Dopey Challenge Training Week 6

In last week's training recap, I mentioned that I had been experiencing a sore hamstring. I took the advice that so many of you gave and laid off my long run on Saturday, iced my leg, and took it easy throughout the weekend. I'm happy to report that by Tuesday's run, all hamstring tightness and soreness was gone! Yay! I appreciate your advice and am (hopefully) moved past the point of injury!

Currently Training For:

• Dopey Challenge 2018 - Walt Disney World
• Rock n Roll New Orleans Half Marathon 2018 - New Orleans, LA

Saturday - Rest Day
Sunday - 2 mile walk
Monday - Rest Day
Tuesday - 3 mile run
Wednesday - Squats/Lunges/PT
Thursday - 3 mile walk
Friday - Cross Training

Apart from my cooky hamstring, this past week was an emotional struggle. My best running friend laid her son to rest and needless to say, getting mileage in wasn't a priority. If you guys could continue to be in prayer for Heather and her family, I know she would appreciate it (so would I)! Thank you!

On Sunday after visitation, I had to get out of the house - so Brayden and I went for a 2 mile walk around the neighborhood. Now that I've been pushing the Bob consistently on our runs and walks together, I appreciate the Bob so much more when I use non-Bob strollers!  The Bob is just such an easy ride in ways other strollers are not!

After the funeral on Tuesday, Brayden and I went for a 3 mile run and dedicated our run to  Heather! She's a big Snow White fan, so we both wore our 7 Dwarfs shirt for her! :)

This run was great because although it was so very hot out, I had zero hamstring issues and still managed negative splits with the Bob! Mile 1 was 9:34, mile 2 was 9:18, and mile 3 was 9:14! 

Melissa joined us for our Thursday night miles! The temps were "feels like" 102 degrees but the humidity was low - thankfully, it wasn't overwhelmingly hot.

This silly kid loves to take glasses off my face and hats off my head, then he tries to put them back!

On Wednesday, Brayden had his 15 month appointment and is doing very well as far as development and growth are concerned! He is in the 75th percentile for weight and the 90th percentile for height. The doctor wasn't terribly concerned about his vocabulary (he only has about 3 words or so down now), so we will see what his 18 month appointment brings!

Have a great weekend, y'all!

Not Alone

Yesterday, my sweet running buddy Heather said goodbye to one of the most precious people in her life, her 22 year old son.

Although I didn't know Andrew well, Heather and I had many talks about him during our runs throughout the years and I saw Andrew from a different perspective - through the heart of a mom that loved him so much and would have roped the moon for him had he asked her to do so.

My heart is so broken for my friend as she mourns the life of her son that she loved so much.

Through this devastating and heartbreaking time, I've seen so much courage from his family. From his obituary to the funeral service itself, they've done everything possible to give hope to those who are suffering and in a dark place in their lives. From their own broken hearts, they are reaching out to others who are also broken. What a powerful testimony of love and grace.

Andrew's obituary was so beautifully written by his amazing mom, I only saw it fitting to share bits and pieces of it here.

Andrew, 22, passed away on July 21, 2017.

Andrew struggled with addiction and depression. In the end the depression is what took our beautiful son. Right now we as parents know no answers. But this is what we do know and will hold on to. Andrew was a smart, funny, handsome, quick witted, athletic son. He had a smile that would brighten our day. He had a big heart and always had a soft spot for animals and stray dogs. Andrew was excellent at skate boarding. Andrew enjoyed going with his dad to hunt in Texas. Andrew loved his niece and nephew and his face would light up when they would call him “Uncle Andrew.” He enjoyed trips to New Orleans and loved New York. On our last evening with Andrew, he smiled, we laughed together, we made plans for the weekend, we hugged, said “I love you, see you this weekend.”

If you have family or a friend who is struggling find a way to help reach out, be kind and compassionate. A smile and laughter are sometimes hiding the darkness. If you are struggling with addiction and or depression tell someone, tell a friend, tell your mom or dad, or sister or brother. Reach out, there is help. You are loved and by reaching out others will be there for you to help you through the darkness. In lieu of flowers, show acts of kindness, tell your kids every chance you can you love them and hug them when you can, even when they try to pull away.

Please be in prayer for my sweet friend and her family. Pray for peace, comfort, and strength for the days ahead. It's so hard to see the world continue to go on when it seems as if your world has completely ended. I can't even imagine the pain they are feeling right now.

And if you're in a place where you feel as if the darkness is overtaking you, please reach out - there's always someone there who loves you and cares for you and wants to help you. You are not alone. 

Memorial Day Weekend

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Happy Memorial Day! Before I get into my weekend, I would like to give honor where honor is due. Our military is truly a special group of people and we would not be here today without the sacrifice that so many of them have made. On this Memorial Day, let us remember and honor those who have given their lives so we can be free. It truly is a sacrifice I don't take lightly.

My long weekend began on Friday around noon. We had an early day off work which was nice! I stopped by Wendy's on my way home to pick up lunch for Jason and I - and I happened to notice a new salad on their menu! 

The Strawberry Mango salad was REALLY good! It might be my new favorite!

On Friday night, Brayden and I attended a 1 year old birthday party for a church friend. The theme was centered around baseball and it was adorable! I loved it!

