It CLICKED!!! Finally!

Woohoo!!!  Today's run was such a SUCCESS!!! I finally feel like things were "right!"  My run wasn't a struggle, and I even added on to it a bit.  I know I haven't been training for very long, and I know that there will be many, many more days of struggling, rather than days like today, but today gave me the boost I needed and have been waiting for!  I'm probably making a bigger deal out of today's run than it actually deserves, but after struggling through the runs for the past 2 (ish) weeks, this makes me really happy!!  Yippee!!! :)

I also took a pretty picture while on my run!

#31. (Something beautiful)

Like I said, tomorrow is June 1!  I did some searching and found the photo challenge for June.  It is actually an Instagram challenge, so I don't feel so bad about using my phone to get most of the pics for the challenge.  :)  I'm not sure if this is initially where the challenge was created, but here is where I found it.  Jeroxie.com is a pretty cool blog!  I haven't checked it out too closely, but it appears to to focus a lot of food and recipes.  I'll definitely be spending more time looking around there!  If anyone is interested in attempting the challenge for June, here it is (you can also check out Jeroxie.com):

1. Morning
2. Empty
3. On your plate
4. Close-up
5. Sign
6. Hat
7. Drink
8. 6:00
9. Your view today
10. Best bit of your weekend
11. Door
12. From a low angle
13. Art
14. Time
15. Yellow
16. Out & about
17. In your bad
18. Something we don't know about you
19. Imperfect
20. Favorite photo you've ever taken
21. Where you slept
22. From a high angle
23. Movement
24. On your mind
25. Something cute
26. Where you shop
27. Bathroom
28. On the shelf
29. Soft
30. A friend

I've already got so many ideas for these!  They probably won't come in order...  But I'll get them all!  (Just like I promise to finish up May in due time!:)

I'm going to add something to Thankful Thursday: I am thankful that it rained early; we certainly needed it, and I'm glad we got it!  But I'm glad it was long gone in time for my run, which was so great!  I think it would have been pretty disappointing to have another struggle of a run.  :)  Thankful for progress!

Thankful Thursday & Rodents

I got the idea to do a Thankful Thursday post from my friend, Michelle's, blog.  I read quite a few blogs, and I've seen similar things on a few of them, too, so, I thought it may be a good idea to hop on the Thankful bandwagon.  Today is a good day to start; I need to focus on things I'm thankful for, instead of getting frustrated with little things, which has sort of been how my day started.  So, time to be thankful!

1.  The rain that we'll probably get this evening.  This is a tough one to be thankful for today because it's a running day, and I took yesterday off, so I really needed to get that in today.  Maybe the rain will work around my schedule and allow me 25 minutes to run and not get wet.  Actually, it's been raining all day, so hopefully it will let up this evening.

2.  My job.  Thankful that I have one.  Paychecks are very nice.  Thankful that I work with friends who help me get through the day and keep me entertained and understand my frustrations.  Every job has frustrations, but we should all be happy to have a job, especially in an economy where so many people don't.

3.  Technology.  Oh, this is another tough one, seeing as my computer at work really test me at times.  It's a necessity, but it really doesn't cooperate with me about 50% of the time.  But where would we be if we didn't have technology?  We'd get by, but we're certainly spoiled by gadgets.  I'd go crazy if I didn't have my phone!

4.  Sad songs.  Odd one to be thankful for, but here is why I am thankful for sad songs: they give you a reason to shed a few tears on emotional days!  They are a great excuse for watery eyes! Lol! But it's true.  Plus, sometimes, they remind you of how good you have it!

5.  Happy songs.  You know, after the sad songs, it's nice to hear a happy one!!  They can make great mood lifters.

6.  Friends.  I'm a lucky girl, and I have many wonderful friends.  I am so thankful that I can pick up the phone, or even walk down the hall, and instantly know that I've got access to some of the best support there is.  Whether it's a laugh, a shoulder, a word of encouragement or an ear, I know I've got the best, and they're always willing and eager to be there for me whenever I'm in need.  :)

7.  I'm thankful that tomorrow is Friday!  That will probably be a reoccurring item!

I'll stop with those for now.  My list goes on and on, so I'm not lacking for next week!


