background filler...like Olaf from Frozen. Sorry, that is not my tradition!  

Luckily, we went down the road to Petco and they DID have a Santa and all was right in my Christmas tradition. I'm use to showing up at these events with lines of other customers and dogs and it's a chaotic situation. We were the only ones there, and they gave us awesome customer service to get the best pic possible (Toby was not thrilled being held by a stranger). 

Merry Christmas from Toby - 2014

I guess people here aren't as excited to have their pooches photo with Santa as they are in PA. That's ok though, tradition complete! ;)

Do you do anything fun with your pets for the holidays?

Wordless Wednesday

I said Amanda, not Mandy. 

But I became Manny!

Not Manny. Manny!

#starbucksfail

The Secret Stash - Crested Butte, CO Dining at its Best! Part II

After licking my wounds and taking a cat nap we decided to head into the quaint downtown area of Crested Butte for some dinner. We we're told that The Secret Stash was the place to go if you'd never been before so that made that decision very easy (and given I love pizza and that was their specialty, it was a no brained!)

Not too far from our hotel was a bus stop that was free transportation around the local Crested Butte area. We had just missed a bus but didn't have to wait long for the next one to show up and we were off!  

Even in the dark, the main street downtown was still quite cute and, even though the shops we're closed, we did a lap around just to see everything before heading to our destination. While we did have to wait about 10 minutes for a table, it was fine as they have a small little gift shop we pursued and I hopped I hopped on Yelp to see what people recommended. 

The decor at The Secret Stash is awesome! Much of it comes from the travels of the co-owner who traveled the world before settling down in Crested Butte to open her restaurant. There are many India influences and relics and I kept spotting something different as I looked around during our meal. 

The guy tossing the pizza behind the counter was so much fun to watch!

Thanks to checking out Yelp, we ordered the Crack Fries as a starter...and OMG were they amazingly good. The mix of truffle oil and parmasan cheese was out of this world good...and we gobbled them up, almost wanting more!  We hadn't had much to eat that day (a bagel on the go in the AM and then a waffle post snowboarding) so we were quite hungry. 

Before *drooools*

After.

Finally our Hamptons pizza arrived. I liked this not only because of what came on it, but also because of its origin. East Coast baby! :) Though we subbed in the corn meal crust and it was so fab. 

SO.GOOD.

Add the 'lemon crown' as the final touch!

For as hungry as I was I only had 2 slices...but knew this would be a great late night Thanksgiving snack since we were having an earlier dinner, so it all worked out. :)

Before heading back to the hotel, I decided it is never too cold for ice cream and we made out way over to grab some yummy sweet treats (chocolate covered pretzels and more!) and I got a yummy cookies and cream ice cream cone to enjoy while making our way back to he hotel.  While cold, it definitely hit the spot!

Feels like 16 degrees...so what!?

What yummy treats have you found on vacation?

Week in Review x 2

Ok, so I clearly slacked on this last week. 

Another fail.  But work is a bit crazy right now...and it wasn't really post worthy. 

The only thing to note last week was my make up for the previous week of being sick, and running 11 miles. It was a weak, weak run. I was disappointed with myself and it showed me how imports the conditioning during the week is to keep your stamina up. My time was just awful considering my 9.5 mile run previously and what I was aiming for...though, to be fair (and to my failness), I basically walked the last 2 miles and just wanted to be done...so I knew what I was in for. 

Ignore Mile 10 and 11...

This past week was much of the same in regards to a lack of conditioning, but my 12.5 mile run yesterday went great!  In basically the same amount of time I did 11 miles, I ran 12.5. Still a run/walk mix...but much more running and I didn't fully walk any of my miles. I also didn't feel any hunger pains...though was definitely ready for hydration by the time it was all over. 

Success!

I was shooting for 2:45...and while I was a tad over that was happy with my performance given the lack of running during the week and the vast improvement from the week prior.

