tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48768626913701073902024-03-06T04:11:26.209-05:00One Girl and Two DogsThe blog of a coffee addict, dog lover, sometimes blogger, and Disney World addict.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-53208580189199769362017-01-03T08:00:00.000-05:002017-01-03T16:51:22.990-05:00Here at Last OKI...Part IIMissed Part I? Go back and <a href="https://onegirlandtwodogs.blogspot.com/2017/01/to-beachpart-i.html" target="_blank">read it first </a>to catch up.<br />
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After my mom and I spent a long weekend on OKI in mid-May, we had plans to end the month by taking my grandparents down and introduce them to where we'd be moving. The night before that trip, my parents got a call from Matt, and it wasn't a good one. He had an accident while helping a friend move and was at the ER in Chicago with a broken ankle. Hoping we'd find out the next day that the break wasn't too serious, and not wanting to disappoint my grandparents, we left for the beach as planned the next day. At about the time we arrived, Matt called with an update. His break was worse than first thought, and eventually we'd find that he'd require two surgeries and nearly 10 weeks of staying off his ankle completely. That's a whole different post though, and not my story to tell. What I will say is that during that trip to OKI with my grandparents, we fit in showing them around the island, delicious food, and beach time in around meetings with the builder my parents had chosen, looking at house plans, and making arrangements to get to Chicago to be with Matt for his surgery. It was a crazy start to June, that's for sure!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our traditional "1st lunch" at Fishy Fishy</td></tr>
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<b>June</b> continued to be crazy! The day after we all got back from the beach, my parents flew out to Chicago for Matt's surgery. My dad came back home after less than 48 hours there to take over dog duty while I flew out for a fantastic trip to the US and British Virgin Islands! Matt had his surgery while I was out of the country, and Echo had surgery on his leg to remove a cancerous tumor the day after I got back.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUkukWxUCKC4pv8CqicFHj6PFrh8l_goLNUjfIL3b4Ka2H8HzvH4zPK-uMYI47G5wJ15I-94qMQ7Ks3_DdEttoMVqMe9p8uSXzjWaMtulRAaQrVYmEV7rFyQXgBn_qnJh6gBILHBEyQzk/s1600/IMG_0050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUkukWxUCKC4pv8CqicFHj6PFrh8l_goLNUjfIL3b4Ka2H8HzvH4zPK-uMYI47G5wJ15I-94qMQ7Ks3_DdEttoMVqMe9p8uSXzjWaMtulRAaQrVYmEV7rFyQXgBn_qnJh6gBILHBEyQzk/s320/IMG_0050.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jost van Dyke, BVI</td></tr>
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My mom ended up staying in Chicago all the way through the summer, while Dad and I took turns visiting there and holding down things here at home. June was also when my parents decided on a house plan and we took care of the paperwork to officially divide their parcel back into 2 lots, with me buying the one they weren't building on. We all became accustomed to notaries and Priority mail, since we were taking care of everything long distance from two different cities! And about that house plan, remember when I said that my mom always had faith that I'd be moving too? Well they put together a house plan that would be perfect for the three of us to live together, with two Master bedrooms on separate floors. You know, just in case it all worked out for me to move. (And the whole time, I was thinking there was no way.)<br />
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I celebrated the 4th of <b>July</b> in Chicago with my mom and Matt, and by the end of my Chicago trip, even more changes were in store. What I haven't mentioned yet is that in the midst of all the craziness of May and June, there was even a little more going on. I happened upon a job posting that sounded pretty perfect- the description was exactly what I wanted to be doing, in the field I wanted to work in, and it was a full time telecommuting position- which means I could work from home. I couldn't pass up sending my application and resume in, but knowing how many applicants there were, pretty much forgot about it for nearly a month after I applied. So you can imagine my surprise when I received a request for an interview for that job. Well, that interview turned into three rounds of interviews, and in early July I was officially offered and accepted the job. Starting August 1, I'd be embarking on a new career and working from home...which meant there was nothing to prevent me from making the move to Oak Island. What's even more fitting? I got the phone call with the offer while I was in Chicago- out on a short walk with my mom, the person who kept telling me that it would all work out for me to move.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN18VgtjkhG5TvsMmWxfC09s9y608F3JHgStGLUWM7oQAjTNp5ncGvtlN06IGo39GJqQUL7PhQpeeU38BqPSCTUDIS7H2vDAj679O_S7SRei5jNk24zgVwUQH8I-YCTrSWXc_zOPpPJSA/s1600/IMG_1577.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN18VgtjkhG5TvsMmWxfC09s9y608F3JHgStGLUWM7oQAjTNp5ncGvtlN06IGo39GJqQUL7PhQpeeU38BqPSCTUDIS7H2vDAj679O_S7SRei5jNk24zgVwUQH8I-YCTrSWXc_zOPpPJSA/s320/IMG_1577.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It wasn't the ocean...but Lake Michigan had to do!</td></tr>
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So to finish July, and soak up what would end up being my last summer off, Echo and I took off to visit and explore Oak Island on our own the week before I started my new job. We spent tons of time on the beach, watched sunsets from The Point nearly every night, and checked out house progress. At this point, the lot had been cleared and that was it....but it was pretty exciting to see!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHhvziy32h-DzFkVHY8eAE3g9Py3EqI4WRhWb6FtTRBUYLFDTNRePZePm05mk7BSXAs-fT2OFi78_NGJA3lgcun9WaUZNREk9QSGlIwFUu-QdfNDwzYsesPvaX_npqUMmDxTaKCTxHmjQ/s1600/IMG_1706.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHhvziy32h-DzFkVHY8eAE3g9Py3EqI4WRhWb6FtTRBUYLFDTNRePZePm05mk7BSXAs-fT2OFi78_NGJA3lgcun9WaUZNREk9QSGlIwFUu-QdfNDwzYsesPvaX_npqUMmDxTaKCTxHmjQ/s320/IMG_1706.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">OKI lot is cleared!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwfudxrSxeR5UqytDGRaiWYQ0G6LgxWqm9KnxXHKogpavTAS7PthWS7nhvwdWHh8LRnaEhM6PlwdPtueHcQUpy3yj9Q07KUAGqwKdv99Vvso02rru1tx0mCI_T1rWBNf61HL1FRvVweHU/s1600/IMG_1898.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwfudxrSxeR5UqytDGRaiWYQ0G6LgxWqm9KnxXHKogpavTAS7PthWS7nhvwdWHh8LRnaEhM6PlwdPtueHcQUpy3yj9Q07KUAGqwKdv99Vvso02rru1tx0mCI_T1rWBNf61HL1FRvVweHU/s320/IMG_1898.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Echo loved being a beach dog!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU0fPM0qRrbFKx3WaExxdqHC4K_6tqkC7Wvne5WsLD_8POgMBCj9rKR-Au6kAfpfRnAy3jPdkI_K6y5NP40rsHPO35oz7UwkNCwP3KgW3eTCpjovlHusLYBxW0fj53IyiAoaTld9XtNw0/s1600/IMG_2034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU0fPM0qRrbFKx3WaExxdqHC4K_6tqkC7Wvne5WsLD_8POgMBCj9rKR-Au6kAfpfRnAy3jPdkI_K6y5NP40rsHPO35oz7UwkNCwP3KgW3eTCpjovlHusLYBxW0fj53IyiAoaTld9XtNw0/s320/IMG_2034.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Best travel buddy</td></tr>
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On <b>August</b> 1, I started my new Instructional Designer position. Writing this 5 months later, I can say that even without the upcoming move, making this career move was one of the best decisions I could have made. For the first 11 years of my career, I'd always been a teacher in some capacity and I'd always worked for the state of NC. As much as I loved teaching, this new position has showed me just how ready I was for a break. Also in August, my mom finally came home from Chicago- and the house construction finally got started.<br />
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In <b>September,</b> <b>October</b>, and <b>November</b>, we made several more trips to the island to check on things with the house. Not because we don't trust the builder, who is amazing, but because it is SO HARD to know your house is being built and not be able to see exactly what is going on daily. Most of these trips were just mom and me- because although my dad is excited about the move, he does not get excited about traveling back and forth. We feel pretty lucky that he tells us to go and that he'll be just as happy staying home and taking care of the dogs. One of those trips in September was special because we took my grandparents back to the see the house. At that point it was just framed, but seeing that only made us more excited!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvKsI5w_wd_1yYJZV4IeKZR-2p-Rs8EOY1u474Q6nNtSScAn0XeccpDIfte_-mzevlkocdagqvcpzcV0SEb3ADAoMav9Vxt4Nnaclow_wJY283TFKDb6u99rg0nZBRZKLBlHx1qKeIiSg/s1600/IMG_2694.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvKsI5w_wd_1yYJZV4IeKZR-2p-Rs8EOY1u474Q6nNtSScAn0XeccpDIfte_-mzevlkocdagqvcpzcV0SEb3ADAoMav9Vxt4Nnaclow_wJY283TFKDb6u99rg0nZBRZKLBlHx1qKeIiSg/s320/IMG_2694.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">OKI House in progress</td></tr>
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In <b>December</b>, Matt came home and we made time to take him down to show him where he'll be visiting the next time he comes back to North Carolina! Having Matt see the house just made it feel "really real," and we were ecstatic at all the progress that had been made! It was also the first time since mid-October that my dad had been there in person! Also in December? My parents sold their house...without it even being listed! In another sign that everything was meant to be, our fantastic real estate agent called my parents to let them know she wanted to show the house to a couple- even though she knew the plan was that my mom and I would move when the OKI house was finished, and my dad would stay behind long enough to list and sell the house. We have three dogs and knew showing the house with them around would be way too much trouble! Well, in just another in a string of 2016 surprises, the couple loved the house and it was under contract the next week!<br />
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So, here we are in <b>January </b>of a new year. In less than two weeks, we'll be moving to Oak Island. Not to our house- but to a rental for a month or so until our house is finished. And yes, as my mom and dad keep correcting me every time I say "your house", it is our house. At least until I move forward on the plans to build my house on that second lot.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWffPBcn-N0Kwlgam7PDZEN5eDqLMJCgIxmYh9UsmVVD8qCql8RtzmY3Ow7fVI4CFUQC89OWT8CvmJnxFYpPsYZKh288xEj7klGtDYzNhmXbjrlwJp7Sj9kT2iwJnZVCaGBuCBjnomGuw/s1600/IMG_3502.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWffPBcn-N0Kwlgam7PDZEN5eDqLMJCgIxmYh9UsmVVD8qCql8RtzmY3Ow7fVI4CFUQC89OWT8CvmJnxFYpPsYZKh288xEj7klGtDYzNhmXbjrlwJp7Sj9kT2iwJnZVCaGBuCBjnomGuw/s320/IMG_3502.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Almost finished!</td></tr>
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There is one more little twist of fate, coincidence, kismet, or whatever you want to call it that I'll close with. Remember in <a href="https://onegirlandtwodogs.blogspot.com/2017/01/to-beachpart-i.html" target="_blank">Part I</a> when I reminisced about that trip to the little beach house on Long Beach? Well, back in 1999, Long Beach and Yaupon Beach were consolidated to found the Town of Oak Island. So all these years later, we're returning to live in that sleepy little beach town where we had so much fun on vacation. We spent a while trying to figure out where exactly Aunt Sarah's house was on the island after we realized that Oak Island and Long Beach were one and the same, but could never quite nail down the location. A couple of months after the lots had been purchased and construction on the house started, one of my mom's relatives reached out to see if she realized that the house we'd visited before was on the very same street where we're now building a house. In fact, it was actually just a couple of houses down- but no one could remember the exact number and none of the houses looked like we thought they should. While going through pictures last week in preparation for our move, I unearthed these. And it finally gave us the address we'd been searching for. In case you can't see those tiny numbers, they read "326."<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoHu8HIznRzdb0UJNeR8DkqMTitF7SKaeEWXMYyFkW0tSh-nvkMOS4SKpyqBAJbLnq66cnd_VaCqM3r4n3V0fn0HWVA6YBrGA8_ZVO_pM2CG7Jwem1ZRTGjB75HDXjx5TAUGEkI_7QkK8/s1600/IMG_3549.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoHu8HIznRzdb0UJNeR8DkqMTitF7SKaeEWXMYyFkW0tSh-nvkMOS4SKpyqBAJbLnq66cnd_VaCqM3r4n3V0fn0HWVA6YBrGA8_ZVO_pM2CG7Jwem1ZRTGjB75HDXjx5TAUGEkI_7QkK8/s320/IMG_3549.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nearly 3 decades ago...who knew we'd live across the street one day?</td></tr>
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So where is that house in relation to ours? To give you an idea, my address will be 331, and the house we stayed at? It was 326. The house is still there- but the numbers aren't on the front, and it is now painted a different color with a storage building out back....so of course we didn't recognize it.<br />
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I've never been much of a believer in signs, but how's that for it all being meant to be? I've always been a planner and I've never liked change, especially change that I wasn't in control of or driving. In all my life-planning, I'd have never guessed that 2016 could have brought the changes in my life's direction that it did. But I have to say, that if nothing else, 2016 taught me that sometimes, you just have to have a little faith and trust (and maybe pixie dust), because even though it may be hard to believe at the time, sometimes those changes in direction end up leading to something that you may have hoped for, but never really believed could happen.<br />
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Here's to finally answering the ocean's call!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-90983133037664886262017-01-02T15:26:00.000-05:002017-01-02T20:44:12.186-05:00Here at Last OKI....Part IIt's no secret that I have always loved the beach, a feeling that was probably passed down from my mother in the same way that I got my father's blue eyes.<br />
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Over 25 years ago, my parents and grandparents took my younger brother and me on a beach trip. We stayed at my grandfather's sister's house in Long Beach, and although the weather wasn't great for being out on the beach, Matt and I both remember that trip. We remember staying up way past our bed times to play Uno with the whole family and getting to take a ferry ride to visit an aquarium. Matt and I grew up being lucky enough go on many vacations, so it wasn't the vacation itself or even the beach that made this particular trip memorable, but it was the way that the 7 of us spent most of the trip hiding from the rain in a tiny little beach house just laughing and being together.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgytMGiEcZhuWnHguiSHMlFf89qVD4Xz2bJ9s21VaejwV2Rp3gExg9t1uIPOKMH5psTU-4YS5mO0oGQb8pkrsL2j9Ri7TNT4YdvrVoQqQ8Ft8XqdCuCYO0UO_sDO-qk_y2iZeqRzBlbrzI/s1600/IMG_3551-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgytMGiEcZhuWnHguiSHMlFf89qVD4Xz2bJ9s21VaejwV2Rp3gExg9t1uIPOKMH5psTU-4YS5mO0oGQb8pkrsL2j9Ri7TNT4YdvrVoQqQ8Ft8XqdCuCYO0UO_sDO-qk_y2iZeqRzBlbrzI/s320/IMG_3551-1.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Late night UNO</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU0wXKx-XsGwgCP0nm9wyMI6oLga4MA3IgqQhtiWDxWxtGclFfwFMfzutTy7kUc-NfAD3AMu6MTZhA0H7HNZMMDabfnk1m5YM01-zIDx-0_CM1pdrmnjSVpgpgFrPkmbpkIjehsAZSkpk/s1600/IMG_3553.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU0wXKx-XsGwgCP0nm9wyMI6oLga4MA3IgqQhtiWDxWxtGclFfwFMfzutTy7kUc-NfAD3AMu6MTZhA0H7HNZMMDabfnk1m5YM01-zIDx-0_CM1pdrmnjSVpgpgFrPkmbpkIjehsAZSkpk/s320/IMG_3553.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaving the Ft. Fisher Aquarium</td></tr>
