St. Jude Fairway 5K

This past weekend, I ran my first race since February. It was my goal with this pregnancy to keep running for as long as possible (given that my body cooperates and it is still ok by my doctor). Unfortunately, there aren't a ton of races in Memphis in February-March (and it has been unbearably cold), so I haven't been training as much as I'd hoped lately. So, going into Saturday's race, my expectations were pretty low, and I was just hoping to finish in under 33:00 (or about an 11:00 min/mile...versus my non-pregnant average 9:00/mile).

Saturday morning came, the weather was gorgeous and I felt good. I was excited and ready to go. Michael and Emmie came to cheer me on, which is always some good motivation!

I met up with some friends for a quick photo before the race started, and then we took off!

Yes, my shirt does say "running for two." That way it's clear that it is a baby bump and not a beer belly...ha!

Overall, the race was great. It started out a little crowded but it thinned out substantially after mile 1 (my slowest mile, due to fighting the crowds). Mile 2 flew by and before I knew it, we were making our way back to the golf course to finish on the fairway. There were a couple of tough hills at the very end, but somehow I was able to push through them and finish strong. I was watching my Garmin very closely from mile 2 on, since I realized a sub-30:00 5K was very possible and at mile 3.11, it flashed 29:17. Once I realized the course was a little long (3.18 according to the Garmin), I knew my time would be off, but I still finished in 30:02, or 12th out of 54th in my age group. I'm pretty proud of that for being 6 months pregnant this week! 

Needless to say, this race was some much needed motivation for me to keep training and keep racing. I said from the beginning that I would love to keep running into my 3rd trimester, so here's to hoping I get there! There's another 5K on the calendar for this weekend, so we'll see if it goes as well as this one did! 

What I'm Loving . . .

Good morning! Here is what I'm loving this Wednesday!

1) These Ikat Toms.

I know I'm totally late to the game on this one, as people have been wearing Toms for years, but they are amazing! They're so comfy and are cute with everything...skinny jeans, shorts, etc. I have been wearing mine like crazy.

2) Target's Threshold curtains

I have been on a decorating kick lately, trying to wrap up a bunch of unfinished rooms and projects around the house (early nesting, maybe?) and these curtains fit the bill in our den. I love the pop of color, and at $20 bucks per panel (on sale this week!), they can't be beat. 

3)  These face exfoliating wipes

I picked them up on a whim at Target recently for those nights when I don't feel like washing my face (which has lately been every night...) and they are great. They actually make my face feel clean and exfoliated after using them and they remove my makeup easily. Love them!

4) The Voice!

I can't tell you how glad I am to see this show back on TV. My Monday & Tuesday nights are much more entertaining now and I have to say, I really like the addition of Usher and Shakira (I never was a fan of either Cee-lo or Christina, to be honest). There are a few contestants from Memphis, too, which makes it even more fun to watch.

So, that's it for me. What are you loving today? 

The Big Apple, Part 1

A few weeks ago, my stepmom, 2 sisters-in-law and their moms all went on a girls' trip to New York. We had a blast! We did not stop moving the whole three and a half days we were there. Needless to say, I came home and crashed hard! Get ready for recap and picture overload...just a fair warning!

Diane and I flew in from Memphis Thursday morning and took a cab to our hotel, The W. The hotel was fabulous...modern, clean and very accommodating. We dropped our bags off and headed out the door to grab a bite to eat. We stopped into Cafe Metro at the recommendation of the concierge and enjoyed our meal immensely. After that, we met up with Kristen and her mom over at the TKTS booth and were able to score tickets to see Nice Work If You Can Get It for that evening. From there, we headed back to the hotel to meet up with the rest of the crew and get ready for dinner.

That evening, we dined at Tony's Di Napoli and stuffed ourselves on arugula salad, shrimp scampi, chicken parmesan and eggplant parmesan. (Got to love family style dining...you can try a little of everything!) Then, we headed on to the show!

