Can You Tell I’m Excited???

I’ve been up since 6:30am… I wish I could say it was because I went for a run this morning. But no, I had to take Lexi to The Cat Practice, where I’m boarding her. I like to call it “Kitty Summer Camp”… I’m really nervous – I’ve never boarded her before and she hasn’t been around other cats since I adopted her at 8 weeks! I hope she does okay and doesn’t hate me when I get back from vacation!

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Vacation time is almost here! Ryan and I just have to get through today and then we’re off to the West Coast at 7am! We’re going to be in Seattle for a couple of days and then my parents are going to come up and pick us up (from the Mariners game) and we’ll all head to Oregon. I cannot wait for this trip!!! We have been planning it forever! Ryan has never been to Seattle so there will be lots of sight seeing and we’re going to the Dave Matthews concert at the Gorge!

How awesome does this look!? AMAZING! We’ll be there Friday! I also can’t wait for my annual pool party at my parent’s house, wine tasting with my family! And my friend Abby’s wedding! (We have a lot planned… It’s going to be a VERY BUSY TRIP!)

I’m famous.

So… I’m totally famous.

My picture is in New York Runner magazine 🙂 This photo was taken at the New York Mini 10k, my very first race as a New York Flyer! (Thanks Elisha for letting me know!!)

Saturday was the Percy Sutton 5K race which was part of Harlem Week. It was a very humid morning and the course was hilly but I powered through and finished in 21:47 – a 7:02 pace! First woman Flyer, 23rd in my age group! 
After the race I ran some more miles with a new Flyer friend and totaled 11 miles for the day.
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After running I didn’t really do anything…. I did try out this face mask thing… My Mom had sent it to me awhile go – so instead of spending $150 at a spa, I did it myself!

I watched a lot of TV and then it was time to get ready for my friend Lisa’s end of summer party. We all had a lot of fun and it was great to see friends from college. 

And now… I just need to get ready for vacation!!! One more day of work!!!

Getting the Miles

Saturday I’m supposed to run 14 miles.
PS – I’m running a 5K Saturday morning…

Here’s my plan on getting those miles.

Run to the race (4 miles), run the race (3.1 miles), run back to my apartment (4 miles), run at the gym (3 miles). 14 miles total. Easy, right?!

It will definitely make the actual running of the 14 miles seem shorter since it’ll be broken up into parts. 

I’m racing in the Percy Sutton Harlem 5K. I haven’t raced a 5K race in a very long time so I don’t really know how to approach my pace. One thing I am excited about is that the race is not in Central Park. Most of the races run by NYRR are in the park so it’ll be fun to see a different part of the city.

I will have to remember that I’ll be running seven miles after the race… Lots of factors here.

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Saturday night Ryan and I are going to our friend’s end of summer party and then Sunday I’m hoping to pack for our trip!!! I can’t wait!

I’m in love!!! … with a water bottle

I bought this Brita water bottle on Saturday (during my 5 million errands) and it has not left my side. I’m in love with it. It filters tap water into clean delicious water. I’m obsessed. (Family – you’ll probably be getting one for Christmas)

Sunday was an AWESOME day. I woke up nice and early (5:15am) to lead the second NYRR Long Training Run. I had a blast! The 15 miles went by so fast. I have to say my group was the best. 8:30 pace Group 2! THE BEST. Everyone was so nice and we all basically talked and hung out – while running of course… 🙂

I have been wanting to go see the Schiaparelli and Prada exhibit for a long time and yesterday was the last day of the exhibit! After pace leading I showered, ate quickly and headed over to the Met. I did not want to sit for too long or I knew I would not get up… And I couldn’t miss it!

Surprisingly the museum wasn’t too busy. I get cranky very quickly when places are crowed (ie the subway). The exhibit was awesome and I was sad they didn’t have more clothing to showcase. I also went to the modern art wing and the european artists wing. 

This was such a great weekend and honestly I’m not that upset that it’s Monday. I got so much done and accomplished this weekend that I’m ready to take on this week. Oh, and it probably also helps that my vacation begins next Wednesday!!!!

TGIF

I am beyond happy it’s Friday. Two reasons. Weekend!!!! AND just two more days of the Olympics! Don’t get me wrong. I love the Olympics. BUT having a job that revolves around the Olympics is not fun. It’s stressful and a lot of work. The five hour time difference doesn’t help either. 

This weekend I’ll be going to Ryan’s house in New Jersey. I can’t wait to relax! I’ll have to run and do some work but it’s going to be a great weekend and much-needed. (and I’ve missed the puppy!!!)

Lots of running will be happening until the end of August (pace leading, one race and long runs) and then we’ll (Ryan and I) be off on our Washington/Oregon Trip!!! We’re both super excited! Lots of planning has happened and we’re going to be fitting a lot into an eight-day trip. A Dave Matthews Band Concert, visiting Space Needle and downtown Seattle, hiking, my friend’s wedding, wine tasting with my parents, my annual pool party, and more! I can’t wait!!!! I really do love the West Coast a whole lot more than the East Coast 🙂

Happy Friday Everyone!