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Twenty six years and a lot of life after that trip, in <b>January</b> of 2016, I made the decision to put my house up for sale. I didn't have an exact destination in mind, but knew that I wanted to move to a different neighborhood and the time seemed right for selling. I was lucky enough to know that I could move in with my parents for a while to give myself time to decide on my next step. Thanks to a great market and a fantastic real estate agent, I had two offers on my house in 3 weeks of it being for sale. I accepted an offer and a closing date was set for March 31. I worked on moving into my parents' house and moved my furniture into storage.<br />
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One weekend in <b>February</b>, the three of us went to dinner at Old Stone Steakhouse and were talking about the unbelievable quickness of my house being sold. My dad said, "Well, instead of you saving to look for a house in Belmont, why don't we just all move to the beach?" Moving to the beach is something my mom has talked about wanting to do for my whole life, so as great as the prospect sounded for them, I didn't really think much about it.<br />
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Until, that is, one day in <b>March</b> when I got a text from my mom that read, "Your dad says that you and I should go check out houses at the beach this weekend." You see, while looking for a house to rent for our summer beach trip, I happened across a house for sale on Oak Island that looked great in the listing (HA!....that's foreshadowing....). I sent it to my parents and jokingly told them we could all go in together and buy this house and make that move. The joke was on me, because that weekend, my mom and I set off on a 24 hour mission to check out a few NC beaches. We drove straight to Southport, stopping at Fishy Fishy Cafe for lunch, then drove all around different neighborhoods in Southport before going to check out the house I'd found on Oak Island. That house was definitely NOT the one, but we continued our trek, making our way north to check out neighborhoods in Ocean Isle Beach and Sunset Beach before returning the next day. The only decision that we really came to that weekend was that Oak Island just didn't seem like it was for us. To be honest, thinking about moving to the beach was still just a fun game to me, seeing as how I knew I'd be hard pressed to find a job in any of the areas we looked in.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic9JU-H3-JeJmDNY4xS0U-bXvW0AyHkU7IAuyg2n52KoBA_WtGDhnJP_UyzTA8v93k8eq_J8BcSBJHnB_j79v0EIsFAnMOXnw7syS7L6ksfW9cbfdTZ-REfRJKEpfZuliRhKUBsK46YZk/s1600/IMG_0258.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic9JU-H3-JeJmDNY4xS0U-bXvW0AyHkU7IAuyg2n52KoBA_WtGDhnJP_UyzTA8v93k8eq_J8BcSBJHnB_j79v0EIsFAnMOXnw7syS7L6ksfW9cbfdTZ-REfRJKEpfZuliRhKUBsK46YZk/s320/IMG_0258.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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Even though it kind of seemed like a far fetched dream, it started to get a little more real in mid-March when Matt flew down to spend a weekend in Asheville with us while I ran the Biltmore Half Marathon. The reason it started to seem more real is because my parents actually told Matt that they were thinking of moving to the beach....but it would probably be a long process. Or so we thought. At the end of March, I signed the closing papers to finalize the sale of my house.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My first house</td></tr>
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The day after that, my parents and I drove back down to the coast to investigate a little more...but this time, with a real estate agent, which meant we are actually looking at houses, not just driving by. By this time, my parents had decided they were definitely going to move, but I was still in limbo. I was debating between moving with them (which meant finding a house we all agreed on and going in together on buying), finding something of my own, or just renting their house back in Gastonia once they moved and visiting as much as possible. My dilemma was that I really wanted to move to the beach, but I knew I couldn't do it without finding a new job. So again at the end of this trip, no real decisions had been made except that.....our search focus was now Oak Island. Yep, the one place my mom and I had already decided we didn't want to be. The thing is, after looking at nearly 20 houses over the course of 2 days in Calabash, Sunset Beach, Ocean Isle, Supply, Oak Island, and Southport, we all agreed that if we were going to move to the beach....we were going to move to the beach. And after spending time on the island, we ended up falling just a little in love with it, a feeling that seems to grow each time we spend more time there.<br />
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By <b>April</b>, it seemed that my parents or I were making frequent trips to the island. After looking and looking at houses, we finally decided we weren't going to find the "perfect" house, so we changed the search to looking at lots. It didn't take long to find a pretty perfect lot. By the end of April, my parents had closed on a parcel of land on Oak Island that was actually 2 lots that had been put together by previous owners. That meant that we could easily separate it back out into 2 separate lots and build 2 houses. Since I still wasn't sure that I would be moving, knowing that I had the option to build my own house when the time was right for me seemed pretty perfect. It's probably worth mentioning that although I was constantly in doubt that I would be moving to the coast with my parents or any time in the near future, my mom never looked at it happening any other way. Any time I said something about their big move, she made sure to correct me and tell me that she had faith that we'd all be moving together.<br />
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I celebrated finishing up my yearly contract at Cleveland Community College in mid-May by spending a long weekend in OKI with my mom, meeting with their builder, checking out the lots, and soaking up as much Vitamin Sea as possible. My mom was dreaming about the day she'd be moving to the island for good, and I was just thankful that if nothing else, I'd get to spend weekends and summers at the beach!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5H3jZPNn9N2LDkaFbErjhPGzz_xDxCG1ftDG_uGH9itp3JEo3jJYcHoU6dUpIXUrjlBqDqfk3JKCMKp4sR2eUhINAKwZ-Ndy_9JMrNA1RZrZl_OI8zT0ilr6EqegjvEXdB7Qvow02_ZQ/s1600/IMG_0504.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5H3jZPNn9N2LDkaFbErjhPGzz_xDxCG1ftDG_uGH9itp3JEo3jJYcHoU6dUpIXUrjlBqDqfk3JKCMKp4sR2eUhINAKwZ-Ndy_9JMrNA1RZrZl_OI8zT0ilr6EqegjvEXdB7Qvow02_ZQ/s320/IMG_0504.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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At this point, I was super excited for my parents but really had no clue what the next few months had in store.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-64192412900115142572016-02-04T15:11:00.000-05:002016-04-30T15:27:08.466-04:002015 Holden Beach Half Marathon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Way back in September, I ran my second half marathon. I should have published this a long time ago, but the post has been sitting in my drafts for way too long with no words. Since I do want to be able to look back and remember this race, instead of the in depth post that I should have written I'm just going to leave a few quick pictures here!</div>
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My friend Susan and I decided to sign up for the Holden Beach races and make a girls weekend out of it. Who can ever say no to a weekend at the beach with friends? </div>
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We drove down to the beach after work on Friday afternoon and made our way to packet pickup. It was just a little table set up outside of a restaurant, no expo or anything. I grabbed my half bib and Susan got her 5k bib. We also got shirts that are super soft and that I love!</div>
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We woke up way earlier than anyone should have to on a Saturday to drive the 5 or so minutes over the bridge and to the start. After parking, this was our view. Kind of worth the early wake-up, right?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9tzZgWtf9qi6ewwFn6NqI1En8o_B13qUQPy9lEq9kj65XocInbY7-wyTAddRcgY40E46YktfuSqORwxnbEgyNDst_njm_oRpnuZ29o52IhBzGBueyuDZmdKuYSl_FFEQ_rCxdER70pRw/s1600/IMG_8614.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9tzZgWtf9qi6ewwFn6NqI1En8o_B13qUQPy9lEq9kj65XocInbY7-wyTAddRcgY40E46YktfuSqORwxnbEgyNDst_njm_oRpnuZ29o52IhBzGBueyuDZmdKuYSl_FFEQ_rCxdER70pRw/s320/IMG_8614.JPG" width="320"></a></div>
Right before the race started (the 5k and half started together) we were rewarded with these colors in the sky. This was a smaller race than I'm used to at just over 600ish half marathoners. The start was easy to find and there was plenty of parking, but the one thing missing was bathrooms. Seriously- at least a thousand people (since the 5k and 1 mile runs start with the half) and TWO bathrooms. Zero port a pottys provided by the race at the start or along the course. That's a major issue in my opinion, and one I hope they fix for next year! <br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-R5xTe6EOI1zj0vNFAIg2AxgRcq6cC-9U8Vzlg7oYTJ2WHl6AUoCEs4zBlCo3vFtg-jTTohR23rFsNA1ZHoA9lxeiMvKaJMS_EFp8by2ExNSOdJeoX5ReLQxJAw0xlIDf8hN0bXQeeY8/s1600/IMG_8616.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-R5xTe6EOI1zj0vNFAIg2AxgRcq6cC-9U8Vzlg7oYTJ2WHl6AUoCEs4zBlCo3vFtg-jTTohR23rFsNA1ZHoA9lxeiMvKaJMS_EFp8by2ExNSOdJeoX5ReLQxJAw0xlIDf8hN0bXQeeY8/s320/IMG_8616.JPG" width="320"></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The half course started by taking runners up and over the Holden Beach Bridge, down and around short gravel drive, and back up and over the bridge. Umm, wow. I knew the rest of the race would be flat but those first couple of miles going over the bridge were tough! But again, we were rewarded with gorgeous ocean views while on the bridge, so it was worth it!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtOn9F4cAndVIH1Gp3qoDnreMY2Y55a2XqGdT4SxFQedWMq3_vewnHHOLJHYQ_mdxi91L1z0JzMT3tHkalgCDLegX5wGP4JHYU9HSnQ_ltb0LCaUxA5DY4jd_Bbo3BPVqGfmAJBdBRQbk/s1600/IMG_8618.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtOn9F4cAndVIH1Gp3qoDnreMY2Y55a2XqGdT4SxFQedWMq3_vewnHHOLJHYQ_mdxi91L1z0JzMT3tHkalgCDLegX5wGP4JHYU9HSnQ_ltb0LCaUxA5DY4jd_Bbo3BPVqGfmAJBdBRQbk/s320/IMG_8618.JPG" width="320"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEged5Dzpku_pJKVV3EEJaNdLo_BFJxtU-LqBly10XSCQBfXv-IPkwLZe1T36JdA0OfePTeluMgbntsh9wTeJZhlRH4hyphenhyphend7GG_rE-qfqivXIcOEIVpDsh619QLUs-FtF539MQMVfPQm1cXo/s1600/IMG_8623.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEged5Dzpku_pJKVV3EEJaNdLo_BFJxtU-LqBly10XSCQBfXv-IPkwLZe1T36JdA0OfePTeluMgbntsh9wTeJZhlRH4hyphenhyphend7GG_rE-qfqivXIcOEIVpDsh619QLUs-FtF539MQMVfPQm1cXo/s320/IMG_8623.JPG" width="320"></a></div>
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After the back and forth over the bridge, I REALLY wanted to turn left and finish up with the 5kers....but I decided to stick it out and headed right to run nearly 11 more miles. And yes, it was all flat, which was amazing. But I totally didn't count on the crosswind, which was crazy. Like at times hard to walk upright much less run crazy. There were several water stops along the way with just water- so if you need any other fuel options, be sure to carry those with you! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I was super excited to cross the finish line and get that huge (and HEAVY) medal!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsCMrrVbGW4BGwdCUo7e1W90T4QnLhRIQci6rFS-kn72XrzR-00ofc7BLaD3f7YhmUdo8JffxJlZZWkoMH1d47X_V2eYYbnCpVLwoJlIgAOSKRKk085I4UUvG4qfGnmo5hyphenhyphenkM1XRLDDfQ/s1600/IMG_8631.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsCMrrVbGW4BGwdCUo7e1W90T4QnLhRIQci6rFS-kn72XrzR-00ofc7BLaD3f7YhmUdo8JffxJlZZWkoMH1d47X_V2eYYbnCpVLwoJlIgAOSKRKk085I4UUvG4qfGnmo5hyphenhyphenkM1XRLDDfQ/s320/IMG_8631.JPG" width="320"></a></div>
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> I didn't see any of the advertised post race eats (except bananas) - but being able to stick my toes in the ocean after finishing find of made up for that. (And I'm sure faster runners had more options.)</span><br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgba1bopLzM7fvV7t9xzsbGJlAsnqUAEylSOuB8CDeZpU_bQDbsoJ3mBjJjboyUCr5Nasdgbxt_CUOg-qutGA_nh1FgnVFq6riSCyOZu115AW7JVA_DO6goeLxpQGQ98MrLPgaquLNqeXI/s1600/IMG_8638.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgba1bopLzM7fvV7t9xzsbGJlAsnqUAEylSOuB8CDeZpU_bQDbsoJ3mBjJjboyUCr5Nasdgbxt_CUOg-qutGA_nh1FgnVFq6riSCyOZu115AW7JVA_DO6goeLxpQGQ98MrLPgaquLNqeXI/s320/IMG_8638.JPG" width="320"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Overall, this was a good race. I was a little disappointed with some of the organizational things (lack of restrooms, running out of food, etc...) but I'm hoping that the race director will take the feedback from this heat and make changes for the better next year. I can see myself making this an annual event on my race calendar.</div>
<br>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-86703458662320825602016-01-27T17:06:00.000-05:002016-01-27T17:06:01.494-05:00What's Up Wednesday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih1Boq9hS019QYSeBffDdPt39gRDyRn0p7fThh3tJa0UuMIUQNoGlUTtwGXqMBEK_81m9BqarDmHOFrUv5S1tETSPLKrAYmzqjGuRHS_yQnQIh1Ydp9ANi7nABI8Xv0IPMAsFvulTR12Y/s1600/whatsupwed1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih1Boq9hS019QYSeBffDdPt39gRDyRn0p7fThh3tJa0UuMIUQNoGlUTtwGXqMBEK_81m9BqarDmHOFrUv5S1tETSPLKrAYmzqjGuRHS_yQnQIh1Ydp9ANi7nABI8Xv0IPMAsFvulTR12Y/s320/whatsupwed1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I had the urge to write today, but no real topic in mind, so linking up for What's Up Wednesday seemed like the perfect fix! So here we go...</div>
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What we're eating this week....</h3>
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This week is my break in between rounds of the 21 Day Fix, so meal prep hasn't exactly been the best! BUT I have had some pretty great meals, such as breakfast for dinner while we were snowed in followed by a pretty great Sweet Potato Hash the next morning. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcv2AHjIhgQy1bKzdn2iMaQTgORjEQ2jTXNw3qzCLDcFk7qvPaOfKPPfvmyNCWG8DuIxlBkjQTqxq8ZuwoPveJI2OFghZPqc2zftgP1WYQB9_UXc25iaXEYtJPu05FTp9xPyHHFvgPWEo/s1600/sweet+potato+hash.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcv2AHjIhgQy1bKzdn2iMaQTgORjEQ2jTXNw3qzCLDcFk7qvPaOfKPPfvmyNCWG8DuIxlBkjQTqxq8ZuwoPveJI2OFghZPqc2zftgP1WYQB9_UXc25iaXEYtJPu05FTp9xPyHHFvgPWEo/s320/sweet+potato+hash.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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What I'm reminiscing about....</h3>