I'm hoping to get back into hot yoga this week...but will have to change things up a bit as I'm coming into work early this week and next week. I think it's doable and given the leg pains I'm feeling today, I know my body could use it!

Only one more month until the Disney half!! Time is flying!  I'm anxiously awaiting them to release the corral information so I can see what type of a lead my 10k has given me...hopefully it will be enough for many picture stops. :)

How is your Disney training going?!

Thanksgiving in Crested Butte, Colorado! Part I

It's hard to believe that it's been a week since Thanksgiving. Time is going so fast right now, it's almost crazy. It also means I'm that much closer to running my first half next month (hello December!) which I'm super duper excited about...especially as we work to finalize our running outfits. ;)

Here is the first installment of our trip last week!

The hubs and I decided to travel roughly 4 hours outside of Denver to enjoy a relaxing Thanksgiving alone in the mountains of Crested Butte.  All I knew of it was it was a quaint ski town, and that it was the original home of Heidi Montag (because The Hills was my show back in the day...and I still love seeing what Lauren Conrad continues to do with her life today.)

Lucky for us the weekend prior they got HAMMERED with snow, so driving through the mountains on Tuesday to ge there was beautiful, and at times slow and a bit treacherous, but we made it!  While we arrived before check in to our hotel, Elevations, they were able to not only get us a room but a bit of an upgraded on at that, so it was quite nice!

After unloading our belongings we quickly suited up in our snow gear to hit the slopes!  The great event for us is that since it was Opening Day, lift tickets were free!  Unfortunately I do not own my own gear BUT we litterlslly went 20 feet out out hotel and the rentals were right there. Not to mention we were also situated right at the ski lift...so I highly recommend our hotel! (We found them via a Groupon deal...money well spent!)

While the hubs has his own snowboard, I have only been a few times and am still unsure what my status is with snowboarding. It is quite a love/hate relationship at this point - and after last week is leaning more towards hate.  However, I could tell he really wanted me to snowboard with him, so I agreed to strap that board to my feet for the day. 

I'd be lying if I told you I knew this was a mistake almost immediately. My one boot was uncomfortable no matter what I did and my right leg (not attached to the board) was in pain from supporting my body. While we didn't have far to go to get to the lift, the lines were long (see: free lift tickets and also best Opening Day conditions in years) and there was much waiting to be had. 

I was anxious most of the way up the mountain, dreading getting off. And, in true form, had a horrible exit off the lift. I quickly had to get over that and prepare myself for what was going to turn into the never ending mountain. This took awhile given the various people surrounding me, but eventually we were off. 

I'm hopeful that if I were to take actual snowboarding lessons (clearly I am self taught thus far) I would perhaps fair better. A Colorado mountain with real fresh snow is quite different from the mountains I've skiied in the Poconos back in PA - which are typically icy and artificial - so compounded with everything else maybe I shouldn't be surprised at the nasty spill I experienced not 5 minutes into my travels down ge mountain.  Face first (well, I guess chest as my face never touched snow...) into the powder. 

Having NEVER had a fall like that before I was hurt (physically and emotionally lol) and was SO over it at that point. However, this board was my only was to get down...so I had to get over it and make the best of the situation. I felt so bad for my hubby because I wanted him to enjoy his ride down, but he was concerned with me and trying to give pointers to help make it down the mountain. 

I was a lost cause at that point. haha. But I love him for caring so much. :)

After many stops (my thighs burned the whole time, which has never happened to me before when I've boarded and think may be running related...so I needed the breaks) I finally made he grand descend back towards home base. The hubs had gone ahead towards he end and was waiting patiently for me.     I couldn't WAIT to get us strapped from my board!  I encouraged him to take at least another run, but he said once was enough for him too, and he'd rather relax with me. 

Before heading back to return my board (yes after only one run which my husband had predicted!) we picked up a yummy waffle to enjoy while watching the other patrons enjoy the mountain. The last time I had a waffle like this, I was visiting a friend in Denmark over Thangsgiving break in college, so it was quite lovely. 

