I used my camera in the locker room at the gym... Such a rebel.

I'm trying out some color today. We'll see if it's readable.

Today was my first day off in a week and I was determined to milk to for all it's worth. Let me be very clear, I LOVE to sleep. LOVE IT. But I really hate getting up and feeling like so much of the day is gone. So I got up at 8am (still later than I normally get up) and headed to the Rush. Does this mean I'm officially old?

I had 4 miles of speedwork today, and to be honest, I didn't exactly know what that meant. So I just ran a mile warm up, then worked the speed up and down the rest of the time. Intervals? ish?

Obviously at some point someone ran by me and tossed a bucket of water over my head... Because there is no way one person could produce that much sweat in 40 minutes. It was way more gross than normal. And by normal I mean normal for me and other cool people... Like hookers in church I believe the saying goes.

And just a quick tangent, I ordered some more Active Bands and I'm stalking the mailman until they come.

Then I ran home, showered and went to get my hair done. I was trying someone new so I was a little nervous. But she was AWESOME and I loved what she did. Rebecca at Asheville Hair Design if anyone around here is looking for someone. She listened to what I wanted and then did it. Crazy right?

So happy that worked out. By this point I was starving and I knew just what I wanted to eat:  Panera. 

Delicious, but not as much food as I needed  wanted. So now it's 2 hours later and I'm hungry again. Maybe some fro-yo in my near future...

Tell me about your worst hair disaster... I had one lady in Lexington turn my hair CAMO GREEN not attractive, let me tell you.

A Little Freedom

I finally had some time off today. I've worked so many 12 hour days in a row that working 8-4 seemed like a piece of cake. Brad and I went to see Friends with Benefits after I got to leave that silly, silly place.

source



I thought it was really cute and very funny. We were late getting there (I thought it started 10 minutes later than it actually did, whooops) so we missed the previews [i get really peeved when we miss previews because I love 'em] and the very beginning of the movie [dislike]. I LOVE Mila Kunis. She is so freaking skinny, but I still love her. She and JT had great chemistry, and they were really funny together. I was surprised.

Then we went to the gym, I had an easy four miler. I tried increasing the incline on the TM to make it more difficult and hopefully help it translate to running outdoors. It went really well, but when I stopped I felt like my right leg was really tense. I spent a lot of time stretching and using the foam roller [not that I really know how]... and it feels better now.

Oh yeah, and on the way to the gym, we saw a beautiful double rainbow. And guess who didn't have her camera. That'd be this girl. It was really awesome, people were pulling off the road to take pictures. I've never seen one so bright. Our God is truly amazing.

Look at me now! I won a Road ID

Katie over at Katie Thinks had an awesome giveaway a while back for a free Road ID. She emailed me last week and let me know that I had won! Sidenote: She and I went to high school together, go check out her blog, she has great recipes and reviews!

I wasted no time designing my Road ID, I've wanted one of these for awhile. After much debate (couldn't decide between the wrist slim or wrist elite) I chose the wrist elite.

I freaking love it (I've worn it all around the house tonight and B-rad is hardcore teasing me... Jealous). It is one size fits all (you cut the strap to adjust) and it's super easy to snap on and off.

I have been super impressed by the company, their quality product, and their great customer service. Every email I get is so personal and laid back. It seems like they really love their job. It's just refreshing. Plus they donate a portion of the sale to a charity, and they let you choose which one.

I put my name, location (this was recommended but I'm not positive how it would help...), B's phone number, mom & dad's number, NKDA (no know drug allergies), MVP (most valuable... just kidding, it's mitral valve prolapse, this thing with my heart), and then on the last line you can put a slogan or motto. I debated between bible verses, song lyrics, etc. Finally I chose Be strong, believe. I don't know if you all listen to Yellowcard or not, but it's from one of their songs. It's a tribute to 9/11 and it's a really great song to run to. At one point I wanted a tattoo of this phrase, but I'm so wishy washy, making a decision like that would be crazy. I change my mind every 3.2342 seconds. Wow what a tangent.

Anyways, Road ID sent me this so I thought I'd share it with you all and you can pass it along to anyone who might use it. It's a coupon for $1 off: ThanksCourtney8155711 (it can be used by up to 20 peeps!).

Do you wear identification when you run/bike/hike?

What's your favorite song to run to right now? be strong believe is my all time favorite, but at the moment i'm loving superbass by nicki minaj!

