Highs and Lows

Good morning! Mondays are always a little rough so let’s talk about the weekend shall we? I think Spring forgot about us over here in Indiana because it sure didn’t feel like the first weekend of the new season. One of my favorite blogger buddies, Tina, recaps her weekends in highs and lows, and my weekend was all over the place, so I thought it would make a perfect idea for today’s post.

The weather on Friday! It got up to 54 degrees on Friday which felt positively balmy to us Midwesterners. Isn’t it amazing what sunshine can do for your mood? I had a spring I my step on Friday night when I got home from work. I opened up the windows to our apartment, made a hydrating pitcher of water and went on an evening bike ride with the hubs.

It was in the mid-30’s all day Saturday and of course we were outside almost all day long.

 

HIGH

Although it was chilly, we trekked up to the lighthouse where Jord and I got engaged almost two years ago today! I experienced some major déjà vu as we were walking on the boardwalk along the beach. The last time I saw this view, I had no idea Jordan was hiding behind the lighthouse to meet me! I will have to give an engagement recap sometime soon, you will love the story. 🙂

 LOW

On our way back from shopping we got in a little car accident. Jordan was driving and we are all okay, but it definitely put a damper on my Sunday. My car had to be towed because of damage to the wheel and we are a one car family right now until we can get a rental.

 HIGH

Because you always have to end on a high note! I spent Sunday night with one of my best girl friends, helping her with wedding planning. Wedding planning is so much less stressful when it’s not for your own!

What was your high and low for the weekend?

 What’s your favorite season?

Mine would have to be summer. It can never be too hot! Maybe I’m just saying that because I’m so tired of this cold winter we’ve been having? 😉

There’s a reason I’ve been quiet…

I’m still here friends!

I’ve just been busy getting married…

         

Going on my honeymoon…

Starting a new job…

And living life!

Be back soon with regularly scheduled programming and more pictures. 🙂

Turns out I’m allergic…to fun

So, remember how excited I was about the Labor Day long weekend? Well, I spoke too soon. Saturday morning started out just as I imagined. Jord and I took a ride through the mountain biking trails and then got in the car to meet up with some friends for breakfast. I got in the car and set my right hand on the side of the window…enjoying a nice breeze. I immediately pulled my hand back in the car when I felt a sharp pain in my pinky. I thought the hot metal on the car door burned me, but then I saw a bee flying away.

I must have set my hand right on top of a bee and the little guy got me right inside of my pinky finger. I started laughing and then crying a little because it hurt SO badly!! I have never been stung before and had no idea the amount of pain the little black and yellow buzzer could give. We met up with friends for breakfast and we were all laughing at how my swollen finger resembled the sausage links that were served. Well, the bee had the last laugh because soon my whole hand was swollen.

I was freaking out a little, but everyone told me swelling was normal, so I popped some Benadryl and we were off to the lake.

     

The Benadryl zapped all of my energy and I pretty much sat on the boat and smiled for most of the afternoon, trying not to fall asleep. I had a lot of fun watching my friends wake surf and jump off the boat.

  

I am usually all about swimming and water sports, but I stayed dry for most of the afternoon and chatted with my girlfriends while we cruised across the lake. Later on, I felt alive enough to go for a quick paddleboard adventure.

It was hilarious trying to get 3 girls on one paddleboard. At this point, my hand was so swollen that I could barely use it. The paddleboard trip below was about 30 seconds out and back.

  

 

Later on I felt well enough to try wake surfing for the first time and I’m so glad I did! We ended the night on the lake by wake surfing, swimming and wakeboarding.

        

 

My hand was still  pretty swollen on Sunday, so I slept for most of the day and was ZERO fun when we went to see Jordan’s family at their lake house. It was a little fun to see people’s reactions when I would show them my huge hand. The swelling still hadn’t gone down since Saturday morning.

 

When I woke up Monday morning, I had had enough. After sleeping and eating Benadryl for two days, my bee sting had turned into a nuisance and I  needed to do something about it. The doctor prescribed antibiotics and steroids for the sting and five hours later I went from this….

