All the in Between

To my dismay real life has taken priority over internet documenting for the past several months.

These happenings have captured all the time...

January brought my first trip to Hillsborough, North Carolina for the year. The most adorable baby graced this planet in early December; at seven weeks, we met. Baby R.J.F. continues to grow in both adorable-ness and size. Life thankfully brought more time with long eye-lashed Baby R.J.F. in April, July, August, and December.

January, Hillsborough, NC

July, Hillsborough, NC

August, Round Hill, VA

December, Hillsborough, NC

Later that month brought a full-speed combination trip to visit my charges from the college era in New Haven, Connecticut--crossing CT off my '50 States before 50' challenge, dwindling the list to single digits, and R.D.S. in New York, New York. "My" little people are now now quite big--turning seven and double-digits over the summer. The visit, despite the brutal temperatures and time shortage, was an excellent escape.

New Haven, CT

New Haven, CT

New York, NY

Strand Book Store - New York, NY

After all the busing, driving, planing, and training, I stayed in in February as it snowed... and snowed some more. We also escaped to Jamaica for a wonderful retreat with P's family.

Treasure Beach, Jamaica

We moved in March. And we had special visitors from both Atlanta, Georgia and Lesotho. On our first hike of Spring, on a day with temperatures leaning more Winter than Spring, Boyfriend became Fiancé at Great Falls National Park. Two weeks prior, my brother proposed to his girlfriend!

Washington, DC

Great Falls National Park

Great Falls National Park

April had me traveling back to NYC to celebrate R.D.S., though she was deathly ill through it all. If she had to be sick, we were all thankful it was during her bachelorette weekend and not for her big day. By her wedding day, she'd made a full recovery and I headed South to commemorate her nuptials. She was a beautiful bride and the weekend itself was busily wonderful.

New York, NY

Columbia, SC

I also finished twelfth (in a field of 3000 women) at the George Washington Parkway Classic 10 Mile race at the end of the month. My 6:55 pace shocked me! The 1:09:06 finish time wasn’t for lack of training, but holy smokes--speedy.

To complete a hectic month, Fiancé and I went on our annual Cherry Blossom walk, clocking eight miles before we arrived at work.

I married Fiancé first thing in May; he’s now Husband and I wife. Weird? Very weird. We jetted off to Nashville, Tennessee to celebrate and had a great, great time doing so. Nashville was followed with weekend in Baltimore with K.A.B. before her departure to South Africa. I thankfully had a bonus weekend with her on my third trip to NYC for another wedding. Another beautiful bride. And way too much fun for a girl with a strict 9:00 pm bedtime.

Washington, DC

Nashville, TN

Long Island, NY

June brought a weekend escape to Asheville, North Carolina--just husband and wife. We mostly got poured on, though we managed a couple scenic waterfalls strolls. To call these mile jaunts hikes would be misleading. I then spent time in Jacksonville, Florida with my mom, where beach strolls were our thing.

Wicked Weed - Asheville, NC

Devil's Courthouse - Asheville, NC

Blue Ridge Parkway - Asheville, NC

Little Talbot Island State Park - Jacksonville, FL

My company treated Husband and I to stellar seats at a Nationals game where it proceeded to rain and rain and rain for two hours straight. The game was not canceled but the mood was certainly dampened.

Nationals Park - Washington DC

What February dumped in snow, June tripled with rain. The soggy month ended with Book of Mormon for the win. The two years was certainly worth the wait and the great seats were worth the price!

The Kennedy Center - Washington, DC

I spent 4th of July at my parents’ home cuddling puppy dogs and eating. Ready or not, this holiday weekend rebooted the marathon season. And as soon as Husband was back in the states, we caught a flight to Portland, Oregon for an extended vacation in the Pacific Northwest.

We spent time with H.J.W. in Portland and further South at Diamond Lake and Crater Lake before catching the train to Seattle, Washington to celebrate my grandma's 80th birthday. The highlight of the trip was definitely the day we spend in Mt. Rainier National Park. Two family vacations in one year is a feat in and of itself, having my mom's entire family gathered was nothing shy of a miracle!

Watson Falls - Umpqua National Forest

Crater Lake National Park

Diamond Lake - Umpqua National Forest

Seattle, WA

Ferry to Bainbridge Island 

Mt Rainier National Park

I also squeezed in another weekend in Asheville for J.L.W.'s bachelorette weekend in late July.

Asheville, NC

August my parent's hosted our non-wedding celebration. To have all our family and friends gathered in one place for us was both exciting and overwhelming. The night was as near perfection as I can imagine. I hope to remember the night for years to come.

Round Hill, VA

I also started a new job in August. While I continued to focus on building my career, I also began the building of a lot of running mileage this month.

In September, I kept on running. P and I traveled to Michigan to visit my extended family unable to travel to Virginia for the "I Do BBQ." My grandparents were delighted to meet P, and it was hands-down one of the best trips to Michigan in recent memory. Later in the month, we took another l-o-n-g road trip back to South Carolina for J.L.W.'s wedding. Despite a disgustingly rainy, wet weekend, the bride was stunning and the night was wonderful (though quite chilly). I very much enjoyed the company of my brother and his fiancé throughout the weekend, including an indulgent Waffle House breakfast prior to our drive home.