Okay, on to the RODENT!  Lol!!!!

This little guy woke me up about four times last night.  Well, not him, per se... But Mr. Vegas was playing with him, and that woke me up.  You see, this little guy has a rattle in him, and although it's not very loud, something about that sound just wakes me up.  So, I hear the rattle, get out of bed to get the mouse, but can't find him...  Back to bed I go.  This happens a few times.  Then Mr. Vegas changes his game.  He manages to throw the mouse, I think by flinging it by its tail.  Poor mouse hits the wall.  This, too, wakes me up, only this time I have a better idea where it is because I know it hit a wall!  I ended up hiding the mouse and going back to sleep.  I was just a little irritated with the Fuzz Ball.  (Oh, when Vegas was younger, he would play fetch with these mice.  We have many.  Husband or I would throw the mouse over and over again, and each time, he'd bring it back.  I've also been known to find random mice in my purse from time to time. :) It's cute!!)

Vegas made up for waking me up so many times by being cute.  He does that.  We were folding cothes this morning, and...

Yep. He likes to burrow right in the middle of the clothes.  Cute. I know. It's what keeps him around! ;)

Tomorrow is June 1st!  Can you believe that?? I can't! I'm going to try to find another photo challenge for June, and actually complete the assignments on time.  I still want to finish the one that I'm currently working on, but I obviously didn't do that on schedule.  Oh well...  It'll get done. :)  I've got a few more additions for you!

#3. (Something you wore today)

Thank you, Franchesca!  I got these favorites at a swap party...  More on those at another time! Great way to recycle good stuff!!  So glad one of my besties has great taste and small feet!

#9.  (Something you do everyday)

I brush my teeth EVERYDAY (several times, actually), and I hope you do too!  This one really took some thought.  I wanted to post a picture of something that I really do everyday.  There are so many things I think I do everyday, but when it comes down to it, I only do them 99.9% of the time.  So, this was one of the few things that I can honestly say I do everyday!  Not very exciting, but it's at least the truth!
#27. (Something Sweet- I have a few for this one!)

Cupcakes and sharing!!! Both are definitely sweet!! :)
Have a wonderful Thursday!!

Wednesday Golfing

So, today's 1/2 marathon training did get a day off (not on the schedule, but I sort of altered things this week).  But I did manage to get some 'exercise' in!  I don't really consider going to the golfing range exercise, but it is activity and using muscles that don't really otherwise get used, so it's something!  I can definitely see some improvement, especially over where I was a few months ago, but I still have so far to go...  The husband gave me some tips that he learned in his lesson, and, other than trying to think of 100 different things to do and not do, all while, of course, relaxing (ha!), it seemed to go pretty smoothly.  His pointers, along with the ones my dad gives me when we play, have helped me appreciate all that goes into the game, and therefore, makes me appreciate my improvement even more!  One day, I'll be a golfing force to be reckoned with!!  Hehehe...  I do think I managed to break a tee for about every 2 or 3 balls I hit.  :/

But the running will resume tomorrow.  It was fun to get out and do something different for a bit this evening though. :)

Quick Update

Yesterday's run was... Better!!! I didn't push myself, and I stayed at a very steady pace.  It wasn't fast, and I'm not positive as to what it was (I can do some math to figure it out, but haven't yet), but my run was overall much easier and less forced.  Again, my little app decided to start me off from a different location, so before I had even left my driveway, it said I was over .5 miles into my run.  This pretty much messes up any chance that the average pace it calculated for me was accurate.  But even so, the overall feeling was a good one!  I think I may take today off, of just do something light, since I didn't take Monday as a rest day.  Yay for progress!  To be honest, even though it was only week one, I was feeling a bit frustrated with the whole thing, probably due to the fact that I used to run for such longer distances with so much more ease.  I guess taking a break from the elements and sticking with the elliptical for a long stretch of time wasn't the best idea.  Live and learn! 

