Teacher Appreciation, Flashbacks, & Puppies

This week for Teacher Appreciation, I became my very own superhero:

I really wish I was that epic, and cute!

One of the secretaries at school is in charge of Teacher Appreciation Week and she goes ALL OUT!!  I am always amazed at the creativity, time, work, and effort that she puts into this week; she really is the best of us :)

I love Timehop because sometimes it helps me remember things from the past that I have forgotten or just don't think about on a regular basis.  Phil and I graduated (and he commissioned) 6 years ago!

He's still as cute now as he was then, and I'm still as smitten...insert mega heart eyes and sigh

I had Friday off from school and got to spend the entire day with my puppies and my books and color me contented!  I even started to take a nap on the couch while watching cartoons with the pups!  Note the "started" part, I soon felt paws on my back reminding me that it was play time now:

Hello Penny!

Max was less inclined for play time as it was overcast, he was much more content napping on my feet:

We had already played and walked and so, he felt the cuddle time was just right.

The rest of the weekend was filled with gym time (finally! It's been more sporadic than I'd like!), volunteering with my awesome Battalion Crew,  dog walks, and book reading.  I have finished two books and am marching my way through a third; ah the joy of the written word :)

I hope everyone has a wonderful week! I am gearing up for my LAST FULL WEEK OF SCHOOL!!! School is out next week!  It is finally winding down at a super quick pace!

How was everyone else's week? 

Wedding Dresses, Disappointment & Running

Hello everyone!  Sorry for the absence, life has been CRAZY lately, and honestly, I am just enjoying the ride.  I took a whirlwind of a trip back home because my cousin is getting married and I'm her MATRON OF HONOR!!!  So I am super, super excited! So I flew home for Fall Break because it was time to find her wedding dress!  She did say yes to her dress and she is absolutely stunning; I cannot wait for June to get here so I can watch her and her fiancé make the vow of forever :)


After that it was a whirlwind until Halloween!  I love Halloween, I love watching Hocus Pocus, Scooby Doo movies, pumpkins, decorations, and most of all, trick-or-treating!  Last year we lived in a neighborhood that had lots of kids and I was blessed with only THREE trick-or-treaters.  This disappointment is strong to this day my friends.  Well this year, we live in a neighborhood with kids again and I was ready!  I had Halloween music playing, a big bowl of candy (all chocolate) and a cute dog!  Wonderful!

No, it was bad, awful, and just sad.  Max and I had only TWO trick-or-treaters!  I was soooo bummed!

Max was just as unhappy...

So, I compulsively ate 5 pieces of candy and we watched the Hocus Pocus marathon on TV.  I think I am boycotting the trick-or-treat part of Halloween next year, my heart cannot continue to take this disappointment.

Poor Phil has been in the field this past week and a few days this coming week; well he gets home around 9-10pm and then is out of the house at 6am.  I think that is worse than just being out there completely!  But with him in the field this weekend, I thought it was a good idea to get some good gym time in, walks with Max and some running done.  The only time I have been running lately is when I have a race, and I mean I only run the day of the race, nothing leading up to it.  I had gotten back in the habit, but then I went home and things got crazy!  But this weekend I have put in 7.5 miles (total) and I am feeling good about this start.

I really want to sign up for a half marathon up in Tulsa next month, but for some reason I am having a hard time actually doing it.  I feel excited, but super nervous!  Does that happen to anyone else?

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!  There is a LOTR marathon on TV today and Max and I are holding down the couch: snacks and sweet tea included! :)

Linking up with Bianca!

Dogs, Running, & Food Trucks

I had an earth-shattering epiphany this week: maybe if I ran steadily, I wouldn't be in soooo much pain after I decide to run a race.  I was thinking this as EVERY muscle in my body from my ribs down were boycotting life on Monday and Tuesday.  So, in order to remedy some of that, I have ran every night this week!  I have ranged from 1-2 miles and they have been just slow and steady...definitely not breaking any speed records or coming close to my race times, but just an easy pace to get back in the swing of things.    It has actually felt really amazing (except on Monday and Tuesday, that completely sucked, not going to lie) and it makes me happy getting back into running.  I have been more focused on lifting and exploring exercises with weights that I have let running slip on by (that and it was 100+ degrees everyday in the summer).  I still lift after my runs, but it just makes my heart happy to be running steadily once more.

On Saturday, Phil and I, along with some friends, went to Wichita Falls, TX to just poke around.  And to participate in the Food Truck Fest! I have never really eaten from a food truck and I see them on cooking shows all the time, but haven't ever eaten at one.  But you bet I got a street taco from a legit food truck on Saturday!  It was so fun to mix and mingle and people watch! The hardest part was choosing which truck I wanted to eat from!

Once the school year starts, I have a hard time fitting in any reading time.  I read a lot and it is one of the ways I unwind and relax, and I (as well as Phil) can always tell when I haven't been reading enough.  This week I destroyed this book:

It was really good and the first of a series!  I have the next one arriving on Monday...happy day!

Max is also obviously, very excited...