Now, I am not a Broadway fan by any measure. But, I was sold on the show by the promise of Matthew Broderick (SJP's husband! Yay!). Unfortunately, he was off that night, but the show was very entertaining without him and we did get to see Blythe Danner, which was neat. After a quick stroll through Times Square, we went back to the hotel to rest up for Friday. 

Friday morning, we had big plans. We were heading to Rockefeller Center at 6:00 a.m. to stand in the crowds at the Today Show with the hopes of getting on TV. Well, that we did! Diane (my stepmom) had made a very loud sign, complete with ruffles, flowers and flip flops attached to it, in order to get the anchors' attention so we could be on screen. When the weather anchor that day (Dylan Dreyer...Al was off!) came out and started greeting everyone, she headed in our direction and asked if we wanted to be on camera with her. Of course we did! We were featured in a quick snippet while she went over the weather forecast and we were excited. She was unbelievably friendly and posed with us all for a picture afterward.

With our goal of being on screen fulfilled, we headed on to get some breakfast at Burger Heaven. Then, it was time for shopping and sightseeing. We hit up St. Patrick's Cathedral, The Empire State Building, The NYC Public Library (site of the ill-fated Carrie & Big wedding...yes, I did make it a point to see as many SATC landmarks as possible), Grand Central Station, The Flatiron Building and a few other shops along the way. 

After all that walking, we needed something to eat, so we grabbed lunch at The City Bakery (another SATC landmark). The food was delicious! I had some wonderful marinated turnip greens, roasted fennel and pasta salad that served as the perfect fuel for the rest of our jam-packed afternoon. 

We were scheduled for a walking tour of Greenwich Village and Soho after lunch, so we headed onto that. The tour was great. Very informative and interesting and we got to see a lot, including the Friends building and a few other pop-culture sites. 

While this isn't the best stopping point, I'm having some issues with Blogger and adding photos, so I'll finish up this little recap later this week. Thanks for reading! 

Menu Monday

Good afternoon! I hope everyone is having a good Monday. It seems like the weather here has finally turned to spring, so here is to hoping it sticks. I thought I'd pop in and share a few recipes I am trying this week, as a couple of them are new and sound pretty appetizing. Here's what's on our menu this week:

Tonight- Crockpot chicken and dumplings with Arugula and Tomato Salad
I actually found this recipe via a friend's blog but the original link is above. Michael LOVES chicken and dumplings, but to be honest, it always sounds like a lot of work, so I've shied away from making it in the past. When I saw this recipe, I knew it would be a good one to try out! If you know me, this is totally not a recipe I would normally make (I try to use whole food ingredients most of the time), but I did try to health-ify it as much as possible by using organic chicken and organic cream of chicken soup. We'll see how it turns out!

Tomorrow night- Mini Italian Meatloaves with Four Cheese Risotto and Roasted Broccoli
I've always made traditional meatloaf, but have been wanting to try some mini meatloaves, so when I saw this Rachael Ray recipe, I was sold. I'm not going to trouble of making her mac and cheese from scratch, since I've got a box of Archer Farms Four Cheese Risotto in the pantry just begging to be used! (Has anyone else tried the Archer Farms Risottos? They are SO good and super easy!)

Wednesday-Italian Chicken with Green Beans and Potatoes
I found this recipe on Pinterest ages ago and can't find the original website, so here it is:

-4 raw chicken breasts
-new potatoes, diced
-green beans
-1 stick of butter, melted
-1 package of Italian seasoning

Place chicken down center of 9x13 baking dish. Line with new potatoes on one side and green beans on other. Sprinkle entire dish with Italian seasoning, then top with melted butter. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Source

This recipe is unbelievably easy and a good standby. I like to sprinkle parmesan on mine when it comes out of the oven. Yum!

What's on your menu this week?

Exciting News!

Yep . . . Emmie is going to be a big sister in early August!!

Now that the initial shock has worn off, we are super excited to grow our family by one more. We had an ultrasound today and everything looked great. We saw the little peanut moving around and waving at us and the heart rate was 162 (high like Emmie's was!).