On to the book... Which also gives me the opportunity to mention that I got up early and didn't just lay there, attempting to fall back asleep- I read, per Dr. Neal's orders to not just lay in bed when I wake up, but to do something to get myself alert.  This is in the hopes that I can get my irregular sleep patterns under control.  (Yes, I could have worked out, gone running or something, but today may be an off day, so I was going with that.  Plus husband has started using the elliptical in the morning, and I don't want to mess up his routine by rushing him to finish up on that.)  So, 50 Shades it was.  This book is NOT for the faint of heart.  It's (my guess) up there with all those trashy romance novels, no offence intended to those who like it or any other trashy romance novels.  I guess they can serve a purpose to their intended audience, which I guess I am not.  The main character, Anastasia, (yep, that's her name, Anastasia Steele- oh so dramatic.  Pretty, but dramatic) is just way, WAY to naive for that name, or for any 21 year old I have ever encountered.   Found out from today's reading that she doesn't have a computer, which is fine, but very uncommon for most graduating college students (she's about to graduate).  I know that there are many students who rely on the school computers, but I just found it to add to her innocence.  Almost as if the author used that fact to make her seem even more childish.  I know I sound insulting, and that's not what I'm intending to do, but let's face it.  It's pretty unrealistic, especially when you look at the rest of her character description and development.  So, Ms. Innocent is thrown into some just plain crazy situation.  Mr. Suave thinks she's the most beautiful thing to grace the world, while she sees herself as mousy.  I guess many girls thing this view of themselves, but to be truthful, pretty girls know they are pretty on some level, and even girls that may not be the most attractive typically do give themselves credit for their other positive qualities.  She doesn't.  I just don't know.  Still have a bunch to read, and I'm getting intrigued, probably because I can only see this book getting getter.  If they'd just shy away from the graphic... umm... intimate (?) discriptions, which they won't, it would have so much more potential.  As I said, this book was written for a certain audience, which is totally fine, but I just don't think I fall into that category.  More to come on this...

Yesterday was a bit of a blah day, but I was able to bet through it with a positive attitude for the most part!  Yay for accomplishing that goal.  Lots of errands to get done today, things at work need to be taken care of...  Today may be a bit less relaxed, which is good.  Maybe my day will fly by, and tonight can be an evening of relaxation.

Possibly more later!  Have a great day!

Oh, Tuesday!!

Today didn't start off as I'd hoped... But that's okay.  There is still plenty of time to make up for all the things that I wanted to get done this morning that just didn't happen.  Dispite going to bed early, I just couldn't get up to run before work, so I will just have to struggle through the heat this evening.  I've done it before; I can do it tonight!

I wanted to add a few pictures from my picture challenge.  I had some great opportunities to get some really great shots this weekend, but I didn't take full advantage of that.  Again, something I need to work on.  But here are some pictures from the challenge, and then a few from this weekend!

#5. (Bird)

It's not very easy to tell, but this is a little glass bird that sits in one of my best friend's and co-worker's plants at work.  For some reason, it always makes me smile!  I've known that this is what I've wanted to use for the bird picture, but it's taken me a while to actually make the effort to take the picture!  Cute little blue bird!!

#11. (Kitchen!)

This is our office coffe pot.  The heavy duty one! It definitely gets its use... It seems to have gotten an especially hard work out today.  Today has been Tired Tuesday! I'm hoping to come up with some other pictures for "kitchen," but this was a pretty important part of today, and it is really what "kitchen" means to us at the Chamber!

#12. (Something that makes you happy.)

Meet Ms. Pepper!  She is the other furry family member in the Bates's house.  She was being extra cute this morning, so I thought she's enjoy having her picture taken!  She is definitely more a fan of my husand than she is of me, but I still get my fair share of love from Pepper.  Bless her heart for putting up with all of Vegas's taunting... Sweet little girl!!

Now, on to some picutures from this weekend!  Like I said, it was jam packed!  But it was fun to see so many people, it just left me exhausted (and I have a feeling that it left the rest of my friends feeling pretty much the same).

This would be me, Kim and Franchesca!

This would me me and the husband!! <3

And back to Kim and Franchesca!  Silly girls!  I love them so much!

