Race Recap: A soggy (but still awesome!) St. Jude 1/2

Saturday I ran my 3rd half marathon.  It was special because it was the first half that Mr. C and I have run together. I think he's so sick of me harping on running that he's decided to join me.  Unfortunately, bad weather was on the horizon.  But what's a girl to do? Needless to say I had no aspirations of a PR but guess what? I  got one! My best time yet, a 1:50:52 at an 8:28 pace. Not fast to some, but fast for me. There are days when I'm tired of training and I think, why am I doing this? But then I get a fast time, and I want to make it even better.

So y'all, when I say rain, I mean, like, cold.soaking.rain. Pouring rain. I couldn't have been more soaked if I had jumped into a pool before the start and I have some (awful!) race pics to prove it. I was actually fine until the finish. Once I stopped, I was freezing and realized how soaked and disgusting I was.

The gun was at 7 and we were in the 2nd corral so we started right on time. Christian had some friends in the race and though we started together, he left me after a quarter of a mile. We didn't plan to run together so that wasn't a complete surprise, but I sort of thought we'd hang for a while. Not! But I'm pretty used to running alone so I settled into my rhythm and figured I'd see him at the finish.

I passed him at mile 6. :)

How funny is that guy behind me?

He passed me at mile 8.  :(

Then I caught him again at mile 11ish. :) We were definitely (silently) competing.

The finish line kind of snuck up on me. I sprinted the last tenth of a mile and was juuuuuust shy of catching him but he beat me by 10 seconds. I let it slip through my fingers. There will definitely be a re-match.

It was a tough race overall. But running it (and doing well) in those conditions made me feel like a rock star. Thank the Lord for those wrap thingies they gave us, I was so cold my lips were blue and I was headed for hypothermia. I am so stubborn that I still wore my cutie pie Lulu peach outfit in spite of the weather.  Overall, it was a good choice temperature wise since I hate to be hot (although white shorts in pouring rain was a questionable decision).

I'll never forget this race. We had a lot of good friends/colleagues in it and it was a great accomplishment for all (one friend finished in 1:37!).  I hate to get mushy, but running continues to enrich my life in ways I wouldn't have imagined.

The week in Instagram

Just a few snippets from the week...

Dress up days at school were fun and my little man was more than happy to be a cowboy.

My 4 year old wanted to wear his hat sideways and when I asked why he replied, "That's how they do it on car TV. Daddy lets me watch it." Daddy is grounded!

The pic of Mr. C and I is actually from dinner last week.

An OOTD from Thursday.

An upcoming project involving a giant block monogram, stay tuned!

Flowers in a mason jar will always bring out a smile.

Got my bib and ready for Saturday's half:)

What I'll be sporting.. I love the Lulu arm warmers (sadly this cute outfit will likely be covered by a throw away sweatshirt and trash bag due to RAIN!)

Bracelets the runners will be wearing to honor Boston.

As I mentioned, it's supposed to be pouring rain on Saturday and I don't really enjoy running in the rain but I'm keeping my attitude positive:) I'm excited that this is the first race Mr. C and I have done together and yay for my mama coming to visit!!

Happy weekend friends!

New faves

I have a couple new faves from Nordstrom to share. This Caslon tee is kind of a slub knit, not to tight, not too loose, very good price. I now want one in every color.

Find here

I think I have finally (after years) found a favorite scent that doesn't give me a headache. My friend has me hooked on Jo Malone Nectarine Blossom and Honey -- it smells so good and so clean.

Here

I picked up this sassy little swimsuit by Robin Piccone that is the best of both worlds for a mama at the pool chasing little boys around.  It's even cuter in person, a bright bright juicy red.

Here

And P.S., those Lulu shorts I mentioned a few days ago....on sale now (of course!) If you have a Lulu nearby go check them out. Happy Thursday!

A very Nashville weekend

We had an action packed weekend, y'all, so fun, and it ended with some serious excitement!

Friday night Mr. C's parents arrived and we headed out for our usual Friday night Italian. I think it's funny that when they come to visit (fresh off the plane from New York) the first place we always take them is to a New York pizzeria. We love our little spot though and we indulged in some yummy desserts too. No calorie counting on weekends:)

Saturday we had a day full of soccer with my favorite boys and then headed off to a great dinner followed by tickets to the Opry. Performing: Diamond Rio, Charlie Pride, Vince Gill, and Billy Ray Cyrus along with a few beginners. We love the Opry, it's always fun and I just looooove live music. This was the second time in one week we've seen Vince (*much* better seats this time).

I've been a fan of Vince for 20 years (really!) and in the spirit of laughing at oneself I have to show the first time I met him (holy sequins and big hair)...HA!

