Vacation in pictures

I have been meaning to post about our vacation, but I was so darn excited about finishing my first half marathon that it was on the back burner. 

The hubs and I left North Carolina on Thursday, May 5th and headed to Florida for our vacation.  We were both a little concerned about being off work for 7 business days, but we were bound and determined to make the best of our 5th wedding anniversary trip!

We were on the Disney Dream from Thursday, May 5th through Sunday morning, May 8th.  After getting off the ship, we headed to the Polynesian Resort from Sunday through Thursday, May 12th.  It was 7 days of bliss...  The entire point of the vacation was to just relax - and that's just what we did.  We aren't very good about taking pictures, but here are a few that show the fun things we did...

Just before boarding the Disney Dream

Drinks in 687 before dinner at the Royal Table
on the first night

Jason spent most of the time at Castaway Cay napping

Our time on the Disney Dream was just that - a dream.  We had a little bit of a hiccup on Thursday night.  We were preparing to head to bed and Jason's wheelchair battery charger wouldn't work.  Of course, we both freaked out.  I mean, seriously, I checked it before I left North Carolina at 3:30 a.m. that same day and it worked.  I promptly took it down to Guest Services to see if they could help at all.  They offered to have one of the ship's electricians look at it the next day.  J and I fretted over the charger most of the day, but still managed to enjoy several hours lounging by the pool and going to see the movie Prom in the ship's movie theatre.  Around 5:15 p.m., we got a message that the charger was working!  YAY!  We promptly went to one of the bars and had a celebratory drink while his chair batteries charged.  This was definitely a moment where Disney went way above and beyond the call of duty!

At Epcot - the Flower and Garden Festival was going on

Before dinner at Narcoosee's

When we were at Walt Disney World, we spent one day at Epcot, 2 partial days at the Magic Kingdom, and one day at the resort.  On Wednesday, Margaret, Val, and Gavin came to our resort pool to hang out.  I have to say that when they come to hang out with us at the pool, it is always one of my favorite things.  I love being by the pool, having fruity-girly drinks (this time it was the Southern Sunrise), and catching up with my best friend. 

On Thursday afternoon, we headed back to North Carolina.  It was a great week of vacation - so good for the soul!

(We did the Disney PhotoPass so we would actually have some pictures together.  When I order the disk, we'll have a lot more pictures - especially pictures of us together!)

My first half marathon

Yesterday just may have to be added to the short list of "best days of my life".  I completed my very first half marathon and actually enjoyed it.  The half marathon benefited an organization called Hope for the Warriors. 

The day began earlier than I initially planned - a terrible thunderstorm woke me up around 2:15 a.m.  I drifted in and out of sleep until my alarms went off at 4:30 a.m.  I got up and ate my normal pre-race meal - peanut butter and jelly on wheat and an orange.  After everyone was up and ready to go, we left my parents house in Beaufort around 5 a.m.  The race was in Jacksonville, at the high school, and was about an hour drive from my parents.  Thank goodness for my Daddy being willing to drive!

We got to Jacksonville High School just after 6 a.m. and met up with my running buddies.  I was so happy to have them there with me.  I had planned to do this half all along, but the training was a lot easier and the anxiety was a lot less once they signed up to join me.

The girls before the race!
(from left:  me, Sarah, Alisha, and Shruthi)



After the pretty inspiring opening ceremony, we lined up at the half start.  There were about 350 people registered for the half marathon.  It was obvious from the very beginning that we were going to be a lot slower than 99% of the people in front of us.  I stuck my ear bud in my ear and turned on the playlist that the hubs created for running and we were off!  Very early after crossing the start line, we decided to embrace being slow and the likelihood that we would probably be last.  This was totally cool with me - the point of this race was to stay on my feet and finish. 

The bulk of the route was through neighborhoods.  We were definitely offered the scenic (and not so scenic) tour of Jacksonville.  If I had to give one complaint about the whole route, it would have been the 2.5 to 3 miles on Gum Branch Road.  It sucked, big time - cars speeding by, no shade to speak of, etc. 