I took many more, but these are some of my favorites!

I also took some in Crockett.

Kris and me

Don, Jaxson (sweetie pie) and Kris.

I had a feeling today may be a bit of a struggle, so I set a goal for myself today.  I'm big on setting goals and writing them down.  Today's goal (I even wrote it in my little bedside notebook before getting up) is to get through today with a positive attitude.  So far, I'm doing pretty good!  Of course, that goal is in addition to all the other goals I've set for today, like running, drinking more water, getting some errands out of the way and getting to bed early...  Sometimes you have to remind yourself to be in a good mood.  It's easy to let the tired take over and make you moody.  I've found that if you recognize that you're allowing that to happen, you can often change your attitude, and therefore your day! So, in theory, pretty much every day can be a good one!  My challenge for you is to try to make every moment a happy one.  I know that's asking a lot, so start small.  When something isn't going well, redirect your focus to something positive, or try to find the sliver lining to the not so great path things seem to be taking.  It's worth a shot, right? :)

Oh, and there was something else I wanted to include in this post!  My soon to be book club friend, Rosary, has a really great blog that I'l like to link to here!  She and I share a love of books, and we have a similar taste in books.  Her site is full of recipes, book reviews, etc...  She also is a runner, so she's a go to for support!  Chck out he blog! I bet you'll find something on there that catches your eye!  Plus, my dad and I photographed her wedding, and she's got pictures that my dad (mostly) and I took that day!  I love that she loves them so much.  She made the most beautiful bride! :)  It was such a fun day and a wonderful experience.  I'm so glad I got to be part of it!

Happy Memorial Day!

First of all, I'd like to wish everyone a Happy Memorial Day!  I hope that everyone has taken some time to be thankful for all the brave men and women who have given their lives for us or have served our country in some way.  Thank you!

We come, not to mourn our dead soldiers, but to praise them. -Francis A. Walker

This has been one very, very busy long weekend.  We celebrated a friend's big 40th birthday in Houston on Saturday, and then on Sunday, we drove to Crockett to spend some time with our friends, Don and Kris.  While in Crockett, we also got to spend some timewith some new friends, Jeff and Michelle (actually, we'd met them once before, almost two years ago).  When we met Jeff and Michelle, they had just found out she was pregnant!  And yesterday, we got to meet Jaxson!!!  Precious, precious!!!  Really, the most well behaved, happy child I've seen!  I'm in love!! 

Even with all the traveling, I managed to get all the training in!  (I even got on the elliptical today to make up for eating pretty unhealthy, but very tasty, things.)  I know today was supposed to be a rest day, but guilt got me... :/

I was really hoping that Saturday's run would be great!  It wasn't.  It wasn't terrible at all, but it wasn't great either.  My little app that I put on my phone to track my pace and distance somehow got messed up, so I don't have a very accurate picture of how the run actually went.  All I know for sure is that I ran for 22 minutes, which is well over the two miles that the schedule called for, but not knowing my pace and exact distance is irritating. 

I haven't taken a day off of the weight training since Friday, and I think my body is asking for one.  I'm pretty sore.  I may skip the weights here and there.  I don't want to over do it.  But I can now say that I have a week of following the schedule under my belt!  It wasn't too hard, and I think I'm off to a nice start!  I'm excited to see how next week (really this week) goes.  I've noticed how much easier the elliptical is.  30 minutes on that thing is NOTHING compared to running, especially in this heat.  I don't dread the elliptical at all.  Now, I'm just hoping (and expecting) the running to get easier.  It's so strange...  In the past, running was much easier.  Maybe that's just my memory of it?  Not sure... But I don't remember it being such a challenge.

