Cowboy 5k 2014 Recap

Yesterday morning was the Cowboy 5k in our town. It helps benefit the IB program at my daughter's school. It was a chilly morning! first cold of the season, so needless to say we were a bit cold!  

My daughter has been running 8:32-9 minute miles in gym. I told her to just run and not wait for me! I am  not that fast! HA! The race started and she wasted no time leaving me! I was excited for her! For  me this race was all about her. I wanted to see what she was capable of. In the past we have always ran together, and I have always felt that I hold her back. I look back to our WDW Princess 5k and have no clue how I kept up with her. So this race I told her to just run and not look back. When she passed me on the loop back I was struggling a little, not normal for me. I was still cold and my nose was all stuffy. ( for those that know me, know I run with tissues. True story). I forgot my tissues and was miserable the entire run, but thinking of Lenee and how well she was doing was what kept me going. As we passed each other I told her to keep going! I was proud! 

As I came to the finish line I saw Fireman, Lenee and the family! But the main thing I saw was the time! For real was I finishing in under 32-35 minutes?!?! Most of my 5k runs are 35 minutes, the occasional run is 32 minutes on a good day. But I saw that time and picked up my speed, I had to finish under 32 minutes! Had to! 

My time was 31:39!!! No way!!! I couldn't believe it!! 

My fireman was amazing enough to snap this picture. You really can't see me, and I don't care. My finish time is all that matters!! I couldn't be more proud of myself for that time improvement. It might not be a lot to some. It is to me and that's all I care about. I finished 5th in my age group and 65th overall! Not bad! 

Okay enough about me, back to my amazing 11 year old.

She ran the 5k in 29:07!! With a pace of 9:24! I am so glad I didn't hold her back. Even though we only had a few minutes between us. That makes a huge difference to a runner! So yes I will be bragging until her next 5k about her time! 

After the race there were refreshments and a raffle, we almost left because it was cold. But I said let's stay and see if we win anything. Sure enough I won a gift certificate to a local restaurant. Whoop! I love food!!  A great end to a great race! I am thankful we have an awesome running community that puts on great races!

Wedding recap

Last Saturday was the wedding. The days before were filled with rehearsal, last minute shopping, nailing down the plans and much more. It was exciting yet exhausting at the same time. I wanted to do early morning runs, but come morning sleep was more important. I think I am still recovering from it all. Enough of the boring talk though, I have a wedding to chat about.
I'll start with decorating. We did that the morning before at the hall. I brought a box of O'Joe! Oh yes!! Coffee was a must! It was stressful yet we made it fun. Kids running around, flowers being cut and set. I decided to just have fun with it.

The finished setting was well worth all the hard work and stress. The hall looked great! Rustic and beautiful all in one!

The best part was Everything was practically hand made. Burlap was bought and old wine bottles were used. Thrifty is where it is at!!

Here we are after it was complete and we were ready to go get our nails done! Fun stuff! 

The wedding day! I didn't sleep much the night before. I couldn't! So I was up early to head over to Sisnlaw's house to prep for the big day! We saved big money by doing our own hair and makeup. (two of us are Mary Kay consultants so that might have helped a tiny bit). Wink! Seriously though, we really did it all on our own. 

We all looked like we had our makeup professionally done! We so got this. I think we need to go into the event planning and makeup business! HA!

Ceremony time!

 The nerves were going by the time we got to the School house.

 ( The wedding location was done at a historical school house, breathtaking)!

All of us ladies did a shot before go time. Just to try to calm ourselves a little. 

The baby decided her Aunt needed a good luck kiss. 

The ceremony was beautiful, tears of joy from many of us!  

Words cannot describe the beauty in the picture! Exquisite!!  

RECEPTION TIME!

 Myself on the way to the reception, See told ya make up and hair look good! 

 Fun times on the dance floor! The DJ was awesome! We did a surprise dance for the guests. The music all night was great! 

We even did the Harlem Shake complete with horse heads! EPIC!!

Here is to many years of love and laughter!! 

Xoxo

Father's Day Weekend Getaway

We planned for a mini-vacation / Father's Day retreat to one of our most favorite places, The Caribbean Resort at Walt Disney World, (for those that don't know, we are big Disney people). We love staying there. So I booked a 2 night getaway for us to just enjoy the hotel and some pool time. It was also Car Master's weekend at Downtown Disney so it was perfect timing.
 While packing, I made sure to pack running clothes. I have done this is the past on past trips but have never actually ran while on vacation. That should be a crime! I would use the excuse "I wanted to sleep in" or "I was to tired to go". No excuses this time. I packed running stuff, I was running.
Our first day there it rained on and off, but after the rain let up around 7:30-8:00 I dressed and went for a run while Fireman went for a walk with the kiddos. The view was amazing! I kept stopping to take pictures!
2 miles went by so fast!! It was truly a great run, I felt full of energy and refreshed! I didn't want to be out to long, so I went a little over 2 and a half miles. I could have been out for hours I think!

Beautiful flowers were everywhere! After the rain, they were still covered with water, made them look even better! It's funny how often we forget, to stop and just smell the roses (or in my case many flowers).

This run reminded me of just that! To stop and enjoy the present. 

I will start my training next month for my first half marathon, which of course will be Disney's Wine & Dine. So is it safe to say I have already started my run Disney in training? On another note, I love Magic Bands! They are so easy to use and makes a running trip easy because I don't have to carry a card on me! It's also awesome because it is waterproof so a trip to the pool is easy peasy! 

Enough about running I suppose, The Car show was great!  Lots of classics and a few not so classics. But my son and Fireman were in car heaven. 

And me, I found my dream van!!! One day! One day! 