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A month ago yesterday, I had to make the decision to say goodbye to my sweet Bailey. It was probably the hardest thing I've ever done. A month to the day after that, this came in the mail from the vet clinic. Coincidence? </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVda_JMJFpVZ8Oa4ffvvL4T7RkpPhZMINg9JTGH9sJpgrwpaj14K7lZDsEJZfNhiuyTKtWOr9PSSPMoRjvJDWIjV0YLKeEkLNiipYopktnz6C4XyVs3SgzKN8HRFZEJIs9Eq1CXWucSeI/s1600/sweet+bailey.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVda_JMJFpVZ8Oa4ffvvL4T7RkpPhZMINg9JTGH9sJpgrwpaj14K7lZDsEJZfNhiuyTKtWOr9PSSPMoRjvJDWIjV0YLKeEkLNiipYopktnz6C4XyVs3SgzKN8HRFZEJIs9Eq1CXWucSeI/s1600/sweet+bailey.JPG" /></a></div>
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My HyrdroFlask and Nuun! Drinking water has always been a struggle, but with the combination of being able to keep it super cold and adding a little flavor (but not sugar) and vitamins, it is getting easier and easier!</div>
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What I've been up to...</h3>
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We were lucky enough to get just enough winter weather to keep us inside for a couple of days but not cause damage or power outages, and I loved it! I may be in the minority, but I LOVE having a reason to stay cozied up at home....and Echo may have loved it even more than I did!</div>
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What I'm dreading... </div>
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This sounds pretty silly...but next week! Thanks to holidays and snow days, I've been spoiled by short week weeks since before Christmas! An actual five day work week next week is going to be rough!</div>
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What I'm working on...</h3>
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This week was the start of the semester for online classes at the college I teach at. So it's been a busy week of making sure everything online is ready for students and answering messages and emails!</div>
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What I'm excited about...</h3>
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The weekend! The weather is supposed to be better and I can't wait to get outside a little!</div>
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What I'm watching/reading...</h3>
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Ohh...I watched the premiere of Lucifer last night. Did anyone else? I think I'm going to love it!</div>
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What I'm listening to...</h3>
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I feel like I need some new music, so today I've been listening to Spotify's Spotlight on 2016 playlist.</div>
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What I'm wearing...</div>
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My workout clothes! I'm typing this in between my workout and getting ready for work this morning. Shirts and jackets with thumb-holes are the best! </div>
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What I'm doing this weekend...</h3>
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Hopefully running! Last weekend's weather meant my long run with my running group was cancelled, so I'm looking forward to getting back on track with 8 miles this weekend!</div>
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What I'm looking forward to next month...</h3>
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Spending a night in the Asheville area! It's for a quick work trip, but hopefully we'll be able to have a good dinner out and enjoy a bit of the area the night before our meeting.</div>
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What else is new...</h3>
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I made the decision to list my house! It's been a whirlwind and happened really quickly, but I'm looking forward to the next chapter!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-66513571802390249422015-12-09T13:20:00.002-05:002015-12-09T13:20:39.252-05:002015 Charlotte SouthPark 8k Turkey Trot<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
I've always wanted to run a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning, but for various reasons never have. This Thanksgiving, I was determined to change that, and signed up for the <a href="https://charlotteturkeytrot.racesonline.com/home" target="_blank">Charlotte Southpark Turkey Trot</a>. This race had a 5k or 8k option, and I chose the 8k. Even signing up late on November 17, registration wasn't too pricey at $40. Since that included a long sleeve t-shirt (cotton, tech tee was an additional $15) as well as a finisher's medal, I didn't think $40 was bad.</div>
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Since I wasn't exactly sure how crowded race day would be, I opted to visit packet pick-up the day before, and it was super easy and fast to grab my bib and shirt. I tried to get to bed early and organize myself on Wednesday night so that I could get to the start on time. That meant that I finished cooking a Thanksgiving dessert, had my Garmin charged, and my Nuun bottles filled all before bed!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prepping for race day!</td></tr>
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On Thursday morning, I woke up and realized I didn't have Bagel Thins or bread in the house, so went with a bowl of Trader Joe's Pumpkin Pecan Oats for breakfast before I left (prepping fail). Traffic on Thanksgiving morning was non-existent, so I made it to the start at SouthPark Mall with plenty of time to spare. I wasn't exactly sure where the best place to park would be, but decided to park closer to the start than the finish to hopefully avoid traffic leaving. I made my way towards the 8k start line and was super happy to see that it was actually right by an indoor food court that housed a Bojangles, so was open! This meant that runners had a warm place to wait inside AND indoor bathrooms with NO LINES! It was great - especially since it was around 40 degrees at the start.</div>
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I met a fellow #TeamrunDisney Facebook group member and we actually stuck together for the whole race! The race started right on time, and we were off! The 8k started at 9:00 am, with the 5k starting at 9:30 in a different location, but they finished at the same spot. Being Charlotte, the course was filled with rolling hills, and our goal was just to have fun and keep to our 30:30 run/walk/run intervals. The course was open enough that in the first few miles there wasn't really any crowding, which was great! At around the 2-mile marker, a couple families had set up a "water" stop with mimosas and Bloody Marys! There were a couple other families throughout the course that were out cheering runners on, which was nice!</div>
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We kept up with our intervals, and before we knew it, there was only about a mile left. Somewhere around that point, the course merged with the 5k course. Well, it went from being not crowded at all, to being super crowded! It was fine for us since we were just running for fun, but I can imagine any 5kers who were racing may not have been pleased. There were around 7,000 finishers total, so it wasn't exactly a small race! You can see from the splits how much the merging slowed us down in the last miles! (That and what I'm convinced is a Charlotte rule that races must have a huge uphill in the last mile or two of every race.)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Turkey Trot 8k Splits</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">8k Turkey Trot Finisher</td></tr>
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Once through the finish chute, we were handed our medals, which are pretty great! My only complaint about the race was the organization after finishing. Although we saw people walking around with fruit and Kind Bars, we never saw any and had to assume they ran out. Even water at the finish line was almost completely gone (and was cups, not bottles), so I was extra happy I had a bottle of Nuun in the car waiting for me. </div>
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We finished in about an hour, so that means people were finishing the 10k for at least another 30 minutes, and the 5k for a little longer than that. As a solid mid to back of the pack runner depending on the size of the race, nothing frustrates me more than races running out of post-race food/water before everyone is finished!</div>
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Overall though, I thought this was a great race, and I felt great running it the whole time! I'll definitely be returning next year!</div>
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<br />Lesliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15719852459940419963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-13270959345801426992015-11-27T20:40:00.001-05:002015-11-27T20:40:46.015-05:00A Black Friday Hike<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid9nCr4HmwVvNrRwmpKC4toZ7FAjNJPATCRuu_r3ULO63XcX7m-5yLBbq2aVX3pDoB2NpbIcfhSgI1UdxKDzh5iGd7Z9z9psxnc6W7Xsju6dnIRpfLX3u6p-zLD4bf5PQLKv_UJ0D5ZY8/s640/blogger-image-1524219895.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid9nCr4HmwVvNrRwmpKC4toZ7FAjNJPATCRuu_r3ULO63XcX7m-5yLBbq2aVX3pDoB2NpbIcfhSgI1UdxKDzh5iGd7Z9z9psxnc6W7Xsju6dnIRpfLX3u6p-zLD4bf5PQLKv_UJ0D5ZY8/s640/blogger-image-1524219895.jpg"></a></div>Today after a lunch of leftovers, I decided to take Echo and Boone for a hike. (They're brothers- Echo belongs to me, Boone belongs to my parents). The trail we hiked is part of the Carolina Thread Trail, and is a pretty easy 5.5ish mile hike along Lake Wylie. It also connects with trails at Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens, so you can add a little mileage or switch it up easily.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_8ed4XaNCNzWsOljaCf79KjOhjjiOAKHnubcbk-bsuepYM2kBGDWQk3maTmWFhX6hYYbMIOhTvvKySM5ay9lTSgLyIUeTikc8O9HnvVXW80JTh_jkZbLGR46f96OuJwRkpkk_RMquH8/s640/blogger-image--961580630.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_8ed4XaNCNzWsOljaCf79KjOhjjiOAKHnubcbk-bsuepYM2kBGDWQk3maTmWFhX6hYYbMIOhTvvKySM5ay9lTSgLyIUeTikc8O9HnvVXW80JTh_jkZbLGR46f96OuJwRkpkk_RMquH8/s640/blogger-image--961580630.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div>It was the first time I've used the double leash with these two...and geez it took about 3 miles for them to decide to calm down. But seriously, they did so great with the hike and with all the other dogs and people we came across! (My favorite is hearing "Look at the wolf!" which I've heard at least once every single time I've hiked with Echo.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj847pBn9z6zpq2v0dB1irQw2Zhlw1Pn9xc3hDuvMRwyszO_87YFTzuEJ1cO5LTM6BeEML5fR7nOmyPpqXgbTYteowiRsGz16qQ6i71OqeXrlNAsVNoqlCDW39W7oORWCIsd6Bl4q8aDk0/s640/blogger-image-1727939824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj847pBn9z6zpq2v0dB1irQw2Zhlw1Pn9xc3hDuvMRwyszO_87YFTzuEJ1cO5LTM6BeEML5fR7nOmyPpqXgbTYteowiRsGz16qQ6i71OqeXrlNAsVNoqlCDW39W7oORWCIsd6Bl4q8aDk0/s640/blogger-image-1727939824.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div>The best part is, this trail is only about 3 miles from my parents house (and not much further from mine). I spent a lot of time just feeling thankful that I live in a county with so many public parks and trails- some city, some county, and even a couple state parks. I know it's early for resolutions- but one of mine is to take advantage of these more often! </div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimaW-W0M035nSuNAttPeHcXuGr9MgNnwNUJkM9cYu33h5VLlJr7O6OnalSbH2AGo0DbDNXls1Xlu4dWRiFWlx1buEmUKmjvD2aTx5-4bFBWWLn6ABHI8F7Nm-0zdQw0OcYJwYn3u7rOZ8/s640/blogger-image--2146234076.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimaW-W0M035nSuNAttPeHcXuGr9MgNnwNUJkM9cYu33h5VLlJr7O6OnalSbH2AGo0DbDNXls1Xlu4dWRiFWlx1buEmUKmjvD2aTx5-4bFBWWLn6ABHI8F7Nm-0zdQw0OcYJwYn3u7rOZ8/s640/blogger-image--2146234076.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Now- off to Boone tomorrow!</div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIpmWQxOkq1P6MJohhSnmtYN1Zel6GcuAS5clC7pZJbZi9Vh-EGC0SuVMIcOpSbuPY-m3sbu4_GSEAlJ3aT-ld4be9SkYO8F1OeN9KLi4wMPD5KCsCDgFYj-zXApJfUarx6KO-cEFxVs4/s640/blogger-image-1690661350.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIpmWQxOkq1P6MJohhSnmtYN1Zel6GcuAS5clC7pZJbZi9Vh-EGC0SuVMIcOpSbuPY-m3sbu4_GSEAlJ3aT-ld4be9SkYO8F1OeN9KLi4wMPD5KCsCDgFYj-zXApJfUarx6KO-cEFxVs4/s640/blogger-image-1690661350.jpg"></a></div><br></div>Lesliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15719852459940419963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-91555658875045931412015-10-14T23:08:00.000-04:002015-10-15T21:16:00.514-04:00OrthoCarolina 10k ClassicWay back in August, I ran the OrthoCarolina 10k Classic in Charlotte. I mainly signed up for this race because sign up included a pint glass, a t shirt, and a finisher's medal! I don't run for the "bling," but all that for a 10k isn't bad, right? It also didn't hurt that the 6 miles fit in pretty perfectly to my fall half marathon training plan.<br />
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What I wasn't thinking about when I signed up was how HOT it is in August in North Carolina. My dad was nice enough to go to the race with me (and wait on me to run). The race was in Charlotte, about 25 minutes from my house. We left in plenty of time to get to the start, which was a good thing since there was a bit of a traffic back up of people trying to get into the parking garage. The morning started with a bang as we were rear ended at a stoplight while waiting for traffic to move. Luckily there was no damage and we (and the runner who rear-ended us) were able to get parked and make our way towards the start.</div>
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Within just a few minutes of getting into line, we were off! I was planing on running the whole race using 30:30 run-walk-run intervals, so that's how I started off. I'd been training all summer running 13ish minute miles on long runs, and since I was running this as a training run, I knew I needed to slow down when I saw this for the first mile, I knew I needed to slow it down.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJc9uAxPH0SqRruMn8b4x-2jDMhAcDy0JHZJ-PFTtw6Vt0WFU0wnkP2ttxaHmKj9aZRcfjA6jDlt9UZ-uUfCYeA-g3wggFvK9w_MVIX2Evj1b_zqObxOU2JsuDE3iA8xhcaGxXsNr3lz8/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-10-14+at+10.29.09+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJc9uAxPH0SqRruMn8b4x-2jDMhAcDy0JHZJ-PFTtw6Vt0WFU0wnkP2ttxaHmKj9aZRcfjA6jDlt9UZ-uUfCYeA-g3wggFvK9w_MVIX2Evj1b_zqObxOU2JsuDE3iA8xhcaGxXsNr3lz8/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-10-14+at+10.29.09+PM.png" /></a></div>
