My latest vice...

image via the miracle workers aka..Ben & Jerry

Ben & Jerry's Oatmeal Cookie Chunk (ie...heaven on earth)! Seriously you should've seen my eyes light up as soon as that spoon filled with cinnamon, oatmeal chunk, chocolate chip goodness hit my tongue...

I might be a bit behind on this ice cream flavor since I just read that it was first released in 2003. How in the world did I miss this deliciousness for the last 7 years? I am not sure I am going to sleep tonight knowing that my hips and tush could be alot rounder right about now if someone would've just told me about this fabulous ice cream.

In addition to the euphoria pictured above, I have another vice...one that I have found myself daydreaming about in the middle of the work day practically drooling at my desk thing of it..in fact excuse me while I go get myself a napkin...

via my lovers - Ben & Jerry

In case my behind is not big enough, those pesky guys Ben and Jerry went ahead and created yet another can't live without yummy flavor. Cinnamon Buns. Approriately named for it is going straight to your buns...but I tell you I don't mind if my behind grows three sizes, this ice cream is worth every dimple!

If you have missed the express train to absolute yumminess, run do not walk to the nearest grocery store, or if you are lucky B&J store, and pick up BOTH of these ice creams....seriously stop reading and get going! You and your tush can thank me later!

xoxo

Pink Penpals

THINK pink was my sorority's theme for our philanthropy the Susan G. Komen Foundation, so you know couldn't pass up the opportunity to participate in Hopsy's (Monograms & Manicures) Pink Swap.

Essentially you sign up on Hopsy's blog (if you haven't checked it out, please do it is filled with all things pink, green and Lily!) and get paired up with another reader and swap all things PINK. The only stipulation was that everything had to be the lovely rosy shade and that you couldn't not exceed $30.

Once I found out my pink pen pal I headed straight to Target and started filling my basket to the brim....it was so much fun to go up and down the aisle thinking what would my pen pal like. Would she like this pink heart shaped candle? Or darling pink woven place mats? It was a treat to shop....below is my pen pals bounty....

complete with Carmel Hershey Kisses, Pink striped slippers, makeup bag,

note cards, note pads, pink candy bowl, and lots of pink candles

I got my PINK package the other day and it was lovely! Full of pink and treats galore! Thank you thank you pink pen pal! xoxo

It is just so much fun to get REAL mail these days. Sending and then anticipating my package was so much fun and made me realize I need to be sending more REAL mail more often...electronic mail not allowed!

xoxo

Better late than never...

how I spent my week off of work - baking!

Good Morning lovelies! My sincere apologies for my absence - and for my tardiness on writing about one of my favorite holidays! The past week and a half has gone by in a white blur of far too much snow.

Usually I am all about snow - trust me I am like a 10 year old when it comes to snow that is how excited I get, but 31 inches of snow is just too much. Mr.President and I were in Philadelphia with his family the weekend the first blizzard hit DC, and then came home Super Bowl Sunday to Snowmagedon or Snowpocalypse, whichever you prefer. I had off from work all last week (insert happy dance here!) and then we had Monday off for President's Day so I am just trying to dig out (literally!) from the snow, the work I missed etc. I am now officially ready for February to go bye-bye, and for March to hurry up and get here...preferably in like a lamb, not a lion!

Anyways - let's talk Valentine's Day! Despite all the snow and craziness of last week, me and Mr.President found a way to make the day really special. Mr.President booked us a room Sunday night in Annapolis, Maryland. It was both of our first times there - sad considering I have lived in DC for almost four years now - so we were so excited to go. We left around lunchtime Sunday and arrived to a very snowy Annapolis. The town is so very quiet and quaint and romantic.

image via HistoricInnsOfAnnapolis

We stayed at the Maryland Inn, which is part of the Historic Inns of Annapolis. It was perfect! The Inn only had about 40 or so rooms and made you feel like you were in 1773 still. The room had a fireplace and lace curtains and a red velvet covered bench at the end of the bed...it was all very romantic if I do say so myself. Mr.President did a great job selecting our hotel!

We spent the afternoon walking around the downtown area and playing tourists. It is a charming little town - perhaps even more charming if there were not 3 foot high mounds of dirty, black snow but I digress.

