May & June Update

Oh, hey blog! How are you? No, I haven't forgotten about you.  I've just neglected you a little...(ok, a lottle!).  Please forgive me.  And remember that my Instagram and Tumblr do get some more love than you.

Well, I actually had these pictures saved as a draft to post over a month ago.  The first three are from Welcome to Rockville, and the others are from my graduation weekend.

Welcome to Rockville - I was going to give a much bigger recap on this, but it's been so long!  It was in Jacksonville, FL April 30 and May 1.  Here is the line-up, if you want to take a look.  Now, I'll say first and foremost that this is not my type of music; it is, however Will's favorite.  He won tickets on the radio and Jacksonville is only about a 2-hour drive away, so I had no real excuses not to go.  Let me tell you, though - I. Was. TERRIFIED.  I was terrified of mosh pits and violent music and loud music and violent people, etc.  Nothing was as I expected.  Ok, the music was loud.  I think I yelled at people for a week after I got home.  But the people were beyond amazing.  I only met one rude person the whole weekend, and we talked to a ton of people (Will is a talker).  People were so nice and supportive and offered protection and assurances that I wouldn't become involved in mosh pits.  We were literally right next to one during Five Finger Death Punch, and Disturbed was insanity.  Other than that, we were far enough in the front that we avoided it.  We were even in the front row for a lot of shows!  Anyway, enough rambling.  It was one of the most amazing and life changing experiences that I've had, and I really want to go back next year!

Still not sure about all this

Front row at Enter Shikari - LOVED them

Front row at Parkway Drive - his favorite

Then, the next weekend I graduated! It's been a crazy journey.  I started at this college in August 2012.  I've gone literally every semester since then.  I was a nursing major, then a biology major, then an early education major, and finally graduated with a BSED in Middle Grades Education with concentrations in science and math, and a minor in Psychology.  And not to brag, but I was Magna Cum Laude as well!  My aunt and uncle and my brother were able to come down from New England, which made the weekend even more special.  Friday we went to a local super small aquarium and for a little nature walk, then had a pinning ceremony at school, then went out to a delicious dinner.  Saturday morning was graduation, which his parents and little brother also went to, and an amazing lunch at The Pink House in downtown Savannah.

I don't have any pictures of it here (I really didn't take many), but the next week Will and I went on a 5 day Carnival Cruise to the Bahamas.  It was so great to get away and not have to do anything.  On every break from school I've been working or dog sitting or had something to do, so to just relax with no responsibilities was something very foreign to me!

However, rest time was soon over and on June 8th I started an online program at the University of Georgia to get my M.Ed. in Educational Psychology of Gifted and Creative Students.  It's super intense, and I'm taking a larger course load than normal this summer.  It's a lot of work, but I'm learning a ton!

Dad, Mom, and my "furry sister" Savannah

Me, brother (David) and my Uncle Doug

Dad, David, Mom, me, Aunt Jean, Uncle Doug

Proud parents!

All decorated!

Teacher friends waiting to be called

Clearly, they were paying attention

Silly faces back at home!

As far as running goes, since that is the reason for this blog, uhm...I haven't been.  April 16th, I think, is the last time I ran when I did a 5k with Will and his brother Trace.  I then was just too tired, had almost two weeks of vertigo, hurt my foot (walking down a set of 4 stupid stairs), went on a cruise, then it's just been so hot!  I'm considering starting a 5k plan next week which would train me for one at the end of the summer, but I'm just going to take it as it goes.  I have been doing Crush Booty Boot Camp, though! I was doing it fairly regularly until school started and have slowed down since then.  I'm figuring out the school/life balance right now.

In August, I'll start at a local Catholic school teaching 6th through 8th grade both math and science.  Planning for that will start super soon!  I'm excited and terrified all at the same time.

So, there's an update on the past two months.

