That Announcement is Coming Soon…

I know it was like two weeks ago when I said I had an announcement, and I promise it’s coming soon. Things are taking a little longer than I thought they would, but I AM making progress, so that is good. And believe me, it’s BIG news. At least in my mind it is. I can’t wait to share!

I’m so glad it’s the weekend. It’s too bad it’s going to be busy. After traveling last weekend to visit family up north, I came home pretty exhausted. This week feels like I’ve been running non-stop and my body is craving sleep. I should be in bed right now, but I have to post a blog. It’s just my style.

Last weekend in addition to taking my cousin’s picture, I also got the opportunity to go to my niece’s baptism/dedication. She’s getting big so fast, well for her anyway…she’s a tiny girl! Here are some pretty cute pictures of the little sweetheart:

Here she is with her daddy, Adam, who is a Methodist minister:

The district superintendent came to baptize her:

This is mommy, Kyla, holding Elizabeth. I love how this picture turned out. I shot at a really small aperture so everything except Elizabeth’s face is blurred:

This next picture makes my heart SO happy. This is Grandma Helen holding Elizabeth. I love the look on her face; it just seems like such a peaceful moment.

And finally, Tyler and I were outside waiting for everyone to go to lunch when I decided to play off the reflection in his glasses. Love it!

In other news, I finally started running again yesterday. It had been a month since I’d done any running at all (before we left for Hawaii) because I had cut my foot on a rock in the ocean in Hawaii and then I had my wisdom teeth removed. One month off really makes you feel out of shape! I’ve done 4 miles each of the past 2 days, so we’ll see how long it takes to build up my endurance again.

 

500 Festival Mini Marathon

Today, I ran my first — and probably not last — 500 Festival Mini Marathon. It was the perfect morning for a run…overcast, cool and dry. I ran with my friend Jaimie, who ran it last year. We got up at 5:45 and were out the door by 6:20 a.m. We quickly found parking at the race and then waited in line at the port-o-johns. If you know anything about running, they are a popular place before a race. We weren’t as early as we could have been, so waiting in the lines made us a bit nervous. But luckily, we were able to make it to our corrall just in time for the start.

Tyler went to the start line to wait for us to make our way up. We started in corral K, which took only about 15 minutes to reach the start. It was estimated that corral Z would take 30 minutes to make it to the start, if that tells you anything. Even with 35,000 runners, the race coordinators find a way to make it a very seamless start.

The race was a blast. I’ve run the Evansville Half Marathon twice, but it is nothing like the Mini Marathon. There were people every step of the race cheering us on as well as musical and dance groups entertaining us. I think I was smiling most of the race. I felt good running, but more than that I was having fun. I decided that having fun was going to be the most important factor for me. In the past, I’ve put too much pressure on myself to do well. It was great to have Jaimie there running with me and keep me pumped.

My goal for the race, other than to have fun, was to run it in less than two hours. I’ve not been able to make that goal the past two races, so I was determined. I felt great and was on pace the entire first half. I started to get a side stitch at mile 11, so that was the only time I stopped to walk. I ended up running it off and was able to continue a good pace. I am happy to report that I made my goal and finished with a time of 1:58:44, or a 9:04-mile pace. I finished 494th in my 20-25 age group, 1947 out of women finishers, and 7425 overall.

Thanks to everyone, especially Jaimie, who encouraged me for this race. And a HUUUUGE thanks goes out to Tyler, who came all the way from Evansville just to see me race. Well, really he saw me at the starting line and then wait for over two hours until I made it back. He wins Husband of the Year award for sure.

 

Guess where I am!?!

 

Another weekend bites the dust

How is it that the weekends go by so darned quickly? I’m beyond frustrated that I have to go back to work tomorrow. Today was so beautiful that it made me just want to call in tomorrow and instead drive around with the windows down, breeze blowing in my hair and the music turned way up. But alas, it’s back to reality.

My weekend wasn’t altogether too productive. Too much going on for that, really. Saturday, I went on a 5.3-mile run. It was really great, even though it was in a light drizzle most of the time. That evening, we had a wedding to go to and after that we caught the Michael Peterson benefit for the Army at Roberts Stadium. One of our friends had box seats, so we were way above watching the show. Pretty cool to be up that high.

