Earning my Turkey

Every year on the fourth Thursday in November the Atlanta Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon takes place.  And every year, I wondered what exactly possessed those people to wake up early and run 13.1 miles?  The day when you eat the most delicious food and express what your thankful for, why on earth would you torture yourself with a half marathon?  

Well, this year, I was one of those crazy people! Why?!

At the Expo, there was a big sign reading 'Why I run:'
Which one's mine!?

For some bizarre reason, on January 1, 2012, I made a goal, or a New Year's resolution if you will, to run a half marathon in 2012.  I can honestly tell you that I'm not sure why I made that decision.  I'd never run a race before, and quite honestly, didn't really like to run, or run often for that matter.  It wasn't a way to reach a weight loss goal or anything of the like, but simply to push myself to do something I'd never done before -- something I thought was impossible for myself.  And whatta ya know?!  I did it!

My friend Rachel decided to start her Thanksgiving with a 13.1 mile run as well:

Excited/Nervous about the run.

Byron's such a good sport -- he always wakes up early to support me in my races.  This time, because traffic was so terrible, Rachel and I jumped out of the car and left him to park while we hustled to Turner Field.  Needless to say, I was a little surprised when I saw him as we lined up in our corrals:

I wouldn't say that the course was too difficult, but I will admit that I didn't train for the 13.1 miles as I should have.  To be honest, I just got sick of running, so I lost interest and focus on training.  My time wasn't great, but I did do it, which I'm pretty happy about.

run. run. run. run. run.

Crossing the finish line.  2:42:12 [according to my watch]

finishedddd!

I saw Byron as soon as I crossed the finish line and was completely surprised when he pointed to Brad and my Mom on the other side!  Not gonna lie, I got a little emotional.  

Surprise!!! 

happy with my husband

Go, Rachel, Go!!
This girl is inspiring.

We're still alive!

Running the half marathon was definitely an experience -- not sure I wanna do it again anytime soon, or ever for that matter.  The turkey, dressing, and [Byron's] pumpkin pie sure did taste good, though!

Unfortunately, my Thanksgiving feast-induced food coma went into full effect at my grandparents' house, so I didn't get a single picture of the delicious food or my wonderful family.  But Byron and I did manage to snap a photo of the two of us to commemorate our first Thanksgiving as a married couple:

achieved goals, good shoes, blister-free feet, a loving family, delicious food, an incredible husband . . . I have a whole lot to be thankful for this year!

banana nut muffins

I absolutely love having friends visit us at our apartment.  Even though we don't have tons of space for entertaining or lots of seating, it's so much fun to host!  Maybe it will be even better once we finish start decorating!

Cal and Ashley are our overnight guest guinea pigs.  We look forward to the weekends they spend with us, like this weekend!  I love cooking for people, especially good friends.  Whilst I love cooking [anything], my favorite meal is breakfast.  So naturally, that's one of my favorite meals to cook.  

Whenever Byron and I spend weekends with Cal and Ashley, we always enjoy a nice big breakfast together.  Last weekend was no different when Banana Nut Muffins were added to the menu -- Mmmmm!

Banana Nut Muffin Recipe:

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda OR 3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
3 ripe bananas
1/2 cup of chopped pecans
ground cinnamon

(makes 12 muffins)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350.  Place muffin liners in a 12 count muffin pan.

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a bowl and set aside.  Whisk the eggs and vanilla together in a large measuring cup with a spout and set aside.  Cream the butter and sugar together using an electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Gradually pour the egg mixture into the butter mixture while continuously mixing the batter together.  Then add the flour mixture, pouring it 1/3 at a time.  Mix until all ingredients are incorporated.  Add in the bananas and continue mixing.  The batter will look curdled -- don't worry!  Once the bananas are combined and mixed well, use a rubber spatula or large spoon to fold in the nuts.

Evenly distribute the muffin batter into the muffin cups.  Sprinkle cinnamon on each muffin.  Bake for about 20 minutes or until the muffins pass the toothpick test (Insert a toothpick into a muffin -- the muffins are finished when the toothpick is clean when removed from the muffin.).  Let the muffins cool for a few minutes before serving.

Variation: Use cinnamon roasted almonds instead of pecans.

Enjoy!

24 - a birthday of sprinkles and running

If my birthday is an indication of how my 24th year will be, it's going to be incredible.  I couldn't have asked for or planned a better birthday!

On Friday, one of my students [with her mom's help] surprised me with homemade red velvet cupcakes.  And, they were covered in sprinkles, which means she was paying attention when I told them last week about what would make the perfect cupcake!

My wonderful husband planned a perfect day for me, filled with running, family and friends, and yummy food, and beginning as soon as the sun peaked over the horizon.  We ran the Flap Jack Dash; a 5k that rewarded us with pancakes, bacon, hot chocolate and coffee afterwards.  It was SO cold, but a lot of fun. Byron doesn't particularly like running, so I can't express how much it means to me that he ran a race with me on my birthday.  And surprisingly, we both won medals for our age groups! Haha, fooled them.

After relaxing for a portion of the afternoon, we met for dinner with some wonderful friends.  We headed to the bowling alley after dinner, then home to play some Family Business and eat birthday cake.

@ Goldfish

such beautiful friends.

Let the Mob Wars begin.

[Oh, and Byron built that awesome coffee table!!!]

And Cal and Ashley made me a cake!

SPRINKLES!!!!

Oh happy day!!  A great beginning to my 24th year!!

Thankful Friday

Yesterday was not a very Thankful Thursday for me, so I'm redeeming my grouchiness from yesterday with a 'Thankful Friday' post.  