Have I missed anything big with you?
Lauren

Sunday Summary

Monday 4/4 - Crush Chest.  I'm re-re-re-re-restarting Crush, hopefully for the last time.  The plan currently is to run 3-4 times a week and do Crush 2-3 times a week.  We'll see how it goes!

Tuesday 4/5 - Nothing.  Was absolutely exhausted.  I seem to have issues with exhaustion lately.  I really need to get in to a GP and have levels of everything checked, just in case.  It doesn't seem to matter if I get 4 hours of sleep or 9, I'm the same level of tired.

Wednesday 4/6 - 3 mile walk with a few minutes of jogging thrown in.  The fiance and I are down to one car right now.  School is over at 3:15, he gets off at 5.  For the most part, I've been using this time wisely and working out!

Thursday 4/7 - Crush Back Day.  Love this branch of the gym more than ours.  At least at this time of day.  This was a good workout!!

Friday 4/8 - Crush Booty Boot Camp Performance Day.  Clearly, I was dying.  Then after school, a super slow 2 mile run.



Saturday 4/9 - 5k! It was for the fiance's little brother's school, so I talked them into doing it with me. It was little brother's first 5k (he's 14) and fiance's first since probably high school.  Clearly, he was super excited.  I had a decent time, at least for the week after a half!




Overall, it was a good week.  I worked out more than normal and felt pretty good in my workouts!

Lauren

Savannah Women's Half 4/2/16

April 2 was the second annual Savannah Women's Half Marathon, and like in the first year I ran it again with Cori!  

Overall, it was a good race! My ultimate everything is perfect goal was 3:15, but my realistic goal was 3:30.  I came in at 3:30:41 but my Garmin read almost a quarter mile long, so I claim goal accomplished!

I have many similar thoughts about the race as last year.

Pros:

- Super cute participant bags instead of tee's

- Awesome race gear selection

- Mimosas at the finish line

- Amazing water stop volunteers

- The race directors really really listen to their participants, such as fixing the finish line to have enough mimosas for ALL participants (even at almost 4 hours in)

Cons:

- Far too many out and backs

- I know I'm contradicting myself here BUT the awesome race gear selection does NOT come in curvy-friendly sizes

- Tents and other finish line things (besides mimosas) coming down before all racers were done

Thursday night we went to the New Balance Girls Night Out at Fleet Feet.  It involved champagne, marshmallows, and giggles!  It was a fun event and I'm glad we got out and went.  We also got new sports bras!!  

Mmmm, so good

Friday afternoon after school we went to the expo.  I'm really not a huge fan of this expo.  The only "booths" I bothered with were Savannah Rae's Gourmet Popcorn and the New Balance official race merchandise area.  Will got a Himalayan Sea Salt thing, but other than that it was a pretty boring expo if we're being honest here.

Blurry expo pic

Saturday morning, we got to Forsyth around 30 minutes before the race started and got a really good parking spot on the street.  We used the bathrooms VERY last minute and ended up starting almost literally last.  Despite that, the course really never seemed crowded.  I did start my watch too late and it didn't pick up GPS. At 1 mile I decided to start it anyway so I could at least have my intervals instead of trying to guess them, and lo and behold it had signal!  I did pretty well at a slow and steady pace throughout the race, and held on mentally and physically for longer than I expected.

We're ready!

Ok, guess it's real now!

Yes, I Snapchat and run

Still going strong

That's me in the teal on the far right

They let me give her her medal!

Yay, we're done!

My arch did act up a bit...

Mmmm, mimosas!

She doesn't know about this picture...

11 halfs/halves later!

Today, I'm linking up with Tuesdays on the Run hosted by Patty, Erika, and Marcia.  They're talking about 2016 goal updates.  But, uhm, I have none.  So here's a recap instead!!

Lauren

Tie it Up Tuesday (with an Exciting Announcement!)

Y'all, it's been a busy time.  I still owe you a 10k recap too.  But today this summary is being linked up with Tuesdays on the Run hosted by Patty, Erika, and Marcia.  They're talking about favorite medals, but I have some other bling to share! Ok, this isn't really running related...please forgive me.

