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Category Archives: life

Weekly Recap

July 22, 2016 By in life Tags: , , , 11 Comments

I’ve thought about doing a personal life weekly recap.  I have a lot of friends and family that read LOLZ blog, but I barely ever talk about my “real life.”  While this blog is heavily running focused, it isn’t everything I do.

Sometimes I think I’m living a double life: Blogging and the outside world.  I’m not hiding anything from blogging, but I tend to microblog on Instagram or Facebook.

I thought I would start adding more personal life updates as well.

This week was a great week. My sister in law Lindsay graduated with her master’s degree.  I made the quick trip down to the DC area to watch her graduation.  It was a very good time seeing my family, and I definitely miss them.

mastes graduation

Yesterday I got my blood drawn for Inside Tracker.  I was given a discount to talk about my experience. To be honest, I was nervous about the entire thing.  I scheduled the appointment just over two weeks ago, and I wanted it to be over sooner than later.  I’ve never dealt well with needles.  I  can’t relax enough for them to get into the vein.  I also pass out the majority of the time giving blood or getting shots.  Needless to say, needles are a big deal for me. I paid the extra fee to have a certified nurse come to my house and take my blood at 7 am.  Since we had to fast 12 hours beforehand and I wake up hungry in the morning, this was the best option for me.  The Nurse was kind and helpful, and I watched Netflix, which kept my mind off it.  Everything went smoothly, and I was shocked at how easy it was.

I decided to try Inside Tracker for a number of reasons.  Since we are in the military, I don’t have a Primary Care doctor. It would take a lot of hoops for me to get a “routine blood test” after just getting one from my fracture (only with a few minerals such as calcium and Vitamin D) and the results being normal.  The miliary has great insurance, but I have no life-threatening conditions and in fact, I am healthy.  My quality of life is fine and I wanted a blood test “just to know” and to make sure that my nutrients are appropriate for running.  InsideTracker, while expensive, was the best route for me to take.  I have also seen several bloggers and others use and have great success with it.  Plus, Insider Tracker gives out fun bandaids.

InsiderTracker

Since my fracture still doesn’t have an exact cause I’m hoping my blood work might reveal something.  Either way knowing that information will be good knowledge to have, and I’m looking forward to the results. Once I have the results, I’ll be sure to talk more about it.

Last night for work we also hosted our first “Paint Your Own Race Medal Holder” event.  It was a lot of fun, and we sold out the event.  They have painting parties, so we thought, why not a race medal painting party?

running co paint night

Recent Posts: 
26 Things I learned before Age 26
Training Last Week (Summary: not so great)
Hiking at Bear Mountain (New York State)
A Day in the Life

Question for you:

How was your week?  Have you been busy? Quiet?

 

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Hiking Hemlock Falls

July 13, 2016 By in life Tags: , , , , , 8 Comments

As you can probably see, my husband and I have been trying to explore the state of New Jersey more.  Last week we went hiking and the week before, we flew to Northern New Jersey.  hemlock falls 5

While we don’t have any plans to move soon, you never know what could happen.  I want to leave knowing I’ve explored the state. Plus, without running races, I’ve needed something to fill that space.  To be honest, I miss racing, and I’ve wanted to stay busy too.

hemlock falls 8

Last week we went up to Hemlock Falls in what is considered “Central New Jersey.”  It’s further north, but technically the state boundary lines consider it Central.  The debate of New Jersey is a post for another day, and probably one I have no business sticking my head into.

hemlock falls 7

With that, we went hiking.  The Hemlock Falls Trail is roughly 6 miles long.  We got lost a few and took several detours, so it ended up being about 6.5 miles for us.  My ankle wasn’t bothering me during the hike which I was happy about.

NYC is through the bushes

NYC is through the bushes

Many people don’t realize how beautiful and scenic New Jersey is.  The State is known as “the Garden State” and there are plenty of gardens, nature and scenery to view.  I promise we aren’t all turnpike, pollution, and traffic.

hemlock alls 2

There wasn’t a lot of water trickling through the falls last week, so we were able to walk around on the banks.  My husband is more adventurous than I and climbed to the top.  Since I can barely run in a straight line, rock climbing was not in the cards for me. hemlock falls 6

Afterwards, I left exhausted. Hiking is tiring and a hard workout. It was my only workout that day, but I was the most tired.

hemlock falls 8

Questions for you:

Have you ever been hiking?  Do you have any New Jersey/PA/Delaware recommendations? 

What are some fun hobbies you like to do?

