Life is a Marathon...

3 days away

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Fri, 10 May 2013 13:09:00 +0000

In 3 days, I turn 30.

This really kind of blows my mind. It doesn't feel like it's been that long ago that I was turning 25 and sort of having a mini quarter-life crisis.

In the past 5 years...

I've been laid off from a job I loved, had a job I hated, and then found an amazing job planning races and working with runners!

I've dated a lot, and I've had my heart broken a few times.

I found my best friend and got engaged! (And am also becoming a stepmom to an awesome little boy!)

I've recently moved to another state.

I've traveled a lot.

I've run a lot.

I've learned a lot.

Honestly? I can't really summarize the last 5 years or even the 20s in words here. It's been one heck of a journey, and I'm honestly not that sad to say goodbye to my 20s.

I feel excited about this next decade. I'm getting married. I'm going on a honeymoon to Italy. I'll probably have another job or two. I'd like to have some babies (not just yet, but in a few years.) We will move back to Tennessee. We'll probably buy or build our own house and become homeowners. I hope to run more. I will definitely love more.

On Monday, I'll only be a day older than I was a day before... but there's something about 30. It definitely doesn't feel as old as I remember thinking it would back when I turned 20... but it feels solid. I feel like I finally know who I am (well, for the most part.) It took a lot of ups and downs in my 20s, but I feel like I've come into my own.

30. Just seems a little hard to believe I'm there.

Engagement Photos!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Sun, 05 May 2013 16:02:00 +0000

A few weeks ago, Adam and I headed back to Nashville to meet up with our awesome wedding photographers from Brown Lab Photography to take our engagement photos. We did most of them in Shelby Park over in East Nashville, and we also took a few night shots around town. I am so happy with how they turned out! Here are a few of my favorites!

Coming Together

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 01 May 2013 18:47:00 +0000

I can now say that at 3 months and 9 days out from the wedding, all of the BIG planning things are done.

1. We have a wedding website! Feel free to check it out here if you'd like.

2. We figured out how to register for our honeymoon. We are so thankful to people who want to bless us, and since we pretty much have all we need for our home we set up a page to show people how they can make our honeymoon more fun and memorable. You can check it out here if you'd like.

3. We also registered at Bed, Bath and Beyond as well as Macy's since we could use some new towels, bedding and a few other small things.

4. We have our invitations designed and the paper picked. I'm just waiting on the proof, and then we should have them in plenty of time to send out at the beginning of June!

5. We picked out the tuxes! YAY!

6. We picked the menus for the reception as well as our rehearsal dinner.

7. I secured our bartending services.

8. All of my showers and bachelorette party are on the calendar. I am so thankful for the people working to plan them and make them happen!

There's still a lot left. My mom is busy working hard on all of the decor (she's making pretty much everything herself and with some of her friends). I need to figure out about my bouquet (those are the only real flowers we're using - mom is making the other bouquest and bouts out of some awesome fake flowers from Hobby Lobby). We need to find some random items like a basket for the flower girl. We need to pick out gifts for the people in the wedding (and each other, though I've already figured out one for Adam!). I need to figure out my hair. Just stuff like that.

We have a busy summer on tap even with non-wedding stuff (for example, we'll have Adam's little boy for almost 4 weeks of the summer). We have a few fun things planned like some concerts and a little trip for the 4th of July. So it feels really good that we have all of the big stuff accomplished.

It is so exciting! I can't wait to see everything truly come together on August 9!

Happy Birthday Tucker!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 13:07:00 +0000

Yesterday, my sweet boy Tucker turned 7!!!

It's hard to believe he was once this small... I know he's a cat, but he is MY cat. I love this little fella, and I am so thankful that I have such a great pet. It's just been me and him for a long time, and he has kept me company while I lived alone the last 7 years.

And now he is also Adam's! Fortunately, they really like each other. Last night, we gave Tucker an extra treat and then he spent some time snoozing on Adam. We're hoping for at least another 7-8 years with this one!

My Thoughts on Boston

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:55:00 +0000

I've been debating ever since last Monday afternoon about whether or not I wanted to post about Boston. It's not that I don't have thoughts and opinions, but I don't know that I can say anything to really add value to everything else that is being said.