I'm going to break it down this way.

Monday is the only day I worked out - Crush Legs (killer!). 

From Sunday 2/14 through today 2/23, my steps have been as follows: 2,333; 10,000; 10,119; 13,417; 10,706; 21,066; 25,886; 2,790; 10,097; 12,244.

Thursday night after school, we got in the car and drove south to Orlando.  Sadly, it wasn't for runDisney Princess Half Marathon, although I dearly wish it was.  Those of you with those new Little Mermaid medals - I envy you!  We were headed to Universal!  Will's mom, dad, and little brother had gotten there about two hours before us.  That night started with an overpriced hotel dinner and a surprise shot of Patron (that was probably at least 2, if not 3 - thanks, babe).

Friday we got to Universal around 9:30 am.  We started with Cinnabon (mmmm) and headed off to Islands of Adventure.  I had a very insistent boyfriend saying we needed to get our wands before anything else.  While I was excited (the wands are interactive y'all and I was ready to do magic!), I didn't understand the rush and why we couldn't even do the Suess ride his brother desperately wanted to.  We got to Ollivander's in Hogsmeade, got in line and waited about 30 minutes.  We watched a little girl get selected and then got our own wands.  I went to wait outside because that shop is super small.  He bought our wands, his mom got his and his brother's, and we all met up outside.

We got ready to open our wands, and mine just happened to have a little more sparkle than everyone else's.  It was a little more sparkle in the form of an engagement ring!

So, as of Friday morning outside of Ollivander's, I'm officially engaged!

We stayed at the park until close that day and had burgers for dinner - brie and caramelized onions on mine.  Saturday we stayed in the park from about 10:30 am until close.  Sunday the magic had to stop, and we had to come home =(

It was an absolutely magical and amazing weekend!  Maybe this will help explain why this post didn't come on Sunday =P

Lauren

Sunday Summary (2/6 through 2/13)

Ok, so I wanted to switch from Saturday to Sunday and forgot to post yesterday...oops?

Saturday 2/6 - I did absolutely nothing.  Spoiler alert - I'm still somewhat sick and stuffy today, so that has made me lazy this past week.  3,014 steps.

Sunday 2/7 - I did some food prep for the week and Crush BBC.  My boyfriend's little brother was staying over.  Normally when I wake up before my boyfriend I just watch TV downstairs, but then I would have been on the couch where his little brother is sleeping.  So, I went to the gym instead.  Squats were the first exercise on the schedule after warming up, but there was a dude in the squat rack doing shoulder shrugs.  What the heck dude? Well anyway, he was there before I even walked in the gym, so I figured he wouldn't have that long left.  I looked over every time I finished a set of anything else.  He was NEVER done.  I ended up leaving without doing squats because this guy was there for 40+ minutes doing shrugs on our ONLY squat rack! I'm particular about the way I do squats because I want to work on them traditionally for various reasons, so I just added them on to Monday's workout instead. 3,945 steps.

Monday 2/8 - Crush Shoulders before school.  12,999 steps.

Tuesday 2/9 - Crush Chest before school.  Everything hurt this entire day of school.  Also people don't know how to rerack their weights. Grrrrr!  12,246 steps.

Wednesday 2/10 - Crush BBC before school.  Most of it, at least.  I think I skipped a couple of exercises, but mostly cardio things. 10,294 steps.

Thursday 2/11 - Nothing! 10,017 steps.

Friday 2/12 - Nothing again, but this time it was planned in preparation for the next day.  Saw Deadpool and loved it! 8,465 steps.

Saturday 2/13 - Love Chocolate 10k.  It was a decent race, but I'll write a separate post about that soon.  And I got my second piercing in my ears.  17,489 steps.

What was your week like?
Lauren

Saturday Summary (1/30 through 2/5)

This past week has been my first full week of student teaching - no days off of school, no internship meetings to go to at college, just a full 40+ hour week of being with 6th graders.