Unfortunately, due to the very old feel of the hotel there was no ice machine (or at least not one we could find!) so Mr.President improvised and found another way to chill the wine...

please note that is not in fact a wine bucket, but the trashcan from the bathroom...we used what we had!

our makeshift wine glasses

Now since "we" are not planners - note "we" is just me trying to be nice to Mr.President..I am in fact 100% a planner....we did not make dinner reservations until Sunday morning. Not knowing the area we decided to go to opentable and just see what reservations were left for the night. We found 3 or 4 restaurants that looked good and then decided on an Italian restaurant...of course not knowing it was a chain restaurant. In fact, I am still not sure it is, but it certainly had a Cheesecake Factory feel to it - and don't get me wrong, I LOVE the CF. The food was delicious and my only complaints was that we were sitting so close to the other two tables that I felt like I was on a double date with the other couples. We could hear word for word their conversation and on Valentine's Day I do not think that is ideal for anyone involved.

Overall the entire weekend was just lovely! Mr.President if you are reading this - GOOD JOB! A+ for you!

I hope you all had a lovely Valentine's Day as well. I hope that your bellies were full of yummy chocolates and wine and that you spent the day feeling fabulous!

I have so many delayed posts to share with you...including Hopsy's Pink Swap so I promise to upload my photos and update soon.

xoxo

Wedding Wednesday

Rebekah Westover images

(major swooning happening over her work)

Holding true to what I started this blog hoping to do - I am going to start (or well try my darnest) to make every Wednesday - Wedding Wednesday! If you know me, you know I LOVE all things to do with marital bliss so this will be a great creative outlet for me!

In honor of all the snow DC is getting right now I wanted to do WW with a snow theme...so here goes....

inspiration via Sunday Style

I am absolutely, whole-heartedly OBSESSED with these engagment pictures...I am doing some serious swooning over here. Love the snow, the colors and the plaid, the blanket, the fun headbands (ahh, girl after my own heart!) and the precious couple to boot!

Are you swooning now too? Between the snow and these photos - I am a happy girl!

xoxo

Do you know the donut man?

before - breakfast of champions

See that image up there...yep that was taken from my blackberry this morning and I wish I could say it was not mine, nor was it breakfast...but sadly it was both.

Now you might wonder why in the world there is not only a sugar sweet, sinful chocolate frosted donut (note the Valentine's day sprinkles!) sitting next to a handful of potato chips...fair enough question I suppose...

Let me back up and tell you that at my office there is a printing company rep (ie. read slimy used car salesman type) that comes once a week to schmooze and try and sell us on printing our marketing collateral with his company and as part of his slimy pitch, he bribes all the ladies of the office with Dunkin Donuts.

Now it would be fine (well not fine, but ok as long as a long workout follows) to have these donuts around if I actually had a shred of self-restraint to resist these inner tubes of sugar...but I don't. Now the donuts come into play because over the course of a conversation with Donut man we discussed how his donut deliveries were increasing my waistline...from that we somehow managed to talk about the debate of sweet vs. savory. Donut man is a savory - so now he brings chips in addition to the donuts

I would love to end this by saying I resisted at least the donut OR the chips...but nope, ate both

after - well only sorta after because by the end of this post the rest of that donut will be in my belly

ugh...damn you donut man

xoxo

Snow Day

outside my window

Mr.President and I on our snowy walk

Let it snow, Let it snow, LET IT SNOW...and there is still more to come! This weekend in DC boy did it snow! I think the grand total was around 7 or 8 inches...and it was the perfect snow - light, fluffy, powdery! I woke up around 7am on Saturday and couldn't sleep anymore - I would love to tell you that it was because I was just so excited for the looming snow storm, but I shudder to think it was more the result of one too many (or three too many) glasses of wine.It started snowing here around 9am and by about 10am I had successfully convinced Mr.President to bundle up in every warm piece of clothing we have and take a snowy walk to get breakfast.

It was so much fun - like we were inside a giant snow globe (cheesy I know - but it really was, promise). We went to a place nearby called Bear Rock and sat in front of the fire, yep they have a little fireplace with a little sofa. Mr.President read the paper and I day dreamed. By the time we headed back for home, there was abou 4 or so inches of snow covering the ground....great but not so good for my not so practical crocheted Uggs not meant for 5 inches of snow! Although I love them, they are not waterproof - my tootsies were quite cold by the time we eventually made it home.

The rest of the afternoon we snuggled (nauseating, I know) watched movies and ordered pizza. Such a lovely snow day!

