cold front love

Ok, I don't know that much about weather. Shocker. I know exactly nothing about barometric pressure, dry heat and the difference between Fahrenheit and Celsius (ps, I had to look up how to spell both of those words.)

In fact, until very recently I could watch the 'weather on the 1s' with Josh and still have no idea what to wear to work the next day. Unless it said it would be raining, but then the chances of me remembering to pack an umbrella were pretty dang slim.

But since I've been training for my marathon I've learned quite a bit: the more humid it is, the more I'll need to hydrate....there's a big difference between 75 degrees and 82 degrees...and summer was quite possibly the most stupid time to train for a marathon.

Gone are my modest days of wicking tshirts and running capris; welcome to running shorts and tank tops. Its so stinking hot outside that I've given up completely on trying to look fashionable. Its all about survival at this point. And if you think I'm being a little over-dramatic...well, I am. But seriously guys, this heat we've been having is foolishness.

I've finished 8 weeks of training (10 weeks left) and am officially in marathon training mode. I ran 14 miles two Sundays ago an 15 miles this past Sunday. I was so stinking proud of myself. Until I realized that I was exhausted after the 15 miles...and would still have to make it 11 more miles come race day.

I was feeling pretty bummed...until this morning. Is it possible to fall in love with a weather pattern? If so, I'm in deep....as in I want to serenade with a Taylor Swift song. Meet the effects of a cold front:

Tue

Aug 24

7 am
71° F
Precip:10%

71 degrees? Seriously?! I had my shortest run of the week this morning, so I soaked up every minute of the four miles. I could not believe it. Now, its still gonna be nearly-surface-of-the-sun hot today, but I reeeeeally enjoyed my little fall preview.

Go grab your gear....tommorow's gonna be even better!

Wed

Aug 25
7 am

65° F
Precip:10%

rock on

Ladies, prepare to meet your new best friend:

'Rock On' dry shampoo is quite possibly the best invention ever (followed quickly by mascara, toothpaste, and TiVo). It contains some magical ingredients that soak up oil in you hair and helps you maintain a fresh just-washed-and-blown-out look without all the hassle. It even adds a light hold and added texture. Simply spray on, massage in, brush out and strut your stuff.

I highly recommend this to:
-girls with fine hair
-lazy people
-bar/club goers (totally gets rid of the smokey smell)
-anyone wanting to sleep in a few extra minutes

I should offer a little warning: don't use this on wet hair...even if its only slightly misted. You will end up with a pasty mess on top of your head. Not that I've ever done that or anything...

So go stop by your local Sally Beauty and pick up this magical can for $6.99.

Enjoy your hair wash-less weekend!!

good friends, good food, good night

met up with some good friends on sunday night for dinner.

i love the lampley and turner families....so fun.

we laughed a lot, ate a lot, and window-shopped at celebrity consignment

(but that's a blog for another day all-together)

love them!

in the rotation

I'm in the middle of week 7 of my 18 weeks of training for the Spinx Marathon. All the training so far has been fairly similar to the training I've done for my half-marathons....which is great, since I'll be running the Virginia Beach Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon with my friend Allison in three weeks.

I feel prepared for the half marathon, but the full marathon is seeming a little elusive at the moment. I've been averaging between 20-25 miles per week since January. But the increase in mileage is starting to take its toll. This week I'll run 29 miles, next week 30 miles, the next week 32 miles and the next week I'll scale back to 29 (finishing off with the VA Beach race). But then the mileage ramps back up again.

The next twelve weeks are looking loooooong. I'm doing what I can to survive training...and I'm certainly open to any ideas y'all have. Right now I'm focusing on hydration, nutrition and rotation. Yep, I had to break down and go and get another pair of running shoes. I've got around 700 miles on my old Asics and I still plan to run in them, but I thought now would be a good time to break in a new pair of shoes for the big race. After all, I've got around 330 miles before the marathon.

I took advantage of the tax-free weekend we just had and a $10 off coupon that I found. Here are the new parts in rotation.

So, I've got three pairs of shoes in my training rotation: the new Asics, the old Asics and the Nike Free Run (still just for recovery runs). How on earth did I go from not running at all 20 months ago to talking about shoe rotation and marathon training?

fall is almost here (or so i wish)

fall is almost here (or so i wish). look what i just got in the mail:

i love the summer...playing at the pool, longer days, eating on the deck.
but now i'm ready for fall...the crunch of leaves, crisp weather, layered clothing

top of my list to get me prepped for the new season:

me and the pres.

by now, i'm sure that you've heard that wyclef jean is running for president of haiti

while i'm not so sure about what kind of job he'll do...i do think its kind of cool that i met him

here we are, just hanging out in saint lucia

sorry....its monday and that's all i've got for ya

money well spent

Money is tight these days. I'm shopping at Aldi, thrift stores and clearance racks. Its nothing new, we've all been watching the 'ole purse strings for a while now. But I don't think there is anything that has can bring more joy (when referring to finances) when you spend money on a worthy cause. And is there anything better than this:

This is my friend Amy; she was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. When I heard the news I felt scared, confused and totally helpless. It was so hard to think about someone you care about dealing with something that you can't help with at all.

I've been praying for Amy, Adam (her sweet husband) and Charis (that adorable baby!)...for their health, peace, community, faith, finances, sanity. Oh, how much we love them.

I was reading in "Bicycling" about a new program that Trek Bikes has started. It's called the Unity Campaign. You can personalize stickers, water bottles and posters to show the world who you're cycling for. All the proceeds go to Livestrong and for cancer research. I like working out, but I like working out for a cause more. I had to get something for Amy. My water bottle came in the mail yesterday:

I also signed up for the Susan G Komen 5k in Charlotte. Its October 2 and starts at 7ish am. Come join Amy's team! Even if you're not a runner they have a "sleep in" option where you can pay to run the race but you aren't actually running it. So you really don't have an excuse for not signing up folks :)

I know its not much, but I want the money I spend to have the potential to bless others....whether its cancer research or cancer awareness (or another disease/condition that close to your heart) I think its important to literally put your money where your mouth is.

We love you Amy.

We're fighting this with, for and because of you.

plant killer

If you'd like me to kill your plants, I'm available for hire. Please see some of my most recent work:

For an additional fee, I can also help you plant random vegetables in your yard (such as tomatoes and squash as seen below)

lessons learned:

-must water plants in pots

-it may be cheaper to buy herbs instead of planting (and subsequently killing) them

-if you throw fruits/veggies in your yard you may grow something