I've started another book while my soon to be book club friend finishes up what she's currently reading.  One of these days we'll both finish our books around the same time and be able to read one simultaneously!  I'm almost embarrassed to actually say what I'm reading, but oh well!  I'm reading 50 Shades of Grey.  Knowing nothing about this book, I put it on my list of potential reads after seeing it on Pinterest quite a bit.  I kept hearing the title here and there, so it seemed like the new "it" book.  Then I found out what it's about...  Sort of.  Then I had a friend tell me she's reading it and how her friend just could not put it down.  She encouraged me to read it because she was interested in my take on it, and she gave an a general idea of what it's about.  Not what I was expecting, but I decided to give it a chance.  So far, I'm not all that impressed.  Okay, I'm only a few chapters into it, but it seems like it's going to be very predictable.  The main character is a bit too sheltered to be believable, but I'll give it  a bit more of a chance before I really form an opinion.  Surely it's popular for a reason, other than the main male character is supposed to be this ultra suave gazillionaire.  More to come on that.

Back to this weekend, Michelle is an avid blogger, and I'm catching up on her blog and learning a lot about her!  Sounds a bit stalkerish- sorry Michelle! :)  But she's got some great challenges, crafts, recipes, and tons of other fun things on her blog, and I'm really enjoying it! Here is a link to her blog, if  you're interested: Michelle's Blog. Her and Jeff also took tons of pictures of Jaxson.  I love that!!  I was thisclose to bringing my camera to Crockett, but at the last minute, I decided not to.  I wish I had!  I want to start taking it with me more often.  She suggested I put photography tips on my blog, so I'll probably do that from time to time.  Maybe I'll get some feedback, too!  You never stop learning!

Updates, updates!

And it's only been, what? Two days? As I've said, life move at a pretty quick pace. So, obviously a lot has gone on (or so it seems).

1/2 Marathon training:  I'm trying to recruit as many people as I can to join this race.  I'm not really sure why... I am very self confident when it comes to this.  I know I can and will do it.  I just want some friends suffering with me.  AND I want some friends to have the same feeling of accomplishment that I will when it is said and done.  I think that, in order to really appreciate something, you should experience it.  I want to experience this with people I love and am close with.  I want those gross sweaty hugs.  I will be super proud of myself for accomplishing this task on my own (which seems crazier and crazier every day), but I just know it will be so awesome to share that experience with someone else. So, that's why I push all of those that I love and know can do it if they start training soon, to sign up!  I'm not really all that much of an athletic person, but I'm going to do this.  If I'm encouraging you, that means I know you have what it takes. 

Now, on to some slightly less positive news...  Yesterday's run was PATHETIC.  Did I accomplish my scheduled goal?  Yes.  Was it less than I'd hoped for?  Most certainly. :/ How did I compensate for this?  I jumped on the elliptical and did an extra 20 minutes of cardio, knowing that today (Friday) was my rest day.  (Oh, thank God for rest days...  I combine all my workouts with some strength training, so there is obviously additional strain on my body.  I woke up this morning, and my entire back was just sore...  Then I noticed my arms were sore...  It's a geat thing, but it was certainly not expected.)  All in all, yesterday was a combination of sad, sad jogging (not running, despite my effort), 20 minutes on the elliptical (in the a.c., in front of the t.v., with water in reach) and some strength training.

Today... NOTHING!  Completely took advantage of REST!!!  Well, I did take the stairs, which is a no-no, but I'm just not at the point where I will go out of my way to get to the elevator to avoid the stairs just yet plus taking the stairs is habit.  I feel great!!! Sore from the weight training mostly, but so ready for my run tomorrow morning.  Just hoping it goes better than last Saturday's run.  I don't see it being much worst.  And I'm looking forward to it, so it hopefully will be a nice improvement. 