Bonus, I also got to hang out with one of my best buds, Kenzie! It was great to see her there!

On Saturday morning, I met up with my friend Heather for my first run since Tinker Bell. I decided to take a short 2 week hiatus from running (we all need a break sometimes) and although it was a nice break, I was ready to get back into it!

I haven't completely stopped doing any form of physical activity though - I'm still on the Tone It Up bandwagon for now!

The weather on Saturday morning was just plain gross. It was about to rain, so a heavy, thick, humidity hung in the air which made it hard to breathe.

We still knocked out 5 miles which wasn't too bad for our first time to run together in a while!

After returning home, I played with Brayden for a few minutes, then made breakfast.  

A recent favorite here lately has been an "egg in the hole" where you cut a circle out of a slice of bread and cook the egg inside. It's pretty tasty and was perfect for a post-run breakfast!

Brayden was determined to get into that puffs container no matter what! 

I spent the rest of my Saturday afternoon watching LesMiserables! The music had been stuck on repeat in my head since Tinker Bell!

On Sunday morning, we got ready for church and enjoyed a breakfast of Mickey waffles! A friend of mine alerted me to these in the grocery store and I couldn't pass them by because.....hello......Mickey waffles!

After church, Brayden took a really long nap, then we enjoyed a few slices of pizza together. This is the first time he finally got the whole feeding himself effectively thing. Up until now, he would grab handfuls of food and try to shove them in his mouth which would either lead to him choking or  leaving a mess on the floor! Needless to say, I was a proud mom last night!

Madalynn and Pixie were just waiting for their chance for a bite to fall - but not a single one did!

Today, we are not planning on doing much! A run will hopefully be in the cards this morning followed by a shindig of some sort with my family. I'm making an angel food cake red, white, and blue dessert that looks super tasty!

I hope you all have a fantastic day!

Mandeville Weekend in Pictures

Hi there and happy Monday! I spent the weekend in Mandeville, Louisiana for a race weekend and had a blast! Here's some pictures and tidbits of our weekend!

Off we go on our latest adventure!

Our first stop was for a potty break along the Atchafalaya Basin (pregnancy bladder). If you're ever in the area, this is the coolest visitors center/rest stop I've ever seen! 

There's even a little movie you can watch, depicting life in Louisiana! 

Free Community coffee, too! 

Of course, the Baton Rouge bridge was full of traffic...and of course, they were playing the Florida Gators this past weekend (as usual). 

As tradition, Heather had to gator chomp everyone. The first time she did this (several years ago), I died. now I think it's hilarious!

Packet pickup was held at Varsity Sports in downtown Mandeville. This is seriously the cutest little town and I love to visit! 

If you couldn't tell from the bridge/gator chomp picture, Heather is NOT an LSU fan.  Sooo, when I saw the official race shirts for this race (they were purple and gold with a tiger on the front), I laughed so hard I almost cried.

In fact, I was laughing so hard, I almost missed seeing Fred!

It was great to catch up and talk to him again! 

He also took our picture with our bibs! I truly meant to put K-Ren on my bib, but I somehow messed up and put my twitter username. Definitely didn't mean that! Haha oh well...whoops!

After packet pickup, we walked over to LaLou (the former Broken Egg Cafe) and enjoyed a yummy breakfast! 

Same owners, new restaurant name, similar menu. I noticed a few things that weren't on the menu anymore, but it all still looked and sounded pretty good! 

We also noticed a downtown festival that looked intriguing, so we walked through to check it all out! We didn't buy anything, but we enjoyed browsing the various booths! 

Our after lunch treat included a stop at PJ's. We tried to find a snowball stand but the one I've been to was closed. PJ's is right next door which is the second best thing, so that's where we went! This sign with the kids cracks me up!! 

Apart from a velvet ice, I also ordered a cake ball to go and a slice of banana nut bread for a post race treat!

Our next stop was the hotel to check in and relax before dinner. I laid out all of my race clothing/items, making sure I had everything I needed!

The above is how I prepare before a race...

...and this is how Heather prepares for a race! We got a good laugh out of that one, too!

For dinner, we decided on Cracker Barrell (partly because I had to have another look at their Christmas collection)! 

I behaved myself and didn't buy anything this time! :)
 

Chicken and dumplins for dinner!

We also shopped around Academy and World Market before calling it a night! We had an early wake up call the next morning!

After the race (more on that tomorrow), we showered and took our time getting ready because we had a late check out...so incredibly nice!

Lunch was at the Times Grill for a yummy cheeseburger!

 We also stopped a friends parent's house to pick up some maternity clothing she's sharing with me! I am so appreciative...thanks, Heather!

On our way out of town, we stopped at Cafe du Monde in Mandeville for a little take-home treat! 

Their iced cafe au lait is incredible. I'm glad we don't have one of these closer to home! I would be in trouble!! 

Jason and I shared the order of beignets at home after dinner! :)

They put the powdered sugar in a separate to-go back so we were able to enjoy them later!

I also couldn't let the weekend go by without a picture of this girl in her purple and gold tigers themed race shirt!! Muahaha!

Overall, we had a ton of fun and really enjoyed ourselves! The weekend was filled with lots of fun times and experiences! Looking forward to the next time!! :)

What's your favorite race-weekend destination?