We finished the race in 3:08:12 - 318 through 321 of 322 finishers.  Am I upset about our time?  Absolutely not.  Why?  Because I did it.  Sarah and I started the NC Roadrunners Club Women's Beginner Running Program on July 24 - less than a year ago.  I think Sarah would agree that if you told us we would finish a half marathon 10 months after starting to run, we would have laughed uncontrollably. 

The feeling of finishing was so awesome.  There is no way to describe how I felt.  I was so happy, exhausted, and ready for the next adventure.  While I am definitely not ready to run a half next week, I am ready to sign up for another one.  I love the feeling I get when I am done.  So great...

The hubs and I after the race

Picture from the day after the race

 

Quotes before the half....

Here are some of my favorite quotes related to running, etc.  I think these are great, especially considering that my half is in tomorrow!!!.

I look at running as meditation.  It allows me to decompress, download, and get rid of a lot of negative stuff.  That's my secret.  I go inside myself. -- Jeff Corwin, American animal and nature conservationist

You have to wonder at times what you're doing out there. Over the years, I've given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement. -- Steve Prefontaine
In running, it doesn't matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say, 'I have finished.' There is a lot of satisfaction in that. -- Fred Lebow, New York City Marathon co-founder

My attitude at a race has always been that if you look your best, you will perform your best. If you're all grungy and feeling kind of sloppy, you are going to behave and perform that way. So I would always put on full make up - you know, lipstick and mascara, the whole bit, even hairspray. It's as if I am going to work. After the race, people would ask me 'Did you even run? It looks like you just got out of the beauty department.'. On the start line, it's a psychological ploy. I like the dichotomy that you can be really aggressive and athletic and flirty and sporty, and still be feminine. Why shouldn't you be able to do all of that at the same time? -- Shirley Matson

If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run. -- John Bingham

The miracle isn't that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start. -- John Bingham

Happy 5th Anniversary!

Well, I lied... I said my previous post would be my last before my half marathon.  Then I realized that I couldn't go without posting a Happy Anniversary post for my dear hubs. 

Jason and I met in 2004.  When we met, I was honestly a little concerned.  Jason uses a wheelchair because he has cerebral palsy.  For some reason, this just made me slightly nervous.  I talked through my feelings with Jason and as we grew closer and I knew that I wanted to be with him, I also realized that using a wheelchair doesn't mean a hill of beans.  We may have to do things a little different, but our life is no less adventerous than others. 


In May 2005, Jason proposed.  It was quite an interesting couple of weeks - it played out like this:

• Weekend of April 15 (2005) - J and I went to Beaufort to visit my parents, extended family and celebrate my Granny Brown's birthday.  It was during this weekend that Jason asked my Daddy if he could marry me - I had no clue!  I mean, yeah, we had talked about maybe, one-day getting married, but I didn't realize he was quite that serious...



Jason and I at Sportsman's Pier (in the
terrible wind that weekend!)

• April 26 - We went to the mall for a "diamond event" at Carlyle and Company.  J said that he just wanted to get an idea of the types of rings I liked.  I should have thought something was a little "fishy" with this, but I had no clue!  I found a stunning setting that I absolutely loved - one oval center stone with two princess cut diamonds flanking each side of the oval.  It was classic, simple, but different - I loved it.  After we finished looking at rings, J and I went our separate ways before dinner.  I needed to get a few things for my upcoming trip to visit Margaret in Florida while attending a conference.  Needless to say, I had no clue that he was actually purchasing the ring that night.
• April 30 through May 5 - I headed off to Florida for a weekend visit with Margaret.  After our weekend together, I headed over to the Portofino Bay hotel for a work conference.  It was a great week.  It was during that week that I realized I wanted to spend the rest of my life with J.
 