However, I am a runner. Even though I wasn't in Boston (though I appreciated the numerous phone calls and texts I got from family and friends last Monday to see if I was there and if I was ok), I still feel affected. This wasn't just about that race and those runners... it impacts the entire running community. If you're a runner, chances are that you knew someone who was there.

I was relieved to discover that the people I knew running the race were fine. I was relieved when only 3 lives were taken by this act (and not to discount those lives... three is still too many). I was relieved when the FBI determined who conducted this terrible act, and I was even more relieved when the suspects were found.

These terrorists picked the wrong community to mess with when they selected a running event to perform this act. I am proud of the way our community came together to help the FBI find who did this... by sending in pictures, by describing things they saw, and so on and so forth. I am proud of the way our country united to stand against this act. I am proud that we have organizations who could work so hard and quickly to find out who did it and to locate them. I am proud of the way our running community throughout the country and the world has held events in honor of those affected by this tragedy and that we have all brought our prayers together for Boston.

Last week was a tough week. Between all of this and the explosion in West, Texas, it can really get you down about the world we live in. On a personal level, I also had a tough week... it's all inconsequential stuff - our closet system collapsed for the second time (just a hassle to get the rental company to fix it and to do it right this time), I fell down the stairs in our house (I'm ok, but a little banged up), and one of my parent's cats started having seizures (they determined he has epilepsy) and then the other one started vomiting and was lethargic (they think he has an infection and will be ok, but we're still waiting to see)... it just felt like a week that would never end.

But the sun rises again. We have love. We have each other.

I ended up not working out the past 5 days or so. I just needed a break from doing so much. But it's a new week, and I have a new energy. I'm tackling my to do list and getting back on the fit train. Life keeps going, and I think we have to just keep our heads up and keep pushing forward.

Odds and Ends

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:26:00 +0000

Updates on my life via Sections and Bullets! Haha.

Indy

I'm pretty much in Indy full-time now. It's so nice to feel settled, though I've still got a few projects on the list of some things to finish organizing here now that the rest of my stuff is moved up.
It has been warming up! Adam and I were able to run outside in a t-shirt and shorts last week. It's by no means warm, but it's at least not ridiculosuly cold.
I've been learning my way around a bit better - I've managed to successfully run all errands I needed to run in the past week or two.
I've also been cooking dinner for us a lot. This is both saving us money and helping us to eat a little better! And we usually have leftovers for Adam to take to work the next day for lunch.

Wedding

We had one of our tastings last weekend, and we were very impressed! We still have a tasting with another caterer, but then we'll be able to make all the final decisions about who to use, what to order, etc.
Once we do that, we're also going to order our cake!
We're starting to figure out what we want our invitations to say and how we want them to look so that we can get that all to our awesome designer Matt and get those done in the next month or so in order to get them ordered on time.
My flower girls now have dresses! Their mom found them something at Macy's that is PERFECT!
My mom is hard at work on decor - it's going to be amazing.
I also found the fake flowers for all of the wedding party. They look real and saved a ton of money!

Fitness

We are doing our engagement photos in a few weeks, and trying on clothes to figure out what to wear has just made me unhappy. I know I am not fat or anything, but I have not been working out and it is showing. SO....
I am running again! It's not a lot yet... just doing a mile or so in the neighborhood each day as more of a warm-up for the rest of my workout, but it feels good.
I also started Insanity again. After only 5 days of it, I already just feel better!
Now that life feels a bit more settled, I'm determined to make working out a priority again. I've got a wedding and honeymoon to look good for!

Honeymooning in Italy

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:45:00 +0000

It's been decided and booked.

Adam and I are going to take the dream trip for our honeymoon and go to Italy!

We've both always wanted to go, but at first we thought it was a bit too big of a trip to try to plan right now. First, we talked about just doing a mini-moon and taking a long weekend to go to Colorado or something along those lines. Then, we talked about going to a Sandals resort for a week, but we found out to do the one we liked it would cost almost as my last trip to Europe! So we sat down one night, sent out some request for quotes from various travel agents, and now here we are all booked!

We start out by leaving the day after the wedding and flying to Venice.

After one full day and night in Venice, we hop a train to Florence for 3 nights. We plan to explore the city, and we'll probably also take a train over to Pisa for a few hours to see the famous leaning tower and take the typical tourist photos with it.

While in Florence, we are also going to take a day and do a bike tour through Tuscany. We'll get to to go to a castle, do a wine and oil tasting, have lunch out in the countryside, and just explore on bike.