Breaking Through

I haven't been posting about my runs this week because they've been depressing me and mentally kicking my butt. I was excited for this week because my training plan called for 3 easy runs. Not necessarily to take it easy, but excited and confident that I would have a strong week because I knew I could run the distances (4,3,4). I couldn't have been more wrong.

Monday I had the 3.6ish (should have been 4) miles from hell. I accidentally grabbed my road shoes for a trail run, Garmin was being a lazy bum, I ran too close to dark so I was freaking the whole time, and not to mention that darn snake.

Wednesday I convinced B-rad to join me on my 'easy 3 miler.' I was excited for him to run with me and I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to show off a little bit (look at me I can run 3 miles soooo easy). That backfired. He kicked my trash, and my confidence took a major blow.

I had somehow convinced myself that I can't run outside. I can hop on the treadmill and run without stopping (I know it's different) but I have this mental block that beats me up while I'm running outside. I've yet to have a race that I haven't walked, and deep down I know this isn't a big deal, but I'd be lying if I said it didn't bother me. ALOT.

So this morning I was nervous. I had a 4 miler that I really wanted to do outside. I figured I needed to get over this before I start adding mileage. Well I worked 10-10 yesterday, and we have inventory this morning, so I stayed til 1130 to help count down our robot (very exciting work). I set my alarm for 7 and come morning that just wasn't working out.

I got up a little later and knew it would probably be better to head to the gym due to the heat. Then I thought, to heck with I'm doing this outside. I was hydrated, wore my Mizuno hat, and kept telling myself what Kara Goucher says in her book about running in the heat:  You might have to slow down but you can do it.

And I did. It took me 47 minutes, but I ran 4 miles, without stopping. I feel so great right now, knowing that I didn't let those two bad runs defeat me.

But don't worry, I won't get all big headed on you... Not with awesome self portraits like these. If that's not humbling I don't know what is ;) And just so you know I was saying four aloud. Not singing.

What are your tricks for getting over a bad run?
What are you all doing this weekend? Any races? I'm working 9-9 on Saturday and Sunday, so think of me. I hope you all have a great weekend!!

What a stinker...

I walked in the door this afternoon and immediately knew something was wrong. Where is my big brown dog who always meets me at the door?

Oddly, he's upstairs and is apparently afraid to come down (FYI- Riley is a big baby. He gets froggy about the stairs every once in a while). I go get him to take him outside and find a few unwelcome 'presents' along the way.

I'm starting to get worried that he's sick and I call B-rad to let him know what's going on. Brad says, "I wonder if he got into his food?" Sure enough, I go check the thing we keep his food in and I find this:

That little big fat turd weaseled his way in the closet and got into his food. Then apparently ate so much that he made himself sick. Stinker.

He won't even look at me when he knows he's in trouble. It's a good thing he's so darn cute.


Does your dog do stuff like this?

Let's be clear, I'd be a Gryffindor not Slytherin

3.6 ish miles approximately 11:00 pace

Why am I estimating mileage and pace? Because my Garmin was being a punk. It searched for satellites for so freaking long that it tried to go into power save. You've gotta be kidding me. After about 11 years I finally just said forget it and took off. It quit being a d-bag at some point.

About 10 minutes later, I notice something stretched across the trail. A big fat snake. I tossed a few rocks at it to get it to scoot along. Dummy me didn't think about the fact that I would have to come right back through there.

So the whole way back I was freaking out that I was gonna get bit by a snake. You'd think it would've increased my pace. You'd think.

Secret Mission Revealed

Today's workout:  5 miles on the TM in 53:01.

On Saturday I mentioned a secret mission that I had to take care of the day before. I've been so excited about this (driving Brad crazy like a kid at Christmas)so it was hard to keep quiet. But now I can finally share... We got new mountain bikes!!

That's mine in the front, isn't she a beauty? I have been wanting one ever since we started running trails. I knew a lot of people rode street bikes here, but I had no idea that it was such a popular place to mountain bike.  We run at Bent Creek a lot and it is always overflowing with bikers. I thought it would be something really fun for B and I to do together.

He surprised me on Monday and took me to check them out at Liberty Bikes. Sam, the manager, helped us choose bikes and even let us test drive them. He was extremely knowledgeable and helpful. I went back in on Friday to tell him we wanted the bikes and then we got to pick them up on Saturday (they check the bikes over before selling them). Then we hit the trails.