Today, I woke up at 6:30 and got ready for my run. I only intended on doing 11, but my miscalculations put me at more like 12.5. — in just under 2 hours. I think had I not gone on the run yesterday, I could have really been a lot faster. I’m feeling very good about the Mini. But needless to say, I was tired and sore afterward. 

Then we had church (the service was great and got my spiritual battery recharged!), ate out with friends, and took a much-needed nap. This evening I did round one of the senior pictures for my co-worker’s son. Originally, they only wanted to do head shots tonight, but when I got there, they also wanted to do some more fun ones. I think there are quite a few that really turned out well, and they seemed to like them, so that’s the important part. I can’t wait until I get them edited and can show you all!

 

I’m mad at mother today…

Mother Nature, that is. Seriously, this rain is really inconvenient to my running schedule. I need to get an 11-mile run in this weekend, and I’d rather not get soaked in the rain. I know it may rain on the day of the half marathon so this could prepare me for that, but I also don’t need to chance getting sick this close to the race. According to weather.com, tomorrow is supposed to be a beautiful, sunny day, so maybe I’ll get up early before church and put in 11 miles.

And I didn’t run yesterday, either. I forgot to set the alarm on my phone, so after the earthquake woke us up, I eventually went back to sleep and didn’t get up until 6 a.m. I was so angry. I should have just gotten up after the earthquake and gotten ready. It took me a while to fall back asleep after it since it completely freaked me out, so I probably would have been better off going out for a run.

I’ll probably get out today to do at least 4.5 miles just because I’m really wanting to get the extra mileage. I’ve run 15 miles so far this week, so that’s really not too bad. Add on the 4.5 today, and 11 tomorrow, and I’ll have 30.5 miles.

But for now, I’m going to take a nap, so this is where my running shoes will stay:

 

 

Beautiful Sunset

Last night as I was running, I couldn’t help but enjoy the fabulous weather and scenery. The flowers are blooming, trees are starting to get their leaves and the sky was a fantastic blue. About midway through the run, I came across this old water tower and realized that the sun would be setting behind it…a perfect photo opportunity. So I ran back home as fast as I could, grabbed my camera and hopped in my car.

The sun was still up as I was leaving, but by the time I arrived back at the water tower, it was all but hidden. I was disappointed until I realized that the sunset was a brilliant purple and orange, better than I could have imagined. I parked my car, put on my hazard lights, grabbed my Canon 40D and started clicking away. I was more than pleased with what I got, but I’ll let you be the judge.

I’m so glad spring has finally arrived!

EDIT: I realized that I had put sunrise, but this is obviously a sunset. And it’s a water tower, not a silo. I was tired when I wrote this. Sorry guys!

 

Busy as a Bee

In the next few months, I’m probably going to wear myself out, but I’ll have a blast doing it. I have so many fun things coming up in the near future that I just have to blog about it…because, you know, that’s what I do.

Yesterday, I got my first client for photography. Granted, it’s not a paying client because I’m not ready to charge for my work just yet, but it’s a client nonetheless. A co-worker’s son is graduating and because they haven’t gotten any senior pictures yet, they are running out of time. She only needs a head shot, but I’ve talked her into doing an entire session as well as some family shots so she can give them as Mother’s Day gifts. I’m very excited about just getting out to practice using my camera and finding creative shots.

I got the okay yesterday to work in Indy the couple days before the 500 Festival Mini Marathon. This is so great for me because I don’t have to stress about leaving work the day before the Mini and fighting the traffic (there will be 35,000 runners in this race) to get there on time, get settled in, get dinner, and get to bed early. I’m planning on staying the weekend with my college friend Jaimie, who has been the one who has encouraged me to take on this beast of a race. I’m so excited she did, because I think this is going to be a really fun race. And to top that off, we get tickets into opening day at the Indy 500. How cool is that? I’ve never been to the race track; I’ve only driven by it, so I think this should be a blast! I can’t wait! My training is going fabulously. Last week I only ran 25 miles opposed to the 30 I had planned, but they were some really great runs (even the 10-miler I did on the treadmill). I got in 5 last night and am hoping to do another 5 tonight. This is the best I’ve trained for a race, so I’m hopeful about the outcome.