Fingers crossed we have another potential snow day this week - and perhaps even a day off from work? One can dream right?

xoxo

Tuna Casserole fail

Ugh...a total and complete dinner failure. Let me say for the record I have never, and probably will not be a tuna fish fan. Something about the texture and the fact that this mysterious fish gets packed in water and shoved into a can that you then have to drain to get the foul smelling, and weird looking fish. Yuck! Not a fan - don't get me wrong I will occasionally make a tuna fish sandwich, but that is few and far between. Growing up, and still to this day my Dad makes tuna fish sandwiches regularly and I can stomach those, but anything else, no thanks!

Anyways, Mr.President is a fan of tuna fish so I being the fabulous (HA!) girlfriend I am I decided I would whip up a tuna casserole the other night. Sounds like a sweet gesture in theory - but it failed miserably. The above photo is the proof in the pudding (or tuna) that it was not good. It tasted like wall paper paste and salt mixed together.

Bless Mr.President's heart, he tried a few forkfuls before he politely said "Can I be honest without hurting your feelings....I don't want to eat this". I can't blame him, I wanted nothing to do with it either.

Tuna helper you are NOT in fact a helper at all, but instead a gross mix of sodium and putty. YUCK! No wonder it is so cheap at the grocery store. Avoid it at all costs!

xoxo

1-800-Brownies Anonymous

"Your good friend has just taken a piece of cake out of the garbage and eaten it. You will probably need this information when you check me into the Betty Crocker clinic" - Miranda, SATC

So I have a confession to make - I am officially addicted to brownies. Yep you heard me right. I am 100% a brownie addict. I love everything about brownies. I love licked the spatula after stirring the mix (don't worry I am full aware that there is raw egg in the batter, that has yet to stop me), I love the smell of chocolaty goodness baking in the oven and filling the house with pure yummyness..and I most certainly taking the first bite of a warm brownie fresh from the oven. I just can not get enough of all of it. Seriously I have found myself dreaming about brownies.

Now I wish I could stop there and tell you that was the worst - but it isn't. Three weeks ago I bought a mix of Betty Crocker Lowfat brownie mix and made a delicious batch on Sunday evening. It doesn't stop there, I ate the entire pan (read the ENTIRE pan) by Tuesday evening. That is alot of brownies - and I am fairly certain eating that many brownies in three days negates any redeeming quality there was in the brownies being LOW FAT. The following week I did the same thing, the same thing! I ate an entire batch in three days!

Now I would stop there, but it is even worse. On Saturday morning I woke up early, went to body pump, did the elliptical for 45 minutes..and then promptly took my bootie to Harris Teeter and bought yet ANOTHER box of Betty's lowfat brownie mix...and what do you know there are only TWO brownies left in the pan tonight.

So I tell this to you my blogging loves so that you have his pertinent information when I overdose on brownies and need to be checked into the Betty Crocker Clinic ASAP!

xoxo

Just around the corner...

yours truly scoping out the flavors of the day

Lookey lookey what I found on a walk the other day during lunch time. I have heard all about this little gem of a pink truck in my DailyCandy, but have yet to see it in person...until now! I practically went running towards the pink-mobile I was that excited.

If you know me you know I love all things sweet...no really ALL things sweet, but my sweet tooth most certainly leans the most towards sugary sweet cupcakes. Be still my heart. Speaking of, and not to take away from these cupcakes but if you live in the DC area and have not yet tried Georgetown cupake, then you must drop everything (really everything) and take your bootie to Georgetown STAT!

I digress I know...I just get oh so excited about cupcakes!

So back to the pink mobile...it was pink as pink can be and smelled like a little piece of heaven. Inside the pink mobile was the most delicious flavors - cookies and cream, red velvet (their signature) and vanilla! YUM! Basically how it works is that Curbside Cupcake is a mobile truck of cupcake goodness that travels around the DC area and makes a handful of stops across the day - and the kicker is that in order to find the truck you need to follow twitter or facebook to see the truck's next stop...cool,, huh?

The man behind the truck could not have been nicer - I could've chatted him up all day (if you know me you are just rolling your eyes thinking, yes you most certainly could and would)...the business was started with himself, one other guy and his fiance, who does the tweeting and the facebook. I melted right then and there when he started mentioning his fiance....cupcakes and true love...my heart was swooning out of control.