Next, we will spend 2 nights in Rome. We are going to take a tour of the Colleseum and the Vatican, but otherwise we will just wander around and explore the city.

To wrap up the trip, we will spend 2 nights on the Amalfi Coast in Positano. It should be gorgeous!

We then spend one last night in Rome before flying back home.

We couldn't be more excited, and I wish it was time to go right now! Neither of us are really "lay on the beach all week" kind of people, so we're thrilled that we're getting to go somewhere together that we've both always wanted to go. It's going to be so fun to explore these cities together. We feel like we've planned a good itinerary of being able to do some sightseeing, but also some relaxing. We're staying in some nicer hotels (the one in Positano has an ocean view), and we've only booked a few tours. We really just want to explore and take it in as we wander around.

I can't wait! It feels so good to have this planned and marked off the to do list! I am so glad we worked with a travel agent, too. She got us some great deals, and it really took off the pressure of having to plan it all ourselves when we have so much other stuff going on right now!

Now to get the rest of the wedding planning done!

Some Updates

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 04:42:00 +0000

I am now spending far more time in Indy with my man than I am in Nashville. This is good in that I love being with him, and our home really feels like OUR home. It's bad in that I have to miss out on some things in Nashville with friends.
Work is work. :)
I ordered my bridesmaid dresses.
I also found flowers for the bridesmaids bouquets. (We're using silk flowers to save money, but they still look so real!)
We have scheduled two catering tastings and are working on one more, and then we will pick our caterer and menu for both the rehearsal dinner and the reception!
The Save the Dates went in the mail over the weekend, and I've been so excited to hear from people that they got them and love them!
We are booking our honeymoon tomorrow - we are going to.... ITALY!!! We will do 10 days of traveling through Venice, Florence, Tuscany, Rome and the Amalfi Coast. We may also add in a quick visit to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and we are discussing Pompeii. We are definitely going to book a couple of tours in some of the cities.
Next up is to decide on what we want with invitations so we can get the designer going, and Adam is going to set up a website for us that will be used for the RSVPs.
We have CJ this weekend, and another friend and her two kiddos are going to ride up to Indy with us so we can take all the kids on Saturday to the big children's museum there in town.
I bought some books on CD for the drive back and forth between Indy and Nashville. I love listening to good tunes, and it's only a 4-hour drive... but it was time to find other ways to entertain myself when I am making the drive alone.
I am hoping by the time May rolls around that I will be in Indy pretty much full-time with the exception of trips down here for our time with CJ or to come visit family/friends.

All in all, life is good... Just BUSY!

Oh, and I haven't run in almost 4 months. Oops. I'm determined to start working out again soon, but honestly? It's been good for me to take a break. I think I needed it, and I think it would have stressed me out to have tried to keep up the running over these last few months.

Call for Help

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 17:41:00 +0000

So Adam and I are pretty settled in our new home in Indy.

Granted, I don't quite live there full-time just yet. I'm back and forth between here and Nashville on a weekly basis.

To say it's a little crazy is an understatement.

I'm balancing loving Adam and developing our relationship, work, wedding planning, learning how to be a step-mom and toting a 5-year-old around, staying in touch with friends, figuring out how to make new ones in Indy, and so much more.

It's definitely nuts. And I have had about 2 meltdowns in the last 2 months, which I would argue is not that many all things considered.

But all in all, it's good.

So how can you help?

One thing Adam and I are working on is saving money and eating at home more often.

If anyone has any quick and healthy recipes you can send me that you love and rely on, I would love to hear them! Email them to me at melanie0513 (at) gmail (dot) com.

Thanks!

My Boys

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 06:04:00 +0000

These are my boys, and they have been my life lately. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Saying Yes to the Dress

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 01:28:00 +0000

I have decided on my wedding gown.

I didn't cry. I didn't get some big overwhelming feeling. I actually tried on quite a few that were gorgeous.

But this was the one where I looked in the mirror and said, "I feel like a bride."

I pretty much spent all day Saturday looking. We had three appointments, and I tried on at least 10-12 dresses at each store. I had a favorite at each store, but there was the one where I just knew.

I went back today to try it on one last time so I could be sure.

I haven't ordered it yet... I want to make some calls and determine who can order it for me for the best price.