Next update: Reading!!  I finally finished my book.  I was reading Mockingjay, which is the third, and final, book in the hunger games trilogy.  This book got a whole lot of negative reviews.  So... going into it, I was very skeptical.  I was skeptical even though I was getting those more negative reviews from people who enjoy a much different reading style than I do.  Although I doubt that there are many people read this blog, I do feel the need to issues a ***SPOILER ALERT***!!!  for anyone who may fall upon this blog while not having finished all the books.  Yes, this book was slower.  I was talking to my friend about it, and we both agreed that this book was almost one that should belong in a different series.  Not because the story wavered, but because it very much changed direction.  The tone was so different, it was as if the book belonged in a different genre.  There was action in the third book, but Mockingjay way not action packed.  There was a lot of down time.  A lot of character development, some of which wasn't for the best.  My views of certain characters changed drastically, and I was unhappy with the ending in many aspects, while at the same time, finding satisfaction with how Collins decided to end her story.  The ending just didn't live up to th rest of the story, and it was totally unexpected.  Maybe she wanted to just throw a wrench in the story?  If I had that much brilliance stored in my head, I hope I would have gone out with a BANG!!!  I think it ran its course.  Any more would have been over kill.  Maybe.  Maybe that is the problem.  But who likes to invest their time in a book to be left with thoughts of, "Oh, I wish she'd done this...", or "Really?  You're going to end like THAT?!?"  That being said,  it's a great series.  Easy read for fast readers, which I am not, but still an easy read for me.  Very entertaining.   And how can you not read it?  It's everywhere!!!

On to pictures!!!
All these are Instagram pics, but like I said, I think Instagram is a new favorite of mine!! So, back to the challenge:

#6 (pink):
I love LOVE BRIGHT pink lipstick!!!  It's fun!  Enought said...  ;)

#20 (Something you can't live without)

My lips are destroyed from golfing using chapstick w/o spf...  Learned my lesson.  Now it's ultra moisturizer, with SPF, ALL the time!!!

#12 (Something that makes you happy) Again, this is one that you may see pop up again!
Mr. Vegas!  On occasion, he has been known to get a bit cuddly.  It's true!!

I guess that's all for now.... Here's to hoping tomorrow's run is very much a success... :)

Fun in the Sun: My Camera and Me

As I mentioned, I love photography.  I even said that at some point I planned on doing the 30 (I thought it was 31 days, but whatever) day photo challenge.  Instead of making it a challenge (I really don't have time to get a picture every day that goes along with the picture you're supposed to take that day), I'm using the picture challenges as inspiration or ideas. Here they are:

1. peace
2. skyline
3. something worn today
4. fun
5. bird
6. you
7. someone that inspires you
8. a smell you adore
9. something you do every day
10. a favorite word
11. kitchen
12. something that makes you happy
13. mom
14. grass
15. love
16. what you're reading
17. snack
18. something you made
19. a favorite place
20. something you can't live without
21. where you stand
22. pink
23. technology
24. unusual
25. 12:00
26. something sweet
27. the weather today
28. a number
29. your personality
30. something beautiful

(I've also started a list of inspirational ideas to spark some creativity after I've accomplished these.) 

After my training today (which went pretty well), I took advantage of the really nice sunlight and took some pictures.  :) Very happy to have officially started this challenge!  These were taken with my "big girl" camera, not the Iphone (haha), but have had no editing done to them.  Literally taken straight from the camera to the computer to upload here and to facebook!  I love it when pictures turn out really great with little or no editing.  Not that I don't love all the great things you can do with Photoshop or Lightroom, but there is something about a plain, non altered picture!

#6. (you) That would be me!  Or part of me! :)

#7. (someone that inspires you) That goofy guy behind me is my crazy, but very inspirational and motivating husband.  Terrible, TERRIBLE pic of me, but I love it because he intentionally did everything he could to surprise me when I looked through the pics!! Love him!! <3

Don't be surprised if there are some other pics of people that inspire me... I am surrounded by inspirational people.  I'm lucky like that. But he's definitely someone that helps keep me going when I'm lacking the motivation to go on...  Sometimes by simply serving as an example because he is so determined in all he does.  For example, he was working on "Project Jeep."  He's very committed to the things he sets his mind to.

#15. (love)  So, I'm definitely not techno savvy, but even so, it is slightly embarassing that I, just this morning, (while still in bed) downloaded Instagram to my phone, especially considering how much I use the camera on my phone... (Better late than never!) So, I will take full advantage of this really cool app! 

Okay, on to the picture...  Pretty obvious.  My wedding ring and engagement ring. Perfect. Beautiful.  I love them.  I've loved them since the moment I got each of them (even though it took some adjusting to the actual wedding band.)  Our engagement story is really cute!  Maybe one day I'll post it!  Let's just say that the hubby did a great job, and I was totally shocked!!