Anyways, if you ever happen to be in DC...look up Curbside cupcake and scope out their daily flavors!

you know I will be looking up the pink mobiles next stop soon...in fact I think they already posted for tomorrow...please oh please Union Station

Good Morning Sunshine

image via here

Let me explain my work set up. At my non-profit the majority of the office functions on an open floor plan (ie...the worst idea ever) where no one really has an office, but instead we sit in cubicle land. My desk mate and I (I can call her that because we sit about 5 ft from one another) can hear everything the other one says, when we are on the phone we can practically hear what the person on the other end is saying. You get my point - we sit close! Aside from that my cubicle is affectionately placed near the only bathrooms on my floor so I get a whole lot of visitors. I deal with it pretty well for I am a self-proclaimed chatty cathy and can small talk with the best of them, and in the morning I often revert to part-time greeter by wishing everyone a "good morning".

This morning as one of my co-workers walks by I say "good morning sunshine" to which she responds good morning etc...well next thing I know another co-worker walks past my desk and says the following...

"Did you just call her sunshine? That sort of name is for strippers"

Yep, that is what he honestly said to me. I couldn't help but smile and giggle...all while thinking, he can't really thinking I was giving her a nickname of sunshine, can he?

On that note....I am wishing you all a Good Morning Sunshine!

xoxo

A tisket, a tasket...

image via wardrobe 911.com

a green and yellow basket!

Don't ask me. I have no idea why but that nursery rhyme just keeps going over and over again in my head and I can't seem to shake it. Lord knows where it came from...go figure.

So all night i have been looking forward to writing a new post - and in all the excitement I have found that I have no idea what direction I want to take this post in. Me indecisive - hard to believe right? If you know me in "real life" you know that I am just about the queen of indecision. I can barely decided what to wear in the mornings.

Speaking of...I was reading my daily blogs today (in between doing work of course) and came across a post about outfit planning and immediately felt at home. Everyday since 3rd grade, the exact time I remember asking my mom if I could start picking out my outfits the night before school...I have in fact laid out my clothes the night before. I tell you I can probably remember on one hand how many nights i have gone to bed without laying out my clothes (and those days are NOT good mornings at all). I have always been a stickler for organization and there is just no way I can wait until the morning of to start deciding my outfits. Call me obsessive compulsive (I can almost hear Mr.President chiming in right about now) but I just can't go to sleep not having my outfit selected. In fact often I will even go as far to pick out more than one (sometimes three or four) options just in case come morning I am not a fan of the night befores decision. It is quite a process and has given me the title of "high maintenance" far too many times...

Do you all do this too? Please tell me I am not alone here!

image via Closet Coture

Speaking of...I just saw this fabulous website the other day and thought it was my lucky day for sure! I subscribe to CityShopGirl - which I am not entirely sure if this is a DC only newsletter, but regardless you should subscribe ASAP! Anyways...the site is called Closet Coture. Essential it allows you to upload clothing items from your own personal closet to share with friends, or via blog etc. I am officially obsessed...I am certain there is much more to come for you lucky readers via Closet Coture. Check it out and let me know what you think!


xoxo

Well hello there 2010...

image via here

I love New Year's Eve for oh so many reasons. I love the feeling knowing that everyone, everywhere is watching the clock eagerly counting down the moments until the clock strikes midnight. I love that there are noisemakers, and silly party hats, and lots and lots of midnight smooching going on...I love it all.

I even love the idea of New Year's Resolutions...although I have to admit I rarely make (or keep for that matter) very many resolutions. I relish the idea that once we are done ushering in the New Year that we have a fresh slate...a new beginning and a whole new year to do what we want with. Even if resolutions are broken a matter of days after they are made, there is still the sweet aftertaste of optimism and the possibility of change in the air (I sound like a hallmark card, I know I know).

This year I made a few resolutions and you bet your bottom dollar I am going to try my best (hopefully with my lovely readers and friends and family's support and helpful nagging) to keep them.