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The course started out relatively flat, but in true Charlotte race fashion, seemed to get more and more hilly as the miles added up. I swear, it must be some sort of Charlotte rule that all courses finish with the last 1.5 miles uphill. You can see from my splits that by the last mile and the biggest hill, I was over it!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0H-nmnHWN7KpkqMjQwWfiOIe-PfORBHPNPfzWe5-33nSIX1PgwUnB5ATIFYDTrlnNLbfsGavGndw_r5lgyOxdI7bBdUNBn3ineV-ojkpkc_HT9tB8vW0cDXeiMi-cI6Q9apf90oaXEPo/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-10-14+at+10.13.37+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0H-nmnHWN7KpkqMjQwWfiOIe-PfORBHPNPfzWe5-33nSIX1PgwUnB5ATIFYDTrlnNLbfsGavGndw_r5lgyOxdI7bBdUNBn3ineV-ojkpkc_HT9tB8vW0cDXeiMi-cI6Q9apf90oaXEPo/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-10-14+at+10.13.37+PM.png" /></a></div>
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But, I did make it through the finish chute, and even with the hills and heath, managed to get a new 10k PR! The only downside was that they were out of finisher's medals! After a little confusion and some disgruntled runners, an announcement was made that more medals were on the way! So, a few minutes later, I had a medal to add to my collection! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguGOeFXDywfOXh0PBH9n5SvTxz2JCHeIAy7kI_0I0biNuAxoMqH6VMRs7X-Eyp4K2bgQN7efuWq8msBa7VKGXXEzCbjz7uSp6L45MN6_i7TeLR7dhwct6uGB-VZrh8cmm76M-lCYm9qXw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-10-14+at+9.58.33+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="54" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguGOeFXDywfOXh0PBH9n5SvTxz2JCHeIAy7kI_0I0biNuAxoMqH6VMRs7X-Eyp4K2bgQN7efuWq8msBa7VKGXXEzCbjz7uSp6L45MN6_i7TeLR7dhwct6uGB-VZrh8cmm76M-lCYm9qXw/s320/Screen+Shot+2015-10-14+at+9.58.33+PM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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It's really hard for rate races after doing several runDisney events, because honestly, very little can compare. However, I really enjoyed this one! Packet pickup was quick and easy, there was free parking right at the start/finish, the course was really well marked, there were just enough water stops, and the post race festivities were pretty great! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW5yJDN6jrqGvgFL331s9lxN0s2EJIbOMytNmdMLzRp5CjglQHlewxFYbH7b-ZFRLBEaAq2gbMytIfx0qCybW-b__WYqx_TASy5NlfM_wjHnQA8RplLsp4IWkNW3zc-SgQ0wvyj-ptS_c/s1600/IMG_8517.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW5yJDN6jrqGvgFL331s9lxN0s2EJIbOMytNmdMLzRp5CjglQHlewxFYbH7b-ZFRLBEaAq2gbMytIfx0qCybW-b__WYqx_TASy5NlfM_wjHnQA8RplLsp4IWkNW3zc-SgQ0wvyj-ptS_c/s320/IMG_8517.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Even with the hills and heat to contend with, I just may make this a yearly must do!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-64673010991424842062015-10-08T22:20:00.000-04:002015-10-08T22:24:08.485-04:00Finding BalanceMonday and Tuesday of this week was my college's Fall Break. That means that students were off, and since students were off and most of our systems were down for a big data center move, I decided to take those two days off as well.<br />
<br />
For a lot of the working world, taking a couple vacation days probably isn't that big of a deal. You have them, so you might as well use them, right? In fact, a lot of companies force employees to use all of their allotted days each year. The thing is, no matter how many times I tell myself those two statements, I haven't learned the trick of not feeling major guilt when I take vacation. Maybe it's a teacher thing, maybe I have issues....but I find it really hard to turn my brain off. It always seems like there is something MORE I should be doing, and I feel like I'm being a bad employee if I actually take any vacation days.<br />
<br />
I was thinking about this over the weekend and on Monday while I was off. I spent Monday hanging out with my newly retired mom, and I can't tell you how many times I checked my email or checked in on work things while we were out and about (the blessing and curse of smartphones, I guess).<br />
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And then Tuesday came, and I was faced with the reality that the day was going to be spent attending one funeral while other family members were attending a second funeral that was being held at the same time. Suddenly, as I was riding to the funeral with my parents, I realized that there has to be balance. It is so cliche, but we really aren't promised tomorrow. And it just made me think that the most important thing is to actually be present. While I definitely wish the occasion hadn't been what it was, I was so thankful all day for the mid-week time I got to spend with my parents and grandparents. I heard stories from my dad I'd never heard before, explored out in the country a little bit, and had lunch with my grandparents. And during the whole day, I think I only used my phone to find a place to eat and get directions.<br />
<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="5" style="background: #FFF; border-radius: 3px; border: 0; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: -webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width: 99.375%; width: calc(100% - 2px);">
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/8gG15xKRYw/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">Not exactly where or what I had in mind for today, but figuring out how to find the bright spots every day. Today's bright spot includes hearing stories from when my dad was growing up and having extra time with family.</a></div>
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A photo posted by Leslie Noggle (@onegirlandtwodogs) on <time datetime="2015-10-06T15:46:09+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 6, 2015 at 8:46am PDT</time></div>
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So what does being present mean? When I'm at work, focus on work. Be there, be productive, and do my best. It's not realistic to think that I'm never going to have work to do at home and that it won't ever bleed over. But- it's okay to take time off. At the end of the day, as important as my career is, it's work, a career, but it's not what my life is. Although I like my job, I don't live to work. I live to enjoy time with my family, pursue interests, and all of those things. While the paycheck that comes with work enables me to do those things, I don't live to work. So this is just me reminding myself that it's okay to take time off every once in a while, and in fact, I'll probably be a better employee for it! And then when I'm at home or with friends and family, be present. Soak it up. Realize that it's okay to take a drive, linger over dinner or a drink, or even take a night to be lazy with a book that's I'm just reading for fun.<br />
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Here's to finding balance.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-52415263754220077052015-07-28T11:47:00.000-04:002015-07-28T11:47:09.719-04:00Week in Training: July 20-26<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBRjWBd0DTALFZGlRcWP62s9kXjeE8tbacnbQNGul5y_KWZzkhkeaIYyIagYj2g0uXoGg2bqcnZWb6pVsJHRTcH69UlMOuMLSx4Ua5zV5BXmSA4BOJP0aodqUqRtyHuyINOaPb9akqlcE/s1600/Week+in+training+July+20-26.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBRjWBd0DTALFZGlRcWP62s9kXjeE8tbacnbQNGul5y_KWZzkhkeaIYyIagYj2g0uXoGg2bqcnZWb6pVsJHRTcH69UlMOuMLSx4Ua5zV5BXmSA4BOJP0aodqUqRtyHuyINOaPb9akqlcE/s320/Week+in+training+July+20-26.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Week 3 of Wine and Dine Half training is complete! So far, each run has been completed, still along with my regular MFP workouts. We'll see how this next week goes, as I'll be out of town for work but so far, so good!</div>
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<br />
<b>Monday (7/20): </b><br />
<ul>
<li>60 minute MFP class</li>
<li>1.5 mile walk </li>
</ul>
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<b>Tuesday (7/21): </b><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>60 minute MFP class</li>
<li>3 mile run</li>
<ul>
<li>This one was on the treadmill again. I'm making myself do my weekend runs (so far) outside, but I'm okay with the shorter runs being on the treadmill during the week for now. I figure I'm still getting some outside training in with all the hill sprints we're doing in class!</li>
</ul>
<li>1.5 mile walk</li>
</ul>
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<b>Wednesday (7/22):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>60 minute MFP class</li>
<ul>
<li>1 lap warm up</li>
<li>10 minutes hill sprints</li>
<li>Alternating sets (deadlifts, calf raises, good mornings, glute bridges, etc...) with cardio intervals</li>
</ul>
<li>1.5 mile walk</li>
</ul>
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<b>Thursday (7/23):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>Unintentional rest from MFP class thanks to a work meeting</li>
<li>3 mile run</li>
<ul>
<li>On the treadmill again! And it was rough!</li>
</ul>
<li>1.5 mile walk</li>
</ul>
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<b>Friday (7/24):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>REST</li>
<li>1.5 mile walk</li>
</ul>
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<b>Saturday (7/25):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>5 mile run</li>
<li>1.5 mile walk</li>
</ul>
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<b>Sunday (7/26):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>REST</li>
<ul>
<li>This was a day of travel, starting with being at the airport at 5am for a cross country flight. After 8 hours of travel, I still got in 12,600 steps before the night ended, so I'm good with that!</li>
</ul>
</ul>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-56766286785854030172015-07-24T08:00:00.000-04:002015-07-24T08:00:00.533-04:00Taco Stuffed Mini Bell Peppers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitZeDjWzh5HX-I1hOaL4hJ1m6va913CXWw1_1tdwMjgY12qSuCqiEPhL_YqhHkYFBuZpptmwBZNvMSJ9xLo0Jh32WJ3vdagPpwwYJylm8CPs0sjxIsFvu0ZQri2EzXuCzYRj-ngcbm6uY/s1600/TacoStuffedMiniBellPeppers+%25281%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitZeDjWzh5HX-I1hOaL4hJ1m6va913CXWw1_1tdwMjgY12qSuCqiEPhL_YqhHkYFBuZpptmwBZNvMSJ9xLo0Jh32WJ3vdagPpwwYJylm8CPs0sjxIsFvu0ZQri2EzXuCzYRj-ngcbm6uY/s320/TacoStuffedMiniBellPeppers+%25281%2529.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Last week, I made this recipe and shared with my parents. It was so good that my mom requested I make it again the next night! Not only is it pretty simple, but is also reheats really well, so it's a recipe that I'm sure I'll be making more once school starts back! It would be a pretty appetizer (just ignore my horrible photograph), but we loved it for dinner as an entree. As written, this makes about 4 servings. I can take or leave regular bell peppers, but LOVE the sweet ones! This recipe is based on this one from <a href="http://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2014/08/mini-taco-stuffed-peppers.html" target="_blank">The Girl Who Ate Everything</a>.</div>
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<b>What You'll Need:</b></div>
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<ul>
<li>1 lb bag of sweet mini bell peppers</li>
<li>1 lb ground meat (I used ground sirloin, but any ground meat would work)</li>
<li>Homemade Seasoning (adjust to meet your taste preferences)</li>
<ul>
<li>1 Tablespoon chili powder</li>
<li>1 teaspoon garlic powder</li>
<li>1 teaspoon onion powder</li>
<li>1 teaspoon cumin</li>
<li>1.5 teaspoons salt</li>
<li>1.5 teaspoons ground pepper</li>
</ul>
<li>1 cup shredded cheese</li>
<li>3/4 cup water</li>
<li>A handful of fresh cilantro</li>
<li>1/2 cup Greek Yogurt </li>
<li>2 Tablespoons lime juice</li>
</ul>
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<b>What to Do:</b></div>
<div>
<ol>
<li>Preheat oven to 350.</li>
<li>Brown ground beef (or other meat). Once fully cooked, drain beef.</li>
<li>While your beef is browning, cut peppers in half length-wise and deseed. Basically, you're making little pepper boats. Line a baking sheet or dish with pepper boats.</li>
<li>Sacrifice enough of your pepper halves to create about 3/4 cup of diced pepper.</li>
<li>Once meat is browned and drained, add in diced pepper, seasoning mix, and water. Stir and simmer for about 5-10 minutes, or until water is soaked up and peppers are soft.</li>
<li>Fill pepper boats with ground beef mixture and bake for about 15 minutes. During the last 5 or so minutes, sprinkle on cheese and allow it to melt. (I like a little crispiness, so I turned the oven to broil for the last few minutes.)</li>
<li>In a food processor or blender, process your cilantro, greek yogurt, and lime juice to create a sauce to drizzle over finished peppers. You can adjust your sauce ingredients to your taste preferences. (Don't skip this....it is SO delicious!)</li>
<li>Serve peppers with cilantro yogurt sauce for drizzling or dipping!</li>
</ol>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-83370118871465263752015-07-22T15:29:00.001-04:002015-07-22T15:29:45.028-04:00Week in Training: 7/13 - 7/19<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy8_Rf_lf_EcjSor5tWSxAjx6_Apww07LKuPFbtubgDv-PIlx8WJFvRCNtxCLt5pH9Tt784j0pCBk9mbDGgy90lwyKBZF013Dkx8hOsWP0xaoL4Iik4for6NLwwzuxcdngwGcDhfzktQ0/s1600/Copy+of+Week+in+training+July+13-19.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy8_Rf_lf_EcjSor5tWSxAjx6_Apww07LKuPFbtubgDv-PIlx8WJFvRCNtxCLt5pH9Tt784j0pCBk9mbDGgy90lwyKBZF013Dkx8hOsWP0xaoL4Iik4for6NLwwzuxcdngwGcDhfzktQ0/s320/Copy+of+Week+in+training+July+13-19.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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I forgot to post this on Monday, but another week of work-outs was completed and tracked! This was officially Week 2 of Wine & Dine Half Training, and I'm still trying to balance that with going to my MFP classes at About Face Boot Camp. The MFP classes are actually 5 days a week, but I'm going to skip most Saturday classes to get in my long runs. The 1.5 walks that are listed are my nightly walks with my parents. My dad has decided he's going to walk 3 miles every day...1.5 before work and 1.5 at night, so I'm going to his house to join him most evenings. My mom is joining us too at night....even with a knee injury! I'm so proud....but not quite dedicated enough to be at his house before 6am to join for his morning walks too :) .</div>
<br />
<br />
<b>Monday (7/13): </b><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>60 minute MFP class</li>
<ul>
<li>Warmup: 3 laps, 10 minutes of hill sprints</li>
<li>Workout: 5 sets of 3 exercises, timed for 6 minutes each block, build up to 5 reps of each</li>
</ul>
<li>1.5 mile walk </li>
</ul>
<br />
<b>Tuesday (7/14): </b><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>60 minute MFP class</li>
<ul>
<li>LEG DAY </li>
</ul>
<li>3 mile run</li>
<ul>
<li>I was hating myself for waiting until leg day to do this run, but then the best thing happened! On my way home from the gym and grocery store, it actually started raining! We've had pretty much NO rain and over a month of 90+ degree days, so I was so happy for the chance to go for a run in cloudy, breezy, drizzly (totally made that word up) conditions! I've definitely had my share of "why in the world did I sign up for another fall race that means summer training runs" runs lately with it being so hot and humid, so it was nice to have a run that I really enjoyed! This run made me remember why I love running so much!</li>