Yesterday was just one of those days.  Actually, scratch that; it was one of those weeks.  You know what kind of week I'm talking about.  The ones when the weather's just kind of 'bleh' and by Thursday night you're mentally, emotionally, and physically exhausted.  Was your week super stressful? No.  Did something terrible happen? No.  But by Thursday, you're ready for the week to be over because it's just been 'bleh.'

I wasn't feeling very thankful yesterday [maybe that's my problem -- why my week was nothing to write home about], yet I know I have things to be thankful for; lots of things.  and people, too.  So it's been one of those nights when it seems the only thing I can do is go to God.

To ask Him for peace or patience or strength? No.

Just to thank Him.

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

to thank him for:
my incredible, loving husband.  grace.  a supportive group of coworkers. my students' senses of humor. forgiveness.  my puppies and their snuggles.  midweek date nights.  being 1/3 of the way done with the gifted endorsement class.  Thanksgiving Break.  loving me even though I'm completely undeserving.

Why is it so easy, even in this season of Thanksgiving, to be unthankful and inappreciative?  We have countless blessings to be thankful for, but it's like the less-than-perfect things overshadow the praiseworthy things.  How frustrating is that? Very.

My goal for myself for the next week: to focus on my blessings and to be thankful for them.  To enjoy them and praise the Lord for how graciously He loves me.  To be thankful during the week of Thanksgiving.

oh, Monday.

I left school this afternoon telling another teacher to 'have a great weekend,' to which I shook my head and thought, Man, it's only Monday and it already feels like Friday.  It's definitely one of those weeks: the ones similar to standing in the kitchen waiting on the pot of water to boil.

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love my job and consider it an incredible blessing and the answer to numerous prayers.  My students make me laugh every day and I am grateful to work with such wonderful teachers, but anticipation of Thanksgiving Break is getting the better of me!

Thankfully -- 1 day down and 4 to go!  . . . [until break begins!]

Rule # 32

My life has been crazy lately.  Between teaching, taking the Gifted Endorsement class, Vision Cohort, training, and settling into a new apartment, it's been nearly impossible to slow down and relax.  Since Byron and I have been married, we hadn't spent a single weekend in our apartment, just the two of us, to do chores, run errands, sleep in, and what-not.  You know, the lazy weekends when you might do some laundry, clean the house, sleep in, and grocery shop?  But finally, we had a somewhat boring weekend!  [and we couldn't be happier about it!]   I've finally gained some of my sanity back.

We were able to sleep in, take the dogs to the park, and grocery shop together.
My sweet husband bought me tulips at Trader Joe's!

Beginning the weekend with cafe au-laites and ending it with homemade pizza. Mmmm!
[Thanks, Karie for the pizza stone!]

The world is constantly tugging us in multiple directions and it's easy to lose focus of what's important and our relationships and priorities suffer as a result.  Maybe that's part of the reason God thought it necessary for the Sabbath.  To have a day for worship and praise without work.  A day of rest in which you remove the stresses of your life momentarily to delight in the Lord and the blessings He's given you.

Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.  

Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 

but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God.

Exodus 20:8

I'm thankful for our weekend and for a weekday without school, but I'm challenging myself to enjoy the little things (rule number 32) as they present themselves, amidst my daily routine.  Although the Sabbath is the day of rest, I want to take time everyday to relax and rest before I over-exhaust myself [and my patience].  The Lord deserves my attention and affection before I'm running on fumes.  So does my husband. And my family.  And my students and coworkers.

Thank God for the golden orange trees He blesses us with in the Fall.  Laugh and enjoy an evening with your husband before you're ready to conk out at night.  Enjoy the blessings before they pass.

Halloween Fun

When you're a kid you look forward to Halloween all year long, right?  You impatiently await the day for candy, costumes, candy, trick or treating, candy, parties, candy, jack-o-lanterns, and candy.  Then you grow up.  Does that mean the Halloween festivities have to stop?  NO.  Why on earth would growing up mean that?!  We all know we shouldn't/can't eat the vast amounts of sugar, but that's so need for the celebrations to cease . . . they might just look a little different from when we were kids!

On Saturday I decided to run the Monster Dash 10k.  It was actually an enjoyable run.  It wasn't my best run ever, but I made felt like I finished strong.  It was definitely a reality check to tell me I need to get serious about my training.

Byron's wonderful.  Even in the cold he wake up early with me for races.

I now have my first running medal!
[Every runner was given one -- I'm not that good.]

Byron spent hours [seriously -- he stayed up until almost 5am] building a Captain America shield for the Halloween Party at his office.  The shield is intense; it flies and everything.

I had to spend Halloween night finishing up some lesson plans for my Gifted Endorsement [Boo.] but made sure to take a break and bake cookies.  Mmmm!  Let's be honest, cookies make any holiday better!

I was overjoyed to finally use my mixer for the first time!
 It doesn't matter how old you are -- sprinkles AND icing [lots of both] are always the right choice.

 Unfortunately, I didn't get to take a picture of the pumpkin we carved before it rotted.  So Byron recreated it on a cookie and made me photograph it immediately!  [It was a zombie pumpkin.]

October flew by.  I can't believe Halloween is already over.  One year we're going to have a Halloween party and dress up and decorate the house. . . go all out.  Maybe next year.

It's crazy that it's already November!  Thanksgiving is 3 weeks from today - whoa.  It's gonna be a crazy month: birthdays, election day, Thanksgiving, a 1/2 marathon, Black Friday, and more. . .

Here we go!