To this…

 

Hallelujah! Aside from some itchiness, my bee sting has healed and I now have a normal hand. It was definitely a scary experience to see my body react to something like that and I am so grateful for doctors who know what they’re doing and prescriptions that actually work. Phew!

I wouldn’t say my Labor Day weekend was a flop, but it wasn’t exactly what I had planned for my last few days of summer fun.

Have you ever been stung by a bee? Tell me about it! 

What did you do for the holiday weekend?

 

Booty Bronze: Get your Workout Outdoors

The ultimate summer holiday weekend is upon us and I’m ready to soak up the sun on the last few days of summer. I have a pool 10 steps from the front door of my apartment and it is calling my name.

In my world, summer long weekends mean swimsuits, rosy cheeks and towel dried hair. They also mean that I don’t see the inside of a gym. Since I have a job that keeps me indoors, I go a little stir crazy if not spending a sunny Saturday outside. I also tend to get a little grumpy when I don’t get my endorphins fix. So, why not combine the two?

Here are a few ways I like to take my workout outside:

• Running: This is the easiest and most obvious way to take your workout outdoors. Want to add in a little strength training? Mix up your run by breaking it into 3 minute intervals. Stop every 3 minutes to do triceps dips on a park bench, push ups on the pavement, crunches in the grass, and lunges down the street. 
• Pool Workout: Try this pool workout that mixes in strength training and cardio. Best part about this one? You don’t even have to put on a sports bra!

(source)

• Bike: Grab a friend and go for a ride around the neighborhood, local trails or mountains. The weekend is a great time to explore new areas with your bike. Bring a picnic basket and stop for lunch!

• Lake: Summertime in Indiana means lakes and boating. If you’re at the lake, try out some water sports. Skiing, wakeboarding, kneeboarding and even tubing (you WILL be sore!) are great ways to get a workout in. Don’t have a boat? Go for a swim or tread water for 30 seconds on and off.

• Paddleboarding: This summer’s craze seems to be paddleboarding. Standing on this surf board in the water will work your core, balance skills and arms while you row down the river. Surf the web for local outfitter shops in your area to rent a board. Most places let you rent them by the hour.

(source)

• Take a hike: Beat the heat and hit the shaded trails for a hiking adventure with your friends. Search for parks in your area (even flat Ohio has hiking spots!), or take a short trip to hoof a few hills. I promise your glutes will thank you.

Cheers to the weekend! Have a fun and SAFE Labor Day!

What will you be doing this Labor Day weekend? 

Any other suggestions for outdoor activity?

Last Wedding Before My Own!

I’m still alive! No worries, I don’t post on Mondays remember? I’m trying to get better at blogging on the weekends, but my weekends are extremely full of wedding planning and working on my tan.  😀 Anyway, this past weekend was no exception and I had a fantastic time at one of my good friend from high school’s wedding. It was the last one I’ll be attending before my own, so the experience was a little surreal for me! The wedding was in Ohio, so you know what that means… Florist, videographer and pastor appointments flooded my calendar and RSVP cards were begging to be opened.

We spent a few hours on Friday night going through our RSVP’s and laughing at all of the funny responses we got. Our RSVP cards were Mad Libs style and I’ll be writing a post about them soon. 🙂

I woke up bright and early Saturday morning to get a 5 mile run in before errands took over my day. I always feel better when I get a good workout in before a busy day, it just makes me a little bit more calm. And I definitely needed the calmness on Saturday. We met with our wedding videographer and then drove straight to the church for our final meeting with our Pastor. It was so weird to actually start talking about vows and our ceremony timing. It’s actually happening!

After our meeting, we went to my parent’s for lunch where my mom filled me in on her appointment with the florist. I wasn’t able to go to the florist meeting because I overbooked myself on Saturday (womp womp), but I sent my very capable mom with all of my notes and pictures. After lunch it was time to get ready for the wedding!

One of my good friends from high school married her high school sweet heart of 8 years! It was so special to watch two people you have seen together for so long, finally tie the knot. They have been through so much together and truly belong together. My heart pretty much melted on the floor when they pronounced them husband and wife.