</ul>
<li>1.5 mile walk</li>
</ul>
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<br />
<b>Wednesday (7/15):</b><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>60 minute MFP class</li>
<ul>
<li>Hill sprints then weights (upper body)</li>
</ul>
<li>1.5 mile walk</li>
<ul>
</ul>
</ul>
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<br />
<b>Thursday (7/16):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>60 minute MFP class</li>
<li>3 mile run</li>
<ul>
<li>Treadmill run because WHOA it was too hot after my class at the gym.</li>
</ul>
<li>3mile walk</li>
<ul>
<li>My dad didn't get his morning walk in, so we walked 3 in the evening. I took him on my normal 3 mile running route around the neighborhood in between where I live and my parents live. I think my favorite comment was about a mile in when he said, "You better NEVER bring your mother on this route." He made the comment because my mom has a torn ACL (she's a rockstar who is still walking 1.5 with us every night in her brace) and the route is way too hilly for her knee to handle. For some reason, walking it made me realize just how hilly it is, whereas I don't think about it all that much when running it.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<br />
<b>Friday (7/17):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>REST</li>
<li>1.5 mile walk</li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />
<b>Saturday (7/18):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>4 mile run</li>
<ul>
<li>I hated this run. I didn't feel like the running itself was hard....but it was SO hot! I'm trying really hard to ignore my paces on runs right now, because after seeing months of improvements, June and July have been SLOW. With temps and humidity so high, I'm just telling myself that as long as I get the distance in, the paces will start improving again once it cools down.</li>
</ul>
<li>3 mile walk</li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />
<b>Sunday (7/19):</b><br />
<ul>
<li>REST</li>
<li>3 mile walk</li>
</ul>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-67755658024457028452015-07-13T13:12:00.000-04:002015-07-15T13:49:02.186-04:00Week in Training: July 6-12<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI3aeZa8tateJ4577UPHXJ84hTU_NILgPY-D-oBzAkvklCi9sQExD7ntUxC_XJkYVAOCNHhVn8MCwnG4KbDEWOSPFSgSu3dkYkHq417HSjbn3usUZ6s-OFPEVRfhZ77N506ns_qKYb5tE/s1600/Week+in+training.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI3aeZa8tateJ4577UPHXJ84hTU_NILgPY-D-oBzAkvklCi9sQExD7ntUxC_XJkYVAOCNHhVn8MCwnG4KbDEWOSPFSgSu3dkYkHq417HSjbn3usUZ6s-OFPEVRfhZ77N506ns_qKYb5tE/s320/Week+in+training.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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One day I'll be happy I'm starting to keep up with this, right? So this was officially week 1 of <a href="http://as1.wdpromedia.com/media/rundisney/training/running/plans/2015/wine-and-dine-half-marathon/WnD15_Time.pdf" target="_blank">Wine and Dine Half Marathon training</a>. I'm following Jeff Galloway's plan for that since I've found that I love his run-walk-run method of running. His half plan calls for two 45 minute runs during the week, plus a long run on the weekend. This has worked great for my last half and the last two Tower of Terror 10 Milers. Since I'm still doing 4-5 days of my gym's Mission Fit Possible boot camp program, I'm trying to figure out how to train smart. The MFP program is a mix of cardio, some running, and a lot of strength/weight training. I love it....but I know that once the semester starts back and I'm back to teaching full time it will be hard to fit everything in (and I'm not sure how much my knee will take). I think Week 1 was a success though!<br />
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Monday (7/6): 60 minute MFP class. This was the first day of a new 8 week cycle, so today was fit test day! (3 miles, pushups, sit ups, squats, and burpees)<br />
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Tuesday (7/7): 60 minute MFP class<br />
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Wednesday (7/8): 60 minute MFP class<br />
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Thursday (7/9): 60 minute MFP class, 3 mile run<br />
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Friday (7/10): REST (but did walk 3 miles)<br />
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Saturday (7/11): REST (but did walk 3 miles)<br />
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Sunday (7/12): 3 mile "long" run, 3 mile walkAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-16505311059296550472015-07-05T20:36:00.001-04:002015-07-05T20:36:44.796-04:002015 American 4 Miler<div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Yesterday I ran the American 4 Miler, part of a Run for Your Life series, with my favorite 7am workout buddies. I thought it was a great race! </span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRzDSfkqhsicBIdJ6VAIDjGcivwV_ZBs0QwiP32zWc2UM7_Ur8ntJoafrSot4TpW583fRYpXEvlNZlL6jh3OVRy8j9dkZWitji1PmZstQD_8lleBrYYKy9T2xVLHoeaocUaTltH6e6h0c/s640/blogger-image-249864214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRzDSfkqhsicBIdJ6VAIDjGcivwV_ZBs0QwiP32zWc2UM7_Ur8ntJoafrSot4TpW583fRYpXEvlNZlL6jh3OVRy8j9dkZWitji1PmZstQD_8lleBrYYKy9T2xVLHoeaocUaTltH6e6h0c/s640/blogger-image-249864214.jpg"></a></div><br></span></div><div><br></div><div>Packet pickup was super organized and simple, and the course was well marked, had plenty of volunteers, and took us through pretty neighborhoods with lots of shade! I could have done without several of the hills, but we can't really get away from there here! </div><div><br></div><div>After the race, there was live music, good music, and free beer! We took advantage of the finish line being right at Toast and ate breakfast there. </div><div><br></div><div>I didn't try to "race" this run, but ran it as a training run using Galloway intervals of 30:30. Even though I stopped for a full 30-40 seconds in the first mile to look for friends, I was happy to have finished in about 48 minutes. What made me even more happy was when I looked back at data from a training run from last September (when not only was I much slower, but felt like I was dying the whole time). Take a look at the difference!</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVd4UPXWesue5yz2WFkg-4RP-hHMO2NADn5LLd8YLHiVo1xP1-q4LbRvcJu9XWuLW1yVxUz6DPLGzSj6DS8YdUjeP-9NGjH-InvCjHdO8gGRHq3F2sVHtwBnRgojIGLH_g9Fk7j7RIfMk/s640/blogger-image-1546210259.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVd4UPXWesue5yz2WFkg-4RP-hHMO2NADn5LLd8YLHiVo1xP1-q4LbRvcJu9XWuLW1yVxUz6DPLGzSj6DS8YdUjeP-9NGjH-InvCjHdO8gGRHq3F2sVHtwBnRgojIGLH_g9Fk7j7RIfMk/s640/blogger-image-1546210259.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">This is a race that I'll definitely be on the lookout for next year!</div><br></div>Lesliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15719852459940419963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-85766189966289945902015-06-15T12:53:00.000-04:002015-10-03T08:03:33.731-04:00Disney World Tips: When to Book<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUArxv7W89WJAdWrB19wz6EZZBZ1yJ4kdU4Z9ioDH-UwcYKWYbpRPpbD2SYjFHlhhud33azR4v0JJNT-LbXrZ5DM_AAa8gdmczSHxi7eb6yCxWYWEV_og-_E8lOvarTUtb9notXm1UfE/s1600/WhentoBookDisneyResort.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUArxv7W89WJAdWrB19wz6EZZBZ1yJ4kdU4Z9ioDH-UwcYKWYbpRPpbD2SYjFHlhhud33azR4v0JJNT-LbXrZ5DM_AAa8gdmczSHxi7eb6yCxWYWEV_og-_E8lOvarTUtb9notXm1UfE/s320/WhentoBookDisneyResort.png" width="320"></a></div>
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When should I book my trip to Walt Disney World? </h3>
So you've decided to book a trip to Walt Disney World Resort and you definitely want the best deal. So, when should you book? Unlike trying to figure out when the best time to book a flight, car rental, or hotel room at another destination, it's actually pretty easy to decide when to book your Walt Disney World Resort stay! Book as soon as you decide on your dates.<br>
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But what if a special offer is released after I book? </h3>
The great thing about Disney is that they actually make it pretty simple to get the best deal. Booking early assures that you get the resort and room type that you want, because resort space can fill up quickly depending on the resort of your choice and they time of year you're planning to visit. However, if Disney releases an offer such as a room discount or free dining, as long it is applicable to your resort and dates, you can always call (or have your travel agent call) and modify your reservation to apply the discount. I've done this to apply both free dining and room discounts (on separate trips) to my own personal reservations and it was super easy.
So take one item off of your to-do list- book your resort, then you can spend your time on the fun part of planning such as deciding on dining!<div><br></div><div>Update: I am now a travel agent specializing in Disney destinations- so let me handle your booking and worry about looking for discounts! Email me at leslie@marvelousmousetravels.com!</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-58432212947896908802015-04-25T12:52:00.000-04:002015-04-25T12:52:38.131-04:002014 BB&T Corporate Cup Half Marathon<u><br /></u>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9iuZ89ZiAhl76nv-8La1MzMIEnL3QJjKStOnpVpsRhXpgScBKaIgOUrYAQxpr-4-Y_Ck66VuWSqGv-CGDMukDhcfhgb1NI7R2PN0JhI5MIc-vE_5aUdDZlthOaoXngsAjm4eD9xOB80o/s1600/1st+Half+Marathon.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9iuZ89ZiAhl76nv-8La1MzMIEnL3QJjKStOnpVpsRhXpgScBKaIgOUrYAQxpr-4-Y_Ck66VuWSqGv-CGDMukDhcfhgb1NI7R2PN0JhI5MIc-vE_5aUdDZlthOaoXngsAjm4eD9xOB80o/s1600/1st+Half+Marathon.png" height="180" title="1st Half Marathon" width="320" /></a></div>
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<u>I'm going to run a half?</u><br />
Two years ago, I ran my first long race, the 2013 Tower of Terror 10 Miler. I was vastly undertrained and terrified of earning a DNF, but I finished. Last year, I ran the <a href="http://onegirlandtwodogs.blogspot.com/2014/10/a-different-kind-of-triplets-rundisney.html" target="_blank">TOT 10 Miler</a> again, but was more in shape and actually trained! It was a great experience and reminded me why I love running so much, even though I never considered myself a real runner.<br />
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After taking some time off and focusing lesson on running for a while, I got a Facebook message from my coach at <a href="http://www.about-face-boot-camp.com/" target="_blank">About Face Boot Camp</a> that pretty much said, "Hey, I think you need to run a half in March." One of my goals for 2015 is to run 2 half marathons, so without even thinking about it, I said okay and signed up for the <a href="http://www.ymcacharlotte.org/corpcup" target="_blank">BB&T Corporate Cup Half Marathon</a> on March 7.<br />
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When I signed up, I had a pretty solid 3 mile running base and knew without a doubt that I'd be training using <a href="http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/run-walk/" target="_blank">Jeff Galloway's Run-Walk-Run</a> method. Implementing his methods has meant a major improvement in my running and recovery times. However, I signed up without enough time to follow the mileage on his half training plans, so I used <a href="http://www.halhigdon.com/training/51131/Half-Marathon-Novice-1-Training-Program" target="_blank">Hal Higdon's training plan</a> mileage while implementing the Galloway walk-run-walk method. During training, I missed a couple long runs thanks to aggravating an old knee injury and catching a stomach bug, but went into the half with a long run of 10 miles, so I felt pretty confident about being able to finish the distance.<br />
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What I wasn't confident about was finishing 13.1 miles in the time limit. While my speed has improved a whole lot in the last two years (thanks to consistent runs and lots of hill sprints and strength training at AFBC classes), I'm still nowhere near being a fast runner! I started with no real time goal, except for to finish within the time limit of 3 hours. In fact, I was so nervous about it that I barely told anyone that I was running, never posted anything on social media about registration or picking up, even up to the morning of the race.<br />
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<u>Packet Pickup</u><br />
My mom went with me to pick up the packet on Friday afternoon before the race. Finding the location and parking was super simple. After experiencing a couple of runDisney race expos, I was a little shocked at just being handed a bib and my T-shirt and that's it. There were a few vendors, but it was a tiny little pickup. Next year, I'd feel comfortable waiting until the morning of the race to pick up my bib. After getting home, we went on a walk to try to get rid of my nerves, I made sure that I had all my race stuff together since I was spending the night at my parents, and tried to get to bed early.<br />
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<u>Race Day</u><br />
On race morning, I woke up way before my alarm because of my nerves! It was the morning of my first half marathon! And despite successful training runs and knowing I was in much better shape than in a few months before when I'd run the 10 miler, I was still doubting myself. But, I forced down a Bagelthin with peanut butter (my long run go to), coffee, and water and got myself ready to go. I was undecided on what to wear since it was SO cold and windy, but ended up wearing running leggings, a Raw Threads sleeveless shirt, a longsleeved 2nd later, and my lightweight running jacket. Of course I wore my trusty Brooks Ravenna 5s and taped my knee! I also had my Fitletic hydration belt with one bottle of water, one bottle of Nuun, and a pack of Shot Blocks.<br />
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I found the parking garage in uptown Charlotte with ease, and within a few minutes I was standing the atrium waiting for the start. I had enough time to find a bathroom (a real one!), second-guess my coat wearing decision, go back to my car to leave my coat, and walk leisurely to the starting line. Several people from my gym were running, but in the crowd of people I never found anyone. I was so nervous that it was probably just as well, especially since I think I needed to run my own race on that day.<br />
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There were no corrals, and all half marathon and 5k runners started at the same time. If anything, that's what I would love to see changed. I love corrals where you start with runners who are at about the same pace. I got as far to the right as I could since I figured I'd be a slower runner than most, started my Garmin and my Nike+ app, and started running! It was super hard to make myself run intervals from the beginning, but from reading the course description and other recaps, I knew the course would be flat to start but pretty hilly in later miles. Knowing that made me really want to try to stick to my intervals at the start, even if I felt like running the whole thing. I knew that I'd need energy in the last half. As far as pace goes, I was hoping to stay around 12:30 minute miles.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBIbSytbH6DE1EsIFX3ro7hn82GGSOlfRINRyLXjtvaufne_fm4u0gmbhrgZ3Nasfydz6sEahmg4NaYXDb8DVQhRMVj6msHAmdZgRRHqm2aF48pOkGV9XF00idyrZsVo0OaAqstQStfaY/s1600/Half+Splits+Part+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBIbSytbH6DE1EsIFX3ro7hn82GGSOlfRINRyLXjtvaufne_fm4u0gmbhrgZ3Nasfydz6sEahmg4NaYXDb8DVQhRMVj6msHAmdZgRRHqm2aF48pOkGV9XF00idyrZsVo0OaAqstQStfaY/s1600/Half+Splits+Part+1.png" height="190" title="Corporate Cup Half Splits" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Corporate Cup Half Splits </td></tr>