Speaking of Max, we also have had the pleasure of having a guest dog in the house!  His name is Bear and he is amazing...literally! He and Max had their first playdate last week and Max has been a whole new dog having Bear here in the house.  He has been back to his happy self and this dog mama couldn't be happier!

It has been so fun having them both here, definitely contemplating that second dog now! Maybe over Thanksgiving or Christmas Break...

Max is now snoring on the couch as he has played more in the last few days then he has in months!

I hope everyone has a wonderful week! :)

Anyone have any cute fall decoration ideas for outside?  Phil and I are thinking of decorating the outside of our house and any ideas are appreciated!

Linking up with Bianca!

Early Mornings, Visits, & Running

So back in the winter I was trying that whole "workout before work" thing in order to fit extra training in for our half marathon on Super Bowl Sunday.  Once that was over, I dropped that like a hot potato and gained an extra hour or so of sleep in the morning.  That being said, for the past three weeks, I have been getting up at 4:30am to hit the gym before work.  It has just seemed a lot easier because after school I have cheer practice (I am the assistant cheer coach at my middle school) and by the time I get home from that, all I really want to do is eat and sit on the couch until I can go to bed.  Surprisingly, I really LOVE getting up and hitting the gym early!  It is not the struggle it was in the winter at all! I start the day feeling super productive and awake! And having my metabolism revved all day is a nice side benefit.

Max typically isn't a fan of that alarm, but he doesn't like any alarm, so there's that.

Speaking of Max, he got to have a great play date with his new doggy pal Bear!  This was so awesome because I think Max is going through withdrawal from seeing all of his friends (and girlfriends) at doggy daycare, so this was much needed!  Phil and I got to have a people date with our friends, and our dogs got to run around like crazy, sniffing and licking everything...it was pretty great for these dog parents!

Look at that doggy grin!

Phil had signed us up for a 10k race up in the city this morning about three weeks ago.  Now in the time he told me about it, signed us up,  to this morning when the race actually occurred, I ran a total of ZERO times.  I had every intention of running a bit to keep in shape and all that jazz, but it really just didn't happen.  But, this morning I actually had a great race!  I hit a PR and placed third!  I am super happy about that, because somewhere around mile 4, I was really thinking of how I wanted a drink and to stop.  I shut down that negativity in my head, and just kept plugging away and it actually worked...who knew?

I think the best part of the race is Phil's outfit...

Phil and I are doing the dance where we think about getting a second dog again.  Normally, we dance, I overthink, and we move on.  However,  lately, it does feel like Max is just sad or lonely and it is really starting to get to me!  Does anyone have any advice on getting a second dog?  Max will be 4 years old in December and it probably won't occur until after school is out for the summer, but did anyone overthink as much as I do?  Did your dogs get along?  Is it better to get a girl since we already have a boy?  So many questions!

Any advice is appreciated!! :)

I hope everyone has a wonderful week! :)

Linking up with Bianca!

New Pants, 5k's, & Gym Etiquette

There are very few things the make me irritated, but every once in a while I get a little cranky about certain things.  One of these things is Gym Etiquette.  When you lift and grab your plates, load up your machine, and get your reps in, you are supposed to re-rack your weights.  NOT JUST LEAVE THEM THERE FOR ME TO RE-RACK YOUR 215 lbs!  If you can get them on there, you can take them off and put them back.  I realize that after your reps, the muscle group you were working is reasonably tired, however, I do not want to heft all of that off, to put on my own, to lift, and then put them away...no thank you!  I don't understand how you could watch me re-rack your 215lbs and trot your happy butt off to the next machine...next time there will be words friend.

Ok, rant over!

In other news, Phil came home from work on Thursday and said he signed us up for the Devil Dog 5k here at Fort Sill.  Exciting!  Except that I haven't ran in a solid 8 weeks (I ran once, maybe twice, and I am really not sure it counts).  Saturday morning, we were up and at it!  Race started at 8am and we were ready to rock and roll!  At least as much as someone is at 8am on a Saturday running a race they hadn't prepped for....

It was awesome!  I actually ran my fastest 5k time ever!  I credit that to the Stair Stepper, my competitive nature, and the fact that Phil stuck with me during the race (races are always better with a buddy!)

Post run happy!

We also finally got a couch this weekend!

It is a sectional that fits perfectly into our living room space without crowding it too much!  Phil and I finally were tired of waiting for the claim to go through, so we picked it out after the race on Saturday and it was delivered that afternoon!  I forgot how wonderful it is to have a couch to sit on :)

I have also been shopping...I decided to splurge and try Lululemon athletic wear.  It was recommended by a friend and I had never tried it, so it was destiny.  I am now the proud owner of a pair of Lululemon cropped spandex pants and I am in love!

I wore them to the gym on Sunday and loved the way they stayed in place the whole time and really how cute the pattern is! They have all kinds of colors and I am in serious love!  I may have two more pairs in my shopping cart as we speak...

I also made Phil take a selfie with me at the gym...I needed the photo of my pants!  And he is too cute, that is also a huge factor :)

You can check out the leggings on Lululemon's website here.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!  :)

Does anyone have any other favorite athletic clothes that they love and recommend?

Linking up with Bianca!