It was so much fun!!

I can't wait to go again and we were thinking about going tonight... But our butts HURT! Padded Lycra pants anyone? Sign me up!

So lovely...

I was sofreakingexcited the other day when I saw that Julia at Pain, Pride & Perseverance had tagged me for a blog award. I seriously heart this girl (is that weird considering we've never met? yeah, probably). It's really funny how much we have in common and I love her upbeat attitude. She has been so nice to comment and encourage me. So thanks, Julia!

So let's see... Seven random things about me.

• During our third year of pharmacy school, one of my best friends, Katie and I, organized and held a 5k race and health fair. We were co-chairpersons of the Heartburn Awareness Committee (don't be too jealous), the main goal of which was to screen people for heartburn. Katie was one of my two friends who trained for the ill-fated KY Derby Mini that first year (she has actually ran it twice since because she rocks!). Anyways, we had 12 booths at the health fair, we screened over 200 people, won the award for our region, and held a successful 5k (we called it 'Race Against Reflux') that is now an annual event! We are still pretty proud.



Me & Katie

 

My momma getting her BP checked at one of the booths

 

One of Katie's friends, Rebecca Hammer, designed our logo, shirts, and racing materials. We did a white shirt for runners, and blue for volunteers.

 

Screening my Dad for heartburn (my parents drove all the way to Lexington to support me, they're pretty amazing)

 

We had overall awards and age group awards. Overall winners got mortar & pestles.

 

There go all our runners!

• My granny grew up in England (my papaw met her during the war and brought her to the US) and has family there and in Australia. She took me and my brother (Brad came too) to Sydney to visit in 2007.  

me and matthew



me and brad at bondi beach



at the opera house



the three of us at taronga zoo





taking the ferry into sydney harbor (harbor bridge in the background)



• I hate pickles. HATE.

• I met Brad in pharmacy school... Second year. Why not in first year? That's because he slept in class all day everyday. Not kidding. We met at a tailgate for a football game. He asked me to hold his hamburger so he could dress it (little did I know this should have clued me in to my future of having 349872024714 billion condiments in our fridge). While I was holding it he proceeded to say something 'cute' about me and one of his friends. So I dropped the burger and walked off.

from that day. little did we know

• I hate being hot so I keep it super cold in the house. I usually need a blanket or hoodie, but I prefer it that way so it's cold at night.



also like to make super cute faces apparently

• I was in a sorority (Pi Beta Phi) in college and I was mortified when I realized we were the 'party girls'. At our Bid Day party some handed me a beer that I proceeded to carry around because I hated the taste. As it happened, I met my soon to be best friend Shannon, who drank my beer for me so I wouldn't feel silly carrying it around.

she was the best maid of honor ever

• I thank God everyday for my amazing family and the relationships we have.



brad, me, mom, matthew, dad

 So there you go, way more than you've ever wanted to know about me! I hope we can still be friends :)

And now to pass the award to 7 more awesome bloggers. All you have to do is thank me, tell us 7 things about yourself, and pass along the love!

Unstoppable

Daily Vitamin F

Run With Sam

Neon Blonde Runner

My Marathon Diaries

I Hate Running

Chick Named Chuck



Small Predicament

Yesterday I did a 4 mile tempo run at the gym. This was my first ever tempo run, and I did a mile at 5.5, two at 6.0, and another at 5.5. I know these aren't blow you away fast times, but for me, running more than a mile at anything above 5.5 is a big win. I might have sweat a little.

I think I've mentioned it before, but my face turns beet red anytime I work up a sweat. Super attractive, I know. Does this happen to anyone else?

After the gym I ran home to shower immediately went on a secret mission. I'll share later today, when I have lots of pics! Then I actually did shower, and had to head to work for about an hour and a half for my yearly evaluation (yikes! stuff like this stressesmeoutsomuch!) But it went really well, and I'm glad it's over. I don't know why I let stuff like that stress me out, but oh well.

So back to my predicament. I was supposed to do my tempo run on Wednesday, but I worked 12 hours on Wed and Thurs (I don't usually run when I have to work a 12 hour shift). So I pushed it to Friday. Today is supposed to be my long run. Do I do it today? I'm thinking yes. What do you think?

Does it bother you when you don't follow your training plan exactly? Yes but it's something I'm working on this time around!