1) Run a Half Marathon - quite the lofty goal considering I am just getting back to running since my injury

2) Save more money - stop buying more clothes and frivolous other odds and ends that i do not need (but still very much want!) and that do not fit in my already overstuffed closet

3) Eat less junk - yea I am talking to you beloved french fries, cookies, donuts, chips, ice cream....you get the drift. Focus on eating HEALTHY

4) Focus on my passion (design and ALL things bridal)

5) Take a new class...preferably salsa dancing (hint, hint Mr.President)

6) Be less judgemental of other. If you know me you know that this might very well be the hardest (and my honest resolution) thing for me to do...but I am going to try my best to bite my tongue

7) Take deep breaths. Sounds easy enough, but I assure you there are far too many moments in my day that I let the little things get me all riled up and start putting on my grumpster pants way too quickly. I need to practice patience, deep breaths.....if there is a dish on the counter, or a throw pillow out of place it will be ok (I am silently repeating this to myself right now to drill home this message)

8) Write a new blog post 3 times a week (you lucky readers you!)

So with that, I hope and pray that I am going to be able to stick to these resolutions and truly work hard at keep them. Half the battle is making them right? (check!) And I think another big chunk must be throwing them out into cyber space (check)

Now I am in my warm bed, glasses on, a box of tissues in hand (I have been feeling a bit under the weather today), teeth brushed, waiting for Mr.President to finally get home.

Happy Belated New Year to you all! I hope 2010 proves to be more wonderful than the last

xoxo

Beware of the Dog

Duke Dog

Ahhh…heaven! This weekend I went with Mr. President and one of my all time favorite people, Lauren and her boy to our Alma Mater – JMU! Until now I have not been back since my first Alumni weekend in 2007, so it has been quite a while and to say I was excastic about going back would be an understatement. I heart all things JMU and to spend the weekend with my favorites was just icing on the purple and gold cake.

the Quad @ JMU

Mr. President and I woke up very early on Saturday morning, packed, and hit the road for 81. The entire ride there I could hardly contain my excitement. There is something about going back to my college town that just fills me with nostalgia. If you have never been to JMU and you just saw it passing by you would probably wonder what all the hub-bub is all about – as to the naked, un-alumni eye JMU, and particularly Harrisonburg just looks like a rural, be it maybe even a country-like campus with a handful of bars and lots of hills…but oh there is so much more to JMU.

JMU stadium

Now that I live in the “big city” I can truly appreciate how great it was to go to a school in the middle of nowhere. It is just such a joy to be able to run a quick errand and actually be able to park there and finish the errand in under an hour. Aside from that JMU is just gorgeous – such a pretty campus. Even as we were watching the football game you could see the mountains in the background – you certainly don’t get that in the city. It turned out to be such a perfect day for a football game – sunny with no clouds in sight and high of upper 50s…such a treat.

After the game we went back to our hotel and relaxed for a bit – mostly talking about how old we are and reminiscing about the old days when we could day drink, take a quick nap, and rally again for the night. All of us were feeling the beers and chik-fil-a platter (an absolute must for all tailgating, and especially JMU tailgating. )

We “rallied” as much as we could and headed out to a local tavern, Dave’s which was a staple in our college nights out. They have hands down the best steak and cheese pita EVER – I was in heaven! I quickly gobbled down the entire pita and fries, and started in on the leftovers from Laur’s plate.

Lauren and I @ the tailgate

Sunday morning we woke up, checked out of the hotel and went on a walking tour of the campus. It is amazing just how much it has changed since we all graduated. There is a brand new library, a new dining hall, new dorms, a new tunnel connecting campus…it was just amazing how different, yet exactly the same everything looked. It was just such a treat to be there and walk down memory lane with my favorite people.

Ahh…to be a college student again (and have my parents pay my rent, utilities, and dining plan…)

One Holiday at a Time

It is hard to believe it is already November and stores are already decking the halls with Christmas trees, twinkling lights and giant bows. Although I LOVE Christmas, I happen to think that retail stores start decorating far too early. Let’s get through Thanksgiving first, THEN start putting up the Santa’s, garlands and lights! Nordstrom's has the right idea...

This morning in DC, it was a chilly 40 degrees with a frost advisory. I had to pull out my pink moccasin slippers this morning while getting ready for work. On my walk to work I could see my breath….definitely a brisk fall day outside.

On days like this I wish to be…..

Sipping a warm Chai Tea

wearing this

courtesy jcrew

While this is baking in the oven

courtesy of mykitchensnippets

Watching this on TV

All while the outside of my little townhouse looks like this

courtesy of Pottery Barn

don't you just swoon at the stuff in their catalogue - one day my house will look like some of these pages...one day!