Margaret and I before heading out to
Universal City Walk

• May 10 - It was a normal 'ole day.  I went to work, ran some errands, and then I went to get my hair cut and colored (Hey!  Hair color is important!).  After my hair appointment, I called J at the condo.  He said that we had a small problem and that there was no power in our condo unit.  So strange...  I got to the condo a little after 7 p.m. and J was right - the power was out.  Jason was sitting in the middle of the living room in the dark.  I don't love the dark normally, but hate it even more when I can't see anything.  J had a tiny little flashlight and tried to guide me over to him without causing me to fall over furniture.  When I got over to him, he proposed.  I have to say that I don't really remember what he said, except asking me to marry him.  Of course, I said yes!  I was so excited, shocked, happy - it was great!  We called our parents, Margaret, the Allen family, and a few other people.  Not sure what was up with the power, but when we called the Allen's and their daughters started cheering, the power came back on. 
• May 5 (2006) - Our rehearsal and rehearsal dinner...  Jason's parents hosted the rehearsal dinner at their home.  We enjoyed cocktails and appetizers on the front lawn, followed by dinner in their home.  It was nice to be able to have our rehearsal dinner at their home because it allowed us to spend more time with our family and friends.




• May 6 - Our wedding day... I won't say there were no stressful moments, but no matter the stress, it was the most wonderful day.  Jason and I were married at 4 o'clock in the afternoon at Forest Hills Baptist Church.  We were surrounded by the love of many family members and friends.  Our reception was held at the Albert Coates Local Government Center (home of the NC League of Municipalities - where J's Dad worked before he passed away and where I currently work)
















• After a great wedding reception, we headed off on our honeymoon trip to Nags Head.  It was just the break we needed and the perfect start to our wonderful marriage.

Wow...  I can't believe that it has been five years!  Every single day allows me to see how blessed I am with a great husband - he is the ultimate cheerleader, supporter, and friend.

I love you J!

Last post before the half

The hubs and I will be leaving for our 5th wedding anniversary cruise/vacation bright and early on Thursday morning.  It is hard to believe that we have been married five glorious years - seems like just yesterday! 

We're going on a 3-night Disney cruise, on the Disney Dream, followed by 4-nights at the Polynesian.  While we are on the cruise, we'll be completely incommunicado (cell phone rates are ridiculous at sea!).  I am looking forward to enjoying a few mimosas by the pool and some yummy meals! 

The cruise and vacation isn't going to be all fun and games though.  I do need to get in a few short (2-4 mile) runs while on the ship and once we get back to Walt Disney World.  My half marathon is on Saturday, May 14 (2 short days after getting back from vacation).  So, I will be trying to eat yummy, healthy choices while also enjoying every bit of food I consume. 

Hope that you all have a marvelous week!  Can't wait to report on the half marathon!

10 miles - DONE!

Well, well, well....  Despite the little bit big bunch of nerves yesterday morning, we finished survived 10 miles yesterday.  What does 10 miles mean?  It means - double digits; 3.23 5Ks; 1.61 10Ks; and 3.1 miles from a half marathon.  This is that funny place where people that have run long distances definitely welcome you into the fold and say with the utmost encouragement "You've done 10, you can definitely do 13.1.  A half will be a breeze...."  I can't say I agree with the sentiment that "...A half will be a breeze...", but I am now confident that we can do it and we will do well. 

A few negative things about yesterday's run....  Sarah and I decided to run earlier in the day in hopes of beating some crap-tacular weather forecasted for the afternoon.  Since Sarah had a meeting early in the morning, we met at 10:30 a.m. to run.  I guess I didn't think about the hottest part of the day being between the hours of 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. - yesterday was definitely one of those days.  We trudged on toward Shelley Lake despite the heat/humidity.  It was 80-something degrees and so humid that I actually thought for a moment that I could move to Minnesota in the winter and be happy (For anyone that knows me, you know this is crazy.... I hate cold weather, snow, and everything about winter.)  Poor Sarah and I were ultra-whiny and couldn't seem to find anything good to say about running.  Geez....

Due to the humidity, I found myself hoping begging for some rain around mile 6.  I didn't want to say anything aloud about wishing for rain, because I just wasn't sure Sarah would agree.  Finally, just before mile 7, I did it - I said aloud "I just wish it would rain for a minute or two...."  Guess what??!!??  Not one minute later, it started to sprinkle, then it started to pour.  We had a good rain for about 3 minutes and it was absolute heavenly bliss.  Those three minutes helped me survive the last three miles - I wasn't so sure I was going to make it before that.

