November is practically over! And man, did it go by quick.
Run of the Dead Elimination Run- November 1st, 2015
I started the month with the Run of the Dead Elimination Run that was put on by my running club! It was super fun :D Here's the premise: you run 4.25 miles at the top of every hour. If you make it back by the hour's end, you keep going until you run your full amount of 4.25 mile loops, or until you are ELIMINATED because you didn't get back to the start by the top of the hour. The choices were 8 loops, or 4 loops. Those of us who didn't want to die only ran 1 loop of 4.25 miles, and the winners were just the fastest times. There was also a "King of the Hill" and a "Queen of the Hill" competition for people who wanted an added challenge. Those crazies ran up and down a hill multiple times in between loops with the time left over before they had to start the next loop. The winners were the man and woman who ran up and down the hill the most times.
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| {Me and my strawberry crepe} |
There were also the following awesome things:
- A crepe making station at the start that made three different kinds of crepes
- An aid station that had the BEST foods and drinks for runners- plus people cheering and fun music!You hit up this aid station twice on the loop :)
- The finishers glass- it's basically the only cup I use now, lol
- The afterparty at Tighthead Brewing Company with everyone. They also graciously gave me my free beer in my finishers glass!
- Those awesome trophies and the raffle prizes into other races, and the bike from Amphibian Multisport!
Generally, this was a super fun race to volunteer at and to run. I can't wait for next year!
Hot Chocolate Run November 8th, 2015
The following weekend Tommy and I ran the Hot Chocolate 5K for the 5th year in a row!
It was a good race, mostly because we knew the drill. This year we drove down this year because we I didn't want to take the train, rush to get to the start, and then jump into a random starting corral to run the 5K- a.k.a. be stressed for the start. Also, we were supposed to meet up with a fellow runner to get a bib packet from her that she was looking to give away. We parked and made it to the meeting spot 5 minutes early so that we didn't keep her waiting...but after a few back and fourth phone calls, and an hour of waiting later, we regretfully told her it just wouldn't work out. We just made it to our corral in time to start with our wave, and it ended up being stressful anyway! Note to self: don't try and meet up the day of the race...it's just too much stress!
So anyway, we got to our corral, hopped around to keep warm, and let the race day excitement wash over us as we came to the starting line. This is one of the best races for that. I mean, if you're looking to PR, it's not the best race for you unless you qualify for the first corral. There are just too many people, but if you're a turtle runner like me, it's a fun race!
The run itself was fine. I forgot how it is to run when it's a bit colder out. There's a totally different sensation happening in your lungs that you have to get used to! I also decided to wear a base layer (see the Flat Amy picture below) which is genius. I'm not sure why I ignored the advice of other runners for so long... :/
Tommy and I ended up running it in about 33 minutes, which is pretty good for myself! My goal was under 34 minutes, which is saying something since I haven't been running in the past few weeks. {Insert ankle tendonitis injury summary here blah blah blah} So yea.
Afterwards I got my hot chocolate mug using my ticket on my bib, and I was able to get Tommy one too! Wait, what? Why wouldn't Tommy get one too if he ran the race? you must be wondering. Well, my lovely husband runs all my race with me, but he doesn't pay to run them. He just hops in and runs. I think he might have some sort of superpower that he can run any race, long or short, for NOTHING. No t-shirt, medal, etc. I mean, how. I don't get it.
Like I said, I got him a hot chocolate mug after finding a ticket from a bib on the ground in the finsher's area. I have no idea who it belonged to, and even asked a few people as we were walking, but did not find the owner. At least we put it to good use! I was fully ready to share my mug with him, but I guess it was our lucky day! We also got a LRC photo with some of the runners there. Most of them did the 15K....maybe next year!
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| {LRC Photo} |
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| {Finishers mug} |
Other November Happenings:
\\Listened to: All of Serial. AGAIN. Pretty excited for season 2 to come out. Figured I would re-listen to season 1 just for fun on the way to and from work :)
\\Purchased: (Among other things) An adult coloring book! Yes, yes, I gave into the trend. But I've been coloring children's coloring books for years sooooooo it was time. I got one with inspirational quotes, and figured that I would hang them in my reading room :D
I also bought a FitBit! Well, it's my Christmas present from Tommy. I got it at the end of October, lol, because we got a good deal through a fit challenge thingy from his work. I ended up getting the FitBit Charge, because I like the screen and the fact that I can use silent alarms. It's totally helpful wearing a watch at work...who would have thunk it! I also am loving the challenge aspect of FitBit, and I have already started multiple challenges with friends. HA. I don't win them, but it's fun to do!
\\Read: Dark Places by Gillian Flynn. Whuuuuut. I was super into this book. It is the typical murder mystery type, but it's told through two voices in the past (The main character's mother and brother), and one voice in the present (the main character). It was very interesting, and definitely not the ending I thought it would be. At some point, I was tired of flip flopping between the different voices, and I ended up reading two sections of a character at a time...lol. Not how the author planned it, I know, but I just had to know what happened! It was a good book- I'd recommend it.