I was 17, had just won a local pageant (I entered it to make my daddy happy, first and last one I ever did), but I got to meet him. He was *so* kind to me and I never forgot it. He holds a special place in my heart! His voice is still like velvet too, he's so talented.

Sunday we headed off to Opryland Hotel to pretend we were tourists. We wandered around, looked in shops, and had a great lunch. Mr. C had a raspberry mocktail that really made an impression on me, it was so good I can't stop thinking about it. Club soda, a fresh raspberry simple syrup, and mint. Pretty and yummy.

I also squeezed in some shopping at Lululemon with a giftcard my mother in law surprised me with...how cute are buffalo checked shorts? Thank you L!!

Monday I dropped the fam off at the airport, only to receive this text...my mother-in-law hanging out with Billy Ray at the terminal! They got bumped from their flight and ended up on his, how about that! Check out his new do, I like it. I know he gets picked on a lot but he was fantastic live and very gracious. I'm a fan!

She even got me an autograph! Ha! I'm so easily starstruck.

It was a veeerrry Nashville weekend!

How the week looked

I am so sorry for my lack of posts this week.  I must admit that after what happened in Boston on Monday, every time I sat down at the computer to write a post words failed me. I just couldn't pull words together. I had run last Saturday with a great group of ladies, one of whom was headed to Boston on Monday and was so excited. And for any runner, Boston is a dream. My prayers have certainly been with those affected. And so, this week I spent lots of time hugging my sweeties, laughing with friends, appreciating small things, and being thankful for blessings.

Source

Tuesday night we went with friends to a concert at Bridgestone called All for the Hall. Keith Urban and Vince Gill put this one on the raise money for the Country Music Hall of Fame. SO many talented people performed. It was fantastic. It sold out really fast and so our seats were what you would call nosebleeds (we're talking top tier, last row, hang on to your hats). But there's nothing like live music. They were all great -- Eric Church, Keith of course (although we were late and missed his opening songs, boo!), Hank Williams Jr., Roseanne Cash, Sheryl Crow and Kid Rock, Tim McGraw (he's so skinny y'all, he's hot but he needs to eat a hamburger), Trace Adkins, and the list just goes on. Loved it!

We've also had soccer, school, running, (laundry, cleaning, errands) and I squeezed in a little shopping time at Nordstrom with friends, not to mention a yummy lunch in the Nordi restaurant, Sixth and Pine. Best sweet potato fries I've ever had (even better with cilantro lime dressing). Good thing I purchased that swimsuit before I ate the whole basket of those!

This weekend Grandma and Grandpa are flying in from New York to hang out with us and we're headed to the Grand Ole Opry.  Hope y'all have a great weekend!

How the week looked

Training is back on track and I'm loving my Brooks Ravennas so far (hope that doesn't jinx me).  I also picked up the.cutest.skirt from Lululemon. I LOVE running in it.

How funny is it that when I showed up yesterday to get a cut and color, my stylist (and buddy) was wearing the same thing/different color?  Who loves a Gap sale? We do we do!

Some words of wisdom from Forever21..

A friend made these Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas for us recently and they were so delicious.  So I made them this week for another friend who is on pregnancy bedrest - hope she liked them:) Thanks Pinterest!

Six Sisters' Stuff

Went out with the girls for Mexican and sat a few tables away from Winona Judd.  Too chicken to say anything though, boo!

via

I saw this on Tumblr and it made me smile...

via

These boys are getting so big (too fast!). He looks like a teenager in that picture?! So tall!

I'm looking forward to a great weekend with beautiful weather and lots of time outside. Hope y'all have a great one too!

Currently reading..

Fave magazines this week...

I enjoyed the article about Carrie but I don't know that I believe she does her own hair and makeup.  I love her purple eyeshadow though and I'm totally copying it.  My favorite article in Runner's World was "Beyond the Mantra" by Michelle Hamilton. It's about training your brain for endurance, not just your body. Good read!

I also recently finished The House at Tyneford and I really enjoyed it. It rated highly on both Amazon and Good Reads (plus my sister-in-law recommended it); I had to read it!

It started a little slow but I was hooked at page 50 and had to keep reading.  Interesting story and definitely Downton Abbey-esque.  I wish it had a different ending but I also like when authors don't take the easy way out.  Here's Amazon's synopsis.

I downloaded Six Years by Harlan Coben and couldn't get into it, didn't like his writing. It got great reviews though.

Instead I moved on to this, Night Road by Kristin Hannah.  Love it! I believe it was Heidi who recommended Kristin Hannah to me, I can tell I'm going to be a fan.

Any other good recommendations?