I refuse to show it online in the off chance Adam decides to read my blog and just can't keep himself from looking, but if you really want to see it then let me know you're email and I'll send you a link.

I have also made a decisions on bridesmaids dresses!!! This one isn't a secret, so here's the link:

http://www.billlevkoff.com/style/bridesmaid-dress/155

We will order them in the Kelly Green!

It feels really good to have some of these big decisions out of the way. There's still a lot to be done, but so far all is going well and coming together (knock on wood)!

Becoming a Stepmom

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 02:57:00 +0000

When Adam and I get married this summer, I not only become a wife... I will also become a stepmom!

I've already been around his son a lot, and it's even more exciting to be around him now knowing that he will be a part of my life from now on.

He just turned 5 this past week, and we went to his birthday party with his family and friends from school this weekend.

It's interesting... I've always known that I want to be both a wife and a mom, but I never expected that it would in some ways happen all at once. It's been a fun ride to get to know this kid and fall in love with him as I fell in love with his daddy!

I am just so thankful that he seems to love me back!

I never imagined before Adam and I got together that I would be a stepmom, but now that it's happening? I'm pretty darn excited!

Setting Up House

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 05:43:00 +0000

I headed up to Indy on Friday afternoon to join Adam in doing as much as we could to get the new house organized before he started work today.

We were both not feeling it by the time I got there, so we got some dinner and then did some comparison shopping around town for a few things we wanted to get for the house. It was nice to just go to our home and relax with him a bit.

Then we hit the ground running on Saturday... we managed to get his son's room squared away as well as the kitchen... and we also got all the rest of the boxes opened and everything to the room they needed to go in. By the time we headed out to dinner, we were pleased with all we had accomplished.

Sunday morning we knocked out as much as we could in our bedroom and bathroom before decided on a whim to drive to Cincinatti to go to IKEA. It's less than a two-hour drive, and we ended up spending several hours wandering around. We picked out some items (and daydreamed about getting a king bed when we get married in August) and headed back to the house. Then we decided on another whim to go to Target at 9pm to get a few things we'd seen there the night before.

I continued working on a few things when we got home, and he assembled the IKEA shelf we got for the guest bath and then started working on the cabinet we got at Target for our bath room.

When I left this morning, the house was still in a bit of disarray... the office is not together at all, and we still have all the decor and pictures stacked in a corner waiting to be placed and hung. And our couch won't be delivered til Saturday...

But we accomplished a ton and I realized that it really felt like our home... it was a lot of work, but it was also surprisngly fun to put together our home.

Oh, and to clean out even more stuff! We had a pretty successful yard sale here in TN (thanks to our moms), and we've cleaned out even more to have another one in Indy!

I'm pooped, but I still managed to get most of my stuff organized where I'm living for a bit here in Nashville. I still have a few more things to do before I feel settled here, but it's coming along.

Life is definitely sort of a whirlwind right now, but in a really good and crazy fun way.

Oh, and I'm getting back on the fit train tomorrow. It's time to get my nutrition back in line and start working out again!!!

Indy Update (Among Other Things)

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 03:47:00 +0000

As I write this, I am in bed at my parent's house and Adam is at our new house in Indianapolis where he pretty much only has an air mattress, blanket and case of water.

We managed to Get Sh*t Done this weekend.

Saw 11 houses
Picked a house
Signed a lease and got the keys
Did an inspection and noted all the things we want maintenance on
Took care of the water/electric/sewage/etc.
Scheduled for Comcast to come hook things up for tv and internet
Bought a TiVo (this is what happens when you're getting married apparently... the Comcast DVR will only record 2 shows, and I was informed that won't cut it for us)
AND the big purchase was that we bought a couch

Then we came back to Nashville....

I've been working
The movers packed everything at Adam's and it is being transported to Indy
Adam drove up to Indy today to be there for delivery tomorrow
I go up Friday-Monday to try to get everything unpacked and organized
I come back and finally unpack at my cousin's place so I can feel like I live there for a while

I am still exhausted.

Oh, and we also confirmed our photographer and booked a videographer for the wedding, so now I'm taking care of asking my bridesmaids to be in the wedding and scheduling appointments to try on wedding gowns.

And next weekend I take Adam's little boy and mom up to Indy to see the new place.

I've literally been living out of a suitcase for a month now.