Hope you are enjoying your brisk fall day....Happy November!

xoxo

Long time no see….

My first inclination would be to apologize to my followers, but seeing as I only have 2, I figure you all aren’t too heart broken over my absence. I am not sure how one goes about getting “followers” to their blog, but I am going to try my darnest to get to the bottom of this. I think once I know people are actually reading what I write I will be more inclined to regularly post.

It has been a while since I’ve posted and I have a lot to catch you lovelies up on….

1) I am now officially a red head – long story short my attempt to get rid of my highlights resulted in a catastrophe of hair proportions (ie…my hair was jet black until I started welling up and insisted the not nice stylist try again).

notice how my hair blends into the trees?? yea, RED!

After stripping the color from my hair and re-dying it 3 times (I am lucky I still have hair) my hair is red. Now this seems all well in good if I ever actually had red hair before, but nope, brunette (with a few hints of red highlights). Overall it was a tragic experienc, but the auburn color is slowly growing on me


2) I have not one, but TWO stress fractures in my left foot. L So no running or physical activity (no elliptical, bike, etc) for six weeks! Ugh..I can’t even put into words how disheartening the last three weeks have been for me. I just do not know what to do with myself without running. I feel restless and grumpy all too often and am going stir-crazy. Thank goodness I already have 3 weeks down, 3 more to go God willing. Oh and I forgot to mention the lovely BOOT I have been sporting.

photo from http://rickshawdiaries.wordpress.com/
not my feet, but my boot looks just like this - check out this blog - I couldn't have said it better about this ugly, square toed bootie


3) Happy Belated Halloweenie! My Halloween was complete with a visit to a pumpkin patch, a trip to the Night of the Living Zoo here in DC, oh and cheering on the beloved Phillies (mostly my new crush Chase Utley) through way too many baseball games.

Mine & Mr.President's pumpkins

the carved little guys

my Audrey Hepburn impersonation

my crush

That about wraps up what is new with me...I am going to try my darnest to post more often and get some of the lovelies who's blogs I read to maybe check mine out as well.

xoxo

“The boat was actually Plan C. The church was Plan B. And Plan A was marrying her a long, long time ago. Pretty much the day I met her.”

Happy Friday!

Since starting this blog of mine I haven’t been very good at posting daily (although my 3 followers probably don’t mind much)! I need to get into a rhythm and post more regularly…that and steal the laptop back from Mr. President for a bit at night to post!

I woke up this morning full of energy and practically skipping to work – no really I was. I had my iPod on the whole metro ride and was tapping my foot and singing along (probably to the unhappiness of my fellow riders). I couldn’t help it…every song that came on made me want to get up and boogie. I even found myself happy to be alone in the elevator so I could do a few dance moves. Really, I stood in the elevator getting jiggy with it…who does that?

I attribute my good mood to.....

1) The weather is gorgeous in DC…have to love a high of 83 in October!

High: 83 Low: 67 Mostly Sunny

2) TGIF! (which for me means I get to leave work an hour early and the office is quiet)

3) The Office Wedding last night!

Now if you know me you know I am not a big Office fan, or well really I have only watched a handful of episodes ever, but when I do watch I am usually laughing my hiney off…that and it has always conflicted with Grey’s. However, last night I have to say I committed the cardinal sin of jumping on the bandwagon and watching the Wedding episode (when Grey’s had a commercial of course)…and I was laughing out loud, when of course I wasn’t tearing up. Yes of course I only really wanted to watch because it was the wedding episode (obsessed much, right?), but I was pleasantly surprised. I LOVED the episode! I loved Jim’s rehearsal dinner speech – so precious!

But my favorite part had to be the dance down the aisle! Oh, I swoon!! Now I know Chris Brown is not our favorite person these days for obvious reasons, but I still like the song and I LOVED the precious couple’s YouTube video dancing down the aisle. Seriously, I could watch that on repeat all day and not get tired of it. I LOVE it! The Office version was just as good! So cute.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0 (clearly I am not yet up on technology and how you upload the youtube video to a post, bare with me!)

I think it is so cute when a couple makes a wedding their own and adds personal touches – whether it be with sweet table centerpieces of places they’ve traveled, or pictures of them etc…or with a great first dance song! I think it makes a wedding to have those little or big touches that show the couples personalities. I just loved the show on TLC, which I think is no longer, Rock the Reception…I am sad it is no more.