Rum Run Re-Cap

10K (and a little bit) Rum Run Re-Cap!

This was a fun race. Fun because my family and friends were there to cheer me on and two of my friends ran the race!

The actual running of on the race was hard. Really hard. At one point I stopped and walked… I think lack of sleep, traveling and going out Friday night to celebrate my friend Tracy’s birthday were all against me. I also didn’t look at the course map and there were some monster hills in this race!

Right after finishing the race.. not a happy camper

Surprisingly I got first in my age group!!!! I could not believe it! My time was 48 minutes flat with a pace of 7:29 for 6.4 miles. My friend Tom ran with me most of the way and I know he pushed me to run faster so – Thanks Tom!!! I’m still in disbelief! I got a medal and everything! 

I had a great time at home in Oregon and I can’t wait to be back there in three short months! I know the time will fly by with my marathon training starting up in July, speed sessions with the New York Flyers and a couple of races thrown in there too!

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Tonight I’m going on the NYRR Mini fun run which coincides with the 10K Mini on June 9th. We’ll be running an easy three miles in the park. I think some famous women runners will be there too!

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Next race: NYRR 10K Mini – June 9th! My first official race as a New York Flyer! 

I’m on the team!

Guess what!??? I finally joined a New York running team!

The New York Flyers!!

I’ve been researching for a while now trying to figure out which team would best suit me and I kept coming back to the Flyers. I’m really excited and I can’t wait to go on group runs and race for the team!!! 

Yesterday I signed up for my summer races (go check out my races page) and I loved being able to put down a team. I’m on a running team! Too crazy! I even get a uniform…pretty cool, right!? I also got a shout out on the team’s web site:

This weekend I’m off to Boston to visit my friend Lauren. We studied abroad together in London and were basically inseparable those 4 months. It’s been WAY too long and I CANNOT wait to see her!! It’s also my first time to Boston!

Weekend Getaway – now back to work

We’re back from Cold Spring!

Ryan and I had a wonderful time and I kind of wish we were still there relaxing, hiking, eating and sleeping. But it’s back to work and back to running! The half marathon is on Saturday, so my plan is to run today (Monday), go to spin class on Tuesday morning, run on Thursday and then race on Saturday! It’s suppose to be rainy all week so I’ll be on the treadmill… I really hope there’s no rain on Saturday!

Here are some photos from our hike!

The view from the top!

Show those hills who’s boss

This trip was great! (minus piriformis syndrome when I got back…)

The weather was just perfect, I was able to see friends and family, run a half-marathon and go out and be social! Who says you can’t have your cake and eat it too!

The Red Rock Hotel was super nice. I loved the view from our room and the bathroom was super big and nice 🙂

For dinner Thursday night we went to Hash House A Go Go. I think they called it Southern farm food.

I got the chicken and waffles. HUGE portions. Super good but I would recommend splitting an entrée! As you can see I was a little overwhelmed…

Friday we walked around the strip for a while and then Ashley (far left) and I had to leave the group to pick up our race packets and have dinner with my parents!

Lucky number 238!

After a delicious pasta dinner at Terra Rosa (restaurant in our hotel) it was time to get ready for race day! We laid out all our stuff and lights were out at 8:30pm! Wake up call at 4:30am!!

My parents surprised Ashley and I with Red Rock wine as a congrats on the race! It’s a whole theme on this trip… Red Rock hotel, Red Rock half marathon, Red Rock wine… (went off on a tangent there)

Back to the race! The start was a little unorganized compared the all the NYRR Races I’ve run but still started on time. This was the smallest race I’ve been in. Ashley and I were talking at the start and then someone just yelled GO! and we were off!

Though this was probably the hardest race I have run I LOVED IT. The views were amazing and I love really giving something your all and succeeding. At times during the race I was all alone just running in the desert… pretty cool

I finally got a running photo! score!

With the elevation being way higher than New York breathing was the most difficult part of the race. Running up hills and not being able to get a deep breath is a little scary.

My pace was all over the place during the race. At the steepest hill I looked down and my Garmin said 10 min pace, and the last 3 miles I was anywhere between a 7 min and 8 min pace.

I think one of my favorite memories of the race was about 25 yards to go and my Dad yelled out my name – we waved at each other and then I saw my Mom at the finish line cheering me on! Best parents ever!!!

I would definitely run this race again. Though it really beat me up I want to run it again and show those hills who’s boss 😉

Red Rock 2013! Anyone wanna join me?!

Cupcakes

My vacation began yesterday after work. 5:01pm!!! It was time to relax and enjoy! What better way to do that then by enjoying a cupcake, of course!

Ashley (also running Red Rock) and I went to Sprinkles. She got red velvet and I got pumpkin. THEY WERE AMAZINGGGG!!

Here I am… 6am ready for my trip! After trying to take a picture of myself several times I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m horrible at it. I hate this picture but I tried multiple times so it’s going up.

I’m not taking my computer with me so you’ll all get the full trip details once I get back! I hope you all have a great week!