But I have to say... it's a pretty fun and exciting adventure. So I'm not complaining... just a little surprised at how well we've been knocking things out. I like to hope it's a really good sign for our marriage that it seems we handle all this stuff really well. Like picking the couch... we went to 3 stores, sat on a few couches, and then just decided on one.

I'm hoping finding my wedding gown will be that easy for me!

Getting Things Started

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 04:02:00 +0000

So I haven't run since December 1st. I did Insanity for about a week and a half in mid-December. And then my world turned upside down with the trip to NYC, the engagement, the holidays, and now starting off the year with work and wedding planning.

And a move.

Adam has accepted a job for a company just outside of Indianapolis, and things have been moving quickly.

This weekend, we moved me entirely out of my apartment. Some of my stuff went to my cousin's condo where I will be renting a room from him for a bit. The rest of my stuff went to Adam's place so that it can go on and be moved to Indy with him by the movers.

This weekend we go to Indy to find a place to live, and next weekend we go to Indy to unpack everything when the movers get it there.

To say I'm exhausted right now is an understatement, but it's definitely all very exciting.

I won't move up there for a few months, and we'll be doing the long distance thing for a bit. I'm excited for him that he has found a great job, even though it's hard on both of us to be leaving Nashville. However, he should be able to transfer to the company's Nashville office after 2 years, give or take, so that helps!

In the meantime, we have gotten some wedding planning done. I'm determined to not be "all wedding all the time" on here, but it is sort of a big deal right now.

We have decided to get married on August 9th at a really cool old wool mill that has been converted into event space. It's going to be really pretty - lots of Italian white string lights, brick walls and old, wooden doors.

I attended a bridal fair this weekend (which was surprisingly fun), and we think we found our photographer. We also intend to talk to a couple of videographers and djs I met there and decide on both of those things.

So stuff is coming along!

Once we get him moved next week, it's time for me to get my butt in gear. I've gained about 10 pounds without realizing it until I managed to realize it. I think it's a sign that I am 100% truly happy these days, but it also makes me unhappy to be a bit pudgy and soft in my middle. So I'll be getting myself running (and training for the two half marathons I'm running for fun in March with my job) and doing Insanity regularly so I can trim up.

And then stay trimmed up... homegirl wants to look great in her wedding gown!

Engaged!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 05:46:00 +0000

Engaged.

Yep.

Part of why I've disappeared a little bit from blog land is that I have been spending a lot of time with Adam for a while now. It's sort of a long story and one that I feel I'd rather not divulge every tiny detail of on the internet.

Adam and I met in 2003 and have been friends for a long time, but through a series of events we ended up reconnecting a bit this summer. Over the past 6 months or so, we fell in love and realized we wanted to spend our lives together. We'd been talking about it, but I wasn't expecting to get engaged until spring.

We had planned a weekend trip to NYC months ago - both to see a Dave Matthews Band concert and to explore the city at Christmastime. (I'll save the trip recap for another post.)

On our last night, I really wanted to get a picture in Rockefeller Center in front of the big tree. They had someone set up to take them and you could buy them, and I insisted that we stand in line to take one so that we'd have a really good picture with the tree.

After posing for a photo or two, Adam started talking and next thing I knew he was down on one knee. I was SO surprised!

It took me a little bit to compose myself, but once I did I said yes and he put my beautiful ring on my finger. I was shaking with adrenaline and couldn't stop smiling and kissing him.

Needless to say, this has been the best Christmas of my life. :)

I hope you've all had a very, merry Christmas. If anyone has any great advice on resources about wedding planning (like one solid book to use as a guide, or something like that), I'd LOVE to hear about it!

Race Report: 12S Winter Warmup 12K 12.1.12

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:11:00 +0000

My last race for the year happened about 5 minutes from my home and along some familiar stomping grounds. The 12S neighborhood (in the 12th Avenue South area) is one of my favorite places to both run and hang out (as there are many awesome restaurants along 12S).

I'm part of the 12S Runners, and I try to make it to the group runs as often as I can. So it was an easy decision to run in the first ever 12S Winter Warmup 12K. I knew I'd still be tired from the marathon and my lack of training, but I also knew the area (and its hills) well and that it'd be a fun event.

I wasn't disappointed. The weather was gorgeous (mostly because we've been having 60 and 70 degree days). I saw tons of people I know from the Nashville running community. And even though I ran sort of slow, it was an automatic PR since it was my first 12K.

