Trying to get the hang of this

Hey there! I'm trying to get the hang of this blogging thing. I'm not good at updating every day. Hopefully I'll get better!

Well, the school year has begun and this year is going to be very different from last year and maybe not in a good way. I'm not sure yet. My students are very different from last year's students and require a little more direction. But I'm sure it will be a great year.

On the running front, I ran 1.5 miles on Wednesday and I'm getting ready to run right now as soon as I finish watching Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1. I know...I know...I'm like the last one to see it. That's ok though:)

Tonight Hannah and I are going to see Bye Bye Birdie at the Muny. I'm excited and hoping it brings back some great high school memories. I played Rose Alvarez in my high school's rendition and I have already warned Hannah that I know every word:) I'm sure I will annoy someone tonight, but hopefully I can keep my singing to myself. We love you Conrad. Oh yes we dooooo!!

Start your engines....

Tomorrow is the first day of school and I'm ready! We had "Meet the Teacher" night last night and I got to meet my students and parents. I think that this year is going to be a great year. I have some definitely quirky kids and I think we will be laughing all the time. I'm excited:)

I did get to run on Monday OUTSIDE! The weather is a little cooler this week and I got to run outside. I ran 1.5 miles, but I didn't keep track of time. I'm going to go run again tonight and I'll be sure to take the stopwatch!

Summer has come and gone

Hey Everyone! Man, this first week back has been crazy! I have been sitting in meeting for the last 4 days learning new IEP programs and the annual "Go Get 'Em" meeting from the district. Thank goodness for the weekend before meetings again on Monday and Tuesday.

As for the rest of my life this week, I have enjoyed every moment! Wednesday night was communion service at my church. It was a phenomenal service. Just singing and worshipping about how much God loves us and letting that sink in is sometimes overwhelming.

Thursday night Emily and I met up for dinner because Cynthia had to work late:( We went to Stir Crazy and I my food was great and I'm still eating it!

Last night I totally chilled out on the couch and caught up on my mindless tv shows from the week. This morning I got up and ran 1.5 miles on the treadmill in 25:59. I'm pretty proud of myself. I increased my pace a little and also ran for the first 10 minutes. After that I did a run 4 minutes/walk 2 minutes for the rest of the time.

I'm hoping to continue with the maintenance plan that Kristen from Fleet Feet sent out. The hardest part will be fitting this into my school year. I'm definitely not a morning person, but I run the best in the morning. We shall see how this works!

For the rest of today I'm going to go back to school shopping during Missouri's tax free weekend! Then, I'm meeting up with Alicia and Amy tonight for a girls' night out. Here's to a great Saturday!

Pictures as Promised

Here are a few pictures from my 5K.




This is my Fleet Feet No Boundaries running group. I highly recommend this program when training for a race. It was great for new runners.






I crossed the finish line and not last!!


My friend Beth ran the race with me and my friend Emily cheered me on and volunteered. Couldn't have done it without them and my family.

It's a hot one

Hello August...ugh. I never look forward to August. It means back to school, but I'm optimistic about this year. Today I met Beth for lunch at Dickey's BBQ. Very good.

I went to work in my classroom and just unpack some boxes today. Saw a few of my coworkers doing the same thing. Came back to the apartment and ran on the treadmill for a mile. It took me 17:39. Not too shabby for me. The next goal is to run the whole mile without walking.

Sand volleyball game tonight and then relaxing on the couch with the Bachelorette finale. I hope she picks Ben, but I'm thinking she picks J.P. We shall see.

Back from Vacation

I had a great time at the Lake of the Ozarks with Julie this week. We had a great time of rest, relaxation, and shopping. Beth came down on Thursday and we went to the outlet mall and swam at the pool. For dinner we came across this random bbq place called Burnt Ends. It was very good. I'm so glad we came across it. Julie and I just spent the rest of the week swimming, relaxing, and hanging out. We went to a dueling piano bar on Friday night and had a great time.

Don't worry...I still got some exercise in. I took a water aerobics class on Thursday morning. It was really fun and also a little challenging. I enjoyed it. On Friday I ran 1 mile in 17:36. I ran for a little longer and only walked 3 minutes of it. I know it's slow, but I gotta start somewhere!

Got back into St. Louis on Saturday afternoon so we could celebrate Emily's birthday last night. We went to Espino's Mexican restaurant for dinner and I had some amazing enchiladas. Then out to Fox and Hound for drinks after. It was a really good time. Happy Birthday Emily!

