Stuff: Fitness Survey

Happy Tuesday!  I am in this weird post-half marathon mental place, so when I saw this fitness survey on Carrots 'n Cake, I thought it would be good for me to do and get me back in gear.  :)

Five Fitness Things I Can't Live Without
1. My Runkeeper App on my phone

2. Races (this is abundantly clear now that I seem to find excuses NOT to run that I never found before)

3. My compression jacket with thumb holes from Old Navy

4. Hip stretches

5. Music

Most embarassing song I listen to while working out
When my BIL made me an amazing playlist for my half marathon, I made a special request for the Glee version of "Hey Soul Sister."  I ADORE it...strange.

Favorite pre-workout snack or meal
Oatmeal squares with a little almond milk and a banana...the recipe for a great long run.

On my fitness bucket list...

• Try a spin class
• Join a rec. volleyball league
• Run a sub-2:00 half marathon

Must-have Tech Tools
Right now, I'm not very techie when it comes to fitness.  I NEED my Runkeeper App and iPod...but would love a Garmin (did ya hear that Santa?)

Top Fitness Gear

• Spibelt
• Asics running shoes
• Features socks

Motivational Mantra
"You are capable of doing and becoming more than you realize."  Thanks Pinterest!

Favorite Cardio Exercise
Distance running...hands down.

Favorite Strength Moves

• Planks
• Crunches on the ball
• Tricep dips
• Plie squats

Thanks for putting up with my survey!  Feel free to play along!

Stuff: Photo Challenge Update!

Hello Readers!  A few days have passed during my photo challenge so I figured now is a great time to update!  Since the month started in the middle of the week my updates have been more often than they may be the rest of the month.  I will now update my photos 1 time a week, this will leave Amy and I the space to blog about our day-to-day activities!!

My goal for this challenge is to step outside the box with my photos, while keeping a holiday theme, stray away from the typical things you may think of when you see the theme.  (If I can that is!)  So,
 Day 2:  A List-  Many people think a list written by a child to Santa Claus, and I thought of that as well, however after some thinking I took a twist of displaying a recipe as my "list," because it has a list of ingredients and then a list of steps. 

Day 3:  The Christmas tree:

Day 4:  Presents under the tree:

Thanks for following along with this challenge!  Stay Tuned and Check back this week for re-caps of fun activities going on with Amy and I, as well as photo challenge days 5-9! 

Happy December!

Hello Readers!  Ashley here,

November 2011 has come and gone, and is now leaving us the hustle and bustle of the holiday season!  Our shopping is underway, gifts are wrapped leaving us no choice but to put up our Christmas tree for the first time in our new house leaving us plenty of time to enjoy it!  

Matt and I started with this process on Sunday with the brand new tree.  Here is what we had prior to beginning. 

                                                  Finished product put up still needing to be decorated.

and its complete! 

You all will probably see this tree and some more accessories once our twice more this month. 

I will be participating in a daily photo challenge that Amy found for me on Pinterest but the original idea is from this site.  I love photography and even though I don't have a fancy expensive camera or great lights and props, I think I will really enjoy this challenge!

Instead of posting daily I will combine my photos and post them once a week.  I will fill in the day number and theme of the photo. 

Here is Day #1 which was "Something Red" and this is what I took.  A closeup of a red rose.

End of the Thankful Challenge

It's already the last day of November!  If you've been following along, we've been completing Tina's idea for the Thankful Challenge by blogging one thing every day we are thankful for.  Today, on the last day of the challenge, we are going to post the NUMBER ONE thing we are most thankful for!

Amy's up first:  Today, and every day, I am thankful for my family.  Although this one is sort of recycled, since I've already recognized my sister (twice) and parents, I can't say enough how thankful I am for them.  They support me in all that I do, make me smile, make me laugh, and make me feel like an amazing person, even when I might not act like it.  So, mom, dad, sister, and brother-in-law...you guys are the best!

Ashley's Turn:  I can't believe it is the end of November already!  Along with being thankful for the month of November for encouraging me to recognize all I am thankful for, I am most thankful for my family!  I am fortunate enough to have a few different families, as now I am part of Matt's, and Matt and I have formed our own little mini fam.  Family is one thing that is always there-- friends come and go, things come and go, but one thing that won't is family, and for that I am fortunate! 

Sisters: Crafting Fun!

Now seems like a great time to recap our crafting projects from Sunday.  Amy realized that because she is in her own house she needs more holiday decorations, therefore she set up the day with the creative name "Christmas Craft-stravaganza."  We decided that about 3 projects would be a fair amount to start with, and our mom joined in as well.  We got most of our ideas from Pinterest.

I'd make a liar out of myself to say everything was flawless,  because we did have quite a few issues-- spray paint running off of a glass bottle to the primer that stuck to the bottle running out completely, paint everywhere, things knocked on the floor.  We gave up on a few ideas, but, regardless, we hope to make it an annual tradition.  Here is what we came up with!

This is my shadow box.  I bought the shadow box and fillers at Hobby Lobby and used my cricut machine to make the letters.

Amy had some trouble painting her bottles to create her first project so she chose to move to her next project-- a clay pot Christmas tree.  It took some time for the paint to dry; this is the "in progress" photo.