The course was definitely a hilly beast... and since there was also a 6K and the 12K consisted of the 6K course twice, I got to do all the hills twice. I didn't mind though... I kept an easy pace and just enjoyed waving at friends and running along. I didn't even run with music.

I finished in 1:10:41, a time that I was pleased with all things considered. I had fun, and that was all that mattered.

I haven't thought much about my 2013 racing just yet, but I know I'm done for 2012. It's definitely been a pretty laid back year in terms of running with all my races being just for fun or to do something new... but I had a blast, and I'm glad I didn't really have a goal race when it's all said and done.

Race Report: Boro Dash 4-Miler 11.22.12

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 03:11:00 +0000

As is tradition (or at least as it has been for 6 years), I ran a Thanksgiving morning race.

For the second year in a row, I went to Murfreesboro and ran the Boro Dash 4-Miler.

It had only been 4 days since the Flying Monkey Marathon, so I was totally running for fun. My goal was to take it easy and enjoy the day... and the gorgeous, warm weather!

I did exactly that and finished in 37:00 flat. Sure, it's nothing to brag about, but I had fun and enjoyed the morning. I always see a lot of people I know when I run in the Boro, and this time was no exception - including two of my Ragnar teammates!

I went on to spend the day with loved ones and ate lots of yummy food!

Race Report: Flying Monkey Marathon 11.18.12

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 21:51:00 +0000

On the 18th, I ran in the Flying Monkey Marathon here in Nashville at Percy Warner Park for the third year in a row.

I haven't really trained for a marathon, so running this race was sort of foolish... but you run this race because you love running, so I figured I could eek it out and have some fun.

It was pretty cold in the morning before the race, but it promised to be a gorgeous day as the temps rose a bit. It was fun catching up with friends and hanging out before the race.

I love that there are a ton of Marathon Maniacs at this race. It's always fun to take a group picture.

I knew that I needed to take it pretty easy if I wanted to do this race. I seriously have not run more than 13 miles as a long run this entire calendar year.

My friend Liz and I started the race together and got to chat and catch up. We walked up the big hills and otherwise kept a steady pace. Our friend Amy hopped in with us for a few miles early in the race, and it was super awesome to have her company for a bit. A little later, Liz's boyfriend joined us for a few miles.

Liz and I stayed together until about mile 15 when I told her to take off. I knew she was in much better shape than me! I managed to run a lot until mile 20 when I started doing more of a run/walk... I definitely didn't run up any hills!

I chatted with folks and enjoyed the beautiful day as I took it easy and pushed toward the finish.

Before long, I was done and had completed the race in 4:52:23 - a couple of minutes faster than when I ran it last year in the pouring rain!

I had some chocolate milk and socialized with a few friends who were at the finish.

I also got a 10 minute massage - I think this made a huge difference in keeping me from being too sore.

I went home and napped before we joined a bunch of other runners for pizza and beer at Mafiaoza's that night.

I definitely enjoy this race, but I'm not so sure I'll run it again. It is definitely tough, but then again... I did sore of go out there and run it with very little training.

I was pretty sore on Monday, but by Tuesday I felt good to go!

Race Report: TN Ragnar Relay 11.9-10.12

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 04:30:00 +0000

For the third year in a row, I joined 11 other runners to run in the TN Ragnar Relay - 196.3 miles from Chattanooga to Nashville. This was my fourth Ragnar, and I had a blast yet again.

The team and our two drivers gathered at the start in Chattanooga to see off our first runner.

I was runner 3 in van 1 this year. My first run happened at about 10am, and I had a 5 mile leg running DOWN Racoon Mountain. It was AWESOME! I have been running hills a lot lately, and I felt confident on the downhill. I finished it in about 40 minutes!

Even though I felt great, I was still a little wobbly at the end. It's hard to go from five miles downhill to walking a flat line, haha.

After the first run, we got to really enjoy the GORGEOUS weather and all goof around a bit.

We had a small incident at the first major exchange in Jasper, TN where we accidentally locked the keys in the van. Only three of us knew about it, and we decided to keep it that way until after the race. Fortunately there was a small crack in the window. Two of the guys lifted me up and I was able to reach my arm in up to the elbow.. so we got a stick and I used it to reach down and push the button to unlock the doors. It's pretty funny looking back on it.