We also came across this classic!!! Complete with the dog leash attached to the bumper!  

Overall, we had a great time. We relaxed. That was the whole point of this trip. A nice relaxing well deserved weekend. From the sunshine in the pool to the rainy evening in the arcade. Our weekend was perfect. 

Now back to reality! 

My weight loss journey

I've lost weight. 15-20 pounds maybe. Doesn't seem like much; but it is. Here's my take on it.
 Starting last June, we decided no more fast food. We've stuck to that rule. I can't wait to celebrate the 1 year mark next month!
 In January, we decided we were going to exercise more and move towards cleaner eating. It has been a challenge at times. I've tested myself more than once. Even caved a time or two. I am happy to say that 4 months later I feel like I have control.
 One of the things to cut was coffee creamer. I was a sucker for loading my coffee with that stuff. I wouldn't add sugar, just a ton of creamer. I slowly started cutting back the amount. Fireman cut it cold turkey and never looked back.  One morning I woke and said when I run out of this creamer, that's it. No more. It was hard drinking coffee black that first week. I survived. Now it's not bad at all. Even when I hit up Starbucks, I get a black ice coffee. I do ask for sugar, as a treat to myself that I don't need a whipped cream latte.
 The next thing to go was soda. I'll admit. I loved my Pepsi. LOVED. We have never stocked soda in the home. We would get at a restaurant or while out and about. Regardless, it was still soda, still very bad for one's self.  February was the last time I had a soda. I've craved it and when I was having a stressful day I really wanted it because sugar and junk fixes everything. Right? Now that it has been a few months I am okay and Pepsi doesn't come to my mind. Truth is, I don't miss it at all. I am so happy I gave it up.
 The next thing we've pretty much cut out all together is processed foods. We still have a little ways to go with it, but a chunk is gone. I read all labels on the things we buy now. I only buy my fruit / veggies from the local produce stand. We eat so much better.

 With doing those few things, along with of course running. I have lost weight. I didn't even realize until my clothes were practically falling off and my belts were to big to help. I was a 7/9 and now I am a size 2/3.  Unreal! I have never been that small. Not even in high school. My wedding rings are huge on me. It's amazing what a healthy diet and some running will do.
 Since I was only running, I do have some flab and I have started back at the gym to tone some of this; (I hope).  I rather run then weight train, I have to remind myself that cross training is good. The end results will so be worth it. I can do this!
 Last, I am still unsure of how to respond to people who comment on my weight loss. Some just say nice things. But there is always that person or two, that make odd comments, Like "don't lose to much weight" or "you're going to waste away". I have been just smiling and laughing, but really I want to tell them to fly a kite or this is what being healthy is. How do you handle weight loss questions and comments?
Bottom line is I am healthy, happy and proud of myself!

Running with a view.

Friday morning I got up at 5:00 am. To run. Yup. And I actually got up.  Fabulous was still lounging in bed, I had to talk her into getting up. She's in a slump right now and I am determined not to let her fall. She has been my mentor in running and I need her. We ran the river at 5:30, I did just over 3 miles and this was the view when I finished. What a view! Am I lucky or what? Living on the coast definitely has a few perks.
  I was happy with this early run. It totally sets my mood for the whole day. Who else loves early morning runs?
 Saturday was rest day. I had wine and pizza. OOPS! Oh well. I earned it. A week of running/ exercising and eating clean. A cheat day is okay.
 This morning Fireman came home from shift. We had breakfast and trying to plan our day, he came up with the idea to run; (I was going to wait until the evening). However, the wind was blowing and the temp. was nice, considering the Florida heat has arrived. We loaded up the kids and went down to the river.
  Fireman ran with the baby and my son. I set off on my own.  I was doing okay. The breeze was nice and really the heat wasn't bad. It was a nice run. I was doing good too. Found my groove and kept on.  Aside from the ladies pushing a dog in a stroller, not wanting to single file so I could run by, it turned out to be a great run.  Mile 3 to 4 was a little slower. I was thirsty and Fireman was nowhere in sight with my water. I eventually saw him and finished up.
  I set a new record! In the heat! I am so excited with myself! I was not expecting a PR with the heat and wind factor. This goes to show anything is possible! I am proud of myself. This is what keeps me going.

Here is the view when I finished my run. Clear skies and a beautiful view. I love running this route. 

Zumba say what? And the Gym!

I had a run plan for yesterday (Wednesday), but good ol' Florida weather had other plans. It started to down pour as I was headed out the door with my sis-n-law.  Sis-n-law decided to drag to me to zumba on a whim! Why? Because she knows I don't zumba. I'm a little clumsy. Okay maybe more than a little. I've never tried it and was freaking out. The class was small; (thank goodness).  I was lost and all sorts of backwards most of the time. I did it though! I didn't quit. I stuck it through. One full hour of arms flapping everywhere and feet going every which way. The music was great so maybe, just  maybe I'll attempt it again.
Here is our after zumba picture.

Tonight, the weather was bad. Lots of lightning so it forced Fabulous and I back to the gym. I haven't used my membership in almost a year. Before I got my mojo for running back, I grew to hate the gym and avoided it. However, that is behind me! Fabulous only wanted to run, I said nope lets do this! We biked, used weights, had a few laughs and then hoped on the dreaded treadmill. I am an outdoor runner. The treadmill bores me!! But I did my mile and got it done. That's what matters. I am already feeling the burn in my legs! How I have missed it!! Plus I weighed myself and dropped a few more pounds. 

While I can ramble on, I won't. My story tonight is one of which reminds me that I can do this. I can try new types of workouts and not be afraid of going to the gym. I can push myself to do what I haven't done before. I am determined. I am motivated. Most of all, I am happy.