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Finding Inspiration

Happy Monday! IMG_5839

The discarded cups and thrown confetti has all been cleared from the streets of New York, but the inspiration I gained from yesterday’s race is still very fresh.

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For the first time in six years, I spent yesterday spectating, cheering and supporting friends and strangers alike as they conquered 26.2 miles. Back in 2009, when I last spectated, it was from the sponge station on First Avenue, while volunteering with the New York Junior League.  I didn’t know a soul running the race but watching these strangers conquer such an intimidating race, lit the fire inside of me, inspiring me to join the New York Road Runners and qualify for the New York City Marathon via 9+1.

From my cheering spot on Fourth Avenue I was able to cheer, scream and motivate runners as well as spot my friends Ireen, Theodora, Frank, and Kelly before lacing up my shoes for a few miles with Melissa. These running inspirations made it look so easy yesterday!

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After a less than stellar final month of training due to an injury, Melissa was hesitant about yesterday’s marathon. In order to help her achiever her goal of finishing, I offered to run alongside her for a few miles, taking her mind off the marathon while providing her with some fuel and water. Exactly on plan, around 11:45, I spotted her as she crossed the mile 7 marker and quickly hopped in. We had a blast for 3.5 miles, as I gave her a tour of the Brooklyn sites. Humorously, a few friends spotted me, very confused including Emily and Kim.

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As I prepare to conquer the heat and humidity of this weekend’s Savannah Rock’n’Roll Half Marathon, my third half marathon this season, I’m going into the weekend more excited than ever before thanks to these friends. I know the 80% humidity and predicted temps of 75 degrees aren’t ideal for racing but my goal is to finally break that elusive sub-2 hour half marathon mark. The sweat, tears, smiles and determination that these friends showed during yesterday’s marathon reminded me that so much of racing is mental. I can’t control Saturday’s weather but I can control everything I do leading up to the race, so I can go into the race feeling physically rested, mentally strong and smiling.  Until Saturday when I’m not working, you’ll find me foal rolling, sleeping and reading posts like this, reminding me of the most important things to do before racing in humid and hot conditions.

So here’s to you marathon runners, thank you for showing up yesterday and giving 110% to the boroughs, bridges and streets of New York City. A huge congrats to those I knew yesterday including Sashea, Camille, Jen, Theodora, Frank, Melissa, Chloe, Kelly, Greg, Ireen, Kayla and Dani.

Your turn: Did you spectate or watch the marathon this weekend? For those half marathon runners who have recently achieved new PRs, what are your tips? Do you run in humidity and heat often? Any tips?

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ashleyd /

5 Tips For An Easier Party

housewarming

Last night we hosted the first of many parties in our new home.

Due to work and travel, the weeks leading up to the party were quite busy and suddenly, earlier this week, we realized that the housewarming party was quickly approaching. While we wanted to throw a wonderful party that would provide a great opportunity to catch up with friends and show them our new home, we didn’t want to break the bank or make our life difficult trying to design a “Pinterest worthy” party.  This girl does not have time for anything crafty, regardless how hard I try. But, give me a pumpkin and good friends and I can cheese it up for the camera for hours.

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Since we are hosting three more parties in the coming months, I thought it would be great to capture some of the things we did really well, for both my future benefit and yours.

  1. Wrapping paper can make a great, inexpensive table runner. The lovely team at PaperSource suggested that I use two sheets of their high end wrapping paper to bring a pop of color and fun to our large center island.
  2. Save on beer and wine by ordering in advance. Many online grocery stores such as Fresh Direct or even your local wine, beer or liquor stores have a discount if you buy in bulk.  We ordered a 1/2 case of white, 1/2 case of red and an assortment of pumpkin beers which were on sale last week.
  3. Use your grill! When planning our menu, we decided that the main course would be something we could easily grill without requiring a lot of attention. The pork shoulder smoked on the grill for eight hours, requiring nothing more than an hourly check and baste. Using a large cut of meat saved money and made our life a lot easier!
  4. Use disposable plates, cups and utensils. This was the first party that we’ve not used our everyday china, wine glasses and silverware. At first, we both worried how it would look and how guests would react to the plastic glasses of wine or drinking beer straight from the bottle. By the end of the night, when guests saw that I could go to bed with a spotless kitchen, they all agreed it was well worth it. You can save by ordering the party ware ahead of time online and if you are Earth conscious there are bio-degradable and recycled plates available online or at Whole Foods.
  5. Choose a theme that lends itself to easy party preparation. Last night’s Fall themed housewarming party allowed us to create a menu from seasonal foods. Our dessert was a tower of apple cider donuts, which we bought at the local farmer’s market yesterday morning and our soup was a delicious pumpkin thyme soup from Serious Eats. This theme was easier to work with then say, a 20’s theme flapper party or other random theme.

pork shoulder

pumpkin soup

 

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What Made This Weekend Wonderful

Happy Monday!

I don’t know about you but I wasn’t exactly ready to say goodbye to the weekend. Instead of dwelling on the fact that I wish I had the day off, I woke up bright and early to begin conquering today’s to do list.

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This weekend was one of the best weekend’s we’ve had in ages. If you follow me on Instagram you know that it included a half marathon PR which I can’t wait to tell you guys more about tomorrow. But, at the end of the day, this weekend was wonderful for so many more reasons than the race outcome.

Friday night we hosted an Italian dinner for our friends and family who were also running the race on Saturday. The two hour dinner included lots of questions as three of them were running their first half marathon as well as cuddle sessions with Sulley, our new furry nephew.

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For the first time in ages all three of us had a wonderful race on Saturday morning. Bo, Amy and I have been running races together for years, but Saturday is the first that we can remember where everyone ran a strong, healthy race.

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Due to friend connections, the three of us were able to enjoy VIP treatment during the Brooklyn Rock’n’Roll race which included bathrooms and bag check pre-race and incredible massages post race. It also gave me a chance to spend some quality catch up time with Dani and Megan, who are both Rock’n’Blog Ambassadors.

We celebrated the race with brunch at a new to us spot, Stone Park Cafe. Their biscuits and gravy are reason enough for us to return for brunch in the near future. Seriously, we are each still dreaming about that perfectly balanced gravy.IMG_5110

The ladies at Face Love Fitness hosted Amy and I for a relaxing introduction to their treatments which included 30 minutes of facial massage, exercises and relaxation. Enjoyed with a glass of rose, this was a perfect start to the evening.

As this was Amy’s first visit to Brooklyn, we spent Saturday night enjoying a mini bar crawl which allowed us to share our favorite spots with her as well as give her a tour around the neighborhood. We enjoyed a pumpkin beer flight, laughed by the fire and finally sampled craft cocktails from the new Autumn cocktail menu at our final stop.

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There were signs of Fall everywhere his entire weekend, but especially Sunday morning. Fallen leaves covered our doorstep, Amy and I donned sweaters and booties due to the cooler temperatures, and we all chose warm lattes over iced coffees at Smith Canteen.

Amy helped us put the finishing touches on our apartment using fresh eucalyptus we bought at the market. I love the way it freshens up the room and adds a natural beauty to the space.

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Bo and I prepared a huge batch of roasted root vegetables last night in preparation for a busy week. We have a number of different recipes we like but this one continues to be our favorite.

Your turn: What made your weekend wonderful??

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