The wedding was a beautiful mix of teal, purple and black and the bridesmaids carried broach bouquets. This was the first time I had seen this done and I thought it was so unique and beautiful. It’s strange when you are planning a wedding, you start to look at other weddings a little differently. You appreciate the time it took the bride to make a seating chart and you notice creative details a lot more than before. 🙂

The bride was absolutely stunning and seemed so relaxed the whole day. I hope I’ll be that relaxed!

This wedding was a lot of fun because so many of my high school friends were there! These two ladies, Lauren and Amy, have been my best friends since 6th grade and will also be standing up with me in my wedding.

My crazy brother is good friends with the groom, so he made an appearance as well!

I can’t believe that we are next!! How did this happen so fast??

Any high school sweet hearts out there? Go you!

Do you like your weekends to be go-go-go with fun activities or do you like a laid-back, relaxing weekend? 

Usually, I like my Saturdays and Sundays to be full of fun activities, but we have had so many of those in a row, that I’m ready for a weekend with nothing to do…Maybe that will happen in November? Haha

Obstacle Courses and a Peachy snack

Good morning! It’s Tuesday already? I didn’t post yesterday because, honestly, Mondays kind of depress me. Even if I have something sweet to do on a Monday, I still don’t like them. Negative Nancy in the room. 😦 But hey! It’s Tuesday now, so let’s move on to talk about food.

I’ve had some yummy snacks and meals lately that I want to share with you. These are all super simple, can usually be prepped in 15 minutes or less, and have minimal ingredients. Perfect for summer nights when you don’t feel like cooking or light snacks before heading out to the pool for the day.

ZICO Dark chocolate Coconut Water: It has a ton of electrolytes in it and hydrates your body after a sweat fest. Regular coconut water is great too, but I like the taste of this one the best. 🙂 I usually take 3 big gulps as soon as I get inside from running. It is gluten, dairy and lactose free so it doesn’t upset my sensitive stomach. Winner winner!

Clean Tuna Salad: I’ve had this for lunch a couple of times and love it! Super easy to prepare and it’s a “clean tuna salad” because it doesn’t have any mayonnaise or a cream base to it. Steamed egg whites, tomatoes and tuna top spinach with rice vinegar and balsamic vinegar as the dressing.

Garlic Quinoa Stir Fry: You’ll see the words “stir fry” quite a bit on this blog. It’s easy, fast, and you can pretty much throw anything in a pan and I’ll eat it. My soon to be sister-in-law gave me some zucchinni and tomatoes straight from the garden so I had to use them right away! I love quinoa because it is packed with protein and a great substitute for rice. Some people can’t get over the texture of quinoa–ahem, Jord–but I try to use it as a mixture in my meals instead of the the base. I cooked the quinoa with minced garlic, sautéed zucchini and onions and added cold tomatoes at the end.

Jord’s brother has a huge peach tree in his backyard. The peaches are so ripe that they fall right into your hand with just a touch of the branch. I plucked several to take home with me.

Cheesy Peach Toast: I cut up a juicy peach, nuked some brie cheese and placed it on top of toasted Ezekiel bread. Yum! This was an awesome snack. And you know how I like my sweet and savory concoctions. 🙂

Those are some fun additions to my eats that I’ve been enjoying lately. I get bored with things pretty easily so switching up food is one way to make sure I stay on track with my healthy eating. I also like to switch up my workouts often since our bodies are intelligent and when they get used to a certain routine, they stop changing and stay stagnant. One way to switch up your workout? Compete in an obstacle course race!

Jord and I ran in a mud run this weekend called the Warrior Dash. It was our first one and we had a blast!

I’ve run 5k’s, 10k’s and a half marathon, but mud runs have an entirely different atmosphere. It wasn’t so serious, everyone was just there to have fun! This was the first race in my life that I didn’t care about my time, or competing with everyone else. About 17 obstacles covered the 3.4 mile course and almost every one of them was covered in mud.

The first obstacle we went through was a 3 foot deep trench with barbed wire over the top, so you had to crawl on your hands and knees to get to the other side.