Amy also created memory ornaments!  She put some white paint into a glass ball ornament and used a silver Sharpie to write memories from the year.  She had quite the year this year, and that was a great idea for a memoir!

I created a set of coasters using the base of a clay pot and an etched mirror.  I also created a photo frame on a candle stick, now just to find the perfect picture to put in it!

Amy and I agree this project of my mom's was a great idea!  She's going to use it as a cupcake stand.

When I got home, I decided to create a last-minute project that I didn't originally plan to make.  I printed out one of my favorite photos on a piece of vellum paper and used Mod-Podge to paste it on a glass candle holder.  It is one of my favorite decorations in my house right now!

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Today I am thankful for the giggle of a child.  That particular sound made my day great and made it fly by.

Amy's turn!  Today I'm thankful for baking.  I find it so therapeutic, and it's great having snacks to show for it!  :)

Still Thankful after Thanksgiving!

Today I am thankful for everyone who put up their christmas lights this weekend and lit them up.  It is more entertaining to drive home from work in the dark with decorations to look at.

Well, Ashley, what a coincidence!  Today, I am thankful for Christmas music!  It makes the whole house feel a little nicer.  :)

Stuff: Mission Accomplished- The Half Marathon Recap

I did it!  I am officially a half-marathoner!

As you know if you read last weekend's stuff post, I have been training for a half marathon for a few months now.  My goal for the year was to run 10k, but I decided to take it one step further.

I spent the week in super-paranoid mode, avoiding germs in any way I could think of.  I had these horrible visions of myself being too sick to run and having worked so hard for nothing.  I'll admit...I got a little out-of-control about it.  Thanks to my family for putting up with it!

Finally, Friday rolled around.  I headed out to pick up my packet and found out there were about 1700 people registered for the race.  I know that is nothing compared to some races I've read about, but I definitely wasn't expecting a race so big at this time of year.

After picking up my packet, Ashley, her hubby, and I picked up some dinner (pasta, of course).  Soon enough, I headed home to spend a ton of time reading running blogs and freaking out.  Then, my phone rang.  It was my favorite running buddy to wish me luck and tell me she was proud of me.  :)  Totally made my night and helped me chill out so I could sleep!

Pre-race...ready to rock!

Bright and early in the morning, Ashley, our mom, and I headed out to the race.  We were pretty early, which was part of the plan...as I didn't quite know what to expect.  So, we hung out for awhile before race time.  My nerves were pretty low at this point...so I was happy.  Although my brother-in-law couldn't be there, he made me an awesome playlist to keep my mind occupied through the race.

Soon, enough, it was race time!  I was smiling at the start...

...and then I dropped the BIL's iPod.  Twice.  Luckily, it still worked.  And the first couple songs kept me smiling.  For the first couple of miles, my shin was really bugging me, which made me quite nervous.  Once I chilled out about it, I stopped noticing it and was warmed up enough for it to have stopped bothering me.

The rain started about 4 miles in.  I was really dreading the rain, but it actually didn't bother me too much.  I stayed focused and my playlist popped up with some great stuff right when I needed it.

At mile 10, I saw my cheering squad!  Seeing them was a huge pick-me-up and helped a lot through the last, most difficult miles of the race.  These miles were really narrow.  The people in front of me were going a little slower than I wanted to be moving, which was making my legs hurt.  So, I had to stick it out and pass when I could.

In the home stretch, when I was about at the point where I was considering walking (I only walked through water stations so I didn't spill everywhere), my favorite running buddy popped up again!  I high-fived her and stuck it out to the finish.

It was TOUGH (as you can probably tell from my lovely expression), but I did it! I finished in 2:07:30...beating my 2:15 goal. My running buddy was the first to greet me at the finish, and I hugged her (which she probably didn't appreciate, but I didn't think first, haha) and seeing her made me cry.  When my other friend and my mom and sister got to me, I had gotten it together and coureously gave them knuckles rather than hugs.  :)

After changing into dry clothes, we headed out to lunch.  They gave me an awesome post-race gift.  Ashley came up with the idea to make a "Race Inspiration" book.  She talked to a bunch of my friends and family, and some of my favorite people contributed quotes and words of encouragement.

Sorry for the poor quality on this one...took it on my phone.

When I got home, my BIL had put "Congrats" balloons on my front steps, which are now right next to me--and will stay there until the helium runs out.

This race was a huge accomplishment for me.  I am SO fortunate to have people in my life who supported me and cheered me on, despite the rain and cold.  I have to say that my sister certainly lived up to her rep as my NUMBER ONE cheerleader.  She made me feel like a world-class runner, so much more than a short little lady who runs for fun and probably talks about it way too much. 

The post-race blues haven't set in quite yet...I'm looking forward to just being able to run and not caring how many miles!
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Today I am thankful for my parents...who are pretty much amazing!  My dad came and helped me fix my dryer today, and my mom stood in the rain for two hours just to watch me run.  What a lucky daughter!

Ashley's turn!



Today I am thankful for our first Christmas Craft-Stravaganza! Amy decided to put together a crafting day, and we invited our mom too. It was fun!