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Let me say here that I've had my Garmin F10 for 3 years, and it has been great with no problems whatsoever! Of course though during this race, it completely shut down and stopped during Mile 7. Which means that I lost the data for those 7 miles! I am so glad that I was also using the Nike+ running app on my phone. I was able to restart it, but it only has the last half of the race. As you can see, I started out super fast for me! I felt great and was running a 2:1 interval (so run 2 minutes, walk 1 minute). During the first 6.5 or so miles, I felt like I could run forever! Well, I should have made myself stick closer to the goal pace during those first 7 flat miles, because I paid for it during the last half of hilly miles! </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOszN10piF_k-x4Bb5IWUK5wNK9qRNo1i8HDK4WBxoU627B5mGmBC5HWkwNIBF_1g8f0se1D7DaAV_RqWsXOoztmR6G37tkjDG_YEn6D-plZIfHuctUqETQWLBZcBgf1YcNJ7UqsxtvhE/s1600/Half+Splits+Part+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOszN10piF_k-x4Bb5IWUK5wNK9qRNo1i8HDK4WBxoU627B5mGmBC5HWkwNIBF_1g8f0se1D7DaAV_RqWsXOoztmR6G37tkjDG_YEn6D-plZIfHuctUqETQWLBZcBgf1YcNJ7UqsxtvhE/s1600/Half+Splits+Part+2.png" height="139" title="Corporate Cup Half Splits" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Corporate Cup Half Splits 2<br />
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You can definitely tell that by mile 8, "rolling hills" had started and my legs were feeling it. Somewhere around mile 9 I stopped and took my shoe off because I was feeling like my sock was bunched and thought I had a really bad blister. Nothing was actually wrong, but I loosened the laces on my shoe and that helped. I think it was around mile 10.5 or so that started a hill that was at least a mile long. I dropped down to a 1:1 interval and just tried to run as much as I could. During those hills my left knee also started KILLING me, and by halfway through mile 11 I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to keep walking on it, much less run!<br />
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But, eventually, I saw the Finish Line! One of the awesome AFBC coaches, Misty, was cheering on the sides and at that point it was great seeing a familiar face. Running across the finish line at my first half marathon was one of the best experiences I've ever had! </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc_mjlKe3-9qi6MVSBb8U6ijEm3Aa5QQPD0Wbk0ccEmfVUFk94una5MF2pEo6w0hMJsvSTccUgsRJG9L1qJmOTqvbX58Xe_31dPvrrPH2cxmamXyeTPHRR3ITTTju428dE4DETThI6oJo/s1600/Corporate+Cup+Half+Results.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc_mjlKe3-9qi6MVSBb8U6ijEm3Aa5QQPD0Wbk0ccEmfVUFk94una5MF2pEo6w0hMJsvSTccUgsRJG9L1qJmOTqvbX58Xe_31dPvrrPH2cxmamXyeTPHRR3ITTTju428dE4DETThI6oJo/s1600/Corporate+Cup+Half+Results.png" height="269" title="BB&T Corporate Cup Results" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">BB&T Corporate Cup Results</td></tr>
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I grabbed half a banana and a Gatorade, took a couple pictures, and made my way back to the car to head to my parents' house where I INHALED brunch that my dad made. I was super happy with my first half results, and maybe even more importantly, I learned a lot that I can use to improve next time! </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglrEk-DT9v0XneQARTKRt9IH3Nk6x3O_-NGb3J-Q5qlYtfWnKGwnCUpfkrMY_kFu-ukP_mhPWdeL-tUSoO9nbUxLJjUk4MT-19BRXLpTC4NpWjuuPqfBxn6UZDIflfqEtBKCxFHXqcqXo/s1600/IMG_0004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglrEk-DT9v0XneQARTKRt9IH3Nk6x3O_-NGb3J-Q5qlYtfWnKGwnCUpfkrMY_kFu-ukP_mhPWdeL-tUSoO9nbUxLJjUk4MT-19BRXLpTC4NpWjuuPqfBxn6UZDIflfqEtBKCxFHXqcqXo/s1600/IMG_0004.jpg" height="320" title="Half Marathon Finisher" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Half Marathon Finisher!</td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-88256947032663434272015-04-23T08:00:00.000-04:002015-04-25T12:51:48.527-04:00Surviving a Kidani Christmas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGCg3NefMhY20GDDpOQFqXdaQFnUEALxPm6KP0jG4I1s64BElo8Ut1vrzjC979Fpm2fO8eGdrhemOt-elAiT84wkJs_l7fRWI-omqC3Iq8uUo83VsIVkceAypl0mW07rnJb7AycHdieKY/s1600/KidaniChristmasTree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Kidani Christmas" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGCg3NefMhY20GDDpOQFqXdaQFnUEALxPm6KP0jG4I1s64BElo8Ut1vrzjC979Fpm2fO8eGdrhemOt-elAiT84wkJs_l7fRWI-omqC3Iq8uUo83VsIVkceAypl0mW07rnJb7AycHdieKY/s1600/KidaniChristmasTree.jpg" height="320" title="Kidani Christmas" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
Even though it has taken 4 months to start writing about this trip, it was so fabulous that it has be documented!<br />
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Anyone who knows me is well aware of my love for Disney World, evident in the number of times I've managed to visit in the last few years. One thing I never thought I'd do was spend Christmas at Disney. Well, last year, my family did just that. That's right- my parents, my brother, and I braved the Christmas week crowds to celebrate the season at Disney.<br />
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And you know what? It was wonderful. In many ways, it was the best trip we've ever taken. I could never put into words just how wonderful our trip was, but I do want to document a few thoughts and highlights about our trip, which took place December 21-27, 2014.<br />
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<ol><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLW7l-Yg-VyjXmymiLaIjBlmXcjmgVSSsH3eXBuVnRC9z84Bs5Q1LPasac9iFmMnCkOFSO-tJHO7ifmb6XMDReU2K6Ow7EOq415U_inlmQxUajuMFQBlEb-9a5AOeUZJBfH76EueBIhss/s1600/PhotoPass_Visiting_Magic_Kingdom_Park_7141627403.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLW7l-Yg-VyjXmymiLaIjBlmXcjmgVSSsH3eXBuVnRC9z84Bs5Q1LPasac9iFmMnCkOFSO-tJHO7ifmb6XMDReU2K6Ow7EOq415U_inlmQxUajuMFQBlEb-9a5AOeUZJBfH76EueBIhss/s1600/PhotoPass_Visiting_Magic_Kingdom_Park_7141627403.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a>
<li>For this trip, we rented points from <a href="http://dvcrentalstore.com/" target="_blank">The DVC Rental Store</a>. This was my second experience working with Lauren, and it was great from start to finish! Originally we booked at Coronado Springs with free dining, but found that for about the same price, we could rent points at Kidani Village and just pay out of pocket for the dining plan. We booked a Savannah View Studio at Kidani, and it was amazing! There's nothing like waking up to this view every morning! We did take an air bed with us, and we never really felt crowded in the room, even with 4 people staying in a studio. Of course, we didn't spend a ton of time inside, and having the balcony and really helped!</li>
<li>We went in with realistic expectations about crowds. During Christmas week, Disney is crowded. In fact, it is one of the most (if not THE most) crowded weeks of the year. We've been lucky enough to experience Disney during very low crowd periods and knew that this trip would be drastically different. We planned accordingly, making our dining reservations at the 180 day mark and Fastpass + reservations at the 60 day mark. We went in not really expecting to ride much other than what we had Fastpasses for and planned on spending a lot of time exploring resorts and taking advantage of things we wouldn't normally do instead of fighting crowds in line for rides. This worked perfectly! We got to ride all the head liners thanks to our Fastpasses without waits. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<li>We enjoyed a few amazing meals! We did the Deluxe Dining Plan, which was way too much food. But, it was great to have two meals a day scheduled so that we knew we had a break from crowds. As always, we tried to do an early lunch or late breakfast along with a signature dinner each day. This worked out well, and there was no way we could have eaten three meals every day! Not only was the food amazing, but it was great to end each day with a relaxing dinner where we could all just talk and rehash the day. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Q4G0VHy2HCft1K4mCei4Y0n1QbSKhJgIA-v2GCXuikwAamsof62VefklBu9oECPv_VLoOu88Pvuhdha8plzBp4C05pk-jw4Pxhtmq5ZgtlRfYMKnL1dDqBxVnae5PaPCirfY0_muKrw/s1600/IMG_6732.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="California Grill dinner" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Q4G0VHy2HCft1K4mCei4Y0n1QbSKhJgIA-v2GCXuikwAamsof62VefklBu9oECPv_VLoOu88Pvuhdha8plzBp4C05pk-jw4Pxhtmq5ZgtlRfYMKnL1dDqBxVnae5PaPCirfY0_muKrw/s1600/IMG_6732.JPG" height="320" title="California Grill Dinner" width="320" /></a></div>
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<li>We took advantage of what our resort had to offer. Kidani's table service restaurant, Sanaa, offers free cultural tours each afternoon! Animal Kingdom Lodge does the same for their restaurants, Boma and Jiko. My family were the only ones in attendance the afternoon we toured Sanaa, and there weren't many others for the Boma and Jiko tours. It was really interesting to learn more about these restaurants, meet the cultural ambassadors, and get to taste a few appetizers! We also spent time just relaxing at the animal viewing areas and walking around the resort. Usually we're only in the resort long enough to change clothes or sleep, so it was really nice to relax a bit, especially at a resort as beautiful as Kidani!</li>
<li>We were flexible. Remember how I said that all our dining reservations and Fastpasses were made well in advance? They were, but we also were open to change. For example, we ended up canceling a pre-park opening breakfast at Crystal Palace. After a long first day in the parks, we realized we weren't going to want to get up and ready early enough to make our breakfast, so we cancelled it. We did it before midnight so that we wouldn't be charged, and were even able to find a later breakfast in our resort so that we could sleep a little later and not have to travel to eat. My brother and I also spent a last minute late night in Magic Kingdom after dinner on Christmas night and it was one of the best decisions we made! We ended up there because it was the first bus that came after dinner, and even on Christmas night we managed to ride 8 rides in two hours! It was amazing how empty the park was after Wishes, even on Christmas! We rode Pirates, Jungle Cruise, Haunted Mansion, Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, Big Thunder, Space Mountain, and the People Mover all between 10pm and midnight. In fact, the longest line we stood in during the whole trip was for Winnie the Pooh! We laughed at ourselves, but it was the only ride in the park that I had never ridden, so we waited 15 or so minutes to ride. During those two hours we also managed a stop at Starbucks, shopping, and Photopass stops. It was pretty magical! </li>
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Spending Christmas at Disney with my family was a once in a lifetime experience that I'll always be thankful for!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-52494975529923177542014-10-29T13:45:00.001-04:002015-04-26T10:44:43.558-04:00A Different Kind of Trip….Let’s runDisney!I was lucky enough to be taken to Disney World 3 times while I was growing up, but it wasn’t until a 2011 “adult” trip with my parents to experience the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival that I became hooked. And by hooked, I pretty much mean obsessed! Since then, I’ve made several return trips to the World, with the most recent being last week. What made this trip a little different was that I wasn’t going to just have fun or relax, but to run a race!<br />
Several times a year, runDisney puts on amazing race events at Disney World. runDisney events quickly became my favorite races to run after experiencing my first one last year. It was so much fun that I roped a friend into making this year’s Tower of Terror 10 Miler a fun girl’s weekend. Read on for a couple reasons why I think runDisney events can’t be beat!<br />
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A photo posted by Leslie Noggle (@onegirlandtwodogs) on <time datetime="2014-10-05T04:56:31+00:00" style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 10, 2014 at 9:56pm PDT</time></div>
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<li>It’s totally okay if you’re NOT a speed demon! These races really are for everyone! I started running last year in an attempt to get back into shape- and what better incentive that training for a race that was in Disney? I remember being so nervous before last year’s race because I wasn’t a “real runner.” Not only do the runDisney events have a pretty generous pace requirement (runners/walkers must be able to maintain a 16 minute per mile pace), but the events are low pressure and fun! </li>
<li>Entertainment- before, during, and after the race! Races can be fun? Absolutely! Not only are the expos packed with speakers and great vendors, but the race itself is made fun! At both races I’ve participated in, there has been a couple hours of pre-race entertainment, in the form of a DJ and photo ops. Not only that, but there has also been entertainment along the course! Characters are out for those who want to stop for photos and there has been music and awesome course decorations as well. I’ve did the last two Tower of Terror races, and of course they were both villain themed, so those were the characters who were out. The course decorations were spooky and eerie, and just plain fun! At both night races, there is an after party of sorts in the parks after the race is finished. It was pretty great to have access to rides and entertainment way after hours with 10,000 or so other runners! </li>
<li>The volunteers are simply the best! I appreciate anyone who gives their time to volunteer during any race- runDisney or not! Both years, I was amazed at the friendliness and excitement displayed by the volunteers, even as the back of the pack was running! What you may not realize about the Tower of Terror 10 Miler is that it is a night race that doesn’t start until 10 pm! This means that runners are still on the course way past midnight, but the volunteers handing out water, Powerade, bananas, and medals at the end were still enthusiastic even that late! </li>
<li>The medals are amazing! So, we all run for the bling right? Well, I’m pretty convinced that runDisney events offer some of the best bling out there! I mean, take a look at the medal for the 10 Miler! Not only is the design itself pretty great, but the elevator actually moves, AND it glows in the dark! Totally worth all those months of training and running, right? <blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="3" style="background: #fff; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-radius: 3px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 99.37%;">