After our waffles and people watching we  returns my board and retreated to our room for an afternoon snooze before a night out on the town. 

Have you had any bad spills doing a winter sport?

Wordless Wednesday

An early morning potty break for Toby lead to a beautiful skyline. 

#Furry Friday

Happy Day After Thanksgiving/Black Friday/Relax in your Comfy Pants/Shop Til You Drop!

I hope that you had a wonderful feast yesterday, and a relaxing day with your loved ones.  Today, I hope you're either continuing that relaxation - or shopping those deals at your local mall (or perhaps even online!)

I will be spending today traveling back to the Denver area, after a lovely mini vacay in the Mountains.  More to come on this fun snowy escape later...

For today's Furry Friday, our friends at Bark Post have a lovely article about the love that our dogs have for us like we are their family.  I know I can't wait to get back home to have cuddles with Toby - and I know how much he loves me (even when deciding to be a little pain in the tushy).

Scientific Proof That Dogs Love Us Like Family

I know dogs apparently hate hugs - but I think some like them. =)

So, if you didn't know - now you REALLY know how much they love you.

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you and your loved ones a Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is a great day to reflect about what you're thankful for - though this is something that should perhaps be done more than once a year... - and enjoy those around you.

This is the first year that I won't be spending the holiday with my extended family, as the hubs and I are having ourselves a mini vacation in the Colorado mountains.  Nothing says winter is almost here like lots of fresh snow at a ski resort in Crested Butte!  

It is timely though, considering this is our first year as a married couple and we're spending our Thanksgiving at a hotel spa (relaxation = happiness) and enjoying the Eagles vs Cowboys game (Fly Eagles Fly!) with just one another in our hotel room.  While very different from the hustle and bustle of our normal family meal (my hubby's Aunt always has a marvelous spread for fam) it is nice that we are starting our own traditions together.  I hope the hotel restaurant is offering some amazing green bean casserole...

#Truth

I am so thankful for an amazing husband, my lovable pup, my fantastic family (especially my Mom - she is BEYOND fantastic) and my fabulous friends.  These people make me who I am, and I couldn't be happier to have them in my life.  I really could gush on for days about those so near and dear to me - did I mention what an amazing woman my Mom is? - but I will keep it simple for the sake of the blog.

So, even though I am only able to spend today with hubby, I am thinking of those near and far - and am so blessed to be a part of your lives.

Enjoy your day of feasting with loved ones - and never forget how precious these moments are.  I'll be thinking of you Dad - I'm sure the turkey in Heaven is AMAZING. <3

Thanksgiving 2015

Wordless Wednesday (aka the day before feast!)

Thanksgiving in the year 2014.

 For more Thanksgiving giggles, check out this link

Week in Review

I didn't post this yesterday, because part of me thought maybe I just shouldn't even post this this week because last week was a major FAIL.  I feel like I've lost my mojo a bit because of the weather, and that is a bad, bad thing!  With this week being a holiday week, and I'm traveling, I hope to do my to get things back on track.

I'll keep it simple and not even both trying to make excuses...

Training Schedule (11.17.14 - 11.23.14  
11.17.14 //  Did not make it to AM Hot Yoga.  Fail.

11.18.14 //  Did not do my 30 minute Disney run.  Fail.

11.19.14 // Did not make it to AM Hot Yoga.  Fail.

11.20.14 //  Did not do my 30 minute Disney run.  Fail

11.21.14 // Rest day! lol

...actually, I was ill on Friday, so it HAD to be a rest day.  This taught me that if I'm healthy, regardless of how cold it is out, I should still get in my workout.  I prepped myself all week and was looking forward to my 11 mile Disney run on Saturday (part of the reason I ok'ed myself in missing workouts) in beautiful balmy 50 degree weather - but it came to a crashing halt since I felt nauseous at work most of the day on Friday, and eventually tossed my cookies once I got home. =(  My hubs took amazing care of me though, he's the best!