One of my favorite things about this run is that you go through backwoods Tennessee. A lot of the small exchanges are at tiny little churches, and it always cracks me up a bit to see the church signs.

One of the most fun parts of running a relay is definitely the people!

We had lunch after turning the action over to Van 2, and then we headed to Cowan, TN to rest a bit until it was our turn again. I again took advantage of the beautiful weather while we still had some sunshine.

It wasn't long before we were back at it. I ran my second leg around 8pm, and I had 6.8 miles to go in this one.

I felt strong and confident, and I finished it right in about an hour with 6 kills! A friend of mine ran past me at one point (he was running the same leg on another team and is way faster than me) and knew it was me, so it was nice to say hi to a familiar face.

After we finished, we found a Waffle House in Shelbyville to have another meal before trying to get some rest. We curled up in the van at the next major exchange and napped a bit before it was our turn again.

I ran my last leg at about 3am. I was TIRED, but I was also thankful I'd had a little nap. I had about 5.4 miles to go. My legs were pretty heavy, but I powered through and didn't walk once. It was much slower, taking me 58 minutes to complete. But all things considered, I was happy with that!

After we finished our legs, we went to a team member's house and took a little nap for a couple of hours before heading downtown to finish with the team members in van 2.

We finished in a little over 30 hours - an hour improvement from last year!

It was SUPER fun, and I can't wait to run another relay... though I am sort of itching to do one somewhere else. Anyone else interested?

Oh, and the medals were awesome this year. SWEET.

Never Too Old for Halloween

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 03:51:00 +0000

I am a firm believer that Halloween is not just for kids. And even if it is, I feel like we all need to be kids sometimes.

Adam and I dressed up this year as replacement refs. You can't see it well in the pictures, but we have Foot Locker name tags where we crossed out Foot Locker and added the NFL logo. Heehee.

We met up with some friends at another friend's house and all hung out before going out for a bit in midtown. I love these people, and we had such an awesome night.

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So I Caved...

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 03:45:00 +0000

I bought a Garmin.

I've never felt the need to have one before. I was fine to just use a basic stopwatch. And a lot of my friends I run with have them and could let me know splits if I really wanted to know. And they were expensive. And mostly? They were so big, and I have tiny wrists. Like, super tiny.

I also never really felt the need to know all the facts and numbers and details. I worried it'd take the fun out of running.

But the folks with Garmins? We're all in different seasons right now and don't run together as often. We're still friends of course, but the group runs are a little less frequent. And the people I do run with regularly don't have one either.

And I started running trails and am really getting into that and see myself doing more trail races.... and it's hard to know how far you've run out there.

And I discovered they new Forerunner 10 was MUCH smaller. And only $130. And came in green.

So I bought one.

And I love it. I don't obsess over the times or anything like that, but it has been really nice to hear the beep when I hit each mile so that I can keep up when I'm on the trails. It was also SUPER helpful when I was running the Ragnar Relay this past weekend (race report to come) as they don't have mile markers. When it's 3am and you're tired and running over 5 miles, you sort of want to know how far you've gone and have left.

I'm pretty happy. I totally recommend this one. It's super user friendly, it's not like wearing a garage door opened on my arm, and it's easy to download everything so I can see the stats.

Yay Garmin!

Race Report - The Nashville Color Run 10.21.12

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 03:36:00 +0000

Last month, several friends and I ran in The Color Run here in Nashville. I know this race series has gained popularity this year, but if you're not familiar with it then the jist is you where white, and you run through color stations where they throw color on you.

Here's our group BEFORE picture. We called our team Lisa Frank and the Stickers!

The race is a 5K, and it is not timed. You just run for fun! We laughed and joked and walked and ran and just enjoyed it. It was actually a gorgeous day in Nashville, and it was such a blast to do something like this with friends.

Here's what it looked like running into a color station.

We stopped along the way for pictures.

And here is our group AFTER picture. Maybe you can tell why we went with the Lisa Frank theme for our team name?

One of the things you do after the race is gather in a group and everyone throws their personal packets of color in the air. A friend caught this picture of what it looked like from the pedestrian bridge.

We hung around for a little bit, and then Adam and I walked over to the Municipal Auditorium for church. I sometimes go to Crosspoint, and they were having a special 10-year anniversary service with all locations gathering in one place. It was pretty awesome. And one of the things I love about this church is that people were excited to see us coming all covered in bright colors! And the service ended with a picnic in the park with all the food trucks. Definitely an awesome day!