This picture was taken today while I was in a parking lot, but I love how it turned out.  I'm an instant fan on Instagram!

My wedding ring (and engagement ring) symbolize love to me.  They are also an outward sign that I've found love and so has the great guy who put them on my finger.


I've taken a few other pictures that could fill some of the other 30 challenge categories, but I'm not sure I'm completely sold on those yet, so instead of trying to just get the challenge completed (which timing obviously has nothing to do with; it's quality really), I'll post some other pics that I took today that I really like!  I hope you enjoy!

 Cheers!!  Happy Hump Day!

Juggling Act

As I mentioned, I've known that I'm going to have to do some sort of juggling act in order to get the marathon training in, while making all my after hours work events, having a social life and remaining relaxed.  I don't do too well with too much stress or too much on my plate.  Since yesterday was the official 29 week out marker, I've still got plenty of time to get ready for the race, but I know that I'll always have conflicts.  Tomorrow, for example, I have an event to attend for work after work.  After a full work day and an event, working out, even if it's just a short run and some weights, is just not going to happen.  Not yet at least.  Hopefully, my attitude on that will change, or I'll gain the necessary determination and endurance to make it happen.  But I'm not there yet.  Another advantage of starting so early is that I can ease into the "official training schedule."  That being said, one of the main objectives of following a schedule is to prevent injury.  This schedule requires you to take certain days off to keep you from overdoing it and straining muscles or doing something else damaging.  This leaves me at a crossroads.  Do I take today off, as the schedule says, in the hopes that I'll magically get my butt out of bed early enough to get tomorow's work out (short run) in in the morning, or do I do it today, knowing that most likely, even if I'm up in enough time, I won't be able to pull that off yet.

I've done good for the past two days.  Done pretty much what the schedule instructs, but working the wedding turned out to be a lot more actual work than I'd planned, so it almost counts as a workout in itself.  So, when I look at it like that, there is an additional workout.  Not cardio, but definitely strength and endurance (carrying around a heavy camera for hours, holding it in odd positions, kneeling, squatting... Really, it adds up, and you feel it the next day!).  Nonetheless, the wedding was fun, and we all had a really good tme! :) Congrats to David and Becca!  Hopefully we captured their day just as they wanted it captured.  The venue was very unique and pretty, but it wasn't set up all that well for lighting properly.  My dad should have his hands full in photoshop making corrections where our lighting let us down!  On a fun note: He sent me home with some fun new camera equipment to play around with!!  Hopefully I'll get around to creating some fun pics that I can post on here.  I found this 31 day photo challenge that I've been wanting to do...  But, of course, that takes time.  So many things I want to do, not quite enough time to get them all done in a timely manner!

So, I feel like I'm off to a good start with the working out with the 1/2 marathon in mind.  Now, on to some goals I've set for myself this week:

• Get the number of workouts in that I'm supposed to.  Hopefully as close to what the training schedule calls for as possible (i.e. running the right distance, sticking to the right days), but even if it isn't exaclty what the schedule calls for, I'd like to get them all in in some way, shape, form or fashion.
• Drink more water.
• Finish the book I'm reading!!!  I'm ready to start this book club!
• Work on photography, possibly starting with the 31 day challenge.  (I'll post more about that later.  It's nothing hard.  It mainly just gives you inspiration for pictures, but gives you complete freedom with all aspects of the photo for each day.)

So, that's all for now!  Let's see how this week goes! :)

UPDATE: Well, I managed to pull off tomorrow's run today since I'll most likely NOT get it done tomorrow.  I only did the 2 miles that the schedule said to do (and then came in and did some weights and abs- not many, but enough of an additional workout to count it! :), but it was HARD!!  I had almost convinced myself not to do it, as my car thermometer said it was 105 degrees!  My car is black, so that must have something to do with that because the temp dropped to 93 degrees before I got to the second light on my way home.  So I convinced myself to do it.  Like I said, it wasn't easy, but I did it.  My time wasn't great.  Maybe because it was so hot, maybe because today should have been my rest day...  I don't know, but it doesn't matter.  This will get easier.  This will get easier.  This will get easier. 