11.22.14 //  Did not do my 11 mile Disney run.  Fail.  

I don't consider this a fail like the other work outs because I WANTED to run but couldn't.  I woke up and still felt awful, and decided to spend the day vegging and working on my niece's surprise Christmas gift that I had been neglecting to work on (see: knitting).  So, at least it was productive in that regard.  It killed me that I couldn't go out and enjoy the nice weather that Colorado was providing me - but it was for my own good.  After not eating all day Friday or Saturday, I finally had real food Saturday night.

I did take a brisk walk with the hubs and Toby down to my super close and convenient knitting store so I could pick up 2 more balls of yarn to finish off my project.  I think the walk ended up being just shy of a mile, so at least I kinda enjoyed the weather (and I know Toby loved the jaunt!)

11.23.14 //  Ran 1.82 miles.  

I still wanted to take it easy today, but was feeling MUCH better.  I had a list of things to do (see: laundry, clean house for dog sitter, etc) but was getting antsy.  I decided that amongst my productivity, I would go out for a run.  The temps dropped significantly going into Sunday (which was great because the Mountains got a ton of snow and that's where we're going for Thanksgiving) but it meant running in 30 degree weather.  I still do not like running with layers or in the cold, but thought I should do it given I was missing out on my 11 mile haul.

I had hoped to do a 3 mile run BUT I wasn't even though mile 1 and felt a little queasy.  I decided to turn back around earlier than planned to head back towards home, just in case.  I normally hate completing odd mileage with a run, but in this case i just finished when I got back to our doorstep.

I ran/walked my first mile in 11:16.  Not my best by any means, but considering I hadn't worked out since the Pumpkin Pie 5k, had been sick, I was ok with it.  There is always next time!

How do you get out of a workout rut?

Pumpkin Pie 5k Recap!

It's hard to believe it's been a week since the Pumpkin Pie 5k!

Luckily the weather has warmed up a bit here in Colorado, but I will always have the cold, cold memories of running in 14 degree weather with my hubby on that fateful day!

The night before was all about preparing for the weather, and I wanted to make sure I was properly equipped.  Here is what I prepared:

• Official Pumpkin Pie 5k shirt
• Lululemon sports bra
• UPenn tank tap (had to rep PA, even though no one saw it)
• Old Navy Active Half Zip Pullover 
• Lululemon Running Tights
• Brooks Run Happy shorts
• Snowboarding socks
• Mittens
• Ear warmer headband
• Mizuno Wave Inspire 10 running sneaks

I figured this would do the trick - but I was also contemplating a Turtle Fur neck warmer (that I have probably had since like elementary school) as well.  While it would've been nice to have pre-race, I'm glad I left that off. 

Planning things out on Friday night.

The plan was to leave at 8am the next more, with a 9am start time.  As per usual, I took a little longer getting ready, and we were out the door around 8:15am.  It was then that I realized it was snowing.  Per my last check of the weather, the snow was to occur in the afternoon, not early in the morning, so I was shocked...and couldn't believe I was about to run a 5k with my husband.  Did I mention he was wearing shorts?  Um, yes.

We timed things fairly well even with our late start, as there was quite a bit of a walk in the snowy cold to get from the parking area to the starting line in the park.  By the time we made our way there, we only had to wait about 5 or so minutes for the race to start.

What I'm thinking - "Is this really happening right now!?  Snow, running!?  Oh boy..."

People didn't listen (which I assume is quite common at these events being new to them) in regards to lining up.  They asked the <8 minute mile runners to head to the front and then fan back from there with runners with dogs and/or strollers to be in the back.  We placed ourselves a little ways back from the front - but had a dog right behind us.  We were no where near the back, and the dog was getting a little stir crazy given the confining space.  I am CLEARLY a dog runner, but this woman should've listened to the rules, but I held my tounge.

Smiles at the start line!