A Quick and Enjoyable New Years Trip

January 5, 2016 By in life Tags: , , , 13 Comments

Last week I was able to go home and see my parents for New Years. It’s hard to believe I hadn’t been to my Virginia Beach hometown since the RnR Virginia Beach race in September.

I’m close with my family, so it was nice to spend a few days with them.  It was a great few days and we got to relax, enjoy New Years and run the Resolution Run.

My mom made the best Christmas gift.   When I was younger, I used to play with American Girl Dolls and had everything for those dolls. My mom has a small business and sews outfits for them (as well as other custom made items), so she made a LOLZ running outfit complete with runderwear and all.runner american girl doll

When I was much younger, my hair was dirty blonde, so this was me at about age 10.

You can go to her facebook page here if you are interested in her stuff.  She makes everything from American Girl doll clothing to baby blankets and bibs.  She ships too! 

My family, husband and I just spent time relaxing and hanging out.  Plus drinking coffee from one of my favorite coffee shops.

Jojacks Coffee

Is that enough whipped cream?

After running a 5k PR at the resolution run, we came back to enjoy family time.

An adorable photo of my 16 year old cat.

An adorable photo of my 16 year old cat.

One of my favorite desserts that mom makes is her Chocolate Ribbon Pie. It’s a pie made from cool whip, cream cheese as well as chocolate pudding. I’ve never attempted making it because I know I would be disappointed that it doesn’t taste like moms.

Chocolate ribbon pie

Chocolate ribbon pie

After a delicious and fun New Years lunch, we headed back north. I never realized how short the drive from Virginia to New Jersey is when you don’t stop ten thousand times along the way. It’s only 5.5 hours!

Questions for you:
How was your New Years?
Do you like pie?

To Don’t List

September 16, 2015 By in life, Personal, Reads Tags: , , 27 Comments

Negativity can creep right in at any time. I am someone who likes to make “to do” lists. If I write everything down, I find myself far more likely to get things done.

To Don't List

But what about a “To Don’t” list?

I was on an easy run a few days ago when the idea of a “To don’t list” popped up. I found myself brainstorming ideas and concepts that I could remove from my life to add quality to my day.  While thinking out loud, here is what I came up with…

Don’t rush life. Keep your mind in the present.

Don’t be afraid to say no and don’t overcommit yourself.  As humans we can only be good at a certain amount of things.  When we begin to overcommit and spread ourselves thin, we lose touch of what is most important to us. 

Don’t compare yourself to others. It’s fairly obvious but everyone is different and unique. This includes life, sports, relationships and just about everything. 

Don’t compare yourself to yourself. We all go through different life changes…It is impossible to compare ourselves at different points at our life.

Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket. This includes your career, sports or a single focus in life. Make sure you have something to fall back on. For example if you get injured with running, make sure you have other hobbies to keep you busy.

Don’t neglect family and friends. Family and friends will be there for you…don’t forget about them.

Don’t neglect yourself.  Always remember to give yourself credit and give yourself what you need to succeed. 

Don’t stress about a single day. The saying of life is a marathon not a sprint is relevant…it’s true and one day won’t make or break you.

Don’t be afraid to try something new. New things out of your comfort zone is what helps you grow. 

Everyone’s “To Don’t” list is different but it’s important to make it relevant to your life!

Question for you: What is on your “To Don’t” list?

 

Graduation

June 24, 2015 By in life Tags: , , , 16 Comments

The point of our travel was to watch my brother graduate college! As fun as the cruise around Manhattan was or traveling New York City, we did come for graduation.

We left around 7:30 and arrived to Matt’s campus at 8.

We were fortunate my dad was able to give him the official oath into the Navy. It was definitely a personal and touching moment for our family.

matt and dad

After receiving the oath, we went and found our seats at graduation. It took place outside (rain or shine and it came close to raining!).

Matt, mom and I

Matt, mom and I

The class had 212 students and the graduation took about 2.5 hours. I must admit the valedictorian and class president’s speeches were both two of the best and funniest I’ve ever heard.  They were certainly far funnier than my graduation speeches! They had everyone in the crowd involved.

After a few more speeches and military traditions, the diplomas were handed out.

My brothers and I

My brothers and I

We enjoyed a lovely lunch on the water near the Hudson River. I wish I had taken a photo because the catering was amazing. We had goat cheese salad and every kind of sandwich you can imagine.  I chose the Buffalo chicken sandwich which was popular.

family shot graduation

As you can see it was a really enjoyable and great weekend. It was great to celebrate with my family as well as the other families who were watching their sons and daughters graduate as well.

graduation

Questions for you:

When was the last graduation you attended?

Do you know anyone in any of the branches of the military?

 

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