Anyways, that is enough gushing for the morning! Here’s hoping the weather is lovely where you are and that you have a wonderful weekend ahead of you!

TGIF!

I hate running

Mr.President's attempt at getting a pic of me crossing the finish line, note I am nowhere in this photo

Seems like a tad bit of a negative way to start this post – but bear with me.

This weekend was a whirlwind and went by in a blink. I had Friday off from work (my work does Flex time so we get every other Friday off – fabulous perk of my job) and spent the day running errands and praying my foot started feeling better. I went for a long run on Wednesday around work (to make a last ditch effort to “train” for the Army 10 Miler) and in the course of the run I felt my foot twist and land a bit funny but didn’t think anything of it until….Thursday morning when it hurt to put pressure on my foot. By Friday morning it was still hurting and I was beginning to seriously doubt my ability to run 10 miles on my bum foot…but I decided I mine as well pick up my race packet just in case…at this point I was hating running.

Saturday morning I woke up and my foot was still aching. I tried stretching, taking some aspirin, putting ice on it (and by ice I mean the bag of frozen strawberries meant for my smoothies!)…but nothing was helping. I consulted with Mr. President (the avid runner) on whether or not I should run even though I already knew the answer….he would say “You will regret it if you don’t run. You never know if you can do it if you don’t at least try. There are going to be people running the race with only one leg”…etc. I decided that after my “pep” talk from Mr. President I would think it over and decide later that day.

So off we went to the Shirlington Oktoberfest to meet up with a bunch of friends. It was an absolutely gorgeous day here – not a cloud in the sky and it was a high of about 76 – perfect day for outdoor drinking. By the time we got there I had convinced myself I was not going to run in the race and would instead indulge in some yummy pumpkin ale instead. We bought our wrist bands and hopped in line. By my third pumpkin ale, which was 9% alcohol I was feeling tipsy, or well tipsy with guilt. I immediately started to feel my guilt and regret bubbling up and decided to hand over my glass and start chugging water. We left the Oktoberfest and headed to dinner where I continued my chugging water and carb loading (giant soft pretzels and pasta please!).

Girls at the Oktoberfest

When we finally got home around 9:30 on Saturday night I was still not sure I was going to be able to run the full 10 miles…but I knew I would be sick with regret if I didn’t at least try.

My alarm went off and I jumped out of bed – feel energized and ready to go. Mr. President did not sign up in time to do the race, so luckily one of my girlfriends was going to run with me. We got up to the start line and immediately I had butterflies in my stomach. I honestly didn’t know if I was going to make it past the first mile – not only did I have a bum foot, but I didn’t adequately train for the race, and on top of all of that I drank the day before. I was so grateful to have my girlfriend next to me because if she wasn’t there, I might’ve tried to run back the other way and give up.

The thing about the Army Ten Miler is that from the moment you step onto the course you are surrounded by inspiration whether it be the announcer yelling HOOAH! every five minutes, or the t-shirts with sweet pictures of those we lost, or the brave runners battling with one leg…you know that there is no way you could quit.

Once the start gun went off, I was feeling good – my foot hurt a bit, but I was easily distracted by worrying about how fast I was going and making sure I didn’t run into the person in front of me. By mile 5 I was feeling really good and knew I was going to able to finish. At mile 8 is when I started thinking to myself – I don’t hate running…not at all actually. I loved every moment of that race. I loved the adrenaline rush and seeing all the spectators out there so early in the morning cheering us on…and that is when it hit me. I don’t hate running at all, I love running. Hearing all the spectators yell “Go Runners! You got in Runners! Only 2 more miles to go!” was when it finally clicked for me. The reason I have “hated” running so much is that I never really thought of myself as a runner. I was always just struggling to get through the run and be done…I have never thought of myself as a runner until that moment hearing the word runners being yelled. I am a runner and I am enjoying this run!

After crossing the finish line the first thought that popped into my head (aside from where in the world are those bagels and bananas everyone keeps talking about) was I am going to need to go find that boy of mine and give him a big hug and thank him for pushing me to do this race. When I was doubting myself he was there to encourage me and push me. I am so thankful I had him to push me and remind me why I signed up for the race in the first place. I end up finishing the 10 miles in an 1:23 with an 8:23 mile pace.

Moral of the story – I don’t hate running, not even close, not even a little bit, not even at all!