Do work evaluations stress you out too?

brown dog photography

**Warning-- this post has absolutely nothing to do with running and it is long and full of pics**

So there's something I've been wanting to share with you all but I haven't had the time to sit down and type it up and dig through the files (figuratively). I really, really, really love photography. It's been a hobby of mine for as long as I can remember (I know you've noticed my talent for crappy iPhone photography that I showcase on the regular).

B-rad has been my number one supporter, encouraging me at every turn to take myself more seriously and to put more time into it (don't tell him but it's one of the many reasons that I think he's pretty awesome).

The first time I took pictures for someone other than family was about this time last year. My friend Aimee had just adopted a new greyhound, Sadie, and she asked me to come get some pics of her. I was ecstatic! Here are some of my favorites from that day:

Shortly thereafter, Aimee started working with a local animal rescue group, Charlie's Angels Animal Rescue (CAAR). CAAR pulls dogs and cats from a high kill shelter and finds a safe rescue for them. Long story short, we also started fostering for them, and then (after Aimee suggested it) I started taking pictures of the dogs for them to use on Facebook and to send to potential rescues.

 This is a Plott Hound (the NC state dog, who knew?) named Lila. She went to WAGS rescue.

This is Remsen, a boxer mix. I wanted to adopt him so bad and we almost fostered him. Unfortunately we do not have a fenced in yard, so Brad had to talk some sense into me. I may have cried a little when I realized he was right. He was rescued by Lucky Dog Rescue in DC.

This is Aimee's newest addition, Javier. Isn't he gorgeous? She was fostering him for a greyhound rescue but ended up keeping him. I completely understand why, he's perfect!!



I have met some great people through CAAR, one of which is an amazing local photographer, Kaelee. She contacted me a while back and asked me to 'second shoot' a June wedding with her. It. was. so. much. fun. She'll be sending me the pics soon and I can't wait to see them and share with you all.

So anyways, this is my other hobby. If you'd like you can check out Brown Dog Photography's Facebook page. I post all the rescue dogs there.

I Am Such A Nerd...

but I cannot freaking wait to see this...

Then I'll go through withdrawal because it's over.

Sorry I've been MIA, I had to work 10-10 yesterday and 8-8 today. I thought about posting yesterday, but I had nothing nice to say, if you know what I mean. I swear, dealing with the public is sometimes just a little too much for me.

Taco Roll

Whoa things are getting a little crazy around here... I'm sharing a recipe! Please do not get used to this, seeing as how I only cook like 5 things and B-rad is the gourmet cook of the house. I'm more of a sous chef really... For example it's going to take me 30 minutes to type up this post when it should only take 10, because Bobby Flay the hubs keeps asking me to do stuff for him. Doesn't he know I'm doing way more important stuff!?

Anyways, this is my momma's recipe that is amazing and it's my go-to meal. I hope you like it!

You'll need:
2 lbs turkey
2 packets taco seasoning
1 can diced tomatoes with onion and green pepper
1 can Rotel
1 jar taco sauce
2 cup bag shredded mexican cheese
8-10 burrito shells

1. Preheat your oven to 300.
2. Brown & drain 2 lbs ground turkey (you can use beef, but I'm not digging cow meat right now).
3. After you drain the meat, put it back in the pot and add 2 packets of taco seasoning (I prefer Old El Paso) and 1 small can of petite diced tomatoes with green pepper and onion. ---This is the lazy way. My mom chops up real onion and green pepper and adds to the meat as she's browning it. Sorry mom.
4. Mix that up really good, it should look something like this:
5. This will be the filling for the burrito shells. Get a 9x13 pan and spray it with Pam. Fill the burrito shells with the meat mix, roll them up, and use them to line the bottom of the pan.
6. Next, mix up 1 can of taco sauce (again I prefer Old El Paso) and 1 can Rotel.
7. You'll use this mixture to cover the burritos. Don't drown them, just cover (you won't use all the mixture).
8. And you know what comes next, smother in cheese.
9. Bake for 40 minutes.
10. Enjoy every last bite! Serve with ranch dressing or sour cream (not in this house!).

It's hard cooking for one or two people, but this is great because it really is just as good when heated up as leftovers.

I hope you like it as much as I do. And major props to my momma who made this up one day and it's one of our favoroite meals! She's pretty much amazing.

And just in case you were wondering, B-rad only needed me 4 times during this post :)