We were finally off...and it was a slow start.  In addition to dogs not being where they should've been, people who were walking were ahead of us - like as in walking and we hadn't even been running for a minute!  It was very annoying trying to get around these folks, because in addition to the fact that it was snowing, the conditions were not ideal.  There were a variety of icy spots on the pavement, and trying to bob and weave around people did not help when people were trying to keep their balance and oh you know, RUN a 5k.

I eventually moved into the grass - which while snow covered and not even, was a little bit more stable than the untreated surfaces of the pavement, and helped me get around people.  While the hubs and I planned to run this race together, I knew given his height he could find me far more easily than I could him, and took off a bit ahead of him because the barely running pace was annoying me.

As I ran, I could HEAR people fall behind me - and then those around them/behind them react to the fall.  It made me nervous and after talking to the hubby he said he witness quite a few nasty falls (that I was presumably just hearing).  Lucky for us, we never fell and ran a successful race in that regards.

I realized about 2 minutes in that I had forgotten to turn on MapMyRun - I was clearly caught up in the snow and excitement of the cold! - so I had NO idea where I was mile wise.  I decided to just let it go and 'run the race' but I also assumed they would have mile markers.   Well, I only saw a mile marker for mile 2 on the whole course.  That was frustrating, because I am definitely someone who likes to know where I am at, and since I didn't have the reliance of MapMyRun, I just had to guestimate.  Meh.  There were 2 DJs on the course providing music and words of encouragement (aka runners be careful of the ice!), but besides that it was a run through a park with snow.  Though they did have (free!) race photographers along the course as well.

I'm going to assume that I ran the whole first mile and then some, before starting up on my interval running.  There was no rhyme or reason to it really since I had no way to know where I was in my mileage to try and pace myself.  By this point, the hubs had caught up to me, so we just discussed when we would walk.  

At one point I also got a side stitch, which was annoying but there was such an assortment of runners/walkers/dogs/kids/etc that it really didn't matter.  People just wanted to finish and get their pumpkin pie!

We crossed the finish line together with an official time of 38:57.  Nothing to write home about, but I was happy with it nonetheless given the freezing conditions and not having a proper way to pace myself.

Wooo Pumpkin Pie 5k medal 2014!

It was time to get our medal (a first for both of us!) and then get in line for our pie.  They did have vendors set up, but we were just focused on getting the pie and getting out of there!  By the time we received our pie and started the trek back to the car, the line was CRAZY long - like basically from the finish line to the table - to get pumpkin pie.  It made me feel like I had finished before the majority of those running, so that was nice.  Though there were still plenty of people on the course, as many chose to walk.

Waiting in line for our pumpkin pie!  Smiles all around!

There was a 10k starting at 10:30 and we passed many of those runner coming in, but I was glad to be heading out.  By this point my sweat was cold and making me cold and I just wanted to be warm and eat my pumpkin pie (yes I carried it all the way back to the car) in peace.

Overall, it was a fun experience, though the weather definitely added an extra element we did not expect to have when we registered.  I wish there had been better mile signage on the course, and that they had treated the pavement better as the conditions were no ideal even if it hadn't been snowing.

Finally!  My pie!

 What's your experience running winter races?  Do you plan on doing a Turkey Trot next week? 

I leave you with some of the "official" race photos - I attempted to pose for one with a thumbs up - however they were focused on the hubs, so you can see my thumbs in one of this photos...many of mine were not all that flattering.  haha  I will have to work on this for the Disney Half. ;)

Running in the grass!

Action shot!

Happy to finish with my wonderful husband!

#Furry Friday

Today, I am linking to a hilarious post on BarkPost, entitled  11 Sure-Tail Signs Your Dog Is A Buttface.

While Buttface is not typically a term that I use to refer to Toby, trust me when I say many of the things mentioned in this post refer to some of our daily house banter - especially his love of ripping part his toys, and littering more than 1 room with fluff.

This is Toby's latest victim - his fluff can currently be found on and around our bed.