Southfield, MI

Livonia,MI

Taylors, SC

 

In October, Louis and Toby came to visit for a long weekend. Though it rained for four straight days, we managed lots of long walks! We finally managed to scramble Old Rag, the hike of Shenandoah National Park. October also consisted of the end of the marathon cycle... and a disappointing marathon finish. I still can't quite wrap my head around how it all went wrong after the successes I had earlier in the year and consistently throughout my fall training cycle. I suppose that is the challenge of the marathon. There will be more races to run.

Old Rag - Shenandoah National Park

In November, we had another long weekend with Louis and Toby. This time we went to Northern Virginia, our country escape. We re-outfitted Husband at the Premium Outlets, we hiked Raven Rocks, and exercised the puppies silly. We celebrated Thanksgiving at home. This was my first year contributing to the menu, which was an absolute fail.

We kick-started our holiday season with new and old traditions in December. We saw the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Ravens in Baltimore, Maryland the weekend before we headed to Boulder, Colorado for Christmas with Husband's family. We celebrated Christmas (again) on New Years with my family in Northern Virginia. The highlights include lunch at Bar Taco and shopping in Reston Town Center, a tailgate party to watch the College Football Playoffs (including two of our four teams, Clemson and Michigan State), a tried-and-true Christmas morning on New Years Day!

Baltimore, MD

M&T Bank Stadium - Baltimore, MD

With changes on the horizon, I head into 2016 grateful and hopeful, thankful too.

New Year, New Plans

I have slacked entirely on the blog front, so much so that I have a list of blog posts I would like to write. I also have a folder of pictures waiting to be uploaded. And some scattered notes that will bring me way back to when it was Thanksgiving 2014, which I have essentially otherwise forgotten.

Before I close the the previous year, I thought I would post my plans for the upcoming year in a series of groups: first, physical, personal, reading, spiritual, travel and couple; then yearly. Last year, I also made monthly goals. When I did not forget about these goals, I truly enjoyed the process; some of my monthly goals even became habits after the 30-day repetition! I did not have an organic list of goals I wanted to tackle, so I'm opting to omit them this year. I might have something I want to tackle when March or July roll around, and I will focus on that challenge then.

So without further ado, here's to 2015 and all that could be!

Personal

• Continue cooking. LOTS. The measurable task: Make one new recipe each week. This is the method I used last year, and it seemed to be practical for life as it was then and is currently. I'm ahead of schedule as the date reads now. This year I've made: a heavenly, wonderful corn chowder paired with a decent corn bread; a huge batch of minestrone to freeze for winter lunches; a meaty, porky chili; and two pasta sauces--vodka sauce and a creamy leek and pancetta topping.  
• As an added bonus, I want to expand my palate, so I'm going to try to add a unique ingredient to the shopping cart weekly. In 2015, I've tried a prickly pear and made two meals with leeks.

Physical

• Run 50 miler - MAYBE. I ran a marathon, and have another 15 months before I can run the Boston Marathon. I need to stay in shape in between, right? My fans have not exactly approved said goal. I’m apt to run this thing anyway. This is the race I have my eye on, pending the brutality of winter 2015. Today, I learned (or recalled? ) running in snow is fun and peaceful and pretty (and, yes, cold).
• Abs, abs, abs! And more strength. In an ideal world, this would entail 30 minutes of core per week and an hour of strength training a week. I shall try.

Reading

• Read 40 books. This is an ambitious goal for me! I read a lot, again for me, in 2014 and I’d like to keep the trend alive.
• Read at least two 500+ page books. I'm one-third the way through Hard Choices by Hillary Clinton. And Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand is on the docket. I’m taking recommendations though. 

Spiritual

• More days of solitude. I'll aim for a day of solitude per month. This is going to be easy to knock out in the beginning of the year. Boyfriend will be out of town for two weeks, and I have ample time off work in the first two months of the year.

Travel

• Visit two new states. The line up is set for Connecticut and Delaware. I already have my ticket to CT booked, and DE is a jump, hop, skip from my location in the mid-Atlantic. This is part of a greater goal to reach all 50 states before I’m 50. Though I’m way ahead of schedule, I was unable to hit a new state last year; I’m doubling up this year! 
• Travel internationally. I'm more than ready to leave the United States for vacation. Last year, I renewed my passport to do so. Thanks to Boyfriend’s generous parents, we’re booked for a B Family vacation in less than a month. I’ll knock this one out early. Though I wouldn't be disappointed with late in the year plans (or plans at all) for another adventure abroad.

Couple – 15 plans for 2015 + one bonus plan for a truly thrilling year.

Together, Boyfriend and I made a list of 15 things we'd like to accomplish this year. We threw in a bonus ideas to keep life interesting. 