Church this morning was great. Such a great message from Pastor Ron about not being anxious and trusing God through the ups and downs and just remaining steadfast through them all. Kaleb was back from Africa leading worship and it was wonderful.

I took a few days off of exercising, but I'm back tomorrow for some running and sand volleyball. Then back to work on Tuesday....yuck!

Here we Go!

I'm going to keep this running thing up on my own. I'm going to use part of this blog to document the exercise that I did each day. Hopefully it will be my accountability.

Today I ran on the treadmill because it is just still so stinkin' hot! I ran/walked 1 mile. I ran a little longer during each interval and and a slightly faster pace. So, I'm pretty proud of myself.

Mile 1 - 17:54

I'm heading to Fast Eddie's today with the work girls. I'm really excited for some cheap food and good times! Then, tomorrow, I'm off to the Lake of the Ozarks for some much needed vacation time with Julie. Julie is my best friend from college. Since she moved to Little Rock, I hardly ever see her, but we try to do some sort of trip every summer. I'm excited for some rest and relaxation and maybe a little exercise:)

5K Completed

I completed my 5K on Sunday. It was hot and humid. The course was hilly, but I finished and not last!! The coaches with the Fleet Feet No Boundaries Program were amazing and inspiring. They were with me every step of the way. I couldn't have done it without Doug, Art, and Kristen. Thanks guys!!

But, it wasn't just the coaches that got me through. Beth ran/walked every step of that race with me. She is such an encouraging friend and an amazing source of support while I embark on this lovely journey. Emily volunteered at the race and encouraged me as well. It's friends like these that get me through and help me accomplish my goals. Thanks guys!!

P.S. pictures to come soon. I just haven't uploaded them yet!

3 days!

3 days until I run a 5K. I'm definitely getting nervous and something is going on with my right achilles. I pray it is going to be ok!!

Race Day Draws Near...

My graduation race is Sunday! I'm so excited about completing a 5K and actually running it. But, before we get to that...let me fill you in on what's been going on. My computer crashed the last week of June and I finally purchased a new one! Very exciting, but definitely money I wasn't planning on spending. That's why no pictures will accompany today's post:(

Summer school ended! Thank Goodness!! WOOOHOOO!!

July 4th was great. Love that holiday. I got to hang out with family and friends and watch some fireworks. The very next day Cynthia and I went to Chicago and saw U2 at Soldier Field. Awesome concert. I must say, I'm not a huge U2 fan, but they put on a great show! We literally ate our way through Chicago the next day. Chicago Style Hot Dogs, Chicago Style Pizza from Gino's East, Garrett's Popcorn, and Ghiradelli's. Seriously a lot of good food!

My friend Maeve had her baby shower this past weekend. So excited that she's having a boy! Beth and I knew it (of course!).

Before race day, I am seeing NKOTBSB in concert tomorrow! It's gonna be amazing. I'll feel like I'm a teenager again. Then, I'm heading to Wrigley to catch and Cubs game with my parents. We received free tickets that are 1st row behind the dugout. Seriously good seats. I'm excited to celebrate my mom's birthday with a Cubs win!

Then it's back to St. Louis for my race. I'm getting nervous already about how slow I'm going to be and that I'll finish last. I just need to be confident in my progress from the beginning of this No Boundaries training program. I would have never been able to run 3.1 miles 10 weeks ago. My breathing has gotten better and my stride has improved. Hopefully I will rock this Opening Act 5K.

One Year Later....

Here we go again! Maybe someday I keep with this blog thing. Hopefully this summer. This summer has proven to be sort of difficult for me. I usually enjoy my summers off (one of the lovely benefits of working in a school)! This year I decided to teach summer school so I could pay off my student loans. It's really not that bad, but I do NOT like getting up early. Oh well....one week left:) I can handle that!




In other news, my nephew Noah turned 1 on June 19th. That is crazy! This year has flown by so quickly. He is becoming such a BOY! Loves balls and books and it talking up a storm already! Happy Birthday to my favorite little guy!!







On a more personal note, I started training for a 5K. I joined a program through Fleet Feet after much persuasion from my good friend Beth. I'm already 6 weeks in and I must say that I am really starting to enjoy myself. I am still really really slow, but I have come so far from where I started. Who knows...when I look back next summer I might actually enjoy running and be running on a regular basis. At least I am getting some great clothes from this hobby.

It's definitely not a cheap hobby, that's for sure!

Hopefully I'll get into blogging a little more. I have a lot going on right now and I'm really enjoying where my life is headed. Stay tuned....it's gonna be a great ride!