I had to hold my breath so that I wouldn’t gag in the muddy water…I know, I’m such a girl. I quickly learned that a little trench was the least of my worries.

We were constantly going over bridges, walking on wooden planks, and climbing up walls. It reminded me of playing the “lava game” when I was a kid where you had to jump to different obstacles without touching the ground, except this time, the fire on the ground was real. 

Even if we wanted to go for time, we couldn’t have since our heat was so crowded, we often had to wait in line for obstacles. Waiting in line wasn’t as bed as you would think. We got to meet people, catch our breath and watch how other warriors attempted the upcoming obstacle.

One of my favorites was the “Warrior Wall.” We had to wait in line for this one but it was exciting to cheer for people that made it over and a little scary because some people would get to the top and fall straight down to the ground. Eeek!

We came away with a couple of bloody knees, a fun “Warrior Medal” and lots of memories.

BEFORE

AFTER

Have you ever run in an obstacle course or mud run? 

Did you use to play the lava game when you were a kid? 

Snack Attack and a College Bound MOH

I am a lover of small meals and snacks in between them. Last night turned into a night that I snacked my way right through dinner. Not mad about it. 🙂 Wednesdays are my long run days and I always go home first to get a little pre-run fuel in me. My favorite pre-workout fuel is usually a banana with nut butter or piece of toast with nut butter. Last night started out innocently enough when I got home from work and found my hand stuck in the jar of mixed nuts. Then, because I was procrastinating on my long run, I ate a banana and a granola bar. As I was lacing up my running shoes, Jord came in to change before heading to the gym. He opened up a bag of my favorite, gluten-free chips….

And I think you know what happened next. I finally got out the door for my run at 6:40 and completed 7 miles. My legs felt fresh because I’ve been focusing on a lot of cross-training and stretching. When I got home, I wasn’t too hungry but knew that my body needed fuel after the long run. I showered quickly and fried a couple of eggs with toast, mozzarella cheese and tomatoes. I slept like a BABY last night and woke up feeling a little sore this morning but not bad at all. 🙂 I ate another egg with toast, cashew butter and raspberries and raced to work. Can you tell that eggs are one of my go-to meals? They are easy and extremely nutritious.

Obviously, my iPhone takes beautiful pictures… P.s. I like to smash the berries on the toast because it reminds me of jam. Yum. Halfway through the morning I ate a peach.

And now we are all caught up!

My baby sister is leaving for college today! I can’t even believe that this little girl is old enough to live over 400 miles away from us. She is the baby of the family and the last one to fly the coop, leaving my parents as empty nesters for the first time in 26 years.

Alex and my older brother, Ben (pictured above) were always joined at the hip growing up. She is an aspiring singer/song-writer I can’t wait to get her first autograph. 🙂

My parents are driving down with her today and staying for the whole weekend before driving back home on Sunday…Yea, they are having a little trouble with this one. Apparently, so is my little brother, Pippin.

They found him in my sister’s car this morning as they were packing up. Sorry, Mr. Pippin no dogs in the dorm. I Facetimed with the whole family last night and it was so exciting to get to see and hear the excitement going on as they were packing up 18 years of memories.

She is updating her Instagram account of the whole process and  it reminds me of when I moved away for college. I had so much adrenaline, anticipation and anxiety running through me, that I didn’t even have time to feel sad about leaving home…Until about 3 days into my classes. I was a little bit homesick my first couple of weeks, but after that, you had to beg me to go home. I think my sister will be the same way. I am so excited for her and this new journey she is about to begin.

I really grew up in college and think a lot of my friends did too. You find who you are and start to learn how to be independent. I can’t wait to see what the next four years will bring for my sweet sister.

Oh, and did I mention that I won’t see her, my MOH, until the week of my wedding??!!! Ah! That makes me sad and anxious and stressed out. Thank God for FaceTime and email.

If you went to college, what was your favorite part about it? 

The best part about college was that I was always surrounded by my best friends. How  lucky was I that I got to live with them??

Do you ever snack your way through dinner like I did last night?