\\Watched: (again, among other things) The last installment of The Hunger Games series!!! Tommy and I went to see Mocking Jay Part Two at the AMC theater in the mall by our house. It's a pretty new theater and I LOVE it! The seats are super comfy, and they recline. I prefer to sit in the B or C rows because I feel like I'm actually in the freakin movie being that close. Any further back, and no thanks! I don't love that I can't just show up and see a movie though. If I do that, chances are that I won't get a good seat because people go online and buy tickets and select seats hours before the movie. It is nice, on the flipside, that I can just show up for the movie when I want and I know that my seats will be available sooooo I'm torn. Also, being able to recline like that makes me feel like I'm at a 2 hour slumber party with 100 of my closest stranger friends. Anyway, the movie was good! At the risk of giving too much away, I will just say, there were plenty of parts that were there to make you jump, I cried in three different parts, and I'm glad we got to see a bit at the end- the aftermath if you will. Did you see it? Let's chat!
\\Enjoyed: The snow! I love snow. That first snow fall of the season is just the best. This year it was great packing snow- big and heavy flakes that coated the trees and the ground so nicely. It was the kind of snow that completely soaked you when you walked outside!
\\Celebrated: The fourth annual Friendsgiving! What a blessing to be able to get together with friends, and friends of friends for a celebration of friends :D It's something I look forward to every year! This year we brought dessert- Apple pie, pumpkin pie, vanilla ice cream, and whipped cream for the gluten people, and g-free brownie cookies for the gluten free people. It was a nice time. Thanks Kyle & Kelsey for hosting every year!
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| {It was a squeeze getting in, but it happened!} |
\\Visited: with friends from near and far! Wednesday we met up with Alyssa, Emily, and Joe. Meg couldn't make it due to poor baby troubles :/ We went to Big Shot Pirano Bar in DTAH and had a few drinks. We also checked in on that new Garage place across the street from the piano bar. It's super happenin' with a mid twenties-thirties crowd with fabulous music and a nice bar. The only crappy thing was the one in one out rule. That was annoying....especially since the bouncer wasn't exactly doing a great job of it. We probably could have just snuck in, but he was giving x's on hands and I was worried that the bartenders were going to check hands before serving drinks, so we waited. Turns out that didn't happen sooooo noted for next time. It was fun to catch up and go out again!
I also got the rare opportunity to visit with Stephanie! We went to go see a movie (Mocking Jay Part 2- yes, I saw it again....) together! We sat in the front row, had coke slushies, and got to catch up a bit afterwards about life. I love when we get together for our movies, or whatever! She's in the city now so it's harder to get together regularly, but when we do, it's always a good time. Thank goodness for Snapchat :)
Thanksgiving- November 26th, 2015
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| {My plate. OMG Yum} |
This year, as opposed to hosting this delicious holiday, Tommy and I visited both side of the family. We started out sleeping in (okay, I slept in, Tommy never sleeps in...lol) and having a semi-lazy morning in bed. Then, after getting ready, we drove to Aunt Janet's house and got there a little before 1:00 p.m. It was nice to mingle with the fam, catch up with the cousins, and hang. When it was time for dinner, I had all the fixins' (see above) and did not regret my choice for seconds on corn casserole. Duh. Everyone also gets a chocolate leaf (which has recently replaced the chocolate turkey- such the controversy. How could Fannie Mae have discontinued the turkey?!) which is the perfect treat before dessert.
This year, which is different from all the other years, we stayed for dinner.....and we were going to leave before dessert, but we didn't of course. We stayed and I ate apple pie and pumpkin pie (and I did not have the cherry pie, although it looked beautifully delicious- I'm not a huge cherry pie fan). Tommy ate reddi whip with a side of pumpkin pie of course, and then we stayed a bit longer to digest while trying not to fall asleep on the couch watching football. At around 6:00, we ended up giving hugs and saying goodbye so we could head over to my grandma's house for ANOTHER dessert.
When we got to my grandma's house, I couldn't eat another bite, but Tommy took care of another slice of pie with reddi whip (are you surprised?) and we drank coffee and chatted with my parents and the grandparents. Grandma and I also played piano together (which has become a tradition in her house that I quite enjoy), and we all stayed for the second half of the Bears game and chatted about the typical topics- Syria, ISIS, refugees in our country, police brutality, and Bears vs. Packers.
Always the stimulating discussions happening with the Lacios.
After a titillating and surprising end to the Bears game, we hugged it out and headed home.
And that, my dear readers, was our Thanksgiving 2015. It was pretty eventful. I have a feeling I'll be hosting again next year though...we shall see.
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| {Action Shot} |