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A photo posted by Leslie Noggle (@onegirlandtwodogs) on <time datetime="2014-10-05T15:21:42+00:00" style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 10, 2014 at 8:21am PDT</time></div>
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I’m already looking forward to registering for my next runDisney race!Lesliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15719852459940419963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-80952070441669940942014-08-08T07:30:00.000-04:002015-04-26T10:24:02.859-04:00Chicago!A couple of weeks ago, I headed to Chicago for a work conference. Since my brother lives in Chicago, my parents traveled with me and we got some quality family time in the city too! Now, I grew up in the country, and now live in a very small city. So Chicago is most definitely a huge change of pace...and I love it! Here are a few of the fun things we did!<br />
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Of course on the first night in the city, we had to be the ultimate tourists and visit The Bean! I think this is my new favorite family picture!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd7yjJIjYo4PXtSrZI4z-fSVwbOvxoBiN2X1GjbUJLVf9AdoAigtGTZaxoJVyiz6GW6imb-pV6XUSC-r92rAB6dsi76sGVpYjhZnpDF0CndGW7ydN4yGQalyPCEpWySZizXcjO0k0cIJk/s1600/IMG_6180.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd7yjJIjYo4PXtSrZI4z-fSVwbOvxoBiN2X1GjbUJLVf9AdoAigtGTZaxoJVyiz6GW6imb-pV6XUSC-r92rAB6dsi76sGVpYjhZnpDF0CndGW7ydN4yGQalyPCEpWySZizXcjO0k0cIJk/s1600/IMG_6180.JPG" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Bean Chicago</td></tr>
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We also ate a whole lot of great food! One night after dinner we headed up to the <a href="http://www.grandluxcafe.com/index.htm" target="_blank">Grand Lux Cafe</a> for dessert and coffee. And it was delicious, as you can see!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grand Lux Cafe dessert</td></tr>
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We also finally tried <a href="http://thepurplepigchicago.com/" target="_blank">The Purple Pig</a>! I'd wanted to eat here during my last couple of trips, but we never wanted to wait for 2-3 hours for dinner! This time, we decided to bit the bullet and just enjoyed drinks, conversation, and people watching while we waited to be seated. The Purple pig is a tapas-style restaurant that focuses on using the whole pig- snout to tail! We ordered 7 or 8 plates to split between the four of us, and it was a great experience! One of my favorites was from the smears section of the menu- salt cured Greek yogurt served with strawberry rhubarb preserves and sea salt. So simple, fresh, and delicious!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Purple Pig Chicago</td></tr>
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Our last evening together was spent doing what my dad has always wanted to do, checking out a Cubs game at Wrigley Field! It was so awesome! Well, the experience was awesome...the Cubs lost pretty badly to the Padres, but we still managed to have lots of fun!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wrigley Field</td></tr>
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And of course, what would a Cubs game in Chicago be without a Chicago dog and a local craft beer? Delicious!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ67NE7QUvi8O-cZA3tg4wirQIsbxi27ny9LdaJPRfussenzVgmIS7oF_UJ8Zjm-2qeplgzBuNgu16Uo4XHspAEL5mBJeWrbYCI7a7LzEoURTouHUC0QzidKEK3fEmBujvCmzBD-FT8wc/s1600/IMG_6129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ67NE7QUvi8O-cZA3tg4wirQIsbxi27ny9LdaJPRfussenzVgmIS7oF_UJ8Zjm-2qeplgzBuNgu16Uo4XHspAEL5mBJeWrbYCI7a7LzEoURTouHUC0QzidKEK3fEmBujvCmzBD-FT8wc/s1600/IMG_6129.JPG" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chicago Dog at Wrigley</td></tr>
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My conference finished Thursday afternoon, and our flight home wasn't until Friday evening, so we took advantage of the extra time on Friday to take an architectural tour that showcased both the Chicago River and Lake Michigan. It was easily my favorite activity of the trip!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My parents waiting to board</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chicago skyline from Lake Michigan</td></tr>
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Even though my days were spent working, we managed to fit in a lot of family and fun time in the evenings, and it was a great trip!<br />
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Until next time, Chicago!</div>
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<b>What's your favorite city to visit?</b></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-72157536373231447512014-06-20T21:35:00.001-04:002015-04-26T10:24:23.986-04:00Things I'm Loving About Summer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikDAqdWMVSFtGXGhfqIFAfkAbGcO3sJlhqdYWSz74wtGJy_kulX-NxiekBvZLRKrO2ywJ1H7-kOPXgSvNefB38U47L-9YyT4aQySYvMempfGm33B4aHDqwWxCVOOs3KNKNogArz6sbPd0/s1600/ThingsImLovingAboutSummer.jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikDAqdWMVSFtGXGhfqIFAfkAbGcO3sJlhqdYWSz74wtGJy_kulX-NxiekBvZLRKrO2ywJ1H7-kOPXgSvNefB38U47L-9YyT4aQySYvMempfGm33B4aHDqwWxCVOOs3KNKNogArz6sbPd0/s1600/ThingsImLovingAboutSummer.jpg.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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My full time job is a 9 month faculty position at a community college. Not only do I love teaching, but I also am totally in love with having summers off. Now anyone who has ever taught knows that "summers off" is kind of a misnomer, as you're always tweaking units, researching new curriculum, and other things. It's also not completely off for me, since I'm still teaching a class online and doing some part-time work. But- it feels like it is completely off, since I don't have to be anywhere at a certain time, I'm not going to campus daily, and all that.<br />
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So, since 1 month of my time off has officially gone by (sad face), I thought I'd list a few things I'm loving about summer so far:<br />
<ol>
<li>Disney with my mom! We took off for a girl's weekend to Disney for the last weekend of Epcot's Flower and Garden Festival as soon as I was finished with the school year. It was great to get away for a little while, especially to our favorite place! <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3VJGNyuWIt0M2gSi7snJLMr5BKujjsoc_JzzB9s4iIhzOL2DOvfsaib74mNwFLBBOuI9UxX8TH0EIhxAqWrwYa3i_XRFKS4WRawUlXz_e1DZXydbxx_bW9KaKCPurM6WQ0TxGS0T6gYY/s1600/wd050wdw201413875775757.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3VJGNyuWIt0M2gSi7snJLMr5BKujjsoc_JzzB9s4iIhzOL2DOvfsaib74mNwFLBBOuI9UxX8TH0EIhxAqWrwYa3i_XRFKS4WRawUlXz_e1DZXydbxx_bW9KaKCPurM6WQ0TxGS0T6gYY/s1600/wd050wdw201413875775757.jpeg" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mom and I in Epcot.</td></tr>
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</li>
<li>Lots of time with the pups! I love nothing more than spending time with my two dogs, and over the summer I've been keeping my parents pups for a couple nights each week too. It has been great! <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYLKQrP_vwB132Z40i9crgv4PHIaVk9pguT2SJtif7kp7j6ZDzc-NeEE280eKfyWFCifbvA3FssBFEAcgXmSYGs4g7DALm80yatExc8OmflocxsmIQVKHECeJCfb-W_RnXlWJX99q55_I/s1600/IMG_5825.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYLKQrP_vwB132Z40i9crgv4PHIaVk9pguT2SJtif7kp7j6ZDzc-NeEE280eKfyWFCifbvA3FssBFEAcgXmSYGs4g7DALm80yatExc8OmflocxsmIQVKHECeJCfb-W_RnXlWJX99q55_I/s1600/IMG_5825.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet Echo!</td></tr>
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</li>
<li>Running! Before the semester ended, I finally got into a pretty good routine of working out 4-6 times a week, by going to Boot Camp classes. One thing I really wanted to get back to was running- especially since I'm running my 2nd Tower of Terror 10 Miler in October! Being off has given me plenty of time to start training for that (and keep up with Boot Camp too)! <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-JbvOz3fZxUAIjJzd4XQIzxo2Q_k7f9UcHUR_MIeFYnAhC3ncbrTfY-YCFKxhDAnYuTmyglAIAS7r4T04DnyDG6Zt9KkDqxMPzJIHarcePzoX13ZKZwyOaqJ6SE27UGgMNQpA9wZ6t4Q/s1600/IMG_5742.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-JbvOz3fZxUAIjJzd4XQIzxo2Q_k7f9UcHUR_MIeFYnAhC3ncbrTfY-YCFKxhDAnYuTmyglAIAS7r4T04DnyDG6Zt9KkDqxMPzJIHarcePzoX13ZKZwyOaqJ6SE27UGgMNQpA9wZ6t4Q/s1600/IMG_5742.JPG" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Run is done!</td></tr>
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</li>
<li>Fresh fruit! My two favorite fruits are finally in season! Watermelon and cherries...I could live off of those! It's not nearly as hard to eat healthy snacks with those two fruits around. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7DAl2PVtKHv0h1mPil7PkXOsKo0JgdvDPmUtCjtpRf7vYO6i_oD48v2Gzcg2vyVXounlJC4LDOXwZvmBqf_UnHJVqZ5GiAJb5we3K7fc4O64oruOG3Lc_68yYd4-aHt-gvMHp_grVgI/s1600/IMG_5661.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7DAl2PVtKHv0h1mPil7PkXOsKo0JgdvDPmUtCjtpRf7vYO6i_oD48v2Gzcg2vyVXounlJC4LDOXwZvmBqf_UnHJVqZ5GiAJb5we3K7fc4O64oruOG3Lc_68yYd4-aHt-gvMHp_grVgI/s1600/IMG_5661.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cherries!</td></tr>
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<li>Pool time! This is only my second time (as an adult) having summers off, and I promised myself that no matter what else I have to do or work on, I WILL enjoy some pool time each week! So far, this has meant spending an hour or two at the pool a couple times a week...but that's more than I used to get, so I'm soaking it up! <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaToJbvyOjJOMtQPtAu0MySrlRrFlStVyzjHiQq_dZkaz5GPHxpODdFDj1MnfdCuhzYJYvLsahbtMa_9193mgVz42r3AAggA09YLUarYjWYfZ99mX4L1Le0BqeA_T1DAxNl8WIzOiD_uY/s1600/IMG_5754.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaToJbvyOjJOMtQPtAu0MySrlRrFlStVyzjHiQq_dZkaz5GPHxpODdFDj1MnfdCuhzYJYvLsahbtMa_9193mgVz42r3AAggA09YLUarYjWYfZ99mX4L1Le0BqeA_T1DAxNl8WIzOiD_uY/s1600/IMG_5754.JPG" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pool time</td></tr>
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<b>What do you love about summer?</b></div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-42624022653467685622014-02-02T22:43:00.000-05:002015-04-26T10:24:37.555-04:00Food: Bacon Meatballs with Barbecue SauceThe Super Bowl was tonight, which of course meant craving Super Bowl food. I wanted to make something that would be delicious, but not quite as bad for me as all the other food we were planning on serving up. Plus, I needed something that could double as a couple lunches for the week ahead. I settled on meatballs, and ended up combing a couple of recipes to make bacon meatballs and a tangy barbecue sauce. The recipe I used is an adaption and combination of these two: <a href="http://paleomg.com/superbowl-snacks-bacon-meatballs-mango-honey-mustard-sauce/" target="_blank">PaleOMG's Bacon Meatballs</a> and <a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/03/bbq-meatballs-comfort-food-to-the-max/" target="_blank">The Pioneer Woman's BBQ Comfort Meatballs</a>. The Bacon Meatballs are paired with a Mango Honey Mustard Sauce that sounds awesome...but I'm allergic to mustard, so had to figure something else out. Here's what I ended up with:<br />
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<u>Bacon Meatballs (recipe adapted from PaleOMG, cooking method from Pioneer Woman...this version is not paleo)</u></div>
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1 pound of ground sirloin</div>
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4 slices of bacon, diced</div>
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1/2 sweet onion, diced</div>
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1 egg, whisked</div>
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1/4 cup flour (divided)</div>
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2 teaspoons chili powder</div>
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Oil or cooking fat</div>
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<ol>
<li>Preheat oven to 350 degrees.</li>
<li>Throw the diced bacon into a skillet and start to brown.</li>
<li>Once the bacon starts rendering enough fat for the onion to not stick, add the onions to the skillet. Stir the bacon and onion around until the bacon is cooked and the onions are soft. Remove and drain on a paper towel.</li>
<li>In a bowl, combine the ground sirloin, bacon, onions, egg, spices, and a couple Tablespoons of the flour. Mix it all up with your hands.</li>
<li>Scoop out meatballs and roll into balls (I used a small cookie scoop to make sure they were all the same size). Roll each meatball in remaining flour to coat.</li>
<li>Get the oil or cooking fat of your choice hot (or just use the bacon grease if there's enough) and add the meatballs to the skillet. Cook enough to sear each one. </li>
<li>Once the meatballs have reached the brown-ness of your liking, remove to a parchment covered baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until done.</li>
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<u>Barbecue Sauce (adapted from Pioneer Woman)</u></div>
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2 cups of ketchup</div>
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2 Tablespoons of sugar</div>
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5 Tablespoons of distilled white vinegar</div>
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4 Tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce</div>
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4 Tablespoons of minced onion</div>
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1.5 Tablespoons of grape jelly</div>
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<ol>
<li>While meatballs are cooking, combine all sauce ingredients in a sauce pan. </li>
<li>Cook on medium low heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil.</li>
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Once the meatballs are cooked, you can either pour the sauce over them or serve on the side as a dipping sauce, depending on your preference.</div>
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Since it was Super Bowl Sunday and I knew we'd be grazing, I dumped the meatballs and sauce in the crockpot after cooking to keep it warm.</div>
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This recipe received raves from everyone!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-37845359911445021522014-01-31T07:07:00.003-05:002015-04-26T10:45:05.027-04:00Blogger ChallengeI couldn't decide whether to post this here or on my <a href="http://leslienoggle.com/blog/" target="_blank">professional blog</a>....so I'm posting in both places!<br />
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So a while back, I saw the #11questions thing going around Tumblr, then I started seeing my friends being tagged on Facebook. If you're reading this, you can thank <a href="http://jkylewood.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-challenge.html" title="Kyle's Blog">Kyle Wood </a>for asking questions that made me answer with extremely verbose answers!