The half is only 17 days away.  If we can do a training run in yesterday's conditions with just the two of us, I think we'll be fine for the half - earlier in the day, hopefully less humid, and with our two other running buddies.  YAY!

Nerves getting the best of me...

For some reason, my nerves are getting the best of me this morning.  I took today off so that I could get in a 10-mile training run with Sarah.  Sarah will be out of town this weekend and I'll be heading out on vacation in the middle of next week. 

When I woke up this morning, I was so nervous!  I have no clue why.  I have a feeling that the idea of running a half marathon is freaking me out.  Jason and I talked about how hard we've trained and how well we have done so far.  Running 10-miles today and running a half marathon in 18 days should be no problem.  I have worked hard to get to this point and it will be great to accomplish this goal - now I just have to get the nerves under wraps.

Back in the saddle

I have not exercised in any form since last Thursday morning, well that was until 5:45 this morning.  That's five days of nothing - no walking, no running, no Arc trainer, nothing, nada, zip, zilch.  Now that you get where I am going... not working out for 5 straight days was so foreign to me. 

Why didn't I work out?  Well, I ran with Alisha on Thursday morning and could tell that my breathing was off and my throat hurt a little.  By Friday morning, I had a bad cough and by Friday evening I had no voice.  Saturday morning, I was supposed to do 8 miles around Beaufort and could barely move.  I was sick - yuck!  I ended up staying home from work on Monday and slept the bulk of the day.  By the time I got through the workday on Tuesday, I was exhausted and decided to take one more day off and vowed to get back at it on Wednesday. 

This morning, I met up with my awesome running buddies (Sarah and Alisha).  I wanted to run, but I was worried that the five days off would cause me to be extremely slow.  Thank goodness for Sarah being an awesome pacer!  There were several times that I could feel my legs saying "Go faster, go faster...", but I did my best to stick with Sarah and Alisha, as I knew Sarah had my best interest in mind with the pace.  We finished 2.5 miles in 32 minutes (not too much slower than normal). 

I think it's easy to say that my body was glad to be back in the saddle.  While my body enjoyed the few days of rest, it was ready to get back to movin'.  The run was the perfect thing for the beginning of my day.  I know that I probably say this way too much, but I am amazed at how far I have come.  When I started running in July, I couldn't imagine saying that I missed doing any sort of physical activity.  Now, my body and soul thrive on that time.  I love the "therapy" session and the health benefits - so great!  Lovin' this new me!!

Our first half marathon is in 24 days!!!  I can't believe it!  I am so full of so many different emotions.  I can't wait for May 14th to get here!

Weekend in Review

The past few weeks have been quite busy at work. Other than work there hasn't really been much to talk about, until this weekend.  On Friday afternoon, J and I headed to Carteret County for an awesome weekend full of family and friends.

Friday:

After arriving in Carteret County around 2:45 p.m. we decided to go by my Granny's for a little while.  We had a family celebration of my Granny's 85th birthday scheduled for Saturday afternoon, but figured we'd stop by and say "hi" since we were passing through on our way to Beaufort.

We delivered birthday gifts and a housewarming gift.  I think Carly (my cousin Nicole's daughter) was jealous of the housewarming gift we gave Natalie and Chris.

Friday evening, J and I met up with Margaret and Jamie at Hannah's Haus.  Long story short, Hannah's Haus is a little tavern/bar in the back of the Gaskill's Hardware Store in town.  Hannah's is located in the part of Gaskill's where I used to regularly go with my Dad to pick up lawn mowers that had been repaired or to look at baby chicks.  It is so funny to see it as a bar, but it is a fun atmosphere. 

After hanging out at Hannah's for a while, we met up with Margaret's Dad and my parents for dinner at Clawson's.  As always, dinner was a blast - who couldn't have fun with the bunch!