After that, the biggie is the Hawaii trip. After the whole fiasco with ATA, I was a little worried that we wouldn’t be going after all (one of the guys I work with was on his way to Hawaii on ATA, but made it to Phoenix where he was stranded in the airport after ATA decided to cancel all their flights), but so far, our airline is still in business. I’m praying that it stays that way, too. It’s going to be the trip of a lifetime with some really great people (we’re going with our friends BJ and Rachel). While we’re there, we’re going horseback riding into a dormant volcano, snorkeling, kayaking, and going on a helicopter ride. Of course, we’ll get plenty of beach time, too.

I’m in the home stretch of my photography classes, too. I’m looking forward to being done. I haven’t learned as much as I would like and having class every week twice a week really eats up a lot of my time. I’m nearly finished with one of the two final projects in my Photoshop class and working on my mini portfolio in Basic Photography. I am really excited about my Mini Portfolio, but after being rejected when I asked to take pictures at a family’s home this weekend, I’m a little worried that it might be more difficult than I had planned. My theme is “Aged,” so I’m trying to get shots of anything that looks old and weathered.

On a totally different note, I’m so excited about this fabulous weather! Today is going to be in the 60s, tomorrow in the 70s. Get out and enjoy it…I know I am!

 

 

I have not fallen off the face of the earth…

…I’ve just been super busy. With work, classes, traveling, and training for the half marathon, I have had little time for anything else.

First, an update on my running. Last week was my best running week in a very long time. I ran three days during the week at five miles apiece, plus a long run of 9 miles on the weekend. Grand total, 24 miles. Not too shabby. And my long run was so great! I did the big loop of 4.3 miles that is near my house twice, and tacked on an extra little loop each time for a total of at least 9 miles, if not more. I only stopped in between big loops at the house to get some water and one other time because a dog started chasing me (it was the first time I was actually close to using my pepper spray). I’m on track this week to do even more…I have done 15 miles already, and I plan on doing another 4.5 on Friday morning, and then my long run of at least 10 sometime this weekend, depending on the weather (it’s supposed to rain on Saturday). This will put me at about 30 miles for the week, which is so great considering the mini is less than a month away. I’ve been really disciplined in the running, even going after my classes at Ivy Tech get over with if it’s not too late. This race is a biggie, with 35,000 people entered, so I want to make it my best run ever. I’m feeling very confident and strong right now, so I’m praying for good health and no injuries between now and then. The only thing I’m down about is that I seem to be gaining weight instead of losing it. I know I like to eat, but good grief, I don’t think I eat THAT much.

I didn’t do my long run until Sunday this past weekend because we were visiting our new niece, Elizabeth. I wanted to go up to Indy to get some pictures of her while she is young, so we made the trip up on Friday night and came home late Sunday morning. I had a great time taking pictures of Elizabeth. She’s such a cutie! But because she sleeps a lot, I wasn’t able to get all the pictures I wanted. I still got some good ones, though, and Tyler and I are going to Ivy Tech tomorrow so I can do some editing on them. I want to get a book made of all the images I’ve taken, and since I don’t have a computer with Photoshop on it, I have to use the computers at the school. I don’t know my way around Photoshop all that well, so hopefully they will turn out okay. I had such a great weekend with Kyla (Tyler’s sister) and Adam. I really felt like I got to know them a lot better and bond with them. They’ve not lived locally since Tyler and I have been married, so I usually only get to see them during their short stays when they visit the family.

Photography is going well. I think I’ve decided to go with Appointed Design in Lafayette to edit my images. Since I won’t have Photoshop for quite a while, I’ll have to outsource the editing. I had been looking into some of the bigger companies, but really wanted someone more local that I could really count on to listen to my ideas and taylor how they edit pictures to my taste. I contacted Pictoral twice, but have yet to hear back from them. So if that is any indication of the kind of service I will get, I’ll gladly go with a smaller, local business like Appointed Design. I’ve been in contact with the owner through email, and I feel completely confident that she will do a great job. I will be building my portfolio over the next few months by taking pictures of some family and friends who have expressed some interest in it and then working on actually getting paying gigs as I go. I’m so excited about this. And I’m quickly learning how my camera works, so I feel much more confident about going out and doing some photo shoots. I plan on buying some filters for my camera in the next couple of weeks. I want a UV filter and definitely a polarizing filter, but I’m not sure what brand to go with. I also need a camera bag…I’ve been worried constantly that I’m going to break my camera without one.