Seriously though, I've been a horrible blogger, and what better shove in the direction of getting back to it than this challenge? So here goes...<br />
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<em><strong>The Guidelines of Your Challenge:</strong></em>
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<ol>
<li>Acknowledge the nominating blogger.</li>
<li>Share 11 random facts about yourself.</li>
<li>Answer the 11 questions the nominating blogger has created for you.</li>
<li>List 11 bloggers, excluding the blogger who nominated you.</li>
<li>Post 11 questions for the bloggers you have listed to answer.</li>
<li>Let the bloggers know you have nominated them.</li>
<li>Post back here in the comment section a link to your post.</li>
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<em><strong>11 Random Facts About Me</strong></em>
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<ol>
<li>It is really hard for me to work or be in silence. I can read in silence, but nothing else. It's rare that I don't have TV (or something on the iPad) on just for background noise at home, or earbuds in listening to music at work. Both help me focus.</li>
<li>Breakfast is my favorite. I have breakfast for dinner a couple times a week usually, and I love the days when my dad calls to say he's cooking breakfast so head over, or we go out to breakfast.</li>
<li>I used to make fun of people who treated their dogs/pets like children. I totally am that person now. Sometimes, I wonder if I'd be able to love my kids as much as I love Bailey and Echo.</li>
<li>I can't handle watching ASPCA commercials or news stories of animals being abused, abandoned, or mistreated. I have to turn the channel, close the browser, whatever because I just can't deal.</li>
<li>I have never ever been as proud of myself as I was when I finished the Tower of Terror 10 Miler. I was so scared in the days before, and kept thinking, "I'm not a real runner, what am I doing here?" If it hadn't been for my dad traveling with me, I probably would have found an excuse to not even start (sorry, Amanda! I was scared!). But actually doing it, and finishing? The best feeling in the whole world. Also...that whole silence thing in number 1? I ran the whole thing by myself with no headphones. So basically, alone with my thoughts...and it was really pretty great to have to push myself through something hard like that.</li>
<li>Disney is my happy place. As a kid, I liked it, but as an adult, I absolutely love it. Everybody does Disney differently, but for me, it's all about staying on property and immersing myself in that Disney bubble. It's the one place I can forget reality exists for a few days at a time. We have just as much fun trying out resort restaurants and just soaking up the atmosphere as riding and being in the parks.</li>
<li>That being said, if I could afford to move to the Outer Banks and had a job waiting for me there, I'd be gone in 2 seconds or less. Sometimes I crave the ocean...just sitting and being.</li>
<li>As a teenager and in my early twenties, all I wanted was to get away and be on my own, away from my hometown. Now, I can't imagine not living close enough to my parents to visit just for a walk or to head to Target with my mom.</li>
<li>I really, really, love music. What genre depends on my mood, and I'm not ashamed to admit (anymore) that sometimes this just means really liking popular, Top 40 stuff too.</li>
<li>I miss my brother. Now that we live so far apart, I really hate that we weren't closer in high school. I wish we could go back in time and get along with each other back then like we do now.</li>
<li>I don't mind random people on the internets reading what I write, but it freaks me out sometimes to think that people I know read it.</li>
</ol>
<em><strong>Kyle's Questions for those Accepting the Challenge...</strong></em><br />
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<em>Of your current interests or hobbies, which could you trace back farthest in your past?</em> This would have to be reading. Sorry if that's kind of a boring answer! The thing is though...I have so many memories tied to books and reading. Back in elementary school, I remember hiding my open book inside of desk and straining my eyes to read just a few sentences or pages at a time when I was supposed to be listening to a teacher or doing something else, and sneaking my book into bed under the sheets way after I was supposed to be asleep. In middle school, when my parents were building our house, I loved laying in what would become my room when the house was nothing more than a frame, reading my book while my parents were going over details with the contractor. In high school, I could sit on our front porch or by the pool for hours reading, and there were plenty of nights when I actually looked forward to coming home and crawling in bed so I could finish whatever book I was in the middle of. My love of books and escaping in them stayed with me all the way through high school and college...and reading is still one of my favorite things to do, and one of my favorite ways to relax.<br />
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<em>You are in a convenient store. Describe your most likely meal for the next leg of your 10 hour drive.</em> Well, this depends on a couple of things, 2 of which are the time of day and the season. If it is morning...I'm having coffee of some sort, hot or iced depending on the weather. I'm also probably grabbing a water, a granola bar, and Chex mix. (I mean..10 hours is a long time and you've gotta cover salty and sweet, right?) If it is afternoon, switch the coffee out for a fountain drink (Coke or Dr. Pepper depending on my mood) and something chocolate and Chex mix.<br />
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<em>If you had one sentence to describe your personal philosophy what would it be? </em>Be true.<br />
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<em>You get to read one more book, hear one more song (or album), eat one more meal, and hug one more person. What/who are they? </em>Welp. I guess I'd put on the Avetts, eat a huge country breakfast, get out my Bible, and hug my parents (is a group hug cheating, cause I can't just pick one).<br />
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<em>What qualities made your favorite teacher so great? </em>A willingness to be human. When I think about any of the teachers I've loved, I think that is what it all comes back to. As teachers, sometimes we are so afraid to be seen as anything other than "teacher." My favorites have stayed professional, but not been afraid to form relationships with their students or even mess up every once in a while.<br />
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<em>What is the most embarrassing fashion trend in which you have participated? </em>I tried to do the whole "grunge" thing in middle school. Which was a complete joke and waste on this shy, preppy girl. My interpretation of grunge was baggy-sh cords and a shirt that was a little bit more loose than the skin tight cropped shirts everybody else was wearing with their low-rise jeans. I think the phase lasted for like 1.5 weeks.<br />
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<em>You have become a billionaire rap mogul and have to assemble a "crew" because all of the other billionaire rap moguls have one. (These people don't rap; they just go with you everywhere.) Who are your first five picks and why? </em>Okay so truthfully...I don't know that I can think of 5 people I'd want to be in a "crew" with all the time, everywhere...because I really kind of like and need my space. I mean, this isn't a homework assignment so I can answer without really answering if I want to, right?<br />
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<em>If you became independently wealthy, what cause would you choose to support most? Why? </em>Most definitely some kind of pet adoption or rescue organization. Animals can't take up for themselves, and don't ask to be put in abusive homes or bad situations.<br />
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<em>Two movies are made about you. Who plays you in the comedy? in the drama?</em> Kristen Bell. I just finished re-watching all 3 seasons of <em>Veronica Mars </em>and I just love her. I think she could pull of the comedy and the drama...and add just enough of that Veronica Mars snark to both.<br />
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<em>What is the coolest place you have ever visited?</em> <em>Why? </em>I think Vancouver, BC. It was just so freaking clean and beautiful, and there's the juxtaposition of huge city right there with wilderness of the mountains and sea all together. I'll never forget going for a run along the sea wall. I want to go back, rent bikes, visit all the parks, and take the ferry to Victoria Island and have a picnic.<br />
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<em>What is your favorite word? (Thank you, Lisa Montgomery and James Lipton.) </em>
Still. Because I'm trying to remind myself to take moments every day to be still and relax, and be in the moment instead of constantly thinking about what comes next.<br />
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My Questions for You </blockquote>
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1. How long can you last without checking some kind of social media (Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, etc...) </blockquote>
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2. What's the one tv show you always have to catch? </blockquote>
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3. What's your dream job/career, and do you think you'll ever be working it? </blockquote>
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4. Do you have a mantra or philosophy you live by? What is it? </blockquote>
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5. What's one place you've always wanted to see but haven't yet? Explain. </blockquote>
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6. If you could pick the words someone would use to describe you, what would you choose? </blockquote>
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7. Once you retire, how do you hope to spend your days? </blockquote>
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8. Do you have a favorite movie? What is it and why? </blockquote>
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9. You have to choose one meal to stick with for the next year...breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Which meal do you choose and why? </blockquote>
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10. Are you doing what you saw yourself doing when you were a kid? </blockquote>
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11. What are most excited about for 2014?</blockquote>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-42071336940779473392013-10-29T19:32:00.002-04:002015-04-26T10:45:21.094-04:002014 RacesHere's what I'm thinking for next year...<br />
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May 18, 2014: <a href="http://biltmorekiwanisclassicrace.com/" target="_blank">Biltmore 15k</a><br />
July 20, 2014: <a href="http://runrocknroll.competitor.com/chicago" target="_blank">Chicago Rock 'n' Roll Half</a> (maybe)<br />
October 4, 2014: <a href="http://www.rundisney.com/tower-of-terror-10-miler/" target="_blank">Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10 Miler</a><br />
November 8, 2014: <a href="http://www.rundisney.com/wine-and-dine-half-marathon/" target="_blank">Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon</a><br />
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I may be Disney obsessed, but those are the two I already have friends planning to run with me at! Now who else wants to join?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-16894200182162615502013-10-29T19:06:00.001-04:002013-10-29T19:20:30.340-04:00Tower of Terror 10 Miler–Before the race<div align="left">
Way back in April, probably thanks to enjoying a couple of cool spring runs and wishing I had a Disney trip planned for the fall, I decided to register for the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 1o Miler, which is a runDisney race held in October. If the<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ZLnf3HTX2Hs_Z4OHbD2HSi4UhbWfeA099ZKdAaIrw-ut3806y5GD14B68AtKWKpuevMlWfiZRvOz9u8fGUp3oNarMd-DBeXa1eY0672sHbj175TmDD8YgkTeDDVQs334LBPY9Q2e1H4/s1600-h/Run%25255B2%25255D.png"><img align="right" alt="Run" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEkf-1e-SEBfVfOtaZhzpo0bIqa9z_1sZWvKVI4lXP_srdc6AObSl7fVtmdQ9XNdCxzj-fjLeRaUNL_pGSyZcEe3_KhGCR9-CKbyrlXw8ySS5SstZD7Za7GEExgYn-KyPBOTreiaDavpM/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; float: right; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Run" width="239" /></a> name didn’t give it away, I registered for the 10 Mile run. </div>
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So after registering, I started training and running and did pretty well for a while! (If you don’t Instagram it, it didn’t happen, right?) I had a love-hate relationship with running all summer long. And if I’m being totally honest, it was mainly hate…because people who enjoy runs in the hot and humid Southern summers are crazy people! So I followed the official runDisney training plan off and on, but I did get some runs in…and finally, it was time to head to Florida for race weekend!</div>
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BUT wait…a couple weeks before race weekend, my brother ended up having to back out of the trip. Thanks to him being a responsible adult and getting a brand new job, he was no longer going to be able to take time off, so I had a couple of days to find someone else to go with me. Enter my dad. He was able to get off work and happy (I think) to take Matt’s place. Since my mom went with me on my July trip, I felt pretty lucky to get a father-daughter trip in the same year! (I should mention that I’m also incredibly lucky that Dad kept all 4 dogs (my 2 and their 2) in July while Mom and I were in Disney, and Mom kept all 4 while Dad and I were gone. I guess this means that it’s my turn to stay home and dog-sit?) Thank you, Mom and Dad! You are the best!</div>
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Now, Disney is my happy place. I’m kind of obsessed with it, and usually my trips are planned and scheduled months in advance and I obsess over every single detail…but because of other stresses, and life, this one wasn’t exactly like that. If I’m being completely honest, I was also stressing about the race…because I’ve never run a race longer than a 5k, and this was 10 FREAKIN’ MILES. Not only that…but on average, we walk 7-10 miles daily while in Disney, and would be in the parks starting Thursday. And even though I wanted to do well running…I was not giving up precious Disney time to sit in a hotel room! So to say I was nervous and scared about the race was probably a bit of an understatement. Even so, Dad and I had a great time in the parks on Thursday and Friday. We had Fastpass + reservations for the rides we wanted in Epcot on Thursday and Magic Kingdom on Friday. In just a few hours in each park , we got to do pretty much everything we wanted! We also really enjoyed meals at <a href="http://onegirlandtwodogs.blogspot.com/2013/07/disney-dining-yachtsman-steakhouse.html" target="_blank">Yachtsman Steakhouse</a> and Cape May on those nights. </div>
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I knew that I wanted to get to the Expo before Saturday, so we headed over on Friday afternoon to pick up my bib and race packet. Since we stayed at one of the host resorts, Disney’s Beach Club, there was shuttle bus service to the Expo, which was at ESPN Wide World of Sports. We waited for a bus for maybe 10 minutes and then it was a quick drive to the expo parking lot, followed by a long walk! I’d never visited WWoS, so it was pretty neat to see! I think that this Expo, which was small by Disney standards, but huge compared to the local 5ks I’ve run was super organized! I loved picking up my packet and t-shirt in one place, and all the volunteers were super friendly and helpful. The only regret I have from this was not buying a finisher’s t-shirt. They were long sleeved, which would be perfect for fall/winter runs here in North Carolina! Honestly, I was still freaking out about maybe not finishing, and I didn’t want a finisher shirt (or medal) if that didn’t happen!</div>
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Since this was a night race, we had all day Saturday to <strike>freak</strike> hang out and rest. We spent the morning at Hollywood Studios making sure to ride Tower of Terror, Rockin’ Roller Coaster, and Toy Story Mania (thank you Fastpass +) since I wasn’t sure I’d want to stick around at the after party to ride. I also made sure to step up my hydration game on Saturday…it was around 89 outside, sunny, and humid! We headed back to the resort around 1 or so to grab lunch and rest up! After inhaling a turkey sandwich from the Marketplace and texting back and forth with my friend who was running to figure out a meeting place, I tried to take a nap! And I kind of did…so around 5, I woke up with butterflies to start getting ready to run!</div>
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Since this is already so long…I think I’ll wrap it up here and post separately about you know, actually running! Stay tuned!</div>
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<b>Do you get super nervous before races? Have you ever run a Disney race?</b></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-4475841155686201462013-08-27T10:17:00.001-04:002015-04-26T10:45:46.714-04:00This Week's Eats: August 26 - September 1I'm being lazy and uploading this from my phone- so here is this week's plan ( a couple days late).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiId6HsCEFYHrfuNaLge35-KoeoY8uNMZWd3UxLuVsHhy2RLYU1CnBPtJjiXTe_W7fMWbYGK_eTKYhukerythOVDl5u_6hJA84rgTb0V1AUgUjo7b4WuayKrdiRWqcciSVXNc4GnSKW38s/s640/blogger-image--936740598.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiId6HsCEFYHrfuNaLge35-KoeoY8uNMZWd3UxLuVsHhy2RLYU1CnBPtJjiXTe_W7fMWbYGK_eTKYhukerythOVDl5u_6hJA84rgTb0V1AUgUjo7b4WuayKrdiRWqcciSVXNc4GnSKW38s/s640/blogger-image--936740598.jpg" /></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4876862691370107390.post-18657027903654390942013-08-11T16:09:00.000-04:002015-04-26T10:46:05.244-04:00This Week's Eats: August 11 - 17This is my first week of having to go back to work almost every day (classes start Thursday), so I'm back to prepping meals and lunches. I'm determined to stick with it this time, and the goal is to cook at least 3-4 meals a week and several sides, which will make it easy to pack lunches that aren't processed each day for work.<br />
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Here's what's on tap for this week:<br />
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Sunday: <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=6&cad=rja&ved=0CHYQFjAF&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.foodandwine.com%2Frecipes%2Fbaltimore-style-crab-cakes&ei=dOgHUq7WEMKK2wWa_oCYBg&usg=AFQjCNFWflLGHMB_5qkj17ect73dtMoq4g&sig2=xypf0Vtw-vZNa3d5ZMY1mw&bvm=bv.50500085,d.b2I" target="_blank">Crab Cakes</a>, <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/simple-tomato-and-avocado-salad-94520" target="_blank">Tomato and Avocado Salad</a>, and sweet potato fries<br />
Monday: <a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/194710383862763764/" target="_blank">Paleo Pepper Steak</a>, <a href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/maple-bacon-sweet-potatoes-50400000122909/" target="_blank">Maple Bacon Sweet Potatoes</a><br />
Tuesday: <a href="http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/12/skinny-coconut-shrimp.html" target="_blank">Skinny Coconut Shrimp</a><br />
Wednesday: Family Dinner at the Grandparents<br />
Thursday: Breakfast for dinner<br />
Friday: leftovers<br />
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Also making:<br />
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<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.skinnytaste.com/2013/03/guacamole-deviled-eggs.html" target="_blank">Guacamole Deviled Eggs</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.paleoplan.com/2009/12-03/paleo-candybars/" target="_blank">Paleo Candy Bars</a></li>
<li><a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/03/spicy-dr-pepper-shredded-pork/" target="_blank">Spicy Dr. Pepper Pork</a> (to have for lunches and to freeze)</li>
</ul>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12087568005011693901noreply@blogger.com0