Needless to say, we cannot wait to find out what we are having! Clearly, 2013 is going to be a crazy, fun, exciting year for us!

WILW

Hello! Happy new year to everyone! It's a dreary day here in Memphis, so what better what to cheer up and kick off a new year of blogging than a WILW post?! Here are the things that are making me smile lately.

1) This painting.

(same wall in both photos, the lighting just makes the color look different)

When we hosted Thanksgiving recently, my grandparents were here and mentioned that they had a painting that they thought would go perfectly with our style/house. After showing us other works by the artist (Richard Karwoski for any art buffs out there!), we were super excited and anxious to take if off their hands. Apparently, they bought the original (which you see in the frame), along with all of the prints from the artist decades ago. They never could find a good place for it, but had held onto it for all those years hoping to find a home for it somewhere in the family. We are happy to give it that home! I took it to a local frame shop last week and had it reframed and matted and absolutely love how it turned out. We don't have any other original art, so I am super excited about it and look forward to keeping it in the family for years to come! 

2) Nightly tea. To me, nothing warms you up like a hot cup of tea, and I've been enjoying a cup of this each evening. So tasty and relaxing!

3) Vitamin D. 

I'm not sure if it's the winter weather or what, but my husband and I have both been feeling sluggish and tired lately and our energy levels have been low. As two people who love to stay active and "go" all the time, I immediately started researching and looking for ways to naturally boost our energy. After talking to a friend who is into holistic healthy, I started us both on a vitamin D supplement. Wow. Within days, we both were in better moods, had more energy during the day and were generally less tired. Maybe it's the placebo effect, but whatever it is, I'll take it!

4) These photos:

(Sorry for the small thumbnails! I tried to increase their size but they got blurry.)

One of my sister-in-law's good friends is a photographer, so on the way back from Christmas in the mountains, we stopped in Atlanta to have her do a few shots of us and Emmie. I love the way they turned out! After just a 20 minute session, she was able to get some awesome shots that I can't wait to get printed and framed. If you're ever in the Atlanta area and need a good photographer, check her out:

http://www.jkmitchellphotography.com/ 

Well, that was a wordy post! So, tell me, what are you loving this week??

Catching Up/WILW

Well, hello! How about a nearly four month blogging hiatus? Why, yes, I think I will!

Anyway, in all seriousness, my break from blogging was not intended. Life has gotten busy and I have gotten lazy about blogging! Emmie is now over 11 months old, Christmas is next week and somehow 2012 is nearly over. I think it goes without saying, but this year has absolutely flown by. I need to get back into blogging regularly. Not only do I miss it, but I know that I'll regret not journaling all the memories we are making.

What better way to get back into it than a WILW post?!

1) L'Oreal Youth Code BB Cream

This stuff absolutely rocks. My old makeup routine looked like this: wash face, apply moisturizer, apply concealer, apply Bare Minerals foundation, then apply Bare Minerals Mineral Veil. Well, due to this magic stuff, now, I have completely eliminated the moisturizer, foundation and some days, even the concealer. The BB cream goes on smoothly, makes my skin tone so much more even and even has anti-aging products in it. Love.

2) Homeland

I know I'm a little late on this, but this show is amazing. We just started watching Season 1 a few nights ago and have blazed through 11 episodes already. We are die-hard Dexter fans in this house, but Homeland is giving Dexter a run for the money, big time. 

3) Pura Vida Bracelets

I picked up a couple of these last month on a whim and haven't taken them off since. I got a white one with a circle and a tan one with a cross and I love how they layer well with other bracelets, or just look cute on their own. They're also waterproof and super light, so they are super versatile. And the proceeds go to a great cause! www.puravidabracelets.com

4) Christmas

Between decorating, shopping, baking, etc., I am in the full on Christmas spirit this year. I've always been Christmas crazy, but I think this year is even more exciting since it will be Emmie's first Christmas. What's more, we leave tomorrow for the Blue Ridge Mountains in GA for a mountain Christmas with my family. I think it's going to be so much fun to have everyone together and to create some new memories!

What are you loving today??