Overall, I feel pretty good about this week.  My nutrition was completely off point because I didn't prep things and I didn't prepare foods ahead of time to bring with me.  This will be a major change for next week so I'm ready to go and don't eat lots of junk!  I'm trying to figure out easy lunches to make ahead and bring with me other than salads, and that don't require being heated up.  If you have any, let me know!

I've also been in FitBit walking competitions with other teachers, so that's been motivating me to walk around a lot more during the day.  Granted, I think our kids hate us for walking in circles as they work but at least we're getting steps in!

Saturday 1/30 - This was a complete and utter rest day.  I did nothing.  I accomplished nothing.  It was fantastic.  822 steps - I didn't even hit one thousand!

Sunday 1/31 - I don't really remember much of Sunday, honestly.  I think I folded laundry.  We went to Will's grandparent's for dinner - homemade pizza!  I got 2328 steps.

Monday 2/1 - Crush Arm day!  I hadn't done arms in a minute and had noodle arms the next couple days.  It felt good! 10,054 steps for the day, so clearly I was running in place at bedtime to get to my goal!

Tuesday 2/2 - Tuesday I went on a 4-ish mile run on the dreadmill.  They're such boring miles, but our weather has been so unpredictable lately and it was easier to just stay inside! 15,716 steps.

Wednesday 2/3 - Crush Heat.  It was difficult, but I pushed through.  Not my best effort, but at least I did it.  We went to my parents for dinner and I started to feel a sore throat coming in.  14,951 steps.

Thursday 2/4 - Went to Urgent Care after school due to feeling AWFUL.  Got put on antibiotics.  Tested negative for strep and mono, but could technically still have strep as it can take 48 hours to test positive.  Picked up my packet and rested.  11,948 steps.

Friday 2/5 - Tybee Run Fest 5k.  Finished unofficially in 39:10.  I was super angry because it meant I missed my PR by about 20 seconds, but at least I know I have more in me next time! 23,120 steps.

This week will include trying to get on track with half marathon training.  I have the Publix Women's Half Marathon on April 2nd, and I want to finish feeling strong and like I had been prepared for it.  I also want to stay on top of eating right and preparing food!

How has your week been?

Lauren

2016 Goals

Unlike most, I'm not going to regroup on past monthly or yearly goals.  I know I didn't accomplish them, and I'm not going to sit here and make excuses as to why.  2015 was a year of slacking and excuses.  2016 will be different.

My word of the year is Confidence.  Secondary words are strength, calm, belief.  

Here are my goals, followed by a picture recap of 2015:

Fitness

1. Weigh 130 lbs. or less.

2. Run a mile in 9:00 or less.

3. Run a 5k in 30:00 or less.

4. Run a 10k in 1:15 or less.

5. Run a half in 3:00 or less.

6. Do a headstand for 15 seconds or more.

7. Do wheel pose on forearms instead of hands.

8. Do crow pose for 10 seconds or more.

9. Squat 200 lbs. or more for 5 or more reps.

10. Deadlift 150 lbs. or more for 5 or more reps.

Life

1. Maintain a 3.5 GPA or higher.

2. Try new things (So far, I have riding a bike.  Please let me know if you have any suggestions to add!)

3. Pay off at least 25% of my debt.  Current at (don’t judge me…) $1740.

4. Read at least 6 non-school books.

Half Marathons (this is Skidaway Half in April)

Sister's first half!

Bermuda

Maine in July

Family vacation

Student teaching

Spartan!

Honor Society Induction (KDP and NSLS)

RnR Savannah Weekend

Lots of margaritas

Final half of the year (Space Coast)

4 Christmas celebrations

And a Happy New Year (and another family vacation)

I'm linking up with Patty, Erika, and Marcia for this year's first Tuesdays on the Run!

What's your big resolution? 

Lauren