Race Report - The Middle Half 10.13.12

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Tue, 30 Oct 2012 00:27:00 +0000

For the 6th year in a row, I ran in my favorite half marathon in middle TN - The Middle Half in Murfreesboro, TN.

I have run in this race every year that they've had it, and I fully intend to keep the streak alive. My half marathon PR is from this race, but the past few years I've run it mostly for fun. Since I ran my first trail race at Stump Jump the week before, I just wanted to take it easy and enjoy the race.

My mom and my friend Erin were going to walk the race together, and my sister and I decided we would run together.

We also found my cousin Amy at the start, so we set out with her as well. I love running through Murfreesboro and around MTSU as it brings back a ton of memories from my four years in school there. The weather was perfect - not too hot, not too cool. I love how there are a couple of small out and backs on the course - I spotted friends Amy and Andrea along the way as well as some old high school and college friends.

We kept a pretty gentle 10:00 minute/mile pace. Somewhere around mile 8 the 3 of us split up a bit. I was feeling fine, and I started picking it up a little bit in the last mile. I spotted some friends from my Ragnar team toward the end, and we ran it in together.

I ran a 2:09, which I was totally pleased with considering I haven't been training all that well lately and had just raced a tough race the week before. We had to wait for mom and Erin to finish walking, so we grabbed some food and enjoyed socializing with everyone.

Mom and Erin did great and finished walking in about 3:50! It was mom's second time to walk a half, so we were super proud of her.

I always recommend this race to folks because the course is flat, the weather is usually good, the medals are always nice (though I was glad to see they changed the design a bit as they were tending to all sort of look the same, just in different colors), and they do a long-sleeve Brooks tech shirt that is nice.

My only pet peeve this year was that the women's shirts were hot pink and the men's were red. Not all women like pink! And I'm ok if you do pink, but then they ALL need to be pink. I ended up trading my shirt out for a men's red... which doesn't fit quite as well as a women's shirt, but I just couldn't handle the hot pink.

Anyways, I digress. Another great Middle Half this year!

Race Report: Stump Jump 11-Miler October 6, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 02:51:00 +0000

Earlier this month, I headed to Chattanooga to run my first trail race. I had originally signed up to run the Stump Jump 50K, but the summer just was not conducive for training... so I switched to the 11-miler.

My parents and a friend went with me on Friday. After picking up my packet (including a super awesome Patagonia tech shirt!). We grabbed some dinner and then went to the Haunted Caverns at Ruby Falls. That turned out to be really fun! Then it was off to the hotel to get some shut eye.

I had known from stories of others who have run this race that it can be hard to find it. I had considered doing a dry run the day before, but since I was just doing the 11-miler I was pretty relaxed and didn't think it was necessary. This of course meant that it took us a while to find the race, but we had left early enough that we still had some time to kill before the start.

It was pretty cool and rainy. I find this the perfect weather for running, but I knew it meant I'd need to be more careful. Fortunately I was just here to run for fun, so I had no plans to go all out.

I started off just focusing on keeping an easy pace. The first couple of miles felt pretty easy... nothing too technical, nothing too steep or slick. After those miles, we came across a stretch that was pretty narrow and steep. Everyone I was near was just sort of in a line climbing through it all.

When we got to the first aid station, we were for real on the side of a mountain. Even though it was cloudy and rainy, it was still just beautiful. I thought about how cool it might be to come back and hike out here sometime.

It got a little steeper and more technical for the next few miles, but I chatted with a few people around me and the time went by quickly. I even saw Melissa from Nashville. I hadn't seen her in a while, so it was nice to catch up and also find out that her husband Jeff was taking on the 50K. (I later found out he killed it.)

I started feeling pretty tired the last 2-3 miles. The mud and rain had definitely made it harder to run, and I was a little tired of going uphill. I was definitely glad I didn't try to take on the 50K when I hadn't been able to do the training I had hoped to do.

I finished the race in 2:37, and I was pleased! For my first trail race ever, I felt it was a success - especially considering all the rain and mud.

We all grabbed lunch and then went to check out the Ruby Falls cave tour (surprisingly, I had never done it even though I have lived like an hour and a half away my whole life.) It was pretty neat.

It was definitely a fun experience, and I for sure want to go back and do the 50K sometime. Maybe next year!