The other good news is that I won $500 this week on the radio. I’m now in the running for the $100,000 grand prize, which would be pretty sweet. We would pay off our house and then work on saving money for a while. Eventually, we’d like to build, but we want to save so once we do build, we won’t have a huge monthly payment. I’m not holding my breath for the grand prize, but there are only three of us so far who have qualified, so it might not be too bad of odds.

So there you have it…my life in the past week and a half. I’m exhausted just writing about it.

 

Weekend recap

I was bad this weekend…I didn’t get a single run in. I was just so exhausted all weekend that even the thought of going on a run made me tired. I was aiming to get a 9-miler in at some point to keep on schedule with my half marathon training, but that certainly didn’t happen. And to make matters worse, I ate a bunch of junk that I shouldn’t have…pizza, Easter candy, banana bread, and powdered donuts. I’m not proud of it, and I certainly can’t continue on this pattern. I’m make a small goal for this week…I want to work out every week day, even if it is just a short run or some crunches and push ups at night. If I think in small terms, maybe I won’t be discouraged like I was at the thought of running for an hour and a half this weekend.

On the positive side, I did get a lot accomplished this weekend. I went to our church’s scrapbooking event and got about five pages completed. I haven’t touched my scrapbooking since the last retreat, which was a few months ago. I colored my hair, which didn’t turn out like I wanted…it was much more of a reddish tint than I thought it would be. I’m planning to re-color sometime tomorrow since that will be the 48 hours I need to wait between colorings. I also completed all of the things we need to send in our taxes, which I’ll be doing tomorrow. And I even painted my nails tonight. They’re now a pastel pink, in honor of spring. Which, by the way, has not come in full force like I’d like for it to. I’m ready for weather in the 60s with no rain. I’m so tired of this dismal rainy weather, and it’s really starting to bring down my normally happy demeanor.

This weekend was way too short, and I’m sad to have to go back to work tomorrow. The only thing that makes me excited for it is the fact that the UPS guy will be delivering my new toy, the Canon 40D with the 50 mm lens, f/1.4. Otherwise, it will be a sad day…I have to get my allergy shots and I have to go to my fundamentals of imaging class. Don’t get me wrong, I’m learning a lot, but it’s amazing what two extra free days during the week can do to your schedule. I’m ready for classes to be overwith so I can start putting what I’ve learned into action and booking some clients.

 

Productive Weekend

I accomplished quite a bit this weekend. I always hate to see the weekend go, but it doesn’t hurt as much when you get a lot done.

Saturday started out with going to get my driver’s license renewed. Long story short, I’d been driving on an expired license since my birthday in October and didn’t realize it until Friday night. I was in and out of the BMV in 20 minutes.  Then I went to pick up our Angel Food order and get the oil changed in Tyler’s car. The rest of the day was spent working on dishes and taking a nap since it was rainy out. I was so excited that I woke up to sunshine, so I put on my running gear and went on a 7+ mile run (unfortunately, I don’t have all those fancy schmancy gadgets that tell me my distance, so I’ll have to drive it to see). It was a FANTABULOUS run! I made it back in about an hour and 5 minutes, which is pretty good. Afterward, I cooked dinner and we had a friend over and watched Saw.

Sunday was a good day, too. I got up early and did dishes from dinner the previous night before I headed to church. Afterward, we went shopping for food to grill since it was such a beautiful day out. BJ and Rachel were to come over and have lunch and finish up our HAWAII plans! We got everything ironed out, and figured out our main activities: horseback ride through Haleakala crater on Maui, and on Oahu we’re going on a 45-minute helicopter ride and snorkel/kayak trip. Of course, we’ll also tour the Dole plantation and spend plenty of time on the beach. We also finalized our car rentals on both islands. It feels good to get it all done, but not to pay for it. Nonetheless, we’re beyond excited and can’t wait for May to get here!

I always feel so reluctant to come back to work. Where do the weekends go? Luckily, I had a jury to get ready today, so that motivated me a bit more than a usual Monday morning.

EDIT TO ADD: Thanks to Tiffany’s suggestion, I now know that I ran 7.46 miles yesterday. Whoo hoo!