1. Spend a weekend in Richmond, Virginia. My youngest brother has completed three of eight college semesters in Richmond and we have yet to visit. I'm a bad sister, I know. The eating, the surrounding hiking, the college basketball, and the music scene are all supposed to be incredible. I'm not sure what we're waiting on. I'm have my eye on the Richmond Half Marathon in November; this trip is looking as though it might happen then.
2. Go the the Green Bay Packers/Kansas City Chiefs game in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Boyfriend claims the Packers. I love the Chiefs. The two will meet in 2015. And as soon as the schedule is released, we'll likely know if we'll be there to see.
3. Pirates Stadium – I'm on a baseball stadium mission, and with Pittsburgh a short four hours away, and the Atlanta Braves visiting on a 2015 weekend, we'll be making my way to PNC Park this year. 
4. Mets Stadium – I have been to Citi field. Boyfriend has not. He'd like to do this one together. And if we can see the Braves, I'm in. (This is a bonus goal.)
5. Yankee Stadium – Boyfriend has been to Yankee Stadium. I have not. I'd like to do this one together. And he's in, if the Boston Red Sox are in town. 
6. Delaware Overnight – As mentioned, I (nor Boyfriend) have not explored our nation's first state. 
7. Book of Mormon; Once – We like musicals. And both these are coming to the Kennedy Center in 2015. Tickets are to go on sale soon, and we have our alarms set; these shows will not be missed. 
8. One Restaurant/Month – Food is good. The end. 
9. One Book Club Book/Month – We have our first three books of the year set: Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, Yes Please by Amy Poehler, and Boys on the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown. 
10. Pentagon and Air Force Memorials – Starting in March these memorials will be in our backyard, and we'll have no excuse not to visit. 
11. Participate in the Spring and Fall Book Sales – This is our favorite volunteer opportunity. We didn't get to participate in the Fall, so we're looking forward to being on the schedule in the Spring. 
12. Overnight Kayaking – Why not?  
13. Backpacking Trip – For the great outdoors, our home away from home. 
14. Hike 120 Miles – I opted for closer to 1,200 because #hardcore, but Boyfriend equated that to hiking half the Appalachian Trail while maintaining full time jobs and marathon training. I'm still unsatisfied with the number we agreed on but compromise; I'm learning. 
15. Chincoteague Pony Swim – On Wednesday, July 29, 2015, Saltwater Cowboys will swim ponies across the Assateague Channel from Assateague Island to Chincoteague Island. This year is the 90th year for the annual swim made famous by Marguerite Henry's "Misty of Chincoteague. This is where you'll find us on that Wednesday in late July. 
16. Dog – Maybe? Bonus, big bonus. 

With 11 months remaining, I'm confident I have lots of doing and discovering ahead of me. 

Chicao, Part Duex

I woke up at 4:45 am on Sunday, about 30 minutes before my alarm. #Fail I got up and starting drinking my #prelongrun six ounces of strong coffee. I finished all the #prerace essential tasks and Boyfriend and I were off to the races... #literally. After security--oh so much security--and another bathroom stop, I was in my corral (#CorralC) with about half an hour until the gun sounded. I remember anxious runners budging their way to the front of the corral before I stumbled upon a nice lady, willing to pass the time through conversation with me. I was so thankful for her company.

(Dear Mystery Runner Woman, 

I hope you ran your #BostonQualifier. I enjoyed meeting and chatting with you. I hope Texas isn't still basking in the summer-like temperatures. If so, send warmth. #Winterishere in Washington, D.C.

Best, S)

At promptly 7:30 am, I was off with 40,000 plus runner friends. And I ran and ran and ran those 26.2 miles (I have yet to recap) until I crossed the finish line in #GrantPark. The walk to the 27th Mile Post-Race Party felt like another couple miles. I remember how hard I had to concentrate on putting one front in front of the other for a l-o-n-g period of s-l-o-w-l-y passing time. Boyfriend eventually found me and we walked to meet my parents, who were tired from running their #spectatormarathon. We grabbed food at Epic Burger for calories. And Dairy Queen for more calories. The burger was eh. I still wasn't totally feeling food. I must have recovered quickly though because the ice cream tasted better than anything I had ever consumed.

That is, until I stepped in the doors of Girl and the Goat. (Before I was ready for dinner, I showered (#gome) and spent a few minutes with my brother and his friend at The Aberdeen Tap to end the dry period. My parents dined at Girl and the Goat on their #30thAnniversaryTrip to Chicago a few years back. They, especially Pops, have hyped up the restaurant ever since. We ate and ate and ate until dessert, when we ate some more. #WasNotLetDown The cocktails. The meal. The wine. The dessert. The coffee. The experience is all more than my meager words can describe. Add #GirlandtheGoat to your #bucketlist and, to make this dream a reality, be sure to make your reservations at least 90 days in advance. #NotJoking

I would like to say I crashed after this meal--both from exhaustion and the food coma, but I found sleeping difficult to come by. My body was writhing in pain. I "woke up" ready to be home. We made a few plans for our remaining day: North Avenue Beach, Magnificent Mile, and Portillo's. I felt as though concluding with a #Chicagohotdog complimented the trip perfectly.While I loved the views from North Avenue Beach and under normal circumstances could have shopped the Magnificent Mile all day, my body was too spent to find real pleasure in moving and viewing. #WishIWouldHaveKnown

All in all an excellent trip, I must say. #Takemeback, OK?