 The lil pup featured is a cutie too, and even has his own Instagram account!  Maybe Toby will be that cool some day, but until then, you can find my Instagram account here. 

Does your doggie like ripping up their toys, or do they just enjoy playing with them "peacefully"?

Wordless Wednesday

Happy 25th Anniversary to The Little Mermaid!

Week In Review

Ah, got it in on Monday this week (go me!)

So, I think my workouts were a bit lacking overall last week (unfortunately).  

As my previous posts hinted to...it's been cold.  And quite frankly, I understand that is what happens this time of year.  However, we didn't really ease into it here in Colorado, it basically went from super nice sunny weather to super cold single digits and snow over night - literally.

I blame said weather on my lack of wanting to go out in the early AM (aka yoga) or in the evening (aka the gym) - so I did what I could at home, and I hope to be more with it this week as it warms up a bit around here.  Plus, I have a big long run this weekend!

Training Schedule (11.10.14 - 11.16.14)

11.10.14 //  In all honesty, I had signed up for 5:30am hot yoga on this day.  But when my alarm went off, my little cuddle bug Toby had just gotten super cuddly with me, and I couldn't break his heart and get out of bed.  So, I turned off the alarm, canceled my class appointment, and rolled back over.  I knew this was a mistake, because I knew what weather was coming my way, and figured it was not going to be a good week overall.  Quite frankly, I shot myself in my own foot on this one.  haha

11.11.14 //  Given the deep freeze, and snow, that came upon the area, I actually got out of work 2 hours early to get a jump on the roads and traffic.  However, it also did not make me want to leave the house and go to the gym to do my 30 minute Disney run.  I opted to do online work out videos instead.  I couldn't find my Jillian Micheal's 30 day Shred videos - my husband 'found' them for me, and I could no longer find them on the computer - so I instead tried my hand at the 10 minute work out series that I did find on said computer.  I did 10 minutes of core, and then then 10 minute total body work out...which was a total success for me, since I didn't have a stretchy band to use as they were.  I did work up a decent enough sweat, so I was happy for not doing anything, and felt productive given the nasty weather outside.

11.12.14 //  Ok, so as I had already predicted on Monday - there was no way I was going to hot yoga today.  Given the snow fall and chilly conditions, there was no way I was going to make that early morning trek.  I almost opted out of going to work, but decided to just suck it up and make the drive in.  What normally takes me about 25ish minutes took almost an hour and fifteen minutes - but I blame this more so on the fact that at a major intersection the lights were out and it was a true free-for-all in regards to who got to go which way when.  A true hot mess of traffic, with no cops.  Insanity. 

11.13.14 //  Yet another cold day in paradise, and I did not feel like walking over to the gym for my 30 minute Disney run.  My husband was doing work on his computer, and I couldn't get the Apple TV working, so I just did a Pintrest workout that I had screen capped on my iPad.  It REALLY worked my upper body - planks and pushups! - and I felt that on Friday.  The 1 minute wall sit also wasn't my friend.  But again, I felt happy to have done SOMETHING over nothing.

11.14.14 //  Rest Day!  Yay! haha My husband and I went to pick up our bibs for our Pumpkin Pie 5k after work, and I found the cutest running shorts on a (major!) sale at the store where they were hosting the pick up.  We also went to Panera Bread for dinner - and I got way too excited over their fall menu.  I LOVE their squash soup, so I was over the moon to have that back in my life again!  I could eat that every day.

Brooks Run Happy shorts - adorable and motivating!

11.15.14 //  Pumpkin Pie 5k day!  I will do a full recap of the event this week, but lets just say that it was 14 degrees and snowing for the race.  Not what I had signed up for, but it made it all that more of an experience.  The course was slick, and I kept hearing people fall behind me, but I was just that much more diligent when running.  It was fun to do the event with my husband - who had gone into training mode after I ran my first 10k last month.  I'm thankful we did the 5k vs the 10k given the conditions and my distaste for cold weather. ;)  I got my first ever running finisher's medal, and of course, my slice of pumpkin pie at the conclusion of events!