Saturday:
I was supposed to get up early Saturday morning and run 8 (or so) miles.  When I woke up, I could barely get my breath because of being so congested.  I took some medicine and just relaxed until it was time to get ready to get moving for the day.

We went to my cousin, Jordan's, softball game.  She's playing Babe Ruth Softball for the first time this year.  When we got to Smyrna, her team was on the field and they were doing great.  The Down East Dolphins continued to do well and ended up winning the game!  Congrats to Jordan!

After Jordan's softball game, we headed over to my Granny's.  The whole family was there.  My Aunt Juanita and Uncle Harold live in Michigan and they don't get down to North Carolina as often as they would like.  My Uncle Elmer, Aunt Barbara, cousin Natalie and her boyfriend, Chris, live in northern Virginia.  They visit pretty regularly, but it is not often that we are able to coordinate getting the entire group together.  We grilled out and had birthday cake in honor of my Granny's 85th and cousin Nicole's 26th birthdays.  It was great!

Granny (center) with all her kids, grandkids, great-grandkids
(and spouses and significant others too!)

Granny with her kids - (left to right) Robert/my Daddy, Elmer,
Les (aka "Bo" or "Dee Bo"), Woody, and Juanita

Saturday evening, we went to see my Dad's church cantata.  I got to see a lot of people that watched me grow up.  They were all so nice and complimentary of my weight loss, etc.  It was a good feeling.  After the cantata, we went to No Name for dinner.  Unfortunately, dinner at the restaurant was cut short by the power going out.  We were fortunate that our pizzas were almost done and we ended up taking them home and eating there. 

Sunday:
I woke up still feeling pretty darn awful.  So, I missed my run once again.  Mama drugged me up with some Mucinex and Tylenol Cold.  After lunch, we decided to go ahead and hit the road back to Raleigh.

We were very grateful that the storms that ripped through North Carolina on Saturday didn't do a lot of damage in Beaufort or to our home in Raleigh.  While we were driving back, we were amazed by the damage in certain parts of our drive back.  There were several neighborhoods in Havelock that were completely flat.  We knew the storm did a lot of damage, but didn't realize how much until we got back home on Sunday evening and saw the news.  Our thoughts and prayers are with all the families that were affected by the storm! 

Girls weekend/Cooper River Bridge Run

Happy April!  I cannot believe it is April already!

This past weekend, the girls (Sarah, Alisa, and Jade) and I packed up and headed to Charleston for a much needed girls weekend and to run the 34th Annual Cooper River Bridge Run. 

We got to Charleston on Friday afternoon and headed to the Expo and pre-race spaghetti dinner.  In the back of my mind, I imagined huge pots of spaghetti sauce with women in hairnets dishing out sauce on top of our pasta.  The dinner was actually a "Taste of Charleston".  Some of the best restaurants, bakeries and the culinary school had various food items.  I think we all would agree that the macaroni 'n cheese from the culinary school was slammin'.  So good!

On Saturday morning, we got up at 5:30 and headed to Mount Pleasant.  This was after a night of my barely sleeping because I was so excited.  I think the only person that was more excited than me was Sarah.  The race organizers instituted a "wave start" this year.  While this is my first time participating in this race, I can imagine the absolute madness in the past without the wave start. 

Once the race got started, Sarah, Alisha, and I just trucked along at our normal pace.  When I saw the bridge on Friday evening, I though "Oh, well that's not so steep.  It'll be easy compared to the hills in Raleigh."  I was totally wrong.  Once you get past about mile 1.5, you start on the incline.  The incline goes until about mile 3.  That's about 1.5 miles of uphill, while dodging some of the other 40,000 participants. 

Despite dealing with the headwind and 40,000 other people, we finished in 1:21 - pretty dang good if you ask me. 

After the race, we walked around downtown Charleston and had lunch at Mellow Mushroom.  The veggie calzone that I had for lunch was the perfect finish to a great race. 

The weekend in Charleston was great!  I definitely think that the Cooper River Bridge Run will remain on my "must do" list for years to come.

By the way, our half marathon is 38 days away!!  I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am about the half!  So, so pumped for the rest of the training and the actual race!