What am I doing?

Well, I'm blogging! Or trying to, at least! I've thought about starting a blog for long enough, and now I've finally just decided to jump right into it... That, and I finally have things that some people may find interesting enough to read about. Maybe. So, what are these things?

• I've signed up for my first 1/2 marathon, so I plan on writing about the process of training for that (I started today, and I've learned that I'm nowhere near as ready as I thought I was. Good thing the race is 29 weeks away.)


• Also, I love to read. I'm in the process of starting up a little book club with a friend of mine. That is if I can ever find the time to finish the book I'm currently reading so that we can start a book around the same time. So, this may be somewhat of a book blog at some point.


• And... I'm learning to play golf. It's fun to talk about how terrible I am and how excited I am when I see little improvements.


• Photography! I love photography and take pictures quite a bit. My dad is a photographer, and we shoot events, mainly weddings, together. But I am always taking pictures. Love my Iphone camera, and I use it more than most people- it's just so convenient. (Don't worry, I don't use my Iphone professionally. I am a Canon girl .)

Those are the things that came to mind as I signed up for this. I'm sure that this will not revolve solely on those interests of mine, but it gives you a general idea.

So, I'm going to start with this whole half marathon training thing. I love working out, running, being in shape, being outside, so it may seem odd that I'll be 28 when I compete in my first race. I don't like competition and am not a competivive person at all, so maybe that's why I've never done one before. But then I started spending more and more time around other runners, and I guess I got the bug! I signed up for the B/CS 1/2 Marathon the first day possible and told pretty much everyone. Accountable now!!! Today was the first day of what I am calling my "official training." Today, I wanted to guage where I am. I've never really tracked my pace or distance, other than on our elliptical, which I can pretty much guarantee isn't all that accurate. I downloaded an app that tracks pace, distance, etc. I've taken a few days off from working out. More than normal. I think I took about 4 days off straight. Not by choice, but work and other things just got in the way. (I'm going to have to find a way to manage my time better in order to get all the workouts in, while still having a life and going to all my work events- work keeps me pretty busy.) So, first thing this morning- out of bed, ate a little (can't run on a full stomach, and I can't run with nothing in my system), and off I went. Okay, the results were not at all close to what I had expected or hoped for. I'm blaming the time off and the lack of energy for my slow pace and the level of difficulty I had with my run today. I know I'm going to have to run in the mornings in order to stay on track and make this happen. I'm just going to tell myself that it's going to get easier. And despite the diffculty I had today, I still finished my run! Good for me!

I'm sitting around, about to head to Houston to shoot a wedding this evening. This should be fun. I'll get to spend some time with my parents and have a little fun at the wedding. (It's not strictly a work wedding- my parents' neighbor's son is getting married, and my dad is pretty much doing all the work, and I just get to play around and shoot what interests me. Shooting a wedding solo is very difficult. So much is constantly going on, and you can only be in one place at a time, so it's good to have more than one camera capturing as much as possible. I'm also going to serve as my mom's date.)

I would be out on the golf course right about now if it weren't for the wedding. Golf is a relatively new thing for my husband and me. I grew up with my dad golfing all the time, but it never interested me (not competitive, remember...). But this year for my dad's birthday, my husband and I took him and my mom golfing... And that bug bit us both. Especially my husband, who bought clubs on the way home (not really, but close... I think it was maybe 3 or 4 days later) and has played nearly every weekend since. I've played almost every other weekend, but today he's out with a friend on the golf course! I reminded him to wear sunscreen. With all the time outside, we're doing everything to prevent really terrible tan lines. Despite the sunscreen, I still managed to get slightly tanned legs while keeping very pale feet. :( But as terrible as that is, golf is fun, and it's really a great feeling when you actually notice improvement. And there has been much improvement for the both of us. I still don't keep score, but my husband knocks at least a few strokes off his game each week. Or so it seems! So glad we started at the same time. It's pretty cool to have something that we are learning together.

And, if I weren't typing, I'd be reading... So, I think I pretty much touched on all the topics I said I would be writing about! Look at that!!