Woo a medal!

I completely forgot to turn on MapMyRun given the 'excitement' of the snow and weather so I don't have my split time, but we finished the race in 38:57 - hand in hand through the finish line.  Nothing to really write home about, but given the conditions, I was happy with it!  My mileage for my Disney training was 3 miles, so this race was right on par for what I needed for the weekend.  

11.16.14 //  Rest Day.  The light snow that fell during the race turned into something far more considerable into Saturday night, so Sunday was a great day to lounge around and watch football with the hubs.  I'm also working on something (see: knitting) very special for my niece for Christmas, and it was a good day to work on that as well.  

Hopefully this week I can get back into the swing of things...I have 11 miles to run this weekend, and it doesn't look like I'm going to have much warmer conditions (false - it will hopefully be in the 40s. lol) so I need to get over this issue of not wanting to work out in the cold.  

How do you motivate yourself with the winter weather?

#Furry Friday

I certainly hope this weather can rebound a little more in the next few days.  While I am happy that we are back into double digits (YES!) it's still colder than my liking.

My poor little Toby isn't a huge fan of the cold either.  While he does enjoy a good frolic in the snow, his poor little pads get getting cold quite quick once outside - no one needs those additional struggles when trying to go to the bathroom!

Do I have to go out Mom? (this is an older pic, but he's just so gosh darn cute!)

For today's Furry Feature - it comes again from Bark Post - is regarding Small Dog Parent's and the frequent comments that are made.  Toby is about 20lbs, and most people consider him small (our landlords think he's big.  Crazy, I know).  I have certainly heard some of these things before - and can't help but roll my eyes.  The GIFs are great though.


I hope wherever you are you're surviving the weather - I know the Northeast, my old stomping ground, got snow yesterday...but they didn't have our single digit temps! =P  For those running in the Avengers Half and other races this weekend in Disneyland, I wish you the best of luck!  I'm sure this new race will be a ton of fun for all those involved.   

For me, I will (at least as of now) still planning on facing the elements with my hubby as we run tomorrow in some chilly teen/mid 20 temps for the Pumpkin Pie 5k!  This will be a good test of running in the COLD moving forward as I get into the climax of my running training.  11 miles next weekend - I am praying for a warm up!

Happy Friday!

D is for Disney...duh!

It is crazy how sporadically things can happen. 

One day you think you’re going to Disney in t minus 54 days to run your first ever half marathon.  Then, you suddenly find out that you’re actually going to go to Disney in t minus 28 days!  Whaaaat!?

My husband has a crazy, but lovable, group of friends that have now (obviously) become my friends.  And, with that, comes some crazy ideas – one being to have a whirlwind trip down to Disney and drink our way around Epcot.  And by whirlwind, I mean flying out Friday night, touring Epcot Saturday, and flying home Sunday morning.

I was beyond excited when my hubs was down for the trip.  This is truly going to be an awesome awesome trip, with some awesome awesome people!  We attempted to ‘drink around the world’ when we went to Disney last May – my husband’s first ever time at Disney! – but failed.  It wasn’t that we didn’t try, we definitely had a few drinks and some various food items, but I don’t think our hearts were in it.  We still had a magical time though. 

The group is currently brainstorming some t-shirt ideas, which I am super excited about.  The below graphic will probably make an appearance.  I understand that it doesn’t make sense to anyone who isn’t aware of another crazy idea that this same group of friends has going on (the Game of Life, obviously!) but given this was really the inspiration for the random trip to Epcot, it is only fitting our mascot be a part of our journey as well…it was my suggestion to add the Mickey ears. #lifepoints

Drinking Around the World - December 13, 2014

I feel like I have so many countdowns going on right now between the holidays and my half (which is also a Disney countdown) but I am quite ecstatic to add this to the list!  Also, given the freezing cold temps here in Denver this week, the idea of heading down to sunny WARM Florida makes me happy as well.  

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